Introduction
I have written extensively on Patanjali’s Yoga Sutra (e.g., The Essence of Yoga Philosophy and How to Know and Transform the Chitta). It has always struck me how extensively B.K.S. Iyengar utilizes the practice of asana and pranayama to elucidate philosophical concepts from Patanjali’s Yoga Sutra. It appears that Iyengar not only practiced each of the 196 sutras but also comprehended them through his experiential engagement with the practice. He takes the sutras from an abstract, philosophical realm to a tangible experience in the body and mind.
While there are numerous interpretations of this concise and condensed text, I am unaware of any other interpretation that employs practice to illustrate profound philosophical insights to the same extent as Iyengar does. In this regard, his interpretation is both unique and exceptional, offering yoga practitioners a wonderful means to understand and assimilate the otherwise challenging sutras.
This uniqueness is also expressed in Godfrey Devereux’s Foreword for “Light on the Yoga Sutra of Patanjali“: “Here, in his presentation of Patañjali, that door is flung wide open. This is especially clear, even to the least academically minded student, in his profound and practical interpretations of the sutras relating to Asana and pranayama. Here, especially, Iyengar’s genius comes as a great gift of clarity and insight that can only deepen the understanding and support the practice of any keen student.”
In the following sections, I present quotes from Iyengar’s interpretation in the book “Light on the Yoga Sutra of Patanjali.” These quotes are drawn from the interpretation of Samadhi Pada, Sadhana Pada, as well as the first three sutras of Vibhuti Pada, completing the Ashtanga Yoga. Through these quotes, I illustrate how Iyengar’s practical illustrations bring philosophical ideas into the realm of experience. I emphasize the occurrences of the word Asana to underscore how much the interpretation is rooted in and based on the experience gained from Asana practice.
The Quotes
From the Introduction
“The seeker is taught to perform Asanas so that he becomes familiar with his body, senses and intelligence. He develops alertness, sensitivity, and the power of concentration.”
In explaining the somewhat ambiguous concept of Asmita he uses Śīrṣāsana (headstand) to illustrate how Asmita can play a positive and negative role in our evolution:
“The chameleon nature of asmita is apparent when we set ourselves a challenge. The source of the challenge lies in the positive side of asmita, but the moment fear arises negatively, it inhibits our initiative. We must then issue a counter-challenge to disarm that fear. From this conflict springs creation…
Asana, for example, offers a controlled battleground for the process of conflict and creation. The aim is to recreate the process of human evolution in our own internal environment. We thereby have the opportunity to observe and comprehend our own evolution to the point at which conflict is resolved and there is only oneness, as when the river meets the sea. This creative struggle is experienced in the headstand: as we challenge ourselves to improve the position, fear of falling acts to inhibit us. If we are rash, we fall, if timorous, we make no progress. But if the interplay of the two forces is observed, analysed and controlled, we can achieve perfection. At that moment, the asmita which proposed and the asmita which opposed become one in the Asana and assume a perfect form. Asmita dissolves in bliss, or satcitananda (purity-consciousness-bliss).”
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Asanas are explained in the framework of the yogic disciplines:
“Asana (posture) results in balance, stillness of mind, and power to penetrate the intelligence. Through Asana we learn to know the body well and to distinguish between motion and action: motion excites the mind while action absorbs it.”
The effect of well-done asanas is being in the present moment:
“Asana has two facets, pose and repose. Pose is the artistic assumption of a position. ‘Reposing in the pose’ means finding the perfection of a pose and maintaining it, reflecting in it with penetration of the intelligence and with dedication. When the seeker is closer to the soul, the Asanas come with instantaneous extension, repose and poise.
When effortful effort in an Asana becomes effortless effort, one has mastered that Asanas, In this way, each Asana has to become effortless. While performing the Asanas, one has to relax the cells of the brain, and activate the cells of the vital organs and of the structural and skeletal body. Then intelligence and consciousness may spread to each and every cell. The conjunction of effort, concentration and balance in Asana forces us to live intensely in the present moment, a rare experience in modern life.
This actuality, or being in the present, has both a strengthening and a cleansing effect: physically in the rejection of disease, mentally by ridding our mind of stagnated thoughts or prejudices; and, on a very high level where perception and action become one, by teaching us instantaneous correct action; that is to say, action which does not produce reaction. On that level we may also expunge the residual effects of past actions. The three origins of pain are eradicated by Asana as we progress from clear vision through right thinking to correct action.”
…
“At this subtlest level, when we are able to observe the workings of rajas, tamas and sattva in one toe, and to adjust the flow of energy in ida, pingala and sushumna (the three principal nadis, or energy channels), the macrocosmic order of nature is perceived in even the smallest aspects. And when the student then learns how the minutest modifications of a toe can modify the whole Asana, he is observing how the microcosm relates to the whole, and the organic completeness of universal structure is grasped.
