Edited by James Mallinson, Jason Birch, Jürgen Hanneder, Mitsuyo Demoto, Nils-Jacob Liersch.
The Light on Haṭha Project represents a valuable contribution to the study and practice of traditional haṭhayoga. The Haṭhapradīpikā, authored in the 15th century CE, is widely regarded as one of the most influential historical texts outlining the tenets of haṭhayoga. Encompassing foundational practices such as āsanas, prāṇāyāma, and mudrās, this Sanskrit manual offers detailed guidelines that informed the later development of modern postural yoga.
For those who cannot find the royal highway because they are lost in the darkness of many doctrines, the compassionate Svātmārāma holds the Lamp on Haṭha.
This collaboration between researchers at the University of Oxford (Professor James Mallinson, Dr. Jason Birch) and the University of Marburg (Professor Jürgen Hanneder, Dr. Mitsuyo Demoto, Mr. Nils-Jacob Liersch) will produce the an authoritative critical edition along with an annotated translation of the Haṭhapradīpikā‘s primary recension. Through meticulous examination of surviving manuscript witnesses, Professors Mallinson, Hanneder, and their research teams have produced a new critical edition of the Haṭhapradīpikā. Their rigorous editorial techniques will provide today’s yoga community with the most accurate reference for studying this seminal haṭhyoga treatise. In their scholarly introduction, the project researchers analyze the complex process by which the text was transmitted since its original 15th-century composition. By elucidating this reception history, their study clarifies how the Haṭhapradīpikā‘s teachings illuminate the evolution of physical yoga practice across centuries, from its historical origins to 20th-century interpretations. The annotated English translation helps connect these ancient teachings with modern practice. At the same time, their notes aim to explain how the described yogic techniques and postures should be executed for proper practice, benefiting contemporary yoga students looking to develop a deeper understanding informed by tradition.
This forthcoming critical edition and translation from the Light on Haṭha Project team are invaluable academic resources. It promises to advance scholarly perspectives on the development of haṭhayoga while enriching modern yogis’ appreciation for their practice’s deep historical roots within the Indian tradition. Both academic and lay audiences have ample reason to welcome its publication as an erudite and practical contribution to elucidating yoga’s origins within seminal Sanskrit texts.