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90-698: Mahasiddhas were practitioners of yoga and tantra , or tantrika s. Their historical influence throughout the Indian subcontinent and the Himalayas was vast and they reached mythic proportions as codified in their songs of realization and hagiographies , or namtars , many of which have been preserved in the Tibetan Buddhist canon . The Mahasiddhas are identified as founders of Vajrayana traditions and lineages such as Dzogchen and Mahamudra , as well as among Bön , Nāth , and Tamil siddhars , with

180-489: A common body of practices, including Vedic elements. Yoga-like practices are mentioned in the Rigveda and a number of early Upanishads , but systematic yoga concepts emerge during the fifth and sixth centuries BCE in ancient India's ascetic and Śramaṇa movements, including Jainism and Buddhism. The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali , the classical text on Hindu yoga, samkhya -based but influenced by Buddhism, dates to

270-631: A composite model in which a pre-Aryan yoga prototype existed in the pre-Vedic period and was refined during the Vedic period. According to Gavin D. Flood, the Upanishads differ fundamentally from the Vedic ritual tradition and indicate non-Vedic influences. However, the traditions may be connected: [T]his dichotomization is too simplistic, for continuities can undoubtedly be found between renunciation and vedic Brahmanism, while elements from non-Brahmanical, Sramana traditions also played an important part in

360-520: A female Mahasiddha. Many Mahasiddhas practiced specific tantras, for example Brahman Kukkuripa (34th in Abhyadatta's list) of Kapilaśakru practiced Cakrasaṃvara Tantra , Monk Virūpa (3) of Somapuri practiced Hevajra for 12 years, Monk Karṇaripa (Aryadeva) (18) of Nālandā practiced Guhyasamāja . According to Ulrich von Schroeder, Tibet has different traditions relating to the mahasiddhas. Among these traditions, two were particularly popular, namely

450-542: A nath. The three words are used interchangeably. A list of eighty-four siddhas is found in a manuscript (manuscript no 48/34 of the Asiatic Society of Bengal) dated Lakshmana Samvat 388 (1506) of a medieval Maithili work, the Varna Ratnakara (devnagari: वर्ण-रत्नाकर) written by Jyotirishwar Thakur , the court poet of King Harisimhadeva of Mithila (reigned 1300–1321). An interesting feature of this list

540-578: A sequential growth from an Aryan genesis"; traditional Hinduism regards the Vedas as the source of all spiritual knowledge. Edwin Bryant wrote that authors who support Indigenous Aryanism also tend to support the linear model. The twentieth-century scholars Karel Werner , Thomas McEvilley , and Mircea Eliade believe that the central figure of the Pashupati seal is in a Mulabandhasana posture, and

630-413: A siddha (see siddhar ) refers to a being who has achieved a high degree of physical as well as spiritual perfection or enlightenment. The ultimate demonstration of this is that siddhas allegedly attained physical immortality . Thus siddha, like siddhar , refers to a person who has realised the goal of a type of sadhana and become a perfected being. In Tamil Nadu, South India, where the siddha tradition

720-481: A specific tradition: According to Knut A. Jacobsen , yoga has five principal meanings: David Gordon White writes that yoga's core principles were more or less in place in the 5th century CE, and variations of the principles developed over time: According to White, the last principle relates to legendary goals of yoga practice; it differs from yoga's practical goals in South Asian thought and practice since

810-436: Is God. The following table summarizes the eight supreme qualities of a liberated soul. Because of the quality of Sūksmatva , the liberated soul is beyond sense-perception and its knowledge of the substances is direct, without the use of the senses and the mind. The quality of avagāhan means that the liberated soul does not hinder the existence of other such souls in the same space. A soul after attaining siddhahood goes to

900-471: Is a group of physical , mental, and spiritual practices or disciplines that originated in ancient India , aimed at controlling body and mind to attain various salvation goals, as practiced in the Hindu , Jain , and Buddhist traditions. Yoga may have pre- Vedic origins, but is first attested in the early first millennium BCE. It developed as various traditions in the eastern Ganges basin drew from

990-455: Is a long tradition of hagiographies of these Tibetan adepts, called namtar . Their deeds were first documented in the 12th century in the Vajryana text Caturasitisiddha - pravrtti . Important Tibetan mahasiddhas include: Yoga Traditional Yoga ( / ˈ j oʊ ɡ ə / ; Sanskrit : योग , Sanskrit pronunciation: [joːɡɐ] , lit. "yoke" or "union")

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1080-522: Is a secret land deep in the Himalayas, where great yogis, sadhus and sages who are siddhas live. The concept is similar to Tibetan mystical land of Shambhala . Siddhashrama is referred in many Indian epics and Puranas including Ramayana and Mahabharata . In Valmiki's Ramayana it is said that Viswamitra had his hermitage in Siddhashrama, the erstwhile hermitage of Vishnu , when he appeared as

