Every year on 21 June, the whole world celebrates International Yoga Day, but yoga is not only today’s trend, but India is thousands of years old spiritual tradition. Yoga has not only made people mentally and physically healthy, but has also shown the path of purification and self -realization of the soul. This art is not limited to any particular religion, but its roots are deeply to Hinduism.
Yoga means not only to make the body healthy, but to establish a balance between the mind and the soul. It is a spiritual discipline that teaches meditation, restraint and self -control. Yoga makes a person strong from within by making a bridge between body and mind.
The history of yoga is very ancient. Evidence of this is found even before the Indus Valley Civilization. This 5000 year old knowledge is considered to be the gift of the Vedic era. The sages of that time considered yoga to be a means of penance, practice and self-realization.
There is a thorough mention of yoga in texts like Rigveda, Upanishads, Mahabharata and Srimad Bhagavad Gita. Karma Yoga, Gyan Yoga, Bhakti Yoga and Raj Yoga are found in Bhagavad Gita. The purpose of all these routes is to connect the soul to the divine.
According to mythological beliefs, Lord Shiva is considered the first yogi, Adi Yogi and the father of yoga. It is said that Shiva first gave knowledge of yoga to the Sapt Rishis on the banks of the Kanti Sarovar of the Himalayas. This Sapt Rishi later became a pracharak of various routes of yoga.
The Ganges flowing in the Nataraja form of Shiva, the ascetic posture and the jatas show that Shiva is the highest symbol of yoga. He restrained his body and mind in such a way that he became the author of the universe, destructive and yoga guide.
Yoga and Shiva complement each other. If you want to know yoga, then Shiva has to know. And if you want to understand Shiva, then you have to practice yoga. Yoga is not only asana but a journey towards Shiva.
