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God, self, and body In
the Yoga-sutras, God is defined as a distinct
self (purusa), untouched by sufferings, actions, and their
effects; his existence is proved on the ground that the degrees of
knowledge found in finite beings, in an ascending order, has an upper
limit--i.e., omniscience, which is what characterizes God. He is
said to be the source of all secular and scriptural traditions; he both
revealed the Vedas and taught the first fathers of mankind. Surrender of
the effects of action to God is regarded as a recommended observance. As
in Samkhya, the self is distinguished from the mind (citta):
the mind is viewed as an object, an aggregate. This argument is used to
prove the existence of a self other than the mind. The mental state is not
self-intimating; it is known in introspection. It cannot know both itself
and its object. It rather is known by the self, whose essence is pure,
undefiled consciousness. That the self is not changeable is proved by the
fact that were it changeable the mental states would be sometimes known
and sometimes unknown--which, however, is not the case, because a mental
state is always known. To say that the self knows means that the self is
reflected in the mental state and makes the latter manifested. The aim of Yoga
is to arrest mental modifications (citta-vrtti) so that the
self remains in its true, undefiled essence and is, thus, not subject to
suffering. The
attitude of the Yoga-sutras to the human body
is ambivalent. The body is said to be filthy and unclean. Thus, the
ascetic cultivates a disgust for it. Yet, much of the discipline laid down
in the Yoga-sutras concerns perfection of the
body, with the intent to make it a fit instrument for spiritual
perfection. Steadiness in bodily posture and control of the breathing
process are accorded a high place. The perfection of body is said to
consist in "beauty, grace, strength and adamantine hardness." Self-Realization Fellowship spiritual
society founded in the United States by Paramahansa Yogananda (1893-1952),
a teacher of yoga, who was one of the first Indian spiritual
teachers to reside permanently in the West. His lecturing and teaching led
to the chartering of the fellowship in 1935, with headquarters in Los
Angeles; there are now centres worldwide, as well as several independent
groups influenced by his teachings. His Autobiography of a Yogi (1946)
and other works became highly popular and influential. Yogananda's
teaching was based on the Yoga-sutras of Patañjali
(2nd century BC). He also taught a specific method, kriya yoga,
combining deep meditation with techniques to control the movement of
"life energy" and to withdraw energy and attention from
"outer" to "inner" concerns. Self-Realization
Fellowship centres emphasize classes in kriya yoga and also
offer Churches of All Religions, with services that combine elements of
Hinduism and Christianity and include meditation, lectures, and music. The
Self-Realization Fellowship consists of lay members and of those who have
taken monastic vows and who generally play the role of clergy in the
movement. Indian philosophy the
systems of thought and reflection that were developed by the civilizations
of the Indian subcontinent. They include both orthodox (astika)
systems, namely, the Nyaya, Vaisesika, Samkhya, Yoga,
Purva-mimamsa, and Vedanta schools of philosophy, and
unorthodox (nastika) systems, such as Buddhism and Jainism. Indian
thought has been concerned with various philosophical problems,
significant among them the nature of the world (cosmology), the nature of
reality (metaphysics), logic, the nature of knowledge (epistemology),
ethics, and religion.
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