Yoga: introducción a los principios y a la práctica de una antiquísima tradición

by Georg Feuerstein

Georg Feuerstein es doctor en Filosofia y licenciado en indologia e Historia de la religion. Como especialista independiente, dirige las revistas Yoga Journal, Inner Directions y Intuition, en las que tambien colabora. Ha publicado casi treinta libros, entre los que destacan Living Yoga y Holy Madness. El objetivo de esta perspectiva general de los fundamentos del yoga—entendido no solo como un sistema de ejercicios sino como una tradicion espiritual madura—es proporcionar a los estudiantes noveles unos conocimientos mas amplios y profundos sobre la materia. El libro presenta todos los elementos basicos de esta antigua disciplina y filosofia de la India e incluye traducciones recientes de extractos de las escrituras. En el se ha dedicado especial atencion al tantra, una de las ramas del yoga, que, aunque ofrece dificultades de interpretacion, despierta un gran interes entre los estudiantes occidentales. Entre los temas tratados figuran: las principales ramas del yoga, los principios morales, la meditacion y la concentracion, el control de la respiracion, los ejercicios fisicos del hatha yoga, la dieta los mantras, sonidos sagrados del poder, la poderosa energia espiritual conocida como kundalini, la transmutacion de la energia sexual, sugerencias sobre otras lecturas y fuentes.

Genres: Reference, Nonfiction

175 pages, Hardcover

First published May 28, 1998

About the author

Georg A. Feuerstein was an Indologist and, according to his associate Ken Wilber, among the foremost Westerns scholar-practitioners of yoga. After doing his postgraduate research at Durham University in England, he moved to the United States, eventually settling in Canada with his wife and sometime co-author Brenda.

Reviews

[Dennis Littrell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Indispensable, lively and a pleasure to read

This book stands alone in English. There is simply nothing else like it. Feuerstein is the leading academic expert on yoga in the United States while Shambhala is the leading publisher of books on yoga, so it is not surprising that this is clearly a superior work that fills a void. As such it is a boon to scholars and practitioners alike.

It is also very well cross-referenced so that a reader may, by following the starred words, begin or expand his own study of yoga. There is a guide to pronunciation of the Sanskrit words, numerous bits of black and white artwork and photos, and an engaging and informative introduction by Feuerstein. This handsome book has all those words that you won't find in even an unabridged English dictionary, defined and given their expression in an historical and spiritual context. Anyone with more than a passing interest in yoga will find this book invaluable.

I should add that this is a revised and greatly expanded edition of Dr. Feuerstein's Encyclopedic Dictionary of Yoga (1990), and that it dwarfs both Ernest Wood's Yoga Wisdom (1970) and Harvey Day's Yoga Illustrated Dictionary (1971), which I have enjoyed, but which are also very much out of date.

For Dr. Feuerstein's revision (due circa 2010, I would imagine) perhaps some entries on Westerners (and contemporaries) who have contributed to the study and practice of yoga would be appropriate, including, e.g., Theos Bernard (I was pleased to see eleven photos herein of Bernard demonstrating asana), Richard Hittleman, B.K.S. Iyengar, Swami Vishnudevananda, and others.

Bottom line: this is an up to date, thorough, and lively work of reference without peer.

--Dennis Littrell, author of “Yoga: Sacred and Profane (Beyond Hatha Yoga)”

[Diane · Rating 5 out of 5]

a great reference work and a must have for any yoga enthusiasts, or academics researching yoga. Feuerstein provides concise information, that is clear with references to a large number of texts.

[Oaktreeyoga Recommended · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent encyclopaedia of all things yoga