Antahkarana Chatushtaya (अन्तःकरणचतुष्टयम्)

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Antahkarana (Samskrit: अन्तःकरण), corresponds to what is called the mind as per Advaita philosophy. It is the internal instrument that enables one to know, feel, and act. The mind constitutes the totality of mental states and the processes that give rise to them. Both Yoga and Advaita Vedanta consider mind as physical. It is the composite of awareness and response systems. Since Antahkarana, a component of the sukshma sharira, has four functionalities viz., manas (मनः), buddhi (बुद्धिः), ahamkara (अहंकारम्) and chitta (चित्तम्), it is described as Antahkarana Chatushtaya.

Introduction

Antahkarana is a term for mind, is an internal organ, functionally distinguished into (1) the buddhi (executive system) (2) ahamkara (self-referencing system) and (3) manas (central processing system which is subdivided into manas and (4) chitta in Advaita) connected to the sensory-motor system (jnana karma indriyas). In Advaita vedanta, while functions of buddhi, ahamkara and manas are similar to those in Yoga, the Antahkarana being four fold, includes chitta as having the function of smriti or recalling.

Samkhya Yoga conception of mind may be taken to represent broadly the central view in the Indian tradition not withstanding minor differences. As in Samkhya, mind is the instrument of knowledge, emotion, and volition in Advaita. Again, mind is different from consciousness. In both systems the mind is conceived as going out to the objects to have perceptual experience. One significant difference between Samkhya Yoga and Advaita Vedanta in their notion of the mind is that in Advaita consciousness is alone real and that mind is not ultimately real. Its reality is confined only to the illusory phenomenal world (vyāvahārika sattā). In Samkhya, both consciousness and mind are real.

The Upanishads describe four parts of the Antahkarana, or Antahkarana Chatusthaya, namely,

1. Chitta - storehouse of samskaras or vasanas
2. Buddhi - the decision making faculty
3. Ahamkara - the ego or I-sense
4. Manas - the information synthesizing faculty

Definition of Antahkarana

Vedanta Paribhasha, a seminal text of Vedanta, by Dharmarajadhvarindra, defines the four-fold Antahkarana as follows.

अन्तःकरणभेदे - मनोबुद्धिरहङ्कारश्चित्तं करणमान्तरम् । संशयोनिश्चयोगर्वः स्मरणं विषया इमे । (Veda. Pari. 1)

Antahkarana, refers to an inner organ consisting of four elements viz., manas, buddhi, ahamkara and chitta.

As it cannot operate on external objects except through the organs of sense and action, it is said to be an internal instrument or Antahkarana. One may note that Samkhya system calls the buddhi, ahamkara and manas as antahkarana, the inner organ in contrast to the five sense organs and organs of action which are external organs or bahyakarana.

Origin and Components of Antahkarana

Tattvabodha, by Shri Adishankaracharya, succinctly summarizes that Antakarana is formed from the total sattvik aspect of the five elements or panchamahabhutas.

एतेषां पञ्चतत्त्वानां समष्टिसात्विकांशात्

मनोबुद्ध्यहङ्कार चित्तान्तःकरणानि सम्भूतानि ।

They are governed by the antahkarana devatas (अन्तःकरणदेवताः)

Manas

सङ्कल्पविकल्पात्मकं मनः । मनसो देवता चन्द्रमाः ।

The manas is of the nature of indecision, and the presiding deity of the manas is the moon. Manas constitutes the general indeterminate thinking. Here the translation of manas as mind is not applied as Antahkarana which is of composite functionality is used to refer to mind.

Buddhi

निश्चयात्मिका बुद्धिः । बुद्धेर्ब्रह्मा ।

The buddhi (intellect) is of the nature of decision, and the presiding deity is Brahma.

Ahamkara

अहंकर्ता अहंकारः । अहंकारस्य रुद्रः ।

Ahamkara (ego) is of the nature of doership governed by Rudra.

Chitta

चिन्तनकर्तृ चित्तम् । चित्तस्य वासुदेवः ।

Chitta (memory) is of the nature of thinking or recollection, ruled by Vasudeva.

In Vedantasara, Sadananda Yogindra describes Chitta as one of the Antahkarana vrittis which is involved in memory and recollection. Chitta is treated as one of the modifications of Antahkarana.

अनुसन्धानात्मिकान्तःकरणवृत्तिः चित्तम्।। (Vedantasara. 68)

Meaning: Chitta (referred to as Memory) is that modification of the inner organ which remembers.

Antahkarana Vrtti

In Vedanta Paribhasha we find a lucid explanation defining Antahkarana vrtti or modifications of the mind as follows

तत्र यथा तडागोदकं छिद्रार्न्निर्गत्य कुल्यात्मना केदारान् प्रविश्य तद्वदेव चतुष्कोणाद्याकारं भवति, तथा तैजसमन्ततःकरणमपि चक्षुरादिद्वारा निर्गत्य घटादिविषयदेशं गत्वा घटादिविषयाकारेण परिणमिते स एव परिणामो वृत्तिरित्युच्यते।

Summary: Now, as the water of a tank, issuing through a hole, enters in the form of a channel to a number of fields, and just like them (the agricultural fields) assumes a rectangular or any other shape, so also the luminous mind (Antahkarana), issuing through the medium of the eye etc., goes to the space occupied by objects such as a jar, and is modified into the form of a jar or any other object. That very modification of the mind is called a state (Vrtti).

According to the Vedanta philosophy when an organ perceives an object the mind transforms itself into the object. When, for instance, the eye sees a pot the mind projects itself through the eye and takes the form of the pot. When the Antahkarana becomes absolutely sure of the existence of the pot then it is known as Buddhi, but when it cannot determine whether it is a pot or something else, then it is called Manas. Similarly when the Antahkarana remembers an object it is denoted as Chitta. Lastly when it establishes the relationship of "I" or ‘mine' with the object as, for example in, ‘I know the object', ‘I am happy' or ‘mine is the happiness’, it is known as Ahamkara.