Adhyasa
Adhyāsa (IAST)Translation: "superimposition"
A Concise Dictionary of Indian Philosophy
Sanskrit: अध्यास
Transliteration: Adhyāsa
Translation: "superimposition; illusion; false attribution"
Definition:
- The imposition of a thing on what is not a thing (Atasmiṃs-Tad-Buddhiḥ). It is of two kinds: Svarūpa-Adhyāsa and Saṃsarga-Adhyāsa. The former consists in superimposing an illusory (Mithyā) object on something real; i.e., superimposing an illusory snake on a real rope, which is an example of an ordinary error, or of superimposing ignorance (Avidyā) and the empirical world upon the Absolute (Brahman), which is an example of a foundational error. Saṃsarga-Adhyasa is the superimposition of an attribute on an object. This relation is false (Mithyā); i.e., to superimpose redness upon a crystal which is in the immediate proximity of a red object.
- It may also be divided into (i) Artha-Adhyāsa (the superimposition of an object upon a substratum) and (ii) Jñāna-Adhyāsa (superimposition of the knowledge of the former upon the knowledge of the latter).
- A third division of Adhyāsa is (i) Dharma-Adhyāsa (superimposition of objects) and (ii) Dharmi-Adhyāsa (superimposition of attributes).
Reference:
- Grimes, John (1996). A Concise Dictionary of Indian Philosophy: Sanskrit Terms Defined in English. Albany: State University of New York Press
