Teaching about man in yoga. The purpose and philosophy of yoga. Swami Vivekananda: the life of a philosopher

Updated 11/21/2019

Yoga as a philosophical doctrine takes its origins from the time of the existence of the Aryan civilization. It contains the basics of interpretation of the origin of the world and understanding human nature, methods of spiritual self-improvement.

The concept of this teaching has a huge number of admirers. As a special system of ancient Indian wisdom, yoga consists of theoretical and practical foundations, some sections, methods and directions. It is one of the six famous orthodox philosophical schools of India and one of the Darshanas.

Philosophy of classical yoga

To understand the philosophy of yoga, you must first understand its origins and theoretical foundations.

Yoga is a philosophy of Ancient India, the foundations of which are set out in the main work of this school, called the Yoga Sutra, and commentaries to it. Its author is Patanajali, about whom very little is known. We recommend that you read it.

It was previously believed that the great teacher, philosopher and yogi lived in India in the 2nd century BC. But now the opinion has become stronger that it was several centuries later - in the 2nd century AD. Patanajali is only the author of the work, not the whole philosophical teaching, since mention of the principles yogic practice mentioned also in the Vedas, Ramayana and Mahabharata (in part of the Bhagavad Gita). The term “yoga” itself can be found in the early Upanishads, which are commentaries on the Vedas.


Let's get down to the fundamental concepts of philosophy classical yoga.

So, all existence includes two substances Prakriti and Purusha. Prakriti represents everything material in the existing world. This is something that can be seen, heard or felt in some other way, and recorded with high-precision instruments. We recommend that you read the information about.

The concept of “Purusha” contains the spiritual principle, the so-called eternal Spirit. Ishvara - God among all spiritual beings - is a manifestation of Purusha. He did not create the world and does not control it, but he has the power to unite and separate the spiritual from the material. If Prakriti cannot be realized, then Purusha is conscious.

If Prakriti is constantly changing, then Purusha is not subject to change, therefore he is outside of time and space. He is like an observer of the changing picture of the world.

In the teachings of classical yoga, a person, like the whole world, is a kind of microcosm that unites Prakriti and Purusha.

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The material in a person is his physical body, thoughts, emotions, memory, etc. The spiritual, that is, Purusha, represents his consciousness, the so-called “I” - unchanging and eternal.

Purusha consciously guides Prakriti. This can be compared to people lost in the forest, where Purusha is legless and Prakriti is blind. And only by uniting will they be able to make their way through the forest and free themselves.

From attachment to the objective world, which gives rise to desires and expectations, a person experiences suffering. As long as we are attached to the forms of Prakriti, we leave imprints (vasanas) in our buddhi (instrument of perception of the external world), therefore our Karma will exist - a dependence of a cause-and-effect nature.

After death physical body Vasanas remain, but the soul passes into another entity. This is called reincarnation, and the series of rebirths is called the wheel of samsara.

It is possible to free yourself from suffering, says yoga. It is the practice of yoga, cleansing techniques, a set of exercises for the body and spirit, and philosophical reflections that will help you realize Purusha, give up striving for something material, and free yourself from attachments. After this realization, the soul leaves the wheel of samsara. The achieved existence can only be compared with Ishvara - there is no suffering, but there is awareness.

Within the framework of classical yoga, different directions have been formed. There are a whole lot of them. We will look at some of them.

Features and tasks of Sivananda yoga

Sivananda Yoga founded by Swami Sivananda (1887-1963), Hindu spiritual teacher. This direction is characterized by a comprehensive approach, since it contains exercises to achieve relaxation, training in internal concentration, breathing exercises.


 Founder of Sivananda Yoga - Swami Sivananda

Yoga Sivananda is based on five essential principles:

  1. Relaxation. To achieve maximum spiritual, physical and mental relaxation, you must regularly perform.
  2. Meditation and Vedanta help to achieve positive thinking, which contributes to the well-being of the spiritual, mental, physical. We recommend an article about.
  3. Regularity and correct performance of asanas help strengthen the body, rejuvenate and restore the body.
  4. help you take control of your own consciousness.
  5. Through the practice of vegetarianism and moderate dietary restrictions, the human body receives beneficial substances without any negative impact on the environment.

