Sadhana (साधनम्)

Sadhana (Samskrit: साधनम्) is a term widely used in the Vedantic and Yoga texts to primarily represent instruments or means which are helpful in leading an aspirant to experience the higher states of consciousness.

Sadhana in the practical context is always used to indicate the essential preliminary (human) discipline that leads to the attainment of the spiritual experience which is regarded as the summum bonum (the highest good or Siddhi, i.e., completion and perfection) of existence. Sadhana includes all the religious practices and ceremonies that are helpful to the realization of spiritual experience, and therefore may be regarded as the practical side of religion, as distinguished from the discussion of the theories of the relation of divinity to man and the universe and other such topics which constitute the theoretical aspects in the domain of philosophy. Sadhana is that by which "Siddhi" or perfection is attained i.e., the instrument of perfection.

परिचयः ॥ Introduction

It is well known that there exist distinct theoretical and practical aspects of Indian philosophical systems as manifested in the different sampradayas. There is an essential connection between theory and practice, and Sadhana has a place in both philosophy and theology, emphasizing the true significance of the course of discipline prescribed by the different religious systems for the attainment of spiritual realization.

Philosophy grows out of an experience which is more or less intuitive, and a philosophical system is an elaboration of the experience through reason. Reason can justify the experience, can at best show the experience to be consistent, but cannot yield the experience itself which transcends reason. Here we find the need for sadhana. It is sadhana which makes the realization or the experience possible. The realization of a thought is what sadhana yields us.

Sadhana: Its Place and Function

The inherent division between thought and being, idea and existence, which modern psychologists recently noticed, was long before perceived by the Indian Seers, and was sought to be healed up by Sadhana. All the theories on the nature of truth, except the Vedantic one, fail to recognize that the slightest interval between idea and reality is an impediment to the attainment of truth. The idea exists because of the real, not that the real exists because of the idea. But the Vedantic argument for the existence of Brahman (ब्रह्मन्) is not open to any such charge. Brahman or the Absolute is not merely an idea that is supplied by reason, it is reality or "vastu" which is anubhava-gamya (realized in experience). While Brahmatattava is very subtle in its nature, it is to be recognized (as applicable in this present context) as svayamprakasa and svayamvedya - self-luminous and not revealed or proved by anything else (hence exclusion method of neti-neti is used to understand Brahman in some schools of philosophy). Here the Ontological Argument takes a different turn. It is not manana nor reason that reveals Brahman; they are hopelessly inadequate for the purpose. We have the Upanishadic references of Katha and Kena Upanishads to support that Brahman is beyond the thoughts in the manas and speech.

व्युतपत्तिः ॥ Etymology

Derived from the root साधँ in the sense of संसिद्धौ, Sadhanam (साधनम्) is Kridanta term having the ल्युट् pratyahara.

According to Shabdakalpadhruma, Sadhanam is defined as

साध्यते कर्म्म निष्पाद्यतेऽनेनेति साधनम् । sādhyate karmma niṣpādyate'neneti sādhanam ।

That by which any work is achieved or attained. In general usage, Sadhanam literally means "that by which something is performed" or more precisely "a means to an end".

According to the Apte Sanskrit English Dictionary a few other meanings of Sadhana are given below.

--1 Accomplishing, effecting, performing; as in स्वार्थसाधनं.

--2 Fulfilment, accomplishment, complete attainment of an object; प्रजार्थसाधने तौ हि पर्यायोद्यतकार्मुकौ R. 4. 16.

--3 A means, an expedient, a means of accomplishing anything; शरीरमाद्यं खलु धर्मसाधनं Ku. 5. 33, 52; R. 1. 19. 4. 36, 62.

--4 An instrument, agent; कुठारः छिदिक्रियासाधनम्.

--5 The efficient cause, source, cause in general.

--6 The instrumental case.

--7 Implement, apparatus.

--8 Appliance, materials.

--9 Matter, ingredients, substance.

--10 An army or a part thereof; Mu. 5. 10.

--11 Aid, help, assistance (in general).

--12 Proof, substantiation, demonstration.

