The Main Yoga Paths: Select Whichever is Best for You

If you want to understand the definition of yoga in just one sentence,

Free your mind from all complexities and experience a heavenly peace

There have been continuous experiments in yoga and gradually various techniques of other types of yoga have been added to these paths of yoga. I live not far from Guru Ramdev's yoga institute, Patanjali, at less than 200 km, so I have easy access to and can attain bliss.

Whatever method people follow to understand the mystery of yoga at different times and in different places, many yogis have given it a new name after their experiments.

According to Guru Ramdev, our mind is the center of all our thinking and it is its nature to be entangled in ourselves. We are deeply entangled in our thoughts, feelings, and actions. The struggle with thoughts, feelings, or deeds continues in the life of the common man.

Our three-dimensional personality is identified by these three things. On the basis of these three main techniques were created in yoga in the beginning, which are known as Karma Yoga, Jnana Yoga, and Bhakti Yoga.

Let me mention another path of yoga here, the Raja Yoga, but I would like to tell you that it is for the people of the royal class or needs a lot of time requires a lot of effort and a lot of time, therefore I will keep it out of the program of ordinary people like myself.

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I am from India, where yoga originated, and being a yoga enthusiast, I can tell you that the main methods of yoga are Raja Yoga, Hath Yoga, Kundalini Yoga, etc. Some of these methods of yoga are named after the people who started these paths or styles of yoga.

I will explain three popular techniques or methods of yoga.

Bhakti (Spirit) Yoga

It is a spirit based technique in which the spirit of dedication is paramount. A practitioner of bhakta yoga accepts and enjoys whatever he gets in his life without any complaints.

The introduction of any devotee is incomplete without his own God. God can be in any form, so whatever happens in his life, he considers it an offering of his Lord's grace. Overall, the life of a devotee yogi is pompous and simple.

The life of a Bhakta Yogi is basically influenced by his feelings. So there is no place in his life for making complaints on accounts or taking tension like a common man. People who practice this yoga stream are totally satisfied.

Bhakti yoga means complete surrender with a sincere heart. The devotee yogi has no existence of his own. He remains immersed in the devotion of his Lord. In this process, he purifies not only his personality but also the environment around him.

Karma Yoga

This is a karma-based technique. In this, priority is given to karma.

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The knowledge of this method of yoga was explained by Shri Krishna to Arjuna, and the chapter in which it is described in the Indian mythological book Mahabharata is known as Bhagwat-Gita. But let me add that these methods have been proven scientifically and there is nothing religious in them.

The sense of duty is paramount in Karma Yoga. The karma yogi only has to continue doing his duty and leave the worry of the result to God, no matter who you trust. I know the present generation wants a result, and that result is assured in yoga.

You know that a player puts all his ability and strength into the game and waits for the result. Win or lose is part of the game, but the player gives his best. He accepts defeat or victory and moves on with his next performance. Similarly, karma yogis simply do their best with all their devotion, whatever the circumstances. The result is important, but the karma yogi is not worried about it.

(Karmayogi means one who gives his all to his work and enjoys it to the fullest. Whatever the result of his actions, he happily accepts it and continues with his work.)

Jnana (Knowledge) Yoga

Today, we are living in the age of science and knowledge. Each of us is engaged in a quest in our own right. A true jnana yogi (gyan or knowledge) does not accept anything as such but wants to go to the root of anything. But for this he needs multiple sources of information. He tries his best to ensure that his research and experiments help him find the truth.

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But do you think it is as easy to find the truth? No, it's not that easy. There are many facts that make our work a lot more difficult. Sometimes it is not easy to recognize the truth, but the way to reach the truth after filtering through all these is definitely difficult but not impossible. The Jnana Yogi tries to reach the truth by examining everything through his knowledge. Understanding the mystery and difference between truth and falsehood is the name of Jnana Yoga.

The fact remains that these three methods of yoga take you to the same destination, but it depends on which technique you use to reach the destination. This is your personal choice, and if you feel that you are in a dilemma, your guru can help you find your path.

Although yoga is for everyone and you are looking for an easy path, you should go for Bhakti Yoga, because this is the easiest path of yoga.

Let me add here that for a person who is energetic, an extrovert, and wants to try everything and it is not in his nature to sit still, then karma yoga, which is one of the four classical spiritual paths in yoga can help you better.

And finally, if you approach everything with scientific thinking based on logic and have adventurous instincts, then Jnana Yoga is for you. It's all about knowledge and how you want to treat your body in a scientific way.
It would be appropriate that yoga manifest itself in the form of four main paths, namely Karma Yoga, Bhakti Yoga, Raja Yoga, and Jnana Yoga. Now it is your decision which one you choose or if you want to try everything.

*Note: I have not described Raj Yoga in this post because it's a little too complicated for normal humans but mostly practiced by Yogis.

*If you know how to practice yoga correctly, there are immense possibilities in this unique fitness practice for experiments, so one should try which suits them or as prescribed by their instructor.