Saddarsanam -5

(Verses 21 to 25)

Verse21

Vidheh prayatnasya ca ko'pi vadah tayor-dvayor-mulam-ajanataṃ syat।
Vidheh prayatnasya ca mula-vastu sanjanatam naiva vidhir-na yatnah ॥

The talk of fate and of self-effort shall be for them who do not know the root of these two.  For those who know well the source of fate and effort, there is neither fate nor free will.

The fruits of the actions done in the past come as fate when they mature.  Self-effort, freewill,  is what one does in the present with what one gets. When one removes the conditioning of time, one sees that both are actions only and all actions depend upon the doer of action ahamkara ‘I’.  Ahamkara ‘I’, the experiencer of fate and the wielder of freewill, is truly non-existent. Those who have known the non-existence of the ahamkara ‘I’, the base of fate and freewill, have discarded fate and free will along with their root and base, the ahamkara.  The debate of fate vs, freewill is only for those who are ignorant of ahamkara-mulam, the Athma because once the ahamkara-mulam is discovered ahamkara disappears, and there is no present ‘I’, no karta ‘I’ and no bhoktha ‘I’ and the ones who are wise to Athma, the ahamkara-mulam, also will not become entangled in the dispute about fate and freewill.

Verse 22

Yadisitur-viksanam-iksitaram -avikṣya tan-manasikeksanam syat।
Na drastur-anyah paramo hi tasya viksa svamule praviliya nistha ॥

That vision of the Lord which is without seeing the seer can only be a mental vision. The Supreme is not there other than the seer, indeed.    His vision is the absorption and abidance in one’s own source.

The Lord in His true nature is nameless, formless. attributeless, infinite, all-pervading etc.  So He cannot be seen as the seen is limited by time, space and objects. He is not different from the seer.   Hence the true vision of the Lord is to know Him as One’s Self.   Maharishi himself states in Upadesa-saar 25: “(Isa-darsanam svaatma-roopatah (One sees God as one’s own Self)).  So the one who sees the Self through the enquiry ’Who am I?’, alone is the one who has truly seen God, the source of the individual Self.   Because the real Self which shines forth after the ego self has perished is none other than God.   One seeing God without leaving one’s ego self is only seeing a mental vision (a manasika darsanam or imaginary appearance). The realized Jnani may keep this separate vision for the sake of worship and for singing and revelling in His glory, but that does not negate his true vision of identity and abidance in Self with the knowledge “I am Brahman”.

Verse 23

Atmanam-ikseta param prapasyed - ityagamokteh sulabho na bhavah।
Natmaiva drsyo yadi ka kathese svayaṃ tad-anni-bhavanam tadiksa ॥

The meaning of the sayings of the Vedas, ‘See the Self, see the Supreme’  is not easy.  If the Self itself is not seen, then how can there be talk of the Lord?  Oneself becoming His food is that vision of seeing Him.

Scriptures speak of Self-realization and God-realisation as the goals which are to be attained by a spiritual aspirant.  This is often misinterpreted to mean that one must first realize oneself, the individual soul, and then one must realize God, who is the substratum or underlying support of oneself.  The Self, being one with the seeker cannot be seen as an object either by senses or mind.  We all experience the Self within as ‘I’.  But due to ignorance one mistakes the ego as ‘I’ and misses the realization of Self and God. Here Maharishi advises that the devotee offers oneself i.e. the ego at His altar.  By surrendering the ego at His feet, the devotee loses his identity in Him.  By losing his identity in God, he sees God in him as Self, which is that vision of seeing Him.

Verse 24

Dhiye prakasam paramo vitirya svayam dhiyo'ntah pravibhati guptah।
Dhiyaṃ paravartya dhiyontare'tra samyojanan-nesvara-drstir-anya ॥

The Supreme having distributed light to the intellect, Himself shines hidden inside the intellect.  Having turned the intellect backwards, here within the intellect, by uniting, the vision of the Lord takes place and not by any other method. 

