a certain measure to disentangle our consciousness from our vehicles. But it has to be
borne in mind that complete dissociation from a vehicle takes place only when con-
sciousness is able to leave the vehicle deliberately and consciously and function in the
next subtler vehicle (of course, with all the still subtler vehicles present in the back-
ground). When the Jivatma is able to leave a vehicle at will and ‘see’ it separate from
himself then only is the false sense of identification completely destroyed. We may
meditate for years trying to separate ourselves in thought from the body but the result
of this will not be as great as one experience of leaving it consciously and seeing it
actually separate from ourselves. We shall, of course, re-enter that body and assume
all its limitations but it can never again exercise on us the same illusory influence as it
did before. We have realized that we are different from the body. For the advanced
Yogi who can and does leave his body every now and then and can function independ-
ently of it in a routine manner, it is just like a dwelling house. The very idea of identi-
fying himself with the body will appear absurd to him. It will be seen, therefore, that
practice of Yoga is the most effective means of destroying Asmita completely and
permanently. As the Yogi leaves one vehicle of consciousness after another in Samadhi
he destroys progressively the tendency to identify himself with those vehicles and with
the destruction of Asmita in this manner the veil of Avidya automatically becomes
thinner.
- That attraction, which accompanies pleasure, is Raga.
Raga is defined in this Sutra as the attraction which one feels towards any per-
son or object when any kind of pleasure or happiness is derived from that person or
object. It is natural for us to get attracted in this manner because the soul in bondage,
having lost the direct source of Ananda within, gropes after Ananda in the external
world and anything which provides even a shadow of this in the form of ordinary hap-
piness or pleasure becomes dear to it. If we are attracted to any person or object we
shall always find on scrutiny that the attraction is due to some kind of pleasure, physi-