May 23, 2010: Vṛtti

The antaḥ-karaṇa exists in the form of vṛtti, or thoughts. When we perceive an object, it takes the form of a vṛtti, and what we see in our minds is in fact the vṛtti, not the object itself. This is why every object is seen differently by each person. These vṛtti are kṣaṇika, or momentary, and what we see as our minds is a constant stream of them.

Perception is just one kind of vṛtti. We know that many others also exist, like emotion, analysis, memory, and so on. Śāstra divides them into certain general categories. Firstly, there is an "I" vṛtti which uses all the other vṛtti. This is called the aham-vṛtti or ahaṅkāra. It uses three different kinds of vṛtti :

1. मनस् (manas) : relating to perception, emotion, and doubt
2. बुद्धि (buddhi) : relating to analysis, decision, and reasoning
3. चित्त (citta) : relating to memory and imagination

As we proceed, we will learn how to distinguish our own vṛtti and use each one of them effectively. In doing this, our understanding of the mind as an instrument separate from us will become clear.