Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras set out eight limbs. Yama, restraints in relation to others. Niyama, observances in relation to oneself. Asana, posture. Pranayama, regulation of breath. Pratyahara, withdrawal of the senses. Dharana, concentration. Dhyana, meditation. Samadhi, absorption. The word anga means limb rather than step, which matters, though the sequence is not arbitrary either.
The first two are ethical and are where most modern practice quietly begins at limb three. The yamas are non-violence, truthfulness, non-stealing, continence and non-possessiveness. The niyamas are purity, contentment, disciplined effort, self-study and surrender to the divine. Patanjali places them first because the later limbs concentrate the mind, and a concentrated mind that has not addressed its conduct becomes a more effective version of whatever it already was. The ethical limbs are not a moral preface; they are load-bearing.
Asana in the Sutras receives one famous line, describing it as steady and comfortable, and nothing about the elaborate postural repertoire that developed later in the hatha texts. The centre of gravity of the whole scheme is in limbs six through eight, which are grouped together as samyama and describe a single process deepening: concentration on an object, sustained attention that becomes uninterrupted, and finally absorption in which the distinction between attender and attended lapses. The step from dhyana to samadhi is described as one of degree rather than technique.
The eight limbs are a complete architecture, and its foundations are the part usually left out. To see the limb most of the system is aiming at, explore more of The Living Sanatan Timeline.
Part 82 of 100 — Series II: To the Eternal
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