Yoga Yajnavalkya

by A.G. Mohan, Ganesh Mohan

The Yoga Yajnavalkya was considered by the great yogi Sri T. Krishnamacharya to be the most important and authentic classical text on yoga after the Yogasutras of Patanjali. Many other yoga texts, including the Hatha Yoga Pradipika and Gheranda Samhita have borrowed verses from this text. The Yoga Yajnavalkya takes the form of a conversation between the sage Yajnavalkya and his wife Gargi. The book is a well-structured presentation, following the eight limbs of yoga. An important feature of this text is the in-depth discussion of the kundalini and sound pranayama practices.

Genres: Philosophy

190 pages, Paperback

First published July 5, 2013

About the author

A. G. Mohan (born 1945) is a renowned Indian yoga teacher, author, and co-founder of Svastha Yoga & Ayurveda. Mohan is a longtime disciple of Sri Tirumalai Krishnamacharya (1888-1989). Krishnamacharya, best known as the "father of modern yoga," was a legendary yoga master, ayurvedic healer, and scholar of the last century who modernized the practice of yoga and whose students dramatically popularized yoga in the West.

Mohan co-founded the Krishnamacharya Yoga Mandiram in Chennai, India, and was its Honorary Secretary from its inception, in 1976, to 1989. Mohan was also the convener of Sri Krishnamacharya’s centenary celebrations.

Reviews

[Hema · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Yoga Yajnavalkya is a classical Sanskrit text on yoga presented as a dialogue between the sage Yajnavalkya and the philosopher Gargi. It contains 12 chapters and 504 verses (shlokas). The text is among the earliest systematic treatises on yoga and offers an advanced synthesis of yogic theory and practice.​

This is not a book for beginners. Anyone wishing to study it meaningfully should already have a grasp of Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras and a foundational understanding of Ayurveda. Without this background, many of the subtle discussions on breath control, energy flow, and the nature of mind may remain obscure.

A distinctive feature of Yoga Yajnavalkya is its aim of awakening the kundalini energy through pranayama practice alone, without reliance on the more complex or ritualistic kriyas found in later hatha yoga traditions. The text devotes its twelfth chapter to describing how controlled breathing and the mastery of prana can ignite the “internal fire” and raise the spiritual energy toward enlightenment. This aspect sets the work apart as both deeply practical and spiritually profound.​

Among its many verses, one of the most widely cited and revered passages is the declaration:
"Of all works consisting of sacrifices, or rituals, or control of conduct, or harmlessness, or liberality, or the study of the Vedas; this alone is the highest Dharma — that one should see the Self by yoga."​
This verse captures the text’s central message: direct realization of the Self through disciplined yoga is superior to mere external observances.

Readers who approach this book seriously should do so under the guidance of a living teacher who embodies these principles. While the text gives deep insight into elevating prana, it also repeatedly emphasizes that technical mastery means nothing without the grounding of ethical conduct and a compassionate heart.

Thus, Yoga Yajnavalkya reminds us that genuine spiritual advancement requires unwavering adherence to Yama and Niyama, and that kindness, gentleness, and pleasantness toward all beings are indispensable traits. Being harsh or arrogant is not a sign of progress but a negation of it. Be a good human first; only then can serious spiritual disciplines bear fruit.

[Andre · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great translation with extensive footnotes and references. Each chapter starts with an outline which helps set the reader's expectations.