Awareness and Yoga

Define: what is awareness?  It is to place mind before a thought is creeping in on the screen of mind.  It is nicely defined as – manasaa mana aalokya.

What is not awareness?  Being unmindful.  Doing things without thoughts flowing on or thoughts are flowing out without any parallel flow of attention just as in case of anger etc.  Had there been awareness, there would have not been anger.   

We are deeply dipped in eternal Consciousness all the time. There is a saying— 'Fish are the wrong people to ask about water or asking an Eskimo about ice’.  We human beings talking about or enquiring about Consciousness is an irony.  Same applies to life and consciousness. There exists nothing else but Consciousness all around at all points of time.  It is an endless expanse of Consciousness that pervades all at all points of time.  The question is—are we ‘aware’ about this as a fact?  Not just that.  We have to be aware that ‘we are aware’.  This demands training.  Mind has to be trained over a period of time. Then it becomes easy to grasp.  Yet, it—awareness-- very often fizzles out— this awareness about missing of awareness is great state of awareness.  

It is just like riding a bicycle.  It demands maintaining the balance all the time. 

What is absence of awareness that we can be aware about?  This is a tricky question!  The very moment one is aware about absence of awareness, one becomes very much aware.

To re-establish awareness about awareness needs a little shaking of the head and consistent training or practice is needed.

Subject-object paradigm

I)  ‘I’ is the subject, who is to be aware of itself.  There can be various internal objects within the Self which one can be aware of.  Self can be an object of the Self. There are various faculties within the Self which one can be aware of.  For example, one can watch what various limbs are doing or mind is doing.  What thoughts or emotions mind is producing on a given point of time.    

II) ‘I’ is aware of objects: In this case, one can be aware of external object which lie outside the Self.

b.i: internal and

bii: external. 

a)  Starting point:  Yogic training of asanas is of great help in developing the requirement of awareness as regards bodily awareness, its conditions, positions and states at various points of time.

b)  Secondly, breathing the Yogic way (Pranayama) is another great practice to develop awareness.  This has deeper reach in comparison to Asanas.

c)  Thirdly:  High quality teachings on being aware of breathing comes from a text from the tradition  of Kashmir Shaivism, named Vijnana Bhairava. This text describes about hundred techniques mostly related to breathing awareness. 

(The technique of Vipashyana deploys watching of breathing passively.  Practice of Pranayama is an active process). 

d)  Fourthly:  Then comes the practice of sitting still and repeating OM or any other mantra, at low tune and also repeating the same mentally, or synchronizing same along with flow of breathing.  One monitors and observes each and every bit of breathing.

All segments (angas) of Yoga hinge around various levels of awareness such as personal, social, spiritual, environmental etc.  For example, Asanas are practised for developing awareness as regards one’s bodily states, conditions etc.  In addition, there can be physiological and physical advantages through progressively heightened level of awareness.  Same applies to all other segments of Yoga. Yama and Niyama etc. can make one aware about one’s social responsibilities.  This is how awareness expands from personal self to larger self.  

Awareness can be stretched and expanded till the Supreme Self. This is the sole objective of Yoga and also all spiritual practices.  

It will not be wrong to understand jagarukata as awareness.  It is similar the ‘alertness’, though not exactly the same.  ‘Being watchful’ may also explain awareness, though it is finer.  Just as a watchman guards the premises, so also one (all the time?) watches what one’s own mind, emotion, sentiment etc. are doing.  One can keep noting what one is doing—good, bad or neutral expressions, mood swings, calmness and also quietude.  What mind does, can very well be watched during meditation.

This can create a feeling of distancing ‘self’ from various faculties of the self.

One of the fine objectives of Yoga is to develop isolation and distancing ‘Self’ from all external engagements and internal faculties as well.  This can be done by objectifying ‘Self by the Self’: as has been suggested -- ‘manasaa mana aalokya’: mind is watched by mind itself.  It means mind is divided into two parts.  One is watching what thoughts are being produced or not being produced inside mind.  Or, is it Consciousness that is watching mental functions?  This is applied meditation.

Utility

a) To be and remain aware itself is a great reward, a great achievement.

b) Lot of unwanted acts that one does due to lack of awareness, can be prevented.

c) It is very much useful in managing unwanted spurt of emotions and sentiments.  

d) Awareness and alertness: Both are similar.  Alertness and attentiveness have a dose of stress while awareness is gentle. 

e) Habits which are generally mechanical and those which are unwanted, can be managed efficiently. One needs lot of self-awareness to get rid of bad habits and addictions.  

f) Awareness is the doorway to Consciousness. It is almost impossible to attain Consciousness without developing awareness.

g) Awareness is an effective filtering system of thoughts.  One can examine and promote thoughts to put them into action. This makes a great process.      

h) Events (thoughts, emotions etc. are also events) – good, bad or neutral – appear and disappear each passing moment.  One can develop skill to watch how each split phase of an event (even a thought) is ‘appearing from nothingness, plays for a while and then essentially passes away into nothingness’.  This approach can be developed by watching thoughts popping up on the screen of mind from nowhere and then vanishing into nowhere.      

 

How this discussion on awareness can be related to Yoga of Patanjali or Hatha?

Yoga of Patanjali and Hatha describes number of techniques for practice.  This demands education and training which hinge around awareness as a basic need.  Be it practice of Ahimsa (non-violence) or Samadhi, one needs heightened degree of awareness at all points of time to implement the same in real life conditions.  For example, Ahimsa is an attitude that originates from depth of mind. By constantly being watchful of one’s own mind, one can be aware of how feeling of violence is shaping up and thus can take a positive step to counter it with an attitude of compassion and love. 

