Classical texts, modern questions
What the sources actually say — and what they don't. Every page keeps four things apart: direct textual evidence, when and why the text was written, how the tradition reads it, and what modern research can support.
Asana in the Pradipika
What Does the Hatha Yoga Pradipika Say About Asana?
Fifteen postures, mostly seated, presented as the first stage of hatha — and why that matters for how we read modern pose libraries.
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Sthira sukham asanam
What Does Patanjali Mean by “Steady and Comfortable”?
Sutra 2.46 and the two verses that complete it — and why 'steady and comfortable' was never advice about how deep to go.
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The eight limbs
What Are the Eight Limbs of Yoga?
Patanjali's eight limbs in the text's own terms, with the ethical limbs restored to their place at the start.
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Pranayama in the Sutras
Pranayama in the Yoga Sutras
Five verses, no techniques — what Patanjali actually claims for breath regulation, and how hatha filled in the method.
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Mudras in the Pradipika
Mudras in the Hatha Yoga Pradipika
Ten mudras from chapter three — whole-body practices with bandha and retention, not hand gestures.
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The seven limbs
The Seven Limbs of the Gheranda Samhita
A seven-limbed path with cleansing first and asana second — the most systematic of the hatha manuals.
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Classical vs modern
Classical Yoga Versus Modern Postural Yoga
What genuinely changed between the texts and the modern studio — in aim, repertoire and setting — and what survived.
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How many asanas
How Many Asanas Are Described in Classical Texts?
The real counts text by text, and the honest story behind the number 84.
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Longevity in the texts
What Do Classical Texts Say About Longevity?
Prana, bindu and the counted breath — the classical logic of long life, kept separate from what research can show.
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Immortality claims
Does Classical Yoga Promise Immortality?
What the verses about conquering death actually say, the range of traditional readings, and our own position.
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Read the sources
These guides answer questions. For the texts themselves, chapter by chapter, start with the library.