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HISTORY OF PSYCHOLOGY

A SHORT HISTORY OF INDIAN PSYCHOLOGY V. GEORGE MATHEW, Ph.D

The term Indian Psychology refers to the Psychologically relevant materials in ancient Indian thought. Usually this term does not cover modern developments in Psychology in India. Modern Psychology at the beginning of the century emphasized sensation, perception and psychologists in India took out Indian theories of sensation and perception from the classics and created an Indian Psychology. For example Indian theories emphasise the notion that in perception the mind goes out through the senses and assumes the shape of the objects. In 1934, Jadunath Sinha wrote a book on Indian theories of perception. As soon as Western Psychologists started studying cognition, Indian Psychologists started looking for Indian theories of cognition. In 1958, Jadunath Sinha wrote a book on Cognition. Later on modern Psychology started emphasising emotions, and in 1981, Jadunath Sinha wrote a book on Emotions and the Will. The major part of ancient Indian scriptures (Hindu, Buddhist and Jain) emphasise self-realization, samadhi or nirvana. After 1960 Humanistic Psychology emerged and Psychologists became interested in paranormal dimensions of growth. Maslow's theory of self-actualization and transcendental self-actualization established the link to the major part of ancient Indian theories and methods and almost the whole of ancient Indian writings became psychologically relevant. Psychology of Consciousness, Parapsychology, Psychology of Mysticism, Psychology of Religion and Transpersonal Psychology borrow extensively from Indian writings. The terms Oriental Psychology, Buddhist Psychology, Yoga Psychology , Jain Psychology, etc. are frequently found in modern psychological literature now.

Many book lists in Psychology now include books on Yoga, Buddhism and Zen. There seems to be a paradigm shift in Western Psychology, a shift from the notion of mental disease and healing to personal growth, the reference point shifting from the statistical average or "normal" to the ideal or upper limits of man's potentiality. The rudiments of the theory of consciousness can be traced back to the Indus valley civilization (6000 to 1500 B.C.). Artifacts of a man sitting in Padmasana have been obtained in excavations. The Swasthika symbol was used in Indus valley script. Buddhist thought and methods (6th century B.C.) are in line with the objective spirit of modern science and the law of parsimony of science and Buddhism can be easily incorporated into a scientific framework. The Psychological relevance of the four noble truths and eightfold path and Sunya vada of Buddhism and Buddhist techniques of meditation are of considerable relevance in modern Psychology. Similarly Jain scriptures also are found to be relevant to Psychology in more than one way. The Vedas date from about 1500 B.C. However, Upanishads (appendices to the Vedas, which date from 600 B.C.) which describe the Vedanta philosophy and provide the theoretical foundation of Jnana Yoga are of more direct relevance to Psychology. The Bhagavat Gita gives a quintessence of Indian way of life and philosophy and it describes the four yogas, Karma, Bhakthi, Raja and Jnana. Several books have come on the psychological relevance of Gita. Maslow's theory of Meta-motivation is very similar to the concept of Nishkama karma outlined in the Gita. Patanjali's Ashtanga Yoga is a very systematic presentation of Raja yoga. Both Bhagavat Gita and Ashtanga Yoga are supposed to have been written around the turn of B.C. to A.D. Sankara's writings (8th century A.D.) on the different yogas as well as his Advaita philosophy are considered as classics in the area and are of great value to the Psychology of consciousness as well as personal growth. Modern interest in relaxation can be traced to studies on Savasana. Rising popularity of meditation practice links Psychology to Oriental religious practices and philosophy.

Indian literature on aspects of consciousness is vast, considering the classics and their commentaries. Mental states have been analyzed, classified and differentiated in detail. Similarly paranormal powers (siddhis) have been classified in detail. The process of personal growth and obstacles to growth have been examined thoroughly. There is a great deal of maturity resulting from long experience in these areas reflected in the writings. Indian theories of linguistics, social behavior, crime, etc. are all based on the holistic approach and the broad-based intuitive understanding of behavior in contradistinction to Western theories which are piece-meal, analytic and situation specific. The increasing importance given to the holistic approach and need for synthesis makes it possible to integrate modern Western Psychology with ancient Indian thoughts as well as methods.

