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Lasting Happiness And Bhakti Yoga

To attain jitendriyata is to achieve full control over one’s senses. This leads to what is called God-realisation.In this controlled state all pain and suffering cease permanently. Achievement of this bliss is the sole aim of human life.

There are different paths to achieve this height as there are different routes leading to, for instance, Mount Everest. Gyan, karma, bhakti, raja, hatha, swara, nada, astanga yogas; all of these lead to the same goal of achieving communion with God.

Just as the time taken by different routes to reach a particular destination varies each path of yoga takes its own time .The shortest and most suitable path ordained in this Kali Yuga is bhakti yoga. This is form of yoga and all other forms of yoga come under astanga yoga or the eight-fold yoga, which comprises the following:

1.Yama or ahimsa, satya, asteya, brahmacharya and aparigraha, meaning non-violence, truthfulness, non-stealing, continuous meditation or remembrance by salutation to god and non-accumulation of nonessential things.

2.Niyama or sauch, santhosh, tapas swadhyaya and ishwara pranidhana, meaning cleanliness, both internal as well as external, contentment, rightful penance self study and self-surrender to god.

3.Asana or body postures in the yogic tradition.

4.Pranayama or control of prana.

5.Pratyahara or withdrawal of sense organs within.

6.Dharana or contemplation.

7.Dyana or meditation.

8.Samadhi or total union with god.

A practical thing to opt for is a practice of the eight –fold yoga with a special stress on bhakti yoga

The importance of bhakti and the resultant cessation of dukh or sorrow has been recorded in the scriptures. Saints and also ordinary people who have practiced bhakti yoga in their day-to-day life vouch for its efficacy. Bhakti yoga stands for intense love of god. Practitioners of bhakti yoga do not ask anything in return from god; they believe that god, as the mother and father of all, understands his children. Some times god does not fulfil the immediate desires of his bhaktas. However, the bhakti yogi continues to nurture his devotion and love for god as he is convinced that whatever god gives, He gives for the ultimate good of the bhakta.

Two shlokas in the Bhagavad Gita extol the virtues of bhakti (9:34 and 18:65). Krishna emphasises that bhakti is the theme, which is the secret of all secrets (18:64) and Krishna cautions Arjuna and through him, cautions entire humanity to pay special heed to it. Bhakti yoga acquires potency when it with some kriyas of astanga yoga like trataka, neti and its various forms according to the need of practitioner. However, all yogic kriyas should be learnt and performed under competent guidance to avoid unpleasant results.

Another kriyas that is very powerful for yogic accomplishments and all round happiness is the sabdbrahm kriya of posture the anahat nada – the sound which is produced in our body without any external effort – is meditated upon. This anahat nada is the divine sound and is experienced by the sadhaka in the form of Ghanta Veena Banshuri, Dundubhi, Sankha and Megha Garjana.

The practitioner of nada yoga under the guidance of a siddha nada yogi avoids falling into the trap of self-destructive human weakness and ultimately achieves communion with god. Having done so nothing remains but bliss.