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prahuḥ tāpasāḥ tapa uttamam: "Disciplining the body by the method prescribed in the Vedas by adopting measures of expiation and regulation of intake of food by the rigid Candrāyaṇa rule is the highest among the forms of tapas."
svadhyāyaḥ: silent incantation of the mantras like pranava and the gayatri.
VIVEKACŪĻAMAŅI
Iśvarapranidhanam: dedication to God of all actions whether prescribed or not prescribed but unprohibited, without expectation of fruits of those actions. Hence it is said: kamato' kamato vapi yat karomi subhaśubham tat sarvam tvayi vinyasya tvatprayuktaḥ karomyaham 11: "Whatever I do with desire or without it, all that I surrender to Thee and perform it directed by Thee". The great have spoken about the evil of attachment to fruits of actions thus: api prayatnasampannam kāmenopahatam tapaḥ | na tuṣṭaye maheśasya śvālīḍhamiva payasam || "Though performed with great effort, the tapas motivated by desire does not make for the grace of God being like the payasam licked by a dog". These five, śauca, santoșa, tapas, svādhyāya and Iśvarapraṇidhāna are the niyamas.
The yamas are next explained: ahimsa-satya-asteya-brahmacarya-aparigrahāḥ yamāḥ. Thus according to the Yoga Sutra, the yamas too are five:
ahimsa: explained already.
satyam: never speaking an untruth at any time. asteyam: not taking away another's wealth.
brahmacaryam: giving up the eightfold copulational act.27
aparigrahaḥ: Not accepting anything that makes for enjoyment except what is necessary for maintenance of the body.
By the word yamadyāḥ: yama etc., the limbs of yoga, namely āsana, prāṇāyāma, pratyāhāra, dhāraṇa, dhyāna and samadhi are also included, i.e., posture, breath-control, restraint of sense-organs, concentration, meditation and absorption.
27 These include seeing a woman, smiling at her, talking about their qualities and actions, albeit proper thought of them, endearment, mutual talking, living with them, association are said to be eight forms of maithunam. What is different from these is brahmacaryam (celibacy) which makes for delight of the mind. Vide slokas 109 and 110 of Sri Bhagavatpada's Sarva Vedanta Samgraha: smaranam darsanam striņām gunakarmanukirtanam |
samicinatvadhistasu pritih sambhäṣaṇam mithaḥ 11 sahavāsasca samsargo'pyaṣṭadha maithunam viduḥ
etadvilakṣanam brahmacaryam cittaprasadakam 11
