🕉️ What Yoga Really Means
Reclaiming the True Definition of Yoga — Beyond the Studio and the Mat
So often I hear people say:
“I’m not into yoga—” or “I can’t do yoga—”
Then follow that with…
”— I want to make this pain go away.” or “—build strength and be mindful of my body.”
When I hear these common things, I nod yes with compassion — because what they’re describing is yoga.
They just don’t recognize it yet.
Most of us have been taught to think yoga means flexibility, poses, incense, or a way to “relax.”
But that version of yoga — the one we think we know — is only a shadow of something far deeper.
True yoga begins the moment we get curious about what we don’t know we don’t know.
It invites us to set aside everything we think yoga is, and open to the possibility that it’s not about the body at all — but about remembering who we truly are.
🌿 The Misunderstanding: Yoga as Performance
In modern Western culture, yoga is often presented as a blend of stretching, poses, and perhaps a few moments of mindfulness. The images we see on social media and in studios — hyper-mobile bodies in advanced shapes, serene playlists, and candlelight — have come to define what “yoga” looks like.
Scroll through Instagram and you’ll see designer leggings, perfect lighting, and “Insta-worthy” poses.
You’ll see the aesthetic, not the ascetic.
And while you can wear beautiful clothes, post photos, or enjoy a thoughtfully curated playlist and still be practicing yoga — those things are not the definition of yoga. They can coexist with yoga, but they are not the essence of it.
This misunderstanding is deepened in part by the abundance of newly certified yoga teachers who complete a few hundred hours of training and then teach public classes. While many are well-intentioned, their limited experience and lack of lived union with the Divine can unintentionally reduce yoga to choreography — removing its heart and depth while simultaneously lacking movement science and understanding of anatomy mechanics.
None of the classical yogic texts define yoga as a fitness regimen, and not one emphasizes physical postures as the goal.
Even Patañjali’s Yoga Sūtras, arguably the most referenced yogic text, mention āsana (posture) only twice — simply as a steady, comfortable seat to support meditation.
Yoga is not a method that can be trademarked or packaged into a branded sequence. In fact, you cannot legally trademark yoga poses or breathing practices, because they belong to the timeless spiritual commons of humanity. Yet modern marketing has seen countless “methods” claim ownership of ancient yogic practices, presenting fragments as innovations. Due to this, we have regimented systems of workouts, and movements teaching yoga without acknowlegment and without the Union of Self with the Divine — in other words without mindfulness of what they are doing.
Nearly all of my influential teachers from the devoted Yogi, Physical Therapists, Personal Trainers, and Biomechanists ALL have some version of “It’s not WHAT you do, it’s HOW you do it.”…
GUESS WHAT? That phrase is derived from the Bhagavad Gita — a classical Yogic Texts dating 2000 - 2,500 years old!
“It’s not what we do that matters most, but the consciousness with which we do it”
— The Bhagavad Gītā: Yoga as Skill in Action
🪡 Yoga and the Threads of Tradition
The Sanskrit word Yoga literally means “to yoke” or “to unite.”
It shares its linguistic root with the English word yoke — to connect, to join, to harness.
Yet this union is not between mind and body, as it’s so often described.
Yoga is the union of the individual Self (Ātman) with the Divine or Supreme Reality (Brahman).
It is a spiritual science, not merely a somatic one.
Still, the modern world continues to misunderstand this. One of the most popular computer systems used by yoga studios — the software that manages scheduling and memberships — literally calls itself “Mindbody.”
It’s a name that perfectly reflects the widespread misconception that yoga is about connecting the mind to the body, rather than awakening union with the Divine.
And the irony is, the word “yoga” itself already implies that higher connection. The sacred texts never describe yoga as the alignment of physical or psychological parts — they describe it as the path of realizing oneness with the Infinite.
📜 The Source of “Union with the Divine”
The phrase “union of Ātman (individual self) with Brahman (Divine Reality)” is drawn from the Upaniṣads, the philosophical texts that form the roots of yogic thought.
The Katha Upaniṣad describes yoga as the path by which the senses and mind are restrained so the Self can merge with the Eternal.
