The self and its states: A states of consciousness doctrine in Advaita Vedanta

Description

The introduction —Chapter I— describes how I became interested in turiya and the catuspad doctrine in Advaita thought, and mentions Western "transpersonal psychology" in a preliminary way. After Mote general comments on early Advaita ontology and epistemology, I more extensively describe turiya and the catuspad doctrine in the Advaita context. I then briefly look at some Indian (and Western) assumptions about consciousness, closing with a definition of the terms consciousness and state of consciousness. The central portion of the book describes the development of turiya and the catuspad doctrine in Advaita thought. I start with Vedic and early Upanisadic references to this scheme, then focus on the Mandukya Upanisad and the first prakarana of Gaudapada's karikas on the MaU. These well-known texts are central for explicating turiya and the catuspad doctrine. Many see the MaU as outi (scripture) and the karikas as the basic exposition of the MaU's catuspad doctrine. Sankara, in his commentary on these texts, takes turiya to be synonymous with the self (atman). His commentary is especially interesting as an early (perhaps the first) exposition of his views on non-duality and the self. It also seems to have established the catuspad doctrine as an Advaita scheme for those within and outside the Advaita tradition. In the next chapter, I briefly look at early Advaita views on dreaming, then discuss the special status con lovred on deep sleep in early Advaita thought. Sankara and others take deep sleep to be serene, blissful rest, and the latent, or seed, condition of waking and dream. The relation of Patafijali's Yoga to the states doctrine is briefly mentioned. The Self and Its States CONTENTS Preface Acknowledgements Abbreviations PART I: THE SELF AND ITS STATES CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION CHAPTER II. THE CATUSPAD DOCTRINE BEFORE THE MANDUKYA UPANISAD CHAPTER III. TURITYA AND THE CATUSPAD DOCTRINE IN THE MANDUKYA UPANISAD AND GAUDAPADA’S KARIKAS CHAPTER IV. SANKARA ON TURIYA AND THE CATUSPAD DOCTRINE CHAPTER V. DREAM AND DEEP SLEEP IN EARLY ADVAITA CHAPTER VI. TURIYA AND THE CATUSPAD DOCTRINE AFTER SANKARA CHAPTER VII. MODERN CONCEPTIONS OF TURIYA AND THE CATUSPAD DOCTRINE CONCLUSION : ADVAITA AND TRANSPERSONAL PSYCHOLOGY APPENDICES PART II: TRANSLATION OF THE MANDUKYA UPANISAD AND GAUDAPADA’S KARIKAS WITH SANKARA’S COMMENTARY BIBLIOGRAPHY INDEX