Latin Roots of the Yoga-Sutra--Chapter 1--Aphorism 6

Welcome back fans of Latin roots as they relate to English vocabulary words! Recently I have been focusing this SAT English vocabulary blog on analyzing the Latin root words of titles of great English and world literature, and then discussing why those great works are nonpareil. I have recently perused Patanjali's great work concerning yoga, the Yoga-Sutra, translated by Chip Hartranft. I have found the aphoristic style of the Yoga-Sutra to be not only engaging, but also deeply profound; in it, Patanjali discusses the considerable spiritual, mental, and physical rewards that one can derive from the practice of yoga, which is much, much more than the usually held western conception of yoga as just the asanas, or physical postures/poses. During the next two years or so, I will devote myself to writing about each of Patanjali's aphorisms, sequentially, contained in his remarkable 2nd-century BCE text, with a focus on analyzing the text in terms of its classical Greek and Latin roots of the fine English translation, and then providing an individual's exegesis of the text itself, based upon my own wonderful experience with yoga beyond the asanas. It has been said that memorizing the Sanskrit text of the Yoga-Sutra in and of itself can re-pattern the mind; I am most curious to see if this phenomenon is also metalinguistic, that is, can English and its root words effect the same transformation? Last week I focused on the Latin roots of the Yoga-Sutra: Chapter 1: Aphorism 5. This week I move on to:

Aphorism 6: They are right perception, misperception, conceptualization, deep sleep, and remembering.

You will recall that aphorism 6 is a direct answer of aphorism 5: There are five types of patterns, including both hurtful and benign.

Let's first discuss the Greek and Latin roots of four of the following words in aphorism 6:

n.b. The words "perception," "misperception," and "conceptualization" have the same stem cept, which is derived from the Latin verb capio, capere, cepi, captum.

Perception: from the Latin verb capio, capere, cepi, captum: "take, capture, seize" "Perception," etymologically, is the "thorough seizing or capturing" by the mind of experience, or of the world that the mind "perceives." Note that the prefix "per" in this case acts as an intensive prefix, adding emphasis to the main stem "cept." ("pre" in the word "prefix," on the other hand, means "before, in front of," as "prefixes" are those words that are "fastened in front of a word"). The suffix "-ion" means "act, state, or result of doing something." Hence, etymologically, "perception" is the "act of thoroughly capturing or seizing" the world around one, through the mind.

Misperception: "misperception" contains all the same roots as the word "perception," but adds yet another prefix (a prefix can precede or antecede another prefix), which radically changes the meaning. In this case, the Germanic prefix "mis" means "wrong, wrongly, bad, badly." Hence, etymologically, "misperception" is the "act of thoroughly but wrongly or badly capturing or seizing" the world of experience which surrounds the mind.

Conceptualization: the main root word of "conceptualization" remains capio, capere, cepi, captum: take, capture, seize; the prefix "con," which comes from the Latin preposition cum: "with, together," also here acts as another intensive, whereas the two Latin suffixes "-al" (of or pertaining to) and "-ation" (act, state, or result of doing something) (note that suffixes, as prefixes, can also be serried in formation: consider antidisestablishmentarianism which has fully two prefixes and 5 suffixes): hence, etymologically, "conceptualization" is the "act or state pertaining to thoroughly capturing or seizing" something, that is, forming a "concept" or "conceiving" of something within the mind.

N.b. the Latin root word capio, capere, cepi, captum has many, many SAT and GRE derivatives, including such words as: captious, captivating, inception, encapsulate, incapacitate, conceit, etc. etc. For a full list of these SAT and GRE vocabulary words, check out Word Empire, the most exhaustive source on the web for SAT and GRE vocabulary based on Greek and Latin roots.

Remembering: this word comes to us through the Latin prefix "re-" (back, again) and the Latin root word memor, memoris: "remembering, mindful" and "memoro, memorare, memoravi, memoratum": to remind, call to mind. When one "remembers" something, it is "called to mind again" since it has already been learned. Numerous SAT and GRE vocabulary words come from this root as well, consider: memorial, commemorate, memoir, memorandum, immemorial, etc.

Now, let's take a look at Aphorism 6:

Aphorism 6: They are right perception, misperception, conceptualization, deep sleep, and remembering.

A direct answer of aphorism 5:
There are five types of patterns, including both hurtful and benign.

