3,000BC
The Vedic & Pre-Classical Period
The Indus Valley Civilisation is said to be the first traceable evidence of the origins of yoga. Seals depicting figures seated in yogic postures were excavated from archeological sites dating back more than 5,000 years.
Image: Mohenjo-daro Wikimedia Commons https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mohenjo-daro.jpg
However, it’s believed yoga existed for some time prior to this as a tradition passed on through spoken word.
Following the eventual collapse of the civilisation, sacred scriptures named Vedas (meaning ‘knowledge’) composed of Sanskrit teachings contained the first written documentation of the word ‘yoga’, though not in reference to the postural body practice we’ve come to recognise today.
Derived from the Sanskrit word ‘yuj’, meaning to ‘join’ or ‘unite’, yoga is the enlightened connection to a higher consciousness, indicating harmony between mind, body, and universe.