Patanjali Yoga Sutra — īśvarapraṇidhānādvā||1.23||ईश्वरप्रणिधानाद्वा||
Sādhaka can also attain Samādhi by complete surrender to īśvara, the Supreme Almighty.
There is a beautiful saying:
Bath purifies external body;
Yogāsana purifies physical and physiological body;
Fast purifies health;
Meditation purifies the mind;
Prayer purifies soul;
Charity purifies wealth;
Forgiveness purifies relations;
Surrender purifies ego.
The vidyas can be broadly classified into:
- Aparāvidya: The sciences which try to answer questions like, what, how and why are considered to be ‘Aparāvidyas’.
- Parāvidya: The science that tries to answer the question ‘Who’ is said to be Parāvidya.
Let us try to understand more about this issue. Take the example of the digestive system. The anatomy of the digestive system describes different parts of the system, right from the mouth to anus — full alimentary canal — ie., ‘WHAT’ of the system. Whereas the physiology explains the whole process along which food passes through the body from mouth to anus during digestion, how different parts of the system contribute in the process of digestion, etc, ie., ‘HOW’ of the system. This understanding can be termed as ‘Aparāvidya’.
Bhagavad Gītā also deals with the digestive system in some of the verses. One example is:
अहं वैश्वानरो भूत्वा प्राणिनां देहमाश्रितः।
प्राणापानसमायुक्तः पचाम्यन्नं चतुव्रिधम्॥१५.१४॥
ahaṁ vaiśvānaro bhūtvā prāṇināṁ dehamāśritaḥ.
prāṇāpānasamāyuktaḥ pacāmyannaṁ catuvridham॥15.14॥
In the form of ‘Vaiśvānara agni, combined with prāṇa and apāna, I take shelter in the physical body of all life forms and digest four kinds of foods.
Here, Lord says, ‘HE’ digests the food consumed by life forms, thus answering the question, ‘WHO’. Yes, everything is controlled by the Supreme Lord. Nothing works without Him.
Swāmi Vivekānanda was asked, what did he gain through surrender and prayer. He answered, ‘Of course, I did not gain anything, but I lost anger, frustration, negativity, fear, and the like’.
The nature of water is always to flow down. But the paramātma śakti can make it to elevate itself to higher altitudes into the sky. Don’t try to imagine a calendar or a picture to find out what īśvara is. īśvara, according to patañjali, is the whole of cosmic energy (Universal Soul), Sṛṣṭhikarta (The Creator), sthitikarta (The Sustainer), and layakarta (The Destroyer) of the entire universe. Being the Supreme Ruler, everything is under His control, according to Rājayoga scriptures.
At the end of Mahābhārata war, Uddhava asks Lord Śrīkr̥ṣṇa, ‘Why did you not stop Duryodhana when he was so obstinate? Why did you not guide Dṛtarāṣṭra, when he was so yielding to Duryodhana? Why did you not stop the war, that was so malicious and violent?’ Lord Śrīkr̥ṣṇa answers, ‘In fact, the seed of war was sown during the game of dice. At the beginning of the game of dice, Duryodhana completely surrendered to śakuni, and the latter promised him victory. However, such a surrender was not there on the part of yudhiṣṭhira; not even once he remembered Me, leave alone surrendering. Had he surrendered to Me, he would not have lost the game of dice at all. Only at the end, at the time of disrobing, Droupadi prayed for my help, which she got.’ That is the power of surrender to the Almighty!
Though patañjali has not expressly stated, the polytheism (Multiple Deities’ worship) is surely discouraged in yogasūtra. Surrender to the Supreme Soul is expected of a sādhaka. Whereas, in Bhagavad Gītā, there is a clear message from Bhagavān to strongly believe in monotheism (āñjaneya is the best example for the one who followed monotheism steadfast — he worshiped only śrīrām and none else). The phalas (Fruits) or higher lokas (realms) one gets by the worship of various Deities for the fulfillment of worldly desires are all limited by time and are impermanent.
आब्रह्मभुवनाल्लोकाः पुनरावर्तिनोऽर्जुन।
मामुपेत्य तु कौन्तेय पुनर्जन्म नविद्यते ॥गीता ८.१६॥
ābrahmabhuvanāllokāḥ punarāvartino’rjuna.
māmupetya tu kaunteya punarjanma navidyate ||Gītā 8.16||
Right from manuṣyaloka to Brahmaloka, there is no liberation, as they are limited by time and hence subject to rebirth. But the one who attains to Me (through devotion), is never reborn because I am Timeless.
सर्वधर्मान्परित्यज्य मामेकं शरणं व्रज।
अहं त्वा सर्वपापेभ्यो मोक्षयिष्यामि मा शुचः॥गीता १८.६६॥
sarvadharmānparityajya māmekaṃ śaraṇaṃ vraja|
ahaṃ tvā sarvapāpebhyo mokṣayiṣyāmi mā śucaḥ||Gītā 18.66||
Renouncing all your Dharmas (i.e., giving up all your efforts, sense of doership — kartṛtvabhāva), just (unconditionally) harbor in Me as your ultimate asylum. No need to grieve. I will liberate you from all your sins.
