Interpersonal Aspects of Mindfulness and Concentrative Meditations

The chapter discusses the interpersonal aspects of mindfulness and concentrative meditations in terms of the four Brahmavihara/bhavana, also known as four immeasureables. These are maitri/mettā (loving-kindness), muditā (empathetic, appreciative joy), karuṇā (compassion), and upeksha/upekkhā or samata (equanimity). This practice is considered pre-Buddhist (Hindu) and extra-Buddhist (Jain) in its origin, with references present in Vedas, Upanishads, Tantras, Bhagawad Gita, Yoga Vashistha, and Patanjali Yoga Sutras and further elaborated in Buddhism. This chapter will cover both conceptual and application dimension of the Brahmaviharas.

Using Transition Systems to Formalise Ideas from Vedanta

Vedanta is one of the oldest philosophical systems. While there are many detailed commentaries on Vedanta, there are very few mathematical descriptions of the different concepts developed there. This article shows how ideas from theoretical computer science can be used to explain Vedanta. The standard idea of transition systems and modal logic are used to develop a formal description for the different ideas in Vedanta. The generality of the formalism is illustrated via a number of examples including \samsara, \Patanjali's yoga sutras, karma, the three avasthas from the Mandukya Upanishad and the key difference between advaita and dvaita in relation to moksha.

Filsafat Kelepasan dalam Yoga Sutra Patanjali

<p><em>Yoga is a way to connect oneself to God. The term ‘yoga’ can be found in various sruti and smerti texts. Specifically, yoga is described in Indian philosophy (darsana), otherwise known as the yoga sutras composed by Maharsi Patanjali. Patanjali's teachings emphasize devotion to God (Isvara). Only by Bhakti can Yogis (one who practice the discipline of yoga) attain eternal happiness free from any disease or suffering (klesa). Patanjali systematically compiles the discipline that must be carried out by Yogis, namely by implementing the Astanga Yoga discipline which emphasizes Bhakti to God by reciting the holy script OM as a symbol of God in the form of Nirguna Brahman. This can be achieved through Raja yoga which is divided into two parts. First, bahiranga includes Yama, niyama, Asana, Pranayama and pratyahara. This is called indirect or external help. Second, antaranga includes Dharana, Dhyana and Samadhi, namely direct help from within.</em></p><p><em>Yoga adalah jalan untuk menghubungkan diri kepada Tuhan, kata yoga dapat ditemukan di berbagai teks sruti maupun smerti. Secara spesifik yoga dijelaskan dalam filsafat India (darsana), atau dikenal dengan yoga sutra yang disusun oleh Maharsi Patanjali. Ajaran Patanjali menekankan tentang Bhakti kepada Tuhan (Isvara). Hanya dengan Bhakti para Yogi (seseorang yang menjalankan disiplin yoga) dapat mencapai kebahagiaan abadi yang tidak terikat dari segala penyakit atau penderitaan (klesa). Patanjali menyusun secara sistematis tentang disiplin yang harus dilakukan oleh para Yogi, yaitu dengan melaksanakan disiplin Astanga Yoga yang di dalamnya menekankan Bhakti kepada Tuhan dengan mengucapkan aksara suci OM sebagai simbol Tuhan dalam wujud Nirguna Brahman. Hal tersebut dapat ditempuh melalui Raja yoga yang dibagi menjadi dua bagian. Pertama, bahiranga meliputi Yama, niyama, Asana, Pranayama dan pratyahara. Ini disebut pertolongan-pertolongan yang tak langsung atau yang datang dari luar. Kedua, antaranga meliputi Dharana, Dhyana dan Samadhi, yakni pertolongan-pertolongan langsung dari dalam.</em></p>

Deconstructing ahimsa at the workplace: its relevance and significance

PurposeThis paper aims to conceptualize ahimsa at the workplace as an alternate coping response to negative workplace behaviours. The response strategy aims to impede conflict escalation and transform a hostile situation into a collaborative one.Design/methodology/approachThe conceptualization of the indigenous construct bases upon Bhawuk's methodological suggestion on building psychological models from the scriptures (Bhawuk, 2010, 2017, 2019). The construct ahimsa explicates by synthesizing the micro-world (Bhagawad Gita, BG and Patanjali Yoga Sutras, PYS) and through the lifeworld of Gandhiji.FindingsThe conceptual analysis illustrates the efficacy of ahimsa as an alternate response to negative workplace behaviours. The definition delineates its three core characteristics, i.e. conscious non-violent action, self-empowerment and rehumanizing the perpetrator. Besides, it proposes to enhance metacognition, creativity and individual learning at the workplace.Originality/valueThe conceptual paper gives a new direction to management researchers on coping and responding to stress.

