The 8-Limbed Path; a Guide to the Spiritual Practice of Yoga

When I tell most people I’m a yoga instructor, a lot of people have a picture in their brains of what that means. Typically it involves pretzel-like shapes and circus-style acrobatics. While yoga asana does include some crazy shapes, the actual application of the yoga practice extends far beyond the physical aspects.

Yoga asana is just one of the eight limbs of the yoga practice. Traditionally, through the Ashtanga method, yoga was taught in segments. Starting off with one limb, and working your way up. The traditional eight-limbed path was intended to guide yoga students to the ultimate freedom of Samadhi, or total liberation.

The Eight Limbs

The eight limbs are intentionally sequenced. Each limb builds off of one another. In order to move on to the next limb, a student is expected to “master” or have a great understanding of the previous limb.

Yamas

The yamas are the first limb in the eight-limbed path. Typically translated to external discipline, the yamas are a discipline of our thoughts and our deeds towards others. This includes things like cultivating kindness and compassion and avoiding low vibrational deeds like lying and stealing.

By starting off with the yamas, we are asked to keep careful watch of how our actions and thoughts create the circumstances around us. Bringing awareness to thoughts and actions breeds mindfulness in everyday life. It was also believed that by reducing low vibrational actions, you are cultivating positive energy or karma.

Niyamas

The niyamas are similar to the yamas, but a little more personal. The niyamas are an internal discipline that asks us to reflect on our actions involving ourselves and our lifestyle. Cultivating actions of cleanliness, surrender, and self-study are significant aspects of the niyamas.

Once again, the niyamas are intended to breed mindfulness and reflection. By abiding by the niyamas, we as yoga students are preparing ourselves for the physical practice of yoga.

Asana

The most popular practice of yoga we see today is the asana or postures. The physical asana is intended to encompass the teachings of both the yamas and the niyamas. By practicing yoga asana, we are clearing away impurities in our body, letting go of old energetic blockages, and preparing our minds for meditation.

Pranayama

Pranayama is a practice of breath control. There are multiple pranayama techniques, and in most western classes pranayama and asana are taught together. Pranayama can effectively enhance an asana and meditation practice. However, pranayama is only intended to be practiced when our body is ready.

Traditionally, it is believed that if a yogi practices pranayama without first preparing their body through asana, it can have adverse effects. This is why the practice of pranayama comes after the yamas, niyamasa, and asana.

Pratyahara

This limb can be a little confusing at first as most take it too literally. pratyahara involves distancing oneself from the senses. When most people think of pratyahara they believe it means one must literally distance themselves from external stimuli in the world around them. For example, a spiritual junkie leaving civilization to pursue a life of meditation in a cave somewhere nestled in the Himalayan mountains…it’s just not practical for our modern lives.

Pratyahara does not mean we physically must remove ourselves from a space where external stimuli occur. Instead, it’s about creating a clear separation of our thoughts and our reality. Being able to remove preconceived notions, and save space between the way we initially want to react to something vs how we actually react to it. Withdrawing rather from the need to react to certain stimuli in the first place. It is an act of bringing your awareness within, rather than focusing on what is going on outside ourselves.

Dharana

of course, dharana piggy-backs off of Pratyahara and the previous limbs of the yoga teachings. Dharana is the use of a one-pointed focus. More specifically, the practice of dharana asks us to remove the false veil of the ego and stay present with whatever it is that is occurring at the moment.

The practice of dharana is extremely difficult, especially if we have not taken time to really dive deep into the practice of pratyahara. We cannot move past the ego if we have not taken the time to acknowledge the presence of the ego through the previous limbs.

Dhyana

Dhyana is often referred to as meditation when talking about the eight limbs. However, being in a state of dhyana is different than practicing meditation. Although practicing meditation and one-pointed concentration can bring you closer to a state of dhyana. I know…it’s a lot to take in.

Dhyana is often translated to meditative absorption, meaning we are connecting the dots of the yoga teachings and our awareness of our being. Dhyana is more so a result of meditation rather than meditation itself. being in a state of dhyana means we have a complete awareness of our soul self or higher self. We are fully present in the moment, aware of our true nature, and able to live and act accordingly.

Samadhi

Samadhi is the final step in the eight-limbed path of yoga. It is very similar to being in a state of dhyana but to a much higher degree. There are believed to be three or four levels of samadhi (depending on how you count) but for the sake of this post, I’ll simply be referring to this state as – samadhi.

When we have reached samadhi we are completely pure in our thoughts. We have removed our ego from our experience. There is an awareness of the material world and our divine place within it. Desire and judgment have dissipated, along with our personal conditionings that caused us suffering.

Samadhi is not a guaranteed state, as many yogis believe it can take lifetimes to achieve. Some even say that when you finally reach samadhi or complete liberation, you no longer need to experience this physical world. Many traditions believe that once this state of liberation is complete, the yogi will pass along to the next phase of consciousness that extends far beyond what we see and experience today.

I know it is a lot of information to take in. It was challenging to write this post because there is so much I wanted to add. Since this is a surface level introduction post to the eight limbs, I have tried my best to keep it concise and simple. Don’t worry though, I’ll be diving deeper into each individual limb in future posts so stay tuned!