Each lesson begins and ends with mantras, which allow using sound vibrations to positively influence the body, spirit, and emotional state.

Tantra yoga - what is it

Another widely known area of ​​yoga is tantra yoga. It is represented by a system of methods that allow you to awaken, transform and consciously use sexual energy. The teaching is based on sacred texts - tantras.

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It is worth highlighting three main directions within tantra yoga:

  1. Black tantra is aimed at training mental strength, which allows you to control circumstances and even people. With its help they teach how to fulfill desires.
  2. White Tantra – practiced in groups or couples. It implies going beyond desires and motivations. With the help of mantras and exercises, energetic cleansing of the physical and mental components of the student is achieved. Read more about the meaning of mantras.
  3. Red tantra - with the help of sexual practices practiced with a partner, one can achieve spiritual or creative development and achieve sexual bliss.

This practice helps to unite the masculine and feminine principles, overcome complexes by correct acceptance own body, significantly expand consciousness.

Guru Yoga as a branch of classical yoga

Guru yoga is considered one of the most important practices. Its essence lies in the merging of the mind of the student and the spiritual teacher. In the process of practice, the Four States of Enlightenment awakens, when the student has the opportunity to achieve the blessing of body, speech and mind. The final stage of practice is the merging of the disciple's mind with the guru's mind.


There are three essential principles of guru yoga:

  1. The student's desire to learn.
  2. The student's readiness to interact with the teacher. The student must be responsible for his actions and choices.
  3. Freedom of will and choice of the student. The student should not bow to the teacher and obey him unquestioningly. Only the free choice of the student himself is welcomed.

Now it is clear that yoga is a philosophy, a way of life in India. By practicing it, you can achieve completely different goals: strengthen the body and spirit, improve physical health, gain confidence, get rid of desires and suffering, or even be freed from a series of rebirths (samsara).

Each of the yoga schools offers its own methods of achieving the goal, but each of them places emphasis on the harmony of the physical, spiritual and mental.

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    • The material contains 3 types of force - peace, movement and degradation, which are balanced until there is interaction with the spiritual. Thanks to their interaction, 5 elements appeared: the familiar fire, earth, water and air, and the fifth element - ether. And these elements already served as the beginning for the creation of everything that exists in the world.

    It is worth noting that in yoga, as a general model and way of life, in principle there is no time. It views everything that exists as an endless process of change. That is, the spiritual component is constant, located outside of time and space, but for the material component, time is calculated by the changes that occur with it. This approach can tell you how to become happier: to live, realizing that you are an endlessly changing mini-Universe within a larger, constantly transforming Universe.

    The efficiency of life, from the point of view of yoga philosophy, can be increased through daily streamlining of energy expenditure. Which, according to this teaching, each of us is allocated a strictly defined amount for life. When organizing your lifestyle, as required by yoga, you need:

    • from 4 to 10 o'clock, wake up, calmly and without fuss, tune in to the new day. This includes cleansing, gymnastics, self-massage, etc.;
    • from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m., devote time to active activities. Try to do the most important ones before lunch;
    • from 22 to 4 o'clock indulge in rest and sleep.

    5 Benefits of Yoga System in Everyday Life

    The general model of a lifestyle based on a teaching such as yoga is simple and consistent with the human biological clock. If you try to follow at least these simplified recommendations, you will soon notice how your awareness will increase, your mind will calm down, and a feeling of health will appear in your body. However, do not think that practicing the yoga system in Everyday life so simple.

    Following a daily routine in accordance with the philosophy of yoga is a real severe asceticism. More and more temptations to retreat from it will appear around you all the time. But do not despair in cases of non-compliance. Try to track the reasons for its violation and continue to get used to the new routine. Moreover, yoga as a way of life has at least 5 significant advantages.

    1. Yogic asanas relax muscle tension and heal physical and mental ailments.
    2. The philosophy of yoga teaches us to be more attentive to ourselves and more aware, helping us to notice and eliminate negative aspects.
    3. Yoga classes discipline, teach consistency and help you become more effective.
    4. By practicing yoga, you will become more responsible: first you stabilize the area of ​​your own health, and subsequently all other areas of life.

    By doing yoga, you will master universal calm and become inaccessible to stress.

