प्रत्यय - Pratyaya

 

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Blog author Jayaraman Mahadevan

 

प्रत्यय - Pratyaya

Etymology

प्रति+ इण् + अच् = प्रत्ययः

prati+ iṇ + ac = pratyayaḥ

प्रति Prati is the prefix

इण् - iṇ  is the root word which means movement (गतौ)

अच् ac is the suffix . This suffix is added based on the grammatical rule एरच् erac  (aṣṭādhyāyī  3.3.56) in the meaning of the act, and also the cause 

प्रत्येति अनेन इति प्रत्ययः  - that by which the goal is achieved (instrumental sense) – cause

प्रतीयते इति प्रत्ययः - the act of going – the act

 

Lexicon

There is one reference in the Amarakośa 3.3.148

प्रत्ययोऽधीनशपथज्ञानविश्वासहेतुषु

pratyayo'dhīnaśapathajñānaviśvāsahetuṣu

Pratyaya is used to mean the one who is subservient, vow, knowledge, faith & cause

 

It will be interesting to note that from the references to be discussed below, in Yogasūtras the meanings cause and knowledge are used for the word Pratyaya.

 

Textual Occurrences

Yogasūtra

There are nine references to the term in Yogasūtras. It is interesting to note that this term appears in all the four chapters of the work. A chapterwise summary is given below -

Chapter 1

There are two references in the first chapter. They are as follows -

अभावप्रययालम्बना वृत्तिर्निद्रा ॥ १.१० ॥

विरामप्रत्ययाभ्यासपूर्वः संस्कारशेषोऽन्यः ॥ १.१८॥

abhāvaprayayālambanā vṛttirnidrā .. 1.10 ..

virāmapratyayābhyāsapūrvaḥ saṃskāraśeṣo'nyaḥ .. 1.18..

Summary: The occurrences in the first chapter describe the vṛtti nidrā and also Asaṃprajñāta Samādhi respectively. Base on Tattva-vaiśāradī commentary it can be stated that in the both occasions the word Pratyaya has been used to mean the cause. (जाग्रत्स्वप्नवृत्तीनामभावस्तस्य प्रत्ययः कारणम् , विरामो वृत्तीनामभावस्तस्य प्रत्ययः कारणम्  - jāgratsvapnavṛttīnāmabhāvastasya pratyayaḥ kāraṇam(1.10) , virāmo vṛttīnāmabhāvastasya pratyayaḥ kāraṇam (1.18)- Tattva-vaiśāradī) Nidrā is defined as that activity of the mind which takes support of the cause/pratyaya of the absence (Tamas) of the waking and dreaming state. Asaṃprajñāta Samādhi is defined as the state which arises due to the practice of the pratyaya/cause of absence (para- vairāgya) of the citta vṛttis (Virāma), where only the subliminal impressions only will remain the citta. 

Chapter 2

द्रष्टा दृशिमात्रः शुद्धोऽपि प्रत्ययानुपश्यः ॥ २.२० ॥ -

draṣṭā dṛśimātraḥ śuddho'pi pratyayānupaśyaḥ .. 2.20 .. –

Summary: The lone  occurrence of the term Pratyaya in this chapter is in the context of defining the draṣṭā - the consciousness. Here the word pratyaya is used to mean knowledge/vṛtti (प्रत्ययं बुद्धिवृत्तिमनुसृत्य पश्यतीति  pratyayaṃ buddhivṛttimanusṛtya paśyatīti - yogamaṇiprabhā commentary). Consciousness is defined as that which is pure/unchanging yet is (as if) watching the Pratyaya/activities of the mind/knowledge that arises in the citta.

Chapter 3

There are five occurrences of the term in this chapter. They are as follows -

तत्र प्रत्ययैकतानता ध्यानम् ॥ ३.२ ॥

ततः पुनः शान्तोदितौ तुल्यप्रत्ययौ चित्तस्यैकाग्रतापरिणामः ॥ ३.१२ ॥

शब्दार्थप्रत्ययानामितरेतराध्यासात्संकरस्तत्प्रविभागसंयमात्सर्वभूतरुतज्ञानम् ॥ ३.१७ ॥

प्रत्ययस्य परचित्तज्ञानम् ॥ ३.१९ ॥

सत्त्वपुरुषयोरत्यन्तासंकीर्णयोः प्रत्ययाविशेषो भोगः परार्थात्स्वार्थसंयमात्पुरुषज्ञानम् ॥ ३.३५ ॥

tatra pratyayaikatānatā dhyānam .. 3.2 ..

tataḥ punaḥ śāntoditau tulyapratyayau cittasyaikāgratāpariṇāmaḥ .. 3.12 ..

