Yoga-sutra with Bhashya Vivarana (study)
by Susmi Sabu | 2013 | 55,404 words
This essay studies the enduring and relevance of Yoga in India, highlighting its evolution from a comprehensive philosophy to primarily a physical practice. It further underscores the importance of studying Yoga texts to understand its historical trajectory. Special attention is given to the Patanjala Yogasutra Bhashya Vivarana, a significant work ...
Yoga in the Ahirbudhnya Samhita
Ahirbudhnya samhita is one of the authoritative treatises of the Pancaratra School. The importance of this text in the history of Yoga is that it is the only source which furnishes details about the first systematic treatise on Yoga philosophy (supposed to be written by Hiranyagarbha). The text mentions that Hiranyagarbha expounds the entire system of Yoga through two different books called 'Nirodha-samhita' and 'Karma-samhita'. There are 12 sections in the former text and in the latter, there are four sections. From the descriptions given in Ahirbudhnya samhita, the text of Hiranyagarbha is measured to be a great exposition. Each one of 61
these sections is also elucidated in the so-called Ahirbudhnya samhita. 201 Another important treatise is Hathayogapradipika of Svatmarama, who lived between the twelfth and fifteenth centuries. It is held as a direct practical or technical handbook of hathayoga. The text is divided into four parts. The first explicates yama, niyama, asana and food. The second explains pranayama and the satkarman. The third describes mudra, bandha, nadi and kundalini. The fourth chapter deals with pratyahara, dharana, dhyana and samadhi. Totally, the text contains 390 verses.