plato in the light of yoga jeffrey gold

7/28/2019 Plato in the Light of Yoga Jeffrey Gold

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PLATO IN THE LIGHT OF YOGA

One of the reasonsthat interest n Plato has persisted or2,500 years isthat his dialoguesare multifacetedand complex. Thereare a varietyofuseful and interestingways to approachand interpretPlato.Despitethisplethoraof interpretations, plan to look at Plato from an atypicalper-spective. In this essay, I propose to interpret he dialogues of Platothroughthe lens of Yoga philosophy. I am not makingany historicalclaims allegingtransmission f ideas from Indiato Greece. I am claim-ing, however,thatseeing Plato's houghtthrough he categoriesof Yogais both a neglectedapproachand an illuminating ne. Certain hemes inPlato that are often ignoredstand out more prominentlyand becomemoreintelligiblewhen we examinehis dialoguesfrom he perspectiveofYoga philosophy.Forexample, the geographicalsection of the Phaedo(108c-115a) is an obscure and elusive passage that has provideddif-ficultyfor interpretersf Plato.If,however,we utilize certainthemes inYoga philosophyin interpretinghatpassage,boththe excerptitself andits connection to major topics in the dialogue become more compre-hensible.One of the major hemes in the Phaedothat receives little attentionfrom scholarsis the theme of liberation.Interpretersf Patanjaliare farmore likelyto emphasize the concept of liberation han interpretersfPlato.That liberation s a prominent heme in Patanjali'sYoga-Sdtrasacknowledged by scholarsof Yoga. Incontrast,Plato's attention o thetheme of liberation n the Phaedo has received considerably ess atten-tion fromPlato scholars.I shall attempt o fill that lacunaby discussingthe role of liberation n Plato'sphilosophy,paying special attentiontothe Phaedo.Ifwe see liberation s a central heme inthatdialogue,otherpassages, often neglected and overlooked by scholars (e.g., the geo-graphicalsection mentionedabove), begin to make more sense in thecontext of the Phaedo.I shall begin by discussing the concept of liberation in Indianthought. In Yoga:Immortalitynd Freedom,Eliadestates:"It is not thepossessionof truth hat is the supremeend of the Indiansage; it is lib-eration,the conquestof absolutefreedom."1The Sanskritword 'moksa'is often translated into Englishas freedom or liberation.Sometimes,'apavarga's used (e.g. Yoga-Sutra1.18).Butthe termPataijaliseems toprefer s 'kaivalya',which means independence,aloneness,or isolation.Pataijali requently iscusses he nature f kaivalya n the Yoga-Sotra.2 especificallyconnects kaivalyawith the cessationof ignoranceor avidya(11.25) nd the inclinationtoward discriminativeknowledge or viveka(IV.26).The final sutra of Patainjali's ork (IV.34)defines and explainsthe ultimate tateof kaivalya.

Professor f Philosophyat EastTennesseeStateUniversity

PhilosophyEast&WestVolume46, Number1January 99617-32? 1996by University fHawai'iPress

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Patafijali's commentators acknowledge and recognize the centralrole of kaivalya or liberation in his thought. Forexample, in PatanjaliandYoga, Eliade states: "The conquest of this absolute freedom constitutesthe goal of all the Indian philosophies and mystic techniques, but it isabove all through Yoga, through one of the manifold forms of yoga, thatIndia believes that the goal has been reached."3 Heinrich Zimmer,4ErnestWood,5 Bhoja,6Swami HariharanandaAranya,7and Georg Feuer-stein8 all support the idea that seeking deliverance (or liberation or re-lease) is absolutely central to Yoga.The emphasis on liberation we find in the secondary literature onYoga has no parallel or counterpart in the secondary literature on Plato.Plato's commentators do not underscore the role of lusis (freedom ordeliverance) in Plato's writings. The dialogue which deals most directlywith Plato's concept of liberation is the Phaedo. Yet, there is relativelylittle scholarly commentary on the role of liberation in that dialogue.9

Despite the lack of attention to liberation that one finds in most of thesecondary literature, Plato himself goes to considerable lengths to de-scribe philosophy itself as liberating. In the Phaedo, Socrates repeatedlyclaims that the philosophical soul seeks release. Socrates states (Phaedo67d): "And the desire to free the soul is chiefly, or ratheronly, in the truephilosopher. In fact the philosopher's occupation consists precisely inthe freeing and separation (lusis kai chorismos) of soul from body."10 Indiscussing purification, Socrates states that purification consists in"separating the soul as much as possible from the body" (67c). Whenthat occurs, the soul is "freed from the shackles of the body" (67d). Laterin the dialogue (82e-83a), Socrates sums up his view:

Every eeker of wisdom knowsthatup to the time when philosophy akes itover his soul is a helpless prisoner, hained hand and foot in the body,com-pelled to view realitynot directlybutonly through ts prisonbars,and wal-lowing in utterignorance.And philosophycan see that the imprisonmentsingeniouslyeffected by the prisoner'sown active desire,which makes himfirstaccessoryto his own confinement.Well, philosophy akes over the soulinthis conditionand by gentle persuasion riesto set itfree.'1Plato's image in the Phaedo of the soul as a "helpless prisoner,chained hand and foot in the body" is developed in the Allegory of theCave (Republic V1.514a-518d).12 In that allegory, the prisoners, whoare chained and fettered in a dark cave, can only see the shadows caston the wall of the cave. Eventually (515c), one of the prisoners is deliv-ered or freed (lusin)from bondage.13 The allegory of the cave is not onlysimilar to the passage in the Phaedo quoted above, it also bears a strikingresemblance to the myth at the end of the Phaedo. In that myth, people,

believing themselves to be living on the surface of the earth, are actuallyPhilosophyEast& West living beneath the earth in hollows.14 Socrates states:

