The Heart of Yoga: Returning Home to the Self

by Jenny Fairbank, Wisdom Pathways

“Yoga is the journey of the Self, through the Self, to the Self.”— Bhagavad Gita

Dear friends,

In this season of reflection and renewal, I invite you to pause and turn inward. Yoga, in its truest essence, is a homecoming — a remembering of who we really are beneath the noise and motion of life.

Let’s begin this exploration together with a timeless question…

Who Am I?

When you read those words, what arises? Perhaps you think, I am a woman or man. I am a business owner, a parent, a friend, a human being.

But when you begin to peel away those outer layers — the names, the roles, the identities — who are you really?

Beneath it all, you are divine consciousness expressing through human experience.

These are beautiful words to say, but how does one realize this truth? The heart of yoga lies not in the performance of physical postures, but in awareness and devotion to something greater than ourselves.

Yoga is not about touching your toes; it’s about touching the infinite within.

A Personal Journey of Discovery

For the last twenty-five years, I have been fascinated with the yogic path.

Like many in the Western world, I first encountered yoga through asana — the physical postures — in group classes. At the time, I was a personal fitness trainer, and fitness was, in many ways, my religion. I was seeking deeper truths, yet I didn’t recognize yoga as a spiritual path until I took my first yoga teacher training in 2004.

That’s when everything changed.

I began studying Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras and the Eight Limbs of Yoga. I quickly discovered that yoga is not about physical practice — it is about truth. The truth of who we are, why we are here, and what to do about it.

In Sanskrit, this eternal truth is called Sanatanadharma — “that which is.”

Through yoga, I found what I had been seeking: a path grounded in remembrance, devotion, and liberation. Over time, I’ve come to understand that being a yogi is far more profound and life-changing than I could have ever imagined.

Yoga as Union

The word yoga comes from the Sanskrit root yuj, meaning to unite. It points to the merging of the individual soul (jivatma) with the universal Spirit (Paramatma).

All paths of yoga — Bhakti (devotion), Jnana (wisdom), Karma (selfless action), and Raja (meditation) — converge toward one purpose: union with the Divine.

Yoga is not a religion but a universal science of Self-realization. It shows us how to harmonize body, mind, and soul so that we may awaken to our essential nature — pure consciousness, ever-existing, ever-conscious, ever-new bliss.

The Inner Landscape

As our awareness expands, life itself becomes a living practice of yoga. Every thought, breath, and interaction becomes an opportunity to remember who we truly are.

The outer practices — posture, breath, mantra — lead us inward toward stillness. In that stillness, the veils begin to lift, and the radiance of the Self is revealed.

Yoga, then, is not confined to the mat. It is how we live, how we love, and how we serve — the art of sacred presence in everyday life.

Devotion as the Pathway

Among all the paths, Bhakti — the path of love and devotion — has always been closest to my heart.

When we offer ourselves in devotion, the ego softens and the heart opens. We begin to feel the Divine not as a distant ideal, but as a living presence within and around us.

Through love, we remember that yoga is not something to achieve but something to reclaim.

Devotion transforms striving into surrender. It replaces effort with grace. In surrender, we discover that we were never separate from Spirit — only momentarily asleep to our true nature.

Closing Reflection

Take a moment to close your eyes. Breathe deeply into your heart. Let go of everything you think you are and rest in the awareness that simply is.

Silently affirm:

“I am coming home to my true Self — one with Spirit, whole and free.”

A Simple Practice

Set a gentle intention each morning:

To remember God in all things.

Whether you are walking, working, laughing, or praying, let your awareness return again and again to love.

This is the heart of yoga — a sacred journey of remembrance .Not something to achieve, but something to reclaim. A returning home to the Self.