The mind through the senses finds fulfilment in enjoying the world of names and forms and so it prompts body into action.  The mind is a flow of thoughts and thoughts themselves are inert.  The Self, which is of the nature of pure Consciousness, is reflected in the thoughts lending them sentiency.  This sentient mind illuminates objects. If one wants to seek the Self, one must shift the attention of one’s mind from the object to the thought illumining the object, and from the illumined thought to the pure Consciousness that is illumining the mind as though hiding within thought.   So the only means by which one can know God, who is the real Self and who shines within the mind as the pure Consciousness ‘I am’ is to merge the mind in Him, by turning it inwards through the enquiry ‘Who am I?’

Verse 25

Na vakti deho'ham-iti prasuptau na kopi nābhūvam-iti pravakti।
Yatrodite sarvam-udeti tasya dhiyā'hamaḥ śodhaya janmadeśam ॥

The body does not say “I am”.  In deep sleep, no one says, “I was not”.  Upon the rise of that 'I' all arise.  Investigate the birth place of that “I,” with the intellect.

In this verse Maharishi speaks about three distinct things, namely (1) the body, which, being insentient, has no ‘I’ – Consciousness, (2) the Consciousness ‘I’ (the real Self) which exists even in sleep, where the body and all else do not exist, and (3) another ‘I’ (ego ‘I’, (ahamkara)) after whose rising all else rises. Since this rising ‘I’, in whose wake all the transactions, worries, complexes, limitations, in short samsara arises. is clearly distinct from the body and from the real ‘I’ which exists even in sleep, Maharishi instructs one to scrutinize where this ego ‘I’ rises, for when one scrutinizes, it will be found to be nonexistent and one discovers the one Truth, the real Self,

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Meditation

(Based on Swami Paramarthananda’s Sivarathri talk 2019)

Meditation is a mental conditioning programme. The primary purpose of meditation is to develop the skill to control the mind which is a powerful instrument. An instrument is an instrument only when it is under one’s command. The capacity to control the mind is called manonigraha. All forms of spiritual practices require that mind functions as one’s instrument under one’s control.  We can classify all forms of meditation into five types as follows:

1. Relaxation meditation. – This is for relaxing the mind in particular and relaxing all the other parts of the body as well.  This can be also called as de-stressing meditation.

2. Focussing meditation – This is for developing mind’s ability to focus on any subject, material or spiritual, for a length of time

3. Expansion meditation - in this meditation one learns to expand the mind to visualize the totality of creation.  This can be called also as Viswarupa dhyanam, as the Universe is meditated upon as the form of the Lord.

4. Value meditation – In this meditation one tries to bring about a total inner transformation by changing the thought pattern.  This is also called Transformation meditation

5. Vedantic meditation –  This is for for internalizing the acquired Athma Jnanam, removing the viparitha bhavana. This meditation is called Nitidyasanam and is practiced after acquiring doubt-free Jnanam through Sravanam and Mananam.

Whatever be the form of meditation, success in meditation is dependant on mind management. Mind being a subtle organ it is not easy to control it.  Arjuna in chapter 6 of Gita which deals with Vedantic meditation complains to Lord Krishna with these words

“Chanchalam hi manah krishna pramaathi balavad dridham I

Tasyaaham nigraham manye vaayoriva sudushkaram.II 34II

The mind is restless, turbulent, strong and obstinate. O Krishna! I consider it as difficult to control as to control the wind.

Lord Krishna while replying agreed with him and added “Abhyaasena tu kaunteya vairaagyena cha grihyate.( Arjuna, it is brought under control through practice and dispassion)”. Through the practice of karma yoga one acquires dispassion. To practice mind management one should understand the mind. Mind is flow of thoughts and mind management can be interpreted as thought management.   One’s thoughts can be classified in two groups

1.     Voluntary thoughts – thoughts which are deliberate and will-backed

2.     Involuntary thoughts – thoughts that occur without one’s intention, which are not will-backed

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The process of meditation involves two steps

1.     Displacement of involuntary thoughts at will

2.     Maintenanace of voluntary thoughts for a considerable length of time of our choice.

Sri Ramana Maharishi in his Upadesa saar (verse 9) says that wandering thoughts of mind can be controlled through pranayama.

Vaayurodhanaath leeyathe manahI

Jaala pakshivad rodhasaadhanamII

By control of breath, the thoughts in the wandering mind subside. This is like a fluttering bird being trapped in a cage.

