In-depth articles on asanas, pranayama, Shatkarma, philosophy, anatomy, and meditation.
This library covers the core subjects taught at Medhya Laya across all teacher training programs. Each article is written for practitioners and student teachers who want more depth than a class description provides. Use it as a study reference alongside your practice.
Sun Salutation — the complete twelve-posture sequence with breath and mantra.
Mountain Pose — the foundational standing posture and root of all alignment.
Triangle Pose — lateral extension, hip opening, and spinal lengthening.
Half Moon Pose — balance, lateral stretch, and core stability.
Swaying Palm Tree — lateral spinal stretch with balance awareness.
Waist Rotation — spinal twisting from standing for lumbar mobility.
Dynamic Chair Pose — strengthens thighs and trains functional squat patterns.
Double Angle Pose — shoulder opening and chest expansion.
Cobra Pose — back strengthening and the first classical backbend.
Locust Pose — posterior chain strengthener and back pain remedy.
Bow Pose — full spinal extension and chest expansion.
Camel Pose — kneeling backbend that opens the entire front body.
Wheel Pose — the advanced backbend that activates the Anahata Chakra.
Cat Pose — spinal flexion and extension for warm-up and back health.
Tiger Pose — hip extension, core activation, and spinal mobility.
Rabbit Pose — deep spinal forward fold and nervous system reset.
Seated Forward Bend — the hamstring and lower back lengthener.
Head-to-Knee Pose — unilateral hamstring stretch and gentle twist.
Half Spinal Twist — the classical seated twist for spinal rotation.
Fish Pose — chest and throat opener, counterpose to Sarvangasana.
Plough Pose — spinal traction and thyroid stimulation.
Shoulder Stand — the queen of asanas and its comprehensive benefits.
Headstand — the king of asanas, technique, and prerequisites.
Thunderbolt Pose — the kneeling posture for digestion and meditation.
Reclined Thunderbolt — deep quadricep stretch and spinal extension.
Peacock Pose — the challenging arm balance that strengthens the wrists.
Lord of Dance Pose — balance, grace, and hip flexor opening.
Plank Pose — foundational core and shoulder strength.
Corpse Pose — the art of conscious relaxation and why it matters.
Three-part breath — the foundation of all pranayama practice.
Skull Shining — rapid exhalations that cleanse and energise.
Alternate Nostril Breathing — balancing Ida and Pingala nadis.
Advanced alternate nostril pranayama with retention ratios.
Bellows Breath — the heating, energising pranayama technique.
Victorious Breath — the ocean breath used in dynamic practice.
Humming Bee Breath — the calming pranayama for the nervous system.
Cooling Breath through the curled tongue — reducing heat and anger.
Hissing Breath — the alternative cooling technique when Sheetali is inaccessible.
Sun-Piercing Breath — breathing through the right nostril for Pingala activation.
Moon-Piercing Breath — activating Ida for calm and inward focus.
Visualisation-based pranayama for awakening the sushumna nadi.
Nasal irrigation with saline water — technique, benefits, and precautions.
Advanced nasal cleansing with a rubber catheter or wax-coated thread.
Stomach cleansing with warm saline water for digestive health.
Abdominal pumping to activate the digestive fire and strengthen the core.
Concentrated gazing on a candle flame for eye health and mental focus.
Abdominal churning — the most powerful digestive practice in Hatha Yoga.
The core principles, four paths, Koshas, Gunas, and the meaning of yoga.
Five thousand years of yoga from the Vedas to modern Rishikesh.
The eight limbs, the definition of yoga, and the five Kleshas explained.
The 15th-century text that defines and systematises Hatha Yoga practice.
Action without attachment — yoga as service and daily living.
The path of devotion — nine forms, kirtan, and purifying the heart.
The path of self-inquiry — Neti-Neti, Viveka, and the witness consciousness.
What Tantra actually is — philosophy, Shakti, and its relationship to Hatha Yoga.
The science of sacred sound — types of mantras, japa, and mala practice.
The three syllables, their meanings, and the silence that follows.
The five vital airs — Prana, Apana, Samana, Udana, and Vyana.
The seven chakras, three main nadis, and how prana moves through the body.
The dormant energy at the base of the spine and how Hatha Yoga awakens it.
What Hatha Yoga is actually preparing the practitioner for.
Bones, joints, muscles, and connective tissue in yoga practice.
The vertebral column, its curves, and how to teach safe spinal movement.
Breathing mechanics, the diaphragm, and the physiology of pranayama.
How yoga shifts autonomic balance and produces neuroplastic changes.
Types of joints, what limits movement, and working with hypermobility.
The key muscles working and stretching in common yoga postures.
Physical correspondences, psychological functions, and practical applications.
Energy channels and the five sheaths of the human being.
Concentration — the sixth limb, objects, technique, and how to build it.
What true meditation is, how it differs from concentration, and how it arises.
The eight stages of yogic sleep — deep rest with conscious awareness.
Candle-flame meditation — external and internal gazing in detail.
Using sacred syllables as the object of concentration and deeper practice.
Developing interoception by moving awareness systematically through the body.
Present-moment awareness in asana, daily life, and its classical roots.
Svadhyaya — watching mental patterns without judgement as practice.