1170-525: Is a term that is used widely in Indian religions and culture. It means "one who is accomplished." It refers to perfected masters who have achieved a high degree of perfection of the intellect as well as liberation or enlightenment . In Jainism , the term is used to refer to the liberated souls. Siddha may also refer to one who has attained a siddhi , paranormal capabilities. Siddhas may broadly refer to siddhars , naths , ascetics , sadhus , or yogis because they all practice sādhanā . In Jainism,

1260-744: Is also very significant that nowhere else, except at Bharmaur in Chamba district, may be seen the living tradition of the Eighty-four Siddhas. In the Chaurasi temple complex, near which the famous temple of goddess Lakshana (8th century A.D.) stands, there once were eighty-four small shrines, each dedicated to a Siddha. A number of archaeological sacred sites require iconographic analysis in the Chaurasi complex in Chamba, Himachal Pradesh . Although it might be hagiographical accretion and folk lore, it

1350-494: Is an Indian scholar of the 12th century who is claimed to have recorded the hagiographies of the eighty-four siddhas in a text known as The History of the Eighty-four Mahasiddhas (Sanskrit: Caturasitisiddha pravrtti ; Wylie : grub thob brgyad bcu tsa bzhi'i lo rgyus ). Dowman holds that the eighty-four Mahasiddha are spiritual archetypes : The number eighty-four is a "whole" or "perfect" number. Thus

1440-682: Is available in the Vedas themselves is scanty and indirect. Nevertheless the indirect evidence is strong enough not to allow any doubt about the existence of spiritually highly advanced wanderers. According to Whicher (1998), scholarship frequently fails to see the connection between the contemplative practices of the rishis and later yoga practices: "The proto-Yoga of the Vedic rishis is an early form of sacrificial mysticism and contains many elements characteristic of later Yoga that include: concentration, meditative observation, ascetic forms of practice ( tapas ), breath control practiced in conjunction with

1530-542: Is demonstrated in the sacred biographies of the great siddhas of the Vajrayāna tradition. Tilopa attained realization as a grinder of sesame seeds and a procurer for a prominent prostitute. Sarvabhakṣa was an extremely obese glutton, Gorakṣa was a cowherd in remote climes, Taṅtepa was addicted to gambling, and Kumbharipa was a destitute potter. These circumstances were charnel grounds because they were despised in Indian society and

1620-413: Is derived from the root yuj, “to yoke,” probably because the early practice concentrated on restraining or “yoking in” the senses. Later the name was also seen as a metaphor for “linking” or “yoking to” God or the divine." Buswell and Lopez translate "yoga" as "'bond', 'restraint', and by extension "spiritual discipline." Flood refers to restraining the mind as yoking the mind. Yoga is a cognate of

1710-411: Is difficult to distinguish between the early Jain school and elements derived from other schools. Most of the other contemporary yoga systems alluded to in the Upanishads and some Buddhist texts have been lost. The Upanishads, composed in the late Vedic period , contain the first references to practices recognizable as classical yoga. The first known appearance of the word "yoga" in the modern sense

1800-500: Is in the Katha Upanishad (probably composed between the fifth and third centuries BCE), where it is defined as steady control of the senses which – with cessation of mental activity – leads to a supreme state. The Katha Upanishad integrates the monism of the early Upanishads with concepts of samkhya and yoga. It defines levels of existence by their proximity to one's innermost being . Yoga

1890-530: Is known as Grub thob brgyad cu rtsa bzhi’i gsol ’debs by rDo rje gdan pa. There exist several Tibetan versions of the list of mahasiddhas based on the Vajrasana text. However, these Tibetan texts differ in many cases with regard to the Tibetan transcriptions of the Indian mahasiddhas names. By convention there are eighty-four Mahasiddhas in both Hindu and Tibetan Buddhist traditions, with some overlap between

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1980-572: Is said that in the reign of Sahil Varman : Soon after Sahil Varman's accession Brahmapura was visited by 84 yogis/mahasidhas, who were greatly pleased with the Raja's piety and hospitality; and as he had no heir, they promised him ten sons and in due course ten sons were born and also a daughter named Champavati. New branches: Tantric techniques : Fourfold division: Twofold division: Thought forms and visualisation: Yoga : The Caturasiti-siddha-pravrtti (CSP), “The Lives of

2070-535: Is still practiced, special individuals are recognized as and called siddhas (or siddhars or cittars) who are on the path to that assumed perfection after they have taken special secret rasayanas to perfect their bodies, in order to be able to sustain prolonged meditation along with a form of pranayama which considerably reduces the number of breaths they take. Siddha were said to have special powers including flight. These eight powers are collectively known as attamasiddhigal (ashtasiddhi). In Hindu cosmology , Siddhaloka

