Yoga Sadhana Journey

Discovering your Goals

The first step in this journey is understanding your goals. It is well explained below as follows:

• To build “Tapas” — Sanskrit for “self-discipline”

• Answers questions — Who am I? & What is my purpose here?

• Connect mind, body & soul

• Create stillness and focus in the mind (Be Still & Know That I Am God, Psalm 46:10)

• Embody teachings from the yoga texts or scriptures

Defining the Structure of Routine

Initially start with the aim of incorporating pranayama, mantra, meditation, & asana. After a while, Practice the following:

• Asana with focus on the Chakras: 10 minutes

• Pranayama, Nadi Shodhana: 5–10 minutes

• Meditation with Drishti on 3rd eye: 10–20 minutes

With iteration, this can nail down the above routine in a way that worked best for many.

In terms of the order for our practice, we typically practised Asana first to get energy flowing, pranayama second to help expand that energy & meditation last when we felt grounded (and awake). However, on days when we woke up cuddling with our snooze button…

The idea of jumping out of bed to do Asana at 6 AM seemed very unlikely. We should start with pranayama, followed by asana, then ease into meditation on these days.

Technique 1: Pranayama

Pranayama, breathing exercises, has recently gained popularity in the West due to its mental and physical benefits. By practising these techniques extensively, one can keep the mind sharpest ever.  

In Yoga Sutra 2.52, Patanjali writes:"Tata kshiyate prakasha avaranam"

An interpretation of this is that, as a result of pranayama, the covering that blocks our own inner light is reduced. Through the practice of pranayama, you can reduce all of the mental noise — the agitation, distractions, and self-doubt — that prevents you from connecting with your own inner light, your true Self. One can attain this state by creating stillness with the practice of anulom vilom Nadi Shodhana, a technique associated with calming the nervous system.

Technique 2: Asana with Affirmation / Mantra

These rare techniques might be awkward to some, as many skipped this practice in their sessions.  This technique is used to align with our goal of connecting our mind, body & soul as an anchor of the mind.

The 3 parts of this technique incorporated were:

Part 1: Do Asana (poses)

Part 2: While visualising a colored disk/lotus flower (chakra) at a specific point in the body

Part 3: Then activate Mantra syllables (repeating sounds/words)

What can this look like?

The Practice:

Sit comfortably cross-legged (Sukhasana). Imagine a bright white light entering the top of your head and flowing all the way

down to your toes.

The Benefit:

This visualisation feels as refreshing as standing under a waterfall. It clears the body's energy pathways (Nadis), which boosts

your overall physical health.

Technique 3: Meditation

Finding stillness in a world full of noise requires more than just listening to guided tracks; it demands the discipline of single-pointed concentration. While mastering this mental stillness remains a personal, ongoing challenge, the blueprint left by Paramahansa Yogananda offers a clear path forward. He teaches that by gently relaxing the body, closing the eyes, and directing our internal gaze upward toward the space between the eyebrows, we can unlock a state of deep, effortless concentration. True focus isn't about straining the eyes—it is the natural byproduct of a calm, centred mind. 

What do we get out of this?

• A Lifelong Sadhana: What began as a simple 40-day commitment quickly transformed into a permanent way of life. When a practice yields such profound shifts, counting the days becomes irrelevant; it evolves into a lifelong sadhana.

• Cultivating Tapas: Developing tapas (self-discipline) began with the simple act of resisting the snooze button. Over time, the mental clarity gained from meditation fueled the resolve to eliminate mindless distractions, such as social media, creating space for deeper focus.

• Uncovering Purpose: Scepticism regarding whether yoga could reveal a true calling dissolved during deep meditation. An undeniable clarity emerged: a responsibility to share the authentic, comprehensive practice of yoga as discovered and passed down by Indian ancestors. Modern yoga has unfortunately been watered down, reducing an expansive lifestyle to a single element (asana). True purpose lies in using this platform to honour the sacrifices of the past and pass down the full depth of the tradition.

• Embodying the Eightfold Path: Studying the Yoga Sutras introduces the concept of Samadhi—the final stage of the eightfold path, where individual awareness dissolves into the infinite. However, intellectual understanding pales in comparison to actual practice. The profound bliss and sense of total oneness experienced during deep immersion reveal the ultimate goal of yoga.