अभ्यासabhyāsa · practice
The practices of yoga, one by one
2 min read · Updated October 17, 2026 · sources checked October 17, 2026
In short
Yoga is practised in many ways: postures (asana), breath (pranayama), seals and locks (mudra, bandha), cleansing actions (kriya), withdrawal of the senses, concentration and meditation, repetition of a mantra (japa), devotional singing (kirtan), steady gazing (trataka), yoga nidra, study of the texts (svadhyaya), selfless service (seva) and worship (puja). Each has its own source and level.
In Sanskrit, practice is abhyāsa, and Patañjali defines it before any technique:
तत्र स्थितौ यत्नोऽभ्यासः ॥ स तु दीर्घकालनैरन्तर्यसत्कारासेवितो दृढभूमिः ॥
tatra sthitau yatno 'bhyāsaḥ || sa tu dīrgha-kāla-nairantarya-satkārāsevito dṛḍha-bhūmiḥ ||
Practice is the effort to remain there, in stillness. It becomes firmly grounded when it is kept up for a long time, without interruption and with devotion.
Whatever the practice below, these three conditions apply: a long time, without interruption, with care. Ten minutes a day kept for years is worth more than an hour now and then.
All the practices at a glance
| Practice | Source text | What you do | Level | Learn it |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Asana, posture | Yoga Sutra 2.46; Hatha Yoga Pradipika ch. 1 (fifteen postures) | hold postures steady and at ease | from beginner | asanas |
| Surya namaskar, sun salutation | modern sequence, twentieth-century Indian schools | a flowing sequence of postures, often with mantras | from beginner | sun salutation |
| Pranayama, breath regulation | Yoga Sutra 2.49-2.53; Hatha Yoga Pradipika ch. 2 | slow, measured breathing, later with retention | from beginner (without retention) | pranayama |
| Mudra, seal | Hatha Yoga Pradipika ch. 3; Gheraṇḍa Saṃhitā ch. 3; ritual and images for the hands | hand gestures; seals of body, breath and gaze | hands: all; great seals: advanced | mudras |
| Bandha, lock | Hatha Yoga Pradipika 2.45-2.46 and ch. 3 | locks of the throat, abdomen and pelvic floor | intermediate | bandhas |
| Kriya or ṣaṭkarma, cleansing | Hatha Yoga Pradipika 2.21-2.38; Gheraṇḍa Saṃhitā ch. 1 | six cleansing actions, from nasal rinsing to abdominal churning | some for all, most with a teacher | shatkarma, jala neti |
| Trāṭaka, steady gaze | Hatha Yoga Pradipika 2.31-2.32 | gaze at a flame or a point without blinking | beginner, with precautions | trataka |
| Pratyāhāra, withdrawal of the senses | Yoga Sutra 2.54-2.55 | let the senses turn from their objects | intermediate | the eight limbs, pratyahara |
| Dhāraṇā, dhyāna, samādhi | Yoga Sutra 3.1-3.3 | concentration, meditation, absorption | from beginner (concentration) | dharana, dhyana, samadhi, how to meditate |
| Japa, repetition of a mantra | Yoga Sutra 1.27-1.28 | repeat a mantra aloud, murmured or silently, often with a mala | from beginner | mantra meditation, mala |
| Kīrtan and satsaṅg | Bhagavad Gita 9.14, 10.9; Bhāgavata Purāṇa 7.5.23 | sing the divine names together; sit in good company around a teaching | for all | satsang and kirtan |
| Yoga nidrā | the word is ancient; the guided method is Swami Satyananda's (1976) | a guided rotation of attention lying in śavāsana | from beginner | yoga nidra |
| Svādhyāya, study | Yoga Sutra 2.1, 2.32, 2.44 | read and recite the sacred texts, observe oneself | for all | svadhyaya |
| Sevā, selfless service | Bhagavad Gita 3.19, 4.34 | serve without seeking a return | for all | seva, karma yoga |
| Pūjā, worship | Bhagavad Gita 9.26 ("a leaf, a flower, a fruit, water") | a daily offering to the divine at home or in a temple | for all | puja |
| Yama and niyama, ethics | Yoga Sutra 2.30-2.45 | non-harming, truthfulness, contentment and the other observances | for all, every day | yamas and niyamas |
How the practices fit together
The texts arrange these practices in two great orders.
Patañjali's eight limbs go from the outside in: ethics (yama, niyama), posture, breath, withdrawal of the senses, then the three inner limbs of concentration, meditation and absorption (Yoga Sutra 2.29). Svādhyāya, discipline and surrender to the Lord, the three practices Patañjali calls kriyā yoga (2.1), run through all of them.
The hatha manuals go from the body to absorption: the Hatha Yoga Pradipika moves from posture (chapter 1) to breath and cleansing (chapter 2), seals and locks (chapter 3), and absorption and inner sound (chapter 4). The Gheraṇḍa Saṃhitā names seven means: purification, posture, mudra, withdrawal, breath, meditation and samādhi (1.10-1.11).
The devotional and active practices, kīrtan, satsaṅg, pūjā, sevā, come mainly from the Bhagavad Gita and the bhakti traditions. They are the yoga of most people in India today, and many ashram days include them alongside asana and meditation. See bhakti yoga and karma yoga.
Practices by level
- Beginner: a few postures for beginners, five minutes of breathing exercises, five minutes of japa or silent sitting, a few lines of a text, one act of service a week.
- Intermediate: a daily sequence with the sun salutation, nadi shodhana with short retentions, the bandhas learned one by one, twenty minutes of meditation, regular study of the Yoga Sutras.
- Advanced: long retentions with the locks, the great mudras, the kriyas that need a teacher, retreats of silence. This is where the texts insist on a guru, and where an ashram or a teacher becomes necessary.
The levels guide details this scale, and what is yoga explains the word itself.
A daily practice that touches every limb
- Intention (1 minute): sit, añjali mudrā, recall one yama you will keep today.
- Posture (10 minutes): a few rounds of the sun salutation, then rest in śavāsana.
- Breath (5 minutes): slow breathing, then nadi shodhana without retention.
- Mantra or silence (5 to 10 minutes): japa on a mala, or sitting with the breath.
- Study (5 minutes): read one sutra or one verse and its meaning.
- During the day: one act of seva, done without telling anyone.
Questions people ask
What are the main practices of yoga?
In the Yoga Sutras: the eight limbs, from ethics and posture to breath, withdrawal of the senses, concentration and meditation. In hatha yoga: asana, pranayama, mudra, bandha and the six kriyas. In the Bhagavad Gita and devotional India: action as service, chanting, study and worship.
Which yoga practice should a beginner start with?
A few simple postures, five minutes of slow breathing and five minutes of sitting in silence or with a mantra. That already touches three limbs: asana, pranayama and the first steps of meditation.
Is yoga only postures?
No. Patañjali gives posture a few sutras out of nearly two hundred, and the Bhagavad Gita hardly mentions it. Postures are one practice among many, the most visible today.
Sources
- Patañjali, Yogasūtra, Sanskrit text (GRETIL, University of Göttingen) checked October 17, 2026
- The Hatha Yoga Pradipika, translated by Pancham Sinh, Sacred Books of the Hindus vol. XV part 3 (1914), Internet Archive checked October 17, 2026
- Srisa Chandra Vasu (tr.), The Gheranda Samhita, Sacred Books of the Hindus vol. XV (1914-1915), Internet Archive checked October 17, 2026
- Bhagavadgītā, critical edition (Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute), Sanskrit text (GRETIL) checked October 17, 2026