Practice of the Yoga Sutra Book Club, Part 8: The Self-Revealing Power of Pranayama and Pratyahara

Prana is the energetic potential that imbues us with life. We cultivate awareness and control of this life force through the practice of pranayama, control of the breath, which eventually culminates in the practice of pratyahara, withdrawal of the senses from the external world. In this eighth session (sutras 2:49–2:55) of the Practice of the Yoga Sutra Book Club, Ishan Tigunait explores the purpose and stages of pranayama and pratyahara, the fourth and fifth limbs of Patanjali’s eight limbs of yoga. Discover how practicing them systematically leads us into meditation and the unveiling of our inmost self.

Reading material for this session can be found in Pandit Tigunait’s The Practice of the Yoga Sutra: Sadhana Pada.

Further Reading

The Practice of the Yoga Sutra: Sadhana Pada

by Pandit Rajmani Tigunait, PhD

In the second book in his series of commentaries on the Yoga Sutra, Pandit Rajmani Tigunait, PhD elaborates on Patanjali’s succinct and straightforward plan to transcend pain and embrace lasting happiness. He points out the obstacles, both known and unknown, that prevent us from creating and living the life we dream of, and assures us that we are destined to discover our pure being and experience lasting joy.