DHYANA

Meditation.The seventh limb of the Ashtanga or Raja Yoga system. Please see pages on the 8 limbs and on meditation.

literally, "meditation," "thought," or "reflection." Meditation proper. Whereas dharana is simply the "holding" of one thought in mind, dhyana allows the mind to expand or reflect on that one thought. Stage 7 in Patanjali's analysis of the yoga systems. "Dhyana is the continuous flow of thought [towards the object of concentration, or dharana]." ( Yoga Sutras 3:2)