The IN Movement Podcast (formerly Going Pro Yoga) podkast

Ep #205: Raja Yoga: The 8 Limbs of Patanjali Explained with Akshay Bhat

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Raja Yoga is the path of willpower — Patanjali's 8 limbs that lead from a restless mind to stillness. Akshay Bhat maps the whole way. 

What if real peace isn't found on a mountaintop, but in the stillness already inside you?

This episode explores Raja Yoga, the king of yoga: the path of willpower that Patanjali lays out in his eight limbs (ashtanga). The guest, who has studied these teachings since childhood, walks through the whole journey in plain language.

Raja Yoga isn't about escaping life. It starts with how we live (the yamas and niyamas), then works through the body and breath, slowly clearing the old patterns, the samskaras, that keep the mind restless.

From there the conversation moves inward, deeper into Raja Yoga, through the limbs: asana as steady ease, pranayama as the art of watching the breath, and pratyahara, drawing the senses back from a noisy world. Everyday examples make it real: a turtle pulling in its limbs, the calm after a hard pose, why coffee at night keeps the mind racing.

Then come the three most people blur together: dharana (focus), dhyana (meditation), and samadhi (absorption). You'll hear why most "meditation" is really only the first of these, and how deep sleep already gives us a taste of samadhi, a joy that comes from within rather than from anything outside.

The episode closes on a simple, powerful idea: the highest practice in Raja Yoga may not be doing anything at all, but being fully present. If your mind feels like a restless lion, this is the path to taming it, and this conversation is your map.

Continues the previous episode on the Yoga Sutras and the five kleshas.


Episode Chapters:

00:00:00 Introduction

00:00:43 Recap: Kriyas & the 5 Kleshas

00:02:38 What Is Raja Yoga?

00:03:46 Ashtanga: The 8 Limbs (Not the Asana Series)

00:05:21 Yamas & Niyamas: The Foundation

00:06:08 Clearing the Samskaras

00:07:56 Prakriti & Purusha: Energy vs Stillness

00:12:15 Om / Pranava: Tapping Into Consciousness

00:19:35 Asana: Steadiness & Ease

00:23:13 When Effort Becomes Effortless

00:28:59 Pranayama: Patanjali's Definition

00:34:13 Pratyahara: Withdrawing the Senses

00:38:46 The 3 Gunas & Diet

00:46:23 Ramakrishna & Yoga Beyond Religion

00:50:56 Dharana: One-Pointed Focus

00:57:59 Dhyana: Becoming the Flower

01:00:35 The Mind Tamer & Chitta Vritti Nirodha

01:02:39 Samadhi: Deep Sleep & Inner Joy

01:07:13 Surrender & Endless Bliss

01:10:27 Presence: The Highest Teaching

01:13:09 Recap & Closing Mantra


Akshay's Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/akshaybhatyoga/⁠


Michael Henri’s Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/michaelyoga.pt/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Going Pro Yoga Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/goingproyoga/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠


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The IN Movement Podcast was formerly the Going Pro Yoga Podcast — and before that, the Yoga Teacher Evolution Podcast and the Rat Race Rebellion Podcast. Same mission, evolved name.

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