Pratyahara

The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali instructs the seeker on the 8 Limbs of Yoga, Pratyahara being the 5th, elaborated on in Sutras 2.54-2.55:

स्वविषयासंप्रयोगे चित्तस्य स्वरूपानुकारैवेन्द्रियाणां प्रत्याहारः ॥५४॥

sva vishaya asamprayoge chittasya svarupe anukarah iva indriyanam pratyaharah

By turning attention within (pratyahara), consciousness ceases to come in contact with the objects of the senses. It then mirrors one’s essential nature.

ततः परमावश्यता इन्द्रियाणाम् ॥५५॥

tatah parama vashyata indriyanam

From the practice of pratyahara comes supreme mastery of the senses.

from “Yoga and Ayurveda” by David Frawley

Prati – against, away

Ahara – food

Pratyahara is the control of ahara, gaining mastery over external influences

3 Levels of Ahara:

1. Physical food -nourishes the body and the elements
2. Impressions – nourish mind
3. Associations – people that nourish the soul

Pratyahara is twofold.

It involves withdrawal from wrong food, wrong impressions and wrong associations, while simultaneously opening up to right food, right impressions and right associations.

We cannot control our mental impressions without right diet and right relationship, but pratyahara’s primary importance lies in control of sensory impressions which frees the mind to move within. By withdrawing our awareness from negative impressions, pratyahara strengthens the mind’s powers of immunity. Just as a healthy body can resist toxins and pathogens, a healthy mind can ward off the negative sensory influences around it.

4 Types of Pratyahara:

1. Indriya Pratyahara – sense control
2. Prana Pratyahara – prana control
3. Karma Pratyahara – action control
4. Mano Pratyahara – withdrawal of the mind from the senses

Pratyahara centers on the right intake of impressions.

In Pratyahara we withdraw our attention from ordinary distractions