Hatha Yoga

Meaning

ह (Ha) + ठ (Tha) = हठ (HaTha)

The word is a combination of two sounds that indicate the forceful nature of the practice. 

Observe carefully the Sanskrit sounds of ह (Ha) and ठ (Tha).

ह (Ha), is the hardest Vowel  sound - and Ha implies a feminine (Yin/Shakti) effect.

ठ (Tha), is the hardest Consonant sound, and Tha implies a masculine (Yang/Shiva) effect.

In other words, HaTha Yoga is a tough practice, that merges the Shakti-Shiva, Yin-Yang, Feminine-Masculine principles within us.

Purpose

Hatha Yoga is actually a psycho-physical practice because the psychic viruses that we accumulate in our journey are physically stored in various parts of the body, manifesting as pain, dysfunction, stiffness, etc. 

Where

Hatha Yoga works at two levels:

• obviously, to cultivate a healthy physical Body, so we have a container fit to hold these subtle energies, and 

• subtly, to fine-tune the Nervous System, like a “Life-Fi” antenna to detect & receive subtle energies.

Compared to Rāja Yoga, the practice of Hatha Yoga is considered a "lesser" practice because it is so body-centric.

What

However, the physical practices of Hatha Yoga are mostly complementary to the subtle energy practices of Rāja Yoga.

The practices of stretching, squeezing, balancing, along with Mindful breathing, loosen up these accumulations in the physical body, and thus lay the foundation of the Yoga-Body, for the Yoga-Mind of Rāja Yoga objectives to dislodge these psychic viruses.

For example doing basic physical Kriyas, involving water, oil, cloth, etc. are usually integrated with Hatha Yoga, to clear out the entire digestive tract, from top to bottom.

Indeed, Hatha Yoga is not as cerebral as Rāja Yoga which is probably a good thing given where the Human brain has led us to in the modern world.

Pinnacle

Since there are a plethora of sites devoted to physical practices, we are elaborating only on a few points at this moment. 

In this respect, the practice of Nauli (gut-churning) is considered the pinnacle of Hatha Yoga practice because it serves all three purposes: 

• fixes the digestive system thoroughly for excellent physical health,

• accesses the deep Vagus nerve, a critical part of our Life-Fi antenna, and

• puts the terrain of our gut on notice, that we are paying attention to the bacteria and viruses that lodge within.

Nauli is worth mastering and practising on a daily basis on an empty belly in the morning. <Pix to follow someday>

Prānāyāma

It’s worthwhile mentioning here that the practice of Prānāyāma, popularly called “breathing exercises”, is an ironic characterization because the ultimate expression of Prānāyāma is in Kumbhaka which actually means to stop breathing!

Getting Started

You could get some ideas from these Asana Pix & Sketches of the author

The simplest way to get started is probably epitomized by Suryanamaskār “sun salutations”.