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How to recognise yoga exercise?

A discourse on distinguishing authentic yoga from modern commercialized versions.

"Recently, someone asked me, 'Do you know laughing yoga?' I replied, 'Well, in the śāstras, there is no laughing yoga.'"

"Yoga is always well; there is no separate concept of 'wellness.'"

The speaker addresses listeners directly, critiquing the proliferation of modern, commercialized yoga practices like "laughing yoga" or "wellness yoga" that lack scriptural basis. He emphasizes the importance of seeking out authentic, ancient yogic literature, which he defines as texts rigorously vetted and explained by scholars of Sanskrit and philosophy, unlike easily self-published modern books.

Recording location: Czech Republic, Strilky, Summer seminar

Unfortunately, in the last century, yoga began for many people as a commercial venture. They produced numerous different commentaries on yoga—postures, meditations, prāṇāyāmas, and so on. Recently, someone asked me, "Do you know laughing yoga?" I replied, "Well, in the śāstras, there is no laughing yoga." I do know one thing: for many years, an Austrian newspaper had a column titled, "Who laughs, lives long." That is in Austria, but by Śiva, nowhere in the scriptures is it like this, of course. The idea is simply to be happy. Now there are many different kinds of yoga. People just do something and call it yoga—wellness yoga, for instance. Yoga is always well; there is no separate concept of "wellness." So, dear friends, bhaktas, devotees—I especially respect through this webcast those who are listening to me—I respect your self-practice. It is better than nothing; it is healthy. Do not become fanatic. If you are practicing yoga or would like to continue your yogasādhanā, then please seek out authentic, ancient yogic literature. Authentic literature. In ancient times, there was not so much literature. Now everyone prints a book. Everyone types something on their computer, makes a folder with photos, writes something, binds it, and then says, "It's my book." You have the freedom to make your book as you like. But whether it is authentic or not is another matter. An authentic book is like a regulation; it has been checked by many scholars—Sanskrit scholars, spiritual scholars, philosophers—and it has been proven and explained until it is logical. Then, yes, it is accepted as authentic or potentially so. --- Recording location: Czech Republic, Strilky, Summer seminar

This text is transcribed and grammar corrected by AI. If in doubt, what was actually said in the recording, use the transcript to double click the desired cue. This will position the recording in most cases just before the sentence is uttered.

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