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LAVERA STEWART
Editor-in-Chief of the Gym Expert
Be Light on Yoga: The Bible of Modern Yoga
The Yoga Bible by Christina Brown
Yoga Anatomy by Leslie Kaminoff and Amy Matthews
The Yoga Mind: 52 Essential Principles of Yoga Philosophy to Deepen Your Practice
The Untethered Soul: The Journey Beyond Yourself by Michael A. Singer
Be Light on Yoga: The Bible of Modern Yoga
The Yoga Bible by Christina Brown
Yoga Anatomy by Leslie Kaminoff and Amy Matthews
The Yoga Mind: 52 Essential Principles of Yoga Philosophy to Deepen Your Practice
The Untethered Soul: The Journey Beyond Yourself by Michael A. Singer
Autobiography of a Yogi Paramahansa Yogananda
The Bhagavad Gita by Eknath Easwaran
Inner Engineering: A Yogi's Guide to Joy by SADHGURU
The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali - Sri Swami Satchidananda
Teaching Yoga Beyond the Poses: A Practical Workbook for Integrating Themes, Ideas, and Inspiration into Your Class
Autobiography of a Yogi Paramahansa Yogananda
The Bhagavad Gita by Eknath Easwaran
Inner Engineering: A Yogi's Guide to Joy by SADHGURU
The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali - Sri Swami Satchidananda
Teaching Yoga Beyond the Poses: A Practical Workbook for Integrating Themes, Ideas, and Inspiration into Your Class
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Best Overall: Light on Yoga: The Bible of Modern Yoga
It is the finest works of B.K.S Iyengar, who is a famous practitioner. This is one of the best selling yoga books, and it's available in just one format – paperback, which manages to convey plenty of information to a reader. There are illustrations throughout this book, and they provide a deep insight into aspects like breathing exercises and positions. It’s the most powerful and effective book on this topic that we’ve found.
This book not only presents Asanas (or Hatha Yoga poses), but does an amazing job explaining Yogic philosophy.
Why We Like It?
- Author’s reputation in this niche is excellent
- Focuses on relieving stress and losing weight
- Illustrations are great.
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For Beginners and Experts: The Yoga Bible by Christina Brown
This book comes with more than 170 postures that help an individual achieve mental and physical balance. This comprehensive guide is capable of meeting the requirements of people who practice at different stages of expertise – from beginners to experts. Since these best yoga books to read are available in Kindle and paperback formats, it is rather easy to meet different requirements among buyers.
Each asana is labeled carefully with variations, lead-ins, necessary details, and complex ones also have sequences to enter them. There are wonderful photographs that can be used for comparisons.
Why We Like It?
- Contains information about more than 170 postures
- Suitable for beginners and experts alike
- Comprehensive material
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For Colour Illustration: Yoga Anatomy by Leslie Kaminoff and Amy Matthews
This book has been done by Kaminoff and Matthews – two individuals who are internationally recognized as experts in the world of bodywork, breathing, and anatomy. Readers will come across full-colour illustrations about various asanas in this world. Crucially, there are also tips about perfecting each pose so that it increases effectiveness useful in yoga practice. Irrespective of the reader's experience, this best yoga anatomy book will be able to provide a lot of insight. Let’s now see some pros and cons.
Why We Like It?
- Appeals to beginners and experts
- Full-color illustrations
- Tips and recommendations to improve each pose
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For Essentials: The Yoga Mind: 52 Essential Principles of Yoga Philosophy to Deepen Your Practice
It provides simple exercises and guided meditation. There are plenty of themes that offer clarity on different aspects of real-life yogic practice. Since this book manages to provide meaningful connections between various postures and exercises, it's excellent to understand complex asanas easily.
This book offers a fantastic introduction for those people who want to learn about what yoga actually means, eight limbs, fundamental tenets, and so much more. All philosophies are kept simple, and there are quotes for each chapter.
Pros
- Focus on essential principles
- Easy understanding of this lifestyle
- Easy to read
Cons
- Does not give much information on breathing
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For Meditation: The Untethered Soul: The Journey Beyond Yourself by Michael A. Singer
This book can be an excellent choice for a tech-savvy user, as it is available in three formats – paperback, Kindle, and audiobook. A primary focus of the book is to tap into serenity, inner peace, mindfulness, and meditation. This top book for yogis will be able to provide a connection between the world and oneself. The author Michael A. Singer has made numerous contributions to this niche.
This book offers wonderful instructions on how to loose bonds that shackle you to anxiety, anger, plus, you'll learn how to meditate.
Pros
- Available in three formats to suit the convenience of each individual
- Focuses on serenity and inner peace
- Its author is an established authority
Cons
- Book's primary focus is on meditation
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For Traditional: Autobiography of a Yogi Paramahansa Yogananda
This one is a definite collectible among best yoga therapy books for those interested in understanding the concept and meditation. It was selected as one of the best spiritual books in the 20th century, and it mainly focuses on helping individuals gain insight into the spiritual world. This book has been translated into 30 languages and counting with hardback versions of these top books for yogis providing a nostalgic feeling in this modern era when smartphones and iPads dominate the world.
Pros
- 60 years in print
- Available in 30 languages
- Established authority
Cons
- No kindle or audiobook format
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For Maximum Spirituality: The Bhagavad Gita by Eknath Easwaran
These best yoga books 2021 bring out the spirituality within oneself by going into history and critical concepts. The use of Gita transforms this book into a highly spiritual guide. The Hindu tradition’s knowledge provided in this best yoga book happens to be quite extraordinary. Apart from a hands-on paperback version, readers can also go with Kindle and audiobook options too.
