The world of yoga can be a complex one when you start out, not only are you learning a load of new ways of moving your body but the teacher can keep on throwing words in a foreign language at you too. Maybe something along the lines of ‘engage your bandhas’ , ‘focus your drishti’ and ‘lower down to chaturanga’? I remember at first wondering what the hell was going on but welcome to the language of yoga, sanskrit.
Not all teachers teach with Sanskrit so don’t be alarmed but it’s likely that a few words will creep into most classes. Sanskrit is the classical language of yoga which originated in India and Nepal and is widely used in Hindu and Sikh scriptures amongst other documents. The practice of yoga itself dates back almost 5000 years, being mentioned in the Hindu text the Rig Veda and being used as a vehicle for preparing the body for meditation. Because of these ancient and spiritual beginnings the language of yoga became and remains Sanskrit. In order to demystify this, and to continue my beginners guides, I thought I’d put together a Sanskrit glossary of the basics to get you going on your yoga journey.
Yoga – a great place to start, the actual word yoga is Sanskrit and means ‘to yoke’, ‘connection’ or ‘union’. A great thing to contemplate, the unity of body and mind, the balance of strength and flexibility, the connection of yourself to the world
Namaste – often said at the end of classes it directly translates as ‘the divine in me bows to the divine in you’ but is not only used in the world of yoga. Across India this is also used as a greeting (I found myself saying it a lot while I was there!) Within the world of yoga it is used at the end of a class to seal the practice and incorporates bringing the hands in prayer to the chest and a forward bow, honouring the student, teacher and practice that has just happened
Drishti – this word comes up often in balances where fixing your gaze to a certain spot is needed to remain stable and that’s exactly whats drishti is, its focusing your gaze in order to calm the mind and bring stillness
Bandha – ‘lock’ or ‘bind’ is the direct translation and this refers to the three locks that are used in yoga. In layman’s terms these are engaging certain groups of muscles or areas in order to create locks in the body for energy but also to create strength. Mula bandha is the pelvic floor muscles, uddiyana bandha is the core muscles up to the diaphragm and jalandhara bandha is the lock in the throat
Chakras – the exact translation is ‘wheel’ but chakra refers to various energy centres that are within the subtle body. These are not entirely understood but are believed to have various different areas of the physical and subtle body that they control. Yoga is used to balance these energies in order for the physical and subtle body to work well together. If you are interested in learning more there is a whole series here
Mudra – the direct translation is ‘seal’ and is a position with the hands that helps to channel energy within the body. The most common is chin mudra, palms up, fingers lightly curled with forefinger touching thumb
All of these words above are more to do with the spiritual or subtle body area of yoga but there are also times when teachers will refer to poses using only their Sanskrit names, cue looking around the room as a beginner trying desperately to figure out what is happening! So I’ve popped some of the most common Sanskrit names below
Tadasana – mountain pose – stood at the top of the mat, big toes together, feet spread, drawing up through the legs and core, shoulders rolling back and down. Often used at the start of a class
Savasana – corpse pose – that gorgeous pose at the end of class, laid on your back, feet mat width and feet dropping out to the side
Vinyasa – so often thrown into a class with little explanation, it’s direct translation is movement with breath but within most classes this refers to the flow from downward dog to high plank to chaturanga to cobra/upward facing dog and back to downward dog. Often used as a small ‘cardio’ element to a yoga flow or to connect poses from one to another
Chaturanga – a yoga style press up linking high plank to cobra or upward facing dog. Practiced with the elbows above the wrists and elbows hugged into the waist
Trikonasana – triangle pose, front leg straight, back foot turning in slightly, torso revolved and parallel to the floor, hand to shin and other opening toward the ceiling
Utkatasana – chair or intense pose, knees bent and hips dropping down as if you’re about to sit on a chair
Vasisthasana – side plank
Baddha konasana – cobblers pose, bringing the soles of the feet together while sat, taking the knees out to the side creating a diamond from feet to knees to seat
Navasana – boat pose, a great core strengthener, balancing on the sit bones with arms and legs raised creating a V position with the body
A few additions to Sanskrit names which are often used as additional postures that are also super useful to know!
Utthita – extended
Parivrtta – revolved
Viparita – reverse
There are obviously so many others but these are the ones that I remember being confused about when I first started out so maybe this will help! If there are any other Sanskrit confusions you’ve come across let me know and I can shed the light for others!