Yoga Sutra

I have been reading Yoga Sutra by Patanjali that i bought in Shenzhen, the mandarin version. It has 4 chapters and i began chapter 2 yesterday, and it is very difficult for me to understand untill i read the Tibetan Book of Life and Death last month. As i go further with the reading and understanding of Yoga Sutra, I began to understand what the teachings of Buddhism and Hinduism are about basically. It is about practising control and then removing the effects of your ego and emotions, by separating your true self (Atman) from temptations from your five senses through Yoga. And the effect of karma on your five senses is explained too. A total transformation of one's true self is expected when the meditation reaches the higher stage, called Samandhi, such as a seed which is burnt under high temp will never sprout again. That will cut you off from the greed/hatred/lust, and this is what Buddhism is preaching.

It totally make senses to me, whatever i need/i lust for/i want /i wish /i love.... all are not permanent, but are these really what "I " want ? People will go to the gym to build up their body shape, go to a saloon for an expensive hair cut , go shopping for Gucci/Prada, go dining at Shangrila, but all these are purely acts of attachment to our 5 senses. We like to look good ( visual) , feel sexy ( touch) , taste good food ( taste ) , smell good (scent), etc. None of these is what our true self really needs, and all of these are superficial. And once we cannot do that, jealousy and dissatisfaction will grow and create Karma, the greater the attachment to the objects from this earth, the more difficult you can recognise your true self (Atman) in Yoga. And being able to recognise your true self is like giving yourself a passport to escape from reincarnation. Yoga is about achieving minimalism in life with everything in moderatation. And the final result is that you will become a monk, but come to think of it, some of the monks are very rich in terms of their possessions nowadays.

I do not think i can reach the stage of being a monk, as my understanding of these concepts and teachings are very minimum, and i am not a bright student either. What i hope to achieve is to find the happiness/peace within myself, by knowing who i really am, and have less attachment to my possessions. It will help me to go further with my life, my work and my relationship with others.


Darby