A Student's Guide to the History and Philosophy of Yoga, Revised Edition

338 Pages·2014·2.228 MB·English

by  Connolly, Peter

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Peter Connolly
Published by Equinox Publishing Ltd.
UK: Office 415, The Workstation, 15 Paternoster Row, Sheffield, South Yorkshire S1 2BX
USA: ISD, 70 Enterprise Drive, Bristol, CT 06010
www.equinoxpub.com
First edition published in 2007 by Equinox Publishing Ltd. This revised edition
published in 2014.
© Peter Connolly 2014
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in
any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying,
recording or any information storage or retrieval system, without prior permission in
writing from the publishers.
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
ISBN-13 978 1 84553 224 6 (hardback)
978 1 84553 236 9 (paperback)
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Connolly, Peter, 1951-
A student's guide to the history and philosophy of yoga / Peter Connolly.
ñRevised edition.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-1-84553-224-6 (hb)óISBN 978-1-84553-236-9 (pb)
1. YogañHistory. 2. Yoga. I. Title.
B132.Y6C638 2014
181'.45--dc23
2013017539
Typeset by S.J.I. Services, New Delhi
Printed and bound by Lightning Source Inc. (La Vergne, TN), Lighting Source
UK Ltd. (Milton Keynes), Lightning Source AU Pty. (Scoresby,Victoria)
❧
CONTENTS
Abbreviations vii
Sanskrit Letters and their Pronunciation ix
Preface x
Introduction 1
1. Background to Yoga Philosophy 16
2. Yoga in the Texts of the Veda 22
3. The ›ramanic Traditions: Jainism and Buddhism 63
4. The Epics and the Bhagavad G∂tå 98
5. The Orthodox Philosophical Systems 125
6. Sectarian Developments: ›aivism, ›åktism
and Tantra 180
7. Modern Yoga 213
8. Some Reflections on the Psychology of Yoga 229
9. Whither Modern Yoga in the West? 246
Appendix: Shifting Paradigms in Modern Yoga 288
Notes 293
Bibliography 314
Index 322

❧
ABBREVIATIONS
AU Aitareya Upani¶ad
AV Atharvaveda
BG Bhagavad G∂tµa
BAU Bæhadµaraƒyaka Upani¶ad
BSBh Brahmasµutra
CU Chµandogya Upani¶ad
HYP Ha¢ha Yoga Prad∂pikµa
KU Ka¢ha Upani¶ad
MaitriU Maitr∂ Upani¶ad
Manu Mµanava Dharma ›µa‹tra
MundU MuƒŒaka Upani¶ad
RV °Rgveda
SU ›vetµa‹vatara Upani¶ad
TU Taittir∂ya Upani¶ad
YS Yoga Sµutra

❧
SANSKRIT LETTERS AND THEIR
PRONUNCIATION
The following list gives Romanized versions of the letters in the Sanskrit
alphabet. Examples of the letters in the actual devanagari script can be found
at the front of Monier-Williamsí SanskritñEnglish Dictionary. The pronunciation
examples are taken from this work. Letters are given in the order of the Sanskrit
rather than the English alphabet.
a ñ mica, rural, or as the ëuí in but ¤ ñ singe
µa ñ tar, father ¢ ñ true
i ñ fill, lily ¢h ñ anthill
∂ ñ police §d ñ drum
u ñ full, bush §dh ñ redhaired
µu ñ rude ƒ ñ none
æ ñ merrily t ñ water
æi ñ marine th ñ nut hook
læ ñ revelry d ñ dice
læi ñ revelree dh ñ adhere
e ñ prey, there n ñ not, nut, in
ai ñ aisle p ñ put, sip
o ñ go, stone ph ñ uphill
au ñ Haus (as German) b ñ bear, rub
√ ñ pure nasal (anusvåra) bh ñ abhor
¨ ñ an aspirated sound (visarga) m ñ map, jam
k ñ kill, seek y ñ yet, loyal
kh ñ inkhorn r ñ red, year
g ñ gun, get, dog l ñ lull, lead
gh ñ loghut v ñ ivy
∆ ñ sing, king, sink ‹ ñ sure
c ñ dolce (as in music), a ëchí sound ¶ ñ shun, bush
ch ñ churchill s ñ saint, sin, hiss
j ñ jet, jump h ñ hear, hit
jh ñ hedgehog (hejhog)
NOTE Sanskrit consonants have an ëaí sound built into them which is pro-
nounced unless another vowel is attached or they are combined with another
consonant. So when you recite the alphabet, the consonants go ëka, kha, ga,
gha, naí, etc. Those consonants transliterated with a dot below them are pro-
nounced with the tongue at the top of the mouth.