The practice of yoga and the ritual of chai tea are intertwined, woven together in a skein of spiritual and medicinal sources. Both yoga and chai have origin stories dating back more than 5,000-years, both laying claim to their birthplace in mother India. When studying yoga in India, it’s not uncommon to practise yoga at dawn, then stop to enjoy a sweet, milky chai in that blissed out zen state following savasana. A true nourishment of the mind, body and soul!

The practise of yoga and the enjoyment of chai tea contain many of the same principles that flow like chi; ritual and discipline, conscious intentionality, a searching for peace, a transcendence from the ordinary, an exchange of energy. Both offer respite in the hamster wheel of contemporary life; a chance to pause, to breathe and to recoup.

Legend has it that it was an Indian king who oversaw the infusion of medicinal spices that would go on to become the foundational bedrock of the chai tea we know and love today. The warm drink would be used in ‘Ayurveda’; the holistic Indian system of health and wellness that aims to bring balance to the mind, body and spirit.

Ayurvedic practitioners claim that each person has a constitution informed by their unique characteristics, all connected to the universe. Chai tea - brimming with antioxidant rich herbs and spices - is said to protect the physical self from free-radical damage, helping to boost the immune and digestive systems.

Ayurveda experts claim that an imbalance in one area of life - whether spiritual or physical - will have a knock on effect through every other facet of being. Balance can feel like a distant mirage for many of us running to compete in a modern world, burdened by stress, juggling priorities and laden with mental load. Within Ayurveda, imbalance leads to dis-ease - the ultimate aim is to bring the physical, spiritual and mental self into synergistic alignment.

An exploration of breathwork & meditation

For yogis, this philosophy rings true. Within the yoga practise there are eight ‘limbs’ of yoga which aim to promote the “cessation of the fluctuations of the mind” - quieting the whirling monkey mind. This means yoga is not just the physical poses that many of us know and love, but an exploration of breathwork, meditation and the higher ethics of society and how we interact with each other. Each limb offers a chance to delve into the traditional scriptures of yogi Patanjali, offering methodologies to inform how one can live one’s life for ultimate contentment; including uncovering true authenticity, channelling the life force through ‘pranayama’ (breathing-exercises) and the seeking of bliss and enlightenment.

With such beautiful commonalities and overarching aims of truth seeking, inner reflection and the search for ease, balance and peace, it is no wonder that a yoga practise and a cup of Tiger Purrr chai go together like waves and water, Taylor Swift and a red lipstick or a bath and a good book. This synergy between mind and body and our relationship to the tapestry of the world around us is acknowledged with every sip of enriching, delicious tea.