Sankhya
– Elements of Creation
Dr. Laxmidhar Behera
Director, IIT Mandi
25 tattvas
Body – mind – consciousness model
Supersoul
Soul
Five objects of senses
Subtle Sound, touch, form, taste and smell
body Mind
Integrations, thoughts, desires, intentions
Gross Intellect
body Five elements
Earth, water, fire, air, ether
Urge to control
False ego
Five sense organs Space of identities
Ears, skin, eyes, tongue, nose
Purusha
bhoktāraṁ yajña-tapasāṁ
sarva-loka-maheśvaram
suhṛdaṁ sarva-bhūtānāṁ
jñātvā māṁ śāntim ṛcchati
A person in full consciousness of Me, knowing Me to be
the ultimate beneficiary of all sacrifices and austerities,
the Supreme Lord of all planets and demigods, and the
benefactor and well-wisher of all living entities, attains
peace from the pangs of material miseries. BG 5.29
Purusha
nityo nityānāṁ cetanaś cetanānām
eko bahūnāṁ yo vidadhāti kāmā
The Supreme Lord is eternal and the living beings are
eternal. The Supreme Lord is cognizant and the living
beings are cognizant. The difference is that the Supreme
Lord alone is supplying all the necessities of life for all
living entities. Katha Upanisad 2.2.13
Prakriti Internal Marginal External
antaraṅgā--cic-chakti, taṭasthā--jīva-śakti
bahiraṅgā--māyā,--tine kare prema-bhakti
The spiritual potency of the Supreme Personality of Godhead also
appears in three phases- internal, marginal and external. These are all
engaged in His devotional service in love.
CC Madhya 6.160
Jivas – Units of consciousness
avināśi tu tad viddhi
yena sarvam idaṁ tatam
vināśam avyayasyāsya
na kaścit kartum arhati BG2.17
That which pervades the entire body you
should know to be indestructible. No one
is able to destroy that imperishable soul.
Jivas – Units of consciousness
yathā prakāśayaty ekaḥ
kṛtsnaṁ lokam imaṁ raviḥ
kṣetraṁ kṣetrī tathā kṛtsnaṁ
prakāśayati bhārata BG13.34
O son of Bharata, as the sun alone illuminates all this
universe, so does the living entity, one within the body,
illuminate the entire body by consciousness.
Symptoms of Unit of
Consciousness
• Willing, feeling, Loving and desiring
• Being self-aware
• Being aware of sense objects
• Being aware of self
• Sense to perpetuate – death is not
welcome
• Subjective and experiential time
The material body
– subtle and gross
Subtle and Gross body
bhūmir āpo ’nalo vāyuḥ
khaṁ mano buddhir eva ca
ahaṅkāra itīyaṁ me
bhinnā prakṛtir aṣṭadhā
Earth, water, fire, air, ether, mind, intelligence and false ego
– all together these eight constitute My separated material
energies. BG 7.4
Gross Body
• Earth – the carrier of smell
• Water – the carrier of taste
• Fire – the carrier of form
• Air – the carrier of touch
• Ether – the carrier of sound
Subtle Body
• Mind, Intelligence, False ego
• Every aspect of our existence is a form
of energy
• Conscious like energy
• Gross form of energy
• Subtler energy drives the grosser
energy
Marketing funnel
Subtle and gross body
Soul
indriyāṇi parāṇy āhur
indriyebhyaḥ paraṁ manaḥ
manasas tu parā buddhir Intelligence
yo buddheḥ paratas tu saḥ
Mind
The working senses are superior to dull
matter; mind is higher than the senses; Working senses
intelligence is still higher than the mind; and
he [the soul] is even higher than the
Dull matter
intelligence. BG 3.42
The hierarchy
इि ये यः परा यथा अथ य च परं मनः ।
मनस तु परा बु धबु धेरा मा महा परः ॥ १०॥
महतः परम य तम य ता पु षः परः ।
पु षा न परं कं च सा का ठा सा परा ग तः ॥ ११॥
Beyond the senses are the objects; beyond the objects is the mind; beyond the mind, the
intellect; beyond the intellect, the Great Atman; beyond the Great Atman, the Unmanifest;
beyond the Unmanifest, the Purusha. Beyond the Purusha there is nothing: this is the end,
the Supreme Goal. Katha Upanishad 1.3.10-11
Mind
Mind is self aware
Mind
Thoughts
and Desires
Accepts Rejects
Mind is an element in mode of goodness
Mind gets agitated by
passion and
ignorance
Mind in goodness
Mind
Contemplates Associates
Stays in Becomes a
on the nature with other Natural state
present seeker
of truth seekers
Mind in passion and
ignorance
Mind
Future Past
Hankers Laments
Mind in pure goodness
Mind
Reveals
Self
Mind is your best friend and worst enemy
uddhared ātmanātmānaṁ bandhur ātmātmanas tasya
nātmānam avasādayet yenātmaivātmanā jitaḥ
ātmaiva hy ātmano bandhur anātmanas tu śatrutve
ātmaiva ripur ātmanaḥ vartetātmaiva śatru-vat
One must deliver himself with the For him who has conquered the mind, the
help of his mind, and not degrade mind is the best of friends; but for one
himself. The mind is the friend of the who has failed to do so, his mind will
conditioned soul, and his enemy as remain the greatest enemy. BG 6.6
well. BG 6.5
Mind is your best friend and worst enemy
jitātmanaḥ praśāntasya evaṁ buddheḥ paraṁ buddhvā
paramātmā samāhitaḥ saṁstabhyātmānam ātmanā
śītoṣṇa-sukha-duḥkheṣu jahi śatruṁ mahā-bāho
tathā mānāpamānayoḥ kāma-rūpaṁ durāsadam
For one who has conquered the Thus knowing oneself to be transcendental to
mind, the Supersoul is already the material senses, mind and intelligence, O
reached, for he has attained mighty-armed Arjuna, one should steady the
tranquillity. To such a man happiness mind by deliberate spiritual intelligence [Kṛṣṇa
and distress, heat and cold, honor consciousness] and thus – by spiritual strength
and dishonor are all the same. BG – conquer this insatiable enemy known as lust.
6.7 BG 3.43
Mind is your best friend and worst enemy
cañcalaṁ hi manaḥ kṛṣṇa asaṁśayaṁ mahā-bāho
pramāthi balavad dṛḍham mano durnigrahaṁ calam
tasyāhaṁ nigrahaṁ manye abhyāsena tu kaunteya
vāyor iva su-duṣkaram vairāgyeṇa ca gṛhyate
The mind is restless, Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa said: O mighty-
turbulent, obstinate and armed son of Kuntī, it is
very strong, O Kṛṣṇa, and to undoubtedly very difficult to
subdue it, I think, is more curb the restless mind, but it is
difficult than controlling possible by suitable practice and
the wind. by detachment. BG 6.35
BG 6.34
Control your Mind
1 2 3 4
Read Bhagavad Read Ramayana Introspect on Adopt Sattvic life
Gita and Mahabharata Upanisads style
• Enumerate 25 elements that
Prakriti (external) is made of.
• Explain the holistic model of
mind, body and consciousness.
• Who is Purusha? Give an
elaborate description.
• What is Prakriti? What are
categories? In which category do
your belong?
• What is pancha kosha? How are
they connected to gross and
subtle bodies.
• Explain the gross body in terms
of pancha-maha-Bhuta.
• Explain the subtle body and its
connection to the gross body,
• Write an essay on the art of
mind control.
