ॐ ॐ ॐ
The 31st sutra is another very important one which gives the symptoms of the antarayas which we spoke of in the earlier sutra. In the 30th sutra, the 9 antarayas, the impediments and hurdles were listed. And what are the symptoms of those hurdles? How do we recognize at the physical and at the mental level? So this sutra also is an important sutra for the recognition and understanding our sadhana, our practices and a caution whether we are on the right path, on the right direction. This is the important sutra, number 31.
दुः॒खदौ॒र्मनस्या॒ङ्ग॒मेजयत्वश्वा॒सप्र॒श्वा॒सा विक्षेपस॑हभु॒वः ॥ १.३१॥
Duḥkha-daurmanasyāṅgamejayatva-śvāsa-praśvāsā vikṣepa-sahabhuvaḥ ॥ 1.31 ॥
Duḥkha-daurmanasyāṅgamejayatva-śvāsa-praśvāsā vikṣepa-sahabhuvaḥ ॥
Duḥkha-daurmanasyāṅgamejayatva-śvāsa-praśvāsā vikṣepa-sahabhuvaḥ - The word used in the 30th sutra was the antarāya and here it is used the sahabhuvaḥ. Duḥkha, daurmanasya, aṅgamejayatva, śvāsa-praśvāsa vikṣepa sahabhu - that is the words used in this particular sutra, Sutra number 31.
duḥkha is misery, pain. Duḥkha - you see the pronounce the word itself is duḥkha. Then daurmanasya, daurmanasya actually means a depression.Depression is always mental, mental depression. A very bad state of mind, a negative state of mind. Not interested to do anything. Aloofness, loneliness, a sense of depressed. That is called daurmanasya. Aṅgamejayatva - this is made out of two words - aṅgam ajayatva, aṅgam is the part of the body or body parts, limbs. Aṅga ajayatva is trembling, shaking. So trembling condition of the body parts, tremors. Śvāsa is inhalation, praśvāsa is exhalation. First time Maharshi is using two important words which are very common in pranayama practices, śvāsa - inhalation, praśvāsa - exhalation, vikṣepa, disturbances. And then saha bhu, sahabhuvaḥ, sahabhuvaḥ means accompanied, accompanies, accompaniment.
So what is that accompanies the vikṣepas which are told in the 30th sutra, that is important. Vikṣepa, saha bhu, these accompany the disturbances is the, of course, plural.
So the importance is given here is duḥkha daurmanasya aṅgamajayatva śvāsa praśvāsaḥ vikṣepāḥ.
That is how beautifully it is given. Duḥkha is, of course, all of us know. It is misery, pain. If there is a pain and a misery in the practice of yoga, you should remember it is a sign of one of the antarāyas. How nicely Patanjali is hinting. Any type of misery and pain as we all know that misery and pain are physical, bodily and also mental, psychological - mānasika, mano-duḥkha, śārīra-duḥkha. Antar-duḥkha, bahir-duḥkha - but both are the cause of antarāyas. So if there is a physical pain, misery similarly there is a mental pain and misery that means it is a sign of an antarāya. It is an impediment.
Then daurmanasya a mental depression, disinterestedness, not interested at all, lonely, aloof, no enthusiasm and always feeling a sense of negativity, something is lost, that type of mental depression. Not interested to do anything and that is a tremendous psychological problem which we see nowadays most of the people in the society we come across depression. There are a lot of medicines used anti-depressants but they are not the solutions because the cause is in the mind. It is a citta vikṣepa. See how Maharshi Patanjali as we saw in the earlier sutra psychosomatic ailments, depression is a psychosomatic ailment and Patanjali refers it in the Yoga Darshana daurmanasya. Umpteen number of anti-depressants a person may take very hardly it has any cure because it is a citta vikṣepa. So depression is another sign of antarāya.
Aṅgamejayatva or trembling in the body, stability is not there, body is shaking, trembles, anxiety, anxiety neurosis and the body is not stable, physical stability is not there. A person cannot sit at one place, cannot stand at one place, cannot stay at one particular place, that stability of the body and also stability of the body parts both aṅgamejayatva, trembling in the body.
Then śvāsapraśvāsayoḥ vikṣepa - so there are disturbances in the śvāsa and praśvāsa. It is very common for all of us easily can understand that if the mind is disturbed breathing is disturbed, if the mind is disturbed rhythmic breathing is disturbed and it is so softly, so deeply connected, the tremors and the respiratory disturbances very closely, intimately related to the mental disturbances, anxiety, tension, anger, emotional disturbances and upsurge of emotions, uncontrollable outpour of emotions that disturbs the rhythm of the breathing, harmony of the breathing, stability of the breathing, śvāsa and praśvāsa gets disturbed. Which we shall see this more when we see the sutras connected to prāṇāyāma.
And that is how Maharishi Patanjali lists out the symptoms of the nine antarāyas, physically and also mentally and psychologically duḥkha-daurmanasyāṅgamejayatva-śvāsa-praśvāsā vikṣepa-sahabhuvaḥ. Then we have another wonderful sutra coming in the 32nd sutra, which is another important one which we shall see.
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/CtQghaj2rrE?si=u4XIfHxtc-qogVuJRead n Get Articles, Magazines, Books @ http://prakashan.vivekanandakendra.org
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
