Hatha Yoga Guide – Science, Benefits and Insights

Many students, during yoga classes, often ask about the science behind Hatha Yoga, ‘what are its benefits?’, ‘how is it different than other fitness practices?’. So, to resolve these doubts and provide clarity on the subject, we have a detailed Hatha Yoga Guide for you.

Yoga, a science that has found a way to survive over 5000 years of change and evolution. It is often misunderstood as a health practice but it is so much more than that.

It is the study of finding oneness in your consciousness, being aware of your actions and being in control of your thoughts.

In the olden days, yoga was practiced by Sadhus/ Sages, and it is believed to have been the source of their wisdom. This is because unlike today, where Yoga is seen merely to improve physical fitness back in the day, Yoga was an overall lifestyle that focused on physical fitness, healthy breathing, calmness of the mind and reflecting on one’s inner self.

It was about creating a suitable atmosphere for your body to be in the yogic state all the time. It was the practice of a healthy and sustainable lifestyle.

Even today, while practicing, it is crucial to practice all these aspects of yoga in a balanced manner as they tap into all the aspects of who you are.

The human body is a huge part of our mortal existence, it is a house where our spirit resides for this lifetime. It is our cosmic responsibility to focus pushing our abilities to their fullest.

The science that helps us accelerate the process of evolution by using the body is known as Hatha Yoga. The body that we have been given comes with its own “Ego”, “Attitude” & “Nature”.

Let us take an example, say that you decided yesterday to quit meat. Still, today soon as your colleague reveals the biryani at lunch your mouth became watery and suddenly you are haunted by the thought of how good it feels to eat biryani.

This is because the body has its own way. Hatha yoga teaches you how to discipline the body using its own mechanisms,’’ purifying and preparing it to receive higher levels of energy and possibilities.

The Science behind Hatha Yoga

Hatha yoga is the science of understanding the mechanics of the body, creating a certain atmosphere for it, and then channeling your energy through diverse types of postures. It is not just any exercise.

While there is much more depth to it, in simple words, it is like this, when we look at our friends or family, we can tell how they are feeling just by looking at their posture.

You may have noticed that anytime you are feeling angry or anxious, your breathing pattern changes, or if you are sad or depressed you tend to sit in a certain way and in a completely different posture when you are happy.

Our bodies naturally assume a certain posture depending on every different level of consciousness or mental and emotional situation we are going through. Yogasana/ hatha yoga is the science of communicating with your body to understand its emotional state.

You can deliberately control and elevate your consciousness by doing a certain set of postures.

We often hear stories of miraculous people who healed their spines without any medical surgery simply by practicing a few Yogaasanas when even the best of doctors had told them that their only hope was to go through surgery.

See, yoga has the power to heal your back to such miraculous extents. It not only makes your back flexible it makes you flexible too. When you become flexible you begin to truly listen, not just to the people talking but to the world itself. The power to listen is the key to living a sensible life.

The commitment of a certain amount of time to ensure that the body does not become a barrier is important. A painful body or a compulsive body can be the root of your downfall. Even the simplest of compulsions, whether vices or lust, can possess you so strongly and limit your vision to your physical existence, restricting you from gazing at the dimensions beyond your physical self.

Our physical forms are just a part of us, they should not become the entirety of our existence. Performing Yogasana helps level down the body to its natural place.

Hatha Yoga Elevates the soul

By practicing to gaze beyond the physical form, Hatha Yoga prepares the body for the journey into deeper realms of meditation and makes it ready to receive higher levels of energy and possibilities.

If you desire to surge your energy levels, then it is important to do it gradually and ensure that your body’s pipeline is ready to receive higher forms of energy.

If it is blocked it will not work, or something within you may burst. Practicing Hatha yoga ensures that you can move into deeper states of meditation joyfully and gently.

Hatha Yoga is not mindlessly twisting your body, holding breath, or putting it in awkward positions. Unfortunately, many fail to acknowledge this, therefore, setting off on a painful path to spirituality with their under-prepared bodies.

Most people surrender control of their lives to external factors, they let their situations Mould their thoughts and direct them. They fail to acknowledge universal wisdom and its spiritual possibilities until they fail, and the answer slaps them in the face.

Even then only some of them become wise, others become wounded. Hatha Yoga teaches us to embrace these wounds and turn them into wisdom to achieve the state of freedom. When one puts in the necessary efforts into their preparation their spiritual journey becomes a very pleasant and wonderful experience.

In the end, hatha yoga is healthful for some, brings peace to some and is a painful circus to those who do not approach it with discipline and respect. It is a study that teaches you to transcend from the mortal world and become one with your consciousness making it far vaster than just its physical aspect.

Most renowned yogis have said to have found spiritual breakthroughs while performing the most basic asanas. It’s hardly about what you do and more about how you do it that makes an enormous difference.