1.17. Vitarka-Vicaara- Aananda- Asmitaa- Roopa- Anugamaat Samprajnaatah.

Word by word meaning: (Samprajnaatah) Samprajnaata Samaadhi is achieved by (anugamaat) following the stages of (vitarka) reasoning, (vicaara) contemplating, (aananda) enjoying happiness and (asmitaa roopa) realizing the soul and God in the form of ‘I am’.

Details: ‘Anugama’ (Anu+Gama) means ‘to proceed one after another,’ ‘to realize step by step’, and ‘to follow regularly’. Maharshi Patanjali wants to say that ‘to reach the final stage of ‘Asamprajnaata Samaadhi’ (the final stage of Samaadhi where the soul forgets its own identity and merges in Brahman) one must reach the stage of ‘Samprajnaata Samaadhi’. It is the last but one stage of Samaadhi where the soul rises beyond the gross, subtle and causal bodies and sets in its own self. And to accomplish that stage one should pass through the 3 stages of ‘Vitarka –roopa’, ‘Vicaara-roopa’, ‘Aananda-roopa’ one after another and finally set itself in ‘Asmitaa roopa’, the ultimate stage of Samprajnaata Samaadhi. Besides it has to rise itself beyond three Gunas (Tamas, Rajas and Sattva) and become Nirguna. Without reaching the stage of Nirguna a soul cannot reach the stage of Samprajnaata.

According to Darshanas these two stages of Samaadhi can be compared to the union of the couple. During making love the man and woman gradually forget their separate identity and become one at the final stage in the form of ‘I’. In that final stage there is no chance for the existence of ‘YOU’. As the Vedas declare ‘ ‘ Aham ghaa syaam tvam tvam ghaa syaa Aham – may I become you and you become I ‘”, just like when a river meets the ocean the separation is lost and the river water and ocean water merge in each other and become ‘ONE’. That is what the boy and girl pledge during the marriage ceremony i.e. “Sam aapo hridyaani now”- our two hearts have become one like two different waters mix together and lose their separate existence and identity. The river water and ocean water exchange their sweet and saline natures without any grudge and dance hand in hand and heart in heart with extreme joy having no complaints whatsoever against each other.

1. Vitarka Roopa – means analyzing the gross body with the help of arguments and reasoning. For example, the parts of a body like the eyes, ears, nose, lips, face, teeth, tongue, breast, stomach, arms, legs and feet etc. are concerned with the gross body because one is able to see them. Even the dresses and clothes belong to the gross body only because the subtle body and soul never wear a cloth. Suppose ‘A’ looks at ‘B’ and starts arguing about her body with ‘C’ as follows:

A: ‘B’ has too big eyes. I do not like them. Small eyes are more attractive than the big ones. One can easily read the emotions of a person in the big eyes. The emotions like greed, anger, jealousy, hatred etc. can be judged by a looker very easily in the big eyes through the eyeballs and the tiny red nerves in them. One can easily hide them in the small eyes. Look, an elephant also has small eyes. How beautiful they look. No one can read the feelings of an elephant in its eyes. That is why Ganesha, with his elephant head, says that a Ganesha (Gana+Eesha, a leader) should have small eyes so no one is able to read his mind in them.

C: See the nose of ‘B’. How nice it is. I like a long and pointed nose very much. It seems as if a parrot is sitting over the lips. And when such ladies wear golden rings and drops, they look more beautiful. In Sanskrit literature you can find such details of the beauty in plenty. I never like a thick and small nose.

A: What do you think about the clothes the ladies wear?

C: I like Western dresses like skirts and blouses etc. The girls and ladies in them look very smart and active. The sarees are very good to look at but a girl does not look smart in them. Culturally the sarees make a first-class dress because in them a lady looks more glamorous and glorified like a Devi (goddess). Have you seen any goddess in a skirt and blouse?

Like that when people analyze the gross body and clothes etc, through reasoning and arguments it is called ‘Vitarka Roopa’.

Similarly, when a person looks at his body and tries to build it in a beautiful way with the help of Yogasanas and proper and regular diets he is at the first stage of Vitarka Roopa. As per Paatanjala Yoga Yamas, Niyamas and Aasanas help in developing the physical strength and health.

