Ashtanga Yoga Chants
At The Breathing Space, we begin and close our Mysore-style Ashtanga yoga practice with traditional Sanskrit chants. These invocations help ground the mind, honor our teachers and lineage, and create a container of presence and intention. Below you’ll find the text of both the opening and closing chants, along with English translations and reflections on their meaning.
Ashtanga Invocation
Chanting at the beginning of practice invites us into the present moment. It is a way to honor our teachers—those who came before us, those guiding us now, and the teacher within. This sacred verse expresses gratitude for the wisdom that illuminates the path of self-realization and eases the suffering of conditioned existence.
vande gurunam caranaravinde
sandarsita svatma sukhava bodhe
nih sreyase jangalikayamane
samsara halahala mohashantiyai
abahu purusakaram
sankhacakrasi dharinam
sahasra sirasam svetam
pranamami patanjalim
om
I bow to the two lotus feet of the Gurus, which awaken insight into the happiness of pure Being which are the complete absorbtion into joy, the jungle physician, eliminating the delusion caused by the poison of Samsära (conditioned existence).
I prostrate before the sage Pataïjali who has thousands of radiant, white heads and who has, as far as his arms, assumed a human form, holding a conch shell (divine sound), a wheel (a discus of light or time) and a sword (discrimination).
(Translation Richard Freeman & Mary Taylor)
Closing chant
The closing chant is a gesture of compassion and interconnection. It reminds us that our personal practice exists in service to the collective—that our clarity, steadiness, and kindness ripple outward. It is a call for peace and well-being for all beings everywhere.
svasti praja bhyaha
pari pala yantam
nya yena margena mahim mahishaha
go bramanebhyaha shubamastu nityam
lokah samastah sukhino bhavantu
om shanti shanti shantihi
May all of humankind be fulfilled and prosperous.
May our leaders protect the earth in every way by the path of just virtue.
May there be joy for those who know the real nature of things.
May all the worlds be content.
om freedom from suffering caused by natural disasters, freedom from suffering inflicted by others, freedom from suffering inflicted upon ourselves