Showing posts with label eight limbs of yoga. Show all posts
Showing posts with label eight limbs of yoga. Show all posts
Monday, September 17, 2018
Sunday, September 16, 2018
Yoga is... (Yoga Sutras 4.27-34)... The End
I only know one thing...and that is that I know No-thing...
One of the things that made the Athenians mad enough to condemn Socrates to death is his inadvertent bringing God to be his witness at his trial. Let God, and in this case, Apollo, be my witness to testify that "I am not a wise man," Socrates says in so many words, causing a ruckus in the courtroom to say the least.
In Plato's Apology (which literally means a "defense") of Socrates, the accused relates the story of how once Chaerephon, a fellow Athenian, went to the Oracle at Delphi and asked her who is the wisest man in Athens? The answer was that no-one was wiser than Socrates, with the emphasis on not saying that Socrates was wisest, but that no one was wiser. Socrates took this challenge to heart and went around Athens trying to find someone wiser, or for that matter, who truly knew anything at all. His conclusion was that everyone claims to "know" something, but in reality, we do not really know and nobody had true wisdom as such. And, since Socrates never claimed to know anything, rather, as above, he claimed that the only thing he did know was that he did not know anything...(That is, by the way, Socratic irony par excellence), which means at least he was not a hypocrite about being wise. The Athenians were not amused and sentenced him to death.
We are approaching that sentiment very quickly in the closure of Patañjali's Yoga Sutras as we shall see momentarily. Similar, but different; different, yet similar.
In 4.26, we arrived at the state of mind in which one needs to be in to engage with the ultimate concept of Yoga, Kaivalya, and that mind is one that is fully attuned to the process of discernment and discrimination, that is viveka. Viveka is the path of conscious decisions and processing of information, having shed the veils of a-vidya and the fog of samskãras so that one can see things as they are and not how we want them to be, which are often dramatically different things.
So, the stage is set, the well is primed, and the mind is engaged in viveka, however, we are human after all, as 4.27 reminds us:
tac-chidreshu pratyaya-antarãni samskãrebhyah 4.27
or,
Other ideas/concepts/perceptions arise from the samskãras within the lapses (of the viveka-mind). 4.27
In other words, to paraphrase Horace's lament (via Pope), even Homer nods...When the mind is not fully engaged then we relapse into the perceptions and prejudices governed by the samskãras, or mental impressions. So, at times, we shall all fall back into old habits, and from that comes indiscretion and avidyã rears its ugly head.
4.28, however, reminds us that there is a remedy:
hãnam-eshãm kleshavad-uktam 4.28
The extinction/cessation of these lapses have already been spoken of, as with the kleshas. 4.28
Here, Patañjali reminds us of YS II.10-11 which tells us that when the mind is back in its original state (pre-tainted by samskãras and avidyã), then the kleshas are eliminated, and dhyãna is the key to that return. To return to those highly important sutras, that is when we learn that avidyã is the root of all kleshas, or obstacles to our Yogic path, and consequently the source of our suffering, or duhkham. And, it is at that point that Patañjali provides the 8-limb program, which culminates in the samyama of dhãranã-dhyãna-samãdhi, about which is the focus of Book III.
The lynchpin of the samyama triad, namely dhyãna, or intensive, focused meditation, is once again the answer to ridding ourselves of the kleshas, clearing out the storehouse of karma (YS 4.6), and now also the lapses in our discretion. But, once again, this is not mere navel-gazing, for as we also have seen, that leads to an infinite loop, which leads us nowhere.
Rather, it is intensive, focused meditation on the fact that the Seer (I) and the Seen (thou) are not separate. To see that in everything, at all times then is Kaivalya. Blake's oft-quoted quatrain from "Auguries of Innocence" comes to mind:
To see the World in a Grain of Sand,
And a Heaven in a Wild Flower,
Hold Infinity in the Palm of your Hand,
And Eternity in an Hour...
One of the things that made the Athenians mad enough to condemn Socrates to death is his inadvertent bringing God to be his witness at his trial. Let God, and in this case, Apollo, be my witness to testify that "I am not a wise man," Socrates says in so many words, causing a ruckus in the courtroom to say the least.
In Plato's Apology (which literally means a "defense") of Socrates, the accused relates the story of how once Chaerephon, a fellow Athenian, went to the Oracle at Delphi and asked her who is the wisest man in Athens? The answer was that no-one was wiser than Socrates, with the emphasis on not saying that Socrates was wisest, but that no one was wiser. Socrates took this challenge to heart and went around Athens trying to find someone wiser, or for that matter, who truly knew anything at all. His conclusion was that everyone claims to "know" something, but in reality, we do not really know and nobody had true wisdom as such. And, since Socrates never claimed to know anything, rather, as above, he claimed that the only thing he did know was that he did not know anything...(That is, by the way, Socratic irony par excellence), which means at least he was not a hypocrite about being wise. The Athenians were not amused and sentenced him to death.
