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Yoga Sutra 1.20
श्रद्धावीर्यस्मृतिसमाधिप्रज्ञापूर्वक इतरेषाम् ॥२०॥
śraddhā-vīrya-smṛti samādhiprajñā-pūrvaka itareṣām ॥20॥
- śraddhā: unconditional faith
- vīrya: energy, strong will
- smṛti: memory, mindfulness
- samādhiprajñā: intelligence arising from samadhi
- pūrvaka: preceded by
- itareṣām: of others
- Others (other than those disembodied and merged into prakriti) attain to asamprajnata samadhi through the stages of faith, strong will, memory and intelligence derived from samprajnata samadhi.
Otherwise, merits needed for asamprajnata samadhi - Unlike in the previous verse, where yogis attain samadhi right from birth, without any rigorous practice, are very rare. Most aspirants have to practice regularly various techniques, as per this verse.
Shraddha means 'that which holds the truth'. Faith is usually blind, belief is always firm, but shraddha arises from true experience. Belief is learned from others, not an outcome of realization of the truth. Hence Shraddha, Self realization of the truth is utmost important.
Veerya, i.e. energy, physical as well as mental. To continue samadhi practice, one needs courage, strong will and determination for a very long time.
Then comes memory, i.e. smriti. Through smriti, the practitioner gets realization of consciousness which helps in continuing the sadhana.
And the final and most important aspect is intelligence, i.e. Samadhi Prajna. Intelligence is of two types; worldly intelligence which one needs to be successful in this material world, and a higher consciousness or spiritual realization which develops from samprajnata samadhi after regular practice.
The spiritual progress to attain asamprajnata samadhi depends on these factors.
References
- Four Chapters on Freedom by Swami Satyananda Saraswati, published in 1976.
