Body & Soul

More and more South Floridians have taken up yoga for exercise, but relatively few explore its spiritual underpinnings

Comments (0) By Amy Roe Thursday, Mar 1 2001

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kundalini: life energy harnessed by yoga or a method of yoga that promotes such energy; once considered esoteric, in recent years kundalini yoga has edged its way into the mainstream

mantra:an "instrument of thought"; any word, prayer, verse, or phrase used to invoke a deity, more commonly used as a phrase in meditation

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Namaste: literally "I bow to the divine in you"

om:the universal mantra, the vibrations of which are believed to bring about oneness

prana:breath, life

pranayama: breathing

Raja:royal or sovereign; the eight-limbed system of Raja yoga is thought to be the royal path

sadhana:spiritual practice

Samadhi: the superconscious state of oneness with all things

satsang:a meeting of devotees for the purpose of chanting, meditation, and the study of philosophy; can also refer to the deepening of a the guru-disciple relationship

siddhis:a magical or spiritual power for control of the self, others, and the forces of nature; believed to be dormant in all people and cultivated through yoga

sri:an honorable title used by followers to revere great masters

swami/swamiji:the title given to a monk; swamijiis an affectionate form of the word

tantra:the oldest known form of yoga; means "loom" and seeks to weave together the physical being with the spiritual one

Veda:literally translates as "knowledge"; one of four classical Hindu scriptures of India

viniyoga: a method of yoga that stresses the importance of developing a specialized, personal practice and may involve the study of scriptures, pranayama, mantra, visualization, and meditation

yogi/yogin/yogini:one who seeks union with the divine; yogini is the feminine form, yoginthe plural