    Modern people today are again coming to realize the importance of everything spiritual. Exhausted by incessant worries and stress, they just need a sip fresh air, a source of peace and inspiration.

    And this source can be the philosophy of yoga, which allows one to gradually discover the true path to liberation. And awareness of one’s own essence with the further disclosure of hidden inner potential.

    Understanding yoga in a philosophical sense

    For many people, the philosophical teaching of yoga becomes an incredible discovery, saving them from constant anxiety and stress, helping them to openly see the main thing in life. But you shouldn’t think that yoga comes down to the usual performance of asanas.

    In a philosophical sense, it helps to find shortest way to liberation, unlock your own potential and discover true path to the inner essence.

    Therefore, the basic principles of yoga come down to achieving a harmonious fusion of the human soul with the body. In a deeper understanding, this implies unity with the Almighty. In general, the basics of yoga are not very systematized, and its individual aspects are described in detail in various ancient sources - the Vedas.

    And according to numerous sources, the philosophy that became part of the foundations of yoga was first described in the works of Patanjali. In the classical sense, yoga includes two main categories - Purusha (spirit) and Prakriti (matter). Together they make it possible to consider and unite the external and internal world of each person.

    The philosophical theory of yoga is multifaceted, and its the main objective consists in gradually achieving the state of Nirvana in the form of complete reunification with the Creator. In the modern world, there are a number of different yogic trends that can effectively help in achieving Nirvana.

    It is also worth noting that the philosophical teaching of yoga is also valid in the case when a person has little knowledge in this area or practically does not believe in the power of the teaching. And this approach is completely justified for a modern person who strives to gain more material rather than spiritual things in the learning process.

    Purusha and Prakriti

    For those who find it difficult to understand what the essence of yoga is, it is necessary to study various sources of information and first try to understand what Purusha (spirit) and Prakriti (matter) are. It is the spiritual and material components that are the main basis of everything in the world.

    According to the teaching, Prakriti consists of three main forces:

    • peace - Guna Sattva;
    • degradation – Guna Tamas;
    • movements - Guna Rajas.

    But the true essence of the spiritual component in the philosophy of yoga is very difficult to imagine. It does not have a specific form, and its location is outside the boundaries of the material world.

    Purusha also has real consciousness, but in matter it is completely absent. And its embodiment is the ancient god Inshvara, although other deities are also known.

    Having studied the basics of philosophical teaching, one can realize the unity of the material and spiritual, which forms all that exists on Earth. And beyond the framework of space and time, since yoga implies continuous processes of change occurring in material structures. But the spiritual basis remains completely unchanged, since it is timeless.

    The philosophy of yoga is extremely popular today. For many, it became a real discovery in life. Yoga saves tortured people from daily stress and helps them see what is most important, discarding what is unimportant. However, it is not reduced to a banal complex physical exercise. Yoga as an ancient tradition and religion, yoga as - this is what will be discussed in this article.

    Reasons for the popularity of yoga in the modern world

    As already noted, yoga is extremely popular today. You could even say that it is fashionable in modern society. What are the reasons for such popularity?

    To do this you need to answer one question. Modern personality - what is it like? Exhausted, depressed and depressed. A person of the 21st century, as a rule, spends his life in pursuit of dubious benefits. Yoga not only helps you cope with daily stress, but also teaches you to concentrate your attention (and strength) on the most important, truly important things.

    The philosophy of yoga opens a person to the only true path to realizing his essence and helps him fully realize his inner potential.

    It is interesting that the practical methods of yoga work in any case. Even if a person does not really believe in them or does not have the slightest idea about the essence and foundations of this philosophy. This is another unique feature of yoga.

    Yoga Philosophy (briefly)

    What is yoga? Is it fair to call it philosophy, science or religion?

    The word itself translated from Sanskrit means “unity”. In a narrow sense, we are talking here primarily about the harmony and fusion of the human body and soul. In a more global sense, this is the unity of man with God.

    Yoga is an Indian philosophy, very ancient. Its main postulates were outlined back in the second century by the famous guru Patanjali. However, it is incorrect to claim that the philosophy of yoga was founded by him. After all, it is believed that the Creator himself gave yoga to humanity (through the avatar Krishna).

