The Philosophy
of Yoga: An Aesthetic Perspective
Yoga is one
of the most ancient spiritual concepts of East, and
despite a
philosophical look it has an equally significant
physical
basis. It is not a body of doctrines, theories or
principles.
Intellectual problems or inquiries as to 'why' or
'whence'
are not the areas of yogic deliberations. Boiled down to
basics, Yoga
is a collection of simple practices, a kind of body
rituals,
consisting of action, method and technique.
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The Bhagvad
Gita clarifies this interpretation and lays stress
upon the
Karma Yoga. This scripture says 'Work alone is your
privilege,
never the fruits thereof. Never let the fruits of action
be your motive;
and never cease to work. Work in the name
of the Lord,
abandoning selfish desires. Be not affected by
success or
failure. This equipoise is called Yoga.'
The Kathopnishad
describes Yoga thus: 'When the senses are
stilled,
when the mind is at rest, when the intellect wavers not -
then, say
the wise, is reached the highest stage. This steady
control of
the senses and mind has been defined as Yoga.
He who attains
it is free from delusion.'
According
to B.K.Iyenger, Yoga is the method by which the
restless
mind is calmed and the energy directed into constructive
channels.
As a mighty river which when properly harnessed by dams
and canals,
creates a vast reservoir of water, prevents famine
and provides
abundant power for industry; so also the mind, when
controlled,
provides a reservoir of peace and generates abundant
energy for
human upliftment.
The word yoga
itself is derived from the Sanskrit verbal root
'yuj'. It
means 'to yoke' or 'join'. Thus, Yoga is the science
that yokes
'the finite' with 'the Infinite', or 'the finite spirit'
with 'the
Supreme Spirit'. In the book "Gita according to
Mahatma Gandhi,'
the author says that yoga means "the yoking
of all the
powers of body, mind and soul to God; it means the
disciplining
of the intellect, the mind, the emotions, and the
will-power.
" The learned author further says that yoga helps one
achieve a
poise of the soul which enables one to look at life in
all its aspects
evenly, whether it is pleasure or pain. Yoga
prescribes
no pantheon; one can have a deity of one's own choice
to guide
yogic performance. In modern terminology Yoga thus is a
secular ritual.
The Origin of Yoga
In the valley
of the River Indus, a team of archaeologists under
Sir Mortimer
Wheeler discovered the remains of a civilization,
which is
now acknowledged to be approximately five thousand
years old.
Amongst the valued artifacts discovered were a number
of seals
depicting horn-capped figures sitting in positions which
are advanced
Yogic postures. The most famous of these seals is
that of an
ithyphallic deity now recognized as Shiva.
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Indeed tradition
has it that it was Lord Shiva who first
manifested
in himself both Yoga and Tantra. The ithyphallic
nature of
this object points to tantric connotations while the
essentially
Yogic posture in which he is seated points to him
being the
Lord of Yoga. Yoga ultimately also got associated with
Vishnu, where
in his Yoga Narayana form he is personified the
supreme object
of Yoga.
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Sankhya-Yoga
The term 'Yoga'
emerged for the first time, in the metaphysics of
the Sankhya,
a philosophy born of 'buddhi', meaning mind and
which is
basically the meaning of the term 'Sankhya'. In the
Sankhya theory
of cosmic evolution there sprouted the seeds of a
systematic
philosophy of 'Yoga', called the 'Sankhya-Yoga'. It
recognized
two ultimate entities - Prakriti and Purusha or nature
and spirit.
Sankhya acclaims
that the objective universe in its infinite
diversity
evolves out of this Prakriti when it is yoked with
Purusha.
The Purusha has no physical entity and manifests only
when yoked
with Prakriti. Sankhya calls the manifested cosmos the
'parinama'
(result), of this yoga of the male and female
elements,
or evolution out of the union. In visual terms this is
envisioned
as the physical mating of Shiva with Parvati, his
Shakti, and
represented in art as such.
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Sankhya gives
to Yoga a definite metaphysical shape and the
status of
an independent philosophy. It perceives creation as a
cyclic evolution
on the completion of which the objective
universe
dissolves and the cyclic process begins afresh. This
Sankhya theory
of evolution makes no reference to God and thus
incidentally
Yoga evolved as a secular concept with the result
that almost
all sects in India adopted it with alike zeal. Hindus
personified
Purusha and Prakriti in Shiva and Shakti and
perceived
the Creation as the result of the union of the two.