śabdārthapratyayānāmitaretarādhyāsāt saṃkarastatpravibhāgasaṃyamāt sarvabhūtarutajñānam .. 3.17 ..

pratyayasya paracittajñānam .. 3.19 ..

sattvapuruṣayoratyantāsaṃkīrṇayoḥ pratyayāviśeṣo bhogaḥ parārthātsvārthasaṃyamātpuruṣajñānam .. 3.35 ..

Summary: In all these five occurrences, based on the traditional commentaries, it can be stated that Pratyaya is used to mean knowledge/vṛtti in the citta. Dhyāna is defined (3.2) as a state where there is a flow of homogenous pratyayas/vṛttis in the citta. Subsequently, ekagratā pariṇāma (change towards single-pointedness) of the citta is described (3.12) as the state where the subsided and arisen pratyayas (vṛtti) of the citta are identical.  The ability to understand all the sounds made by various beings is discussed next (3.17). It is said to arise by segregating the word/object/pratyaya (vṛtti/knowledge) that get mutually superimposed in the process of perceiving any object.  In the next reference in this chapter, the special power of knowing the other persons Citta is said (3.19) to be attained when Saṃyama (dhāraṇā-dhyāna-samādhi) is done on Pratyaya (cittavṛtti). The final reference in chapter is about attaining the knowledge about consciousness/puruṣa (3.35). Normally pratyaya/knowledge/virtti  about the Sattva (citta) and the Puruṣa are super imposed and grasped as not different from each other. When by discrimination (viveka) one focusses only on the Puruṣa, then the knowledge of the consciousness (puruṣa-jñāna) is attained.

 

Chapter 4

There is a solitary reference to Pratyaya in this chapter. It is as follows -

तच्छिद्रेषु प्रत्ययान्तराणि संस्कारेभ्यः ॥ ४.२७ ॥

tacchidreṣu pratyayāntarāṇi saṃskārebhyaḥ .. 4.27 ..

Summary: Here the word Pratyaya is used in the sense of Vṛtti/knowledge. Even in the mind that has attained viveka, in the gaps that may exist in the viveka, the Pratyayas/notions/vṛttis that I am, this is mine etc will arise, from the already weakening earlier subliminal impressions (that are outwardly). 

 

Bhagavadgītā - There are no entries in this text on Pratyaya.

Haṭhayogapradīpikā 

There is just one reference to the usage of the term Pratyaya in this text. It is as follows -

उन्मन्यवाप्यते शीघ्रं भ्रूध्यानं मम सम्मतम् ।

राजयोगपदं प्राप्तुं सुखोपायोऽल्पचेतसाम् ।

सद्यः प्रत्ययसन्धायी जायते नादजो लयः ॥ ४.८० ॥

unmanyavāpyate śīghraṃ

bhrūdhyānaṃ mama sammatam .

rājayogapadaṃ prāptuṃ sukhopāyo'lpacetasām .

sadyaḥ pratyayasandhāyī

jāyate nādajo layaḥ .. 4.80 ..

Summary: 

The context is the description of the  practice Nādānusandhāna for attainment of state of Laya (absorption of the mind in the object of the focus). In the process of Nādānusandhāna meditating the space between the eyebrows is prescribed, where by Unmanī – the state of Samādhi is achieved. The text states that this practice of meditating in between the eyebrows – as sadyaḥ pratyaya-sandhāyī which is described in the Jyotsnā commentary (सद्यः शीघ्रं प्रत्ययं प्रतीतिं सन्दधातीति प्रत्ययसन्धायी प्रतीतिकरो जायते प्रादुर्भवति - sadyaḥ śīghraṃ pratyayaṃ pratītiṃ sandadhātīti pratyayasandhāyī pratītikaro jāyate prādurbhavati)as that which leads to quick manifestation of the state of Samādhi. Quick manifestation or the realization of the state of Samādhi is the intended meaning of the expression Pratyaya- sandhāyī, where Pratyaya refers to the realization/understanding.

Tabulation of Textual References

Pratyaya	Yogasūtra 9 references	Bhagavadgītā -	Haṭhayogapradīpikā 1       reference
	Chapter 1 Sūtras 10, 18  Chapter 2  Sūtra  20 Chapter 3  Sūtra  2, 12, 17,19,35 Chapter 4  Sūtra 27	-	Chapter 4 Verse 80

 

Observation

Thus as could be seen from the references above –

1) Among the three Yogasūtra texts - Pratyaya is profusely used in the Yogautras. Two meanings – Cause and knowledge/vṛtti are given to the term in this text.

2) Bhagavadgītā does not use this word

3) In Haṭhayogapradīpikā is used in the sense of understanding/realization.

Hence these contextual significances and shades of meanings of the term Pratyaya have to be noted in the process of discussing the term Pratyaya in Yogic context. 

 

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