Yoga Sutra Cards

1.13 Effort toward a steady mind is practice.

“‘Effort toward steadiness’ refers to focusing and stilling the mind in meditation, to cultivation of regularity, and to developing an unwavering awareness of the mind’s activities (especially the ego’s limiting and harmful impact)…. But yoga is not limited to formal meditation or prayer…. We won’t make satisfactory progress if we practice control of the mind…

1.12 The mind can be stilled through practice and non-attachment.

“Nonattachment (vairagya) signifies the stability and serenity that arise when we withdraw from passion. The less we identify with our passions, the greater is our inner peace, in spite of difficulties. Nonattachment implies freedom with regard to affects, emotions, and sentiments…. Persevering practice is a way of proceeding, and nonattachment is what comes of it.”…

1.5 The fluctuations of the mind are fivefold and are either detrimental or non-detrimental.

“Our thoughts and feelings are trained by habit to flow in predictable patterns, which determine whether our life fosters a sense of ease and happiness or turns from it.” — Nischala Joy Devi, The Secret Power of Yoga

1.7 The sources of right knowledge are direct experience, inference, and verbal testimony.

“We must not mistake right knowledge for absolute truth.” –Devadatta Kali, Managing the Mind

1.8 False knowledge stems from misapprehension – believing something is true and then discovering it is not.

“Misperception or contrary thoughts, twisting the basic facts or reversing the facts arises due to the erroneous understanding or perception of an object.” –BKS Iyengar, Core of the Yoga Sutras

1.9 Imagination arises from words and ideas that are not grounded in reality, devoid of an actual object.

“The mind has great creative power….Without the ability to ideate we would not have any of our arts, sciences, and other human achievements.” –Devadatta Kali, Managing the Mind

1.10 In deep sleep there is an absence of thoughts.

“Though sleep and meditation may appear the same on the outside, deep, dreamless sleep is heavy and unconscious, while deliberately meditating inwardly is alert and conscious.” –Nicolai Bachman, The Path of the Yoga Sutras

1.11 Memory is thinking about a prior experience.

“Memories create impressions in the mind and at a later time come to the surface, either when we want them or sometimes even when we do not want them.” –Sri Swami Satchidananda, The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali

1.1 And now, the teachings of yoga.

“Often this very first sutra is read quickly or even disregarded, which is unfortunate since this sutra is placed first to set the tone.” – Nischala Joy Devi, The Secret Power of Yoga

1.2 Yoga is the stilling of the changing states of the mind.

“For a keen student this one Sutra would be enough because the rest of them only explain this one.” – Sri Swami Satchidananda, The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali

1.3 When your mind is still, you abide in your own true nature.

“In the state of Yoga, the different preconceptions and products of the imagination that can prevent or distort understanding are controlled, reduced or eliminated. The tendency to be closed to fresh comprehension or the inability to comprehend are overcome.” – T.K.V. Desikachar, Reflections on Yoga Sutra-s of Patanjali

1.4 When your mind is not still, you are absorbed by the changing states of the mind.

“Self-identification with the difficulties we encounter tends to make us dramatize them and lose track of what is really going on.” – Bernard Bouanchaud, The Essence of Yoga