Is Yoga Just About the Postures? A Beginner’s Guide to the Bigger Picture
🌿 Updated for You – May 2025: This post was one of the first I ever wrote. I’ve now refreshed it with new insights from recent research and a clearer path for beginners who are curious about what yoga is really all about. Whether you’re new to yoga or have been practising for a while, I hope you enjoy this deeper dive.
Do you think yoga is just stretching or twisting your body into odd shapes?
🎧Listen now: “Is Yoga Just About the Postures? A Beginner’s Guide to the Bigger Picture”
You’re not alone. Over the years of teaching, I’ve met many yoga students — even those practising not just since yesterday — who believe yoga is mainly about the physical postures. In Sanskrit, these are called asanas.
And while it’s true that the postures are an important part of the practice, they’re just the tip of the iceberg. Yoga is a complete system for living with greater calm, clarity, and strength — and it has been evolving for thousands of years.
Let’s take a moment to explore the bigger picture — and where the postures actually fit in.
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The History of Yoga: A Living Tradition
The history of yoga isn’t linear; it’s more like a river with many streams feeding into it. And for a long time, much of that history was unclear. The deeper roots of yoga were passed down orally, and written records were scarce or difficult to access.
However, a recent research project, the Hatha Yoga Project, led by SOAS University in London, has uncovered new insights. By translating over 200 ancient manuscripts and tracing yoga’s evolution, the project revealed that:
Early yoga wasn’t focused on postures.
Some of the first references to physical yoga (Hatha Yoga) actually appeared in Buddhist texts.
The postures were initially tools to prepare the body for breathing techniques, inner work, and deep meditation, not ends in themselves.
In short, what we call yoga today has grown out of a long, rich tradition, and the postures we know and love are just one part of it.
The Main Yoga Texts: What They Teach Us
Yoga has been shaped by many ancient texts, each offering a slightly different lens. Let’s look at three of the most influential — and why they still matter today.
The Bhagavad Gita
This text is over 2,000 years old. It tells the story of the warrior prince Arjuna, who breaks down on the battlefield, and his charioteer, Krishna, who gently guides him back to strength and purpose.
The Bhagavad Gita introduces different pathways to self-realisation, which later became known as the four yogas: meditation (dhyana yoga), insight and intuition (jnana yoga), righteous action (karma yoga), and loving devotion (bhakti yoga). Chapter XIII, verses 24–25.
Individually, they have been explained:
Karma Yoga: acting without expecting anything back from our actions, expounded in Chapter 3.
Jnana Yoga: understanding our actions and acting accordingly, in Chapter 4.
Dhyana Yoga: on how to control the mind through meditation; Chapter 6.
Bhakti Yoga: the yoga of devotion, seeing the divine in each and every one, Chapter 12.
Each path recognises that we’re all different, and that yoga can meet us where we are.
The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali
Written around 1,500 years ago, this is one of yoga’s most well-known philosophical guides in the Western world. Patanjali defines yoga as:
“Yoga is the stilling of the movements in the mind.”
Only three out of the 196 sutras mention postures. Instead, the focus is on calming the mind and overcoming the obstacles to peace through a step-by-step process called the eight limbs of yoga, which include ethics, breath, meditation, and concentration.
The Yoga Sutras are a wonderful resource for understanding how our minds work — and how to find clarity, even in difficult times.
Curious about the Yoga Sutras? Read more here.
The Hatha Yoga Pradipika
This 15th-century text marks a shift in yoga’s focus toward the body, but not in the way we might think.
It introduces 15 key asanas (out of 84) chosen not for flexibility or strength, but for their healing benefits. For example:
Paschimottanasana (Seated Forward Fold): stimulates digestion and removes disease.
Mayurasana (Peacock Pose): is said to digest even the strongest poison!
Siddhasana (Adept’s Pose): strengthens the spine and purifies subtle energy channels.
Asanas in this tradition are designed to cleanse and balance the body, allowing breathing practices (pranayama) and meditation to unfold with ease. The text also gives guidance on diet and daily routine, echoing many principles found in Ayurveda.
My favourite line from the Haṭhapradīpikā is this:
“Anyone who is not lazy in the pursuit of yoga, whether young, old, very old, ill, or weak, attains success through practice.” (1.64)
Isn’t that beautifully encouraging?
This is also where my personal journey with yoga began.