We are approaching that sentiment very quickly in the closure of Patañjali's Yoga Sutras as we shall see momentarily. Similar, but different; different, yet similar.
In 4.26, we arrived at the state of mind in which one needs to be in to engage with the ultimate concept of Yoga, Kaivalya, and that mind is one that is fully attuned to the process of discernment and discrimination, that is viveka. Viveka is the path of conscious decisions and processing of information, having shed the veils of a-vidya and the fog of samskãras so that one can see things as they are and not how we want them to be, which are often dramatically different things.
So, the stage is set, the well is primed, and the mind is engaged in viveka, however, we are human after all, as 4.27 reminds us:
tac-chidreshu pratyaya-antarãni samskãrebhyah 4.27
or,
Other ideas/concepts/perceptions arise from the samskãras within the lapses (of the viveka-mind). 4.27
In other words, to paraphrase Horace's lament (via Pope), even Homer nods...When the mind is not fully engaged then we relapse into the perceptions and prejudices governed by the samskãras, or mental impressions. So, at times, we shall all fall back into old habits, and from that comes indiscretion and avidyã rears its ugly head.
4.28, however, reminds us that there is a remedy:
hãnam-eshãm kleshavad-uktam 4.28
The extinction/cessation of these lapses have already been spoken of, as with the kleshas. 4.28
Here, Patañjali reminds us of YS II.10-11 which tells us that when the mind is back in its original state (pre-tainted by samskãras and avidyã), then the kleshas are eliminated, and dhyãna is the key to that return. To return to those highly important sutras, that is when we learn that avidyã is the root of all kleshas, or obstacles to our Yogic path, and consequently the source of our suffering, or duhkham. And, it is at that point that Patañjali provides the 8-limb program, which culminates in the samyama of dhãranã-dhyãna-samãdhi, about which is the focus of Book III.
The lynchpin of the samyama triad, namely dhyãna, or intensive, focused meditation, is once again the answer to ridding ourselves of the kleshas, clearing out the storehouse of karma (YS 4.6), and now also the lapses in our discretion. But, once again, this is not mere navel-gazing, for as we also have seen, that leads to an infinite loop, which leads us nowhere.
Rather, it is intensive, focused meditation on the fact that the Seer (I) and the Seen (thou) are not separate. To see that in everything, at all times then is Kaivalya. Blake's oft-quoted quatrain from "Auguries of Innocence" comes to mind:
To see the World in a Grain of Sand,
And a Heaven in a Wild Flower,
Hold Infinity in the Palm of your Hand,
And Eternity in an Hour...
This is the vision, the discretion that Kaivalya requires through dhyãna. It is the conscious awareness that leads to letting go of the dualities to arrive at the ultimate singularity.
We continue then with 4.29-30 which introduces us to the most curious phrase in all of the sutras:
prasamkhyãne'apyakusIdasya sarvathã viveka-khyãter-dharma-meghah samãdhih 4.29
tatah kleshakarmanivrittih 4.30
Giving us,
The "dharma-cloud" of samãdhi comes for the one whom is even disinterested/dispassionate about the constant perception of viveka. 4.29
Then, the kleshas and karma (or karmic affliction) are released. 4.30
Or, read slightly differently together:
The samãdhi (total integration/synthesis of Yoga) of the dharma-megha (dharma-cloud) comes about for one who is utterly free of attachment, even from the process of viveka and then, the affliction of karma is released. 4.29-30
The dharma-megha, or Dharma-cloud, then is a curious entity that does not appear anywhere else in Sanskrit philosophy, but is vaguely Buddhist in context...treading the Dhamma-pada, or path of Dharma is the highest order of enlightenment for the jivan-mukti, or one who is released in this life-time. None of the commentators actually know what the dharma-megha is, so I am not going to speculate further than the visual of one being fully enraptured by Dharma, meaning, one who has found his or her Dharma in life via the path of Yoga and then lives it, rather than just talks about it. The samãdhi, or total integration and synthesis then of Yoga is now at hand.
The dharma-megha also sounds similar, yet different to the mystical Christian concept of "The cloude of unknowyng" or "The Cloud of Unknowing," a chiefly medieval concept (via Neo-Platonists...) that to know God, to truly know God, means to let go of everything one knows...to forget in order to remember. The Greek concept of Truth as well is a-letheia, or un-forgetting in order to remember what we have lost, looking at the Universe for what it is, not what we make it. The veil of illusion, of Mãya, or demonic magic that the Buddha overcomes is none other than the human constructs and concepts and prejudices that we build up for ourselves and promote as "truths," yet as Socrates found, they are not wisdom, but merely opinions.
