The FOUR YOGAS are 1) Bhakti Yoga 2) Jnana Yoga 3) Karma Yoga & 4) Hatha Yoga (which leads to Raja Yoga). In this Part 1 of 2 we will discuss Bhakti Yoga & Jnana Yoga. As explained in my previous blog on Jnana Mudra (<click here) the Causal Body consists of “Vasanas” which are a bundle of “stored” desires & impressions from our past lives in the un-manifest form and it also is the seed of future experiences. Causal Body or “Seed” manifests first as Subtle Body (consisting of thought, emotions & desire) and further manifests as gross body which perceives & acts! (For More details on the 3 bodies – Causal, Gross & Subtle <click here)
Once the negative “Vasanas” are controlled, the merger of the individual self with the supreme Brahman happens through meditation. This is union is called Yoga derived from the root word “Yuj”, which means to unite or yoke! The innate nature of each individual is different, as it depends on his mind & intellect. These innate natures make people either emotional, intellectual, active or inactive. Secondly, this innate nature in a man is also driven by his 3 Vital Gunas (<please click here for more details on Gunas). Therefore, four Paths of Yogas are prescribed for each one of them namely, Bhakti, Jnana, Karma & Hatha Yoga and he can choose the one that suits him.
BHAKTI YOGA:
Introduction:
Bhakti Yoga is for the one when his Mind rules over his Intellect, one who is emotional, as his mind is controlled by his feelings and has Rajas Guna dominant. His heart prevails over his head! Bhakti means devotion and for such a man Bhakti Yoga is recommended. He needs an Idol, a shrine & a favorite God that he needs to pray to and express his extreme devotion. As he continues with this pursuit, he eventually frees himself from his bad “Vasanas” or “Desires”. Desires are tricky as it takes many forms and can deceive us in multiple ways. It can be so subtle, that one will forget it is a desire. So one needs to be continuously alert & aware of this. (When a strong desire for enlightenment disappears, enlightenment appears – Osho).
Bhagavad Gita on Bhakti Yoga:
Chapter 12, Verses 13-20 of Bhagavad Gita details 35 qualities of a Bhakta or a true devotee. Only if a devotee has these qualities can he achieve his goal of enlightenment. Verse 13 lists (seven qualities), Verse 14 (Five qualities), Verse 15 (Three), Verse 16 (Six) Verse 17 (Five), Verse 18 (Two), Verse 19 (Five), Verse 20 (Last Two qualities are 1) Śraddhā or Faith & 2) Mukti or Realizing the Supreme Self within or Liberation), thus taking the total to 35 qualities. (You may refer to Chapter 12 of Bhagavad Gita for further details on what are these qualities). Krishna refers to these 35 qualities as Immortal Dharma as it applies to all humanity.
Śraddhā or Faith is common to all spiritual practices, so it is essential for the path Bhakti as well. Mukti or Spiritual Liberation is the result of this spiritual practice!
Kena Upanishad on Bhakti Yoga:
Kena means “by whom?” which tends to convey – who is the prime mover of life? Adi Shankara says “by whose mere presence does that desire arise that moves this Universe?” Talavakāra is the Brahmana of Sama Veda to whom this Upanishad is credited with and Kena Upanishad is also known by his name. This Upanishad has four sections. The first two are explained in verses which deal with the Supreme Brahman that is within our self, also known as “parā vidyā” or the knowledge of the Absolute Brahman that gives us immediate liberation. The other two sections are explained in Prose and known as “aparā Vidyā” or the knowledge of the world & worship of the Supreme as God, Isvara (worship of Vedic Gods). This path also leads one to the Supreme Self eventually.
In section 3 of Kena, the allegory of the of Vedic Gods’ ignorance of Brahman is mentioned. The story is that Brahman had helped the Gods to achieve victory against the demons. Not knowing this, they credited themselves for that victory & to their greatness. Brahman knew this & appeared before them. The Gods wanted to know who this Spirit was & sent Agni to find out. Agni told Brahman that he could burn everything in sight on earth. Brahman laid out a blade of grass in front of him and asked him to burn it. Agni could not. The Gods then sent Vayu who had the power to blow away everything on earth. But he also could not blow the blade of grass away. Then the Gods sent Indra to find out about this Spirit.
