Raja Yoga
Swami Vivekananda, shown here practicing meditation,
was a Hindu sanyāsin (monk) recognized for his
inspiring lectures on spiritual topics such as
bhakti yoga, karma yoga, raja yoga, and jnana yoga.
He founded the Ramakrishna Mission, which today
conducts religious teaching and philanthropic
activities worldwide.
The followers of Raja yoga seek to realize spiritual
truths through meditation. Raja yoga, also known
simply as yoga, is based on the Yoga Sutras
(aphorisms on yoga) of the sage Patanjali.Through
the practice of meditation, followers of this path
seek to gradually gain control over their own
thoughts and actions, rather than being controlled by
their impulses. They seek to attain one-pointed
concentration and perfect equanimity of mind.[54]
Ultimately, through meditation, the followers of raja
yoga seek self-knowledge: by concentrating all the
energies of the mind inward, they seek to perceive
whether they have souls, "whether life is of five
minutes or of eternity, and whether there is a God".
Thus, the highest goal of raja yoga is
God-realization, or experiencing the Ultimate Truth.
The actual act of sitting down for meditation,
however, is only the tip of the iceberg in raja
yoga. The disciplines of raja yoga, as taught by
Patanjali, consist of eight steps, of which dhyāna
(meditation) is only one.[56] Thus according to
Patanjali, the eight practices of raja yoga are:
1. Yama: Restraining harmful thoughts and impulses.
2. Niyama: Cultivating good habits.
3. Āsana: Learning proper posture for prolonged
meditation.
4. Prānāyama: Control of prana, or life force,
through rhythmic breathing exercises.
5. Pratyāhāra: Withdrawing the senses from their
objects of enjoyment.
6. Dhāranā: Fixing the mind on the object of
contemplation.
7. Dhyāna: Uninterrupted contemplation (meditation).
8. Samādhi: Total absorption of the mind in the
object of contemplation.
As with the other yogas, raja yoga may be combined
with bhakti yoga, karma yoga, or jnana yoga to
create a customized path suitable for an individual
aspirant. The aspects of raja yoga that deal with
physical exercises (especially āsana) are known
collectively as hatha yoga. With the increasing
popularity of the therapeutic benefits of Hatha
Yoga, the sanskrit term Yoga is often interpreted in
the narrow sense of Hatha Yoga. However yoga
encompasses a broader meaning in Hinduism.
Jnana Yoga
Jnana Yoga has been called the path of rational
inquiry, and is prescribed for people to whom reason
appeals more than faith.The followers of jnana
yoga emphasize a two-step process to help one attain
salvation:
(1) Viveka: the practice of discriminating between
things that are impermanent (e.g., worldly
pleasures) and those that are permanent (e.g., God
and the soul), and
(2) Vairāgya, renunciation of unhealthy
attachment to things that are impermanent.
For monks (called sanyāsīs or sādhus ) and nuns (sanyāsinīs),
renunciation may mean actual physical departure from
worldly activities such as marriage and earning
money. For the vast majority of people, however,
renunciation means mental detachment from selfish
desires while continuing to fulfill family and
community obligations. By focusing the mind on
Divinity instead of the desire for selfish gain, jnana yogis seek to maintain a healthy mental
equilibrium in the face of the inevitable highs and
lows of life.
According to Hinduism, humans identify themselves
with their physical bodies and their egos (the sense
of "I" and "mine") due to ignorance (or māyā). These
attributes are considered impermanent, and thus
ultimately unreal. The true "self" of every person —
the only part of a person that is permanent — is the
soul, called the atman. Further, it is postulated
that the atman of each person is eternally connected
to the atman of every other person, with God, and
with all existence.
In an analogy attributed to Swami Vivekanand each
individual soul is compared to a wave on a shoreless
ocean.The ocean is the Infinite Brahman. When a
person sees rightly, he comes to understand that
each wave is part of the ocean. Similarly, the
highest realization that the followers of jnana yoga
strive to attain is that all living beings are
essentially indistinguishable from the infinite,
eternal Brahman.
Jnana yoga is often associated with the Vedanta
school of philosophy, although Hindus of the Vedanta
school may incorporate elements of bhakti yoga and
the other yogas into their spiritual practices as
well.
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Karma and Reincarnation
The doctrine of karma is related to the law of cause
and effect. It states that everything that people do
(karma) leaves impressions (samskāras) in their
mind, which determines what kind of people they will
be in the future, and hence their fate. Some Hindus
see God's direct involvement in this process, while
others consider the natural laws of causation
sufficient to explain the effects of karma.
