Yoga is More Than Just Exercise: A Portal to the Supernatural World
Riya Kumari | Jan 29, 2025, 15:50 IST
Yoga is more than a physical exercise. It's an ancient practice that, when done with intention, becomes a bridge to something much deeper—a connection to a part of us we often forget exists. The essence of yoga goes beyond the sweat, the poses, and the desire for a better Instagram shot. It’s a quiet rebellion against the noise and distraction of everyday life, a pathway to rediscover what’s truly important and meaningful.
Yoga is often marketed as a “workout,” a way to stretch out tight muscles and increase flexibility. It’s a word we associate with calmness, peaceful poses, and mindfulness—stuff you do on a mat, in a quiet room, while silently trying not to fall asleep in child's pose. But here’s the truth: Yoga isn’t just about exercise. It’s a bridge to something deeper, more powerful, something beyond the physical. It connects us to a layer of existence that’s often ignored, almost as if we’ve been walking around with a veil over our lives, and yoga is the moment we pull it away.
1. A Path to the Self
Yoga’s true power lies in its ability to strip away the distractions we’ve built up around ourselves. It’s not just about stretching your hamstrings or holding a pose for a certain number of breaths. Those things matter, but only because they give us space to listen. The real essence of yoga is tuning into something you’ve always known but perhaps forgotten. It’s reconnecting to your true self, to the part of you that knows more than the person who spends their days managing emails, checking social media, and running through an endless to-do list. Yoga asks you to stop being busy, to stop running, and to simply be.
In this stillness, the real work begins. It’s not about adding more to your life but subtracting all the things that aren’t you. The more we connect with that quiet place inside, the more we understand that peace isn’t something to achieve; it’s something that already exists within us, waiting to be remembered.
2. Moving Energy, Finding Balance
The idea of energy in yoga isn’t some mystical concept shrouded in mystery; it’s a fundamental truth about how life operates. Think of it like this: everything, from the air we breathe to the thoughts in our minds, is energy. Our body, our emotions, our thoughts—these are all energy in motion. When we practice yoga, we move that energy. We breathe deeply, hold poses, stretch, and twist, not just to strengthen our muscles but to allow energy to flow freely through us. This isn't about being flexible in a physical sense only. It’s about creating a balance, a flow, that moves through our entire being.
In our busy lives, we often block that flow. Stress, anxiety, fear, doubt—they get in the way, and we create resistance. Yoga invites us to let go of those blockages, to acknowledge them, and then to release them. It's not a quick fix. It's a practice. It's a constant unfolding. But the more you do it, the more you start to notice a shift. Life feels less like a constant battle and more like a dance you’re learning to move with.
3. The Power of the Present Moment
One of the most powerful teachings of yoga is its insistence on the present moment. In a world where everything is pulling us in a million different directions, yoga asks us to come back to now. Right now. Forget about your past, forget about your future—what are you feeling, what is your body telling you, what does your breath sound like? We are often so wrapped up in the idea of what’s coming next or what we did wrong that we forget to be present in the one thing we actually control: the moment we're in.
Yoga forces us to focus on what’s happening right now. It asks us to let go of the need to control and simply observe. This practice, although simple, carries profound wisdom. In the moment, we realize that the only thing that ever truly matters is what’s here. Not in the past, not in the future, but in the now. And in that, there is peace.
4. A Spiritual Connection
At its highest level, yoga is not just a physical practice—it’s a spiritual one. And no, this doesn’t mean you have to start chanting mantras or living in a monastery (unless that’s your thing, in which case, more power to you). Yoga, at its core, connects you to something bigger than yourself. For some, it might feel like connecting to a higher power; for others, it’s about a deeper connection with the universe or the life force that flows through everything.
There’s an understanding that we are all connected to something larger—something that transcends our individual selves. It’s not something you always see, but in moments of stillness, in moments when you are truly present, you feel it. There’s a quiet hum of recognition, a sense that you are part of something vast and eternal. This connection is what grounds you, what keeps you humble, what reminds you that you are not just the thoughts in your head or the tasks on your to-do list.
5. The Transformation You Don’t Expect
Perhaps the most significant part of yoga is how it subtly transforms you. You step onto the mat thinking it’s about a workout or a moment of quiet. But it ends up being so much more. You start to notice things you never noticed before. The way your mind reacts to stress. The way your body feels when you relax. How you treat others, how you treat yourself, how you see the world. You begin to see patterns, both in your body and in your life. Yoga doesn’t fix everything overnight, but it gives you the tools to slowly build a life that is more intentional, more conscious, and more aligned with who you truly are.
When you practice yoga, you start to peel back the layers, revealing parts of yourself you might have ignored or forgotten. And that’s where the magic lies—not in mastering a pose or achieving a physical goal, but in waking up to the deeper truth of who you are.
6. Yoga is the Gateway, Not the Destination
Yoga doesn’t promise quick results or easy answers. What it offers, instead, is an invitation: to explore, to connect, and to return to your true self. It reminds us that we are more than just our bodies, more than just our thoughts, more than just our fears. We are a living, breathing connection to something bigger, something deeper.
