YOG SCIENCE BEYOND YOGAASANS AND PRAANAAYAAM

(All Sanskrit words are written in italics. Long vowel sounds have been denoted by repeating the vowel again. Use of vowel ‘a’ at the end of proper and common nouns has been omitted to emphasize the point that there is no long sound of vowel ‘a’ at the end. For example, Yoga is pronounced as Yog and so, has been written as Yog to encourage proper pronunciation.)

Abstract

Yog science deals with human existence in an integrated way at the three levels – Physical, subtle and Causal. It not only deals with the body exercises (Yogaasans), breathing (Praanaayaam) and meditation but also helps adopt a healthy lifestyle. It tells us about the five root causes of sufferings, viz. Ignorance, Illusion, Attachment, Enmity and Fear of death. How to regulate your thoughts? How do thoughts arise in your mind in the first place? You learn about the first two steps of Maharshi Patanjali’s Ashtaang Yog, viz. Yam and Niyam as the key steps in stepping onto the Yog path.

Eating, Drinking, Breathing and Sleeping are important sciences for maintaining good physical body health and you must obtain full knowledge of it. Other Yogic practices will help progress towards higher states of realizations about oneself. The Ayurved science is specifically dealing with Physical health of the body and treatment of individuals when struck with diseases. Key point to note is Ayurved treats the individual and not the disease; because the same disease would cause imbalance in the tridoshas differently in each individual.

The second level of living is called the Sookshma Shareer or Subtle body, which you cannot see but you are aware of it’s activities. Mind, Intellect and Memory are knowledge faculties that process the information gathered by the five senses of perception, namely ears, skin, eyes, tongue and nose and the five action organs, namely speech, hands, legs, anus, and sex organ. You are continuously using these faculties and are aware of their existence but I do not think you have any clue about the subtle way of working of these faculties and the way they impact on the physiology and biochemistry of the body.

The third level of existence is the Ego level, called the Kaaran Shareer or Causal body. Ego is the reflected image of the Self or the Soul on the brain’s memory plane called the Chitta. The Self is a pure entity, a detached onlooker and non-doer, representing the link in your body with God. But when it enters a given body, the individual’s Trigunaatmak Chittavrittis or three-fold personality traits from past births also come enveloping it. So, it’s pure identity as an embodiment of God gets transformed to that of the individual and is called the ‘Ego’ or the Jeeva or simply the ‘I’. Thoughts evolve with time in tune with your Chitta’s knowledge enrichment and correspondingly the Chittavrittis also evolve and determine the changing nature of Ego, called the Consciousness.

Causal body’s food is your thought process, which when refined and purified to higher and higher levels of Eternal Truths, transforms the Ego to become closer to the Self. This is possible by acquiring deeper and deeper knowledge/wisdom from the Vedic literature, scriptural texts of other religions and attained Gurus. Spirituality is all about this process of refining your understanding of the Self through continuous study of the self (ego), then meditating over every new knowledge you acquire for refinement of the self for firsthand experience of it, so that it becomes pure wisdom that can tranquilize your Chittavrittis responsible for mental distractions and destabilizations. When Chitta reaches a pure state, it reflects the Self in it’s pure form because there is no more the envelop of ignorance. This is the state of union or Yog of the self or ‘I’ with the pure Self, called the state of Self-realization. The state of God-realization is one more step away where the seeker has to rise from the Pure Self state to that of merger in the Supreme Self, the Parmaatman. That is the state of Kaivalya Samaadhi or Tooriya state.

Introduction: Yog Science, according to its originator, as scripted by Maharshi Patanjali in his Yog Sutras, is a discipline, a management art of controlling and subliming your “Chittavrittis”, which are impulses/emotions/thought process arising out of your memory plane called the Chitta (memory cells of the brain) that distract the Mind. It empowers you to live your life to its full potential in every walk of your life while staying in perfect and peaceful balance with everything else happening around you. A Yogi is continuously immersed in Karma Yog (path of detached action), Bhakti Yog (path of devotion), Gyaan Yog (path of knowledge) and Dhyaan Yog (path of meditation) to be able to stay and sustain continuous progress on the Yog path. All the four paths are complementary and supplementary of one another and not exclusive of each other.

A major difference between Yog and Ayurved is that the latter deals with your body as living matter. So, an Ayurved Vaidya (Sanskrit name meaning doctor) and his therapists are working on your body at all the three levels to bring it to normal health whereas in Yog, your Guru can only guide you, show you the path but the real effort, action or sustained practice has to be entirely yours, your Guru cannot do it for you. Yog Practice is a journey performed all by yourself to the microcosm inside your body. This journey after transcending the five body sheaths is all along in the Thought Plane where there is no physical path to follow and, therefore, you need constant guidance of an accomplished Guru to answer all your doubts, confusions, hesitations, road blocks, etc. arising on the way. Secondly, there is no time limit for attaining mastery in Yog practice. It is a lifelong process until you attain Moksha/Nirvaana.

