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An Introduction to Yoga
These lectures are intended to give an outline of Yoga, in order to prepare the student to take up, for practical purposes, the Yoga sutras of Patanjali, the chief treatise on Yoga. I have on hand, with my friend Bhagavan Das as collaborateur, a translation of these Sutras, with Vyasa's commentary, and a further commentary and elucidation written in the light of Theosophy. To prepare the student for the mastering of that more difficult task, these lectures were designed; hence the many references to Patanjali. They may, however, also serve to give to the ordinary lay reader some idea of the Science of sciences, and perhaps to allure a few towards its study.
This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery.
This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery.
38 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1907
190 people are currently reading
496 people want to read
About the author
Annie Besant
2,097 books151 followersNoted British reformer Annie Wood Besant vigorously supported socialism, birth control, trade unionism, and rights of women; the cause of independence interested her through her involvement with the theosophical society, and she moved and founded the home rule league in 1916 and served as president of the Indian national congress in 1917.
This prominent activist and orator wrote of Irish.
She, aged 20 years in 1867, married Frank Besant but separated over religious differences.
Once free of Frank Besant and exposed to new currents of thought, she began to question her long-held religious beliefs and the whole of conventional thinking. She began to write attacks on the way of the churches in lives of people. In particular, she attacked the status of the Church of England as a state-sponsored faith.
She quickly wrote a column for the National Reformer, the newspaper of the national secular society, to earn a small weekly wage. The society stood for a secular state and an end to the special status of Christianity and allowed her to act of its public speakers. Very popular public lectures entertained in Queen Victorian times. People quickly greatly demanded Besant, a brilliant speaker. Using the railway, she crisscrossed the country, spoke on all of the most important issues of the day, and always demanded improvement and freedom.
For many years, Besant befriended Charles Bradlaugh, leader of the national secular society. Bradlaugh, a former soldier, long separated from his wife; Besant lived with him and his daughters, and they worked together on many issues. He, an atheist and a republican, also tried to get elected as member of Parliament for Northampton.
She then prominently spoke for the national secular society, wrote, and closely befriended Charles Bradlaugh. In 1877, people prosecuted her and Bradlaugh for publishing a book of campaigner Charles Knowlton.
Besant and Bradlaugh, household names in 1877, then published a book of the American campaigner Charles Knowlton. It claimed that never happy working-class families ably decided not want of children. It suggested ways to limit the size of their families.
The scandal made them famous, and people elected Bradlaugh as member of Parliament for Northampton in 1880.
Actions included the bloody Sunday demonstration and the match girls strike of London of 1888. She led speakers for the Fabian society and the social democratic federation of Marxists. She topped the poll and won election to the school board of London for Tower Hamlets, topping the poll even despite few qualified female voters at that time.
In 1890, Besant met Helena Blavatsky, and over the next few years, secular matters waned. She joined as a member and a prominent lecturer on the subject. As part of her related work, she traveled. In 1898, she helped to establish the central Hindu college.
In 1902, she established le Droit Humain, the first overseas lodge of the international order of co-freemasonry. Over the next few years, she established lodges in many parts of the empire. In 1907, she led at international headquarters in Adyar, Madras (Chennai).
She also joined politics. When World War I broke in 1914, she helped to launch to campaign for democracy and dominion status within the empire. This led to her election in late 1917. After the war, she continued to campaign.
In 1922, she helped establish the Hyderabad (Sind) national collegiate board in Mumbai.
She fought, starting with freedom of thought, Fabians, and workers as a leading member of the national secular society alongside Charles Bradlaugh.
She continued to campaign until her death.
This prominent activist and orator wrote of Irish.
She, aged 20 years in 1867, married Frank Besant but separated over religious differences.
Once free of Frank Besant and exposed to new currents of thought, she began to question her long-held religious beliefs and the whole of conventional thinking. She began to write attacks on the way of the churches in lives of people. In particular, she attacked the status of the Church of England as a state-sponsored faith.
She quickly wrote a column for the National Reformer, the newspaper of the national secular society, to earn a small weekly wage. The society stood for a secular state and an end to the special status of Christianity and allowed her to act of its public speakers. Very popular public lectures entertained in Queen Victorian times. People quickly greatly demanded Besant, a brilliant speaker. Using the railway, she crisscrossed the country, spoke on all of the most important issues of the day, and always demanded improvement and freedom.
For many years, Besant befriended Charles Bradlaugh, leader of the national secular society. Bradlaugh, a former soldier, long separated from his wife; Besant lived with him and his daughters, and they worked together on many issues. He, an atheist and a republican, also tried to get elected as member of Parliament for Northampton.