By regulating the breath, the mind becomes like a caged bird – it cannot wander.  According to scriptures prana is born out of the rajo guna of panchabhuthas and mind is born out of the satva guna of panchabhuthas. So they are linked together like the branches of a tree.  Sri Ramana Maharishi says that since both are connected to each other, if you regulate one the other automatically gets regulated. So through pranayama one regulates the breath directly and the mind indirectly. And In Ashtanga yoga of Patanjali maharishi, pranayama is given as one of the eight limbs and this step is before Dhyana, which is another name for meditation.

All forms of spiritual practice require that a sadhaka should develop manonigraha and keep the mind under one’s control and this is achieved through meditation.  All such meditations entertain thoughts centering on Bhagawan to the exclusion of all other thoughts. Manasa puja, manasa parayanam and manasa japa are all various forms of meditation only.  While in Puja, the whole routine is meditated upon, a sthuthi and a mantra are meditated upon in parayanam and Japa respectively. 

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The importance of Japa can be seen from Lord Krishna’s words in Gita (10-25) “Yajnaanaam japayajno’smi (Among Yajnas I am Japa Yajna)”.  In Japa dhyana a Mantra on Ishta Devata is chosen for chanting.  Sandilya states in Sandilya Upanishad, "The Vaikhari Japa (loud pronunciation) gives the reward as stated in the Vedas; while the Upamsu Japa (whispering or humming which cannot be heard by any one) gives a reward a thousand times more than the Vaikhari; the Manasic Japa gives a reward a crore of times more than the Vaikhari".  Sri Ramana Maharishi also observes in Upadesa Saar(verse 6) that Japa Dhyanam is superior to the other two in achieving manonigraha; “Chittajam japa dhyaanam uttamam (best of all is silent, mental japa).  Nama and Rupa are inseparable. So when one thinks of the name of Lord in Japa, His form comes before the mental eye and vice versa, when the chanting is done mindfully and not mechanically.  So when one does Japa of Om Namasivaya or Om namo Narayana, or Hare Rama etc., the form of Siva or Vishnu or Rama will come before one’s mind. One focusses on the form at start and shifts the focus to Mantra itself slowly.  Mantra by itself is powerful as it represents Divine power manifesting in sound body.  So the chanting itself is beneficial and doing it as Manasa Japa empowers one with manonigraha and also endows one with Divine Grace, thus helping one in receiving the Jnanam, retaining the Jnanam and reaping the benefit of Jnanam. Japa Dhyanam is done after Pranayama as thoughts get displaced in Pranayama and they can be replaced with the Mantra of one’s choice in Japa Dhyanam.  With the mind control skills developed in Japa Dhyanam one can achieve manonigraha effortlessly and stay absorbed in the Mantra, and this will lead to Samadhi state, the climax of meditation.

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Three great powers of the mind

(adapted from Swami Sarvapriyananda’s leture)

One of the three great powers of mind is the power of concentration or the power of focus. According to Swami Vivekananda the difference between an ordinary person and a great person is the degree of concentration one can bring to the job on hand.  The great person has greater focus on the work at hand and this focus when it is total is called ‘Flow’ by positive psychologists.   Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi  (pronounced as ‘mehigh cheeksendmehigh’) describes the mental state of flow as “being completely involved in an activity for its own sake. The ego falls away. Time flies. Every action, movement, and thought follows inevitably from the previous one, like playing jazz. Your whole being is involved, and you're using your skills to the utmost."  It is the mental state of operation in which a person performing an activity is fully immersed in a feeling of energized focus, full involvement, and enjoyment in the process of the activity. This focused absorption is what is achieved in Dhyana and when prolonged leads to the Samadhi state, as we can see now.

