"An ideal book for beginners and a spur to more experienced students" - Yoga Magazine This is a complete, illustrated practical guide that takes a traditional, holistic approach combining yoga postures with a healthy lifestyle, especially with regards to diet and meditation. It shows how these teachings are as appropriate today as they were in the past - helping you to cope with stresses and strains of modern life. Develop your own personalised yoga practice following the detailed descriptions of how to work safely and progressively with the postures and breathing exercises of hatha yoga. The author explains the essentials in plain, simple language and uses over 200 step-by-step colour photographs to take you through the essential asanas (postures) and sequences. Special 'box outs' suggest how beginners can adapt the classic postures to make them easier to perform - while more experienced students are shown how to progress towards more challenging asanas as they build up their skills. The practical core of the book is complemented by coverage of yoga's traditional physiological, philosophical and spiritual context, and its roots in ancient India. The idea that the body has its own energy pathways and centres in the form of nadis and chakras is explored in a way that is clear and inspiring to Western readers.