…
Asanas act as bridges to unite the body with the mind, and the mind with the soul. They lift the sadhaka from the clutches of afflictions and lead him towards disciplined freedom. They help to transform him by guiding his consciousness away from the body towards awareness of the soul. Through Asana, the sadhaka comes to know and fully realize the finite body, and merge it with the infinite – the soul. Then there is neither the known nor the unknown and only then does the Asana exist wholly. This is the essence of a perfect Asana.”
Sutra I.17
Illustrating the concept of samprajñata samadhi (cognitive Samadhi) in the interpretation of sutra I.17:
“Take, for example, the performance of an Asana, or movements of breath in pranayama. In the beginning, these are done at a physical level. As understanding deepens, the body is penetrated internally, its movements are connected with the intelligence, and the Asana is grasped as a single unit in all directions: front to back, top to bottom, side to side. It is absorbed and held by the body’s intelligence for the soul to perceive.”
Vitarka, Vicara, Ananda and Asmita are explained through Asana:
One learns that one’s body is the bow, the Asana is the arrow, and the target is the soul. When the Asana is perfected, the target is struck: the field and the knower of the field are united. The logic and reasoning of the Asana are fulfilled. The sadhaka, having lost the consciousness of the Asana and of his body, is one with himself. His Asana, his breath, his effort and his very being are one with the millions of cells in his body. He has reached sasmita, the auspicious state of asmita.
Patañjali generally addresses us at several levels at once, so it is not unreasonable to explain vitarka, vicara, ananda and asmita in relation to Asana.
… Finally, when the conscious mechanism by which we consider and perform Asana comes to an end, the process reaches a resting point. The Asana then rests only on the inner self which is in poise: the only support is asmita.
Sutra I.37
In the interpretation to I.37 that suggests that “… by contemplating on enlightened sages who are free from desires and attachments, calm and tranquil…”, Iyengar writes:
“In the same way, one can also contemplate each stage of an Asana or each movement of breath in order to bring the citta to a state of desirelessness.”
Sutra II.8
Sutra II.8 defines Abhinivesha – clinging to life. Guruji’s interpretation shows how practice can help us overcome this basic affliction:
“While practising Asana, pranayama or dhyana, the sadhaka penetrates deep within himself. He experiences unity in the flow of intelligence, and the current of self-energy. In this state, he perceives that there is no difference between life and death, that they are simply two sides of the same coin. He understands that the current of self, the life-force, active while he is alive, merges with the universe when it leaves his body at death. Through this understanding, he loses his attachment to life and conquers the fear of death.”
Sutra II.32
This sutra defines the first Niyama, Sauca (Cleanliness)
“Cleanliness or purification is of two types, external and internal. Both are necessary. Taking a bath is external purification; performing Asanas and pranayama is internal.”
Sutra II.33
This sutra presents the concepts of Paksa and Pratipaksa:
“Paksa means to take one side (in an argument), to espouse one view; while pratipaksa conveys the idea of taking the opposite position. Let me turn to the physical plane to help the reader understand and experience the sense of these two words.
While practising the Asana, the sadhaka must carefully and minutely observe and adjust the position of the muscles, muscle fibres and cells, measuring lightness or heaviness, paksa or pratipaksa, as required for the performance of a healthy and well balanced Asana. He adjusts harmoniously the right and left sides of the body, the front and the back. Learning to interchange or counterbalance the weaker with the intelligent side brings about changes in the sadhaka: he grows, able to observe equipoise in the body cells and the lobes of the brain; and calmness and sobriety in the mind. Thus the qualities of both paksa and pratipaksa are attended to. By raising the weak or dull to the level of the intelligent or strong, the sadhaka learns compassion in action.
…
The internal measuring and balancing process which we call paksa pratipaksa is in some respects the key to why yoga practice actually works, why it has mechanical power to revolutionize our whole being. It is why Asana is not gymnastics, why pranayama is not deep breathing, why dhyana is not self-induced trance, why yama is not just morality. In Asana for example, the pose first brings inner balance and harmony, but in the end it is merely the outer expression of the inner harmony.
…
The student of yoga who learns to balance himself internally at every level, physical, emotional, mental, by observation of paksa and pratipaksa, frees himself from this hellish to-ing and fro-ing and lives in harmony with the natural world. Because he is stable, he can adapt to outside changes. The flexibility we gain in Asana is the living symbol of the suppleness we gain in relation to life’s problems and challenges.”