And so, for the Yogi/ni, the dharma-cloud engulfs and enshrouds, but does not blind nor veil, but reveals, apo-kalyptestai...
tadã sarvãvarana-mala-ãpetasya jñãnasyãdantyãjñeyam-alam 4.31
or,
Then, from the infinity from the result of the maladies of concealments have been removed, there is little to be known. 4.31
In other words, when we know longer seek to know by reason, and have fully integrated the Dharma, there is nothing much to be known. In other words, when the Dharma is known, and one walks the walk, there is nothing really more to know. However, it is then a continuous process of integrity, not an easy path. But, as Mark Twain is attributed to have said once, "If you tell the truth, you don't have to remember anything." Here, if you live the Dharma, you don't need to know anything...Sounds easy, living it is another thing all together.
4.32 continues:
tatah kritãrthãnãm parinãma-krama-parisamãptir-gunãnãm 4.32
or,
From this, with their purposes now fulfilled, the sequence of permutations of the gunas comes to an end. 4.32
Echoing the Bhagavad Gita of Krishna's directive to Arjuna to eventually transcend the gunas, because Krishna is beyond the gunas, and Krishna is the Universe, when the Dharma-megha reigns supreme in the Yogi/ni's life, the gunas are irrelevant as they have served their purpose for the mundane, but now they are inconsequential.
And so, we come to the End with 4.33-34:
kshana-pratiyogI parinãmãparãnta-nirgrãhyah kramah 4.33
purushãrtha-shUnyãnãm gunãnãm pratiprasavah kaivalyam svarupa-pratishthã vã cit-shaktir-iti 4.34
Giving us,
The sequence (of permutations) is grasped at the extreme end of change, which corresponds to small increments of Time. 4.33
Ending with:
Kaivalya, the ultimate singularity of liberation, the returning to the original state of the gunas, devoid of all purpose for Purusha, is steadfast in one's own nature, known as the power of consciousness. 4.34
When there exists illusion of the separation between the Seer and the Seen (YS 3-4), this begins a series of perceived changes (parinãma) that are linked by infinitely small increments of Time (kshana), which causes the gunas to hold sway over our Self/Atman/Purusha because of the power of avidyã. Following the path of Yoga as has been laid out by Patañjali, these increments of Time no longer exist as in the state of Kaivalya, the Seer and the Seen are united (as they were never separate in reality) and the svarupa, or true form of our Selves is experienced by the samãdhi of the Dharma-megha, or the power of consciousness as true awareness...and the cessation of the fluctuations of the mind-stuff then happens.
Monday, September 10, 2018
Beauty is (Not) in the Eye of the Beholder (Yoga Sutras 4.16-21)
Turning the last corner of the Yoga Sutras on our quest for discerning what actually Kaivalya is, we found that the method of Neti Neti is being used to some extent, namely: to define something, sometimes the best way is to say what it is not, rather than what it is. This seems to be the case at hand.
Before moving on to 4.16, it is prudent to take a step back to 4.15, which seems to be rather linked to it.
In the last post, we saw that 4.15 tells us more or less that due to a multiplicity of minds, there are many paths for the perception of an object, begging the question of perspectivism and/or relativity, meaning: if I see an object as one thing, and you see it as another, are we both right and there are two objects? Or, are we both wrong? Or...both and neither? This likewise leads to the questions of taste and aversion and attraction and so forth. Is an object/person inherently beautiful/repulsive, or is it in the eye of the beholder as the saying goes?
Turning to 4.16 then with this in mind, we see:
na caika-citta-tantram ced-vastu tad-apramãnakam tadã kim syãt 4.16
Giving us,
Nor is it (the being--vastu) dependent upon a singular consciousness (eka-citta), for if the object was not perceived/observed, then what would it be? 4.16
So, 4.16 is interesting for a number of reason, not in the least that it truly asks the reader a question: tadã kim syãt? Then, what would it (the being/existing object) be [if not observed]? This is highly interesting in the subject/object split, because it says that an object does not exist because it is perceived...The more interesting flip-side of that is that what we perceive an object or person to be, does not make it so, and moreover, may not at all be what we think/perceive/believe/observe it to be! You could think something/someone is very beautiful/good/ugly/harmful, but it does not matter if that is not what that person or thing is.
Only by seeing it/him/her as what they truly are, then there is perception. However, as we have seen again and again, the samskãra filters and memory and preconceived ideas inhibit this process, hence the goal of Yoga to remove those filters and de-clutter the noise of the senses so that we can finally begin to see things as they truly are. The hesitation of course is that we might not like what we see...
