Daily Katha

Friday, 20 February 2026

Patanjali Yoga Sutras Sadhana Pada - 02

ॐ ॐ ॐ

Second sutra is a continuation of the Kriyā Yoga described in the first sutra Tapaḥsvādhyāyeśvarapraṇidhānāni kriyāyogaḥ. Sūtra number 2 gives the purpose, result, and the benefit of the Kriyā Yoga. What is the purpose of practicing, what is the benefit of practicing, and what is the result of practicing Kriyā Yoga, which contains Tapaḥ, Svādhyāya, and Īśvarapraṇidhāna.

As we have seen, Tapaḥ is for the physical, Svādhyāya is intellectual, and Īśvarapraṇidhāna is emotional. But Kriyā Yoga, as we have seen, is preliminary and also practical. All these three things — Tapaḥ, Svādhyāya, and Īśvarapraṇidhāna — are at the physical level, all three at the physical level.

Svādhyāya means reading a book, reading literature, and similarly Īśvarapraṇidhāna is actually involving, in surrendering devotion towards the Īśvara, physically involving, physically expressing. That is how these three are very important dimensions.

So the second sūtra is
स॒मा॒धिभा॒वनार्थः क्ले॒शत॒नू॒क॒र॒णा॒र्थश्च ॥ २.२॥

Samādhibhāvanārthaḥ kleśatanūkaraṇārthaś ca.
Samādhi-bhāvana and bhāvanārthaḥ, Samādhibhāvanārthaḥ it is, for Samādhibhāvanā, the first benefit, first purpose and the first result of Kriya Yoga is Samādhibhāvanā. Samādhi is samādhi and bhāvanā is an inner experience, the inner peace and ārtha is for. So Kriyā Yoga is for samādhibhāvanā. Ca — and also tanūkaraṇa. Tanū means thinning or weakening. Karaṇa is the process of weakening. Tanūkaraṇa is weakening. Weakening of what? Kleśas. So Kriyā Yoga is for an inner peace and the weakening of the kleśas.

The purpose of Kriyā Yoga is for the samādhibhāvanā and kleśatanūkaraṇa. That is how Kriyā Yoga prepares a sound ground, a strong foundation for the samādhi. As we have seen, Īśvarapraṇidhāna as a part of the Kriyā Yoga, Tapaḥ as part of Kriyā Yoga, Svādhyāya as part of Kriyā Yoga will again be repeated as part of Niyama later.

There it was as a single bundle practice of Niyama and here individually each one has an importance and that is how it is to be taken that. It is not just a repetition as we have understood that in Sutra repetition of the words are avoided, but if it is repeated it only shows the importance and emphasizing that and at a particular context. So there is a change of context and emphasizing in that particular context that is how these three things were done.

So samādhibhāvanārthaḥ, for the experience and the status state of Samadhi and kleśatanūkaraṇa weakening of the kleśas. That is the importance of Kriya Yoga. Tapaḥ has two purposes samādhibhāvana and kleśatanūkaraṇa. Svādhyāya two results samādhibhāvana and kleśatanūkaraṇa. Similarly Īśvarapraṇidhāna samādhibhāvana and kleśatanūkaraṇa.

In fact Īśvarapraṇidhāna was repeated thrice. In the first chapter itself we have seen, Sutra 23rd Yogaś citta vṛtti nirodhaḥ can directly be attained by Īśvarapraṇidhānād vā. And now it is repeated in the Kriya Yoga and again Īśvarapraṇidhānā comes under the Niyama. So the importance is emphasized and that is an important dimension which we should remember and here the kleśatanūkaraṇa is given. Kleśas are weakened and of course in the next Sutra the description, detailing, expounding the kleśas from the 3rd Sutra up to the 11th Sutra. But what are these kleśas? What is the science of kleśas, the knowledge of the kleśas what are called as kleśas.

