Category Archives: Yoga Sutra

Brahma-vihāras: Qualities for Clarity of Mind

Yoga Sūtra 1.33 first lists four qualities to cultivate on the path of yoga: maitrī (friendliness or love), karuṇā (compassion), muditā (joy), and upekṣā (equanimity). These virtues are also heralded in Buddhism as the brahma-vihāras. The next part of this sūtra lists four types of people: sukha (happy), duḥkha (suffering), puṇya (virtuous) and apuṇya (nonvirtuous).

This sūtra suggests that cultivating (bhāvanātaś) the four qualities toward those four types of situations one might encounter, yields greater clarity of mind (citta prasādanam). Specifically, it suggests one should cultivate friendliness or love toward those who are happy, compassion toward those suffering, joy toward those with virtue, and equanimity toward nonvirtuous or evil people. So this sūtra gives a technique for creating clarity in consciousness by giving some tools to work with in relationships. As well, YS 1.33 can be thought of as describing qualities that naturally emerge given a more refined awareness.

YS 1.33 maitrī-karuṇā-muditā-upekṣāṇāṃ sukha-duḥkha-puṇyaapuṇya-viṣayāṇāṃ bhāvanātaś-citta-prasādanam
maitrī: friendliness
karuṇā: compassion
muditā: joy, gladness
upekṣā: equanimity
sukha: happiness
duḥkha: sorrow, suffering, pain
puṇya: virtue, meritorious
apuṇya: vice, demeritorious
viṣayāṇām: concerning or regarding object
bhāvanātaś: cultivating attitude citta: mind, awareness
prasādanam: purification, clarification
The mind becomes clarified by cultivating [or alternately: A clarified mind yields] an attitude of friendliness, compassion, joy, and equanimity toward happiness, pain, virtue, or vice.

As I have contemplated this sūtra, it seems that its list of qualities starts with what is easiest for us to do and moves to what is most difficult. The first two, maitrī/friendliness and karuṇā/compassion, are relatively easy because they often arise spontaneously. Most well-adjusted people find it easy to be friendly and loving when they encounter happy people. Likewise, compassion/karuṇā often naturally arises toward those who are suffering/duḥkha.

The third quality, muditā/joy, may naturally arise in the face of someone who is puṇya/virtuous. For example, when someone performs a beautiful dance or makes a piece of art, we are joyful about that. If someone excels at a sport or a child performs a difficult piano piece, we naturally applaud their accomplishment, joyfully celebrating their virtuosity. However, at times when faced with someone else’s success, instead of feeling joy, we might experience jealousy. So at times, that third pairing of extending muditā/joy toward someone else’s accomplishment can be a challenge.

The last listed quality is the one many people find quite difficult: upekṣā/equanimity toward the apuṇya/nonvirtuous person. Upekṣā is often translated as “equanimity,” which usually leads to the question: What does equanimity mean? Equi means what you might think: “equal or same.” And animus indicates “mind,” so equanimity can mean “even-mindedness.”

A good place to start cultivating these qualities is toward ourselves, as everyone has times when they’re happy, sad, virtuous, or nonvirtuous. When suffering/duḥkha, can we give ourselves some karuṇā/ compassion? When we’ve behaved badly/apuṇya, can we foster a bit of upekṣā/equanimity? Can such behavior be put in perspective? For example, it’s helpful to understand that making a mistake doesn’t make us a bad person.

To practice cultivating these virtues, we can begin by consciously noticing our reactions when meeting these different situations. For example, in the case of someone else’s success, what saṃskāric pattern habitually arises? We have the choice to continue to reinforce it or not, to the degree the ledge of freedom has been established. Though it is hard to stop a thought once it has arisen, we can choose to change the channel. It isn’t a matter of stuffing or ignoring that thought; it’s a matter of laying down a new pattern. When we make the choice and act, that pattern/saṃskāra is established. When repeated, that action becomes a habit. So it is important to ask: What do we want our habit patterns to be like?

