Foundations · Reading
The five states of mind
Scattered, dull, distracted, one-pointed and still: the five conditions of the mind.
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
In his commentary on the first sutra, Vyasa describes five states, or grounds, of the mind.
Kshipta is scattered, pulled in every direction. Moodha is dull and heavy. Vikshipta is distracted, sometimes steady and often not; this is where most practitioners begin. Ekagra is one-pointed, and niruddha is fully still. Vyasa says that Yog proper belongs to the last two.
Terms
- Kshipta
- Scattered.
- Moodha
- Dull, heavy.
- Vikshipta
- Distracted.
- Ekagra
- One-pointed.
- Niruddha
- Still, restrained.
Further reading
- Vyasa on Yoga Sutras 1.1
Ideas behind it
Sources and tradition
- YOG Union App Content Map, 2 November 2026, p. 3
- Vyasa, commentary on the Yoga Sutras, 1.1