In Ashtanga Yoga Dhyana, the uninterrupted focus is achieved through a process of steps starting from mental and moral disciplines outlined in Yama and Niyama.  These help to keep one on the path of Dharma, and staying on the path of dharma there are less distractions for the mind as compared to otherwise.  It is all the more important today where we are in the midst of an epidemic of distractions sparked by the latest smart phones and where it has become a habit to look into the phone for messages or latest updates in various fields all day long even in the midst of other activities, not to mention waking up in its face and going to bed with it.  Yama and Niyama are followed by Asana which brings physical discipline.  Staying quiet in a place also limits the field of distractions for the mind. Next step is Pranayama and control of breadth is a shorter way to control mind as Maharishi Ramana states in verse no. 11 of Upadesa saar “Through breath-control, the movement of the mind is contained, just as a bird is restrained when caught in a net.”  Pratyahara, withdrawl of the wandering senses, the next step leads to Dharana, focussing on a single object or chant.  This focus maintained continually for some time is called Dhyana. Dhyana, effortlessly achieved with ease and at will, helps one to achieve Samadhi.

Scientifically it is stated that our mind is capable of processing at the same time 150 bytes of information. In Samadhi state all the 150 bytes are concentrated on the object of meditation. But ordinarily only a fewer bytes are focussed on the object at hand.  The greater the number of bytes one is able to focus on the work on hand the greater degree of concentration one achieves in the work on hand.   But the effect this power has on an individual depends on the object of focus.  If the object of focus is on the positive values of life then greater the focus, the better the quality of life one enjoys. The greater is one’s misery when the object of focus is on the negative values of lie.  So to use this power to one’s advancement and happiness in life:

1)    Be focussed on whatever you do, cutting off the distractions from other sources.

2)    Hold to that focus to that point of absorption in the object of concentration.

3)    Hold on that way for extended stretches of time.

4)    Focus only on positive values of life.

This brings us to the second important power of mind, the power of making decision

Second great power of mind is the power of making decision on what to do, what to speak and what to think.  They include the opposites as well i.e. what not to do, what not to speak and what not to think.  This power one has all the time and one exercises it all the time when he does not act out of instinct of habit but engages in self-conscious activity.  As Swami Vivekananda has pointed out all that is great and excellent including power and glory will come to one rising to self-conscious activity all the time.  The conscious action should be not only in respect of others but even in respect of oneself.  Another important point to note is the conscious action in respect of thought, word and action should embrace Dharma to uplift a person.  In Mahabharata Duryodhana once told Lord Krishna, “ Jaanami dharmam, na cha me pravrittihi: Janaami adharmam, na cha me nivrittihi”  i.e. “ I know what is Dharma, but I cannot follow it;  I know what is adharma, but I cannot stay away from it”   When one acts self-consciously in an unrighteous way,  he is driving himself towards his downfall. On the other hand we have the example of Arjuna, who surrenders to Lord Krishna seeking advice and says at the end of advice in Gita “karishye vachanam thava” i.e. “I will act as per your advice”   Arjuna was here willing to be guided by the Lord. Even psycho-analysis and medicine can help only if one is willing to be changed. So one should remember for making the best use of the power:

!) Words are subtler than action; thoughts are more subtler than words.   So take care of your thoughts and be self-conscious to entertain positive thoughts only

2) Deciding consciously what not to do is as important as deciding consciously what to do

Swami Vivekananda said that all that is great and excellent in human life will come if one knows what to speak, what words to employ and what action to perform and acts accordingly.  So not only our actions be self-conscious, the guiding motive must also be righteousness and positive thoughts. 