Many of the teachings we’ve considered through our svādhyāya/study can be useful in these situations. For example, understanding how the malas and other mechanisms of concealment work to occlude the heart allows for more karuṇā/compassion for ourselves and others and puts things in perspective/upekṣā. And all the practices work to remove the obscurations and clarify awareness/sattva buddhi. The contemplative practice, bhāvanā, can be particularly useful. When something like jealousy arises, bhāvanā could help uncover and eventually dissolve the source of this pattern. So it can be worked with through practice while acknowledging that at times we might need some additional help from a valued friend or a therapist.

The major point here is to act consciously and skillfully, from the highest place possible in the moment. In YS 1.33, Patañjali is suggesting to cultivate these virtues as a means to calm the surface agitation so one can move to a deeper level of awareness. When choosing to respond with positive qualities, we create more positive saṃskāras/habit patterns while at the same time a more sattvic buddhi/clarified awareness arises. So over time, this leads to a positive citta-vṛtti-karma-saṃskāra cycle, which will aid in surface life while at the same time refining the depths of awareness. We have to start connecting the dots of how the thoughts, feelings, and actions play out in our lives.

And remember, word order is important in these pithy sūtras, and the first word in YS 1.33 is maitrī/love. The practice of meditation aligns us with our very own Heart essence (hṛdaya). Exercise freedom/svātantrya to pause and connect, then choose to respond from that Sourceplace of love. When we can do this, it will shift our world.

Reflect and explore

  • Consider each of the virtues listed in YS 1.33, as well as the types of people listed.

~ Give a real-life example of each, preferably from your own life.

~ How do they manifest in your life?

~ What encourages or discourages their occurrence?

  • Practice and note your experience(s): Pick one of these qualities to consciously cultivate for some period of time (it could be a day, a week, a month) and note your experience(s). Repeat this with other qualities.
  • Practice and note your experience(s): For some period of time, cultivate these qualities toward yourself.
  • Do you always experience joy for another’s virtuosity, or does jealousy sometimes arise? How can you work with this?
  • How do you think about upekṣā/equanimity? What helps you find a greater perspective?

Refinement of Your Individuality

At the beginning of chapter 2 of the Yoga Sūtra, Patañjali outlines kriyā-yoga, a yoga of action (YS 2.1). In the following sutra he describes how this yoga works to refine one’s being in two ways. First, it helps attenuate the kleśas/impediments; second, it serves to cultivate samādhi, the deep state of meditative absorption. YS 2.2 says that yoga helps address the root obstructions to the heart, the kleśas, and yoga/meditation also creates samādhi. Remember that samādhi is a series of progressively deeper and immersive states of awareness resulting from the practice of meditation.

YS 2.2 samādhi-bhāvana-arthaḥ kleśa-tanū-karaṇa-arthaś ca
samādhi: state of meditative immersion
bhāvana: cultivating, causing, bringing about
artha: meaning, purpose
kleśa: affliction, impediment
tanū-karaṇa: attenuating, making weak
artha: purpose
ca: and
The purpose [of kriyā-yoga/the yoga of action] is samādhi/meditative immersion and attenuating the kleśas/afflictions.

This is exactly why meditation is an effective way to create changes at the surface of life by directly addressing these underlying mechanisms of the kleśas and saṃskāras, which prompt us toward feeling and acting in particular ways based on past actions/karma. It is very hard to get to the root of the saṃskāras by working only with the surface mind and behaviors. Through meditation, you go deeper than the surface to the saṃskāric seeds and burn them up, so they will no longer sprout. This is the teaching of the dagdha-bīja, the burnt seed, which is alluded to in several places in the text (See, for example, YS 2.4). These seeds can be latent, just waiting for the right conditions to sprout. When the mind finally comes to rest in meditation, the seeds of saṃskāras are burnt up and can no longer sprout.

In the Yoga Sūtra, meditation is emphasized as the method for knowing our true selves. The process of meditation acts on the deepest layers of individuality to remove (burn up) the saṃskāras and attenuate the kleśas, clearing a pathway to the true Self. YS 1.47 says that in the deepest states of samādhi, awareness is clarified, revealing the inner Self.

