The Essence of the Tantra· 4.14 / 46

The Essence of the Tantra4.14

4.14

प्रत्याहारो ऽपि करणभूमिम् एव सातिशयां कुर्यात् ध्यानधारणासमाधयो ऽपि यथोत्तरम् अभ्यासक्रमेण निर्वर्त्यमाना ध्येयवस्तुतादात्म्यं ध्यातुः वितरेयुः

Transliteration (IAST)

pratyāhāro 'pi karaṇabhūmim eva sātiśayāṃ kuryāt dhyānadhāraṇāsamādhayo 'pi yathottaram abhyāsakrameṇa nirvartyamānā dhyeyavastutādātmyaṃ dhyātuḥ vitareyuḥ

— withdrawal of the senses ; — the domain of the sense-instruments ; — heightened, more refined ; — meditation, concentration, and absorption ; — in ascending order, each higher than the last ; — by the sequence of practice ; — identity with the object to be meditated upon ; — to the meditator ; — could bestow

Even withdrawal of the senses (pratyāhāra) would only render the domain of the sense-instruments more refined. And meditation, concentration, and absorption (dhyāna, dhāraṇā, samādhi) too, accomplished in ascending order by the sequence of practice, could bestow upon the meditator only identity with the object to be meditated upon.