NCERT Solutions Poorvi Chapter 4 Yoga–A Way of Life — Let us think and reflect

The aim of yoga is to join, or unite — to bring the different parts of a person into one balanced whole, and so to reach complete health and well-being.

The passage explains this from the word itself: “The word ‘Yoga’ comes from the Sanskrit root ‘yuj’, which means ‘to join’ or ‘to unite’.” What is joined is the mind with the body, thought with action, and the human being with nature.

Sage Patanjali states the aim in another way in the Yoga Sutras: yoga is “the means to make the mind quiet and free from all distractions”. And the Hatha Yoga Pradipika verse printed on page 124 gives the aim of asana in particular — it “should be practised for gaining steady posture, health and weightlessness of body”.

Unity is the whole meaning of the word ‘yoga’ — yuj, to join. The passage names three unions.

The passage adds a fourth, practical union at the end: movement and breath. “If each stretch is coordinated with the breath and awareness, our practice will become a yogic practise.” That single sentence explains why yoga is not the same as ordinary exercise. In exercise the body works alone; in yoga the body, the breath and the attention all move together.

It tells us that the benefits of yoga are now accepted by the world’s highest health authority — yoga is no longer only an Indian tradition but a recognised way of keeping people healthy everywhere.

Three things about the launch make the point:

• Who launched it. The World Health Organisation is the health body of the United Nations. It does not promote a practice unless there is evidence behind it. As the text says, “the benefits of practising yoga are internationally recognised”.
• When. It was launched on 20 June 2021 — the eve of International Day of Yoga, and in the middle of a global health crisis, when calm and immunity mattered to everybody.
• What it is. A collection of videos and audio files, made deliberately “easy-to-use and free”, so that anyone anywhere with a phone can learn — no teacher, no fee, no equipment.

One clear long-term effect is that a regular practitioner of yoga becomes a calmer, more focused person.

The passage explains how this happens over time: “Yoga involves breathing techniques and meditation, which can help to calm the mind and reduce stress and anxiety. It relaxes the mind, improves the quality of sleep and increases concentration.” A person who has held the same steady posture every morning for years learns to sit still with his own thoughts. That steadiness does not stay on the mat — it shows up in the classroom, in an examination hall, and in the way he answers when somebody provokes him.

So the quality that grows is self-control: the ability to stay calm and give full attention to one thing at a time, instead of being pulled about by every distraction.