YS 1.47 nirvicāra-vaiśāradye-adhyātma-prasādaḥ
nirvicāra: a state of samādhi without any thought
vaiśāradye: lucidity, clarity, pure flow
adhyātma: inner Self
prasādaḥ: clarity, purity, luminosity
In the lucidity of nirvicāra-samādhi, there is clarity of the inner Self.

When you meditate, several things happen simultaneously that serve to shift and refine awareness, thus supporting the recognition/pratyabhijñā of the deepest Self. When turning the mind inward during meditation practice, awareness starts to traverse from the surface layers to the subtler layers. With repeated practice the habit pattern of moving into deeper places inside is cultivated. You are creating inward-moving saṃskāras. Meditating establishes the saṃskāra/habit pattern of moving awareness from the surface to deeper layers, to the deepest part of oneself.

The experience of steeping awareness in the deep spaces of consciousness creates a different type of saṃskāra. YS 1.50 teaches about two types of saṃskāras. First are those more conventional saṃskāras, the imprints of our past actions. Second, a different type of saṃskāra arises in deep meditative states of awareness, which acts to obstruct other saṃskāras. So the practice of meditation creates obstructor saṃskāras that don’t activate awareness with citta-vṛttis like other saṃskāras. Instead, they put a damper on the outward-moving saṃskāras, even destroying them. With continued practice, this has the effect of eliminating the influence of those old saṃskāras/subliminal activators we’re carrying around from previous life experiences. And this is a continuing and reiterative process.

YS 1.50 taj-jaḥ saṃskāro ‘nya-saṃskāra-pratibandhī
tat: that [truth-bearing wisdom]
jaḥ: born
saṃskāra: subliminal impressions/activators
anya: other
saṃskāra: subliminal impressions/activators
pratibandhī: obstructing, preventing
Saṃskāras born from that [truth-bearing wisdom] obstruct other saṃskāras.

At the same time we’re burning up problematic saṃskāras, our meditation practice produces the obstructing or inhibiting saṃskāras (YS 1.50). A commentary on the Yoga Sūtra says that these blocking saṃskāras enhance the experience of samādhi, creating more of the wisdom saṃskāras, which block the others, and so on. As well, remember that meditation helps establish the habit of moving awareness internally. All of this eventually leads us to have fewer citta-vṛttis and experiencing more calm during meditation. The obstructer saṃskāras are a way that our awareness is reorganized. In this way, awareness is slowly clarified.

REFLECT AND EXPLORE

Contemplate any of the teachings you find drawn to or find challenging and consider how you’ve experienced them.

How have you noticed the release of old patterns and/or a greater clarity?

How do these teachings relate to how you approach the practice of yoga?

The Cycle of Karma, Saṃskāras, and Citta-vṛttis

Recall the definition of yoga from Yoga Sūtra 1.2: yoga is calming the “turnings”/citta-vṛttis of the mind. The citta-vṛttis are the fluctuations of consciousness, everything that happens in the field of awareness, including thoughts, perception, concepts, emotions, and memory.

So the next questions become: What is the nature of these citta-vṛttis? Where do they come from, and how can we work with them? There is a whole process by which these citta-vṛttis are generated through a cycle involving the citta-vṛttis, saṃskāras, and karma. Without going into all the technicalities of the philosophy here, we will consider the general process. Understanding this process is integral to exploring how awareness works, how meditation works, and how the teachings can be applied to everyday life.

The citta-vṛttis/fluctuations of the mind—essentially whatever is in your awareness—are said to be activated by the saṃskāras. In the context of Classical Yoga, saṃskāra is usually translated as “subliminal impression,” or “subliminal activator.” Saṃskāras are all the impressions or imprints left by past actions, which then condition future actions. And the theory is that they are based on actions not only from this life, but from previous lives as well.

There’s a cycle that involves actions (karmas), the traces they leave (saṃskāras), and the thoughts and feelings (citta-vṛttis), which works as follows. You do something or something happens to you: that is karma. Remember there are different definitions of karma, but in this context, just think of karma as an action. That action lays down an imprint, a saṃskāra, in your psyche. So the saṃskāra becomes part of you. It might be inactive, or when circumstances are right, it starts activating certain thoughts or feelings, which are the citta-vṛttis. There can be a repetitive cycle when the citta-vṛttis prompt action, thereby creating karma, which lays down the saṃskāra, which causes more citta-vṛttis, and so on.

