December 2019 - Collectors' Edition, VOLUME 4, Vrittis, Yogic Psychology |
December 02, 2019
True knowledge and inaccurate knowledge
Here we will explore the first two of the vrittis – pramana and viparyaya. The definitions “right or accurate knowledge” and “wrong or inaccurate knowledge” do not really do justice to the words pramana and viparyaya, but there is no equivalent in English. Patanjali elaborates on these definitions in the Yoga Sutras. PRAMANA 1.7 Pratyaksha anumana agamah pramanani There are three ways of gaining true knowledge: by direct perception, by deduction and inference, and by the words of those awakened ones who have knowledge. True knowledge, pramana, emanates from purity and stillness,......
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Imagination
Now let’s explore the third vritti, vikalpa, which means “imagination” or “fantasy.” Imagination is a very important mental faculty with which we form and create new ideas, images and concepts that cannot always be...
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Sleep
All manifest life seems to require a period of sleep, of calm, in which to gain added strength, renewed vigor, for the next manifestation, or awakening to activity. Thus is the march of all...
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Memory
Try to imagine life without memory. How would you learn from your mistakes? You would not remember how to do those things that make up your daily routine, such as making breakfast, going to...
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