That brings us to the third great power of mind, Power of selflessness.  Thinking unselfish thoughts, speaking unselfish words and doing unselfish action makes one a good person.   Further unselfishness and spirituality go together. Swami Ranganathananda says that  when he closes his  eyes in meditation, he feels peace flowing in him and when he opens his eyes, his attitude is one of ‘what can I do for others meaning community’.  We should not feel other way i.e. with eyes closed in meditation, letting all agitations and problems surface and when eyes are open to have the attitude of ‘what I can get from the world’.  Get should change to give; it can be in money, time or service.  In a school a teacher once told the students “No class today. Let us all go to the theatre to watch a movie”.  The boys gladly followed the teacher. After returning to class, the teacher gave them each a sheet of paper and asked the students to evaluate their happiness on watching the movie in the scale of 1 to 10. Next week also this exercise was repeated but this time the visit was to a children’s home where they distributed, books, toys, clothes and sweets to the poor children housed there.  After returning to the class now also they evaluated their happiness of being with the children and helping them.  Six weeks later the teacher asked the students to recollect their experience and evaluate the happiness felt then separately for the two visits.  It was found that while the scores were now lower for the visit to movies, the scores for the visit to the children’s home was almost the same or even higher. Then the teacher used the comparison of scores to show them how the happiness derived in giving and helping others i.e. from selfless activity lasts much much longer than the happiness derived from personal entertainment i.e selfish activity..  No doubt one feels happy when entertaining oneself or enjoying a pleasure but the happiness is all more when one helps others and instills happiness in their lives. Swami Vivekananda gave as the ideal to the monks the motto “Athmanasthu mokshartham, Jagat hitaya cha.” i.e. “For the liberation of oneself, For the welfare of the world” and laid as much emphasis on “Love thy neighbor” as on “Love thy God”.  Advaita Vedanta does not subscribe to individual soul being separate and unique. Soul is only one for all and is in essence  Brahman, the Supreme.  So Vivekananda says to be selfish is immoral and he emphasized that each individual should work not only for their individual liberation but also at the same time for the uplift of the less privileged fellow men as well.  The interest and care one takes in working for the welfare of under-privileged and downtrodden in the community must be no less than the interest and care he takes in working for his liberation.  In practice one effort helps the other.

The above three great powers of the mind can be harnessed to promote the feeling of personal happiness and well-being in an individual all the time; if one thinks, speaks and acts self-consciously, engaging oneself in all activities one hundred percent, eschewing selfishness and entertaining positive emotions only.  

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Sadhana Chathushtayam - Four disciplines

Tattva Bodha-1

Tattva Bodha is an introductory text for the study of Vedanta that explains in simple prose style the technical terms of Vedanta. It is a preliminary text for the study of Prasthana thraya viz. Upanishads, Bhagavat Gita and Brahma Sutra.  Sri Sankara who has written commentaries for 10 key Upanishads and the other two of Prasthana thraya has also authored Tattva Bodha.  Tattva Bodha means Self-knowledge, knowledge of our Real nature.  Tattva Bodha opens with a prayer and after prayer comes the first topic “Sadhana Chathushtayam” the four means of practice to be cultivated by a serious student of Self-enquiry to facilitate the absorption of Athma Jnanam, knowledge of Self, at the time of Sravanam, Mananam and Nidhidhyasanam. The four means include also six virtues for disciplining the mind and bringing it under one’s control. Even if one does not have total control over mind initially one should try to cultivate these virtues in full to claim Athma Jnanam as one’s own and become a Jivanmuktha. The four means are:

1.     Viveka – Discrimination
2.    Vairagya – Dispassion
3.    Mumukhsutvam – Desire for Moksha,
4.    Shad Sampath – six virtues for mind-discipline

Swami Paramarthananda refers to them as four D’s – Discrimination, Dispassion, Desire and Discipline.  Now we shall see them one by one in detail.

Viveka – Discrimination.  Viveka is qualified as Nithya Anithya vasthu viveka i.e. the differentiation between the Real and the unreal, between the permanent and the impermanent.   The whole universe exists in space-time frame and anything subject to time cannot be permanent as it has an origin and exit.  Everything in the universe including universe itself is subject to change..  What is permanent is only the changeless substratum of the changing universe i.e. Brahman, which is beyond time and space. This firm knowledge of what is ephemeral and what is eternal is Viveka.

Vairagya – Dispassion.  From the above Viveka, follows Vairagya, dispassion for worldly objects and even for heavenly pleasures.  He does not hate them or run away from them; only he does not crave for them in their absence or get attached to them in their presence. The world and its objects need not be rejected as they have their own limited use.  No slavish addiction even to ethical pleasures is the end-aim of Vairagya.  No person, situation, object, relationship can be depended on for eternal happiness and security.  Dependence on them is like leaning on a cardboard chair.  A cardboard chair can be treasured in the showcase, admired as an ornamental piece but cannot be leaned upon.  This applies to other worldly pleasure as well as they can be enjoyed only so long as one’s punya allows. So the priority is only for attaining Brahman, the eternal one, and for things that will take him to his goal and all other things rank low in priority.  He has only disinterested detachment towards all the pleasures and objects of this world or the other.

