The concept of smṛti in the Yogasūtra: Memory or mindfulness?

Abstract

One of the key concepts in Buddhist meditation is mindfulness which has recently been introduced into new environments, including contemporary yoga. This paper identifies some of the parameters involved in the rather seamless integration of Buddhist mindfulness and yoga and explores whether this synthesis is an ancient one, already found in the oldest recorded text on yoga, the Yogasūtra, by investigating if the word smṛti, usually translated as "memory," can refer to mindfulness. This would imply that mindfulness may have been a component of ancient yogic practices, although perhaps lost at some stage in the transmission only to be reintroduced recently by the syncretistic new trends in the globalised spiritual movements.