Meditation controls the vacillating mind |
Our
feelings vary throughout the day because of the presence of the three guṇas in
the mind. This has been explained in detail in the chapter titled “How to Deal
with the World.” The material energy, Maya, has three modes, or guṇas— sattva
guṇa, rajo guṇa, and tamo guṇa. The mind is made from
Maya, and it too
contains these three guṇas. As these guṇas vary throughout the day, a person’s
thoughts too keep fluctuating.
To give an
example, when sattva guṇa becomes prominent in the mind, you may start
thinking, “I have received so much Grace from my Guru. The human form is
precious and it should not be wasted in mundane pursuits, so I should endeavor
to progress rapidly in my sādhanā.” When rajo guṇa becomes prominent, you may
think, “I must surely progress on the spiritual path, but what is the hurry?
At present, I
have many responsibilities to discharge, and they are more important.” When
tamo guṇa dominates, you could think, “I am not really sure if there is any God
or not, for no one has ever seen Him. So why waste time in sādhanā?” Notice how
the same person’s thoughts have oscillated from such heights to the depths of
devotion. For the mind to fluctuate due to the three guṇas is very natural.
If it remained at
the highest consciousness all day, there would be no need for sādhanā. Sādhanā
means to fight with the flow of the three guṇas in the mind, and force it to
maintain devotional feelings towards God and Guru. Though the mind’s natural
sentiments may be inclined towards the world, yet with the intellect, we force
it into the spiritual realm. Initially, this may seem difficult, but with
practice it will become easy. This is just as driving a car is difficult in the
beginning, but with practice it becomes natural.
Swami Mukundananda clarifying on the fluctuating nature of the mind |
The problem in
this process is that we do not see the mind as different from ourselves. And so
when the mind presents a disturbing thought, we feel, “Oh! I am thinking in
this negative manner.” We begin to associate with the poisonous thought, allow
it to reside in us, and damage us spiritually. To the extent that even if the
mind presents a thought against God and Guru, we accept the thought as ours.
If, at that time, we could see the mind as separate from ourselves, we would be
able to dissociate from that negative thought. We could then chastise the mind,
“I will have nothing to do with any thought that is not conducive to my
devotion.”
Jagadguru Shree
Kripaluji Maharaj says:
mana ko māno
śhatru usakī, sunahu jani kachhu pyāre (Sādhanā Karu Pyāre)
“Declare war on
your mind. Do the opposite of what it says, and soon it will stop bothering
you.”
Jagadguru
Shankaracharya also stated:
jagad jitaṁ kena?
mano hī yena
“Who will conquer
the world? One who conquers the mind.”
Saint Tulsidas ji
has repeatedly and severely chastised his mind in his
bhajans in the “Vinay
Patrikā.” So do not be disappointed if the mind troubles you and repeatedly
runs to the world. Put on the spiritual armor (tattvagyān) given by your
Gurudev, and begin the fight.
Beautifully written! Before I started engaging in sadhana, my mind was plagued with so much negativity that I was always depressed. Now, I chastise it so often and not let it disturb me. A key part to my transformation is engaging in meditation - taking my mind to my Beloved Krishna or my Guru. I feel safe when my mind is at the Lotus feet of HariGuru. Hence, Learning meditation (though might seem hard in the beginning) is highly recommended for everyone.
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