Some Hindus believe in reincarnation, and to them
action in one life can determine the fate in
subsequent reincarnations. Virtuous actions take the
soul closer to the Supreme Divine and lead to a
birth with higher consciousness. Evil actions hinder
this recognition of the Supreme Divine, and the soul
takes lower forms of worldly life. Thus according to
this school of Hindu philosophy, one should try to
behave in a virtuous manner, as it impacts current
and future lives, Over the course of time, if a
person sufficiently purifies the mind and intellect,
he or she can attain the goal of life, which is to
experience the highest truth or God.The cycle of
birth and death is called samsāra. According to the
doctrine of reincarnation, the soul (atman) is
immortal, while the body is subject to birth and
death. The Bhagavad Gita states that
Worn-out garments are shed by the body; Worn-out
bodies are shed by the dweller within the body. New
bodies are donned by the dweller, like garments.
Hinduism teaches that the soul goes on repeatedly
being born and dying. One is reborn on account of
desire: a person desires to be born because he or
she wants to enjoy worldly pleasures, which can be
enjoyed only through a body. As long as the soul
mistakenly identifies itself with the ego (the sense
of "I" and "mine", called ahamkāra in Sanskrit), it
has worldly desires, which cause it to be reborn
again and again. Hinduism does not teach that all
worldly pleasures are sinful, but it does teach that
they can never bring deep, lasting happiness or
peace (ānanda).It is thought that after several
cycles of birth and rebirths, a person is no longer
satisfied with the limited happiness that worldly
pleasures bring. At this point, the person seeks
higher forms of happiness, which can be attained
only through spiritual experience. When, after
spiritual practice (sādhanā) the person finally
realizes his or her own divine nature - i.e.,
realizes that the true "self" is the immortal soul
rather than the body or the ego — all desires for
the pleasures of the world vanish, since they seem
insipid compared to spiritual ānanda. This
realization breaks the cycle of reincarnation.
When the cycle of rebirth thus comes to an end, a
person is said to have attained moksha, or
salvation. While all schools of thought agree that
moksha implies the cessation of worldly desires and
freedom from the cycle of birth and death, the exact
definition of salvation depends on individual
beliefs. For example, followers of the Advaita
Vedanta school (often associated with jnana yoga)
believe that they will spend eternity absorbed in
the perfect peace and happiness that comes with the
realization that all existence is One, and that the
immortal soul is part of that existence. Thus they
will no longer identify themselves as individual
persons, but will see the "Self" (ātman) as a part
of the infinite ocean of Divinity (Brahman). The
followers of dualistic schools, on the other hand,
expect to spend eternity in a loka, or heaven, where
they will have the blessed company of their chosen
form of God (some form of Ishvara) throughout
eternity. The two schools are not necessarily
contradictory, however. A follower of one school may
believe that both types of salvation are possible,
but will simply have a personal preference to
experience one or the other. Thus, it is said, the
followers of Dvaita wish to "taste sugar," while the
followers of Advaita wish to "become sugar".
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Practices
Puja
Most observant Hindus engage in some type of formal
worship (pūjā) both in the home and in temples. In
the home, Hindus usually have a special place that
is used as a shrine, and which contains a picture or
statue symbolizing the individual's chosen form(s)
of God (ishta). Typically a devotee enters the
shrine at dawn and at dusk to make an offering to
God, symbolized by placing items such as food,
water, and flowers before the image, waving incense,
lighting candles or oil-lamps (diya), ringing a
bell, and/or waving a fan. The devotee thus
symbolically offers to God items that can be enjoyed
by each of the five senses. Other practices in the
home include meditation (dhyāna), the chanting of
God's name or names (japa), and the recitation of
scriptures such as the Bhagavad Gita.
Ganesha is the son of Shiva and Parvati (pictured
left). He is widely worshipped as Vignesh, the
remover of obstacles.
Before performing pūjā, the devotee usually bathes
and wears washed clothes. Women customarily do not
engage in pūjā during the first four days of
menstruation. It is also customary for Hindus not to
perform pūjā for a month after birth of a child (viddhi
sūtak) or during the first sixteen days after the
death of a family member (mritaka-sūtak). These
periods are explained as resulting from a temporary
state of ritual impurity (ashaucha).
Visiting temples is not obligatory for Hindus.Many
Hindus go to temples only during religious
festivals. Temples are not used for weddings,
funerals, or as social hubs—they are primarily used
for formal worship. Sometimes worship in temples is
accompanied by devotional singing (kīrtana) and
religious discourse. Hindu temple priests (pandās)
are salaried workers, hired by temple authorities to
perform ritualistic worship. They are not to be
confused with swāmīs or sanyāsins (all-renouncing
monks, who do not work for salary).
Priests begin to perform temple worship at daybreak,
and continue with various rituals until late in the
evening. During the worship the priest makes various
offerings to God, such as food, drink, flowers, and
perfume as a token of love, sacrifice and devotion.
Often, devotees bring their own offerings to the
temple, or purchase them from nearby vendors. Food
offerings are called "Naivedhya". The priest takes
the offering from the devotees and presents it to
God on their behalf. Food that has been offered to
God is considered to be sanctified (prasāda), and is
generally distributed to the devotees, wandering
monks or nuns, or the poor. Accepting prasāda is
considered spiritually beneficial.
