This lecture series takes you into the Yoga Sutras of Patañjali through the text itself.
You will read the Sutras directly, not only through modern summaries.
The focus stays on original Sanskrit terms, classical meanings, and the aims of yoga as a training of the mind.
You will begin with Patañjali’s definition of yoga and the method of stilling fluctuations of thought.
You will study the eight limbs as a systematic path toward clarity, discipline, and freedom from suffering.
You will move through each chapter, from core definitions to deeper teachings on meditation, inner powers, and liberation, with attention to traditional interpretation and pre-modern commentaries.

About the teacher: Edwin Bryant
Edwin Bryant is a professor of religions of India at Rutgers University, with a Ph.D. in Indic languages and cultures from Columbia University.
He has taught Hindu philosophy, yoga philosophy, Sanskrit, and related texts at Harvard and Rutgers.
His translation and commentary on The Yoga Sutras of Patañjali foregrounds original Sanskrit, traditional interpretation, and classical philosophical context.
He also teaches public workshops, svādhyāya study groups, and online courses on yoga philosophy.

Who this is for:
Practitioners who want philosophical depth in their study
Teachers seeking a textual foundation for teaching yoga
Anyone ready to explore yoga as a system of knowledge and practice, not just exercise