For example, I like to have some chocolate after dinner. I love good dark chocolate, and when I have some, the experience creates an impression in my psyche of how good that chocolate is. So next time as I finish dinner, I have the thought: “Wow, some chocolate would be so good right now.” So I eat some chocolate and am again reminded of how good it is.

In this example, the action of eating the chocolate is the karma. My experience of eating the chocolate yields the saṃskāra, the impression left in my psyche. When the conditions are right (I’ve finished dinner) the saṃskāra is activated. This leads to the citta-vṛtti, the thought and impulse in my manas, my thinking mind, that I want more chocolate. And so I have some chocolate, further reinforcing that saṃskāric impression.

Saṃskāras are often likened to seeds. They are planted in awareness and will sprout when the conditions are right. They may lie dormant for a long time—even lifetimes. Then circumstances arise that activate them. And remember, every action creates these seeds, so they are quite numerous.

Another way to think of saṃskāras is as habit patterns. Some of the patterns aren’t a big deal—like a little bit of really great dark chocolate after dinner isn’t a particularly detrimental habit. But in other circumstances, these patterns can be quite debilitating. One example is post-traumatic stress, in which there are environmental triggers that elicit extreme cognitive or emotional citta-vṛttis. Drug or alcohol addictions are also debilitating habit patterns. However, some habit patterns can be positive. For example, when I get up in the morning, the impulse to meditate arises pretty quickly for me as a result of my repeated action of meditating each morning and the resulting saṃskāras embedded in my buddhi. Also, the saṃskāras differ in how ingrained they are. More traumatic or repetitive experiences will be deeply embedded. So there’s a whole range of how these patterns work in our lives.

REFLECT AND EXPLORE

Give examples from your life of saṃskāric “habit patterns.” Consider those that are both positive and negative.

How can you break the pattern of problematic habit patterns?

YOUR MIND IS DIVINE

The very first aphorism from the Pratyabhijñā-hṛdayam (PH) says: the Highest Citi, out of her freedom, contracts from its expanded state to manifest everything. Then PH 5 specifies a result of that process. The absolute Consciousness contracts to produce our individual awareness, citta.

PH 5 citir eva cetana-padād avarūḍhā cetya-saṃkocinī cittam
Citi: absolute Consciousness
eva: itself
cetana: uncontracted or expanded Consciousness
padād: state, stage
avarūḍhā: descend
cetya: object of perception
saṃkocinī: contracted, limited
citta: mind, individual awareness
Consciousness contracts from its expanded state and becomes our individual awareness, conforming to objects of perception.

You may recognize citta in this sūtra as the same word from the definition of yoga in the Yoga Sūtra. Yoga is the calming of the whirlings/vṛttis of the mind/citta (YS 1.2). PH 5 indicates the citta is a relatively contracted state of awareness. Remember the citta-vṛttis include all our thoughts and feelings, both positive and negative.

Anyone who observes the movements of the mind/citta-vṛttis, knows that the mind is quite active, which, of course, is the opposite of the directive from YS 1.2 to stop (nirodha) the thoughts. The challenge in trying to calm the mind is reflected in a teaching common in spiritual circles about “monkey mind,” which asserts that the mind is unsettled, uncontrollable, and full of restless mental chatter. You may perceive a bit of a rub between the idea from Tantra that “the mind is divine” and the idea of monkey mind.

When I began to study the Yoga Sūtra, I got the sense that thoughts are a bad thing, especially in meditation. From the perspective of Classical Yoga, one wants to squelch/nirodha the thoughts/citta-vṛttis. Early in my journey, I thought I was really messed up and couldn’t meditate properly because my mind was active. But in this sūtra (PH 5), the expanded awareness/cetena, contracts to form our individual mind/citta. If we think of our thoughts as manifestations of the Highest/Citi, maybe thoughts aren’t so bad, and perhaps they can be seen as part of a benevolent process. The mind/citta is a beautiful thing; we just need to make it an ally. We need it to function in, and maximally experience, our householder life. It allows us to live in this world. The mind is allowing you to read this book and learn these teachings.

