Yoga English – Yoga Philosophy | English Vocabulary & Exercises
Yoga English
Yoga English – Yoga Philosophy
Balance, Awareness, Discipline, Acceptance, Non-Judgement & Personal Development
Explore some of the ideas connected with Yoga while developing
the English you need to describe experiences, express opinions,
compare ideas and discuss more abstract questions.
From movement to ideas
Yoga can begin with the body, but it does not have to end there.
It can also become a starting point for
conversation about ideas.
We may begin with a simple physical question:
How do you keep your balance?
But the idea of balance can quickly become much broader.
What does it mean to have balance in our lives?
How much time should we spend working, resting,
exercising, thinking or simply doing nothing?
The same can happen with awareness.
During Yoga, we may become aware of tension in the shoulders
or notice that we are holding our breath.
But awareness can also mean noticing our
habits, emotions, reactions and
thoughts.
Yoga therefore gives us a natural bridge from
physical experience to abstract conversation.
This is particularly valuable for English learning because
abstract topics require richer language.
I think... •
In my experience... •
It depends on...
On the one hand... •
On the other hand...
I'm not sure whether... •
I would distinguish between...
We also need words that allow us to talk about values,
behaviour and personal development.
Words such as discipline, patience, acceptance,
awareness, balance, attachment, judgement, effort
and habit create many possibilities for discussion.
The aim here is not to tell you what Yoga philosophy must mean.
It is to use its ideas as a starting point for
thinking, questioning and talking in English.
Six useful ideas for discussion
Each idea can begin with Yoga and then develop into a wider
discussion about behaviour, learning and everyday life.