Normally, nowadays, in this modern world comparatively we can easily equate kleśa to the stress, anxiety and tensions. Because kleśa signifies, symbolizes the actual meaning of kleśa is pain causing, pain giving. What are all the reasons which give pain to the body, to the mind, to the intellect, to the emotions or in general to the body and the mind, the reasons can be varied, the root causes will vary, but we should remember all the causes of giving pain, all the causes of giving pain they are all called as kleśa. The root cause, the seed cause, the cause can be anything, it's a kleśa.

If you fall down and hurt the leg and there is a pain in the leg, there are two events, one is falling is also the cause and even after falling, feeling and experiencing is another one, so there are external cause and internal cause, both are there, but maybe it is mostly external, an accident, a pin prick, a mosquito bite or insect bite, a thorn prick, a fall, hitting a stone, all the causes for physical pain, they are all kleśas.

Similarly there will be a mental prick, an insult, a hurt and an abuse or our own ego, our own reactions, our own responses to a particular event, to a particular circumstances to a particular cause which is outside, that outside is also a kleśa and our response also is a kleśa. The experience, the cause of the experience can be outside and the cause of experience can be our own response, if the response is the cause of the experience, then the kleśa is inside and the cause of the experience is outside the kleśa is outside, so it has both sides of the same coin. So kleśa has to be very clearly, properly, in detail, it is to be understood, that's why in the following Sutras, Maharishi goes in deep analysis of what are all the kleśas, it is as if dissecting, analyzing the causes, for pain we shall see those wonderful Sutras in our following Sutras of the Sādhanapāda.

Oṃ śāntiḥ śāntiḥ śāntiḥ. ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः|| To Be Continued.. ---------------------------------------- These are transcription of session delivered by Vice-President of Vivekananda Rock Memorial & Vivekananda Kendra, Sri M. Hanumantha Rao Ji. Audio Link - https://youtu.be/gBQemF6S7m8?si=PYFYPfAnMkSLvmFW

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मुक्तसंग्ङोऽनहंवादी धृत्युत्साहसमन्वित:।
सिद्ध‌‌यसिद्धयोर्निर्विकार: कर्ता सात्त्विक उच्यते ॥१८.२६॥

Freed from attachment, non-egoistic, endowed with courage and enthusiasm and unperturbed by success or failure, the worker is known as a pure (Sattvika) one. Four outstanding and essential qualities of a worker. - Bhagwad Gita : XVIII-26

Thursday, 19 February 2026

Patanjali Yoga Sutras Sadhana Pada - 01

ॐ ॐ ॐ

After understanding the sutras in the Samādhipāda, the first chapter of the Pātañjala Yoga Sūtras, Yoga Darśana, now let us try to understand and take out the points suitable for our sādhana.

The second chapter is aptly named as Sādhanapāda. Traditionally it is believed or accepted that the first chapter, Prathamapāda, is for the uttama sādhakas, and this Sādhanapāda is for the madhyama and the adhama.

Of course we cannot compare, but people who are very serious and who pursue only the path of yoga very intensely, very committed and dedicated, and the whole life is given for that, for a practice — that is the uttama. Madhyama is the type of people who try to manage and have an intense urge to achieve the highest realms as discussed and presented by Maharṣi Patañjali. And the adhamas is the beginners who begin and who struggle with the body and the mind to make it into disciplined and preparatory, preliminary stages. And that is the division or understanding which is generally as said, accepted. So Sādhanapāda is the pāda in which what was discussed in the earlier Samādhipāda and the practices, tools, methods are adopted, suggested and pointed in the Sādhanapāda. Very important, for many of us who take up the practice and the various practices in pursuing the path of yoga for the ultimate aim, the citta-vṛtti-nirodhaḥ.