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Althoughwe live in a hollowof the earth,we assumethatwe arelivingon thesurface,and we call the air heaven, as though it were the heaven throughwhich the starsmove. And this pointtoo is the same, that we are too feebleand sluggishto make our way out to the upperlimit of the air. Ifsomeonecould reach to the summit,or puton wings andfly aloft,when he put up hishead he would see the worldabove, justas fishes see our worldwhen theyputuptheirheadsout of the sea. Andif his naturewere able to bearthe sight,he would recognizethatthat is the true heaven andthe truelightand the trueearth.Phaedo 09d-e)

Thisimageinthe Phaedoof livingbeneaththe surfaceof the earth na darkerand less pureregionis preciselythe imagewe find inthe Alle-gory of the Cave. In the Phaedo,the inhabitants f the lowerworldare"feeble and sluggish."In the Allegoryof the Cave,they are chainedandbound. In the Phaedo, we have a very clear image of freedom whenSocratesdescribes he personwho reachesthe summitas the personwhois able to "puton wings and fly aloft."Inthe Allegoryof the Cave, wehave the imageof a prisonerwho is released rom hechains andclimbingout of the cave onto the surfaceof the earth.Socratesmakes it veryclearthat the prisoners n the Allegoryof theCave are similar o us. When Glauconpointsout (515a)thatSocrates spainting a strange picture with strange prisoners,Socrates responds,"Theyare like us."Justas the prisonersaresurroundedby darkness,weare "in the dark," hatis, in a state of ignorance.Movingout of the caveinto the sunlight represents he ascent of the soul froma state of igno-rance to a state of illumination. It also represents he transition rombondageto liberation.Therefore,n Plato'sthought, here is a connectionbetween liberationand illumination n the one hand and ignoranceandbondageon the other.Atboth the beginningof the allegory(514a)and atthe conclusion of the allegory(518b), Socrates makes it clear that thecentralfocus of the allegoryis paideia (learningor education).At 515c,Socrates makes clear the connection between the prisoners'situationand ignorancewhen he says: "Considerthen what deliverance fromtheir bonds (lusindesmon)and the curingof their ignorance(iasinaph-rosuneis)would be if somethinglike this naturallyhappenedto them."Platothen describesthe liberationof one of the prisoners.This is theflip side of the passage I quoted earlier from the Phaedo (82e) whereSocrates describes the soul as "a helpless prisoner,chained hand andfoot in the body, compelledto view realitynot directlybutonly throughits prison bars, and wallowing in utter ignorance (amathia)."In thePhaedo passage, Plato connects imprisonmentwith ignorance;in theRepublicpassage, he connects deliverancefrombondage with the ces-sation of ignorance.Itseems clear, therefore, hat,for Plato,we are im-prisonedby our ignorance,and with wisdomcomes liberation.Thatignoranceis the main source of our bondage is also a central Jeffrey old

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theme in Yoga. Eliaderepeatedlystates that, in SamkhyaYoga, igno-rance is the cause of our bondage and knowledge is the cause of ourliberation.15 orexample,he states:Thewretchednessfhuman ife snotowing o a divinepunishmentrto anoriginalin,but o ignorance. otanyandeverykindof ignorance,utonlyignorance f the truenature f Spirit,he ignorancehatmakesus confuseSpiritwith our psychomentalxperience.... ForSamkhya nd Yogatheproblemsclearlydefined.Sincesufferingas itsoriginn ignorancef 'Spi-rit'-that s,inconfusingSpirit' ithpsychomentaltates-emancipationanbe obtained nly f theconfusionsabolished.16

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Eliade later quotes the Samkhya-Sutra111.22, 3), which states:"Throughknowledge,liberation;hrough gnorance,bondage."17Patanjalihimself makes it clear (Yoga-Satra 1.2-4)that ignorance(avidya)is not only one of the obstacles (klesas)to samadhi, it is thesource or breedinggroundof all the other obstacles. Later n the Yoga-Sutra (11.23-26) Pataiijali points out that the (false) identificationofpurusa (self) with prakrti phenomenalworld) is caused by ignorance(avidya).Finally 11.25-26),he statesthat the dispersionof ignoranceandthe practiceof discriminationviveka) eadto liberation kaivalya).Thus,for both Plato and Patanjali, gnorance s the cause of our bondageandknowledgeis the sourceof our liberation.Furthermore,lthough I wouldn't want to say that the knowledgethat Plato seeks is identicalto the knowledge Patanjali eeks, there aresome striking imilarities.Pataijalidefines ignorance avidya)as follows(Yoga-Sutra 1.5): Avidyaconsists in regarding transientobject as ev-erlasting,an impureobject as pure,miseryas happinessandthe not-self(anatman)as the self (atman)."18The Yogi with discriminativeknowl-edge (viveka)would, therefore,not confuse the transientwith the eternal,the purewith the impure, miserywith happiness,and the not-selfwiththe self. Similarly,Plato'sphilosopherwould not confuse the transient,impureworldof the senses with the eternal,pureworldof the Forms.19Nor would Plato'sphilosopherconfuse miserywith happiness(althoughthe ignorant,unjust person is characterizedby Plato as someone whomakesprecisely hatconfusion).20Lastly,Patanjali's ointthatignoranceconfuses the selfandthe not-selfcan also be found inthe Allegoryof theCave.21Therefore, t appearsthat Platoand Patanjalinot merelyagreethat knowledge is essential for liberation,but also hold similarviewsconcerningthe type and content of the knowledgerequired.To summarize,both Plato and Patafjali place liberation n a centralplace in theirphilosophy.Second,both associateliberationwithwisdomandbondagewith ignorance.Third,bothspeakof the wise personas theone who can distinguish he eternalfrom the transient, he self fromthenot-self,and misery romhappiness.

