Samskara
Saṃskāra (IAST)Translation: "impression"
A Concise Dictionary of Indian Philosophy
Sanskrit: संस्कार
Transliteration: Saṃskāra
Translation: "latent impression; predisposition; consecration; imprint, innate tendency; innate potency; mold; inborn nature; residual impression; purificatory rite; rite of passage (from sam + kṛ – “to fashion or to do together”)"
Definition:- It is a predisposition from past impressions. It is one of the five aggregates (Skandha) according to Buddhism. They are impressions (Vāsanā) left in the mind after any experience.
- It is one of the twelve links in the causal chain of existence (Pratītyasamutpāda) according to Buddhism.
- It is a rite performed with the help of sacred syllables (Mantra) to restore a thing to its original pure state.
- It is a purificatory rite in connection with an individual’s life in Brāhmaṇical Indian society. It includes the sacred thread ceremony, marriage rites, funeral rites, etc.
- It is of three kinds: velocity (Vega), by virtue of which an object possesses motion; feeling (Bhāvanā), by virtue of which there is memory or recognition; and oscillation (Sthitisthāpa-Katva), by means of which a substance returns from a distance to its original position.
The Serpent Power (Arthur Avalon)
"Mental Artha is a Saṃskāra, an impression left on the subtle body by previous experience, which is recalled when the Jīva re-awakes to the world experience and recollects the experience temporarily lost in the cosmic dreamless state (Suṣupti) which is dissolution (Mahāpralaya). What is it which arouses this Saṃskāra? As an effect (Kārya) it must have a cause (Karaṇa). This Karaṇa is the Śabda or name (Nāma), subtle or gross, corresponding to that particular Artha. When the word “Ghata” is uttered, this evokes in the mind the image of an object – a jar – just as the presentation of that object does. In the Hiraṇyagarbha state, Śabda as Saṃskāra worked to evoke mental images. The whole world is thus Śabda and Artha – that is, name and form (Nāma Rūpa). Those two are inseparably associated. There is no Śabda without Artha or Artha without Śabda. The Greek word Logos also means thought and word combined. There is thus a double line of creation, Śabda and Artha, ideas and language together with their objects. Speech, as that which is heard, or the outer manifestation of Śabda, stands for the Śabda creation. The Artha creation are the inner and outer objects seen by the mental or physical vision. From the cosmic creative standpoint, the mind comes first, and from it is evolved the physical world according to the ripened Saṃskāra, which led to the existence of the particular existing universe. Therefore, the mental Artha precedes the physical Artha, which is an evolution in gross matter of the former. This mental state corresponds to that of dreams (Svapna) when man lives in the mental world only. After creation, which is the waking (Jāgrat) state, there is for the individual an already existing parallelism of names and objects."
The Science of Yoga (I.K. Taimni)
This word means impression but in the present context it can best be translated by the word ‘habituation’ as we shall see presently. There is a law of Nature according to which any experience through which we pass produces an impression on all our vehicles. The impression thus produced makes a channel for the flow of a corresponding force and the channel thus becomes deeper and deeper as the experience is repeated. This results in our acquiring habits of various kinds and getting used to particular kinds of environment, modes of living and pleasures. But there is at work simultaneously, the law of change, referred to already, which is constantly changing our outer environment and places us among new surroundings, circumstances and people. The result of this simultaneous action of two natural forces is that we are constantly acquiring new habits, getting used to new circumstances and also being forced out of them. No sooner do we settle down in a new habit or a new environment than we are forced out of it, sometimes easily and gradually, at other times roughly and suddenly. This continuous necessity for adjustment in life is a source of constant discomfort and pain to every individual." (p. 151.)
"The forces set in motion by our thoughts, desires, and actions are of a complex nature and produce all kinds of effects which it is difficult to classify completely. But all these leave some kind of Saṃskāra or impression which binds us in one way or another for the future. Thus our desires produce potential energy which draws us irresistibly to the environment or conditions in which they can be satisfied. Actions produce tendencies which make it easier for us to repeat similar actions in the future and, if they are repeated a sufficient number of times, may form fixed habits. In addition, if our actions affect other people in some way, they bind us to those people by Karmic ties and bring pleasant or unpleasant experiences to ourselves. Our thoughts also produce Saṃskāra and result in desires and actions in accordance with their nature." (p. 346-347.)
