Wuthering Heights By Emily Bronte - 1149 Words

During it release in 1842, ‘Wuthering Heights’ by Emily Bronte was considered to be a novel of obscenity and monstrosity. The novel has the ability to adapt to a range of themes and transcend the forms of content and cultural context within the ideas of love, oppression, power and harmony. Critical readings of the text have challenged and enriched readers in a diverse array of interpretations of language and structure; forming personal meanings that have developed throughout history. England, in the1840s was a time where the economy struggled with depression and the middle and upper classes feared revolt. Terry Eagleton, within his critical reading, suggests that the novel, ‘Wuthering Heights’, is based on the â€Å"enteral conflict of social†¦show more content†¦He rebels against the ideas of social prejudice through the bond he shares with Catherine. Eagleton states that Heathcliff and Catherine change the interpretations of social status as an attempt to liberate themselves through love, enriching the idea of breaking the social standards and manifesting the idea that love conquers all. Oppression is a major theme that underlines the novel ‘Wuthering Heights’. This idea of confinement within the novel is presented through the social class and the oppression inflicted onto the characters. Bronte depicts social class between the Earnshaw’s and the Linton’s through the marriage of Catherine Earnshaw and Edgar Linton. Catherine fears that her love for Heathcliff could intruded the cultural standards of the time so therefor decides to marry Edgar instead of Heathcliff stating â€Å"†¦if Heathcliff and I married, we should be beggars†. This marriage is an attempt to rise social status as being with her true love, Heathcliff, would mean she descends society. Although Catherine marries Edgar, she still finds oppression. She is so torn between her love for Heathcliff that it slowly kills her, making her weak. When confronted by Heathcliff, who speaks of his suffering, she torments him saying †Why shouldn’t you suffer? I do! †. Catherine is naive, betraying her one true love for a life of wealth and comfort with Edgar. She believes â€Å"time

Dante Alighieri An Italian Poet - 1552 Words

Dante Alighieri was an Italian poet, originally from Florence experienced economic, political and religious disruption that reflected the town’s struggles. Hardship that he encountered, being the death of his mother, his wife Beatrice until his death in exile. Dante took his pain and suffering and turned it into his inspiration for his poetry. The Blacks seized control of Florence and in 1302 Dante and others were exiled. It was during Dante s exile he faced hardship and was forced to discontinue his studies. However he continued to work on his writings under his struggles, using them as an inspiration. Dante is noted to become stronger and more wise throughout his writing, maturing. His views on the world and of himself changed during this time, including his political, religious, and economic action. His writings reflect his life struggles in his writing. The Devine Comedy was Dante s greatest and final piece. Dante Alighieri, Divine Comedy is a reflection of his Christian beliefs. It incorporates biblical figures but also characters in Pagan, Greek, and Roman mythology. The most important character is besides Dante himself is Virgil, who is also Pagan. The Middle Ages, poets incorporated their heritage and introduced their culture in their writing. It was understood in the beginning, God created human life. One comes to the understanding Dante believes that all humans have the choice to live to the fullest and are granted a place in heaven upon death, if a personShow MoreRelatedThe Divine Comedy1705 Words   |  7 Pagesrevival. One of the writers that influenced this revival is Dante Alighieri, a 13th century poet from Florence, Italy. His world famous epic, La Commedia, or more commonly known as The Divine Comedy remains a poetic masterpiece depicting truth and sin. The Divine Comedy, through the journey into the three hells, expresses a universal truth of good versus evil. Alighier i’s life of heartbreak with the influences of other famous poets like Homer and Virgil has affected his writing style, and throughRead More Dante Alighieris Influence on Italian Culture Essay examples886 Words   |  4 PagesDante Alighieris Influence on Italian Culture nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Dante Alighieri was a very well known and influential poet in early literature. amp;#8220;He was not only a poet, he was also a philosophical thinker, an active politician, and a religious visionary; (Holmes 1). Dante was born in Florence in 1265, into the Guelph political party, one of the two main parties in Florence. The Guelphs