Ultimately the yogi must be guided by the Divine from within his own consciousness
Who is God?
Since yoga is a practical matter, we need some workable, pragmatic
understanding of the nature of God. For how will we seek and
recognize Him if we have no idea who He is? Patanjali supplies us
with exactly the kind of definition we need: "Ishwara is a
particular Spirit Who is untouched by the afflictions of life,
actions [karma] and the results and impressions [conditionings]
produced by these actions.”1
The unique Being
God is a Person in the fullest sense of the term. Furthermore, He is
a special, unique Person—not just abstract Existence or Being. God
is a"particular"being in the sense that God can be"picked out"
or"singled out"from among all other things or beings.
Though God is within all things and all things are within Him, yet
He stands apart.2 For God is unique in the sense that He is Ekam
Evam Advityam Brahman—the God Who is One, Only, Without a Second. He
is not one of many, nor is He even one of two. He is ONE in every
sense of the term. God is neither conditioned nor confined in any
manner. Therefore He is not touched or tainted by the afflictions or
faults of life (relative existence), in contrast to us who live
within them as though they were the air we breathe and the basis of
our existence. Nor is Ishwara bound or in any way conditioned by
actions; therefore He is ever unchanging.
Infinite Consciousness: Omniscience
God is the essence and the apex of Consciousness, so Patanjali
further says: "In Him is the highest limit of omniscience.”3
Commenting on this, Shankara says: "The all-pervading mind of the
supreme Lord is in simultaneous contact with every object.”The
omniscience of God is total and absolute, for in truth God is
Omnipotence, Omniscience, and Omnipresence.
Then for the yogi Patanjali introduces a significant fact. He does
not just say that omniscience (sarvaj—a) is in God, but that the
seed of omniscience (sarvaj—a bijam) is in Him. within God is the
seed or potentiality of omniscience for those who are united with
Him through their practice of yoga. Omniscience is not just
objective knowledge, but infinity of consciousness—the Being of God
Himself.
The two Selves
"Who am I?”Is the age-old question asked with"Who is God?”The
true"I"of each sentient being is the individual spirit, the self
(atman). But there is more. God (Brahman) is the Self of the self—as
the ocean is the"self"of every wave. The illumined know that they
are the immortal self whose ultimate Self is the Immortal Itself. We
are spirits within Spirit, in a wondrous way both ourselves and
Brahman, both finite and infinite.
"Like two birds of golden plumage, inseparable companions, the
individual self and the immortal Self are perched on the branches of
the selfsame tree. The former tastes of the sweet and bitter fruits
of the tree; the latter, tasting of neither, calmly observes. The
individual self, deluded by forgetfulness of his identity with the
divine Self, bewildered by his ego, grieves and is sad. But when he
recognizes the worshipful Lord as his own true Self, and beholds his
glory, he grieves no more.”4
"That being who is the power of all powers, and is born as such, who
embodies himself in the elements and in them exists, and who has
entered the lotus of the heart, is the immortal self.”5
"In the effulgent lotus of the heart dwells Brahman, who is
passionless and indivisible. He is pure, he is the light of lights.
Him the knowers of the self attain.”6
"Brahman is supreme; he is self-luminous, he is beyond all thought.
