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The very title might blow off some of our minds with a thought that yoga was never a religion then how come the concept of God in Yoga? Yoga as a school of philosophy and practice has influenced millions of lives across the globe. Yoga offers a profound wisdom of life and its intricacies. But what does it have to do with God? How does Yoga approach the concept of GOD?
God is always seen as a superhuman being with powers to control nature and beyond humans. Or God is the creator, ruler and destroyer of the Universe and source of all Morality. This is how we understand or cognize GOD.
God According to Yoga:
Yoga never approached the concept of God with the above said meaning. To be more precise, there is no concept of GOD in any of the Indic Schools of Wisdom. The exact word that Yoga uses to define GOD, if at all we can translate it so is “ISHWARA”. Now do not pounce with conclusions or predetermined meaning of this Sanskrit word Ishwara.
ISHWARA – The Unaffected:
According to Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Ishwara is:
|| Klesa Karma Vipaka Asayaih Aparmrstah Purusavisesah Isvarah || Sutra I.24 – Chapter I
That Entity which is unaffected by the storage or sources of suffering, actions and consequences of actions is called “Ishwara”
Now can any explanation beat that meaning of Ishwara? There is no equivalent word for this in English. Someone with limited understanding must have loosely translated this as GOD and many have blindly followed the misunderstanding as great wisdom.
In other words, anyone who is beyond the storage or sufferings of actions sourcing out of Ignorance, Ego, Bondage, Repulsions and Fear of Loss is “ISHWARA”.
The Conclusion
Yoga is all about the journey from being “NASHWARA” (Mortal) TO “ISHWARA”(Immortal). Every Yoga teacher Training Course at Samyut Yoga emphasizes this aspect of Yoga.
