YOGA. — Y. is called “concentrated meditation,” carried as far as hypnotic ecstasy as a means of attaining the absolute isolation of the soul from matter and, with it, mukti, “liberation” from samyāra, from the transmigration of souls (v. KARMAN). “One must avoid a new suffering,” that is, a new life, because “everything, for the wise person, is suffering.”
These aphorisms belong to the Rules of Yoga [Y(oga)-s(ūtra), II, 15–16], dictated by Patanjali (2nd century B.C. 7), who gave systematic form to an ancient ascetic discipline, already partially known to the author of the Katha-upanisad, I, 8; II, 10–11. Patanjali’s treatise comprises 194 brief aphorisms, divided into 4 pāda, or parts, which deal respectively with 1) mental concentration,
2) the means of attaining it, 3) supernatural powers, and 4) isolation. In order to give Y. a theoretical foundation, Patanjali adopted the metaphysics of Sāṃkhya, “the philosophy of number,” except for the denial of God characteristic of that system. Hence Sāṃkhya properly so called is also known as Nirīśvara-s., “S. without God,” and Y. as Seśvara-s., “S. with God.” But the Lord (Iśvara) of Y. did not create or govern the world, which is ruled by the law of harman (v.). He is a sui generis soul, eternal and omniscient, who out of compassion helps human beings to attain liberation. Therefore devotion to the Lord and meditation on his mystical name, Om, are considered means capable of facilitating the practice of Y. This is defined by Y.-s. I, 2 as the cessation of the functions of the “organ of thought (citto).” Once the aim of Y. has thus been determined, one would expect the means of attaining it to be specified. But this occurs only in the second and third parts of the work (II, 28–35; III, 1–55). It is impossible to present the laborious procedure in full; a brief indication will suffice. The isolation of the “spirit (puruṣa)” is achieved by stages corresponding to the eight parts (aṅga) of Yoga: yama, niyama, āsana, prāṇāyāma, pratyāhāra, dhāraṇā, dhyāna and samādhi. The last three, included under the common designation samyama, “subjugation,” are the heart and essence of Y. After stipulating that the yoghīn, the “follower of Y.,” must maintain irreproachable moral conduct, the text recommends that anyone preparing to meditate should assume a stable and comfortable position (āsana). The Y.-s. does not specify it, but the commentators affirm that the text refers to the three most common ways of sitting: the comfortable, the auspicious, and the lotus position. The Hathayoga, or “rigorous Y.,” on the other hand, dwells on the description of 32 positions, some of them downright acrobatic. Exercises regulating the breath (prāṇāyāma) follow, as a means of calming the irregularity of thought, and finally the withdrawal of the sense organs from their objects (pratyāhāra). At this point the organ of thought, cut off from the external world, directs its activity toward introspection and, through samyama, arrives at intuitively distinguishing the soul from matter. This “discriminating knowledge (viwaka)” determines the detachment of the organ of thought (citto) from the spirit (puruṣa), which remains isolated “in its own proper form,” but temporarily deprived of consciousness. The “yogic sleep (yoganidra),” which today would be called hypnotic, that overtakes the yoghīn at the moment of liberation, is the consequence of this detachment. It is a pan-Indian belief that “liberation in life,” attained by the followers of a particular philosophical-religious system through the means indicated by it, is definitive and irrevocable. The liberated person continues to live in order to reap the fruit of works previously performed, and when he dies, the spirit not only remains isolated but also eternally free from the suffering of existence. By applying samyama to the most varied cases, the yoghīn can perform wonders: guess the thoughts of others, wander through the air, and make himself invisible. Y.-s., III, 16–55 contains a long list of these miraculous abilities; but later the same text warns that magical powers (siddhi) arouse pride and attachment to the world and obstruct liberation. Whoever aims at the supreme end must be dispassionate and therefore indifferent even to the siddh