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Writer's pictureDamian Cadman-Jones

Yoga sutra 1.6


A little look at the first Yoga Sutra …

Yoga sutra 1.6


pramāṇa viparyaya vikalpa nidrā smr̥ti


Correct comprehension; false understanding; imagination; deep sleep; and memory.


This sutra 1.6 lists the five movements / mental activities (vrtti in Sanskrit) of the mind: correct comprehension; false understanding; imagination; deep sleep; and memory. These movements cannot be seen as such but offer testimony to the existence of the mind; they are as follows:


  • Correct functioning of the mind leading to accurate knowledge (pramāṇa);

  • False understanding (viparyaya) arises from poor functioning of the mind and or is tainted by presumption or prejudice;

  • Mental creation (vikalpa) is an extraordinary mental capacity to visualise / to learn what you are doing before it is done;

  • Deep sleep (nidrā) is a mental activity that can only exist in the absence of the others and it has to be just right: not to short; not too long; not ill timed;

  • Memory (smr̥ti) is a mental activity which enables us to recall an event from the past and/or one of the other mental activities listed above.


Damian Cadman-Jones is an authorised teacher of Prana Vashya Yoga™







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