Foundations · Reading
Ishvara Pranidhana
Surrender to Ishvara, the fifth niyama, and the third part of Kriya Yog.
Awaiting subject reviewWritten from our source material and not yet checked by a teacher of this practice. Read it as reference, and learn the practice from someone who teaches it.
Philosophy
Ishvara pranidhana, the last niyama, is dedication or surrender to Ishvara. Patanjali describes Ishvara as a special awareness untouched by affliction or karma, whose sound is AUM.
In practice it means offering one's effort and letting go of its fruit, much as Karma Yog does. Patanjali says that through it, samadhi is attained. It is the third part of Kriya Yog.
Further reading
- Yoga Sutras 2.1
- Yoga Sutras 2.32
- Yoga Sutras 2.45
Ideas behind it
Related
Sources and tradition
- YOG Union App Content Map, 2 November 2026, pp. 2–3
- Patanjali, Yoga Sutras, 2.1, 2.32, 2.45