The Yoga Darshana (योग दर्शन) of Patanjali is one of the six classical schools of Sanatan thought. Compiled in the Yoga Sutras — 196 terse aphorisms in four chapters (padas) — it presents a systematic discipline by which the modifications of the mind are stilled so that the seer may rest in its own nature.
The Aim Stated
Patanjali's second sutra defines itself: yogaś citta-vṛtti-nirodhaḥ — "yoga is the stilling of the modifications of the mind". The third immediately gives the consequence: tadā draṣṭuḥ svarūpe avasthānam — "then the seer abides in its own nature". When abiding fails, the seer identifies with its modifications and suffers the round of bondage.
The Five Vrittis and the Kleshas
The mind's modifications are classified as five (pramana, viparyaya, vikalpa, nidra, smriti) and are coloured by five kleshas — afflictions — avidya (ignorance), asmita (egoism), raga (attachment), dvesha (aversion), and abhinivesha (clinging to life). Yoga's whole discipline is aimed at thinning and finally dissolving these afflictions.
— The Eight Limbs
The most famous teaching of the Sutras is the ashtanga — eight limbs — set out in the second pada:
- Yama — restraints: non-injury (ahimsa), truth (satya), non-stealing (asteya), continence (brahmacharya), non-grasping (aparigraha).
- Niyama — observances: purity (shaucha), contentment (santosha), austerity (tapas), self-study (svadhyaya), surrender to the Lord (ishvara-pranidhana).
- Asana — steady, comfortable posture.
- Pranayama — regulation of the breath.
- Pratyahara — withdrawal of the senses from their objects.
- Dharana — sustained concentration on a single point.
- Dhyana — unbroken meditative flow.
- Samadhi — absorption in which subject and object merge.
The first five are sometimes called outer limbs (bahiranga), the last three inner limbs (antaranga); together they form a complete path.
and Its Kinds
Patanjali distinguishes several grades of : with cognitive support (samprajnata), without it (asamprajnata), with seed (sabija) and without seed (nirbija). The final goal is kaivalya — "aloneness" — the establishment of purusha in its own purity, free of identification with prakriti.
Ishvara in
Sutras 1.23-29 introduce Ishvara as a special purusha untouched by afflictions, action, fruits, and karmic deposits. Ishvara-pranidhana — surrender to the Lord — is offered as a direct path to . The pranava om (ॐ) is given as the symbol and seed of meditation on Ishvara.
The Siddhis
The third pada catalogues vibhutis or siddhis — extraordinary powers arising from deep concentration. Patanjali takes care to warn that these powers are obstacles to the highest realisation when grasped at; their proper attitude is observation, not pursuit.
Bhagavad Gita's
The Bhagavad Gita's sixth chapter parallels Patanjali in many respects but situates within a theistic, devotional framework. Krishna teaches Arjuna sitting posture, regulation of breath, single-pointed concentration, and finally surrender to the Lord as the highest .
A Practical Path
What distinguishes Patanjali is precisely its practical character. It does not argue at length for metaphysical positions; it offers a sequence of disciplines and reports what they yield. Lived patiently, the eight limbs slowly thin the kleshas, settle the mind, and prepare the ground for the realisation that other schools describe in their own languages.