With so much agreement regarding Dharma leading in so many directions, we become bewildered, O god supreme, unable to reach any certainty. MBh. 14.48.23-25
The word yoga is often seen together with the word Samkhya as a pair in the meaning of theoria (Samkhya) and praxis (yoga). At other times they almost oppose each other as alternative paths and philosophies. Samkhya, then, seems to stand for a Gnostic path to release while yoga is an ascetic path of harnessing the mind-body system.228 Hence within the MBh we find a spectrum of understanding of yoga, often connected to different teachers who teach their idea of yoga to someone else. These sages neither agree on defining the yoga practice nor on its aim and meaning (Brockington 2003). Sometimes yoga is linked with death and access to heaven, sometimes it is linked with nirvana or the emergence ofpurusha, and at other times is praised for allowing the adept to vision atman or reach brahman when the mind is controlled. However soon after we are told that bhakti and revelation are superior ways to god.
Inhale, firm your legs, and stretch up through the Yoga girl spine. Exhale, bend forward, retaining the long spine, and reach straight down to Yoga girl touch the floor or two blocks. You may bend your knees if the hamstring muscles are very tight. It is important to tip the pelvis forward from your hips, not by rounding your waist. Once your hands are on the floor or the blocks, inhale, extend your legs and sitting bones back, and draw your spine forward. Exhale and release your spine and neck. Repeat this breathing extending movement several times. Then hang forward and down, totally releasing your neck and head but keeping your arms pulled up into the shoulder sockets.
