The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali offer a profound map for understanding the mind and achieving inner peace. While the text covers deep philosophical terrain, many verses provide simple, powerful guidance for navigating modern life.
The foundational definition of yoga is given right at the start, in Sutra 1.2: ‘Yogas Citta Vritti Nirodhah.’
This translates roughly to: ‘Yoga is the cessation (nirodhah) of the modifications (vritti) of the mind-stuff (citta).’
What does this complex Sanskrit phrase mean for us today? Our ‘mind-stuff’ (citta) is constantly bombarded by fluctuations (vrittis): planning, judging, worrying, remembering, and reacting. These are the waves on the surface of our consciousness. When the mind is spinning, we feel anxious, scattered, and disconnected.
Patanjali suggests that the core practice of yoga—whether through asana, meditation, or breathwork—is learning to quiet these fluctuations. It is not about stopping thought (an impossible task), but about creating enough space between the observer (you) and the thought (the vritti) so that the waves no longer overwhelm the ship.
In daily life, this means recognizing those moments of mental chaos. When you are rushing to a deadline, entangled in a family argument, or lost in anxiety about the future, your vrittis are raging.
Applying Sutra 1.2 is the simple act of pausing. Take three conscious breaths. This moment of intentional stillness creates a break in the cycle of modification. When the modifications are subdued, we experience our true, stable nature.
This sutra reminds us that true yoga is not the flexibility of the body, but the unwavering stillness of the mind.
Reflection: When the internal conversation ceases, we find true clarity and ease.