22 Mar 2023
[Mr. Talin Rowe asked: Hello Great and Unrivaled Swami, What are the differences between Salvation, Moksha, Mukti, and Nirvana? In one of your discourses, You’ve mentioned that Moksha is freedom from worldly bonds, where Salvation might be the ending of a soul’s subsequent action of sin. Many adherents to different faiths believe that there is an end to the reincarnation cycle. I am wondering what the differences between these concepts are? Thank You for Your care and wisdom. Talin Rowe]
Swami replied:- Liberation from worldly bonds can mean Moksha because the meaning of Moksha is simply liberation from worldly bonds for which there may not be any other cause. A stone has Moksha because it is liberated from all worldly bonds being inert by nature. Moksha or mukti means the same liberation from worldly bonds without any other reason because the inertness of the stone itself is the sufficient reason. In the place of the stone, if you take a soul made of awareness, there must be some reason for its liberation from worldly bonds, which is not the inert nature because it is awareness or soul and not an inert stone. If the reason like suffering from worldly bonds exists, it can be salvation. Here, the soul is attached to the suffering due to which liberation from worldly bonds results. This is detachment from worldly bonds due to the attachment to some pain. The suffering is the result of the past sin of the soul. If the liberation from the worldly bonds happens due to the attachment to God, such liberation from worldly bonds can be called as Nirvaana. In both salvation and Nirvaana, detachment from X due to attachment to Y is the basis and much difference does not exist between salvation and Nirvaana. All these four terms are used for the liberation of the soul from the worldly bonds due to strong attachment to God and the differences explained here are not strict.
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