--13 The hetu or middle term in a syllogism, reason, that which leads to a conclusion; साध्ये निश्चितमन्वयेन घटितं बिभ्रत्सपक्षे स्थितिं व्यावृत्तं च विपक्षतो भवति यत्तत्साधनं सिद्धये Mu. 5. 10.

--14 Subduing, overcoming.

--15 Subduing by charms.

--16 Accomplishing anything by charms or magic.

--17 Healing, curing.

--18 Killing, destroying; फलं च तस्य प्रतिसाधनं Ki. 14. 17.

--19 Conciliating, propitiating, winning over.

--20 Going out, setting forward, departure.

--21 Going after, following.

--22 Penance, self-mortification.

--23 Attainment of final beatitude.

--24 A medicinal preparation, drug, medicine.

--25 (In law) Enforcement of the delivery of anything, or of the payment of debt, infliction of fine.

In the context of this article, sadhana is used in a technical sense as the means of achieving Brahmajnana, and here the discussion is about the essential characteristics of a sadhaka (such as nitya-anitya-vastuviveka, vairagya, etc.) to be developed as a means for the attainment of the highest spiritual experience.

ब्रह्मज्ञानसाधनन्तु नित्यानित्यवस्तुविवेकेहामुत्र- फलभोगविरागशमदमादिसम्पन्मुमुक्षुत्वम् । इति वेदान्तसारः ॥ brahmajñānasādhanantu nityānityavastuvivekehāmutra- phalabhogavirāgaśamadamādisampanmumukṣutvam । iti vedāntasāraḥ ॥

Thus, though the word Sadhana has a very wide connotation and implies all kinds of means for attainment of all types of aspirations both worldly and spiritual, in this article its connotation is restricted to means for achieving spiritual perfection.

Sadhana related to Sadhaka and the Sadhya

A Vedantic aspirant may be termed as a Sadhaka (साधकः) who has a goal (eg., Srimaha Vishnu, Brahman) or Sadhya (साध्यम्) and the means to attain the goal is Sadhana (साधनम्) which could include Bhakti, Jnana and Yoga margas.

Who has the Adhikara for Sadhana?

The entire humanity is meant for Sadhana as the animal world bereft of rationality is beyond its purview. The theory of evolution both ancient and modern acclaims the human being as the finest product of creation endowed richly with an enormous power of thought and deed that could be directed towards the attainment of perfection.

Man is not a mere compound of certain elements that appears by chance at certain times and disappears at certain other times without a permanent phase. Man has been the subject of study and speculation from very early times and seers with wisdom have arrived at the fundamental truth that he is an eternal principle different and distinct from matter. This revelation of the eternality of the self is the fulcrum on which the entire superstructure of Sadhana rests. So the psychology of the Jiva has to be studied and his relationship with the Universe has to be understood. This leads us to the understanding why Moksha (includes the Atma jnana), the Paramapurushartha, is considered the highest among the four Purusharthas and is a unique goal of a human being alone.

A Sadhaka

The philosophy of Sadhana therefore centers around the Sadhaka, the aspirant human being, who is called the embodied Self (finite) or Atman in Vedantic terminology. Sadhaka is related to the Sadhya or the Universal Self (infinite) or Brahman. In Kathopanishad (1.1.20) Nachiketa questioned Yamadharmaraja only about the three problems namely

• the Sadhya or the Universal Self
• the nature of the Sadhaka or the aspirant
• the means or Sadhana to attain the Universal Self

Seers of the past therefore urged all the aspirants to get a thorough knowledge of the five factors implied in the above three problems before taking up any Sadhana.

1. The nature of the Brahman who is to be attained.
2. The nature of the individual Self (Atman) who has to attain the Brahman.
3. The means of attaining the Brahman.
4. The fruits of attaining the Brahman or the summum bonum (Moksha).
5. The obstructions for the attainment of the Brahman.

The Sadhya

It is indispensible for a Sadhaka to have a thorough understanding of the nature of the goal he aspires to achieve. He must know very precisely the full content of his ideal with all its implications so that his efforts may not be wasted or misdirected.

