Letters on Yoga — I
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Letters on Yoga — I
Foundations of the Integral Yoga
Foundations of the Integral Yoga
PART ONE: THE DIVINE, THE COSMOS AND THE INDIVIDUAL
The Divine, Sachchidananda, Brahman and Atman
The Divine 5 The Divine Consciousness 5 The Divine: One in All 6 Aspects of the Divine 7 The Transcendent, Cosmic and Individual Divine 7 Personal and Impersonal Sides of the Divine 11 The Divine and the Atman 12 The Divine and the Supermind 12
Sachchidananda 13 Sat or Pure Existence 14 Chit or Consciousness 14 Outer Consciousness and Inner Consciousness 19 Consciousness and Force or Energy 24 Force, Energy, Power, Shakti 25 Ananda 27
The Impersonal Brahman 28 The Inactive Brahman and the Active Brahman 28 Spirit and Life 29
The Self 30 The Cosmic Spirit or Self 30 The Atman, the Soul and the Psychic Being 31 The Self and Nature or Prakriti 32
The Cosmos: Terms from Indian Systems
Virat 37 Visva or Virat, Hiranyagarbha or Taijasa, Prajna or Ishwara 37 Vaisvanara, Taijasa, Prajna, Kutastha 38 Karana, Hiranyagarbha, Virat 38 The Seven Worlds 38 The Worlds of the Lower Hemisphere 39 Tapoloka and the Worlds of Tapas 39
Purusha 40 Purusha and Prakriti 41 Prakriti 43 Prakriti and Shakti or Chit-Shakti 44 Purusha, Prakriti and Action 45 The Gunas or Qualities of Nature 46 Transformation of the Gunas 47 Sattwa and Liberation 48 Transformation of Rajas and Tamas 48 Transformation of Tamas into Śama 49 Mahat 50 Tanmatra 51
The Jivatman and the Psychic Being
The Jivatman or Individual Self 55 The Jivatman, the Psychic Being and Prakriti 56 The Central Being and the Psychic Being 60 The Surrender of the Central Being 61 The Central Being after Liberation 62 The Karana Purusha 62 The Jivatman and the Caitya Puruṣa 62 The Jivatman and the Mental Purusha 62 The Jivatman, Spark-Soul and Psychic Being 64 The Jivatman in a Supramental Creation 66
The Jivatman in Other Schools 68 The Jivatman and the Pure “I” of the Adwaita 68
PART TWO: THE PARTS OF THE BEING AND THE PLANES OF CONSCIOUSNESS
The Organisation of the Being
Men Do Not Know Themselves 79 Many Parts, Many Personalities 80
Different Categories in Different Systems 82 The Concentric and Vertical Systems 82
The Concentric System: Outer to Inner
The Outer and the Inner Being and Consciousness 89 The Inner, the Outer and the Process of Yoga 91 The Inner Being 93 The Inner Being, the Antaratma and the Atman 93 The Inner Being and the Psychic Being 93 The Outer Being and Consciousness 95
The True Being 97 The True Consciousness 99
The Psychic and the Divine 102 The Self or Spirit and the Psychic or Soul 105 The Atman, the Jivatman and the Psychic 106 The Words “Soul” and “Psychic” 109 The Psychic or Soul and Traditional Indian Systems 110 The Soul and the Psychic Being 114 The Form of the Psychic Being 119 The Psychic Being and the Intuitive Consciousness 120 The Psychic Being and the External Being 120 The Psychic or Soul and the Lower Nature 121 The Psychic Being or Soul and the Vital or Life 123 The Psychic Being and the Ego 124 The Psychic World or Plane 124
The Vertical System: Supermind to Subconscient
The System of Planes or Worlds 127 The Planes and the Body 132
Supermind and the Purushottama 133 Supermind and Sachchidananda 133 The Supracosmic, the Supramental, the Overmind and Nirvana 137 Supermind and Other Planes 144 Supermind and Overmind 146 Knowledge and Will in the Supermind 151
Overmind and the Cosmic Consciousness 152 Planes of the Overmind 153 The Overmind, the Intuition and Below 154 The Overmind and the Supermind Descent 155 The Overmind and the Kāraṇa Deha 155 The Dividing Aspect of the Overmind 155 The Overmind and the World 156
