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What Are the Different Stages of Life and Spiritual States? Traditional Indian understanding of Avastha, or state, can be viewed in two ways. One is related to ordinary human life. The other is related to spiritual experience and consciousness.
Five Stages of Life
From the worldly or Laukika perspective, human life is traditionally described in five stages.
1. Balya-(बाल्य) Childhood: Balya is the stage of childhood. It is the early period of life when a person grows and begins learning about the world.
2. Kaumarya-(कौमार्य) Adolescence: Kaumarya refers to the stage of adolescence. It is the period between childhood and adulthood.
3. Yauvana-(यौवन) Youth: Yauvana means youth. It is generally understood as the stage of physical and mental development associated with adulthood and youthful life.
4. Praudha (प्रौढ)- Mature Adulthood: Praudha refers to maturity. At this stage, a person is traditionally considered to have greater experience and responsibility.
5. Vardhakya-(वार्धक्य) Old Age: Vardhakya means old age. It is the later stage of physical life.
Thus, the five traditional stages are: Balya - Kaumarya - Yauvana - Praudha- Vardhakya
Four Spiritual States
From a spiritual perspective, the traditional teaching describes four states of consciousness.
They are:
1. Jagrat - Waking State: Jagrat is the waking state. It is the state in which a person is aware of the external world through the senses.
2. Swapna - Dream State: Swapna is the dream state. In this state, the mind experiences dreams while the physical body is asleep.
3. Sushupti- Deep Sleep: Sushupti means deep sleep. It is a state in which there are no ordinary waking or dream experiences.
4. Turiya-Fourth State: Turiya literally means the fourth.
In the traditional spiritual teaching, it is described as a state beyond the ordinary waking, dream and deep-sleep states. It is associated with higher spiritual realisation and liberation.
A Traditional Distinction
First three states - Jagrat, Swapna and Sushupti- are experienced by everyone as part of ordinary human life. According to the traditional teaching presented here, Turiya is associated with advanced spiritual experience and is described as a state of liberation attainable by yogis.
Thus, the teaching presents two different ways of understanding Avastha:
| Perspective | States |
|---|---|
| Laukika - worldly life | Balya, Kaumarya, Yauvana, Praudha, Vardhakya |
| Adhyatmika - spiritual | Jagrat, Swapna, Sushupti, Turiya |
Traditional Explanation
This explanation of the different Avasthas is presented according to the traditional teaching explained by Vedamurthi Manjulagiri Venkataramana Bhatta.
Here is the Kannada version
ಅವಸ್ಥೆಗಳು ಯಾವುವು?
1.ಲೌಕಿಕವಾಗಿ ಜೀವನದ ಐದು ಹಂತಗಳು - ಬಾಲ್ಯ, ಕೌಮಾರ್ಯ, ಯೌವನ, ಪ್ರೌಢ ಮತ್ತು ವಾರ್ಧಕ್ಯಗಳು. 2. ಆಧ್ಯಾತ್ಮಿಕವಾಗಿ - ಜಾಗ್ರತ್ (ಎಚ್ಚರದಿಂದಿರುವ ಸ್ಥಿತಿ), ಸ್ವಪ್ನ (ಕನಸು), ಸುಷುಪ್ತಿ ( ಗಾಢ ನಿದ್ರೆ ) ಹಾಗೂ ತುರೀಯಾ (ನಾಲ್ಕನೆಯದು) ಎಂಬ ನಾಲ್ಕು ಅವಸ್ಥೆಗಳು.
ವಿ.ಸೂ:-ಆಧ್ಯಾತ್ಮಿಕ ಜಗತ್ತಿನಲ್ಲಿ ಎಲ್ಲರಿಗೂ ಸಂಬಂಧಿಸಿದಂತೆ ಮೊದಲಿನ ಮೂರು ಅವಸ್ಥೆಗಳಿದ್ದರೆ ನಾಲ್ಕನೆಯದು ಯೋಗಿಗಳಿಗೆ ಮಾತ್ರ ಲಭಿಸುವ ಮೋಕ್ಷಾವಸ್ಥೆ.
| ವೇದಮೂರ್ತಿ ಮಂಜುಳಗಿರಿ ವೆಂಕಟರಮಣ ಭಟ್ಟ
Note: This article presents the traditional religious and linguistic interpretation as explained by Vedamurthi Manjulagiri Venkataramana Bhatta. It is shared for educational and cultural understanding of the traditional teaching.
Keywords: stages of life, four states of consciousness, Jagrat Swapna Sushupti Turiya, Hindu philosophy, spiritual states, Turiya