The Beauty and the Depth of the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali

I practiced yoga for years before I even picked up a translation of Patanjali's Yoga Sutras. After doing so, I became hooked and went on to study the sutras more in-depth. This foundational text, while is best to study with a teacher (or join a sutra discussion group), is so full of wisdom and offers a complete picture of yoga (as opposed to the McYoga we see today in America).

This post pays tribute to the perfection of the sutras with resources for further study of the sutras as well as a chanting of the first two chapters of the sutras:

• One of my favorite translation of the Yoga Sutras comes from T.K.V Desikachar in his book The Heart of Yoga.
• The Internet archive of the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali is chock full of information for anyone wanting to take his/her study of the sutras deeper.
• You can download the archive of the Yoga Sutras here. The archive includes translations by multiple authors in a variety of languages, as well as electronic versions of some reference works, translations, sounds and images.

And speaking of sounds and images, check out these fantastic videos of the most influential yoga teacher, Krishnamacharya, practicing yoga with the chanting of the sutras (the first two chapters) by his grandson Kaustub as the soundtrack (if you're interested in the chanting of the yoga sutras, visit the Vedic Chant Center). What a treasure!

Namaste!

Comments

[michael]

I find the questions asked in Bernard Bouanchaud's _The Essence of Yoga - Reflections on the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali a fine guide for contemplation.

My fave translation and commentary is The Yoga-Sutra of Patanjali by Chip Hartranft.

[Bob Weisenberg]

jsd,

I'm sure that your comments on the Upanishads and the Bhagavad Gita are correct as far as they go, but in my opinion they are considerably more accessible and livable than that. Showing this is the primary goal of my website and eBook http://YogaDemystified.com.

For example, in my review of Mitchell's version of the Bhagavad Gita I write "The Bhagavad Gita is quite literally about falling in love with the indescribable wonder of the universe". http://wp.me/PlUox-eU

Please take a look and tell me what you think. (I actually think the Upanishads and the Bhagavad Gita are more direct and accessible than the Yoga Sutra, once one understands the core meaning and gets used to the rich metaphorical language.)

Bob Weisenberg
http://YogaDemystified.com

[Emma]

id love more sutra groups to be out in the world... hard to find, though

[Jack]

Thanks for this wonderful article...

[JSD]

Hi Bob and Diane,

Thanks for the great post and conversation - couple of quick points - YS is great because it is so clear. Upanishads, on the other hand, are meditations on the 'holographic' nature of the cosmos, such that the very large (brahman) and very small (atman)come to coalesce. They are not easy to access even if you have good sanskrit. The BG, on the other hand, is a text that shows how to use the forces of bondage - action, thought and attachment - against themselves. These are the three yogas of the BG - karma, jnana and bhakti.

Together, they pack quite a punch!

[Bob Weisenberg]

Hi, Diane.

Great post. Your favorite Yoga Sutra version is the same as mine--Desikachar's translation in "The Heart of Yoga".

And thanks for the Internet Archive. I'm going to really enjoy browsing through that.

My only other comment is that, as wonderful as it is, the Yoga Sutra is only one of the "big three" ancient Yoga texts. It gets most of the attention but, in my opinion, the Upanishads and the Bhagavad Gita are equally important for anyone who loves Yoga philosophy.

As with the Yoga Sutra, it's important to get the right version and commentary. Some are very accessible and others are not. See my recommendations at:

RECOMMENDED READING http://wp.me/PlUox-F

Bob Weisenberg
http://YogaDemystified.com