Hindu scriptures refer to four purusharthas (objects of human pursuit) ; namely dharma (righteousness), artha (prosperity), kama (pleasure) and moksha (liberation or the spiritual freedom). All the four purusharthas are said to be important, but moksha is considered to be the supreme ideal of life. Bhagavad Gita has described the concept of liberation, in detail. It has conceived spiritual freedom as the eternal and indestructible status which is free from all misery. Such a state of being can be attained by anyone - irrespective of his or her race, gender or caste etc. - by sincerely pursuing the path of yoga.
In the Gita, the state of liberation has variously been described as ‘freeing oneself from bondage of repeated births’ , ‘attaining divine consciousness’ , ‘experiencing the infinite bliss that arises from being in touch with the Eternal’ , ‘coming to Krishna’ , ‘becoming one with Brahman and thus attaining to the brahmanirvana i. e. absolute freedom’ etc. etc.
Moksha is the attainment of God. It is the state of highest perfection. The idea of the liberation has been explained in the Gita with reference to the individual soul (the self). Liberation means union of the individual soul (jivatman) with the Supersoul (Paramatman). In such a state of being one realises that the soul is in all beings, and all beings are in the soul. He thus feels oneness with all beings. To achieve such a unity with the Divine, Gita has shown a threefold spiritual path namely gyan yoga (the path of knowledge), karma yoga (the path of action) and bhakti yoga (the path of devotion).
Liberation does not mean living a life of a mystic or a mendicant. It rather implies leading a meaningful and purposeful life. It has been stated that those who are free from dualities like pleasure and pain, are firmly fixed in purity, are free from anxieties for gain and safety ; they remain established in the self (shloka 2.45). When one’s intelligence is fixed in self-realisation and is not confused by various scriptural injunctions, he attains divine consciousness (shloka 2.53). Free from attachment, fear and anger ; and absorbed in the Supreme Lord, the one who takes refuge in Him gets purified by the austerity of wisdom and thus attains His state of being (shloka 4.10). The one who is happy from within, whose contentment is within ; and who is illumined by the inner light - such a person becomes one with Brahman and attains to the brahmanirvana i.e. the absolute freedom (shloka 5.24). To put it in simple words, equanimity of mind and knowledge of one’s essential nature leads to liberation of the soul.
Bhagavad Gita does not advocate cessation of action. Instead, man has been advised to perform all his worldly duties enthusiastically but without any attachment to actions or their results. It has been stated that the wise men possessing an equipoised mind free themselves from the bondage of repeated births by renouncing the fruits of their actions. In this manner, they attain that blissful state which is beyond any sorrow (shloka 2.51). By performing one’s prescribed duty without attachment, man attains to the Supreme (shloka 3.19).
One of the easiest and simplest ways of attaining liberation is bhakti i. e. love and trust of God. It has been stated that the Supreme Lord can be known in essence, seen directly ; and entered into (merged with) by unwavering devotion to Him (shloka 11.54). Sri Krishna has assured that those who surrender unto Him (the Supreme Lord) dedicate all their actions to Him, and meditating upon Him always worship Him with single-minded devotion - certainly dwell in Him. Such devotees are swiftly granted deliverance from the ocean of death-bound existence (shlokas 12.6 to 12.8). He who worships Krishna constantly with unwavering and exclusive devotion of love transcends the modes of material nature, and becomes eligible for being one with Brahman (the Absolute) (shloka 14.26).
But, liberation does not suggest abandonment of social obligations. The freed souls cannot be indifferent to the sufferings of other beings. That is why it has been stressed in shloka 12.4 that one should remain engaged in the welfare of all creatures. The ones who have attained perfection must continue to perform their prescribed duties sincerely, to set an example for the general masses to follow (shloka 3.20).
There is no hard and fast division between different branches of yoga. All paths of yoga supplement and complement each other. The inter-connectedness of different means of liberation has been highlighted in various shlokas of Gita. It has been stated that he who dedicates all his actions to the Supreme Lord, looks upon Him as his supreme goal, worships Him ; who is free from attachment and who is free from enmity to any of the creatures - such a devotee certainly attains Him (shloka 11.55). It has also been stated that the one who is free from egotism, free from false sense of strength, free from arrogance, free from lust and anger, who has given up the notion of ownership ; and who is tranquil in mind - such a person is worthy of becoming one with Brahman (shloka 18.53).
In short, the one who has gained knowledge of his essential nature, is devoted to the Supreme Lord and dedicates all his works to Him ; and is free from lust, anger, greed, anxiety, fear etc. - such a person of spiritual wisdom attains the ultimate goal of human life.