Balancing the Nadis:
“Through paksa and pratipaksa we can balance the three energetic currents of ida, pingala and susumna, the three principal nadis, or channels of energy. Imagine the calf muscle as it is extended in TrikonAsana, the Triangle Posture. Initially the outer calf surface may be active or awake on one side, dull on the other, and its absolute centre completely unaware. Then we learn to stretch in such a way as to bring the excess energy of ida equally to pingala and susumna or vice versa. So there is an equal and harmonious flow of energy in the three channels.”
Sutra II.46
Defining Asana:
“Asana is perfect firmness of body, steadiness of intelligence and benevolence of spirit.
The definition of Asana is given as follows: whatever Asana is performed, it should be done with a feeling of firmness, steadiness and endurance in the body; goodwill in the intelligence of the head, and awareness and delight in the intelligence of the heart. This is how each Asana should be understood, practised and experienced. Performance of the Asana should be nourishing and illuminative.
…
Asanas should be performed without creating aggressiveness in the muscle spindles or the skin cells. Space must be created between muscle and skin so that the skin receives the actions of the muscles, joints and ligaments. The skin then sends messages to the brain, mind and intelligence which judge the appropriateness of those actions. In this way, the principles of yama and niyama are involved and action and reflection harmonize.
In addition the practice of a variety of Asanas clears the nervous system, causes the energy to flow in the system without obstruction and ensures an even distribution of that energy during pranayama.
Usually the mind is closer to the body and to the organs of action and perception than to the soul. As Asanas are refined they automatically become meditative as the intelligence is made to penetrate towards the core of being.
Each Asana has five functions to perform. These are conative, cognitive, mental, intellectual and spiritual. Conative action is the exertion of the organs of action. Cognitive action is the perception of the results of that action. When the two are fused together the discriminative faculty of the mind acts to guide the organs of action and perception to perform the Asanas more correctly; the rhythmic flow of energy and awareness is experienced evenly and without interruption both centripetally and centrifugally throughout the channels of the body. A pure state of joy is felt in the cells and the mind. The body, mind and soul are one. This is the manifestation of dharana and dhyana in the practice of an Asana.
Patañjali’s explanation of dharana and dhyana in sutras III.1–2 beautifully describes the correct performance of an Asana. He says ‘the focusing of attention on a chosen point or area within the body as well as outside is concentration (dharana). Maintaining this intensity of awareness leads from one-pointed attention to non-specific attentiveness. When the attentive awareness between the consciousness of the practitioner and his practice is unbroken, this is dhyana.’ In II.48, when Patañjali says that the pairs of opposites do not exist in the correct performance of an Asana he clearly implies the involvement of dharana and dhyana.”
Sutra II.47
What is a perfect Asana?
“Perfection in an Asana is achieved when the effort to perform it becomes effortless and the infinite being within is reached.
Perfection in Asana is reached only when effort ceases, instilling infinite poise and allowing the finite vehicle, the body, to merge in the seer. The sadhaka can be considered firm in his postures when persevering effort is no longer needed. In this stability, he grasps the physiology of each Asana and penetrates within, reaching the minutest parts of the body. Then he gains the art of relaxation, maintaining the firmness and extension of the body and consciousness. In this way he develops a sensitive mind. With this sensitivity, he trains his thinking faculty to read, study and penetrate the infinite. He is immersed in the boundless state of oneness which is indivisible and universal.”
Sutra II.54
Explaining pratyahara
“For example, while performing an Asana the intelligence of the body extends outwards, and the senses of perception, mind and intelligence are drawn inwards. It is the same in the performance of pranayama. This is pratyahara.”
Sutra III.1
Explaining Dharana:
“For example, most people, even most yoga practitioners, are under the impression that Asanas are merely external and physical. This sutra removes that misconception. Patañjali defines concentration as the focusing of attention either within or outside the body. If, in performing an Asana, one directs the organs of action and senses of perception towards the mind, and the mind towards the core, the external sadhana is transformed into internal sadhana. If the limbs, the senses of perception, the mind and the discriminative intelligence are then yoked and fused with the energy of the soul, this becomes the innermost sadhana. If one performs each Asana zealously, fusing with integrated attention the parts of the body, the wandering mind and the discriminative intelligence with the soul, is this not a spiritual practice?
…
In Asana, our initial commitment or passion lifts itself, through concentration, to the level of total absorption.”
Sutra III.2
Explaining Dhyana:
“Ekatanata implies an unbroken flow of contact between the sadhaka’s consciousness and his sadhana. We can see, therefore, that dhyana may be achieved in both Asana and pranayama.
In Asana, there is a centrifugal movement of consciousness to the frontiers of the body, whether extended vertically, horizontally or circumferentially, and a centripetal movement as the whole body is brought into single focus. If the attention is steadily maintained in this manner, meditation takes place.”
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