She then prominently spoke for the national secular society, wrote, and closely befriended Charles Bradlaugh. In 1877, people prosecuted her and Bradlaugh for publishing a book of campaigner Charles Knowlton.
Besant and Bradlaugh, household names in 1877, then published a book of the American campaigner Charles Knowlton. It claimed that never happy working-class families ably decided not want of children. It suggested ways to limit the size of their families.
The scandal made them famous, and people elected Bradlaugh as member of Parliament for Northampton in 1880.
Actions included the bloody Sunday demonstration and the match girls strike of London of 1888. She led speakers for the Fabian society and the social democratic federation of Marxists. She topped the poll and won election to the school board of London for Tower Hamlets, topping the poll even despite few qualified female voters at that time.
In 1890, Besant met Helena Blavatsky, and over the next few years, secular matters waned. She joined as a member and a prominent lecturer on the subject. As part of her related work, she traveled. In 1898, she helped to establish the central Hindu college.
In 1902, she established le Droit Humain, the first overseas lodge of the international order of co-freemasonry. Over the next few years, she established lodges in many parts of the empire. In 1907, she led at international headquarters in Adyar, Madras (Chennai).
She also joined politics. When World War I broke in 1914, she helped to launch to campaign for democracy and dominion status within the empire. This led to her election in late 1917. After the war, she continued to campaign.
In 1922, she helped establish the Hyderabad (Sind) national collegiate board in Mumbai.
She fought, starting with freedom of thought, Fabians, and workers as a leading member of the national secular society alongside Charles Bradlaugh.
She continued to campaign until her death.
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
August 21, 2011
I got this book as a freebie on my Kindle App. I have been practicing yoga for a while now and it gave a great history and look at some wonderful ideas about yoga as a whole. It is broken up into different "lectures" and those are broken into different segments as well.
I recommend this for people who have been practicing for a while or even newbies to yoga. Even if you are not into yoga yet and are thinking about it, the book gives some wonderful things to think about. The only thing I had some issue with was I had to go back an re-read some sentences in any given section to really understand it.
I recommend this for people who have been practicing for a while or even newbies to yoga. Even if you are not into yoga yet and are thinking about it, the book gives some wonderful things to think about. The only thing I had some issue with was I had to go back an re-read some sentences in any given section to really understand it.
October 27, 2020
This was a very rudimentary exercise in the study of yoga, and it spends the majority of the time it has on why you should really be reading books in Sanskrit instead (which, to be fair, is quite understandable). There's not much of substance here, and it could have been condensed (even though it already was rather short). As a result, there's really not much to say here in relation to it either.
June 17, 2009
I'm going to finish this book since I'm more than halfway through it. It came installed on my iPod so I thought I'd give it a whirl.
Since I know no Sanskrit or basically nothing about the philosophy of Yoga, I'm pretty lost. I'm reading the words but not really grasping what I'm reading and certainly not retaining.
Would recommend for a newbie unless really interested in the topic and willing to read supplemental material to make the investment of time worthwhile.
FINISHED!
Since I know no Sanskrit or basically nothing about the philosophy of Yoga, I'm pretty lost. I'm reading the words but not really grasping what I'm reading and certainly not retaining.
Would recommend for a newbie unless really interested in the topic and willing to read supplemental material to make the investment of time worthwhile.
FINISHED!
June 13, 2018
This short book discusses the basic principles behind the spiritual aspects of yoga. Its chapters correspond to four lectures delivered at the thirty-second anniversary of the Theosophical Society held in Benares (India) on four consecutive evenings at the end of 1907. While it contains a reasonable outline, the book is hardly an introduction - people who are new to this kind of thinking might be put off by its esotericism. Some background reading in the field would help anybody trying to understand it. I felt it was a little heavy-handed, and Besant’s claim that “Yoga is a science” untrue. Yoga is more of a philosophy, as it lacks the experimentation, measurement and objectivity required of science. However, the book was interesting, as I had not read anything about yoga before.
January 20, 2020
Comes off as a foreword to a larger opus, than a work of it's own. Not as much an introduction to Yoga, as it is an introduction to the philosophies behind it, with the goal of helping one understand the possibilities of choice before them and ends before the actual introduction implied by the title begins.
Taken as what it actually is, though, it is a good book and fairly informative considering it's length.
Here and there Besant lets it show she's convinced of her own intellect over practically everyone elses.
Taken as what it actually is, though, it is a good book and fairly informative considering it's length.
