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3 paths to self-Realization: Action, Knowledge, Faith
As per many ancient scriptures and scientists of the self there are primarily 3 paths to self-realization. the path of Karma Yog (Action), Bhakti Yog (Faith, Devotion) and Sankhya Yog (Wisdom, Knowledge). I have always been thinking which path would best suit me and I have tried doing all at times. I was on a phone call with my dad yesterday and the discussion was regarding the same dilemma Ive shared above.
Bhakti Yog (Path of Faith): can be practiced by anyone. You dont need to be a scientist or a philosopher, nor do you need to be a Yogi having full control on his mind and body. All that you need to do in Bhakti Yog is complete surrender to your God, Nature, or whoever you consider having absolute power. Bhakti Yog can easily be misunderstood to be “blind-faith” which in reality it is not; and here’s the real deal… even if it is blind it still bears fruits that are conducive to the individual’s progress on spiritual evolution. Its power of the devotee thats the driving force and not the power of the one he/she is devoted to.
Karma Yog (Path of Action): is the path where the individual is fully devoted to his/her action (duty). He may or may not believe in any higher self. He only believes in righteous action and does it without the desire for gaining anything in return. Usually, Karma Yogi’s are misunderstood to be people who are workaholics and with a passion to acquire power, fame, money, health etc. If you find someone who is dedicated to action but with the seed of desire to acquire one of those things then he/she is not a Karma Yogi. A true karma yogi will only do action without the desire for the fruit of action.
Sankhya Yog (Path of Knowledge) is the path of knowledge. The sankhya yogi is the true scientist who runs his experiments using his senses by using the knowledge from ancient scriptures. he understands the reality of the self with his intellect and reasoning. For someone to walk this path it requires a lot of perseverance, maturity and dedication. A sankhya yogi can easily be confused with scientists who run experiments using fancy scientific apparatus and instruments. A true sankhya yogi uses the best instrument in the world his/her own body, mind and intellect to practice his experiments and convert the knowledge he has acquired from his study of scriptures into experiential wisdom.
So, which is the best of all the 3 paths? Is it possible to walk more than one path? Do all of them lead us to the same goal? These are all good questions and may have various answers depending upon the individual’s place in the evolutionary path.
My observation has been that every path once walked upon will bring the goodness of other paths along the way. A karma yogi is doing nothing else but putting his devotion (bhakti) in his action. A sankhya yogi is doing nothing but putting his karma (action) into acquiring knowledge and using karma to transom that knowledge into wisdom. And they both karma yogi and sankhya yogi are devoted to their paths (Bhakti Yog).
In essence the three paths may seem to be different to start off with but they all merge into the path of devotion (bhakti) which ultimately leads to complete surrender to the higher self that brings wonderment and ultimate liberation.
Drop the hatered
Hatred is like poison. It harms the person who nurtures it. Wake up to the fact that hatred is not helping you in any way, it is in-fact harming you physically, mentally and even spiritually.
1. Self-doubt: Hatred is born out of self-doubt that manifests into hatred for others. If we cannot accept ourselves then how can we accept others. So, the first steps starts with accepting oneself and loving and respecting ourselves. Next step will come naturally i.e. we will start accepting others and respecting them for who they are. Stop doubting yourself, accept yourself the way you are, know that you are lovable and loved (even though it may not be apparent in the beginning).
2. Ignorance (Natural or self-imposed or due to conditioning from the outside such as Radio, TV, other news media, movies etc): Reason for hatred can be ignorance or just the fact that you are not accustomed to the other person/ community’s “way of doing things and ideologies”… in other words their customs and traditions. This can be overcome if we start accepting others “as they are”, educate ourselves about their traditions and beliefs and develop an all-accepting matured outlook. Just don’t blindly follow others or accept what they tell you. Use your intelligence and power of discrimination.
3. Happening (somebody did something to you or your loved ones that makes you hate them): The most common and most difficult one generates from someone’s actions. Lots of negative feelings and emotions are generated when this happens. First step at that time should be to take a step back and free yourself from such transitory stuff (feelings, emotions etc). Use compassion and forgiveness to douse the fire of anger, frustration and hatred. Know that you cannot solve a problem while you are inside it. Accept the situation as it is and look at it as a 3rd person. Try to find out how you can prevent this from happening in the future by mutual understanding. If that is not possible, offer your prayers to the higher power to bring togetherness and love in all living beings and unburden yourself and move forward. Yes, this is the most challenging but you have to get over this in order to progress in life.
Unlearn the art of falling sick
From my childhood the times when I was most taken care of and made most comfortable was when I was sick. A little temperature and I’d not need to go to school, I’d get everybody in my family taking nicely to me (not that they weren’t nice to me at other times but they were ‘extra nice’ on such occasions) and I’d get to stay in bed watch television the whole day. I think most of us (if not all) get the same treatment when we fall sick.. dont we? Unfortunately, these are all great incentives to getting sick.Upon growing up we try to create sickness of the mind (some people call depression) to gain other people’s sympathy as if we subconsciously know that if we show we are in a miserable condition people will love us more. On top of that hospitals are becoming more and more comfortable in many times with 5 star hotel facilities…. you see where we are heading with this 🙂
Interestingly, I noticed one more thing, if there was a good enough incentive to go to school (maybe a very nice looking girl in my class or a subject that I really loved to study) then no matter how sick I would be I would still make my way to school (sometimes against my parent’s wish) and by afternoon my body would bounce back and become healthy again. Which means, that even though the sickness may manifest in a physical form its root is in my mind or my attitude towards it.
So, here’s the secret to staying healthy==> Just say to yourself: no matter what the external situation (it maybe raining, too hot, etc) or I maybe having a sore throat I still have to get my job done…. come what may and just move forward. You will notice that your immune system will become stronger and your body will stay healthier, your mind sharper and your energy levels higher. Take your medicines if you have to (that would give you the quick short-term relief) but changing your attitude will give you long-term benefits for sure.
Just Being Human... 