Yoga was an ancient practice that originated in India around 3000 B.C. While Yoga has been modernized today, our collection of yoga quotes will inspire you, motivate you, and intended to enrich your body & spirit. Yoga is popular, especially in the Western hemisphere, due to all of the benefits it brings to your life. Below you will find 100 quotes about yoga to fully enrich your life.
Yoga Motivation Quotes
1. “The body benefits from movement, and the mind benefits from stillness.” – Sakyong Mipham
2. “Yoga begins with listening. When we listen, we are giving space to what is.” – Richard Freeman
3. “Yoga is not a work-out, it is a work-in. And this is the point of spiritual practice; to make us teachable; to open up our hearts and focus our awareness so that we can know what we already know and be who we already are.” – Rolf Gates
4. “Yoga means addition – addition of energy, strength and beauty to body, mind and soul.” – Amit Ray
5. “Yoga is a light, which once lit will never dim. The better your practice, the brighter your flame.” – B.K.S. Iyengar
6. “If you seek peace, be still. If you seek wisdom, be silent. If you seek love, be yourself.” – Becca Lee
7. “Yoga exists in the world because everything is linked.” – Desikashar
8. “Yoga is the journey of the self, through the self, to the self.” – The Bhagavad Gita
9. “The very heart of yoga practice is ‘abyhasa’ – steady effort in the direction you want to go.” – Sally Kempton
10. “Move your joints every day. You have to find your own tricks. Bury your mind deep in your heart, and watch the body move by itself.” – Sri Dharma Mittra
11. “True yoga is not about the shape of your body, but the shape of your life. Yoga is not to be performed; yoga is to be lived. Yoga doesn’t care about what you have been; yoga cares about the person you are becoming. Yoga is designed for a vast and profound purpose, and for it to be truly called yoga, its essence must be embodied.” – Aadil Palkhivala
12. “Most people have no idea how good their body is designed to feel.” – Kevin Trudeau
13. “A photographer gets people to pose for him. A yoga instructor gets people to pose for themselves.” – T. Guillemets
14. “Although yoga has its origins in ancient India, its methods and purposes are universal, relying not on cultural background, faith or deity, but simply on the individual. Yoga has become important in the lives of many contemporary Westerners, sometimes as a way of improving health and fitness of the body, but also as a means of personal and spiritual development.” – Tara Fraser
15. “Anyone who practices can obtain success in yoga but not one who is lazy. Constant practice alone is the secret of success.” – Hatha Yoga Pradipika
16. “Be where you are, not where you think you should be.” – Anonymous
17. “Body is not stiff. Mind is stiff.” – Sri Krishna Pattabhi Jois
18. “Calming the mind is yoga. Not just standing on the head.” – Swami Satchidananda
19. “Change is not something that we should fear. Rather, it is something that we should welcome. For without change, nothing in this world would ever grow or blossom, and no one in this world would ever move forward to become the person they’re meant to be.” – B.K.S Iyengar
20. “For those wounded by civilization, yoga is the most healing salve.” – T. Guillemets
21. “I was looking for someone to inspire me, motivate me, support me, keep me focused… Someone who would love me, cherish me, make me happy, and I realized all along that I was looking for myself.” – Unknown
22. “Inhale the future. Exhale the past.” – Unknown
23. “Inner peace begins the moment you choose not to allow another person or event to control your emotions.” – Pema Chodron
24. “It is through your body that you realize you are a spark of divinity.” – B.K.S. Iyengar
25. “It would be a shame to lose the precious jewel of liberation in the mud of ignorant body building.” – Sri Krishna Pattabhi Jois
26. “Let your practice be a celebration of life.” – Seido lee deBarros
27. “Letting go is the hardest asana.” – Anonymous
28. “Once you’re in touch with the life force around us, it’s natural to want to help keep it around.” – Adi Carter
29. “Remember, it doesn’t matter how deep into a posture you go – what does matter is who you are when you get there.” – Max Strom
30. “That’s why it’s called a practice. We have to practice a practice if it is to be of value.” – Peace Pilgrim
Yoga Sayings
31. “The attitude of gratitude is the highest yoga.” – Yogi Bhajan
32. “The body is your temple. Keep it pure and clean for the soul to reside in.” – B.K.S Iyengar
33. “The longest journey of any person is the journey inward.” – Anonymous
