TEXTS AND TRADITIONS : 3-4 page essay (approximately 1000 words)
ORGANIZATION OF YOUR ESSAY: Be sure to include a thesis statement in your opening paragraph and be sure to make it clear which essay you are responding to. Organize your arguments to that they support your thesis statement and finish the essay with a conclusion that summarizes your argument.
RESOURCES: Your notes, along with the required and optional assignments, and other resources on the class website, should be adequate to satisfactorily complete this assignment. You may do additional research if you want, but it is not necessary to do so. Please email me if you would like help identifying additional resources.
PRINTED FORMAT: Your paper should be double-spaced with one-inch margins and printed in a 12-point font. Please observe the academic convention of documenting your quotes and sources in footnotes.
SUBMITTING YOUR ESSAY: All essays are due by midnight on Wednesday May 4th. Please send your essays by email to both Stephanie and Karen. PLEASE USE THEIR GMAIL ADDRESSES!!!
TOPICS: Choose ONE of the following topics
- Definitions of Yoga
Throughout this class we have discussed various meanings of the Sanskrit word yoga. How has the word yoga been used in the traditions that we are studying? How are these definitions similar, and in what ways are they different? Include a brief discussion of how this term is understood in contemporary American culture.
- Yoga Sutras, Hatha, and Modern Postural Yoga
Although there are many threads of continuity between the Yoga Sutras, medieval hatha yoga, and contemporary practices of postural yoga, there are also many important differences. In your essay, explore the various differences between these three different forms of yoga. Important areas to focus on could be the body, mind and senses, metaphysical and theological worldviews, and the motivations or goals of the practice.
Thou Art That 