The best thing about Yog practice is that it is evidence based. It takes just one lesson, a matter of spending an hour or two with a well-trained Guru, to understand the healing powers of Yogic practices. In fact, this is also the best way to test the ability of the Guru whether he/she is able to give you the firsthand experience. The first sitting itself sets the healing process in motion at body and mind levels. The flexibility exercises and Yogic postures, when performed with long deep breathing rhythm, increase the oxygen content in blood and it’s flow in the body makes all joints flexible and free so that body’s autonomic functions are unhindered. This is the simple technique of natural healing of the body, which should become evident in the first sitting itself. It should not be that you just heard or learnt firsthand from the Guru. You must also get a firsthand experience of it yourself. The next most important lesson to be learnt from Yogic practice is the functions of the ten senses and the mind. We must know that our body cannot function by itself and every action of the body is operated by the senses. The senses in turn cannot function without connectivity with mind. Senses can only work for the specific task they are made and cannot interchange their functions.

Law of Duality: We all claim: my body, my hand, my eyes, my brain, my heart, my mind, my intellect, my ego, my home, my wealth, my achievements, etc. If that be so, then who are you who is claiming ownership of all this? Only if you are different from the body or the other things can you claim ownership to the same. If I am the body, then the question of owning it does not arise. This is the principle of duality between ‘Drishta’ (the onlooker) and ‘Drishya’ (the object to be seen), the two are two independent entities but work in unison or Yog. The existence of one is incomplete without the other. But Drishta being the doer is regarded as the subject and Drishya as the object of the Drishta. The duality of Creator (Purush) and Creation (Prakriti) also represents the same principle – the two are distinct and exist independently but without one, the existence of the other is meaningless and represents the state of total inactivity/void.

Modern Lifestyles in contradiction with Nature’s laws: Yog Science is the Art of self governance at all three levels of human existence – physical, subtle and causal – and to be able to do so, one has to have a good knowledge and understanding of the said three levels and their respective roles and ways of workings in daily living. We must know that the body has 100% ability to heal itself on an ongoing basis provided we let it do so. But our lifestyles these days unfortunately have become so comfort oriented and materialistic that we do not live and work in normal and natural environment. Further, our desires, greed, enmity, jealousy, lust, anger, etc. have created such a complex web of stresses in our emotional plane that the mind remains engrossed with those 24x7 hours and is left with little time to take care of the body. Everybody is so stressed out these days irrespective of age or profession!

We need to ask ourselves a very simple and basic question – who manufactures the human body? It is manufactured in a factory – the mother’s womb – but it is not a human-made factory, nor is the manufacturing process human made. It happens naturally, mother though can definitely help or derail this natural process with consequent results for the new-born child. Therefore, since all creatures are a product of Nature and come to life by the Will of God, they all are 100% dependent for their wellness on Nature and the more we human beings learn to stay as close to Nature as possible and follow Nature’s Laws, the more Nature can take good care of us at all three levels. All our illnesses, stresses, emotional imbalances, etc. are results of our own doings or Karmas from the past. While everyone is familiar with the physical body and somewhat with the subtle body of Mind, Intellect and Memory, there is hardly any appreciation of the causal body. I will cover both the subtle and causal bodies in more details at a later stage in this Paper, which are the deeper fields of Yog practice.

How is it that different trees/plants draw different nutrients from the same soil as reflected in the nutrient contents and taste of their fruits, grains or vegetables? Do we even pause to think that the many grains of cereals and pulses that we eat actually carry a life in it and if those seeds were to be put in the soil, they will give rise to plants? That also establishes a very important fact of Brahmacharya (a highly disciplined lifestyle, including celibacy) – that the reproductive energy in every creature (plant kingdom included) is the ultimate pack of concentrated energy that needs to be conserved for the ordained purpose. We casually claim that our body is made of Panch Tatwas (five basic elements – space, air, fire, water and earth) but how do these elements come in our body, what are its’ role in making the body or its’ specific functions? It will be very instructive to study and compare our existence with that of the plant and animal kingdoms to understand humanity’s role and place in ensuring balance of Nature and survival of the Universe. The specific roles of the five elements are as under:

Earth: Contains all five elements and provides food in the form of plants and animals, which collectively provide all the nutrients required by the body. Earth also provides stability to exist and move about on it.

Water: Contains four elements other than earth and performs two main functions: firstly as a carrier of nutrients and secondly as a cleansing agent to remove waste and toxins from the body.

Fire: Contains three elements other than earth and water. Provides energy, represents Sun’s energy and as is well known, without Sun nothing can grow on earth and without food, no creature can survive for long. It is the single most firsthand evidence for people to realize why they need to respect Laws of Nature and follow Nature’s clock, enjoy seasons, spend time out in Nature, etc. and avoid artificial virtual spaces.

Air: Contains two elements – air and space. It provides mobility and dynamism. Nothing can survive without air. We cannot live for more than few minutes if we do not get to breathe.

Space: Nothing can exist without space. Everything has to start with provision of space where sound can start energy flow and activity.

Ashtaangyog: Indispensability of Yam, Niyam and Kriyaayog

Clinical Research at international level in the past few decades have widely established the efficacy of Yogic practices in continuous retention of normal health and in case of illnesses, the Yogic knowledge and admissible practices help in providing faster relief and recovery, more so in post-trauma rehabilitation. Yog Sutras provide for eight limbs or steps of Yogic practices, namely Yam, Niyam, Aasan, Praanaayaam, Pratyaahaar, Dhaarnaa, Dhyaan and Samaadhi. The first two limbs, viz. Yam and Niyam are key to Yog discipline. It has to be appreciated that while we do our Yogaasans, Praanaayaam and Meditation religiously everyday, we also need to continuously guide our daily living on the principles of Yam and Niyam. It is, therefore, very instructive if we recall the following Yog Sutras from Chapter II, Saadhan Paad:

Sutra 29 “Yam-niyam-aasan-praanaayaam-pratyaahaar-dhaarnaa-dhyaan-samaadhayo-ashtaavangaani” lists out the eightfold-path of Yog (AshtaangYog) consisting of Yam, Niyam, Aasan, Praanaayaam, Pratyaahaar, Dhaarnaa, Dhyaan and Samaadhi.