Here and there Besant lets it show she's convinced of her own intellect over practically everyone elses.
March 5, 2020
На удивление прекрасная, ясная книга о принципах йоги как пути трансформации сознания от знаменитой последовательницы теософии Анни Безант в качественном переводе известной писательницы, переводчицы и теософа Е. Ф. Писаревой (1853–1944). Ранее я почти не был знаком с корпусом теософской литературы начала XX в., так что уровень рассуждений и смыслов данной небольшой работы меня приятно удивил. Интересно знакомиться с трудами, сильно повлиявшими на культуру русского Серебряного века.
July 12, 2023
This book was definitely an introduction to yoga. In places it was really hard to read. It was one of those books that you sort of "slog" through like moving through deep mud.
Really, I think that some people would really enjoy this. You just need to be aware that it reads a great deal like a term paper.
It's free, though, so you're out nothing if you don't care for the book!
Really, I think that some people would really enjoy this. You just need to be aware that it reads a great deal like a term paper.
It's free, though, so you're out nothing if you don't care for the book!
September 3, 2023
A couple of nice paragraphs about peace of mind but it’s too rare, the rest of it is pseudoscientific hogwash, orientalist stereotypes of Indians and other weird mystical beliefs of new age spirituality
April 28, 2024
Confusing to me
I started reading it, and to be honest, I'm confused by it. I practice yoga sometimes, but not enough to understand what I am reading. I will have to come back later and try rereading this.
I started reading it, and to be honest, I'm confused by it. I practice yoga sometimes, but not enough to understand what I am reading. I will have to come back later and try rereading this.
July 24, 2020
Extremely complicated and unclear to me
Contrary to the title this is For advanced yoga geeks
Contrary to the title this is For advanced yoga geeks
March 16, 2017
I expected much more from an introduction book, giving me more historical details, about spirituality and maybe some pictures but nothing. If you have 2 hours to spend read it, if not you find books about yoga more interesting as I did.
July 25, 2015
Given what the word “yoga” brings to mind these days, I’ll first note that this isn’t the book for one who’s looking to improve a stiff downward dog, or even an errant kapalbhati breath. There’s no mention of such physical practices. This is a philosophy book--or theosophy if you want to get technical about it. Besant’s definition of yoga makes this clear, “Yoga is the rational application of the laws of the unfolding of consciousness, self-applied in an individual case.” The book is actually a series of lectures by Besant delivered in 1907 at the 32nd anniversary of the Theosophical Society. If it were being released today it might be called “An Introduction to Yogic Philosophy” or “An Introduction to Jnana Yoga” to avoid confusion. Jnana Yoga is the path of knowledge, as opposed to Karma Yoga (the yoga of action) or Bhakti Yoga (the yoga of devotion,) and it’s Jnana Yoga that’s the focus of this work.
I was ignorant of who Annie Besant was when I read this book. I’d heard of the Theosophical Society, but mainly in the context of being an organization that Jiddu Krishnamurti had been a prominent member of, but then had a falling out with. (Given my respect for—and alignment with-- the ideas of Krishnamurti, I must admit that this biased me a bit against the Society.) If you’re not familiar with Theosophy, the name probably gave you a big clue about what it’s all about. The “theos” (as in theology) refers to the divine or godly, and “sophia” (as in philosophy) means wisdom or knowledge. So theosophy is knowledge of the divine and it suggests that a mystical path to knowing god can be achieved. I mention all this so that the reader will be aware that this isn’t “what is yoga?” through the eyes of a Hindu or a yogi as much as it is “what is yoga?” framed by a Theosophist. (That’s not to imply any objectionable biases in the book, just in the interest of full disclosure.)
Having clarified what the book isn’t, it’s now time to turn to what the book is. It’s divided into four lectures. The first is entitled “The Nature of Yoga” and revolves around the questions of what is consciousness, what is divine, and how do they interrelate. The second lecture puts yoga into context as one of the six Indian schools of Philosophy, mostly comparing and contrasting yoga to Samkhya and Vedanta—the schools that yoga is most closely linked to. The third lecture considers yoga as an applied science. The final lecture discusses the practice of yoga. Again this is the practice of Jnana Yoga, and not yoga as it’s practiced today. Besides some discussion of diet and vague statements about how to purify the physical body, there’s no discussion of practices other than Dharana (concentration) and Dhyana (meditation.)
In more specific detail, the book addresses the following topics: the 4 states of consciousness, the 3 aspects of consciousness, the 5 stages of the mind, the 3 gunas, the 5 functions of pain, and the 7 obstacles to yogic progress.
