It’s not a prerequisite to know every pose name in Sanskrit to be a good yoga teacher. Almost no one expects that of you. What is useful is recognising the words that show up constantly in the practice, understanding what they actually mean, and using them well in the rare moments they add something to your teaching.
This is the cheat sheet that gets you there. Fifty words, grouped by where you’ll actually meet them, with a few notes on pronunciation and how to use Sanskrit in class without making things worse for your students.
A quick note on Sanskrit itself
Sanskrit was, and is, the primary language used in our yoga practice. You’ve come across it already in pose names, in pranayama, in chants, and across yoga philosophy. Its roots go back more than 3,500 years to the Vedas, and by 300 AD it was the dominant language across South and Southeast Asia, spreading with Hinduism and Buddhism. Most yoga texts you’ve heard of, the Sutras, the Hatha Yoga Pradipika, the Bhagavad Gita, were written in it.
You don’t need to memorise that history. But it’s worth knowing that when you say “Savasana” or “Om,” you’re using a language that’s been carrying these ideas for millennia. That’s the depth Sanskrit adds when it’s used well, and the depth that’s missing when it’s skipped.
The 50 words
Pose name building blocks (15)
These are the words that combine to form most pose names. Once you know them, you can usually decode a pose title without looking it up.
- Asana: pose, originally meaning seat
- Adho: downward
- Urdhva: upward
- Mukha: facing, or direction
- Svana: dog (yes, really, that’s why it’s Adho Mukha Svanasana)
- Ardha: half
- Paripurna: full, or complete
- Parivritta: revolved, or twisted
- Parsva: side
- Supta: reclined
- Utthita: extended
- Prasarita: wide, or expanded
- Baddha: bound
- Salamba: supported
- Viparita: inverted, or reversed
Body parts (10)
Show up constantly in pose names. Worth knowing.
- Pada: foot
- Hasta: hand
- Janu: knee
- Mukha: face, or mouth (also “facing,” from above)
- Shirsa: head
- Karna: ear
- Bhuja: arm
- Anga: limb
- Jathara: stomach, belly
- Sarvanga: the whole body
Sages and figures (5)
These show up in pose names and chants. You don’t need to know the full mythology, just enough to recognise the reference.
- Hanuman: the monkey god, said to have jumped from Chennai to Sri Lanka (hence Hanumanasana, the splits)
- Virabhadra: the warrior sage (hence Virabhadrasana, warrior pose)
- Matsya: the fish god (hence Matsyasana, fish pose)
- Nataraja: the dancer (hence Natarajasana, dancer pose)
- Marichi: son of Brahma (hence Marichyasana, the seated twist)
Pranayama and breath (8)
If you teach breathwork, these are non-negotiable.
- Prana: life force, or breath
- Pranayama: breath control, literally life-force restraint
- Ujjayi: victorious breath, the soft throat-narrowed breath used in most asana practice
- Nadi Shodhana: alternate nostril breathing
- Kapalabhati: shining skull breath
- Bhramari: bumble bee breath
- Kumbhaka: breath retention
- Sama Vritti: even breathing
Philosophy and practice (12)
The big ideas. The words that show up across the Sutras, the Gita, and most modern yoga discussion.
- Yoga: to yoke, to unite
- Yama: restraint, the first limb (ethics toward the world)
- Niyama: observance, the second limb (ethics toward yourself)
- Pratyahara: withdrawal of the senses
- Dharana: concentration
- Dhyana: meditation
- Samadhi: absorption, the eighth limb
- Bandha: lock, or muscular activation that protects a joint complex
- Drishti: gaze, or focal point
- Mantra: a sacred sound or phrase used to focus the mind
- Om: the seed sound, often considered the original mantra
- Namaste: the divinity, or light, within me recognises the divinity within you. Still used in Hindi as a greeting like hello.
How to actually use Sanskrit in class
Here’s the rule. There’s only one.
Don’t use Sanskrit as your only way of instructing the poses. This belittles and confuses students, as they almost never understand what you mean. Instead, use Sanskrit to add cultural relevance only after explaining what to do or where to go in English.
It’s simple. Just add the Sanskrit name after you direct them.
- “Come to downward facing dog, Adho Mukha Svanasana.”
- “Look forward, halfway lift, Ardha Uttanasana.”
- “Arms up, Urdhva Hastasana.”
- “Open to warrior two, Virabhadrasana two.”
Teachers who have a strong grip on Sanskrit often end up making their classes less effective by using it in a confusing way. The point isn’t to demonstrate knowledge. It’s to add depth where it helps and stay clear everywhere else.
A small thing about pronunciation
Worth knowing, even if you don’t change anything in your teaching.
The Sanskrit word योग is technically pronounced yog, not yoga. The ‘a’ sound at the end disappears when the two letters are placed together. The same is true of asana, pranayama, bandha, and most other common words we use in the practice. Some Indian teachers, and some Western ones who’ve spent serious time in India, will say Asan, Panayam, and so on.
You don’t have to switch your pronunciation. Most students would find it confusing if you did. But it’s the kind of thing worth knowing, especially if a student ever asks why a teacher they trained with said it differently.
What to do next
If you want to go deeper, the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali are the obvious starting point, and Iyengar’s translation is the one I keep coming back to. I’ve covered it in 6 Yoga Books every new teacher should actually finish.
Sanskrit also makes much more sense once you’ve used it in practice with someone who knows it well. That’s part of what we cover on our 200hr YTT in Sri Lanka, where the Sanskrit shows up in pose cues, philosophy, pranayama, and chant, all in the right places.
In short
Fifty words, grouped by where you’ll actually meet them. Learn the building blocks, recognise the body parts and sages, know your pranayama, get a handle on the philosophy. Use them sparingly, always after the English cue, and you’ll add depth to your teaching without making your students feel lost.
Stefan