2160-632: Is that the names of the most revered naths are incorporated in this list along with Buddhist siddhācāryas. The names of the siddhas found in this list are: In the first upadeśa (chapter) of the Hatha Yoga Pradipika , a 15th-century text, a list of yogis is found, who are described as the Mahasiddhas. This list has a number of names common with those found in the list of the Varna(na)ratnākara : In Tamil Nadu , South India,

2250-606: Is upright, the breath is restrained and the mind is meditatively focused, preferably in a cave or a place that is simple and quiet. The Maitrayaniya Upanishad , probably composed later than the Katha and Shvetashvatara Upanishads but before the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali , mentions a sixfold yoga method: breath control, introspective withdrawal of the senses, meditation ( dhyana ), mental concentration , logic and reasoning , and spiritual union . In addition to discussions in

2340-472: Is viewed as a process of interiorization, or ascent of consciousness. The upanishad is the earliest literary work which highlights the fundamentals of yoga. According to White, The earliest extant systematic account of yoga and a bridge from the earlier Vedic uses of the term is found in the Hindu Katha Upanisad (Ku), a scripture dating from about the third century BCE ... [I]t describes

2430-673: The Satipatthana Sutta (the four foundations of mindfulness sutta) and the Anapanasati Sutta (the mindfulness of breathing sutta). The chronology of these yoga-related early Buddhist texts, like the ancient Hindu texts, is unclear. Early Buddhist sources such as the Majjhima Nikāya mention meditation; the Aṅguttara Nikāya describes jhāyins (meditators) who resemble early Hindu descriptions of muni ,

2520-762: The Atharvaveda and in the Brahmanas (the second layer of the Vedas, composed c. 1000–800 BCE). According to Flood, "The Samhitas [the mantras of the Vedas] contain some references ... to ascetics, namely the Munis or Keśins and the Vratyas." Werner wrote in 1977 that the Rigveda does not describe yoga, and there is little evidence of practices. The earliest description of "an outsider who does not belong to

2610-496: The English word "yoke," since both are derived from an Indo-European root. According to Mikel Burley , the first use of the root of the word "yoga" is in hymn 5.81.1 of the Rigveda , a dedication to the rising Sun-god, where it has been interpreted as "yoke" or "control". Pāṇini (4th c. BCE) wrote that the term yoga can be derived from either of two roots: yujir yoga (to yoke) or yuj samādhau ("to concentrate"). In

2700-471: The Katha Upanishad , dated to the fifth to first centuries BCE. Systematic yoga concepts begin to emerge in texts dating to c. 500–200 BCE, such as the early Buddhist texts , the middle Upanishads, and the Mahabharata 's Bhagavad Gita and Shanti Parva . According to Geoffrey Samuel , the "best evidence to date" suggests that yogic practices "developed in the same ascetic circles as

2790-585: The Mahabharata contains no uniform yogic goal, the separation of self from matter and perception of Brahman everywhere are described as goals of yoga. Samkhya and yoga are conflated , and some verses describe them as identical. Mokshadharma also describes an early practice of elemental meditation. The Mahabharata defines the purpose of yoga as uniting the individual ātman with the universal Brahman pervading all things. Siddha Siddha ( Sanskrit : सिद्ध siddha ; "perfected one")

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2880-510: The Vamana avatar . He takes Rama and Lakshmana to Siddhashrama to exterminate the rakshasas who are disturbing his religious sacrifices (i.28.1-20). Whenever siddha is mentioned, the 84 siddhas and 9 nathas are remembered, and it is this tradition of siddha which is known as the Nath tradition. Siddha is a term used for both mahasiddhas and Naths So a siddha may mean a siddha, a mahasiddha or

2970-442: The jnana yoga of Vedanta . While yoga is often conflated with the "classical yoga" of Patanjali's yoga sutras, Karen O'Brien-Kop notes that "classical yoga" is informed by, and includes, Buddhist yoga. Regarding Buddhist yoga, James Buswell in his Encyclopedia of Buddhism treats yoga in his entry on meditation, stating that the aim of meditation is to attain samadhi, which serves as the foundation for vipasyana , "discerning

3060-712: The Abhayadatta Sri list and the so-called Vajrasana list. The number of mahasiddhas varies between eighty-four and eighty-eight, and only about thirty-six of the names occur in both lists. It is therefore also wrong to state that in Buddhism are 84 Mahasiddhas. The correct title should therefore be Names of the 84 Mahasiddhas according to the Abhayadatta Sri Tradition . It should also be clearly stated that only Tibetan translations of this Sanskrit text Caturasiti-siddha-pravrtti (CSP) or The Lives of