Subtler than the subtlest is he, farther than the farthest, nearer
than the nearest. He resides in the lotus of the heart of every
being.”7
"He who glows in the depths of your eyes—that is Brahman; that is
the Self of yourself. He is the Beautiful One, he is the Luminous
One. In all the worlds, forever and ever, he shines!"8
Meditation is the key to knowledge of the self and the Self of the
self. Knowing one, both are known—so say the sages.”Wise, self-
controlled, and tranquil souls, who are contented in spirit, and who
practice austerity and meditation in solitude and silence, are freed
from all impurity, and attain by the path of liberation to the
Immortal, the truly existing, the changeless Self.”9
God is the guru of all
Since God is eternal, it is from Him that all knowledge has come—
especially the revelation of spiritual truth. As Vyasa
observes: "His purpose is to give grace to living beings, by
teaching knowledge and dharma [righteousness or religion].” "There
is no other but God to give the teaching which is a boat by which
they can cross over the sea of samsara, and He teaches knowledge and
dharma to those who take sole refuge in Him....For all the kinds of
knowledge arise from Him, as sparks of fire from a blaze or drops of
water from the sea," says Shankara. Therefore Patanjali
concludes: "Being unconditioned by time He is Guru even of the
Ancients.”10
Dwelling in the hearts of all, God continues to be the guru of
questing souls. This does not mean that qualified spiritual teachers
are not helpful to us, but ultimately the yogi must be guided by the
Divine from within his own consciousness. Therefore the great poet-
saint Tukaram wrote in one of his hymns: "The guru-disciple
relationship is a sign of immaturity.”11
Who is God?
www.atmajyoti.org/me_om_yoga_book_03.asp
1) Yoga Sutras 1:24
2)"They are contained in me, but I am not in them...I stand apart from them all, supreme and deathless" (Bhagavad Gita 7:12, 13).”For my spirit stands apart, watching over Maya, the maker" (Bhagavad Gita 9:9).”Standing apart, He sustains" (Bhagavad Gita 13:14).”He is within and without: He lives in the live and the lifeless: subtle beyond mind's grasp; so near us, so utterly distant" (Bhagavad Gita 13:15).”Although I am not within any creature, all creatures exist within me" (Bhagavad Gita 9:4).
3) Yoga Sutras 1:25
4) Mundaka Upanishad 3.1.1,2
5) Katha Upanishad 2:1:7
6) Mundaka Upanishad 2.2.9
7) Mundaka Upanishad 3.1.7
8) Chandogya Upanishad 4:15:1
9) Mundaka Upanishad 1.2.11
10) Yoga Sutras 1:26
11) Tukaram's Teachings by S. R. Sharma, p. 20
Dear All,
For a few years i have been insisting that it is possible to meditate anywhere, anytime on the Divine Mother within, and it is not necessary to have Shri Mataji's photo. i have also insisted that Shri Mataji is just the incarnation of the Devi and that we should thus meditate on the Shakti within ............. and discard Her external manifestation.
This has caused a lot of distress and commotion amongst the ignorant rank and file i.e., the vast majority of SYs. It is pointless arguing with them. One day Shri Mataji will leave - SYs will then be compelled to understand that"ultimately the yogi must be guided by the Divine from within his own consciousness.”
For all the time, devotion and sacrifice of Shri Mataji over decades to enlighten SYs they have hardly understood 10% of Her Divine Message ......... and i am in a generous Christmas mood. i do not consider SYs to be better enlightened than the rest of humanity, perhaps only marginally. But if you use their Sahaja Yoga Subtle System Religion knowledge as a yardstick to gauge enlightenment the rest of humanity is better off. At least some of the later are illumined enough to know that"ultimately the yogi must be guided by the Divine from within his own consciousness.”i never once heard a SY saying the same in all my years in the collective/organization. In fact it is till today still regarded as an Agnya problem, one of the mind-numbing number of catches of the official SYSSR. It is indeed a great blessing to break free from this ignorant collective bunch and be guided by the Antharayamin. i wish the same blessings to all.
regards,
jagbir
Indweller (Antharayamin) is the only Being worth realizing
Indweller (Antharayamin) is Shakti/Holy Spirit/Ruh/Eykaa Mayee
Indweller (Antharayamin) - Liberation (moksha) consists in realizing this
Indweller (Antaryamin) of Granth drawn from Brihadaranyaka Upanishad
"The supreme divinity, Lalita, is one's own blissful Self.”
"The supreme divinity, Lalita, is one's own blissful Self.”#1
"The supreme divinity, Lalita, is one's own blissful Self.”#2
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