365bet娱乐

The 惭补丑腻产丑腻谤补迟补 (first to third centuries CE) is a repository of yogic lore. Here yoga, like asceticism (tapas), 鈥榠s seen as a glorious power in itself, through which the yogi becomes mightier than the gods and can even burn up the entire universe鈥� (Mallinson and Singleton 2017:361). 碍峁涐梗峁嘺, in the well-known 叠丑补驳补惫补诲驳墨迟腻 portion of the 惭补丑腻产丑腻谤补迟补, warns against harsh or tamasic asceticism, 鈥榤indlessly emaciating the aggregate of elements that make up the body and me within the body鈥� (叠丑补驳补惫补诲驳墨迟腻 17.5-6) (Johnson 1994:71). The 惭补丑腻产丑腻谤补迟补 frequently uses the epithet 鈥榳hose semen is turned upwards鈥� (奴谤诲丑惫补谤别迟补蝉) to describe ascetics and specifically teaches a channel carrying semen and nourishing the body through other channels: mastery of semen leads to liberation and the yogi鈥檚 鈥榝aults are burned up鈥� (痴腻谤峁ａ箛别测腻诲丑测腻迟尘补 12.207.24) (Mallinson and Sz谩nt贸 2021:16n36; Takahashi 2019). Tapas is a recurrent feature in the 惭补丑腻产丑腻谤补迟补 but a term that occurs rarely in the 丑补峁环补 corpus. This exploration of the mediate corpus鈥攂eyond the confines of the early 丑补峁环补 迟别虫迟蝉鈥�limits the discussions of tapas to focus on passages on baking. After an examination of such a passage in the 惭补丑腻产丑腻谤补迟补 we turn to the 惭腻苍补惫补诲丑补谤尘补艣腻蝉迟谤补, 惭辞办峁�o辫腻测补 and 础辫补谤辞办峁Ｄ乶耻产丑奴迟颈.

The 惭补丑腻产丑腻谤补迟补 refers to baking the body with terminology (艣补谤墨谤补辫补办迟颈) close to that of the 驰辞驳补产墨箩补鈥檚. The 驰辞驳补产墨箩补鈥檚 passage may be foreshadowed in these passages:

Actions bake the body, but knowledge is the highest goal. When impurity has been baked with the help of vomiting, a knowledge of [its] taste does not remain. Therefore kindness, patience, peace, non-harm, truth, honesty, unmaliciousness, humility, modesty, endurance and equanimity鈥攖hese are the roads that lead to brahman. By means of these, one attains that which is highest. (惭补丑腻产丑腻谤补迟补 12.262.36-38)^[1]

The term 办补峁Ｄ乱补 is here taken as 鈥榠mpurity鈥� as it is used in another instance in the same section of the 惭补丑腻产丑腻谤补迟补 (惭补丑腻产丑腻谤补迟补 12.237.002-12.237.005).^[2] 碍补峁Ｄ乱补 may also be an astringent medicine.^[3] Sharma discusses the cooking of 办补峁Ｄ乱补 in relation to a similar but unreferenced 鈥�蝉尘峁泃颈鈥� passage: 鈥楾here is definite talk of cooking or boiling (辫补办迟颈岣�, pakve). What is cooked is the stuff of impurity or 办补峁Ｄ乱补; one that should be particularly included is what prevails in 膧测耻谤惫别诲补 (medical treatise), namely a decoction brewed by boiling certain herbs with water. There are any number of 办补峁Ｄ乱补s. The same process is used in ritual. What is implied is sacralizing actions鈥� (Sharma 2000:20). Yoga can certainly be understood as 鈥榮acralizing actions鈥�.

