01/12/2025
FOCUS OF THE MONTH / DEC 2026
Pratyāhāra, the fifth limb of Patanjali’s eight limbs, is commonly described as ‘withdrawal’—to be able to withdraw your mind and senses from the external world. For many this has been interpreted as avoiding, ignoring or denying the senses. This interpretation has contributed to viewing the world in a negative way, as if it was the enemy of spirituality. I think this perspective has limited our consciousness, isolated us from nature, inhibiting spiritual evolution by reinforcing the schism that divides the world into good and bad and separates us from nature. Pratyāhāra, at least from a bhakti yoga perspective, is more inclusive than exclusive. “Bhakti loves senses,” as Shyamdas would say. So, what is pratyāhāra, and how do we practice it and what does it have to do with Yoga—with God realization, and healing our disconnection from nature?
God and the creation are not separate. It is us who have disconnected ourselves from God and from the world. If we can work on changing our perception of what we think of and see as mundane and what we think of and see as spiritual, we may have a chance at yoga. When we can offer all our activities to God, the higher Self, that which is beyond our own ego, when we bring bhakti, love for God, into our daily life then our life becomes sparkly and magical—certainly not mundane.
December 2025 FOTM
Pratyahara – Healing the Disease of Disconnection
by Sharon Gannon