    The fundamentals of this teaching are not systematic. Their individual aspects can be found in various ancient Indian sources, starting with the Vedas. That is why historians cannot determine a clear chronological framework for this direction.

    The philosophy of yoga is extremely multifaceted. The main goal of the teaching is to achieve nirvana. This term means complete reunification with the Creator.

    Today, researchers identify several forms of yoga. This:

    • karma yoga;
    • bhakti yoga;
    • jnana yoga;
    • mantra yoga;
    • hatha yoga and others.

    Each of these directions is only one of the steps towards the single goal of yoga philosophy - unity with the Almighty. In our article we will dwell in more detail on the last of these forms.

    Parable of the Hidden Divinity

    The philosophy of yoga for beginners is best illustrated by one of the ancient Indian parables. It will help to better understand the essence of this teaching for those who are just beginning to get acquainted with it.

    So, the parable of hidden divinity...

    According to legend, previously all people on Earth were gods. This is how Brahma created them. However, soon the ruler of all gods saw that they were using their power not entirely righteously, and therefore decided to take away their divine power. At the same time, he had a question: where to hide divinity from people so that they could not find it?

    To solve this dilemma, Brahma called his advisors. They started to fill him up various options: some suggested burying the divinity in the ground, others - throwing it at the bottom of the ocean... However, Brahma did not like either proposal. “Sooner or later people will reach the bottom of the oceans,” he answered thoughtfully.

    Suddenly the ruler of the gods himself realized what needed to be done. He decided to hide divinity within man himself. And I was not mistaken. Man conquered the skies and the depths of the sea, drilled kilometer-long tunnels underground, but never really looked inside himself.

    ancient finds

    It is difficult to determine how deep the roots of yoga stretch into history. Thus, in the Indus River valley, archaeologists found ancient seals dating back to the second millennium BC. They depict people, as well as deities in unusual poses (in total, researchers counted 16 different positions). This find led historians to believe that one form of yoga was already familiar to the inhabitants of the Harappan civilization.

    If we talk about written evidence, the concept of “yoga” is first found in the Rig Veda - one of the most ancient monuments of Indian literature.

    Patanjali and his Yoga Sutras

    This teaching is included in the list of six orthodox schools of Hinduism. The philosophy of yoga is very closely related to the Samkhya movement. However, in comparison, yoga is more theistic.

    Heinrich Zimmer also spoke about the kinship of these two schools in his time. At the same time, he argued that Samkhya provides a general explanation of human nature, while yoga reveals practical methods and paths to its complete liberation (the state of moksha).

    Like any other school of Indian philosophy, yoga has its own sacred texts. These are the so-called “yoga sutras” expounded by the sage Patanjali. In one of them, by the way, the teacher reveals the very essence of the concept we are considering. According to the text of the second sutra, yoga is “the process of controlling the disturbances inherent in the mind.”

    Swami Vivekananda: the life of a philosopher

    One of the brightest representatives of this school is the Indian sage and Swami Vivekananda. The philosophy of yoga in his works acquired a new meaning. He was able to explain its key provisions from the point of view of the Western worldview.

    Swami Vivekananda lived and worked in the second half of the 19th century. He was born in 1863 into a very religious family. He studied at the Scottish Church College, where he took a special interest in philosophy. At the same time, Vivekananda sets out to find a person who met God himself. And soon he finds it. It was a certain Ramakrishna. Soon Vivekananda becomes his student.

    In 1888, he, along with other students of Ramakrishna, began traveling throughout India. Then it goes to other countries (USA, France, Japan, England and others). The sage died in 1902. Swami's body, like his, was cremated on the banks of the Ganges River.

    During his life, Vivekananda wrote a number of works. The most important among them are the following:

    • "Karma Yoga" (1896).
    • "Raja Yoga" (1896).
    • "The Philosophy of Vedanta: Lectures on Jnana Yoga" (1902).

    Swami Vivekananda: philosophical views

    Vivekananda has a very famous saying: only his names differ." Some call him Jesus, others Allah, others Buddha, and so on.

    Swami Vivekananda was distinguished by the originality of his thoughts. His main merit as a philosopher is that he was able to prove that the key ideas of Vedanta can be applied for purely practical purposes, in public life.