3150-507: The Brahminic establishment" is found in the Keśin hymn 10.136, the Rigveda 's youngest book, which was codified around 1000 BCE. Werner wrote that there were ... individuals who were active outside the trend of Vedic mythological creativity and the Brahminic religious orthodoxy and therefore little evidence of their existence, practices and achievements has survived. And such evidence as

3240-547: The Buddha borrowed from the śramaṇa tradition. The Pāli Canon contains three passages in which the Buddha describes pressing the tongue against the palate to control hunger or the mind, depending on the passage. There is no mention of the tongue inserted into the nasopharynx , as in khecarī mudrā . The Buddha used a posture in which pressure is put on the perineum with the heel, similar to modern postures used to evoke Kundalini . Suttas which discuss yogic practice include

3330-460: The Eighty-four Siddhas seem to have survived. This means that many Sanskrit names of the Abhayadatta Sri tradition had to be reconstructed and perhaps not always correctly. According to Ulrich von Schroeder for the identification of Mahasiddhas inscribed with Tibetan names it is necessary to reconstruct the Indian names. This is a very difficult task because the Tibetans are very inconsistent with

3420-556: The Eighty-four Siddhas”, compiled by Abhayadatta Sri, a Northern Indian Sanskrit text dating from the 11th or 12th century, comes from a tradition prevalent in the ancient city-state of Campa in the modern state of Bihar. Only Tibetan translations of this Sanskrit text seem to have survived. This text was translated into Tibetan by sMon grub Shes rab and is known as the Grub thob brgyad cu rtsa bzhi’i lo rgyus or “The Legends of

3510-649: The Eighty-four Siddhas”. It has been suggested that Abhayadatta Sri is identical with the great Indian scholar Mahapandita Abhayakaragupta (late 11th–early 12th century), the compiler of the iconographic compendiums Vajravali , Nispannayogavali , and Jyotirmanjari . The other major Tibetan tradition is based on the list contained in the Caturasiti-siddhabhyarthana (CSA) by Ratnakaragupta of Vajrasana, identical with Bodhgaya (Tib.: rDo rje gdan) located in Bihar, Northern India. The Tibetan translation

3600-508: The Kesin and meditating ascetics, but the meditation practices are not called "yoga" in these texts. The earliest known discussions of yoga in Buddhist literature, as understood in a modern context, are from the later Buddhist Yogācāra and Theravada schools. Jain meditation is a yoga system which predated the Buddhist school. Since Jain sources are later than Buddhist ones, however, it

3690-641: The Kham, entered the Himalayan tantric tradition from the Mahasiddha, Ngagpa and Bonpo . Dream Yoga or " Milam " (T:rmi-lam; S:svapnadarśana), is one of the Six Yogas of Naropa . Four of the eighty-four Mahasiddhas are women. They are: In Vajrayana Buddhism there are eighty-four Mahasiddhas. The list (in alphabetical order) below includes their name and their epithet. An asterisk after their name denotes

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3780-683: The Principal Upanishads, the twenty Yoga Upanishads and related texts (such as Yoga Vasistha , composed between the sixth and 14th centuries CE) discuss yoga methods. Alexander the Great reached India in the 4th century BCE. In addition to his army, he brought Greek academics who wrote memoirs about its geography, people, and customs. One of Alexander's companions was Onesicritus (quoted in Book 15, Sections 63–65 by Strabo in his Geography ), who describes yogis. Onesicritus says that

3870-758: The Upanishads (composed during the late Vedic period ). Alexander Wynne agrees that formless, elemental meditation might have originated in the Upanishadic tradition. An early reference to meditation is made in the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad (c. 900 BCE), one of the Principal Upanishads . The Chandogya Upanishad (c. 800–700 BCE) describes the five vital energies ( prana ), and concepts of later yoga traditions (such as blood vessels and an internal sound) are also described in this upanishad. The practice of pranayama (focusing on

3960-465: The analysis, understanding and cultivation of those altered states of awareness that lead one to the experience of spiritual liberation." Another classic understanding sees yoga as union or connection with the highest Self ( paramatman ), Brahman, or God, a "union, a linking of the individual to the divine." This definition is based on the devotionalism ( bhakti ) of the Bhagavad Gita, and

4050-545: The beginning of the Common Era in Hindu, Buddhist, and Jain philosophical schools. James Mallinson disagrees with the inclusion of supernatural accomplishments, and suggests that such fringe practices are far removed from the mainstream Yoga's goal as meditation-driven means to liberation in Indian religions. A classic definition of yoga comes from Patanjali Yoga Sutras 1.2 and 1.3, which define yoga as "the stilling of