The psychosomatic relationship was well known and salient in ancient times. The very first invocatory stanza of Ashtangahridaya (the main text in Ayurveda, written in 4th century A.D.) describes how emotions like desires lead to both physical and mental diseases. Many attempts are being made to integrate ancient Indian Psychology with modern Western Psychology. More than 40 books have appeared in the field of Indian Psychology. There is a journal of Indian Psychology published from Andhra University which has an Institute of Yoga and Consciousness. At least five persons have developed personality inventories based on the Triguna theory (Satwa, Rajas and Tamas) of Kapila (Sankhya philosophy, 6th century B.C.)

A Short History of Western Psychology Ajan Raghunathan

The roots of western psychology can be traced to Greek philosophy. The word psychology itself is derived from the

Greek words ‘psyche’ which means soul and ‘logos’ which means study. Psychology thus started as a part of philosophy and became an independent discipline much later. Plato and Aristotle where among the first philosophers who thought about the mind. Plato believed that body and mind are two separate entities and mind could exist even after death. But he was positive in that education can bring change to the basic nature of the mind. Aristotle, who was the disciple of Plato, followed the feet of his teacher and believed in the body-mind duality. But he thought that of each of these is the manifestation of the other. He, but, was pessimistic about the role of education in changing the fundamental nature of humans. Rene Descartes, the French philosopher and mathematician, who originated the Cartesian system of coordinates or the coordinate geometry, also believed in the body-mind duality. But he was open enough to consider that there is an uninterrupted transaction between the body and the mind. In the eighteenth century AD, John Locke, a British national, proposed that knowledge depends upon the experience based on the sense organ and that thinking is not innate. He also considered that the mind of a newly-born child is like a clean-slate on which anything can be written. Locke believed that knowledge occurs only when the sense organs interact with the outer world. These two ideas – the body-mind duality and the ‘cleanslate’ mind - have been the strong roots of the western psychology for many decades. Only in the twentieth century western psychologists, especially Jung, Maslow and others, were able to break free from this limiting concepts. In the twentieth century AD, German scientist E.H.Weber attempted a scientific approach in the study of the mind by his finding of the quantitative relation between stimulus intensity and the resultant sensory experience. This was later known as the Weber’s law. Almost in the same period, G.T.Fechner, who is called the

father of quantitative psychology, coined psycho-physics which is the quantitative study of external structures and sensory experience. Then came Darwin with his revolutionary ‘origin of species’ which influenced psychology and human thought. In 1879, Wilhelm Wundt, a German scientist, established the world’s first psychological lab at Leipzig, Germany. His aim was to prove that there is a physical activity for every mental activity. He opined that psychologists should study sensation, perception, and emotions. In the first decade of the 20th Century AD, the Russian psychologist Ivan P. Pavlov made a path breaking finding when he was studying the digestion process in dogs. Before the experimental dog was given food, a bell was sounded. When this was repeated several times, the dog started salivating the very moment it heard the bell sound. Pavlov called this the conditioned reflex. This was one of the greatest findings that made radical changes in the field of psychology.

Major Schools of Psychology Structuralism Titchner and his followers said that conciseness can be analyzed into three—sensation, perception and feeling. Titchner and his followers are called structuralists and their main method for study of mind was introspection. Functionalism:William James, the father of American Psychology, J.R.Angels and John Dewey argued that psychologists should study the function of the mind and not its structure. These group of psychologists are called functionalists. Freud and Psycho Analysis Sigmund Freud of Vienna, who is considered as the father of modern psychology, originated a new method called the Free Association Technique. Freud considered that mind has three

parts – the conscious, the pre-conscious and the unconscious. He considered that 90% of the mind is the unconscious mind. He argued that Id (unconscious mind) is the seat of repression, and instincts. Freud further considered that behind any behavior is the libido energy. He divided the personality into three – id, ego, superego. Of these, Id goes after pleasure and thus is said to be governed by the pleasure principle. Ego which is the organized part of Id is driven by the Reality Principle. Superego connects the id to the external world and is considered the conscience. Later, Erich Frome, Karan Horney, Erik Erikson, Harry Sullivan and Otto Rank improved upon the ideas of Frued and so they are called Neo Fruedians. Alfred Adler and Individual Psychology Alfred Adler gave the focus to society because he thought that since we are social animals we should give emphasis on social factors. He argued that, the will to power and superiority are thus more important than sex or will to pleasure. So, the individual will try to overcome the deficits he has or he thinks he has. He will try to show superiority or ambition. Inferiority complex is the most important concept Adler added to psychology. His psychology is called Individual Psychology. Jung and Analytical Psychology Carl Gustav Jung, like Adler, was in the psychoanalytical camp in the beginning, but later parted with Freud to create his own (school of) psychology called the Analytical Psychology. He dismissed the Freudian theory that the only motive that drive the unconscious is sex. Jung extended the concept of the unconscious beyond the individual. Thus he said that there is a collective unconscious besides the individual unconscious. He postulated that the racial memory of centuries is precipitated in the unconscious of each individual. According to him, the main ingredient of the collective unconscious is the archetype. Behaviorism

