Veggie Blog

The old version of this post was only a few short paragraphs. It said yoga began in India 3,000 to 4,000 years ago, that it has never been a religion, that about 5 million people in the United States practice it, and that many health professionals feel it can be part of a treatment plan. This rewrite expands each claim and checks the numbers.

How old is yoga, and where did it begin?

The word comes from the Sanskrit for “to join” or “union,” as the old post says. Historians agree that yoga began in India, but they disagree about when. In their introduction to Roots of Yoga, Mallinson and Singleton write that systematic yoga techniques are hard to find in South Asian sources before about 500 BCE, and that popular claims that the oldest Vedic texts prove an ancient yoga practice are speculation. The 3,000 to 4,000 years in the old post is therefore an estimate that cannot be proved. A safer statement is that texts about yoga-like practices date from the first millennium BCE. Our post on Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras covers the best-known classical text.

What are the three parts of hatha yoga?

The old post says that hatha yoga, the kind you see in a gym or YMCA, has three parts: poses (asanas), breathing techniques and relaxation. That matches Harvard Health’s description of a typical class, which starts with breathing exercises, moves on to poses and ends with a final relaxation called savasana. Hatha texts themselves began to appear in the Middle Ages (historians place the first ones between roughly the ninth and eleventh centuries), and the Hatha Yoga Pradipika, written by Svatmarama in the 15th century, is the best known. If you want to know what a modern hatha class looks like, read what hatha yoga is.

Is yoga a religion?

The old post says that yoga has never been a religion. That is partly right. Yoga developed within Indian philosophical and religious traditions, including Hindu, Buddhist and Jain ones, and Britannica describes it as something that may be atheistic or theistic and can adopt different principles. In most American classes it is taught as exercise and relaxation, with some teachers adding chanting, meditation or philosophy. If you are unsure, ask the teacher what a class includes and whether you can skip any part you are not comfortable with.

How many Americans practice yoga?

The old figure of 5 million is out of date. According to the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health, the share of U.S. adults who practiced yoga rose from 5.0 percent in 2002 to 15.8 percent in 2022, based on a national survey, which is roughly one adult in six. In 2012, 94 percent of adults who practiced it did so for wellness-related reasons. Our post on how yoga became popular in America tells that story.

Do health professionals recommend yoga?

The old post said that you may be given yoga postures by a physical therapist, and that many health professionals feel it can be part of a treatment plan. That is a fair statement if it is read carefully. The NCCIH says that research suggests yoga may help with stress, neck pain and some other problems, but the evidence is mixed in places, and it is not a replacement for medical care. Some therapists do use yoga-based movements, so ask your provider whether a gentle practice suits your condition. For the full picture, see yoga explained: what it is, who practices it and what the research supports.

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