With all its technological advancement, the effort to understand ‘God’ by science is at an infant stage. The experiment conducted in Europe to know the physical evidence for ‘Higgs Boson’ particle, involving 111 countries, spread over 40 years, expending Rs.55,000 Crores, has finally established the existence of ‘GOD Particle’. Scientists have declared unanimously (on 4th July 2012), that this ‘God particle’ is the cause for creation of universe (In the last century, scientists were scoffing at the very talk on ‘God!’). But Indian seers, yogis were/are unanimous and their belief in the existence of ‘God’ was/is unshakable. This celestial belief is as old as man on this earth. Scientists’ ‘God particle’ is a misnomer. Science deals with matter (objective world) alone and cannot deal with vijñānamaya kośa, ānandamayakośa, Brahman, soul, etc, explained in taittirīyopaniṣad. Because they are very subtle and subjective. At the most science can make certain brain studies to understand the changes in the electrical activity in brain cells to understand the effect of happiness/bliss, etc.
śrī rāmakr̥ṣṇa paramahamsa gives a beautiful story to indicate the limitations of science:
An ant went to a huge sugar hill. He ate one grain of sugar, was satisfied (a small stomach!) and went away. While going home, it turned back, looked at the sugar hill and said: “Next time, I will carry this entire sugar hill to my home”.
Will science and spirituality ever converge? There were/are/will be great scientists who simultaneously believe in science and spirituality (like śrī rājārāmaṇṇa). They never felt any need to reject one to pursue the other. They never felt any need to scoff at spirituality just because they are scientists (the other way round is also true). They never felt any need to prove God through scientific experiments. Wanting to know more and more is not something infused by education. Our yogis/seers never had the kind of education that we see today. But they were curious enough to know the ‘Reality’. But the approach to know was different from that of the approach of science. Their study/experimentation was through Dhyāna, contemplation, introspection, but never through sophisticated gadgets that science uses today. It was through ātmabhāva and not through dehabhāva (Matter). Even upaniṣadic Gurus like Pippalāda (praśna), Varuṇa (taittirīya), Yamadharma (kaṭha) never said: “You just believe what is said by me or my predecessors”. Instead, they advised their disciples to ‘quest/seek/search/experiment’ to ‘know/believe’ the ultimate Reality. Because, if you are a believer, you can never become a seeker. Both the great yogis, patañjali and Śrīkr̥ṣṇa are no exceptions. Both have advocated the above-said modus operandi for ultimate knowledge and complete surrender to īṣvara, the sṛṣṭikarta for liberation. Nowhere these greatest of the yogis said ‘God is realizable/knowable through technology’. Look at the following verses:
नाहं वेदैर्न तपसा न दानेन न चेज्यया।
शक्य एवंविधो द्रष्टुं दृष्टवानसि मां यथा॥गीता ११.५३॥
भक्त्या त्वनन्यया शक्य अहमेवंविधोऽर्जुन।
ज्ञातुं द्रष्टुं च तत्त्वेन प्रवेष्टुं च परन्तप॥गीता ११.५४॥
Nāhaṃ vedairna tapasā na dānena na cejyayā|
śakya evaṃvidho draṣṭuṃ dṛaṣṭavānasi māṃ yathā||Gītā 11.53||
bhaktyā tvananyayā śakya ahamevaṃvidho’rjuna|
jñātuṃ draṣṭuṃ ca tattvena praveṣṭuṃ ca parantapa||Gītā 11.54||
Bhagavān declares: This cosmic form what you have seen is not attainable, knowable through the study of Vedic lessons, sacrifice, charity, austerity, etc. Unshakable devotion is the only way to understand, experience and get absorbed in this cosmic form of Mine.
A navigator keeps looking at the distant stars and propels the ship in the right direction. That means those distant stars guide him in the right direction. A true devotee keeps looking at the Divine intently and that Divine only steers him in the Dharmamārga — righteousness or the rectitude. Any small step, that is guided by dharma, could yield enormous benefits to the sādhaka. Dharma is not bondage, but it is liberation and path to the Ultimate. Alpamapyasya dharmasya trāyate mahato bhayāt (Bhagavad Gītā 2.40); that is, Dharma, followed even a little could protect from greatest of the fears (Adharma followed a little could grow into huge magnitude; because, dharma breeds dharma and vice versa).
Hiraṇyakaśipu, Rāvaṇa also practiced penance. But they remained demons. Marīci, Atri, Aṅgīrasa, Paulastya, Pulaha, Kratu, Vasiṣṭha also practiced penance and became great Maharṣis. The difference is purely that of absence or presence of surrender.
