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Wim hof have achieved great things practising the ancient practice of pranayama which is actually a part of yoga. Yet he presents it as if he "discovered" it. T

Wim hof have achieved great things practising the ancient practice of pranayama which is actually a part of yoga. Yet he presents it as if he "discovered" it. This is pure intellectual dishonesty. Yoga's actual name is ashtanga yoga which means it has eight limbs[1]. Contrary to popular belief Yoga is not about just twisting your body into weird poses. That aspect is called ASANA and what Wim Hof claims as his discovery is called pranayama which is a fully developed science of breath control practices by Sadhus and monks for centuries. YAMA – Moral disciplines NIYAMA – Positive duties ASANA – Posture PRANAYAMA – Breathing techniques PRATYAHARA – Control over senses DHARANA – Focused concentration DHYANA – Meditative absorption SAMADHI – Enlightenment I think there is strong bias going on here in the comments. Two of the comments mentioning yogic origins of this practice are dead. So I present 2 videos as an example. First video[2] was captured by Indian soldier in -45 degree temperatures of himalayan border. Second video[3] captures another sadhu who lives naked under snow without any protective gears [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ashtanga_(eight_limbs_of_yoga) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ashtanga_(eight_limbs_of_yoga) [1] https://youtu.be/8Xbi4Qrf9mE https://youtu.be/8Xbi4Qrf9mE [2] https://youtu.be/FcUdEkPa-2c https://youtu.be/FcUdEkPa-2c EDIT: Second video added. EDIT 2: Major edit explaining yogic origins of this practice.

Igelau 6y ago
It's completely possible he rediscovered it independently, and free from the religious trappings. > Yet he presents it as if he "discovered" it. This is pure intellectual dishonesty. You might want to contemplate your accusatory nature on this topic as part of your practice.
- drieddust 6y ago
  > It's completely possible he rediscovered it independently, and free from the religious trappings. Yes it is possible but highly unlikely. He himself claims practising yoga for years. How do you justify him never coming across eight parts of Yoga? Moreover on his website he admits similarities with Buddhist meditation but reluctantly[1] and justifies by claiming of "stripping the religious aspects" just like you. so as far as religious trappings are concerned, Hinduism and Buddhism aren't religions in Abrahmic sense. There is no creed to be followed, there are no prophets, and you don't have to follow commandments to achieve eternal bliss in after life. Buddhism and Jainism don't even have gods per say. Word Dharma comes from Sanskrit root dhri, which means maintains the stability and harmony of self, society, environment, and universe. This means there are no prohibitions but only principles to be followed to maintain the balance. Depending upon the situation same principle might suggest diametrically opposite actions. [1] https://www.wimhofmethod.com/tummo-meditation https://www.wimhofmethod.com/tummo-meditation
  - Igelau 6y ago
    You say there are no commandments, but these two concepts pass the duck test for commandments. > YAMA – Moral disciplines > NIYAMA – Positive duties You also say there's no creed, and then talk about "bliss in after life". That's a creed. I get into this with Catholics sometimes where they think having special vocabulary and a big bag of trivia makes one thing not another. They tell you they don't worship Mary, but if it looks like a duck and it quacks like a duck... Viewed from the outside, Hinduism is just as much a religion as any of the Abrahamic ones.
    - drieddust 6y ago
      You are misreading my comment. My comment is with respect to Abrahmic creed offering "bliss in after life". Indian Dharmic traditions doesn't claim to give you "bliss in after life". They help you lead a blissful life in this world and leave the world fully satisfied. Yoga teaches this blissful existence so some parts of these teaching deal with physical aspects like asanas(exercises) and pranayana(breathing). However, central ideas of Yoga is called निष्काम कर्म or unattached action which simply put means hell or high water, you should stick to your duties and perform them without caring for the results. No wonder many scholars like Beethoven, Eliot, Emerson, Oppenheimer to name a few got inspired by its philosophy.[1][2] [1] https://www.yogajournal.com/yoga-101/first-book-yoga https://www.yogajournal.com/yoga-101/first-book-yoga [2] https://www.theguardian.com/music/2005/nov/18/classicalmusicandopera.thomasstearnseliot https://www.theguardian.com/music/2005/nov/18/classicalmusic...
Cytobit 6y ago
> That aspect is called ASANA and what Wim Hof claims as his discovery is called pranayama which is a fully developed science of breath control practices by Sadhus and monks for centuries. I'm curious why you called it a "science". It would be very interesting to see yoga developed with a scientific approach.
- drieddust 6y ago
  > I'm curious why you called it a "science". It would be very interesting to see yoga developed with a scientific approach. Yoga is all about living in harmony. Some parts of it like Asanas, and Pranayama can be measured as it impacts the physical body. I have no problem with Wim taking a part of it and popularizing it but in not admitting to its sources he is preventing from others making further discoveries of the list of techniques available. What he is teaching is just one of paranayama technique from a list of many. I do not doubt his achievements and commitment to excellence.
- bsima 6y ago
  It is "a science" insofar as it draws relations between observed phenomenon. Do not confuse this with "the scientific method" which is a particular technique of drawing these relations that has a particular history in the Western world.
albanberg 6y ago
Interesting! What lineage have you studied?

