It's been over a century since Swami Vivekananda first began inspiring young people to seek enlightenment. He spread his spiritual wings to the world and began a revolution that is still felt by millions of his followers today. Vivekananda was born on January 12, 1863, and his ideas continue to influence people today.
He has always had a wide range of interests, from religion and philosophy to the arts and literature to the social sciences. His interest in Hinduism's holy texts grew similarly. He was so enchanted by the wandering monks that he began meditating in front of statues of Shiva, Rama, and Hanuman, the Hindu monkey god.
One day, he turned to his Guru Sri Ramakrishna and asked, "Have you seen God?" with a look of genuine curiosity and a yearning to draw closer to the ultimate power. He asked, and his master confidently answered, "Yes, I have. To me, He is as real as you are, only more so.
From the anguish of losing his loved ones, he experienced a spiritual awakening that led to the establishment of the Ramakrishna Mission and the dissemination of his teachings throughout the Western world. His words of wisdom, "Each soul is potentially divine," reverberate through the halls of the afterlife long after his death on July 4, 1902. To realise this Divinity within, one must master nature in all its forms. Whether through labour, religious practise, mental training, or philosophical inquiry, you can achieve this goal and gain independence.
In his writings, Swami Vivekananda outlined the four limbs of yoga (Raja-yoga, Karma-yoga, Jnana-yoga, and Bhakti-yoga) that lead to liberation from the world's pleasures and attachments.
Karma-yoga, also known as the yoga of selfless action, teaches that by performing the right deeds, the "troublemaker" ego can transform into the "troubleshooter" ego.
Karma yoga, along with Jnana (knowledge or self-study), Bhakti (devotion), and Raja (meditation), is one of the four classical schools of yoga that promise a way to moksha (spiritual liberation) and self-realization.
Karma, which comes from the Sanskrit word for "action," is defined in both the Hindu and Buddhist traditions as the cumulative effect of one's actions in all of one's lives. Selfless service to others is the goal of the yoga practise known as karma.
Karma yoga is widely regarded as one of the most useful and fruitful techniques for personal growth on a spiritual level.
Bhakti Yoga - The Sanskrit word for "devotion to God" is "bhakti," which is where the term "Bhakti Yoga" originates. Bhakti yoga is often described as "union through love and devotion" or "love for love's sake." Like other types of yoga, the goal of bhakti yoga is enlightenment, the realisation that you are one with everything.
According to musician Jai Uttal, who was trained in devotion by the late Neem Karoli Baba, "Bhakti Yoga is the yoga of a personal relationship with God."
Uttal, who is based in California but travels the world leading kirtans and chanting workshops, says that surrender is at the centre of bhakti.
Yoga guru David Frawley agrees. "surrender to the Divine as one's inner self" is the pinnacle of bhakti yoga, as described by Swami Sivananda in his book Yoga: The Greater Tradition. By "the path," he means focusing one's mind, heart, and senses on God.
Raja Yoga - When referring to Raja yoga, the Sanskrit word raja (which means "king" or "royal") is used because this style of yoga is considered to be the "royal path" or primary type of yoga. Raja yoga has traditionally been used to describe both the end goal of yoga and the means by which that goal is attained. Thus, it is also understood to be the resultant feeling of calm and contentment from regular yoga and meditation.
As its name suggests, Raja yoga is the yoga of mastery over one's own mind and body through techniques like meditation and physical exertion. It incorporates philosophies from all schools of thought, and hatha yoga and contemporary asana practise evolved from Raja yoga.
Raja yoga helps people find internal peace and harmony on all levels of their being because it addresses the body, mind, and spirit.
Jnana Yoga, from the Sanskrit word for "knowledge" or "wisdom," Jnana, is the spiritual discipline that guides its practitioners toward an enlightened understanding of the nature of reality through the methods of meditation, introspection, and contemplation. Jnana Yoga, which literally means "knowledge of absolute consciousness," is the disciplined study of one's own mind (Svadhyaya).
To free oneself from the bonds of one's own thoughts and ego, Jnana yoga encourages introspection into the nature of the mind itself. Achieving the union of the inner Self (Atman) with the oneness of all life is the ultimate aim of Jnana yoga, the path to liberation from the illusionary world of maya (self-limiting thoughts and perceptions) (Brahman). This can be accomplished by regularly engaging in the mental practises of the Four Pillars of Knowledge, which include self-questioning, reflection, and conscious illumination. Jnana Yoga involves meditating intently on a single question of self-inquiry in order to cut through the fog of one's preconceived notions and preconceived ideas as well as one's own perceptions. Meditation helps you see through the illusion of maya and into the true nature of things as one.
Yoga was popularised by Swami Vivekananda, not just in India, but also in the United States. His 1893 speech at the World's Parliament of Religions in Chicago did more than raise his audience's profile; it caused quite a stir. An American newspaper, The New York Critic, hailed him as "An Orator by Divine Right" for his work advancing the Yoga tradition. He spent four years touring the United States, sharing the message of his Four Yogas for Attaining Salvation, and is now revered as a national hero in his native India.
Currently, there are over 125 Vedanta Chapters in different countries. When asked about salvation, Swami Vivekananda is often quoted as saying, "Each soul is potentially divine." Taking charge of one's own nature (both physical and spiritual) is essential to realising one's own divine potential. Work, prayer, self-control, or philosophical reflection are all viable methods for accomplishing this.
Once, he made a profound statement about yoga, saying, "All this bringing of the mind into a higher state of vibration is included in one word in Yoga — Samadhi."
You can find God and your own divinity through the practise of yoga. Swami Vivekananda made a huge impact by popularising Yoga and inspiring people to prioritise spirituality in their daily lives. Knowledge, like concentration, is fundamental. The practise of yoga trains one to master their senses, thoughts, and emotions. The ultimate goal of Yoga is to attain God-realization and to bask in the glory of the Divine.
Philosophy of yoga and religion according to Swami Vivekananda
Swami Vivekananda believed that providing the right kind of education was the key to solving the world's problems. Solving problems requires considering the entire human population, regardless of race, religion, nationality, or any other limiting factor. By teaching students to view all sentient beings as extensions of the self, a holistic education can foster compassion and a thirst for knowledge. All ethical systems have made the same mistake: they haven't shown people how to control their baser impulses and resist evil. This problem can be solved by following the yoga path and mastering our inherent tendencies. To achieve this goal, Swamiji came up with a strategy that would be acceptable to people of all backgrounds and beliefs: yoga. This union means something different to different people: for the worker, it's a union between man and the whole of humanity; for the mystic, it's a union between his higher and lower selves; for the lover, it's a union between himself and the God of love; and for the philosopher, it's a union of all existence. According to Swamiji, everyone has a divine potential, complete with omniscience and omnipotence. Selfless service, the assimilation of wisdom through deeper introspection, devotion to a higher power, and unique psychophysical practise are all viable routes to the same realisation.
For Swamiji, service to others was the one true way to find enlightenment. To be free, one must grow until one's identity encompasses the cosmos. Realizing the essential divinity and, by extension, unity of all creatures requires going beyond dogma and sectarian faith in order to serve humanity.