Yoga as we know it today is practiced to improve overall health and well being. Its roots are in the Hindu tradition, and date back nearly 5000 years. Derived from the Sanskrit word for "union," yoga aims to brings its practitioners close to the supreme being. The exercises we now simply call "yoga" are actually "hatha" yoga. This form attempts to prepare the body for the pursuit of union with the divine, while raising the practitioner’s awareness of creation to a higher level.

There are three disciplines which contribute to this search for union:

The life force, or "prana" is believed to enter the body through the breath. Shallow, rapid breathing therefore inhibits the life force. Hatha yoga focuses on deep, slow, controlled breathing (pranayama) to disperse the energy from the life force throughout the body, resulting in a feeling of calm.

Hatha yoga is the third limb of an eight fold classical system which involves ethical restraints and observances, postures, breath regulation, guided deep relaxation, one pointedness, meditation, and ecstatic state. Coordinates body, breath, and mental focus. Consistent practice over time releases accumulated tensions in the muscles, calms frayed nerves, restructures alignment, detoxifies the blood stream, increases oxygen absorption, changes the brain wave patterns, and induces felicity through improved respiration and hormonal circulation. Well being and clarity become familiar companions.