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Santosha.com's Shopper's Guide to Books on Yoga
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he Yoga-Sutra of Patanjali: A New Translation With Commentary
by Chip Hartranft
In just 196 short, pithy aphorisms, this classic of Indian philosophy spells out succinctly what happens to the mind during meditation -- and shows how to use the mind to attain liberation. The Yoga-Sutra of Patanjali is a road map of consciousness, particularly of the states one encounters in meditation, yoga, and other spiritual practices. A collection of short texts written in India in the second or third century CE, it expresses truths about the human condition with great eloquence: how we know what we know, why we suffer, and how we can discover the way out of suffering.
The form of yoga practiced in third-century India bears little resemblance to the yoga with which most people are familiar today -- the hatha yoga consisting of sequences of poses. The word yoga as used by Patanjali means simply "yoke" or discipline -- the discipline needed to work toward liberation. Chip Hartranft's fresh translation and commentary rescues the text from its identification with hatha yoga, and makes it beautifully accessible to people following any path of meditation practice.
In addition to the extensive, lucid commentary, the translator provides a fascinating history of the Yoga-Sutra, as well as an essay on Patanjali's legacy over the past 2,000 years, making this volume unique among Yoga-Sutra commentaries both in its scope and broad accessibility.
Synopsis:
This classic of Indian philosophy spells out succinctly what happens to the mind during meditation - and shows how to use the mind to attain liberation. It is a road-map of consciousness, particularly of the states one encounters in meditation, yoga and other spiritual practices.
Includes bibliographical references (p. 135-137) and index.
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