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How is liberationachieved? ForPataijali,we must begin with hisclassicdefinitionof Yoga(Yoga-Sotra.2):"Yoga s the suppressionof themodifications f the mind(Yogascitta-vrtti-nirodhah)."ow are the mod-ifications or fluctuationsquieted, calmed, or suppressed?Once again,Patanjali s clear (Yoga-Sotra .12):"Their uppression is broughtaboutby) persistentpractice(abhyasa)and non-attachmentvairagya)."22hisview is repeatedvirtuallyverbatim n the BhagavadGTta.23I will begin with a discussion of vairagyaor detachment.Patanjalidefines detachmentas follows (Yoga-Sutra .15):"Whenthe mind losesall desireforobjectsseen or described nthe scripturestacquiresa stateof utterdesirelessnesswhich is called detachment."The term translatedas "desirelessness" s vitrsna.Thatterm is also translatedas "withoutthirst"or "withoutcraving."Thus,detachmentrequiresa lack of thirst,craving, or desire for objects. The BhagavadGTtapresents a similarview.24The Yoga-Sutrandthe BhagavadGTtadentifydetachmentwiththe loss of desire.When we turn to Plato,an emphasison detachmentand desirelessness s also evident. In the Phaedo,afterSocratesdefinesdeathas the separationof the soul andthe body, he discusses the philo-sophical life (Phaedo 64c-68b). In that discussion, Socratesmakes itclear that the philosopher s not concerned with the so-called pleasures(hedonas)connected with food and drink,sex, fancy clothing,and otherbodilyadornments Phaedo64d).At Phaedo65c-d, it is pointedout thatthe philosophical soul seeks to be alone, independent, separate,anddetached from bodily desires. In terms of the previously mentionedpleasures(food, drink,sex, etc.), Socratesmaintains hat the philosopher"finds no pleasurein such things"and "thinksnothingof physicalplea-sures" (65a). Like Pataijali's sage, who acts without thirst or withoutcraving,Plato'sphilosopher s detachedfrompleasureand pain and un-movedby desire andaversion.Therefore,desirelessnessanddetachmentare not simplycentralconcepts in Yoga, they also play a role in Plato'sthought. In a passagethat connects desirelessnesswith liberation,Soc-rates states (Phaedo 66c): "Warsand revolutionsand battles are duesimplyand solely to the body and its desires.All wars are undertaken orthe acquisitionof wealth,and the reasonwhy we have to acquirewealthis the body, because we are slaves in itsservice."Earlier, pointedout that,for Patanjali, here are two ways to calmthe modifications n the mind. Having looked at one of the ways (de-tachment), let us now turnto the second, namely persistentpractice.Patafijali tates(Yoga-Sutra.13):"Exertion o acquiresthitior a tranquilstateof mind devoid of fluctuations s called practice."25A greatdeal ofmaterial ound in books 2 and 3 of the Yoga-Sutras devoted to a dis-cussion of Yogic practices.All eight limbsof Yoga are to be practiced.Forexample,posture asana),control of breath(pranayama),ense-with-drawal (pratyahara),oncentration(dharana),and meditation(dhyana) Jeffrey old

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all involvediligence,effort,discipline,and practice.Vyasa(commentingon Pataijali'ssutra11.28)nsists hat it is throughpractice hatignoranceis reduced, impurities re attenuated,and discriminative nlightenmentis attained.26Practice s also central n Plato's hought."Itmay be that the rest ofmankindare notaware that those who applythemselvescorrectly o thepursuitof philosophyare in fact practicingnothingmore nor less thandying and death."27Philosophy s the practiceof death and dying. ForPlato,that meansthatthe philosophermustpractice separating he soulfromthe body. Socratessays that "realphilosophers rain ordying ..."(Phaedo67e).28Thistrainingor practiceis, as odd as it sounds,a philo-sophical pursuit,and as a philosophicalpursuit, t is associatedwith thesearch for truth.Socratesasks:"Then when is it that the soul attains otruth?"Phaedo65b). He answersthatthe soul attains ruth hroughrea-soning (logizesthai)Phaedo65c). He continues:

Surely he soul can best reflect[reason]when it is free of all distractions uchas hearingorsightorpainorpleasureof anykind-that is,when it ignores hebody and becomes as faras possibleindependent,avoidingall physicalcon-tacts and associationsas muchas itcan, in its searchforreality. Phaedo65c)In his discussion of the forms,Socratesmakes the following (verysimilar)point:

