c.4th–2nd BCE
Date (contested)
The text and its nature
The Yoga Sūtras are aphorisms — extremely compressed, precise formulations that cannot be understood without a commentary. Each Sūtra packs an entire philosophical argument into a handful of words. The standard reading tradition is always Sūtras + Vyāsa's Yogabhāṣya (c. 4th–6th CE) + further commentary layers. Patañjali himself says almost nothing about context, background, or elaboration — these are provided by the commentarial tradition.
The Yoga Sūtras are the primary text of the Yoga Darśana — one of the six classical Āstika schools. They adopt Sāṃkhya's metaphysical framework (Puruṣa-Prakṛti dualism, the 25 tattvas) and add the concept of Īśvara and the systematic practice path. The text's extraordinary density means it can be read as a meditation manual, a psychology of consciousness, a metaphysics of liberation, and a practical guide — all simultaneously.
The foundational definition
yogaś citta-vṛtti-nirodhaḥ
"Yoga is the cessation of the modifications of the mind."
Yoga Sūtras 1.2 — trans. Edwin Bryant (North Point Press, 2009)
tadā draṣṭuḥ svarūpe 'vasthānam
"Then the seer abides in its own nature."
Yoga Sūtras 1.3 — trans. Edwin Bryant (2009)
The four Pādas
Book I
Samādhi Pāda
51 Sūtras · YS 1.1–1.51
The foundational definition (1.2–1.4), five types of vṛtti, five types of Samādhi (Samprajñāta and Asamprajñāta), Īśvara (1.23–1.29), obstacles to practice (1.30), means of overcoming them.
Book II
Sādhana Pāda
55 Sūtras · YS 2.1–2.55
Kriyā Yoga (Tapas, Svādhyāya, Īśvara-praṇidhāna). The five Kleśas (Avidyā, Asmitā, Rāga, Dveṣa, Abhiniveśa). The Puruṣa-Prakṛti conjunction as cause of suffering. The eight limbs (Aṣṭāṅga, 2.29–2.55).
Book III
Vibhūti Pāda
55 Sūtras · YS 3.1–3.55
Saṃyama (Dhāraṇā + Dhyāna + Samādhi combined). The extraordinary perceptions (Vibhūtis/powers) arising from Saṃyama on various objects. YS 3.37: these powers are obstacles when liberation is the goal.
Book IV
Kaivalya Pāda
34 Sūtras · YS 4.1–4.34
The nature of liberated consciousness. The multiple arising of citta. The Guṇas' purpose and their dissolution. YS 4.34: Kaivalya — the return of the Guṇas to their source when emptied of purpose for Puruṣa.
The commentary tradition — essential reading
Vyāsa's Yogabhāṣya (c. 4th–6th CE) is so fundamental that the tradition is always called "Pātañjala Yoga" — Patañjali's Yoga through Vyāsa's lens. Vācaspatimiśra's Tattvavaiśāradī (c. 9th CE) is the next essential layer. Edwin Bryant's 2009 translation (North Point Press) includes comprehensive commentary drawing on Vyāsa and all subsequent commentators — it is the best single scholarly edition in English.