Yogic Philosophy Overview

In my teacher training, we studied the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. Patanjali’s definition of yoga is the calming and stilling the movements or fluctuations of the mind. We can achieve this through meditation, by quieting the mind of the vrttis. The vrttis are types of thoughts. The are five types of thought, they are right knowledge, wrong knowledge, imagination, sleep, and memory. Our thoughts can usually be categorized into one of these five vrttis. The vrttis, or fluctuations of the mind, are regulated through the practice of asana and non-attachment. Asana is the physical practice of yoga poses. Practicing asana helps calm the mind to be in a meditative state in order to view our thoughts with non-attachment.

Some other definitions of yoga is the connection between the mind, body, and breath / spirit or soul. Yoga helps create a deeper understanding of ourselves by taking time to reflect inwards to notice how we’re currently feeling each time we practice. While practicing non-judgement or attachment, we learn to accept and become aware of our body and mind in the present moment. The practice of asana and pranayama helps calm and steady our mental movements. Pranayama is the control or regulation of the breath and meditating helps reduce the mind’s fluctuations, the vrttis.

There are eight limbs of yoga. Incorporating the 8 limbs helps us achieve Patanjali’s definition of yoga, which is the calming and stilling the movements or fluctuations of the mind. Asana and Pranayama are two of these limbs. There are six other limbs, which are Yama, Niyama, Pratyahara, Dharana, Dhyana, and Samadhi.

Yama is how we interact with others and the external world. There are five branches under Yama, they are Ahimsa, Satya, Asteya, Brahmacarya, and Aparigraha. Ahimsa stands for non-harm and compassion, non-violence towards yourself and others. Satya stands for truth. Doing things simply because they are the right thing to do and not because you’re expecting results to gain for yourself. Asteya stands for non-stealing. You can steal someone’s physical possessions, their energy, or time. Brahmacarya stands for confidence and sense moderation. Aparigraha stands for non-greed and non-hoarding, not over consuming.

After incorporating Yama in our lives there is Niyama. Niyama stands for personal observations of the world around us. Niyama also also has five branches which are Sauca, Samtosa, Tapah, Svadhyaya, and Isvara Pranidhana. Sauca stands for purity. Purifying our mind and life of people, taking in purity through our senses, pure food, listen to pure thoughts, watch pure behavior, read positive/good writing. Samtosa stands for contentment. No matter what is going on around us, find joy and fulfillment within yourself. Look internally vs externally. Tapah is accepting pain as purification. Realize challenges and obstacles are happening for you and not to you. Pain is inevitable, but suffering is a choice. Svadhyaya is the study of the self, self awareness and acknowledgement. Isvara Pranidhana is surrender. Going with the flow and trusting the universe. Surrender to life and trust you are divinely guided.

Yama, Niyama, Asana, and Pranayama are limbs focused on the external outside world whereas the other four limbs are focused on the internal self world.

The limb of Pratyahara is the internal sense-withdraw, turning our senses inwards to reflect upon ourselves. The Dharana limb stands for concentration, training the mind to concentrate without allowing fluctuations to take over. This type of concentration takes effort as we learn and train the mind for something new. The next limb is Dhyana which stands for mediation or concentration without effort, when our mind gets used to reduces of the mental movements. The last limb is Samadhi which is meditative absorption meaning connecting to the divine or Brahman. Forget we are an individual soul or Atman, and connect to the collective whole or consciousness, feel one with everything around us.

We are all brahman. Brahman is everything. It is the divine, God, pure consciousness, the collective, oneness, the “ocean”. Since we are all in individual physical bodies, we sometimes perceive ourselves as entirely separate or different from another and the collective whole. The misperception of only being an individual soul is called Atman.

Our senses perceive Prakrti or matter. Since Pakriti is all we can sense, sometimes we believe that’s all that we are. That this physical realm is all that exists, but that is an illusion. Maya is the illusion of the material world, because the material world is constantly changing. We often experience pain when we attach to Prakrti because of its constant changing nature.

Brahman does not change, it is what we truly are. Atman is the individual soul that misperceives itself through the senses and the illusions of maya that it is something different than Brahman. Atman is like perceiving ourselves as a drop in the ocean vs seeing that we are an ocean in a drop.

Prakrti consists of three primordial forces called the gunas. Guna means rope and there are three strands composing this rope. The 3 forces are Sattva, Tamas, Rajas. Sattva is yellow and embodies bliss, peace, good light energy, clarity, health, and is associated with morning time. Tamas is blue and is inertia, dull, murky, doubt, sadness, depression, rest, sleep, slow, and is associated with evening time. Rajas is red and is goal oriented, movement, fast, action, anxiety and is associated with midday time.

