74 – Directing the Mental River toward Auspiciousness | Patanjali Yoga Sutras | Swami Tattwamayananda - a podcast by Vedanta Society, San Francisco

Lecture by Swami Tattwamayananda. This lecture begins with a discussion of the meaning of the invocation verse describing the great sage Patanjali. Nirodha state, the goal of Yoga is reviewed. We can either rest in our true nature or identify with changing sense phenomenon. The five types of mental impressions, Vrittis are reviewed. We are kept rotating in a cycle of Karma, action, Vrittis, Impressions, and Samskaras, strong tendencies. Vyasa compares this to the river of the mind, which can flow either in an auspicious or negative direction. Practice and Dispassion, Abhyasa and Vairagya, and ethics, Yamas and Niyamas, are the prescribed methods for channeling the mind towards auspiciousness. Verses: I.2, I.3, I.4, I.5, I.6, I.12, I.13

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