Later evolution
of yogic thought also perceives this cosmic
element in
the union of Vishnu and Lakshmi.
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In broader
perspective it is the same wherever the creative
process is
involved. In Buddhism this is visible in the Yab Yum
imagery.
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It must be
noted here that the woman, who is the Prakriti,
creates by
union with the male, but through her own expansion.
This quality
of expansion is her exclusive preserve and is
evident in
the sexual act where it is the female who expands
while consummating
the union (or yoking). Similarly while
carrying
the fertilized seed in her womb, her belly expands.
Patanjali and his Yogasutra
Patanjali
was the earliest to systematize Yoga into a body of
philosophy.
He assimilated elements of Buddhism and Jainism also,
but his metaphysical
basis consists broadly of Sankhya. He,
however,
makes a significant modification in Sankhya metaphysics.
To the Sankhya
theory of Prakriti and Purusha, Patanjali adds the
element of
'Purushavishesha', the All Pervading Seer, or God,
whom he neither
defines nor gives evidence for the existence of,
but only
accepts its reality and believes it.
Patanjali
consecrates 'Purushavishesha' as the supreme divinity
of Yoga and
he calls it by the name of 'Aum', the sacred syllable
and the most
powerful of all 'mantras'. Indeed in its
multi-dimensional
rise and fall of sound - taking off from middle
level, the
lips, rising to zenith, the palate, and descending
into the
unknown recesses, the throat, Patanjali sought in the
syllable
'Aum' parallelism for his 'Purushavishesha' who, like
'Aum', also
pervades the 'three worlds'. Patanjali says, the
created ones
can unite with the 'Purushavishesha' by
commemorating
'Aum.' Thus Patanjali was the first individual to
realize the
nature of AUM as an independent potent entity.
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In the arts
of ancient India this is exemplified in the classical
representation
of the human body, known as tribhanga, or the
posture of
'three bends.' In this particular visualization, the
head, torso,
and legs slant in contrary directions: the legs and
hips to the
right, the trunk to the left, and the neck and head
then gently
to the right. It is a lyrical, dreamy, very graceful
pose. The
three curves formed by the body symbolize the three
worlds, upper,
lower and middle, better known in Sanskrit as
triloka.
Significantly AUM too is made up of three curves, making
the analogy
self-evident.
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: http://www.exoticindia.com/artimages/zn62.jpg
Patanjali's Eight-Fold Yoga
The most significant
contribution of Patanjali however, was his
development
of the practical aspects of Yoga, and the elaboration
of both its
theory and practice. He virtually made Yoga a
practical
science of body and mind, a metapsychology along with
metaphysics,
and identified various physical positions, exercises
and moves
and mental modes which today constitute the diverse
forms of
Yoga. Patanjali enumerates these means as the eight
stages of
Yoga leading towards the attainment of Nirvana. Known
as Ashtanga
Yoga (Asht - eight; anga - limb), these are:
1. Yama, or
Self-Control : Yama is a kind of self discipline
consisting
of five parts:
a). Non-injury
(ahimsa)
b). Truthfulness
(satya)
c). Non-stealing
(asteya)
d). Celibacy
(brahmacharya)
e). Non-hoarding
of material objects (aparigraha)
The emphasis
here is on the non-acceptance of anything that
instruments
pleasure.
2. Niyama,
or Rules for Regulating Life: While yama are precepts
that are
universal in their application, Niyama are rules of
conduct that
apply to individual discipline. They are again five:
a). Purification
(shaucha): Of the body through washing and by
taking pure
food only; and that of the mind by practicing
friendliness,
kindness, cheerfulness and indifference to the
vices of
others.
b). Contentment (santosha)
c) Penance by practicing austerities (tapas)
d). Self-Study of sacred texts (svadhyaya)
e). Meditation
on God (Ishvara pranidhana)
3. Asanas
or Body Postures: This is the third stage of yogic
evolution.
Asanas are physical exercises that bring steadiness,
health and
lightness of limb. A steady and pleasant posture
produces
mental equilibrium and prevents fickleness of mind.
According
to B K S Iyengar, asanas have been evolved over the
centuries
so as to exercise every muscle, nerve and gland in the
body. They
secure a fine physique, which is strong and elastic
without being
muscle-bound and they keep the body free from
disease.
Indeed the yogi conquers the body by the practice of
asanas and
makes it a fit vehicle for the spirit.