I don’t mean to make it sound like the book is entirely a listopia, but the author is very organized—and, to be fair, a lot of these lists are passed on from ancient works. Given this book is the product is 19th century English, its readability is tolerable—especially considering the complex and abstract concepts under consideration. That said, there’s no attempt to put the abstractions in more concrete terms by way of narrative techniques or the like.
I’d recommend this book for those who are interested in Yoga as a philosophy. If you’re interested in the philosophy of the Theosophists, all the better. Again, it’s not of much value for an individual who wants to know about yoga as an approach to fitness, or even someone who wants a balanced view of the eight limbs of yoga. This book skips straight to the last three limbs, i.e. dharana, dhyana, and Samadhi (union with the divine, liberation from the karmic cycle, etc.) In that way it’s an advanced text, and the term “Introduction” in the title may be more deceptive than the word “Yoga.”
I was ignorant of who Annie Besant was when I read this book. I’d heard of the Theosophical Society, but mainly in the context of being an organization that Jiddu Krishnamurti had been a prominent member of, but then had a falling out with. (Given my respect for—and alignment with-- the ideas of Krishnamurti, I must admit that this biased me a bit against the Society.) If you’re not familiar with Theosophy, the name probably gave you a big clue about what it’s all about. The “theos” (as in theology) refers to the divine or godly, and “sophia” (as in philosophy) means wisdom or knowledge. So theosophy is knowledge of the divine and it suggests that a mystical path to knowing god can be achieved. I mention all this so that the reader will be aware that this isn’t “what is yoga?” through the eyes of a Hindu or a yogi as much as it is “what is yoga?” framed by a Theosophist. (That’s not to imply any objectionable biases in the book, just in the interest of full disclosure.)
Having clarified what the book isn’t, it’s now time to turn to what the book is. It’s divided into four lectures. The first is entitled “The Nature of Yoga” and revolves around the questions of what is consciousness, what is divine, and how do they interrelate. The second lecture puts yoga into context as one of the six Indian schools of Philosophy, mostly comparing and contrasting yoga to Samkhya and Vedanta—the schools that yoga is most closely linked to. The third lecture considers yoga as an applied science. The final lecture discusses the practice of yoga. Again this is the practice of Jnana Yoga, and not yoga as it’s practiced today. Besides some discussion of diet and vague statements about how to purify the physical body, there’s no discussion of practices other than Dharana (concentration) and Dhyana (meditation.)
In more specific detail, the book addresses the following topics: the 4 states of consciousness, the 3 aspects of consciousness, the 5 stages of the mind, the 3 gunas, the 5 functions of pain, and the 7 obstacles to yogic progress.
I don’t mean to make it sound like the book is entirely a listopia, but the author is very organized—and, to be fair, a lot of these lists are passed on from ancient works. Given this book is the product is 19th century English, its readability is tolerable—especially considering the complex and abstract concepts under consideration. That said, there’s no attempt to put the abstractions in more concrete terms by way of narrative techniques or the like.
I’d recommend this book for those who are interested in Yoga as a philosophy. If you’re interested in the philosophy of the Theosophists, all the better. Again, it’s not of much value for an individual who wants to know about yoga as an approach to fitness, or even someone who wants a balanced view of the eight limbs of yoga. This book skips straight to the last three limbs, i.e. dharana, dhyana, and Samadhi (union with the divine, liberation from the karmic cycle, etc.) In that way it’s an advanced text, and the term “Introduction” in the title may be more deceptive than the word “Yoga.”
October 16, 2015
An interesting read into the background and origins of yoga and its involvement with science, spirit, body and mind. Recommended for those who are interested in grasping the understanding of yoga and concepts behind it, so not necessarily those who practice it.
Some of the terminology is a little difficult for someone who doesn't study or understand or have any interest in philosophy or its related areas. Majority of the book, however, is well detailed and easy to determine the ideas being presented even if some of the words and there intent are a little complex.
I received this book for free on my iBooks app :)
Some of the terminology is a little difficult for someone who doesn't study or understand or have any interest in philosophy or its related areas. Majority of the book, however, is well detailed and easy to determine the ideas being presented even if some of the words and there intent are a little complex.
I received this book for free on my iBooks app :)
September 24, 2015
Slightly confusing... tooooo wordy and not enough examples. More of a lesson not a how to!
March 25, 2014
way over my head. might have been good for someone who has been spiritually practicing yoga for a while.
June 12, 2016
Scattered with occasional clarity.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews