Ashtanga yoga
Also called: Eight limbs of yoga · Topic: The Vedic Age · NCERT: Beyond NCERT
Meaning
Aṣhṭāṅga yoga means "yoga of eight limbs". It is the eight-step path set out in Patañjali's Yoga Sūtra. The eight steps are yama (self-control in how we treat others), niyama (personal discipline), āsana (posture), prāṇāyāma (control of breath), pratyāhāra (pulling the senses back), dhāraṇā (focus), dhyāna (meditation) and samādhi (complete absorption). The first five are outer practices and the last three are inner ones. Together they lead to kaivalya, or liberation. The path grew out of Yoga, a school of thought that came from the Vedas and sought ways to experience brahman in one's own mind.
Example
In Patañjali's Yoga Sūtra, a learner first builds moral discipline through yama and niyama. Then they steady the body through āsana and the breath through prāṇāyāma. Only after that do they move inward to dhāraṇā, dhyāna and finally samādhi.
Don't confuse with
- Aṣhṭāṅgika mārga (Eightfold Path): This is the Buddha's path to end suffering, with steps such as right view and right speech. It is a Buddhist teaching, not Patañjali's yoga.
- Āsana alone: Postures are only the third of the eight limbs. Yoga in this sense is much more than physical exercise.
Related concepts
- Upanishads
- Brihadaranyaka Upanishad
- Chandogya Upanishad
- Uddalaka Aruni
- Tat tvam asi
- Katha Upanishad
- Nachiketa
- Mundaka Upanishad
- Satyameva Jayate
- Atman