I have been discussing lot of things for the past some years. Most of my talks were around Yoga, Meditation, Indian philosophy and so on.
I have always encouraged people to ask questions before accepting anything. Many of my readers have asked me questions both through by blog as well as through other channels.
I thought why not address some of those questions one by one, for the benefit of everyone. And here I am, taking a few interesting questions that you asked me and the ones that I felt needed some detailed answers.
You can add one of your own questions by posting them in the ‘Ask me’ page of my blog as a comment. I will surely answer them if they are relevant. I may not look at other channels like face book or twitter or comments on one of the many podcast channels etc. for want of time. Sorry.
Here we go.
Today’s question is “What is the best path for ultimate realization?”
On reading my recent book “Krishna’s 4 paths to ultimate happiness”, one of my readers asked me whether whatever I have written in that book does not contradict what a well-known Swamiji says!
Before I get into what the contradictions are, and defend my position, let me very briefly discuss what I wrote in that book.
My main thesis in that book is that there are broadly 4 spiritual paths, each well suited for people with certain predominant personality. More specifically, I was talking about Path of intellect or Jnyaana Yoga, Path of Meditation or Dhyaana Yoga, Path of action or Karma Yoga, and Path of devotion or Bhakti Yoga, that are discussed elaborately in Bhagavad Gita. I further claim that all these 4 paths lead one to the same destination namely bestowing of ultimate happiness. The paths are different in terms of practice, but they are equivalent since all of them take one to the same destination.
What is Swamiji’s objection?
Apparently, this Swamiji says that only path of intellect or Jnyaana Yoga can take you to that destination and other three are only supportive. They can only help you in moving on the path of intellect. As such, they can’t take you to the destination.
The Swami in question is a well-known orator from the Ramakrishna order. He presently heads a Ramakrishna institution in US. No doubt he is a great scholar and very popular. He is a great proponent of Advaita Vedanta. But I am amazed that he holds such a view.
My claims were not based on my personal views or experiences. As far as I can understand, Bhagavad Gita clearly says that. Krishna definitely says that “whatever state a person moving on the path of intellect reaches, is nothing but that reached by a person moving on the path of Meditation”. In another verse, the same Gita says that one experiences incomparable bliss when one reaches that state. I called it ultimate happiness.
That means, at least Path of intellect and path of meditation lead to the same destination. Now let us look at other two paths.
Krishna quotes the examples of past masters, and asserts that one who moves on the path of action or Karma Yoga, would attain liberation or Moksha. Similarly, he also promises Moksha to any one who ardently follows the path of devotion or Bhakti Yoga. That means, Moksha is the destination of both path of action as well as path of devotion. So, that way these two paths are equivalent.
What is liberation or Moksha? Later Indian Dualist philosophers have categories and hierarchies even in Moksha. It is not defined as one state. But an Advaiti views Moksha as a state which is bereft of ‘name and form’. A state in which the individual soul identifies itself with the supreme soul or Atma. In the same Bhagavad Gita, Krishna also says that anyone who identifies himself with the Atma ‘becomes’ Atma. That means there is no separate existence. That is what the Upanishads also declare.
Now, even the person moving on the path of Intellect also identifies himself with the Atma towards the end of his enquiry. He too ‘becomes’ Atma. So also a Yogi who gets into the state of ultimate Samadhi.
That means, no matter which path you follow, you ultimately reach the same destination namely ‘becoming one with the Atma’. And happiness is just a consequence of becoming one with the Atma since the Atma is inherently blissful.
But then there is a small doubt. While Krishna explicitly says that the destination of path of intellect and path of Meditation are the same, why is he not making a blanket statement that all 4 paths lead to the same destination? Why take two at a time and indirectly suggest equivalence?
If you observe carefully, path of intellect as well as path of meditation are paths that involve the intellect directly or indirectly. So, the end result is explained using a language that can be understood through intellect. Where as path of action and path of devotion are more driven by emotions, and intellect has a secondary role. So, naturally, even the destination is explained in a way that can be experienced and not understood intellectually. It is a question of understanding oneness versus experiencing oneness.
So, if you look beyond superficial differences, all four paths are equivalent in terms of where they lead to. That is what Bhagavad Gita conveys.
Swamiji’s statement further surprises me since it contradicts what his own preceptor Ramakrishna Paramahamsa preached. Ramakrishna always preached that all spiritual paths are equivalent. Not only he preached that, he even showed it through practice. He started off on the path of devotion, and as he moved, he kept blending it with path of meditation. He was not very much for the path of intellect since he felt that it is difficult for a person who has strong identification with the body.
To end this discussion giving a benefit of doubt to the said Swami, probably he was misunderstood or misquoted.
I have many more interesting questions. So, tune in every Wednesday when I will take up another question. It could well be one of yours as well 😉
A series discussing questions and answers on Yoga/Philosophy. © Dr. King, Swami Satyapriya 2021
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