As we learned in my post concerning aphorism 4 of Patanjali's Yoga-Sutra, patterns of thought that are formed at birth and early on in life limit one's view of reality, coloring one's awareness of what the world truly is and restricting it to the view of the pattern, which is not necessarily where reality lies, but only the reality of the pattern itself, which is not actual truth or clear perception. Hence, to understand how to supersede such patterning, one must learn the "types" or forms of these patterns; all of them, according to Patanjali, are not necessarily hurtful, although some are. Being able to harness those that are benign to further the process towards enlightenment and obviating those that are hurtful will take us a long way towards fulfilling our goal, that is, to allow one's awareness of true reality to be unhindered and unfettered by those patterns. In aphorism 6, we are given the names of these patterns, both hurtful and benign:

Right perception: clearly benign. If the mind were to "thoroughly capture" experience and the world as it actually is, one would see clear to the truth.

Misperception: clearly harmful. If the mind "badly" or "wrongly" perceives reality (which unfortunately is where most of us are), it becomes afflicted with the kleshas, those "causes of suffering" or "poisons," in Sanskrit named the ff.: avidya, asmita, raga, dvesha, and abhinivesha.

Conceptualization: unsure whether harmful or benign. The formation of images or concepts or ideas in our minds could, I gather, go either way: future aphorisms of Patanjali will clear up the obfuscation.

Deep sleep: hopefully benign. Who doesn't like a deep and restful sleep?

Remembering: hopefully benign. Remembering, I think, in this sense is like Wordworth's Intimations of Immortality, a "remembering" of where we came from, "trailing clouds of glory." What is the etiology of the mind? The body? Our soul? Whither the origin? The origin itself, the Transcendent, the Numinous, the Ineffable Nondual, the Unmoved Mover, Ptah, or whatever other referent or inadequate word you wish to give that which comprises the very nature of the Universe...love in its purest, most pristine, most powerful, and most wonderful form.

My next post will focus on aphorism 7: Right perception arises from direct observation, inference, or the words of others.

Fascinated with English vocabulary words? Want to pick them apart into their constituent Greek and Latin roots? Want to know even more SAT and GRE words that come from the Latin root words capio, capere and memor, memoris? Studying hard for the SAT or GRE verbal section, and just can't get a handle on all of those vocabulary words, which are truly legion? Check out the Greek and Latin roots site called Word Empire, where you will find the most comprehensive Greek and Latin roots dictionary available today, and also the most beautiful...it's in full color, and artistically designed. There's even a Greek and Latin roots poster available, which nicely illustrates the full power of what Greek and Latin root words can do for you.

Latin Roots of the Yoga-Sutra--Chapter 1--Aphorism 5

Welcome back fans of Latin roots as they relate to English vocabulary words! Recently I have been focusing this SAT English vocabulary blog on analyzing the Latin root words of titles of great English and world literature, and then discussing why those great works are nonpareil. I have recently perused Patanjali's great work concerning yoga, the Yoga-Sutra, translated by Chip Hartranft. I have found the aphoristic style of the Yoga-Sutra to be not only engaging, but also deeply profound; in it, Patanjali discusses the considerable spiritual, mental, and physical rewards that one can derive from the practice of yoga, which is much, much more than the usually held western conception of yoga as just the asanas, or physical postures/poses. During the next two years or so, I will devote myself to writing about each of Patanjali's aphorisms, sequentially, contained in his remarkable 2nd-century BCE text, with a focus on analyzing the text in terms of its classical Greek and Latin roots of the fine English translation, and then providing an individual's exegesis of the text itself, based upon my own wonderful experience with yoga thus far. It has been said that memorizing the Sanskrit text of the Yoga-Sutra in and of itself can re-pattern the mind; I am most curious to see if this phenomenon is also metalinguistic, that is, can English and its root words effect the same transformation? Last week I focused on the Latin roots of the Yoga-Sutra: Chapter 1: Aphorism 4. This week I move on to:

Aphorism 5: There are five types of patterns, including both hurtful and benign.

Let's first discuss the Greek and Latin roots of four of the following words above:

type: From the Greek root typos: "blow, impression, form." One "types" on a keyboard by making "impressions" on the keys with one's fingers, just as a "type" of candy is the "form" it takes, just as character traits "form" a "type" of person. Numerous SAT and GRE-level vocabulary words run through the Greek root typos, including: archetype, stereotype, atypical, typify, prototype, genotype, and timbre. Pattern: from the Latin word pater, patris: “father;” a “pattern” is the “father” of something because it generates the limitations within which forms can arise, that is, according to its “pattern,” in much the same way that a father’s genetic information helps form the physical “pattern” of his offspring, and also the child’s mental “patterning” by the way that the father behaves, highly influencing the child. Other SAT and GRE-level derivatives from pater, patris include: patriarch, paternal, patron, patronize, repatriate, patriarch, and compatriot. Include: from the prolific Latin verb claudo, claudere, clausi, clausum: "shut, close;" when something is "included" with something else, it is etymologically "shut in" with it. This root has many, many English derivatives at the SAT and GRE-level that come from it, "including" but not limited to the ff.: exclusive, inclusion, exclusion, preclude, occlude, recluse, conclusive, closure, disclosure, seclude, conclusive, claustrophobia, seclusion, cloister, and foreclose. For even more SAT and GRE vocabulary words, check out www.wordempire.com where you will find many more examples! Benign: this word comes directly from the Latin word benignus: "kind;" this includes the Latin adverb bene: well and ago, agere: "do;" so, someone who "does well" is kind. English words are legion from ago, agere (in the 100s); from bene: benediction, benefactor, beneficent, benevolent, beneficial, etc. Aphorism 5: There are five types of patterns, including both hurtful and benign. As we learned in my last post concerning aphorism 4, patterns of thought that are formed at birth and early on in life limit one's view of reality, coloring one's awareness of what the world truly is and restricting it to the view of the pattern, which is not necessarily where reality lies, but only the reality of the pattern itself, which is not actual truth or clear perception. Hence, to understand how to supersede such patterning, one must learn the "types" or forms of these patterns; all of them, according to Patanjali, are not necessarily hurtful, although some are. Being able to harness those that are benign to further the process towards enlightenment and obviating those that are hurtful will take us a long way towards fulfilling our goal, that is, to allow one's awareness of true reality to be unhindered and unfettered by those patterns. We all live with the purview or even control of these patterns, and without even being able to recognize them as such, one cannot know how to deal with them, for through the patterns we perceive the reality dictated by the pattern, not unadulterated, pure reality. This concept is fully discussed in Plato's Allegory of the Cave, in which men live who have only ever seen shadows dancing on the wall of the cave and have never been out in the real world; imagine one man's surprise one day when he leaves the cave and comes upon glorious, colorful, three-dimensional reality--what a blow to his mind and preconceptions that must have been! In much the same way do our mind's patterns cause us to remain in the shadows, shackling awareness and giving us only the smallest glimpses of the glory of reality as it truly is. My next post will focus on aphorism 6: They are right perception, misperception, conceptualization, deep sleep, and remembering. Fascinated with English vocabulary words? Want to pick them apart into their constituent Greek and Latin roots? Want to know even more SAT and GRE words that come from the Latin root words pater, bene, ago, and claudo? Studying hard for the SAT or GRE verbal section, and just can't get a handle on all of those vocabulary words, which are truly legion? Check out www.wordempire.com , where you will find the most comprehensive Greek and Latin roots dictionary available today, and also the most beautiful...it's in full color, and artistically designed. There's even a Greek and Latin roots poster available, which nicely illustrates the full power of what Greek and Latin root words can do for you.

Latin Roots of the Yoga-Sutra--Chapter 1--Aphorism 4

Welcome back fans of Latin roots as they relate to English vocabulary words! Recently I have been focusing this SAT English vocabulary blog on analyzing the Latin root words of titles of great English and world literature, and then discussing why those great works are nonpareil. I have recently perused Patanjali's great work concerning yoga, the Yoga-Sutra, translated by Chip Hartranft. I have found the aphoristic style of the Yoga-Sutra to be not only engaging, but also deeply profound; in it, Patanjali discusses the considerable spiritual, mental, and physical rewards that one can derive from the practice of yoga, which is much, much more than the usually held western conception of yoga as just the asanas, or physical postures/poses. During the next two years or so, I will devote myself to writing about each of Patanjali's aphorisms, sequentially, contained in his remarkable 2nd-century BCE text, with a focus on analyzing the text in terms of its classical Greek and Latin roots of the fine English translation, and then providing an individual's exegesis of the text itself, based upon my own wonderful experience with yoga thus far. It has been said that memorizing the Sanskrit text of the Yoga-Sutra in and of itself can re-pattern the mind; I am most curious to see if this phenomenon is also metalinguistic, that is, can English and its root words effect the same transformation? Last week I focused on the Latin roots of the Yoga-Sutra: Chapter 1: Aphorism 3. This week I move on to:

Aphorism 4: Otherwise awareness takes itself to be the patterns of consciousness.