Sadhana Bhedas and Outcomes

Sadhana - Positive and Negative Aspects

Sadhana may broadly be divided into two important phases according to some ways of, as namely

1. Vairagya (desirelessness) which is the negative side.
2. Abhyasa (repetitive practice) which is the positive phase.

Both the phases are intermingled and complement each other. The negative aspect is only preparatory and creates the proper field for the positive Sadhana. The value of the negative aspect consists in withdrawing the mind from things other than the object of interest, so that the positive aspect of concentrating the entire mind on the topic at hand may be fully serviceable. Vairagya (dispassion, renunciation, non-attachment etc.,) represents the elimination of attachment to everything finite, while Abhyasa helps bring out infinitude in the vaccuum created by Vairagya. it should be noted that Vairagya is not mere absence of desire; it is knowing an object as unworthy of desire that is truly vairagya. These important phases to restrain the mind are mentioned both in Yogasutras as well as Bhagavadgita.

अभ्यासेन तु कौन्तेय वैराग्येण च गृह्यते ॥ ६-३५॥ (Bhag. Gita. 6.35)

Meaning: Undoubtedly, the mind is difficult to control and is restless, O! Arjuna, it is to be restrained by Abhyasa (practice) and Vairagya (dispassion).

अभ्यासवैराग्याभ्यां तन्निरोधः ॥ १.१२॥ (Yoga. Sutr. 1.12)

Meaning: Their (vrittis of the mind) control is by Abhyasa (practice) and Vairagya (non-attachment).

Positive and Negative Aspects in Different Ways of Sadhana

Summarized below is the divisional outlook of Sadhana into positive and negative aspects according to various ways

Text/Sadhana Line	Negative Aspect	Positive Aspect	Removal of Obstacles
Advaita Vedanta	Nitya-anitya vastu viveka (discrimination of the permanent and the transitory)	Shravana (hearing the sacred texts and understanding their meaning or arthānusandhāna)	Vichara
	Ihāmutra-phalabhoga-virāga (indifference to pleasure of every kind either in this world or the next)	manana (reflection and ratiocination or tattvānusandhāna)
	janma-mrtyu-jvarā-vyādhi-dukhadoshānudarsanam (constant perception of and reflection on the sorrows attending birth, death, disease and old age)	nididhyasana (constant meditation on the conclusions established by ratiocination)
Patanjali Yogasutras	Pratyahara (withdrawing from things other than the object of meditation)	dharana (concentration), dhyana (meditation) and samadhi (ecstasy)	Yama, niyama, asana, pranayama, and pratyahara
Tantra	Bhuta-shuddhi (or purification of the gross, the subtle and causal bodies)	Matrka-nyasa (pure spiritual creative energy)	Puja, asana-shuddhi, bhuta-shuddi
Bhagavadgita	aratirjanasamsadi —absence of pleasure in the company of worldly people. Nothing worldly and finite can yield pleasure to one who is in search after the Infinite.	adhyatma-jnananityatvam —constant living in things spiritual
Bhakti	Recitation of the name of the Krishna, Narayana

Chittashuddhi - Chief Outcome of Sadhana

Great emphasis has been laid upon the negative aspect of Sadhana, not only by most sects of the Sanatana Dharma, but by other religions of the world. This negative side is described as the stage of purgation which is the essential preliminary to all illumination. The divine discontent, the unwillingness to be satisfied with the merely animal level of existence, is the first stage in the development of spiritual consciousness, and this, when earnest and real, cannot but lead to purgation or Chittasuddhi.

The purification of the chitta or mind is the one thing that is indispensable, and whatever differences might exist with regard to other points, all the different forms of Sadhana agree in holding that this is the basis of all true illumination. According to the Yoga school, the negative step precedes the positive and prepares the vacuum that is to be filled up by the positive.

Tantra also involves purgation or purification of the sinful body and the removal of all sins and taints, acquired and inherited. This is what prepares the vacuum that is next filled up by the Matrka or the pure spiritual creative Energy, which is the mother of all feelings and ideas (bhava).

Bhakti Marga Differs

The Bhakti line of Sadhana does not place much emphasis on this negative phase and regards - vairagya or desirelessness as not much helpful towards spiritual realisation.