Sutra 30 “Ahimsaa-satya-asteya-brahmacharya-aparigrahaa Yamaah” lists out the five Yams – Nonviolence (Ahimsaa), Truth (Satya), no Stealing (Asteya), a highly disciplined life, including celibacy (Brahmacharya) and no accumulation of worldly possessions (Aparigrah). The Yams and Niyams have to be followed with rigor, such that its practice has to be at all three levels, viz. Manasaa (in thoughts), Vaachaa (in speech) and Karmanaa (in action). We need to realize that the seed for every activity resides in the Chitta or memory – the thought level. Therefore, the first effort has to be to nip the vice in the bud – meaning the thought of engaging in violence, telling lies, stealing, running after desires or material possessions has to be curbed right at the initial thought stage. The only way to make it possible is to erase thought of such vices from the memory by reminding the ego of all the ills and harm arising from keeping company of them.

But if it has not been possible to do so and the thoughts do arise, we need to train the mind through intellect to exercise control over the speech, so that the thoughts do not get externalized to speech level like hurling scorn. If that also fails, then the physical action has to be controlled so that actual violence is avoided. But if the situation does manifest to physical level also, then evasive actions of not adding fuel to the fire like leaving the place, withdrawing from heated arguments, asking for forgiveness, etc. need to be consciously practiced. The highest level of practice of Yams and Niyams is when they do not disturb us even at the thought level. This is the way to practice control on Chittavrittis to nirodh state, that is neither oppose, nor suppress but tame mind’s wanderings to a serene state.

Sutra 31 “Jaati-desh-kaal-samayaan-avachhinnaah Saarvabhaumaa Mahaavratam” meaning the Yams and Niyams have to be practiced without consideration of birth in a particular race, place, time or circumstance, in other words the determination to abide by them has to be universal – at all times, places, situations and applicable to all peoples. It makes it clear that firm vows have to be observed in practice of Yam and Niyam without any excuse (Avachhinnaah) of time (kaal), circumstance (samay), place (desh) or family of birth (jaati). Only then they become the universal supreme pledges (Saarvabhaumaa Mahaavratam).

Sutra 32 “Shauch-santosh-tapah-swaadhyaaye-iswarpranidhaanaani Niyamaah” lists out the five Niyams, disciplines or abiding standards of daily living – Shauch, Santosh, Tapah, Swaadhyaaya and Ishwarpranidhaan. If Yams are meant to cleanse our Chittavrittis and the thought process, the Niyams are meant to cleanse our body and senses. They are a daily code of conduct that the seeker has to steadfastly practice relentlessly to move continuously to purer and higher levels of practice. Shauch relates to personal hygiene and is practiced at two levels – body hygiene externally and purity of thoughts. Body hygiene does not mean taking bath to avoid foul smell alone but regular bowel movement, keeping the senses and internal digestive systems in good order by practice of the six kriyaas – Dhauti, Basti, Neti, Kapaalbhaati, Traatak, and Nauli. Purity of thoughts means curbing feelings of jealousy, anger, greed, lust, pride, etc., which relate to purity at the subtle level. Santosh means being content in every situation and in whatever comes our way. Tapah means observing austerities – both physical and subtle. Swaadhyaaya relates to acquiring more and more knowledge about our own existence, as also our relationship with the rest of the world around us. Ishwarpranidhaan means unconditional surrender to God. The last three Niyams are explained in greater details under Kriyaayog below.

The Yams and Niyams are the most important of all the eight steps of Yog and yet most students of Yog are totally oblivious of the usefulness of these ten cardinal commandments or may not even have heard about them. In fact, almost all if not the entire teachings of all religions are rooted in the Yams and Niyams. They contribute invaluably in making a healthy, happy personality and helpful outlook for the seeker. But it is not so easy to abide by these ten commandments and apply them steadfastly in daily living despite our knowing of their importance and the advantages we derive from its faithful practice – such is the overpowering nature of Maayaa (illusion) and Avidhyaa (ignorance). This is why Maharshi Patanjali has unambiguously declared in Sutra 31 above that the seeker has to take a firm, unconditional and universal vow in the practice of Yams and Niyams.

Sutra 33 “Vitark-baadhne Pratipaksh-bhaavanam” tells that whenever we find ourselves going against (Vitarkbaadhne) the spirit of Yams and Niyams, we must immediately remind ourselves of the sufferings and adverse results we would face in not doing so (pratipakshbhaavanam). That would help avoid breaking them. We have to continuously remind ourselves of the sufferings from human weaknesses like anger, greed, lust, attachment, egoism, etc., which are major obstacles in faithfully living by the Yams and Niyams. Besides, these weaknesses also cause untold harm to our material wellbeing and result in disturbing our mental peace and physical health because they disrupt normal thought process and block the communication processes from the Chitta through the nerves-systems to the body organs.

