The Vedic Samhitas contain references to ascetics, while ascetic
practices (tapas) are referenced in the Brāhmaṇas (900 to 500
BCE), early commentaries on the Vedas. Several seals discovered
at Indus Valley Civilization (c. 3300–1700 B.C.E.) sites in
Pakistan depict figures in positions resembling a common yoga or
meditation pose, showing “a form of ritual discipline,
suggesting a precursor of yoga”, according to archaeologist
Gregory Possehl. Some type of connection between the Indus
Valley seals and later yoga and meditation practices is
speculated upon by many scholars, though there is no conclusive
evidence. Techniques for experiencing higher states of
consciousness in meditation were developed by the shramanic
traditions and in the Upanishadic tradition. While there is no
clear evidence for meditation in pre-Buddhist early Brahminic
texts, Wynne argues that formless meditation originated in the
Brahminic tradition, based on strong parallels between
Upanishadic cosmological statements and the meditative g