Art of Vinyasa, The

“More than just a book, this is a body of work that proves that yoga is a spiritual path, and that the body is not reducible to mere bones and muscles. I strongly recommend this book to all sincere students of yoga.”

—KING MACGREGOR, author of The Power of Ashtanga Yoga

“Mary Taylor and Richard Freeman are a dynamic duo merging their collective energies to create this powerful book. The pages are filled with their esoteric, practical, philosophical, visual, and compassionate insights presenting yoga in its myriad layers of physical endeavor, intellectual pursuit, theoretical expression, and ultimately a spiritual path.”

—D ENSON, author of Ashtanga Yoga: The Practice Manual

The Art of Vinyasa is an essential guide to practicing yoga as a meditation in motion. Richard Freeman and Mary Taylor present a radical approach to the form of Ashtanga yoga—one that is based on the subtle internal forms of the practice. When practiced in this way, Ashtanga yoga—and particularly the vinyasa, or the conversation of complementary opposites—allows practitioners to experience a deep and focused awakening. Where Ashtanga yoga is usually practiced in a set sequence of postures, in this book those same movements and poses are broken down by their form: Standing Poses, Forward Bends, Backbends, Twists, Balancing Poses, and Finishing Poses. Alignment, anatomy, and imagination—these are the beads that string together the asana, which in turn reveals the direct experience of the nature of both the body and the mind. With warmth, humor, and wisdom, Freeman and Taylor provide the groundwork for establishing an internally rooted yoga practice that goes far beyond the mat and into the core of one’s life.