There are diverse spiritual
practices in the form of prayers, meditation, yoga, tantra, glorifying
the guru or god, meditation and inquiry. etc.
What the goal of spiritual practice might be is described
differently in various religions and traditions. In some religions, the goal of
spiritual practice is to go to heaven and be with
angels, divine beings, and God. In some spiritual traditions, the goal of spiritual
practice is said to be union with God. Still, in other schools of thought, the
goal of spiritual is freedom from bondage from all concepts including the
notions of heaven and God. There are many variations on these themes in the world religions.
The nature of life and existence is generally determined by
one’s inherited cultural and traditional conditioning and upbringing or
conditioning through circumstances.
From an Eastern meditative perspective, anything that
allows the mind to be quiet and content and peaceful in awareness is spiritual
practice. The schools of yoga in Hinduism,
Buddhism, and Jainism emphasize the path of nonviolence in their spiritual
practice. The goal of spiritual practice in these traditions is Moksha or Nirvana. Moksha or Nirvana imply release from
all bondage and liberation from the cycle of birth, life and death.
The Advaita perspective
emphasizes Self-knowledge as the only means to overcome the idea that self is
separate from God or the Universe. According to this philosophy, when the
Self is realized, the false cognition that the world is different from the Self
simply vanishes.
There is only consciousness, which is the true self; however
when the consciousness is conceptualizes with different concepts and ideas, so it
becomes difficult to understand and assimilate the non-dual truth. Therefore
there is no attainment of goal outside of consciousness which is the formless
substance and witness of the three states.
Consciousness is the center of
the physical existence or mind, and it pervades in everything and everywhere in
all the three states. Deeper inquiry,
analysis and reasoning revels the fact that, consciousness is the true self.
Holding on to the awareness that the formless consciousness as the
real Self is the goal. The consciousness is already there. The veil of
ignorance has to be lifted to overcome the illusion. Therefore Self-Knowledge
is the only tool to know and realize the fact that, the veil mere mirage.
One can find answers to all questions if one first realizes
the fact that, the self is not physical body but the self is that, which
witnesses the physical body and the universe together, without the physical
apparatus.
The ultimate answer to all the questions comes only after
one realizes the self is not physical but self is consciousness. One will be able to understand and assimilate
the non-dual truth only after he becomes aware of the fact that, the
consciousness is the true self. Therefore, there is a necessary to realize the
fact that, “consciousness” is the true self, in order to realize, the body and
the universe are mere mirage created out of consciousness. Therefore the whole
experience of diversity is nothing but consciousness. Thus consciousness is
second to none. Therefore, to understand and assimilate and
realize the consciousness is ultimate truth nothing else will help other then
the knowledge of the true self.