तस्मान्मद्‍भक्तियुक्तस्य योगिनो वै मदात्मनः । न ज्ञानं न च वैराग्यं प्रायः श्रेयो भवेदिह ॥ ३१ ॥ (Bhag. Pura. 11.20.31)

Love of what is divine is the one thing that is essential, and indifference towards other things (vairagya) is not to be sought separately. God and all that is God’s are loved, and automatically everything other than God and the Divine ceases to be of any importance.

Trshnatyaga (desirelessness) comes as a consequence of filling up with Krishnanishta—(love of God). The Bhakti-marga points out that it is wrong psychology to try to drive out things from the mind and to make it a vacuum before filling it up with other things. If we fill up the mind with God, automatically other things disappear. This is the direct method of getting rid of worldly things and objects, and also of realising God. Similarly, reciting the name of Krishna, according to this school, also removes all obstacles. Thus in this system the separation between the positive and negative aspects is not distinct.

Sadhana - Bahiranga and Antaranga Aspects

Another principle of division of Sadhana involves the exoteric and esoteric aspects. A bahiranga or exoteric aspect and the antaranga aspects of Sadhana are closely associated with the positive and negative kinds discussed above.

The Bahiranga Sadhana is only preparatory and is rather remote from the spiritual experience. Antaranga Sadhana is vital for an aspirant, it is very near to and closely intimate with Anubhava or experience. Antaranga sadhana of almost all schools is Dhyana. It is

- nidhidhyasana with the Vedantist.

- dhruva smrti or smarana with Ramanujacharya.

- dhyana and samadhi with Patanjali.

- loving communion with the divine according to Sri Chaitanya.

- mantra-chaitanya according to Tantrika.

Sadhana - Margas

There is yet another classification of Sadhana into different ways based on the important Sanatana Dharma tenets, namely,

1. Karma-marga
2. Bhakti-marga
3. Jnana-marga

The three great forms of Sadhana; Jnana, Yoga and Bhakti are not arbitrary divisions but based on important principles. Sadhana may proceed by emphasizing the subject or the object. The emphasis is laid on the object-factor by the Bhakti schools, while it is on the subject by the Jnana and Yoga schools of thought.

The Bhagavad Gita speaks of two divisions—Karma and Jnana.

लोकेऽस्मिन् द्विविधा निष्ठा पुरा प्रोक्ता मयानघ । ज्ञानयोगेन साङ्ख्यानां कर्मयोगेन योगिनाम् ॥ ३-३॥ (Bhag. Gita. 3.3)

Meaning: In this world there is a two-fold path, as told earlier, O sinless one, the ‘Path-of-Knowledge (ज्ञानयोग)’ of the Samkhyans and the ‘Path-of-Action (कर्मयोग)’ of the Yogis.

It is well-known that Vedas are said to have two important branches—Karma-kanda (Brahmana texts) and Jnana-kanda (Upanishads). Bhakti or Upasana is placed under Karma-marga and is not given a separate place. The Ashtangayoga of Patanjali, all the Vaisnava schools, the Tantrika and Pasupata forms of Sadhana, and the yajna forms of Sadhana as prescribed in the Vedas would all be classified under Karma-marga. Under Jnana, the Samkhya and the Vedanta forms of Sadhana are included. In the present context, Bhakti-marga is elucidated separately.

Sadhanas in Sanatana Dharma

Jnana Marga

The objective of life is to experience the ultimate ontological truth - Self is Brahman - and the way to pursue it is through vairagya (renunciation) captured by the attributes of knowledge (Sadhana by Jnana-marga) is presented in the thirteenth adhyaya of Bhagavadgita. In other words, epistemology or the Indian theory of knowledge is to be able to live and experience the ontological belief that brahman is in everything in the universe, and it is practiced through a meticulous lifestyle filled with positivity.

