Āsana

Āsana ('seat') is the third of the eight limbs (aṣṭāṅga) of yoga in Patañjali's Yoga Sūtra, which defines it in a single sūtra (2.46) as sthira-sukham, 'steady and comfortable'. Later haṭha texts, such as the Haṭhayoga Pradīpikā (15th century), describe a range of named postures. In the Yoga Sūtra its purpose is to prepare for prāṇāyāma and meditation.