The concept of freedom in Yoga philosophy - Essay Example

CONCEPT OF FREEDOM IN YOGA PHILOSOPHY and Number of In this essay I will provide a summary of theconcept of freedom in the yoga philosophy. How this philosophy tries to outline how yoga brings about liberation. What the developers of yoga were thinking or in what state or situation they were in when they came up with the concept and how they were able to convince others of the benefit of yoga. I will further argue that the philosophers and developers of the art were right in designing Yoga in such a manner that it is beneficial to human beings.

The Samkhya philosophy is a philosophy that, explains how Yoga sets one free from pain and suffering. It describes how one can remove pain and suffering from their minds and body. It describes the different concepts that form part of our world. This philosophy states that when one feels deep pain in their body, they want to destroy their body and mind (Sinha, 2012). This becomes a problem because we do not have the knowledge on how to destroy our body or mind. The philosopher states that “life means integration of the body; mind and consciousness, whereby some are unwanted while others are desired” (Buley, 2006).

We can see that this philosophy combines consciousness and the body matter. This is shown in the two independent variables namely, the Purusha and the Prakriti. The philosopher concludes by saying that real freedom is obtaining freedom from the three types of pain and suffering the physical, emotional and spiritual (Michaels, 2004). Therefore the philosopher identifies with our experience of pain, fear, anger and any other emotional or physical pain. The philosophy then gives us a means by which we can remove or deal with this pain accordingly.

The process by which one removes pain is called the doctrine of cause and effect. It states that “there is a time and process by which undesirable, painful elements get into our bodies and consciousness and there is a means by which we can reverse it. Every effect has its cause and it is possible to remove the cause, thus removing the effect” (Sinha, 2012). This is true, but us as Human beings, are we able to clearly know what is causing us pain? It is not true that we can effectively identify the causes of our problems.

The philosopher was not wrong in saying that we can find the cause and effect of pain, although it is still true that many people have been unable to find the root cause of their pain and suffering. In conclusion we can see that the proponent was able to combine consciousness and the body. Research studies have found that the mind can control what we think and feel, therefore if a person thinks that they are feeling a lot of pain then the body will be in that state and if one stops the mind from thinking about the pain, and then the body will not feel any pain.

Therefore the philosopher recommends Yoga as one of the effective techniques of removing the cause of pain and suffering. In yoga the treatment used to remove the pain is internal, deeply rooted in our body. (Haney, 2002)ReferencesBuley, M. (. (2006). Classical Samkhya And Yoga: The Metaphysics Of Experience. New York: Taylor & Francis,.Haney, W. S. (2002). Culture and Consciousness: Literature Regained. New Jersey: Bucknell University Press, .Michaels, A. (2004). Hinduism: Past and Present. Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press,.Sinha, N. (2012).

The Samkhya Philosophy. New Delhi: Hard Press,.