Glossary
Hatha yoga
HaṭhaPronunciation: HUT-haหะฐะโยคะ
Hatha yoga is the physical branch of yoga, and on a modern timetable it means a slower class where postures are held for several breaths rather than flowed through.
Historically, hatha is the parent category of almost all physical yoga: the texts that describe postures, breath practices, locks and cleansing techniques are hatha texts, and vinyasa, ashtanga and the heated styles all descend from them. The word is usually read as effort or forceful practice, which is a clue to its character — it is not a passive tradition.
On a timetable in 2026 the word has taken a narrower and genuinely useful meaning: a slower class. Postures are held for five breaths or more, transitions are walked rather than jumped, and there is time for the teacher to correct what you cannot see. That changes what you learn. A five-breath hold tells you where your weight actually is, which leg is doing the work, and whether your breath is still even — information a fast class moves past too quickly to notice.
In a KEO session, the garden and park formats are closest to hatha: fewer postures, held longer, with real pauses between them and a long stillness at the end. It is the format Ben recommends for a first class, for anyone carrying an injury, and for anyone whose week has already been fast enough.