Mumukshutvam – intense desire for Moksha. This desire for Moksha, Swami Tejomayananda classifies into four categories

1.     Very dull (ati manda) – “It is Okay if I get it this life, otherwise there is always next life” attitude.  This is not true mumukshutvam

2.     Dull (manda) – “I will start seeking liberation after discharging all my responsibilities” attitude.

3.     Middle (madhyama) – “I must get liberation soon.  The earlier the better” attitude

4.     Strong (theevra) – “I want liberation here and now” attitude.  This person’s intensity is comparable to the intensity of a drowning person for air.

It is the theevra mumukshuthvam  that enables one to reach the goal of Self-knowledge. To him all other qualities accrue easily

4. Shad Sampath – the six virtues. They are:

1.     Sama – Mind control. वृत्तयो मनः(vrrattayo manaha) – mind is thought forms says Ramana Maharishi in Upadesa Saar. So mind control amounts to thought control. The purity of the thoughts can be maintained by good practices like Dhyana, japa, satsang and prayer.  Mind cannot be allowed to have a freedom of its own and it has to follow the direction of the intellect.  This goes hand in hand with Vairagya and Dama, the sense-control.

2.     Dama – Sense control. The sense organs are gateways of the mind to the outer world.  So they determine what enters the mind.  Senses are extrovert by nature and run after their sense objects without any discrimination. It is only through sound intellect and good habits they can be kept on track under control.  Kathopanishad compares sense organs to horses, sensory objects to the path it traverses on, mind to reins and intellect to the charioteer.  Neither reins nor horses should be allowed to determine the direction of the chariot. Only the charioteer should.  Same way mind and Indriyas must be under the control of the intellect and the intellect properly developed through satsang,  and study of scriptures and moral and ethical literature.

3.     Uparama or Uparati – Withdrawl.  It is achieved  through reduction of extrovert activities and turning the mind away from sensual objects and from worldly longings. This comes naturally when one practices Sama and Dama with Viveka and Vairagya and attains inner tranquillity. This is described in Sthitha prajna lakshana in Gita thus:

यदा संहरते चायं कूर्मोऽङ्गानीव सर्वशः। Yadha samharate chayam kurmanganeeva  sarvasaha I
इन्द्रियाणीन्द्रियार्थेभ्यस्तस्य प्रज्ञा प्रतिष्ठिता।।2.58।।Indriyani Indriyrbhyah tasya prajna prathisgtatha II

When, like the tortoise which withdraws on all sides its limbs, he withdraws his senses from the sense-objects, then his wisdom becomes steady.

4..     Tithiksha – forbearance. The ability to bear without reacting, complaining, or blaming oneself or others for contrary experiences at the physical level like heat and cold, at the emotional level like joy and  sorrow , and at the intellectual level like praise and censure, whether conducive or non-conducive. Tithiksha is tolerance of conditions outside one’s control, natural social or physical without losing one’s cool. This gives one a tension-free calm mind that is suitable for reflection on scriptural teachings regarding Self, Athma.

5..     Sraddha – Faith or conviction. Non-critical acceptance of the words of Guru and scriptures.  Sraddha enables one to listen to the words of Guru and scriptures with an open, alert mind and work with determination towards the chosen goal to realize it.   The importance of Sraddha can be seen from these words of Lord Krishna in Gita:

श्रद्धावाँल्लभते ज्ञानं तत्परः संयतेन्द्रियः। Sraddhavan labhate Jnanam tatparah sayatendriyaha I
ज्ञानं लब्ध्वा परां शान्तिमचिरेणाधिगच्छति।।4.39।।Jnanam labdhva param santhim achirenadhigacchathi II

The man with shraddha and devotion, who has subdued the senses, attains Jnanam; and having got this Jnanam he attains at once the Supreme peace.

6..     Samadhana – Chitha Ekagratha, single-pointedness of mind. This is the ability to have the goal in one’s sights always and be constantly focussed in one’s efforts to reach it.  As a bowman has an eye only for the target so must be the concentration of efforts to attain the goal.

