Ashtanga yoga

noun

Ash·​tan·​ga yoga ash-ˈtäŋ-gə- 

variants or less commonly ashtanga yoga or Ashtanga or ashtanga

: a system of yoga (see yoga sense 2) in which the practitioner moves through a series of asana postures usually in a prescribed order

Ashtanga yoga is definitely an energy-raising practice. The constant flow of movement and breath is designed to detoxify and enliven, ideally bringing your metabolic rate back to normal through the finishing poses.

—Sarah Powers

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Sanskrit aṣṭāṅgayoga-, from aṣṭāṅga "eightfold" (from aṣṭa- "eight" + aṅgam "limb, member") + yoga; so named from the eight practices that originally constituted the system

First Known Use

1860, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for Ashtanga yoga

• conestoga
• toga