Aphorisms of Yoga.

पातञ्जल-योगसूत्राणि

--

In the last post, we could see how वृत्ति / vritti is the starting point of :

पातञ्जल योग Yoga of Patanjali.

The very first aphorism is :

अथ योगानुशासनम्।।१।।

And the next is :

योगश्चित्तवृत्तिनिरोधः।।२।।

This implies cessation of the flow of vritti is the first step in practicing this "Yoga".

Yoga of Patanjali is therefore a discipline / अनुशासनम्. 

If this is properly done, this results in fixing the mind in a state, where no वृत्ति / vritti, or the interplay between the object (विषय) and the subject (विषयी) is any more.

Then :

तदा द्रष्टुः स्वरूपेऽवस्थानम्।।३।।

And then the observer (द्रष्टा) gets settled in its natural state of just being, without being this or that, without identifying itself with any of the objects what-so-ever.

What happens when the state of just being is disturbed? This has been pointed out in the next aphorism :

वृत्तिसारूप्यमितरत्र।।४।।

This natural state of pure uncontaminated being, where the mind (consciousness) stays unruffled, without identification with a vritti is called the "witness" / "दृष्टा".

Where the mind moves away from this state, the play of the vritti / वृत्ति begins and at once Consciousness (दृष्टा) splits into the object विषय and the subject विषयी. 

The विषयी / the subject then appears to have assumed the character and the form of the विषय / object. The विषयी / subject is changeless in comparison with the विषय / object, and the object undergoes changing all the time. One object विषय is replaced by another object and this play goes on indefinitely without an end. Identification (वृत्ति सारूप्यम) is the state when the विषयी / subject is totally and completely absorbed in a single विषय / object. This state of  indulgence is itself the vritti / वृत्ति.

When all vritti / वृत्ति  ceases to exist, there is neither the indulgence, nor the वृत्ति-सारूप्यम् / identification. Still the state of pure being is in no way affected.

--

This is the preliminary about the vritti / वृत्ति and how to deal with it. Yet the Sense of "I" that prevails over all states of the mind is an important aspect of vritti / वृत्ति. There is this sense, the underlying principle that is what enables one to claim one's individuality as being an individual / some-one.

This sense of being some-one is referred to by Patanjali as the "misery" / "क्लेश" while the same could be also said to be the ego / अहंकार.

तपःस्वाध्यायेश्वरप्रणिधानानि क्रियायोगः।। १।।

समाधिभावनार्थः क्लेशतनूकरणार्थश्च।।२।।

अविद्यास्मितारागद्वेषाभिनिवेशाः क्लेशाः।।३।।

अविद्या क्षेत्रमुत्तरेषां प्रसुप्ततनुविच्छिन्नोदाराणाम्।।४।।

अनित्याशुचिदुःखानात्मसु नित्यशुचिसुखात्मख्यातिरविद्या।।५।।

दृग्दर्शनशक्तयोरेकात्मतैवास्मिता।।६।।

The same has been indicated by the word अहं-प्रत्यय for the same, by Sri Shankaracharya, (vivekachudamani 125) while Sri Ramana Maharshi refers to this as in Upadesh Sarah by  अहं-वृत्ति The two references are as under :

अस्ति कश्चित् स्वयं नित्यं अहं-प्रत्ययलम्बनः।।

अवस्थात्रय साक्षी सन् पञ्चकोषविलक्षणः।।१२५।।

(विवेकचूडामणि) 

वृत्तयस्त्वहंवृत्तिमाश्रिताः।।

वृत्तयो मनो विद्ध्यहं मनः।।१८।।

(उपदेश-सारः)

Then Sri Raman refers to मनोलयं  and  मनोनाशः. मनोलयः मनोनाशः

चित्त वायवः चित्क्रियायुताः।।

शाखयोर्द्वयी शक्तिमूलका।।१२।।

लयविनाशने उभयरोधने।।

लयगतं पुनर्भवति नो मृतम्।।१३।।

प्राणबन्धनाल्लीनमानसम्।।

एकचिन्तनान्नाशमेत्यदः।।१४।।

This helps us in understanding the purpose and result of abnegation / निरोध of vritti / वृत्ति  as is suggested in the aphorism 2. This also lets us see how the Yoga of Patanjali is to be practiced, while the way of understanding; the ज्ञान / सांख्य is about enquiry (अनुसंधान) into the nature of anything and everything.

--

To be continued in the next post. 

***