were aristocrats and nobles. They supported the church and papacy and were against theRead MoreEssay about Dante Alighieri1178 Words   |  5 PagesDante Alighieri Dante Alighieri was the first and best Italian poet and wrote mainly on love and religion. His Divine Comedy is considered the greatest book of the last millennium. George Steiner said, Dante’s totality of poet form and philosophic thought, of local universality and language, remains unrivaled. At a time where the notion of culture and of European culture in particular, is somewhat in doubt, Dante is the sovereign underwriter. His are the solutions beyond logic†Read MoreAnalysis Of The Poem Comedia 947 Words   |  4 PagesIn his life Dante, Alighieri was a famed author, poet, and statesman. Over the course of his life the esteemed thirteenth century Italian wrote a handful of successful works. However, Dante is undoubtedly best known for his critically acclaimed epic poem, Comedà ¬a, which would later be called The Divine Comedy. Comedà ¬a has 3 parts: Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso. The first installment, Inferno, may currently be the most well known of the three poems, spawning countless reprints, several moviesRead MoreTheme Of Symbolism In Dantes Inferno720 Words   |  3 PagesWhen reading Dante’s ‘Inferno’, it becomes apparent that Alighieri used his writing as a means of cogitating on the events that happened in his life. In order to understand his references to early Rome, Florentine politics, and other characteristics of the poem, it is necessary for the reader to develop a foundational background of Alighieri himself. With this knowledge, one can begin to grasp the concepts of symbolism and idealism that are so prevalent within the text, experiencing the poem inRead More Dante Alighieri Essay834 Words   |  4 Pages Dante Alighieri was one of the most renowned writers in world literature. His great masterpieces have influenced the world immensely. He was not only a great writer and poet but he also was a man that overcame great odds to write awe inspiring works of art. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Dante Alighieri was born in Florence, Italy either in late May or early June, 1265. His childhood was somewhat troubling because of the early death of his mother and then his father when he was 18. He managedRead MoreTaking a Look at the European Renaissance Essays1385 Words   |  6 Pagesperiod was the Italian poet Dante Alighieri. Dante was born in the city-state of Florence, Italy in the year of 1265. When Dante was just nine years old, he met the love of his life, Beatrice Portinari. Beatrice Portinari would become the subject of, and inspiration for much of Dante’s writing. Love was the topic of many of Dante’s literary works and he was amongst the first poets to write about love. After the death of Beatrice Portinari (when Dante was twenty-five years of age), Dante became interestedRead MoreThe Divine Comedy By Dante Alighieri873 Words   |  4 PagesDivine Comedy† is an epic poem written by Dante Alighieri. He wrote the epic some time between 1308 and 1321, the year he died. It is considered one of the greatest works of world literature. He wrote â€Å"The Divine Comedy† while he was exiled from Florence, Italy (Bishops 182). â€Å"The Divine Comedy† recounts Dante’s idea of the afterlife. It is written in a first person perspective and follows Dante’s journey through Hell, Purgatory, and Heaven. At the time Dante wrote the Divine Comedy, Italy was goingRead MoreHow Literature Changed a Nation: Dante Alighieri and The Divine Comedy1146 Words   |  5 Pagesdifficult task to achieve. The poet, Dante Alighieri’s world was one filled with spirituality and stigmas. Unlike many other artists of his time, he completed his most famous and influential work in Europe’s 1300’s. Dante’s piece, The Divine Comedy, demonstrates the journey one takes throughout life, to find one’s self and connect with the world and religion, all through three volumes of poet ry. Of his talent, came a business of the arts. In addition, he changed the way the Italian language was perceivedRead More Analysis of the Inferno of Dante Alighieris Divine Comedy Essay1221 Words   |  5 PagesAnalysis of the Inferno of Dante Alighieris Divine Comedy The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri is considered by many as the first great poem in the Italian language and perhaps the greatest poem written in Medieval Europe. The poem is so famous that one of the minor characters, Capaneus the great blasphemer, has his name on a mesa on one of Jupiters moon Io (Blue, 1). Also, the poem is divided into three canticles, or sections, Inferno, Purgatorio, and

The Aeneid of Greece by Virgil The Aeneid Free Essays

