The Cause of Bondage
(Part 1:
Samadhi Pada - An Exposition of the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali)
Everything in all the worlds –
is constituted of the three gunas. Na tadasti pṛithivyāṁ vā divi deveṣu vā punaḥ, sattvaṁ prakṛitijairmuktaṁ
yadebhiḥ syāttribhirguṇaiḥ (B.G. XVIII.40): There is none free from
these three gunas anywhere in creation; and the
freedom from gunas is liberation.
As the old saying goes, stone walls do not a prison make. A prison does not mean a building with walls, because even a house is a building
with walls, but we do not call it a prison. So bondage is not merely a physical
association, but is also a psychological feeling, and ultimately it is a state
of consciousness.
To bring about the ultimate
purity and freedom of consciousness in spite of its so-called association with
the gunas, the Samkhya gives us the
example of a crystal that can falsely appear to be coloured on account of its
proximity to a coloured object. If there is no proximity of the object to the
crystal, there would be no reflection, and the crystal would appear in its
pristine purity. Likewise, it is said that consciousness appears to be bound on
account of what they call adhyasa, or
transference of characters, which happens to take place between consciousness
and the gunas of prakriti in a mysterious manner. This transference of
characters, which is called adhyasa, is the
real bondage.
Our world is a psychological
world and everyone carries a world inside his cap or hat, which causes the
bondage. The larger part of what we are is inside, and that cannot be seen by
us. The only instrument with which we can see things is a pair of eyes, and the
eyes cannot see what is inside us, because even the way in which we see things
through the eyes is conditioned by what we are inside.
We can know our self a little
better when we are absolutely alone, for, in the midst of other people, we put
on a false personality. When we retire to a secluded place for japa, meditation, swadhyaya, etc., the impressions of
the false personality will not leave us so easily. A collector will think he is
still a collector, though he is a retired man. Yet he has a false personality which he has
created in himself due to his association with other people while he was in
service, and those impressions do not leave him even now. We have deep-rooted
thoughts of collecting pension, of old relationships, and many other associated
factors which will be pursuing us wherever we go, in spite of our attempt to
lead a holy life of spiritual practice.
The liberation of
consciousness, which is moksha, said to
be freedom from the gunas of prakriti, cannot be achieved until
the root of bondage is dug out – which means to say, the ultimate connection
with the gunas is snapped. Moreover, our
physical individuality is not merely constituted of the visible body alone. Our
real individuality is in the subtle body. The mind, the intellect, etc., including
the principle of ego, are all in the subtle body, inside this are the pranas, the powers of sense.
This subtle body that is
within us, which is the operative principle of the self-affirming ego, is a
form taken by an ethereal transformation of the three gunas. The self-affirming
consciousness urges itself forward outwardly through the mind and the senses,
and then this urge, called desire, creates impressions. To untie these knots (granthis)
and remove the layers of bondage, that
have formed on account of the many births
that we have taken, requires a herculean effort.
The gunas operate both outwardly and
inwardly. The gunas are the desires inside, as
well as the objects of the desires, so when we tackle the gunas, we have to tackle the
objects of desire as well as the conditions of desire.
Hence, the practice of yoga is
not merely a one-sided effort – it is a total effort in two ways. Firstly, it
is a total effort in the sense that the whole of our personality is worked up
into action in the practice of yoga. Secondly, the whole of the atmosphere,
inwardly as well as outwardly, is taken into consideration for the purpose of
the practice. Thus, it is ultimately an effort of consciousness only. Therefore,
freedom means the freedom of consciousness from its feelings in respect of its
conditions, which are called the gunas.
Continue to read:
“The Study and
Practice of Yoga – Patanjali’s Yoga Sutra” by
Swami Krishnananda
“The
Three Gunas” by Swami Sivananda
“Prakriti
does everything” by Swami Sivananda
“Gunas”
by Swami Sivananda
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