Let's first take a look at the Latin roots of two key words:

Consciousness: from "scio, scire": to know; the “con” of “consciousness” means “thoroughly” (from the preposition “cum” which here acts as an intensive), so one who exhibits “consciousness” possesses the “state, quality, or condition” of “thoroughly knowing” one’s surroundings. Other SAT and GRE-level derivatives that come from "scio, scire" include: conscience, conscientious, conscionable, conscientiousness, unconscionable, omniscient, omniscience, prescient, nicety, plebiscite, and nice.

Pattern: from the Latin word pater, patris: “father;” a “pattern” is the “father” of something because it generates the limitations within which forms can arise, that is, according to its “pattern,” in much the same way that a father’s genetic information helps form the physical “pattern” of his offspring, and also the child’s mental “patterning” by the way that the father behaves, highly influencing the child. Other SAT and GRE-level derivatives from “pater, patris” include: patriarch, paternal, patron, patronize, repatriate, patriarch, and compatriot.

Aphorism 4: Otherwise awareness takes itself to be the patterns of consciousness.

A human’s “awareness,” if having been proscribed or circumscribed or limited by the early “patterns” that have delimited or delineated her “consciousness,” cannot see reality for what it is, but only reality as it appears to the “patterns” or “filters” that keep true, or unfiltered, reality in check. It is as if she were seeing reality through rose-colored glasses. Imagine, if you will, true reality as clear, unsullied water, and ground coffee as the “patterning” or “filter” through which that “reality” must pass; the grounds stain the water as it passes through the coffee maker, creating an end product that is opaque and indiscernible to that clear water, despite the fact that the clear water is the primary substrate or underpinning of all that darkness or lack of clarity. Transcendent vision is all around one, permeating one’s senses, but the “patterns” of “consciousness” themselves are so impermeable that they act to obscure or obfuscate our vision of the ding-an-sich, the “thing-in-itself.” How does one remove these patterns of the mind, these dark coffee grounds that so influence our vision of the transcendent? How does one clear one’s consciousness for clear viewing? Is it truly as difficult as removing the dark color from that once clear water that created the coffee? Hmmm…maybe, maybe not. Patanjali contends that the patterns of consciousness can be stilled through the discipline of yoga, a new reverse filtration system, as it were, that can make pellucid the opacity of compromised vision, that can return lucidity to the darkness of that cup of coffee, to those clouds swirling in one’s cup of awareness. The substrate of clear water is comfortably there, and yoga is the path to clear the way.

Fascinated with English vocabulary words? Want to pick them apart into their constituent Greek and Latin roots? Want to know even more SAT and GRE words that come from the Latin root words scio, scire and pater, patris (there are a good number)? Studying hard for the SAT or GRE verbal section, and just can't get a handle on all of those vocabulary words, which are truly legion? Check out www.wordempire.com , where you will find the most comprehensive Greek and Latin roots dictionary available today, and also the most beautiful...it's in full color, and artistically designed. There's even a Greek and Latin roots poster available, which nicely illustrates the full power of what Greek and Latin root words can do for you.

Latin Roots of the Yoga-Sutra--Chapter 1--Aphorism 3

Welcome back fans of Latin roots as they relate to English vocabulary words! Recently I have been focusing this SAT English vocabulary blog on analyzing the Latin root words of titles of great English and world literature, and then discussing why those great works are nonpareil. I have recently perused Patanjali's great work concerning yoga, the Yoga-Sutra, translated by Chip Hartranft. I have found the aphoristic style of the Yoga-Sutra to be not only engaging, but also deeply profound; in it, Patanjali discusses the considerable spiritual, mental, and physical rewards that one can derive from the practice of yoga, which is much, much more than the usually held western conception of yoga as just the asanas, or physical postures/poses. During the next two years or so, I will devote myself to writing about each of Patanjali's aphorisms, sequentially, contained in his remarkable 2nd-century BCE text, with a focus on analyzing the text in terms of its classical Greek and Latin roots of the fine English translation, and then providing an individual's exegesis of the text itself, based upon my own wonderful experience with yoga thus far. It has been said that memorizing the Sanskrit text of the Yoga-Sutra in and of itself can re-pattern the mind; I am most curious to see if this phenomenon is also metalinguistic, that is, can English and its root words effect the same transformation? Last week I focused on the Latin roots of the Yoga-Sutra: Chapter 1: Aphorism 2. This week I move on to:

Chapter 1: Integration
Aphorism 3: Then pure awareness can abide in its very nature.

The name of this chapter (itself derived from the Latin root caput, capitis: "head") comes from the Latin root integer: "whole, entire, untouched." Thus, this first chapter, the first of but four in the Yoga-Sutra, from an etymological point of view, will focus upon "the act of becoming whole, entire, or untouched."

