By Swami Chidananda
The sānkhya philosophy itself had pointed out that the problem with our life is that ‘the spirit’ is caught in (or bound by) ‘matter’. The Vedānta goes further and declares that such bondage is in the domain of ignorance (ajnāna) and true wisdom (jnāna) can set us free.
Before we get glimpses of that liberating wisdom, we need to undo all the damage that ‘matter’ does to our personality. We get much defiled when we are in the tight embrace of matter. Attachment to matter not only blinds us to the truth of our being the ‘pure spirit’ but also causes numerous forms of undesirable behaviour. To speak lies, to mindlessly go after sense pleasures and to revel in worldly power or position etc. are the sinful ways that make it very difficult for any of us to turn towards the exit door – to proceed towards moksha.
yuyodhi asmat-juhurānam enah
Make us free of crooked, sinful acts!
[Ishāvāsya Upanishad, mantra 18]
The last mantra of the Ishāvāsya Upanishad thus makes an earnest prayer to the Supreme Almighty Lord, visualized as Agni, to separate us from the tight grip of sin, which is no other than the delusion caused by matter.
To say goodbye to wrong ways of living paves the way to enlightenment.