European Satyananda Yoga Family

Yoga Branches

Health on all levels, a balanced and contended mind and the expression of positivity in day to day situations, leading to a harmonious interaction with our environment, are just a few of the reasons to dedicate oneself to yogic sadhana (sincere and regular practice) and a yogic lifestyle.

SATYANANDA YOGA® combines the different branches of yoga to a complete system, known as the Yoga Chakra, in order to develop the various levels of the personality in a balanced manner. It teaches yoga as a holistic lifestyle incorporating all the aspects of human experience.

The first three branches (Hatha, Raja and Kriya Yoga) are referred to as the external aspects of yoga, as they focus on improving the quality of body and mind and the expression of the senses and their behavior.

The other three branches, known as the internal aspects of yoga (Karma, Bhakti and Gyana Yoga), aim at cultivating a positive attitude towards life’s situations and the awakening of creativity, allowing a harmonious expression of one’s inner qualities.

In this way the Satyananda system of yoga addresses the qualities of head, heart and hands – intellect, emotion and action. The six yoga branches are described here in order to give an overview of the diversity of the integral yoga system as presented by Swami Satyananda Saraswati, his successor Swami Niranjanananda Saraswati and the Bihar School of Yoga.

Hatha Yoga

The original aim of Hatha Yoga is, to establish balance between the two major forces of life, prana shakti or vital force and chitta shakti or mental force. This is the meaning of the word ‘Hatha’, the combination of the mantra Ham, standing for pranic energy and the mantra Tham, standing for mental energy.

The classical Hatha yoga texts state, that when balance between these two is attained, a third force – shushumna nadi – opens in the center of the spinal cord expressing itself through an inner state of harmony, peace, understanding and wisdom. Eventually ajna chakra, a energy center in the mid-brain awakens, leading to the experience of expanded awareness.

Swami Satyananda presented Hatha Yoga in his unparalleled work Asana Pranayama Mudra Bandha, outlining the original aspiration by integrating all practice aspects in the classical progression:

  • shatkarmas (cleansing techniques)
  • asanas (body postures) and pranayamas (breathing techniques)
  • mudras (psycho-physiological gestures) and bandhas (energy locks)

Through the correct application of these techniques the practitioner clears the body tissues, the nervous and endocrine systems and the inner organs of impurities and blockages. He then balances and awakens the energetic network (nadis and chakras). The outcome is harmony and health on the various levels of body and mind.

Hatha yoga is the basis for advanced meditation and chakra and kundalini sadhanas.

Raja Yoga

After body, prana and mind have been purified and balanced through Hatha Yoga, Raja Yoga aims at focusing the dissipated mental energies and managing the inner modifications of the mind.

The word Raja means king and Raja Yoga can be translated as “royal path”. Today the Yoga Sutras of Rishi Patanajali is the most well known raja yoga scripture. Rishi Patanjali extracted in his work the essence of many pre existing, complex yoga teachings and compiled them to a system that today is known as Patanjali’s asthanga yoga, the eightfold path.

By progressively expanding and refining awareness, these eight stages aim at attaining clarity of thinking and behavior and at unfolding the dormant potential of the mind to eventually awaken higher intelligence, wisdom and true understanding.

Patanjali’s eightfold path consists of:

  • Yamas: self restraints to regulate outer/social life
  • Niyamas: disciplines to harmonize inner/personal life
  • Asanas: steady and comfortable posture
  • Pranayamas: control over breath and life force
  • Pratyahara: techniques to direct the mind and senses inwards
  • Dharana: techniques to concentrate the mind
  • Dhyana: meditative state of mind
  • Samadhi: experience of unbroken peace and luminosity

Kriya Yoga

One of the hallmarks of the teachings of Swami Satyananda is a series of 20 Kundalini Kriya techniques. The word kriya means activity, referring to specific movements of consciousness, which is one of the key components of the kriya yoga system.

On a practical level it aims at the awakening of the dormant kundalini energy, thus allowing sadhakas (practitioners) to access the complete human potential. Different to other classical yoga systems and meditation techniques, during kriya yoga techniques practitioners do not oppose the activities of their mind. They use specific inner movements to systematically refine their consciousness and to release energy.