John B. Watson, also of America, proposed that psychologists as scientists should study observable human nature and not the concepts like mind, consciousness etc. He and his followers tried to explain behavior based on stimulus and response. They are called behaviorists and their school of psychology is called behaviorism. Tolman, Hull and B.F.Skinner are the later behaviorists. Skinner originated operant conditioning which is one of the most used techniques for psychological therapy today. Gestalt Psychology Gestalt Psychology was a reaction to the over emphasis of reductionistic methods in psychology. The gestalt psychologists were against this blind reliance on analysis and reductionism. They believed that behavior should be understood in a holistic way. Max Wertheimer, Wolfgang Kohler, Kurt Kafka were the first proponents of this school psychology. Humanistic Psychology Some psychologists believed that neither Frued et al nor the behaviorists could include the complexity and uniqueness of man their studies of psychology. So a group of psychologists gave human experience more importance and they are called humanists. They argued that man is a subjective animal. The humanists counted that the motives for development and to become perfect are more important than sex, power etc. They brought back the dignity of man that Frued and others undignified. They denied Freudian unconscious or behaviorstic environment as the ultimate basis of behavior and said that man is not a slave of either the unconscious or the situation. Gestalt psychology, Indian Psychology, Psychology of Consciousness, Environmental Psychology, Para Psychology are the schools of psychology that are included in Humanistic psychology. Gordon W Allport, Carl Rogers, and Abraham Maslow are some of the early proponents of humanistic psychology.

The Three Major Forces in Modern Psychology There are three major forces in psychology. Freudian Psychoanalysis and the offshoots from it are considered the First Force in Psychology. This has been very dominant in the earlier part of the 20th century but has given way to the second force in psychology called behaviorism. Currently, behaviorism is also slowly reaching its end. Slowly, holistic and more natural ways are coming to the main stream. This is the third force in psychology – the Humanistic Psychology. Many experts foresee that by the first or second decade of the 21st century, humanistic psychology will become the dominant major force. This is because that man will slowly come to realize that the origin of bliss is in himself and so man will turn to himself for truth, beauty, happiness, success, and achievement. Neither Freudian psychology nor Behaviorism can be of definite help in this stage.

ORIENTAL PSYCHOLOGY Introduction Oriental Psychology consists of the psychologically relevant materials taken from ancient writings in the orient. During the early part of the present century, modern psychology emphasized sensation and perception and Indian Psychology consisted of largely Indian theories of perception. Later on when modern psychology started studying cognition, materials relevant to that also were taken from ancient scriptures and other documents. Still later theories of emotion also were included. Climate perhaps has an influence on the goals and values of people. In the West people have an external orientation, their temperament being characterized by practical aggressive traits. In the East people are philosophically inclined. There is an internal orientation and the main concern of life is with the ultimates. Consequently ancient oriental writings are largely concerning religious and philosophical issues. Self-enquiry using holistic intuitive methods did not fall within the traditional framework of empirical psychology and so most of oriental material was supposed to be irrelevant for Psychology. But with the development of humanistic approach and the psychology of consciousness, almost the whole of oriental writings has become very relevant. In Western psychology, the reference point was the average person. The normal was the average. But in the orient the normal was the ideal, the perfect. Cultivation of the quality of subjective experience was the main concern. The aim of life was considered to be self-realization.

INDIAN PSYCHOLOGY Motivation The four asramas are Brahmacharya, Garhasthya, Vanaprastha and Sanyasa, the last one aiming at self-realization. The four motives are Kama, Artha, Dharma and Moksha, showing a rough correspondence to Maslow's hierarchy of needs. The concept of Nishkama Karma (action with detachment) shows a similarity to Maslow's concept of metamotivation.