The Aeneid of Greece by Virgil The Aeneid, tells the story of Aeneas’s journey in search of the land where he is destined to build the city that will one day become the great Roman Empire. Largely influenced by Homer’s Odyssey and Iliad, the Aeneid begins halfway through Aeneas’s journey, as he nears the city of Carthage, ruled over by Dido, who built the city after fleeing from her murderous brother. King Arthur of Britain, by Howard PyleThe character of King Arthur is larger than life. We will write a custom essay sample on The Aeneid of Greece by Virgil The Aeneid or any similar topic only for you Order Now He is rarely presented as truly human; he is either the idealized symbol of Camelot and the virtues of the Round Table, or he is a peripheral character sometimes virtuous but rarely with a penetrating intelligence capable of seeing long-term effects and making sound decisions. Whether a historical Arthur actually existed, what we are left with today is a mythological character, memorable and tantalizing in his virtues and foibles. Beowulf was written in England, but is set in Scandinavia. The author is unknown. This epic poem describes the hero Beowulf marching with his fourteen warriors and arrive at the place of Heorot where he finds that he king of Heorot Hrothgar terrified by a monster called Grendel. Beowulf manages to kill Grendel and his monster-mother at his abode beneath a lake. After that he returns to his country and becomes the king there and rules his kingdom for fifty years. He dies of the wounds he got once during the combat fought with a dragon. Gilgamesh Is the Priest-King of the city of Uruk. He is a tyrannical king who works his people to death and takes what he wants from them. He kills the young men at will and uses the women as he pleases. The people of Uruk cry out to the gods for help so that they can have peace. | Ramayana – is the immortal tale of Shri Rama that teaches us the values of ideology, devotion, duty, relationships, dharma and karma. Biag ni Lam-ang (Tagalog: â€Å"Buhay ni Lam-ang†) ay isang epikong tula ng mga Ilokano mula sa rehiyon ng Ilokos sa Pilipinas. Sinalaysay at sinulat sa orihinal na wikang Ilokano, pinapaniwalaang na pinaghalong gawa ito ng iba’t ibang mga lumilikha ng tula na pinasa sa pamamagitan ng mga salinlahi, at unang sinulat noong 1640 ng isang bulag na manunula na si Pedro Bucaneg. Ibalon – Author Fr. Jose Castano May tatlong mga bayani sa epiking ito: Baltog, Handyong, at Bantong. Unang bayaning dumating sa lupang ibalong ay si Baltog at sya ang nagpayaman ng bukid. Ang pangalawang bayani na dumating sa ibalon ay si Handyong, nakipaglaban siya kasama ng kanyang mga tao sa libu-libong mga giyera at digma. At si bantong ang namuno sa pag patay sa kalahating tao, at kalahating halimaw na c Rabot. | Analysis: The difference between western and eastern epic, the eastern epic involves the story about Indians and Philippines but in western epic they start from the medieval ages and it involve the story about the gods and the goddess. How to cite The Aeneid of Greece by Virgil The Aeneid, Papers

Hindu Essay Example For Students

Hindu Essay In India there are six orthodox schools of philosophy which recognize the authority of the Vedas as divine revelation, and they generally function as pairs Nyaya and Vaishesika, Mimamsa and Vedanta, and Samkhya and Yoga. Those who did not recognize this authority were the Jains, Buddhists, and materialists. Even in India where spiritual ideas dominate the culture there were some who were skeptical of those ideals and held to a materialist view of the world; they were called Carvaka, and their doctrine that this world is all that exists is called Lokayata. The materialists did not believe in an afterlife and found sense perception to be the only source of knowledge, denying the validity of inference or general concepts. They focused on the senses and the four traditional elements of earth, water, fire, and air. Consciousness for the Carvaka is only a modification of these elements in the body. The soul is also identified with the body, and pleasure and pain are the central experiences of life, nature being indifferent to good and evil with virtue and vice being merely social conventions. This worldly philosophy naturally ignored the goal of liberation (moksha) or simply believed that death as the end of life and consciousness was a liberation. However, they also tended to neglect the value of virtue or justice (dharma), placing all of their attention on the worldly aims of pleasure (kama) and wealth or power (artha). Although Carvaka ideas are mentioned in some ancient writings, their own ancient writings were lost, and much of what we know of the early materialists is based on criticisms of other schools. However, a famous, ancient drama called The Rise of the Moon of Intellect (Prabodha-candrodaya) reveals some of the beliefs