Abhyāsa, in

Hinduism Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...

, is a spiritual practice which is regularly and constantly practised over a long period of time. It has been prescribed by the great sage Patanjali Maharishi in his

Yoga Sutras The ''Yoga Sutras of Patañjali'' is a collection of Sanskrit sutras (aphorisms) on the theory and practice of yoga – 195 sutras (according to Vyāsa and Krishnamacharya) and 196 sutras (according to others, including BKS Iyengar). The '' ...

, and by

Lord Krishna Krishna (; sa, कृष्ण ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and also as the Supreme god in his own right. He is the god of protection, compassion, tenderness, and love; and is one of ...

in the

Bhagavad Gita The Bhagavad Gita (; sa, श्रीमद्भगवद्गीता, lit=The Song by God, translit=śrīmadbhagavadgītā;), often referred to as the Gita (), is a 700- verse Hindu scripture that is part of the epic ''Mahabharata'' (c ...

as an essential means to control the mind, together with

Vairāgya Vairāgya (वैराग्य) is a Sanskrit term used in Hindu as well as Eastern philosophy that roughly translates as dispassion, detachment, or renunciation, in particular renunciation from the pains and pleasures in the temporary materi ...

. Sutra 1:12 "Both practice (abhyāsa) and non-reaction (

vairāgya Vairāgya (वैराग्य) is a Sanskrit term used in Hindu as well as Eastern philosophy that roughly translates as dispassion, detachment, or renunciation, in particular renunciation from the pains and pleasures in the temporary materi ...

) are required to still the patterning of consciousness." Sutra 1:13 "Practice is the sustained effort to rest in that stillness."—as translated by Chip Hartranft in his work ''The Yoga Sutra of Patanjali''. According to Swami Krishnananda sutra 1:13 means "Abhyasa or practice is the effort to fix one's own self in a given attitude." Prolonged periods of practice within a given attitude to align ourselves with our soul's freedom, this is practice. Our attitude is fixing series of mistakes by ourselves such that we "tend to greater and greater stages of freedom of the soul, and a lessening and decreasing of the intensity of bondage."

References

Hindu philosophical concepts Yoga concepts {{Yoga-stub