Particularly as indicated in this sūtra, the mind/citta is a manifestation of the Highest/Citi. Indeed, it is a gift that allows us to maximize our householder lives and to contact the highest Consciousness. The mind is the instrument to return to the Divine. So from a Tantric perspective, there is an honoring of the mind that has a different flavor than is found in Classical Yoga.

Reflect and Explore

How does the phrase “monkey mind” make you feel?

Do you see your mind as an ally or a problem? Why?

Adhikāra

Before a student can appropriately receive practices that will move them along the path of yoga, they must be willing and ready. This willingness and readiness is related to the adhikāra of the student. I first learned this word as “studentship,” as in the degree of aspiration one had, as well as the proclivities of the student. One could be tepid or lackadaisical, or somewhat motivated with moderate studentship, or a very intense and dedicated practitioner (for example, see YS 1.22). One could be more open and receptive to different perspectives, or more rigid in their thinking.

In the yoga tradition, adhikāra relates to who is entitled, eligible, or qualified to receive a practice. For example, it was customary during earlier eras like Upaniṣadic times, that most practices were restricted to Brahmin men. Others were not entitled and seen as ineligible. A different and much less restrictive perspective is that adhikāra relates to the degree to which a student is prepared, ready, and interested in receiving practices and teachings. In part, this has to do with the capacity of one’s awareness and receptivity. Adhikāra relates to how a student should take the first and subsequent steps on the path of yoga, given their current degree of evolution of consciousness, which is related to the degree of śaktipāta they’ve received.

It is useful to think about this in other domains of practice and study. For example, the system of yoga in which I started had a well-established sequence of yoga āsanas, and one did not progress to a more advanced level until they displayed competence in the previous level, and were, therefore, ready to move forward. This is true in many domains of study, like mathematics, wherein one must first become proficient in fundamental concepts before receiving more advanced concepts. In both cases there is a sequence that is useful to follow.

Likewise, in the domain of consciousness particular practices are more or less appropriate for particular individuals, depending on the progress of the practitioner along the path of yoga. Many may sincerely wish for more advanced practices, though they are not prepared and may not have the capacity to receive the benefits, given their current state of awareness. Some say that advanced practices given to someone who is not ready for them can be harmful. More likely the practices just won’t be effective, which can be discouraging to a student. Often it requires a previous practice of meditation to properly “prime” the practitioner for other ancillary practices to be most effective.

Adhikāra has a lot to do with the aspiration of the student. The student must first want to step into the journey of yoga and be receptive to seeking out a teacher. For example, throughout the Bhagavad Gītā, Arjuna seeks guidance from Kṛṣṇa by asking progressively more astute questions, signaling his readiness and capacity to receive more. Adhikāra is reflected in students’ prior cultivation of their practice and study, so that the ground of their awareness is properly prepared for the seeds of further practices and teachings to flourish.

REFLECT AND EXPLORE

Write down your definition of adhikāra.

How have you seen your adhikāra play out on your path of yoga?

Have you ever had a teacher dissuade you in some way from moving into a more advanced practice? What do you think about that?

Consider these attributes of adhikāra: receptivity, fluidity, curiosity, groundedness, regularity, dedication, stamina, commitment, aspiration, degree of knowledge or awareness. What other attributes of adhikāra do you think are important?

Specifically consider your own adhikāra regarding any of the above listed (or other) attributes:

– which best describes you?

– which you tend toward?

– which you feel you need to cultivate more?

Yogic Qualities as Emergent Qualities

Anyone exploring yoga and spirituality learns about its many edicts, all the ways yogis are supposed to be as spiritual practitioners. For example, in the Yoga Sūtra, the yamas and the niyamas are the first two limbs of the famous aṣṭāṅga/eight-limbed system (YS 2.29). They include qualities like nonharming, truthfulness, nonstealing, cleanliness, and more. Elsewhere in the Yoga Sūtra are listed several attributes to cultivate on the path of yoga, such as joy, equanimity, faith, and strength (YS 1.20 and 1.33). These are treasured attributes of the path of yoga.

