Yoga Sutra and Hatha Yoga
YOGA SUTRA
This day of study of our training will be dedicated to one of the most important texts of classical Yoga, the Yoga-sutras of Patañjali, the first written systematization of the ancient Yoga discipline and the basis of the "philosophical system" that derives from it.
Through a linguistic and comparative analysis we will approach this work by favoring an approach
traditional, trying to highlight the cultural context, the vocabulary and the main contents.
Topics covered:
- Historical notes, Yoga in Sanskrit literature and in the philosophical context of India.
- The figure of Patañjali: the eight parts of Yoga and structure of the work.
- The school reading of the Yoga-sutras.
- In-depth analysis of some key steps.
- The language of Yoga: an intertextual comparison.
The Teacher
Iacopo Nuti holds courses and seminars on Sanskrit language and literature in various Italian cities.
Graduated from the University of Pisa, he collaborates with cultural institutes and centers for the research of
relations between India and the West. He has contributed to some publications on spirituality
of India.
HATHA YOGA
Although this training is mainly devoted to the study and functioning of Ashtanga Yoga, it is essential to look at the origins of this practice. Origins that nurture, sustain and directly influence Ashtanga Yoga itself.
Considering Yoga as one of the 6 Darshanams (Nyaya, Vaisheshika, Yoga, Samkhya, Mimansa and Vedanta); we can imagine Yoga as one of the 6 main branches of a tree, which draws its origins and nourishment from the roots represented by the Vedas and more specifically by the Upanishads. A KALPA VRKSHA, or tree of desires, which exists and makes itself a gift for human beings in order to rediscover the lost connection with the divine.
The branch of Yoga can be divided into other main branches (Bhakti, Jnana, Karma, Raja), of which Hatha Yoga represents one of the possible ways, which arises when the practice of Yoga begins to give greater importance to the body component, in its many possibilities.
Bodily practice cannot be split or divided into the Spiritual and Mental dimensions. In this sense, Hatha Yoga opens the gaze, creates a wider listening and practice space and allows us to live, through the body, the path of Yoga in a profound and dedicated way to the needs of the practitioner.
Ashtanga Yoga has its origins in the roots of Hatha, which in turn, in a broader and more organic design, has its roots in the Yoga tree, which belongs to an even larger universe.
Some elements of the practice of Hatha Yoga:
-Pranayama
-Mudra
-Bandha
-Asana
-Shatkarma
For an Ashtanga Yoga teacher it is essential to recognize the origins of this practice and to know how to move in the vast territory of Hatha Yoga, also in order to be prepared to welcome all types of practitioners and to know how to set a lesson that takes into account the different needs.