Sure Ways to Success in Life and God-Realisation by Sri Swami Sivananda (Msg 7)

SURE WAYS TO SUCCESS IN LIFE AND GOD-REALISATION
BY SRI SWAMI SIVANANDA
(Message 7)
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RAJA YOGA (Continued)

CONTROL OF THE WANDERING MIND

You must know the habits and ways of your mind. Then alone it will be
easy for you to control the mind, to develop the will, memory and
thought-culture. One of the most important habits of the mind is the
wandering habit. It cannot stick to one point. It is like air. That
is the reason why Arjuna says to Sri Krishna: "Chanchalam Hi Manah
Krishna Pramathi Balavad Dridham Tasyaham Nigraham Manye Vayoriva
Sudushkaram—For the mind is very restless, O Krishna! It is
impetuous, strong and difficult to bend. I deem it hard to curb, as
the wind" (Gita, Ch. VI-34). Sri Krishna answered: "Without doubt, O
mighty-armed, the mind is hard to curb and is restless; but, it may
be curbed by constant practice and by dispassion." Sri Krishna
describes, in unambiguous terms, the ways to check the wandering
habits of the mind. Destruction of desires and control of Indriyas
are the essential steps for the control of mind. It is desire that
makes the mind restless. The Indriyas run after objects, and the mind
also follows the Indriyas just as a dog follows its master. The rays
of the mind get scattered in sensual objects. All the mental rays are
dissipated in the acquisition, possession and enjoyment of sensual
objects. Now the mind thinks of hearing some pleasant music. At once
it gives command to the Karma Indriya (feet) and Jnana Indriya
(ears). The feet say: "Dear Mr. Mind, I am ever ready to take you to
the Triplicane beach. I am waiting for your commands only. Get
along." The ear also joins hands now and says: "Now sir, I am only
waiting for your company. I am very keen and anxious, and more eager
than you. I am only expecting your command."

This little hopeless Jiva (human being) falls into the meshes and
nets of this mind and the deluding Indriyas. After a little while,
the tongue says: "Why are you cruel and partial to me? I am also as
much a dear friend to you as the ears and feet. Now let us go to the
Royal Restaurant or the Taj Mahal Hotel. You can have first-class
coffee, bun, cakes and Rasagullas." After sometime, the reproductive
Indriya gets excited, because he is the fast friend of Mr. Tongue.
Both Indriyas are born of the same source or Tanmatra. Tongue is born
of the Sattvic portion, hence it is a Jnana-Indriya (organ of
knowledge); the organ of reproduction is born of the Rajasic portion,
and hence it gets the name of Karma-Indriya (the organ of action).
After you have finish ed a rich, heavy meal, the reproductive Indriya
gets very much excited, and you become very passionate. Mr. Tongue
says: "Do not ignore me. I am always your best friend. It is I who
keep the life of this body. If I do not take any food, this body will
perish and you will have to leave this body." Reproductive Indriya
says: "I alone keep up this world-show. This world will come to an
end, should I put a stop to my activity. It is through me alone that
people procreate. So, come along. Join me and satisfy me as you did
the ears and the tongue." In this way, man runs after the five kinds
of sensual pleasures and has no rest even for a second. The mind runs
in these grooves in company with the five Jnana-Indriyas and this
little Jiva.

Therefore, if you want to check this wandering mind, you will have to
renounce all sorts of desires and control the Indriyas first. Then
alone you will be successful in the practice of concentration,
meditation, will-culture, memory-culture and thought-culture. I have
come across several educated people during the course of my lecture-
tour in the Uttar Pradesh, the Punjab, Kashmir and Andhra Pradesh.
They asked me: "Dear Swamiji, how to concentrate and meditate? We
have been meditating for the last twelve years, yet we have not found
any improvement." The obvious reason is that they are not doing
meditation in the right scientific manner. They have not purified
themselves. They have not renounced the desires of this world. They
have not disciplined their minds. Without having these preliminary
training and discipline, they are trying to achieve the impossible,
viz., concentration. How can this be possible? This is something like
trying to tie an infuriated elephant with a slender piece of silken
thread. Sri Krishna gives the method to curb the wandering
mind: "Abandoning without reserve all desires born of the imagination
by the mind, curbing the aggregate of the senses on every side,
little by little let him gain tranquillity by means of reason
controlled by steadiness; having made the mind abide in the Self let
him not think of anything. As often as the wavering and unsteady mind
goes forth, so often reining it in, let him bring it under the
control of the Self." Now hear the fruits that one gets from this
practice. Supreme joy is for this Yogi whose mind is peaceful, whose
passionate nature is calmed, which is sinless and of the nature of
the Eternal.

