Patanjali: Yoga Sutras

The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, one sutra a day, in Charles Johnston's interpretation of 1912. Every one of the 195 sutras, with Johnston's own commentary beside it, and a short modern comment and question for each.

Johnston called his book "An Interpretation", and this app reads it as one. Three voices are kept apart and labelled on every screen: the sutra as Johnston gives it, his commentary (shown whole, never shortened), and our own notes.

THE SUTRA OF THE DAY
• One sutra each day, the same for every reader, from your local date
• Johnston's commentary one tap away, and a plain-language comment with a question
• A daily image to share: the sutra, its reference, Johnston's name and the date
• Mark the day as done; the app counts days practised and nothing else

THE FOUR BOOKS
• All four books, 51, 55, 55 and 34 sutras, with Johnston's introduction to each
• Search the sutras and Johnston's commentary, or jump to a reference like II.46
• Bookmarks and a private journal tied to the sutra you were reading

THE EIGHT MEANS
• A path through the eight means of II.29, from the Commandments to Contemplation
• Seven days for each: the sutras, Johnston on them, a reading, a question, a small exercise of attention, a connection and a note on translation
• No poses and no breathing techniques: the exercises are about attention in an ordinary day

AROUND THE BOOK
• Articles on Johnston and his time, the four books, why the sutras are not a yoga of poses, what they do and do not say about chakras, and how Book III treats its own list of powers
• 23 Sanskrit terms beside the English Johnston chose for them

A CAREFUL TEXT
Every sentence was compared, word for word, with a scan of the printed book of 1912. Forty errors in the common online transcription are corrected here, such as "the internals of the batik" where Johnston printed "the intervals of the battle".

A home-screen widget shows the day's sutra, and an optional daily reminder comes at the hour you choose. Your notes stay on your device.

Free to install, with ads. A single one-time purchase removes them.