Swamiji- These thought patterns (vrittis) are mastered (nirodhah, regulated, coordinated, controlled, stilled, quieted) through practice (abhyasa) and non-attachemnt (vairagya)
Iyengar- practice and detachment are the means to still the movements of consciousness
Abhyasa – practice, lifestyle, discipline
Vairagya – non-attachment, letting go of klishtas
They work together, practice sets up the space for non-attachment which takes you further on your inner journey.
Iyengar speaks of abhyasa and vairagya as being complimentary opposites. Ha- abhyasa – sun and tha –vairagya-moon of “Hatha’ yoga. You need both the yamas and niyamas to continue on your spiritual path, if you lose one or the other then you stagnate and become stuck. Hence many of the problems with the modern western view of yoga as pure exercise or ha or yang without the balancing effects of ying or non-attachment. Otherwise it is just another form of aerobics.
1.13 tatra sthitau yatnah abhyasa
Swamiji- “Practice means choosing, applying the effort, and doing those actions that bring a stable and tranquil state (sthitau)”
Iyengar- “practice is the steadfast effort to still these fluctuations”
Practice is meant to work toward the stabilizing of the mind.
Swamji distinguishes between abhyasa practice and sadhana practice. Abhyasa is a more general type of practice, which looks at the bigger picture and works towards a greater goal of Self realization. Sadhana is more specifically what you actually do to work on the abhyasa, for example asana, meditation, pranayama etc. Iyengar suggests working on yama to dhyana.
My current sadhana includes reading, interpreting, typing and blogging these two interpretations of the yoga sutras as well as asana practice.
1.14 sah tu dirgha kala nairantaira satkara asevitah dridha bhumih
Swamiji- “when that practice is done for a long time, without a break, and with sincere devotion, then the practice becomes a firmly rooted, stable and solid foundation”
Iyengar- “long uninterrupted alert practice is the firm foundation for restraining the fluctuations”
Correct practice is selecting that which you CAN do, not that which you wish to do. It is more important to be consistent. Consistent practice is better than performing great feats of practice for short periods of time with interruptions of days, weeks or years.
1.15 drista anushravika vishaya vitrishnasya vashikara sanjna vairagyam
Swamiji- “When the mind loses desire even for objects seen or described in a tradition or in scriptures, it acquires a state of utter (vashikara) desirelessness that is called non-attachement (vairagya)”
Iyengar- “renunciation is the practice of detachment from desires”
Renunciation is not simply giving up something but giving up the desire for it, so there is no reaction to that object, action or person.
Iyengar cites 5 states of non-attachment
1. detaching from the objects which our senses desire, one by one
2. detaching from the consciousness’s desire for heavenly rewards
3. when moving towards ekaraga, one-pointedness, the mind seeks self-realization, one must also detach from the desire for it
4. when all senses including the mind have become detached then one has achieved vasikara
5. once you have reached the highest state of non-attachment paravairagya, which is beyond even the three gunas, then the student is not concerned with herself or other people who still have attachment to this world
1.16 tat param purusha khyateh guna vaitrshyam
Swamiji- “indifference to the subtlest elements, constituent principles, or qualities themselves (gunas) achieved through a knowledge of the nature of pure consciousness (purusha) is called supreme non-attachment (paravairagya)
Iyengar- “the ultimate renunciation is when one transcends the qualities of nature and perceives the soul’
Paravairagya comes when you have moved beyond even Self-realization and attachment to the gunas or the physical world
Swamiji outlines 3 levels of non-attachement
1- gross world – freedom from the everyday world objects
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