The Higher Planes and Higher Consciousness 158 The Plane of Intuition 159 The Plane of Intuition and the Intuitive Mind 161 Yogic Intuition and Ordinary Intuitions 162 Powers of the Intuitive Consciousness 163 The Illumined Mind 164 The Higher Mind 164
The Higher Nature and the Lower Nature 166 The Three Planes of the Lower Hemisphere and Their Energies 166 The Adhara 167
Mind in the Integral Yoga and in Other Indian Systems 168 Manas and Buddhi 169 Chitta 170 Western Ideas of Mind and Spirit 173 The Psychic Mind 177 The Mind Proper 177 The Thinking Mind and the Vital Mind 178 The Thinking Mind and the Physical Mind 179 The Vital Mind 179 The Physical Mind 181 The Physical Mental or Physical Mind and the Mental Physical or Mechanical Mind 182 The Mental World of the Individual 184
The Vital 185 The True Vital Being and Consciousness 185 Parts of the Vital Being 187 The Mental Vital or Vital Mind 189 The Emotional Being or Heart 193 The Central Vital or Vital Proper 193 The Lower Vital, the Physical Vital and the Material Vital 195 A Strong Vital 196 The Vital Body 197 The Vital Nature 197 The Vital Plane and the Physical Plane 197 The Life Heavens 198
The Physical Consciousness and Its Parts 200 Living in the Physical Consciousness 206 The Opening of the Physical Consciousness 206 The True Activity of the Senses 207 The Physical Parts of the Mind and Emotional Being 207 The Mental Physical or Mechanical Mind 207 The Vital Physical 208 The Material Consciousness or Body Consciousness 209 The Gross Physical and the Subtle Physical 210 The Physical Nerves and the Subtle Nerves 211 The Sheaths of the Indian Tradition 212
The Environmental Consciousness around the Individual 213 The Environmental Consciousness and the Movements of the Lower Nature 214 The Environmental Consciousness and the Subconscient 215
The Subconscient in the Integral Yoga 216 The Subconscient in Traditional Indian Terminology 222 The Subconscient and the Superconscient 223 The Subconscient and the Subliminal 223 The Subconscient Memory and Conscious Memory 223 The Subconscient and the Inconscient 225
The Chakras or Centres of Consciousness
The Functions of the Chakras or Centres 229 The Chakras in Reference to Yoga 231 The Centres and the Planes 233 The Mind Centres 234 The Sahasradala or Sahasrara or Crown Centre 235 The Ajnachakra or Forehead Centre 237 The Throat Centre 239 The Throat Centre and the Lower Centres 240 The Heart Centre 241 The Navel and Abdominal Centres 242 The Muladhara 242 No Subconscient Centre 244
The Parts of the Body in Yoga 245 The Cerebellum 245 The Ear, Nose, Face and Throat 245 The Chest, Stomach and Abdomen 246 The Legs and Feet 247 The Sides of the Body 247
PART THREE: THE EVOLUTIONARY PROCESS AND THE SUPERMIND
The Supramental Evolution
The Riddle of This World 253 The Disharmonies of Earth 262
Human History and Spiritual Evolution 265 Spiritual and Supramental 273 The Overmind and the Supramental 274 Involution and Evolution 275 The Supermind and the Lower Creation 279 Speculations about the Supramental Descent 280
The Supramental Descent and Transformation
Inevitability of the Descent 287 A Beginning, Not a Completion 288 Clarifications about the Supramental Descent 292
A World-Changing Yoga 294 The Vital World and the Supramental Descent 297 The Nature and Scope of the Transformation 297 The Earth, the Earth Consciousness and the Supramental Creation 298 The Supramental Change and the Ananda Plane 299
Preparatory Steps towards the Supramental Change 301 The Supramental Influence and Supramentalisation 301 Premature Claims of Possession of the Supermind 303
The Transformation of the Body 305 The Transformation of the Body in Other Traditions 306 Transforming the Body Consciousness 309 Death and the Supramental Transformation 310 The Conquest of Death 312 The Reproductive Method of the Supramental 315
