I thought it would be nice to share what yoga means to me. The following is what I wrote for my yoga teacher's training on my test. It has not been through any revisions so please forgive me if it seems like it just came out of the top of my head because it did. Or maybe, just maybe it was from the bottom of my heart. :)
It also outlines an ideal that I must admit I am a long way from living 100%.
Yoga evolved from the ancient science originating in India of exploring the human body, heart, and mind to develop tools for attaining a sense of union with God or the divine. Although most people think of poses, contortions, and otherwise deep stretching, this is only the tip of the ice berg. In fact, there are many yogic traditions and techniques that may never involve what some people know as "Sun Salutations".
In truth, yoga is anything that brings you closer to God whether it is prayer, singing, dancing, helping at a homeless shelter, meditating, or giving someone a hug. And a true yogi is a person who attempts to make every aspect and action of their life a means to that goal.
Hatha yoga, the form of yoga that many people in the general public are aware of, is only one starting place for this path. By going to a class and doing asanas (the names of the yoga poses), breathing and maybe chanting, a person becomes more aware of their own body and mind. Out of this awareness the student develops the ability to see firsthand what actions and thoughts lead them towards peace or towards suffering.
Paying attention to how holding a certain posture opens up the chest and lungs makes breathing easier and in turn providing more vitality and oxygen to the brain. Then the student notices a chain reaction. Because breathing becomes easier, more energy is available to do things like smile at a neighbor or let someone jump in front of you at the checkout line.
By bringing love into ones heart and peace to the mind a yogi is able to accomplish great changes in the world by starting within. Thus doing as Mahatma Gandhi instructed, "Be the change you wish to see in the world."
That...is yoga.
Matthew Cox . org
http://matthewcox.org/article.php/what-is-yoga