Yoga Sutras

Yoga originated over 5,000 years ago. Historically, students of yoga memorized 195 sutras (short, simple aphorisms) under the supervision of an accomplished master, via oral transmission. Between 1,700 and 2,200 years ago, these sutras were recorded into four books by Patanjali, a sage of mysterious identity, and along with the Bhagavad Gita and the Hatha Yoga Pradipika, the Yoga Sutras provide the fundamental scriptural reference for the practice, study, and understanding of yoga philosophy and yogic living.

The translations I read in class are my own amalgamated version of the sutras as derived from 4 different translations authored by Baba Hari Dass-ji (Book 1 only), TVK Desikachar, Bernard Boucanchaud, and Barbara Stoler Miller. If you are interested in picking up a copy, I find the Bouanchaud version to have the most useful commentary. It also includes the original Sanskrit (in transliteration) with various English translations for each word. It's not widely available, so I recommend ordering it from Vedams Books in India.

I have summarized Books 1, 2, and 3 further down on this page.
Book 1 | Book 2 | Book 3 | Book 4

Vedic Chants

The Vedas are the primary scriptural texts of Hinduism, and though no common consensus on when they were written has been reached, they are arguably the oldest surviving scriptures in the world. The oral tradition of transmitting these teachings via chanting has been handed down through the generations with the traditional melodies preserved. UNESCO has acknowledged Vedic Chants to be "Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity."

Vedic chanting provides both a form of devotional practice and a method for developing knowledge, as the chants contain wisdom teachings within them. I typically chant at the beginning and end of each class, then speak the translation in English. When you come to class, I invite you to concentrate on the Sanskrit sounds as a form of meditation. The Sanskrit language, when correctly pronounced (as I am endeavoring to do), is said to elevate the consciousness of the listener regardless of whether or not one understands the meaning of the words.

If you are interested in reading more about Vedic chants and seeing my source for learning them, please visit my teacher's website, Phoenix Artemesia-ji, where she has posted an article about them, a .pdf file she created with the chants written in Devanagari script, Sanskrit transliteration, and English translation, and links for further study and information.

Summary of Yoga Sutras

Book 1 – Samadhi Padah

The first chapter of the Yoga Sutras defines yoga, the aim of practice, and the various problems that may crop up as one endeavors to reach the yoga state.

The first four Yoga Sutras establish that control over the fluctuations of the mind is the ultimate purpose of yoga. Most of us, when we first experienced yoga, didn't realize how the practice would slowly transform the way we see ourselves and the world. As sutras 1.3 and 1.4 point out, however, through yoga, we become established in our true nature and we reduce our identification with the fluctuating flow of thoughts. Book 1 goes on to identify the various forms of thought that occur in the mind and declares continuous, respectful practice and dispassion, resulting from mastery over desire, to be the two means by which the fluctuating mind can be controlled.

Essential along this path are the disciplines of faith, courageous energy, consistent remembrance of the spiritual goal, steady contemplation, and wisdom. Of these, I found consistent remembrance to be an intriguing idea. How often do we completely forget about our yogic insights and fly off into emotion or the fulfillment of worldly desires? At this point, Baba Hari Dass introduced in his commentary the concept of "neti, neti," or "not this, not this," a practice that can be used when performing worldly tasks in order to keep the mind absorbed in the Self.

The Yoga Sutras also offer devotion to God as a path toward realizing the true Self. The qualities of God are then listed as 1) a distinct form of consciousness untouched by suffering, actions, the results of actions, or subliminal desires, 2) limitless omniscience, 3) being unsubjected to time, and 4) being the teacher of even the earliest teachers (or in other words, the teacher within). To invoke divine presence and inspiration, it is recommended that one practice repetition of the pranava, or "sacred syllable" (in the yoga tradition, this is Om). When contemplated with respect and consideration of the divine qualities it represents, Om causes awareness to draw inward, obstacles to fall away, and the true Self to be revealed.

Sutras 1.30 and 1.31 list the 9 obstacles to practice and the 4 symptoms that accompany the distracted mind. To remove obstacles and symptoms of distraction, the yogi practices focusing the mind continuously on a single essential principal (for example Om, or the breath, or any other spiritual object of focus that interests the practitioner). Progress along the path occurs when one can recognize obstacles and the accompanying symptoms of being distracted by them.

