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Roots of Yoga
'Yoga is to be known through yoga. Yoga arises from yoga. One who is vigilant by means of yoga delights in yoga for a long time'
Yoga is hugely popular around the world today, yet until now little has been known of its roots. This book collects, for the first time, core teachings of yoga in their original form, translated and edited by two of the world's foremost scholars of the subject. It includes a wide range of texts from different schools of yoga, languages and eras: among others, key passages from the early Upanisads and the Mahabharata, and from the Tantric, Buddhist and Jaina traditions, with many pieces in scholarly translation for the first time. Covering yoga's varying definitions across systems, models of the esoteric and physical bodies, and its most important practices, such as posture, breath control, sensory withdrawal and meditation, Roots of Yoga is a unique and essential source of knowledge.
Translated and edited with an introduction by James Mallinson and Mark Singleton
541 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 26, 2016
239 people are currently reading
1317 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
April 6, 2019
Not for the novice yogi and definitely not an easy, quick guide to yoga. A true investigation of the original roots of yoga without being too religious. The authors took a more academic approach when translating and studying the Vedas. By no means an easy read, but certainly a gem for the serious student.
May 20, 2017
Haven't finished this, but so far finding it a terrific distillation of yoga's many roots. The authors go back to Upanishadic and even (the few) Vedic references and travel forward to the 16th-17th centuries.
(The other editor, Mark Singleton, is the author of Yoga Body: The Origins of Modern Posture Practice, which discusses the ways in which what some call Modern Postural Yoga (MPY) is a fairly recent phenomenon, in fact little more than 100 years old. I'm hoping for a book about the time between, roughly the 18th-20th centuries, and the effect European shock and distaste had on the yogic practices they witnessed).
Each chapter (topics include Posture, Breath-Control, The Yogic Body, Yogic Seals, Mantra) summarizes teachings from various traditions regarding those topics and gives examples from a wide but not overwhelming range of yoga's vast literature.
I'm reading it on an iPad using iBooks, and find all the footnotes and intra-document links take you out and back into the book's main body smoothly. I have generally bought hardcover or paperback non-fiction books because I felt it was easier to take go back and forth between indexes and notes and the book, but this book has really changed my view on e-books for weighty subjects.
Not that this is so hard to read. I'm no student of Sanskrit, but the translations read as very clear and concise, and the editors write with equal clarity.
(The other editor, Mark Singleton, is the author of Yoga Body: The Origins of Modern Posture Practice, which discusses the ways in which what some call Modern Postural Yoga (MPY) is a fairly recent phenomenon, in fact little more than 100 years old. I'm hoping for a book about the time between, roughly the 18th-20th centuries, and the effect European shock and distaste had on the yogic practices they witnessed).
Each chapter (topics include Posture, Breath-Control, The Yogic Body, Yogic Seals, Mantra) summarizes teachings from various traditions regarding those topics and gives examples from a wide but not overwhelming range of yoga's vast literature.
I'm reading it on an iPad using iBooks, and find all the footnotes and intra-document links take you out and back into the book's main body smoothly. I have generally bought hardcover or paperback non-fiction books because I felt it was easier to take go back and forth between indexes and notes and the book, but this book has really changed my view on e-books for weighty subjects.
Not that this is so hard to read. I'm no student of Sanskrit, but the translations read as very clear and concise, and the editors write with equal clarity.
May 19, 2017
like the borges' library of babel in its scope. brueghelian in its breadth. this anthology decentralizes any monolithic assumptions about the roots of yoga and puts a cornucopia in its place.
August 7, 2025
6/10
Both an admirable scholarly achievement, and a daunting and dense literary work that I'd only recommend for burgeoning students of the subject willing to sift through the compilation of various yogic/religious texts assembled here.
Both an admirable scholarly achievement, and a daunting and dense literary work that I'd only recommend for burgeoning students of the subject willing to sift through the compilation of various yogic/religious texts assembled here.
September 14, 2025
For yoga teachers I would strongly recommend this as a "reference text" for the historical roots of yoga. Very academic, so I would recommend this primarily for yoga teachers (or anyone who has done yoga courses), or spiritual people who like reading complex yoga philosophy.
Not recommended for people who do not want to read citations of ancient texts and cross-examine how yoga concepts have evolved over time. Not recommended as a gift to a layperson yoga hobbyist or beginner, or someone who wants to read a bit about yoga (Desikachar's The Heart of Yoga is the best introduction to "what is yoga?" I have found to date).
The primary motivations for reading this is to deepen one's personal and teaching practice, identify elements one wants to keep or remove based on the meaning behind them, and to get a broader cultural understanding of what it means to be a yogi.
The chapters on Yoga as definition, preliminaries to starting (8 limbs), posture (asana), breath-control (pranyama), the yogic body, were all very interesting. The explanation between withdrawal, fixation, and meditation were very useful.
The chapters on samadhi, yogic powers, and liberation, were less useful to me and harder to grasp. It seems these later concepts may be hard to summarize in a paragraph, so it may be my failing and/or the fit of the approach for these topics...