Personality The three components of temperament are Thamasik (characterised by lethargy), Rajasik (characterised by high drive) and Sathwik characterized by balance and stability. There is also a transcendental qualityless (gunatheetha) state conducive to self-realisation. Six personality types are recognised in Buddhism: Ragacharith (attached), Doshacharith (envy, aggression), Mohacharith (dull, idle), Buddhicharith (rational), Vithakkacharith (imaginative), and Sadvacharith (disciplined). Jain typology called Laisya or colour type theory grades people according to the colouration of soul by karmic passions: Black, Blue, Grey, Pink, Red and White. All these theories recognise a gradation with respect to the state of self-realisation.

Personality development consists of growth toward unity. The Indian view is similar to the views of Rogers and Maslow which hypothesise spontaneous growth given right conditions. Guru occupies a very important place and parallels have been drawn between the guru-sishya relationship and counsellor- counsellee relationship. The main difference is that the Guru is a person with a high degree of self-awareness instead of any factual knowledge or skill of a counsellor and in the Indian system total personality change is emphasized more than specific behaviour change. The guru is a person with steady awareness. Many modern therapies like the Gestalt therapy emphasise Nowness, Actuality, Awareness and Wholeness and emphasise the personality of the counsellor and these therapies come close to the Indian model.

YOGA PSYCHOLOGY Yoga means union. It is customarily used to denote methods used to attain superconsciousness. Several qualities like ability to discriminate the real from the unreal (viveka), disinterest and desire to know the truth (mumukshathava) are required in order to become a sadhaka (practitioner). The methods have been grouped into four. 1. Karma yoga

Every action has a reaction on the doer and the effect of actions remain in the person as his samskara. Good karma purifies the mind. Adler's method of developing social interest as a technique for personality development and personality development through improving social interactions (including counselling) can be related to karma yoga.

Actions can be classified into Nitya (daily routines), Kamya (desire-driven), Nishidha (sinful), Naimithika (occasional duties) and prayaschitha (compensatory). Another classification is into Sakama karma (desire driven) and Nishkama karma (action motivated only by a sense of duty, without any concern for the results. The concept of Nishkama Karma is close to Maslow's notion of Meta motivation (action stemming from fullness) as against deficiency motivation.

2. Bhakthi yoga Bhakthi yoga is the yoga of emotions. It is controlled cultivation of higher emotions. It involves the awakening, actualising and controlling of libidinal forces. It draws out latent emotional potentiality, arouses experiencial capacities and merges suppressions, repressions and inhibitions.

Gods represent psychic forces. God is the symbol of one's own evolved self. It is Brahman (the absolute) relfected in Maya (the percieved reality). Through Bhakthi yoga you seek your own true identity. Each person is advised to select or conceive of a God suited to his personality requirements.

Bhakthas are of different types: The Artha prays to escape from suffering. The Jignasu does so out of curiosity. The Artharthi seeks material gain. The Jnani seeks deliverance. This classification is based on the aim of the Bhaktha. Bhakthi or devotion has been broadly classified into Saguna Bhakthi (God with name & form) and Nirguna Bhakthi (God as the absolute consciousness). There is some agreement that Nirguna Bhakthi represents a higher type of Bhakthi than Saguna Bhakthi. In Dasya Bakthi, the bhaktha considers himself to be the servant of God. In Sakhya Bhakthi God is approached in a friendly manner. This has been further subdivided into relationships in which God is considered as a friend, a child or lover. In bridal mysticism, the sadhaka (regardless of whether he is male or female) considers himself a female and God as his lover. Love and hate are two sides of the same coin and there is Vaira Bhakthi in which God is contemplated as an enemy. Some sadhakas have mixed emotions; they shower praise as well as abuse on the chosen god.

The instruments of worship are the body (for puja, archana, vandana), word (for parayana, sravana, keerthana and japa) and mind (smarana). To a sadhaka following Bhakthi yoga, Bhakthi is a pleasurable experience and an end in itself. To him God is not just a device, but more real than any object of the senses. The goal of Bhakthi is to replace fear by love.