of this worldly movement. In this play Passion is personified and speaks to a materialist and one of his pupils. Passion laughs at ignorant fools, who imagine that spirit is different from the body and reaps a reward in a future existence. This is like expecting trees to grow in air and produce fruit. Has anyone seen the soul separate from the body? Does not life come from the configuration of the body? Those who believe otherwise deceive themselves and others. Their ancient teacher Brihaspati affirmed the importance of the senses, maintaining that sustenance and love are the objects of human life. For the materialists the Vedas are a cheat. If blessings are obtained through sacrifices and the victims ascend to heaven, why do not children sacrifice their parents? How can fasting, begging, penance, and exposure to the elements be compared to the ravishing embraces of women with large eyes and prominent breasts? The pleasures of life are no more to be avoided because they are mixed with pain than a prudent person would throw away unpeeled rice because it has a husk. Sacrifices, reciting the Vedas, and penance are merely ways that ignorant and weak men contrive to support themselves. Yet upon analysis it was often found that the materialists theory that no general inferences can be made contradicted their own views about the nature of the world. Nevertheless their hedonistic philosophy at times gave a humanistic criticism of the ethical contradictions of others. In the great epic Mahabharata a Carvaka is burned to death for preaching against the bloodshed of the great war and condemning Yudhishthira for killing thousands to regain his kingdom. They did criticize sacrifices and valued the arts as a means of pleasure. Hell they believed to be the pain experienced in this world, but all this ended in death. Like Epicureans they found that pleasure could be maximized and pain minimized by detachment (vairagya). Immortality was only found in the fame one leaves behind for noble deeds performed. Nyaya and VaishesikaThe Nyaya and Vaishesika schools are primarily analytic and are therefore more concerned with logic and epistemology than ethics. The word nyaya means that by which the mind is led to a conclusion. The Nyaya school formed about the fourth century BC with the Nyaya Sutras by Gautama. The first sentence declares that supreme happiness is attained by knowledge of the sixteen categories which are right knowledge, objects of knowledge, doubt, purpose, example, tenets, inference, confutation, ascertainment, discussion, sophistry, cavil, fallacy, quibble, futile rejoinder, and losing arguments. Knowledge comes from perception, inference, comparison, and verbal testimony. Objects of knowledge are self, body, sense organs, sense objects, intellect, mind, activity, defects, rebirth, fruit, pain, and release. The soul is distinct from the sense organs and the mind which it uses to make judgments with the aid of memory. Judgments and actions are transitory but produce karma, which causes the union of the soul with the body, the soul transmigrating from a dead body to another birth. Gautama recognized the soul as the cause of the body but also acknowledged parents and food as other causes as well. Ethical concerns can be found in the discussion of the defects and the means of liberation. Gautama mentioned three categories of defects as attachment, aversion, and misconception. Vatsyayana, who wrote the first commentary on the Nyaya Sutras in the 4th century CE, explained that attachment can come from lust, jealousy, avarice, greed, and covetousness; aversion from anger, envy, malice, hatred, and resentment; and misconception from wrong apprehension, suspicion, pride, and negligence. Gautama considered misconception the worst sin, because without it attachment and aversion do not occur. By fruit Gautama referred to what is produced by activity and defects. These results of action (karma) may occur immediately or after a long interval. Release is defined as the absolute deliverance from pain. Release does not occur though because of debts, afflictions, and activities. However, when knowledge is attained, wrong notions and defects disappear, removing pain and bringing about release. Since false concepts are the cause of the chain of events that leads to pain, correct knowledge is the solution. Even hatred of pain and attachment to pleasure can bind one. The activities of mind, speech, and body must be good and not bad but must also be performed without attachment. Selfishness is associated with false concepts, and virtuous actions emphasize the soul rather than the body and its senses. True knowledge comes from meditation, which is prepared for by good deeds. Gautama recommended practicing yoga in forests, caves, and on riverbanks. To attain final release the