And the first sutra itself lays down, begins with the preliminary introduction or preliminary tools of the Sādhanapāda or for the sādhaka. The sutra is a very well known sutra which says that:

त॒पः॒स्वा॒ध्यायेश्वरप्रणिधानानि क्रि॑यायो॒गः ॥ २.१॥

Tapaḥ-svādhyāya-īśvara-praṇidhānāni kriyā-yogaḥ ॥ 2.1 ॥

Tapaḥ svādhyāya īśvara-praṇidhānāni kriyā-yogaḥ - Tapaḥ, svādhyāya, īśvara-praṇidhāna — and these three are called kriyā-yogaḥ. We are very conversant with these words. Tapaḥ is austerity. Svādhyāya is Sva-adhyāya. Sva is the self or one's own. Adhyāya is studying. So svādhyāya, self-study. And īśvara-praṇidhāna, which is already discussed — īśvara-praṇidhāna is worship, devotion to Īśvara. Praṇidhānāni-āni is plural. Kriyā-yogaḥ is the yoga of the Kriyā. Kriyā is action. So austerities, svādhyāya and īśvara-praṇidhāna, these three are combined, termed as kriyā-yogaḥ.

Kriyā-yoga is tapaḥ, svādhyāya and īśvara-praṇidhāna. The word īśvara-praṇidhāna was already referred in the first chapter. It is again referred here and it will be again referred later. So three times the word has come, which symbolizes and signifies the importance of īśvara-praṇidhāna, and also īśvara-praṇidhāna as a practice, as a sādhana, as a dimension for each of the three types of sādhakas. The fact that it is repeated three times also emphasizes the importance of īśvara-praṇidhāna in the Yoga Darśana.

So the sutra — the first word is tapaḥ, austerities. Tapaḥ has been a prominent part in the Indian way of life, Bhāratīya Hindu Sanātana Dharma Saṁskṛti. In our Indian culture, tapaḥ has a very important role. Various vratas, vows, rituals, and so many niyamas, restrictions, regulations, way of life, the rules, the conduct — many things come under this tapas.

The word tapaḥ itself means to burn. When we work hard, when we sweat, that means there was some tapaḥ. Karma-tapaḥ. When we intensely think, the body heat increases — vicāra-tapaḥ, bauddhika-tapaḥ. So wherever there is a dimension of increasing rise of the uṣṇatā, that is tapaḥ is involved.

Various vows are there, various vratas which we adopt ekadashi, mangalvarm, somvara, shanivar, Sometimes we take food, sometimes we restrict our food, Sometimes we restrict our activities, observe the mauna, Sometimes we climb or walk up towards the temples on hills, take on yātrās, restrain ourselves for various reasons — maybe for some pratiphalam. But still, comparatively it is a tapaḥ. So tapaḥ means some sense of physical and mental strain, or what we should say, a restriction on activities —that holding the reins and putting up extra effort. That is tapaḥ. If somebody puts extra effort or puts intense effort to learn music — tapas. You read a book — tapas. Unconcerned with external disturbances, totally involved in a particular task — it is tapas. So tapas has all these dimensions and a very important part in yoga sādhana. That is one of the reasons in the preliminary sutra, the first sutra itself, Maharṣi Patañjali begins the second chapter with the word tapaḥ.

Svādhyāya — is sva-adhyāya it is, reading oneself, understanding oneself, analyzing oneself, measuring oneself, our own behavior, our own character, and our own flow of thought, way of thinking, direction of thinking, our own ups and downs in our character, the pulls-the rush - flow of our own emotions — this sort of self-analysis, that is the svādhyāya. Sva-adhyāya also means reading a specific book, a specific portion of a book, a specific part of a book. And it is laid down by tradition and practice that you stick to the reading. It is not that we keep changing, but a specific reading, specific chanting, at a specific time — that is svādhyāya. Chanting of Viṣṇu Sahasranāma, chanting of Gāyatrī Mantra, chanting of Mṛtyuñjaya Mantra, or chanting of Omkāra at a specific time for a specific number of rounds —yes, that is svādhyāya.

