From Ignorance to Awareness
The Yog curriculum in the Advanced Course of Chiranjeev Gurukul Leadership program covers traditional Ashtaang Yog philosophy as mentioned in Patanjalis Yog Sutras, which helps us to reflect deeply, internalize, and experience it at an individual level.
Recently in one of the sessions the five Kleshas or ‘afflictions’ were covered: Avidya (ignorance), Asmita (egoism), Raga (attachment), Dvesha (aversion or hatred), and Abinivesah (clinging to life and fear of death). All these kleshas/afflictions are said to be born from ignorance, and the practice of yog awakens the awareness that is our true nature. Ignorance cannot exist in the light of awareness which is vital for self transformation.
The prayer Aum Asato Maa Sadgamaya, Tamaso Maa Jyotir Gamaya, Mrityor Maa Amritam Gamaya from the Brhadaranyaka Upanishad means leading us from this ignorance to knowledge, from darkness to light, from death to immortality.
The maintaining of balance within our mind, body, emotion and intellect becomes such a critical aspect of our journey and this lesson really opened up the need to understand how this balance helps to deal with challenges at work and in personal lives with clarity. Yog also provides the tools needed to help understand the distractions that afflict us.
All of us go through various situations which cause pain, we do also understand that while pain is inevitable suffering can be optional. A good exercise is to identify which ignorance/kleshas caused this suffering. At the level of the mind emotions keep swinging from happiness to sadness , at the level of the physical body there is constant regeneration and degeneration, in nature too we see this change in the seasons and from day to night. It’s very evident thus that nothing remains as is, however we live in the false notion of permanence in everything. This is where the suffering starts.
Our endeavour needs to be on the consistent practice of understanding our true native state of being.