soul may be embellished by the restraints and observances of the internal discipline learned from yoga. Study and friendly discussion with those learned in knowledge is also suggested. The Vaishesika philosophy is considered the oldest of the six orthodox schools and may even be pre-Buddhist. The Vaishesika Sutras by Kanada were written shortly before Gautamas Nyaya Sutras. The word vishesa means particularity, and this philosophy emphasizes the significance of individuals. Vaishesika recognizes three objects of experience as having real objective existence, namely substance, quality, and activity, and three products of intellectual discrimination which are generality, particularity, and combination. The reality of the soul is inferred from the discernment that consciousness cannot be a property of the body, senses, or mind. However, the life of the souls knowing, feeling, and willing is only found where the body is. Each soul experiences the consequences of its own actions, resulting in the differences between individuals, from which the plurality of souls is inferred. Even liberated souls maintain unique characteristics in the Vaishesika philosophy. The Vaishesika Sutra begins with the idea that virtue (dharma) is the means by which prosperity and salvation are attained, but it acknowledges the authority of the Vedas as the word of God that leads to this prosperity and salvation. As with Nyaya the supreme good results from knowledge, in this case of the six predicables substance, quality, activity, generality, particularity, and combination. In addition to the four traditional elements of earth, water, fire, and air, they name ether (akasha), time, space, soul, and mind as the only other substances. One need not fall back on the scriptures to know the existence of the soul, because the expression of I makes its reality clear. The qualities are color, taste, smell, touch, numbers, size, separation, conjunction and disjunction, priority and posteriority, understanding, pleasure and pain, desire and aversion, and volition. Activity is going up or down, contracting, expanding, and motion. Action (karma) is opposed by its effect which is how it is neutralized. Individuals are only responsible for voluntary actions; actions from organic life are considered involuntary. Worldly good is attained by ceremonial piety, but spiritual value is found by insight. The highest pleasure of the wise is found in independence from all agencies involving memory, desire, and reflection, and this knowledge results from peacefulness of mind, contentment, and virtue. Pleasure and pain result from the contact between soul, senses, the mind, and objects. When the mind becomes steady in the soul through yoga, pain can be prevented. Liberation (moksha) is not having any conjunction with the body and no potential for a body so that rebirth cannot take place. The traditional character of this school can be seen from the actions recommended for achieving merit. Ablution, fast, abstinence (brahmacharya),residence in the family of the preceptor,life of retirement in the forest, sacrifice, gift,oblation, directions, constellations, seasons,and religious observances conduce to invisible fruit.1Progress comes from virtue (dharma), but even this has consequences which neutralize it; for ultimate release cannot occur until even virtue is eradicated in selfless insight. So long as one is dominated by desire and aversion, virtue and its opposite are stored up, preventing liberation. When one realizes that all objects that seem either attractive or repulsive are merely compounds of atoms, their power over one ceases. True knowledge of the soul dispels self-interest in universal awareness. Each soul reaps the harvest of its deeds in this life or a future one, but with liberation it becomes absolutely free. The awareness of the seer is the vision of perfection which results from virtue.Mimamsa and VedantaThe Mimamsa philosophy is also very ancient, and the Mimsama Sutra by Jaimini was written about the 4th century BC. This text begins with the subject of dharma, which the Vedas consider the means most conducive to the highest good. Dharma transcends sense perception, because the senses only perceive what exists in the present; dharma in the Mimamsa philosophy has a metaphysical reality that carries into the future. Same Sex Marriages EssayEvolution from the will down to specific elements modifies nature and emancipates each spirit. Just as one undertakes action in the world to release the desire for satisfaction, so does the unevolved function for the liberation of the spirit. Thus spirit is never really bound or liberated nor does it transmigrate; only nature in its manifold forms is bound, migrates, or is liberated. The pure spirit, resting like a spectator perceives nature which has