Which leads us to 4.17:
tad-uparãgãpekshatvãc-cittasya vastu jñãtãjñãtam 4.17
Or,
Due to the influence of expectation, an object is known or not known by a mind/consciousness. 4.17
In other words, what we bring to the table with respect to expectations can cloud our judgment about what is actually going on. If we want something to better than it is, we can fool ourselves, or, we can likewise make something worse than it is, and in both cases, we are not actually seeing the event/person/object for what it is. Okay, that is rather a negative thought, begging the question, "can we ever get past this?"
Yoga and Buddhism say "yes," despite the veneer of Pessimism that is attached to this situation. However, that "yes" does not come easy. We are still not quite there, so we need to look into the situation a bit further, with 4.18-19 then:
sadã jñãtãsh-citta-vrittayas-tat-prabhoh purushasya-aparinãmitvãt 4.18
na tat svãbhãsam drishyatvãt 4.19
Giving us,
The fluctuations/movements/behaviors of the mind are always known because of the non-changing nature of the guiding/governing Purusha (Soul). 4.18
And not because of the ability to see the radiance of them. 4.19
Here I am deviating from many of the translations out there but sticking to the Sanskrit instead, which ultimately yields a rather logical couplet. In other words, we have:
The immutable Soul truly knows the behaviors/fluctuations (vrittayah) of consciousness/the mind (citta), not because it perceives them. 4.18-19
Which bring us back to Do, a female deer....The circle finally begins to close. We began back in February with the first two sutras, the second one being the well-known "definition" of Yoga by Patañjali:
Yogas'citta-vritti-nirodhah....Yoga is the temperance/cessation of the mind's fluctuations/modifications/behaviors and the like...
And now, here in the middle of Book 4, with the end in sight, we are reminded why we came to this party in the first place, to find out what Yoga is and what is its purpose. With 4.18-19, we start to return to the original question after building up the method of the 8-limb path, figuring out what role the senses play, the mind, and the Soul...So, here, we have the notion that it is not because the Soul/Purusha perceives something, it is because it is beyond Time...a-parinãma, because parinãma, or change and evolution or transformation is only a perception of Time.
Because, if we were to experience something across the Space-Time continuum, within the 4th Dimension, so to speak, then we would not see change, but all things at all times...and that, according to 4.19 is the actual nature of the Soul, and it is the Mind, or reason that perceives change and therefore difference, causing us to judge and not truly observe. Again, Patañjali is not proposing some simple solution, this is heavy stuff.
And, then we arrive at 4.20-21:
eka-samaye cobhayãnavadhãranam 4.20
citta-antaradrishye buddhi-buddher-atiprasangah smriti-samkarah 4.21
And, there can be no discernment of both at the same time (mind/Soul) 4.20
In the seeing of the mind within the mind, as a thought of a thought, there would be an endless loop and a confusion of memory. 4.21
These two sutras are a bit murky still, but this the gist of the matter:
Mind/Soul cannot be distinguished as Subject/Object, because the result would be an infinite regress or loop of self-reflection--mirrors reflecting mirrors ad infinitum.
This version of Neti, Neti here then, of saying why something cannot happen, is setting us up for the final dozen or so sutras to lead us to the end, to Kaivalya, and the rejection of a duality between the Seer and the Seen, which will then lead us to the temperance of the vrittayah of the citta...
So close now.
To be continued.
Before moving on to 4.16, it is prudent to take a step back to 4.15, which seems to be rather linked to it.
In the last post, we saw that 4.15 tells us more or less that due to a multiplicity of minds, there are many paths for the perception of an object, begging the question of perspectivism and/or relativity, meaning: if I see an object as one thing, and you see it as another, are we both right and there are two objects? Or, are we both wrong? Or...both and neither? This likewise leads to the questions of taste and aversion and attraction and so forth. Is an object/person inherently beautiful/repulsive, or is it in the eye of the beholder as the saying goes?
Turning to 4.16 then with this in mind, we see:
na caika-citta-tantram ced-vastu tad-apramãnakam tadã kim syãt 4.16
Giving us,
Nor is it (the being--vastu) dependent upon a singular consciousness (eka-citta), for if the object was not perceived/observed, then what would it be? 4.16
So, 4.16 is interesting for a number of reason, not in the least that it truly asks the reader a question: tadã kim syãt? Then, what would it (the being/existing object) be [if not observed]? This is highly interesting in the subject/object split, because it says that an object does not exist because it is perceived...The more interesting flip-side of that is that what we perceive an object or person to be, does not make it so, and moreover, may not at all be what we think/perceive/believe/observe it to be! You could think something/someone is very beautiful/good/ugly/harmful, but it does not matter if that is not what that person or thing is.