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There are
many kinds of 'asanas' elaborated in the Yoga-sutra,
many of which
find their echo in the annals of Indian art. Take
for example
the 'Tadasana,' the first posture mentioned in
Iyenger's
famous book Light on Yoga.' Tada means mountain,
and broadly
suggests an upright, straight, and unmoved posture.
Tadasana
therefore implies a pose where one stands firm and
erect as
a mountain. Tadasana is often described as a standing
meditation
posture. In Indian art, this stately posture is first
witnessed
in the form of Jinas, the founder of the Jain faith.
Across the
centuries the sculpted figure, whether male or female,
stands often
upright, steadfast and motionless, as though rooted
to the earth.
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In the actual
performance too of this asana, across modern yoga
studios around
the world, the practitioner stands firm with
weight evenly
distributed. Kneecaps are pulled up, hips move
inwards and
the stomach is held up but neither tightened nor
sucked in.
The chest is forward and the outer shoulders extend
horizontally.
Chest and shoulders are further expanded due to the
rhythm of
yogic breathing or pranayama (discussed next). The
spine is
extended, the neck is held straight and the eyes gaze
straight
ahead. Arms are held down along the sides of the body;
they do not
hang limp but are charged, with fingers energized,
straight
and pointing downwards.
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Every South
Indian bronze of the goddess, whether of Parvati,
Lakshmi,
or Sita, has one hand raised to hold a flower while the
other is
held alongside the body with fingers extended and
pointing
downwards. While we may stand casually at ease with one
arm extended,
none of us extends our fingers in such a manner.
The sculptural
convention of elongated arms with fingers extended
so as to
reach down the knees is not solely attributable to
artistic
stylization. It is explained in a large measure by the
tradition
of Tadasana in which the fingers are extended.
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Then there is the simple posture of sitting cross-legged.
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Why do most
yogis sit cross-legged? Some believe that the answer
lies simply
in the fact that the yogic system was created
thousands
of years ago, mostly in a country where people were
used to sitting
on cushions on the floor. But trust yoga to have
a practical
and useful reason behind each characteristic. Indeed
all of the
traditional writings on Yoga stress the importance of
sitting,
with the spine in as erect a position as possible.
Patanjali
said:
"Sitting is
to be steady and pleasurable. This is done by
loosening
of effort and by thinking on the endless (infinity)."
From the purely
metaphysical point of view there is yet another
and important
reason to sit cross legged. Prana the vital air
which circulates
in us, flows round the body and tends to escape
at the fingers
and feet. If the hands and legs are crossed or
folded, especially
as in the lotus seat (padmasana), then a
"closed circuit"
of energy is formed, minimizing the leak of
energy by
continually feeding it back into the body.
The Padmasana
is one of the most popular postures in which
deities are
shown engaged. Nearly always such an image is neither
athletic
nor warrior, but the dispassionate ascetic who has
always been
held in the highest esteem (like the Buddha). It
expresses
not the muscular physical form, but the serenity of
meditative
state. It stands for an ideal state which did and does
exist in
reality in the practice of yoga. In padmasana the legs
are crossed
and placed high upon the thighs with soles turned up.
In addition
to meditation this posture is also used by gods and
enlightened
beings for preaching the finest example of which is
the Buddha
image from Sarnath, where he is shown still
half-absorbed
in the bliss of the meditative state, from which he
has awakened
to preach.
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The seated
figure in the pose of yogic meditation was adopted by
the various
religions of India without being restricted to one or
other faith.
The Buddha, the Jina (Jain), the Hindu God Shiva,
the goddess
Lakshmi when venerated by elephants, the goddess
Parvati and
also several other figures of saints and teachers,
all assume
this classic posture.
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Another asana
of interest from the point of view of art is the
Vajrasana,
the thunderbolt or the pelvic pose. In this posture
one kneels
down and then sits back on the heels. This form of
sitting is
very commonly used domestically in Japan. Apart from
being very
suitable for meditation, this stance is also excellent
for digestion.
As the ancient yogis put it, 'It increases the
digestive
fires.' Fittingly thus Samurai warriors from Japan are
often depicted
in this posture.
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Vajrasana
is an extremely useful and comfortable exercise and is
yogically
speaking very efficient. It provides a satisfactory
answer for
many people who would otherwise find themselves
depressingly
uncomfortable in the cross-legged postures. Most
exercises
performed in the lotus seat could just as appropriately
be performed
in Vajrasana.