The third aphorism includes three key English derivatives, all three from Latin root words:

pure: from the Latin root word purus: "clean, pure, spotless," source of the following English SAT vocabulary words: purgation, expurgate, impurity, purge, puritanical, et al.

very: from the Latin root word verus: "true," source of numerous and sundry English SAT words, including but not limited to: verify, verdict, verity, verisimilitude, veracious, and aver. Hence, "very," at core, is "truly."

nature: from the Latin root word nasci, nasci, natus sum: "to be born," and, more directly, natura: "character, power which gives birth to the world," source of a huge number of SAT and GRE English vocabulary words, including but certainly not limited to: innate, nascent, nativity, naive, puny, renaissance, cognate, preternatural, etc. The key here is the power of giving birth, or of creating the world.

Aphorism 3: Then pure awareness can abide in its very nature.

"Awareness" is defined as "knowing, realizing, or perceiving." Consciousness brings about awareness, that ability we humans have of being cognizant of not only our own existence, but also of that which surrounds us. Once aphorism 2 has been attained, that is, the "patterns of consciousness have been stilled," "pure," or "spotless, clean" knowing can transpire--which intimates that patterns of consiousness control our thought processes and give us an "impure" view of the world around us, somehow tainting our awareness (in much the same way that Kant described the mind as a a-priori filter that sees "reality" only in terms of itself, not as it really is). So, once the knowing becomes spotless, it can "reside" or "abide" or "be" in its "very" (or "true") nature..the question is, what is the "true nature?" A linguistic or etymological clue here, I believe, resides in the root of the word "nature" discussed above, that is, natura: "character, power which gives birth to the world." If the "nature" of this "pure awareness" is a "power which gives birth to the world," and the inherent "patterns of consciousnss" that is that "awareness" are not "spotless" or "pure," we cannot know the true essence of the world as it really is, what its "truth" is, because the "power which gives birth to the world" is blocked by patterning. But...this awareness, this "very nature," if it indeed does have the "power to give birth to the world," must contain the seeds of enlightenment, indeed must be an immanent, divine force which can allow us to see the world as it is, to view truth (the Platonic Ideals, discussed in the Allegory of the Cave in Plato's Republic), indeed, allow us (since we possess awareness) to "abide in true nature." With the intimation that this "true nature" in an inherent part of every human being, and that every human being can become and has the innate ability to become enlightened.
I guess that blows the "divine elect" out of the water. And supports the conviction that all people are indeed equal. And that all people are sacred and divine and ONE. Sorry, hierarchy of priests and all you infallible ones, we are all infallible.
But...a big but here...how to cleanse the patterning of consciousness so that we can reside in our "true nature," so that we can take the blinders off "awareness" so that we can apprehend the transcendent, the divine, the ineffable nondual that surrounds us? Yoga, in all its phases. How huge is that?
Next: Aphorism 4: “Otherwise awareness takes itself to be the patterns of consciousness.”

Fascinated with English vocabulary words? Want to pick them apart into their constituent Greek and Latin roots? Want to know even more SAT and GRE words that come from the Latin root words purus, natura, and verus (there are a great number!)? Studying hard for the SAT or GRE verbal section, and just can't get a handle on all of those vocabulary words, which are truly legion? Check out www.wordempire.com, where you will find the most comprehensive Greek and Latin roots dictionary available today, and also the most beautiful...it's in full color, and artistically designed. There's even a Greek and Latin roots poster available, which nicely illustrates the full power of what Greek and Latin root words can do for you.

Latin Roots of the Yoga-Sutra: Chapter 1: Aphorism 2

Welcome back fans of Latin roots as they relate to English vocabulary words! Recently I have been focusing this SAT English vocabulary blog on analyzing the Latin root words of titles of great English and world literature, and then discussing why those great works are indeed great. I have recently perused Patanjali's great work concerning yoga, the Yoga-Sutra, translated by Chip Hartranft. I have found the aphoristic style of the Yoga-Sutra not only engaging, but also deeply profound; in it, Patanjali discusses the considerable spiritual, mental, and physical rewards that one can derive from the practice of yoga, which is much, much more than the usually held western conception of yoga as just the asanas, or postures. During the next two years or so, I will devote myself to writing about each of Patanjanli's aphorisms, sequentially, contained in this remarkable 2nd-century BCE text, with a focus on analyzing the text in terms of its classical Greek and Latin roots of the fine English translation, and then providing an individual's exegesis of the text itself, based upon my own wonderful experience with yoga thus far. It has been said that memorizing the Sanskrit text of the Yoga-Sutra in and of itself can re-pattern the mind; I am most curious to see if this phenomenon is also metalinguistic, that is, can English and its roots bring effect the same transformation? Last week I focused on the Latin roots of Chapter 1: Integration and Aphorism 1: Now, the teachings of yoga. This week I move on to:

Chapter 1: Integration
Aphorism 2: Yoga is to still the patterning of consciousness.

