Yoga Aphorisms of Patanjali

Author(s): Prabhavnanda Swami, Christopher Isherwood
Publisher: Ramkrishna Math Madras

Page 92

YOGA AND ITS PRACTICE
dangerous animal. The power of tamas in our nature is so great that we hate to be disturbed. We loathe any new idea, especially if it implies that we shall have to make some change in our own lives. And so, when the spiritual teachers come to tell us that we are not pigs but God, we are quite apt to persecute and crucify them. प्रकाश-क्रिया-स्थितिशीलं भूतेन्द्रियात्मकं
hogarifat burn 118511 18. The object of experience is composed of the three
gunas-the principles of illumination (sattwa), activity (rajas) and inertia (tamas). From these, the whole universe has evolved together with the instruments of knowledge—such as the mind, senses, etc.-and the objects perceived-such as the physical elements. The universe exists in order that the experiencer may experi
ence it, and thus become liberated. The last sentence of this aphorism is one of the most important in the entire book. It is Patanjali's answer to the pigpeople; to those who want to stay wallowing in their mire.
When told that all sense-experience is, in the last analysis, painful, the pig-people become scornful and angry. They find such a philosophy cowardly and lacking in spirit. One should not be afraid of pleasure, they exclaim; one should seize the flying moment and enjoy it, whatever the consequences. They quote approvingly from their poets (for many of the finest poets write pig-poetry) saying that "one crowded hour of glorious life is worth an age without a name,” and Patanjali is a timid old kill-joy grandmother.
To this accusation, Patanjali replies: “It is you who are really afraid. It is you who shrink from experience. You talk so much about your pleasures, yet you know nothing about pleasure. You never try to understand its nature. The universe