The Yoga Sutras of Patañjali: A New Edition, Translation, and Commentary

Edwin F. Bryant

Jan 2015 · Sold by North Point Press

About this ebook

A landmark new translation and edition

Written almost two millennia ago, Patañjali's work focuses on how to attain the direct experience and realization of the purusa: the innermost individual self, or soul. As the classical treatise on the Hindu understanding of mind and consciousness and on the technique of meditation, it has exerted immense influence over the religious practices of Hinduism in India and, more recently, in the West.

Edwin F. Bryant's translation is clear, direct, and exact. Each sutra is presented as Sanskrit text, transliteration, and precise English translation, and is followed by Bryant's authoritative commentary, which is grounded in the classical understanding of yoga and conveys the meaning and depth of the sutras in a user-friendly manner for a Western readership without compromising scholarly rigor or traditional authenticity. In addition, Bryant presents insights drawn from the primary traditional commentaries on the sutras written over the last millennium and a half.

Ratings and reviews

fantastic 'big book' ! It was about 9 years ago that I had picked up this book in Print. I was scheduled to get a major surgery that would require about a month in a nursing home. Having previously read other translations and some commentaries, I was definitely excited to get into these sutras. By no means am I recommending or suggesting this in any manner, but I decided to use each individual yoga sutra as a devotional/meditation. I could definitely do more than one in a day...

There are 2 books that I really feel changed my perspective on life. One is Bhagvad Gita as it is by Swami Prabhupada and Yoga Sutras by Patanjali by Dr.Bryant. This book really gives deep insights on different views of great acharyas of Indian subcontinent without bias. Plus Dr. Bryant really makes it so applicable to our lives.

About the author

EDWIN F. BRYANT received his PhD in Indology from Columbia University. He is a professor of Hindu religion and philosophy at Rutgers University, and also teaches workshops on the yoga sutras and other Hindu texts in yoga communities around the world.