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Glossary
A plain-language glossary of Sanskrit and yoga terms — each defined simply, with pronunciation and context. Search, jump by letter, or filter by category.
- AhimsaAhimsa is non-harming — the first and foundational yama, extending to thoughts, words and actions toward all beings, inc…
- AsanaAsana means a yoga posture. Traditionally 'a steady, comfortable seat', it is the third limb of yoga and the physical pr…
- AshtangaAshtanga is the eight-limbed path of yoga set out in Patanjali's Yoga Sutras — eight progressive practices leading from …
- BandhaA bandha is an internal 'lock' — a gentle, conscious muscular engagement used in yoga to contain and direct prana.
- Bhagavad GitaThe Bhagavad Gita is a revered Indian scripture — a dialogue between the warrior Arjuna and Krishna — that presents the …
- BhaktiBhakti is the path of devotion — cultivating love and surrender toward the divine as a form of yoga.
- ChakraA chakra is an energy centre in the subtle body, traditionally described as a spinning wheel of prana along the spine.
- DharanaDharana is the sixth limb of yoga: one-pointed concentration, holding the attention on a single object, point or idea.
- DharmaDharma is one's duty, ethical path or right way of living in harmony with a deeper order.
- DhyanaDhyana is the seventh limb of yoga: meditation, an unbroken, effortless flow of attention toward a single object.
- DoshaIn Ayurveda, the doshas are three bio-energies — Vata, Pitta and Kapha — whose balance shapes each person's constitution…
- DrishtiDrishti is a focused point of gaze used during yoga practice to steady the mind and aid balance.
- GunaThe gunas are the three fundamental qualities of nature in yoga philosophy — sattva, rajas and tamas — that combine to s…
- GuruA guru is a spiritual teacher or guide who leads a student from ignorance (darkness) toward knowledge (light).
- HathaHatha yoga is the branch of yoga concerned with physical practices — posture, breath and cleansing — that most modern yo…
- Hatha Yoga PradipikaThe Hatha Yoga Pradipika is a classical 15th-century manual of Hatha yoga, covering asana, pranayama, mudras, bandhas an…
- IshvaraIshvara refers to the supreme being or divine principle in yoga philosophy; surrender to Ishvara is one of the niyamas.
- KarmaKarma means action, and the principle that every action has consequences that shape future experience.
- KundaliniKundalini is a dormant spiritual energy pictured as coiled at the base of the spine, which yoga practices aim to awaken …
- MantraA mantra is a sacred sound, word or phrase repeated in meditation and chanting to focus the mind.
- MokshaMoksha is liberation — freedom from the cycle of birth and death and from suffering — the ultimate goal in much of India…
- MudraA mudra is a symbolic gesture — usually of the hands — used in yoga and meditation to focus the mind and direct energy.
- NadiNadis are the subtle channels through which prana (life-force) flows in the yogic body.
- NamasteNamaste is a respectful Indian greeting, often offered with palms together at the heart, meaning 'I bow to you'.
- NiyamaNiyama is the second limb of yoga: five personal observances that cultivate inner discipline and self-care.
- OmOm (Aum) is the primordial sound and most sacred mantra in yoga, chanted to represent the essence of the universe and to…
- PrakritiPrakriti is primordial nature or matter in Samkhya-Yoga philosophy — everything that can be observed, including the body…
- PranaPrana is the vital life-force or energy that animates all living things, carried and regulated through the breath.
- PranayamaPranayama is the yogic practice of consciously regulating the breath — its inhalation, exhalation and retention — to ste…
- PratyaharaPratyahara is the fifth limb of yoga: withdrawing the senses inward, so attention is no longer pulled outward by sights,…
- PurushaPurusha is pure consciousness or the true self in Samkhya-Yoga philosophy — the unchanging witness behind all experience…
- RajasRajas is the guna of activity, movement and restlessness — the energy that drives action but can also unsettle the mind.
- SamadhiSamadhi is the eighth and final limb of yoga: complete meditative absorption, in which the sense of a separate self diss…
- SamskaraA samskara is a subtle mental impression left by past experiences and actions, which shapes habits, tendencies and futur…
- SattvaSattva is the guna of clarity, balance and harmony — the quality yoga and a sattvic lifestyle aim to cultivate.
- TamasTamas is the guna of inertia, heaviness and dullness — the quality that brings rest but, in excess, stagnation and letha…
- VinyasaVinyasa is the linking of movement with breath, and the flowing style of yoga built on that principle.
- YamaYama is the first limb of yoga: five ethical restraints guiding how we treat others and the world.
- Yoga NidraYoga Nidra is a guided relaxation practice — 'yogic sleep' — in which you rest in a state between waking and sleeping wh…
- Yoga SutrasThe Yoga Sutras of Patanjali are a foundational text of yoga philosophy — 196 short aphorisms that set out the eight-lim…