The Vyasa commentary on the Yoga Sutras is the earliest surviving full commentary on Patanjali’s aphorisms, known as the Yogabhashya (also called Yogabhasya, or Sankhya Pravachana in some alternative titles). It explains the terse sutras, which are short aphorisms, and it shapes how many readers understand Yoga as a philosophy of meditative absorption, disciplined practice, and liberation. This article explains what the commentary is, who it is attributed to, how it relates to Patanjali’s text, and how to approach it as a reader. It also separates what the sources say from traditional belief and from scholarly debate.
Direct answer: what is Vyasa’s commentary on the Yoga Sutras?
Vyasa’s commentary is a prose explanation of the Yoga Sutras attributed to a figure named Vyasa. The Wisdom Library summary of the English edition describes it as Vyasa’s commentary called the Sankhya Pravachana (dated there to the 7th century) or Yogabhashya, and it notes a later gloss by Vachaspati Mishra (dated there to the 9th century) called the Tattvavaisaradi [1]. The Shastra Deep page presents the Yoga Bhashya as Vyasa’s foundational commentary on the Yoga Sutras [2]. The Internet Archive lists a 1917 Bombay Sanskrit and Prakrit Series edition titled as the Yoga Sutra “with Bhashya of Vyasa and Commentary of Vachaspati Mishra” [4].
Two points should be kept in view from the start. First, the sutras are Patanjali’s, and the commentary is a separate work that depends on them. Second, the dates given in popular summaries are not uniform across scholarship, so readers should treat them as the summary’s claims rather than settled history.
What the Yoga Sutras are
Patanjali’s aphorisms
The Yoga Sutras are a collection of aphorisms. An aphorism, or sutra, is a compressed statement meant to be unpacked by a teacher or commentator. The Wisdom Library summary describes the text as dealing with samadhi (meditative absorption), sadhana (yoga practice), vibhuti (powers or siddhis), kaivalya (isolation or independence of the seer), and moksha (liberation) [1]. The same summary gives Patanjali’s date as 500 BCE. Other scholarly accounts date the sutras differently, so that date should be read as one source’s claim.
The Wisdom Library’s online edition is arranged by individual sutra, with separate pages for passages such as Sutra 1.1, 1.2, and onward through the first book, titled Samadhi, and the second book, titled Sadhana [1]. This arrangement is useful for readers because the commentary can be read alongside a single aphorism at a time.
What the word bhashya means
In Sanskrit commentary literature, a bhashya is a commentary that explains a root text in detail. The Vyasa commentary is therefore best read as an explanatory layer. It is not a separate scripture that replaces the sutras. When a translation says “Vyasa says,” it usually means that the commentary is explaining or expanding a sutra, not that Patanjali himself said it. Keeping that distinction helps readers avoid confusing the root aphorism, the commentator’s explanation, and a modern translator’s wording.
Who Vyasa is in this context
Attribution and the name Vyasa
The commentary is attributed to Vyasa. The Shastra Deep page lists Vyasa as the author of the Yoga Bhashya [2]. Readers should be aware that the name Vyasa is associated in Hindu tradition with several figures and works. The Yoga commentary is a distinct text in the sources cited here, and it should not be assumed to be the same work as the Mahabharata, the Brahma Sutras, or other texts linked with the name Vyasa. Our site has separate articles on Vyasa-related topics, including Vyasa Bharata and Bhagavad Gita by Vyasa, which address other texts traditionally associated with the name.
Dating and scholarly uncertainty
The Wisdom Library summary dates the Vyasa commentary to the 7th century and Vachaspati Mishra’s gloss to the 9th century [1]. These dates give a useful framework, but they are presented as summary claims. Academic studies of Yoga texts often discuss the relationship between the sutras, the commentary, and later glosses, and they note that exact dates and authorship are difficult to establish from manuscript evidence alone. This article does not supply additional historical dates because the sources available for this draft do not provide a full scholarly chronology. Readers who need precise dating should consult academic editions and specialist studies.
Traditional voice and modern teaching
Modern teachers also describe Vyasa as the original and most important early commentator on the Yoga Sutra. One Yoga International article presents Vyasa in this role while discussing a present-day commentary by Pandit Rajmani Tigunait [5]. That is a teaching-platform statement, not a neutral historical study, so it should be read as one teacher’s framing. It reflects how a living tradition values the commentary.
What Vyasa’s commentary does
It explains terms and connects sutras
A sutra can be very short, and its meaning often depends on technical vocabulary. The commentary typically clarifies such words, identifies the subject of an aphorism, and shows how one sutra leads into the next. The Wisdom Library’s sutra-by-sutra pages make this structure easy to follow in English [1]. A reader who studies one sutra with its commentary, then returns to the root text, usually understands the flow of the work more clearly than one who reads only a summary.