Then the clearestknowledgewill surelybe attainedby one who approachesthe object so far as possible by thought(dianoia),and thoughtalone, notpermitting ightor anyothersense to intrudeuponhis thinking,notdragginginanysense as accompanimento reason:one who setshimself o trackdowneach constituent f realitypurelyandsimplyas it is by meansof thoughtpureandsimple:one who gets rid,so faras possible,of eyes and earsand,broadlyspeaking,of the body altogether,knowingthatwhen the body is the soul'spartnert confuses the soul and prevents t fromcomingto possess truthandintelligence.29

Plato'spoint that the soul can reason, think, and reflectmost clearlywhen not distractedby the senses is verysimilar o Patainjali'smphasison pratyahara r sense-withdrawal. n the Yoga-Sutra11.54),Patanijalicharacterizespratyahara s the mindand the sense organswithdrawingthemselves from their respective objects. This is similar (though notidentical) o Plato'spoint that the soul reasonsbest when it withdrawsitselffromthe senses and theirobjects.Theprecedingpassagesfromthe Phaedomakeit clearthat the phil-osophical pursuitof truth s accomplishedonly when the soul reasons,reflects,andthinks.Twopointsseem to follow from his.Thefirstpointisthatreasoning, hinking,and reflectionrequirepracticeandtraining.Thesecond point is that,forPlato, he soul reasonsbestwhen it is isolatedorwithdrawn romthe body.

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To summarizebriefly, it seems to be the case that, for Plato, lib-erationrequiresknowledge.Knowledgedependson one's ability o thinkand reasonclearly. Thinkingand reasoningclearly require hat the soulbe isolatedfromthe body. This isolation of soul frombody is similar oPatanjali'spoint that liberationrequires he destructionof the union oralliance betweenpurusa(self)andprakrti phenomenalworld).Patanjalisays (Yoga-Sotra 1.25): Thedissociation of Purusaand Prakrtibroughtaboutby the dispersionof Avidya[ignorance] s the realremedyandthatis the Liberation f the Seer."30Vyasahas an interesting ommentary:

WhenAdarsanaignorance,ackof discernment]eases, the allianceofBuddhiintelligence, hich spartofprakrti]nd Purusaeasesandthere scomplete essation fbondageoralltime,which s isolation f theSeer, .e.stateof aloofness f Purusa ndnon-recurrencef future ontactwith theGunas.31Itappears,therefore, hat liberationrequires he total isolation andaloofness of Purusa or Patanjali,and it requires he total isolationandaloofness of soul for Plato.Furthermore,his isolation demandstrainingand practice.ForPatanjali,we must,amongotherthings,practicebreathcontrol and meditation. Are there any parallelsto these practices inPlato?Atfirstglance, itdoes not appearthatPlato advocatespranayama(breath ontrol)or meditation.However,if Imayconclude thisessay inadaringmanner,I would like to suggesta symbolic interpretationf theeschatological myththat occurs at the end of the Phaedo. Such a sym-bolic interpretation ointsin the directionof a Platowho bothalluded toand advocatedpracticesakin to meditationandpranyama.Like he other threeeschatological mythsin Plato,32he mythat theend of the Phaedo (107d-114d) begins with a discussion of the wan-deringsof the soul afterdeath.Whereasall fourmythsin Platoinclude adiscussion of the "judgment"of the soul, only the myth in the Phaedohasan extendedgeographicaldescriptionof the earth.Socratesdescribesthe earthas filledwithhollows,undergroundivers, ndsubterranean as-sages. My hypothesis s that Plato'sverydetaileddescriptionof the earthis notan attemptatgivingan accurategeographicalaccountof the earth;it is rathera symbolicdiscussion of what Eliadecalls "mysticalphysiol-ogy."33I am suggesting hatwhen Platois talkingaboutthe earth,he is

reallydiscussingesoteric physiologicalstates of humanbeings. In dis-cussingthe mysticalphysiologyof Yoga,Eliadestates:Thebody-both thephysical nd he'subtle'-is madeupof a certain um-ber of nadTslit., conduits,'vessels,' veins,'or 'arteries,'ut also 'nerves')andof cakraslit., circles,'disks,' utusuallyranslatedcenters').implify-ingslightly,we couldsaythat hevitalenergy,ntheform f 'breaths,'ircu-latinghroughhenadTsnd hat hecosmicenergy xists, na latent tate, nthecakras.34 Jeffrey old

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Justas Eliade peaksof vitalenergyor breathcirculating hrough henadTsconduits)and cakras centers),Platospeaksof hot and cold riversflowing in and out of hollows and channels deep within the earth. Forexample,at Phaedo111c-e, Socratesstates:Inthe earth tself,all over tssurface,herearemanyhollowregions....Allthesearejoined ogether ndergroundy manyconnectinghannels,omenarrower,omewider,hrough hich, rom nebasin oanother,here lowsa great olumeof water-monstrousnceasingubterraneanivers fwatersboth hot and cold-and of firetoo, greatrivers f fire,andmanyof liquidmud....

