0In the yoga, mindfulness plays a fundamental role in everyday actions, in breathing, and particularly in physical practice. The Sage Patanjali gave the first systematic summary of this practical science in his "Patanjali Yog sutras".
Patanjali describes the fluctuations which continually disturb the mind. The task of the brain is simple, i.e. to receive information from the senses of eyes, ears, nose, tongue, and skin, and to reflect on this information to select or reject it. The mind is distracted and distressed if there are
too many stimuli from the sense organs. Patanjali shows various ways of stilling the organs of senses and the brain. One famous verse says: “Yoga is the cessation of movements in the
consciousness”. The general
means of achieving this calmness are mentioned in Yoga-Sutras. This includes learning what is essential
for a fulfilled, healthy life.
Several practical means are described: yoga asanas, breathing, stilling the senses, concentration, meditation.
According to the Yoga-Sutras meditation is the fruit of sustained practice of yoga. Mind and breath are
closely related. Control of the breathing ( pranayama) is considered fundamental for mental stillness and peace, throughout the further development of yoga.
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