Saṃskāra (Impression)
Saṃskāra · sam-kāra, “a making ready; an impression”
Grammar: masculine noun, from sam (together, well) and the root kṛ (to make): “a making ready, a shaping”. Here it means an impression left in the mind; the word also names the rites of passage.
Meaning: the trace that past acts and thoughts leave in the mind. Saṃskāras are the root of vāsanās; good saṃskāras steady the buddhi.
In the scriptures:
Good saṃskāras in dhāraṇā. Śrī Śuka Maharshi tells Parīkshit that the mind scattered by vāsanās is fixed on the form of Śrī Hari by a buddhi that has good saṃskāras; this is dhāraṇā (Bhāgavata Purāṇa, Skandha 2, Chapter 1).
Brahmā‘s vision. When Brahmā saw every gopa boy and calf as a form of Śrī Vishṇu, Kāla, svabhāva (nature), saṃskāra, desires, karma, the guṇas and jāti took form and adored those forms, and before them their own glory paled (Bhāgavata Purāṇa, Skandha 10, Chapter 13).
Related terms: Vāsanā · Karma · Buddhi · Dhāraṇā · Citta
Sources
- Bhāgavata Purāṇa, Skandha 2, Chapter 1; Skandha 10, Chapter 13