In this article, I present a brief overview on the Śramaṇa movements, covering four points: (i) a potential definition, (ii) the reasons that might explain their emergence, (iii) their relationship to earlier Vedic tradition and (iv) their impact on the development of practices of self-transcendence in South Asia.
Firstly, I will show that, even though defining the Śramaṇa movement is a problematic task, the concept is useful to understand cultural and historical trends in South Asian spiritual thought. Secondly, I explain how there is still much uncertainty about the causes behind the appearance of these movements. Thirdly, I will present some conflicting views on whether or not the ‘Upaniṣadic’ branch of Śramaṇa thought constituted a complete shift of paradigm in the Vedic tradition, or merely a “re-interpretation” or even “re-invigoration” of the same. Finally, I will conclude that the Śramaṇa movements played vital roles in the development and dissemination of meditative practices.
What is the so-called ‘Śramaṇa’ movement’?
The term Śramaṇa is used by academics to refer to largely heterogeneous groups of people who, to different extents, abandoned traditional Vedic society to engage in meditative and ascetic practices directed at attaining liberation from the cycle of death and rebirth. According to Andrea Jain, these movements arose around the 6th and 5th century B.C.E., while Joseph Campbell places them earlier. The term Śramaṇa is frequently used in opposition to the group of the Brahmanas, the priestly class in Vedic society. Feuerstein refers to some of these groups as part of a “Vedic counter-culture” and Zimmer considers the Upaniṣadic sages in particular as “pioneer intellectuals and freethinkers of their age”.
The definition provided above is based on four characteristics: (i) renunciation, (ii) rejection of traditional Vedic tradition, (iii) aim of attaining of the goal of liberation, and (iv) engagement in ascetic and meditative practices for this purpose. However, these four characteristics are present to varied degrees in the different groups to which the term Śramaṇa is usually applied, as we will see through some examples. First, even though renunciation is undoubtedly a feature of these movements, it is known that some ascetics at that time retreated to the forest with their spouses. The second characteristic, rejection of the orthodox Brahmanical rituals and doctrines, is not applicable to the same extent to all groups since some of these ascetics still practiced the traditional Brahmanical rituals. Third, the soteriological doctrines of the different Śramaṇa groups differ widely, especially between the Jain, Buddhist and Upaniṣadic traditions. The fourth and final characteristic outlined above, engagement in ascetic, meditative or “proto-yogic practices”, is also problematic. The Vratyas, a group still not very understood by scholars, practiced sexual rites which are more reminiscent of later tantric traditions.
Although there are some significant differences, it is possible to identify the presence of at least some of the previous four characteristics in the movements usually referred to as Śramaṇa. Thus, the expression Śramaṇa remains useful to designate a significant cultural and historical trend that certainly made important contributions to South Asian spiritual thought. However, due to this diversity, I personally believe that it would be better to speak of Śramaṇa movements or traditions in plural.
Having discussed the topic of the definition of the Śramaṇa movements, I will now explain the choice of the texts that limit the scope of my research: the Śatapatha Brāhmaṇam and the Kaṭhopaniṣad. Feuerstein explains that the Brāhmaṇa, the Āraṇyaka and the Upaniṣad were manifestations of attempts of interpretation and re-interpretation of the early Vedic heritage. Although the Brāhmaṇa are commonly described as being clear exponents of the orthodox priestly orientation, Feuerstein states that the Śatapatha Brāhmaṇam shows an early shift in perspective from the external and ritualistic mentality frequently ascribed to the Vedic tradition, leaning towards a more symbolic conception where the concepts of breath, life force, rebirth and mysticism play an important role in “proto-yogic” practices. This more esoteric or internalized conception of sacrifice is later refined in the Upaniṣad, works devoted to deep philosophical and spiritual matters. In Feuerstein’s opinion, the Kaṭhopaniṣad is a key text in this category: “(…) Better than any other scripture, this work marks the transition between the post-Vedic esotericism of the earliest Upanishads and the Pre-Classical Yoga of the Epic Age. With this work, Yoga became a recognizable tradition in its own right.”
Although their chronological dating is certainly unclear, the two texts mentioned above are useful for limiting the scope of my research, in the sense that they reflect progressively higher degrees of an internal or symbolic understanding of Vedic ritual (or at least contain more explicit explanations). This is closely related to the development of what Feuerstein terms “India’s psychospiritual technology”, practices directed at the transcendence of ordinary human consciousness.
