Non-violence, truthfulness, non-stealing, continence and non-possessiveness are the restraints.

Five Ethical Restraints

Yoga Sutra 2.30 names the five yamas, ethical restraints forming the first of the eight limbs described in the preceding verse: ahimsa (non-violence or non-harming), satya (truthfulness), asteya (non-stealing), brahmacharya (often rendered as continence, or the responsible, moderate use of one's vital or sexual energy), and aparigraha (non-possessiveness, or non-grasping). These five are presented as the ethical bedrock upon which the remainder of the eightfold path is built, addressing conduct toward others before the text turns to the niyamas, which concern the practitioner's relationship with themselves.

Unconditional, Not Situational

The verse immediately following this one, 2.31, states that these restraints apply universally, regardless of one's class, place, time, or particular circumstance — marking them as unconditional commitments rather than optional guidelines to be applied selectively. This universality is part of what distinguishes the yamas from social or religious codes that might vary by context; Patanjali presents them as applicable to any practitioner in any situation.

Ahimsa as the Root

Traditional commentary, including Vyasa's, often treats ahimsa as foundational among the five, with the remaining four understood as extensions or specific applications of non-harming: truthfulness spoken without causing needless harm, non-stealing as a refusal to take what causes loss to another, brahmacharya as responsible use of vital energy that avoids harm to oneself and others, and aparigraha as freedom from the grasping that so often generates harm through excess or competition over resources.

An Ethical Foundation, Practiced Daily

The yamas are traditionally treated as a necessary foundation without which deeper meditative practice is considered unstable or even counterproductive — hence their placement first among the eight limbs. Teachers commonly use them not as rules confined to formal practice sessions but as an ongoing basis for self-examination in daily conduct, relationships, and speech, encouraging students to notice where harm, dishonesty, taking more than what is needed, excess, or grasping actually show up in ordinary situations.

A Simple Daily Review

At the end of each day, briefly review your interactions through the lens of these five restraints. Did you cause unnecessary harm, through words, actions, or even harsh internal judgment of yourself or others (ahimsa)? Did you speak truthfully, including in small matters where a convenient exaggeration or omission might have felt easier (satya)? Did you take only what was rightfully yours, in time, credit, or material terms (asteya)? Did you use your energy, including sexual energy, in a way that felt responsible and aligned with your values, rather than depleting or careless (brahmacharya)? And did you notice any grasping after more than you needed, whether possessions, attention, or certainty (aparigraha)? This is not meant as self-criticism but as a gentle nightly practice of noticing.

One Yama at a Time

Rather than attempting to work on all five simultaneously, traditional teaching often suggests choosing one yama to focus on for a period of weeks, observing closely where it shows up in daily life before moving attention to the next. This gradual approach mirrors how these restraints are meant to become gradually internalized habits of character rather than externally imposed rules applied all at once.

A Note on Interdependence

Commentators note the five yamas support one another: dishonesty often masks small theft or harm, and grasping frequently drives both. Practicing one restraint tends to strengthen the others, which is why traditional teaching treats them as a single interconnected discipline rather than five unrelated rules.

Brahmacharya Narrowed to Mandatory Celibacy

Brahmacharya is often reduced in modern discussion to strict, universal celibacy required of every practitioner, when classical and later commentary treats it more broadly as the responsible, moderate use of one's vital or sexual energy, appropriate to one's stage and circumstances of life. For a householder, this need not mean abstinence at all, but rather conscious, non-exploitative, non-excessive engagement with sexuality and vital energy generally, in contrast to the specific renunciate application the term sometimes carries in other contexts.

Ahimsa Stretched Into an Absolute Rule

Ahimsa is also sometimes stretched into an absolute, universally binding rule covering every situation without nuance or context, as though any harm whatsoever, in any circumstance, represents an equal violation. Traditional discussion of the yamas generally allows for contextual judgment in their application, recognizing that competing goods and unavoidable harms sometimes require careful discernment rather than mechanical rule-following.

Treating the Yamas as Optional Preliminaries

A further misreading treats the yamas as a preliminary phase to be completed quickly before moving on to the "real" practice of asana, breath work, or meditation. The text's own structure and traditional commentary instead treat ethical restraint as continuous, lifelong work that deepens alongside, not merely before, every other limb of practice.

Aparigraha Beyond Material Possessions

Aparigraha is sometimes understood narrowly as owning few possessions, when traditional teaching extends it to grasping of any kind, including clinging to opinions, relationships, or outcomes. Read this way, the practice of non-possessiveness touches far more of daily life than simple material minimalism suggests.

Yamas as Continuous Refinement

Because the yamas are unconditional, traditional teaching treats them as never fully finished; even advanced practitioners are expected to keep refining truthfulness, non-harming, and the rest throughout life, rather than treating them as a beginner's stage to be completed and left behind.