Teks-Teks Klasik Yoga dan Refleksinya bagi Pengajaran Yoga di Bali

<p><em>The long history of yoga has given birth to a number of important texts that became the source of learning Yoga, at a certain time. Yoga, whose origins are derived from the Rigveda, is a mindful practice of living in which physical and mental training has evolved to become the dominant physical training method in the modern age. A number of classical yoga texts such as Yoga Vasista, Yoga Sutras Patañjali, Goraksasatakam, Gheranda Samhita, Siva Samhita and Hatha Yoga Pradipika have influenced the knowledge and practice of yoga in Bali from the fourth to sixth centuries, before yoga's popularity continued to decline during the colonial period. Yoga is not a new product that has entered the modern era, after the formation of the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia, but Bali has become a conservationist for the world's yoga baboons. The ancient yoga training center is located on Mount Watukaru, so the yoga tradition is called Ancient Balinese Yoga, the Watukaru Tradition. Although there is no specific mention of the name of the text, a number of the same terminology at the relatively the same era is evidence that the influence of classical yoga texts has reached Bali at that time.</em></p>

Raja Yoga Sebagai Jalan Mencapai Pemahaman Akan Hakikat Brahman (Studi Kasus Pustaka Suci Bhagavad Gītā)

<p><em>Catur Yoga are four ways that humans can take to unite themselves with Brahman. The four paths include Karma Yoga, Bhakti Yoga, Raja Yoga, and Jnana Yoga. Of the four paths, this study will discuss Raja Yoga, which is the most difficult way or way for humans to do if it is done without the assistance of a spiritual teacher. Raja Yoga teachings emphasize the process of the self to be able to control all activities of the movement of the mind for the realization of a clear and good mind and always focus on Brahman. The state of the self that is able to control the movement of one's mind in the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali is called Citta Vrtti Nirodha. Citta Vrtti Nirodha will lead human life to Moksartham Jagadhita Ya Ca Iti Dharma. The teachings of Raja Yoga will be studied in depth and comprehensively using the literature study of the sacred literature of Bhagavad Gītā as the main source.</em></p>

Yoga Sebagai Sarana Menuju Tuhan Yang Advaita

<p><em>Yoga is becoming an increasingly global activity. This worldwide yoga is only for hatha yoga, not accompanied by the well-known advanced stages of hatha yoga, namely Raja yoga. The actually, Yoga teach to connect ātman and paramātman . This goal can be achieved if humans undergo the stages of yoga as a whole so that the atman who is affected by virtual nature can be purified again.Maha Rsi Pātañjali was the first people to give an explanation of the yoga system in the Yoga Sutras and there are eight stages which are called astangga yoga. Furthermore, yoga teachings are also contained in tattwa texts, including: Lontar Text of Tattwa Jñāna (prayogasaṅdhi);The lontar text of Wrhaspati Tattwa (ṣaḍanga yoga); Lontar text of Jñānasiddhânta (ṣaḍ-aṅga-yoga). Tattwa texts contain teachings about yoga because in the tattwa teachings there are the concepts of cetana and acetana. Putting off acetana leads to cetana with yoga as the path. The teachings of yoga whose aim is to connect and purify the ātman to paramātman are related to the advaita or monistic concept of divinity, because the paramātman that the ātman will aim at in yoga is of course the monistic paramātman which believes that everything is God and all the differences that exist are mere delusion.</em></p>

The Phenomenology of Meditation: Commonalities and Divergences between Christian Meditatio and Hindu Dhyāna

The aim of the chapter is to compare meditation in the Western Christian tradition with the Hindu tradition, particularly from the Yoga Sūtras. Its main focus is to highlight the essential differences between meditation in these two traditions. One can find various contrasts as well as unexpected convergences, such as the description of exercises involving focused concentration and the development of a hierarchy of states of consciousness where the sense of self is progressively transformed. The chapter ends with a critical appraisal of how meditation is popularly understood today, with its healing and psychobiological emphasis. Although meditation is not a science, it can be considered an art of mind transformation: ultimately desiring and thinking minds are no longer in control but become the ferment that meditation operates on. To use St. Teresa of Ávila’s metaphor, this meditative process is like watching “a windmill that grinds without stopping” independently of the will. It is in this sense of mind transformation that meditatio and dhyāna can be conceived as rich traditions of creative human spirituality, which are radically different from the domesticated versions used today for well-being purposes.

Neuroscience of the Yogic Theory of Mind and Consciousness

Yoga as a practice and philosophy of life has been followed for more than 4500 years with known evidence of Yogic practices in the Indus Valley Civilization. A plethora of scholars have contributed to the development of the field, but in last century the profound knowledge remained inaccessible and incomprehensible to the general public. Last few decades have seen a resurgence in the utility of Yoga and Meditation as a practice with growing scientific evidence behind it. Significant scientific literature has been published, illustrating the benefits of Yogic practices including asana, pranayama and dhyana on mental and physical well being. Electrophysiological and recent functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) studies have found explicit neural signatures for Yogic practices. In this article, we present a review of the philosophy of Yoga, based on the dualistic Sankhya school, as applied to consciousness summarized by Patanjali in his Yoga Sutras followed by discussion on the five vritti (modulations of mind), practice of pratyahara, dharana, dhyana, different states of samadhi, and samapatti. We introduce Yogic Theory of Mind and Consciousness (YTMC), a cohesive theory that can model both external modulations and internal states of the mind. We propose that attention, sleep and mind wandering should be understood as unique modulatory states of the mind. YTMC allows us to model the external states, internal states of meditation, samadhi and even the disorders of consciousness. Further, we list some testable neuroscientific hypotheses that could be answered using YTMC, analyse the benefits, outcomes and possible limitations.