Hatha Yoga

• Consists of 8 limbs of practices.
• Branches that need attention and exploration.
• Hatha yoga is practiced in the West.  "Ha" meaning sun and "tha" meaning moon, thereby uniting pairs of opposites.
• Haṭhayoga is translated by the Monier-Williams dictionary as "a kind of forced Yoga or abstract meditation (forcing the mind to withdraw from external objects.
• Swatmarama introduces his system as preparatory stage of physical purification that the body practices for higher meditation or Yoga. It is based on asanas (postures) and pranayama (breathing techniques, also known as shatkarma). Hatha Yoga became popular in the west beginning in the second half of the 20th century, and is often referred to simply as "Yoga" in the context of health and physical exercise.

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