The Yoga Mind: 52 Essential Principles of Yoga Philosophy to Deepen Your Practice

by Rina Jakubowicz

Enhance your practice and your life with the mindful wisdom of yoga.

The profound inspiration that yoga promises begins not in the body, but in the mind. In The Yoga Mind, internationally renowned yoga expert Rina Jakubowicz takes a simple, accessible approach to the complex origins of yoga philosophy. With clear, thoughtful guidance, The Yoga Mind offers everything you need to deepen your yoga practice and discover a meaningful way of life.

Your complete resource for bringing yoga philosophy off the mat and into your life, The Yoga Mind

Clear explanations of core yoga principles that turn complex theories into memorable lessonsGuided meditations and simple exercises that offer clear, tangible instruction for practicing each principle in your daily lifeA structured approach to vital yoga themes that brings clarity to crucial, but rarely understood, conceptsWhether you read The Yoga Mind cover to cover or skip to a certain topic, you'll find simple actions to incorporate the principles of yoga into a yoga practice that is meaningful to you.

Genres: Nonfiction, Health

201 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 14, 2025

About the author

Rina Jakubowicz has been active in the field of yoga for more than ten years. Known in Miami as a teacher of teachers, her studios, Rina Yoga, continue to serve the community for the past five years. She is an inspiring young author whose first book, Choose Peace, empowers others to feel the potential that they have within and instill motivation for deeper healing."

Reviews

[Cassidy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm not sure what I was expecting this book to be, but it was not what I was anticipating. It's a crash course in a lot of what I learned in YTT and I will say that the side notes from the author (i.e. the "no thank you"s and the "boo"s) were distracting. It was short and digestible and I did have takeaways, but it wasn't as insightful - I guess will be the word I choose - as I was looking for.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reads like a glossary of yoga terms. Probably a helpful accompaniment to other, deeper texts.

[Nancy · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good pocket reference.

[Lorraine · Rating 5 out of 5]

An essential book for any yogi to add to their permanent library. Explains the foundation of yoga, as you live your life day to day and as you bring it to your mat in the most clear and understandable way. Excellent resource with many practices offered and great quotes.

[NicholeReadsWithCats · Rating 4 out of 5]

A solid mix of information for those new to the practice. Wasnt quite what I expected from the description but a good read with a lot of insightful information nonetheless.

[Becky Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 out of 5 stars. This is a great overview of Yoga Principles, and I definitely learned more about Yoga as a whole. It also has some fantastic exercises that go along with each principle. I only gave this 4 stars because it is really just a taste. Each review is very brief. If you want to really learn the principles of yoga this book is a starting point, but much more study is needed. #bookreview #yoga #yogabook #2019readingchallenge #bibliophiles

[Uday Desai · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yoga in capsules

Very good effort to present yoga in very simplified form, accessible to many, and in capsule form. Liked the format of putting each concept in very simple form and giving simple practice for each one of them.

[Rajesh Kannan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book for beginners

This book is a simple reference guide for beginners who are interested in exploring the eight limbs of yoga. S

[lyle · Rating 3 out of 5]

“Absolute reality means there are no prejudices, opinions, or perceptions. For example, let’s say I was taught eggplants are awful because my dad hated them. Does this mean they are awful? If I remove my prejudices, I will see that eggplants are neither awful nor delicious. It depends on the person—implying it is relative truth. If I can remove myself from my own and other’s opinions, I can begin to understand the basis of absolute reality.”

“Practicing a pose by watching someone else or without thinking it through for yourself is a mild form of stealing. Monkey see, monkey do not! You can observe your teacher and learn the general idea of the pose, but you have to come up with your own expression of the pose based on your assessment and understanding. We don’t just want to mimic another person without analyzing if that pose works best for us in that way. Find the pose within your body. No two bodies are the same, just as no two minds are the same.”

“Asana is the third limb from the Eight-Limbed Path, called Raja Yoga. The Yoga Sutras, the source that explains Raja Yoga, describe an asana as a steady and comfortable posture. This indicates that every time we do a yoga pose, we should be steady and comfortable—an unreasonable expectation because of our mental desires and habitual physical patterns. Nevertheless, achieving the poses in this manner is a good goal. Practicing yoga poses is the safest exercise because it uses only your body weight as resistance. You’re also holding poses longer than in dynamic exercises, such as aerobics or sports, so you are less susceptible to hurting yourself. In addition, modifications are offered for all body types and situations. For these reasons, all ages can practice the physical postures of yoga. All for one and one for all!”

“Consider when you are in traffic: You hate it and react (overreact?) to everything (that person who just cut you off, maybe?). But when you watch traffic from a building, it doesn’t affect you at all. This is being a witness. Ideally, you could be in the traffic but see it as if you were in the building so it doesn’t affect you. You remove yourself from the situation emotionally in order to intellectually respond in the best possible way, so peace and harmony are cultivated instead of stress and suffering.”