Our individual bodies have different layers called energetic stealths or koshas. There are five koshas starting from the most gross body, the one we can physically touch, which is the annamaya kosha, the physical body. The physical body is associated with food, asana, and stability. Then comes the pranamaya kosha, the breath body. Prana is life force and this is the energetic body associated with air, prana, and vitality. The next body is the manomaya kosha, the thought body. This body is associated with the mental mind, active thinking, concentration, and the brain. It can be thought of as our “lower mind” being led by the senses. Then there is the vijnanamaya kosha, the wisdom body. This body is associated with the higher mind, intelligence, knowledge, and meditation. The last energetic body is the anandamaya kosha, the bliss body. It is the most subtle body and resides in our heart. This body is associated with knowing the truth, being yourself, pure awareness.

Prana, or life energy, flows through the physical body’s energy channels called the nadis. It is believed there are at least 72,000 nadis that energize and sustain all parts of the body. There are 3 most significant nadis to yogis and they all originate in the root chakra located at the base of the spine. The Susunna nadi is located along the spinal canal and flows up and down the spine starting at the root and ending at the crown. Ida starts on the left side of the spine and sequences in and out through the seven chakras ending through the left nostril. Pingala starts on the right of the spine and sequences the opposite way of the Ida ending through the right nostril. Ida and Pingala flow through the seven major chakras and make a DNA-like sequence through and up the body, like a spine. Some characteristics of Susumna are central, neutral, yellow, balance, sunrise and sunset, unconscious mind, knowledge, wisdom, Sattva, central nervous system, awareness. Some characteristics of Ida are left, feminine, night, yin, moon, negative, cold, intuition, internal, subconscious, subjective, passive, parasympathetic, blue, Tamas. Some characteristics of Pingala are right, masculine, sun, yang, day, positive, hot, logic, action, conscious mind, external, objective, sympathetic, red, Rajas.

The chakras are energy wheels within the body, there are seven of them and are each associated with the colors of the rainbow! Starting at the base of the spine is the Muladhara or root chakra. It is associated with the color red and its properties are grounding, stability, deep relaxation. It’s associated with the ages of 0-7 and the associated physical organs are the testes, kidneys, and tail bone. It’s chant is Lam.

The second chakra is Svadhisthana or sacral chakra. It’s associated with orange and happiness, pleasure, sexuality, and creativity. It’s located bellow the navel or belly button and its chant is Vam. The ages associated are 7-14 and the organs are the bladder, prostate, ovaries, kidneys, gallbladder, bowels, and spleen. The third chakra located right below the sternum above the navel is Manipura or the solar plexus. Its chant is Ram and is associated with the color yellow. The ages are 14-21 and represents strength, courage, power, confidence. The organs associated are the intestines, pancreas, liver, bladder, stomach, and upper spine.

The fourth chakra is Anahata or the heart and is associated with the color green. This is all about love, giving and receiving and accepting love easily. It’s located in the middle of the chest and its chant is Yam. It’s associated with the heart and lungs and is ages 21-28. The fifth chakra is Visuddha or the throat chakra. It’s light blue and is associated with communication and listening compassionately. It’s located in the center of the throat and its chant is Ham. The ages are 28-35 and organs are bronchial tubes, vocal cords, respiratory system, mouth, tongue, and esophagus.

The sixth chakra is Anja or the third eye. It’s located in between the eyebrows and is indigo. This is intuition, dream recollection and insight, and our perception. It’s associated with the ages 35-42, the chant is Om, and the organs are the eyes, pituitary gland, pineal gland, and the brain. The last and seventh chakra is Sahasrara or the crown. It’s purple/violet and is located at the top of the head. It’s associated with peace, wisdom, bliss, and connection to Brahman. The chant in silent and is associated with the ages 42-49. The organs are the spinal cord and brain stem.

Practicing asana and pranamaya helps clear blockages in these energy systems. Clearing blockages helps to move energy throughout the body easily. Free flowing energy helps us reach a higher state of being to connect to Brahman. We connect to Brahman through our crown chakra. Connection to Brahman is the Samadhi limb of yoga and is the true intention of practicing yoga. By trying our best to incorporate the eight limbs of yoga into our daily lives, carrying the knowledge of yogi philosophy is how we can reach this desired state of yoga! (:

Image by Danielle Noel