And if we’re willing to listen, to move, to breathe, yoga can show us the way. It’s not about becoming perfect. It’s about becoming more of who we already are—whole, connected, and deeply at peace with the present moment. So, the next time you step onto the mat, remember that it’s not just exercise. It’s the start of something far more powerful: a journey back to yourself.
1. A Path to the Self
Yoga
( Image credit : Times Life Bureau )
Yoga’s true power lies in its ability to strip away the distractions we’ve built up around ourselves. It’s not just about stretching your hamstrings or holding a pose for a certain number of breaths. Those things matter, but only because they give us space to listen. The real essence of yoga is tuning into something you’ve always known but perhaps forgotten. It’s reconnecting to your true self, to the part of you that knows more than the person who spends their days managing emails, checking social media, and running through an endless to-do list. Yoga asks you to stop being busy, to stop running, and to simply be.
In this stillness, the real work begins. It’s not about adding more to your life but subtracting all the things that aren’t you. The more we connect with that quiet place inside, the more we understand that peace isn’t something to achieve; it’s something that already exists within us, waiting to be remembered.
2. Moving Energy, Finding Balance
Meditation
( Image credit : Times Life Bureau )
The idea of energy in yoga isn’t some mystical concept shrouded in mystery; it’s a fundamental truth about how life operates. Think of it like this: everything, from the air we breathe to the thoughts in our minds, is energy. Our body, our emotions, our thoughts—these are all energy in motion. When we practice yoga, we move that energy. We breathe deeply, hold poses, stretch, and twist, not just to strengthen our muscles but to allow energy to flow freely through us. This isn't about being flexible in a physical sense only. It’s about creating a balance, a flow, that moves through our entire being.
In our busy lives, we often block that flow. Stress, anxiety, fear, doubt—they get in the way, and we create resistance. Yoga invites us to let go of those blockages, to acknowledge them, and then to release them. It's not a quick fix. It's a practice. It's a constant unfolding. But the more you do it, the more you start to notice a shift. Life feels less like a constant battle and more like a dance you’re learning to move with.
3. The Power of the Present Moment
Balance
( Image credit : Times Life Bureau )
One of the most powerful teachings of yoga is its insistence on the present moment. In a world where everything is pulling us in a million different directions, yoga asks us to come back to now. Right now. Forget about your past, forget about your future—what are you feeling, what is your body telling you, what does your breath sound like? We are often so wrapped up in the idea of what’s coming next or what we did wrong that we forget to be present in the one thing we actually control: the moment we're in.
Yoga forces us to focus on what’s happening right now. It asks us to let go of the need to control and simply observe. This practice, although simple, carries profound wisdom. In the moment, we realize that the only thing that ever truly matters is what’s here. Not in the past, not in the future, but in the now. And in that, there is peace.
4. A Spiritual Connection
Yoga as a Spiritual Practice
( Image credit : Pexels )
At its highest level, yoga is not just a physical practice—it’s a spiritual one. And no, this doesn’t mean you have to start chanting mantras or living in a monastery (unless that’s your thing, in which case, more power to you). Yoga, at its core, connects you to something bigger than yourself. For some, it might feel like connecting to a higher power; for others, it’s about a deeper connection with the universe or the life force that flows through everything.
There’s an understanding that we are all connected to something larger—something that transcends our individual selves. It’s not something you always see, but in moments of stillness, in moments when you are truly present, you feel it. There’s a quiet hum of recognition, a sense that you are part of something vast and eternal. This connection is what grounds you, what keeps you humble, what reminds you that you are not just the thoughts in your head or the tasks on your to-do list.
5. The Transformation You Don’t Expect
Deep Thinking
( Image credit : Times Life Bureau )
Perhaps the most significant part of yoga is how it subtly transforms you. You step onto the mat thinking it’s about a workout or a moment of quiet. But it ends up being so much more. You start to notice things you never noticed before. The way your mind reacts to stress. The way your body feels when you relax. How you treat others, how you treat yourself, how you see the world. You begin to see patterns, both in your body and in your life. Yoga doesn’t fix everything overnight, but it gives you the tools to slowly build a life that is more intentional, more conscious, and more aligned with who you truly are.
When you practice yoga, you start to peel back the layers, revealing parts of yourself you might have ignored or forgotten. And that’s where the magic lies—not in mastering a pose or achieving a physical goal, but in waking up to the deeper truth of who you are.
6. Yoga is the Gateway, Not the Destination
Pray
( Image credit : Pexels )
Yoga doesn’t promise quick results or easy answers. What it offers, instead, is an invitation: to explore, to connect, and to return to your true self. It reminds us that we are more than just our bodies, more than just our thoughts, more than just our fears. We are a living, breathing connection to something bigger, something deeper.
And if we’re willing to listen, to move, to breathe, yoga can show us the way. It’s not about becoming perfect. It’s about becoming more of who we already are—whole, connected, and deeply at peace with the present moment. So, the next time you step onto the mat, remember that it’s not just exercise. It’s the start of something far more powerful: a journey back to yourself.