Patanjali
Ancient Indian author of Yoga Sutras and grammar classic Mahābhāṣya.
Patanjali (Sanskrit: पतञ्जलि, IAST: Patañjali) is the name of one or more authors, mystics, and philosophers in ancient India, recorded as the author and compiler of several Sanskrit works. The greatest of these are the Yoga Sutras, a classical yoga text, and the Mahābhāṣya, a classic text on Sanskrit grammar. Estimates based on analysis of the Yoga Sutras suggest its author(s) may have lived between the 2nd century BCE and the 5th century CE, while the Mahābhāṣya is firmly datable to the 2nd century BCE. There is significant scholarly dispute over whether these works were written by the same person or by different authors bearing the same name.
- born
- Unknown
- died
- Unknown
- field
- Grammar, Yoga, Medicine
- nationality
- Ancient Indian
- known_for
- Yoga Sutras, Mahābhāṣya, Patanjalatantra
Lore & Background
Patanjali is regarded as an avatar of Adi Sesha. Among the more important authors called Patañjali are the author of the Mahābhāṣya, an ancient treatise on Sanskrit grammar and linguistics based on Pāṇini's Aṣṭādhyāyī, dated to the mid 2nd century BCE. This text is so revered that it is widely known simply as Mahā-bhasya or 'Great commentary'. Another author of the same name compiled the Yoga sūtras, a text on Yoga theory and practice, variously estimated to have lived between the 2nd century BCE and the 4th century CE. A third author is credited with a medical text called Patanjalatantra, cited in many medieval health sciences texts, and a fourth Hindu scholar named Patanjali likely lived in the 8th-century CE and wrote a commentary on Charaka Samhita called Carakavarttika.
Reader's Guide
Patanjali's significance lies in the enduring influence of the works attributed to him. The Mahābhāṣya has been the authority as the last grammarian of classical Sanskrit for more than 2,000 years, with Pāṇini and Kātyāyana preceding him. The Yoga Sutras is one of the most important texts in the Indian tradition and the foundation of classical Yoga, translated in its medieval era into forty Indian languages. The view that these works were likely by different authors is generally accepted by Western scholars, but in more traditional circles and yoga culture, the glorification of Patanjali as a singular author of yoga, grammar, and medical texts has become an oft-repeated article of faith. This tradition is memorialized in a verse by Bhoja from the 11th century, though no known Sanskrit text prior to the 10th century states that one and the same Patanjali was behind all three treatises. The sage Patanjali is said to have attained Samadhi through yogic meditation at the Brahmapureeswarar Temple in Tamil Nadu, India.
Did You Know?
- The name Patanjali is a compound from Sanskrit 'pata' (falling, flying) and 'añjali' (reverence), meaning 'flowing from reverence'.
- The Mahābhāṣya influenced Buddhist grammatical literature and was mentioned by the Chinese pilgrim I-tsing as studied in India.
- Patanjali is one of the 18 siddhars in the Tamil siddha (Shaiva) tradition.
- The Tamil Saiva Siddhanta tradition holds that Patanjali learned Yoga along with seven other disciples from the great Yogic Guru Nandhi Deva.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Patanjali?
Patanjali is the name attached to one or more ancient Indian scholars, mystics, and philosophers credited with composing foundational Sanskrit texts in yoga, grammar, and medicine. His exact identity remains uncertain, and scholars debate whether a single individual or multiple figures bear this name.
What are Patanjali's major works?
He is best known for the Yoga Sutras, a foundational treatise on the practice and philosophy of yoga, and the Mahābhāṣya, a landmark commentary on Pāṇini's Sanskrit grammar. A medical text called the Patanjalatantra is also traditionally ascribed to him.
When did Patanjali live?
The Mahābhāṣya is firmly placed in the 2nd century BCE, while stylistic and textual analysis of the Yoga Sutras points to a window stretching from the 2nd century BCE as early as the 5th century CE. His exact birth and death dates are unknown.
Did the same person write the Yoga Sutras and the Mahābhāṣya?
This is one of the central disputes in Patanjali scholarship. Some researchers argue the two works reflect different authors separated by centuries, while others maintain they stem from a single tradition or individual. No definitive consensus has been reached.
Why is Patanjali important in philosophy and theology?
The Yoga Sutras codified an eight-limbed framework for mental and spiritual discipline that shaped Hindu, Buddhist, and Jain contemplative traditions for over two millennia. Simultaneously, the Mahābhāṣya became the authoritative reference for Sanskrit grammar, underpinning centuries of Indian literary and scholarly production.
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