The Inner Tradition of Yoga: A Guide to Yoga Philosophy for the Contemporary Practitioner

by Michael Stone, Richard Freeman (Foreword)

There is more to the tradition of yoga than toning and strengthening. At the root, there is a vast and intriguing philosophy that teaches the ethics of nonviolence, patience, honesty, and respect. Michael Stone provides an in-depth explanation of ancient Indian yogic philosophy along with teachings on how to bring our understanding of yoga theory to deeper levels through our practice on the mat—and through our relationships with others.

To learn more about the author, Michael Stone, visit his  

Genres: Nonfiction, Spirituality, Philosophy, Health, Buddhism, Psychology, Mental Health

234 pages, Paperback

First published August 12, 2008

About the author

Librarian Note:
There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Reviews

[Corrina]

This has got to be, without doubt or hesitation, one of the best books I have ever read. There is breath (and breadth) in each sentence. It is a fabulous, beautiful work, and I can honestly say, it is one of the only books I just wanted to keep reading forever! How ironic, then, that it is a work about letting go, impermanence, and non-attachment... OK, I can let go of everything else, as long as I can hold on to this book! ;-D

[Robyn]

It is clear that Stone is familiar with historic texts and with some of the spiritual practices of yoga. The problem lies in his inability to effectively communicate the concepts with his writing, which is trying at the best of times. Sentences such as "Whatever factors we notice in the body, we see them as existing contingently on the way we perceive," serve to frustrate this reader. Stone comes close to making points and then backs away, instead repeating himself several times in varied language, and then moves on, attempting to circle in on a different point, and he repeats the whole process.
What is really annoying is that the concepts he attempts to proffer are not difficult to conceive of. Stone does a good job of obscuring them with his unnecessary proliferation. Perhaps he should take some time off from yoga and take a few writing classes.

[Meghan Allen]

I found this to be one of the most insightful, buddhist influenced teachings of yoga I’ve ever listened to. Stone reminds me a lot of the Dalai Lama. Despite some other reviews saying he repeats himself with no real point, I disagree. The book is meant to be read overtime, alongside with practice. The ideas aren’t arguments. They are notions and additions to practice that must be incorporated and lived over time to understand. I truly loved this writing and am so grateful to have spent so long reading it alongside my developing practice. I will be revisiting it again in a year or so.

[Nancy Collins]

Quite possibly the crappiest book I have ever read. I only finished because it was required reading for my class. With so many great options available about yoga, why this one. It was SO wordy and vague and confusing. I didn't understand anything after I had read it, and I understand a lot about the subject already. SOOOOO disappointed and such an effort to get through.

[Alex Ast]

This was an excellent introduction to the philosophy of yoga for me. I've always been confused as to how yoga in the West seemed so detached from its historical and spiritual contexts in India. Westerners tend to emphasize yoga postures (asanas) in order to improve flexibility and mobility but that is probably only about 5% of what it actually involves. Yoga literally means 'union' and' its aim is to bring us into union into the present moment and be completely absorbed by it. This is done by paying attention to not just the bodily aspects of yoga, but more importantly the psychological and ethical aspects. At its core, yogic philosophy is about dissolving our pre-conceived regarding dualism: the belief that mind and body is separate. But that is an illusion of the self, which is inherently empty of conceptualizations about one's self-image. We bolster our conception of the self when we categorize experience by terms of subject-object. We cannot help this because when we are born we are immediately objectified by being given a name. That is not bad in and of itself, but when we forget that our selfhood is only a representation of ourselves, it can lead to tricky waters and ego inflation. We inflate the ego by 5 'enemies of the heart': 1) not seeing reality as it is because of our simultaneous 2) attachment to pleasure and 3) aversion to discomfort. It is through our attachments that we objectify experience by categorizing reality with "I, me mine," and this leads to us creating 4) stories/narratives about ourselves that makes us want to continue the fantasy that 5) the ego is solid and eternal making us want to further our egoistic existence and never face death. It is only by meditating on our awareness that we are able to see through these illusions and mind states that run in the background of the theater of our minds. When we begin to meditate, we will see habitual thought patterns arise and these influence all of our actions subconsciously. Karma, is not about fate, contrary to popular conceptions in the West. Karma is about recognizing that our actions have consequences and the more attention we devote to our actions, the greater we have the ability to stop our habitual thought patterns which can help us to take a pause to reacting to sensations, thoughts, emotions mindlessly. This is the route to moksa, enlightenment, and psychological freedom. This does not mean that the goal of spiritual practice is to attain transcendental transformation that will lead us incapable of experiencing any fear, anger, doubt, depression, etc... rather the goal is to be willing to 'sit with' whatever arises in your consciousness, no matter how pleasurable or uncomfortable and to simply let them pass by like clouds in the sky without clinging or grasping. Paradoxically, it is only when we stop trying to make progress and simply let go that we tend to develop the most spiritually. It is clear the author was intentional with every sentence he wrote and successfully distilled thousands of years of tradition for the contemporary mind in a way that can help us bring this tradition in a new light for this generation. His words and teachings were made more pertinent because this was the last book the author has written. The author suffered a life-long battle with manic depression and resulted in an internationally renowned Buddhist psychotherapist and yogic instructor dying of a drug overdose in his early 40s. This ironically deeply humanized him for me and helped me to realize that all the great spiritual teachers are not transcendentally otherworldly, but deeply human. This fact further deepened my experience of impermanence when reading the book and instilled in me a sense of spiritual urgency because the hour of death is always uncertain. However, what is certain is that underneath the chaotic surfaces of our ocean-like minds do we find deep inner psychological stillness and that this is a place only filled with love and compassion which can be found in us all.

