Oscar-winning filmmaker Shekhar Kapur asks Sadhguru what freedom really is. Sadhguru explains that spirituality essentially means moving towards ultimate freedom, and breaking everything that limits us.

Shekar Kapur: Sadhguru, you have said many times that the highest goal is freedom. Freedom from what?

Sadhguru: Generally, before 1947 in India, if you said “freedom,” people only thought, “If the British go away, we are free.” That was the idea of freedom at that time. The British went away. Now, are we free? Not really. Politically free – yes. But in no other way are we really free. So, freedom may mean different things to different people, depending upon the context of their individual life at a certain moment.

But leaving the political, economic and other aspects of freedom aside, do you see that essentially, as a human being, as a piece of existence, we are living within certain limitations? That you are a limited entity? Do you also see there is something constantly longing within you to be a little more than what you are?

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Shekar Kapur: Yes.

Sadhguru: There is something within you which cannot stand boundaries. Or, in other words, there is something within you which wants to become boundless. What can be boundless? A physical form can be small or big, but never boundless. There is something within you which is longing to touch a dimension which is beyond the physical.

There is something within you which is longing to be spiritual. “Spiritual” does not mean looking up or looking down, or praying or going to the temple. “Spiritual” essentially means you are in an experience which is beyond the limitations of the physical. That means you are in a boundless space. This longing is always there in every human being. Either you are approaching it in installments, or you are consciously going for the Ultimate.

Shekar Kapur: So why, in my mind, is the Ultimate so blurred? Why can’t I imagine it? The moment you talk about something measurable, I can imagine it. But how do I aspire for something that I am unable to imagine?

Sadhguru: That is why you should never aspire for something that you are unable to imagine, that you do not know. If you want to become free, you should never think of freedom. Only look at the ropes which bind you.

If you cut these ropes which bind you, there is some sense of freedom. Then you realize, there is another set of ropes that bind you. If you cut that, there is freedom. But then you notice there is another set. It does not matter how many sets of ropes bind you, there must be a point where if you cut enough of them, nothing binds you anymore, right? The number may be big, but still, it cannot be infinite.

Only freedom can be infinite. Bondage cannot be limitless. Only freedom can be limitless. This is not just semantics and ideas. In terms of life’s experience, don’t waste your time talking about or thinking about freedom or the Ultimate. The body is a limitation, the mind is a limitation, emotions are limitations – but they are also possibilities. Look at what binds you now, and see how to transcend this. This is growth.

“Mystic’s Musings” by Sadhguru offers more on spirituality through the mystic eye. Sadhguru keeps us teetering on the edge of logic and captivates us with his answers to questions relating to life, death, rebirth, suffering, karma, and the journey of the Self.

Editor’s Note: This article is based on an excerpt from the December 2014 issue of Forest Flower. Pay what you want and download. (set ‘0’ for free). Print subscriptions are also available.