Yoga and Yogi
February 2, 2011 Comments Off
With the attainment of knowledge, people come to conjugate with the Supreme Almighty
and which results into dispersion of their ignorance.
To attain Moksha,
it is necessary for a man to shun attachment first of all. Only after that, he will become free from sorrows.
When he becomes free from sorrow, he unites with the supreme almighty. This phenomenon is
known as Yoga. Unification with the supreme almighty enables a man to
attain knowledge and finally Moksha (salvation).
It is therefore essential for the all those seeking salvation that
first of all they should renounce affection and attachment for the
worldly objects including their near and dear ones.
Knowledge and renunciation are nothing but two sides of the same coin and one is
necessary to give rise to the other. Home is nothing but the place for
staying, food is nothing but the energy required sustaining our body and
knowledge is nothing but an aid to attain salvation. Anything that
caused obstacles in the way of salvation is ignorance.
A living being is bound to receive the fruits of action no matter whether they
are good or bad. Hence one should carry out his duties without bothering
for the results. With the attenuation of the results of the action
performed in the previous births, a living being becomes free from the
cycles of life and death.
With the attainment of Yoga, Yogis take refuge in none other than Brahma.
But the path of attaining Yoga is
indeed difficult, if not impossible. One has to conquer his soul first
of all because the soul itself is regarded as invincible. Control of
physical impurities with the help of Pranayam, sins by determination,
lust by self-restrains and contemplation on God are the ways to conquer
the soul.
During the process of conquering the soul, different kinds of allurements
begins to divert the mind of the Yogis. It is
imperative for the Yogi to keep his mind busy by observing fast,
worshipping and contemplating in God. It is the duty of the Yogi to
always contemplate on God, only then he can seek solace in Him. Thus,
after controlling his senses, a Yogi ought to eat and sleep less, attain
unification with the Supreme Being. O king! A Yogi unifies with Brahma
once his physical and mental faults are removed. Then, he never
separates from the Supreme Being.
Daily Routine of a Yogi
Respect and insult are the two reasons for love and hatred.
Yogis attain perfection by understanding insult as respect
and vice versa. A Yogi should therefore never attend social functions
like Shraadh, marriage ceremonies or other festivities. He should not
accept the hospitality of others and should shun unnecessary journeys.
A Yogi should seek alms only after the householder and his family has
dined. A Yogi should accept alms only from those households whose
inmates are gentle, religious and free from blemishes and should accept
things like whey, milk, fruits, edible roots, gram flour etc. Before
going to dine, a Yogi should offer his food to the deities reciting he
following mantras-
PRANANYAY SWAHAA
APANAY SWAHA
SAMANAY SWAHAU
DANAY SWAHA
VYANAY SWAHA
After reciting these mantras one by one and offering food to the deities who are present in
his body as different forms of air, the Yogi may now proceed to dine.
Control of senses and greed, celibacy, renunciation and non-violence are the
five resolutions of a Yogi. Control of anger, service to the Guru,
sanctity, eating less and studying Vedas regularly are the five norms
for a Yogi. A Yogi must practice meditation at a desolate place, forest,
cave or peak of a mountain. A true celibate has full control over his
speech, mind and action. Iron and gold have equal worth in his eye; he
loves no one and hates no one.
SOURCE- Markandeya Purana
for meanings of Sanskrit words in the text