4140-399: The body for toil in order that his opinions may be strengthened", that "there is no shame in life on frugal fare", and that "the best place to inhabit is one with scantiest equipment or outfit". According to Charles Rockwell Lanman , these principles are significant in the history of yoga's spiritual side and may reflect the roots of "undisturbed calmness" and "mindfulness through balance" in

4230-518: The breath) is mentioned in hymn 1.5.23 of the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad, and pratyahara (withdrawal of the senses) is mentioned in hymn 8.15 of Chandogya Upanishad. The Jaiminiya Upanishad Brahmana (probably before the 6th c. BCE) teaches breath control and repetition of a mantra . The 6th-c. BCE Taittiriya Upanishad defines yoga as the mastery of body and senses. According to Flood, "[T]he actual term yoga first appears in

4320-419: The broad array of definitions and usage in Indian religions, scholars have warned that yoga is hard, if not impossible, to define exactly. David Gordon White notes that "'Yoga' has a wider range of meanings than nearly any other word in the entire Sanskrit lexicon." In its broadest sense, yoga is a generic term for techniques aimed at controlling body and mind and attaining a soteriological goal as specified by

4410-423: The concordance lists published in the appendices of his book is primarily for the reconstitution of the Indian names, regardless of whether they actually represent the same historical person or not. The index of his book contains more than 1000 different Tibetan spellings of mahasiddha names. Tibetan Buddhist masters of various lineages are often referred to as mahasiddhas ( grub thob chen po or tul shug ). There

4500-567: The context of the Yoga Sutras , the root yuj samādhau (to concentrate) is considered the correct etymology by traditional commentators. In accordance with Pāṇini, Vyasa (who wrote the first commentary on the Yoga Sutras ) says that yoga means samadhi (concentration). Larson notes that in the Vyāsa Bhāsy the term "samadhi" refers to "all levels of mental life" (sārvabhauma), that is, "all possible states of awareness, whether ordinary or extraordinary." A person who practices yoga, or follows

4590-410: The conventions of Buddhist monastic life of the time, and abandoning the monastery they practiced in the caves, the forests, and the country villages of Northern India. In complete contrast to the settled monastic establishment of their day, which concentrated the Buddhist intelligenzia [ sic. ] in a limited number of large monastic universities, they adopted the life-style of itinerant mendicants, much as

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4680-449: The cosmology and anthropology of a much older pre-Aryan upper class of northeastern India [Bihar] – being rooted in the same subsoil of archaic metaphysical speculation as Yoga, Sankhya , and Buddhism, the other non-Vedic Indian systems." More recently, Richard Gombrich and Geoffrey Samuel also argue that the śramaṇa movement originated in the non-Vedic eastern Ganges basin, specifically Greater Magadha . Thomas McEvilley favors

4770-554: The development of a number of yoga satellite traditions. It and other aspects of Indian philosophy came to the attention of the educated Western public during the mid-19th century. Heinrich Zimmer was an exponent of the synthesis model, arguing for non-Vedic eastern states of India . According to Zimmer, yoga is part of a non-Vedic system which includes the Samkhya school of Hindu philosophy , Jainism and Buddhism : "[Jainism] does not derive from Brahman-Aryan sources, but reflects

4860-425: The early śramaṇa movements ( Buddhists , Jainas and Ajivikas ), probably in around the sixth and fifth centuries BCE." This occurred during India's second urbanisation period. According to Mallinson and Singleton, these traditions were the first to use mind-body techniques (known as Dhyāna and tapas ) but later described as yoga, to strive for liberation from the round of rebirth. Werner writes, "The Buddha

4950-464: The early Upanishads of the first half of the first millennium BCE, with expositions also appearing in Jain and Buddhist texts c.  500  – c.  200 BCE . Between 200 BCE and 500 CE, traditions of Hindu, Buddhist, and Jain philosophy were taking shape; teachings were collected as sutras , and a philosophical system of Patanjaliyogasastra began to emerge. The Middle Ages saw

5040-426: The early Vedic period and codified between c. 1200 and 900 BCE, contain references to yogic practices primarily related to ascetics outside, or on the fringes of Brahmanism . The earliest yoga-practices may have come from the Jain tradition at ca. 900 BCE. The Rigveda 's Nasadiya Sukta suggests an early Brahmanic contemplative tradition. Techniques for controlling breath and vital energies are mentioned in

5130-586: The early centuries of the Common Era . Hatha yoga texts began to emerge between the ninth and 11th centuries, originating in tantra . Yoga is practiced worldwide, but "yoga" in the Western world often entails a modern form of Hatha yoga and a posture-based physical fitness, stress-relief and relaxation technique , consisting largely of asanas ; this differs from traditional yoga, which focuses on meditation and release from worldly attachments. It