34. “The most important pieces of equipment you need for doing yoga are your body and your mind.” – Rodney Yee
35. “The secret of change is to focus all of your energy, not on fighting the old, but on building the new.” – Socrates
36. “The ultimate goal of yoga is to always observe things accurately, and therefore never act in a way that will make us regret our actions later.” – T.K.V. Desikachar
37. “The yoga pose you avoid the most you need the most.” – Anonymous
38. “There is always room for change, but you have to be open to that change.” – Kathryn Budig
39. “Through sustained focus and meditation on our patterns, habits, and conditioning, we gain knowledge and understanding of our past and how we can change the patterns that aren’t serving us to live more freely and fully.” – Yoga Sutra
40. “To perform every action artfully is yoga.” – Swami Kripalu
41. “Treat your soul with care. It is your bosom friend. Feed and nurture it with love.” – Ashourina Yalda
42. “True meditation is about being fully present with everything that is–including discomfort and challenges. It is not an escape from life.” – Craig Hamilton
43. “Undisturbed calmness of mind is attained by cultivating friendliness toward the happy, compassion for the unhappy, delight in the virtuous, and indifference toward the wicked.” – Patañjali
44. “When the breath control is correct, mind control is possible.” – Sri Krishna Pattabhi Jois
45. “When you find peace within yourself, you become the kind of person who can live at peace with others.” – Peace Pilgrim
46. “When you listen to yourself, everything comes naturally. It comes from inside, like a kind of will to do something. Try to be sensitive. That is yoga.” – Petri Räisänen
Yoga Quotes
47. “Yoga begins right where I am – not where I was yesterday or where I long to be.” – Linda Sparrowe
48. “Yoga does not transform the way we see things, it transforms the person who sees.” – B.K.S. Iyengar
49. “Yoga is 99% practice and 1% theory.” – Sri Krishna Pattabhi Jois
50. “Yoga is a dance between control and surrender — between pushing and letting go — and when to push and to let go becomes part of the creative process, part of the open-ended exploration of your well-being.” – Joel Kramer
51. “Yoga is invigoration in relaxation. Freedom in routine. Confidence through self-control. Energy within and energy without.” – Ymber Delecto
52. “Yoga is not a religion. It is a science, science of well-being, science of youthfulness, science of integrating body, mind, and soul.” – Amit Ray
53. “Yoga is not about tightening your ass. It’s about getting your head out of it.” – Eric Paskel
54. “Yoga is not for the flexible. It’s for the willing.” – Anonymous
55. “Yoga is not just repetition of few postures – it is more about the exploration and discovery of the subtle energies of life.” – Amit Ray
56. “Yoga is the fountain of youth. You’re only as young as your spine is flexible.” – Bob Harper
57. “Yoga is the perfect opportunity to be curious about who you are.” – Jason Crandell
58. “Yoga is the science of reality.” – Sushil Singh
59. “Yoga is the stilling of the changing states of the mind.” – Patanjali, The Yoga Sutras
60. “Yoga music helps increase the mind and spirit to elevate to new levels.” – Unknown
61. “Yoga reveals to you the beauty of mindfulness and takes you into the essence of an endless present moment.” – Debasish Mridha
62. “Yoga takes you into the present moment. The only place where life exists.” – Anonymous
63. “Yoga teaches us to cure what need not be endured and endure what cannot be cured.” – B.K.S. Iyengar
64. “Yoga teaches you how to listen to your body.” – Mariel Hemingway
65. “You may not be able to control the whole world, but you may learn to control your inner world through yoga.” – Debasish Mridha
66. “You will never influence the world by trying to be like it.” – Unknown
67. “You either get bitter or get better. It’s that simple. You either take what has been dealt to you and allow it to make you a better person, or you allow it to tear you down. The choice does not belong to fate, it belongs to you.” – Josh Shipp
68. “You cannot always control what goes on outside, but you can always control what goes on inside.” – Wayne Dyer
Yoga Inspiration
69. “You are the sky, everything else is just the weather.” – Pema Chodron
70. “Yoga is about clearing away whatever is in us that prevents our living in the most full and whole way. With yoga, we become aware of how and where we are restricted — in body, mind, and heart — and how gradually to open and release these blockages. As these blockages are cleared, our energy is freed. We start to feel more harmonious, more at one with ourselves. Our lives begin to flow — or we begin to flow more in our lives.” – Cybele Tomlinson