Possible causes of the emergence of the Śramaṇa movements
Connolly presents a summary of four hypotheses that have been suggested, which provides a very useful framework for the purposes of this paper. The first two of them are general theories of human development, while the other two refer specifically to social development in the Indian subcontinent:
(i) Jared Diamond’s theory: the practical difficulties of early agricultural life in comparison to nomadic life (diseases caused by wastes, malnourishment, inequality, etc.) caused increased human suffering, which sparked many people’s desire to escape from it. The emphasis on the end of suffering, a key point in Upaniṣadic, Buddhist and Jain doctrines, might be related to the social conditions mentioned above.
(ii) Julian Jaynes’ explanation: from a more anthropological perspective, Jaynes draws a parallel between the shift in human consciousness that occurred around the same time in Greece and India. This is supposedly reflected in the differences between the Iliad and the Odyssey, and between the Vedas and the Upaniṣad. The Iliad and the Vedas reflect a process of decision making in which the right hemisphere of the brain transmits answers to the left hemisphere via auditory hallucinations considered to be the voices of the gods. In contrast, in the Odyssey and the ‘Upaniṣadic’ peoples seem to make decisions by weighing a series of alternatives or sometimes challenging traditional knowledge. This questioning of tradition supposedly brought disconnection from what was considered a divine principle, causing anxiety and uncertainty. In Jaynes’ opinion, this marked the birth of religious mysticism, understood as a quest to find divinity within oneself.
(iii) “Developmental explanation”: the development of Śramaṇa ideas is seen as elaborations, revisions or responses against traditional views. Authors who espouse this kind of theories generally reject the idea of a radical change of paradigm in Indian thought and consider that many of the ideas brought forth in the Upaniṣad were present in a less developed form in earlier texts such as the Brāhmaṇa and the Āraṇyaka.
(iv) “Interaction explanation”: other authors agree that there was continuity in some respects, but also acknowledge that there are complex and still unclear historical and archeological elements that point to possible non-Vedic influences. For example, some scholars postulate the existence of a non-Vedic or pre-Aryan indigenous yoga tradition. Buddhism on the other hand, which according to Eliade has a clear yogic character, does not follow orthodox Brahmanical teachings and claims its teachings as not being derived from the Vedas. A similar claim can be found in the Jain tradition.
Deciphering the potential causes of the Śramaṇa movements is certainly a complex subject that would require a more thorough study. My limited research suggests that history might better be explained by a confluence of multifaceted causes, as is often the case. I will now leave aside the first two theories, since the last two last lead us to the final two topics of this paper, which will be treated together since they are closely related: (iii) do Śramaṇa traditions represented a radical change in South Asian spiritual thought or would a developmental perspective would better explain their influence?; and (iv) what impact did these movements have in the development of spiritual practices of self-transcendence in South Asia?
Taken to the extreme, the “Developmental” and “Interaction” explanations presented above can serve as heuristic points of reference for the following discussion. For reasons of space, the next section will only refer to the role that the concept of the “inner ritual” played in the ‘Upaniṣadic’ branch of the Sramana movements, leaving aside other important aspects of these traditions.
Continuity and change in the Vedic tradition, impact of the Sramana movements
According to Feuerstein, the actual concept of inner sacrifice, “Antar Yajna” was introduced in the Upaniṣadic. Sacrifice is explicitly presented in some of these texts as a practice that takes place inside the body and mind of the practitioner, as opposed to an actual sacrificial fire as it was practiced by the Brahmanical orthodoxy. Does this reflect a radical shift in Indian spiritual thought, or merely a process of progressive revelation of a deeper meaning, making the symbolism and metaphoric language of the earlier Vedic texts more explicit? There is no clear-cut answer.
Surendranath Dasgupta argues that the Upaniṣad represented a radical change in the Vedic tradition. He boldly states: “The passage of the Indian mind from the Brāhmanic to the Upanisad thought is probably the most remarkable event in the history of philosophic thought”.
An example of an author that espouses a theory of continuity of thought is Sri Aurobindo, who wrote: “The Veda possesses the high spiritual substance of the Upanishads, but lacks their phraseology; it is an inspired knowledge as yet insufficiently equipped with intellectual and philosophical terms”.
