The last three limbs happen inside the mind, and they flow into one another.

Dharana is concentration: holding the mind on one thing, like a candle flame, the breath or a sacred word like Om. At first, the mind keeps slipping away and you keep bringing it back.

Dhyana is meditation. Patanjali describes it as an unbroken flow of attention toward that one thing. The mind stops slipping away, and the focus flows steadily, like oil being poured from one pot to another.

Samadhi is the last step. The mind becomes so still and clear that it forgets itself, and only what it is focused on remains. Patanjali says this is where we see our true Self.

This may sound far away, but you have probably had a taste of it. When you are so absorbed in music, painting, a sport or prayer that you lose track of time, you've touched something like it.

That is the whole path of yoga, from being kind to others all the way to a still, clear mind. It's a lifelong practice. Every small step counts.