Controlling the mind and senses through Sama and Dama, withdrawing from worldly pursuits through Uparama, meeting internal and external challenges through Titiksha and pursuing the goal with Sraddha and Samadhana, a sadhaka attains with Vairagya the goal of Self-knowledge chosen through Viveka and strengthened by Mumukshutvam.  Thus the four fold qualification of Viveka, Vairagya, Mumukshutvam and Shad Sampath leads a sadhaka to Self- knowledge

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Shadanga Yoga

(adapted from Swami Paramarthananda’s talk “Ashtanga Yoga”)

Ashtanga yoga of Patanjali Maharishi consists of eight limbs:
1)    Yama - the five restraints or the "don'ts"

1)  Ahimsa - Non-violence,

2)  Sathyam – Truthfulness and avoidance of telling untruth

3)   Brahmacharyam - Celibacy and avoidance of indecent and inappropriate attitude towards other sex.

4)  Asteyam - Non-stealing

5)  Aparigraha - Non-covetousness and not having a feeling of possessiveness.

2)    Niyama - the five observances or the "do's"

1)    Saucham - Purity, cleanliness

2)   Santoshaha - Contentment

3)   Tapas - Austerity

4)    Swadhyaya - Self-study, study of scriptures

5)    Ishwara Pranidhanam - Surrender to God's will

3)    Asana -  Steady physical posture

4)    Pranayama - Control of prana or life force

5)    Pratyahara -  Withdrawal of the senses

6)    Dharana  -  Concentration

7)    Dhyanam -   Meditation

8)    Samadhi – Total absorption in meditation.

Of these 5 don’ts of Yama, and 5 do’s of Niyama, had been the subject of an earlier lecture of Swami Paramarthananda, or Swamiji in short, under the title “Ten commandments of Hinduism”.  The other six, namely asana, pranayama, pratyahra, dharana, dhyana and samadhi, are the subject of the present lecture under the caption ‘Shadanga yoga”, the yoga with six limbs. In an earlier lecture, Swamiji has discussed ‘What is yoga?’  In the present talk he briefly recalled some points from his earlier talk, as a prelude to the present discourse, that is given in next para.

Yoga is derived from the word ‘Yuj’, that means union, merger.  As per scriptures it is the union between Jivathma, individual self, and Paramathma, the cosmic self.  This Ikyam, called Moksham, is also called parama purushartha, Supreme goal of life.  After initially speaking about Ikyam, scriptures later point out that union is not  necessary as Jivathma and Parmathma are one only and only upadhis are different and upadhis give an appearance of separation.  Jiva in his delusion labours under the notion that Jivathma is different from Paramatma and seeks union with Paramatma. The scriptures talk of this union (yoga) also as separation (viyoga) from our delusion that Jivathma and Paramathma are different and the notions that arise out of the delusion of separation.  Removal of this notional division through Jnanam is called Jivathma Paramatma Ikyam. So, this Ikyam is called Sadhya Yoga as it is the ultimate goal of life and all the other yogas that lead to this Ikya Jnanam, are called Sadhana yogas.

Patanjali Maharishi propounded this ashtanga yoga in his Yoga sutras.  This has two parts: 1) philosophy called yoga dharsan and 2) a scheme of spiritual disciplines i.e. ashtanga yoga called yoga sadhanas.  Yoga dharsan, which talks of the existence of Iswara as supreme Purusha and spells out the aim of Yoga  as fusion or merger of individual soul with the supreme Soul is not acceptable to advaita vedantists but yoga sadhana is accepted as a means of controlling and focussing the mind and internalising the Brahma Jnanam gained through Sravanam and consolidated and made doubt-free through Mananam.  

