Yoga to Be Kidding Me

If you're thinking "what can yoga do for me, sheesh", then you have to read this book. No seriously. Brian Leaf tracks his yoga journey with such hilarity and wit you'd be black hearted not to see the humour in his misadventures.

When he first started out, he did it as a course in college. At that time, it was mostly all women. But Leaf embarked on a quest for health and happiness — visiting yoga studios around the country and consulting Ayurvedic physicians, swamis, and even (accidentally) a prostitute. Twenty-one years later, he teaches yoga and meditation and is the beloved founder of a holistic tutoring center that helps students whose ailments he once shared.

Alright, this one is for the beginners who have no idea what yoga really is, where to start, or how to even embark on an exercise routine. Simple Yoga is a complex subject made accessible. It's easy to absorb, and even comes with diagrams of poses that you can try at home and in the office (!!! so useful). So pluck up that courage and really go for lessons - you can always turn to this book as a guide so you won't look so clueless in classes!

Ten years ago, Claire Dederer put her back out while breastfeeding her baby daughter. Told to try yoga by everyone from the woman behind the counter at the co-op to the homeless guy on the corner, she signed up for her first class.

Poser is more than just a handbook to yoga poses, or a spiritual guidebook that waxes lyrical about the "good life". Claire Dederer, in a very personal manner, pens out and reveals how yoga helped her to be joyful, to be good, to be better. It's witty, sharp and irreverent. But most importantly, it's got plenty of sincerity and heart.

A huge part of yoga is all about the mediation. In so much as yoga can help tone up your body, the exercise is all strengthening one up mentally and spiritually as well. It's a starting point for mediation, and can lead up to a deeper, more intense spiritual connection and release. This book draws upon the tradition of kriya yoga, and features a wide range of yoga postures, purification practices, breathing exercises and meditation practices. Definitely a must-read for the more seasoned yogis who are looking for something extra.

Ever wonder what your body looks like and goes through when you push yourself to stretch and attain that one pose that you've been trying? The Key Poses of Yoga has all the super detailed, anatomically accurate drawings of your muscles that work together to create optimal form in a given pose. So when you look at them, you can pinpoint which are the ones working hard, and which are the ones you have difficulty with. Maybe that will help you understand your body better.

Internationally renowned and bestselling author Donna Farhi moves yoga practice beyond the mat into our everyday lives, restoring the tradition's intended function as a complete, practical philosophy for daily living.

Expanding upon the teachings of Patanjali's Yoga Sutras, the core text of the yoga tradition, Donna Farhi describes yoga's transforming power as a complete life practice, far beyond its common reduction to mere exercise routine or stress management. This is the philosophy of yoga as a path to a deeper awareness of self. Drawing upon her years of teaching with students, Farhi guides readers through all the pitfalls and promises of navigating a spiritual practice.

Did you know that all the orthodox systems of Indian philosophy have one goal? That the liberation of the soul through perfection by yoga. This yoga book is all about Raja-Yoga, and Vivekananda's interpretation of Patanjali's Yoga sutras - the highest authority on Raja-Yoga.

According to him, the goal of Raja Yoga is how to concentrate the mind, how to discover the innermost recesses of our own mind and how to generalise their contents and form our own conclusions from them.

This is not really a book on yoga per se, but Deepak Chopra is such a well known figure in the New Age movement that it is only right that his book gets mentioned.

Through a unique blend of storytelling and teaching, the New York Times bestselling author explores the evolution of God. By capturing the lives of ten historical prophets, saints, mystics, and martyrs who are touched by a divine power, Chopra brings to life the defining moments of our most influential sages, ultimately revealing universal lessons about the true nature of God.

Yoga should be taught by a teacher but if you're looking for a more intellectual, philosophical read, then this one is for you.

Aleister Crowley's work is largely a demystified look at yoga, using little to no jargon or satirical humor. Sounds boring, but it really is quite fascinating. He instructs students on the steps to approach mysticism through Yoga, and details the complications that arise along the path. What Crowley really wanted to do was to dispel the various myths surrounding Yoga in Europe at the time. So this book really, covers, in detail, the philosophical, mathematical, and scientific aspects of yoga. Perfect for the ones who are obsessed with detail and form.

At some point, you're like, "I'm a seasoned yoga practitioner, what's next?" Well - teaching, maybe? Christina Sell's manual is not meant to substitute any certification of classes (you have to for teacher's courses, definitely!). But instead, it is meant to accompany a year-long classroom experience. This is a workbook designed to give support to lectures, reading, group discussion, and experiential exercises. Great for those who want to see if teaching might just be their cup of tea.