Yoga is a Sanskrit word which means to yoke or unite. Many explain this union as yoking to a higher power, or uniting the lower self with the higher self. Another exploration is uniting body and mind, which means the essential core of our being and our conscious awareness.

In the Ashtanga practice of yoga, the movements of body and breath are consciously synchronized, which is very calming to the mind and energizing to the body. Learning to “mind the body” removes mental stress and relieves physical tension. However a much deeper reason to synchronize the movements of body and breath is to find purpose in all life’s experiences.

When mind and body come into union, finding purpose in difficult life experiences and bringing peace to life’s traumas becomes easier. Events that our mind has a hard time dealing with tend to get stored in our body as raw sensations and emotions. The mind tries to define experiences as good or bad, but the body doesn’t; it just preserves them until the mind learns how to make sense of them.

Emotions that are stored too long in the body eventually get expressed as physical pain or ailments. Over time, the body will filter these emotions back through the mind for another try at integration, some say, because each personal experience occurs to fulfill that individual’s evolution. The body and mind coming together in union enables us to experience all of the events of our lives as having purpose.

Bobbi Misti is founder of BeFit Body & Mind Yoga. Location: 2201 Market St., Camp Hill 17011. For information, call 717-443-1119 or visit BeFitYoga.com.