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ering of self-realization. The sadhak who finds himself on the path of self-realization, is blessed. All material craving then comes to an end and, he passes through a state of complete transformation.
Q. What do you mean by self-realization? Does one have a direct experience of the soul in this state? What does actually transpire?
Ans. There is an element inside our body which cannot be experienced from the outside. In the state of self-realization or soul-realization, one comes face to face with that element. One directly experiences the very source of the current. There is no hindrance whatever. One has a direct experience of consciousness. But very few people reach that stage. Therefore, by self-realization in the present context we only mean the perception of all kinds of gross and subtle movements of the body, within and without.
Thus, breath-perception is also a part of self- or soulrealization, because breath has been recognized as the material apparatus of the soul. The perception of the sense organs is a part of self-realization. Similarly, the perception of bodily vibrations, or the experiencing of the karma sharir, is also a form of self-realization. In the very midst of these realizations there comes a moment when one has a direct experience of consciousness.
Consciousness is the fundamental quality of the soul. But in common 'parlance, the soul has other connotations, too. For example, the sentence "I surrender myself", implies the transcendence of self, of passions, of body-consciousness, and of all that is false. Similarly, "victory over oneself", too, implies control over the senses, passions, etc.
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