The word spiritual is a combination of two words – “spirit + natural”, meaning – “one’s true identity”. When we start identifying ourselves through the role we are playing in life, for instance – “I am a doctor, lawyer, woman, man…..etc.”, we create an image about ourselves within our inner mind. This is called “Ego” – a false image much deviated from who we really are. False images can have no strong foundation, and hence gets shaken very often by situations and people.
If a person is spiritual, it means he is natural, in his original form. Now, this leaves us with a question – “who I really am?”. First of all, I am a thinking, experiencing being. Thoughts are not something physical which I can experience with the physical senses. I am not any physical entity which is bound to get destroyed at some point of time. I am a ‘soul’, the ‘energy of consciousness’.
My form is the only form that cannot be destroyed. I am an infinitesimally small point of light that cannot be divided. I, the soul, am a subtle star, a point source of light, energy and consciousness. I am the source of my thoughts, words and action. The soul is like a driver and the body is like a car. To be in complete control, the driver has to sit in a place where he has complete access to the controls and also can collect all necessary information to make decisions. Each thought begins with an impulse from the brain. In Raja yoga, it is considered that the soul is located in the centre of the forehead in the vicinity of the brain. This knowledge provides me with a constant point of reference on which I can focus my attention.
By practicing this knowledge, I start strengthening the foundation of all life values – ‘constant peace’. By identifying everyone with whom I interact daily as ‘souls’, I end the war of ego. I look at everybody and the situations I confront from their original spiritual perspective which helps me easily reach the root cause of a problem.
Through maintaining soul-consciousness in this way, I continue to progress towards my aim of attaining constant peace of mind. In Rajayoga meditation, I bring my thoughts in meditation directly into daily life. This is the first and foremost important step in making meditation practical. As I go around doing things – ‘ I experience being a soul and acting a role through the body’. When I see my fellow humans, I look beyond the name, body, race, culture, sex or age and see with the elevated vision of equality, a soul, like myself, simply playing a different role. This is something which does of course take time and patient efforts to practice. The reward of the practice is enjoyable in itself and the greater benefits are bound to accumulate gradually.
In this column – Realising values of life, we will discuss about how yoga – the true union with your original identity – shall bring about self-transformation and eventually ‘world transformation’ and easy-to-practice meditation techniques.
Practice until we meet again: start with 10 to 15 minutes, preferably early in the morning. Choose a quiet and well-ventilated place and sit. Feel the silence around you sinking deeply. You could play mild music for the initial kick-start which shall blend well with the quiet atmosphere. Do not stop your thoughts forcefully, observe your thoughts and do not judge them, let them go.
Slowly, start visualising yourself as a point of light in between the two eyebrows. You the soul, are a form of peace and happiness and you are the controller of this body – experience this thought. Relax and take a slow deep breath.
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