Bhagavadgita presents the all positive psychological elements or characteristics that everyone needs to cultivate to be able to learn the knowledge of Brahman. These elements of Jnana include

अमानित्वमदम्भित्वमहिंसा क्षान्तिरार्जवम् । आचार्योपासनं शौचं स्थैर्यमात्मविनिग्रहः ॥ १३-८॥

इन्द्रियार्थेषु वैराग्यमनहङ्कार एव च । जन्ममृत्युजराव्याधिदुःखदोषानुदर्शनम् ॥ १३-९॥

असक्तिरनभिष्वङ्गः पुत्रदारगृहादिषु । नित्यं च समचित्तत्वमिष्टानिष्टोपपत्तिषु ॥ १३-१०॥

मयि चानन्ययोगेन भक्तिरव्यभिचारिणी । विविक्तदेशसेवित्वमरतिर्जनसंसदि ॥ १३-११॥

अध्यात्मज्ञाननित्यत्वं तत्त्वज्ञानार्थदर्शनम् । एतज्ज्ञानमिति प्रोक्तमज्ञानं यदतोऽन्यथा ॥ १३-१२॥ Bhaga. Gita. 13. 8-12)

Shri Krishna lists that the characteristics mentioned (in these shlokas) constitute Jnana and those opposite to these are termed as Ajnana.

1. अमानित्वम् ॥ humility
2. अदम्भित्वम् ॥ pridelessness
3. अहिंसा ॥ nonviolence
4. क्षान्तिः ॥ tolerance
5. आर्जवम् ॥ simplicity
6. आचार्योपासनम् ॥ service to a spiritual teacher
7. शौचम् ॥ cleanliness
8. स्थैर्यम् ॥ steadfastness
9. आत्मविनिग्रहः ॥ self-control
10. इन्द्रियार्थेषु वैराग्यम् ॥ desirelessness in the sense pleasures
11. अनहङ्कारः ॥ without ego
12. जन्ममृत्युजराव्याधिदुःखदोषानुदर्शनम् ॥ remembering the problems of birth, death, old age, disease, and miseries that go with the physical body (to motivate oneself to think about the Atman)
13. असक्तिः ॥ without attachment
14. पुत्रदारगृहादिषु अनभिष्वङ्गः ॥ without fondness towards son, wife, or home etc.
15. नित्यं च समचित्तत्वमिष्टानिष्टोपपत्तिषु ॥ constancy in a balanced manas or citta (or mind) or having equanimity of the mind in attainment of favorable or unfavorable consequences
16. विविक्तदेशसेवित्वमरतिर्जनसंसदि ॥ preferring solitude having no desire to associate with people
17. मयि चानन्ययोगेन भक्तिरव्यभिचारिणी ॥ unwavering offering of unalloyed devotion to kRSNa
18. अध्यात्मज्ञाननित्यत्वम् ॥ Constant dwelling on the knowledge pertaining to the Self
19. तत्त्वज्ञानार्थदर्शनम् ॥ Contemplation (on the goal) for the attainment of knowledge of the truth

Sadhana - A Psychological Process

Sadhana involves quite a few psychological processes such as thoughts, ideas, facts, cognition, reality, sensation, truth or falsity, distinction between the subject and object, reasoning, intuition, knowledge and so on.

Sadhana begins with the consciousness of the existence of some Supreme Power, an intimate connection or rather a conscious union with which is deemed absolutely essential to the realisation of the summum bonum of life.

This Supreme Power has sometimes been regarded as the Higher Self of man himself and not any foreign power with whom only an external connection could possibly be established. Sadhana, thus means the conscious effort at unfolding the latent possibilities of the individual self and is hence limited to human beings alone. Only in man is the special equipment, viz. a conscious effort apparently separate from the activities of nature, comes into being.

The inwardly directed individual Self perceives vaguely its latent infinitude and realises gradually that its limitation and bondage are not inherent in its nature but are rather imposed on it, and wants somehow to shake them off and thus realise its full autonomy. Liberation or vimukti is identical with freedom, and freedom is expansion. It is the gross outward matter and contact with matter that have made the Self appear limited. The deeper and deeper we dive into Self, the more of expansion, freedom and light do we feel and enjoy. The conscious urge of the finite to become more and more expanded till it realises its infinitude is what is really meant by mumukshutva (desire for liberation) which forms the unmistakable first step in the course of, Sadhana.

