Dhyana is a Sanskrit word meaning "meditation." It is derived from the root words, dhi, meaning “receptacle” or “the mind”; and yana, meaning “moving” or “going.” An alternate root word, dhyai, means "to think of."

 

As the seventh limb of Patanjali's Eight Limbs of Yoga, dhyana builds upon the practices of asana (physical posture), pranayama (breath control), pratyahara (control of the senses, moving the focus inward) and dharana (concentration). When practiced together with dharana and the eighth limb of samadhi (absorption), the three together form samyama, resulting in a full detachment of the mind from worldly bindings and a deeper understanding of the object of meditation. At the final stage, or jhana, of dhyana, the yogi does not see it as a meditation practice anymore as they are so fully immersed in the meditative act that they can no longer separate the self from it.