5220-664: The eight characteristics in a poem, which is given below. கடையிலா ஞானத்தோடு காட்சி வீரியமே இன்ப மிடையுறு நாமமின்மை விதித்த கோத்திரங்களின்மை அடைவிலா ஆயுஇன்மை அந்தராயங்கள் இன்மை உடையவன் யாவன் மற்று இவ்வுலகினுக்கு இறைவனாமே The soul that has infinite knowledge (Ananta jnāna, கடையிலா ஞானம்), infinite vision or wisdom (Ananta darshana, கடையிலா காட்சி), infinite power (Ananta labdhi, கடையிலா வீரியம்), infinite bliss (Ananta sukha, கடையிலா இன்பம்), without name (Akshaya sthiti, நாமமின்மை), without association to any caste (Being vitāraga, கோத்திரமின்மை), infinite life span (Being arupa, ஆயுள் இன்மை) and without any change (Aguruladhutaa, அழியா இயல்பு)

5310-432: The eighty-four siddhas can be seen as archetypes representing the thousands of exemplars and adepts of the tantric way. The siddhas were remarkable for the diversity of their family backgrounds and the dissimilarity of their social roles. They were found in every reach of the social structure: kings and ministers, priests and yogins, poets and musicians, craftsmen and farmers, housewives and whores. Reynolds (2007) states that

5400-544: The five symbolic adornments, crown, ear-rings, necklace, bracelets, girdle, signs of his success. These he wears on those set occasions, the eighth or fifteenth day of the dark-fortnight, when perfected yogins and yoginis come together, to consume the flesh and wine, to sing and dance, and realize their consummation of bliss. He is free from all conventions and wanders as he pleases, knowing no distinction between friend or foe, clean or unclean, good or evil. According to Ulrich von Schroeder, Tibet has different traditions relating to

5490-438: The formation of the renunciate ideal. The ascetic traditions of the eastern Ganges plain are thought to drew from a common body of practices and philosophies, with proto-samkhya concepts of purusha and prakriti as a common denominator. According to Edward Fitzpatrick Crangle, Hindu researchers have favoured a linear theory which attempts "to interpret the origin and early development of Indian contemplative practices as

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5580-536: The hierarchy of mind-body constituents—the senses, mind, intellect, etc.—that comprise the foundational categories of Sāmkhya philosophy, whose metaphysical system grounds the yoga of the Yogasutras, Bhagavad Gita, and other texts and schools (Ku3.10–11; 6.7–8). The hymns in book two of the Shvetashvatara Upanishad (another late-first-millennium BCE text) describe a procedure in which the body

5670-589: The later works of Patanjali and Buddhaghosa . Nirodhayoga (yoga of cessation), an early form of yoga, is described in the Mokshadharma section of the 12th chapter ( Shanti Parva ) of the third-century BCE Mahabharata . Nirodhayoga emphasizes progressive withdrawal from empirical consciousness, including thoughts and sensations, until purusha (self) is realized. Terms such as vichara (subtle reflection) and viveka (discrimination) similar to Patanjali's terminology are used, but not described. Although

5760-604: The mahasiddha tradition "evolved in North India in the early Medieval Period (3–13 cen. CE). Philosophically this movement was based on the insights revealed in the Mahayana Sutras and as systematized in the Madhyamaka and Chittamatrin schools of philosophy, but the methods of meditation and practice were radically different than anything seen in the monasteries. He proffers that the mahasiddha tradition "broke with

5850-430: The mahasiddhas. Among these traditions, two were particularly popular, namely the Abhayadatta Sri list and the so-called Vajrasana list. The number of mahasiddhas varies between eighty-four and eighty-eight, and only about thirty-six of the names occur in both lists. In many instances more than one siddha with the same name exists, so it must be assumed that fewer than thirty siddhas of the two traditions actually relate to

5940-511: The most beloved Mahasiddhas is Virūpa , who may be taken as the patron saint of the Sakyapa sect and instituted the Lamdré (Tibetan: lam 'bras ) teachings. Virupa (alternate orthographies: Birwapa/Birupa) lived in 9th century India and was known for his great attainments. Some of the methods and practices of the Mahasiddha were codified in Buddhist scriptures known as Tantras . Traditionally

6030-465: The movements of the mind," and the recognition of Purusha, the witness-consciousness, as different from Prakriti, mind and matter. According to Larson, in the context of the Yoga Sutras , yoga has two meanings. The first meaning is yoga "as a general term to be translated as "disciplined meditation" that focuses on any of the many levels of ordinary awareness." In the second meaning yoga is "that specific system of thought (sāstra) that has for its focus

6120-464: The origins of yoga. The linear model holds that yoga has Vedic origins (as reflected in Vedic texts), and influenced Buddhism. This model is mainly supported by Hindu scholars. According to the synthesis model, yoga is a synthesis of indigenous, non-Vedic practices with Vedic elements. This model is favoured in Western scholarship. The earliest yoga-practices may have appeared in the Jain tradition at ca. 900 BCE. Speculations about yoga are documented in

