Commentaries

(All titles are in English unless otherwise specified)

Four Chapters on Freedom
(Commentary on the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali)

Swami Satyananda Saraswati

This text contains the full Sanskrit text of Rishi Patanjali's Yoga Sutras, along with transliteration, translation and commentary. The Yoga Sutras, containing 196 epithets or threads of yoga, is the most respected treatise on yoga. This extensive commentary on each sutra fully explains the text and the path of raja yoga.

Serious yogic aspirants and spiritual seekers will find invaluable guidance within these pages.

400 pp, Soft cover, Line drawings, diagrams
ISBN 81-85787-18-2, (English and Hindi)

Hatha Yoga Pradipika

by Maharishi Swatmarama translation and commentary by Swami Satyananda Saraswati and Swami Muktibodhananda

This book is a thorough commentary on the original text by Maharishi Swatmarama. It elucidates the entire science of hatha yoga as it was conceived and practised, not for health and fitness only, but for awakening the pranas, chakras and kundalini shakti. This text points out that hatha yoga is not just a physical practice but a process of cellular transmutation from gross, to subtle to divine. Thus hatha yoga was considered the foundation of all higher yogas.

This text clearly shows the link between tantra and hatha yoga, and also emphasises that hatha yoga leads to raja yoga, otherwise it is practised in vain.

641pp, Soft cover, Line drawings and diagrams
ISBN 81-85787-38-7

Ishavasya Upanishad

Swami Satyananda Saraswati

Sanskrit text, English translation and detailed commentary on this most important "principal" Upanishad, considered to be the seed of Indian philosophy in general and of Vedanta philosophy in particular. Includes a useful introduction to the essence and wisdom of the Upanishads.

82 pp, Soft cover
ISBN 81-85787-21-2

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Nine Principle Upanishads

Swami Satyananda Saraswati

The Nine Principal Upanishads are the culmination of vedic thought and contain the essence of the original vedantic teachings. They impart sublime truths about the nature and destiny of mankind revealed by great sages and seers during informal discussions with disciples and spiritual seekers. These upanishads describe the direct experience of transcendence which results in the unity of the individual with the highest consciousness. They also provide methods of meditation to realise the nature of Atman, the supreme soul, and to attain the immortal Brahman.

This text includes the original Sanskrit verses, transliteration and translations of the following nine major upanishads: Prashnopanishad, Kenopanishad, Mandukyopanishad, Mundakopanishad, Ishavasya Upanishad, Kathopanishad, Aitareya Upanishad, Shvetashvataropanishad and Taittiriya Upanishad.

274pp, Soft cover
ISBN 81-85787-21-2

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Nirvanopanishad

translation and commentary by Swami Niranjanananda Saraswati

This book contains the complete original Sanskrit text of the Upanishad on Nirvana, one of the Sannyasa Upanishads, with translation and commentary by a modern master.

Nirvanopanishad explains the nature of Paramahamsa sannyasins, who are one with the divine. It elaborates on their connection with disciples, spiritual path, lifestyle, and the teachings that they embody and live.

274pp, Soft cover, Line drawings and diagrams
(English and Hindi)

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Prashnopanishad

translation and commentary by Swami Niranjanananda Saraswati

This book contains the complete Sanskrit text of Prashnopanishad, the 'Upanishad of Questions', along with the transliteration, translation and commentary of a modern master. Subjects covered are tapasya (austerity), brahmacharya (celibacy), faith, the process of creation, the supporters of life, the senses and prana, and how the life force originates.

The text is thoroughly explained from the yogic and scientific points of view, and many points relating to yoga philosophy are clarified. The commentary of Adi Shankaracharya is also given in Sanskrit with each verse and an explanation of the Vedantic interpretation. The practices necessary to understand and experience the teachings are distilled in the final section.

Suitable for advanced practitioners, yoga teachers and scholars.

