Evaluation of an adapted yoga program for people with a spinal cord injury

"Yoga is an art, a science and a philosophy" (Iyengar, 2002, p. xvii) informed by a body of spiritual values, attitudes, precepts and techniques developed in India approximately 5000 years ago (Feuerstein, 1998, 2000). It is a complex intervention that includes physical movement, breathing techniques, meditation and philosophical underpinnings that may influence attitudes, beliefs and social interaction (McCall, Ward, Roberts, & Heneghan, 2013). Rooted in Indian philosophy and spiritual practice, yoga is considered a tool to quieten the mind with the view of achieving union of mind, body and spirit (Feuerstein, 1998). More recently it has been used clinically as a therapeutic intervention to bring health and balance to an individual's physical, mental and emotional wellbeing (Mishra, 2012). Over the centuries, views and traditions have varied between schools and teachers of yoga, and there is a multitude of styles of yoga with contrasting frameworks available to the general public. In Western society yoga is synonymous with physical exercise (Feuerstein, 1998), however, originally it was a more comprehensive practice that encouraged service, devotion and intellectual discernment to procure enlightenment or a higher level of consciousness (Feuerstein, 1998).