The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali

For two thousand years the Yoga Sutras have guided seekers toward stillness, mastery, and liberation. Yet the deeper history of this wisdom — its threads reaching back through the Siddhars, into Kemet, and across the ancient African world — has rarely been told.

In The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali: The Black Yogi Master and the African Roots of Yoga, #1 bestselling author Ajarn Shaman Shu (Shri Surya Narayana Swamikal) presents the timeless text alongside a bold reclamation of its origins — arguing that the science of yoga belongs to a wisdom stream that once unified Africa, Egypt, and India.

Inside you'll explore:

The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali — the foundational teachings, explained clearly
What yoga truly is: the mastery and stilling of consciousness
The eight limbs (Ashtanga) and the real path to liberation
The 18 Siddhars — the original masters of yoga — and their place in the lineage
The African and Kemetic roots of yogic wisdom, from Patanjali back to their source
How this ancient science unified Kemet, Africa, India, and beyond

Part sacred text, part historical reclamation, this is the Yoga Sutras restored to their fullest lineage — the philosophy of yoga and the forgotten story of where it truly began.

The cessation of the fluctuations of the mind. The African roots of yoga. The wisdom that unified the ancient world.

About the Author
Robert S. Shumake, publishing as Ajarn Shaman Shu, has lived two lives in one — the builder and the priest — and his books are where the two meet. He rose from a Ford factory floor to become founding president and CEO of Inheritance Capital Group, a Black Enterprise-ranked private equity firm, served as honorary consul for Botswana and Tanzania, and founded Inheritance Media Group, owner of more than 300 publications produced by an AI-run newsroom. In spirit, each tradition that initiated him gave him a name: Buddhist Ajarn in the Theravada and Vajrayana lines, Oluwo Jolaoso Osainbola in Ifá, and Shri Surya Narayana Swamikal in the Tamil Siddha line. He is the founder of Soul Tribes International Ministries and of Buddha Digital Temple and its universities — Orisha University, Buddha University, and Shiva University. He authored Detroit’s Proposal E, the 2021 ballot initiative that decriminalized entheogenic plants in Detroit, and is the author of more than 140 published books and 86+ DOI-registered academic publications. His philosophy: the Double Bottom Line — make a profit, and make a difference. Robertshumake.biz