Uparati
The Sanskrit word Uparati ( उपरति ) meaning wither away, cessation is an important concept in the Hindu philosophy of Advaita .
etymology
The Sanskrit noun Uparati is composed of the prefix upa ( उप ) above, above and rati ( रति ) joy, enjoyment, pleasure , in turn derived from the verb ram ( रम् ) to be scattered . What is meant is the state that is above sensual joys.
Ramaḥ ( रमः ) means to linger, to disperse and uparama ( उपरम ) means to cease all distractions .
definition
In Vedanta the term Uparati is defined in three ways:
- As a rest and ending of all worldly activities
- As a means of gaining liberation ( moksha ) through dispassion
- As a suspension of all religious ceremonies.
description
According to the Tattva Bodha of Adi Shankara , Uparati or Uparama consists in the strict observance of one's own Dharma :
"Uparamaḥ kaḥ? svadharmānuṣṭhānameva "
Shama (mind control) and Dama (mind control) are necessary preliminary stages for attaining Uparati . Shama prevents the mind from being distracted from sensual things in the outside world and Dama curbs sensory activities. If these two processes are mastered, Uparati arises, which now enables the practitioner to dwell on the object of his meditation.
In the Vedantasara , Uparati is described in verses 18-20 as Pratyahara - the withdrawal of the self . The Bhagavad Gita visually compares this behavior with the example of a turtle that easily retracts its head and limbs into its shield. Verse 21 then continues:
"Nivartitānāmeteṣāṁ tadvyatiriktaviṣayebhya uparamaṇamuparatirathavā vihitānāṁ karmaṇāṁ vidhinā parityāgaḥ"
“Uparati / Uparama means for the restrained sense organs the end of their tendency to wander into the outside world; this is accompanied by the task of the compulsory work prescribed by the scriptures "
Uparati in harmony with Shama, Dama, Titiksha (bearing opposites), Samadhana (constant concentration of the mind) and Shraddha (belief in the truths of Vedanta) is one of the six inner riches ( Shat-sampat ) that drive those seeking liberation of Mumukshutva - desire for spiritual liberation) ultimately impart the knowledge of Brahman .
Shama and Dama are associated with conscious effort, whereas Uparati is no longer an effort. The state of Uparati, that is, the complete turning away from active action and the duties connected with it, leads to equanimity, inner calmness and joy. The key to the ease of Uparati lies not in a purely mechanical control function, but in the attainment of a higher level of the mind. This is also explained by the Bhagavad Gita in verse 2.59:
" विषया विनिवर्तन्ते निराहारस्य देहिनः।
रसवर्जं रसोऽप्यस्य परं दृष्ट्वा निवर्तते ॥२- ५ ९॥ "
"Viṣayā vinivartante nirāhārasya dehinaḥ
rasa-varjaṁ raso 'py asya paraṁ dṛṣṭvā nivartate"
“The embodied soul can be held back by sensual pleasures, but the taste for the sensory objects remains. However, if she gives up such inclinations because she experiences a higher taste, she is consolidated in consciousness "
A spirit trained to perform duty is unfree and therefore unable to acquire real wisdom. Only through total renunciation (tyāga) have some seekers of truth attained immortality - the merging of becoming and being - but not through rituals, descendants or accumulation of riches. This is expressed in the Kaivalya Upanishad as follows:
" न कर्मणा न प्रजया धनेन त्यागेनैके अमृतत्वमानशुः "
"Na karmaņā na prajyā dhanena tyāgenaike amṛtatvamānaśuḥ"
The result of Vairagya is Bodha , that is, spiritual wisdom, which in turn leads to Uparati. In verse 23 of Vivekachudamani , the highest form of Uparati (withdrawal of the self) is considered to be the state in which our thought waves can spread free from all influences from the outside world.
Yoga is an active process and requires pravṛtti , whereas Jnana nivṛttiḥ requires turning away from any action. With Uparati, actions also come to a standstill, yet the acquisition of wisdom remains the focus. Uparati occurs when our senses and mind stop dissipating into sense objects and begin dwelling in the self.
In principle, Uparati requires abstaining from all actions, including even the ceremonies recommended in the Shastras . Uparati is thus the state of mind that is constantly and without failing śravaṇam (hearing), mananam (thinking) and nidhidhyāsanam (constant and uninterrupted meditation).
Individual evidence
- ^ Eliot Deutsch: Advaita Vedanta: A Philosophical Reconstruction . University of Hawaii Press, 1980, ISBN 978-0-8248-0271-4 , pp. 105-108 .
- ^ George Thibaut: The Sacred Books of the East: The Vedanta Sutras . Ed .: Max Muller. Part 1. Google Books, Oxford University Press, p. 12 .
- ↑ Swami Viditatmananda Saraswati: Uparati, the abidance of the mind and the sense organs .
- ↑ GRSMead: Five Years of Thesophy . Echo Library, p. 210 .