Yoga should not be a training for body control

Yoga should not be a training for body control; on the contrary, it must bring freedom to the body, all the freedom it needs.
Yoga should help us to acquire the order in the body that it is necessary for it to function properly.

Vanda Scaravelli in "Awakening the Spine" page 106

Relationship, behaviour and order are essential for meditation

Yoga exercises are excellent; the speaker does them every day, for an hour or more; but that is merely physical exercise, to keep the body healthy, and so on. But through them you can never come upon the other - never! Because if you give them all importance, you are not giving importance to the understanding of yourself which is to be watchful, to be aware, to give attention to what you are doing, every day of your life; which is to give attention to how you speak and what you say, to what you think, how you behave, whether you are attached, whether you are frightened, whether you are pursuing pleasure and so on. To be aware of the whole movement of thought; for if you are and you are really serious about it, then you will have established right relationship, obviously. Relationship becomes extraordinarily important when all things about are chaotic - when the world is going to pieces, as it is. But when there is this establishment of total relationship, whole relationship, not between you and me, but human relationship with the whole of the world, then you have the basis. From there you can go on to behaviour - how you behave. If your behaviour is based on pleasure or on reward, it is not behaviour. It is merely the pursuit of pleasure from which fear arises. Relationship, behaviour and order, these are absolutely essential if you want to go into the question of meditation. If you have not laid this foundation, then do what you like - stand on your head, breathe in for the next ten thousand years and repeat words, words - there will be no meditation.

Krishnamurti in "Total Freedom"

Cure all except...

Yoga will cure everything except injuries caused by improper yoga practice!

David Williams

Yoga is a living process

Yoga is a living process. The heart of Yoga does not lie in visible attainments; it lies in learning and exploring. Learning is a process, a movement, while attainments are static. One is internally learning about the whole field of life using the energy systems of one's mind and body to find out how universal patterns express theselves through individuals. Yoga also involves the process of freeing one's energy, moving out of the blocks and binds that limit one both physically and mentally. Freeing oneself is part of the process of self-knowledge for one's binds limit the nature of exploration, just as releasing them permits learning to occur.

Joel Kramer in "A New Look at Yoga"

Yoga for Self-Transformation

For thousands of years, yoga has been a tool to open the mind and body, bringing transformation. At its core, yoga is a process that involves confronting your limits and transcending them. It is a psychophysical approach to life and to self-understanding that can be creatively adapted to the needs of the times.

Joel Kramer in "Yoga as Self-Transformation"

Theory

Before you've practiced, the theory is useless. After you've practiced, the theory is obvious.

David Williams

Sadhana

Your sadhana, or practice, is your spiritual path. In yoga class you learn with your teacher and enjoy the company of like-minded souls. The real magic of yoga, however, begins when you integrate what you learn into your daily life...

Remember that practice continues off your mat and throughout your day.

Marsha and Donald Wenig

Forcing leads nowhere

Yoga has nothing to do with acrobatics or spectacular exhibitionism, even though some poses rather look like it. Students are sometimes inclined to force the flexibility of their bodies to the maximum, but this leads nowhere.

Vanda Scaravelli in "Awakening the Spine" page 41

Yoga must not be organised

BE CAREFUL, VERY CAREFUL about organisations. Yoga cannot be organised, must not be organised. Organisations kill work.

Vanda Scaravelli in "Awakening the Spine" page 110