[Jenny]

Very insightful book on the philosophy of Yoga. Michael Stone is a psychotherapist, Buddhist teacher, yoga teacher, activist as well as an excellent author who brings traditional teachings into a contemporary context effortlessly, integrating them into contemporary psychological and philosophical understanding.

[Desiree]

This book was referred to by one of the external instructors at my YTT last year, and although it took me a while to get through it (I "started" it maybe 3 times), I finally finished it. It makes Iyengar's Light on Life seem like easy reading. I thought many of the ideas presented were just retreads of ideas from elsewhere, but written with bigger words to make yoga seem more intimidating than most people already think it is. The only chapter I enjoyed was the last one (and no, not just because it was the end); it was the only chapter when I felt that I hadn't already read it all before. Not for the light-hearted yogi, that's for sure.

[Frank Jude]

This is a book that should be read by serious yoga practitioners, ALL yoga teachers, and therapists looking for another perspective on psychology. I liked it enough to offer a back cover blurb as follows: "Michael Stone details a practical and pragmatic psychology of yoga that can provide all practitioners a way to engage with the deepest transformative possibilities that yoga can offer. It is certainly what we need now.

[Ellie]

Sometimes repetitive and can require some focus to decode the meaning packed into each sentence. However, there is something cerebral that I find it only a couple places, one of which is while practicing yoga. I suppose if anything plucked my heartstrings it'd be beautiful writing about a practice that makes me feel connected to something greater, the uniting nature of everything around me, just like true and gorgeous words do.

[Yolanda]

This is one of my all time favorite books. It brings to light the fundamentals of yoga and the beauty of interconnectedness. A beautiful read.

[Christy]

I liked this book and definitely understand why it's a required text in my 200 Hour course, but his writing frustrated me at times. There were quite a few times where I felt like I was really getting into a concept only for him to change direction in his writing and me to get lost. And some of his sentences were quite wordy and hard to follow.

That said, these are some abstract concepts and there are so many historical texts that give different perspectives on these concepts. It was nice to have someone try to pull it all together and intertwine them all.

While I don't think I fully grasped everything he was writing about, I definitely have a far better foundation of yoga philosophy than I did when I started.

[Anna Rinz]

A great introduction to the yoga philosophy, which touches upon a lot of topics at once. I will definitely be rereading this one at some later point!

[tonia peckover]

A nice introduction to the deep and complex world of yoga philosophy. The language and philosophical concepts of Yogic tradition are unfamiliar to me so there was much I could only grasp at the most basic level, but Michael Stone's generous, kind nature and and his passion for these ideas does come through and I had several ah ha! moments while reading. (I would have given this more stars if Stone's writing had been a little less opaque, but I could sense in his words the challenge of describing abstract concepts in text.) At any rate, it's definitely one to keep and refer back to as I continue with my yoga practice.

[Melody]

The late Michael Stone covers basic yoga philosophy and psychology in this book, however his writing style is dense. At times, I felt trapped in the author’s mind as he circles around and around concepts with personal shares, rather than making direct reference to the vedas or sages.
It really was ok, but I struggle to identify the audience for this book to recommend.

