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Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga derives its name from the eight-part system of Classical Ashtanga Yoga that traces its origins to a Yogi named Patanjali who lived during the Classical Period of Indian history more than 2500 years ago.  He observed, studied, and eventually systematized and recorded (in the form of 196 short verses, called sutras, or threads) the varied, widespread practice of Yoga that emerged from India’s Vedic traditions.

The eight limbs of Patanjali’s Yoga AshtangaYoga (aka Raja Yoga) aren’t always made obvious in a modern 60-minute Yoga class.  Making beautiful shapes with our bodies is often seen as the goal.  But there is much more to it than that.  

The first two limbs of Patanjali’s Raja Yoga system, the Yamas (Moral Restraints) and Niyamas (Ethical Observances), together form a ten-part ethical code.  The highest value of this code is ahimsa (non-violence).  It’s the foundation for all that follows.

The third limb, Asanas (Postures) is what most contemporary Yoga studios teach today.  And rightly so.  Practicing asanas has powerful effects on not only the body, but also on the mind.  And our minds are often quite noisy places to inhabit.  

The fourth limb, Pranayama (Breath Control), like asana, has powerful effects on both the body and the mind.  It’s a rich practice in and of itself.

The last four limbs of Classical Raja or Ashtanga Yoga are Pratyahara (Sense Withdrawal), Dharana (Concentration), Dhyana (Meditation), and finally Samadhi (Absorption or Self-Realization, or as the Buddha called it, Nirvana). 

Put simply, by observing an ethical code that starts with ahimsa (non-violence), and by regularly practicing both asana and pranayama, an aspiring Yogi can then begin the hard work of calming the vibrations of the mind and traveling the path of deep concentration and meditation that promises to reveal the illusion of separateness for what it is: fiction. 

We are one.  And the nature of the universe is Love.

Today when people say “Ashtanga,” they are most likely not referring (at least not directly) to Pantanjali’s Classical Raja or Ashtanga Yoga.  Instead, they are referring to a modern asana-focused practice more accurately called Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga.

The Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga lineage traces its modern origins to Tirumalai Krishnamacharya (1888 - 1989), a Yoga teacher and scholar at the Mysore Palace in Southwest India.  He is credited with having helped to repopularize the practice of a posture- and breath-focused Yoga called Hatha Yoga (Forceful Yoga).  He did so by teaching choreographed sequences of asanas to a school of flexible young boys, who often gave public demonstrations.  This was part of a broader movement to celebrate and elevate the richness of Indian culture during the period of English colonial domination.

Among his many now well-known students were B.K.S. Iyengar (1918-2014)  and Pattabhi Jois (1915-2009).  Both Iyengar and Jois garnered fame during this period of blossoming global interest in Yoga and Indian culture.  Students from all over the world -- especially Europe and the United States -- began to flock to Iyengar and Jois (among others) starting in the early 1970s.  

At first they came in small numbers, but eventually the numbers grew and grew.  For a Yoga practice that had been traditionally taught one-on-one, one asana at a time, this posed a logistical problem.

Pathabi Jois’s solution to this decidedly modern problem (how to “scale up”) drew upon his experience performing synchronized asana routines under the tutelage of Krishnamacharya: he created a routine.  

Today that routine is known as the “Primary Series” in Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga circles.  Also known as Yoga Chikitsa (Yoga Therapy), the Primary Series consists of 26 postures.  It doesn’t have everything, but it’s a beautiful sequence.  It begins with Sun Salutations, and then moves through standing postures, balancing postures, seated postures, backbends, inversions, seated meditation, and rest.  Intermediate and Advanced Series are available for the ambitious.  

The Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga Primary Series is now practiced all over the world in more or less the same way.  And there are benefits to practicing a dedicated routine.  It becomes an actual Practice, which can support you through some of life’s most difficult challenges.  Because life is not easy.

Many Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga studios offer instruction in what is called the “Mysore style,” which emphasizes teaching students one-on-one, one posture at a time.  Students practice at their own pace, with personal instruction and sometimes physical assistance where needed. 

The Primary Series is also taught in a guided, synchronized fashion.  Practicing in a community is wonderfully motivating. 

Larry Schulz (1950-2011), founder of San Francisco’s It’s Yoga studio, was one of Pathabi Jois’s students.  Larry was sometimes considered the “bad boy” among Jois’s Western students.  Although he took the practice very seriously, perhaps more seriously than most, like many San Franciscans, Larry liked to bend the rules, and question authority.  “How long will it take me to get to Samadhi,” he would ask his teacher, perhaps egging him on.  The answer was always something like, “for you, at least 25 lifetimes.” 

You see, Larry knew a joyous secret: there’s actually nothing on the other side of all these asanas.  Nobody cares if you aren’t doing it perfectly.  It’s about the experience of the Practice.

Larry also had some challenging students of his own, including members of The Grateful Dead, who were going to bed instead of waking up at dawn, which is the “traditional” time to practice Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga.  And since they were on tour, they didn’t have hours and hours to devote to their practice either.  Only 75 minutes. 

So Larry did what any good post-modernist would do: he deconstructed the lengthy Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga sequences he had learned from Pattabhi Jois.  He developed a suite of shorter, progressively more challenging sequences of postures that could be practiced a few times a week in the afternoon, with groovy music. These sequences borrowed from primary, intermediate, and even the advanced series of Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga, reorganized them with an emphasis on injury prevention and joint mobility, thereby making Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga more accessible.  The “traditional” Primary Series was taught on Sundays at It’s Yoga as well.  

One day after class with Larry, one of The Grateful Dead band members took a puff and said something like “dude, it’s like a rocket!  It gets you there faster!”  

And thus was born Rocket Yoga, San Francisco’s bend-the-rules approach to helping a lot of people have fun practicing Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga, while making life a little less miserable along the way.   

Steve Pyka, one of Larry’s students, keeps the Rocket soaring high at AstaYoga. 

We don’t worry so much about achieving the “perfect posture” or doing it the “traditional” way at AstaYoga.  Maybe we’ll find Samadhi.  Probably not.

No Ashtanga Police allowed. 

We’re having too much fun.

Despite our love of mixing things up a bit at AstaYoga, we still do enjoy a little “tradition.”   And so, in gratitude for Patanjali’s great gift to us, we chant the Primary Series opening mantra every Sunday, which we share with you below.

At Naked Yoga For Men | SF we care even less about perfection.  We believe the experience of showing up on the mat and practicing is the point. 

We get naked in celebration of our imperfections. 

Zack and Naked Yoga For Men | SF are grateful to AstaYoga for providing the nude dudes a home. 

Thank you.