Cleanliness, contentment, discipline, self-study and surrender to the divine are the observances.

Written and reviewed by The Kriya Yogi · Updated 21 September 2026

Sanskrit, in transliteration

śauca-santoṣa-tapaḥ-svādhyāya-īśvara-praṇidhānāni niyamāḥ

Our own plain rendering, checked against the standard published translations.

What the verse says

Five things to do. Śauca — cleanliness — is the seed the later hatha texts grow into the six cleansing acts, and the reason a daily routine tradition like dinacharya sits comfortably beside yoga.

In practice

Contentment is listed as a practice, not a reward. It is something you do on a bad day, not something that arrives after a good one.

This verse sits in Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, chapter 2 — read our commentary on the whole chapter.