    “Every person is divine in itself” - this saying of Ramakrishna became a red thread in the life of the philosopher. He was sure that no one would gain freedom until all other people became free. Vivekananda asserted that he had a real duty to work tirelessly to save other people. The philosopher extolled selflessness and urged everyone not to lose faith in themselves.

    Swami Vivekananda's social views were based on the idea that there should be division. Religion, in his opinion, should under no circumstances interfere in issues of marriage, inheritance relations, and the like. He also believed that society should ideally be an even mixture of all four castes. Moreover, he was sure that religion should not interfere in the process of building an ideal society.

    Yoga Hatha: school philosophy

    The name of this is translated from Sanskrit as “enhanced fusion”. For the first time, the postulates of this school were systematized by Swami Swatmarama. He believed that hatha yoga is the process of preparing the human body for complex meditation.

    The word “hatha” itself, as researchers suggest, consists of two components: “ha” - mind and “tha” - life force.

    Hatha yoga is a complex teaching about how you can achieve bodily harmony through physical and mental influences on the body (these are asanas, pranayama, mudras and bandhas). Each of them affects a specific part of the human body. In hatha yoga, sets of certain exercises are specially selected with the help of which you can strengthen your health and fight serious diseases.

    Breathing is the basis of life

    The main emphasis in hatha yoga is on breathing. Adherents of this school are confident that the influence of breathing on the body is so strong that with just pranayama ( breathing exercises) you can significantly improve your condition. And skillfully combining them with asanas is the key to a healthy and strong body.

    Hatha yoga as a medical philosophy puts as its primary goal the complete cleansing of the human respiratory system. In addition, this is a real art of relaxing the body and all its muscles. After all, real clarity of mind comes only to a relaxed body.

    The state of the body, well-being, as well as a person’s thought processes are closely related to his breathing. I think everyone will agree with this. That is why in Hatha Yoga such attention is paid to art and techniques. correct breathing. At the same time, she teaches people to breathe correctly not only during special classes, but also in everyday life. A wise and careful attitude towards one’s health is what hatha yoga teaches people. Philosophy and practice are organically intertwined in this teaching.

    General goals and objectives of yoga

    Anyone who decides to take up yoga seriously may pursue different goals. It could be a simple desire to improve your health or recover from a chronic disease. And for some, yoga is the key to achieving moksha (“union with Brahman”).

    By the way, it is moksha - as the process and fact of liberation from samsara - that is the ultimate goal in many schools of ancient Indian philosophy. But in Vaishnavism, the main goal of yoga is the desire for God, the Creator. According to the teachings of this school, a Vaisnava then enters the spiritual blissful world, where he can enjoy devotional service to Vishnu.

    Development of yoga in Russia

    Individual residents of Russia showed interest in yoga even in pre-revolutionary times. In the era Soviet Union this school was under an ideological ban, which, however, did not prevent individual enthusiasts from studying semi-legally.

    In Russia, at different times, many famous personalities acted as active promoters of yoga. Among these are the doctor B. L. Smirnov, professor V. V. Brodov, writer V. I. Voronin, engineer Ya. I. Koltunov and many others. At the end of the 80s, a higher educational institution began to operate in Moscow - the so-called Yoga Academy. Its founder was Gennady Statsenko. At the same time, a laboratory appeared in the capital of the USSR, which was studying unconventional methods of treatment and recovery. Of course, the area of ​​interest of this laboratory also included the teachings of Ancient India - yoga.

    Today, yoga courses are taught in almost every fitness club. However, knowledgeable people still recommend attending classes at a specialized school.

    Finally, a few useful tips for those who are planning to start doing yoga:

    • clothes for classes should be comfortable and made of natural fabric;
    • you need to start mastering yoga small, gradually penetrating into the “depths” of this teaching;
    • It is not advisable to skip classes, because each new session is a logical continuation of the previous one;
    • Yoga practice must be approached extremely consciously and thoroughly.

    And, of course, we should not forget that yoga is not only healthy, toned body, but also the opportunity to feel the harmony of body and soul.

    Finally...

    Yoga is a philosophy of Ancient India, which is very popular in the modern world. However, this is not entirely philosophy, or rather, not only it. It is also science, religion, centuries-old tradition and practice. Why is modern man so attracted to the philosophy of yoga?