3.Raja Yoga This is the yoga of exercises and mind control. The term yoga is most often used to refer to Raja Yoga. This is also the type of yoga where a formal guru is considered essential. Usually there are initiation ceremonies to initiate a person into Raja yoga. Pathanjali's Yogasutra (1st century A.D.) is considered to be the best known treatise on yoga. It is also known as Astanga yoga or yoga with eight limbs as follows: 1. Yama (ethical condcut) - Ahimsa, Sathya, Astheya (non-stealing), brahmacharya and aparigraha (non-acceptance of gifts) 2. Niyama (practices and observances) - Soucha (cleanliness), Santhosha, Thapa (austerity), Swadhyaya (study) and Iswara Pranidhana (surrender to God) 3. Asana - yogic postures. Asanas, kriyas (stomach wash, etc.) and pranayama together are called Hata yoga. 4. Pranayama - breath control. This is supposed to purify the mind. This involves paying attention to breathing and regulating the duration of inhalation (Puraka), holding breath (Kumbhaka) and exhalation (Rechaka). 5. Prathyahara - Withdrawal of the mind from the objects of the senses. 6. Dharana - Concentration. Achieving one pointedness. 7. Dhyanam - meditation - achieving stillness of mind. 8. Samadhi - superconscious state. The person enjoysbliss, peace and freedom. There is lack of body consciousness and concern. The different states of mind are Kshiptha (scattered), Moodha (slovenly and sleepy), Vikshiptha (oscillating), Ekagra (one pointed) and Nirudha (controlled). The different states of consciousness are Jagrath (waking), Swapna (dream), Sushupthi (deep sleep), Thuriam (superconscious) and Thuriatheetham (absolute). Samadhi itself is of three grades - Savikalpa samadhi involves retention of personal identity while in Nirvikalpa samadhi, there is the experience of pure consciousness, beyond time and

space.

Sahaja samadhi is experience of samadhi within, all the time, even when the person interacts and behaves like an ordinary person. Ishta samadhi is samadhi at will. Bhavasamadhi is experienced by artists. Karma samadhi is experienced by karmayogis. Jada samadhi is not real samadhi; it is a state of numbness experienced by pranayama or meditation and often mistaken for real samadhi.

Kundalini Yoga: It is supposed that consciousness has three sheaths - Physical body, astral body and causal body. There are seven psychic centres in the astral body along the spine. They are Muladhara (root of spine), Swadhistana (corresponding to sex organs, in spine), Manipuraka (corresponding to navel), Anahatha (corresponding to heart), Visudhi (corresponding to throat), Ajna (corresponding to pineal gland, at the base of the brain) and Sahasrara (slightly above the head). It is supposed that in ordinary persons, pschic energy lies dormant in the form of a coiled serpent in Muladhara chakra. By intense visualisation, the yogi attempts to arouse the kundalini sakthi and make it move along the spine upwards passing through the other chakras. Various siddhis are obtained when the kundalini reaches the different centres. The major siddhis are eight in number. Samadhi is experienced when the energy reaches sahasrara chakra. Many techniques of kundalini yoga involve pranayama. Kundalini is often visualised as moving up along with inhalation and it is visualised as coming down (in two different paths crossing each other at the chakras during exhalation. Mantra

Yoga:

In Mantra yoga, the yogi repeatedly utters a word or a few words constituting the mantra. The word may or may not have a meaning. It is supposed that thoughts have power and that the principle of autosuggestion makes for changes in the person who repeatedly utters a mantra with meaning. The mantra is a means to bring back the wandering mind and make it one-pointed. In yoga, the mantra is used to evoke higher states of consciousness by association, while in black magic the mantra is used to evoke psychic power. The commonly used mantras include Om, yogic aphorisms like Aham Brahamasmi and names of gods and goddesses. It is believed that silent utterance in the mind has more effect than loud utterance. Tanthra Yoga: This type of yoga flourished in north eastern India. Elements of manthra yoga and Kundalini yoga are included in Tanthra yoga. Some tanthric sects think that controlled indulgence of sense pleasures is a means to arouse Kundalini and that indulgence with awareness and with the aim of self-realisation enables the yogi to gradually transecend desires. Partial indulgence without full satisfaction is seen as a method of arousing and

sublimating libidinal forces. Meditation: Meditation is the most important technique of Raja yoga. It is functioning in the passive, receptive mode, as against the active mode. It increases awareness and control and has some similarities with bio-feed back. It gradually reduces restlessness and reduces instinctual disturbances. Instincts cause mechanical, uncontrolled behaviour and meditating makes for more conscious behaviour.