"The question naturally arises: ‘When and how does this process of accumulating Saṃskāra begin and how can it be ended?’ We are bound to the wheel of births and deaths on account of Vāsanā which result in experiences of various kinds and these in their turn generate more Vāsanā. We seem to be facing one of those philosophical riddles which seem to defy solution. The answer given by Patañjali to the first part of the question posed above is that this process of accumulating Saṃskāra cannot be traced to its source because the ‘will to live’ or the ‘desire to be’ does not come into play with the birth of the human soul but is characteristic of all forms of life through which consciousness has evolved in reaching the human stage. In fact, the moment consciousness comes into contact with matter with the birth of Avidyā and the Kleśa begin to work, Saṃskāra begin to form. Attractions and repulsions of various degrees and kinds are present even in the earliest stages of evolution—mineral, vegetable and animal—and an individual who attains the human stage after passing through all the previous stages brings with him all the Saṃskāra of the stages through which he has passed, though most of these Saṃskāra lie dormant in a latent condition. Animal traits are recognized even by Western psychology as present in our subconscious mind, and the occasional emergence of these traits belonging to the lower stages is due to the presence within us of all the Saṃskāra which we have gathered in our evolutionary development. That is why, as soon as the control of the Higher Self temporarily disappears or slackens owing to heightened emotional disturbances or other causes, human beings begin to behave like beasts or even worse than beasts. That, incidentally, shows the necessity of keeping a rigid control over our mind and emotions because once this is completely lost there is no knowing what undesirable Saṃskāra which have been lying dormant through the ages may become active and make us do things for which we may have to repent afterwards. History provides many instances of the recrudescence of such traits in human beings and the temporary reversion to the animal stage. It is true that the human, animal, vegetable and mineral kingdoms are clearly defined and are separate stages of evolution and there can be no retrogression, from one kingdom to another, but as far as Saṃskāra are concerned, they may be considered to be continuous and the human stage may be considered as the summation and culmination of the previous stages.
As evolution progresses, Vāsanās become more and more complicated and in the human stage assume a bewildering variety and complexity owing to the introduction of the mental element. The intellect, though it is the servant and instrument of desire to a certain extent, plays in its turn an important part in the growth of the desire nature and the highly complicated and various desires of the modern civilized man bear an interesting contrast to the comparatively simple and natural desires of the primitive man. As evolution progresses still further and with the practice of Yoga subtler levels of consciousness are contacted, desires become more and more refined and subtle and thus more difficult to detect and transcend. But even the subtlest and most refined desire which binds consciousness to the bliss and knowledge of the highest spiritual planes differs only in degree and is really a refined form of the primary desire—‘will to live’ which is called Asisah. It will be seen that it is not possible to destroy Vāsanā and thus put an end to the life process by tackling them on their own plane. Even Niṣkāma Karma when practiced perfectly can only stop generating new personal Karma for the future. It cannot destroy the root of Vāsanā which is inherent in manifested life. As Viveka and Vairāgya develop, the active Vāsanā become more and more quiescent but their Saṃskāra remain and like seeds can burst forth into active form whenever favorable conditions present themselves and appropriate stimuli are applied to the mind." (p. 352-353.)
References:
- Grimes, John (1996). A Concise Dictionary of Indian Philosophy: Sanskrit Terms Defined in English. Albany: State University of New York Press
- Avalon, Arthur (1950). The Serpent Power: Being the Shat-Chakra-Nirūpana and Pādukā-Panchakā. Adyar, Madras: Ganesh & Co. (Madras) Ltd. p. 90-91.
- Taimni, I. K. (1975). The Science of Yoga: The Yoga-Sūtras of Patañjali in Sanskrit with Transliteration in Roman, Translation in English and Commentary: Theosophical Publishing House. p. 151, 346-347, 352-353.
