Yoga dictionary. Vivec
And from the absolute point of view, these concepts are very conditional. What in one situation is poison to one person is medicine to another, and Vice versa. And the concepts of good and evil, right and wrong often turn into dogmas that cause no less harm than the absence of any principles and rules at all. In his philosophical treatise on yoga, Patanjali described such a phenomenon as “Viveka”. And this is the key to understanding how to distinguish black from white. Moreover, it is the key to understanding that life is not a black-and-white film and in addition to these two colors there is a whole range of colors.
In Sanskrit, Viveka means ‘discrimination’. This concept is revealed in Sutra 24, Chapter 4. One of the most curious translations of this Sutra is that of falkow, and His version of the Sutra reads as follows:”for one who has attained mastery of discernment, the contradictions of the nature of the soul are mitigated.” The point is that all contradictions exist only at the level of the mind. The soul itself is originally pure and blissful and knows exactly the absolute truth. And only Avidya (ignorance) forces the mind to be tormented by doubts and contradictions. And in Sutra 24, Chapter 4, Patanjali reveals the key to eliminating all contradictions and doubts — one should establish oneself in insight, or Viveka. Another facet of this Sutra is revealed by Svensson’s translation: “one who has seen the difference no longer doubts the nature of the Atman.” That is, one who has learned to distinguish correctly between reality and illusion, the main thing and the transient, has known the nature of the Atman as it is.
The translation of this Sutra Zagumenova in more detail the essence of the Vivek, and said, by and what and what is this distinction: “To see the difference between the mind and the Purusha cease the contemplation of his own being”. What does it mean that the contemplation of one’s own being ceases? One who knows the difference between the conditioned clouded mind and the Purusha becomes aware of the illusory nature of his personality, his Ego, realizing that it is only a collection of Samskaras (karmic imprints) and nothing more. It is about this that it is said:”the contemplation of one’s own being ceases.” In Krishnamacharya’s translation, one who has attained Viveka is called ” a person of extraordinary clarity.” That’s a great point — has developed a Vivec has a clear perception of reality. Krishnamacharya also indicates that such a person is ” free from the desire to know the nature of the Perceiver.” Why is such a person free from this desire? At first glance, it may seem that this is ignorance, because only ignorant people are free from such a desire. Not at all. The desire to know the nature of the Perceiver is the deepest desire of every living being, which may not be realized because of Avidya (ignorance). Therefore, it is not an ignorant person who can be considered free from such a desire, but on the contrary, only one who has already known this nature, and this happens, as already mentioned, thanks to Viveka.
The concept expressed in Sutra 24 is continued in Sutra 25 of Chapter 4, where Patanjali describes the fruits or consequences of Viveka. In Falkov’s translation, this Sutra reads as follows:”and then the consciousness aspiring to recognition returns to the former freedom.” A. Bailey’s interpretation gives an even clearer understanding of the consequences of acquiring Viveka: “then the mind aspires to recognition and increasing enlightenment as the true nature of the one Self.” Thus Viveka makes it possible to distinguish between the Soul and the Ego, that is, the true eternal reality and the illusory temporal reality. Simply put, Viveka is the process of removing the masks from your true face. And the deeper one takes root in Viveka, the deeper knowledge of one’s own Self one can attain. Viveka is also a cleaner, unclouded view of reality. And the more Viveka takes root when looking at external objects, the fewer projections the mind imposes on the primordial reality.
Sometimes the concept of “Viveka” is interpreted as conscience. This interpretation also has the right to exist. The word conscience is interpreted as”joint message”. With whom? As one of the versions-the joint message with the higher consciousness. If we compare this with Patanjali’s interpretation of Viveka as the distinction between the Self and the non-Self, between the eternal and the transitory, and so on, we can see a certain identity between these interpretations. Conscience, as a “joint message” with the higher consciousness, also gives an understanding of what is eternal and true, and what is temporary and illusory. Thus, Viveka allows a person on a deep, intuitive level to distinguish between reality and illusion, as well as on an intuitive rather than dogmatic level to have ideas about moral norms of behavior. Viveka, among other things, allows you to see cause and effect, and it gives a true understanding of what actions lead to what consequences. This allows you to intuitively do the right thing and refrain from doing the wrong thing.
