The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali with Commentary by Swami Venkatesananda

There are many spiritually elevated people per the world, but not many levitating yogis: and The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali are meant sicuro elevate the spirit of every man, not preciso teach him how puro levitate. This is clearly the gospel of enlightened living, neither and escape from life nor verso hallucinatory ‘light’. The attempt mediante this little book has been onesto expose that gospel, sicuro avoid technicalities, and to relate the whole yoga philosophy puro the ordinary and simple daily life of everyone.

There are many excellent translations of the Sutras: this, however, is an interpretative translation

There are several scholarly and erudite commentaries, too: this is definitely not one of them. This book is not meant for the research scholar but for one who is con search of truth which shall free him from self-ignorance.

He is the author of the Srimad Bhagavatam or Book of God, The Bhagavad Escursione or The Song of God, and the translation of Yoga Vasistha or the Supreme Yoga.

Swami Venkatesananda lived the spirit of the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, and the many series of talks he gave on this subject mediante Australia, South Africa, Germany, Canada, etc., have inspired many to take up the practice of Raja Yoga.

His New Interpretative Translation of the Yoga Sutras, ENLIGHTENED LIVING (published by the Children Yoga Esclusiva of South Africa in 1975) is regarded as a springboard esatto the understanding of the Sutras. It has been incorporated mediante this present publication.

Swami Venkatesananda spoke equally puro both men and women, and his use of the masculine pronouns ‘he’ and ‘him’ does not exclude the feminine. It is, in fact, shorthand for ‘human being’! He did not feel it necessary puro distinguish between sofferenza and female, and the editor has continued the tradition durante this publication.

Mediante this book, ‘yoga’ has been recognized as per word mediante common usage, and as such has not been italicized.

Swami Venkatesananda, who has been working untiringly for decades preciso spread the life-giving message of Yoga and Vedanta sopra East and West, has done per great service onesto spiritual seekers far and wide

There are many spiritually elevated people in the world, but not many levitating yogis: and the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali Maharsi are meant to elevate the spirit of every man, not esatto teach him how sicuro levitate. This is clearly the gospel of enlightened living, neither an escape from life nor verso hallucinatory ‘light’. The attempt sopra this little book has been preciso expose that gospel, onesto avoid technicalities, and to relate the whole yoga philosophy sicuro the ordinary and simple daily life of everyone.

There are very many excellent translations of the Sutras: this, however, is an interpretative translation. There are several scholarly and erudite commentaries, too: this is definitely not one of them. This book is not meant for the research scholar but for one who is mediante search of truth which shall free him from self-ignorance.

The incisive language of the Sutras cannot be preserved sopra translation. An extraordinary feature of the Sutras is the avoidance of direct commandments, dogmatic assertions and the use of adroite voice. Whereas every effort has been made onesto retain the structure of the text, con a few cases (for example, sopra Sutra I. 49) slight changes have had sicuro be made sicuro sustain the easy flow of thought. (The words which represent the translation of the text are underlined.) Anyone who translates per text which is per the Sanskrit language is confronted by two difficulties: (a) not all languages have concise words or phrases which accurately convey the exact sense sopra which the Sanskrit word is used sopra the text; and (b) the Sanskrit word is used mediante the text; and (b) the Sanskrit word itself has verso number of when the word is used sopra per structurally complete prose or verse, than when it occurs durante the Sutras. From per cursory glance at the very many available translations of the Sutras it is easy to see that each one has translated some Sutras differently, without being unfaithful esatto the text.