The name of this chapter (itself derived from the Latin root caput, capitis: "head") comes from the Latin root integer: "whole, entire, untouched." Thus, this first chapter, the first of but four in the Yoga-Sutra, from an etymological point of view, will focus upon "the act of becoming whole, entire, or untouched."
The second aphorism includes two key English derivatives, both from Latin root words:

pattern: The word "pattern" comes from the Latin root pater, patris: father. Just as a "father" or pater contribues to children via his genetic pattern, so too are patterns progenitors of forms. Patterning in the conscious mind becomes the "father" of action or thought; early patterns that are formed in the mind lead to children of restricted thought. Many SAT-level English vocabulary words arise from the Latin root word pater, patris, including but not limited to: patriarch, paternity, expatriate, patron, patronize, patronizing, patronage, perpetrate, and patricide.

consciousness: The word "consciousness" arises via the Latin prefix "con" which comes from the Latin preposition "cum," which in this case acts as an intensive, meaning "thoroughly," and the Latin verb scio, scire, "to know." It is one's "consciousness" that allows one to "thoroughly know" the world around one, making one aware that one is not only alive, but that much, apparently, surrounds one in this world; a whirling vortex of samsara which leads to the kleshas, or afflictions. Other SAT-level derivatives that derive from the Latin verb scio, scire include: conscientious, omniscient, prescient, conscionable, unconscionable, nicety, and plebiscite.

Aphorism 2: Yoga is to still the patterning of consciousness.

Let's take a look at the aphorism in light of the etymology of "pattern" and "consciousness." Patterns formed in the consciousness early on in life lead to restricted ways of thought limited by those patterns, which give a skewed, awry, and false view of our awareness and knowing because our consciousness has been, as it were, biased. This yogic view of the apprehension (or not) of reality is remarkably similar to Kant's philosophical bent towards Metaphysical Agnosticism, in which Kant asseverates that our minds contain a priori filters with which we are saddled, or "patterned," at birth, and which color our view of reality for our entire lives; hence we must, by the limitations of our own ability to apprehend reality, remain metaphysical agnostics. Kant's filters are similar to viewing "reality" through rose-colored glasses at all times, or similar to an operating system of a computer that can only read programs based upon its own code. Although Nietzsche thought that Dionysiac carousing (which he termed Rausch) could ephemerally touch that transcendent reality, the beholder could not recall the experience once having returned to consciousness (probably because of the huge post-wine headache, if nothing else). The yogic view, however, is different; although our minds or consciousness are limited by their "patterning" which is formulated early on in life during our impressionistic childhoods, there is a way to break through the false view of reality to see reality as it is (Kant's ding-an-sich) via the multi-step approach of yoga. Thus, despite the undeniable greatness of Kant's 1781 Critique of Pure Reason and its ultimate limited conclusion, yogis provide an answer to not only experience reality, but also to relieve human suffering which is created by this invidious and insidious "patterning" of the "consciousness."
Next week I will focus on Aphorism III of Chapter 1: Then pure awareness can abide in its very nature.

Fascinated with English vocabulary words? Want to pick them apart into their constituent Greek and Latin roots? Want to know even more SAT and GRE words that come from the Latin root words pater, patris: father or scio, scire: "to know"? Studying hard for the SAT or GRE verbal section, and just can't get a handle on all of those vocabulary words, which are truly legion? Check out www.wordempire.com, where you will find the most comprehensive Greek and Latin roots dictionary available today, and also the most beautiful...it's in full color, and artistically designed. There's even a Greek and Latin roots poster available, which nicely illustrates the full power of what Greek and Latin root words can do for you.

