What is the goal of Traditional Yoga?

Zahir Akram
Sep 22
3 min read

What is the goal of Traditional Yoga?

So what is the goal of original, traditional yoga? (before the man buns, the playlists, and the teachers whispering “feel into your fascia”).

A quick answer can feel baffling. Essentially, the yoga we do today, the postures and the flows, doesn’t really resemble what the first yogis were doing thousands of years ago. So what actually is “traditional” yoga?

Thousands of years ago, yogis believed that man could go beyond the mind - that you could transcend what it means to be human. To achieve this, you practised various concentration or meditative exercises. Not physical postures, but exercises in internalisation. Through sincere observation of these, it was believed you could transcend the limits of human existence.

These days, most of us can’t even transcend the urge to check our phones in the changing room 😏

Yoga was both the journey and the destination. The practices themselves were yoga, and the final realisation - nirvana or enlightenment - was also referred to as yoga.

Fast forward a few thousand years, and a great yogi named Gorakhnath realised something: before man could sit for long hours of meditation, he needed to strengthen and prepare the body. And so Hatha Yoga was born. Not the poses we know today, but physical techniques designed to make the body durable enough to bear the weight of meditation.

Then, in the early 20th century, a yogi by the name of Krishnamacharya (image below) began weaving in movements inspired by Western gymnastics. He introduced shapes like Warrior I, Warrior II, and Triangle into the older yogic framework. His goal wasn’t just to prepare people for meditation, but to prepare them for life itself. Stronger bodies and steadier minds.

So when people say, “We’re not really doing yoga - what we do is just a Western invention,” they’re partly right. But they’re also missing the point.

From meditation to man buns, yoga has taken many shapes - which is fitting, because shapes are what we keep getting ourselves into.

The yoga we all do today is a modern adaptation of older yoga. But that doesn’t make it less yoga. I see it as an entry point. The yoga we practise today is a doorway. Some people will step through that doorway and discover something deeper - perhaps even the original goal of yoga, to go beyond the mind. Most will simply find strength, resilience, or a spiritual connection they didn’t know they were missing.

Both are valid. Both are yoga.

Yoga isn’t ancient or modern - it’s timeless. Which is ironic, considering how long I ask you to hold a stretch.

I made a video on the history of yoga a while ago.

You can watch it here 👉🏽 [YouTube Video]

And here is a very detailed and thoroughly researched biography I wrote on Krishnamacharya many years ago. His daughter even contacted me and thanked me for the article 🙏🏽

Read it here 👉🏽 [My Blog Page]

Namaskar

Zahir

Are you interested in enhancing your yoga practice or teaching skills? Our online training courses are now available, filled with comprehensive content on anatomy, biomechanics, and yoga philosophy. These courses are tailored to support students and yoga teachers in their ongoing development.