Daily Readings from the Works of Swami Venkatesananda


Venkatesa Daily Readings - Volume 1 Let's Re-cognize

May 25, 2023

Let's Re-cognize

    It is hard to define what yoga is in positive terms. It has been described as union, harmony, integration, as God-realization, realization of truth. But who is to say what God is, what truth is? Can we recognize these? Re-cognize means to "know again". What we do not know already we cannot re-cognize.

   Therefore, when we hear words like "God", "truth", we create mental images. Yoga enables us to recognize the psychological, social, religious and national barriers, and recognize them for what they are. If we recognize that an unhealthy life-style is endangering our life, then it will drop away. If we recognize that the psychological barriers we erect within ourselves, with an external polished behavior for the public and an internal nature hidden even from ourselves, are a danger to our peace of mind and happiness, they will drop away.

   In the same way too, we will know that the religious and national barriers that we have put up, in the false hope of ensuring our security and prosperity, do in fact promote their opposite. Then these too will drop away from our consciousness.

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