Sutra 1.2 and What IS Yoga?
1.2 yogas-citta-vrtti-nirodhah. Yoga is the cessation of the movements in the consciousness.
Patanjali gives us the tools to quell the whirling vrttis when a teenager says one phrase, no longer than a sutra, and my vrttis start to spin chaotically... It's an amazing phenomenon to behold. And it requires much self-effort to practice the yoga of quelling the thoughts before saying the reactive, impulsive, negative words--to pause and remind myself that Now is the time to practice the yoga I have studied. Each life situation is a chance to study yoga, to study and review what works. For life itself truly gives us the most creative and surprising exercises of yoga. Consciousness in Patanjali’s yoga is within the level of mind. As yoga progresses, the definition of consciousness changes into one that encompasses mind, and the power to desire, create, know everything and all things possible, a One source from which all Purushas are born. That One source is Shiva-Shakti or Paramashiva.
The tantra has a newer understanding of what yoga can be...In a tantric text called the Kularnava Tantra, verse 14.38 states Shaktipata-anusarena shisho anugraham arhati. It means by entering the current of Divine Shakti's descent into the heart, the true disciple becomes capable of receiving grace.
If I enter the currents of grace completely, then I won't be so unraveled by my beautiful daughter. Instead I can see her beauty and see that, in that moment, I have the honor of being able to guide this amazing being. By listening to her--for she is that flow of grace descending and ascending--I may guide. And since I have learned a few things about how to flow with grace, and since I aim to teach it, I have come to love this definition of yoga, of Anusara Yoga. A little Patanjali (a stilling of thoughts for a moment), a pause, so that I remember I am either aligning with grace or not--whatever She brings me--in each moment.
From some tantric perspectives, it is not at all necessary to still thoughts of any kind because when we are in that current, all time and no time simultaneously exist. In certain extraordinary moments, all we know is this current of grace, for we enter it and even as it is moving us from inside, it is somehow utterly still and complete, even for just a moment. There is no need to still thoughts, for every thought ever born or to be born is within that current as we ride it, and it is in its own way beautiful. All the beauty of the world is in that current. There is no beauty nor richness nor good thing that is not present within that current. Enter life, enter into the current, enter life with all our heart, enter into Grace. Deep in the current of scintillating calm, She sings us awake, She sings us asleep. She is the beauty of my children’s faces, their smiles gliding freely, their impetuous currents, all.
What is your goal of yoga? When you say you practice yoga, what is it that you are using that word to describe?
Shall we still thoughts? If we still the movements, how will we know consciousness? Shall we ride the currents of them into that rushing one that is Shakti descending in our hearts? Shall we see each thought as nothing less than that stillness that She is inside Her current? Is it necessary to go and out? Is it even possible?
Thankfully Grace doesn’t kick us out of the club. We can’t make one too many mistake. We can try again. She will smile at us each time, She will not throw us out. She will not tire of us, She will not deny us. We have the opportunity to align with Her, again and again.
Patanjali gives us the tools to quell the whirling vrttis when a teenager says one phrase, no longer than a sutra, and my vrttis start to spin chaotically... It's an amazing phenomenon to behold. And it requires much self-effort to practice the yoga of quelling the thoughts before saying the reactive, impulsive, negative words--to pause and remind myself that Now is the time to practice the yoga I have studied. Each life situation is a chance to study yoga, to study and review what works. For life itself truly gives us the most creative and surprising exercises of yoga. Consciousness in Patanjali’s yoga is within the level of mind. As yoga progresses, the definition of consciousness changes into one that encompasses mind, and the power to desire, create, know everything and all things possible, a One source from which all Purushas are born. That One source is Shiva-Shakti or Paramashiva.
The tantra has a newer understanding of what yoga can be...In a tantric text called the Kularnava Tantra, verse 14.38 states Shaktipata-anusarena shisho anugraham arhati. It means by entering the current of Divine Shakti's descent into the heart, the true disciple becomes capable of receiving grace.