Connolly and Feuerstein point out two elements that lead us to question both Dasgupta’s and Sri Aurobindo’s perspectives. According to Connolly, “some sections of the Upanishads are much more radical, much less Veda-affirming than others. Indeed, this pattern of both affirming and challenging Vedic orthodoxy can be seen to operate throughout most of the subsequent Brāhmanical religious history”. Feuerstein says that there is still much deep symbolism in early Vedic hymns that we still do not understand enough. Couched in this dense symbolism are probably allusions to the inner world (or microcosm), an aspect that is more clearly reflected in the later Upaniṣad.
Now, let us discuss very briefly the legacy of the Śramaṇa movements regarding the development and dissemination of techniques of self-transcendence in South Asia? As we know, Jainism and Buddhism became rather distinct religions on their own and helped propagate the practice of austerities and techniques of meditation. On the other hand, concrete practices directed at self-transcendence also evolved within the broadly-defined Vedic tradition. In the Vedic context a very interesting phenomenon occurred, which might explain why the idea of continuity has been so influential. Andrea Jain explains that some Brahmanical texts in the post-Buddhic era (toward 300 and 200 B.C.E.) seem to be attempts to incorporate posterior ascetic ideas into the concept of dharma, as well as to “appropriate” the concepts of yoga and salvation. One might add that this tendency continues in the teachings of many modern influential thinkers of the South Asian spiritual traditions, particularly Vedanta.
Conclusions and personal reflections
I would like to recall the definition Geoffrey Samuel gives for the concepts of yoga, meditation and tantra : “disciplined and systematic techniques for the training and control of the human mind-body complex, which are also understood as techniques for the reshaping of human consciousness towards some kind of higher goal”. While admitting that the yoga traditions are notoriously varied in their practices and aims, what appeals to me the most are the practices directed at the transcendence of ordinary consciousness and eventually liberation from the effects of karma and the cycle of death and rebirth.
Books about Vedanta often contain categorical claims about a linear development of the Vedic tradition tracing back to the dawn of times. This has never convinced me completely, and I suspect that reality must surely be more complex and more “imperfect” (perhaps more “human”, in a sense). Nevertheless, I can understand why considering the Śramaṇa movements a mere continuation or development of the Vedic tradition might seem like a tempting alternative for a teacher or practitioner of the so-called classical yoga techniques. Allusions to a sort of perennial philosophy that runs through the history of South Asian spiritual thought can be deeply satisfying to someone who agrees with these teachings or considers them sacred.
My research, although limited, has given me more reasons to question these common categorical claims. If we are to carry out rigorous scholarly research, I believe that we would do better to adopt a more cautious approach to the study of the historical development of South Asian spiritual thought. My findings have definitely led me to think that there remains much uncertainty regarding the continuity or changes in the Vedic tradition that might have taken place with the influence of the Upaniṣadic doctrines.
My research left me more questions than answers about the origins of yoga, and I believe that Connolly clearly summarizes the main issue: “So, did yoga originate in Vedic circles, eventually finding expression in the Upanisads and going on to become disseminated out to the wider culture and adopted by religions such as Buddhism, or did it already exist in India, ready to be appropriated by both brāhmanical and non-brāhmanical groups alike?”.
As we have seen, good points can be made for both perspectives of continuity and change in the Vedic tradition. In my opinion, the debate remains open for two main reasons: (i) archeological evidence is still being found and deciphered; and (ii) there remains much work to be done regarding the hermeneutics of ancient texts, particularly the symbolic and metaphorical language that abound in them. Work on each end can certainly help the development of the other and provide more clues to better understand the subject.
Finally, I would like to mention as noteworthy the mysterious Vratyas, one of the groups that arose at the time of the Śramaṇa movements. The deeply esoteric and symbolic language found in the texts of this tradition seems to foreshadow ideas and practices that later solidified into tantric traditions.
Notes and bibliography
1 Georg Feuerstein, The yoga tradition (Hohm Press, 2008): 127.
2 Feuerstein, 70, 106, 125-126, 138.
3 Peter Connolly, A Student’s Guide to the History and Philosophy of Yoga (Revised Edition) (Equinox Publishing, 2014): 64; Andrea Jain, Selling Yoga (Oxford University Press, 2015): 6.