274pp, Soft cover, Line drawings and diagrams
(English and Hindi)

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Sanskrit Glossary of Yogic Terms

Swami Yogakanti Saraswati

This Sanskrit glossary contains a wealth of definitions of yoga and its related topics, including philosophies, yogic traditions and concepts. It is designed to aid yoga practitioners who seek the deeper meaning of yoga's symbols and metaphoric language. It may be utilized as a guide for understanding the precision and subtle associations of Sanskrit words found in yoga publications.

The Sanskrit glossary, with English translation, reveals the deep significance of yogic terms through word structure, meaning, scriptural references and original Devanagri script. Selected pictures illustrate the text.

222 pp, Soft cover, Line drawings and diagrams
ISBN 81-86336-31-1

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Sri Vijnana Bhairava Tantra (The Ascent)

Swami Satyasangananda Saraswati

The theme of Vijnana Bhairava Tantra is dharana, or concentration, a subject most relevant today. This new translation and commentary of a classical tantric text sheds much light on the practice of dharana, which until now has been revealed only by peripheral explanations. The text comprises 112 different dharanas, or techniques of concentration, which can easily be incorporated into one’s daily life. Although dharana is a practice intended for an adept, whose mind is steady and controlled, the techniques contained within this book provide a way even for the aspirant with a distracted mind to gradually develop concentration and meditation.

This work is the result of an in-depth study of dharana in relation to the tantric view of meditation, substantiated by the personal experience of the author. Included is a detailed introduction followed by the original Sanskrit slokas, with transliteration, translation and extensive commentary.

522 pp, Soft cover, Line drawings and diagrams
ISBN 81-86336-32-X

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Sri Saundarya Lahari (The Descent)

Swami Satyasangananda Saraswati

The original Sanskrit text by Adi Sankaracharya has been translated and explained in a lucid and eloquent style, which brings the reader into the living presence of the Goddess. The 103 mantras of this text are presented here as meditations and visualizations of Sri Devi, the root matrix of creation, depicting her divine form as a path of highest sadhana and realization.

The text deals with the essence of tantric philosophy and sadhana, elucidating the esoteric traditions of Sri Vidya, the Dasa Mahavidyas, kulakundalini, chakras and tattwas, and their usage to bridge the gap between the outer and inner experience. Sri Saundarya Lahari, the Descent, an exposition on the feminine divine, is substantiated and enhanced by the personal experience and in-depth study of the author. Also included are a comprehensive introduction, Prayoga (uses of the mantras, yantras and especially the mandalas contained in the text), transliteration and index.

536 pages, soft cover, 10 colour plates
ISBN: 978-81-86336-70-0

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Swara Yoga (The Tantric Science of Brain Breathing)

Swami Muktibodhananda Saraswati

This book contains the original Sanskrit text of the Shiva Swarodaya with a translation in English. The theory section includes references to scientific research into the influence of breathing patterns on the right and left hemispheres of the brain, instinctual behaviour and higher brain functions, which is correlated with the tantric view of human physiology.

In the practice section the techniques of this ancient yoga are explained in detail. For this practice prior experience in pranayama, mudras and some pratyahara techniques including mantra japa, trataka and visualization are necessary.

This is an important text for advanced yoga practitioners and yoga teachers.

248 pp, Soft cover, Line drawings and diagrams
(English and Hindi)

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Yoga Chudamani Upanishad (Crown Jewel of Yoga)

Swami Satyadharma Saraswati

Yoga Chudamani Upanishad is a manual of higher sadhana for advanced and initiated aspirants. It delineates the ancient path of kundalini awakening in its original and pure form before the proliferation of modern yogic literature. The text elucidates a unique combination of kundalini yoga and vedantic upasana. It discusses the nadis, prana vayus, chakras and kundalini shakti, and also provides detailed descriptions of ajapa gayatri and pranava, which are older vedic and upanishadic meditative disciplines.

The text includes the original Sanskrit verses, along with transliteration, anvay, translation and a comprehensive commentary by Swami Satyadharma Saraswati under the guidance of Swami Niranjanananda Saraswati. For students of Indian philosophy, it provides a valuable study of the compatibility of Yoga and Vedanta, or the tantric and vedic systems of philosophy and practice.

330 pp, Soft cover, Line drawings and diagrams
ISBN 81-86336-27-3

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