2. Vicaara Roopa – is concerned with the subtle body like mind, intellect and internal energies and powers and emotions etc. Suppose a boy wants to meet a girl before saying ‘Yes’ to marry her and wants to get introduced with her principles, ideologies and thoughts. He is following Vicaara Roopa. He knows that the thoughts, ideals and emotions are more valuable in life. The physical shape, dress, face, style, notes etc. are not that significant in one’s life. Because if a girl is very beautiful but has bad qualities like greed, anger, jealousy, hatred, inferiority complex, ego and impertinence etc. a boy will never accept her because she will cause tension in his mind. On the other hand, if a girl, though not very beautiful, has very good qualities and is calm, quiet, ever smiling, very sweet in arguments etc. a boy will surely agree to marry her. That is why the Gaayatree Mantra lays stress on the intelligence, feelings and emotions. The word ‘Dhiyah’ in the Mantra covers all these abstract things. The development of the subtle body is more important for leading a happy and peaceful life. Therefore, an intelligent person judges a lady by contemplating and concentrating more on the qualities, mental and intellectual powers etc, rather than the gross body.

Similarly, a person who wants to attain perfection must not develop his body alone but should train and discipline his mind too. This is called the stage of ‘Vicaara Roopa’. The two next parts of Yoga i.e., Praanaayaama and Pratyaahaara help in mental development.

3. Aananda Roopa: This is concerned with the spiritual qualities called Dharma. Dharma, that is mainly concerned with the soul and mind combined, consists of Dhriti (patience, courage, bravery, firmness etc.), Kshamaa (forgiveness, tolerance, etc.), Damah (self-control and disciplining the senses etc.) Asteyam (to free oneself from greed and stealing etc.) Shoucam (to keep oneself financially, morally, mentally, intellectually, emotionally and physically clean and pure), Indriya-Nigrahah (holding and preventing the senses from going towards wrong path of life), Dheeh (intellectual development), Vidyaa (collecting good ideas and thoughts, studying good books and trying to enhance the spiritual as well as worldly knowledge), Satyam (truthfulness, honesty and observing oneness in thought, speech and deeds etc.) Akrodhah (freeing oneself from anger, jealousy, hatred etc.). When a person follows the path of Dharma as explained above, he leads a very happy life. He says “I am very happy indeed”. This is called ‘Aananda Roopa.’ Dhaarnaa and Dhyaanam help a lot in having this kind of Aananda.

There is difference between this Aananda and the one that is experienced by the soul when it is one with God. The present kind of Aananda is ‘happiness’ while the other one is called ‘Bliss’. In the present Aananda the soul is joined with the mind which is the source of Dharma while the Supreme Aananda is experienced by the soul when it is beyond body and senses and stays with God. The present Aananda is temporary while the other one is 'Nityaananda' or Eternal Bliss.

The Maandookya Upanishad explains the stage of ‘Nityaananda’ in a beautiful way. When a man chants OM (or A, U and M the components of the name) he does not reach the climax of Aananda. He reaches that stage only when he enters into the area of silence that starts beyond the chant of A, U. and M which is called Chaturtha Paada or Amaatra. It is at this stage where the soul and God become one. This is called SHOONYA kaala. Please refer to my book “The self meets the SELF in silence” or the explanation of “Maandookyopanishad”. In this period of Shoonyam God transfers all His qualities to the soul and it feels real Aanandam. It is the same thing that happens with the couples too. When the man and woman go through the steps and reach the climax during making love they enter into Shoonyam. They do not have any other feelings but Aanandam. They become totally inactive and enjoy that Shoonyam that causes orgasm. It is not happiness. It is Aanandam in silence. At this stage of climax both lose their separate identity and exchange their hearts and energies. Similarly, when the soul becomes one with God all the powers of God flow into the soul. The same thing happens, but only for a short time, during Dhyaanam and Samaadhi when Aanadam stays flowing through until the soul returns from Dhyaanam or Samaadhi. In the period of Moksham or emancipation the Aananda is stabilized because the soul never gets separated from God.

4. Asmitaa Roopa: It means to be well established in one’s own self. When a person rises above Vitarka, Vicaara and Aananda i.e. the gross body, subtle body and causal body (i.e. Sthoola Shareeram, Sookshma Shareeram and KaaraNa Shareeram) he realizes his own self and is free from everything else. He has only one experience and that is of ‘I’. Detaching oneself from all these things possessing Tamas, Rajas and Sattva and reaching the stage of NirguNa is called the stage of ‘Samprajnaata Samaadhi’. At this stage the soul starts his next journey towards ‘Asampajnaata Samaadhi’ which will be explained in the next issue. OM.

(Excerpted from Satya Sneha Surabhi, issue 20)