'An indispensable companion for all interested in yoga, both scholars and practitioners' Professor Alexis G. J. S. Sanderson
Despite yoga's huge global popularity, relatively little of its roots is known among practitioners. This compendium includes a wide range of texts from different schools of yoga, languages and eras: among others, key passages from the early Upanisads and the Mahabharata, and from the Tantric, Buddhist and Jaina traditions, with many pieces in scholarly translation for the first time. Covering yoga's varying definitions, its most important practices, such as posture, breath control, sensory withdrawal and meditation, as well as models of the esoteric and physical bodies, Roots of Yoga is a unique and essential source of knowledge.
Translated and Edited with an Introduction by James Mallinson and Mark Singleton
“Forget everything you thought you knew about yoga history . . . With new critical translations of over 100 little-known yoga texts dating from 1000 BCE to the 19th century, threaded together with clear and steady-as-she-goes commentary, these authors have charted the deep. Their endlessly diverse sources—translated from Sanskrit (of course) but also Tibetan, Arabic, Persian, Bengali, Tamil, Pali, Kashmiri, and early forms of Marathi and Hindi—explode the available resources for everyday practitioners.” —
Yoga Journal “Momentous . . . we can expect original ideas and substantial insights.” —
Georg Feuerstein, author of The Yoga Tradition “With all the myth and misinformation in the Yogasphere, this research and the resulting book will be a much needed resource for yogis, practitioners, teachers, and scholars.” —
Ganga White, author of Yoga Beyond Belief “Assembling in translation an unprecedented array of sources, many of which have been unknown or neglected, this anthology will be an indispensable companion for all interested in yoga, both scholars and practitioners.” —
Alexis G. J. S. Sanderson, University of OxfordB-Format Paperback