Only by seeing it/him/her as what they truly are, then there is perception. However, as we have seen again and again, the samskãra filters and memory and preconceived ideas inhibit this process, hence the goal of Yoga to remove those filters and de-clutter the noise of the senses so that we can finally begin to see things as they truly are. The hesitation of course is that we might not like what we see...
Which leads us to 4.17:
tad-uparãgãpekshatvãc-cittasya vastu jñãtãjñãtam 4.17
Or,
Due to the influence of expectation, an object is known or not known by a mind/consciousness. 4.17
In other words, what we bring to the table with respect to expectations can cloud our judgment about what is actually going on. If we want something to better than it is, we can fool ourselves, or, we can likewise make something worse than it is, and in both cases, we are not actually seeing the event/person/object for what it is. Okay, that is rather a negative thought, begging the question, "can we ever get past this?"
Yoga and Buddhism say "yes," despite the veneer of Pessimism that is attached to this situation. However, that "yes" does not come easy. We are still not quite there, so we need to look into the situation a bit further, with 4.18-19 then:
sadã jñãtãsh-citta-vrittayas-tat-prabhoh purushasya-aparinãmitvãt 4.18
na tat svãbhãsam drishyatvãt 4.19
Giving us,
The fluctuations/movements/behaviors of the mind are always known because of the non-changing nature of the guiding/governing Purusha (Soul). 4.18
And not because of the ability to see the radiance of them. 4.19
Here I am deviating from many of the translations out there but sticking to the Sanskrit instead, which ultimately yields a rather logical couplet. In other words, we have:
The immutable Soul truly knows the behaviors/fluctuations (vrittayah) of consciousness/the mind (citta), not because it perceives them. 4.18-19
Which bring us back to Do, a female deer....The circle finally begins to close. We began back in February with the first two sutras, the second one being the well-known "definition" of Yoga by Patañjali:
Yogas'citta-vritti-nirodhah....Yoga is the temperance/cessation of the mind's fluctuations/modifications/behaviors and the like...
And now, here in the middle of Book 4, with the end in sight, we are reminded why we came to this party in the first place, to find out what Yoga is and what is its purpose. With 4.18-19, we start to return to the original question after building up the method of the 8-limb path, figuring out what role the senses play, the mind, and the Soul...So, here, we have the notion that it is not because the Soul/Purusha perceives something, it is because it is beyond Time...a-parinãma, because parinãma, or change and evolution or transformation is only a perception of Time.
Because, if we were to experience something across the Space-Time continuum, within the 4th Dimension, so to speak, then we would not see change, but all things at all times...and that, according to 4.19 is the actual nature of the Soul, and it is the Mind, or reason that perceives change and therefore difference, causing us to judge and not truly observe. Again, Patañjali is not proposing some simple solution, this is heavy stuff.
And, then we arrive at 4.20-21:
eka-samaye cobhayãnavadhãranam 4.20
citta-antaradrishye buddhi-buddher-atiprasangah smriti-samkarah 4.21
And, there can be no discernment of both at the same time (mind/Soul) 4.20
In the seeing of the mind within the mind, as a thought of a thought, there would be an endless loop and a confusion of memory. 4.21
These two sutras are a bit murky still, but this the gist of the matter:
Mind/Soul cannot be distinguished as Subject/Object, because the result would be an infinite regress or loop of self-reflection--mirrors reflecting mirrors ad infinitum.
This version of Neti, Neti here then, of saying why something cannot happen, is setting us up for the final dozen or so sutras to lead us to the end, to Kaivalya, and the rejection of a duality between the Seer and the Seen, which will then lead us to the temperance of the vrittayah of the citta...
So close now.
To be continued.
Friday, August 24, 2018
Be Careful What You Ask For, Book III of Patañjali's Yoga Sutras
Turn and Face the Strange (Ch-ch-changes...YS 3.8-13)
Journey to the East (YS 3.14-16)
You Don't Say... (YS 3.17-20)
I am Superman, and I know what's happening... (YS 3.21-34)
And, Along came a Spider (YS 3.35-37)
Walk the Rice Paper, Young Grasshopper (YS 3.38-43)
The Measure of All Things (YS 3.43-48)
Divide and Conquer, Unite and Transcend (YS 3.49-55)
Tuesday, August 21, 2018
Divide and Conquer, Unite and Transcend (Yoga Sutras 3.49-55)
The time has come. The pathway has been laid out before us, the pitfalls and obstacles identified, we have been given the key to release the shackles of ignorance, the maps have been drawn and the warnings given. There is only one choice to be made at this juncture.
Continue with this challenge, or return to status quo, the familiar.
We now close in on Book 3 with this daunting, and it is daunting, challenge when we arrive at the following sutras. The well has been fully primed, and it should be no surprise what lies behind the veil, and yet, it is...so let us continue.
