How Yoga Works

An in-depth article on the effects of yoga from the journal *Viveka* by Dr. Imogen Dalmann and Martin Soder.

Quote from the authors:

“ Anyone who asks about how yoga works still often encounters mechanistic, pseudoscientific ideas rooted in medieval thinking—ideas that in no way reflect our current understanding of the complexity, individuality, and adaptability of the human body and mind.”

• We still read that the headstand stimulates blood flow to the brain and that a heart attack is a problem of the heart chakra.
• People still practice the headstand because they’ve been told it can affect their thyroid.
• People are still led to believe that there are credible studies proving the healing power of a single Āsana.

"What is needed instead is an open, honest, and transparent approach to describing the effects of yoga. That is what this article is about."