Indra went towards the Spirit, but it vanished before he could reach it. Then Indra saw the most beautiful Uma, daughter of Himavat (Himalayas) in the same region of the sky. He asked her about this Spirit. Umā then revealed to Indra that the Spirit was none other than Brahman, the Supreme Consciousness. It was because of Brahman that the Gods had been victorious in their conquest and obtained glory. Agni, Vayu & Indra are therefore the only Vedic Gods that came closest to Brahman -the Supreme Consciousness and through whose power the Gods enjoy greatness. Also, it is because of the grace of Uma that the Gods got the knowledge that the spirit was indeed Brahman!
In essence, Kena Upanishad conveys that Brahman cannot be understood as an “Object” of knowledge, but He can only be realized as the “Subject” in all knowledge! Adi Shankara says true knowledge is an intuitive experience or samyag-darśnam – purely by intuition of oneself. Secondly, “Brahman” is that which is always within our Self and not what we worship in this material world.
The above Verses gives us a deep insight on how instantaneous enlightenment happens to an individual, by providing examples of the flashing of lightning and the sparkling of the eyes, during the union with the Supreme Self or Brahman. When the mind is in deep stillness, the light of Brahman flashes for a sudden brief moment causing a burst of intense emotion & exhilaration! Lightning tears through darkness of clouds just as the knowledge of Brahman destroys or removes darkness of ignorance. Therefore, it is Brahman that is the prime object of all desires and has to be meditated upon!
Updated 28th Oct, 2024: About Lord Indra - the Lord of all Vedic Gods
Indra is the Lord of all Gods and his arrogance, impulsive behavior, regret & repentance, valor, grandeur & exploits are mentioned in many scriptures. The removal of darkness or ignorance mentioned in the verses of Kena Upanishad IV.4-6 above, is captured in a story of Lord Indra fighting with Demon Vritra using his weapon known as “Vajra”. A condensed form of the story of Lord Indra is given below as mentioned in Bhagavata Purana & Rig Veda.
The combat between Indra & Vritra as described in Bhagavata Purana:
Indra, also known as the Lord of Maruts* is known as the absolute ruler of the three worlds and this pride caused by his affluence had gone into his head. One day a great sage named Vachaspati (meaning Lord of Speech & also known as Brihaspati) came to his court. Because of his ego & arrogance, Indra did not pay him his due respects nor did he offer him a seat. After the sage left his court, Indra realized this mistake committed by him and felt miserable. Indra went to meditate and seek forgiveness from the sage. But he could not find any peace.
(*Maruts are energies contained in the wind and moving along the Sun. They are said to travel from the Sun to Earth & back due to the power given to them by Indra. During this course they support various objects in the world including divine & human forms).
The demons or asuras under the advice of their preceptor/teacher Ushanas (also known as Shukracharya) knew of Indra’s predicament and used this opportunity to attack him & the other Gods defeated them. Indra felt helpless & he went to Lord Brahma to seek refuge and seek a remedial course of action. Brahma said that the asuras or demons faithfully worship their preceptor Shukracharya (also known as Ushanas or Kavya) and because of this they are powerful.
But on the contrary, Indra had disrespected a great sage who had come to his court. Brahma therefore asked Indra to immediately worship a brahmana known as Vishvarupa, the son of the illustrious sage “Tvastha”. But Vishvarupa had earlier helped the asuras in their various pursuits and supported them as well. Despite this, Indra & other Gods approached Vishvarupa and paid him their due respects and told him that they have chosen him as their preceptor & teacher. Vishvarupa was delighted and agreed to help the Gods.