3.49-50 then reveal:
sattva-purusha-anyatã-khyãti-mãtrasya sarvabhãva-adhishthãnritvam sarva-jñãtritvam 3.49
tad-vairãgyãd-api dosha-bîja-kshaye kaivalyam 3.50
Giving us:
Only for the one who recognizes the difference between sattva (reason/Mind) and purusha (consciousness/true awareness/Soul) is there the intelligence of all and supremacy over all beings. 3.49
However, even from vairãgyam (detachment) from that state comes kaivalyam (absolute singularity) in the destruction of the affliction of the seed concept (for samãdhi). 3.50
Bam. The sutra heard around the Yoga world...duality is only apparently the final step...non-duality is the ultimate one.
I cannot stress how influential it has been for centuries that this turn at 3.50 has been ignored or simply denied.
The message here is quite clear: Duality brings us omniscience and omnipotence; Non-Duality brings us freedom, because the former is the highest form of bondage ever.
To restate.
What we have been building up for the entire Yoga Sutras thus far are the tools to refine our sense of discretion, or viveka, in order to recognize the difference between sattva (pure reason) and purusha (pure intelligence) through the 8-limb path of Yoga and through diligent, long-lasting practice (abhyãsa) and ultimate detachment (vairãgyam) from the fruits of our actions. It is what we do when the Bee stings.
That is to stand at the abyss. 3.50 dares us to jump. And, this is when we falter, we hesitate, we freeze, or we turn around.
We fear Kaivalyam above all else. It is the most primal fear of all. It drives us to act when we should not or not to act when we should. It paralyzes and it enervates us to even think about it. It is the monster in the closet, the fear of turning off the lights.
Krishnamurti often spoke about the difference between being lonely and being alone. Being lonely gives us a perverse comfort because we can feel sorry for ourselves, we can play the victim to an audience of one, thus creating two. From the singularity comes duality. To be alone is the opposite, it is to extract yourself from the continuum of the flow, and to still the thoughts, the vrittis in the mind, because at that moment, you are no longer distracted by the buzzing of technology, the chatter of inane conversations around you, the to-do lists in your head, the frets and anxieties of what "might" happen, the text messages that barrage you on your Smart phone...and the list goes on. To be alone is to detach from all of that. To un-plug, unconditionally. To actually see and to listen to your own heartbeat and breath. To be as primal as the original, first element of the Universe. And, it is terrifying. But, it is the ultimate liberation.
Kaivalyam is: To be utterly alone.
And, we balk. We hesitate. We turn back to the familiar.
Or, we go forward.
3.51-53 give us some final tools of advice before we leap. One final samyama to perform...
sthãnyupanimantrane sangasmayãkaranam punar-anisththaprasangãt 3.51
ksana-tat-kramayoh samyamãd-vivekajam jñãnam 3.52
jãti-lakshana-deshair-anyatãnavacchedãt-tulyayos-tatah pratipattih 3.53
Upon the enticement of divine beings, one should shun being/acting in awe, lest falling prey to attachment/desire again. 3.51
By performing samyama on the absolute present and its progression, knowledge born from discretion (viveka) occurs. 3.52
At that time, the discernment of two identical essences can be determined, though they are not distinct in species/type, quality or location. 3.53
3.51 gives us the final warning...the warning of the Midas Touch. The Temptation of Christ. The apple to Adam and Eve.
If the Yogi/ni has reached such a level of progression upon his or her 8-limb path that the deities themselves are enticing them, beware because that is merely seduction. When Buddha was nearing his ultimate Enlightenment, to become the Buddha, the Awakened One, he was first seduced by Mara (the agent of Death), the demon who tries to seduce Guatama with the most prevalent human temptation of all: sex and power...
The Buddha saw that this too was seduction for attachment and was not to be his path. He touched the Earth as his witness as testimony that even the divine and demonic could not sway him and that he was grounded in being alone. Kaivalyam.
3.52 and 3.53 then return to the concept of setting up discretion (viveka) as the ultimate tool, one that soon too will be discarded. However, like Picasso learning the rules of Realism first, he could then break the rules to create Cubism. John Cage had to know the meaning of sound before presenting silence. The Yogi/ni has to refine discretion/discernment before abandoning even that. For, if we have not truly looked, truly seen and experienced, then it is false. It becomes bumper-sticker slogans: "All is One" "Be One with the Universe" "Love and Light" that eventually mean No-thing if one has not truly experienced them.
In 12-step programs, one saying is "One day at a Time." A bumper sticker. A wall poster. If you have not lived it. 3.52 calls upon us to live it. To perform samyama on the immediate NOW. It is very trendy for people to spout out "Live in the Moment" and some people have made millions of dollars saying what Patañjali and others have said for thousands of years. Nothing new under the sun. It is mere psycho-babble, a palliative for the masses, and it sells.