Mention must
be made here of the 'Parvatasana,' Parvata literally
means a mountain.
In this variation of Padmasana, the arms are
stretched
over the head with the fingers interlocked.
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Intriguingly,
the Laughing Buddha is often shown in this stance,
albeit standing.
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: http://www.exoticindia.com/artimages/zl53.jpg
4. Pranayama
or Breath-Control: Prana means breath, respiration,
and in the
broadest sense, all that is vital in life. It also
connotes
the soul as opposed to the body. Ayama means length,
expansion,
stretching or restraint. Pranayama thus means
extension
of breath and its control. Thus in Pranayama control is
established
over all the functions of breathing namely:
a). Inhalation (filling up, Skt. Puraka)
b). Exhalation (emptying the lungs, Skt. Rechaka)
c). Retention
or Holding the Breath: In this state there is no
inhalation
or exhalation (Skt. Kumbhaka)
Pranyama thus
is the science of breath. It is the hub round which
the wheel
of life revolves. Warns the Hatha Yoga Pradipika: 'As
lions, elephants
and tigers are tamed very slowly and cautiously,
so should
prana be brought under control very slowly in gradation
measured
according to one's capacity and physical limitations.
Otherwise
it will kill the practitioner' (chapter II, verse 16).
A yogi measures
his life not by the number of his days but by the
number of
his breaths. Therefore, he follows the proper rhythmic
patterns
of slow deep breathing. These rhythmic patterns
strengthen
the respiratory system, soothe the nervous system and
reduce craving.
As desires and craving diminish, the mind is set
free and
becomes a fit vehicle for concentration.
As fires blaze
brightly when the covering of ash over it is
scattered
by wind, the divine fire within the body shines in all
its majesty
when the ashes of desire are scattered by the
practice
of Pranayama.
Shankaracharya
gives the following metaphysical interpretation of
Pranayama:
'Emptying the mind of the whole of its illusion is the
true rechaka
(exhalation). The realization that "I am Atman"
(the infinite
spirit) is the true puraka (inhalation). Finally
the steady
sustenance of the mind on this conviction is the true
kumbhaka
(retention). This is the true Pranayama.'
Prana the
vital, dynamic air in our mortal bodies, is a part of
the cosmic
breath of the all-pervading infinite Universal Spirit
(Parmatama).
Pranayama attempts to harmonize the individual
breath (pinda
prana) with this cosmic breath (Brahmanda-prana).
It has been
said by Kariba Ekken, a seventeenth century mystic:
'If you would
foster a calm spirit, first regulate your
breathing;
for when that is under control, the heart will be at
peace; but
when breathing is spasmodic, then it will be troubled.
Therefore,
before attempting anything, first regulate your
breathing
on which your temper will be softened, your spirit
calmed.'
(Quoted by B K S Iyenger)
Human nature
is like a chariot yoked to a team of powerful
horses. One
of them is prana (breath), the other is vasana
(desire).
The chariot moves in the direction of the more powerful
animal. If
breath prevails, the desires are controlled, the
senses are
held in check and the mind is stilled. If desire
prevails,
breath is in disarray and the mind is agitated and
troubled.
Therefore, the yogi masters the science of breath and
by the regulation
and control of breath, he controls the mind and
stills its
constant movement. Indeed in the practice of
Pranayama,
the eyes are kept shut to prevent the mind from
wandering.
Thus says the Hatha Yoga Pradipika: 'When the prana
and the manas
(mind) have been absorbed, an undefinable joy
ensues.'
(Chapter IV, verse 30)
Not surprisingly
thus, the importance of Pranayama in Yogic
thought provides
a fundamental basis for the conception of the
human figure
in the canons of Indian art. Indian artists have
over the
centuries shaped the body as a disciplined one, a subtle
body glowing
radiant with the light of inner realization.
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Stella Kramrisch puts it admirably:
'In Indian
art the figures are, as it were, modeled by breath
which dilates
the chest and is felt to carry the pulse of life
through the
body to the tips of the fingers. This inner awareness
was given
permanent shape in art, for it was daily and repeatedly
practiced
and tested in the discipline of yoga. It was found that
by the concentrated
practice of controlled breathing, an inner
lightness
and warmth absorbed the heaviness of the physical body
and dissolved
in the weightless 'subtle body,' which was given
concrete
shape by art, in planes and lines of balanced stresses
and continuous
movement. This shape, inwardly realized by yoga,
was made
concrete in art.'
