The Yoga Sutra is a traditional text considered “the yoga guide” to achieve a free and full life, following certain steps to satisfy all the needs of the being. The 196 sutras are divided into four chapters. By the Therapeutic Yoga teachers Gisela Righelato and Lucrecia Righelato
• Samadhi Pada. Defines yoga as a means to understand and calm the mind, as well as its states, levels of consciousness and difficulties.
• Sadhana Pada: path. Referring to the practice of the yogi as an exercise that encompasses the aspects of life. Here he includes the first five steps of yoga: external practices.
• Vibhuti Pada: results of practice. It deals with the more subtle aspects and the capabilities that we would have if we had a calm and clear mind. Explains the last three steps of yoga: internal practices.
• Kaivalyapada: freedom as destiny. He speaks of liberation as a state of consciousness full of splendor.
Through the analysis of these four chapters and the influence of the mind, Patanjali divided into 8 steps to follow, to achieve balance and harmony with the being and the environment that surrounds it, transcending the limits of the mind, expanding consciousness and being able to live differently creating a new world.
The eight steps of yoga are as follows:
1-yamas; Ethical principles and rules for living in society, and together with the niyamas form the “commandments of yoga.” The yamas are 5:
Nonviolence
sincerity and honesty
Do not steal
Do not get carried away by passions
detachment
2-Niyamas; Personal rules on how to treat ourselves while maintaining positive thinking:
Cleanliness and purity, internal and external
Contentment
Be disciplined in everything you do
Self-knowledge and self-study
devotion and delivery
3-Asanas (Postures); Through the postures, balance, concentration, strength and purification of the body, mind and spirit are achieved.
4-Pranayama; Prana (energy)- Yama (Extension), through Paranayama control of vital energy is achieved.
5-Pratyahara; Abstraction of the senses. Withdrawing all the senses, completely moving away from the external and achieving connection with the being.
6-Dharana; Concentration, full attention, is the step prior to meditation.
7-Dhyana; This point corresponds to meditation, it is the phase in which time stops and the one in which the full encounter with oneself is achieved.
8-Shamady; The last step is lighting. Samadhi means total absorption. Mental instabilities cease, reaching full liberation and reflecting the light of the soul.
With the sustained practice of yoga, every being achieves its balance and can open its heart, observing situations from other perspectives, with a broader vision of everything that is presented. Your consciousness expands, limits are transcended in all aspects, fears dissolve, self-esteem resurfaces and everything changes. It is achieved through the encounter with oneself, that union and balance on the planet, being aware that everyone is one and that each one contributes his wisdom to achieve perfect harmony with the nature that surrounds him.
Editor’s Note: A.Article published in the Educational Material of Icarus Centro de Salud & Longevidad, for patients of Pios-Pec and Pios-Pec PER, corresponding to November 2022, assigned for publication in AIM.