Nirvicārasamāpatti

By Swami Harshananda

Nirvicārasamāpatti literally means ‘samādhi on subtle objects without discrimination’.

The words samāpatti and samādhi means the same thing. It means attaining the object of concentration or perfect concentration on the object of concentration mentally. While dealing with samāpatti, the Yogasutras, has mentioned four types of them:

1. Savitarka
2. Nirvitarka
3. Savicāra
4. Nirvicāra

Out of the aṣtāṅgas or eight steps described by the Yogasutras, the last three are clubbed together and given the technical name ‘saiyama’. They are:

1. Dhāraṇā
2. Dhyāna
3. Samādhi

When saiyama is practiced on the subtle elements of the object comprising it and only the subtle object of concentration shines before the mind’s eye, all the other processes being completely transcended, it is called ‘nirvicāra samāpatti’.

References

• The Concise Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Swami Harshananda, Ram Krishna Math, Bangalore