Exploring the roots, purpose, and transformative potential of yoga through the lens of Patanjali’s Yoga Sutra. Each week, we dive into a teaching shared by yoga teacher Ann Schreppers, uncovering how ancient wisdom translates into modern practice and how yoga can become a living philosophy.
In this first part of our Yoga Philosophy series, Ann explores Patanjali’s Yoga Sutra 1.2 and the essence of yoga sutra — how stilling the mind leads to awareness, compassion, and a more conscious way of living.
Sutra 1.2 — Yogaś citta-vṛtti-nirodhaḥ
"Yoga is the stilling of the fluctuations of the mind."
Honoring the Roots & Living the Tradition
Yoga is the key to unlock endless possibilities in life. It’s a path within, one that allows us to become aware of our heart and what intentions and values truly matter in a world filled with distractions. It has the power to enrich our lives with the ability to live and lead from love.
When we practice yoga, we begin to understand that the journey is not about doing more to feel fulfilled, but remembering the richness and depth of each experience. The true essence of yoga lies in the realization of our Self, the witness awareness that observes without judgment, the soul that radiates light and clarity. When we reconnect to this inner source, the way we experience life transforms completely. The mind begins to quieten, the conditioned reactivity softens, and what remains is peace, pure presence.
To me, Yogaś citta vṛtti nirodhaḥ means that yoga stills the fluctuations of the mind so that we may see clearly. Only then can we understand the true meaning and direction of our life. We begin to move from essence, inwards out, and our life becomes an opportunity to feel and spread light. It all starts with noticing the ways our attention is scattered and patterns of conditioning keep us captive in the same loops and cycles where we react to similar situations in the same manner. Yoga is a potent invite to engage differently with our body, mind, its sensations and our relationship to the day-to-day reality.
Honoring the Tradition in Modern Practice
To honor yoga’s roots is to step onto the mat with a clear commitment to be present, to feel the body, the breath, and the interconnection of all that exists. We’re not separate. Every thought, word, and action has an impact.
A potent way to awaken and amplify this process of awareness, I believe, is through appreciation. As it can be quite overwhelming to start and witness the many ways we engage with life from fear, judgement or scarcity. Appreciation keeps our sadhana from becoming ego driven striving, it ignites the heart and nourishes acceptance. It gives us a tool to celebrate small progress, rather than being hung up on the outcome. When we practice in this way, our yoga becomes a sacred balance between intentional effort and heartfelt contentment.
Each time we move, we give our best in the expression of the pose, immersing ourselves beyond like or dislike. A simple physical action becomes a spiritual key, one that transforms resistance into the capacity to act from truth & humility for our present capacity. We remind ourselves continuously of the gifts of our breath, body and life.
Yoga truly grants us the liberty to no longer believe everything we think, but anchoring in the witness seeing all of it to cultivate a clear value system & commitment to the vision of the world we wish to live in. Through small steps and deep breaths, we move forward. Not striving toward perfection, but immersion in the process of continuous progress through permission and sustainable effort.
Practice inevitably awakens our connection to others and the energy we send into & share with the world. It’s a ripple effect of awareness and compassion that begins within and expands outward.
Remembering the Lineage
History leaves a margin for interpretation, so we humbly recognize the margin there according to different stories. It is said that yoga’s roots lie in the ancient Indus Saraswati civilization, as a part of sacred ritual to honor nature and the divine energy that flows through it. Over time, the focus shifted from external offerings to internal inquiry, from worshiping the divine outside to realizing freedom within.
This evolution & some other key events / evolution in the landscape, led to the Yoga Sutra of Patanjali, the first systematic overview of the study of yoga. Later, the development of Hatha Yoga deepened yoga’s physical and energetic dimension, and both streams merged through modern day teachers such as T. Krishnamacharya, whose Vinyāsa krama method ignites a meditative state & vitality through the union of breath and movement.
Yoga Sutra sees yoga as an instrument to liberate ourselves from suffering, the suffering born of identifying with the mind and its attachments. Knowing our true nature liberates us from the need to control, leading us into a deep state of flow and presence.
Yoga offers us the opportunity to pay reverence to our body, our breath, and the life that allows us to be here. It can reignite a childlike curiosity and creativity, a sense that life is not a problem to solve but an exploration/ expression of freedom and love.
Living Yoga Beyond Asana
If we allow our asana practice to be a true portal to presence, one that invites peace through inner authenticity rather than external validation, we reconnect with what is real. We stop striving to please and instead begin to listen. We honor the intuition that guides each of us toward our own unique steps on and off the mat. In this sense, it does not matter as much what it looks like .. but it’s all about what it feels like.
Many of us fear the unknown, fearing the emotions that might arise with challenge or change. But yoga builds the capacity, in body, mind, and nervous system, to stay with difficulty without collapsing into reactivity. That, to me, is the ultimate freedom: not needing others or circumstances to change in order to find peace.
Asana then becomes a mirror, showing us where we resist and where we can soften. Every pose teaches us how to reclaim our power, not the kind of power that controls or grasps, but the power to act from patience & compassion.
Even science now affirms what ancient wisdom already knew, that gratitude and appreciation transform individuals and communities alike. Everything is connected. The change we seek begins with presence and inner resilience.
I love this saying:
“A bad day for the ego is a good day for the soul.”
And the same holds true for our practice.
Honoring the Tradition Today
To honor the tradition of yoga is to never take the practice for granted. It is to give thanks, before every practice, to the lineage and all teachers. To move with reverence for the body as a sacred instrument of awareness.
For me, it also means to study, to learn Sanskrit, to understand its layered meanings, to chant, and to remain humble before the vastness of this path. But most importantly, it means the commitment to try to be a good human being. To allow judgment and resistance to transform into curiosity. To live life as a Vinyāsa, breathing, moving, and flowing with awareness and love.
And always, remember it’s all interconnected. We’re in this together. To remember that there is no “I” in well being. That yoga, in its truest essence, is the art of living in increased harmony, with oneself, with others, and with life itself.
Practice with Ann
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Ann Schreppers is a lifelong bodyworker, and yoga teacher devoted to personal and collective transformation. Her journey began in classical ballet, where her love for movement and the human experience first took root. For over a decade, she has shared the gift of yoga and heartfelt leadership across the world, in communities in Central-America and Kenya, where she lives partly. Through her platform, Conscious Corner, Ann creates programs, retreats, and teacher trainings that weave together movement, mindfulness, and purpose. With an academic background in Public Policy, she is passionate about fostering well-being through structures of self-awareness and conscious living — inspiring others to reconnect with their inner truth and make an impact for people and the planet.
Instagram: @ann.schreppers
Website: consciouscorner.be
Upcoming retreats: consciouscorner.be/retreats
Upcoming trainings: consciouscorner.be/sacred-sequence-trainings
Read more:
→ Part II: The Causes of Suffering and Energetic Awareness
→ Part III: Vinyāsa & Asana as Tools
→ Part IV: Practicing from the Heart