To buy it is one thing, to live it another.
3.52 challenges us to live in the ever-present now, that kshana (which like the original Greek meaning of a-tom, means that which cannot be divided/cut further) is the smallest, infinitesimal description of Time, meaning, no Time. And yet, things change. There is a krama, a progression form one kshana to the next, that is imperceptible to one who is casually living, but for the Yogi/ni who is aware and hyper-observant, there is discretion, but that too, is not the bigger picture. It is the forest for the trees once again.
3.53 is resonant with a concept in Physics that has fascinated me for some time now. Entanglement. It is the process in which two essences become entangled at the quantum level, the absolute fundamental level in such a way that they can be on opposite sides of the Universe and still be linked by communication that supersedes even the speed of Light. They are linked identically and simultaneously, irrespective of Time and Place, and once entangled, it is permanent.
3.53 says then that even the Yogi/ni can discern between the Entanglement, despite to all other observers, there is no difference.
And, yet, that again, is just parlor tricks. 3.54-55 lead us beyond that Rabbit Hole that we entered at the beginning of Book 3. We are on the other side of the Black Hole now.
tãrakam sarvavishayam sarvathã-vishayam akramam ceti vivekajam jñãnam 3.54
sattva-purushayoh shuddhi-sãmye kaivalyam iti 3.55
Leaving us to conclude Book 3 with:
Knowledge born of discretion is the liberator of all objects, everywhere and is a singularity in Time. 3.54
Kavilayam occurs then in the absolute equality of the pureness of sattva (reason) and purusha (consciousness). 3.55
We divide by discretion. We recognize the difference between pure reason and pure consciousness, only to then see that they are merely two sides of the same coin, Kaivalyam, so we then unite, and transcend.
And, so, the curtain has been pulled back, the veil removed, the apo-calpyse begins, and what do we find behind?
A mirror.
With the reflection of ourselves, ... alone.
Book 4 awaits.
Continue with this challenge, or return to status quo, the familiar.
We now close in on Book 3 with this daunting, and it is daunting, challenge when we arrive at the following sutras. The well has been fully primed, and it should be no surprise what lies behind the veil, and yet, it is...so let us continue.
3.49-50 then reveal:
sattva-purusha-anyatã-khyãti-mãtrasya sarvabhãva-adhishthãnritvam sarva-jñãtritvam 3.49
tad-vairãgyãd-api dosha-bîja-kshaye kaivalyam 3.50
Giving us:
Only for the one who recognizes the difference between sattva (reason/Mind) and purusha (consciousness/true awareness/Soul) is there the intelligence of all and supremacy over all beings. 3.49
However, even from vairãgyam (detachment) from that state comes kaivalyam (absolute singularity) in the destruction of the affliction of the seed concept (for samãdhi). 3.50
Bam. The sutra heard around the Yoga world...duality is only apparently the final step...non-duality is the ultimate one.
I cannot stress how influential it has been for centuries that this turn at 3.50 has been ignored or simply denied.
The message here is quite clear: Duality brings us omniscience and omnipotence; Non-Duality brings us freedom, because the former is the highest form of bondage ever.
To restate.
What we have been building up for the entire Yoga Sutras thus far are the tools to refine our sense of discretion, or viveka, in order to recognize the difference between sattva (pure reason) and purusha (pure intelligence) through the 8-limb path of Yoga and through diligent, long-lasting practice (abhyãsa) and ultimate detachment (vairãgyam) from the fruits of our actions. It is what we do when the Bee stings.
That is to stand at the abyss. 3.50 dares us to jump. And, this is when we falter, we hesitate, we freeze, or we turn around.
We fear Kaivalyam above all else. It is the most primal fear of all. It drives us to act when we should not or not to act when we should. It paralyzes and it enervates us to even think about it. It is the monster in the closet, the fear of turning off the lights.
Krishnamurti often spoke about the difference between being lonely and being alone. Being lonely gives us a perverse comfort because we can feel sorry for ourselves, we can play the victim to an audience of one, thus creating two. From the singularity comes duality. To be alone is the opposite, it is to extract yourself from the continuum of the flow, and to still the thoughts, the vrittis in the mind, because at that moment, you are no longer distracted by the buzzing of technology, the chatter of inane conversations around you, the to-do lists in your head, the frets and anxieties of what "might" happen, the text messages that barrage you on your Smart phone...and the list goes on. To be alone is to detach from all of that. To un-plug, unconditionally. To actually see and to listen to your own heartbeat and breath. To be as primal as the original, first element of the Universe. And, it is terrifying. But, it is the ultimate liberation.