Narayana – kavacha (armor) revealed:
Thus, with Vishvarupa’s guidance Indra was able to defeat the demons and regained his control as the Lord of Three Worlds. During the course of Indra’s interaction with Vishvarupa, he asked him about the famous armor of Narayana or Vishnu known as “Narayana –kavacha (armor of Narayana)”. Vishvarupa then told him in detail about this mantra that begins with the two mantras known as “anga-nyasa”.
Anga is “Body” and Nyasa is “mentally placing or depositing the mantra while touching different parts of the body (limbs), after assigning them to different divinities”. These two famous mantras are – “Aum namo Narayanaya” (consisting of eight aksharas or syllables) & Aum namo bhagavathe Vasudevaya” (consisting of twelve aksharas or syllables). Narayana Kavacha is then chanted which is an embodiment of the divine energy & offered sacrifice, thereby providing a protective shield or armor. There is a very detailed procedure to be followed while chanting the above mantra and is usually imparted by a Guru.
Creation of Vritra from sacrificial fire:
Vishvarupa’a father was Tvashta & mother was Rocahna or Rupavati who belonged to the Asura or demonic race. During all the Yajnas or sacrifices performed by him, Vishvarupa made sure that a share of the sacrifice (possibly partaking of Soma) was also given to the Asuras or demons as he had a soft corner for his mother’s relatives. Indra came to know of this and due to his impulsive nature and because of the fact that the Asuras could become more powerful than the Devas or Gods, he severed the heads** of Vishvarupa. (**Vishvarupa was also known as “Trishira” – meaning “the one with three heads”).
Vishvarupa’s father Tvastha was furious and offered oblations to the sacrificial fire (Yajna) to generate a fierce being who could kill Indra. Thus, Vritra (meaning darkness) was born from the southern part of the sacrificial fire (also called ancestor’s fire which destroys any impediment and ensures smooth completion of ritual) and was terrible in form. “Vritra” means darkness and as he came forth from this fire, he enveloped the world in darkness. The best among Gods rushed at Vritra to kill him but he swallowed all of them. The Gods were astounded and sought refuge in Narayana (Lord Vishnu).
Lord Narayana advices Indra on how to obtain Vajra:
Lord Narayana asked Indra to go to Dadhyan – supreme among the Rishis, a realized soul who knew Brahman (Supreme Consciousness). (Rishi Dadhyan is also known as Dadhicha or Dadhichi is the son of Rishi Atharvan, who along-with Rishi Angiras compiled the Atharva Veda). It was Dadhyan who gave the Narayana Kavacha which has the spirit of Lord Narayana to Tvastha, who in turn passed it to his son Vishvarupa, who further gave it to Indra.
Dadhyan’s limbs were energized with the mantra of Narayana Kavacha and full of energy and as suggested by Lord Narayana, Indra asked Dadhyan for his limbs (bones) to fabricate a powerful weapon to kill Vritra. Dadhyan who knew that his body is not permanent was happy to discard his body for the greater good of others. Vishvakarma, who is known as the “celestial architect” was entrusted to forge a weapon, which was given to Indra. This weapon was the “Vajra” (Vajra means “thunderbolt” and also “diamond” which is a very hard material). It is clear from this that the Vajra was some kind of a “divine energy weapon” and not just made of human bones (if translated literally).
The duel between Indra & Vritra:
In the terrible battle that followed, Indra’s army looked formidable and Vritra men were no match for them. Vritra could see that many of his Asura men ran away in the midst of battle. Vritra addressed them & said that death is certain for anyone who is born. No one can avoid it. He said “Two kinds of death are difficult to get and are regarded in high esteem: One who can meditate & give up his life to eventually merge with Brahman/ Supreme Consciousness and the other is to fight in a battle & die”.
Vritra knew that he would eventually die in battle because the “Vajra” had both the spiritual power of Lord Narayana (charged with the Narayana – kavacha mantra) and the power of Rishi Dadhyan’s fierce Tapas or austerities. He therefore and did not mind surrendering to these powers as he knew that death by a weapon charged by these divine powers was superior to victory. At the same time he knew that his Dharma is to fight for the sake of his father Tvastha & brother Vishvarupa.