PART FOUR: PROBLEMS OF PHILOSOPHY, SCIENCE, RELIGION AND SOCIETY
Thought, Philosophy, Science and Yoga
Intellectual Truth and Spiritual Experience 321 Intellectual Arguments against Spirituality 324 The Valley of the False Glimmer 330
Doubt and Yoga 337 Faith in Spiritual Things 348
Metaphysical Thinkers, East and West 351 World-Circumstances and the Divine 355 Comments on Thoughts of J. M. E. McTaggart 368 Comments on Terms Used by Henri Bergson 374 Metaphysics, Science and Spiritual Experience 375
Science, Yoga and the Agnostic 380 Science and Spirituality 381 Science and the Supernormal 385 Science and Superstition 388 The Limitations of Science 391 Physics and Metaphysics 395 Space and Time 401 Matter 404 Animals 406 Plants 407 Life on Other Planets 408
Religion, Idealism, Morality and Yoga
Religion and the Truth 411 Religion in India 412 Religious Ceremonies 413 Religious Fanaticism 415
Human Perfection and Spirituality 416 The Collapse of Twentieth-Century Idealism 417
The Spiritual Life and the Ordinary Life 419 Morality 422 Vice and Virtue 423 The Sattwic Man and the Spiritual Man 424 Selfishness and Unselfishness 428 Humility 429 Sacrifice 432 Ahimsa, Destruction and Violence 434 War and Conquest 436 Poverty 437 Natural Calamities 437
Family, Society, Country and the Divine 438 Philanthropy 441 Humanitarianism 441 Social and Political Activism 444
PART FIVE: QUESTIONS OF SPIRITUAL AND OCCULT KNOWLEDGE
The Divine and the Hostile Powers
The Dynamic Divine, the Gods, the Asuras 449 The Soul, the Divine, the Gods, the Asuras 449 Terms in The Mother 451
The Gods or Divine Powers 456 The Gods and the Overmind 457 Vedic Gods of the Indian Tradition 458 Post-Vedic Gods of the Indian Tradition 459
The Existence of the Hostile Forces 461 The Nature of the Hostile Forces 463 The Conquest of the Hostile Forces 464 Asuras, Rakshasas and Other Vital Beings 465
The Avatar and the Vibhuti
The Avatar or Incarnation 471 The Divine and Human Sides of the Avatar 472 Human Judgments of the Divine 474 The Work of the Avatar 476 The Avatar: Historicity and Symbols 478 The Avatar and the Vibhuti 485
The Ten Avatars as a Parable of Evolution 487 Rama as an Avatar 489 Krishna as an Avatar 499 Buddha as an Avatar 500 Mahomed and Christ 501 Ramakrishna 501 Augustus Caesar and Leonardo da Vinci 502 Napoleon 502
Greatness 504 Greatness and Vices 505
Destiny, Karma, Death and Rebirth
Destiny 509 Free Will and Determinism 510 Predictions and Prophecy 515 Astrology and Yoga 519
Karma 520 Karma and Heredity 521 Evolution, Karma and Ethics 522
Death and Karma 526 Death and Grieving 528 The After-Death Sojourn 529
The Psychic’s Choice at the Time of Death 532 Assimilation in the Psychic World 533 The Psychic Being and the Progression from Life to Life 536 The New Birth 541 Reincarnation and Soul Evolution 543 What Survives and What Does Not 544 Lines of Force and Consciousness 546 Beings of the Higher Planes 547 Fragments of a Dead Person that Reincarnate 547 Connections from Life to Life 548 Lines of Sex in Rebirth 548 Asuric Births 549 Animals and the Process of Rebirth 550 Remembering Past Lives 551 Unimportance of Past-Life Experience in Yoga 552 Speculating about Past Lives 553 Traditional Indian Ideas about Rebirth and Other Worlds 554 European Resistance to the Idea of Reincarnation 554
Occult Knowledge and Powers
Occultism and the Supraphysical 559 Occult Forces 559 The Play of Forces 560 The Place of Occult Knowledge in Yoga 565 Spiritism 567 Séances 568 Ghosts 569
General Remarks 571 Occult Powers Not the Object of Our Yoga 573 Ethical Rules for the Use of Occult Powers 577 Thought Reception and Thought Reading 577 Occult Powers and Health 578 The Power of Healing 579 Miracles 580 Magic 580
Notes are paraphrased from the “Publisher's Note” and “Note on the Texts”.