6210-523: The performance of the sacrifice " may be precursors of yoga. "The ecstatic practice of enigmatic longhaired muni in Rgveda 10.136 and the ascetic performance of the vratya-s in the Atharvaveda outside of or on the fringe of the Brahmanical ritual order, have probably contributed more to the ascetic practices of yoga." According to Bryant, practices recognizable as classical yoga first appear in

6300-556: The real from the unreal," liberating insight into true reality. Buswell & Lopez state that "in Buddhism, [yoga is] a generic term for soteriological training or contemplative practice, including tantric practice." O'Brien-Kop further notes that "classical yoga" is not an independent category, but "was informed by the European colonialist project." There is no consensus on yoga's chronology or origins other than its development in ancient India. There are two broad theories explaining

6390-472: The recitation of sacred hymns during the ritual, the notion of self-sacrifice, impeccably accurate recitation of sacred words (prefiguring mantra-yoga ), mystical experience, and the engagement with a reality far greater than our psychological identity or the ego." Jacobsen wrote in 2018, "Bodily postures are closely related to the tradition of ( tapas ), ascetic practices in the Vedic tradition"; ascetic practices used by Vedic priests "in their preparations for

6480-441: The recognition or reconstitution of the original names became all but impossible. Whatever the reasons might be, the Tibetan transcription of Indian names of mahasiddhas clearly becomes more and more corrupt as time passes. Local folk tradition refers to a number of icons and sacred sites to the eighty-four Mahasiddha at Bharmour (formerly known as Brahmapura ) in the Chaurasi complex. The word chaurasi means "eighty-four". It

6570-508: The roots of yoga are in the Indus Valley civilisation . This is rejected by more recent scholarship; for example, Geoffrey Samuel , Andrea R. Jain, and Wendy Doniger describe the identification as speculative; the meaning of the figure will remain unknown until Harappan script is deciphered, and the roots of yoga cannot be linked to the IVC. The Vedas , the only texts preserved from

6660-414: The same Mahasiddha sometimes serving simultaneously as a founding figure for different traditions. Robert Thurman explains the symbiotic relationship between Tantric Buddhist communities and the Buddhist universities such as Nalanda which flourished at the same time. The exact genealogy and historical dates of the Mahasiddhas are contentious. As Jackson notes, "despite their importance and influence,

6750-455: The same historical persons. In the days when the siddhas of the later Tibetan traditions flourished in India (i.e., between the 9th and 11th centuries), it was not uncommon for initiates to assume the names of famous adepts of the past. Sometimes a disciple would have the same name as his guru, while still other names were based on caste or tribe. In such a context the distinction between siddhas of

6840-453: The same illustrated Tibetan text we find another inconsistency: the alternate use of transcription and translation. Examples are Nagarjuna [Skt.]: Na ga’i dzu na/Klu sgrub; Aryadeva (Karnaripa) [Skt.]: Ka na ri pa/’Phags pa lha; and Ghantapa [Skt.]: Ghanda pa/rDo rje dril bu pa, to name a few. For the identification of individual mahasiddhas the concordance lists published by Ulrich von Schroeder are useful tools for every scholar. The purpose of

6930-431: The same name becomes blurred. The entire process of distinguishing between siddhas with the same name of different texts and lineages is therefore to large extent guesswork. The great variation in phonetic transcription of Indian words into Tibetan may partly be the result of various Tibetan dialects. In the process of copying the Tibetan transcriptions in later times, the spelling often became corrupted to such an extent that

7020-467: The siddhas ... remain profoundly elusive, especially to the historian. We don’t know exactly who they were, what religious allegiance they claimed, where or when—or even if—they lived, or how many of the works attributed to them really are theirs". Comparing Abhayadattaśrī's and Ratnākaragupta's Vajrāsana lists of the 84 siddhas, Lopez found that only 34 names are held in common. Dowman (1986) holds that they all lived between 750 and 1150 CE. Abhayadatta Sri

7110-481: The siddhas were viewed as failures, marginal and defiled. In his study of the Hevajra Tantra, David Snellgrove outlines the typical tantric siddha or yogi. After experiencing the consummation of enlightenment in the embrace of a female consort: Thereafter the pupil is free to pursue the practice of strenuous meditation and physical self-control, and after five years or more he will perhaps succeed. He receives