A lot of modern scientific research has gone into the effects of meditation. Japanese scientists found that monks in meditation show alpha brain wave by reduction in heart rate, BP, respiratory rate, rate of oxygen consumption, muscular tension, electrical skin conductivity of the skin, lactate content in blood, etc. Meditators show increased perceptual ability, higher gains in IQ, creativity, academic achievement, adjustment, stress tolerance, work output and athletic performance. Meditating prisoners show better rehabilitation. A significant reduction in crime rate was observed in cities where a significant percentage of the people were meditating (Maharishi effect). Meditating drug addicts showed more improvement than control groups. Meditation techniques have been incorporated into many modern psychotherapeutic systems (like Autogenic Training of Schultz, Morita Therapy of Japan, and Zen Integration therapy).

4.Jnana Yoga This is the yoga of the intellect. Some people think that each type of yoga is meant for people with a certain type of temperament while some others like Aurobindo speak of an integral yoga which combines all the four yogas as best. Still others think that there is a gradation. Initial preparation and readiness are required for the practice of any yoga, without which imbalances may develop. Karma yoga is for beginners and after achieving a degree of purity one becomes ripe for Bhakthi yoga when devotion spontanesously appears in the heart. Bhakthi yoga prepares one for practice of Raja yoga and mind control. Finally the person reaches the stage where the existential questions arise with force in his mind and he becomes a Jnana yogi. All intellectual effort, in a broad sense is Jnana yoga. Broadly conceived, all scientists and philosophers are Jnana yogis. Low living and high thinking go together and an austere life is part of Jnana yoga. It is said that if a person is genuinely curious about anything, that will in due course lead him to the same ultimate questions of existence the final answer to which lies in a transformation of personality leading to an alteration in consciousness. You can't know reality without becoming part of it.

The four stages of acquiring knowledge are sensory perception, testimony by somebody, reasoning and the last is insight. Sensory and intellectual knowledge is supposed to be indirect (Paroksha Jnana) while direct knowledge (Aparaoksha Jnana)

is intuitive. Apara Vidya is wordly knowledge while truth is apprehended through Para vidya.

The first step in Jana yoga is developing a real urge to ralise the truth, or asking the one ultimate question: what is reality ? One has to discard wrong answers by reasoning Neti, Neti (not this, not this). Intellectual blocks have to be surmounted. In the language of Advaitha, one has to experience Paramarthika reality, discarding Vyavaharika (empirical) and Prathibhasika (illusory). Dwaitha is unreal and the result of Maya. Truth is unitary; it is the Advaithic experience. The method is Sravana, Manana and Nididhyasa i.e., hearing, thinking and fitting what one has understood to one's actual experience. Finally one realises one's indentity with pure consciousness and the perceiver, perception and object of perception merge into one supreme experience.

BUDDHIST PSYCHOLOGY Buddhism is said to be the most 'scientific' religion. It does not speak of a God. There is no soul, but only the continuation of experiences or karma or personality through different incarnations. The ultimate reality is described as vacuum or 'Sunyata'. The four noble truths are 1. Pain, 2. Cause of pain (passion and lust), 3. Annihilation of Pain (i.e., the possibility of ending pain or suffering), 4. The eight fold path leading to cessation of pain. The eight fold path consists of right views, right intention, right speech, right conduct, right livelihood, right effort (mental exercises), right mindfulness (of body, mind and actions) and right meditation. The capacity for moral sense is inherited but it has to be developed by pracitce. Desirelessness is the key to nirvana and the path is moderation, not total indulgence or complete self-denial. One has to become indifferent to pain and pleasure. Buddhism does not emphasise the guru-sishya system. It encourages free enquiry. Buddha told his disciples not to accept anything because he said it, but only if it appeared rational. His last words were, "Do not seek refuge in anything external, be a refuge unto yourself". One should not have any belief or preconception. But one should pierce all preconceptions like a diamond needle (Vajracheda) to experience truth. Theravada (thera=elders) follows the orignal teachings of Buddha, while Mahayana sects admit innovations. The Psychology of Zen

Zen is a variety of Buddhism which evolved in Japan from 6 th century A.D. The word Zen is derived from Dhyan meaning meditation. A novice has to take a vow to save all beings which induces the right motivation to realise truth. Zen practice involves different elements.

