108 Truths of the Yoga of Enlightenment🔗

Let me take a few minutes to introduce this great
book, Patanjali Yoga Sutras, and today's subject to
all of you. You may be aware that I am delivering a
series of discourses on Patanjali, he is the father of
yoga, from this book all yogic traditions originated.
I can say not only all yogic traditions, almost all
religions are influenced directly or indirectly
from these sacred and secret teachings.
Maybe, five thousand year old these
teachings are from a great master Patanjali
who lived in a place called Chidambaram, in
South India in Tamil Nadu and left the body in
a place called Rameshwara in South India. Just
(sneeze) in few aphorisms, in few words, in few sutras
he is trying to explain all the great truths, just in seed
form he is sharing all the great truths of Yoga with us.
What is Yoga?
Yoga forms one of the six systems of Indian
philosophy. The word Yoga comes from the Sanskrit
word 'yuj' which means to join or yoke. Whenever we
talk about a union we presume duality. The two come
together to become one. First lets us understand the
term union correctly so that before we commence
the study of yoga, we are sure about its goals and
objectives. Yoga means the union of the individual with
the absolute. By our very nature we think of ourselves
to be separate individuals. Yoga teaches us that by
our very nature we are not separate as we think. We
are the ultimate potentiality due to which all dualities
come into existence. Yoga teaches us that we are not
one among the many but the source from which the
entire manifestation of dualities has come into being.
We are one with the absolute and it is due to our
false identification with the body and the mind that
makes us believe that we are separate. Yoga means
the union of this separate entity, the individuality
with the absolute or God. In this book we talk about
Yoga-sutras, a scripture written thousands of years
ago by a great
sage by the name Patanjali.
Patanjali was an extraordinary
scientist, a real scientist of the inner
world. He was an enlightened master from
ancient India. We remember him for his great book,
the book of books, and the root for millions of books.
He created a formula and aphorism for spiritual
philosophy.
All spiritual literature can be classified into 3 categories:
one outlining goals of what you wish to achieve in life,
death, what happens after death, what is atman etc,
books of philosophy, shastras. These books speak
about the truth beyond life and death, intellectual
material. Difficulty is that this philosophy is not a
method or technique to transform your life. They are
perceptions of individual philosophers. Millions have
answered the question of what happens after death,
and yet it is a virgin question. We do not know the
answer. Each person who tried to answer created
one school of thought. These books do not give any
answers or solutions; they just build hypothesis. There
is a second level of literature: songs in praise of God.
These are for emotional people; fairy tales. Third
kind of spiritual literature is for those seeking
solutions, a seeker at the being level, asking
for clear-cut explanations of spirituality.
These are sutras, the aphorisms, the
techniques to provide solutions.
A young man asks Socrates: Should I marry.
Socrates had a terrible wife, who used to beat him.
Socrates said: you should marry. Only two things can
happen. You can have a good wife and lead a happy
life. Or you will be like me, and become a philosopher
and it will be good for other people. People who
are not happy, down to earth create philosophies.
Philosophy is complicate truths, to make people
not understand what they should understand. Like
psychiatry, try to cure, but not to cure. Philosophers
just raise questions and never answers; they always
try to postpone answers. You will be happy with
one philosopher's answers till you read another
philosopher. Ultimately philosophy leads to confusion.
Philosophy may appeal and help a very small subset of
people. But its not a guaranteed solution for all. Many
would get bored with philosophy because philosophy
will never give any solution. It will only build a concept
trying to explain the ultimate reality but will never tell
you what to do.
Similarly devotional literature can be equally
misleading. Again it's a domain for the few who are
blessed with devotional qualities. I always say that
it's very easy to love God but it's difficult to love
your wife. You can always say that I love God or I
love the world but the real problem comes when
you have to love your own wife. When you cannot
love a person whom you see every day how can you

love God whom you have never seen. Once a great
sage from southern India by the name Ramanuja was
asked a question by a brahmacari (loosely defined
means a celibate; a person who abstains from any
sense pleasures) "how to develop love for god".
Ramanuja replied to that person asking him whether
he had fallen in love with any person before or has he
experienced a long lasting relationship with anybody
before. That person was shocked. He said that I am a
pure brahmacari, a celibate. How can I fall in love with
anybody? Ramanuja exclaimed that if you cannot fall
in love with people whom you see everyday; how can
you develop love for God whom you have never seen.
Your love of God is all unfulfilled fantasies. You may
feel hurt. Please understand that for most of you God
is only a concept. How can you love a concept that you
do not even know? Patanjali does not depend on any
faith. He is providing clear-cut techniques. He does
not ask you to sing praises for God. He gives you a
solution for experiencing his state.
Patanjail's book is called Yoga Sutra: Aphorisms to
achieve union with the ultimate energy. His sutras
or aphorism teach you how to achieve this union.
Of thousands of books I have read, this is the most
scientific, most practical. There is a movie called 'What
the Bleep do we know' and another book 'Fabric of
Cosmos', explaining Quantum Physics. Patanjali is
more practical and more scientific than any of these
excellent books and movies. A Scientist has thirst for
truth; he analyses data without prejudice; he has the
courage to follow the conclusion of his research. One
who has all these qualities and one who does not
compromise on any of these parameters is a scientist.
Patanjali is an extraordinary scientist and is the father
of all eastern philosophy and religions. Patanjali has
inspired all those who came after him, knowingly or
unknowingly.
When Galileo said that Earth is not flat and that the
Earth follows the Sun, there was so much pressure
to make him recant. He had to withdraw his views
under pressure from religious leaders. He said I have
to change my views, but the Sun and earth will not
change their nature. Even in modern day research,
researchers have to listen to their fund providers.
In olden days Kings and religious leaders controlled
them. But Patanjali does not bend, does not change
his views. His declarations were so foolproof that no
one could defy them.
A scientist researches and provides a formula to
reproduce their results in the outer world. A mystic
produces a formula to reproduce experiences in the
inner world. Patanjali's yoga sutras are valid even after
5,000 years; they are still fool proof and still produce
intended results for hundreds of yogis (practitioner
of yoga) around the world. Many spiritual masters
produced formulas that suited only specific groups;
intellectuals, emotional people, being level people,
men, women etc. There is a book, Men are from Mars
Women are from Venus. Someone said that this is
not correct, they cannot be from same universe; their
distance is too great. Here is a Master who provided
techniques to open all doors to all people. Patanjali
yoga sutras are for the whole world.