Patanjali

There is little historical information available on Patanjali, who is credited with developing yoga, one of the six systems of Hindu philosophy. Several scholars suggest several persons may have developed yoga under the pseudonym of Patanjali. In any case, Patanjali existed around 150 B.C. in India. He developed yoga based on a loose set of doctrines and practices from the Upanishads, themselves a set of mystical writings. The Upanishads are part of the Aranyakas, philosophical concepts that are part of the Veda, the most ancient body of literature of Hinduism. Patanjali gave these combined philosophical and esoteric writings a common foundation in his Yoga Sutra, a set of 196 concise aphorisms (wise sayings) that form the principles of yoga. He also drew upon Samkhya, the oldest classic system of Hindu philosophy. Patanjali's yoga accepted Samkhya metaphysics and the concept of a supreme soul. He established an eight-stage discipline of self-control and meditation. The individual sutras (verses) lay out the entire tradition of meditation. They also describe the moral and physical disciplines needed for the soul to attain absolute freedom from the body and self.

[Article by: Ken R. Wells]

Patanjali was an Indian teacher traditionally thought of as the person who gathered and systematized the teachings of meditation and yoga. He is believed to have lived between 200B.C.E. and 450 C.E. However, he is credited with composing the small Sanskrit volume of Yoga Sutras from which the modern practice of yoga is derived.

The Sutras laid out a system of practice by which one can attain a pure state free of illusion. The practice begins with the adoption of a fivefold ethic (call yama), very similar to that taught by Mahavida and the Jains—nonviolence, truthfulness, non-stealing, sexual restraint, and non-attachment. It is followed by the adoption of five virtues (niyama)—purity, contentment, austerity, study, and dedication. These practices inhibit the negative influences of being in the world. After adopting a lifestyle centered on yama and niyama, one begins the step-by-step adoption of the asanas (postures), breath control, control over the sense, concentration, and meditation, each of which should lead to the goal of samadhi (variously described as absorption or liberation).

According to Patanjali, the practice of yoga has a number of side effects. For example, the practice of nonviolence will lead to the cessation of violence in one's presence. Some of these side effects involve distinctly paranormal activity. For example, truthfulness in one's life leads to the ability to speak the future. The practice of concentration and meditation grants a number of siddhas, unusual powers, such as the ability to remain hidden or to greatly increase one's strength. It also leads to an understanding of the subtle anatomy of the body, including an awareness of the mysterious psychic/spiritual centers generally referred to as chakras. The practice of yoga then leads to the valuing of the siddhas and those who practice them throughout Indian society.

The practice of yoga (especially that part of Patanjali's system that included the asanas,) reached a low point in the nineteenth century, but was reborn early in the twentieth century. Simultaneously, hatha yoga, that aspect of the teachings devoted to the postures, was exported to the West as a discipline centered upon the improvement of bodily health. Hatha yoga has actually enjoyed a greater response in non-Indian cultures than in the land of its birth.

Sources:

Majumdar, Sachindra Kumar. Introduction to Yoga Principles and Practice. Secaucus, N.J.: Citadel Press, 1976.

Patanjali. The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali: A New Translation and Commentary. Edited by Georg Feuerstein. Folkstoone, UK: Dawson, 1979.

Quotes:

"In deep meditation the flow of concentration is continuous like the flow of oil."

"When you are inspired by some great purpose, some extraordinary project, all your thoughts break their bonds: Your mind transcends limitations, your consciousness expands in every direction, and you find yourself in a new, great, and wonderful world. Dormant forces, faculties and talents become alive, and your discover yourself to be a greater person by far than you ever dreamed yourself to be."