Yoga Sutras I, 41 – Types of Samadhi

[lavina]

I, 41 – TYPES OF SAMADHI

I, 41 ksina vrtteh aghijatasya iva maneh grahitri grahana grahysesu tatstha tadanjanata samatattih

One
whose vacillations
are steadily diminishing
experiences the mind
as transparent
just as a high-quality gemstone
reveals the form of objects
placed near it.

They attain
a state of absorption
wherein the knower,
the experience of knowing
and the object of knowledge
fuse
into one
indistiguishable
subject-object.

M. Stiles

Iyengar defines the following terms:
“YOGA is the employment of the means to reach SAMADHI. SAMADHI is profound meditation, total absorption. SAMAPATTI is the balanced state of mind of the seer, who having attained SAMADHI, radiates his own pure state. YOGA & SAMADHI, in other words, can be regarded as practices; SAMAPATTI, the state towards which they lead.” ( p.88 )

Sw. Satchidananda describes this state as one “in which there can be no differentiation between the knower, knowable and knowledge (or meditator, meditated upon, and meditation)." ( p. 68 )

...and then duality ceases.


Iyengar, B.K.S., Light on the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. New Delhi, India: Harper Collins Publications India. 1993

Stiles, M., Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. Boston, MA: Red Wheel/Weiser LLC. 2002

Swami Satchidananda, The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. Buckingham, VA: Integral Yoga Publications. 2004

[hcoppen]

I think this state is impossible to understand until experienced; maybe when we do experience it we then discover our real self/soul/essence and are merged with the universe?

[yajvan]

Hari Om
~~~~~

Originally Posted by hcoppen

I think this state is impossible to understand until experienced; maybe when we do experience it we then discover our real self/soul/essence and are merged with the universe?

Hello and namaste hcoppen,

I am new to the forum...as I was reading I saw this post. I thought perhaps I could add a word in on this?

This samadhi as you know if very delicate; its also called turiya ( the 4th) and there is no news here I will assume. Yet your point of "until experienced" is of great value. This is called svatasiddha - or self proved. This comes from practice and with Patanjali-ji's instructions.

Regards and pranams,