Chaitanya () refers variously to 'awareness', 'consciousness', 'Conscious Self', 'intelligence' or 'Pure Consciousness'. It can also mean energy or enthusiasm.

Etymology

It is derived from cetanā (), which refers to

living Living or The Living may refer to: Common meanings *Life, a condition that distinguishes organisms from inorganic objects and dead organisms ** Living species, one that is not extinct *Personal life, the course of an individual human's life * ...

things or consciousness itself.

Scripture

In the Rig Veda (R.V.IV.XL.5) ''Nrishad'' is the dweller amongst humans; ''Nrishad'' is explained as ''Chaitanya'' or 'Consciousness' or '' Prana'' or 'vitality' because both dwell in humans. In his commentary on the Isha Upanishad, Sri Aurobindo explains that the Atman, the Self manifests through a seven-fold movement of Prakrti. These seven folds of consciousness, along with their dominant principles are: # annamaya puruṣa - physical # prāṇamaya puruṣa - nervous / vital # manomaya puruṣa - mental / mind # vijñānamaya puruṣa -

knowledge Knowledge can be defined as Descriptive knowledge, awareness of facts or as Procedural knowledge, practical skills, and may also refer to Knowledge by acquaintance, familiarity with objects or situations. Knowledge of facts, also called pro ...

and

truth Truth is the property of being in accord with fact or reality.Merriam-Webster's Online Dictionarytruth 2005 In everyday language, truth is typically ascribed to things that aim to represent reality or otherwise correspond to it, such as belie ...

# ānandamaya puruṣa - Aurobindo's concept of Delight, otherwise known as

Bliss BLISS is a system programming language developed at Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) by W. A. Wulf, D. B. Russell, and A. N. Habermann around 1970. It was perhaps the best known system language until C debuted a few years later. Since then, C b ...

# caitanya puruṣa - infinite divine self-awareness # sat puruṣa - state of pure divine existence The first five of these are arranged according to the specification of the

panchakosha A ''kosha'' (also ''kosa''; Sanskrit कोश, IAST: ), usually rendered "sheath", is a covering of the ''Atman'', or Self according to Vedantic philosophy. There are five ''koshas'' (Panchakoshas; ; the five sheaths), and they are often vi ...

from the second chapter of the

Taittiriya Upanishad The Taittirīya Upanishad (Devanagari: तैत्तिरीय उपनिषद्) is a Vedic era Sanskrit text, embedded as three chapters (''adhyāya'') of the Yajurveda. It is a ''mukhya'' (primary, principal) Upanishad, and likely co ...

. The final three elements make up

satcitananda ( sa, सच्चिदानन्द, IAST: ; also Sat-cit-ananda or ) is an epithet and description for the subjective experience of the ultimate unchanging reality, called Brahman,Devadutta Kali (2005), Devimahatmyam: In Praise of the Godde ...

, with cit being referred to as ''chaitanya''. The essential nature of

Brahman In Hinduism, ''Brahman'' ( sa, ब्रह्मन्) connotes the highest universal principle, the ultimate reality in the universe.P. T. Raju (2006), ''Idealistic Thought of India'', Routledge, , page 426 and Conclusion chapter part X ...

as revealed in deep sleep and Yoga is Chaitanya (pure consciousness).

Vedanta

The Vedantists also speak about the Consciousness or ''Mayaopahita-chaitanya'' that is associated with the indescribable

Maya Maya may refer to: Civilizations * Maya peoples, of southern Mexico and northern Central America ** Maya civilization, the historical civilization of the Maya peoples ** Maya language, the languages of the Maya peoples * Maya (Ethiopia), a popul ...

which is responsible for the functions of creation, preservation and dissolution of entire Existence, and about the Consciousness or ''Avidyaopahita-chaitanya'' that is associated with Avidya which causes the wrong identification of the Atman with the body etc.; after negating both Maya and Avidya, that is, after all distinctions are obliterated, what remains is Pure Consciousness or Chaitanya. The form of an object that the mind assumes, after coming into contact with that object or enveloping it, is called '' Vritti''. The process of enveloping is called ''Vritti-Vyapti''. '' Vyapti'' is pervasion and the pervasion by the mind of a certain location called the object is ''Vritti-Vyapti''. The awareness that the object is there illuminates the object due to the presence in this moving process called the mind and is called ''phala-vyapti''. It is only because of the consciousness attending on the mind that the object is perceived.

Vedanta ''Vedanta'' (; sa, वेदान्त, ), also ''Uttara Mīmāṃsā'', is one of the six (''āstika'') schools of Hindu philosophy. Literally meaning "end of the Vedas", Vedanta reflects ideas that emerged from, or were aligned with, t ...

says that the object cannot be wholly material and there is no qualitative difference between the object and consciousness which consciousness by coming into contact with the object knows that the object is there which fact implies that consciousness is inherent in the object. This is the ''Vishaya- chaitanya'' or the 'object-consciousness' which does not mean consciousness of the object but the object which is a phase of consciousness which prevails everywhere. To advaitins, it refers to a pure

consciousness Consciousness, at its simplest, is sentience and awareness of internal and external existence. However, the lack of definitions has led to millennia of analyses, explanations and debates by philosophers, theologians, linguisticians, and scien ...

that knows itself and also knows others.

References

{{Indian philosophy, state=collapsed Consciousness Hindu philosophical concepts Sanskrit words and phrases

Etymology

Scripture

Vedanta

See also

References