Moksha


Moksha (Sanskrit: mokṣa m. , release) or Mukti (vimoksha, vimukti :  liberation) stands for  the deliverance from the cycles of rebirth of the soul and therefore also for the enlightenment of Nirvikalpa-Samadhi (Kaivalya)  or the Nirvana.

In old Samkhya it stood for the liberation from the 'three worlds' of samsara.

Another name is Jivanmukti or Jivan Mukta (self-realized person), the liberation through the developed individal spiritual soul, the Jivatman and union with the Paramatma-Purusha.

The Yogi or adept has developed his spiritual body(Jivatman) so far, that he stays in consciousness in this body and steers his activities from there.

The  Varaha-Upanishad counts several steps of the Jivanmukta : Sayujya (sāyujya), Sarupya (sārūpya), Salokya (sālokya), Sarshti (sārṣṭi)  and Samipya (sāmīpya). Verses 4.21–4.30 describe his characteristics (Ayyangar, Aiyar etc.) :

  • He who is engrossed in the ways of the world, yet his mind is steady, like ether, is said to be Jivanmukta
  • He whose mental radiance neither rises nor sets, whose inner state is neither affected by happiness nor by misery inflicted on him, is said to be Jivanmukta
  • He who is wakeful while remaining asleep, he whose mental alertness is devoid of impressions, is known as Jivanmukta
  • He who responds to influences such as hatred, fear, love, yet his heart remains pure like Akasha (aether, space), is said to be Jivanmukta
  • He whose attitude is not be attached to anything, his intellect never clouded whether active or passive, is a Jivanmukta
  • He who does not shrink out of fear from the world, nor the world shrinks from him, who is free from anger, fear and joy, is a Jivanmukta
  • He whose mind is not agitated, though participating in the world, who rests in state of calmness and absolute consciousness, no matter what, is known as Jivanmukta

The concept and characteristics of Jivanmukta in Varaha Upanishad is similar, states Sprockhoff, but other Upanishads develop these ideas further and in greater depth.[42]

In this category are  Turiya and  Kaivalya of the Yogasutras.

In tantric buddhism moksha corresponds to the union with the dharmakaya.

== Enlightenment ==

 

In tantric buddhism the term bodhi stands for common enlightenment why bodhicitta is practiced.

Nirvana is the final enlightenment with no return comparable to the Nirbikalpa samadhi. The term appears in the Rigveda, in the Bhagavad Gita, in Jainism and in Buddhism.

But Nirvana is not extinction. It happens after the nineth Jhana. The Buddha describes Nirvana in Dhammapada 202 and in Majjhima-Nikaya 75 as highest bliss.

In the Lankavatara Sutra, the Blessed One says in chapter 1, "You do not disappear into Nirvana, nor dwell on Nirvana in you, for Nirvana transcends all duality of knowing and knowing, of being and not-being."
It is taught in the Lotus Sutra that one can attain the state of Nirvana by awakening to one's indwelling Buddha-nature, - which is an awakening as the culmination of a long process of development of the spiritual nature rather than just a satori or a mental culmination.

Sri Aurobindo stated that the essence  of Nirvana is the establishment of a new standpoint or status of consciousness that sees and acts from the basis of Oneness, not duality, and because of this Oneness, our entire life becomes divinised when we act with that awareness.

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