Abhāva-pratyayālambanā vṛttir nidrā
Meaning:
Nidra, or sleep, is a mental modification in which the mind takes the cognition of absence as its object.
After explaining Pramana (right knowledge), Viparyaya (mistaken knowledge), and Vikalpa (imagination), Patanjali introduces another movement of the mind — Nidra, or sleep.
At first, sleep may seem like a state in which the mind is completely inactive. But Patanjali considers sleep itself to be a vritti, a modification or movement of the mind.
What happens to the mind during sleep?
In waking life, the mind is constantly engaging with objects, experiences, memories, thoughts and emotions.
During sleep, our ordinary connection with the external world is withdrawn. We are not consciously seeing, hearing, analysing or responding to what is happening around us.
Yet, according to Patanjali, the mind is not simply “nothing.”
Sleep has its own mental content — a cognition of absence, a state in which there is an absence of ordinary waking experiences and objects.
This is why, after waking, we can say:
“I slept well.”
“I didn’t sleep properly.”
“I don’t remember anything from the night.”
There is an experience of having been in a particular state, even though the usual objects of waking consciousness were absent.
What about dreams?
Dreams give us another fascinating window into the mind.
While dreaming, the body may be resting, but the mind can create an entire world of its own.
A dream may contain:
- memories from the past
- emotions and desires
- fears and anxieties
- people and situations
- imagination and impressions from daily life
The events in a dream may not exist externally in that moment, yet the experience can feel completely real while we are dreaming.
You may wake up after a vivid dream with your heart racing, feeling happy, sad, anxious or even relieved.
The dream may have ended, but its emotional impression can remain for some time.
This shows us something important about the mind:
The mind can create an experience internally, and that experience can influence how we feel even when there is no corresponding external event.
Sleep, dreams and awareness
It is also useful to distinguish ordinary sleep from conscious practices such as Yoga Nidra.
In ordinary sleep, our awareness of the process is largely withdrawn.
In Yoga Nidra, however, the practitioner is guided into a deeply relaxed state while maintaining a thread of awareness. It is not simply “sleeping consciously”; rather, it is a structured practice of deep relaxation and inner awareness.
The purpose is not merely to fall asleep, but to remain aware while moving through progressively deeper states of relaxation and internal experience.
This distinction is important because Yoga Nidra is a yogic practice, whereas Nidra in Sutra 1.10 refers to sleep as one of the modifications of the mind.
Why is Nidra included among the Vrittis?
Patanjali’s larger teaching is that even sleep is a state in which the mind is functioning in a particular way.
Whether we are:
thinking → imagining → remembering → dreaming → sleeping
the mind is continually moving through different states.
Yoga is not simply about managing the mind when we are awake. It is about developing an understanding of these movements so that we gradually become less identified with them.
This is why Sutra 1.10 is connected to the larger teaching of Chitta Vritti Nirodha.
A practical reflection
Tonight, before going to sleep, take two minutes to observe your mind.
Ask yourself:
What thoughts are still active?
What emotions am I carrying from the day?
What am I replaying in my mind?
What am I anticipating for tomorrow?
Then take a few slow breaths and allow the mind to settle without trying to force it to stop.
In the morning, notice:
How did I sleep?
Was my sleep restless or peaceful?
Did I remember any dreams?
How does my mind and body feel now?
This simple observation helps us become more aware of the relationship between our daily mental activity, sleep and the quality of our inner state.
The deeper lesson of Sutra 1.10
Patanjali is reminding us that sleep is also part of the mind’s experience.
We may think that when we sleep, the mind disappears. But from the yogic perspective, sleep itself is one of the mind’s modifications.
Dreams show us how powerfully the mind can construct experiences from memories, emotions and impressions. Deep sleep shows us another state, where our ordinary waking objects and experiences are absent.
The practice of Yoga gradually teaches us to observe all these states without becoming completely identified with them.
Thoughts come.
Dreams come.
Sleep comes.
And they pass.
But the deeper question remains:
Who is the one who is aware of these changing states?
This takes us back to the central teaching of Yoga — moving from identification with the changing mind towards recognition of the Seer within.
