The Hatha Yoga Pradipika

by Swatmarama and Michael Beloved

Book Overview

This affordable, definitive edition of the Hatha Yoga Pradipika contains the original Sanskrit, a new English translation, and full-page photographs of all the asanas. The chakras, kundalini, mudras,... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1463727917
• ISBN13: 9781463727918
• Release Date: August 2011
• Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
• Length: 118 Pages
• Weight: 0.45 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.3" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

Exactly what I needed

This was one of our required books for YTT and it's probably my favorite out of the bunch. So glad I got it here, it looked new too. Great book too keep going back to and really helps make a person calm, centered and enjoy life!

Another GREAT text

If you are familiar withthe Bihar School of Yoga text, you will know how wonderful their books and insights are. Their research stems not only from a spiritual point of view but from a scientific and medical one. I had only the mildest of thought of what I might find in this text as I was purchasing it. I figured it would be an indepth book on the religious aspects of the system we know as Yoga. Was I mistaken... Here I found a work so compelling and utterly educating. I can not understand why I hadn't purchased this book earlier. On my quest to understand Yoga and why I do the asana's, pranayama's, mudra's and meditation, I came into contact with the Bihar School of Yoga's great work Asana Pranayama Mudra Bandha/2008 Fourth Revised Edition and was blown away. Then came several more books from this school. Every one of these books have taught me something more than what I could ever hope to find on the internet. I delved further into learning true Yoga. This book is no different. Each text in here begins with the original sanskrit writing. Then follows the engish translation of the sanskrit. Lastly, but in no way less important, follows the translation and expansion of these great writings by Swami Satyananda and Swami Muktibodhananda, giving insight on how things can be done in todays world owing to dramatic change of living and the spreading of these teaching all over the world, adapting it to everyones personal situation. Throughout they suggest that a guru is obtained to walk you through the changes and insights you will likely experience while practicing. I agree with this, but I feel they do such a great job on coaching throughout the book that you can get pretty far without one. I guess that is why these books are used in their Masters and Doctorate Yoga program in Bihar, India. Also, when read carefully, you will notice that they also mention that no matter what your spiritual/religious beliefs this book can still be used to bring you closer to it, to feel it and also to bring you closer to yourself and humanity. This book is for everyone. Reading this book alone is a journey in of itself. Another great from the Bihar School of Yoga. To go anymore indepth than I already have would take alot more space. I highly recommend this book to any and all who are looking for a guide for a safe practice toward True Yoga (connection with the supreme). Enjoy. Other books of theirs to consider (they have helped me understand how life and our bodies really work - inside and out, how disease manifests and how to heal) something I have yet to find in via my doctors ... Dynamics Of Yoga Yogic Management of Asthma and Diabetes The Practice of Yoga for the Digestive System

into the depths of Hatha Yoga

Wow, I had no idea the depths of Hatha Yoga until I picked up this book. I think here in the West we have mostly come to know of yoga - even hatha yoga - as the yoga postures and some breathing exercises. The Pradipika really brings the Hatha yoga experience to a whole new level, one that I think many people here are not ready for! A must read for any yoga teacher.

A treasure trove of hard-to-find information!

The preceding reviews do a good job of appraising this book. I'd just like to add that this is one of the single most expansive, detailed, and frankly, unbelievably-generous books on the esoteric practices of Hatha yoga I have ever encountered. To be quite honest, this book made me realise, in stark terms, how lacking in depth and genuine content (by relative comparison with this book) a large proportion of the English-language books on Hatha yoga are. Most such books concentrate on the basic practical mechanics of learning how to mimic various selections of the familiar asanas, with some commentary and a few philosophical statements from the author, perhaps with a few disjointed interpretations from the Upanishads thrown in for good measure. That is not meant as a criticism in itself as it can be a valid and useful approach and they have no pretences to be any more than they set out to achieve. Neither am I suggesting that all such books are to be found lacking - indeed, many are excellent in their own right, provided your notion of yoga is not that of 'union with the divine' (Erich Schiffmann's 'Yoga: The Spirit and Practice of Moving into Stillness', for example, is a great Western book that, to some limited extent, bridges the gap a little, in the sense that it does discuss the idea of 'running energy' through one's asanas, rather than treating them purely as musculoskeletal exercises). All I am trying to point out is that, with some notable exceptions such as Erich's work, many Western books on Hatha yoga cover a rather well-trodden path, such that one could pick 3 out of 100 of these books and garner pretty much all the knowledge contained in the other 97. In contrast to many of the Western yoga books, then, Swami Muktibodhananda's treatment of Swatmarama's classic 'Hatha Yoga Pradipika', delves DEEP into Hatha yoga practices with an authenticity and generosity which are awe-inspiring. Page after page, I kept pinching myself, grinning at what an absolute treasure this book is. Topics and practices which the vast majority of Western so-called yoga 'gurus' have CLEARLY never experienced (and in many cases, never even bothered to learn about even on an intellectual level) are not only given their rightful place within this discussion of the Hatha tradition, but are elucidated in a depth which is both a treat and an inspiration. BSY/YPT publications are widely-revered by sincere yoga practitioners, owing to their invariably detailed and authentic approach. For the uninitiated Western yogi/yogini, they discuss topics which have rarely, if ever, been widely available in print. As a general rule, the BSY/YPT books are written by authors who have actually experienced what they are writing about (some extremely esoteric practices, way, way beyond the understanding of the general public), and who have been initiated by masters of yoga. Of course, no matter how authentic such writings are, simply reading them will not provide the reader with true u

An Ancient and Essential Guide for Yogic Practitioners

An all-encompassing text on the vast teachings of hatha yoga, lucidly expanding on each verse from the original Pradipika written in the 1300's. This book is "the source" for methods of asana, pranayama, mudra, bandha and meditation practice providing clear step-by-step instruction. A remarkably easy read for such dense material.

The best kind of its genre

This book is a must-have for yoga practicioners that want to go beyond simple asanas. This is a wonderful way to learn of hatha yoga's roots as a holistic system, and even put it into practice, since this book is a modern compilation of ancient Indian lesson-texts put into modern English. Hatha Yoga Pradipika means "Light on Hatha Yoga" (not to be confused with modern and lesser imitations that use that title). Holding this book in my hands feels like direct access to a rich history of the roots of hatha unscathed by "new age" ideas. Basically the book is about classical postures, breath control, and cleansing. Interestingly, the book does not talk about food intake--basically says that it is not important to spend too much time thinking about what food to eat, how much, etc. (this is a nice change in a modern world that obsesses over food). However, it does go into length on the subject of cleansing the body using several methods, some of which are extreme, but some of which a novice could do with some courage. Another interesting thing about the texts in this book is that although they are traditional, the focus isn't spent on spiritual concepts such as chakras, kundalini, or meditation, etc, it even rarely mentions relatively popular yoga terms such as prana or nadis. As it is well-known about hatha, the people who practiced these ancient rituals believed that persons could not reach enlightenment through stillness and meditation, but instead, through physical asana and purification. There are interesting and clear ideas concerning this inside the book as well.