Samkhya – The Why of Yoga

The students of philosophy know that the six theistic Indian philosophy exist in pairs and are best learnt in pairs; Nyaya-Vaisheshika, Samkhya-Yoga, Veda-Mimansa.

For the students of Yoga, it thus becomes like an inner compulsion at some point, to know and understand Samkhya.

While we worked to produce the Cyclopedia of Yoga Volume 2 the group of us had the good fortune to research the various texts of Samkhya, discuss the various concepts in Samkhya and get clarity from Dr. Jayadeva on all the aspects. It was a humbling experience. Dr. Jayadeva never allowed anything to remain a topic for armchair discussion. Through and through he made us see the practical aspect in everything. Nowhere else can one get to learn Samkhya the way Dr. Jayadeva has taught it.

We wish to invite all the members of Swadhyaya to use this platform for sharing their learning, understanding, and insights with all so that a discussion can be done and learning can continue. I am sure all will agree that learning never comes to an end. The more we know, more we realise how much we have yet to know.

Looking forward to having a good discussion taking place on this forum as well as comments on the blog of our swadhyaya group http://swadhyayatyi.blogspot.com where you will find brief write ups on various concepts. There may sometimes be just questions to ponder upon, reflect and write. We hope that many will be prompted to send us a post to be put up on the blog or even published on the Swadhyaya page of the Yoga Institute's monthly magazine.

Sharing and Learning Yoga,

Suchitra Pareekh

Swadhyaya-TYIAA Committee member-Publications