Mark carefully the words of Sri Krishna's instructions: "All desires
should be abandoned without reserve." Most of the Sadhakas or
students keep some desires for their satisfaction. Some desires do
lurk in the mind. Householders who practise concentration cannot
leave some of their desires. They20keep them for their secret
gratification. Hence energy leaks; and they do not get any
improvement. They rise up five steps and suddenly fall from the
spiritual ladder. Perfect dispassion is necessary for checking the
mind-wandering or mental oscillation. The senses should be curbed on
every side. Mark the words: `on every side.' Control of one Indriya
alone will not do. All the Indriyas should be controlled from every
side. This is also another vital point. As the practice is difficult
and tedious, you should not be discouraged. You will have to wait
patiently for the results. Some people do practice by fits and
starts. They practise concentration for six hours daily for three
months. When they see that they have not found any tangible results
in the shape of powers or Siddhis, they give up the practice. This is
very, very bad. Hence Sri Krishna says: "Little by little do the
practice, and be steady in the practice." Practice (Abhyasa) consists
of bringing the mind again and again back to the point, fixing and
concentrating it on the point or Lakshya. Dharana means concentration
of mind on a point. When the wandering mind becomes one-pointed, the
state is called Ekagrata. It is single-mindedness.

The subject of concentration is disgusting, and tiring for the
neophyte; but it is the most interesting and beneficial science in
the world. When one adva nces in concentration, when one takes real
interest, when one has realised some benefits, he cannot leave the
practice. He cannot remain even for a day without concentration. He
becomes restless when he fails to have the practice. Concentration
brings supreme joy, spiritual inner strength, unalloyed felicity and
infinite eternal peace. Concentration brings profound knowledge and
deep inner sight, intuition and communion with God. It is a wonderful
science in the three worlds. I cannot adequately describe its
benefits.

Concentration on a chair really means getting full, detailed
knowledge of the chair, its different parts, the particular wood out
of which it is manufactured, such as Devadaru, rose wood, etc., its
workmanship or finish, its durability, its cost price, the degree of
comfort it gives to the back, arms, etc., whether the parts can be
detached and fixed again, whether it is manufactured on modern lines
and made bug-proof, what sort of polish or varnish is used to make it
durable, etc. When you concentrate on the chair, these sorts of ideas
occupy your mind. Mind generally wanders wildly at random. When it
thinks of one object, in a second it leaves this present object and
runs to another object like a monkey, then to a third object and so
on. It cannot stick to one point.

If you can carefully watch the mind-wanderings, you will find tha t
there is an intimate connection though the mind wildly wanders about
like an unchained monkey. The law of association operates always,
though the links are broken. The mind may think of a book, then the
bookstall wherefrom Mr. John has purchased it, then the friend whom
he met at the railway station when he was purchasing, then of
railways and of the directors of the railways who live in London. The
thought of London may bring in the idea of skating. From skating, it
may jump to Alps. It may think of pine trees, consumptive hospital,
open-air treatment. The thought of a pine tree will bring in the
remembrance of Almora in India and its vicinity where pine trees
grow. The thought of Almora will bring in the thought of Swami
Vivekananda, who founded the `Advaita Ashram' at Mayavati, near
Almora. It may entertain some divine ideas of concentration and
meditation and of Advaita Brahman. Then, suddenly, it may drop into
sensual grooves. It may think of the prostitutes in Almora. It will
entertain lustful thoughts.

All these will take place within the twinkling of an eye. The mind
works and moves with a tremendous speed that is impossible to
imagine. It catches one object and fabricates one idea, and through
association, it leaves this object and this idea and jumps to another
object and another idea. There is a sort of concentration all
throughout its wanderings though the concentration is not a
continuous one. When the thought runs in one definite groove
continuously on one subject alone — like the flow of oil from one
vessel to another, then it is concentration. The aspirant should
withdraw his mind whenever it runs outside and put it in the same
groove in the same line of thought on one subject and on one idea.
This is spiritual Sadhana. This is Yogabhyasa. This is Dharana and
Dhyana. This will result in Samadhi or the superconscious state, the
fourth dimension or Turiya.

