Master the philosophy, goals, & practices of Patañjali’s Yoga Sūtra & identify its Jain, Buddhist, & Vedic influences. Understand the history that allowed this text to become a text in the modern yoga canon.
Learning Objectives
• Learn the classical yoga of Patañjali’s Yoga Sūtra and Vyāsa’s Bhāṣya
• Take time to reflect on and incorporate Patañjali’s principles into daily life
• Learn the text's Sanskrit vocabulary in depth to penetrate its deeper meaning
• Understand the Yoga Sūtra’s ancient as well as modern colonial history
Course Length
20 hours
Course Details
• 20-hour self-study course.
• Additional readings offered as support material.
• Professor available by appointment.
Learning Area

Yoga, Self-care and Spirituality
Instructor

Christopher Miller, PhD
Christopher Jain Miller, the co-founder and Vice President of Academic Affairs at Arihanta Institute, completed his PhD in the Study of Religion at the University of California, Davis. He is Professor of Jain and Yoga Studies at Arihanta Institute, Visiting Researcher at the University of Zürich's Asien-Orient-Institut, and Visiting Professor at Claremont School of Theology. Christopher's primary fields of research interest are Yoga Studies and Engaged Jain Studies, and he currently serves as the co-chair of the Yoga in Theory and Practice Unit at the American Academy of Religion as well as on the steering committees for the Dharma Academy of North America (DANAM) and the Yoga Darśana Yoga Sādhana conference. Christopher is the author of Embodying Transnational Yoga: Eating, Singing, and Breathing in Transformation (Routledge 2024) and the co-editor of Engaged Jainism: Critical and Constructive Studies of Jain Social Engagement (SUNY 2025) as well as Beacons of Dharma: Spiritual Exemplars for the Modern Age (Lexington 2020).