 

 

Consciousness 

Consciousness has a biological reference.  This is known.  Consciousness can be equated with Cetana or Chaitanya.  Consciousness is elaborately discussed in Darshana-shastras, particularly in Uttara-Mimamsa and Upanishads. It is experiential and it is the basis of all that is in existence.  As per shastras, Consciousness has spiritual significance.  It is the sole aim of all spiritual practices. 

I.  Consciousness

a)  Nature of Consciousness and its definitions.

Consciousness has a biological reference.  A living human being is conscious. This is known.  Here we are not talking about biological consciousness.

Prime objective of the system of Vedanta, Advaita in particular, is to establish that Consciousness alone is the Truth.  All else is false and impermanent.  Various words are used for Consciousness such as Brahman (Absolute Consciousness), caitanya, cetanaa, ish (as in 1^st mantra of Ishavasyopanishad) etc.   Yoga of Patanjali culminates into the state of Pure Consciousness which is known as Svarupa.  Consciousness is experiential and it is the basis of all that is in existence or which alone is in existence (all else is false).

What is it?

a) Consciousness is also said to be the Absolute Truth – Parama Satya. It is Kutastha Nitya:  Consciousness does not undergo any modification whatsoever; be it decay or growth.

b)  It has no color or form or dimension.   That means it has no characteristic, quality, or measure.

d) It is beyond time. It means that it is changeless. All changes or actions occur in time. Since there is no modification possible in Brahman, it transcends time.

e) Brahman is independent (sva-tantra). It does not depend on anything.

e) It does not occupy space.  It is just as space (space in Samkhya is matter).  Hence it is Deshatita.

f)  Thus, it is not possible to identify it just as one identifies an object through senses. For example, by using eyes along with mental attention, one can identify an object, say a tree.   A tree has a form etc. which eyes can see in relation to other object or objects which are ‘not mango’.   

This is called direct sense-perception (pratyaksha).  All perceptions happen in time (kala).  Since Brahman or Consciousness has no dimension or form, it cannot be perceived by human senses. Consciousness is also kalatita, beyond the scope of time.  

 As per shastras, Consciousness has spiritual significance.  In fact, it is the sole aim of all spiritual practices. 

Third state of consciousness is described as follows (as per Mandukyopanishad-5):

ya~ sauPtao na kHcana kamaM kamayato na kHcana svaPnaM pSyait t%sauYauPtma\.

sauYauPtsqaana ekIBaUt: p`&anaGana evaanandmayaao *yaanandBaUk\ caotaomauK: p`a&stRtIya: pad: 5

Same is further described:

eYa savao-Svar eYa sava-& eYaao|ntyaa-maI eYa yaaoina: sava-sya p`BavaaPyayaaO ih BaUtanaama\ 6

The fourth state of Consciousness (Pure state) is as follows:

The state of Consciousness, which is the purest, is inexplicable and the same is narrated mostly by use of negations (Neti Neti—not this, nor this—this shows that whatever is describable is not Brahman).  Since no definition can be provided, it is called ‘the fourth’ by the Rishis of the Upanishads.  It is as follows:   

naant:p`&M na baih:p`&M naaoBayat:p`&M na p`&anaGanaM na p`&M naap`&ma\

AdRYTmavyavahaya-maga`a*yamalaaxaNamaican%yamavyapdoSyama\

eka%map`%yayasaarM pHcaaopSamaM SaantM iSavamaWOtM catuqa-M manyanto sa Aa%maa sa iva&oya: 7

It may not be wrong to state that this is the finest description that is available to us.

State of Consciousness has been described by Patanjali in the last sutra of Yogasutra:

 

II.  Methodology to approach Consciousness and its limitation.

Is it possible to know Consciousness??? The Rishis of the Upanishads say:

iva&atarmaro kona ivajaanaIyaat\ ?

How the knower can be known?  What is the problem?

It is an object that ‘is known’.   A subject is the knower – that is pure Consciousness.  How is it possible to know the subject by the subject itself ??

Then what is meant by ‘atma-jnana’ (knowledge of the Self)?, as has been repeatedly mentioned in the scriptures?  All spiritual efforts are made to know the Self.  This is the highest and the only culmination of all spiritual pursuits. What does it mean??  

b)  Consciousness: Defining the abstract.

c)  Yogic view on Consciousness.

Yoga (of Patanjali) is the technology.  It recommends methods, techniques, practices and processes to approach Consciousness and also to remain in this state forever.  This is called Kaivalya or Svarupa, True nature (of the Self).    

Samadhi – samprajnata, asamprajnata, sabija, nirbija: all these are stages and processes to contract exposure of Citta to the externals and also internals. And finally, to squuze the same to Kevala—absolute aloofness. This is Kaivalya which is pure state of Consciousness. 

 

III. Benefit

d) Utility or usefulness of delving into Consciousness.

Kaivalya: is the state of aloofness, isolation and freedom from all involvements. It is similar to sleep condition wherein one is not inactive and detached.  But in this state, one is not aware of anything whatsoever.  In contrast to this, in the state of Kaivalya, one is fully conscious and yet detached and noninvolved. 

Consciousness and mental health:

Nature of Consciousness and its (various) definitions:  Consciousness: Defining the Abstract: See the definitions above.

How Yoga views Consciousness:  Yoga has a set of techniques to make one aware at every level of life.  This science makes one aware at the physical to moral to social to spiritual planes and then to transcend same and thus one can remail ever Consciousness.  This state is called Kaivalya.    

Methodology to approach Consciousness:  Yoga provides the methodology. However there exists a plethora of practices to make one aware and then approach Consciousness. It can be Japa-Yoga, Pranayama, meditation etc. 

Utilities: usefulness of delving into Consciousness. 

Studying Consciousness and its limitations. Limitations:  There exists this limitation with the study of Consciousness. Consciousness is not an object which can be studied objectively.

All that exists is Consciousness.