TRADITIONAL YOGA STUDIES

From the author’s preface:

Over the years, I have frequently been asked how Sanskrit words are correctly written or pronounced. In my retirement, it struck me as a worthwhile task to convert my online glossary of Sanskrit terms into the present printed version along with some additional materials, which hopefully serious students of Yoga will find useful.

Many Yoga teachers feel obligated to include in their teacher training programs a prominent segment on the Sanskrit language. It seems to me that in 200- to 500-hour trainings, this is something of a luxury. A strong coverage of the ethical teachings of Yoga, which are frequently given little more than a nod, is far more important. Apart from the fact that many students are intimidated by foreign languages, even the tradition-oriented 750-hour training I conducted in 2003–2004, did not have the space to do justice to the complex Sanskrit language even at a rudimentary level. Nor is this necessary considering the needs of Yoga teachers, who are mostly focusing on yogic postures. What Yoga teachers really require is a vocabulary of basic Sanskrit terms relating to their subject and how to pronounce them; additionally, they might find it useful to know how key Sanskrit terms are formed.

The present booklet is intended to give teachers and students the necessary background for using Yoga terms competently and confidently.

Contents:

Preface
Sanskrit Alphabet, Transliteration and Pronunciation
Glossary
Select Mantras
Invocations
Names of Principal Yoga Postures
Anatomical Sanskrit Terms Found in Yoga Scriptures
Select Bibliography

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