Often living in America, it can feel that Freedom was an American invention, this is far from the truth. Swa (meaning one’s own in Sanskrit) raj (to rule over) has a dual meaning through history. Swaraj or Freedom was spoken of in the Indian Upanishads and Bhagavad Gita (we will read in Teacher Training) starting about 1000 B.C. One interpretation of Swaraj as strictly political; to rule over one’s land. But the second and much more discussed meaning is spiritual or psychological, that is to rule over one’s soul or self.
In Indian philosophy, this meant Swadhyaya (Self-study) through knowledge to gain freedom-swaraj from ignorance, illusion, and fear.
Freedom is both internal and external. In ancient Greece, Pericles spoke of the Athenian democracy as “the apostle of freedom and an education to all of Greece.”
Further down the time, Christ expounded a philosophy of freedom through truth (Satya) much like the ancient Hindus. We are all familiar with the biblical statement “Ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”
As we moved into our consumer centric, popularity driven culture in the late 20th and 21st century, we have lost touch with the spiritual discussion on freedom. We make fun of philosophy as a superfluous subject and that is a great mistake of our current culture.
Plato has warned through his dialogues, as he was heartbroken about the decline of Athenian democracy, that political freedom depends on spiritual freedom and the education of each individual. I believe this moment right now in history is a very important moment to rejoice in philosophy. Nothing is more pertinent towards the preservation of human spirit than the study of self-awareness, to learn to question accepted dogmas, dependencies, and needs. Our Freedom is limited by how much we know – Dive into Swadhyaya with Spira’s Teacher Training and find your liberation. Find your spirit that is healthier, stronger and free from self-imposed boundaries.
To dive into Swadhyaya with Dora and discover a new level of Swaraj – Look into 200 teacher training. It is not for teachers only, it is for humans who wish to create a peaceful, intelligent, and free society!
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