Kriyaayog: It is also very important to realize that after explaining the entire science of Yog in the first chapter, Maharshi Patanjali provides the starting point of Yog Sadhnaa in the first three Sutras of second chapter, which do not relate to Yogaasans and Praanaayaam but concentrate on three of the five Niyams. That confirms the necessity of laying emphasis on Yam and Niyam because they help to engineer our thought process without which nothing can be achieved. Let us consider the first three Sutras of chapter II, the Saadhan Paad:

Sutra 1 “Tapah-Swaadhyaaye-Ishwarpranidhaanaani Kriyaa Yogah” explains that Tapah (austerities), Swaadhyaaya (study of the scriptures to gain higher and higher knowledge about the Self) and Ishwarpranidhaan (surrender to God) together constitute the science of ‘KriyaaYog’.

Tapah includes the many physical and subtle pursuits in austerities that help the seeker to strengthen his willpower. For example, fasting regularly on fixed days, getting up early in the morning and retiring early at night – preferably at fixed timings, performing pilgrimages, helping the needy, etc. are the external dimensions of austerities. Controlling senses, anger, greed, lust, etc. are internal dimensions of Tapah and the seeker has to constantly set higher and higher standards of austerities to overcome these obstacles and attain faith and trust on the path of Yog. The seeker looks for higher and higher knowledge to strengthen his willpower. He remains observant all the time, every sense impulse is first analyzed by his intellect and only after looking at the pros and cons, he strives to stick on to the righteous path. In this way by subjecting himself to a highly disciplined living or austerities, the seeker strengthens his willpower and gains empowerment to control his Chittavrittis.

Swaadhyaaya is regular study of scriptures to learn about the real nature of things happening all the time around us, acquiring knowledge about what is right, what is wrong, what is the righteous path, pitfalls to be avoided, sins to be curbed, and so on. Knowledge so acquired helps the seeker to regulate his daily living accordingly and Swaadhyaaya thus becomes an integral part of uplifting his living, his lifestyle, his existence. An ignorant person without acquiring or having such knowledge cannot even think of taking the first step and question of having the willpower or desire to practice the Yog science would not arise at all.

Ishwarpranidhaan meaning surrender to God is the simplest path to connect inwards leading to Samaadhi. But it is not so simple as it sounds. Surrender to God implies that everything is done in the name of God and individual does not pride himself/herself for his/her achievements. It helps in purifying Chittavrittis and progress on the Yog path. These are all interdependent practices even though they may sound independent of each other, which are preparatory to advancing on the path of Maharshi Patanjali’s AshtaangYog. Before we surrender to God, we must know Who, What and where God is and for that Swaadhyaaya or study of the Vedic texts or scriptures of other religions is a must.

These three attributes together are called Kriyaa Yog and form the foundation of the path to Self-realization. The most important and forthright lesson to be understood right in the beginning is that the first step in Yog science starts not with Yogaasans but with moderating lifestyle, monitoring the thought process, inculcating basic moral and human values, gaining higher and higher wisdom and surrendering to God – that invisible Cosmic Power that is beyond scientific exploration in laboratories.

Sutra 2 “Samaadhi-bhaavanaarthah Klesh-tanoo-karanaarthscha” meaning KriyaaYog is meant to inculcate the yearnings for Samaadhi and ease & dismantle obstacles in it’s path. It clarifies that KriyaaYog helps to ease the Klesh (obstacles) in the path of Yog and ignites the initial curiosity towards Samaadhi. The seeker is propelled by an inner urge towards God realization. It may be interesting to know that Paramhamsa Yognanda, author of the bestselling book on KriyaaYog: ‘Autobiography of a Yogi’ and the chain of Gurus preceding him were practitioners of KriyaaYog. He had migrated to the USA in early AD 1920s on instructions of his Guru to spread the practice of KriyaaYog in that continent. The Self Realization Fellowship (SRF) established by him is still active worldwide under the Guru-Shisya Paramparaa (Master-disciple tradition).

Sutra 3 “Avidyaa-asmitaa-raag-dwesh-abhiniveshaah Kleshaah” meaning Ignorance, Illusion, Attachment, Enmity and Fear of death are the five obstacles on the path to God Realization. They reside in the Chitta or subconscious mind as vrittis or habits and determine the individual's personality. The person’s actions at any given time depend on which one of his vrittis is dominating at that time and which others are in supporting role.

Necessity of Yogaasans and Praanaayaam

Is it necessary that a person has to perform the 3rd and 4th limbs, viz. Aasan and Praanaayaam of Ashtaang Yog? Yes, it is necessary for sustaining and upkeep of the health of the body but there can be many ways of achieving the same goals. A person who is mostly working outdoors and exercises his body in normal performance of his work like a farmer, a labourer, a sports person, and other professions involving enough physical activity need not perform Aasans and Praanaayaam but they have to make sure that their overall lifestyles are such that they are able to maintain a normal physical health. But for those wanting to follow intellectual and creative pursuits where the physical mobility of the body is limited, Aasan and Praanaayaam form a very important part of their daily lifestyles so that they can maintain normal body health. Meditation is necessary for all to keep their mental and causal faculties in absolute nick.

