How to Achieve Total Tranquility

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"The real spiritual progress of the aspirant is measured by the extent to which he achieves inner tranquility." 
- Swami Sivananda

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This blog post is part of our Yoga Sutras series.  
​Want to start at the beginning?
Yoga Sutra 3.10
तस्य प्रशान्तवाहिता संस्कारात् 
tasya praśāntavāhitā saṃskārāt
 By habitually calming the movement of the mind, a tranquil flow of consciousness is developed.

No matter our external goals, I think we are all looking for more tranquility in our lives.  Whether our mind races with anger or anxiety, is heavy with despondency or worry or is generally peaceful, a feeling of calm is always welcome.
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That is why yoga is so attractive - especially in the frenetic world we are in right now.  We are all looking for ways to increase and maintain a sense of peace.

In Yoga Sutras 3.9 and 3.10, Patanjali describes how the process of samyama increases tranquility in our minds and therefore, our lives.  What is life other than a projection of the mind?

Looking at direct translations from Sanskrit, I find 3.9 very difficult to understand.  However, reading various interpretations elucidates this lengthy Sutra.  At its core, Sutra 3.9 is explaining the concept of nirodhah parinamah, which might be translated as predominating calmness.

To show how elusive this phrase is, I’d like to share a few translations of nirodhah parinamah from the various interpretations I am using.

“Moments of restrained thought predominat[ing]” (Stiles, 33)

“Ceas[ing] transformation” (Stiles, 97)

“The transformation of consciousness toward restraint” (Iyengar, 187)

“The restraint of rising impressions” (Iyengar ,191)

“The moment of conjunction of mind and new modifications” (Satchidananda, 223)

“Releas[ing] an outgoing thought by the habit of suppression” (Bhakt, 138)

The variety of interpretation indicates how challenging it is to describe this state.  I believe the simplest explanation is that by our effort, the natural aim of yoga is attained, resulting in reduced mental chatter.  In other words, the space between our thoughts increases and a feeling of tranquility pervades our mind.

BKS Iyengar validates this by writing “the method [of nirodhah parinamah] consists of noticing then seizing and finally enlarging those subliminal pauses of silence that occur between rising and restraining thoughts.” (188)  He further compares this method to the natural movement of breath that adept pranayama practitioners understand.  In between our rising and falling breath (inhales and exhales) there are moments where the breath is suspended or quiet. 
 
So our consciousness has rising thoughts, falling thoughts and “quiet state[s] of consciousness” (Iyengar, 189) in between.  Through meditation, we learn to lengthen the quiet conscious periods and induce the expiration of our thoughts by restraining them.  This develops “the habit of letting go of rising impressions… We don’t allow fear or thoughts of the past or future to linger in our mind.” (Bhakt, 141)

This is similar to the process in advanced pranayama practice of increasing our exhalations relative to our inhalations and eventually, increasing the moments wherein our breath is suspended.  Indeed, this practice of expanding our breath directly induces the relaxation response in our body-mind, creating a state of calmness.

Swami Satchidananda explains in his translation that by these “suppressive efforts… new mental modifications [are created].” (223)  As we learn more about neuroplasticity (the nervous system’s capacity for change), this turns out to be very insightful.  

We are not only creating a temporary moment of tranquility by suspending our thoughts in meditation, we are creating the conditions in which the nervous system naturally flows in a state of tranquility.  The more we practice calming our mind, the stronger these neural pathways become, the more likely it is for our mind to flow through these tranquil pathways, which strengthens these pathways further.  As Ram Bhakt puts it “as the mind becomes more focused and deeper levels of concentration develop, it becomes more efficient and our lives start to change.” (141)

Now that we understand what nirodhah parinamah is and how to practice it, Patanjali explains in Yoga Sutra 3.10 that by our habitual practice  and refinement of it, we achieve “an undisturbed flow of tranquility.” (Stiles, 33)  Both Satchidananda and Iyengar call this a “steady” flow but the direct translation calls it a “tranquil” flow.  I believe they are one in the same.  

As Iyengar puts it, “steadiness becomes effortless and natural” (191) by practice.  As anyone who has mastered a challenging yoga pose (or any other challenging goal) can say, once the challenge becomes effortless and natural, a state of calmness is achieved as well.  We do not need to utilize so much energy to complete the effort and therefore, anxiety and doubt around performing it subside.  The effort naturally becomes more tranquil through its steadiness.

In the next couple of posts, we’ll look at Patanjali’s explanation of what comes after nirodhah parinamah, or accomplishment in keeping one’s mind calm, is achieved.
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​When you meditate, do you ever notice your thoughts appear?  What happens when you notice them: do they get stronger or dissipate?  If you try to force your mind to stop thinking about something, does that thought disappear or get stronger?  Instead of forcing yourself to stop thinking, what if you just noticed the thought?  What happens then?