What is Self-Realization?
The Self-Realization is a process of knowing who we are, what is our real identification and what is the real purpose of our life.
ANSWER IN DETAIL:
We are living in a world of technology and it has become a inseperable part of our lives. We interact more with virtual friends than we do with our real friends and family members. It is difficult to say if in this race to make our life better, life has turned for better or has paved way for increased complications. Even after becoming so advanced technically, people have become more stressful, greedy, quarrelsome and less peaceful and ethical. Is this what we all are supposed to be doing? Or is there any higher purpose of our lives? Is there a solution to all our problems we are facing? Is there a way to end to our sufferings for good?
The solution to all our problems lies in knowing who we are, what is our real identification and what is the real purpose of our life. This is called as self realization!
We may be Indian, American, white, black, man, woman etc., but that is not our real identity because our bodies are temporary and the identity related to the body ends when the body is destroyed. The real intelligence is to understand that we are all eternal spirit souls.
There are different processes described in scriptures for self realization, like – yoga practice, philosophical speculation, devotional service etc. Our great acharyas like – Caitanya Mahaprabhu, Ramanujacharya, Nimbarkacharya etc. give us more refined answer to our question – We are all part and parcel of the Supreme Lord, Sri Krsna and our sole purpose is to engage ourselves in serving Him. Caitanya Mahaprabhu says –
jīvera ‘svarūpa’ haya — kṛṣṇera ‘nitya-dāsa
(It is the living entity’s constitutional position to be an eternal servant of Kṛṣṇa)
-CC Madhya 20.108-109
This human life is meant for self-realization, ātma-tattvam and when we don’t utilize it, we are just wasting this precious chance. To understand, “I am an eternal servant of God, Kṛṣṇa.”, is actual self-realization. Knowing and understanding this truth, we should engage in serving the Lord, which alone can give us permanent happiness.