Ancient Wisdom for Modern Pain Management – Why Yoga Philosophy Matters (Part 2/4)

In this Noijam series, Martina Egan-Moog and Neil Pearson explore where ancient yoga philosophy intersects with contemporary pain science. Drawing on some of their work in the Embodiment in Pain Science Education course, they bring together philosophy, lived experience, and emerging evidence. They consider where current science offers support, as well as where ideas are still developing or not yet well understood. This creates space to explore different ways of thinking about pain, suffering, and care, while staying mindful of the evolving evidence base.

This ‘jam’ is the second in a series of four, intending to provide an overview of interconnected topics – yoga philosophy, techniques and practices, the lived experience of pain, neuroplasticity, and embodied pain education. Through the interconnectedness of these topics, we offer an introduction to how yoga can address common impacts of chronic pain across biopsychosocial and spiritual domains. (Read part one.)

In this section, we intentionally move between philosophy and science. Where science is cited, we reference evidence. Where philosophy is discussed, it is offered as a lens, not a mechanism.

What if a 2,000-year-old philosophical text held insights that could transform how we approach chronic pain management? While yoga has gained scientific recognition for its physical and mental health benefits, the deeper wisdom embedded in one text – Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras – offers something even more profound: a framework for understanding suffering and consciousness and healing that remarkably aligns with cutting-edge pain science.

The practice of yoga has become increasingly validated in mainstream medicine, with studies appearing in high-impact journals like the AIM and yoga being recommended by groups such as the American College of Physicians (Saper et al 2017; Qaseem et al 2017). But beyond the physical postures and breathing exercises lies a philosophical system that may offer a fresh perspective on person-centred pain care.

What Is Yoga Really About?

The Sanskrit word ‘yoga’ literally means ‘to yoke’ or ‘to unite’ or ‘to connect’ referring to the integration of body, mind, and spirit. However, yoga encompasses much more than what we typically see in modern studios. According to scholars, yoga has five principal meanings:

• a disciplined method for achieving goals
• techniques for controlling body and mind
• a philosophical system
• specialised traditions of practice
• ultimately, the goal itself – to understand our true nature / spiritual essence

The Yoga Sutras, compiled by the sage Patanjali before 400 CE, consist of 196 aphorisms synthesising ancient knowledge about yoga practice and philosophy. While this text nearly vanished from practice for seven centuries, it experienced a remarkable revival in the late 19th century and has since become central to Western understanding of yoga.

The Core Concepts That Matter for Pain

From the 5th century onward, yoga philosophy has centred on three transformative principles that feel surprisingly relevant to modern pain management:

1. Discovering and Overcoming Dysfunctional Perception
   Yoga provides meditative methods for recognising problematic patterns in how we perceive and think about our experiences. The intent of the practice, based on yoga philosophy, is the release from suffering and restore inner peace – not by eliminating pain itself, but by changing our relationship with it (seen in Acceptance Theories, e.g.Veehof et al 2016).
2. Expanding Consciousness Beyond the Self
   The practice involves raising awareness from a narrow self-focus to a connection with everything around us. This shift from ‘I-ness’to ‘we-ness’ has profound implications for how we experience isolation in chronic pain. Gratitude practices and actively caring for and connecting with other living beings are common recommendations in modern pain care (Diniz et al 2023).
3. Understanding Permanent vs. Impermanent Reality
   Yoga philosophy teaches us to distinguish between what is truly lasting and what is temporary or illusory. This mirrors modern pain science’s understanding that pain itself is a constant variable process (‘even chronic pain changes in intensity on a daily basis’) and a conscious experience (‘we cannot have pain and not know about it’).

According to Patanjali’s teachings about yoga, he suggested that suffering is directly linked to our current state of consciousness, specifically to the unhelpful identification of the self with the ever-changing mind and to the material world, rather than with our true, unchanging spiritual essence. Modern neuroscience would agree – pain is indeed a protective construct of the human, an output of individual consciousness shaped by integrated biopsychosocial factors.

This ancient-meets-modern perspective offers hope. Pain and consciousness are impacted by every aspect of human existence, and so pain care is far more than a process of fixing what is broken or dysfunctional. Therefore, based on Pantajali’s philosophy, our suffering is influenced by consciousness, and consciousness can evolve, then gaining more influence about our suffering is clearly.

The Relevance of This Ancient Text

You might wonder, why turn to a 2,000-year-old philosophical text when we have advanced neuroscience and evidence-based pain management protocols? The answer is that Patanjali’s sutras offer something unique – a holistic framework that acknowledges the interconnected nature of the body, physical ‘sensation’, emotional experience, cognitive interpretation, and spiritual meaning-making.

In an era of person-centred care, where we recognise that each patient’s experience of pain is utterly unique, yoga philosophy provides language and concepts for understanding suffering and consciousness and healing and why two patients with similar injuries may have vastly different trajectories. It offers a non-judgmental way to meet people where they are in their healing journey. As we’ll explore in the next ‘jam’ these ancient insights align remarkably well with contemporary understanding of pain neuroscience, homeostasis, and the mind-body connection.

In Part 3, we’ll dive into the fascinating intersection between yoga philosophy and modern neuroscience, exploring concepts like homeostasis, interoception, and the role of consciousness in pain perception.

– Martina Egan-Moog and Neil Pearson

Martina and Neil teach the Embodiment in Pain Science Education (EPSE) course. Open to all healthcare providers, whether your background is specific to manual therapy, movement-based, psychological, wellness-focused, education or research. EPSE utilises body-based experiences to help individuals better understand and manage pain. It focuses on movement, interoception, and mind-body techniques like yoga to challenge misconceptions about pain through felt experience. This approach empowers both clinicians and patients by enhancing body awareness, reducing fear, and improving self-efficacy in pain care.

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