Vitarka
Sanskrit: वितर्कTransliteration: Vitarka (IAST)
Translation: “reasoning”
A Concise Dictionary of Indian Philosophy
Translation: "a state of Samādhi; debate; logical argument"
Definition:
The Yoga Darśana (Gangānātha Jhā)
Translation: The “Argumentative”
From the PREFACE: "The “Argumentative” – whereby the aspirant is enabled to apprehend all the past, present, and future aspects of the ordinary perceptible kind, of the object of his devotion – such as the elements and the sense-organs. Prathamakalpika – one who is at the first stage, who is still practicing the Argumentative form of meditation, wherein he looks upon all ordinary things of the world as true under ordinary conditions, and so forth."
The Science of Yoga (I. K. Taimni)
Translation: "reasoning; argumentation"
Commentary: "Vitarka is that activity of the lower mind through which it differentiates a particular object from all others. How do we differentiate a particular dog, for example, from all other objects in the phenomenal world? The mental process may be illustrated by the following line of reasoning. A particular dog, say Bonzo, is a living animal. This differentiates it from all inanimate objects. Bonzo is an animal of the canine species. This differentiates it from all other species. Bonzo is a fox-terrier. This differentiates it from dogs of other breeds. We can in this way narrow down the range of objects from which Bonzo has still to be differentiated until we come down to the last stage when the object has been completely isolated in the mind and stands apart as a particular object in the Universe different and distinguishable from all other objects. This isolation or differentiation of a particular object which is illustrated by the crude example given above is called Vitarka and it is through such a process that the first stage of Samādhi is reached." (p. 164-165)
References:
Translation: "a state of Samādhi; debate; logical argument"
Definition:
- It is of two kinds: Savitarkā and Nirvitarkā."
- See Samādhi.
The Yoga Darśana (Gangānātha Jhā)
Translation: The “Argumentative”
From the PREFACE: "The “Argumentative” – whereby the aspirant is enabled to apprehend all the past, present, and future aspects of the ordinary perceptible kind, of the object of his devotion – such as the elements and the sense-organs. Prathamakalpika – one who is at the first stage, who is still practicing the Argumentative form of meditation, wherein he looks upon all ordinary things of the world as true under ordinary conditions, and so forth."
The Science of Yoga (I. K. Taimni)
Translation: "reasoning; argumentation"
Commentary: "Vitarka is that activity of the lower mind through which it differentiates a particular object from all others. How do we differentiate a particular dog, for example, from all other objects in the phenomenal world? The mental process may be illustrated by the following line of reasoning. A particular dog, say Bonzo, is a living animal. This differentiates it from all inanimate objects. Bonzo is an animal of the canine species. This differentiates it from all other species. Bonzo is a fox-terrier. This differentiates it from dogs of other breeds. We can in this way narrow down the range of objects from which Bonzo has still to be differentiated until we come down to the last stage when the object has been completely isolated in the mind and stands apart as a particular object in the Universe different and distinguishable from all other objects. This isolation or differentiation of a particular object which is illustrated by the crude example given above is called Vitarka and it is through such a process that the first stage of Samādhi is reached." (p. 164-165)
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. 164-165
