age, including Mohandas Karamchand GANDHI,
Luther Burbank, Therese Neumann, and Rabin-
dranath TAGORE. In 1942 he opened the Church
of All Religions in Hollywood and later the Self-
Realization Lake Shrine and Mahatma Gandhi
World Peace Memorial in Pacific Palisades, Cali-
fornia. Self-Realization Fellowship is currently
headed by Sri Daya MATA at Mount Washington,
California.
His death on March 7, 1952, was noted by his
disciples as an extraordinary event because of the
“absence of any visual signs of decay in the dead
body of Paramahansa Yogananda... even twenty
days after his death, according to a notarized tes-
timony from Forest Lawn Mortuary in Glendale,
California.”
Further reading: Paramahansa Yogananda, Autobiogra-
phy of a Yogi (Los Angeles: Self-Realization Fellowship,
1971); ———, Whispers from Eternity (Los Angeles:
Self-Realization Fellowship, 1958); ———, Yogoda
(Boston: Yogoda Satsang Society, 1924); Paramahansa
Yogananda, in Memoriam (Los Angeles: Self-Realization
Fellowship, 1958).
Yoga Sutra
The Yoga Sutra of PATANJALI outlining ASHTANGA
YOGA is the earliest and most important text of
the HATHA YOGA, or “posture yoga,” tradition. It is
dated around the second century C.E. The SUTRA
designation refers to the text style: a collection of
very concise lines that often need further expla-
nation to be understood fully. The Yoga Sutra
totals 195 sutras divided into four books: Book I
is on concentration; Book II outlines the practice
and means of reaching the highest goals; Book
III details powers gained in the practice of yoga,
including supranormal powers; Book IV describes
various aspects of the nature of things but par-
ticularly the nature of the liberated state. Scholars
believe the four chapters may have been written
at different times, but all the hatha yoga traditions
consider them to be a single authoritative text.
Book I begins with a definition: “Yoga is the
practice of ceasing the false identification with
the fluctuations of the mind.” It then lists the
types of mental fluctuations and discusses how to
curb their influence on the self, soul, or PURUSHA.
It deals with types of concentration (dharana),
the obstacles that get in the way, and methods of
overcoming them. Finally, it discusses God as a
special self and presents the goal of a stable mind
and attaining undisturbed calm.
Book II begins with methods for overcoming
the mental “afflictions,” things that cause distrac-
tions. It discusses the origin of KARMA, the causes
of sorrow or pain, how to escape these through
yoga, the eight branches of yoga (Ashtanga Yoga),
abstentions (yama), observances (niyama), pos-
tures (asana), breath control (pranayama), and
withdrawal of sense organs from their objects
(pratya hara).
Book III begins by discussing the internal
practices of yoga, including MEDITATION (dhyana)
and various levels of concentration, including
SAMADHI, the highest. It goes on to discuss seed-
less concentration (i.e., concentration without
an object) and different categories of mental
tranquility. Finally it discusses the attributes and
powers one can achieve though these practices,
including supernormal powers.
Book IV discusses philosophy, including argu-
ments against other Indian philosophical systems.
It ends with a discussion of the highest state of
liberation and tranquility.
The Yoga Sutra is usually studied together with
the ancient commentary of Vedavyasa (VYA S A),
which expands in detail upon each of the subjects
covered in the brief sutras. Most yoga schools rely
on this commentary explicitly or implicitly. There
are many subcommentaries to the commentary of
Vedavyasa, which are used by different schools in
support of their particular practices.Further reading: Swami Hariharananda Aranya, Yoga
Philosophy of Patanjali (Albany: State University
of New York Press, 1983); Ian Whicher, Patañjali’sK 514 Yoga Sutra