As I began studying the texts in my early days as a yoga practitioner, I earnestly tried to cultivate in my daily life the qualities I read about. I imagined myself embodying various attributes, much like the New Age notion of visualizing some outcome one wishes to manifest. However, if one works only on the level of the relative surface existence, success may be relatively limited.

Consider that these treasured attributes are innate capacities of the heart that may be blocked or veiled to some degree, so success in cultivating these qualities is directly correlated with the clarity of awareness and the ability to access the highest within. A more potent and effective means of manifesting them is to align with the deepest self—that which rules over everything else. As one becomes more aligned with the Highest and refines awareness, innate capacities of the heart begin to naturally emerge and flow.

Since these qualities are actually already within us, it is simply a matter of unleashing them. The process of yoga eliminates and shifts our habitual patterns/saṃskāras and they no longer guide behavior. As awareness becomes more clear and lucid, the responses these yogic virtues represent will naturally arise. These positive characteristics can be thought of as emergent qualities. They naturally emerge as the practices move us farther along the path to greater awareness and clarity.

Like many things in yoga, cultivating these virtues is a bit paradoxical as they are both the result of practice, and they are practices in and of themselves. The world desperately needs each of us to embody these qualities, so it is good to cultivate them to whatever degree possible. The more we consciously bring these attributes into awareness, the more our being will be colored by them. And as well, the more we practice and generally clarify our awareness, the more these qualities will naturally and spontaneously emerge.

These qualities are dharmic—they help hold things together on the surface of life. As we cultivate these virtues, they create more positive saṃskāras and fewer negative saṃskāras as we proceed along the path, as they begin to arise spontaneously more frequently. Most importantly, they have a positive effect on our own lives and on the world at large.

REFLECT AND EXPLORE

How have you found positive qualities of the heart arising along the path of yoga?

How do you find them easier to cultivate over time?

How do you observe them spontaneously arising?

Samādhi and Prajñā

Patañjali’s Yoga Sūtra considers several yogic qualities and the last two are samādhi and prajñā, which have a variety of nuanced meanings. The topic of samādhi is huge, evidenced by the first chapter of the Yoga Sūtra being entitled “samādhi,” and the great number of aphorisms which address it throughout the text. Briefly, samādhi refers to a meditative state of awareness with various stages, the ultimate involves a complete identification with the object of meditation. Prajñā is generally translated as wisdom. These two words can be seen as separate, or some interpret them as a phrase meaning “the wisdom of samādhi.”

In the process of meditation, one moves through the increasingly refined stages of samādhi, into the depths of awareness and the essence of reality. There’s a lot to say about the process and the effects that it has on us that is beyond the scope of the present discussion. But basically our awareness becomes clarified such that we see things more clearly. This allows us to begin to see the essence of reality, of who we are, and the nature of everything.

This clarity is associated with prajñā, translated as wisdom, insight, and discernment. It is a profound knowledge based on the increased awareness we experience in deep states of meditation. So there’s a sense of clarity and a wisdom arising from the deepest connection with the highest, yielding the ability to see things as they really are. That’s why some translators pair these two as the wisdom (prajñā) that is inherent in samādhi.

So our practice of yoga, particularly meditation, creates the conditions for this wisdom to emerge. As well, such knowledge reinforces the previous qualities listed: we have more faith/ śraddhā in the process of yoga and increased vīrya/strength. Smṛti/remembering is supported with this clarity of awareness, and one thing we remember is that connectedness the state of samādhi ultimately yields. The practical consequence is that as we access this wisdom within, it guides us in all our householder activities so that our life begins to reflect the highest possible outcomes.

REFLECT AND EXPLORE

Contemplate and write about samādhi and prajñā.

How have you experienced increasing discernment on your path of yoga?

How do you see the connection between all the five qualities listed in Yoga Sūtra 1.20?

