हठयोग प्रदीपिका (योगी स्वात्माराम - ज्योत्स्ना टीका सहित सटीक)

xvi HAṬHAYOGAPRADĪPIKĀ devotes himself to them will undoubtedly become acquainted with the real nature of the deity.’ The Bhagavadgītā is written in eighteen chapters, each describing a system of Yoga; and in the eighth chapter Śrī Kṛṣṇa advises Arjuna to become a Yogin that he may avoid falling into errors in virtue of the superior knowledge of Self which Yoga offers to its votaries. We hope we have clearly demonstrated by the accumulated experience of authorities and the Śāstra-s that the Haṭha- and Rāja-yoga-s far from being anta- gonistic to each other, are, on the contrary, inter- dependent, and that the pursuit of the Rāja-yoga cannot be successfully accomplished without the co- operation of the sister Haṭha-yoga. It has also been shown that it is safer to begin with the Haṭha-yoga. The founders of the Haṭha- and the Rāja-yoga-s are respectively the Gods Śiva and Viṣṇu. To demonstrate to the world the fundamental unity of those two systems which have only an apparently different outward garb, the founders worshipped each as his Guru unceasingly with the object of securing emancipation as expressed in the following maxim: शिवस्य हृदयं विष्णुर्विष्णोश्च हृदयं शिवः ॥ ‘The heart of Śiva is Viṣṇu, and the heart of Viṣṇu, Śiva.’ In order to illustrate more forcibly the unity of these two systems (identical in their founders, the Gods Śiva and Viṣṇu), Īśvara addressed the sages