The sutras about cultivating a tranquil mind were my favorite in this book. I include sutra 1.33 here, in its entirety, as it is especially sweet: "By the cultivation of friendliness toward those who are happy, compassion for the suffering, joy in regard to virtue, and indifference toward vice, the mind becomes tranquil." The commentators in the translations I am working from were careful to point out that indifference toward vice does not mean that we don't care when harm is being done around us, it refers to an attitude that helps keep the mind calm while one is doing necessary work to right a wrong. Other practices that support tranquility are controlled exhalation and breath retention, objectivity, contacting the luminous, sorrow-free state within, contemplating those beings who are free from attachment, remembrance of peaceful sleep, and meditation.

Eventually, the mind of the yogi becomes like a transparent crystal, reflecting the object of its perception clearly and without flaw. The pure mind can become totally immersed in contemplation so that the yogi loses his or her sense of being an individual identity and instead experiences union with the object of focus. As one gains expert proficiency in contemplation, spiritual insight arises and gives birth to wisdom of the supreme truth, that All is One. This wisdom then dominates all other impressions, and becomes the determining factor in the life of the practitioner.

Book 2 – Sadhana Padah

The second chapter of the Yoga Sutras introduces the methods of yoga that reduce suffering and allow the mind to move from a state of distraction to one of attention.

The basic ritual actions (kriyas) of yoga are self study according to scriptures, disciplined ascetic practice, and surrender to a higher force. These methods increase clarity and reduce suffering.

In sutras 2.4 – 2.9, Patanjali defines the five afflictions (kleshas) that cause suffering. The primary klesha is ignorance, or misperception, which gives rise to the other four: ego consciousness (identifying with the small, limited, individual self), desire, aversion, and clinging to life (or fear). To reduce the kleshas, meditation is prescribed. Otherwise, actions will be conditioned by suffering and one’s experience in the world will be determined by the intention behind those actions. Here, the Sutras establish the cause and effect nature of existence and call on the yogi to recognize that actions have consequences.

A discerning person, therefore, sees the potential for suffering in everything. To avoid future suffering, we must learn to identify the distinction between the unchanging nature of the perceiver and the changing qualities of that which is perceived. A steady practice of such discrimination (viveka) allows the sensual world to serve spiritual liberation, rather than temporal indulgence. Ignorance is eliminated, and the yogi gains clarity, serenity, and in stages, wisdom.

The remainder of Sadhana Padah, sutras 2.28 – 2.55, begins an introduction of the eight limbs of a complete yogic life. In this chapter, the first five limbs are covered. Practicing the eight limbs (ashtanga) diminishes impurity and illuminates awareness, producing wisdom.

The first two limbs, yama and niyama, have 5 components each. The yamas are the restraints we employ to counteract negative tendancies toward the world around us and ourselves. These are, in order of importance:
Ahimsa – non-harming in thought, word, and deed, non-anger, kindness
Satya – truthfulness, non-delusion
Asteya – non-stealing, greedlessness
Brahmacharya – sexual continence, right use of energy, non-haste, patience, care
Aparigraha – non-grasping, acceptance
The Yamas are the “great vows,” and the call to follow them is not limited by any circumstance. They are universal.

The Niyamas are the positive actions we observe to cultivate the highest Self. They are:
Saucha – cleanliness, purity
Santosha – contentment
Tapas – disciplined living, austerity, ascetic practice
Svadyaya – study of self according to scripture
Ishvara Pranidhana – surrender of action to a higher force
Remembering that negative thoughts always result in suffering helps to maintain the positive state of mind associated with the yamas and niyamas. Next, sutras 2.35 – 2.45 declare specific benefits that accrue when one maintains these restraints and observances, for example the power to diffuse hostility, heroic vigor, mastery over the senses, an aptitude for learning, and perfect happiness.

The physical discipline of Asana, or right posture, is the 3rd limb of yoga. Patanjali says posture should be both steady and comfortable. Asana, practiced while meditating on infinity, with correct effort and relaxation, helps one to transcend dualistic disturbances.

Asana also replaces unconscious breathing habits with deliberate breath regulation, thereby developing the fourth limb of yoga, Pranayama. By modifying the various components of breath over a long period of time, greater subtlety becomes apparent, perception becomes illuminated, and concentration becomes possible.

When all of the senses withdraw from outer objects and turn inward, this is the fifth limb of yoga, Pratyahara. In this state, the mind resolves into its own nature, and the yogi gains liberty from the thrall of the sense world.

The final three limbs of ashtanga yoga are covered in chapter three.

