Pratyaya
Sanskrit: प्रत्ययTransliteration: Pratyaya (IAST)
Translation: “condition”
A Concise Dictionary of Indian Philosophy
Translation: "suffix; condition (from the verb root i – “to go” + prati – “against, back”)"
The Science of Yoga (I.K. Taimni)
Translation: "content of the mind"
Commentary: "Pratyaya is a technical word used in Yoga to denote the total content of the mind at any moment using the word mind in its widest sense and not merely the intellect. This Pratyaya may be of any kind and may exist on any plane of the mind. A mental image of a child, a concept of a mathematical principle, an all-embracing vision of the Unity of life are all Pratyaya of different kinds and belonging to different planes." (p. 37)
"This word covers a wide range of notions such as concept, idea, cause etc., but in Yogic terminology, it is generally used for the total content of the mind which occupies the field of consciousness at a particular time. As the mind is capable of holding a large variety of objects simultaneously, a word has to be used to denote all these objects taken together irrespective of their nature. Pratyaya is a technical word for this total content of the mind." (p. 248)
"As the consciousness of an ordinary individual in the waking state is functioning through his mental body, the Pratyaya in his case will be the mental image occupying his mind. Anyone who can see this mental image can gain knowledge of that mind. This can be done by performing Saṃyama and establishing clairvoyant contact between the two vehicles. As Part 3, Sutra 17 follows immediately after Part 3, Sutra 18, the words Sākṣāt-Karaṇāt may be considered to be understood after Pratyayasya. [...]
[...] It is obvious that by perceiving the mental image in the other mind, the Yogi cannot automatically gain knowledge of the motive or purpose which is present behind the mental image. For this he will have to go deeper into the other mind. An example will make this clear. Suppose the Yogi sees the image of the sun in the other mind. This image may be produced by thinking of the sun by an astronomer who is interested in the sun as an astronomical object. It may be produced by an artist who is admiring the beauty of the sun. It may be produced by a sun-worshiper who is worshiping the sun as an expression of Divine Life. The image in all these cases will be the same, but the mental background will be entirely different. Part 3, Sutra 20 points out that by merely perceiving the mental image, the Yogi will not be able to obtain knowledge of the other factors which are present in the background and which are responsible for the production of the image. This merely serves to emphasize that the world of names and forms is different from, and is easier to reach than the world of motives, etc. which produces movements in the lower mind." (p. 281-282)
"Although efforts have been made to describe the glorious and vivid Pratyaya of the higher planes by mystics and occultists in all ages, those who read these descriptions can see that these efforts are a failure, the higher the plane which is sought to be depicted, the more complete the failure. The fact is that it is impossible to have any idea of these higher planes except in the most general and vaguest manner. Each world can be known only through the vehicle which consciousness uses in that world. The successive descent of consciousness into the lower worlds is not like a progressive and general dimming of a brilliant light by a number of covers. Each successive descent involves a decrease in the number of dimensions of space and time and this imposes at each step additional limitations on consciousness which are inherent in the working of that plane." (p. 43)
References:
Translation: "suffix; condition (from the verb root i – “to go” + prati – “against, back”)"
The Science of Yoga (I.K. Taimni)
Translation: "content of the mind"
Commentary: "Pratyaya is a technical word used in Yoga to denote the total content of the mind at any moment using the word mind in its widest sense and not merely the intellect. This Pratyaya may be of any kind and may exist on any plane of the mind. A mental image of a child, a concept of a mathematical principle, an all-embracing vision of the Unity of life are all Pratyaya of different kinds and belonging to different planes." (p. 37)
"This word covers a wide range of notions such as concept, idea, cause etc., but in Yogic terminology, it is generally used for the total content of the mind which occupies the field of consciousness at a particular time. As the mind is capable of holding a large variety of objects simultaneously, a word has to be used to denote all these objects taken together irrespective of their nature. Pratyaya is a technical word for this total content of the mind." (p. 248)
"As the consciousness of an ordinary individual in the waking state is functioning through his mental body, the Pratyaya in his case will be the mental image occupying his mind. Anyone who can see this mental image can gain knowledge of that mind. This can be done by performing Saṃyama and establishing clairvoyant contact between the two vehicles. As Part 3, Sutra 17 follows immediately after Part 3, Sutra 18, the words Sākṣāt-Karaṇāt may be considered to be understood after Pratyayasya. [...]
[...] It is obvious that by perceiving the mental image in the other mind, the Yogi cannot automatically gain knowledge of the motive or purpose which is present behind the mental image. For this he will have to go deeper into the other mind. An example will make this clear. Suppose the Yogi sees the image of the sun in the other mind. This image may be produced by thinking of the sun by an astronomer who is interested in the sun as an astronomical object. It may be produced by an artist who is admiring the beauty of the sun. It may be produced by a sun-worshiper who is worshiping the sun as an expression of Divine Life. The image in all these cases will be the same, but the mental background will be entirely different. Part 3, Sutra 20 points out that by merely perceiving the mental image, the Yogi will not be able to obtain knowledge of the other factors which are present in the background and which are responsible for the production of the image. This merely serves to emphasize that the world of names and forms is different from, and is easier to reach than the world of motives, etc. which produces movements in the lower mind." (p. 281-282)
"Although efforts have been made to describe the glorious and vivid Pratyaya of the higher planes by mystics and occultists in all ages, those who read these descriptions can see that these efforts are a failure, the higher the plane which is sought to be depicted, the more complete the failure. The fact is that it is impossible to have any idea of these higher planes except in the most general and vaguest manner. Each world can be known only through the vehicle which consciousness uses in that world. The successive descent of consciousness into the lower worlds is not like a progressive and general dimming of a brilliant light by a number of covers. Each successive descent involves a decrease in the number of dimensions of space and time and this imposes at each step additional limitations on consciousness which are inherent in the working of that plane." (p. 43)
References:
- Grimes, John (1996). A Concise Dictionary of Indian Philosophy: Sanskrit Terms Defined in English. Albany: State University of New York Press
- 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. 37, 43, 248, 281-282.