Besides home and temple worship, observant Hindus
are supposed to perform every action as an offering
to God as prescribed by karma yoga.
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The guru-disciple tradition
In many Hindu denominations, spiritual aspirants are
encouraged to have a personal spiritual teacher,
called a guru. The student is expected to follow the
instructions of the guru and to sincerely strive to
reach the goal of spiritual life. Gurus may teach to
each student a special mantra, which is a name of
God, a holy phrase, or other sacred words, which the
student repeats to himself or herself daily at dawn
and dusk, and as much as possible at other times.
The chanting of a mantra is called japa (see below).
Japa is meant to increase remembrance of God and to
elevate the mind so that it will become purer and
able to experience God. A guru may also give a
student instructions in meditation and other
practices.
According to many systems of belief, a guru must
never charge any money for the guidance that he or
she gives, although a student may give voluntary
gifts to the teacher as a token of appreciation
(guru-dakshinā).
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Japa and Mantra
Mantras are chanted, through their meaning, sound,
and chanting style, to help a person focus the mind
on holy thoughts or to express love and devotion for
God. Mantras often give courage in exigent times and
serve to help invoke one's inner spiritual strength.
Indeed, Mahatma Gandhi's dying words are said to
have been a two-word mantra to the Lord Rama: "Hé
Ram!"[citation needed]
One of the most revered mantras in Hinduism is the
Gayatri Mantra. In India including Kashmir, Brahmins
are initiated into this most sacred mantra at the
time of their Yajñopavit (thread ceremony). Many
Hindus to this day, in a tradition that has
continued unbroken from ancient times, perform
morning ablutions at the bank of a sacred river
while chanting the Gayatri and Mahamrityunjaya
mantras.
Japa has been extolled as the greatest dharma for
the Kali Yuga, in the Mahabharat.
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Pilgrimage
Around 70 million Hindus from around the world
participated in Kumbh Mela at one of the Hindu Holy
city Prayag (India).
Pilgrimage is not mandatory in Hinduism as it is in
Islam. Nevertheless, many Hindus who can afford to
do so undertake one or more pilgrimages during their
lifetimes. There are many Hindu holy places (tīrtha-sthānas)
in India. One of the most famous is the ancient city
of Varanasi, otherwise known as Benaras or Kashi.
Other holy places in India include Kedarnath and
Badrinath in the Himalayas, the Jagannath temple at
Puri, Rishikesh and Haridwar in the foothills of the
Himalayas, Allahabad (also known by the ancient name
Prayāg, located at the confluence of multiple holy
rivers), Rameshwaram in the South and Gaya in the
east. The largest single gathering of pilgrims is
during the annual Kumbh Mela fair held in one of
four different cities on a rotating basis
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Satsang
Satsang is the practice of gathering for study or
discussion of scripture and religious topics, or
chanting of hymns. In Sanskrit, Satsang means
circle, or, fellowship ('sangha') with truth
('sat'). People may gather under guidance of a sage,
a priest, or a singer. This practice is sometimes
called sādhu-sangha.
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Devotional singing
Devotional singing, called bhajan or kirtan, is an
important part of worship in many denominations.
Devotional singing may take place in temples, in
ashrams, on the banks of holy rivers, in the home,
or elsewhere. Hymns may be in the ancient Sanskrit
language, or in modern languages such as Hindi,
Bengali, or Tamil. Musical instruments accompanying
devotional singing frequently include the manjeera,
tanpura, harmonium, and table
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Denominations
Many Hindus do not claim to belong to any particular
denomination at all.However, scholars frequently
categorize contemporary Hinduism into three or four
major denominations: Vaishnavism, Shaivism, Shaktism,
and sometimes Smartism or Advaita Vedanta. These
denominations differ primarily in the particular forms
of God worshipped, and in the rituals and traditions
that accompany worship of that form of God. Vaishnavism
worships God in the form of Vishnu; Shaivism worships
God as Shiva; Shaktism worships a female divinity or
Goddess, Devī; while Smartism and Advaita Vedanta
believe in an impersonal or pantheistic God without
focusing on any particular form of God.
There are also many movements that are not easily placed
in any of the above categories, such as Swami Dayananda
Saraswati's Ārya Samāj, which condemns image worship and
veneration of multiple deities, focusing instead on the
Vedas and the Vedic fire sacrifices (yajna). Traditions
such as the Ramakrishna movement incorporate elements
from all the major denominations and stress that
God-realization can be achieved through any denomination
so long as it is followed sincerely. In Tantra, the
Goddess is considered the power of Shiva, and thus
represents a combination of the Shaiva and shakta
denominations.As in every religion, some people view
their own denomination as superior to others. In
Hinduism, however, many Hindus consider other
denominations to be legitimate alternatives to their
own. The concept of heresy found in some other religions
is therefore generally not an issue for Hindus.
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