NOSTOPSA Teacher's-First Yoga Cooperative
Historical ParamparāHistorical tradition

Rāja Yoga

Rāja Yoga, the 'royal' path of meditation, is identified with Patañjali's eight-limbed discipline and its progressive interiorisation culminating in samādhi. The term was popularised for the modern world by Swami Vivekananda in his 1896 work of the same name.

Origin: classical → popularised 19th c.
Geographical roots: India
📜 Historical traditionA pre-modern tradition. Content reflects scholarly consensus; uncertain points are marked accordingly.Historically Documented

Historical development

Rāja Yoga, the 'royal' path of meditation, is identified with Patañjali's eight-limbed discipline and its progressive interiorisation culminating in samādhi. The term was popularised for the modern world by Swami Vivekananda in his 1896 work of the same name.

Key scriptures (Śāstra)

Yoga Sūtras of Patañjali

Core practices

DhyānaSamādhi

Modern transmission

It underlies most meditation-centred modern yoga teaching.

NOSTOPS teachers in this tradition

Affiliations are shown with their verification state. A teacher's self-declared affiliation is never presented as a verified lineage.