Patanjali

 

Traditional Hindu depiction of Patanjalias an avatar of the divine serpent Shesha

Patanjali's Yoga Sutras are considered the first compilation of yoga philosophy.^{[note 13]} The verses of the Yoga Sutrasare terse. Many later Indian scholars studied them and published their commentaries, such as the Vyasa Bhashya(c. 350–450 CE).^[178] Patanjali defines the word "yoga" in his second sutra, and his terse definition hinges on the meaning of three Sanskrit terms. I. K. Taimni translates it as "Yoga is the inhibition (nirodhaḥ) of the modifications (vṛtti) of the mind (citta)".^[179] Swami Vivekananda translates the sutra as "Yoga is restraining the mind-stuff (Citta) from taking various forms (Vrittis)."^[180] Edwin Bryant writes that to Patanjali, "Yoga essentially consists of meditative practices culminating in attaining a state of consciousness free from all modes of active or discursive thought, and of eventually attaining a state where consciousness is unaware of any object external to itself, that is, is only aware of its own nature as consciousness unmixed with any other object.

Yoga Sutras of Patanjali

Pada (Chapter)	English meaning	Sutras
Samadhi Pada	On being absorbed in spirit	51
Sadhana Pada	On being immersed in spirit	55
Vibhuti Pada	On supernatural abilities and gifts	56
Kaivalya Pada	On absolute freedom	34

One of the best-known early expressions of Brahminical yoga thought is the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali(early centuries CE,

the original name of which may have been the Pātañjalayogaśāstra-sāṃkhya-pravacana (c. 325–425 CE); some scholars believe that it included the sutras and a commentary.

As the name suggests, the metaphysical basis of the text is samkhya

Patanjali defined an eight-limbed yoga in Yoga Sutras 2.29:

1 Yama (The five abstentions): Ahimsa (Non-violence, non-harming other living beings),[185] Satya (truthfulness, non-falsehood),[186] Asteya (non-stealing),[187] Brahmacharya (celibacy, fidelity to one's partner),[187] and Aparigraha (non-avarice, non-possessiveness).[186]

1 Niyama (The five "observances"): Śauca (purity, clearness of mind, speech and body),[188] Santosha (contentment, acceptance of others and of one's circumstances),[189] Tapas (persistent meditation, perseverance, austerity),[190] Svādhyāya (study of self, self-reflection, study of Vedas),[191] and Ishvara-Pranidhana (contemplation of God/Supreme Being/True Self).[189]

2 Asana: Literally means "seat", and in Patanjali's Sutras refers to the seated position used for meditation.

3 Pranayama ("Breath exercises"): Prāna, breath, "āyāma", to "stretch, extend, restrain, stop".

4 Pratyahara ("Abstraction"): Withdrawal of the sense organs from external objects.

5 Dharana ("Concentration"): Fixing the attention on a single object.

6 Dhyana ("Meditation"): Intense contemplation of the nature of the object of meditation.

7 Samadhi ("Liberation"): merging consciousness with the object of meditation.