Igelau 6y ago

It's completely possible he rediscovered it independently, and free from the religious trappings. > Yet he presents it as if he "discovered" it. This is pure intellectual dishonesty. You might want to contemplate your accusatory nature on this topic as part of your practice.

drieddust 6y ago
> It's completely possible he rediscovered it independently, and free from the religious trappings. Yes it is possible but highly unlikely. He himself claims practising yoga for years. How do you justify him never coming across eight parts of Yoga? Moreover on his website he admits similarities with Buddhist meditation but reluctantly[1] and justifies by claiming of "stripping the religious aspects" just like you. so as far as religious trappings are concerned, Hinduism and Buddhism aren't religions in Abrahmic sense. There is no creed to be followed, there are no prophets, and you don't have to follow commandments to achieve eternal bliss in after life. Buddhism and Jainism don't even have gods per say. Word Dharma comes from Sanskrit root dhri, which means maintains the stability and harmony of self, society, environment, and universe. This means there are no prohibitions but only principles to be followed to maintain the balance. Depending upon the situation same principle might suggest diametrically opposite actions. [1] https://www.wimhofmethod.com/tummo-meditation https://www.wimhofmethod.com/tummo-meditation
- Igelau 6y ago
  You say there are no commandments, but these two concepts pass the duck test for commandments. > YAMA – Moral disciplines > NIYAMA – Positive duties You also say there's no creed, and then talk about "bliss in after life". That's a creed. I get into this with Catholics sometimes where they think having special vocabulary and a big bag of trivia makes one thing not another. They tell you they don't worship Mary, but if it looks like a duck and it quacks like a duck... Viewed from the outside, Hinduism is just as much a religion as any of the Abrahamic ones.
  - drieddust 6y ago
    You are misreading my comment. My comment is with respect to Abrahmic creed offering "bliss in after life". Indian Dharmic traditions doesn't claim to give you "bliss in after life". They help you lead a blissful life in this world and leave the world fully satisfied. Yoga teaches this blissful existence so some parts of these teaching deal with physical aspects like asanas(exercises) and pranayana(breathing). However, central ideas of Yoga is called निष्काम कर्म or unattached action which simply put means hell or high water, you should stick to your duties and perform them without caring for the results. No wonder many scholars like Beethoven, Eliot, Emerson, Oppenheimer to name a few got inspired by its philosophy.[1][2] [1] https://www.yogajournal.com/yoga-101/first-book-yoga https://www.yogajournal.com/yoga-101/first-book-yoga [2] https://www.theguardian.com/music/2005/nov/18/classicalmusicandopera.thomasstearnseliot https://www.theguardian.com/music/2005/nov/18/classicalmusic...

Cytobit 6y ago

> That aspect is called ASANA and what Wim Hof claims as his discovery is called pranayama which is a fully developed science of breath control practices by Sadhus and monks for centuries. I'm curious why you called it a "science". It would be very interesting to see yoga developed with a scientific approach.

drieddust 6y ago
> I'm curious why you called it a "science". It would be very interesting to see yoga developed with a scientific approach. Yoga is all about living in harmony. Some parts of it like Asanas, and Pranayama can be measured as it impacts the physical body. I have no problem with Wim taking a part of it and popularizing it but in not admitting to its sources he is preventing from others making further discoveries of the list of techniques available. What he is teaching is just one of paranayama technique from a list of many. I do not doubt his achievements and commitment to excellence.
bsima 6y ago
It is "a science" insofar as it draws relations between observed phenomenon. Do not confuse this with "the scientific method" which is a particular technique of drawing these relations that has a particular history in the Western world.

albanberg 6y ago

Interesting! What lineage have you studied?