Book 3 – Vibhuti Padah

The third chapter of the Yoga Sutras, Vibhuti Pada, is primarily about practicing samyama, the “perfect discipline” in which the yogi directs the mind into dharana (concentration), dhyana (meditation), and samadhi (complete union) with a single object of focus. Dharana is focusing the mind on an object, Dhyana is the uniterrupted flow of the mind toward the chosen object, and Samadhi occurs when mind becomes transparent and no separate sense of self is felt, only the object shines forth in awareness. These are the final three limbs of Ashtanga (8-limbed) yoga, and they concentrate the energy of consciousness.

Samyama practice causes mental fluctuations and distractions to diminish, allowing subliminal imprints of tranquility to develop and produce an inner experience of steadiness. Thereafter, even when the mind is distracted, inner steadiness consistently draws the mind back to peace. From this perspective, the yogi can see how all the changing characteristics of form actually develop out of a single substratum. This foundational teaching of yoga, that facts (satvada) are subject to change (parinamavada), is traditionally illustrated with the analogy of a clay pot: The essential nature of clay remains the same whether it appears in the form of clay dust, a lump of unshaped clay, a shaped pot, or broken shards. The substratum (clay in this case) provides the essential basis for all changes in form.

The Sutras then name twenty five objects of meditation and the corresponding abilities that develop when one focuses on them. Implied in the list is the idea that samyama can be applied to any object, different objects will be suitable for different individuals, and the results will match the object chosen. The concentrated consciousness associated with samyama allows the practitioner to transcend conventional conceptual constraints and master deep knowledge in specific fields. Eventually, one must master mastery itself to gain true liberation.

Repeatedly, the Sutras warn that new abilities can be impediments to further practice and spiritual growth. All acquisition bears the risk of attachement, and unusual abilities can inspire pride, egoism, or new cravings. So the yogi must strive to maintain the practice of samyama and not be distracted by limited benefits that arise along the way. (Ironically, the various, worldy benefits of yoga are often the very enticements used in the west to draw people to the practice, but the ultimate purpose of yoga is to attain enlightenment.)

In Sadhana Pada (book 2), the yogi is taught to distinguish between the unchanging perceiver and the changing aspects of that which is perceived in order to avoid suffering. Here, in Vibhuti Pada, it is revealed that the yogi must further distinguish between the perceiver, which is limitless, and the mind, which is dependent on objects. From this, mind becomes a more transparent and powerful instrument of perception, benefiting active life but potentially causing difficulty in concentration. So the yogi must renounce even the desire for heightened perceptive abilities to keep the mind in peaceful equilibrium with the spirit and realize spiritual liberation.

Book 4 - Kaivalya Padah

Chapter 4 of the Yoga Sutras discusses the ultimate evolution of the yogi into a state of serene liberation, independent of changes in the natural world. Such evolution is revealed to be inherent in one’s nature, occurring by means of removing obstacles that block progress, just as a farmer would lift a dike to allow water to irrigate the fields.

The survival instinct causes one's ideas to be based on a feeling of separateness from other things. Such ideas build upon one another and create subliminal impressions. Actions that arise out of these impressions have positive and/or negative (“white” and “black” in Sanskrit) results which cause even more subliminal impressions to develop. However, when thoughts arise from a meditative state of union, they leave no impressions, and actions become “colorless.” Therefore, the yogi attempts to remove subliminal impressions by understanding the process of cause and effect and the role of mental attitude so that actions will be pure.

The Sutras refer to the fact that the natural world manifests according to three constituent qualities, or gunas: rajas (activity, passion, excitement), tamas (inertia, dullness, heaviness), and sattva (purity, clarity, understanding). Thus, the essence of past and future are said to always exist, with circumstances changing according to the shifting presence of the constituent qualities. Likewise, one’s perception changes over time because the fragmentary mind is influenced by the gunas. However, spirit, the unchanging source of perception, is always aware of the fluctuating thoughts. Mind's purpose therefore, is to organize and present changes in external phenomena to the perceiver. But when mind turns inward, then consciousness can reflect upon itself.

The ability to discern between mind and spirit is the ultimate practical achievement of the yoga path. Doing so interrupts the manifestation of a separate, individual identity and instead, generates serenity. Lapses in discernment, on the other hand, allow mental disturbances (errors in speech, judgement of others, egocentric thoughts, etc.) to resurface, so such lapses should be carefully avoided.

Ultimately, one must let go of even the desire for higher understanding in order to prevent the gunas from disturbing the contemplative mind. This will allow actions to become pure and agenda-less. When meaning is no longer derived from changes in circumstance, one attains supreme knowledge, and the spiritual entity rests in its own awareness.

End.