Question

Who is credited with having written the immortal classic treatise Raja Yoga Sutras (Aphorisms on Meditation)?
A) Panini
B) Kapila
C) Patanjali
D) Manu

Answer 1

Hint: He was an ancient sage and known to be the author of a number of texts written in Sanskrit about Yoga Sutras. There are many ancient authors with the same name. The author of Mahabhasya, an ancient text on Sanskrit literature was also of the same name.

Complete answer:
Let us look at the given options:
Option A) Panini: He was a Sanskrit scholar, grammarian, and philologist in ancient India. He is known as the “Father of linguistics”. His most notable text is ‘Astadhyayi’. His work and ideology influenced many scholars from different religions like Buddhism. He even created a language very close to modern-day algebra. This option is incorrect.

Option B) Kapila: Kapila is the name given to different individuals in ancient texts. Many historic personalities in Hinduism and Jainism went by the name of Kapila. The most famous reference of Kapila in ancient texts is the Sage Kapila with his student Asuri, who is considered as the first masters of the Samkhya school of philosophy of Hinduism. This option is incorrect.

Option C) Patanjali: He was an ancient sage and was the author of numerous Sanskrit texts. The most famous work of Patanjali is the “Yoga Sutras of Patanjali”. It has the 196 Indian Sutras of Yoga. It is known to be the most translated ancient Indian text in the medieval era. Scholars consider it to be the foundation of classical Yoga philosophy. This option is correct.

Option D) Manu: This word in Hinduism can find many meanings. It can be referring to the first man on Earth, according to early texts or could be the 14 Kshatriya rulers of Earth in later texts. There are 14 Manus that rule in succession during each Kalpa or day of Brahma. This option is incorrect.

Thus, the correct answer is Option ‘C’. Patanjali is credited with having written the immortal classic treatise Raja Yoga Sutras.

Note: It also got translated into two non-Indian languages; Old Javanese and Arabic. Before the 20th century, the Indian yoga scene was dominated by texts like Bhagavad Gita and Yoga Vasistha but it all changed when Patanjali gained prominence again. Patanjali is honoured with Shrines in some modern-day schools of Yoga.