परिणामतापसंस्कारदुःखैः गुणवृत्तिविरोधाच्च दुःखमेव सर्वं विवेकिनः ॥२.१५॥
पदविभाग: परिणाम-ताप-संस्कार-दुःखैः, गुण-वृत्ति-विरोधात्, च, दुःखम्, एव, सर्वम्, विवेकिनः।
अन्वय: परिणाम-ताप-संस्कार-दुःखैः गुणवृत्तिविरोधात् च विवेकिनः सर्वम् दुःखम् एव (अस्ति)।
प्रतिपदार्थ: परिणाम = consequence / change / transformation, ताप = anxiety / acute anguish / the stress of maintaining, संस्कार = subconscious impressions / deep conditioning, दुःखैः = due to the sufferings (caused by those three), गुण = the three fundamental qualities of nature (Sattva, Rajas, Tamas), वृत्ति = their functions / fluctuations / movements, विरोधात् = due to the constant conflict / opposition / contradiction, च = and, दुःखम् = suffering / pain, एव = alone / indeed, सर्वम् = everything / all, विवेकिनः = to the discriminating one / to the person of profound wisdom.
तात्पर्यम्: To the discriminating one, everything is indeed suffering, due to the pains of change, anxiety, and subconscious conditioning, and because of the constant conflict among the fluctuations of the Gunas.
Further context on the 66th Sutra from Patanjali’s Yogasutras
This verse resonates with Buddha’s First Noble Truth – Sarvam Dukham. For most people, acknowledging that there is suffering, is itself a monumental task. Everything we have ever loved dies and as there is the process of creation so comes the seed of destruction.
This verse points out there are three kinds of dukha:
1. Pariṇāma-duḥkha (The Pain of Change): Everything in the material world decays. The moment you achieve the perfect job, relationship, or physical health, it begins to age, shift, and eventually end. The yogi sees the inevitable grief of loss embedded in the very moment of acquisition.
2. Tāpa-duḥkha (The Pain of Anxiety): To have pleasure is to fear losing it. Once you acquire something beautiful, you immediately suffer the anxiety (tāpa) of it being taken away from you by thieves, time, and competitors.
3. Saṃskāra-duḥkha (The Pain of Conditioning): As we learned in 2.7 (Rāga), experiencing pleasure creates a deep subconscious groove. You become addicted. Your baseline for happiness shifts, meaning you now require more of the stimulus just to feel normal. Pleasure literally conditions you into future slavery.
Yogasutras too believe the Prakrittic nature is made up of the three gunas – Sattva, Rajas and Tamas. These forces of nature are in constant clash with each other. Hence, in the materially, seeking permanent happiness is impossible
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