REVIEW: The Tibetan Book of Yoga - Geshe Michael Roach

I had no idea that such a form of Yoga practice existed prior to writing up a short review of Tibetan Heart Yoga for my Yoga blog-site during the latter half of 2008. I have been practicing Yoga for a couple of years now, and apart from two setbacks, one where I became lazy with my practice and one where I currently suffer from a back problem caused by an illness and inability to practice regularly, have found yoga to be of great benefit, both physically and spiritually.

I have not aligned myself to any specific brand of Yoga, but was I the process of investigating many options prior to locating a suitable strain to adhere to. Whilst Tibetan Heart Yoga may or may not end up being my overall choice, it is definitely a style of Yoga I wish to continue to practice long term.

Combining commonly known Yoga asana with Tibetan postures, Tonglen and visualization practices, Tibetan Heart Yoga combines the physical with the spiritual in a way that can progress both Yoga and Buddhism practice. This book covers the actions, words, visualizations, and overall techniques involved in the practice with some background information. It offers sufficient to practice at home, though to advance beyond the basic into a more complex practice it would appear to require participation in classes or further teachings.

By following the methods for practice outlined in the book, I have managed to obtain several benefits:
* a more demanding physical practice, with many of the Asana I previously ignored or passed by being required
* the integration of Buddhist and Yoga practices
* a specific structured routine, rather than a self-led structure
* the ability to develop my Tonglen practice in a safe way
and
* inclination to stick with a set course and master it, rather than adapt to myself as I go