[Mary Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve considered myself a “yoga beginner” for the past 5 years or so. I go to classes and do the poses at home, but have not gone too deep into the philosophy before. It can be very overwhelming to try to “deepen your practice,” as the title suggests, because there is just SO much yoga information out there. It’s hard to discern what’s great info but not so accessible to a beginner, and what’s just pure fluff.

This book is great for someone who’s just beginning to get interested in understanding yoga philosophy, but doesn’t really know where to start. It’s a very brief overview of several important yogic principles. I like how the author connects each principle to a physical pose as well. It’s a good little reference to keep around.

I still want to learn more about yoga, but now I have a better branching off point!

[Alison · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting, simple, and easy to read. I picked this up on a whim at the bookstore when browsing the fitness and wellness section (specifically looking for books on yoga). This is an excellent read for a beginner who knows pretty much nothing about the practice of yoga beyond what you do on a mat in a studio (me!). Would you believe I had no clue that yoga was something beyond the physical exercises themselves? This was eye-opening for me, and with such accessible writing I finished the whole thing in a little over 2 hours. I would recommend this for anyone interested in the deeper spiritual practices of yoga, and a little bit of history on the subject as well.

[Irida · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great guide book for beginners of yoga. I read the book during a transatlantic flight. I read very easy and I love the well placed quotes throughout the book and the detailed step by step instructions to the practice of key yoga poses. It teaches us about yoga philosophy in such a simple andaest way. I will definitely reference this book again. Love, love love this book

[Q · Rating 4 out of 5]

cool book to introduce you to the complex religion of yoga. i learned a lot in this book that deepens my understanding of the practice and philosophy, but ultimately religion of yoga. there are many many many unfamiliar and words in here that i undoubtedly will forget because it’s so dense. but great educational and practical tool!

[Jess Mackay · Rating 3 out of 5]

I feel I'm being generous with 3 stars. Beneficial perhaps if this is the first ever book you have picked up on yoga. I found the cheesey italics irritating although I understand that their input was to make a heavy subject a little lighter to digest. Maybe?

[Rae · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read via Kindle unlimited. This is decently thorough and a helpful guide but it didn't blow me away either. Lots of practical stuff and it's definitely worth a look through if you have Kindle unlimited.

[StellarDreamzz · Rating 5 out of 5]

great intro book

I was looking for a book to explain the philosophy of yoga in a way that a novice can understand. It’s laid out well and presents the info clearly. It also gives plenty of resources and books if you want to further delve into specific topics.

[alyssapeterson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not a fan of the structure or writing style however acted as a good overview of yoga philosophy for beginners. Also has some useful book and film recommendations at the end to further enhance understanding of yoga philosophy.

[Tannis · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is amazing

I am going through the process of becoming a yoga instructor and this book was so helpful. It explains things in plain language so I understood it but short enough that I didn't get bored. Thank you!!!! For sharing your knowledge with me

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was decent. A good overview and I liked the one-a-week approach to the structure.

[Michelle Alford · Rating 4 out of 5]

Easy read for beginners

I enjoyed the quick reading and exercises. The only drawback was that there were no illustrations of the poses so some I had to Google.

[Tausha · Rating 3 out of 5]

A simple breakdown on the fundamental building blocks of yoga. Nothing too advanced. A good beginning step into the philosophy.

[Rachel Methvin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good basic examples.

[Beth May · Rating 5 out of 5]

WONDERFUL book!

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Basic explainer for yoga principles and the spiritual foundation associated with yoga.

[Dana Bolen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a fantastic introduction to yoga for the newbie like me. The physical aspect of yoga has done wonders for my mental and physical health in the last several months, but this book showed me that the physical exercise portion is just the tip of the iceberg. It is fascinating to learn that so much of the teachings of yoga correspond to my religious beliefs as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. For example, the Latter-day Saint concepts of making moral choices, finding inner peace, recognizing divinity within all people, and giving selfless service are all parts of yoga. This book opened up my understanding of people who have a belief system that I knew little about, and I am happy to say that my esteem toward practitioners of the yoga lifestyle has risen even more.

[autumn ‧₊˚❀༉‧₊˚. · Rating 3 out of 5]

basic stuff, kinda just a vocab guide with some more in-depth applications that are helpful to go back and view if needed. handy and beneficial, but nothing super noteworthy. It got the job done and accomplished what it needed to for me

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

While this is not a difficult read, I took my time with it, thinking on each chapter. I ended up taking 5 years to finish such an incredibly short book.

I think the information in this book is wonderful, information, and very digestible for new yogis. It is a book I can absolutely see myself coming back to. My reason for only giving it 3 stars is that I felt it was too basic for me. Some of these concepts were new, but I wanted a more in depth discussion. Despite my feelings, I highly recommend this to anyone wanting an introduction to yogic theory.

[Alison Shely · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great easy summary!

Easy for beginners and a great way to remind all of us how to use it in our lives every day!