Goals of Yoga

It has often been wondered as to what does one gain from Yoga. Or rather, what does Yoga aim to teach us? The answer to these questions is that the ultimate goal of Yoga is to attain salvation. Simply explained, salvation refers to the liberation of soul from the materialistic pulls of this world. It strives to make a man free from the yearnings of this world, and be at complete peace with his inner self.

With Yoga, an individual reaches a state where he is no longer affected by emotions such as anger, happiness, greed, and envy. Yoga also delivers a human being from the biggest pulls in this materialistic world, namely, birth and death.

Mahabharata describes salvation as a state where an individual is one with the Brahman. Brahman is all-pervasive, according to yogic beliefs. The Vaishnav school of thought believes that the state of salvation merges the individual’s entity with that of Vishnu.

However, Yoga helps mortals with much more than helping them attain salvation. It also helps them discipline and control their daily lives. The benefits of Yoga are not just in attaining physical fitness. The physical fitness acquired through the discipline of Yoga must be used to gain mental and spiritual knowledge. Yoga is not attached to a specific religion. Yoga helps to increase an individual’s spiritual awareness.

It helps ordinary human beings to realize the true meaning of life.