Yogaasans and Praanaayaam exercise all body joints to keep them free from any toxins and waste deposits, so that there is no blockage in the free flow of communication through the nerves and blood vessels flowing through the arteries or veins. A whole series of exercises of all the body joints, carried out with rhythmic deep and brisk breathing rounds, has been developed by Yogis in the past, more commonly known by the name ‘Sookshma Vyaayaam’ or Flexibility Exercises, that provides an absolutely clear experience of the meaning of body healing through blood circulation and mental promptings through the central nervous communications to the body parts to guide each one of them to maintain normal health. Once the body attains good flexibility, it is possible to practice more complex body postures, called Yogaasans, to further ensure body’s total health. Thereafter, Praanaayaam helps in bringing the body to complete stillness so that the senses also get withdrawn from their subjects and mind can be directed inwards to intellect and memory sheaths. It is possible to clearly experience the five sheaths in the body, viz. food, energy, mind, intellect and memory through this process. This then leads to the last three steps of Ashtaangyog, viz. contemplation, concentration and finally connectivity of the ‘I’ towards the Self/Soul/Atman. While I do not wish to go into details of Yogaasans and Praanaayaam since there is sufficient focus on these in normal discourses, I would focus more on the last three steps of Ashtaang Yog practice, that of connecting with the ‘I’ first and then directing it towards the Self for it’s continuous purification and sublimation.

Vrese 18 in ‘Purush Sukta’ (II Chapter of Rudraashtaadyaayi) reads as follows:

Vedaahme-tam-purusham-mahaantam-aadityavaranam-tamasah-parastaat,

Tamewa-vididtwaati-mrityu-neti-naanyah-panthaa-vidyateyanaaya.

Meaning there is no other way to get over the fear of death than getting to know that Supreme Purusha or God who like the Sun removing all darkness, is the remover of all ignorances. And the only way to know God is to unite with Him and that is the pinnacle of Yog Saadhanaa or never ending intense Yog practice until merger in God.

Wisdom is God

I have seen many references in Upanishads and other religious books to conclude that 'Knowledge is God', which can be easily explained by a profound argument about God being a 'Perfect Individual'. He possesses all the best qualities that one can imagine. We ask him for virtues depending on our own understanding of the virtues. In other words, God is our role model with all the best of qualifications that we can think of. Such a person has to know everything. Or we can say that total knowledge represents God or Knowledge is God. No wonder GyaanYog (path of knowledge) is also one of the many paths of Self-realization.

Mundakopanishad speaks (verses I/5-6) about God as Paraavidhyaa (supreme knowledge) and the four Veds (Rig, Yaju, Saam and Atharva) and the six Vedaangs (limbs of Veds) - Shikshaa, Kalp, Vyaakaran, Nirukta, Chhanda and Jyotish - as the Aparaavidhyaa (knowledge of the Universe). The latter empowers seekers to learn about the Paraavidhyaa. Adishankaraachaarya declares that there is no difference between realization of the Parmaatman and gaining the Paraavidhyaa, in other words gaining knowledge about God is as good as realizing Him. Verse 6 then provides the attributes of God (He cannot be realized by senses of perception or attained by the organs of action, He is unborn, without description or form, omnipresent, omnipotent and omniscient, the smallest in appearance and largest also by way of Creator of the whole universe, etc.). Anyone who can realize those attributes or have a firsthand experience of the same, can claim to have realized God.

But what is Wisdom? Knowledge when personally experienced and found to be true becomes Wisdom for that seeker. We talk of theoretical and applied sciences. The former postulates and develops theoretical knowledge and the latter puts it to actual use or performs laboratory research to verify correctness of the theoretical knowledge so developed. So, applied science is verified knowledge, which we call wisdom or experienced knowledge. In general context, we utilize the word wisdom in more of a moral or human values terms because these have been tested generation after generation as a healthy practice for human development. Knowledge of physical world is one dimension of modern higher education whereas Knowledge of the entire Universe, including the Spiritual Universe, delves in the realm of higher wisdom (Aparavidhyaa). Knowledge about God becomes Wisdom when we experience His presence within us, as also within everyone else.

We all can be Godly if we also imbibe Godlike qualities. Maharshi Patanjali makes a categorical statement in Sutra I/25 that God is the ultimate in Knowledge. Nothing is beyond Him. This is the precise reason that every religion has fixed so many codes of conduct in daily life to raise individual characters. To be true to one's religion, one has to faithfully observe the daily chores of living and conduct and then alone can one claim to be a true follower of his religion. Mahatma Gandhiji explained this subject so precisely. He said religion is a matter of faith and that all religions are equal. There cannot be one superior to the other. "Whether Whitney Houston thanks Jesus as her Lord and personal saviour at the Grammy Awards, or the Pope invokes His name in daily prayers, it is the "Christ of Faith" whose continuing and powerful presence makes a difference in People's lives. The charismatic preacher of first century Palestine remains in the shadow" (source: Tikkum Magazine website, San Francisco, US).

‘I’ - the Body Manager

The best way of understanding the relationship between the body and the ‘I’ within is to compare it with a vehicle. There are so many makes and models of cars. But car by itself can do nothing, it is dead matter, cannot move until the driver drives it. It’s performance would depend on the driver's knowledge of the car and it’s working, of traffic rules and regulations and of streets through which he has to drive to the destination. It is also normal to have car breakdowns. Some breakdowns like a flat tire, empty gasoline tank or a run down battery can be easily detected but there can be other causes like engine trouble, electrical fault, etc. that a normal driver would not know and has to call for a mechanic or get the car towed to the service center. But if the driver is knowledgeable and trained to handle even such breakdowns also, he would be a clear winner.

