A Practice History of Yoga

archaeologies of practice, possibilities for the present

In this course we will approach the practices of yoga through its history: what were the practices people were doing two thousand years ago, or five-hundred years ago? What can we learn from a deep archaeology of practice?

Contemporary American yoga culture reflects a very narrow, short branch of yoga history. Many of the original practices and philosophies have fallen away, and been replaced with new or transformed elements. Much of yoga’s long history is plain forgotten in today’s marketplace of yoga. But by looking closely at yoga’s history of practice, and carefully considering the role and goal of these practices, we can open out possibilities for our present moment.

Some of this history of the ancient past may seem strange to us. Nevertheless, in examining these ideas, and how practices work in different contexts, we become able to reflect more deeply on our own practice, and our own goals, in a new and fresh light. This process can open new doors, enrich our practice, and help us reflect more deeply on what it means to “do yoga” today.

WHO IS THE COURSE FOR?

This course is open to anyone.

JOY students must first apply to the 100-Hour JOY MAP Certification or the JOY 300-Hour Certification to receive credit.

It is eligible for 15 elective hours toward the JOY of Yoga 300 Hour Teacher Training. It is also eligible for 15 CEUs (continuing education units); hours will be broken down on the certificate of completion, available after the last day of training – please contact aurelia@breathetogetheryoga.com.

ABOUT MARK

Mark Singleton is a scholar of yoga traditions, ancient and modern. He has a PhD from the University of Cambridge, and has published extensively on the history of yoga over the past twenty years. Among his books are Yoga Body (2010), a groundbreaking study of the modern evolution of yoga postures, and Roots of Yoga (2017, with James Mallinson) an anthology of yoga practice texts from across the ages. He was Senior Research Fellow on the Hatha Yoga Project at SOAS University of London, and remains a research associate there. He is also a certified teacher in the Iyengar and Satyananda traditions. In 2022 he was awarded the International Yoga Federation’s Patanjali Prize for his outstanding contributions to yoga.

LEARNING PATH

Part 1 - Overview of Yoga's History

Part 1 is an overview of yoga’s history, from the point of view of practice. It spans the most important milestones in the evolution of yoga across the centuries and millennia.

Ancient Past
Early Hindu Texts
Patañjali and Classical Yoga
Tantra
Haṭha.

This history is a prerequisite to understanding why and to what end yogis carried out these practices, and what they believed they would achieve by doing yoga. When we understand the historical and philosophical underpinnings of practice, we also gain a deeper understanding of practice. By challenging our world views, another vision of yoga becomes possible. Each unit is followed by a short, “micro-practice” that illustrates one or more of the practices considered in the talk.

In the second part, we focus more closely on the practices themselves. To help orient ourselves, this part is divided up into “outer” and “inner” practices.

Part 2 - Outer and Inner Practices

In the second part, we focus more closely on the practices themselves. To help orient ourselves, this part is divided up into “outer” and “inner” practices.

The outer practices include

a consideration of the preliminary conditions for practice (both personal and material)
the changing place and function of posture (āsana) across the centuries
the importance of breath control practice (prāṇāyāma)
and the methods for controling the endogenous energetic principles of the body, called “seals” (mudrā). Even though we may think of these practices as “outer”, or physical as opposed to mental or spiritual, they powerfully and effectively prepare the way to “inner” practice.

We then turn to the ‘inner’ practices of meditation:

withdrawal (pratyāhāra)
fixation (dhāraṇā)
meditation itself (dhyāna)

Often in the global marketplace of yoga a distinction is made between “yoga” as such and “meditation”. But throughout its history yoga has been synonymous with meditative practices, and other practices are just preliminaries to meditation. It is therefore vital to understand the continuum of practice, and to understand the rich traditions of yogic meditation, beyond today’s popular ideas of ‘mindfulness’. The meditative goals of traditional yoga are much more radical.

Each element of the inner and outer practices is followed by a short practice that illustrates one or more of the topics covered in the corresponding talk.