Yoga Darshan [Paperback]

Swami Niranjanananda Saraswati (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 1, 2002

Gives a contemporary Yogic vision of the Upanishads. Taking a holistic and practical view of spiritual life, this text provides a picture of Yoga.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Successor to Swami Satyananda Saraswati and Founder of Bihar Yoga Bharati Swami Niranjanadaji is very well known.He has Authored about twenty Books.He guides the National and International Yoga Programmes.

Product Details

• Paperback: 501 pages
• Publisher: Yoga Pubns Trust (December 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 8186336265
• ISBN-13: 978-8186336267
• Product Dimensions: 0.4 x 0.4 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #389,047 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very wide-ranging and informative., February 9, 2008

By 

Jas CB "Jason" (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Yoga Darshan (Paperback)

This book provideds a truly panoramic view of the yoga traditions and consequently serves to clear up a great many questions that arise from reading the hugely-disjointed array of books on the subject, in the general marketplace. If, like me, you have struggled at times to place all the various elements of yogic tradition into a coherent theoretical structure, over and above the 8 Limbs of Ashtanga Yoga (not the popularised Mysore vinyasa style which misleadingly borrows the label 'Ashtanga', I mean Ashtanga in the genuine traditional sense), then 'Yoga Darshan' may just be the answer to your prayers! Actually, this book discusses elements of the yoga tradition that I had never heard of. I can honestly think of no greater general overview of the quite vast yoga tradition as a whole. Although it does contain some practical instruction on a variety of yogic techniques, it is primarily pitched as an easily-accessible foundational overview of the ancient tradition, encompassing more than most, and enabling the reader to use it as a springboard to achieve a grasp of topics which may subsequently be individually explored, in deeper detail, according to personal interest. The same publisher's catalogue of books offers many such detailed books, targeted at specific topics.

Owing to its extraordinary breadth of coverage, this volume cannot go into exhaustive depth on every topic but it does a truly admirable (and enjoyable) job of covering significantly more than just the basics of each topic, and (perhaps more importantly) placing the multitudinous elements into reliable context.

Seldom have I enjoyed reading a book on yoga so much, in the 'readable' sense. This title is a real pleasure to simply kick back and read, without needing to treat it formally, as a textbook. I should qualify this statement, though, by pointing out that I am deeply interested in true, traditional, classical, authentic yoga, not Westernised, diluted, physique-obsessed forms. If you are similarly inclined, then I highly recommend this book, it's a great read and superbly treads the fine line between dry, challenging textbook and overly-simplified paperback.

Don't be fooled by its lack of extreme detail - this is only a RELATIVE observation. Indeed, this book contains infinitely more depth and real substance than 90% of the books available on yoga. It's authored by an AUTHENTIC yogi and this fact shines through on every page, such is the confidence and authority with which Niranjanananda writes, very much like his forebear, Satyananda.

I suspect the paucity of reviews for this book is a reflection more of the somewhat-dry product description and title, rather than intentional indifference to the contents of the book itself. True followers of the yoga path would do well to heed this book as it is a very informative read, unprepossessing though it might appear.

Yet another excellent member of the BSY/YPT library, then, and certainly one of the most enjoyable to read on a casual basis, whilst simultaneously being of sufficient calibre to qualify as a light reference source.

I view BSY/YPT books with a degree of amusement, from the point of view that their lack of glossy pages and colour pictures makes them appear dry and bland to the casual browser. Indeed, it occurs to me that this may not be just a cost-of-production decision, on the part of YPT; perhaps it is also a deliberate ploy to separate the sincere seeker from the casual, style-conscious yoga practitioner, because if one is sincere enough to take the time to actually delve into a YPT/BSY book, one is rewarded with an absolute treasure of information, and from a source more authentic than probably 80% of the books on the market. I own more than 10 BSY/YPT books and while there is some (contextually-appropriate) overlap between each of the various titles, each one of them is a pleasure to read and, broadly-speaking, I can say with absolute confidence that I owe my understanding of yoga and its various principles more to YPT/BSY than to any other single publisher. So, although I am already a fan of this series of books, my purchase of 'Yoga Darshan' was nonetheless encouraged by François's review, above (thankyou) and having now read it, I can wholeheartedly agree with her - 'Yoga Darshan' really IS very complete, generous and well-organised. One to buy with confidence, if you're interested in real yoga.

18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Major work, December 7, 2005

By 

François (Henderson,NV United States) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Yoga Darshan (Paperback)

This is indeed a major book. The Yoga Tradition is alive and adapting to universal audience and modern science. In this very complete and generous book, the author present the Yoga science in a very well organised manner. If the book is not for the debutant it is absolutly accessible to the motivated reader and you should find it very stimulating and ..surprising! For me this book will be a companion and I know I will go back to it many times and with pleasure.