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Plato'sdescriptionof hot and cold energy flowing throughchannels andbasins is remarkablyimilar o Eliade'sdescriptionof vitalenergyflowingthroughna.ds and cakras.Socratesgoes on to pointout that the move-ment of the waters is caused by an oscillation inside the earth(Phaedo111e). He then quotes Homer, who refersto Tartarusas the earth'sdeepestchasm intowhich all the rivers low (Phaedo111e-1 12a).Giventhis symbolic interpretation, artaruswould representwhat Eliadecallsthe muladhara akra. Eliadestates: "The moladhara mula= root) s sit-uated at the base of the spinal column, between the anal orifice andthe genital organs (sacrococcygeal plexus)."35Plato's great rivers offire remind the reader of kundalinT. liade states: "The awakeningofthe kun.dalinTrouses an intense heat.... [T]hepartthroughwhich thekun.dalinTasses is burninghot."36Inboth Plato and Yoga,we have apictureof hot and cold energy(inthe formof water, air,andfire)surgingthroughchannels, conduits,and hollows.For Plato(Phaedo112a-b), the streams hatsurgeto and froareac-companied by air, wind, or breath nside the earth. "Andjustas in ourbreathing he air is constantly lowing in and flowing out, so in the in-teriorof the earththe wind swayingabout with the waters,and enteringor leaving a given place, causes gusts of appallingviolence."37 Platogoes on to say that the watersand airflow throughmanychannels buteventually "dischargethemselves back into Tartarus, ome with longwinding courses through many lands, others more direct.... [S]omecompletea fullcircle,windinground he earthonce or more thanonce,like snakes,descendingas low as they can before once again plunginginto Tartarus."38fterplungingintoTartarus,he rivers hen flow uphill(Phaedo 112d-e). My hypothesis s that Plato iscarefullydescribing,us-ing coded language, a meditationtechnique that appearsto involvemovinghot and cold energyupanddown the spinalcolumnthrough hecakras.Like Patanjali,Plato is careful not to put too many details inwriting.This shouldnot be surprising, ecause if Plato hadbeen privy othe esoteric secrets found in Pythagoreanism r especially the Orphicmysteryreligion,he would have exercised the utmostcare and written

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cautiously. Virtuallyevery standardinterpretation f the Phaedo ac-knowledgesthat the Phaedowas heavily influencedby Pythagorean ndOrphicdoctrine.39And, althoughour knowledgeof Orphism s limited,we do know thatthe Orphiccult practicedsecret ritesof initiationandpurification.40ecret initiationritesof a Mysteryreligionare specificallymentionedby Socratesat Phaedo 69c-d. In view of this, I am puttingforth the bold hypothesesthat (1) these secret Orphic rites may haveincluded something analogous to meditation and pranayama;and(2) Plato,throughout he geographicalsection of the myth in the Phae-do, was speaking symbolically and guardedly about these Orphictechniques.Why offer such bold hypotheses?The reason I advance these hy-potheses is the explanatorypowerthey offer.My hypothesescan explaina section of the Phaedo that has not yet adequately been explained.Standardnterpretationsf the Phaedo admit that the geographicalsec-tion at the end of the dialogue is mythological.41Hackforth nd Bluckboth insist hatit is symbolic.42Forexample,Hackforth tates:"Platohasgivenhismytha metaphysical ymbolismaswell as aneschatological."43However, Hackforthdoes not back up his generalclaim with any spe-cific interpretationsf the symbols.He makes no attempt o explainthenumerous detailed descriptions nvolving hot and cold runningwater,hollows, Tartarus, nd so forth. Nor does any other interpretationhat Ihave read. Inshort, he standardinterpretationslaimthat the end of thePhaedo is mythologicaland symbolic,butprovideno explanation, nter-pretation,or translation f the symbols. My interpretation,owever,cangive quite specificand detailedexplanationsof the hollows, the hot andcold currents, he riversof fire,and Tartarus.All of these symbolsrepre-sent veryspecific internal tates or processesakinto the mysticalphysi-ology described n Eliade.Thehollows represent akras;he hotand coldcurrents,pranaand apana; he riversof fire,kundalinT;nd Tartarus,hemuladhara akra.

Furthermore,my hypothesis can explain why that very peculiargeographicaldiscussion belongs in the Phaedo. Other commentatorsprovideno explanationof the relevance of that section to themes in thePhaedo.But,on the Yogic interpretationf Plato,the maintheme of thePhaedo is liberation.The esoteric physiologyat the end of the Phaedoprovidesa specifictechniqueof meditationandpranayamahat one canuse as a meansof acquiring iberation.According o Eliade,Yogateachestechniques of meditation that are indispensabletools used in the ac-quisitionof liberation.44ParamahansaYoganandaalso describesmedi-tation as a technique for liberation.45 am suggestingthat Plato makesthe same connection.Another hermeneuticalbenefit of this interpretation oncerns theSocraticdoctrineof the unityof virtue.Manycommentatorshaveoffered Jeffrey old