Not recommended for people who do not want to read citations of ancient texts and cross-examine how yoga concepts have evolved over time. Not recommended as a gift to a layperson yoga hobbyist or beginner, or someone who wants to read a bit about yoga (Desikachar's The Heart of Yoga is the best introduction to "what is yoga?" I have found to date).
The primary motivations for reading this is to deepen one's personal and teaching practice, identify elements one wants to keep or remove based on the meaning behind them, and to get a broader cultural understanding of what it means to be a yogi.
The chapters on Yoga as definition, preliminaries to starting (8 limbs), posture (asana), breath-control (pranyama), the yogic body, were all very interesting. The explanation between withdrawal, fixation, and meditation were very useful.
The chapters on samadhi, yogic powers, and liberation, were less useful to me and harder to grasp. It seems these later concepts may be hard to summarize in a paragraph, so it may be my failing and/or the fit of the approach for these topics...
August 17, 2021
esse livro é um maravilhoso que compila diferentes textos clássicos, em seus trechos que se referem a alguns termos chave do mundo do yoga.
Essencial para qualquer praticante afim de ir além do misticismo cego e compreender que há uma história por detrás da prática e há caminhos pelos quais o yoga não seguiu - mas poderia.
Por exemplo, sabia que em diferentes textos, havia outras configurações de chakras? a atual configuração pode ter sido a mais disseminada, porque foi descrita em um livro sobre o "esotérico corpo tântrico e do yoga", de Arthur Avalon, muito popular na Inglaterra na edição de 1919, do século 16, "satcakranirupana" ('a descrição dos seus chakras'). 🤯
Essencial para qualquer praticante afim de ir além do misticismo cego e compreender que há uma história por detrás da prática e há caminhos pelos quais o yoga não seguiu - mas poderia.
Por exemplo, sabia que em diferentes textos, havia outras configurações de chakras? a atual configuração pode ter sido a mais disseminada, porque foi descrita em um livro sobre o "esotérico corpo tântrico e do yoga", de Arthur Avalon, muito popular na Inglaterra na edição de 1919, do século 16, "satcakranirupana" ('a descrição dos seus chakras'). 🤯
April 1, 2025
A fantastic and thorough exploration of the origins of Yoga practice from two obviously incredibly passionate and knowledgeable scholars. I picked this up after developing a small interest in yoga practice and got WAY more than I bargained for! (In a great way:)) so yeah definitely don’t recommend for casual reading as it is pretty rigorous in its examination of source texts but if you are interested in yoga I would call it essential if you have a bunch of time. The organization took a bit to get used to it but as the book progressed I came to love the introductions and timelines followed by the large groupings of excerpts. Also love when you can tell from the work just how invested a scholar is in their field!
December 2, 2018
Haven't finished, but know what it offers in case I will decide to learn about yoga in scholarly manner. What is beautiful in this book is INCREDIBLE breadth of examples of ancient texts as wellas overview of many directions that the practice took over the centuries.
February 26, 2021
It was a really interesting reading.
Where some early yoga texts have been collected and compared to each other.
It was interesting also reading some of those bizzare rituals.
Where some early yoga texts have been collected and compared to each other.
It was interesting also reading some of those bizzare rituals.
April 8, 2021
Like an encyclopedia of ancient texts - very handy!
June 2, 2021
An informative book that filled in a lot of gaps I had on the history of these practices.
April 8, 2022
Not a book you will sit down and actually read, but it’s a phenomenal reference book!
August 25, 2021
Excellent and extensively researched.
All chapters are well organised with a summary at the start of each one. Supporting texts are numbered after the summary , allowing the reader to decide what to read as there is a lot. As a yoga student myself I found the book to be very enlightening.
All chapters are well organised with a summary at the start of each one. Supporting texts are numbered after the summary , allowing the reader to decide what to read as there is a lot. As a yoga student myself I found the book to be very enlightening.
February 18, 2023
A comprehensive overview of the concepts of yoga tracing to their roots in the available literature. A truly objective approach to put things in the right perspective. An indispensable treasure for those doing research in yoga and related subjects.
July 19, 2018
This publication is bomb. Essential
January 10, 2019
Showcases the latest research on the history and interpretation of Yoga. Essential reading if you're serious about yoga.
Want to read
February 20, 2020Spirit Rock YTT required reading
Read
November 9, 2021Didn't read it outright. Read all of the other works from James MAllison that basically cover every topic in this book. Couldn't find these other works here in goodreads so I left this one here.
August 24, 2022
Agree with other reviewers- this is an in depth academic study of the beginnings of yoga through a number of spiritual texts. A very detailed, in depth read.
April 24, 2024
Incredible book for anyone want to deepen their understanding on the origins and practices of yoga. I will 100% read again.
October 27, 2024
En underbar bok om yoga och skrifterna. En njutning.
April 23, 2020
This is a serious book for a serious yoga student. A must read work on the history of yoga as theory and practice. Both James and Mark have spent years in the field in India researching and practicing themselves yoga disciplines and came in contact with many well known (and some obscure) yoga practitioners and gurus.
January 5, 2021
A good overview of different yogic techniques from different Buddhist and Hindu schools. This is more of a technical approach than a book on Yoga philosophy.
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews