Patanjali's Yoga Sutras

This book contains 196 concise sentences, well-connected as flowers in a garland, presenting the subject of Yoga in its entirety. Agamas or Vedas look upon Lord as a limitless conscious- being and a repository of all knowledge. Knowledge of Yoga also, therefore, comes from the lord and has existed for millennia. Even though it came much later, Yoga Sutras of Patanjali is a pioneering work as the eight limbs of yoga summed up in this book form the basis of Ashtanga Yoga. One meaning of the word Yoga is self-knowledge. A life-style followed to gain self-knowledge is also called Yoga. Yoga is, therefore, both the journey and the destination. The book addresses both categories of yogis, those who are naturally contemplative and are pursuing knowledge exclusively (Chapter 1 -Samadhi Pada); and those who are pursuing other goals in life but have a value for self-knowledge and would like to become contemplative (Chapter 2 - Sadhana Pada).

Bhagavad-gītā

Gita means a song. The prefix Bhagavad has two valid meanings – from the lord, and, about the lord. Therefore, we can say that Bhagavad-Gita is a song where the lord is singing his own glories; or Gita is the introduction of the lord in his own words. As we assimilate the teaching, we find that the Lord is saying to each one of us, You are Me. In other words, in the vision of Gita, the individual self is equated to universal self. This transcending understanding of oneself takes away the conflict in performance of one’s duties and allows one to live one’s life freely.

About

Yoga Philosophy and Sanskrit interpretations

Arvind Pare has been teaching classes in Yoga Philosophy in Gokulam, Mysore since 2013. His evening sessions on Bhagavad-Gita and weekly talks on yoga-related topics are very popular among students. Prior to this, he lived for 15 years in ashrams learning Vedanta from his teacher Swami Dayananda Saraswati of Arsha Vidya Gurukulam. Arvind has masters degree in Engineering and Business Administration from USA where he spent 12 years. His effective use of language and adherence to traditional methods of teaching allows him to communicate most complex concepts to his students, who range from beginners to yoga teachers.