Mukti is liberation from all suffering

Most people think that being happy is the goal of life. Of course, we all seek to be happy. While most of us seem to be heading towards destination happiness, we haven't realised the truth. We begin our life thinking that success is happiness and we chase achievements. Although we experience joy, it is fleeting. About 20 percent of the human race, leaves the rat race to live a life of contentment and fulfilment. But neither achievement, nor fulfilment can liberate us from misery and sorrow. Only Mukti or Liberation can. What is liberation? liberation starts with the realisation of the truth – the realisation that we are not the body or the mind. We are the divine life energy that gives us the power to live. If we do not attain self-realisation and liberation, we will continue to live like prisoners in this body-mind complex and suffer the pain of the body and misery of the mind. Unless we achieve the ultimate goal of liberation, we cannot really escape from misery and sorrow.

Many spiritual masters and religions talk about liberation from the cycle of death and rebirth. Even the Buddha – the awakened one, advocated this. But regardless of whether we believe in an afterlife or not, we all seek Liberation from misery and sorrow. Therefore, this should be our ultimate goal. Otherwise, we may enjoy pleasures from achievement or the joy from fulfilment but we will not be able to experience the eternal bliss and peace that we experience as we realise the Truth about life and our purpose. This is the third and ultimate peak of happiness – enlightenment.

Hindus, Jains, and Buddhists, amongst others, believe in rebirth, that we human beings will be reborn in a new body based on our karma, our actions. Other religions preach that our actions, good or bad, are recorded and these actions decide our destiny. The seeker, the one who wants to achieve the ultimate goal of life, tries to find out the truth by going on a quest. It doesn't matter which religion one follows, what matters is discovering the truth. What is the truth? For instance, do we really go to heaven or hell? If yes, then where are heaven or hell exactly located? If we bury or cremate the body here on earth, then who goes to heaven or hell? Though we may be promised all kinds pleasures in heaven, but without a body, how can we enjoy these pleasures?

Liberation has to be achieved while we are alive. We cannot be liberated after we die, although the final reward of liberation comes only after death. A true seeker who realises the Truth transcends the body, mind, and ego and realises that he is the soul that must escape and transcend the law of karma, which states, 'As you sow, so shall you reap.' Most of the world is aware of this law and accepts it. But very few people know that we can transcend karma, that we can escape from this law. To transcend karma, we have to realise that we are not the body. We have to transcend the Me, Mind and Ego. When we realise we are an instrument of the divine and we surrender our actions without being the doer, then the actions are no longer ours and so, the karma doesn't belong to us. But only a tiny minority is fortunate to realise this truth. It is this minority that is able to escape from the cycle of death and rebirth. This is liberation.

Liberation is only possible through realisation. The one who wants to escape from karma must give up his 'I' – his ego, to arrive at this final destination. However, our own mind and ego are our biggest enemies. The mind is a rascal and along with the ego, tries to stop us from both realisation and liberation.

All religions advocate liberation as the ultimate goal of life. Some call it enlightenment, some salvation; others call it Nirvana, Mukti or Moksha. They are all one and the same, different names for Mukti, Liberation, Our Ultimate Goal.