Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare
Radhe radhe!
The mind moves faster than the speed of light. In a split second it can traverse the fourteen lokas, and scale the heights of human aspiration and fall to the deepest depths of animal nature.
The mind is seemingly untameable, and difficult to control as the great winds.This is the constant dilemma of the spiritual aspirant. How to control this errant mind ?.
There are very many answers to this problem..the seeker may be presented with many difficult technical methods that are designed to tame the mind and control the thought processes. These methods may have varying degrees of usefulness and relevance. Some are quite gentle and others verge on self violence. Some are laborious and routine.
A common factor may be that they need some particular circumstance for their performance. This is further complicated by the age we are living in-Kali Yuga. it is stated in Padma Purana thus..
‘In this Kali Yuga people will have low intellect,lethargy, misfortune and will not posses real dispassion’
This is of course making spiritual sadhana very difficult to perform,as it requires, time, place and limitation.
The answer to this problem is given in Srimad Bhagavatham where it is stated..
‘Though this Kali Yuga is full of Dosha (flaws), it has one great quality, that quality is ‘Mahaguna’
This ‘mahaguna’ is that, one can come out of the coils of the mind through chanting of, and meditation upon Nama.This Nama brings an end to all dosha.
Krishna in Gita says this ‘ananya-cetah satam yo maam smarati nityasah’ meaning ‘undeviatingly you think of Me’ Easiest way to think of Krishna is through Nama, Nama is avatar of Krishna and those that take Nama live ever in His presence and constant remembrance of HIM.
Also this remembrance is based upon love. Our Swam-ji says that, generally, search for jnana is stimulated through fear, but the stimulus for bhakthi is unconditional love.
Guruji then talks about the various technical and limited methods to control the mind, likening to an attempt to stem the surging tides of the ocean. it may succeed for a while, but only until the water is forceful enough to gush out. Further more, He says that the mind flows out through the sense organs, and by shutting the doors of the senses the control of the mind will occur but it will only be temporary.
Then Guru-ji presents us with a much easier and infinitely sweeter way than mere mechanical or forceful control. He says..
‘Let the powerful rays of the sun shine on the water. Drench your senses in the enchanting form of Krishna. His stories, glories and Divine Name’
When we our minds dwell on Krishna and Nama all the doshas shall be cleansed and eventually dissolved. Not only the doshas, but the mind its self, its vasanas and tendencies shall be made transparent so light of the Athma can shine through. Nama dissolves manas and we realise Athma Swaroopa.
Identification with the mind and vasanas puts us into a state of self forgetfulness of our true nature. Swami Vedanta Desikan tells this very well in ‘Rahasya traya saram’
He tells the story of young crown prince who went hunting with his father the King. However the prince became lost and came upon a village of tribal people, gradually he came to take on their customs and manners. As time passed he forgot his origin and who he was. He adopted the ways, customs and attitudes of the tribal people. A very long time passed in this way. The prince no longer considered himself to be a high born person, his former true state and identity had been clouded and temporarily forgotten. However one day he was spotted by some courtiers who reminded him of who he was. His identity being revealed he was taken back to the King. The King was over joyed to see his son return to his kingdom. The son had regained his original position.
In the same way the jeevathman is coming out of its self forgetfulness and realising its true nature through the encounter with The Sadguru, who gives Nama and asks the disciple to merge the mind in God, thus reminding of who we are, and in this way not only are vasanas cleansed, but jeevathma realises its true nature.
This is a path based upon love, based upon the remembrance of God..who is our very Self, it is not a forceful technique that can only be implemented at certain times only, but the a path that can be lived with the entire being, a natural expression and not a false imposition.
Surely through the Krupa of Our Guru-ji shall we rise from the restlessness of the mind, through the cleansing of our doshas and vasanas and then so to experience KrishnaAnubhava within us.
Gopika Jivana Smarana Govind Govinda!
Sath Gurunath Maharaj Ki Jai!