Traditionally, Sanātana Dharma prescribes that every individual has a tradition of following a particular Vedic tradition, a particular Vedic adhyāya. And that portion of the Veda mantra to which a person belongs —that chanting, repeating those mantras, studying and understanding those mantras — that is svādhyāya. Generally this is how svādhyāya has been prescribed.

If a person belongs to a particular gotra, that ṛṣi's mantras, that particular ṛṣi's lifestyle, that particular ṛṣi's contribution — understanding, reading, learning, and of course bringing it into practice — that is the effect of svādhyāya.

When we read a book, we just do not read printed matter; we read the thoughts of the person in printed form. Reading a book, reading a portion, reading a sentence is actually reading the thoughts of the person who gave it. When svādhyāya becomes deeper, it is as if we follow or we lead the thought process of the person; it is as if we live with the person's thought. That leads to satsaṅga. That is why books are respected; literature is respected, because it may be in book form, but it is the consolidated form of thoughts of a noble person. That is how svādhyāya, not can influence, will definitely influence transformation, changing and strengthening our lives.

What type of book should a person read? That books, those books or those portions which calm the mind, which enhance a person's desire for freedom, which inspire and ignite the thought of mumukṣutvam. Those portions of literature which inspire a person to lead a life of serenity, austerity and life of service and sacrifice — such reading is svādhyāya.

And of course the last one is īśvara-praṇidhāna — īśvara-praṇidhāna is surrender and devotion to Īśvara, which we have already seen in the first chapter.

So kriyā-yogaḥ — these three combined, may be a different balance and different portions, different percentages which we can say involving — is the kriyā-yogaḥ. Normally the term kriyā-yoga as we know various books, various practices which we see in the society or in the field of yoga may seems to be different, but Patañjali prescribes and defines what is kriyā-yoga. As we are studying Yoga Darśana, we should take this as the standard, definitive dimension of kriyā-yoga.

Kriyā-yoga is preliminary, physical and also psychological. So that is why this particular an important dimension, Kriyā-yoga is preliminary, beginning and also as a practice, as a sadhanā and as a tool. There is a school of thinking that kriyā-yoga is actually karma-yoga — kriyā is karma— but here in Yoga Darśana, it is very difficult to conceive that idea of karma-yoga in kriyā-yoga. Though karma-yoga may involve tapaḥ, svādhyāya and īśvara-praṇidhāna. But specifically Maharṣi Patañjali has specified sutras, specified thinking, prescriptions and definitions. So it is very difficult to say kriyā-yoga is karma-yoga. So that is an important understanding which we should have.

So this preparatory self-discipline is a very important dimension: tapaḥ, svādhyāya and īśvara-praṇidhāna. Three principles have been given. And svādhyāya is to the intellect and īśvara-praṇidhāna is for the emotions, and tapas is basically, mostly to the physical and body level. So body, intellect and emotions — all three are addressed in this particular sutra and in this particular practice.

So, this discipline therefore tests and develops all three aspects of a sādhaka's nature and produces all-round and balanced growth of the individuality, which is essential for the attainment of any high ideal — so the physical level, the intellectual level and the emotional level.

So kriyā-yoga, as I said, it is considered as preliminary and also as practical. But actually, it is both — it is preliminary as well as practical. It is to be practiced and also it is a preliminary level. So, it is preliminary because it has to be taken up in the initial stages of the practice of yoga, and practical because it puts to practical test the aspirations and earnestness of the sādhaka and develops the capacity to begin and to launch the higher dimensions of yoga. And this is important dimensions, that is why kriyā-yoga is preliminary and at the same time practical it addresses tapas — the body level; svādhyāya — the intellectual level; and īśvara-praṇidhāna — the emotional level: a total approach and total purification for the entire system, for sincere and serious practice of Yoga Darśana and Yoga practice.

So let us see the further sutras in this important second pāda, second chapter, Sādhanapāda.