Yogi’s and the Advent of Scientific Thinking
Imagine living in a world with no mirrors. No physical spaces to witness what occurs to you on a day-to-day basis. No cameras to document yourself to refine and correct whatever it is you’re observing. All you had was another person to reflect what they saw back at you. Imagine, in this world, even pen and paper are scarce.
Well, this was the world in which Yoga originates. Nearly 4,000 years ago, the ancient teachings of the Vedas were passed down orally. One long deeply respected game of telephone. Eventually it became understood that these teaching were so important, they had better write things down so as to not misinterpret things (jokes on them! We’ve done a great job misunderstanding). Thus, stone chiseled away, the vedas became one of the first written texts in history dating around 800-1000 BCE.
Now, what stands between these ancient texts and modern day is a long lineage of gurus who passed their teachings from one to the next. They would all study the Vedas and continue to educate each other through oral tradition. Then they would TEST these teachings through their own practice by literally sitting still and meditating on the effects of, lets say, forward fold. They would then come to a conclusion and pass that down to the next student or, if they were able, they would agree to write it down.
This is where the yogi as a scientist comes into play, for they are the first ever individuals in history who documented their “research” for others to benefit.
For example, in the Hatha Pradapika, an ancient scripture written at a later date, states the below.
PASCIMOTTANASANA 28. Stretch out both the legs on the ground without bending them, and having taken hold of the toes of the feet with the hands, place the forehead upon the knees and rest thus.
This is Pascimottanasana. 29. This most excellent of all Asana’s, Pascimottana, makes the energy flow through Sushumna, stimulates the gastric fire, makes the loins lean and removes all diseases of men.
Now, this is loosely translated, with generalizations about health and disease, and yet, it becomes an agreed upon practice that is good for the (man’s) body.
Women please also note that historically yoga was a male designated practice due to other outdated cultural elements in India and beyond. There’s a bit of irony there considering most Yogi’s today are majority female… but that’s a discussion for a different day.
THIS is what slowly manifested into the current practices we see today… Cryptic messages in an outdated language passed down to you by a YouTube video or instagram post. Maybe a blog just like this one. If you’re lucky, you’ll gain some insight from a seasoned yoga instructor who understands the sanctity of tradition and does their due diligence in studying AND practicing the concepts, as the gurus of the past did.
Now, if one is to read these texts today, you may find that it makes little to no sense… so you can understand why the average modern day Yogi doesn’t mention the various oddities that are the Kriyas (cleaning practices) or tell their students “if you practice headstand for three hours daily you will live forever”. (This is something written in the Hatha Pradapika, pg. 57 - 58 btw)… Now this difficulty in understanding comes due to a few factors:
The first being the difficulty of translating Sanskrit into other languages. Again, think telephone on steroids. For example, the word Hari has 61 definitions. Depending on context in a line as well as context in terms of topic of discussion, the meaning changes.
The second comes from a lack of cultural context. Again, taking into account yogis of the past lived much closer to nature. So when texts state that “When the Sun is above and the Moon below [of the practitioner] whose navel is above and palate below, it is the Viparita Karani. It is to be learned through the instructions of a Guru”. It can be clear that they are not really referring to the sun and the moon. Rather the naval is a symbol of the sun and the pineal gland, just above the palate, as the moon… but how would you know that without a teacher?
You can begin to see how puzzling yoga becomes.
Trying to piece together this cryptic language of Sanskrit, which is full of metaphor.
Parsing through the various modern arguments for what these metaphors even mean once we translate them (considering they are properly translated in the first place).
Of course, the fact that we live in a world that is deeply disconnected to the Earth in the way the yogis of the past were connected, causing even more dissonance between these historic truths and our modern practice of them
In Conclusion
The reason I bring all of this together is to highlight three things.
The first is the understanding and context behind these texts. To know that these writings took place in a world far unlike our own. No blogs to track things, no mirrors, no cameras, no fridges or air conditioning. This is the origin of civilization. This was the bedrock of spirituality 4000 plus years ago, and even still to this day we pass on the wisdom of these practices.
The other element that is key to understand here is the power of experimentation and OBSERVATION. In a world of information positioned as “right” and “wrong”, I believe the true practice of yoga is in experimenting with the information that is passed down to us. For someone somewhere tried something and deemed it right for them. Someone else had an experience that was deemed wrong. They are both valid experiences but they are not YOUR experience. So take that information and investigate it so you can decide what you believe to be true.
The third and most important component is the presence of a guru. A guide. Coming from a tradition that is primarily oral in nature, one must find guidance from somewhere beyond the text. As study and practice may enlighten a practitioner to one or two delights of yoga, having a guru as a guide will enlighten you to countless more. Trial and error thus becomes mitigated by an expert guide.
The overall message here is this - You are your own scientist. You have the power to decide your own experience. The next time you are told what to do. The next time some other person positions themselves as an authority on the matter, simply observe, as a scientist does, their claims, retest them as best you can in your own body and your own life, and witness the results. This is the true practice of yoga. To find a guru. To learn from the guru. To question the guru. To become your own guru.
From there, you will begin to enter into the true manner of seeing as a Yogi. Slowly, you will find the core of your own belief system.
As is my own experience, you may even discover the depths of these Yogic traditions, passed down for millennia, hold the truth of existence and simultaneously become more mysterious the more you study them.
In that, the puzzle of yoga becomes a lifelong practice of scientific experimentation and (more importantly) observation, where you may find, one day, that practicing handstand for three hours a day, indeed does give you everlasting life.
There’s only one way to find out. ;)