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Intro
Yoga Sutras
Sutra 1.3-6 + 12
tadā draṣṭuḥ svarūpe ‘vasthānam | vr̥tti-sārūpyam itaratra | vr̥ttayaḥ pañcatayyaḥ kliṣṭākliṣṭāḥ | pramāṇa-viparyaya-vikalpa-nidrā-smr̥tayaḥ | abhyāsa-vairāgyābhyāṁ tan-nirodhaḥ
"Then the seer (Self) abides in its own nature." | "Otherwise, the seer identifies with the modifications of the mind." | "The mental modifications are of five kinds, painful and not painful." | They are right knowledge, misconception, imagination, sleep, and memory." | "Through practice and detachment, there is control of the mind."
Translated - Swami Satchidananda
Sutra 1.3 suggests a state where the individual (the seer) resides in their fundamental essence or true nature.
Sutra 1.4 highlights that when the seer is not in that state of abiding in their true nature, they become entangled in the activities and fluctuations of the mind.
Sutra 1.5 refers to the different types of thought patterns that can arise in the mind, some causing suffering and others not.
Sutra 1.6 lists five types of mental modifications. These five categories encompass various ways in which the mind engages with thoughts, perceptions, and experiences. They illustrate the different modes of mental activity that an individual can go through, ranging from clear understanding to confusion, creativity to delusion, wakefulness to slumber, and the recall of past experiences.
Sutra 1.14 emphasises the idea that by engaging in regular and disciplined practice and cultivating detachment from desires and outcomes, we can gain control over the fluctuations of the mind.
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