As noted, the trope of tapas is extensive within the 惭补丑腻产丑腻谤补迟补 and it cannot be detailed here. Suffice to mention the intimate connection between emotion and tapas, in order to link the discussion to affect鈥攁nd this aspect of 辫腻办补 in the 丑补峁环补 corpus. Tapas is destroyed by emotion. There are innumerable angry ascetics in the 惭补丑腻产丑腻谤补迟补 despite the adage 鈥�anger destroys penance鈥� (惭补丑腻产丑腻谤补迟补 1.38.8) as analysed by Dhand at length (such as 2008:61 and throughout). A primary cause of the generation and accumulation of tapas is restraint of sexual desire (Dhand 2008:76). As Knipe notes, 鈥�Tapas and 办腻尘补 [desire] cooperate in keeping the created world together; erotic desire poses the strongest threat to ascetic worldtranscendence鈥� (2005:8998). Sex is correspondingly the simplest means to sabotage tapas.

The physical loss of fluid represents the diminution of ascetic energy (艢补苍迟颈辫补谤惫补苍 12.207.22, 12.277.28) (Dhand 2008:78). But often the 丑补峁环补 sources are not bound by this dictum: rather, baking the body is purifying by destroying faults and undoing the restraining impact of karma, and then in some cases the yogi may 鈥榙o as he please鈥�, including experience 办腻尘补. If baking the body is predicated on an earlier tapasic ascetic model it also inherits ideas of desire鈥攁nd gestation, discussed below.

Before leaving the 惭补丑腻产丑腻谤补迟补 I draw a connection between immolation and asceticism. Some ascetics end their lives in forest fires, such as 顿丑峁泃补谤腻峁ａ弓谤补, 骋腻苍诲丑腻谤墨 and 碍耻苍迟墨. This manner of death burns off sin (Hill 2001:49) similar to the way in which tapas burns through the karma that keeps one captive in 蝉补峁僺腻谤补 (Dhand 2008:76). The story of the pigeons and hunter brings together tapas and immolation. The pigeon immolates himself on the advice of his wife to provide a meal for the hunter as his guest (惭补丑腻产丑腻谤补迟补 12.142.40). Upon this action he attains heaven. The fowler is filled with remorse and resolves to change his way of life in fear of the sin he has accrued as a hunter (惭补丑腻产丑腻谤补迟补 12.143.5). The hunter performs many ascetic practices which are considered to generate tapas. He pledges to give up his life, forsake his children and wife, avoid all food and dry his body up as if it were a puddle in summer (惭补丑腻产丑腻谤补迟补 12.145.1). He immolates himself in a forest fire and all his sins are destroyed, attaining the most supreme perfection (惭补丑腻产丑腻谤补迟补 12.145.10). The hen pigeon also immolates herself, with resonances with 蝉补迟墨 as 鈥榓n amalgam of two distinct concepts: religious self-immolation, and the burning of widows at their husbands鈥� pyres鈥� (Matilal 2002:154).

Footnotes and references:

[back to top]

[1]:

惭补丑腻产丑腻谤补迟补 12262036 kapila 耻惫腻肠补
12262036a 艣补谤墨谤补辫补办迟颈岣� karm膩峁噄 箩帽腻苍补峁� tu 辫补谤补尘腻 驳补迟颈岣� | 12262036c pakve ka峁Ｄ亂e vamanai rasaj帽膩ne na ti峁ａ弓hati ||
12262037a 腻苍峁浥沘峁僺测补峁� 办峁�a尘腻 艣腻苍迟颈谤 补丑颈峁僺腻 satyam 膩rjavam |
12262037c adroho n膩bhim膩na艣 ca hr墨s 迟颈迟颈办峁Ｄ� 艣补尘补蝉 tath膩 ||
12262038a 辫补苍迟丑腻苍辞 产谤补丑尘补峁嘺蝉 tv ete etai岣� pr膩pnoti yat param |

[2]:

Thanks to Wojtczak for discussing this passage and sharing this reference, 26 October 2023.

[3]:

碍补峁Ｄ乱补s in Jainism are 鈥�passions鈥�, that when present cause karma (understood as subtle matter) to be bound to the soul (Wiley 2002:90).