Why the thirst for the infinite is natural to every human being, how yoga differs from taking things on faith, and why a harmonious society begins with a revolution in each person's consciousness.
To deal effectively with stress and difficulties, people must understand and control their own mind. The mind is the container of all our thoughts and feelings, which arise under the influence of outer conditions. Once we learn to create harmony with the world around us, we will reduce the negative influence of circumstances to a minimum.
The thirst for the infinite
All the religions of the world aim at knowing the truth, God, or the supreme Consciousness that created this world, and at attaining eternal life and infinite happiness. They all speak of a higher level of existence, though they call it by different names: heaven, paradise, salvation, bliss, satori, nirvana, liberation, and so on. All religions were created out of the human desire to go beyond physical and psychic existence and to develop one's spiritual sphere. This longing for spirituality is the basic quality of the human being as the most highly developed being. The thirst for the infinite is present in every living being. True spirituality is hard to recognize, and so people become disillusioned and lose interest in the subject.
In an age of advancing science and technology, people today do not want to accept a worldview on faith if it is far removed from the scientific discoveries already made and is not based on rationality. Yoga is 99% practice and only 1% theory.
Outer show, rituals, and fanaticism are foreign to it. Every practice can be tested in one's own experience. Regular meditation broadens one's perception of reality and, through direct personal experience, leads a person to realize their own essence and the purpose of life.
A revolution of consciousness
We usually identify ourselves with the body and the senses. We feel ourselves to be individuals, and we raise social barriers of faith, caste, gender, race, or nationality. We shut ourselves up in a narrow circle of those with whom we share personal interests, a worldview, a religion, philosophical views, and we often show hostility toward those who live and think differently. Such narrowness of thinking has given rise, and continues to give rise, to many conflicts in the history of civilization. On the level of the body and the senses all people are different and separate from one another, but in the spiritual sphere they are one. When a person brings their spiritual potential into play, they overcome all psychic and social barriers and gain a universal outlook. At the root of goodwill, compassion, and universal love lies the understanding of the oneness of the world, which is the manifestation of one Consciousness.
Such a person perceives the universe as a part of themselves, rejoicing together with every being and sharing in its sorrows. Today the main task of humanity is to create a healthy society that will provide people with a decent physical existence and create favorable conditions for everyone's psychic and spiritual development. A key role in building such a system will be played by people with universal spiritual views and a cosmic understanding, all of whose aspirations are aimed at the welfare of all. The world is waiting for them to solve humanity's pressing problems.
People need a spiritual practice capable of elevating, ennobling, and leading each person to a deep understanding of universal oneness. Only by changing ourselves inwardly can we overcome egoism and all the barriers that separate people from one another. This change is a psycho-spiritual process, and it is the cornerstone in building a harmonious society. It is useless to reform the political, economic, and social system without carrying out a reform of consciousness. A constant effort to elevate the mind through the spiritual practice of meditation is an indispensable condition for achieving the true welfare of society. The only thing humanity really needs is a revolution in the consciousness of each person.