What the West has come under the name of Yoga is a set of physical and meditative practices associated with three major religions of India: Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism.
Postures or asanas is the beginning of yoga that seeks the ultimate union of self and God understood as a whole through a different state of consciousness. In yoga we often speak of three classic types:
Raja Yoga or mental yoga. based on introspection (also called Ashtanga Yoga)
jnana yoga, or yoga focused on achieving the highest knowledge
Karma yoga focuses on breaking the chain of reincarnations achieving union with God.
Yoga began in India on an unknown date, possibly before the eighteenth century before Christ. Naturally, if you are interested in yoga in India will find many training centers for practice or make a trainer. There are excellent teachers in Varanasi where even practiced bhakti yoga.
Meditation
Buddha taught vipassana , meditation technique that usually follows a session of physical yoga, once it has dominated the body and mind can work with energy. There are schools of vipassana in all major cities in India where even offer free classes for beginners usually lasting at least 10 days.
Another type of meditation more and more famous in the West is the Tibetan meditation. Taught particularly well in Dharamsala, where the largest community of exiled Tibetans in India.
The Ashram
For travelers who want to delve into concepts of yoga are the possibility of joining an ashram, a community of retirees who are engaged in the practice of yoga and other Hindu practices. There you can live with sannyasis, Buddhist monks who wander the country in Ashram Ashram. Not all offer accommodation and you get the facts as each ashram has a different level of discipline and different schools of yoga practice.
Where to practice
In India, perhaps the city where yoga is practiced more are Uttaranchal, Kerala and Bihar, known as the Varanasi .
Meditation in India