We have five senses, “Sight, Hearing, Taste, Smell and Touch”  If someone possessed by these sense, then we will do what these indriyas(senses) want, and we can’t go on with Yoga practice without distractions, for example :

Sight : Eyes always like to see beautiful things, and lead you towards the beauty, like if one man is practicing and just see a beautiful girl, then his eyes will lead towards that beauty, but if this man is practicing Pratyahara, then he will go on with practice without this distraction. (This is just a example to understand).

Likewise all sensory organs leads us in their own way, but with the practice of Pratyahara we have to control and don’t become slave of these Indriyas(senses).

There are four types of Pratyahara :

Indriya Pratyahara means withdraw oneself from five senses.

Prana Pratyahara means withdrawal of Prana(vital energy of the body), as Prana is what drives the sense. To stop dispersion of Prana, we are required to control its flow and harmonize it.

Karma Pratyahara implies Control of Action, which actually entails not just control of motor organs, but also right action or work.
 Mano Pratyahara which suggests the Withdrawal of Mind. It is consciously practiced by withdrawing attention from anything that is unpleasant, and distracting for the mind, such as, by withdrawing attention from the senses, and directing it inwards.

Note: next topic we will discuss how to practice pratyahara.

Namaste Ji,

Yogi Manu