Vritra was a fearless warrior and tormented Indra and in the midst of the encounter the Vajra made up of one hundred joints fell down from Indra’s hand. Indra was ashamed and was too embarrassed to pick it up again. Indra did so after Vritra told him not to be upset and pick up the weapon again and fight. When Indra heard these words, he knew that Vritra was indeed a great Siddha, a great being and honored him! Indra won the hard fought battle and Vritra was finally slain. This is the very condensed version of the story of Indra & Vritra narrated in Bhagavata Purana.
The glory of Indra as per Rig Veda:
The earliest mention of the fight between Lord Indra & Vritra in Vedic scriptures is given in Rig Veda 1.32 (Mandala 1/Sukta 32) and complied by Rishi Angirasa Hiranyastupa. Indra has been given his due importance as he is considered as the foremost among all Vedic Gods. In Rig Veda, Vritra is a demon who holds up the dark clouds (water) in the skies preventing rain from falling on to earth. Indra who is the Lord of thunder & lighting absorbs the vital essences present in the three worlds (earth, sky & heaven) and breaks this dark cloud to finally release the waters from the sky.
Note: In ancient times, people attributed every natural event to a particular deity or God. During Vedic times, it was Lord Indra who caused rain to fall by his power. For the Greeks it was Zeus. Today science has taught us that when the negative charge (electrons) located below the storm cloud becomes large enough, it attracts the positive charge (protons) located on earth resulting in a flash of lighting. This lighting discharge causes a sudden rise of heat in the surrounding air which expands rapidly, which creates a shock wave known as thunder. Thunder & lighting occur at the same time, but we see lighting first, as light travels faster than sound. As air expands, it rises higher causing it to cool, forming water droplets which falls on earth as rain.
Conclusion:
Puranas consist of histories, stories, myths & allegories composed for those people who are less informed of their religion and who could not study the Vedas & Upanishads under the guidance of a qualified Guru (well, that is most of us today, unfortunately). Also, during ancient times, people passed on knowledge of their cultures by way of myths & rituals, as there were no written works. The oral tradition was the primary means of passing in their knowledge and written script evolved much later on. Myths are contained in their memory through stories and cannot be dismissed as a figment of their imagination. So the stories contained in the Puranas cannot be taken in a literal sense and it is therefore essential to understand its allegorical significance.
The story of Indra and Vritra in the Bhagavata Purana, tells us that victory is not assured to any person who picks up a weapon & fights! It is the Supreme Brahman who is the only exception who controls creation, preservation & destruction. He is the time & cause of this universe! Without Brahman – Purusha & Prakriti, Mahat, Ego, the senses & mind cannot create anything. An ignorant person thinks he is the controller, but he does not realize that it is Brahman or the Supreme Consciousness that is the foundation of all existence. After all, the Vajra was infused with “divine powers” which enabled Indra to win the battle!
Brahman creates beings with the help of the Five Elements (Pancha Bhutas) and dissolves them back into himself at the appropriate time. Once a person understands that Brahman is a silent witness and our temperaments (sattva, rajas & tamas) are only qualities of Prakriti (primordial nature), he is then not cowed down by dualities (which are opposites like pleasure & pain, good & bad, love & hate, etc) that he encounters in his lifetime.
The lesson from Rig Veda is the victory of good over evil. When a King sees a threat to his Kingdom or people, he should be resourceful enough to understand the strength of the enemy, seek advice & to get appropriate weapons like Indra did before his battle with Vritra. He should then fight & eliminate this threat of the enemy to ensure victory, peace, prosperity & progress of his people. The second message is that only when darkness (cloud) is removed, light (Sun) shines forth which creates awareness thereby clearing all confusion in life.
Also, a couple of photos of an object that looks like a “Vajra” taken by me, against the backdrop of the night sky. This video is shown & analyzed at the end of this Blog. Edge detection image shows holes in the passage between the upper & lower chambers. Its is clear from these photos that it is some kind of a device – a probe that can propel by itself!