Remember to Remember

In our recent studies, we’re delving into aphorism 1.20 from Patañjali’s Yoga Sūtra. In a previous essay, we considered the first two listed qualities: śraddhā/faith and vīrya/strength or energy. The third listed quality is smṛti, variously translated as memory, remembering, or even mindfulness. This always reminds me (I remember!) of something Krishna Das said: remember to remember. I suspect he was talking about remembering the Highest, the Divine, the beloved, always and all ways.

One very concrete interpretation of smṛti is to remember the lessons you’ve learned in your life. This may be a recollection, but it also could be an active inquiry into your history to discern the connection between your actions and the outcomes in your life. First off, we don’t want to continue making the same mistakes. When we encounter some situation we have previous experience with, we bring to bear all we’ve learned about what type of action will bring about the highest in a given situation.

This is related to the concept of sambandha, which is the ability to see the relationship, to connect the dots between one thing and another. Especially important is remembering what takes us further along the path of yoga, understanding what actions on our part keep us most aligned with our Heartself. We must identify how our practice of yoga impacts our life, remember that connection between our practices and the unfolding of our life. This will feed back into the faith/śraddhā and energy/vīrya to do our practices, and to generally affirm we are continuing to move forward in an aligned way.

Another interpretation of smṛti that I see in the commentaries concerns recalling the calm, loving, and luminous states we experience during practice. This relates to the concept of vyutthāna, mentioned by Kṣemarāja in the Pratyabhijñā-hṛdayam (e.g., PH 19). This is a practice done as one is emerging from practice, like when getting up from śavāsana and sitting quietly for a moment to remember and imprint the state of sattva/luminosity the practice brings. Then one’s life can be uplifted by actively recalling that state later during daily life on a moment by moment basis.

Which brings us back around to remembering the Highest in each moment, being mindful of the dynamics of each situation and instead of reacting from some habitual behavioral pattern, remembering your heart, remembering you have some freedom of choice, remembering previous lessons and consciously choosing to move from the highest possible place. And remember to remember.

REFLECT AND EXPLORE

Contemplate and write about smṛti.

What are all the ways you think about smṛti? How can they be applied to your life?

What connection/sambandha do you see between your practice of yoga, and living your householder life?

How is smṛti related to śraddhā and vīrya?

FAITH AND STRENGTH

One of my favorite sūtras from Patañjali’s Yoga Sūtra relates to yogic qualities associated with the path of yoga. You can think of these as virtues that naturally emerge as we move further along the path, and/or as qualities to consciously cultivate as part of your practice.

YS 1.20 śraddhā-vīrya-smṛti-samādhi-prajña-pūrvaka itareṣāṃ
śraddhā: faith
vīrya: vigor, energy, strength
smṛti: memory, mindfulness
samādhi: meditative absorption
prajña: wisdom, insight
pūrvaka: preceded or accompanied by
itareṣāṃ: for others
For others [the state of yoga] is accompanied by faith, strength, memory, samadhi and wisdom.

For starters let’s consider the first two qualities. First listed is śraddhā/faith. What does faith mean? You may want to take a moment to contemplate that question.

Sometimes faith gets a bad rap because it can be seen as a blind religiosity. I think of it as faith in the process and your path, in the teachings and your teachers. This includes faith in yourself, that you will progress on the path, expanding awareness and understanding. And as well, faith can mean sensing that everything will work out. I know that sounds rather Pollyanna-ish, but it’s a sense that even when things are really hard, you will learn something from it, refine your understanding, and get through it.

I remember once I was at a big workshop with my teaching colleagues. My main teacher at the time asked in front of everyone: “Cindy Lusk, what is the first sūtra of the Yoga Sūtra?”, which I answered correctly. The teacher proceeded to point out how I hadn’t freaked out when he put me on the spot, and just called forth the answer in a calm way.

Then the next day, he said, “Cindy Lusk, what is Yoga Sūtra 1.20?” And…I freaked! It is so ironic because the very first word of this sutra is śraddhā/faith, but when I freaked out, I lost faith that the answer would come if I paused to remember. Yet, even though it was embarrassing in the moment, I will never forget this sūtra again.

