The Eight Limbs of Yoga: Why Yoga is not just about the physical body

What is yoga? 

Yoga is so much more than these poses we do in class. 

Yoga is a whole system; a system of living that when followed can bring mental, emotional and physical wellbeing, as well as spiritual enlightenment. 

The poses we all know so well that we practice in class are actually only one small part of this system. The poses are not even called “yoga” but actually “asana”. “Asana” is one of the eight limbs of this full system called yoga, and this system is what I hope to shed more light on with this blog post. 

The word Yoga means to connect, unite or to yoke. What we are looking to connect with is our soul, the universe, God, our divine essence, or our Universal Self. According to Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras, there is an eight-limbed way of living leading to liberation, spiritual enlightenment and ultimately bliss.  Historically, this 8 limbed path was the beginning to the yogic way of life and stands even today as the foundation this practice was built upon. 

The first 2 limbs of this practice have to do with vows, disciplines, duties or practices directed at our external and internal environment.  They have to do with our ethics, principles and ways of living in harmony and peace. 

The next 2 limbs have everything to do with getting control of our physical body and our nervous system through breath work and physical postures. To the ancient yogis, this was important because it prepared the body for deeper spiritual work. 

Finally the last 4 limbs have everything to do with the different levels of consciousness that lead into deep meditation and how this state of deep meditation can help us transcend the suffering of the material world and achieve states of bliss. 

Here are the 8 limbs in summary form. 

1. YAMAS – 5 ethical principles that outline a code of conduct for when interacting with the world around us. They are guidance on how to behave toward others.
   I) Satya – Always tell the truth.
   II) Ahimsa – Non-violence. Do not engage in violent acts physically and even mentally.
   III) Asteya – Do not steal.
   IV) Brahmacharya – Right use of energy. Directing your energy away from external desires and fleeting pleasures.
   V) Aparigraha – Non-attachment. Do not get attached to an image, an outcome; do not get greedy, jealous or possessive.

2. NIYAMAS – 5 inward practices for self-development and spiritual growth.
   I) Saucha – Purity - This has to do with the cleanliness of our body, mind, spirit and surroundings, all helping to direct us towards a pure and positive life.
   II) Santosha - Contentment – This sounds simple but it’s very challenging. We need to accept and appreciate what we have and what we are already, and move forwards only from there.
   III) Tapas – Heat; burning off spiritual impurities through self-discipline and practice.
   IV) Svadhyaya – Self Study: studies of the sacred texts, mantras, breath work, and other yogic practices, as well as self-study and lots of introspection.
   V) Isvara Pranidhana – Surrender to the Universe (God). Cultivate a deep and trusting relationship with the universe, and make each action an offering to something bigger than yourself.

3. ASANA – This is the physical practice that we are so well aware of here in the West. Asana refers to the poses and it is actually derived from the root word “as” in Sanskrit, which means seat, therefore designed to prepare the body and mind for seated meditation.

4. PRANAYAMA – Pranayama is the practice of consciously controlling our breath in order to have it positively influence our nervous system, our states of consciousness and our emotions. This again prepares us for deeper mediation.

5. PRATYAHARA – Withdraw of the senses. This is the conscious state of withdrawing from all external stimuli to bring full attention to the inner world. It’s not about fully silencing your sense, but quieting them down enough that you can start to see beyond the physical, into the realm of the mind, and into the realm of the spirit.

6. DHARANA – Concentration; one pointed focus. This is the next conscious state towards full deep meditation. This is the practice of intense concentration, focusing only on one subject, as to quiet the mind and let go of everything else. This can look like focusing on a mantra, or an image, or a candle flame, or a deity, etc. The point of this practice is to catch yourself when the mind starts to drift away from that focus, and to bring yourself back to it, letting go of the mental chatter.

7. DYHANA – Meditative Absorption. This is, to the ancient yogis, the true conscious state of deep ‘meditation’. It is a state that comes only once the above is truly mastered. This is the action of being completely absorbed in the focus of your meditation, and it’s an action rather than a practice because it is not something we can actively ‘do’. Rather, it is the spontaneous action of something that happens as a result of everything else. Fundamentally, if you are really meditating, you will not be thinking and telling yourself that you are in mediation. The thought of “oh, I’m meditating” will not exist because you will be so absorbed in the mediation itself. This one takes time and practice to fully understand, so be gentle with yourself if it doesn’t make sense right away.

8. SAMADHI – BLISS; enlightenment. This is the last limb and it refers to 2 different aspects of enlightenment or realization. One aspect is the temporary state we can achieve by practicing all the above and reaching levels of deep mediation, which is a state of realization to the true self and the nature of the universe. However, most of us can only hold on to this state temporarily because life tends to pull us back into attachment, aversion, desires and habits. The second aspect of this limb is the permanent state of full liberation from the bonds of impurity, and therefore release from the cycle of death and re-birth.

These concepts are very complex and require much more discussion to really dive deeper into the philosophy, but I hope this helps on getting a grasp on what the fundamental system of yoga truly is. 

For those of you that are interested, we will be diving much deeper into these topics throughout a 40 day yoga challenge coming up at the beginning of January, 2024 called “THE PRACTICE”. Here we will be dedicating 40-days to bring forth a challenge that will not only be about ‘asana’ but incorporate and integrate the entire 8 limbed yogic system to help everybody create more peace, love and compassion in their lives. 

Hope to see you all on the mat!