This is exactly true for the human body also. The body is just like the car, cannot do anything by itself, knows nothing about itself. There is a driver inside, called ‘I’ who causes everything to happen and the more he gets to learn and understand about the body and it’s working, the better he can manage it’s upkeep and performance. That is why it is so important to make use of Yog and Ayurved sciences to learn about this inter-connectivity of physical, subtle and causal bodies within our body. ‘I’ is equipped with the three subtle faculties of mind, intellect and memory with which it operates the body through the senses. The knowledge about maintaining good health of the body and ways of fixing the possible illnesses and breakdowns in it can be pre-stored in the memory cells of the brain by conscious learning and experience, to be used by ‘I’ when needed; just as the mechanic learns all about car breakdowns before becoming a car mechanic or software is pre-loaded on the computer hard-disc to enable it perform the assigned tasks.

The car breakdown is not such a serious problem so long as the driver has full knowledge of the breakdown but suppose the car is in perfect condition and the driver breaks down. That is a clear disaster. The same is true with our existence in present times. The body is easy to handle but health of the ‘I’ seated inside the body is more important and even more difficult to maintain, for average people just do not know about it. Most people think of the body to be the ‘I’. When we talk of the nervous breakdowns or emotional imbalances, it does not relate to the physical body but to the subtle and causal bodies. So, any disturbance or breakdown at the latter two levels has to be seen as a very serious matter as it directly impacts on the physiology and biochemistry of the physical body and needs to be addressed urgently.

The top priority has to be to know the body constitution, its working and who and where the driver is inside the body? The performance of the driver is determined by his adherence to the path of Dharma (moral and ethical human values), which lays down the traffic rules of the subtle and causal bodies, and adherence can come provided the person has knowledge of it in the first place. Therefore, ultimately what determines the performance of the ‘I’ in the body is the knowledge of the Self, the Paraavidhyaa, possessed by it and stored in his memory or the Chitta.

Consciousness

A debate on subjects like Consciousness and Intelligence appears confused without first determining its actual existence and play. A clear definition needs to be given to identify them before starting a serious discussion on the subject. The Upanishads and the Yog Sutras provide an exact understanding of the different sheaths of human existence – the food sheath, the energy sheath, the mind sheath, the intellect sheath and the happiness sheath. The last of these, the happiness sheath lies in the Consciousness and if a seeker can transcend this sheath, he then enters the realm of pure Self and is able to discriminate between the Ego and the Self. Intellect sheath no doubt lies in intellect but this too without the coordination of the Chitta remains disabled. Therefore, the memory plane is the sheet anchor of each and every individual’s existence and any discussion on Consciousness or Intelligence without acknowledging the central role of Chitta is meaningless. This again establishes the fact that Yog is all about management of Chitta as defined in I/2 Yog sutra.

The simplest way to understand the exact nature of Consciousness is to consider its opposite, viz. Unconsciousness or even deep sleep. We know for sure that in both these situations, the soul stays in the body and there is also flow of life energy (Praan) in the body; the breath continues uninterrupted. The only thing that gets disabled is the memory. The person has no knowledge of events during this time because nothing is recorded on the memory. Even deep sleep is interpreted as a state of ‘zero knowledge’. When someone claims that he slept soundly, he actually claims that he has no knowledge of the period he was sleeping; when and how the time of sleep passed. In the state of unconsciousness also, the person has no information of what happened during that much period of unconsciousness. Therefore, what determines the state of consciousness is the ability to be aware or record events taking place during this time.

The basic idea of consciousness, therefore, represents our state of awareness about things happening in and around us as experienced by our senses and assessed by the intellect. State of knowledge stored in the Chitta is the most important component defining the state of Consciousness. In the computer language, we can divide Consciousness in two parts – the hard disc and the software along with data stored on it. So, even if the hard disc has huge memory capacity, without the software and data stored on it, the hard disc by itself is irrelevant. In my view, the Chitta’s knowledge base is the real operative part of Consciousness whereas the memory cells comprising the Chitta provide the hard disc or the physical existence of the Chitta.

We already know that the body cannot operate without Praan and the Self. Also, as already explained, the Self is a non-doer and instead, its reflected image in the Chitta plane, called the Jeeva or Ego, is the real doer. The Jeeva draws its empowerment entirely from the knowledge stored in the Chitta and the two together (reflected Self and the Knowledge) in reality constitute the Consciousness. Thus, with the changing state of memory from moment to moment because of new knowledge and experiences being gained by it and the less important contents fading out of it, the Consciousness is in a continuous state of evolution. In fact, it can be systematically developed to reach any levels an individual wishes to acquire.

We can thus conclude that Jeeva in reality is the true Consciousness. But since the reflected image of Self is a constant, the only other fluctuating factor directly constituting the Consciousness is the knowledge base of the Chitta. So, all evolution process of Consciousness directly depends on the evolution of the Chitta. This is why the entire Yog science focuses on Chittavrittis and sublimating the Chittavrittis to a pure satiated state. All other faculties like the senses, the mind, the intellect, the Praan and the reflected Self are instruments to help shape the nature of Chitta.

It would thus be fair to relate the operating part of Consciousness to knowledge, which is not a physical entity and, therefore, is not matter. It is generally accepted that the seat of Self is the thumb-size cave in the normal human heart whereas the memory plane lies in the brain. Medical Science has full knowledge of the memory cells in the brain but the knowledge stored in the memory cells is not physical in nature and, therefore, medical science cannot directly deal with it. Psychiatrists explore this plane through conversations with the individuals but Yog science and more specifically the field of Spirituality directly deal with training of the self’s thought process by the Self. This is where the Praanaayaam and Dhyaan practices of Yog become very relevant in training the Consciousness and provide firsthand clarity on these subjects without studies or experiments on memory cells of the brain as physical entities or matter storing the knowledge. Health of memory cells is a separate issue and any degeneration in them would obviously directly impact on the knowledge stored in them.

