Books to Start Your Yoga Journey

Hiya everyone it's Val! One thing I noticed as I started my yoga journey was figuring out what books to read, and how I can improve my practice and align with the true yoga philosophies and be practicing in the roots. Here are some books I recommend as they have helped my journey!

1. The Yamas and Niyama's: The Yamas and Niyama's are the first two limbs of the eight limbs of yoga; they provide guidelines for living a purposeful life. The Yamas are social ethics, and how we interact with the world while the Niyama's are personal observance and self-disciplines. I always find myself re-reading this book, as I continue my journey reminded me of my dharma in this life

   
   

   

   2. The Bhagavad Gita: This book I got in India, it's a 700-verse Hindu scripture, goes into depth of the four pathways into self-realization, which we know as the four yoga's. A famous person we know as Oppenheimer quoted from the Bhagavad Gita, it's amazing.

3. Eastern body, Western Mind: This book is insane, it will open your mind and make you question your existence. It connects how the chakras, are connected to our traumas and why certain illness, show up and why. Def up there with Yamas and Niyama's.

4. The heart of yoga: Desikachar a guru in his time created a book with love. All the poses, elements, counterposes, meditation, and conscious breathing is in this book, so that the student (you) can develop a practice for yourself.

5. B.K.S Iyengar: the founder of the style of yoga, known as Iyengar Yoga. I couldn't pick in-between the tree of yoga, or light on life so I added all three of his books. The Tree of Yoga brings the yoga practice into your everyday life. The Light on Life, is the guide towards stillness in movement and inner peace. The light on Pranayama, is the guide and art of breathing.

I hope you guys enjoy these books as much as I do! I always catch myself rereading, because the path isn't perfect and sometimes, we nudge ourselves to remember what brought us to the practice in the first place.