Patañjali’s Yoga Sūtras echo this through the stilling of the mind’s fluctuations (citta-vṛtti-nirodhaḥ).
The Bhagavad Gītā later expresses this union through action, knowledge, and devotion — each a thread leading to the same realization of oneness with the Divine.
The word Sūtra means “thread.”
The Yoga Sūtras of Patañjali are not a set of poses; they are threads of wisdom woven into a tapestry of liberation.
In those teachings, Patañjali defines yoga as:
“Yogaḥ citta-vṛtti-nirodhaḥ.”
Yoga is the stilling of the fluctuations of the mind.
Movement - Poses (āsana) is simply one of the eight limbs of yoga — the third of the Aṣṭāṅga (Eight-Limbed) Path, also known as Rāja Yoga, or the royal path toward liberation.
This classical Aṣṭāṅga system, codified by Patañjali, includes ethics, self-discipline, breath regulation, sensory control, concentration, meditation, and union with the Divine.
It should not be confused with the modern Ashtanga Yoga method popularized by Pattabhi Jois, which focuses primarily on asana through specific, disciplined sequences of postures.
While that physical practice can be a beautiful doorway into yoga, it represents only one small aspect of the broader spiritual path described in the ancient texts.
Your mat is a teacher, not your stage.
The mat can reveal so much — patience, humility, awareness — but it was never meant to be a platform for performance.
Each pose, each breath, each pause is simply another opportunity to observe the mind and reconnect with the Divine.
Yoga, in this classical sense, is not something we do for an hour a week.
It’s a state of being that we cultivate through breath, devotion, discipline, and awareness in every aspect of life.
🌸 The Bhagavad Gītā: Yoga as Skill in Action
Centuries after Patañjali, the Bhagavad Gītā expanded this understanding.
In this sacred dialogue, Krishna tells Arjuna:
“Yogaḥ karmasu kauśalam.”
Yoga is skill in action.
And,
“Be steadfast in yoga, O Arjuna. Perform your duty and abandon all attachment to success or failure. Such evenness of mind is yoga.” (2.48)
The Gītā reveals that yoga is not withdrawal from the world — it’s presence within it.
When we act with awareness instead of reactivity, when we serve without attachment to the outcome, when we care without controlling — we are practicing yoga.
💫 Yoga in Everyday Life — More Common Than You Think
It’s true: many people are already practicing yoga without realizing it.
For instance, Box Breathing — the four-count inhale, hold, exhale, hold pattern widely used by the military, therapists, and athletes — is directly adapted from ancient yogic prāṇāyāma practices like Sama Vritti (equal breath).*
This same method was popularized in the United States by retired U.S. Navy SEAL Commander Mark Divine, who adapted it for leadership and stress regulation — a teaching later referenced by Brené Brown in her book Dare to Lead (2018, Random House) as a practical tool for emotional resilience.
*Note: Breath retention (holding the breath) is contraindicated during pregnancy and the early postpartum period.
During these stages, it’s safer and more supportive to practice gentle, continuous breathwork such as extended exhales, diaphragmatic breathing, or soft rhythmic patterns without pauses. These encourage optimal oxygenation, reduce intra-abdominal pressure, and regulate the nervous system without strain.
Mindfulness meditation, gratitude journaling, chanting, and daily acts of devotion — these are all threads of yoga.
They may go by different names today, but their roots run deep in the soil of yogic science.
So when someone says they’re “not into yoga,” yet they practice breath awareness, mindfulness, or functional movement with intention — they’re already walking the yogic path. They just haven’t learned to call it by its name.
🌺 Honoring My Lineage
My own lineage of yoga honors both the classical teachings and their living evolution.
I have studied within the lineages of Mount Madonna Institute (rooted in Baba Hari Dass’s teachings), Bhakti Yoga with Hari-kirtana Dās, and modern functional and therapeutic approaches with Katy Bowman, Dr. Ginger Garner, and Dr. Sarah Duvall.
Among many others, my continuing education includes perspectives from Donna Farhi and other somatic-based teachers, as well as highly clinical instructors with backgrounds in physical therapy and biomechanics.