I lived with daily back pain and body aches for over a decade due to scoliosis. At the time, I thought that was just my normal. But after my very first yoga session, I was in heaven. The pain was gone. Completely. Over time, yoga gave me back strength, mobility, and confidence.
That’s why the Hatha Yoga Pradipika speaks to me so deeply. It reminds us that the postures are not about achieving shapes. They’re about healing the body so we can breathe, sit, and live with more ease.
So… What Is Yoga, Really?
Yoga is about so much more than movement. The postures are like stepping stones — they help us feel better, breathe more deeply, and prepare the body to sit quietly and tune in.
Many people come to yoga with back pain, stiff hips, sore shoulders, or feeling stressed and disconnected. And that’s okay — it’s a great place to start. In fact, it’s exactly where yoga wants to meet you.
Practising postures can help you:
Strengthen and heal the body
Support digestion and circulation
Calm the nervous system
Reset your energy
Feel more like yourself again
In fact, studies have shown that regular yoga practice can reduce chronic low back pain and improve daily function. (source)
The breath we use in yoga also plays a powerful role. Deep, rhythmic breathing switches on the rest-and-digest response, calming the mind and soothing the entire system. Over time, you may begin to notice a quietness underneath the surface. That’s the beginning of something deeper.
Yoga teaches that this calm, peaceful state is our natural state — it’s just been covered up by stress, worry, or habits of overthinking.
And the best part? You can access it at any time.
New to Yoga? Here’s What to Expect
If you're new to yoga, you might be wondering:
“What if I’m not flexible?”
“Will I be the only beginner?”
“What if I can’t keep up?”
These are completely normal questions — and the good news is: you’re not alone, and you’re not expected to know anything before you begin.
Yoga is not about touching your toes or doing handstands (though those things can come later if you want them to!). It’s about reconnecting with your body, calming your nervous system, and moving in a way that feels good.
When you join a beginner-friendly class or course, you can expect:
A warm welcome — no judgment, no pressure
Simple, clear instructions — everything is explained step by step
Adaptable poses — there’s always a way to make a pose work for you
Guided breathing — one of yoga’s most powerful tools for managing stress
Time to slow down — you won’t be rushed or pushed into anything
Space to ask questions — whether you're curious about poses or philosophy
Each week builds on the last, gently improving your strength, posture, and flexibility. And over time, something subtle begins to shift. You may sleep better. Feel calmer. Begin to breathe more deeply, more often.
Many of my students come to yoga feeling tight, tired, or stuck — and leave class feeling lighter, clearer, and more at ease.
So if you’ve been thinking, “Maybe I should try yoga, but I’m not sure where to start,” — consider this your invitation.
You don’t need to be flexible. You don’t need to have the right clothes or gear. You just need to be open to giving it a try.
Try It Now: Legs Up the Wall
Want to feel what I’m talking about?
Viparita Karani, a mudra (body gesture) from the Hatha Yoga Pradipika, now slightly adapted as legs up the wall:
Lie down and bring your legs up to a wall (or rest them on a chair/sofa).
Place a thin cushion under your head, letting it support your neck.
Place a thicker cushion or blanket underneath your pelvis for elevation.
Close your eyes. Let your breath slow down.
Stay here for 3–5 minutes. Don’t worry if your mind stays busy. Focus on how your body and breath feel.
Or press here for a short breathing guide. You can practise it either lying down or seated.
How do you feel now? This is the potential of yoga. Even this short practice creates a shift.
Let’s recap what we covered today:
Yoga isn’t just about the postures — it’s a whole system designed to help you live with more calm, clarity, and balance.
The postures came later in yoga’s evolution, and were originally used to support breathwork and inner stillness.
Texts like the Bhagavad Gita and Yoga Sutras remind us that there are many paths in yoga — and each of us can find the one that fits.
The Hatha Yoga Pradipika introduced postures as tools for healing, not performance — and this is where my own healing journey began.
Even simple practices, like lying with your legs up the wall or breathing mindfully for a few minutes, can shift how you feel — body, mind, and spirit.
Final Thoughts: Start Where You Are
You might still be thinking, “I’m just here for the postures.” And that’s absolutely fine.
What matters is that it works. Even a short practice can help you feel calmer, more grounded, and more like yourself. That changes how you show up — for your family, for your work, and for your own well-being.
And if you ever feel curious to go deeper, to explore how your breath shapes your mind, or how ancient philosophy can support your modern life, the teachings of yoga are here for you.
One step, one breath, one posture at a time.
Live inspired.
