THE ESSENCE OF YOGA
A Transformational Journey
with Guy Donahaye
December 2026 – July 2027
YOGA = SAMADHI
Patanjali defines Yoga as Samadhi — a special state of mind, which happens when mental activity stops.
It is associated with a profound feeling of peace, clarity and bliss.
Patanjali continues by saying that when the mind is in this state, consciousness — the Self, our true nature — is experienced in its pure, true and unconditioned form.
Whereas, when the mind moves, it seems as though consciousness moves with, or is modified by it.
Samadhi is not something reserved for a special category of person.
It is accessible to ordinary people.
In fact, it is something we all experience naturally, although usually without recognising it as such.
The purpose of Yoga is to understand this state, to learn how to access it deliberately and to recognise what it reveals about the nature of consciousness.
YOGA AS A TRANSFORMATIONAL JOURNEY
Yoga cannot ultimately be understood intellectually.
The texts can tell us about Yoga. The commentaries can explain the meaning of the Sutras. We can discuss the ideas and develop a sophisticated intellectual understanding.
But ultimately, Yoga has to be experienced.
And that experience changes you.
The ideas that lead towards that experience can also begin to change the way the mind is operating.
As we study the nature of the mind, its movements, its patterns and its tendencies, we begin to see things differently.
What was previously an idea can become something we recognise directly in our own experience.
This is why the study of Yoga is itself part of the practice.
THE METHOD
Krishnamacharya and his students emphasised that Yoga cannot be understood through book learning alone.
“Yoga is the practical field of knowledge.” BNS IYENGAR
The Brihadaranyaka Upanishad gives us a traditional three-part method:
Hearing
Reflecting
Meditating
This is the method we will follow.
We will hear the teaching through the texts and commentaries.
We will reflect on it through study, questions and discussion.
And we will investigate it directly through pranayama and meditation.
THE JOURNEY
The course moves between:
TEXT → COMMENTARY → REFLECTION → PRACTICE → EXPERIENCE
The purpose is not simply to acquire more information about Yoga.
It is to see whether the teaching can change the way we understand ourselves and the way the mind operates.
Ultimately, the purpose is direct experience.
THE COURSE
An eight-month study of the Yoga Sutra and the traditional commentarial tradition, together with important texts from the wider Yoga tradition.
28 recorded Yoga Sutra talks
28 supplementary-text talks
28 live meetings
Pranayama and meditation
Traditional commentaries
Digital texts and supplementary readings
All classes recorded
December 2026 – July 2027