lect, the highest discriminatory faculty, as much
as possible from the whirl of prakriti, phenomenal
existence.
This task requires the devotee to develop an
immunity of sorts to the pulls and pushes of mani-
fest reality. Meditative practice and other yogic
practices are designed to firm up the discrimina-
tive faculty against the pull of the fluctuations
of reality. A yogi learns not to be influenced by
either the good or the bad that comes her or his
way, but to remain calm and steady in the face of
all phenomena. When the highest discrimination
(viveka) is awakened in the intellect, then the
dormant consciousness or PURUSHA becomes fully
aware that it is not of the stuff of prakriti or nature
but is a conscious eternal entity of its own sort.
Then occurs release from prakriti and the cycles
of birth and rebirth, though one may remain in a
bodily state afterward.
Further reading: Knut A. Jacobsen, Prakrti in Samkhya-
Yoga: Material Principle, Religious Experience, Ethical
Implications (New York: Peter Lang, 1999); Gerald
Larson and Ram Shankar Bhattacharya, eds., Encyclo-
pedia of Indian Philosophies: Samkhya a Dualist Tradition
in Indian Philosophy, vol. 4 (Princeton, N.J.: Princeton
University Press, 1987); Kapila Vatsyayan, ed., Prakrti:
The Integral Vision, 5 vols. (New Delhi: Indira Gandhi
National Centre for the Arts, 1995).
pralaya See TIME IN HINDU TRADITION.
pramana
A pramana is a criterion for valid argument in
Indian philosophy. From its earliest days Indian
philosophy sought to delimit the grounds upon
which valid argument could be made. Different
philosophical schools varied widely as to which
grounds they accepted, but they all had from one
to six or more explicit pramanas.
Examples of pramanas are pratyaksha, or direct
perception; ANUMANA, or inference; and SHRUTI, or
scripture. The CHARVAKAS, the Indian materialists,
believed that only direct perception or pratyaksha
was valid and there is no point in trying to draw
any conclusions by analogy or any other way. The
MIMAMSA school, on the other hand, saw shruti or
the Vedic scripture to be the most important pra-
mana. NYAYA-VAISHESHIKA, the most philosophical
school, strongly relied on inference, or anumana.Further reading: S. N. Dasgupta, The History of Indian
Philosophy (Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, 1971–75); R. I.
Inagalalli, Sabda Pramana, an Epistemological Analysis
(Delhi: Sri Satguru, 1988).prana
Prana is the vital air or life’s breath. According
to older yogic theory there are five breaths or
pranas. The breathing breath is called prana; the
breath that goes downward out the anus is called
apana (but sometimes apana is used to refer to
the “out-breath” in contrast to the “in-breath”
of prana); the digestive breath is called samana;
the breath that is diffused throughout the whole
body is called vyana; and the breath that goes
up the throat and enters into the head is called
udana. These five breaths, or pranas, resemble the
humors of earlier Western medicine.Further reading: Benimadhab Barua, A History of Pre-
Buddhistic Indian Philosophy (Delhi: Motilal Banarsi-
dass, 1970); Swami Naranjananda Saraswati, Prana,
Pranayama, Prana Vidya (Munger: Bihar School of Yoga,
1994).pranayama
Pranayama (lit. breath control) is one of the
elements in the eightfold path of YOGA found
in PATANJALI’s YOGA SUTRA and other sources.
Watching the breath is an element of virtually
every yoga that emerged in India, whether Hindu,
Buddhist, or Jain. The practice of PRANAYAMA is
one of not only focusing on the breath but learn-pranayama 333 J