Literally one who fell (pat) into the palm (anjali). Refers to an ancient spiritual Master of extraordinary understanding, considered the father of yogic sciences. Believed to be an incarnation of Ananta, or Shesha, the thousand-headed ruler of the serpent race, Patanjali is best known for his work Yoga-Sutras. The Yoga-Sutras have been disclosed in a manner that cannot be understood by a superficial perusal of the text, Rather, it has been attributed the Quality of being an encrypted code intended for the spiritual Masters who have the necessary understanding to properly impart the veiled practices.