Kaivalyam is: To be utterly alone.
And, we balk. We hesitate. We turn back to the familiar.
Or, we go forward.
3.51-53 give us some final tools of advice before we leap. One final samyama to perform...
sthãnyupanimantrane sangasmayãkaranam punar-anisththaprasangãt 3.51
ksana-tat-kramayoh samyamãd-vivekajam jñãnam 3.52
jãti-lakshana-deshair-anyatãnavacchedãt-tulyayos-tatah pratipattih 3.53
Upon the enticement of divine beings, one should shun being/acting in awe, lest falling prey to attachment/desire again. 3.51
By performing samyama on the absolute present and its progression, knowledge born from discretion (viveka) occurs. 3.52
At that time, the discernment of two identical essences can be determined, though they are not distinct in species/type, quality or location. 3.53
3.51 gives us the final warning...the warning of the Midas Touch. The Temptation of Christ. The apple to Adam and Eve.
If the Yogi/ni has reached such a level of progression upon his or her 8-limb path that the deities themselves are enticing them, beware because that is merely seduction. When Buddha was nearing his ultimate Enlightenment, to become the Buddha, the Awakened One, he was first seduced by Mara (the agent of Death), the demon who tries to seduce Guatama with the most prevalent human temptation of all: sex and power...
The Buddha saw that this too was seduction for attachment and was not to be his path. He touched the Earth as his witness as testimony that even the divine and demonic could not sway him and that he was grounded in being alone. Kaivalyam.
3.52 and 3.53 then return to the concept of setting up discretion (viveka) as the ultimate tool, one that soon too will be discarded. However, like Picasso learning the rules of Realism first, he could then break the rules to create Cubism. John Cage had to know the meaning of sound before presenting silence. The Yogi/ni has to refine discretion/discernment before abandoning even that. For, if we have not truly looked, truly seen and experienced, then it is false. It becomes bumper-sticker slogans: "All is One" "Be One with the Universe" "Love and Light" that eventually mean No-thing if one has not truly experienced them.
In 12-step programs, one saying is "One day at a Time." A bumper sticker. A wall poster. If you have not lived it. 3.52 calls upon us to live it. To perform samyama on the immediate NOW. It is very trendy for people to spout out "Live in the Moment" and some people have made millions of dollars saying what Patañjali and others have said for thousands of years. Nothing new under the sun. It is mere psycho-babble, a palliative for the masses, and it sells.
To buy it is one thing, to live it another.
3.52 challenges us to live in the ever-present now, that kshana (which like the original Greek meaning of a-tom, means that which cannot be divided/cut further) is the smallest, infinitesimal description of Time, meaning, no Time. And yet, things change. There is a krama, a progression form one kshana to the next, that is imperceptible to one who is casually living, but for the Yogi/ni who is aware and hyper-observant, there is discretion, but that too, is not the bigger picture. It is the forest for the trees once again.
3.53 is resonant with a concept in Physics that has fascinated me for some time now. Entanglement. It is the process in which two essences become entangled at the quantum level, the absolute fundamental level in such a way that they can be on opposite sides of the Universe and still be linked by communication that supersedes even the speed of Light. They are linked identically and simultaneously, irrespective of Time and Place, and once entangled, it is permanent.
3.53 says then that even the Yogi/ni can discern between the Entanglement, despite to all other observers, there is no difference.
And, yet, that again, is just parlor tricks. 3.54-55 lead us beyond that Rabbit Hole that we entered at the beginning of Book 3. We are on the other side of the Black Hole now.
tãrakam sarvavishayam sarvathã-vishayam akramam ceti vivekajam jñãnam 3.54
sattva-purushayoh shuddhi-sãmye kaivalyam iti 3.55
Leaving us to conclude Book 3 with:
Knowledge born of discretion is the liberator of all objects, everywhere and is a singularity in Time. 3.54
Kavilayam occurs then in the absolute equality of the pureness of sattva (reason) and purusha (consciousness). 3.55
We divide by discretion. We recognize the difference between pure reason and pure consciousness, only to then see that they are merely two sides of the same coin, Kaivalyam, so we then unite, and transcend.
And, so, the curtain has been pulled back, the veil removed, the apo-calpyse begins, and what do we find behind?
A mirror.
With the reflection of ourselves, ... alone.
Book 4 awaits.
Sunday, June 10, 2018
Book 'Em Danno, Books I and II of Patañjali's Yoga Sutras, Translation and Commentary
Patañjali's Yoga Sutras: Translations and Commentary
Want Samãdhi to Love, Book I: Samãdhi
Stairway to Heaven, Book II :Sãdhanã
Want Samãdhi to Love, Book I: Samãdhi
Stairway to Heaven, Book II :Sãdhanã
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