_Hatha Yoga Pradipika_ by Swami Muktibodhananda
Another one of our required reading texts for my yoga teacher training course was this rather thick text. Most of my yogi-mates have avoided reading these more historical/ancient books, but the nerdy literature academic in me loves these readings the most. 😛 As per my usual routine of breaking down the reading of books, I decided I would finish this book in a month over the summer and so read about 20 pages a day, which was just enough.
This text discusses the root of hatha yoga and how the breath (pranayama) should be done in practice. Hatha yoga is a “type” of yoga that people can do in studio classes. It mostly means there is more focus on breath as opposed to a Vinyasa yoga class, which focuses on the flow of poses or Bikram yoga, which is just really about sweating as much as possible. 😉 Hatha yoga may be generally be considered as an older style like Iyengar.
I really enjoyed reading this despite its length as I gained a better understanding of how to do some of our breathing exercises and sitting positions for meditation. Plus, classical pieces of literature just work for me. I do not think I would recommend it for just anyone to pick up for a quick read; however, if you have an interest in philosophy and learning more about the foundations of yoga, then read away! 😀
~T 😀
