The Yoga Sutras of Patañjali

consider the disciplines of yama and niyama (II.30–45) as corresponding to karmamarga (the path of action); āsana, prāṇāyāma, and pratyāhāra (II.46–55) as corresponding to jñāna-marga (the path of knowledge); and dhāraṇā, dhyāna, and samādhi (saṁyama, III.1–4) as corresponding to bhakti marga (the path of devotion).

Patañjali explains the practice of kriyā-yoga in sūtra I of the sādhana pāda, repeating the same ingredients as are found in the niyama disciplines, namely, tapas, svādhyāya, and Īśvara-praṇidhāna (discipline, self-study and devotion to God). This three-tiered definition clearly indicates the paths of karma, jñāna, and bhakti.