The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali: Commentary on the Raja Yoga Sutras by Sri Swami Satchidananda

Further on, we go into the still subtler one in which even the discrimination or reflection is not there. You don’t use the intellect here, but you contemplate just the tranquil mind itself.

In case you might think you are ready to practice samādhi right away, you should know that the practice of samādhi only becomes possible after a person has achieved perfection in concentration and meditation.

The same trick can be used in emptying the mind of thoughts. Tell the mind, “All right, you have that much, and I’ll take the rest away.” After a while say, “This also seems to be unwanted; let’s take this away also.” You remove them little by little. That’s why Patañjali is so careful in forming the thoughts into different groups.

“If you can control the rising of the mind into ripples, you will experience Yoga.”

This itself is Yoga practice—watching our own thoughts and analyzing them.

In the next form, you contemplate the tanmātras, or subtle elements. Here there is no concrete object to see. You contemplate something abstract like white or red or love or beauty.

And then it should be without break. I often hear, “Oh, I’ve been practicing Yoga for the past ten years but I’m still the same.” “How often?” “Oh, off and on.” So it must be continuous practice also.

Memories come in two ways: dreams are memories that come to the surface when we sleep; daydreams are memories that arise during the day.

In other words, Īśvara is all-knowing and is knowledge itself.