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interpretationsf the unityof virtueas it appearsin the early Socraticdialogues, especially the Protagoras.46 ewercommentatorshave no-ticed the appearanceof thatdoctrine n the Phaedo.However,the unityof virtue is discussedby Socratesat Phaedo69a-c. What is interesting,forthese purposes,is that in that passage,Socratesdrawsa directcon-nection between true virtueand the secret rites of initiationand purifi-cation found in the Mysteryreligions.My suggestion is that the fivevirtuesdiscussedby Platorepresenthe five lower cakras ound in Yogaphilosophy.Given standarddescriptionsof those cakras,the followingcorrespondences ome to mind:self-control s correlatedwiththe earthy,heavy,constrictivenatureof the mQladharaakra;usticewiththewatery,nurturing, ealingof the svadhisthana akra;couragewith the fiery, in-tense energyof the maniiporaakra;piety with the devotionalnatureofthe heartor the anahatacakra;and wisdom with the intellectualnatureof the throat, ongue,and mindrepresentedby the visuddhacakra.47Thedoctrineof the unityof virtue s thatall the virtuesarethe same. My hy-pothesis is thatthe reasonthat the virtuesare identicalis thateach truevirtuerepresentshe susumnicor balanced state of the relevantcakra.AtPhaedo68c-69b, Socratescontrasts rue virtuefrom what is commonlyor popularlycalled virtue (e.g., braverythroughfear or temperancethroughdesire).These popular concepts of virtuewould represent heimbalanced state of the relevantcakra; rue virtue would represent hebalanced state. The meditation echnique hinted at in the geographicalsectionof the Phaedo is a techniquewhose aim is to balancethe cakras.Let me conclude thisessay with a briefsuggestionabouthow read-ingPlato hrough he lensof Yogamightbearfurthernterpretativeruit. fwe understand hat Plato's main emphasis is on liberation,we may beable to combat and rejectthe common interpretationf Plato as anti-body and anti-life. Since the time of Augustine,Plato has often beencharacterizedas a haterof the body. Forexample, Hackforth peaksofPlato's"disdainor even hostility oward he 'flesh.'"48He also speaksofPlato's "contemptfor all that empiricalworld which is apprehendedthroughthe senses."49If, however, we focus on Plato's view on lib-eration,we get a verydifferentPlato.The desireto be liberated romthebody is very different romhatingthe body. Gandhi desired liberationfrom the British,but didn'thate the British.Teenagersmay desire free-dom from theirparentswithouthatingthem. Furthermore,iven Plato'sown views, the desire to be liberated romX is not only different romhatingX, it is incompatiblewith hatingX. Hatred s a formof aversion,and aversion is simply anotherdesire (a desire to avoid).Given Plato'sviews on detachmentfromdesire, it is hardto imaginethat he wouldadvocate hatred of desire. Hatred is incompatiblewith detachment.What Platoobjectsto is enslavement. RecallSocrates'claim at Phaedo66c: "All wars are undertaken or the acquisitionof wealth, and the

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reason why we have to acquire wealth is the body, because we areslaves in its service." It is liberation romdesire,not hatredof desire,thatPlato advocates. Ifyou hate something,if you desire to push somethingaway, it'sgot you, and you are not free of it. Plato'semphasison libera-tion helps us to avoidthe caricatureof Plato as a philosopherwho hatesthe flesh.Inconclusion, I would like to stress that readingPlatothroughtheeyes of Patafjalibearsmuch interpretativeruit.First f all, it restores heplace of importance hat liberationholds in Plato'sthought.Secondly, ithelps us to see the connection between liberationandwisdom in Plato'sthought.Thirdly, tconnects the concepts of practiceand detachment oPlato's views on liberation.Fourthly, t sheds lighton the geographicalsection of Platoand drawsa connection betweenthe unityof virtueandthat geographicalsection. Finally,it presentsa more charitableinter-pretationof Plato thanthe standardones thatpresentPlato as one whodespisesthe flesh.

NOTES

I would like to thankthe following individuals or helpfuland criticalevaluation of earlier drafts of this essay: Bill Kirkwood,Niall Shanks,Hugh LaFollette,Gail Stenstad,LauraWaddey,JohnHardwig,and KimRogers.I would also like to thankShellyand Deborahfor all their wis-dom and support.1 - MirceaEliade,Yoga:Immortalitynd Freedom,2d ed. (Princeton:PrincetonUniversityPress,1969), p. 4.2 - Patafjali,Yoga-Sotra1.25; 11.49-51; 11.55;V.26;and IV.34.3 - MirceaEliade,Patafnjalind Yoga(New York:Funkand Wagnalls,1969), pp. 6-7.4 - HeinrichZimmer tatesthatYoga"outlinespractical echniquesforthe gainingof release"(Philosophiesof India[Princeton:PrincetonUniversityPress,1951], p. 280).5 - ErnestWood says: "Often and often the goal of the yogi is des-cribedin yoga literature s 'liberation"'(Yoga[Baltimore: enguinBooks,1962], p. 62).6 - Bhoja, n commentingon a section of the Yoga-Sutra(IV.22), tatedthat"anyknowledgewhose object is not deliverance s valueless."See Eliade,Yoga:Immortalitynd Freedom,p. 13.7 - Swami Hariharananda ranya, n an introductiono a translation f Jeffrey old

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the Yoga-SQtra,tates:"That s the ultimategoal of Yoga,which isperpetualpeace of mind or KaivalyaMoksa,i.e. liberation"(YogaPhilosophyof PatanfjaliAlbany: tateUniversity f New YorkPress,1983], p. xxiii).8 - Georg Feuerstein, n an introduction o a translationof the Yoga-