4 It must be noted that even earlier there were individuals who abandoned traditional Vedic society to seek their spiritual goals. Such is the case of the Munis, who according to Feuerstein were closer to earlier shamanic traditions, Feuerstein, 106. Eliade provides a very detailed account of these groups, Mircea Eliade, Yoga: Immortality and Freedom. Translated by William R. Trask (Princeton University Press, 2009), 138-142
5 Joseph Campbell, Myths of light (New World Library, 2003), 20.
6 Connolly mentions how this two groups were seen as fundamentally distinct even by non-Indians, Connolly, 63.
7 Feuerstein, 66. However, Feuerstein is clear in stating that some renunciants continued to practice the traditional Vedic sacrificial rituals, and even some of the ascetics living in the forest were married, Feuerstein, 70, 125-126.
8 Heinrich Zimmer, Philosophies of India (Princeton University Press, 1951): 355.
9 Campbell, 21. This can be evinced in the reference to “pravrājin”(“one who has left house and home and is wholly intent on Self-realization”) in the Brihad-Āranyaka Upanishad, which Feuerstein considers to be the earliest Upanishad, Feuerstein 70.
10 Feuerstein, 68.
11 Andrea Jain considers this feature a key point of the main groups that made up the Sramana movements, Jain, 6
12 Feuerstein, 136.
13 About the differences between the Jain, Buddhist and Upanishadic views on salvation and rebirth, Jain, 7
14 Geoffrey Samuel, The Origins of Yoga and Tantra (Cambridge University Press, 2008): 115-118. Similarly, Feuerstein, 120.
15 Similarly, Connolly, 64.
16 According to Feuerstein, it was composed before the year 1500 BCE, Feuerstein, 70.
17 While Feuerstein says that the Katha Upanishad might have been written as early as 1000 BCE, Andrea Jain dates this work to approximately the 3rd century BCE. This is an example of how much debate still surrounds the issue of chronology, Feuerstein, 134, Jain, 8. About the problematic issue of chronological dating in general, Feuerstein, 61, 65, 134; Similarly, Connolly, 15.
18 Feuerstein, 123.
19 Campbell, 123.
20 Connolly, 22.
21 Feuerstein, 124.
22 Nevertheless, Feuerstein clearly points out that these ritualistic practices, such as the Prana-agni-hotra (where the life force substituted the sacrificial fire) were still executed physically, Feuerstein, 124-125.
23 Feuerstein, 124-125. According to Connolly, the word Upanishads means “literally ‘sitting down near’ the teacher -hence ‘secret/esoteric teachings that are not to be overheard by eavesdroppers’”, Connolly, 22. Similarly, Feuerstein, 126.
24 Feuerstein, 136. Connolly provides as examples sections 3.3-9 and 6.6-15 of the Katha Upanishad, Connolly, 38. Similarly, Andrea Jain states that the Katha Upanishad contains the earliest identified systematic description of yoga in terms of control of the mind and senses, Jain, 8. Eliade also mentions the Taittirīya Upanishad, Eliade, 117
25 Even though I do not wish to go deeper into the chronological aspect, I will make two assumptions, the first of which would probably not be as contested as the second: (i) the Shata-Patha-Brahmana predates the Katha Upanishad; and (ii) the Katha Upanishad was composed in the post-Buddhist Era (around the 4th or 3rd century BCE). I make this second assumption merely for practical reasons: to include at least the early Buddhist and Jain traditions within the scope of my research, even though I will not be focusing on them for space reasons.
26 In the next section of this paper I will discuss the issue of continuity and change in Vedic thought. For the moment, I only wish to emphasize what could perhaps be termed the degree of ‘explicitness’ of this internal or symbolic dimension.
27 Feuerstein, 63.
28 Connolly, 41-42.
29 Connolly, 42-44.
30 Samuel studies another interesting dimension associated the progress of urbanization that took place later and explains how the “(…) new kind of awareness associated with urban lifestyle might apply to the lay followers as well, particularly for the relatively prosperous, wealthy and powerful individuals who made up much of the following of the new orders”, Samuel, 179.
31 Jain, 3-6.
32 Heinrich Zimmer, for example, considers that “Jainism retains the Dravidian structure more purely than the other major Indian traditions (…)”, Zimmer, 219. Similarly, Joseph Campbell the shift from the “Aryan sacrifice to contemplation” found in the Upanishads seem to reflect “(…) a resurgence of Mohenjo Daro and the Dravidian times”, Campbell, 20.
