Foreword by Shailendra Sharma
I hope that by reading this book people will realize that spirituality does not depend on any faith or religious devotion.
The true spirituality is a state of ever-wandering spirit, eager to question and receive essential knowledge and to move further. Even after crossing the threshold of immortality Gorakshanath continues to search for answers.
This intense dialog between a Guru and a disciple should be read by everyone who aspires to travel the path of yoga. Another work, comparable in the magnitude of direct knowledge communicated by a teacher to his disciple, is Tripura Rahasya, where Parashurama converses with Dattatreya. Gorakh Bodh is a hard core practical discussion, far from philosophical disputes. It states what can be done and achieved because it had been done and had been achieved by the conversing yogis themselves.
The purpose of riddles and paradoxes presented in the text is to convey mystical knowledge only to the true seekers. The Naths have always been a secret order and full access to the teaching could be gained only after years of vigorous practice under the guidance (and with the blessing) of a true Guru. While recording these commentaries, I was asked about the repetitiveness of the questions: why does Gorakshanath, already an immortal yogi, continue to place seemingly similar inquiries?
This text was left for us, the descendants, out of mercy and by the grace of these great teachers, who knew that children learn best through repetitions.
By reaching immortality, these great adepts had obtained a luxury of unlimited time to examine every step of the path which took them there. Some of the shlokas are left without comments: words of the masters carry a direct message to experienced yogis who will grasp its sense without additional explanation. Every Hindi word in the text of Gorakh Bodh gives a certain flavor to every particular question and answer, enriching and deepening their meaning.
The twilight language itself is a powerful and valuable “commodity” alluding to the secrets of immortality and divine life. Immortal beings are considered to be capable of creating future for themselves and may partake the future of some mortals, imbedding it in the ornament of their own fate.
May this book become an inspiration for those who truly believe in the possibility of shaping an extraordinary future for themselves.
The very meaning of immortality could be summed up as follows:
Transformation of the future into past is Life.
Absolute transformation of the future into past is Death.
Unlimited future is immortality…
Shailendra Sharma