Sadhana in Sampradayas

The different systems of philosophy have prescribed different means for attainment of spiritual perfection and these vary sometimes from person to person according to their mental and spiritual attainments. The different schools of Vedanta have expounded the philosophy of Sadhana in their own characteristic way and prescribed either Action (Karma-marga) or Knowledge (Jnana-marga), or Devotion, the self-surrender (Bhakti-marga) as the case may be, as the means for perfection.

Dvaita Sampradaya

Dvaita outlines the means, sadhana for realization of the supreme end, moksa. Sadhana is a progressive endeavour and it mobilizes all the resources of personality. Madhva assimilates into his scheme of sadhana the entire heritage of the Upanisadic thought, the bhakti literature such as the Puranas, the Agamas, and the Itihasas including the Bhagavad-Gita.

The foremost and the ultimate factor that brings about man’s liberation, attainment of moksa, is the grace, prasada of Narayana according to the Dvaita Sampradaya. ‘Without Narayana’s prasada, moksa is not possible’ says Madhva. There are several levels of grace that confers this boon. ‘The grace that responds to karma is the lowest, that, which is in answer to disciplines such as sravana, is of the middle level, and that which rewards the precious possession of knowledge is the highest’. This prasada is an ever-existent reality. All that is required of human effort is to actuate it towards the granting of moksa. It is ultimately God Himself through His grace, which is indistinguishable from His essence because of the principle of Visesa, that effectuates the summum bonum of man, moved towards that end, by the spiritual endeavour of the aspirant.

The Visnu-tattvavinirnaya lays down that ‘Visnu grants knowledge to the ignorant, grants liberation to the man of knowledge, and grants ananda to the liberated individual.’ Grace is a continuously operative factor in spiritual life, and does not cease to be required even when the goal is accomplished.

What brings grace to operational manifestation is bhakti of the aspirant. Dvaita tradition defines bhakti thus: ‘Mahatmya-jnana pursvastu sudrdhah sarvatodhikah; sneho bhaktriti proktahtaya muktih nacanyatha’. The two constituents of bhakti are knowledge of the greatness of God and love towards Him. This love must be steadfast and surpass in its intensity all other love including self-love. It is that height of bhakti that could invoke the necessary grace of Narayana for the purpose of moksa. There are different levels of bhakti, four levels stated in the Gita. Only the highest bhakti is what brings about the prasada for moksa.

Madhva is one of the greatest philosophers of bhakti. For him, bhakti is omnipresent, as it were, in spiritual life. His work Anuvyakhyana records thus: Bhakti generates knowledge; knowledge, in its turn, generates bhakti, which, in its turn, generates the direct perception of God. This perception generates bhakti, which brings about mukti, liberation.’ It is the first means, and the constituent of the last end itself. Jayatirtha says that ‘parama-bhakti’ is the level of bhakti that brings about the final liberating grace of God.

This bhakti must spring from knowledge, not mere emotion. Madhva characterizes it as a particular form of knowledge ‘Jnanasya visesa’. Its character and qualitative level depend upon the knowledge on which it is founded. The highest bhakti can spring from only the highest level of knowledge. Therefore, this bhakti must ensue from the immediate, direct and perceptual or intuitive apprehension of God. Madhva calls it aparoksa-jnana. This cannot be mere meditative imagination. Madhva insists that this bhakti must exceed the imaginative immediacy as stated in Brahmasutra-bhashya. Only the love engendered by the direct communion with the object of love can have the appropriate height and intensity. Hence, aparoksa-jnana is a necessity.

The means prescribed to achieve perceptual experience of God is upasana or nididhyasana. This is meditative contemplation of God with love and longing for the vision. It paves the way for the direct experience of God through the invariable means of grace. The meditation should not be mixed with fear or animosity. It must be of the nature of ardent seeking. The intellectual understanding of God derived from revelation and philosophical investigation can be converted into direct experience only through loving meditation. Aparoksa-jnana is the final phase in the process of knowing God. To effect the transition from mediacy to immediacy, upasana is the essential means. Trivikrama Pandit explains it thus: ‘The accumulated karma, which prevents the emergence of the vision of Ananta, cannot be eliminated except through uninterrupted contemplation.’