Part 5 – The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali: Discipline of the Soul

 

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Part 5 – The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali: Discipline of the Soul

Bismillah hir Rahman nir Rahim.

If the Upanishads are the whisper of eternal truth, then the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali are the clear map of practice. They do not simply philosophize—they instruct, step by step, on how the seeker may ascend from restlessness to stillness, from illusion to realization.

Patanjali’s Sutras, composed around the 2nd century BCE, distill the art of yoga into four books (padas):

1. Samadhi Pada – The path of absorption. Here the mind is trained to quiet itself, to let go of scattered waves, and rest in the stillness of being. Meditation is no longer effort but natural resting in Self.

2. Sadhana Pada – The path of practice. Patanjali lays out the Eight Limbs of Yoga (Ashtanga):

   • Yama (ethical restraints)

   • Niyama (discipline and observances)

   • Asana (postures)

   • Pranayama (breath control)

   • Pratyahara (withdrawal of senses)

   • Dharana (concentration)

   • Dhyana (meditation)

   • Samadhi (union with the Infinite)

   These are not merely physical exercises, but a holistic training of body, mind, and spirit.

3. Vibhuti Pada – The path of powers. When the mind is disciplined, subtle capacities awaken: clarity of perception, inner vision, extraordinary awareness. Yet Patanjali warns—these are distractions if clung to. The true goal is liberation, not power.

4. Kaivalya Pada – The path of liberation. In the end, yoga is not about acquiring, but releasing. The soul, purified and silent, rests in its true nature—free, untouched, eternal.

The Sutras teach that yoga is “citta-vritti-nirodhah”—the stilling of the fluctuations of the mind. This is the heart of the practice: when the restless mind no longer tosses us about, the light of the Self shines unobstructed.

Here, East meets West, ancient meets eternal. The Yoga Sutras echo what the Sufis call fana (annihilation of ego), what the Taoists call wu wei (effortless alignment), and what the Hermetics call union with the One Mind. Different names, same freedom.

Patanjali’s gift is discipline—offering us a methodical ladder to climb from the dust of the earth to the stars of infinity.

Salam. 🌸

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