Eight Limbs of Yoga
Also known as: Ashtanga
Patanjali's yamas, niyamas, asana, pranayama, pratyahara, dharana, dhyana, samadhi.
The Eight Limbs of Yoga (Sanskrit: ashtanga yoga; ashta = eight, anga = limb) is the foundational framework of classical yoga, articulated by Patanjali in the Yoga Sutras (compiled approximately 2nd century BCE-4th century CE), one of the six orthodox darsanas of Hindu philosophy. The eight limbs are: (1) Yama — ethical restraints in relation to others (non-violence, truthfulness, non-stealing, sexual restraint, non-greed); (2) Niyama — observances in relation to oneself (purity, contentment, austerity, self-study, surrender to the divine); (3) Asana — physical posture, originally meaning a seated meditation posture rather than the modern proliferation of physical poses; (4) Pranayama — regulation of breath and prana (vital energy); (5) Pratyahara — withdrawal of senses from external objects; (6) Dharana — concentration on a single object; (7) Dhyana — sustained meditative absorption; (8) Samadhi — meditative union with the object, ultimately leading to kaivalya (liberation, isolation of pure consciousness from prakriti/matter). The eight limbs are progressive — earlier limbs prepare for later — but also mutually reinforcing in actual practice. Modern global yoga (the postural yoga of Iyengar, Ashtanga Vinyasa, modern hatha traditions) substantially emphasizes asana — typically only the third limb — often with limited engagement with the other seven. Mark Singleton's Yoga Body (2010) and other scholarship have substantially complicated the lineage of modern postural yoga, which incorporates substantial 19th-20th century European physical-culture influences alongside Indian sources.
Core components
- Eight progressive limbs: Yama (ethical restraints), Niyama (observances), Asana (posture), Pranayama (breath regulation), Pratyahara (sense withdrawal), Dharana (concentration), Dhyana (meditation), Samadhi (absorption)
- Five yamas and five niyamas (separately enriched)
- Connection to Samkhya philosophy (Patanjali's metaphysical framework)
- Progressive but mutually-reinforcing structure
- Distinction from Hatha Yoga and modern postural yoga
- Foundation of Raja Yoga ('royal yoga')
Primary use case
Foundational framework of classical Hindu yoga philosophy; foundation for Raja Yoga tradition; reference framework in yoga teacher training (200-hr and 500-hr curricula universally include the eight limbs); basis for ongoing dialogue between traditional yoga and modern wellness practice; integration with Buddhist meditation traditions in some contemporary settings; foundation for some integrative meditation curricula.
Common criticisms
- Modern global yoga substantially emphasizes asana (third limb only) — Mark Singleton's Yoga Body (2010) and other scholarship show substantial European physical-culture influences in the development of modern postural yoga, complicating claims of unbroken Indian lineage
- commercial yoga industry frequently invokes 'the eight limbs' while teaching primarily asana, raising questions about authentic transmission
- cultural-appropriation concerns about Western adoption of yoga without sustained engagement with its philosophical and devotional dimensions
- intra-Hindu debates about whether Patanjali's classical yoga (with its dualist Samkhya metaphysics) is the proper context for the eight limbs, or whether they should be reframed within Vedanta or other Hindu philosophies
- tension between yoga as religious-philosophical practice and yoga as health/wellness intervention
- Patanjali's specific formulations on yamas and niyamas have substantial commentary tradition with interpretive variation
- the framework's progressive structure can be misunderstood as strictly sequential when traditional practice typically engages all limbs together.
Lineage
- Parent of
- Yamas and Niyamas
- Siblings
- Yamas and Niyamas