''Titiksha'' or ''titikṣā'' (

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...

: तितिक्षा 'forbearance') is defined by the ''

Uddhava Gita Hamsa Gita (Sanskrit) (also referred to as Uddhava Gita) consists of Krishna's final discourse to Uddhava before Krishna draws his worldly 'descent' (Sanskrit: ''avatar'') and 'pastimes' (Sanskrit: lila) to completion. Though the ''Uddhava Gita'' ...

'' as the "patient endurance of suffering." In

Vedanta philosophy ''Vedanta'' (; sa, वेदान्त, ), also ''Uttara Mīmāṃsā'', is one of the six (''āstika'') schools of Hindu philosophy. Literally meaning "end of the Vedas", Vedanta reflects ideas that emerged from, or were aligned with, t ...

it is the bearing with indifference all opposites such as pleasure and pain, heat and cold, expectation of reward and punishment, accruement or gain and loss, vanity and envy, resentment and deprecation, fame and obscurity, lavishness and obeisance, pride and egotism, virtue-respect and vice-respect, birth and death, happiness, safety, comfort, restlessness and boredom, affection and bereavement or infatuation, attachment and desire etc. Being entirely responsible for encouragement and/or reproach for ones own personal behaviour, past behaviour, the frame of mind and esteem. It is one of the six qualities, devotions, jewels or divine bounties beginning with Sama, the repression, alleviating or release of the inward sense called Manas. Another quality is Dama, the renunciation of behaviours or utilizing self-control with moderation, with correct discrimination and without aversion. Shankara defines Titiksha in the following words: :सहनं सर्वदुःखानामऽप्रतिकारपूर्वकम् , :चिन्ताविलापरहितं सा तितिक्षा निगद्यते , , :"Endurance of all afflictions without countering aids, and without

anxiety Anxiety is an emotion which is characterized by an unpleasant state of inner turmoil and includes feelings of dread over anticipated events. Anxiety is different than fear in that the former is defined as the anticipation of a future threat wh ...

or lament is said to be ''titiksha''." (

Vivekachudamani The ''Vivekachudamani'' (; IAST: ) is an introductory treatise within the Advaita Vedanta tradition of Hinduism, traditionally attributed to Adi Shankara of the eighth century, though this attribution has been questioned and mostly rejected by ...

25) By speaking of ''titiksha'' as endurance without anxiety or lament and without external aids, Shankara refers to such ''titiksha'' as the means to inquiry into

Brahman In Hinduism, ''Brahman'' ( sa, ब्रह्मन्) connotes the highest universal principle, the ultimate reality in the universe.P. T. Raju (2006), ''Idealistic Thought of India'', Routledge, , page 426 and Conclusion chapter part X ...

, for a mind which is subject to anxiety and lament is unfit for conducting this kind of inquiry.

Vivekananda Swami Vivekananda (; ; 12 January 1863 – 4 July 1902), born Narendranath Datta (), was an Indian Hindu monk, philosopher, author, religious teacher, and the chief disciple of the Indian mystic Ramakrishna. He was a key figure in the intr ...

explains that forbearance of all misery, without even a thought of resisting or driving it out, without even any painful feeling in the mind, or any remorse is ''titiksha''. The practice of

Yoga Yoga (; sa, योग, lit=yoke' or 'union ) is a group of physical, mental, and spiritual practices or disciplines which originated in ancient India and aim to control (yoke) and still the mind, recognizing a detached witness-consci ...

makes a person inwardly even-minded and cheerful. The very act of calming emotional reactions develops a better ability to influence outer circumstances, therefore, ''titiksha'' does not make one apathetic or dull; it is the first step to interiorizing the mind, and to bringing its reactions under control. The important way of practising ''titiksha'' is to watch the breath (''parahara'') which practice leads to the practice of meditation proper. Prakrti (matter or nature) shows the way to titiksha, the creative principle of life – just as inertia is a property of matter.

References

{{Indian Philosophy, state=collapsed Yoga concepts Vedas Vedanta Sanskrit words and phrases