71. “Yoga is a way of moving into stillness in order to experience the truth of who you are.” – Erich Schiffmann
72. “Yoga does not remove us from the reality or responsibilities of everyday life but rather places our feet firmly and resolutely in the practical ground of experience. We don’t transcend our lives; we return to the life we left behind in the hopes of something better.” – Donna Farhi
73. “Yoga does not just change the way we see things, it transforms the person who sees.” – B.K.S Iyengar
74. “Yoga allows you to find an inner peace that is not ruffled and riled by the endless stresses and struggles of life.” – B.K.S Iyengar
75. “Wisdom is knowing we are all One. Love is what it feels like and Compassion is what it acts like.” – Ethan Walker III
76. “What you think, you become.” – Buddha
77. “There will always be people who can do it better than you, but that’s a good thing! Start to see competition as inspiration — without envy.” – Kathryn Budig
78. “The study of asana is not about mastering posture. It’s about using posture to understand and transform yourself.” – B.K.S Iyengar
79. “The quieter you become, the more you can hear.” – Unknown
80. “The nature of yoga is to shine the light of awareness into the darkest corners of the body.” – Jason Crandell
81. “The future depends on what we do in the present.” – Mahatma Gandhi
82. “Take care of your body, it’s the only place you have to live.” – Jim Rohn
83. “Sometimes the most important thing in a whole day is the rest we take between two deep breaths.” – Etty Hittlesum
84. “Mindfulness helps you go home to the present. And every time you go there and recognize a condition of happiness that you have, happiness comes.” – Thich Nhat Hanh
85. “It’s not about being good at something. It’s about being good to yourself.” – Unknown
86. “It is not arrogant or egotistical to feel good inside. You had nothing to do with it. It’s simply the honest response to clearly perceived Reality.” – Erich Schiffmann
87. “In truth, yoga doesn’t take time – it gives time.” – Ganga White
88. “If you choose to see everything as a miracle, then where you are right now is perfect. There is nowhere to run to; there is nothing else to do except be in this moment and allow what is to be. From that place of radical acceptance, major change can happen. The first step in any transformational experience is acceptance and surrender to the present moment, the way that it is. From that place we have the awareness, humility and power to change what is.” – Mastin Kipp
89. “I offer you peace. I offer you love. I offer you friendship. I see your beauty. I hear your need. I feel your feelings. My wisdom flows from the Highest Source. I salute that Source in you. Let us work together for unity and love.” – Gandhi
90. “I have been a seeker and I still am, but I stopped asking the books and the stars. I started listening to the teaching of my Soul.” – Rumi
91. “Have only love in your heart for others. The more you see the good in them, the more you will establish good in yourself.” – Paramahansa Yogananda
92. “Follow your nature. The practice is really about uncovering your own pose; we have great respect for our teachers, but unless we can uncover our own pose in the moment, it’s not practice — it’s mimicry. Rest deeply in Savasana every day. Always enter that pratyahara (withdrawn state) every day. And just enjoy yourself. For many years I mistook discipline as ambition. Now I believe it to be more about consistency. Do get on the mat. Practice and life are not that different.” – Judith Hanson Lasater
93. “Don’t move the way fear makes you move. Move the way love makes you move. Move the way joy makes you move.” – Osho
94. “Doing anything with attention to how you feel is doing yoga.” – Jean Couch
95. “Do not feel lonely. The entire universe is inside of you.” – Rumi
96. “Change is not only inevitable, but always happening. When you truly embrace this concept of change being constant, the only thing left to do is grow, detach, venture inwards, touch the spirit and find your source — the one responsible for keeping you grounded through the ever-changing seasons of life.” – Julie Weiland
97. “Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage.” – Lao Tzu
98. “Be a lamp to yourself. Be your own confidence. Hold on to the truth within yourself as to the only truth.” – Buddha
99. “All kidding aside, if everyone did yoga, we would have world peace.” – Rory Freedman
100. “A flower does not think of competing to the flower next to it. It just blooms.” – Zen Shin
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