Toh 1364Six-Branched Yoga
Pāli / Sanskrit:Ṣaḍaṅgayoga
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The Scripture on Six-Branched Yoga (Ṣaḍaṅgayoga)
Background
The Scripture on Six-Branched Yoga is a treatise belonging to the Northern Tibetan Transmission, recorded in the Tengyur - the Tibetan Treatise Collection. This work reflects the original tradition of practice in Mahāyāna Buddhism, especially within the context of tantra and practical yoga. Unlike scriptures taught directly by the Buddha, this work is a treatise developed from the root scriptures, composed by Indian masters in order to clarify advanced methods of practice.
Six-Branched Yoga (Ṣaḍaṅga) represents the six essential components of supreme Yoga in the Tibetan tradition. This is not modern physical yoga, but a profound system of thought intended to transform the mind and spiritual energy of the practitioner, leading to liberation and unsurpassed Buddhahood.
Main Content
Six-Branched Yoga consists of: Pranayama (regulation of vital breath), Dhāraṇā (concentration of the mind), Dhyāna (meditation), Ānanda (bliss), Samadhi (ultimate concentration), and Manonirmāṇa (mental creation). Each branch is not separate, but forms a continuous process, like stages of practice leading the convert toward the true realm of the Buddhist Dharma.
The first branch - Pranayama - teaches the regulation of the breath, which is the bridge between coarse and subtle mind. Through balanced breathing techniques, the practitioner quiets wandering thoughts. The second branch is Dhāraṇā, the deep concentration of the mind on an object, often the image of a deity or Buddha. The third branch - Dhyāna - is meditation, a stable and clear state of mind, free from obstacles and distracting conditions.
Ānanda, the fourth branch, describes the state of profound bliss arising from meditation. This is not the coarse pleasure of the senses, but a transcendent contemplation of feeling. The fifth branch is Samadhi, the state of ultimate concentration in which there is no longer any distinction between the meditator and the object of meditation.
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