primal unity. We are still carrying on their arduous journey. We cannot
go back. Where we are is uncomfortable-so we must go on. On the
way we will taste both the sweet and bitter fruits of individuation, and
they will be included and integrated in our experience of the journey to
ward full consciousness. But nothing says we cannot reach the goal of
Oneness, Paradise Regained, a final, not a primal, Unity. To make such
a long journey, we need power-in fact we need three powers (sakti).
Power and Wisdom-SaktiNow it is time to go back to our own origins in yoga practice in order
to further our inward journey. We have established through practice,
but must not neglect, the power of a healthy body (sarira sakti). But a
body without energy and consciousness is half dead. In chapter 3 on
pranayama, we established the vital importance of the power of pranic
energy (prana sakti). Now I introduce another power, that of aware
ness (prajna). Prajna is awareness of consciousness. I mentioned it only
a few paragraphs ago as self-aware consciousness but did not give the
Sanskrit translation. The power of self-awareness is prajna sakti.
Prajna is also translated as knowledge of wisdom.
These three powers have first to be brought into alignment in order
to coordinate with the power of the soul (atma sakti) so that they may
merge with it. Body power plus energy can, as I warned in chapter 3,
overload the system by putting too high a voltage through an inade
quate circuit. It is by adding the power of the awareness of conscious
ness that we balance these huge forces within us. This makes possible
expansion at every level (kosa) but without danger, strain, or overload.
The role of awareness is to fill the gaps that inevitably exist between
the physical (bones, muscles, etc.) and organic (e.g. organs) sheaths of
our bodies when we practice asana. Even when we are intc�ratin� tlw
various sheaths of our bodies there are gaps that we fail to fill with
WI� Ill l M 'I II I·. I NT I·. I. I. H. T ll A I II 0 I l \' I I' 1/ N .1 N .1 1