33 Eliade, 175
34 Eliade presents a very interesting analysis of this topic, showing elements of Vedic continuity and change in the Buddhist tradition, Eliade, 162-167
35 Zimmer, 217.
36 Two examples of other relevant aspects are: (i) the role of asceticism in Sramana traditions and its relationship to earlier practices characterized as ‘tapas’; and (ii) the soteriological doctrines found in the Upanishads, as well as in the of the Buddhist and Jain traditions. About these topics, Eliade, 106-111; Zimmer, 248-262; Samuel, 119-124, 159.
37 Feuerstein, 63. A very good example of the presentation of the concept of internalization of Vedic ritual is found in the Kaushîtaki-Brâhmana-Upanishad (2.5), cited in: Feuerstein, 125. About the teachings of the sage Yajnavalkya, who according to Feuerstein taught the doctrine of the inner sacrifice, Feuerstein, 106.
38 Eliade, as Feuerstein, quotes the Kausitaki Brahmana Upanishad as an example of this conception of sacrifice, mentioning also and the Chandogya Upanishad, Eliade, 111-112.
39 Surendra Nath Dasgupta, A History of Indian Philosophy (Cambridge University Press, 1922): 31, cited in: Connolly, 22. About changes in mentality between the early Vedic period and the Upanishadic period, Connolly, 39. Not very surprisingly, Eliade, who studied under Dasgupta, expresses a similar opinion, Eliade, 114-117, 143.
40 Sri Aurobindo, On the Veda, Pondicherry, Sri Aurobindo Ashram, 1964, 384, Cited in: Feuerstein, 105. According to Feuerstein, Jeanine Miller and David Frawley have also expressed similar views, Feuerstein, 105
41 Connolly, 40.
42 Feuerstein, 106.
43 Such is the case of the Hymn of creation found in the Rig Veda, or some passages of the Atharva Veda, such as 15.1, Feuerstein, 112, 121. Particularly interesting is Jeanine Miller’s research, cited by Feuerstein, about meditative practices in Vedic times, Feuerstein, 104.
44 This is by no means a pacific subject. For example, referring to the wider Vedic tradition, Sri Aurobindo says that “Buddhism, with all its developments was only a restatement (…)”, Sri Aurobindo, The Upanishads (Lotus Press, 1996): 2.
45 Jain, 8-9.
46About the wonderful capacity of the Brahmanical tradition to assimilate ascetic and mystical developments, Eliade, states: “The very small number of ‘heresies’ recorded during the three thousand years of Indian religious life is owing not only to the constant efforts of the innumerable sects and trends to gain formal admission to the traditional fold, but equally to the ceaseless assimilative and Hinduizing activity of orthodoxy”, Eliade, 113. Similarly, Samuel, 160-165, 189.
47 Samuel, 2.
48 This seems to be the conclusion of Samuel’s research on the Sramana movements, Samuel, 140.
49 Andrea Jain provides a very interesting study of how these claims of an unbroken lineage also appear in what she terms “modern postural yoga”, Jain, 2.
50 Connolly, 44-47. About the interactions between early Buddhism and the teachings of the Upanishadic sages Connolly, 80; Eliade, 173-174.
51 The archeological remains of the Indus Valley civilization are frequently interpreted to contain “proto yogic”, but this a very controversial topic. For example, the interpretation of the so-called “Pashupati Seal” is unclear according to Samuels, 3-5.
52 In Paramahamsa Hariharananda’s words: “Kriya Yoga meditation is a metaphysical meditation by tapas (offering oblation to the real fire”, Paramahamsa Hariharananda, Ocean of Divine Bliss, V. 4 (Prajnana Mission, 2007), 113.
53 Feuerstein, 122-124
Bibliography
Campbell, Joseph. Myths of Light. New World Library, 2003.
Connolly, Peter. A Student’s Guide to the History and Philosophy of Yoga (Revised Edition). Equinox Publishing, 2014.
Eliade, Mircea. Yoga: Immortality and Freedom. Translated by William R. Trask, Princeton University Press, 2009.
Feuerstein, Georg. The Yoga Tradition. Hohm Press, 2008.
Jain, Andrea. Selling Yoga. Oxford University Press, 2015.
Paramahamsa Hariharananda. Ocean of Divine Bliss, V.4. Prajna Mission, 2007.
Samuel, Geoffrey. The Origins of Yoga and Tantra. Cambridge University Press, 2008.
Sri Aurobindo. The Upanishads, Lotus Press, 1996.
Zimmer, Heinrich. Philosophies of India. Princeton University Press, 1951.
Espejo Sideral 
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