Yoga

Yoga is a set of physical, mental, and spiritual practices or disciplines that originated in ancient India and aims to control and stabilize the mind, recognizing a separate witness consciousness untouched by the mind and worldly suffering. Yoga in Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism has a wide variety of practices and goals, and traditional and modern yoga is practiced around the world. Two general theories exist on the origins of yoga. The linear model assumes that yoga originated in the Vedic period, as reflected in the Vedic texts, and influenced Buddhism. This model is mainly supported by Hindu scholars. According to the synthesis model, yoga is a synthesis of non-Vedic and Vedic elements; This model is favored in Western scholarship. Yoga is first mentioned in the Rigveda and is mentioned in several Upanishads.