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Yoga is a 5000 year philosophy from the Indus Valley Civilization and evolved tremendously to adapt to the needs and requirements of the times as well as it practitioners. Hatha Yoga is a system of Yoga propagated by Yogu Swatmarama in the 15^th century and compiled in Hatha Yoga Pradapika, even though its origins can be found in earlier texts. Practicing Hatha Yoga is considered to be the preparatory phase towards achieving equilibrium between body, mind and soul. Many different styles of Yoga have originated from Hatha Yoga, for instance, Bikram Yoga, Ashtanga Yoga and Iyengar Yoga.

The word ‘Hatha’ is derived from a combination of two Sanskit words, ‘ha’ and ‘tha’. ‘Ha’ stands for the sun, whereas ‘tha’ stands for the moon. The combination of the two terms refers to the unification of the two opposites, positive and negative. Hatha Yoga channels as well as balances the two opposite extremities in us, in preparation for a higher goal. The term ‘hatha’ also means ‘forceful’, implying the nature of work done to purify the body. Practicing Hatha Yoga helps an individual gain balance within himself, purifies his body and prepares him for spiritual enlightenment. Hatha Yoga focuses its attention on the 3^rd and the 4^th folds of the Eightfold Path of Yoga, namely Yoga Asanas and Pranayama.

Yoga Asanas are a variety of different postures in which the body needs to be help while practicing Yoga. There are a multitude of benefits to be derived from performing these Yoga Asanas. They help your body become nimble and flexible. They help stretch and relax every muscle in your body, increasing their strength and improving your stamina. They help cleanse and detoxify the internal systems of the body like respiratory, digestive, circulatory, metabolic, etc. ensuring that they always function efficiently, ensuring you of good health and increasing your life span. It also helps tremendously in preventing, controlling and treating ailments like hypertension, arthritis, heart problems and even cancer.

On the other hand, Pranayama is the art of controlling one’s breathing. The word ‘prana’ stands for ‘life force’, while the word ‘yama’ means ‘to control’. By practicing pranayama, you can ensure that your body gets the maximum out of the breathing process, i.e. high oxygenation of the blood and complete detoxification from gaseous waste matter. Pranayama also unlocks the power of controlling one’s mind. With breathing techniques that allow you to focus on your mind as an object, it becomes possible for you to strip the mind of all stress, worry, thought and emotions. This can be an extremely potent stress reliever on one hand, and on the other it prepares you for a journey towards self actualization.

Hatha Yoga is therefore one of the most easily accessible branch of Yoga. In fact, in many cases, the terms Hatha Yoga and Yoga can be used interchangeably. Hatha Yoga classes tend to be slow and meditative as well as physically exerting to a minor extent. You should take up a free introductory class in Hatha Yoga to find out if this style of Yoga is right for you.