Preface Since time immemorial, that aspect of the human being which has intrigued intelligentsia, time and again, about which intense research has been done employing the best technological means available and that aspect which has constantly evaded the understanding by man is the MIND. It is the mystery of all mysteries and the stage on which the entire drama of life takes place. The physical body is just a means for the enfoldment of the drama of the mind with its stored memories and unending thoughts. In the Bhagavad Gita Lord Krishna says indriyani paranyahuh indriyebhyah param manah manasastu para buddheh yo buddheh paratastu sah" indicating that senses are subtler than the physical body, the mind subtler than the senses, the intellect even more subtler and the Self, the subtlest of all. The hitherto scarcely used term, 'psyche', began to be used very often subsequent to the works of Sigmund Freud, father of psychoanalysis and Carl Jung hailed as his successor. Among Jung's most important works was his in-depth analysis of the psyche which he explained as follows, "By 'psyche' I understand the totality of all psychic processes, conscious as well as unconscious; separating the concept from the conventional concept of the mind which is generally limited to the processes of the conscious brain alone." Recent research in the field of medicine too has suddenly given a very high importance to the terms psychology, psychiatry, depression, counseling, psycho-somaticism, neurosciences and not to forget parapsychology. The book "Psychic discoveries behind the iron curtain", by American journalists Lynn Schroeder and Sheila Ostrander unfolded unlimited capacities of the mind with very authentic reports of telepathic mediums, that too from the erstwhile Russian continent.
While medical science is making every effort with the most sophisticated gadgets and laboratories to penetrate deeper, if possible, into the very core of the mind and while intellectuals all over the world have made their effort too to describe consciousness and its allied entities - for example, to quote the renowned German litterateur, Klaus Mann, " .... based on what principles does our consciousness keep the traces of certain sensations, whereas others are dropped into the abyss of the unconscious ...:~ ancient Rishis of Bharat and great saints all over the world have silently carried on their research within the laboratory of the body and the mind advocating very meticulous practices, both to understand the mind, as well as regulate its function by the application of the Will. The foremost among these Rishis whose work and methods of application have been adopted by the largest number of practitioners all over the world, is Patanjali.
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