Example: from samadhi to practice
The first book is titled Samadhi, which the Wisdom Library lists as “Trance” in its index [1]. The second book is titled Sadhana, or “Practice” [1]. This arrangement shows that the text moves from a description of the goal of concentrated absorption to the practices that prepare a practitioner for it. A practical way to read this is to note how the first book sets the aim, and the second book addresses discipline, training, and obstacles. Readers should be careful, though, not to treat the index labels as a full outline of every chapter’s argument. Those labels are editorial headings from the online edition.
Example: reading a sutra with its commentary
A useful reading method is to take one sutra and ask three questions. What is the sutra’s main term? What does the commentary add? How does the commentary relate to the practice described in the sutra? Because the online Wisdom Library edition is divided by individual sutra, a student can compare the root aphorism and the explanatory prose without losing place [1]. This is a study method, not a claim about how any particular teacher or school uses the text.
Vachaspati Mishra’s gloss
Vachaspati Mishra’s gloss, called the Tattvavaisaradi, is closely associated with Vyasa’s commentary. The Wisdom Library summary describes it as a gloss by Vachaspati Mishra dated to the 9th century [1]. A gloss is usually a further explanation of a commentary, often clarifying difficult readings. Many editions present the sutras, Vyasa’s bhashya, and Vachaspati’s gloss together, and the Internet Archive title for the 1917 Bodas edition names both Vyasa and Vachaspati Mishra [4]. The archive record for another edition also describes the work as Patanjali’s Yoga Sutra with the commentary of Vyasa and the gloss of Vachaspati Miśra [6].
For a reader, the practical point is that layered editions can contain several voices. The sutra is Patanjali’s, the bhashya is Vyasa’s, and the gloss is Vachaspati Mishra’s. Distinguishing these layers is important when quoting or summarizing the text.
Editions and translations readers may encounter
The 1917 Bodas edition
The Internet Archive lists a book titled Patanjal Yoga Sutra with Bhashya of Vyasa and Commentary of Vachaspati Mishra by Rajaram Shastri Bodas, published in 1917 as number 46 in the Bombay Sanskrit and Prakrit Series [4]. The record is useful for locating a scanned edition and for understanding the historical series in which it appeared. Any reader who uses a scanned edition should check the front matter, transliteration conventions, and the translator or editor’s notes.
The Rama Prasada English translation
The Wisdom Library page presents an English translation by Rama Prasada, dated 1924, of the Yoga Sutras with Vyasa and Vachaspati Mishra [1]. The page also states that the online text is publicly accessible and suggests buying a book edition for the latest version. The Wisdom Library page is a web summary and reading index. For a formal citation or detailed study, readers should consult the printed edition and its publisher information.
Spelling and transliteration variants
You will see several spellings of the same title and terms. Examples in the sources include Yogabhashya, Yogabhasya, Yogabhāṣya, Sankhya Pravachana, and Sāṃkhya-pravacana [1]. Editions also vary in how they render Vachaspati Mishra, Vācaspatimiśra, and Vachaspati Miśra [1][6]. This article uses Yogabhashya as its main form and notes variants where they appear.
Reading tips for beginners
- Start with a translation that shows the sutra and commentary separately, if available.
- Read one sutra and its commentary before moving on, rather than skimming the whole book.
- Keep a note of which voice is speaking: Patanjali, Vyasa, Vachaspati Mishra, or the translator.
- Use a dictionary or glossary for technical terms, and compare translations on difficult passages.
- Treat online summaries as finding aids, and check printed or academic editions for citation.
Belief, text, tradition, and scholarship
Readers often come to the Yoga Sutras from several directions: as students of philosophy, as practitioners, as devotees of Hindu traditions, or as scholars. The same text can be read in each way, and the distinctions matter.
- Text: What the sutras and the commentary say, as shown in the available editions and translations.
- Tradition: How teachers and communities have read and practiced the text over time. The sources here show that the text is studied and taught in living contexts, such as the Yoga International teaching statement [5].
- Belief: Personal or devotional convictions about liberation, the divine, or the efficacy of practice. These are not claims that a text can verify.
- Scholarship: Historical study of dating, manuscripts, authorship, and interpretation, which may disagree with popular summaries.
A responsible article should not merge these categories. For instance, a devotional statement that a practice produces a particular result is not the same as a text describing a claim, and neither is the same as a historical finding about when a commentary was composed.
Key themes as presented in the sources
Samadhi and the goal of concentration
The Wisdom Library summary identifies samadhi as meditative absorption and places it first in the book’s structure [1]. In the text’s organization, samadhi is the subject of the first book. Readers should understand the term in its textual context: it names a state of concentrated absorption that the text describes and analyzes, rather than a single universal experience that every practitioner reports in the same way.
Sadhana and disciplined practice
The second book is titled Sadhana, or practice, in the Wisdom Library index [1]. The term refers to disciplined spiritual training. Modern readers often connect sadhana with postures or breathing exercises, but the sources here do not establish a claim about which physical practices the commentary recommends in detail. Readers interested in the physical dimension of modern yoga should separate that later development from the textual meaning of sadhana.
