What Is Nagna Yoga?
Nagna Yoga is an ancient form of yoga that is often simply referred to as “naked yoga", and is exactly what it sounds like: the practice of doing yoga without clothes. Although this activity might sound bizarre or uncomfortable in our body-shaming culture of the West, Nagna Yoga has a long and sophisticated spiritual history, and over time has transformed into the more popularized form of Naked Yoga that more and more yogis are falling in love with today.
While the practice of Nagna Yoga pre-dates much of recorded history, it is thought that it most likely originated in India as a spiritual practice as part of wider philosophies of renunciation, or the ‘abandonment of material comforts’, which many dharmic religions in the region adopted at the time. In the case of Nagna Yoga, this renunciation of material comforts even extended down to clothing, considered as the last of worldly possessions to shed away. This practice of stripping down for religious purposes is also sometimes referred to as “spiritual nudity”, and was often part of bathing and meditation rituals.
“Nagna Yoga has a long and sophisticated spiritual history, and over time has transformed into the more popularized form of Naked Yoga that more and more yogis are falling in love with today.”
While Nagna yoga likely originated in India in ancient times, it quickly spread to other places of the world as trade routes grew, and over time transformed and took on other forms and different meanings throughout various cultures. Throughout Europe in the early 20th century, naked yoga and naked exercise were practiced by bohemian and counterculture lifestyle enthusiasts of that era as a means of achieving greater wellness and awareness of the body, many of the same reasons that people practice Naked Yoga today.
In modern times, Nagna yoga is practiced throughout the world, with many yogis proclaiming its benefits to be wide-ranging, such as greater self-love, body positivity, mindfulness, overall well-being and so much more.
The benefits of naked yoga are diverse and incredibly personal to each individual yogi, but some of the most widely reported benefits by Naked Yoga practitioners, are:
A stronger mind-body connection
Improved sense of self-love and acceptance of the body just as it is
Increased self-awareness and sensitivity to one’s environment
Greater freedom of physical movement without the constrictions of clothing
Fewer distractions from adjusting clothing during the practice
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