1. Krishnamurti, the great Thinker of 20th century, writes in his book ‘Freedom from the Known’ in Chapter III ‘Consciousness – The Totality of Life – Awareness’ (page 24): “Consciousness is the total field in which thought functions and relationships exist. All motives, intentions, desires, pleasures, fears, inspirations, longings, hopes, sorrows, joys are in that field. But we have come to divide this consciousness into the active and the dormant (subconscious) … .” We can thus see that Chitta, which is the repository of all experiences and knowledge and from where thought originates, is the key to Consciousness. Krishnamurti further clarifies (page 25): “It is only when you divide consciousness, which is all thought, feeling and action into different levels (fragmentary existence depending on the different roles being played at different times by the same individual like that of a householder, community member, at work place, etc.) that there is friction.”

What I find interesting in Krishnamurti’s discussion is his insistence on relating thought to past events only, which are stored in the Chitta, and that is why he argues for freedom from this known past. “A mind which is not crippled by memory has real freedom”, he argues (page 33). So long as we remain glued to past memories and do not come out of it, there is no freedom for thought to explore new grounds. So, it is essential that seekers on the spiritual path learn to dissociate themselves from past events and store only the knowledge part of it – the lessons learnt from those events have to be absorbed well as lessons for the future to move on to higher states of consciousness. The major clash of interest in modern life-styles arises out of this individualism where the consciousness is being trained all the time to guard self-interest without concern for others’ interests, what to talk of the interests of other creatures at large or the Nature as a whole. Therefore, freedom from the past and detachment from the self (ego) helps to explore new horizons towards higher states of consciousness.

“Thought is never new, for thought is the response of memory, experience, knowledge. ……. From the old you derive pleasure, never from the new. There is no time in the new.” Krishnamurti writes (page 33) and clarifies, “…. – if you can look at it without wanting the experience to be repeated, then there will be no pain, no fear, and therefore tremendous joy.” This indeed is the seed for creative thoughts and sometimes to an entirely new stream of thoughts as well, even if their prompting still came from past knowledge stored in the Chitta. The last three limbs of Ashtaang Yog are meant to explore new grounds through the judicious management of thoughts. This is possible when we get freedom from the known, though the known can also be a seed for exploring new grounds. This is the thrust of verse 5 of Ch. VI in Bhagwat Gita where the seeker is told that the Self is your best friend when Sattvaguna dominates and also the worst enemy when Tamoguna dominates.

Also, the only way to get rid of problems is to find solutions for them so that they do not clog our memory and then burden our living. This is the way to raise our Consciousness to higher and higher levels and can be accomplished by regular practice of Swaadhyaaya (study of the self) and meditation every morning and evening to connect inwards and reflect on the readings from daily Swaadhyaaya. The Vedic wisdoms tell: “Ekam sat, vipraah bahudhaa vadanti”, meaning Truth is one though the learned narrate it in different ways and “Aa No Bhadraa Kratavoyantu Vishwatah”, meaning let noble thoughts/good knowledge come to you from any source (diverse cultures and religions) in the world to further enrich you. Mahatma Gandhi advised to throw open doors and windows of your home so that winds of all cultures and religions could freely flow in.

I see meditation time as quality time for self-reflection and to connect with our pure Self to ponder over our own real life issues without anyone else’s involvement and give our total attention to each and every issue that has remained unresolved and is burdening our memory. Since every individual is different, their knowledge base and understanding of different subjects would also be different and they would have their own ways of finding answers to personal problems in meditation. Therefore, the primary objective of meditation is to clear the unresolved issues from memory by finding answers to them. For this, the person would obviously have to independently empower himself with complete knowledge of the subject from every possible source available to him before sitting for meditation, for knowledge is the prime tool for resolving issues.

A wise person as a rule is a good listener, for he realizes that he does not have the monopoly on wisdom and even the knowledge he possesses, came to him through a learning process from other sources. His own contribution in its making has primarily been by way of being a good observer / listener / analyzer / imbiber, etc. and accepting & absorbing all the new knowledge coming his way. Sadguru Jaggi Vasudev writes (The Age newspaper, New Delhi, 23 May 2011), “Who and what you are right now is just your accumulated past. And whatever information you have gathered is a limited possibility.” So, a wise person realizes the enormity of our Universe and the limited exposure he possesses about moment to moment events taking place on just one planet, mother Earth, what to think of events on rest of the planets in the Universe. Today, we do have the technological advantage of knowing so much about places we have never visited or events we were not witness to. But just a century ago when aviation industry was in its infancy and information and communication technologies were unheard of, people had no access to real time information. The Vedic knowledge could not have been compiled if the wise people limited themselves to their own knowledge and refused to be open to newer information coming their way from different directions and sources.

Sadguru Jaggi Vasudev writes, “It is always good to seek someone or something which is a little larger than yourself and to give yourself to that process. If you become bigger than that, move on and find something still bigger; till then you should just listen because that’s the way to grow. If you obey only to yourself, you will just recycle your past and ensure and enshrine the limitation of who you are. One who enshrines his limitations is working against the fundamental aspiration in every human being, which is to expand, to become free.” He further clarifies, “Obeying this limited possibility (your knowledge) makes your life into a recycle bin of the old; you will never allow any future possibilities to happen to you. While it takes a lot of intelligence to see that you are enslaved, a fool thinks he is free.”

