What Type of Yoga Should I Choose for My Practice?

Hatha yoga, Ashtanga, Vinyasa, et cetera… Today there are more than fifty (!) different types of yoga.

One point in common, however: they all borrow their foundation from this discipline several millennia old, codified for the first time in the Yoga Sutra of Patañjali and which, originally, was much closer to static meditation than to an exercise. physical.

It is in this reference work that Patañjali, the first real or mythical founder of yoga, describes in just 1161 words the 8 pillars of the discipline, the ^3rd of which corresponds precisely to the asanas.

Considered as the temple of the spirit, the body and its “control” are an obligatory passage towards spiritual realization.

The other 7 pillars are essentially major moral and ethical principles for living happily. In short, the breeding ground of yogic philosophy.

In the 15th century, the Indian sage Svātmārāma wrote the Hatha Yoga Pradipika or “little lamp of Hatha Yoga”, which is in fact the basis of the discipline as we know it today.

14 postures are described for the first time, promoting concentration.

In France, it was not until the post-war period that a journalist and philosopher keen on Hinduism named Félix Guyot imported Hatha Yoga into France.

The first school was opened in 1945 and the French Hatha Yoga Federation was created in 1968.

Since then, yoga has branched into two main streams, one emphasizing the sporting aspect of yoga and the other on spiritual development.

No more chronology and history! Let's now explore the different types of yoga so that you finally know which one best suits your temperament and the chapter of your life!

1. Vinyasa Yoga
2. Nidra Yoga
3. Iyengar Yoga
4. Yin Yoga
5. Bikram Yoga or Hot Yoga
6. Ashtanga Yoga
7. Dervish Yoga or Yoga of Samara
8. Kundalini Yoga
9. Kripalu Yoga
10. Ananda Yoga
11. Jivamukti Yoga
12. Anusara Yoga
13. Prenatal Yoga
14. Yoga Sivananda
15. Hatha Yoga
16. Aerial Yoga

To practice more often and more simply at home, discover our 5 favorite free online yoga classes .

Discover here our eco-responsible yoga outfits made in France from recycled materials, perfectly suited to practicing all types of yoga!

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