 Photo by Photoholgic on Unsplash Some cause happiness wherever they go; others whenever they go. - Oscar Wilde This blog post is part of our Yoga Sutras series. Want to start at the beginning? Yoga Sutra 4.3 निमित्तमप्रयोजकं प्रकृतीनां वरणभेदस्तु ततः क्षेत्रिकवत् Nimittam aprayojakaṁ prakṛtīnāṁ varaṇa-bhedas tu tataḥ kṣetrikavat Incidental events indirectly cause the evolution of nature by removing obstacles on its pathway. On the other hand, this energy may be channeled like a farmer removing barriers within a watercourse. Sutra 4.3 is one of my very favorite Yoga Sutras. It is poetic but also clear and direct. But before we get to that…
Let’s not gloss over Yoga Sutra 4.2 because it is tied to the meaning of Sutra 4.3. In 4.2, Patanjali discusses the idea of karma, which underpins the philosophical background of this text. As Vedantic scholars, the scribes listening to him would be intimately familiar with the idea of karma. These days karma seems to be shorthand for justice or punishment, which couldn’t be further from the truth. To begin with, karma is not that orderly.
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 Photo by Greg Rakozy on Unsplash The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams - Eleanor Roosevelt This blog post is part of our Yoga Sutras series. Want to start at the beginning? Yoga Sutra 4.1 जन्मौषधिमन्त्रतपःसमाधिजाः सिद्धयः Janmausadhi mantra tapah samadhi jah siddhayah Accomplishments in yoga can come through birth, medicinal plants, mantra repetition, intense spiritual practice or by samadhi. Patanjali returns once more to the siddhis, which we are calling “accomplishments” here for simplicity and readability. Siddhi implies something much more than simple accomplishments.
A siddhi is a spiritual phenomenon that is a “superphysical” (Satchidananda, 237) sense. Much like we can see, hear, smell, touch, taste, and even sense ourselves in space and from within, some yoga practitioners also achieve sensory phenomena that don’t seem to align with the laws of physical science that we observe with matter. This makes perfect sense. The mind is not like matter and as Patanjali has already explained to us in pada one, the mind has lots of states (dreaming, imagining, remembering) that produce mental phenomena that don’t correspond with physical reality and yet, physical reality is shaped by it.  Photo by Guille Álvarez on Unsplash Satisfaction lies in the effort, not in the attainment, full effort is full victory. - Mahatma Gandhi This blog post is part of our Yoga Sutras series. Want to start at the beginning? Yoga Sutras Book Four: Kaivalya Pada Book Four of The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali is an enigma to me and many other serious yoga practitioners. As we’ve been hinting at throughout this series but especially in our discussions of the third book, Vibhuti Pada, the final stages of a practitioner’s journey are beyond the mind and thus, extremely difficult to describe in a way the mind understands. This work is something that needs to be experienced to be truly understood.
The pursuit of perfection, then, is the pursuit of sweetness and light. - Matthew Arnold This blog post is part of our Yoga Sutras series. Want to start at the beginning? Yoga Sutra 3.56 सत्त्वपुरुषयोः शुद्धिसाम्ये कैवल्यमिति sattva purusayoh suddhi samye kaivalyam iti Thus, the tranquil and purified mind becomes equal to the pure Self and spiritual integration is perfected. In this final post of the year and of pada three of The Yoga Sutras, the image of perfection in yoga is revealed by Patanjali. In essence, by samyama the spiritual aspirant refines their mind to the point wherein vivekajam jnanam (discriminative spiritual knowledge) is achieved and all is intuitively understood by the yogi.
This knowledge purifies the aspirant’s mind. When a person’s mind is strengthened enough that their intuition can grasp the subtlest of distinguishing details between similar things, that mind becomes incredibly perceptive and will be able to understand the difference between what is real and what is unreal. The mind and the soul find harmony.  Photo by Simon Wilkes on Unsplash Perplexity is the beginning of knowledge - Khalil Gibran This blog post is part of our Yoga Sutras series. Want to start at the beginning? Yoga Sutra 3.55 तारकं सर्वविषयं सर्वथाविषयमक्रमं चेति विवेकजं ज्ञानम् tarakam sarva visayam sarvatha visayam akramam cha iti vivekajam jnanam Discriminative spiritual knowledge transcends temporality and comprehends all things in all conditions simultaneously. In Yoga Sutras 3.53-3.55, Patanjali addresses the importance of living in the present moment to the spiritual aspirant. Sutra 3.53 explains how to accomplish this. By samyama on the smallest unit of time (in other words, a moment) and the sequence of these moments in time, one unravels time and gains understanding of it.
