4.31 Endless wisdom arises

4.31 As a result, free from ignorance (avidya) and with all impurities (klesha) removed, endless wisdom arises with little that remains to be known.

There are no longer any goals. All the desire to achieve and to know is now extinguished because the yogi lives in a state of harmony through wisdom. The wisdom of the yogi manifests as embodied pure common sense. This is what Patañjali describes in aphorism 1.3 as the state of yoga, when there are no longer any ways of being to regulate so the yogi abides in the natural state, simply living in the deep peace of an unencumbered heart. Then, all that is left to know is to participate in every moment with utmost clarity, free from all struggle and agitation. Arriving at this level of development, ignorance, defined in sutra 2.4 and the afflictions that arise in the field of ignorance (2.3) stop being obstacles obscuring pure presence. Thus, it is no longer necessary to choose something as either an experience or an opportunity for liberation (2.18); our presence perceives everything with great clarity and discernment (2.26, 3.36 & 3.50). Consequently, every situation and all circumstances are met by the yogini with wisdom, accepting the perfection of life in its continuous changes.

As usual, one more way of exploring the meaning of this sutra is by chanting it.
You can choose to chant it in its traditional form with some of the words coming together:

4.31 tadā sarvāvaraṇamalāpetasya jñānasyānantyāt jñeyamalpam
तदा सर्वावरणमलापेतस्य ज्ञानस्यानन्त्यात् ज्ञेयमल्पम् ॥३१॥

Another option is to chant each word in the sutra individually:

• tadā
• sarva
• āvaraṇam
• alāpetasya
• jñānasya
• ānantyāt
• jñeyam
• alpam

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This is an excerpt from the book Unravel the thread: Applying the ancient wisdom of yoga to live a happy life

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