The History of Hatha Yoga

The development of yoga can be traced back over 5,000 years, but some researchers think that yoga may be up to 10,000 years old old.  The secretive nature of its teachings were originally handed down orally from teacher to student. The Indian sage Patanjali has been credited with the collation of this oral tradition into his classical work, the Yoga Sutra, a 2,000-year-old treatise on yogic philosophy. A collection of 195 statements, the Sutra provides a philosophical guidebook for dealing with the challenges of being human.  The following chronological history of yoga is adapted from The Heart of Yoga, Developing a Personal Practice,​ by T.K.V. Desikachar, 1995.

• Indus Valley, Pakistan, carved scenes depict figures seated in yoga positions; sculptures suggest meditation and inner energy.
• 1500 B.C. Arayans from Central Asia migrate to India, bringing a language that developed into Sanskrit.
•  The Vedas and Upanishads indicate a search for spiritual truth behind rituals and the first written evidence of yoga and meditation.

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When the five senses and the mind are still, and reason itself rests in silence,
​then begins the path supreme.  This calm steadiness of the senses is called yoga.

• 300 B.C. - the Bhagavad Gita was written, introducing Bhakti Yoga, Jnana Yoga and Karma Yoga with references to meditation.
• Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras give a path to be followed by those seeking “the stillness of the mind” and introduce eight steps or limbs of classical yoga.
•  600-1200 A.D. Tantrism is developed, incorporating the physical body as a direct instrument for the attainment of enlightenment.
• 1000 A.D. Hatha Yoga writings detail asanas and pranayama designed to bring health and longevity to the practitioner with emphasis on moral discipline and meditation.
• India is colonized opening up the teaching of yoga to the West.  The Bhagavad Gita was translated into English.
•  Late 19th century, Indian teachers like Vivekananda traveled to Europe and the United States while Westerners went to India in search of teachers.