Patanjali Maharishi defines Yoga as चित्तवृत्तिनिरोधः,chitta vritti nirodaha,blocking mental vrittis, which is interpreted as regulating the mental functions, curbing involuntary thoughts and making all thought patterns satvic.  Our mind is a powerful internal organ.  Its greatness is that it is a main instrument we have for achieving all purusharthams. It is associated with the activities of all organs. And it is also a primary instrument as well, for through its thoughts it can shape one’s attitude and make hell out of heaven or heaven out of hell. That is why chitta suddhi, purity of mind, is insisted in all sadhanas.  Yama and Niyama help in attaining chitta suddhi.  But our mind has involuntary thoughts as well where thoughts happen on their own, besides voluntary thoughts which are deliberate and under our control and in a pure mind only voluntary thoughts become pure and satvic.  Special efforts are required to keep the involuntary thoughts in check and also pure and satvic.  If not, the involuntary thoughts can proliferate and cause emotional disturbances like stress, depression, anxiety etc. that will be an obstacle to progress in spiritual sadhana.  Shadanga yoga helps one to address this problem, retrieving the mind from the hold of involuntary thoughts and bringing back the mind under sadhaka’s control.

Asana is taking up a steady and comfortable physical posture that consciously relaxes the body makes It supple and flexible, balancing the different nerve impulses.  A healthy body facilitates having a healthy mind that can be groomed to bear the opposites like pain and pleasure, heat and cold with equanimity.  Pranayama involves regulation of breadth. Talking about Prana and mind, Ramana Maharishi in Upadesa saar states: शाखयोः द्वयि शक्तिमूलका sakhayoh dvayi sakthimoolaka, two branches stemming from the same power. So you control mind through control of Prana.  Asanas and Pranayama together help in owning up the mind and snatching it, as it were, from the grip of involuntary thoughts.

Pratyahara is the next step where the mind is kept under one’s control denying involuntary thoughts their food by turning the focus of sense organs inwards.  This is what Sri Krishna states as one of stithaprajna lakshnas in Gita (2-58)  

यदा संहरते चायं कूर्मोऽङ्गानीव शर्वशः।  Yada samharathe chaayam kurmonganeeva sarvasaha  
इन्द्रियाणीन्द्रियार्थेभ्यस्तस्य प्रज्ञा प्रतिष्टिता॥ Indriyaneendriyarthebhyah tasya prajna prathishititha                 
When he withdraws his senses from the sense objects like a tortoise, which draws in its limbs from all directions, his mind is stable. 

Dharana is the next step where the mind is given a job like Japa or chanting a prayer slowly with awareness to keep it voluntarily engaged and to maintain control so that it may not stray away into involuntary thoughts. In Dharana concentration is tried to be maintained for five to ten minutes only.  Dhyanam is simply an extension of Dharana, where one is able to maintain a smooth unfluctuating control over the mind not letting it stray into involuntary thoughts for quite a length of time.  Vedantic dhyanam is on one of the Mahavakhyas.  The increased attention span one is able to attain, leads one gradually to the total absorption stage of Samadhi in course of time with constant regular practice and in Samadhi one effortlessly moves into Dhyanam at will and stays for a length of time.  Where effort is involved in doing Dhyanam, Samadhi is attained without effort, at will.  Whereas increase in attention span is achieved in Dhyanam, depth in attention is attained in Samadhi.  When one is conscious of one’s surroundings in Samadhi time, it is called Savikalpa Samadhi. The stage of total absorption where even the triputi of meditator, object of meditation and the process of meditation is also not there in mind, making one appear as dead to one’s environs, is called Nirvikalpa Samadhi. This is the highest state to which all these sadhanas should lead to.  These eight steps are so designed as to gradually lead a spiritual sadhaka to the Nirvikalpa Samadhi.  People like Sri Ramana Maharishi are exceptions who could go to this stage straightaway due to their purva janma vasana aided by divine grace and they cannot be taken as models by spiritual aspirants.

A spiritual aspirant should make a strong resolve, Sankalpa, to reduce the involuntary thoughts.  This can be done through a three-fold strategy -1) resolve firmly and renew the resolve every morning after getting up, 2) alertness during the waking hours by doing all actions consciously and 3) review every night before retiring - aimed at reducing the frequency, intensity and resilience of involuntary thoughts.   Doing action consciously means keeping the mind focused in the action one is doing and such a focused life is called alert life. When one acts consciously, the efficiency and efficacy of the action also increases, besides arresting the mind-wandering which is the cause for involuntary thoughts.  These steps besides Shadanga yoga will help one to win the war over involuntary thoughts, which is necessary to get established in the Ikya Jnanam and mature as Brahma Nishta.

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