ceased to be productive and by discriminating knowledge turns back from the dispositions. When virtue and other karma cease to function, the spirit of the individual remains invested with the body by past impressions; but when separation from the body comes, its purpose is fulfilled as it attains eternal and absolute independence. The practice of yoga in India is very ancient, probably even pre-Aryan. Yoga is mentioned in several Upanishads and its philosophy is described in the great epics, particularly in the Bhagavad-Gita portion of the Mahabharata. The classic text for what is called the royal (raja) yoga is Patanjalis Yoga Sutras, probably written in the second century BC, although scholarly estimates range from the fourth century BC to the fourth century CE. The word yoga has the same origin as the English word yoke and means union. In the Katha Upanishad the senses are to be controlled as spirited horses are by a yoke. The raja yoga tersely described by Patanjali as having eight limbs is considered the psychological yoga. The Yoga Sutras begin with the idea that yoga (union) is the control of the modifications of consciousness; this enables the seer to stand in ones own form instead of identifying with the modifications. The five modifications are knowledge (perception, inference, and testimony), error (ideas not formed from reality), imagination (ideas without objects), sleep, and memory (experienced objects). These are controlled by practice and detachment. Practice requires constant attention for a long time, and detachment comes from getting free of the desire for experiences. Mastery of this comes from the spirit overcoming the qualities. Meditation can be reasoning, discriminating, and joyful awareness of the unity of the universe and self or cessation by renunciation and constantly dissolving impressions, resulting in undifferentiated existence, bodilessness, absorption in the supreme, or faith, enthusiasm, memory, and wisdom. Intense practice brings the best results, or it may be achieved by surrendering to the Lord. The perfect spirit of the Lord is untouched by afflictions, actions, and their results; it is the infinite seed of omniscience beyond time, and its symbol is the sacred word. Constant practice of that brings cosmic consciousness and the absence of obstacles. The obstacles that distract consciousness are disease, laziness, indecision, apathy, lethargy, craving sense-pleasure, erroneous perception, lack of concentration, and unstable attention. These distractions are accompanied by sorrow, worry, restlessness, and irregular breathing. Cultivating the feelings of friendship, compassion, joy, and equanimity toward those who are happy, suffering, worthy, and unworthy purifies consciousness, as does breathing in and out. Subtle vision modifies the higher consciousness by bringing the mind stability, as does the transcendent inner light, the awareness that controls passions, the analytical knowledge of dreams and sleep, and concentration according to choice. The lessened modifications become transparent and transformed, and the memory is purified and empty so that objects shine without thought. The subtle elements become undefinable nature in the meditation with seed. Beyond discrimination the oversoul is blessed with direct truth, which is different from verbal inferences. This impression prevents all other impressions, and control of even this controls everything in seedless meditation. The practice of yoga and meditation is enhanced by discipline, self-study, and surrender to the Lord in order to remove obstacles such as ignorance, egoism, attachment, aversion, and clinging to life. Obstacles result in action patterns that cause suffering in this life and the next, as virtue and vice bear the fruits of pleasure and pain; but concentration overcomes their effects. Future suffering can be avoided if the perceiver does not identify with the perceived. Discriminating undisturbed intelligence removes ignorance and suffering by the absence of identity and the freedom of the perceiver. The practice of union proceeds through the eight steps of restraint, observances, posture, breath control, sublimation, attention, concentration, and meditation. The restraints are not injuring, lying, stealing, lusting, nor possessing and are called the universal great vows we have often seen before. The second step of observances involves cleanliness, contentment, discipline, self-study, and surrender to the Lord. Patanjali suggested that destructive instincts may be overcome by cultivating the opposites of greed, anger, or delusion. In confirming nonviolence the presence of hostility is relinquished. Not lying brings work and its fruits, not stealing riches, not lusting vigor, and from not possessing comes knowledge of past and future