Yogi Speaks

What is renunciation? Its literal meaning is a formal rejection of beliefs, lifestyles, and/or course of action. In religious and spiritual terms, it means renouncing all material lifestyles, relationships, and living life as a renunciate monk. It is very popular in India. It is said that one who has renounced this material world has come on the path to God.  A renunciate or a "sanyasi" as we call it in India, basically means he/she renunciates all the desires for himself/herself. All their course of action would be either for the attainment of Enlightenment or for the betterment of society or any other selfless motive. So they move out of the material world. They refrain from working for personal gain, or from living with family, or from having any sensual pleasures, from living an ordinary lifestyle.  All this is done just to direct their life energies towards the higher goal, Self - Realization.   Bhagwan Ramana Maharshi says, " Sannyasa is only the renunciation o...

In Advaita Vedanta, which is known as the non-dual system of the religion, it is said that there is only one Self (Atman) and that is all-pervasive, that is the Supreme Self (Brahmn) and that is the Ultimate Reality. Rest all are the mere 5 sensory experiences happening in the Self and the Self is beyond all the experiences, but being aware of it all, unaffected by any of it. It is everywhere yet its location is nowhere at the same time which means it is beyond space-time continuum. It is the same Self having different experiences through whole universe at once. It is all a divine play(Leela). Duality exists because the Consciousness is locked up in this mind-body matrix which is called the great illusion (Maya) and when it is freed, it starts to perceive the Ultimate Reality, the Oneness of All there is and there is not. Whereas, Buddhists say there is no Self. There is nothing at the core of it, it is all emptiness (Shunya). What is there are mere sensations, perceptions of the m...

I often hear people especially in religions and spirituality talking about serving other people and I find myself thinking about it. Then I question myself, serving whom? A particular society or community? Who are these people who need to be served and why? Why am I concerned about serving others? If I am really concerned about them, are they still "others?" YES, read the previous line again.  This I feel is the whole point of doing selfless action for others(Karma Yoga). "Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honour preferring one another;"  When the service is performed because, on a deeper level, somewhere, you have realized that they are no "others" but your own people(I would restrain myself from using the term your own "Self" since I'm not enlightened yet;). Then whatever you do for them becomes sacred. When their joy becomes your joy, which further means that when you have crossed the boundaries of your worldly i...

Knowledge and Wisdom, both the terms sound the same to most people. Some may distinguish between the two, but may not have given enough thought to this. So let's go into it today. As per the general definition, knowledge means knowing of facts, truths, and principles. And Wisdom means, "knowledge of what is true or right coupled with just judgment as to action" as dictionary.com describes it. So where does the difference lie? Well, let's take an example from the religions. Religions teach people killing someone is a sin, stealing is a sin. Ok, the principles are told, now it's in people's knowledge. But what the shocking part in this example is that does a Messiah or Avatar has to come down from heaven and educate people about all these fundamental things? Why aren't these principles arising from people's own level of perception? And that is where I believe the whole difference between Knowledge and Wisdom lies. When the truths, the fundamental princ...