JNANA YOGA:
Introduction:
Jnana means Knowledge which gained by using our Intellect. It is prescribed for the one whose Intellect rules over his Mind and has Sattva Guna dominant. Head prevails over his heart! This is explained in my previous blog on Jnana Mudra which describes the three ways of Śravana, Manana & Nidhidhyāsana. Such a person uses his Intellect to rein in his mind and is more logical, investigative, methodical & reasonable. He does not fall prey to his vacillating emotions and is not interested in a monotonous way of life. After he reads what is written in the scriptures or books, he likes to reflect & contemplate upon them and arrive at his own conclusions. They have a quality that makes them think creatively and independently.
Bhagavad Gita on Jnana Yoga:
Chapter 13 Verses 8- 12 that gives 20 qualities that are necessary for a Jnana Yogi. Verse 8 covers nine qualities of Humility, modesty, non-injury, forgiveness, uprightness, service to Guru, purity, steadfastness & self-control. Verse 9 shows three qualities of dispassion towards sense objects, no ego, Perception of pain & evil of birth, death, old age & disease. Verse 10 consists of three qualities of non-attachment, no infatuation or possessiveness with son, wife or home, levelheadedness during desirable & undesirable events. Verse 11 covers three qualities of steadfast devotion to the Lord in yoga, resorting to solitary places & distaste or dislike for crowd of people.
Verse 12 covers the final two qualities of constancy of self-knowledge (engaging in the pursuit of the supreme Self) & perception of the end of knowledge (Understanding that Brahman is the truth and this is the culmination of knowledge. This is the state of pure conditioned consciousness or the Fourth state. The other 3 states of waking, dreaming & deep sleep are unconditioned consciousness and are enveloped in ignorance) Sri Ramakrishna says: Standing by the side of a pond covered in moss & reeds, one thinks there is no water below it. Once the moss is brushed aside, we can see the water below. In the same way, Maya which has the veiling power, has to be brushed aside from our mind to see the brilliant & all-pervading Iśvara.
Mundaka Upanishad on Jnana Yoga:
Mundaka Upanishad of Atharva Veda and consists of three chapters with two sections each. Mundaka means “shaved” (Mund mean to shave the head) indicating that a monk who has shaved and has been liberated from ignorance. Mundaka Upanishad clearly differentiates between two kinds of knowledge – the higher knowledge of Supreme Brahman and the lower knowledge of this existential or practical world that we live in. It is by this higher knowledge alone, we can attain liberation or Moksha and not by rituals & worship.
Shaunaka, a great householder and a disciple asked Sage Angiras “By knowing what is everything known?” (Meaning, which is that cause being known, all will be known?) Angiras replies that the Vedas & the six Vedangas are lower knowledge. The higher knowledge is that by which the Undecaying Brahman is perceived. Mundaka 1.1.6 – Brahman is that which cannot be grasped, without family, without caste, cannot be seen or heard, without hands or feet, eternal, all pervading, omnipresent, very subtle, Undecaying, which the wise perceive as source of beings. The term used for “source of beings” is Bhūta-Yonim. Bhuta means beings. The meaning of Yoni is often misunderstood by many. It means Source or Brahman. Brahman is material cause of this world and thus the source of beings.
The Self or Brahman cannot be reached by verbal discourse or exposition nor by the power of our Intellect, nor by listening to scriptures. Firstly, there needs to a yearning from oneself to merge with the Brahman. Only then Brahman’s true nature is disclosed to such a person! Finally, whoever knows Supreme Brahman becomes Brahman himself and is finally liberated & attains Immortality.
This ends the Part 1 of 2 on Bhakti & Jnana Yoga. The next blog, Part 2 of 2 will cover Karma Yoga & Hatha Yoga.
References:
1) Quotes from “The Upanishads” by Eknath Easwaran:
2) Few Snippets as explained in “The Principal Upanishads” by Dr. S.Radhakrishnan