by Gurani Anjali
Yoga is a way of life. It is a science. It is a philosophy. It is a way to be. But one cannot be if one does not persevere. Perseverance, one day at a time; at work, at play, in the wanderings of the mind— perform with perseverance. Yoga is a way of life. It is not enough to have indirect knowledge. To read from books and to hear from great minds is not enough. Indirect knowledge can be very seductive, and it may give you the impression that you really know it all. Yoga is a way of life and we are put to the test every day. What is put in the mind must come out in the body, and what is in the body, must be shown everywhere.
Yoga is a way of life. So watch out. Don’t be too carried away by what you read, and then say, “Oh yeah, I know that.” In actuality, that is a fact, too; you do know that in the moment of that reading, but then in the becoming of your life, in day to day circumstances, what are your reactions? What are the manifestations of an internal realization? The whole world can be amused by your actions and reactions. But, can you be amused by your own actions and reactions? You see the world as it is and you see everyone, how they are, and you take note of how everything is outside of you, but are you watching you, watching others?
Yoga is a way of life. Book knowledge is inspirational. But never succumb to that sophisticated delusion of saying, “I know it.” Indirect knowledge is indirect knowledge. It can become your own, but until it does, it is not. “This above all, to your own self be true; then you prove false to no one.”1 If you can live with yourself, then you may live with others. If you have irritability, arrogance, judgments, anger, hatred, envy, pride, jealousy, you cannot live with others.
Yoga is a way of life. Freedom from ignorance is something we want on the Yoga path. This is not freedom so that you can do your thing for a change, at last. It is a freedom from ignorance, from not knowing the real from the unreal. When one knows, one becomes and one is. It is very important to know yourself, not to know merely in the mind, because many thoughts arise in the mind; they come and they go. But you must know yourself in reality. Your actions and reactions are important. Therefore, it is not enough to know in the mind. You must know in the body also, because the body carries out what the mind holds.
To be a true Yogi is to be a true spiritual being, one who treats a stone and a diamond the same. When one can do that, one has the ability to go beyond. It is not enough to just say, “Oh yes, these are all human beings, and they are just like me. I see the self everywhere.” It is not enough to see this. It is action that proves what one is seeing. That is why we have action in this world, to prove the realization, the internal realization of the living being (jiva) who seeks truth. The actions are very important.
Actions are such an important part of spiritual evolution. It is not enough to know with the mind; you must also know if it is direct or indirect knowledge. I’ve heard many stories about how an individual will read a book and suddenly they have knowledge. That is not possible. Real knowledge is embodiment. Actions show where the jiva (the seeker of truth) is at. It is shown in sincerity, honesty and in knowing that what is within you is quietly waiting for you to be truthful and honest. With honesty comes respect. With respect, comes adoration. With adoration comes long-suffering. Suffering comes from waiting. Waiting. Just waiting. Not only waiting in meditation or when doing asanas, or pranayama, but waiting with every breath one takes.
Spiritual life is not like going for a diploma or getting a certificate of recognition. Spiritual life is more than that. Spiritual life is walking slowly, but quickly, being alert, not asleep. Spirituality is not just thinking of “me.” Spiritual life is long – suffering. To open your heart to the Mahapurusha (great consciousness), to create a love affair with joyfulness and waiting. You may read the Bhagavad Gita, the Puranas, the Vedas, the Upanishads; you may read all the philosophical texts, and because it is the human voice speaking person to person, one tends to have the belief that one knows it all. Don’t be seduced by this. When you read, read in such a manner that you have respect for the author. And see that the writing was written at a point in time because everything is done in the moment. No matter what century it occurred in, the moment is all there, is, and therefore, we are easily seduced into agreement that, / know this, I feel this, I see this. It is very seductive.
The seeker of truth must read in such a manner to give respect to the author. What is being read was written years ago by a life that you do not know. So the first obeisance goes to the author. When we do the asanas (Yoga postures), or practice the yamas (abstinences) and niyamas (observances), bring to mind the great individual, Patanjali. When you read the Vedas think of the Seers, the great Sages. When you read any book remember the author. Don’t grasp and claim as your own, but take it into your life so that you may be opened up as they were. Great tapas (austerity, heat) has to be done on the spiritual path. Tapas makes us surrender, allows us to become humble and creates a softness in us. That is tapas. It takes away the tension and the clinging. It will take us from a place of attachment to non-attachment. Then when we get up and walk and go here or there, we must see Yoga in action. One who is very restricted to mental activity is attached, finds it very difficult to stay on the path.
The seeker of truth must create a love to know the real, the Mahapurusha, the one in the many and the many in the one. One must cultivate a strong love for that. We can do a lot of asanas and make the body feel good. We can do a lot of pranayama (breath work) and open up the nadis (pathways of the body). We can do a lot of fasting. But the reality of what we want to change is the clinging that we do and the nonsensical afflictions we have in life. We want to be removed from all this so that we may see, know and show in our actions that internal realization. It is important to speak and to say, “I have this. I know this.” But they are mere words, you must show it.
Yoga is a way of life. When we look at pictures of great monasteries, temples, and great places of pilgrimage, we are moved to go there. When you see the Buddhist monks chanting their mantras (chants), and doing their mudras (symbolic hand gestures), it moves you to want to do what they are doing. You must be prepared for long-suffering in order to do that. We look up to figures like Mahatma Gandhi and Christ. We look at many great beings in time, and we aspire to their greatness. We would love to be like them. We think of the life of Buddha. It is so wonderful to see a Bodhisattva, a person who is living so that he may spread compassion to all living beings. All this is wonderful to look at. Look at some of the temples, lots of gold and wonderful architecture. You want to be there. There, too, is long-suffering. Who built those temples? How were they built? Those great monasteries, those great saints, those great high beings, how did they live? Unfortunately, we are not so concerned with how they lived. We want what they had.
When we see these great works that have been left behind, we cannot help but ponder at the wonder of it all. The Taj Mahal, for example, is such a wonderful building. To step into it opens one up to a realization that there must be more to life than this. Every great structure, every great manifestation has been brought about by long-suffering. When the heart cries out and compassion is overflowing, that is when something is going to be born. Long-suffering, waiting, waiting, waiting. To have ahimsa (non-violence) ringing in your ears day and night will create a new you. With aparigraha (non-attachment, non-possessiveness) ringing in your ears everyday, a new you will open up. Yoga is not something that is done periodically, now and then or whenever. The practice of Yoga is done constantly, continually. Constantly and continually. To see a stone and an emerald as the same. To see your brother and another’s as the same. To see your children and other children as the same. To live in such a manner takes long-suffering, takes the practice of tapas, doing a lot of austerities. It is a continuous movement. The seeker of truth allows for sadhana (practice) to be done at the classical times (sunrise and sunset). At the same time, he or she makes every moment of his or her life the right time for sadhana. It is wonderful to get up early in the morning to see the sunrise. But for the true seeker, every moment becomes sadhana. Om shanti.
1. Hamlet by William Shakespeare, Act1, Scene 3.↩