The second quality listed in this sūtra is vīrya, energy or strength. One way to think about this is as the energy we bring to the practices, be they meditation, āsana, or svādhyāya/study. But as well it involves sticking with it through the challenging times, through the boring times, through the times when we just don’t want to do it. Vīrya is the energy to start, and just keep it going, whether the experience is easeful or challenging.

Vīrya reminds me that there is work to be done. This may entail a summoning of inner resources to start shifting non-aligned patterns in order to manifest refinement in its many forms: healing, growth, change, and transformation. At times we can get stuck in situations be they physical, mental, or matters of the heart, and it takes strength and courage to choose to shift.

These two qualities of faith and strength interact and feed each other. As we have śraddhā/faith in the wisdom of the teachings as guidance for our actions, vīrya/courage arises that provides energy for those actions, and as we see the efficacy of the aligned action, we have more faith. And this is why I continue to study the teachings of yoga again and again, deepening my understanding, my faith, and my courage to manifest them in my life on a daily basis.

REFLECT AND EXPLORE

How have you experienced the qualities of śraddhā and vīrya manifesting in your life?

Are you inclined to one more than the other? How is that working?

What helps them manifest?

IGNORANCE

The yoga tradition asserts that at essence we are each divine, yet this isn’t what most of us experience. Somehow we don’t know that, we’ve forgotten our hearts as we become entangled in our surface lives. One way this forgetfulness is expressed in the tradition is as avidyā. Vidyā means “knowledge,” and adding the negator a indicates that avidyā is a lack of knowledge, generally translated as “ignorance.” We are ignorant of who we are at essence.

YS 2.5 anitya-aśuci-duḥkha-anātmasu nitya-śuci-sukha-ātma-khyātir-avidyā
anityta: not eternal, impermanent, transitory
aśuci: impure
duḥkha: pain, sorrow
anātmasu: not-Self
nitya: eternal
śuci: pure, clear
sukha: happiness, joy
ātma: Self
khyāti: perception
avidyā: ignorance
Ignorance is confusing the transitory, impure, and painful not-self with the eternal, pure, joyful Self.

The Yoga Sūtras lists ignorance as one of the five kleśas, which are impediments or afflictions that are the underlying causes of suffering. Avidyā, or ignorance, is given as the primary ground from which the other kleśas are born (YS 2.4). Also, YS 2.5 indicates that ignorance leads to a fundamental confusion. Instead of experiencing the ātma/Self, which is eternal, pure, and joyful, we identify with the surface self (the an-ātma or “not-self,”), which is transitory, impure, and painful.

SS 1.2 jñānaṃ bandhaḥ
jñāna: knowledge
bandhaḥ: bondage
[Limited] knowledge is bondage.

A related way of thinking about this is that we’ve forgotten caitanyam ātmā (SS 1.1), “Consciousness is the self/ātma.” And in the Śiva Sūtra, immediately after proclaiming this highest teaching in the first sūtra, the next sūtra, SS 1.2, says, “Limited knowledge is bondage.” In his commentary, Kṣemarāja points to two ways this limited knowledge manifests, which is similar to what is outlined in YS 2.5. (Note the use of “ātma” in both YS 2.5 and SS 1.1.)

The first type of limited knowledge is thinking of ourselves in limited terms. Our everyday awareness thinks that all we are is our dance on the surface of life. We think the totality of existence is that part of the iceberg above the water. We are sucked into the daily drama of life and identify completely with it.

A second way knowledge is limited is not recognizing that we are in fact Consciousness itself. We don’t know ourselves as the ocean of Consciousness. We fail to penetrate beyond the surface awareness to discover the heart of who we are at the depths.

The teaching on ignorance is fundamental and prevalent throughout the tradition of yoga, and many others. Many mechanisms are posited for how this comes to be, which we will consider sometime in the future.

REFLECT AND EXPLORE

Give your definition of ignorance/avidyā.

Consider YS 2.5 and SS 1.2 and the two ways ignorance is described. Put these into your own words.

How do you see ignorance manifesting in your life?

How do you see ignorance manifesting in the world at large?