Question: What is meant by Eashvara Pranidhaana?

Answer: Pranidhaan is God. In this sutra, the word Eashvara means the Supreme Master. Easha Eishvarye is the original root from where this word has been produced. Eishvarya here does not mean ‘richness’ but the ‘ability to govern, control, or rule over’. The one who controls, masters, governs or rules is called Eashvara. Thus, when a soul is able to control the senses and mind in the body, it is called Eashvara. The purpose of yoga is twofold – to make the soul the master of the senses and mind, and then enable it to join God and become one with Him. When Gita says ‘Bibhartyavyaya Eashvarah’, it explains both of these. The soul bears and protects the body because it is indestructible and is the master, and the God bears and protects the world because He is Avyaya – indestructible as well as free from all kinds of changes and is the Master.

A soul that is unable to control the mind and senses can never be a master and one who is unable to master their body, senses and mind can never join God. Only an Eashvara can join Eashvara. To become Eashvara, one should reach the stage of Asamprajnaata samaadhi. The following sutras of Yogadarshanam ‘Bhavapratyayo videhaprakritilayaanaam’, ‘Shraddhaa-veerya-smriti-samaadhi-prajnaapoorvaka itereshaam’, ‘Teevrasavegaanaam Aasannah’ and ‘Mridu-madhya-adhimaatratvaat tatopi visheshah’ should be read alongwith the present sutra and then one will come to know as to what Maharshi wants to convey to us.

The people who explain the following statement of Gita, ‘Eashvarah sarvabootaanaam hriddesherjuna tishthati’ as “that God exists in the heart of all creatures” are totally wrong. God exists in every part of the body. So, it is not God but the soul that is really meant here by Shri Krishna, because the soul exists near the heart. Similarly, those who say that the soul is not separate from God because both of them have been called as Eashvara in Gita, are also wrong. Actually, this word sometimes represents God while at other places it means the soul only, just like in the above shloka, it stands only for soul. The interpretation of this word depends on the adjectives in the shloka. Therefore, we should be very careful while interpreting the Gita.

The word Pranidhaana is also marvellous. This is the combination of Pra+ni+dhaana. The word ‘Pra’ means ‘meticulously’, ‘Nidhaanam’ means ‘to invest oneself’. When a person invests his money in a bank or a company, it multiplies several times. Similarly, when a devotee invests his soul in God, it develops its spiritual power by hundreds of times. Just like a seed sown in the earth draws suitable qualities from it, even so when a soul is sown in the spiritual land of God, it draws all kinds of qualities from Him. That is the meaning of ‘Agnyaadhaanam’. The soul is ‘fire’. When we perform yajna, we place it in God who is also a great spiritual fire and the fire placed in fire develops one’s spirit, knowledge and power.

Eashvara Pranidhaanam, however, is the result of the four other qualities – Shoucha (purity of conduct, mind, richness, dealings, body and intellect etc.), Santosha (satisfaction), Tapas (physical and mental austerity) and Swaadhyaaya (study of books and the Self). With these means, a person strengthens himself spiritually and then sows that powerful spiritual seed in God. This is how the soul enters into ‘Asamprajnaata samaadhi’ – the oneness with God where the soul totally forgets its own self and all other things and sees and feels nothing else but that Supreme Power. This union with God brings peace and happiness to the mind and a person is freed from all problems and sufferings.

(Excerpted from Satya Sneha Surabhi, issue 25)