Yoga is a Sanskrit word. It means, communion. In spiritual realm, it’s communion with the greatest Truth (you may call it God if you like) to achieve freedom. Many people believe it is a type of exercise, chiefly for the human body and so resulting in a peaceful mind. It’s not so. It’s a very vast subject like a sea.
Physical exercise
The branch that deals with the physical exercise is only a drop in the sea. It’s a process which eases to unite our spirit with the supreme Truth or the Universal Self. This can’t be accomplished easily. Hindus believe in the reincarnation. Yoga teaches how to terminate the cycle of birth and death and become liberated. It concludes that someone could terminate the cycle of birth and death by four distinct procedures.
In Sanskrit, they’re called, Bhakthi-Yoga, Karma-Yoga, Raja-Yoga and Gnana-Yoga. Bhakthi-Yoga is the process of realisation of this fact by way of the complete and perfect love. There’s absolutely not any place for hate. But the material world is full of imperfections. Bhakthi-Yoga teaches the methods by which a true seeker of the truth can merge with the universal self. Thereby he stops the cycle of birth and death and attain freedom.
Karma
Karma means Work. Everyone of us born in this world is involved in one activity or another from the time of birth until our last breath. Sleeping is also an action. We stop our actions only if we die. Karma-Yoga explains how someone could live in this world by performing his ordained responsibilities and ultimately realise the Truth and attains to liberty. Thus he quits being born again. Raja-Yoga describes the process of realizing the truth by way of psychic control. Here is where the modern day interpretation of Yoga plays a role.
Psychic control requires physical exercise followed by control of the brain. Meditation plays an essential part here. Perfect concentration of the mind towards the ultimate Truth lead him to realise the Truth. Gnana-Yoga is developed on the conclusion that someone can realise the Self and merge with the Universal Self by mean of Gnana. The English closest interpretation for Gnana is Knowledge or Wisdom. So long a man is ignorant of how this world is just real and there’s nothing more than that and won’t believe that there’s not any underlying principle behind this material world, that individual can’t attain the Truth.
Conclusion
Once the veil of ignorance is removed, that person attains the wisdom. He’ll become a free bird having two wings, one is named Vairagya (determination) and another Viveka (discrimination) and merges with the Ultimate Reality. That individual attains freedom. Healthy body results in healthy mind results in happy life. The physical exercise division of Yoga combined with meditation part is nonetheless come in handy to lead a happy life.