Pushkarmuni Abhinandan Granth

Author(s): Devendramuni, A D Batra, Shreechand Surana
Publisher: Rajasthankesari Adhyatmayogi Upadhyay Shree Pushkar Muni Abhinandan Granth Prakashan Samiti

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श्री पुष्करमुनि अभिनन्दन ग्रन्थ : नवम खण्ड
YOGA : PERSONALITY, MIND
AND VAIRAGYA
O Dr. K. S. JOSHI, M. A., M. Sc. (Ag.), Ph.D. Secretary of Indian Yoga Society & Head of the Department of Yoga,
University of Sagar (M.P.) Yoga and Personality
Personality is a very vague term. Hundreds of definitions of it are given by psycho
logists, but there is not a single one which is accepted by all.
Whenever we talk about somebody being successful or un successful in playing a particular role, or whenever we use such statements as "he is liked by all', or 'he has become unpopular', we are really speaking about the personality of the individual in question. The process of education and learning which everyone of us undergoes in life, is concerned not only with the mere acquisition of knowledge, but is, also at the same time, a matter of personality development. The interest in the development of personality is perhaps as old as the human civilization. But a scientific treatment of the subject seems to be of a recent origin.
The word 'personality' is derived from the Latin persona, which means a mask. Masks were used extensively in the Greek and Roman drama to enable the spectators to distinguish the characters from a distance. Hence, personality is a convenient collective term for certain psychological functions.
We should distinguish between personality and mere individuality. Individuality may be said to be a characteristic of anything that can be counted separately; whereas personality seems to imply self-consciousness. The term “personality' may be used in relation to an agent who is conscious of himself. Thus, it may be interesting to ask whether a neonate has personality.
Guilford has classified all the definitions of personality into five groups : (i) Those which view personality as it appears to others, (ii) Those in which personality is called the sum-total of all observable characteristics, (iii) those which speak in terms of organization pattern, (iv) personality viewed as a whole, forgetting the parts entirely, and (v) those definitions which look at personality as organism-environment relationship.
A survey of various definitions shows that personality' is a convenient concept useful for understanding human behaviour. Personality is revealed through both overt and implicit behaviour. It is a function of two factors, namely, characteristics which are inherited, and those which are acquired. There may be general laws for explaining human behaviour, but our grasp of such laws is rather too poor. Hence it is generally said that each human being behaves in a unique manner. And lastly, personality as an indicator of behaviour can be measured in terms of quantitative variables.
Every person is found to have his own characteristic ways of doing things. These are called 'traits'. They show up in every act of the individual, in which he is trying to adjust himself with the internal and external reality.
Measurement of personality is usually done by first singling out aspects or dimensions of personality, and then assessing the position of an individual on the continuum or the scale posited in the method. Various such approaches have been tried by investigators, but a completely satisfactory method which would reveal one's personality in all its aspects is yet to be
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