lives. Cleanliness brings protection of ones body, goodness purified becomes serenity, and single-mindedness conquers the senses. Being content gains happiness. Discipline perfects the senses and destroys impurities. By self-study one may commune with the divine ideal, and meditation is successfully identifying with the Lord. Stable and pleasant postures (asanas) release tension and transform thought. Regulating the inhalation and exhalation of the breath (pranayama) prepares the mind for attention. By withdrawing consciousness from its own objects the senses are sublimated (pratyahara) and under control. The last three steps of attention (dharana), concentration (dhyana), and meditation (samadhi) are the same as the last three steps of the Buddhas eightfold path. Attention is defined by Patanjali as the original focus of consciousness, concentration as continuing awareness there, and meditation as when that shines light alone in its own empty form. These three work as one in inner control leading to wisdom and are the psychological steps. As the control of destructive instincts and impressions evolves, the flow of consciousness becomes calm by habit, and oneness arises in meditation. As this oneness evolves, past and present become similar in the conscious awareness. Patanjali then described various psychic abilities that can be attained from the practice of yoga. Supernatural powers may come from birth, drugs, chanting, discipline, or meditation. Yet he warned that worldly powers are obstacles to meditation. Only the knowledge of discriminating between goodness and spirit brings omnipotence and omniscience, and only from detachment to that is the seed of bondage destroyed in freedom. The soul of the discriminating perceiver is completely detached from emotion and mind so that with serene discrimination the consciousness can move toward freedom. Finally the evolution of transforming qualities fulfills its purpose and stops, cognized as a distinct transformation. Patanjali concluded,This yoga text has been tremendously influential in India and beyond, and is in my opinion a very positive guide to spiritual liberation as well as being beneficial to ethical development.Bhagavad GitaThe Bhagavad-Gita, which means the Song of the Lord, was written bet ween the second century BC and the second century CE. It synthesized many ideas from the Samkhya philosophy and practice of yoga, but it is also claimed by Vedanta and Hindu philosophy in general as its greatest work on spirituality. The text is actually contained in Book 6 of the epic poem Mahabharata, which tells the story of the great civil war that may have occurred in India as early as about 1400 BC or as late as about 900. These stories will be discussed in the next chapter, but the dramatic context for the dialog between the warrior Arjuna and his charioteer Krishna is the beginning of the actual battle between the rival ruling families, the Kauruvas and Pandavas. The Bhagavad-Gita is narrated by the sage Sanjaya, who clairvoyantly perceives what is going on and relates it to the blind King Dhritarashtra. Krishna is an uncle and friend of the Pandavas, but remaining neutral he allowed one side to use his vassals in battle, while the Pandava Arjuna got to have him as charioteer although he would not fight himself. By the time this was written Krishna was considered an incarnation of the god Vishnu, the preserver, and he teaches Arjuna several kinds of yoga for achieving union with God. This is the earliest work that emphasized the religious worship of God through devotion to an avatar or incarnation of God which developed into the Vaishnavite faith in medieval Hinduism. The poem begins with Dhritarashtra asking Sanjaya what is happening not only on the field of Kuru but also on the field of dharma (virtue, duty). Sanjaya describes how both armies are arrayed against each other blowing their conch horns to show their readiness to fight. Then Arjuna asked Krishna to position his chariot between the two armies, and there he saw many of his relatives on the other side, causing him to feel faint and consider not fighting. Even though the others are killing, Arjuna does not think it would be worth it to do so, even for sovereignty of the three worlds, let alone an earthly kingdom. Evil would come to him, he says, if he should kill his relatives. How could this bring happiness? This family destruction is wrong and would destroy ancient family duties and bring on lawlessness, which would lead to corruption of the women and caste mixing. Why should he kill for greed of royal pleasures? It would be greater happiness for him to be killed unresisting and unarmed. Thus Arjunas mind was overcome by sorrow. Krishna, who is called the Lord, responds by upbraiding Arjuna for timidity and cowardiceWords/ Pages : 4,844 / 24