[Kevin Cabrera]

Complete waste of time. Get used to reading pages of words and still not understand the author’s point. I only read cover to cover because it’s required in teacher training which I still don’t understand to this day why this is the book of choice.

[Ohhmann]

Content is great but the language used is a bit flowery and hard to digest at times. I had to re-read some parts but still recommend this text. It was my first read on yoga philosophy and it provided a good foundational knowledge with opportunities to dig deeper in many areas.

[Sian]

I am a HUGE fan of Michael Stone. His books are so insightful and smart and interesting and I've tagged loads of bits in this to read out in yoga classes.

[Luke]

This book helped me remember the reasons why I ever liked yoga in the first place. Thanks MS for the gifts you left behind.

[Daisy Sun]

Insightful yet digestible.

[Davis Cousar]

If you see someone reading this it’s a cry for help

[Elizabeth Love]

I had the opportunity to review this book through NetGalley. It's the revised 2018 edition which I think is important to distinguish from the 2014 edition which I have not read.

A lot of yoga theory and philosophy books are dry. They make reading sluggish and challenging. Stone's book is no different. It's a great reference if you need to brush up on your Sutras of Patañjali though. Just like with B.K.S. Iyengar's The Light on the Yoga Sutras of Patañjali, there will be passages that speak to the reader worthy of highlighting sections and lessons.

Michael Freeman's foreword best explains Stone's motivation behind the revision:

"We are encouraged to ask ourselves simple questions that might clarify our relationship with modern yoga. Does your yoga practice superficially cover up our miseries and distract us from the deeper work of the heart?"

TW: Sri K. Pattabhi Jois
Pattabhi Jois for short, is referenced throughout Stone's book. He's the founder of the K. Pattabhi Jois Ashtanga Yoga Institute in Mysore, India. Yoga, like religions or educational systems, can get hung up on lineage. Saying you went to the Ashtanga Institute in Mysore is akin to Harvard or Yale. However, like with anything that is a system there is competition, in-fighting, controversy, and decisions that have to be made about whether it's the right one for you. Pattabhi Jois has been outed by past students (now that he's deceased) as a sexual abuser and that male students were instructed to abuse female students through whatever they consider adjustments.

This is something I feel as a reviewer that needs to be pointed out because of the prevalence of rape culture in all forms of content we consume. I can honestly say that in any yoga class I've ever had and in teacher training which was predominantly women, an adjustment is when a teacher places one or both hands to gently help with alignment or to further the stretch as long as it feels good. It should never feel abusive, hurt, nor violate a student. Touching beyond that is only when there's a familial level of comfort or in what's now called acro-yoga which is like circus performer actions with partners.

None of Pattabhi Jois' illicit behavior was in the book from what I could tell in my non-sequential way of reading this.

Therefore, the inclusion of references to Pattabhi Jois is something you should know and you should understand why he and his legacy are controversial. Should you still decide to read Michael Stone's book, I present more feedback.

Further:

Stone's book is exceptionally well-organized. It opens with his presentation on vidyā or seeing reality as it is. This is something important in today's worldview where it's challenging to avoid taking on the whole emotions of everyone who is suffering whether that's anger, sadness, or fear. This segues into a chapter on suffering which is a natural placement for it.

The meat of the contents include: the eight limbs of yoga, the yamas, the niyamas, the five klesas (emotional poisons), the five kosas (energetic sheaths), samskaras (old scars or baggage), prana (energy and breath), citta (consciousness), and finally death and dying.

Stone makes a clear point throughout that yoga is not about avoiding suffering ("avoidance" is one of the klesas). Yoga is about opening yourself up to your full experience in each moment and that has to include the suffering too.

"Maybe the worst suffering is when we don't know how to be with suffering." Chapter 2, Embrace Suffering

Another area of emphasis is that yoga is about removing the ego. You don't practice yoga per se; you would live yoga. You have two choices if you are stuck in a pattern of un-awakeness: establish new habits or break old ones.

I didn't get through this book in sequence. I bounced around looking for what I was interested in on a particular day and it was okay reading. There are some helpful quotes and clarifications about yoga being from the heart rather than the way it presented socially and publicly today as a fitness trend to get thin, toned, and flexible. Flexibility applies not only to soft tissue, but to your self awareness.

However, as I said upfront, it's dry reading. It's not a book I highly recommend unless you want the most complete collection of yoga structure books possible.