Latin Root Words of the Yoga-Sutra

Welcome back fans of Latin roots as they relate to English vocabulary words! Recently I have been focusing this SAT English vocabulary blog on analyzing the Latin root words of titles of great English and world literature, and then discussing why those great works are indeed great. I have recently perused Patanjali's great work concerning yoga, the Yoga-Sutra, translated by Chip Hartranft. I have found the aphoristic style of the Yoga-Sutra not only engaging, but also deeply profound; in it, Patanjali discusses the profound rewards that one can derive from the practice of yoga, which is much more than the usually held western conception of yoga as just the asanas, or postures. During the next two years or so, I will devote myself to writing about each of Patanjanli's aphorisms, sequentially, contained in this remarkable 2nd-century BCE text, with a focus on analyzing the text in terms of its classical Greek and Latin roots of the fine English translation, and then providing an individual's exegesis of the text itself, based upon my own wonderful experience with yoga thus far.

Chapter 1: Integration

Aphorism 1: Now, the teachings of yoga.

The name of this chapter (itself derived from the Latin root caput, capitis: "head") comes from the Latin root integer: "whole, entire, untouched." Thus, this first chapter, the first of but four in the Yoga-Sutra, from an etymological point of view, will focus upon "the act of becoming whole, entire, or untouched." Note that the mathematical term "integer," also comes via the Latin integer (an "integer" is any "whole" number that is not a fraction or "broken," hence an "untouched" number, including the positives from 1, 2, 3 onwards, the negatives, or -1, -2, -3 onwards, and 0). Other SAT-level words that derive from the Latin root word integer include: integral, integrity, integrate, disintegrate, disintegration, and entirety. Hence, Patanjali suggests very early on that the practioner new to yoga is in some sense "disintegrated," or has lost his or her spiritual "integrity," and must regain being "whole" or "entire."
Let's talk for a moment about the word "yoga." "Yoga" simply means a "yoking" back to one's origins by once again gaining "union" with our ultimate origin. The Sanskrit yogah, "union," from which English created "yoga," is that discipline by which the "yogini" tries to rejoin her spiritual origins via achieving a state of inner serenity by quieting the pestiferous sem, or "flea mind" (so called because our minds tend to jump around desultorily like ‘fleas,’ flittering about to the tune of about 60,000 random thoughts per day). Let us consider related Latin and Greek cognates of "yoga," and a few of the SAT and GRE vocabulary words that derive from them: Greek zygon, "yoke, pair:" zeugma, zygote, zygotic. Latin iungo, iungere, iunxi, iunctum: "to join:" adjunct, adjoin, juxtapose, joint, juncture, conjunction, maladjusted, conjoint, jostle, disjointed, subjunctive, subjunctive, joust, junto, junta, rejoinder, conjoin, conjunctive, disjunct, enjoin, etc. From the roots above and a discussion of the word "yoga," we can see that "yoga" has a deep relationship to "joining" its practitioners again with something profound, but with what? And how does one go about practicing this union? Stay tune for next week's entry which will discuss Aphorism 2: Yoga is to still the patterning of consciousness. In this entry, I will etymologically analyze the Latin root words of "pattern" (related to our word "father") and "consciousness," the latter an absolutely integral concept that is at the heart of what the yogini or yogi does. Fascinated with English vocabulary words? Want to pick them apart into their constituent Greek and Latin roots? Want to know even more SAT and GRE words that come from the Latin root words iungo, iungere: to join? Or the scientific, anatomical, and medical terminology that derives from the Greek root zygon: yoke, pair? Studying hard for the SAT or GRE verbal section, and just can't get a handle on all of those vocabulary words, which are truly legion? Check out www.wordempire.com, where you will find the most comprehensive Greek and Latin roots dictionary available today, and also the most beautiful...it's in full color, and artistically designed. There's even a Greek and Latin roots poster available, which nicely illustrates the full power of what Greek and Latin root words can do for you.

Nobel Peace Laureate--President Barack Obama

Welcome back fans of Latin roots as they relate to English vocabulary words, and great talks about life-changing books, with a focus on great literature! In this series that I'm offering, I am expounding upon books that have made an impression upon myself and many other readers, and the Latin root words inherent in their English titles. Today I drift a bit because of the moliminous announcement of President Barack Obama's reception of the Nobel Peace Prize, although I do quote Guy de Maupassant at some length. What could be more profound than that? I will discuss etymology vis a vis "peace" and "president," and then will provide a layman's disquisition on why this was an unbelievably great announcement for this world at this time.