One of my foremost teachers, Hannah Muse — a long-time student of Baba Hari Dass (Babaji) — led my pilgrimage to India and continues to embody a deeply integrated path that weaves together embryology, social justice, Bhakti devotion, and modern movement science.
This blend reflects what yoga has always been:
A living science of awareness — adaptable, experiential, and rooted in love.
I teach yoga as a biopsychosocial practice, one that honors the whole person — body, mind, spirit, relationships, and environment. Whether we’re rebuilding postpartum strength, releasing neck tension, or reconnecting to breath during pregnancy, these are not “fitness goals.”
They are acts of remembrance.
✨ Yoga Is Not About Interest — It’s About Integration
So when someone says,
“I don’t do yoga,”
what they often mean is:
“I’m not interested in what I think yoga is — poses, incense, or someone telling me to relax.”
But yoga isn’t about performance or perfection.
It’s about presence.
Yoga is learning to live in harmony with your breath, your body, and your unfolding life.
It’s remembering your wholeness — whether that happens on a mat, while cooking dinner, walking your dog, or holding your baby.
Yoga can be the way you sit, the way you breathe through pain, or the way you pause before reacting.
It’s the integration of awareness into movement, thought, and care.
🕊️ Closing Reflection
The mat may teach us to listen, but life is the loom where yoga is truly woven.
If you seek strength, balance, or mindful attention to your body — you’re already stepping into yoga.
The practice isn’t something to “get into.”
It’s something to come home to.
TL;DR: Key Takeaways
Yoga means union — of the individual self (Ātman) with the Supreme (Brahman).
Patañjali defined yoga as stilling the mind, not performance of poses.
The Bhagavad Gītā teaches yoga as skill in action and evenness in life.
The true eight-limbed path (Aṣṭāṅga / Rāja Yoga) centers on ethics, breath, and meditation, not acrobatics or aesthetics.
Yoga can’t be trademarked or owned — it’s a living, universal science of awareness.
Practices like box breathing and mindfulness are ancient yogic tools, even if they wear modern names.
Breath retention is not recommended during pregnancy or early postpartum.
You don’t have to “be interested” in yoga to already be practicing it — you only have to remember.
🪷 Reflection Prompt
Where in your daily life do you already practice yoga without realizing it?
Notice how awareness, breath, and compassion show up in small moments — and how each thread weaves your own tapestry of yoga.
📚 References & Sacred Texts
Patañjali, Yoga Sūtras, I.2 and II.46–47.
Bhagavad Gītā, Ch. 2, 3, 6, 12 (2.48, 2.50, 6.15, 6.20, 6.47).
Katha Upaniṣad, II.3.10–11.
Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad, II.8–15.
Taittirīya Upaniṣad, II.6.
Vivekānanda, Swami. Rāja Yoga. (1896).
Brown, Brené. Dare to Lead. (2018, Random House) — references Box Breathing as taught by retired U.S. Navy SEAL Commander Mark Divine, founder of SEALFIT, who adapted the practice from yogic prāṇāyāma for stress resilience and leadership training.
✨ About the Author
Anne Catherine Spear-Price is a yoga and movement educator with over 25 years of practice and more than a decade of specialized experience in perinatal yoga, pelvic health, and functional movement. Her teaching integrates classical yoga philosophy, modern movement science, and trauma-informed care to support the full spectrum of motherhood — from conception to postpartum and beyond.
Anne Catherine studied under Hannah Muse, a long-time student of Baba Hari Dass (Babaji), with whom she traveled on pilgrimage to India. Her lineage also includes studies in Bhakti Yoga with Hari-kirtana Dās, and continuing education with Katy Bowman, Dr. Ginger Garner, Dr. Sarah Duvall, and Donna Farhi, among others.
A lifelong student of embodied wisdom, she teaches through the lens of the Eight Limbs of Yoga, emphasizing compassion, awareness, and connection as living practices. Her work bridges the sacred and the scientific — honoring yoga as both a path of devotion and discovery, and a tool for nervous system regulation, emotional healing, and physical restoration.
