This is the long awaited, updated and revised 2020 edition of Bernard Bouanchaud’s classic work: The Essence of Yoga: Reflections on the Yoga Sutra of Patanjali.

Yoga stands at the heart of all meditative practices.

This book offers invaluable guidance to those seeking a deeper understanding of their true nature. The Yoga Sutra distill the essentials of an integrated system of physical and spiritual discipline. All too often, Westerners bypass the philosophy and practice the physical postures, but it is impossible to authentically practice the physical postures without first having grasped the philosophical underpinnings.

This book provides:

• A translation of each sutra, study questions, themes for reflection an illumination commentary, and the sutra word for word in Sanskrit.

• An eloquent translation by a celebrated yoga teacher for every yoga and philosophy student.

• A modern interpretation of yoga’s most important text, the essential source of Yoga.

Internationally acclaimed yogi Bernard Bouanchaud began studying yoga in 1961. He is the author of several books on yoga including Meditation Techniques in the Yoga Tradition.