The Sanskrit word, `Yoga` means yuj which in turn means to unite, to control or to yoke. It also means mental and physical rejuvenation of an individual. The Yoga Philosophy is a fascinating inquiry into the realms of philosophy. The Yoga School of Philosophy introduced by Patanjali forms a part of the orthodox school of Indian Philosophy. This school of philosophy began by Patanjali is also known as the Bahiranga Yoga or yoga of the eight limbs. The Yoga School of Philosophy is closely associated with the Samkhya and the Vedantic schools of philosophy. Even in Buddhism and Jainism the word Yoga means a meditative practice. Within Hinduism, the Yoga Philosophy has been further divided into the Karma Yoga, Jnana Yoga, the Bhakti Yoga, the Raj Yoga and the Hatha Yoga. The main aim of the Yoga Philosophy is to realise the mind and the inner self.

Concepts of Yoga Philosophy
The central theme of the Yoga Philosophy is that mind is the ultimate reality and nothing exists beyond the mind. The goal of this philosophy is to emancipate the human mind from all kinds of misconceptions and falsehood. They focus on the fact that unless the mind achieves this state of purity it is not possible to conceive the true self. It also says that the only way to emancipate the mind from all kinds of uncertainties is to carry on a regular meditative practice which will guarantee a calmness and tranquility of the mind. It says that with a constant meditative practice an individual is able to achieve a state in which he is able to control his mental faculties and in turn is enriched with a new kind of wisdom. In this process all the subconscious and unconscious potencies of the mind are destroyed and there appears a stage when the avidya which was controlling the nisus is completely destroyed and a time comes when the entire fabric of the mind gets disintegrated and remains only the purusha in his transcendent solitude and thus the ultimate goal of the human mind is achieved.

The Yoga Philosophy also believes in the existence of God and the existence of God is certainly related to a pure mind. The Yoga Philosophy states that an individual should maintain absolute moral and religious control in order to purify the mind. A Yogi needs to adhere to practices like truthfulness, sincerity, sex-control, non-injury and self-contentment to maintain a purified mind.

In the Yoga process prime importance is given to the purity of the mind, thought and action. The philosophy states that an individual culminates the stages of Yoga step by step. When an individual has been able to conquer a particular stage, he automatically moves on to the next stage. At each stage of meditation or Yog an individual reaches a stage of supra-consciousness whereby all the persisting falsehood and passions that exist in the individual minds is completely destroyed. But this stage does not build any new psychological order rather it brings about a process of self illumination when the purusha takes control of the mind and the individual is able to detach himself from all kinds of falsehood and succumbs himself absolutely to the eternal truth.

The state of purusha can be achieved by concentrating on a particular object so that it becomes the point of consciousness and gradually all the other falsehood are eliminated from the faculties of mind.