Sutra, xplains hatphilosophy inthe Yoga-Sotra)s"more hanwhatis commonlyunderstoodby thatterm." Feuerstein oes on to statethat,forPatanjali, hilosophycontains"strong thicalprescriptionsand above all, includes a method forthe systematic ransformationof consciousness with the ultimatepurposeof achieving 'libera-tion"' (The YogaSutraof Patanfjali: New Translation nd Com-mentary Rochester,Vermont: nnerTraditionsnternational, 989],p. 6).9 - For translationswith commentaries,see: David Gallop, Phaedo:Translatedwith Notes (Oxford:ClarendonPress, 1975); R. Hack-

forth, Plato's Phaedo: Translatedwith an Introduction nd Com-mentary Cambridge:CambridgeUniversityPress, 1972);and R.S.Bluck,Plato'sPhaedo:Translated,with an Introduction,Notes, andAppendices(Indianapolis:Bobbs-Merrill,955). In these texts, nei-ther the introductory ssays northe specificcommentson the rele-vant sections of the Phaedo revealsensitivity o the importanceofthe concept of liberation.See Hackforth,Plato'sPhaedo,pp. 3-24,41-43, 48-51, 56-57; Bluck, Plato'sPhaedo, pp. 1-36, 46-47;and Gallop, Phaedo,pp. 79-98. Forbooks about the Phaedo,see:RonnaBurger,The Phaedo:A PlatonicLabyrinthNew Haven:YaleUniversityPress, 1984); David Bostock, Plato's Phaedo (Oxford:ClarendonPress,1986); PaulStern,SocraticRationalism nd Polit-ical Philosophy:An Interpretationf Plato's Phaedo(Albany:StateUniversityof New YorkPress,1993); and KennethDorter,Plato'sPhaedo:An InterpretationToronto:Universityof TorontoPress,1982).Withthe exceptionof Dorter(pp.10, 19-22), the conceptofliberation s downplayedor ignored n these texts.

10 - Plato,Phaedo67d. Unless otherwisenoted,all translationsrom hePhaedoare takenfrom he HughTredennick ranslation.That rans-lationmay be found in EdithHamiltonand HuntingtonCairns,TheCollectedDialoguesof Plato(Princeton:PrincetonUniversityPress,1963).

11 - See also Cratylus 00c, where Socratesattributeshe view that"thebody is an enclosure or prisonin which the soul is incarcerated"othe Orphicpoets.12 - Foran expandedtreatmentof this allegoryas an allegoryof lib-eration,see JeffreyGold, "BringingStudentsout of the Cave: ThePhilosophy ast&West FirstDay," TeachingPhilosophy11 (1) (March1988):25-31.

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13-All translationsof the Republic are by G.M.A. Grube, Plato'sRepublic Indianapolis:Hackett,1974).14 - Phaedo 109b-110b.15 - Eliade,Yoga:Immortalitynd Freedom,pp. 9, 13, 14, 15, 18, 28.16- Ibid.,p. 14.17- Ibid.,p. 28.18 - Unless otherwise noted, all translationsof the Yoga-Sutrawill befromSwamiHariharananda ran.ya.19 - In the Phaedo(78c-80b), Socratesdistinguisheshe world of Formsfrom he physicalworld.TheFormsareinvisible,unchanging,pure,and eternal. Physical objects are changing, visible, impure,andtransitory.At Phaedo 79c, Socratespoints out that when the souluses the instrumentalityf the body (e.g., sight or hearing) o be

aware of the visible,transientworld, it "loses itsway and becomesconfused anddizzy, as thoughit were fuddled."Socratescontinues(Phaedo 79d) by statingthat the soul achieves wisdom or under-standing (phronesis)when it investigates"the pureand everlastingand immortal nd changeless."Atthe end of book 5 of the Repub-lic (475b-480a), Socrates distinguishesthe lover of sights andsoundsfrom the lover of wisdom (the philosopher).At 480a, Soc-rates dentifies he lover of sightsand sounds as the loverof opinionor doxophilist.The loverof sightsand sounds,who is unawareofthe Formof the Beautiful,believes in beautifulthingsbutnot Forms(476c). Socratessays that thatpersonis in a dream state. The phi-losopher,however, is able to distinguishForms rom sensible par-ticularsand is verymuch awake(476d). Inshort, he philosopher sable to discriminate he purefromthe impureand the eternalfromthe temporal.The philosopherdoesn'tconfuse realitywith appear-ance, shadowsand illusion romsubstance,or the dreamstatefromthe wakingstate.This is remarkablyimilar o Pataijali'sview thatignorance sthe confusionof the transientwith the eternal, he purewith the impure.

20 - Forexample,at the end of book 1 of the Republic 354a),Socratesconcludes his argumentwithThrasymachus y stating:"So the justman is happy, and the unjustone is wretched." This is despiteThrasymachus' laim that (344b) "when a man, besides appropri-atingthe possessionsof the citizens, managesto enslavethe own-ers,as well, then ... he is called happyand blessed,notonly by hisfellow-citizens butby all others who learnthathe has runthroughthe whole gamut of injustice."ForSocrates,the ignorant,unjusttyrant,despite appearances, s actuallywretched. In Socrates'and JeffreyGold

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Plato's view, ignorant and unjust people may think they are happywhen, in fact, they are not. This theme is found in both the Repub-lic and the Gorgias (especially in the discussion between Socratesand Polus, at 461 b-481 b).21 - At the beginning of the allegory, when Socrates is describing the

darkness and the fetters, he points out (Republic VII.515a) that theprisoners (who are "in the dark") cannot see themselves or eachother. Since the allegory is symbolic, and vision and sight are sym-bols that represent illumination and knowledge, the fact that theprisoners can't see themselves seems to imply that they lack self-knowledge or self-awareness. That the prisoners who are ignorantlack self-knowledge seems similar to Patanjali's idea that victims ofavidya confuse self with not-self.

