Yoga Sūtra Chapter One verse 16

तत्परं पुरुषख्यातेः गुणवैतृष्ण्यम् ॥१६॥

tat-paraṃ puruṣa-khyāteḥ guṇa-vaitṛṣṇyam ||16||

That higher is the quenching of thirst for the attributes of nature,
from a recognition of the animating principle.

tat - that, thispara - higher, highest, supreme, chief; otherpuruṣa - animating principle, self, consciousness, spirit; a person, man, a human being; peoplekhyāti - recognition; perception, knowledgeguṇa - an ingredient or constituent or attribute of nature; a property or characteristic of all created things; qualities; a quality, peculiarity, attribute or property; the peculiar properties of the lettersvaitṛṣṇya - quenching of thirst, freedom from desire, indifference to

Commentaries and Reflections

Commentary by T Krishnamacharya:

“When Jīva, attached to Prakṛti,
realizes its own true nature with
clear understanding, all desires,
arising from the three Guṇa and
their variations cease entirely.
This state of Vairāgya,
free from all types of desire,
is called Para Vairāgya.”

Commentary by TKV Desikachar:

Commentary by Paul Harvey:

“Yoga is about recognising change and
recognising that which recognises change.”

“We can experience a quenching of
thirst for the ephemeral Guṇa
when the recognition of the
eternal Puruṣa pulls us more.”

“Yoga is about cultivating a profound discernment
of the difference between
the Nature of our Being and
the Being of our Nature.”

“In Sūtra 1.16 Patañjali introduces two concepts which are
fundamental to the philosophical foundations in Sāṃkhya.
What are they and what is their relationship to Vitṛṣṇasya
within the Sāṃkhya teachings discussing cause and effect?”

Inspirational Quote

“A human being is a part of the whole called by us universe, a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feeling as something separated from the rest, a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty....” Albert Einstein