Shannon Brophy, Yoga.com Staff 9/19/2007There are many traditional yoga paths toward spiritual growth with the goal of self-realization. We offer an explanation of some of the paths up the mountain. You can choose which path or paths may help you develop or progress along your inner journey. All paths are for the goal of union with Divine, and require surrender. Yoga means "union" in Sanskrit, which is its goal. We present (in summary) five traditional paths of yoga in this article: Karma, Hatha, Bhakti, Jnana and Kriya Yoga. There are many other paths of yoga including Raja Yoga, involving meditation, concentration and breathing practices. Additionally there are a several sub-systems like Mantra Yoga, Laya Yoga, Kundalini Yoga, Integral Yoga, Siddha Yoga, and Tantra Yoga.
Karma Yoga
Karma Yoga is done with a joyful attitude, what one is best suited to do, in a peaceful fashion. It is in giving to others without expecting return. Karma yoga is spiritual action via selfless service where the person is called by their inner being to help another in need in a way. They don’t expect a reward for doing the service and are called to help another out of love. Union with divine occurs through this right action by serving your fellow human beings as if they are God. Doing Karma Yoga is very heart opening for the giver.
“A Karma-yogi performs action by body, mind, intellect, and senses, without attachment (or ego), only for self-purification.”
Bhagavad Gita
Mother Theresa of Calcutta exemplified Karma Yoga, and we share these quotes by her:
"I see God in every human being. When I wash the leper's wounds, I feel I am nursing the Lord Himself. Is it not a beautiful experience?"
"The poor give us much more than we give them. They’re such strong people, living day to day with no food. And they never curse, never complain. We don’t have to give them pity or sympathy. We have so much to learn from them."
"I realized that I had the call to take care of the sick and the dying, the hungry, the naked, the homeless - to be God's Love in action to the poorest of the poor.”
Hatha Yoga
Hatha Yoga is another path to realizing the self, with a focus on control of the body via asana (yoga postures or poses), pranayama (breathing practices) and meditation. Some say that hatha yoga postures are a preparation for meditation. Others consider hatha yoga a meditation in movement and stillness. All of these physical practices are hatha yoga which means “Sun” and “Moon” in Sanskrit, the Indian language of yoga. Hatha yoga balances the energies of the body (the prana as it is called) via practices that purify and balance. This is the type of yoga that is currently practiced in the West, and there are different styles of hatha yoga which you can read about on our website. Yoga Studios in the US tend to be hatha yoga studios of one variety or another such as Iyengar, Ashtanga, Bikram, vinyasa, Anusara, kundalini, power yoga, restorative, Kripalu, and Viniyoga. I apologize to those who practice hatha yoga forms not mentioned here. At this time and place in the world, we are blessed with a veritable banquet of approaches to yoga practice with many flavors and tastes to choose from. We must remember that we are all climbing the same mountain though we take different paths.
Bhakti Yoga
Bhakti yoga is the yoga of devotion. One surrenders to the Divine in the way of opening the heart. Bhakti yoga practices include singing praises, worship, prayer and ritual in a total letting go that allows the emergence of the divine self and unity with all that is. Ramana Maharshi, a great realized sage of India explains that one begins with meditation on forms, like those of Gods like Shiva, Vishnu or the Goddess, as different from oneself. Then by degree one comes to understand that the Gods are just forms of one's own deeper Self or pure consciousness, the Divine presence in the heart. What is worshipped outside of oneself merges with what one discover’s inside of self, in unity with self.
Jnana Yoga
Jnana Yoga emphasizes knowledge of self by ceaseless exploration which can lead to self-realization. Jnana yoga, the contemplative path of spiritual wisdom transforms intellectual knowledge into practical wisdom through experience of unity. One attains liberation through focus on knowing and understanding the nature of Consciousness.
Papaji met Ramana Maharshi, his teacher and great sage of India, and discovered that
“A bird cannot fly without two wings. After this revelation I saw that the Maharshi was soaring on the twin wings of bhakti and jnana [devotion and transcendental knowledge].”
Kriya Yoga
The philosophy of Kriya Yoga develops inner peace through breath control. Paramahansa Yogananda, author of Autobiography of a Yogi and is said to have ancient roots deriving from Patanjali and the Upanishads. Patanjali tells us Kriya Yoga consists of body discipline, mental control, and meditating on Aum. Kriya Yoga is thus union (yoga) with the Infinite through a certain action or rite.
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