[Maureen]

challenging to follow all of Stone's ideas here.
Clauses I liked:
The heart of yoga is the realization of the inherent flow of life within the reality of a conditional existence. This we all share to contribute to peace and flexibility rather than violence and rigidity. Yoga teaches us that when we lose our sense of separateness from one another and from the world at large, we become like jewels in Indra’s net, all shimmering in union.
Pay close attention to the breath, mind and body. The experience of the present moment consists of results from past and present actions. By paying attention we find karma alive in ourselves. The law of karma is simply that volitional action always has an effect. Previous experience influences present experience, and we do in the present influences the way we experience the future. . Karma operates in feedback loops. The present moment is shaped both by past and present actions. Present action shapes the present and the future. Karma refers to both volitional action and its effects. Every action we take has an effect. Where do my actions end? Do my actions come back to me, and if so, how? Goal is to be non-harming in body, speech and mind. Let our experience pass through us in a way that does not negatively contribute to the activity of the world.
Don’t make things worse!!!!

[lyle]

“Our relationships are our yoga practice; our practice exists not in some other place or at some other time but in this very interconnected existence of you and I, water and trees, cars and winds, breath and water, rocks and moss, lilies, stars, mind. Our stories about reality create separation, when in fact close examination reveals only the intermingling of forms, coming and going.”

“We can imagine it as a puzzle. If death is inevitable, then the only thing we can change, once born, is birth. How can we change birth once we are born? By simply ceasing to construct a self through which we filter our experiences. In this way, we die into life. What then dies but our self-constructions?”

[Paige Schmitz]

As someone who has casually practice yoga for ~7 years but never invested time into learning about the theory behind it, I gained a lot from this book. I read it during a week of doing 2x daily yoga sessions - it was perfect for growing deeper in my yoga practice. For nonfiction it was still fun to read & I appreciated the authors comparisons to both western culture & typical western yoga practice. This book really opened my mind & gave me an improved perspective on stillness, mind/ body connection, and as cheesy as it sounds, the meaning of life. I was lucky enough to have a physical copy that I gave away to a new friend I made in my yoga class while reading the book

[Kendra Schmid]

I really enjoyed this book! It was like taking my 200hr training all over again. The writing is a bit technical and I think this is better suited to people who are already familiar with basic yogic philosophy and looking to get new insight on those topics. But I found it an illuminating revisit/refresher and felt like it definitely built off of the foundational stuff. Specifically enjoyed the discussion on self/no-self, the reconciling of opposites and death.

My preference is to always have more anecdotes/real life stories to break up all of the information, but for a dense non-fiction, this was quite a lovely read.

[Meghan]

I received this book as an advanced reader's copy for our Non-Fiction section and the demand our patrons have for Yoga. This book was so informative and focused on the basics and the benefits all of the poses ensue and the glossary was very informative and very in depth educating the reader at the same time. The sentiment and meaning behind some of the Ary of Yoga was very inspiring and motivational and definitely brightens the spirit. We will definitely put this book on our list to order. Our patrons will be very pleased. 5 Stars!

[Andrés]

Life transformational book. It came into my life a bit before the covid craziness world and helped my partner and I move through it with grace and humour, even as everyone around us went nuts.

Both my partner and I had rejected Buddhism in our twenties. Stone introduced us to Gautama Buddha, and that improved our lives. And it works as a great reference book, too, putting into clear language and practical guidelines on how to make the psychological acuity and wisdom of Guatama Buddha work today.

5 stars

[Abigail]

'That is why yoga is not about setting up a new belief system, of emptiness, for example, but using the teaching to learn about how we grasp. Then we use the techniques offered by yoga to let go' (185).

'The radical theologian Don Cupitt writes, "We have come to equate religion with holding on, when we ought to have been learning to see religion as teaching us how to let go. [...] We should live as the sun does. [...] It believes nothing, it hasn't a care, it just pours itself out"' (202-3).

[Dave Payne]

Absolutely eye opening perspective into a holistic view of yoga, far beyond poses and stretchy pants. Michael gives a wide and deep view of yoga as a way of life, from ethics and beliefs to supporting practices along with the philosophies and teachings to support them. It is not a book of poses, it is a deep philosophical exploration of yoga. My eyes were opened and mind filled as a read this work. Excellent.

[Ali]

An insightful look into the roots of and purpose of an ongoing yoga practice that incorporates both physical and mental growth and journeys. I connected with Stone’s modern explanation of what exhibiting non-attachment means in practice. At the same time, the book is a bit wandering and sometimes seemingly without purpose.