Like all other siddhis produced through meditation on specific objects or concepts, this makes logical sense to me. When we concentrate upon something, its mysteries are revealed to us.  Photo by Felipe Bastias on Unsplash " Calmness is the cradle of power." - Josiah Gilbert Holland This blog post is part of our Yoga Sutras series. Want to start at the beginning? Yoga Sutra 3.38 ते समाधावुपसर्गा व्युत्थाने सिद्धयः te samādhāvupasargā vyutthāne siddhayaḥ These accomplishments are obstacles to samadhi but powers in worldly life. Sutra 3.38 is so simple and easily missed among the great siddhis or powers listed in Pada Three of The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, but is the most important Sutra in this set. As I referenced at the beginning of the year, Patanjali cautions us here that these siddhis can derail our spiritual progress.
When we get caught up in these “superphysical senses” (Satchidananda, 237) we are thrust back into the material world. We may become so enamored with our newfound abilities that we lose sight of the spiritual progress that exists beyond their attainment. Patanjali catalogues these potential accomplishments through samyama so that yoga practitioners can spot them and overcome them if and when they arise.  Photo by Buddha Elemental on Unsplash "Once you have seen, you cannot fool yourself. " - Sadguru This blog post is part of our Yoga Sutras series. Want to start at the beginning? Yoga Sutra 3.4 त्रयमेकत्र संयमः trayam ekatra saṃyamaḥ When working together, these three are called samyama. Patanjali explains that when dharana, dhyana and samadhi flow into one another while using one object of focus, it is called samyama. This is actually quite a simple sutra. Patanjali is simply saying that “samyama is just another name for the three practices of concentration, meditation and absorption applied together.” (Bhakt, 133) In samyama, “the three are a single thread” (Iyengar, 182) and therefore, integrated.
 Photo by Omkar Jadhav on Unsplash Knowing others is wisdom. Knowing yourself is enlightenment. - Lao Tzu This blog post is part of our Yoga Sutras series. Want to start at the beginning? Yoga Sutra 3.3 तदेवार्थमात्रनिर्भासं स्वरूपशून्यमिव समाधिः tadevārthamātranirbhāsaṃ svarūpaśūnyamiva samādhiḥ Enlightenment (or Samadhi) is when through meditation the essence of the object shines forth in its own essence, without form. Now Patanjali reaches the final and eighth limb of Raja Yoga, which is Samadhi or the state of enlightenment. As difficult as meditation is to describe in words, enlightenment is even harder. Patanjali tries to explain it here so practitioners will have an idea of what it is like to experience enlightenment and understand when they have reached that goal.
 Photo by Zoltan Tasi on Unsplash The mind that is alone is not only innocent but young...only such a mind can see that which is truth and that which is not measurable by words. - Jiddu Krishnamurti This blog post is part of our Yoga Sutras series. Want to start at the beginning? Yoga Sutra 3.2 तत्र प्रत्ययैकतानता ध्यानम् tatra pratyayaikatānatā dhyānam Built upon the foundation of concentration, meditation is the uninterrupted flow of attention toward the object of concentration. Patanjali distinguishes between concentration (dharana) and meditation (dhyana) within the eight limbs of Raja Yoga he lists. This is a key distinction for practitioners because while we often describe what we are doing as “meditating,” in fact the only action we can actually take is to concentrate.
Concentration is the key that opens up to the child the latent treasures within him. - Maria Montessori This blog post is part of our Yoga Sutras series. Want to start at the beginning? Yoga Sutra 3.1 देशबन्धश्चित्तस्य धारणा deśabandhaścittasya dhāraṇā Concentration is fixing the mind to one point. If we followed just this one sutra, we would learn to meditate and eventually reach enlightenment. How often I hear some variation of “I can’t meditate, my mind is too busy!” But this is exactly what the practice is designed to do: reduce the busyness of the mind.
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