Yoga s

118 YOGA SŪTRAS
understanding their essential self (sva-bhāva), they are subjected to endless
mis-identities, on and on and on. It is by the grace of a guru that one gets some
idea about the essential self. It is by the example of a guru that one makes the
endeavor to release the self.
The misplaced self identity (asmitā) causes numerous afflictions in the day
to day existence. By it, one attaches one’s psychological energy to persons and
things in a harmful way. It is by yoga discipline that one develops the power to
control the sense of identity, so that it may focus only on higher realities and
ultimately cause one to be situated in a permanent non-painful condition.
The tendency for emotional attachment (rāga) is an impulse which is
curbed after one has mastered the pratyāhār fifth stage of yoga practice,
consisting of withdrawing the sensual energies from their external pursuits and
conserving that energy within the psyche for application to higher realities.
The impulsive emotional disaffection occurs on the basis of justified or
unjustified biases acquired in the present and past lives. It is impulsively
performed and is hard to control. By higher yoga, one can bring this to an end.
The strong focus on mundane existence, which is due to an instinctive fear
of death (abhiniveśaḥ) is removed by the realization of the self. One must gain
mystic experiences whereby one finds oneself in one’s subtle body when it is
separated from the gross one. Gradually by repeated experiences of this sort,
one loses the instinctive fear of death and finds that it is no longer necessary to
maintain a strong focus on material existence, since one will definitely survive
the perishable body. These five causes of the mental and emotional afflictions
must be removed before one can enter samādhi on a regular basis.
Verse 4
Aiv*a ]eÇmuÄre;a< àsuÝtnuiviCDÚaedara[am!
avidyā kṣetram uttareṣāṁ prasupta
tanu vicchina udārāṇām
avidyā – spiritual ignorance; kṣetram – field, existential environment;
uttareṣāṁ – of the other afflictions; prasupta – dormant; tanu – reducted;
vicchina – alternating, periodic; udārāṇām – expanded.
Spiritual ignorance is the existential environment
for the other afflictions, in their dormant, reduced,
periodic or expanded stages.
Commentary:
Spiritual ignorance (avidyā) is the root cause of the mental and emotional
distresses which come upon a living entity, and which is perceived as an
impediment by aspiring yogins. The other afflictions form on the basis of
spiritual ignorance. These four others arise in the psychological environment of
a person who is spiritually-ignorant of his self-identity, due to having not
experienced it objectively and due to having a strong focus on gross existence.