Pratyahara is the 5th Limb of Yoga and one of the more difficult yogic concepts to understand. Pratyahara is definited as “sense withdrawal” and it’s such an important practice to incorporate into your life in this age of overstimulation!

At the end of a yoga asana class, we take Shavasana, Corpse Pose, as a final relaxation. In Shavasana the goal is to disconnect your senses from the outside world and go to a place where you are non-attached and non-reactive to outside stimuli. You are tuned into your internal world and able to notice and observe your thoughts from an outside perspective. This is Pratyahara.

Pratyahara leads into deeper states of meditation, which are the next limbs of yoga we’ll talk about in the coming weeks!

There are many ways to practice sense withdraw. Meditation is a form of sense withdraw, by closing your eyes, focusing inwards. Sense withdraw could also be something more extreme, like a float pool or a silent retreat. There are many ways to practice Pratyahara and it could be possible that this is something that we need more and more of in the future, as the external world becomes more and more sense “full”.

If you would like to learn more about yoga philosophy, consider a yoga teacher training or checking out one of our retreats!