Microsoft Word - Taimni - The Science of Yoga.doc

accomplishments are discussed in detail and the Section is, therefore, called Vibhuti
Pada.
In the fourth and the last Section are expounded all those essential philosophical
problems which are involved in the study and practice of Yoga. The nature of the mind
and mental perception, of desire and its binding effect, of Liberation and the results
which follow it, are all dealt with briefly but systematically to enable the student to
have an adequate background of theoretical knowledge. Since all these topics are con-
nected in one way or another with the attainment of Kaivalya, the Section is called
Kaivalya Pada.
On account of its comprehensive and systematic treatment of the subject the
Yoga-Sutras is the most suitable book for deep and systematic study of Yoga. In the
olden days all students of Yoga were made to commit it to memory and meditate regu-
larly and deeply on the Sutras for bringing out their hidden meanings. But the modern
student, who has to be convinced first that the study and practice of Yoga is worth-
while, needs a more detailed and elaborate treatment of the subject to enable him to
understand its philosophy as a whole. Even for this purpose the Yoga-Sutras is the
most suitable basis, not only because it gives all the essential information about Yoga
in a masterly manner but also because it is recognized as a masterpiece in the literature
of Yoga and has stood the test of time and experience. It is for this reason that it has
been made the basis of the present book.
The task of an author who undertakes to write a commentary on a book like the
Yoga-Sutras is not an easy one. He is dealing with a subject of the most profound na-
ture. The ideas which he has to interpret are given in the form of Sutras which embody
the art of condensation to the utmost limit. The language with which the Sutras are
constructed is an ancient one which, though extraordinarily effective in the expression
of philosophical ideas, can lend itself to an extraordinary variety of interpretations.
And what is most important, he is dealing with a Science which is related to facts
which come within the range of human experience. He cannot like the academic phi-
losopher give free rein to his imagination and put forward merely an ideal interpreta-
tion. He has to show things, to the best of his ability, as they actually are and not as
they should be or might be. Keeping in view the possibility of the changes which are
always brought about in the connotations of words with lapses of time it is extremely
hazardous to interpret the Sutras rigidly according to their literal meaning. Of
course, one cannot take liberties with a book like the Yoga-Sutras which has been writ-