This book explains the nature of the Self and its incredible relation to existence. It’s a fantastic spiritual exploration, not just pure yoga.
Pros
- Excellent spiritual teachings
- Great insight into Hindu tradition
- Available in three formats
Cons
For Modern Yoga: Inner Engineering: A Yogi's Guide to Joy by SADHGURU
This is among the best yoga books for beginners and focuses on the teachings of Indian philosopher Sadhguru, who has a huge following this part of the world. The insight into spirituality, inner intelligence, and well-being are heavily focused in this book, which also aims to bring together yoga and spirituality. Several revolutionary concepts are brought forward, as per yoga book review.
Sadhguru seems himself as a “dispeller of darkness”. All in all, it’s very easy to read.
Pros
- Fusion with spirituality
- Works on inner intelligence
- The idea of uniting body and soul
Cons
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For Raja Yoga: The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali - Sri Swami Satchidananda
The primary focus of this book is to indulge in a world of raja yoga, which is about meditation and concentration. The teachings are focused on sutras that are more than 4000 years old. All the contents of this publication are presented by Sri Swami Satchidananda, who is regarded as a huge stalwart of contemporary yoga. This best book on yoga and meditation aims to achieve mental, emotional, and physical harmony. We recommend it to those who are quite experienced with yoga.
Pros
- Work of a revered master
- Deals with sutras that are several centuries old
- Very well-explained
Cons
- Not available in audiobook format
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10. For Class Themes: Teaching Yoga Beyond the Poses: A Practical Workbook for Integrating Themes, Ideas, and Inspiration into Your Class
This best yoga book for teachers can be of great assistance to any teacher who is looking to introduce new themes and templates in classes. There are 54 different yoga tips for beginners that can be used by instructors looking to add to their existing portfolio of classes. It also comes with blank templates that can be used by instructors to help them come up with their own notes and themes.
We’ll not give spoilers, but the beginning of this book is fantastic for anyone who is trying to find their inner voice as a teacher, coach, or psychologist. It’s great for any other profession that interacts with people on a deeper level.
Pros
- Excellent for instructors
- Includes 54 different themes
- Well-explained
Cons
Choosing Books On Yoga And Meditation: Buyer’s Guide
Before you choose among the best yoga books you must first determine what type you need. So let’s take a look at them in more detail, and decide which sounds like the one you will benefit from the most:
Types of Books
All the best yoga books for women and men, pros and beginners are divided into various types:
Instructional
While creating our yoga books reviews, we’ve realized that most of the yoga books and best yoga DVDs are mostly instructional. Such books have multiple pictures depicting various sequences and poses. And these are beneficial for everyone, but especially beginners who are not yet familiar with the various yoga poses.
Meditative
These books will explain the mental aspect by putting together a collection of spiritual exercises rather than regimen suggestions and poses. Moreover, these best yoga books for home practice are especially beneficial for people with stress, since meditation is a great way to reduce anxiety stress.
Historical
These top yoga books are ideal for those enthusiasts who are interested in learning about the history of this wonderful activity history. These will tell how yoga was created and how it developed throughout the years. Plus, a lot of the best books on yoga philosophy are also considered historical.
Illustrated
The best yoga books come with illustrations that can help to form a great knowledge base for people practicing to learn postures. There is usually more than just a single photograph of a specific pose or form, as the most significant purpose of these books is to offer a visual example.
Intermediate and Advanced
These are ideal for people who have been practicing for a long time. The primary content of these best books on yoga is to help even advanced users progress and learn new poses, practices, and so on.
Format
The best yoga books are available in multiple formats. These different formats help readers to enjoy the content in a way that is most convenient to them. Some of the most common formats are hardback, paperback, Kindle, and audiobooks. There are also illustrated versions for more visual learners.
How to Pick a Good Book
While creating our yoga books reviews, we’ve determined that the best way to pick only the best yoga book is:
“Look Inside” Portion
Most of the authors allow the readers to take a look at the first couple of pages of their book. So make sure to browse through the content and see whether the yoga book is understandable and interesting for you to read.
Customer Reviews
No matter if you buy the best yoga book or any other product – user feedback is a great option to determine the quality of the writing and informative aspect of the book. So make sure to check what the people are saying, and see if this yoga book is truly the best for you and your goals.
Description
A book description gives a great chance to understand what to expect in the book. For example, most descriptions specify that this is a yoga book for beginners, therefore you will understand that a pro should probably look for something else.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Is The Best Yoga Book For Beginners?
There are many best yoga books available for beginners in this field. Each may come in different formats, types, prices, and various kinds of illustrations. Plus, this also comes doesn’t to what type of book you want – with more illustrations or instructions. Still, we believe that the Light on Yoga: The Bible of Modern Yoga, is a fantastic choice for beginners.
Why Do You Need Yoga Books?
The primary need for the best yoga books stems from a desire to perform each asana and posture in the perfect way possible. An ideal balance between illustrations and descriptions provided in these books can be beneficial. They are applicable even for intermediate and advanced users, who can learn newer techniques and fine-tune their older practice.
Final Thoughts
All and all, the most important factor you need to consider while looking for the best yoga books is what exactly do you need. Are you looking for a great book for meditation – go with a meditative yoga book type. Want to learn more about the history of this activity – then consider a book on yoga history and philosophy. As you can see, this choice is entirely up to you. We at gym-expert think that the Light on Yoga: The Bible of Modern Yoga is the best yoga book 2021, since it boasts of numerous illustrations, and they provide a deep insight into aspects like breathing exercises and positions. However, the type of book you need is entirely up to you, and we sincerely hope that our article will help you find only the best yoga books! So good luck, and feel free to recommend some of the yoga books you like, in the comments below!