If I enter the currents of grace completely, then I won't be so unraveled by my beautiful daughter. Instead I can see her beauty and see that, in that moment, I have the honor of being able to guide this amazing being. By listening to her--for she is that flow of grace descending and ascending--I may guide. And since I have learned a few things about how to flow with grace, and since I aim to teach it, I have come to love this definition of yoga, of Anusara Yoga. A little Patanjali (a stilling of thoughts for a moment), a pause, so that I remember I am either aligning with grace or not--whatever She brings me--in each moment.
From some tantric perspectives, it is not at all necessary to still thoughts of any kind because when we are in that current, all time and no time simultaneously exist. In certain extraordinary moments, all we know is this current of grace, for we enter it and even as it is moving us from inside, it is somehow utterly still and complete, even for just a moment. There is no need to still thoughts, for every thought ever born or to be born is within that current as we ride it, and it is in its own way beautiful. All the beauty of the world is in that current. There is no beauty nor richness nor good thing that is not present within that current. Enter life, enter into the current, enter life with all our heart, enter into Grace. Deep in the current of scintillating calm, She sings us awake, She sings us asleep. She is the beauty of my children’s faces, their smiles gliding freely, their impetuous currents, all.
What is your goal of yoga? When you say you practice yoga, what is it that you are using that word to describe?
Shall we still thoughts? If we still the movements, how will we know consciousness? Shall we ride the currents of them into that rushing one that is Shakti descending in our hearts? Shall we see each thought as nothing less than that stillness that She is inside Her current? Is it necessary to go and out? Is it even possible?
Thankfully Grace doesn’t kick us out of the club. We can’t make one too many mistake. We can try again. She will smile at us each time, She will not throw us out. She will not tire of us, She will not deny us. We have the opportunity to align with Her, again and again.
posted by Sangati at
7:55 PM
3 Comments:
I love the image of whirling vrttis. . . the spinning sensations that occasionally rule our tempers. The yoga is the opportunity to create something from this fire, and the practice of the creation itself. This was perfect timing. . .
1.2 yogas-citta-vrtti-nirodhah. Yoga is the cessation of the movements in the consciousness.
Now here’s an interesting challenge for the tantric thinker. A cessation of the movements in the consciousness? But why would we seek such a thing? Or better still, how would such a thing be possible? This particular sutra is rife with traditional vedantic leanings, and those of Buddhism, as well. It is both tempting and easy to see this sutra from the path of the renunciant, and this is probably how Patanjali intended it to be read. A bold statement there – assuming anything about what Patanjali intended is a risk! – but given his time and tradition, and his strong association with Samkya philosophy, I think it’s a justified risk, and probably correct. His tradition was geared more towards the renunciant, the monk in the cave, as it were.
But this is not what we do. This is not the way we live. We live IN the world, not AWAY from it. We enjoy the fruit of the vine rather than choosing to shy away from it. So how do we reconcile that choice with this seemingly simple sutra? I see it not as a stilling of the mind itself – this makes no sense. The mind does what it does: it thinks. It does this just as a lung provides blood with oxygen, or a heart pushes this blood through the body for nourishment of cells. This is the function of the mind. But there are many paths along the road that the mind must travel, many forks in the road, many places to become entangled in thorns that lay just off the path. Yoga is the discipline one can utilize to stay on that path. If we interpret this sutra to mean something akin to “remain steady on the path,” it becomes sensible to the tantric thinker. Don’t try to stop your mind from thinking. Such a task makes no sense, and denies the mind of its primary function. Instead, think, but think well. Do well, be well. Or, to use the words of the Great Gandhi, be the change you want to see in the world. Don’t let the distractions lining the path lead you astray – these are the “movements” in the consciousness that we must avoid. Remain steadfast and focused. Yoga is the tool we may use to help us be so.
Sarah,
So happy to learn about your blog and get started reading! I enjoyed reading the Sutras back in the immersion, especially this one. When I first read it, I took it literally...to still my mind and at times it does sound appealing, to quiet all the noise...but through practice and study I now take it to mean to pause...like we do in asana after we lengthen one leg in Supta Padangusthasana. To pause in the moment, whether it is a frustrating one, anxiety inducing one or more frequently these days a delightful one. Thank you for this invitation to share in the conversation...I'm looking forward to reading on!
~Deirdre
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