Foundations of Indian Psychology, Volume 2

Preface

Karan Singh

Apart from its other achievements, the ancient Indian civilization undertook the most profound examination of the human mind that has ever been attempted anywhere. The entire process of yoga, particularly the system based on Patanjali's Yogasutras, developed a methodology for ‘stilling the modifications of the mind’. The Bhagavad Gita also contains specific instructions for stilling the mind, and thereby accessing the deeper reaches of our psyche. Indian psychology therefore has a firm base and a profound underlying philosophy.

Due largely to centuries of Western domination, we have tended to be unduly influenced by the West, even in the area of psychology. This is not in any way to denigrate the great breakthroughs of Western ...