Peace:
The English word "peace" comes from the Latin word pax, pacis: "peace." You may remember in your history classes the Pax Romana, or the "Roman Peace" under the august leadership of Augustus Caesar, the first emperor of Rome. Pax vobiscum is a favorite Latin phrase, meaning "peace be with you." Other SAT-level English vocabulary words that come from pax, pacis include:
pay: OK, this is obviously not an SAT word, but what does the word "pay" have to do with "peace"? Try not "paying" your bills, and you will see that your life will not be particularly "peaceful." Indeed, to "pay" for an item or a service is to make "peace" with the merchant who provided you with it.
pacify: To "make peace." To "pacify" another is to make her angst towards you dissipate.
appease: To "appease" another is to provide "peace" for him, especially if he is upset about an injustice.
pacific: Generating "peace." Balboa was said to have discovered and so named the Pacific Ocean on a "peaceful" day, and named it accordingly.
pacifist: A "peacemaker." A "pacifist" refuses to engage in warmongering of any kind. Wise idea.
pact: A "pact" or "compact," which is related to the word "pax, pacis," comes through the Latin root word paciscor, which means "to make a bargain" or "to agree." If you make a "pact" with someone, you come to a "peaceful" agreement about terms which are mutually agreeable to both sides. Hence, both "pact" and "compact" are synonymous for "covenant" or "agreement."
The Warsaw Pact, the Munich Pact, and the Mayflower Compact are all famous historical agreements or "pacts."
These are but a few of the more interesting English vocabulary words that are derived from the Latin word pax, pacis; check out more at www.wordempire.com, the central site for finding out why Greek and Latin roots are the core of the global English language.

President: What, etymologically, is a "President"? The prefix "pre" comes from the Latin preposition prae, "in front of, before;" the stem "sid" comes from the Latin verb sedeo, sedere, "to sit," and the suffix "ent," which is the stem ending for the Latin present active participle (a present active participle is simply a verbal adjective that ends, in English, in "-ing;" e.g.: I saw the boy consuming 50 purple twinkies..."consuming" modifies "boy," and describes an action that is taking place in the present tense); hence, etymologically, the "President" is that leader who is "sitting before" us all, as leader of the nation. Since the United States is arguably the only world superpower at this time, its President is also the leader on a global basis as well. How huge is that?

Well, I would say that it is immeasurably huge, especially in terms of potential. And that fact hasn't gone over the heads of the committee who chooses Nobel prizes either. I believe that President Obama, although some people believe that he "hasn't done anything yet," has the incredible potential of doing so much that no other President before him has been able to do, primarily because of his vast charisma and his incredible, well, fan base. He already has been mending fences through acts of incredible and peaceful good will...my hope is that he will not only bring the wars that plague us all to an end...

OK...so you're a supporter of the wars. And you believe that our society advances because of them. Please read the ff., written well over 100 years ago by the great French short story writer Guy de Maupassant in his novella "Afloat," which, other than a few anachronisms, could very well apply to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan:

"Those little infantrymen who are scurrying around over there are as doomed to be killed as that flock of sheep being driven along the road by a butcher. They'll collapse on some plain with their skull cut open by a saber or with a bullet hole in their chest; and they're all young men who could be in their homes, working, producing, doing something useful. Their fathers are old and poor, their mothers have loved them, adored them, as mothers will, for twenty years; and now, in six months' or perhaps a year's time, they'll learn that his son, her child, that big boy whom she's brought up with so much care, at such expense, with so much love, has been flung into a hole like a dead dog after he's had his guts torn apart by a cannonball, trampled on, crushed, reduced to pulp by a cavalry charge. Why have they killed her child, her lovely boy, her only hope and pride, her whole life? She doesn't know...Why? Why? War! Fighting! Slitting throats! Massacring each other! And now, in our day, with our civilization, our great scientific knowledge and high level of philosophy which we think human genius has attained, we have schools where you can learn to kill, at very long range and with great accuracy, a very large number of people with a single blow, kill poor, innocent devils with family responsibilities, and not be charged with any crime."

Now we see why the highly charismatic President who has 7.5 years left in the White House has been given the clout and the cachet of this laud: the Nobel Peace Prize.

May he use it well. To find a peaceful solution to the madness that goes on, and has continued going on, through the centuries that humans have graced this planet. I am a big fan of Star Trek, and hope that, as happened in that series, that our world will have banished such insanity in the 21st century.

Fascinated with English vocabulary words? Want to pick them apart into their constituent Greek and Latin roots? Want to know even more SAT and GRE words that come from the Latin root words sedeo, sedere: to sit? Or the prefix "pre," "before"? Studying hard for the SAT or GRE verbal section, and just can't get a handle on all of those vocabulary words, which are truly legion? Check out www.wordempire.com, where you will find the most comprehensive Greek and Latin roots dictionary available today, and also the most beautiful...it's in full color, and artistically designed. There's even a Greek and Latin roots poster available, which nicely illustrates the full power of what Greek and Latin root words can do for you.