[Advaita-l] MOKSHA in different schools

[TONY VERMA]

Moksha or Liberation From Samsara
According to Hinduism the goal of human life is to be free or liberated from 
samsara, the repeated births and deaths. Such liberation is called moksha or 
mukti in Sanskrit. Buddhists call it nirvana. Moksha can be attained only 
through God-realization.

The different schools of Hindu philosophy hold differing views about how to 
attain moksha. Some believe that moksha can be achieved by people only after 
their death, others claim that it can be achieved even while they are alive.

Never does a man attain moksha by his own skill; by no means other
than the grace of Siva, the dispeller of evil, is such an attainment
possible. -- Paushkara Agama

In heaven there is no fear at all. Thou, O Death, art not there. Nor
in that place does the thought of growing old make one tremble.
There, free from hunger and from thirst, and far from the reach of
sorrow, all rejoice and are glad. -- Yajur Veda

Only by a tranquil mind does one destroy all action, good or bad.
Once the self is pacified, one abides in the Self and attains everlasting 
bliss. If the mind becomes as firmly established in Brahman as it is usually 
attached to the sense objects, who, then, will not be released from bondage? 
-- Yajur Veda

Moksha After Death

1. Salokya Mukti

In salokya-mukti the departed soul goes to ishta-loka (the abode of the 
Personal God, such as the abode of Vishnu), and stays there blissfully 
enjoying His presence. A person who has gone through rigorous ethical and 
moral disciplines followed by right knowledge, right action, non-attachment, 
and devotional meditation on the Personal God (Vishnu), becomes fit for 
release or moksha through Ishwara's loving grace.

2. Samipya or Sannidhya Mukti

In samipya or sannidhya-mukti the departed soul enjoys the bliss of extreme 
proximity to the Personal God. A person who has gone through rigorous 
ethical and moral disciplines followed by right knowledge, right action, 
non-attachment, and devotional meditation on the Personal God (Vishnu), 
becomes fit for release or moksha through Ishwara's loving grace.

3. Sarupya Mukti

In sarupya-mukti the departed soul acquires the form of the Personal God and 
enjoys intense bliss. A person who has gone through rigorous ethical and 
moral disciplines followed by right knowledge, right action, non-attachment, 
and devotional meditation on the Personal God (Vishnu), becomes fit for 
release or moksha through Ishwara's loving grace.

4. Sayujya Mukti

In sayujya-mukti the departed soul becomes blissfully absorbed in the 
Personal God. A person who has gone through rigorous ethical and moral 
disciplines followed by right knowledge, right action, non-attachment, and 
devotional meditation on the Personal God (Vishnu), becomes fit for release 
or moksha through Ishwara's loving grace.

5. Krama mukti or Avantara Mukti

Krama mukti or avantara mukti means liberation through stages.

A person who has intensely meditated on Saguna Brahman using the sacred 
sound symbol Aum or other prescribed methods of meditation goes to 
Brahma-loka after death. There he attains the knowledge of Nirguna Brahman. 
When the entire universe is dissolved at the end of the kalpa he becomes one 
with Brahman and is not born again. This is called krama-mukti or 
avantara-mukti.

6. Vishishtadvaita Moksha

Those who believe in this school believe that moksha means living blissfully 
in vaikuntha, which is the realm of the Personal God after the death of the 
devotee. A person who has attained moksha lives blissfully in vaikuntha in a 
spiritual body in the presence of God. He/she acquires many divine powers 
such as omniscience, etc., but unlike God he/she cannot create, sustain or 
dissolve the world. In spite of the exalted state the devotee has to remain 
subservient to God. They also believe that Karma Yoga and Jnana Yoga are 
only aids to Bhakti Yoga. One can be liberated from the bondage of samsara 
only through God's grace. They suggest that Bhakti Yoga practices are the 
only means of obtaining divine grace.

7. Purva- Mimamsa Mukti

Devotees achieve moksha through the right performance of rituals as 
prescribed by the Vedas. Some suggest that the liberated soul goes to heaven 
(after death) and enjoys heavenly bliss forever. Others suggest that moksha 
is a state devoid of the possibility of rebirth. You are free from pain and 
suffering. They do not consider moksha as a state of heavenly bliss.

8. Apavarga Mukti

Liberation or Apavarga is a separation from all qualities. Liberation is a 
state beyond pleasure, happiness, pain, or any experience whatsoever. It is 
achieved by cultivating ethical virtues and acquiring the right knowledge of 
reality. After liberation there is no rebirth.

Moksha Before Death

1. Jivan Mukti/ Videha Mukti

Some Hindus, especially those who follows the Advaita School of Philosophy 
believes that one can have liberation from samara even when alive. According 
to them, a spiritual aspirant has to first go through various moral and 
ethical practices, worship (upasana) of the Personal God, etc. These 
observances gradually purifiy his mind and make it ready for intense 
meditation on the Impersonal Divine Reality (Nirguna Brahman).

The intense meditation enables the devotees to attain a condition known as 
atmajnana or the knowledge of inner Divine Self. Atmajnana destroys the 
ignorance (avidya) that covers the knowledge of the Reality. As soon as his 
ignorance is annihilated, the person will be released and becomes a 
jivanmukta (one who has had jivanmukti).

After attaining jivanmukti a person can no longer think of himself or 
herself as an embodied being. The body and the rest of the world appears 
illusory to a jivanmukta. The illusory body will continue to exist as long 
as the prarabdha karma lasts. When the prarabdha is exhausted and the 
illusory body dies, the jivanmukta attains his disembodied release called 
videha-mukti.

2. Sadyomukti

Sadyomukti means "immediate release." Sandyomukti is another way of getting 
moksha for those who believe in jivan mukti. According to this view, a 
jivanmukta may totally lose interest in his illusory body immediately after 
attaining jivanmukti. As a result, his body drops off in a matter of days 
causing his sadyomukti.

It is also possible that after attaining atmajnana, these liberated souls 
can no longer identify with their bodies, which along with the rest of the 
world have become illusory and unreal. So for them, their bodies are not 
really there and attains sadyomukti.

3. Kaivalya Moksha

This form of moksha is suggested by the Sankhya School of Philosophy of 
Hinduism. They suggest that the soul or the spirit is purusha (pure 
consciousness), and the body-mind complex is an evolved form of unconscious 
primordial matter known as prakriti. Prakriti functions by borrowing 
consciousness from purusha.

Purusha gets tied down or bonded by aviveka - purusha's false identification 
with prakriti and its evolved products like mind, body, etc. Such false 
identification is caused by purusha's ignorance. While in bondage, purusha 
suffers mental and physical pain because of its false identification with 
the mind-body complex.

In order to get rid of the false identification and consequent pain and 
suffering, purusha must acquire the knowledge known as viveka-jnana. When 
purusha learns viveka-jnana, it realizes that as spirit it is completely 
different and distinct from prakriti and the associated mind-body system.

When this happens, the devotees will experience the complete cessation of 
suffering and pain. Thus viveka-jnana causes purusha's moksha by 
disentangling purusha from prakriti.

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