7200-533: The spellings in the text vary greatly from the captions of the xylographs. To quote a few examples: Kankaripa [Skt.] is named Kam ka li/Kangga la pa; Goraksa [Skt.]: Go ra kha/Gau raksi; Tilopa [Skt.]: Ti la blo ba/Ti lla pa; Dukhandi [Skt.]: Dha khan dhi pa/Dwa kanti; Dhobipa [Skt.]: Tom bhi pa/Dhu pi ra; Dengipa (CSP 31): Deng gi pa / Tinggi pa; Dhokaripa [Skt.]: Dho ka ra / Dhe ki ri pa; Carbaripa (Carpati) [Skt.]: Tsa ba ri pa/Tsa rwa ti pa; Sakara [Skt.]: Phu rtsas ga’/Ka ra pa; Putalipa [Skt.]: Pu ta la/Bu ta li, etc. In

7290-850: The term siddha is used to refer the liberated souls who have destroyed all karmas and have obtained moksha . They are free from the transmigratory cycle of birth and death ( saṃsāra ) and are above Arihantas (omniscient beings). Siddhas do not have a body; they are soul in its purest form. They reside in the Siddhashila , which is situated at the top of the Universe. They are formless and have no passions and therefore are free from all temptations. They do not have any karmas and they do not collect any new karmas. According to Jains, siddhas have eight specific characteristics or qualities . Ancient Tamil Jain Classic 'Choodamani Nigandu' describes

7380-472: The top of the loka (as per Jain cosmology) and stays there till infinity. Siddhas are formless and dwell in Siddhashila with the above-mentioned eight qualities. Saiddhantika Non - Saiddhantika In Hinduism, the first usage of the term siddha occurs in the Maitreya Upanishad in chapter Adhya III where the writer of the section declares "I am Siddha." In Hindu theology, Siddhashrama

7470-415: The transcription or translation of Indian personal names and therefore many different spellings do exist. When comparing the different Tibetan texts on mahasiddhas, we can see that the transcription or translation of the names of the Indian masters into the Tibetan language was inconsistent and confused. The most unsettling example is an illustrated Tibetan block print from Mongolia about the mahasiddhas, where

7560-505: The two lists. The number is congruent with the number of siddhi or occult powers held in the Indian Religions . In Tibetan Buddhist art they are often depicted together as a matched set in works such as thangka paintings where they may be used collectively as border decorations around a central figure. Each Mahasiddha has come to be known for certain characteristics and teachings, which facilitates their pedagogical use. One of

7650-563: The ultimate source of these methods and practices is held to be the historical Buddha Shakyamuni, but often it is a transhistorical aspect of the Buddha or deity Vajradhara or Samantabhadra who reveals the Tantra in question directly to the Mahasiddha in a vision or whilst they dream or are in a trance . This form of the deity is known as a sambhogakaya manifestation. The sadhana of Dream Yoga as practiced in Dzogchen traditions such as

7740-669: The wandering Sadhus of modern India." The charnel ground conveys how great mahasiddhas in the Nath and Vajrayana traditions such as Tilopa (988–1069) and Gorakshanath (fl. 11th – 12th century) yoked adversity to till the soil of the path and accomplish the fruit, the "ground" (Sanskrit: āśraya; Wylie : gzhi ) of realization: The charnel ground is not merely the hermitage; it can also be discovered or revealed in completely terrifying mundane environments where practitioners find themselves desperate and depressed, where conventional worldly aspirations have become devastated by grim reality. This

7830-403: The yoga philosophy with a high level of commitment, is called a yogi ; a female yogi may also be known as a yogini . The term " yoga " has been defined in different ways in Indian philosophical and religious traditions. "Yoga is skill in action" (2.50) "Know that which is called yoga to be separation from contact with suffering" (6.23) Due to its complicated historical development, and

7920-457: The yogis were aloof and adopted "different postures – standing or sitting or lying naked – and motionless". Onesicritus also mentions attempts by his colleague, Calanus , to meet them. Initially denied an audience, he was later invited because he was sent by a "king curious of wisdom and philosophy". Onesicritus and Calanus learn that the yogis consider life's best doctrines to "rid the spirit of not only pain, but also pleasure", that "man trains

8010-506: Was introduced by gurus from India after the success of Swami Vivekananda 's adaptation of yoga without asanas in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Vivekananda introduced the Yoga Sutras to the West, and they became prominent after the 20th-century success of hatha yoga. The Sanskrit noun योग yoga is derived from the root yuj ( युज् ) "to attach, join, harness, yoke". According to Jones and Ryan, "The word yoga

8100-566: Was the founder of his [Yoga] system, even though, admittedly, he made use of some of the experiences he had previously gained under various Yoga teachers of his time." He notes: But it is only with Buddhism itself as expounded in the Pali Canon that we can speak about a systematic and comprehensive or even integral school of Yoga practice, which is thus the first and oldest to have been preserved for us in its entirety. Early Buddhist texts describe yogic and meditative practices, some of which

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