Goraksha Samhita is composed by the great Yog¿ Gorak¿an¿tha. Renowned spiritual masters in the East have highly acknowledged and honored him as a Siddha Yog¿ for many centuries. His name is mentioned by Sv¿mi Sv¿tm¿r¿ma in his classical text Hatha Yoga Pradip¿k¿ (Chapter One, Verses 4 and 5). He is also one of the Masters mentioned in the Pur¿nas and yogic texts. He is well known as Guru Gorakhan¿th, and a highly respected, revered and worshipped spiritual master in India and Nepal. The followers of the N¿th Tradition worship him as the incarnation of Lord ¿iva, and say that the nine N¿ths and eighty-four Siddhas belong to Adin¿tha, Lord ¿iva. So, he is also called ¿iva Gorak¿a, the founder of the Natha Siddha tradition.
It is said that Gorak¿an¿tha was an Eighth Century Siddha Yog¿. But some say that his physical presence occurred somewhere from the 8th to 11th century. According to the Nath Siddha tradition, Guru Gorakhn¿th is an immortal sage and takes care of human beings and their welfare.
It is said that Hatha Yog¿ Mastsyendran¿th was the Guru of Gorak¿an¿tha. Yog¿ Mastsyendran¿th received Yoga Vidy¿ (knowledge/wisdom) directly from the mouth of Lord ¿iva through Parvati. It was Guru Gorak¿an¿tha who summarized the yogic subject matter in two hundred verses, which he had received from his Guru Mastsyendran¿th, based on the teachings of ¿ri ¿din¿tha (Lord ¿iva). This summarized text by Gorak¿an¿tha is called Gorak¿a Samhit¿ (compendium) which is also known as Gorakhsa Paddhati: Yogic Path of Guru Gorakhan¿tha.
Gorak¿a Samhit¿ highly emphasizes the purification of the body, pr¿na and the mind. It is believed that total purification of all impurities on both the physical and pr¿nic levels is absolutely necessary in order to purify the mind. When these impurities are eliminated from the body and the energy blocks are removed, then the foundation for the awakening of the ¿akti is prepared.
