Five Bodies Yoga - Self-knowledge

This is the most important part of the course, and all previous exercises ultimately serve primarily to prepare and clear the body system for being able to reach higher states of consciousness and to be able to hold these states.

The ultimate question that every soul will ask itself at some point during its incarnations is: 'Who am I?'

The spiritual traditions of this planet have addressed this question and how to find an answer to it since time immemorial.

While it is quite easy to gain a conceptual understanding of 'who you are' that is taught by various spiritual teachers, this is not what it is ultimately about. Certain mental concepts about this can be helpful up to a point, but what's really important is experiencing the answer to this ultimate question firsthand.

Graphics Sri Yantra

Every person always strives (more or less consciously) to be/become happy.

We rush from one experience that promises happiness to the next without often realizing throughout our whole lives that the highest fulfillment we really long for is not to be found in the forms of this world (material objects, people, thoughts, feelings, etc.). Sure, you can experience certain temporary feelings of happiness from the forms of the world, but you cannot find there what you truly long for deep inside.

Once you realize that what you are looking for cannot be found on the 'outside', you will reverse your focus from the 'outside' to the 'inside', and the journey to the true Self can begin. Some people reach this point when they have achieved everything on the 'outside' that they expected would bring them absolute happiness - a good partner, great children, a nice house, a fulfilling job,... - and then notice that they are still not completely fulfilled internally. A swami at whose ashram I was in India calls this phenomenon 'depression of success'.

I don't want to devalue the world of forms here; it is also very important for a holistically fulfilled and balanced life, but it simply cannot give us the highest fulfillment.

How can one achieve this absolute state of happiness then?

There are countless methods in the spiritual traditions for changing certain aspects of yourself and your life for the better, but there are not that many that serve to achieve the highest self-knowledge. I'll introduce you to one of these meditations in the next section.

The very limited perception of the senses

Humans can only perceive a tiny part of the reality that really exists with their senses. We are usually only able to perceive about 2000 bits of data from 400 billions that would be available at any given moment, according to Dr. Joe Dispenza. For example, we only need to look at the electromagnetic spectrum; the visible range here is between approximately 400 and 700 nm. This means that we cannot (normally) see all the frequencies that are above and below it, even though they exist, of course!

'Resting in the ocean of silence, I experience light and love in the ever-changing forms'

I received this description of the highest state of being in a meditation many years ago. It points to a state in which one is no longer identified with the body, the emotions, the thoughts, and even the 'I Am' that observes them. One sees what all this really is: the manifesting play of the two fundamental forces of creation: light and love (or Yin and Yang, Shiva and Shakti, male energy and female energy,...)

Next, let's move on to 5. The Causal Body and beyond