The various yogic traditions and techniques can be classified into four great ways or typologies according to the synthesis of traditional yoga carried out by Vivekananda in the 19th century.
The essence of all these paths, and what they have in common, is that their practice implies the renunciation of one’s own ego: that character that we have built to differentiate ourselves from other beings, satisfy created needs and experience the pleasures of the world. The emptiness that the ego leaves when it disappears brings to light the true Self, or Self, from which the desired peace and happiness flow effortlessly. That is why all these paths are valid, provided they are used wisely. Each person will get the best out of it if he chooses the path (or paths combined) most akin to his temperament. In addition, the spiritual life of a person can go through various stages that also condition the way of practice, depending on the inclinations and needs of the moment.
These pathways or typologies are ways in which one can dedicate his life to yoga. We must not confuse these ways or ways of life with modern yoga styles. In recent decades, especially in the West, many different “styles of yoga” have emerged (power yoga, ashtanga yoga, yin yoga, jivamukti yoga, vinyasa yoga, etc …). These styles mostly have a predominance of the physical part of asanas, therefore, they would be integrated into Raja Yoga, the second of the ways that we present below:
- Karma-yoga, or «yoga of action», considers that it is neither necessary nor advisable to renounce the world, but rather that the question lies in the attitude from which we act: we must fulfill our own duty or nature (dharma ) but without attachment, in a disinterested way, that is, renouncing the fruits of our actions and dedicating them to God and the good of all beings.
- Rāja-yoga, or “real yoga”, consists of the strict control of the mind and the senses, through austerities and exercises of concentration and meditation, in order to achieve a state of absolute and permanent mental silence ( samādhi). Vivekananda identifies this yoga with the method set forth in the Yogasūtra (2nd century AD), although Patañjali does not use this term in his treatise.
- Jñāna-yoga, or “yoga of knowledge”, proposes the study of traditional texts, attentive listening to the teacher’s own teachings, reflection, meditation and contemplation of the unity that underlies everything, with the in order to achieve the contemplative union of the soul or Self (ātman) with the transcendental Reality (brahman).
- Bhakti-yoga, or “yoga of devotion,” posits that love of God — expressed in the form of songs, dances, prayers, ritual worship, or simply as a sincere inner surrender — is the most powerful and direct that the soul has to achieve union with God.