Our own self-interests and egoist tendencies stop us from listening to others; to reason and reality. The ego comes in the way by not being open to newer and better ideas / information / knowledge than what we have stored in our memory from the past. I have myself seen endless instances where I thought I had the correct knowledge but reality turned out to be otherwise. The moment we realize the above Truth, we would not have difficulty in intellectual growth; in finding causes (followed by solutions) of most discords and disputes – be they in family, society or between nations.

Ego or self or the ‘I’ and process of transformation to Self

Let us now try to go little deeper and clearer in understanding the ‘I’ or Ego. I got this clarity once in my own meditation. This happened in Warsaw while I was serving as my country’s Ambassador to Poland. One day during my regular early morning meditations, I felt as if I was clearly floating in the Happiness Sheath of the body. My eyes were closed and body totally still, I was perhaps in a different consciousness plane. A thought started flashing on my mind: “How does this Inner Happiness show on my face?” Slowly the thought became intense and my meditation was broken. I opened my eyes and tried to see my face. I was sitting in my lotus posture with body completely still. I wondered as to why I could not see my face despite my best efforts to do so. For few seconds I was not sure what was going on and then first time the realization came to me that I had never seen my face and all the time I was only seeing my mirror image or a photo of myself. This was a very telling revelation.

I then argued to myself at that very moment of meditation that when my physical face, which is my identity and a reality, is not seen to me without the use of a mirror, how can I see the Soul inside my body, which has no face or form? I still continue reflecting from time to time on this incident, especially when I talk about it in my workshops or in conferences like this and every time some more depth or newer meaning emerges out of it. That was the first time I also got a clear understanding of the concept of Asmitaa/Maayaa or Illusion. For example, my face is reality but the mirror image is an illusion. It stays there until the mirror is there and the moment the mirror is removed, so is the illusion. The mirror image is not a perfect reflection unless there is 100% purity of the reflecting surface. We look at 10 different mirrors and the image will show ten different faces of the same face depending on the impurities on each reflecting surface. You ask ten different people about the same object and there will be 10 different statements, even if with very minor differences of punctuation. Though the object being described by each individual is a constant but each observer’s own understanding of the object comes into play, which is different for each individual. That is why we say ‘beauty is in the eyes of the onlooker’. We must recognize that when we comment on others’ personalities, it primarily reflects our own personality, our own thought process.

When we apply this analogy to the soul, we have to first figure out the mirror on which the soul reflects and registers it’s presence. By itself, it is said to be a non-doer, remains as a passive observer of the activities of it’s mirror image – the ‘I’ (Bhagwat Gita). Yog Sutras tell us that this mirror is the Chitta, which can also be explained by logic, for Chitta is the repository of all knowledge and source of individual actions. Therefore, when the soul reflects on the Chitta, it acquires the entire contents of the Chitta and becomes the ‘I’ or the Ego. When the ‘I’ wishes to pursue the path of Nirvaana and merge with the soul, it will have to work on the Chitta and reverse all the deviations on it from the true nature of the soul, so that the reflected image of soul in the Chitta is exactly the same as the soul. That is why Yog practice involves continuous purification of the Chitta to a tranquil state and finally in the Kaivalya state, it’s existence literally ceases, as if the mirror has been withdrawn and the Yogi is then established only in Self, there is no more an ‘I’ because Chitta ceases to exist.

The important thing to realize is that whatever crisis you are going through in life also happens to others. I myself have been through many ups and downs in my life but at the ripe age of over 65 years, I do realize that many of those 'so called crisis' were actually turning points in my life for a better future. Crisis in life are nothing unusual, only the degree varies. You can analyze why things went wrong for you at crucial times in the past to take advantage or lessons out of it for the present and future but not to get lost or depressed about the past misfortunes. So, you have to constantly reassure yourself of changing course for the better and change that part of your lifestyles, which has caused you sufferings and adopt those things that bring you permanent joy. Then life becomes enjoyable with everything that comes on your plate. In this way we can clearly understand the meaning of the ‘self’ being our best friend (unite with Self) and worst enemy (stay disconnected with Self).

In conclusion, I wish to categorically state that Yog science helps us to learn well beyond the mere body health and mental peace, it trains to know our ego and beyond ego, the true Self. It gives us a clear understanding about the way each individual operates and empowers us to appreciate others’ strengths and our own shortcomings. It gives us confidence to say sorry when we are in the wrong and forgive others if so necessary. Yog trains us to develop Willpower and then everything can be within our reach. Yog is not just for Stress Management, it also outlines techniques for reflecting on issues in meditation to come out with best possible solutions; in other words, bring out excellence in work. I have used common logic and scriptural wisdom to explain the science of Yog rather than worrying on scientific research, for there cannot be a better research than experiencing facts within your own laboratory, the body. All that I have stated above can be exactly experienced in individual practice as has been the experience of hundreds of people from diverse nationalities and walks of life who have attended my classes or workshops. That is why I always emphasize that the best laboratory to test Yogic Knowledge is your own body and not any sophisticated machines and computers whose reach cannot transcend matter. Future research needs to focus more on the causal level of body and establish that training the ‘I’ can provide complete control over the subtle and physical bodies. That in deed is the true empowerment gained from daily practice of Yog science and living by its fundamental teachings.

C. M. BHANDARI