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INTRODUCTION

As described in the foreword, this work is intended for those who are just beginning to deal more intensively not only with physical practice, but also with the historical and philosophical background of hatha yoga.

Some people who want to go deeper into Indian spiritual philosophy may be a little disappointed because I will sketch it here only very briefly. For those who would like to learn more in this direction, I can recommend such excellent works as "The Deeper Dimension of Yoga" by Georg Feuerstein.

Nonetheless, my hope is that these readers will also discover new sources of inspiration and aspects that will enable them to explore their physical and meditative practice in even greater depth.

I have deliberately abstained from using lots of Sanskrit words, as I feel this would make it more difficult to read. Moreover, I understand yoga as a spiritual discipline that is universal and can be described by parallels in our traditions in the West. If you read the writings of Hildegard von Bingen or Meister Eckhart, to name only two self-realized persons from our own latitudes, it becomes apparent that the essence of yoga cannot be reduced to India alone.

Furthermore, as mentioned above in the foreword, we have in the life's work of Paul Brunton an almost inexhaustible source of spiritual wisdom that combines the best of East and West.

In the coming chapters I would like to take us all on an unusual journey: from the body to the Overself. As with all journeys, there is the danger of stopping somewhere along the way. Perhaps where you are now is too beautiful to continue; or the obstacles you have to overcome are too difficult and you give up; or you have simply lost your way and have arrived somewhere you did not want to be.

Either way, we have lost sight of the big picture. But so that this does not happen to us, I will remind us of the reason for our journey at each stage on the way. The quotations by Paul Brunton will also accompany us and serve us as an orientation.

The journey begins with the question of what hatha yoga exactly is and what relevance it might have for the person of the 21st century.