Knowingly or unknowingly, every living being on this earth longs for pleasure, happiness and bliss. Human beings want and crave for them even more so. Despite our innate endeavors to achieve them, the fulfillment of this urge remains an elusive dream for a large segment of society. Instead, what we see is a fractured self, dysfunctional organizations and a tormented society.

 Here, I advance four secrets drawn from a yogic perspective on how to climb the bliss pyramid and move towards attaining a stance of lasting peace and tranquility for both self and larger society as a whole. A basic thesis of Yogic perspective is that there are four inherent longings in humans viz., physical longings (ka'ma); psycho-physical and psychic (artha); psycho-spiritual and proto-spiritual (dharma) and spiritual (moks'a). Our endeavor to attain them may take us in two directions---the path of greater bondage or ultimate freedom from worldly bondages. The sum-total of individual and collective endeavors in these four domains ultimately produces a materialist or a spiritual society. Taken to an extreme, the path of selfish pleasure ( atma-sukha tattva) is likely to lock us into an unending vicious cycle of un-satiated sensual gratification  & insecurity -desire for more and more wealth and knowledge-craving for power & other manifestations of human ego-ultimate depression, frustration , disappointment and un-fulfillment. It has been a quite common scenario till today. Yoga particularly RRY (Rajadhiraja Yoga) offers a way out of this vicious cycle. It requires mastery of the following four secrets.

Secret 1-

Moderation or Restraint is the secret of pleasure in this world. In order to maintain our bodies, we may need to indulge in ka'ma (physical sensual gratification of any kind) but we shall need to use our conscience (viveka) in order to keep the ka'ma under control. A mere indulgence without restraint is the sure recipe for attachment, pain and unnecessary suffering. Our inner passions are like wild horses and need to be trained and cultured. Yogic lifestyle has several ways to achieve this.

Secret 2-

Progressive Utilization rather than mere accumulation of wealth for selfish pleasure is the secret of overcoming psychological insecurity. We want to secure pleasure in the future via control of wealth, information and knowledge. Progressive Utilization Theory (PROUT) teaches us the importance of maximum and proper utilization of all wealth and to explore the inner secrets for the fullest and benevolent utilization of all wealth using latest tools of science, technology and the arts for the good and happiness of all beings.

Secret 3-

The tendency to control inner faculties of mind also usually simultaneously strengthens the tendency to control, manipulate and can sometimes lead to addiction to power. The secret of transcendence over this lust for power is to cultivate the spirit of service and sacrifice. Only such a philosophy of life that goads us towards ‘neo-humanist' service is the panacea for fighting dogma and liberating the human intellect from the noose of intellectual extravaganza and pseudo-intellectual games. However, it is not an easy task. It requires constant application of discriminating intellect and a spirit of coordinated cooperation as opposed to subordinated cooperation.

Secret 4-

Freedom is the innate urge in all living beings. However, freedom begotten out of control of others is not lasting. History is a testimony to the cruel ending of all endeavors to keep control of power through suppression, oppression and repressions. The secret of true and lasting freedom is a peaceful attunement to the call of our Higher Universal Spiritual Self. This spiritual work brings inner-enlightenment; enfoldment of creativity , genuine wisdom; and, perennial flow of universal love. It also gives vitality to stand for Truth or fight for Dharma (righteousness). So, the ultimate solution for bliss is to strive towards spiritual enlightenment above everything else in life. Spiritual enlightenment comes through discipline of the mind, cultivation of selflessness and an unending devotional endeavor to unite with the omniscient Cosmic Consciousness-beyond all forms and expressions.

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Climbing the Bliss Pyramid

While the above four-secret theory may appear simple, its actualization is not an easy task. It is like climbing the steep Mt. Everest. It is fraught with dangers and risks. The obstacles are both internal and external. They originate both from the individual and from the collective-consciousness. The staticity of self and society inter-twines and generates a powerful invisible power of gravity. Hence, a collective effort is required to create a proper environment for enabling the climbing of this Bliss-Pyramid. Any endeavor in this direction would be a laudable task. Rajadhiraja Yoga (RRY), if sincerely practiced, offers a way to deal with the problems of fractured self, dysfunctional organizations and tormented society.