By Victor M Fontane
The real and most important mission we humans have in life is to create the paradigm shift to see and understand our inner divinity, we are not mortal creatures but Devine beings, the essence and the awareness of God. And the most difficult task now is to make it manifest in every movement of life, in other words, knowing and being divine. The goal in non-dual vedanta is Jivanmukti and according to Hindu philosophy, is the state of being spiritually liberated while still alive. The Sanskrit term is derived from the root words, jiva, meaning "life," and mukti, meaning "freedom." Jivanmukti is a state in which one possesses limitless knowledge, free from suffering, and enjoys eternal bliss.
But, Jivanmukti has three components:
Knowledge of reality.
Eradication of desires.
Destruction of the mind but basically it means “samadhi”, deep concentration and deep absorption, perfect meditation, perfect purity of mind and enlightenment.
In the enlightened one they arise simultaneously, but sometimes there are exceptions where is possible to have one without the others. Thus, there are cases of people having a spiritual breakthrough, have one of them but the other two have not been accomplished to a high level and the person is enlighten but not a jivanmukta. It has a great power and can uplift, inspire and move people but also can slip and fall and the recommendation to the person is to do more intense spiritual practice. Good example is a person with a kidney transplant has so many restriction because with no restriction the body will probably reject the organ and will not get the benefits of the transplant. Likewise, new knowledge gained in your spiritual breakthrough needs to be protected. Doing so, at the point of death you will be fully enlighten or moksha, your body falls away but you will be liberated and set free forever. Swami Vivekananda explained and encouraged to follow the four yogas. He said that all the four yogas are indirect path to enlightenment, there is not direct path. So, bringing the spiritual path, knowing and being is difficult.
Swami Vivekananda spelt out the four pathways of attaining moksha from the worldly pleasure and attachment.
Karma-yoga, or the yoga of selfless action tells that through the correct actions, the ‘troublemaker’ ego can turn into the ‘troubleshooter’ ego. It says that even if you do not believe in God, just focus on your work with utmost honesty, dedication and power of your mind. Be non-attached and keep working for work’s sake. Instead of worrying about the results, leave the fruits of your work to the Lord.
Bhakti-yoga is the process of inner purification. Love is the vital element for all human beings, it teaches. Love is pure and cosmic, but ego pollutes it and gives out negative elements like lust, greed, jealousy and anger. God is the only one who truly loves us. Pour holy thoughts into the mind with prayer, chant holy words, study holy books and keep the holy company close to your heart.
Raja-yoga seeks to attain the divine by igniting the flame of knowledge of the self within. Most seekers do not have the patience and perseverance to follow this path for the sacrifices that it calls for. Raja-yoga dispels that the mind is perverted to follow the path of reason. Teaching the process of meditation and concentration, it tells you to confront the restlessness of the mind and uproot it.
Jnana-yoga is the path of knowledge. Weeding out the darkness of ignorance through the light of knowledge, it brings the ‘fire’ and ‘light’ alive by burning all the impurities of the mind. The mind does not give up its attachment to worldly pleasures unless it has tasted something greater and higher. Self-knowledge, according to jnana-yoga, is true liberation.
With the eight limbed Patanyali yoga sutras then we should start with the initial practices, Yama and Niyana.
Simply put, the yamas are things not to do, or restraints, while the niyamas are things to do, or observances. Together, they form a moral code of conduct. The five yamas, self-regulating behaviors involving our interactions with other people and the world at large, include. Ahimsa: nonviolence.
The five yamas, self-regulating behaviors involving our interactions with other people and the world at large, include
The five niyamas, personal practices that relate to our inner world, include
Saucha: purity
Santosha: contentment
Tapas: self-discipline, training your senses
Svadhyaya: self-study, inner exploration
Ishvara Pranidhana: surrender
Follows: yoga asanas, pranayama (breathing), pratyahara (withdrawal of the senses) then dhanara (focus) and dhyana (meditation), finally samadhi, a state of intense concentration achieved through meditation. In Hindu yoga this is regarded as the final stage, at which union with the divine is reached (before or at death).
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