Good Introductions to Advanced Yoga?

[Tor SR]

Hi.
This might have been covered umtied times before, but as a new member, I am looking for good introductions to advanced yoga.
I found "Hatha Yoga: Hidden Language" to be more of an introduction to the philosophy and less about the practice, and wanted to ask here before making any purchases.

Thank you,
Namaste

[Meryl]

Hi Isreal:

I don't really have an answer for you so hopefully someone else will chime in. I mostly know of basic hatha yoga books, not advanced ones. My favorite remains the Sivananda Yoga classic although there are many great basic hatha books.

If you do find a good book, please report back!

[Tor SR]

Hi Meryl.
Well, I'd love to get the names of those Hatha books. Like I said, I was dissapointed with Hatha Yoga: The Hidden Language, as it seems to neither present any formal approach to yoga, nor show how one actually practices it fully; but rather goes on and on about how the positions are important and how they relate to concrete things.
My own approach to yoga is that is is a another form of meditation, that, with practice, it becomes second nature and a holistic approach to solving the human condition.
Would the Yoga Sutras be of any use, do you think?

Namaste.

[Meryl]

Hi Isreal:

The yoga sutras aren't about the physical postures, but rather about working with the mind. Great to read (best are versions that have commentaries on each sutra, since their hard to understand), but I had understood from your question that you were looking for a book on the postures themselves.

[Tor SR]

Meryl wrote: "Hi Isreal:

The yoga sutras aren't about the physical postures, but rather about working with the mind. Great to read (best are versions that have commentaries on each sutra, since their hard to un..."

Yes and no. Not /just/ an illustration, or overview, of the exact postures, which can be obtained easily, but a complete overview of the... nature of yoga.
I guess I'm asking for a lot, though I imagine the market is pretty well covered... as "yoga" no doubt is copyrighted by some far-thinking yogi; What I was looking for, to try and be exact, is an overview of yoga life... An advanced description of the preparation, mind set, expectations, and practice of yoga as a spiritual path... Something which both introduces, but also details how yoga works, how it affects the mind + body, what it produces and why it is important... Something between a spiritual guide and a scientific study. I.e. something like Shankara's "Bhagavad Gita" (which details the mindset and preparation of yoga) but that also presents how, in detail, it is done, and what it does, and how it is practiced by advanced students or yogis.
In brief: "What it is, and how it is done".

Apologies for my high demands...

(PS. (btw) Have you read "American Veda: From Emerson and the Beatles to Yoga and Meditation - How Indian Spirituality Changed the West", Meryl?)

[[deleted user]]

I'm currently halfway through Yoga Sutras of Patanjali by Swami Satchidananda and find the commentary to be top notch!!

[Alison]

I would recommend Mindfulness Yoga by Frank Jude Boccio. He combines Buddhism and Yoga and provides suggestions for practicing Yoga and Meditation. If you are not including meditation practice, you are not doing Yoga.