Vibhuti, powers, and caution
The summary lists vibhuti, which it glosses as powers or siddhis, as one of the book’s subjects [1]. The presence of such material in a classical text does not mean that it should be read as a promise. Traditional texts discuss attainments and obstacles, and many teachers caution students against treating powers as proof of spiritual progress or as a goal in themselves. This article does not claim that any power is achievable or guaranteed, and readers should approach such passages as part of a textual and tradition-specific discussion.
Kaivalya and moksha
The summary also names kaivalya, or isolation, and moksha, or liberation [1]. These terms belong to a philosophical vocabulary that is interpreted differently across schools. Readers comparing the Yoga Sutras with other Hindu darshanas should identify each school’s use of the terms. For a wider context on yoga and Hindu thought, see our article on Yoga and Hinduism.
How the commentary relates to other yoga texts
The Yoga Sutras are not the only text in the Hindu tradition that discusses yoga. Readers often encounter other works, such as the Upanishads and later manuals, and the sources linked from our site address some of them. The Yoga Upanishads article discusses a different group of texts, and the Yoga Chudamani and Yoga in Kathopanishad articles treat other yoga-related texts. Each text has its own context, date, and purpose. Comparing them is useful, but it is important not to assume that all yoga texts present one unified doctrine.
Connection to Vedanta and Brahma Sutra studies
Some readers encounter the Brahma Sutras alongside Yoga studies because both are traditional darshana texts with extensive commentary history. The Brahma Sutras are a separate work from the Yoga Sutras and are associated with the name Badarayana in many accounts. Our site has articles on Brahma Sutras, Badarayana Brahma Sutras, and Brahma Sutras Online, which cover that separate tradition. Students should not merge these texts simply because they share commentary traditions or because some sources use the name Vyasa in related contexts.
A practical reading path
- Read the overview. Begin with the basic meaning of sutra, bhashya, and gloss, and identify the three voices in a typical edition.
- Choose one edition. Pick a translation that clearly shows the sutra, the commentary, and any gloss. Check the translator, date, and publisher.
- Work through Book 1. Read the samadhi sutras with commentary, noting technical terms and recurring explanations.
- Move to Book 2. Study the sadhana sutras, paying attention to the practical framework and how the commentary explains discipline.
- Check scholarly sources. Consult academic editions or studies when you need dates, manuscript history, or disputed interpretations.
- Keep devotional and personal reflection separate. Write notes on what the text says, then separately note what you believe or how your tradition interprets it.
Frequently asked questions
Is Vyasa’s commentary the same as the Yoga Sutras?
No. The Yoga Sutras are Patanjali’s aphorisms. Vyasa’s Yogabhashya is a commentary that explains them. The sources here describe the two as distinct works, with the commentary depending on the sutras [1][2].
Why is the commentary called Sankhya Pravachana in some sources?
The Wisdom Library summary lists Sankhya Pravachana among alternative titles for Vyasa’s commentary [1]. The title links the work to a broader philosophical vocabulary, but the sources here do not explain the full reason for the name. Readers can treat it as a title variant listed in the source.
Do I need Sanskrit to study the commentary?
No, but Sanskrit terms are important. English translations explain many terms, and a glossary helps. Learning a few key words, such as samadhi, sadhana, and kaivalya, makes the text easier to follow.
Should I read the commentary as a set of instructions?
The commentary is primarily an explanatory text. Practical guidance can be discussed by teachers and traditions, but readers should distinguish textual explanation from personal instruction. Consult a qualified teacher for practice, and treat any health or outcome claims with caution.
Summary
Vyasa’s commentary, the Yogabhashya, is the classic explanatory companion to Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras. It is attributed to Vyasa, dated in one summary to the 7th century, and supplemented in many editions by Vachaspati Mishra’s gloss. It clarifies terms, connects aphorisms, and helps readers move through the text’s themes of samadhi, sadhana, vibhuti, kaivalya, and moksha. To study it well, separate Patanjali’s sutras, Vyasa’s commentary, later glosses, and modern teaching, and consult scholarly editions for historical questions.
Sources and further reading
- Yoga-sutras (with Vyasa and Vachaspati Mishra), Wisdom Library: summary of the Rama Prasada 1924 English translation, the commentary’s alternative titles, dates given in the summary, and the sutra-by-sutra index.
- Yoga Bhashya: Vyasa’s Foundational Commentary on Yoga Sutras, Shastra Deep: identifies Vyasa as the author and describes the work as a foundational commentary.
- Patanjal Yoga Sutra with Bhashya of Vyasa and Commentary of Vachaspati Mishra, Internet Archive: bibliographic record for the 1917 Bombay Sanskrit and Prakrit Series edition by Rajaram Shastri Bodas.
- Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras with the Commentary of Vyasa and the Gloss of Vachaspati Miśra, Internet Archive: bibliographic record for an edition titled with Vyasa’s commentary and Vachaspati Miśra’s gloss.
- Vyasa’s Commentary on the Yoga Sutra, Yoga International: a modern teacher’s framing of Vyasa as an early and important commentator; a teaching statement rather than a critical edition.