1. Zazen: This is sitting zen. One has to sit in the cross-legged posture and take a few deep breaths. One may sway from side to side two or three times to become flexible and not rigid. Then there are several options. Just sitting (which is a very difficult, but highly valued practice), observing the body (cultivation body awareness by observing the sensations from different parts of the body), Watching the mind (feelings and thoughts which arise), watching the breath, counting the breath, etc. 2.

Mobile

Zen:

This is cultivating mindfulness. Learn to enter fully into every action, with maximum awareness, and presence.

3.

Koan

Zen:

A koan is a riddle with no clear answer. No answer is expected. The attempt is to break the tyranny of the intellect and the ego. Absorption and penetration into the koan leads to a change in consciousness. Most koans are in the form of a question, some are in action form. Some koans were asked by a Zen master at a certain point during a conversation which helped the disciple who was ready for enlightenment, but was having some block to get over the block and experience sudden enlightenment. Many koans clear the egoistic feeling resulting from bookish erudition. When a certain disciple was asking hair-splitting questions endlessly, a Zen master said, "Have you taken your breakfast? ... Then wash you bowl." In a similar context another Zen master went on pouring tea into a cup even after tea was overflowing. Some other well-known koans are, "Use the spade in your empty hand", "Talk without using your tongue", "What is the sound of one hand clapping?" Every block is considered to be an opportunity for learning (gateless gate). Other Zen practices include Concentration or contemplation (on various shapes, qualities, chakras in the body,mandalas symmetric geometric forms), manthras, etc. For tension release and getting rid of inhibitions, disciples are made to utter a calm cry followed by vigorous shouting.

The results of Zen are flexibility, clarity, serenity, peace of mind, work-efficiency, personality integration, self-control and self-realisation. Kensho is experiencing selftransparency and the final enlightenment (satori) may come all on a sudden on gradually. In the final stage the realised person sees perfection and significance in every thing (suchness) and everything is seen as beautiful. He is self-sufficient and the only thing which motivates him to act is compassion. JAINISM Jain philosophy also differentiates cognitive knowledge and intuitive understanding. The path to realisation of the Jain system has three main steps: right faith, right knowledge and right conduct (consisting of satya, astheya, ahimsa, aparigraha and brahmacharya. While Buddhism emphasises moderation, Jainism emphasises meditation. Buddhism advocates partial non-violence in the sense that even eating meat is permitted under special circumstances.

TAOISM Taoism is a religion which flourished in China. Tao means "Way" or" How". Tao cannot be defined, because there is nothing to compare it with. It can be known by becoming aware of what is happening through meditation. Tao does not behave, does nothing at all, yet everything gets done. Tao applies to everything. All things and events are vibratory, but Tao is not a vibratory event. Tao can be realised by becoming aware of what is happening with an open mind. Tao has no opposites and polarities, Tao is One. Tao is unity. Nothing comes before Tao, Nothing made Tao. Tao is the law of all things, the common ground of all creation. Knowing Tao is not a learning process, but a process of subtraction. The yin-yang figure illustrates the principle of oneness which contains apparent dichotomies (ex. like & dislike, gain & loss). Taoism is considered as one of the oldest religions of the world. Lao Tsu who lived in 6th century B.C. codified Taoism. The main guideline for living is to actualise the principle of Wei Wu-Wei (Action Non-action) which means cultivating an attitude of deterministic acceptance, detachment and transcendence. Taoism considers intellect as a block and the path to enlightenment is a process of subtraction and not learning. The Taoist way of life involves living in harmony with nature.

SUFISM Sufism is the mystic sect of Islam. It origninated in Persia and spread to all countries having Muslims, including India. Mysticism in all religions share the same basic features and Sufism is no exception. At the philosophical level, the dictum "Anal Haq" (meaning the same as Aham Brahmasmi) expresses identification with pure consciousness. At the

emotional level Sufi mystics symbolise themselves as the bride and God as the lover and dance and sing in ecstasy. In India some Sufis even wear female costumes on ceremonial occasions. Sufi contribution to devotional poetry and music has been considerable. Many Hindustani ragas and the Quawali type of singing originated in Sufism. A large collection of Sufi teaching stories are available. The Sufi dance involves very fast whirling movements. Like in many other religions, Sufi mystics were considered heretics and subjected to persecution by orthodox Muslims. Many Sufi mystics are credited with paranormal powers. One power sometimes supposedly demonstrated is making wounds on one's own body which spontaneously heal quickly.