22 - Translation by Dr. I. K.Taimni, p. 20.23 - In chapter 6 of the Bhagavad GTta,when Arjuna points out toKrishna(VI.34) that the mind is restless and impetuous, as difficultto control as the wind, Krishnaresponds (VI.35) that it is difficult tocurb the restless mind, but it is possible through constant practiceand detachment.24 - In chapter 2 of the GTta,Arjunaasks Krishna or a description of theman of stabilized mentality. The concept of stabilized mentality is

something like the notion of a calm, serene, peaceful, unwaveringmind. Krishna's description of the sage with these qualities is asfollows:55. When he abandonsdesires,Allthat are in the mind,son of Prtha,

Finding ontentmentby himself n the self alone,Thenhe is called of stabilizedmentality.56. When his mind is notperturbedn sorrows,And he has lost desireforjoys,His longing,fear,andwrathdeparted,He is called a stable-mindedholy man.

57. Who has no desiretowardsanything,Andgetting hisor thatgood or evilNeitherdelights n it norloathesit,Hismentality s stabilized.71. Abandoningall desires ..Manmoves freefrom onging,Without elf-interest ndegotism,

PhilosophyEast& West He goes to peace.

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Thispassageservesto reinforce he idea that stabilizationof themind (calmingthe fluctuationsof the mind)requiresboth desire-lessness and nonattachment.The passages in the BhagavadGTtaemphasizerepeatedly hatthe sage whose mind is stableabandons,lacks,or has no desires. (Alltranslations f the BhagavadGTta refrom FranklinEdgerton,The BhagavadGTta Cambridge:HarvardUniversityPress,1972].)

25 - Patanjali ontinueshis discussionof practiceas follows (Yoga-Sutra1.14):"Thatpracticewhen continuedfor a longtime withoutbreakand with devotionbecomes firm n foundation."26 - ForVyasa's commentaryon the Yoga-Sutra,ee Swami Harihar-ananda Aranya. Vyasa's commentaryon this particularsOtra sfoundon pp. 203-204.27 - Phaedo64a (Bluck ranslation).28 - Phaedo67e (Hackforthranslation).29 - Phaedo 65e-66a (Hackforthranslation).30 - Translation y Dr. I. K.Taimni,p. 198.31 - SwamiHariharananda ranya,p. 198.32 - The four eschatological myths in Plato are: Phaedo 107d-114d;RepublicX.614b-621a; Phaedrus246c-257b; and Gorgias523a-527e.33 - Eliade,Yoga:Immortalitynd Freedom,p. 239.34 - Ibid.,pp. 236-237.35 - Ibid.,p. 241.36 - Ibid.,p. 246.37 - Phaedo112b (Hackforthranslation).38 - Phaedo112c-d (Hackforthranslation).39 - Forexample,see Bluck,Plato'sPhaedo,pp. 47, 52, 127, 195-196;Hackforth,Plato'sPhaedo,pp. 4-6, 15, 38, 42, 172, 185; Bostock,

Plato's Phaedo, pp. 11-14, 29; and Dorter,Plato's Phaedo, pp.177-178. For wo excellent sustaineddiscussionson Orphismandthe Orphic influence on Plato,see DouglasJ. Stewart,"Socrates'LastBath,"Journalof the Historyof Philosophy10 (July1972):253-259, and W.K.C.Guthrie,The Greeksand TheirGods(Boston:BeaconPress, 1966), pp. 307-332.40 - See Stewart,"Socrates'LastBath,"p. 253; Guthrie,TheGreeksandTheirGods;and Dorter,Plato'sPhaedo,pp. 177-178. JeffreyGold

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41 - See Bluck,Plato'sPhaedo,p. 127, and Hackforth,Plato'sPhaedo,pp. 167, 171-175.42 - Hackforth,Plato'sPhaedo,p. 174; Bluck,Plato'sPhaedo,p. 127.43 - Hackforth,Plato'sPhaedo,p. 174.44 - Eliade,Yoga: mmortalitynd Freedom,pp. 14-15.45 - According o Yogananda:"AYogiwho faithfullypractices he tech-nique [a kriyayoga meditation echnique] is gradually reedfromkarma"(Autobiography f a Yogi [LosAngeles: Self-RealizationFellowshipPublishers, 974], p. 275).46 - See especially TerryPenner,"The Unityof Virtue,"PhilosophicalReview38 (January 973):35-68, andGregoryVlastos,"TheUnityof the Virtues nthe Protagoras,"Reviewof Metaphysics 5 (1972):415-458.47 - Fordescriptionsof these cakras,see Eliade,Yoga:ImmortalityndFreedom, pp. 241-245.48 - Hackforth,Plato'sPhaedo,p. 4.49 - Ibid., p. 5.

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