As Kriya yoga should only be attempted after extensive preparations, previously these teachings were handed down from teacher to disciple by word of mouth (oral tradition) and non of the classical scriptures describes the techniques in detail.
Thanks to Swami Satyananda, who opened up the science of Kriya Yoga and presented it to the broader public, we have access to a powerful and practical kriya yoga system. The techniques he devised consist of a combination of asana (body posture), pranayama (breathing techniques), mudra (gestures), bandha (inner locks), mantra (subtle sounds), chakra (energy centers) awareness, psychic passage awareness and visualization.

Karma Yoga

The aim of Karma Yoga is to integrate awareness into all aspects of daily life. Karma Yoga is part of the inner yoga, where the aspirants focus on the expression of the positive qualities of their personality, rather than applying techniques to regulate and balance the functions of body, mind or consciousness.

Karma means ‘action’ and the term Yoga signifies, that actions are performed with conscious awareness and a process of refinement is applied. Hence Karma Yoga describes the aspirant’s attitude to perform actions in such a way, that they lead to the experience of expansiveness, freedom and creativity.

In Karma Yoga the practitioners learn how to constructively handle the various aspects of their personality leading to the integration of „head, heart and hands“. Or in other words, the mental, emotional and physical levels of our being are brought together into a state of harmony.

Karma yoga methods:

  • Being aware of thoughts and feelings while performing ones daily duties
  • Recognizing expectations and their influence on mental and emotional states
  • Developing a feeling of equanimity in success and failure
  • Letting go of prejudices in regards to daily responsibilities
  • Seva: selfless work (e.g. volunteer work)

Bhakti Yoga

The word bhakti comes from the root bhaja which means “to adore, to love or to serve”. Bhakti yoga is therefore often called the yoga of devotion and is equated with devotional rituals or the singing of kirtans and bhajans. However, this is a limited view. The true aim of bhakti yoga is not devotion, but rather emotional management.

It is the second aspect of the inner yoga. After having fine-tuned the expressions in relation to performance of actions (karma yoga), the aspirants now aim at harmonizing the expressions of their emotional nature. It is therefore, although not exclusively, most suitable for the emotionally inclined personality.

Emotions are flows of energy, which are usually directed outwards towards sensorial objects. This creates desires and expectations, resulting in conditioned emotions with limited and restricted expressions. Through the methods of bhakti yoga, the aspirants learn to channel emotions and feelings into the desired direction and experience an uplifted and refined state of consciousness.

Methods of bhakti yoga:

  • Satsang (spiritual teachings of a master)
  • Positive environment – connecting to people who inspire
  • Cultivation of a positive inner attitude towards life and fellow human beings
  • The study of biographies and stories of realized masters
  • Consciously developing virtues by a process of self-observation and self-reflection
  • Chanting of mantras, bhajans and kirtans with an attitude of connecting to divinity

Gyana Yoga

Gyana means intuitive, illuminative knowledge. And it is also the method and the process assisting the aspirant to experience and properly apply this knowledge in day-to-day life, to harness and properly utilize the full potential of human intelligence.

Its aim is to develop objectivity and non-judgmental understanding by applying an inner process of meditative awareness and contemplation. Through this process self-knowledge and intuitive wisdom arise and the resulting meditative awareness is applied in ones daily life.

In this process the practitioner is first guided to develop the faculties of viveka (discriminative wisdom) and vairaghya (non-attachment) and to become the drashta (non-judgmental observer) of buddhi (intelligence).

This leads to the gradual discovery of the true nature of the human personality and finally to the highest state of self-knowledge and liberation (moksha).

Gyana yoga methods:

  • The SWAN meditation examines one’s strength, weaknesses, ambitions and needs.
  • The inner nature is recognized through critical self-analysis.
  • Personal contact with like-minded people (sangha)
  • Study of spiritual texts (Vedas, Upanishads, Bible, Koran, etc.)
  • Satsang (spiritual teachings of a master)