    This question can be briefly answered with two main theses. First: yoga helps a person cope with the enormous pressure of cruel reality. Second: it is capable of opening the way for each of us to know ourselves, our inner essence.

    2) Yoga is one of the systems of Hindu philosophy, which was created by the sage Patanjali and recorded by him in the “Yoga Sutras” (“Aphorisms of Yoga”) around the 2nd century BC. e.

    Yoga of Patanjali is both a philosophy and a practical method, which includes 8 stages of human improvement:

    1. Yama - regulation of external conditions

    2. Niyama - regulation of internal conditions

    3. Asana - comfortable and stable body position

    4. Pranayama - perception of the movement of energies in the body

    5. Pratyathara - control of the perception of senses

    6. Dharana - the ability to direct our mind

    7. Dhyana - the ability to perceive what we seek to understand

    8. Samadhi - the ability to become and remain that which we intended to understand.

    The philosophy of the Yoga Sutras is closely related to the ancient Samkhya philosophy, the main sources of which are the great Indian epic Mahabharata and the Samkhya Sutras of the sage Kapila.

    According to the basic tenets of this philosophy, there are two independent substances: Purusha (the contemplator, the source of consciousness) and Prakriti (matter, nature). It is their interaction that leads to the emergence of all phenomena of this world, from the subtlest to the densest. Every person, being a product of nature, contains within himself a source of true knowledge. But being drawn into the games of nature, he loses the purity of perception of the Contemplator and becomes dependent on the conditions of the external world.

    Only a return to inner comprehension allows a person to find peace, equanimity, experience a blissful state of freedom and learn to manage his life based on a true understanding of the essence of things and phenomena of this world.

    To achieve this higher state of consciousness, one must calm and balance the qualities of nature in the body, mind and senses. This is what the first five steps of Patanjali’s yoga are aimed at. The first five steps are the regulation of the 5 primary elements of nature (Earth, Water, Fire, Air, Ether (Space)). When the elements of nature in a person are balanced, a person is able to consciously control the unconscious and subconscious areas of his psyche, that is, his animal nature.

    The last three steps are possible only with successful mastery of the first five and allow one to achieve higher states of deep insight into the essence of all phenomena of the world.

    In the Middle Ages, based on the classical yoga of Patanjali, a special type of yogic practice emerged, called “hatha yoga”. One of the translations of the term “hatha” is “sun and moon.” These are, in essence, two energies that are manifested in the body in two channels: to the left - Ida (property lunar channel) and to the right - Pingala (property of the solar channel).

    Ida controls mental energy and corresponds to the parasympathetic reaction in the body (passivity, relaxation). Pingala is associated with vital energy and corresponds to the sympathetic reaction in the body (activity, tension). The main goal of hatha yoga is to balance these two energies in the body and maintain them in a clear balance.

    This makes it possible to balance the qualities of nature in the body and promotes the passage of energy through the central channel - Sushumna. It is this energy that is used to awaken higher forms of consciousness.

    Hatha Yoga uses the concept of chakras - special energy centers in the human body, each of which is associated with a certain level of consciousness. The lower chakras are responsible for the unconscious plane of existence, the middle ones - for subconscious mechanisms, the upper ones - for consciousness, the seventh chakra - sahasrara connects a person with the superconscious. If the higher chakras in a person’s body remain closed, the person will be under the influence of the unconscious and subconscious layers of his psyche all his life, without being able to consciously control his body, mind and feelings.

    The first 7 steps of Patanjali yoga correspond to the 7 chakras in the human body, and the 8th step corresponds to the chakra located above the head.

    Hatha Yoga is a precise sequence of certain actions that brings people of different types into the same state: calmness of the qualities of nature in the body, feelings, mind (the first five chakras). This makes it possible to divert energy from external stimuli to the inner world to ensure a process of deep understanding.

    When the body, feelings and mind are calmed, energy freely rises through the central channel - Sushumna, awakening all chakras, from the lowest to the highest, and a person has the opportunity to comprehend the highest principle, which by nature is the entire manifested world. As a result, a person leaves the power of external circumstances and becomes the ruler of his life, gaining freedom.

    That is why Patanjali’s Yoga is often called “Raja Yoga”, which translates as “Royal Yoga” or “Yoga of Kings”.

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