5. Pratyahara
or Withdrawal of Senses from Objects: If a man's
reason succumbs
to the pull of his senses he is lost. On the
other hand,
if there is rhythmic control of breath, the senses
instead of
running after external objects of desire turn inwards,
and man is
set free from their tyranny. This is the fifth stage
of yoga,
namely Pratyahara, where the senses are brought under
control.
It requires complete detachment from the world around as
also from
the products of one's mind and senses because these too
are external
objects at least to the inner self. It is thus a
difficult
exercise.
6. Dharana
or Concentration: An illuminating tale from the
ancient epic
Mahabharata provides an interesting illustration of
this stage
of yoga:
Once Dronacharya
the venerable guru of the royal princes
organized
an archery contest to test his pupils' proficiency with
the bow and
arrow. Before they actually took a shot at the target
(an eye of
the bird perched on a tree), each of them was asked to
describe
what all was visible to them in their frame of view.
Some of them
mentioned the particulars of the tree, others
described
the bird while some others even waxed eloquent upon the
picturesqueness
of the whole scene. When it came to Arjuna's turn
however,
he informed Dronacharya that to him only the eye of the
bird was
visible and nothing else. Needless to say it was only
Arjuna's
arrow which found its mark.
When the body
has been tempered by asanas, when the mind has been
refined by
the fire of Pranayama and when the senses have been
brought under
control by Pratyahara, the sadhaka (practitioner)
reaches the
sixth stage called dharana. Here he is concentrated
wholly on
a single point or on a task in which he is completely
engrossed.
The mind is to be stilled in order to achieve this
state of
complete absorption. Approached in this frame of mind,
the task
at hand is sure to be successfully accomplished.
7. Dhyana
or Meditation: As water takes shape of its container,
the mind
when it contemplates an object is transformed into the
shape of
that object. The mind which thinks of the all-pervading
divinity
which it worships, is ultimately through long-continued
devotion
transformed into the likeness of that divinity.
When oil is
poured from one vessel to another, one can observe
the steady
constant flow. When the flow of concentration
(dharana)
is uninterrupted, the resultant state that arises is
dhyana (meditation).
According to Iyenger, 'As the filament in an
electric
bulb glows and illumines when there is a regular
uninterrupted
current of electricity, the yogi's mind will be
illuminated
by dhyana. His body, breath, senses, mind, reason and
ego are all
integrated in the object of his contemplation.
Thus Buddha,
when engaged deep in meditation during his search
for Nirvana,
is often depicted in a posture known as the 'Dhyana
Mudra.'
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: http://www.exoticindia.com/artimages/zn73.jpg
8. Samadhi:
Samadhi is the end of the sadhaka's quest. At the
peak of his
meditation, he passes into the state of samadhi,
where his
body and senses are at rest as if he is asleep, but his
faculties
of mind and reason are alert as if he is awake.
The sadhaka
is tranquil in this state, and worships the formless
infinite
as that from which he came forth, as that in which he
breathes,
as that into which he will be dissolved. The soul
within the
heart is smaller than the smallest seed, yet greater
than the
expansive sky. It is into this that the practitioner
enters.
It is that
state of being when contemplation completely merges
with the
object it is contemplating, and all distinctions between
'the seer'
and 'the seen' get eliminated. Comparing the
experience
of samadhi with other experiences, the sages say:
'Neti! Neti!'
- 'It is not this!' The purport being that this
state can
only be expressed by profound silence. The yogi has
departed
from the material world and is merged in the Eternal.
There is
then no duality between the knower and the known, for
they are
merged like camphor and flame.
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===============
This article by P.C. Jain.
===============
References and Further Reading:
Daljeet, Dr. Tantra: New Delhi, 1994.
Dehejia, Vidya (Ed). Representing
the Body (Gender Issues in
Indian Art): New Delhi,
1999.
Eliade, Mircea. Yoga Immortality and Freedom: Princeton, 1969.
Hutchinson, Ronald. Yoga A Way of Life: London, 1974.
Iyenger, B.K.S. The Concise Light on Yoga: London, 1983.
Saraswati, S.K. A Survey of Indian Sculpture: New Delhi, 1975.
Walker, Benjamin. Hindu World: New Delhi, 1983.
Zimmer, Heinrich. The Art
of Indian Asia (2 Vols): Delhi, 2001
