Within the Yoga Sutra of Patanjali is the section called Ashtanga yoga (the eight limbs of Yoga). On the one hand, they are considered to be in a linear order, but on the other hand, they keep recurring at different levels in a kind of spiraling effect that supports and enhances practice.
There are eight limbs of Yoga. These are:
1. Yama
The attitudes towards our environment.
The Yamas are:
- ahimsa (non-violence),
- satya (truthfulness),
- asteya (honesty),
- brahmacharya (sensual abstinence),
- aparigraha (non-possessiveness).
2. Niyama
The attitudes towards ourselves.
The Niyamas are:
- saucha (cleanliness),
- santosha (contentment),
- tapah (austerity),
- svadhyaya (self study),
- ishvara pranidhanani (devotion)
3. Asana
The practise of body exercises or physical postures.
4. Pranayama
The practise of breathing exercises or breath control.
5. Pratyahara
The restraint or withdrawal of our senses.
6. Dharana
Concentration or the ability to direct our minds.
7. Dhyana
Meditation or the ability to develop interactions with what we seek to understand.
8. Samadhi
Ecstasy, self-realization or complete integration with the object to be understood.Understanding and researching these eight limbs is the ground for the Yoga practitioner and teacher. They require constant practice.