PREFACE.

The translation now placed before the public was prepared as long ago as 1895; and the various changes and misfortunes through which the manuscript has passed have made it absolutely impossible for it to undergo any revision. So what is presented here is the work of a mere beginner in the mysteries of translating Sanskrit philosophy; and the translator would therefore, at the very outset, offer his apologies to the reader for providing what he himself considers a rather poor offering. It may however be added, as a justifying circumstance, that the printing of the old "copy" was allowed to proceed in view of a promise given to the late Mr. Tukaram Tatya—an obligation from which the translator could not free himself.

The chief fault of the present translation lies in the fact that it is not readable on its own. This is due to the extremely obscure nature of the original text, a quality which is inseparable from all works dealing with subjects where the full truth cannot be shared with the general public. The author implies that Yoga was traditionally an esoteric or "secret" science passed from teacher to student. Imperfect as it is, it is hoped that it may help, to a slight extent, future workers in this same field.

By way of making up for this deficiency in the translation, it is proposed to give here a readable summary of the teachings of the Yogasutras The foundational collection of short aphorisms on Yoga philosophy attributed to the sage Patanjali..

"Yoga" Union or discipline has been defined as the "nirodha" restraint or cessation of the "vritti" fluctuations or thought-waves of the "chitta" mind-stuff or consciousness brought about by "Practice" and "Freedom from Attachment"; and the only explanation that will make this intelligible to the ordinary reader is that yoga consists in the controlling of the mind;—though it must be admitted that the definition in this form becomes philosophically inaccurate;