The vital point in concentration is to bring the mind to the same
point or object again and again by limiting its movements in a small
circle in the beginning. That is the main aim. A time will come when
the mind will stick to one point alone. This is the fruit of your
constant and protracted Sadhana. The joy is indescribable now. When
you meditate on a chair, bring all thoughts connected with the chair
and dwell on these ideas. Do not allow any other thought connected
with another object to enter the mind. There should be one line of
thought. There should be one continuity of thought, like the steady
flow of oil from one vessel to another vessel, like the continuous
sound of a church-bell. There may be several ideas connected with one
subject. This does not matter. You can reduce the numb er of ideas and
come to one idea of one subject. When this idea also dies, you get
the superconscious state or Samadhi. When there is one idea, it is
called Savikalpa Samadhi, which is a lower stage. When this one idea
also dies out and when there is not even a single idea, the mind
becomes blank or void. There is mental vacuity. This is the stage of
thoughtlessness of Patanjali Maharshi in his Raja Yoga philosophy.

You will have to rise above this blank Vritti and identify yourself
with the supreme Purusha or Brahman, the silent witness of the mind,
who gives power and light to the mind. Then and then alone you can
reach the highest goal of life. The mind is insentient (Jada), but it
appears as Chaitanya (Chaitanyavat) by borrowing the light from the
Adhishthana (source) — Atman, just as water exposed to the sun
borrows the heat from the sun. Because there is reflection of
intelligence in the mind from the background, the source or womb for
this mind, this insentient mind appears as intelligent. This is the
real truth. This is the bold, genuine philosophy of the Hindu sages
of yore. Western psychologists and occultists are still ignorant.
They are groping in utter darkness. They say: "There is nothing
beyond mind and reason. Reason is the ultimate." Let them have their
own convictions. Sooner or later, they will have to admit the T ruth.
There is no other go.

There are some philosophers and psychologists who do believe that
mind is secretion of the brain. What a wild absurd conviction! They
have come to admit the presence of the subconscious mind — the "Dual-
Mind Theory" — which was known to the Hindu sages from time
immemorial. Mind is not self-luminous like the self-effulgent Atman
or the Supreme Spirit. It shines in borrowed feathers. It is like a
glow-worm of the rainy season. Atman is the Sun of suns and Light of
lights. It is Param Jyoti (Infinite Light). It is Svayam Jyoti (Self-
Radiance).

Back to the point: When you concentrate on a chair, do not allow any
other thought of different objects. Again and again bring the mind
that wanders to the object, which is chair. When you meditate on a
rose, think of rose and rose alone. When you think of a book, think
of all that is connected with the book, and nothing outside it. When
you think of a radio or a talkie, think of the radio or talkie alone.
Exhaust all matters connected with the subject on hand. You can take
any subject that is pleasing to the mind. Slowly you can take up any
subject that is displeasing to the mind by creating interest in it
again and again. You should always remember the maxim: "One thing at
a time and that done well is a very good rule as many can t ell." When
you take up any work, apply your whole heart, full mind and soul, to
the work. Do it with perfect concentration. What another can do in
six hours, you can turn out within half an hour, smoothly, in a
methodical and orderly manner. This is Yogic activity. You will be
taken for an accomplished Yogi. Even when you study, study the
subject with perfect concentration. Do not allow the mind to wander.
You must shut out all external sounds. Fix the gaze on one point. Do
not allow the eyes to wander. When you study a subject, do not think
of coffee or sweetmeats, or your friend. The whole world must be dead
to you for the time being. Such must be the nature of the
concentration. It will come to you after some steady and constant
endeavours. Be not troubled. Be not discouraged. There will be some
delay. Wait coolly and patiently. Rome was not built in a day. It is
all a question of time. Do not leave the practice even for a day,
even when you are sick. In your failure lies the secret of your
success, and in your weakness the secret of your strength. Plod on.
Push on. Gird up your loins. Nil desperandum. Be bold. March on
courageously. Be cheerful. A brilliant future is awaiting thee.

Practise. Feel. Rejoice. Become a Yogi or world figure. I can make
you one. Follow me. Be sincere and earnest. Rise up. Awake. Thy light
=0 A has come. O my dear children of Light and Immortality! Brahmamuhurta
is drawing now; it is 3.30 a.m. This is the best time to practise
concentration on Atman, memory and will-culture, and to catch hold of
the mind. Sit on Virasana and do rigorous practice now. May success
and divine glory attend on thee. I shall take leave of you now. I
shall leave you there. Melt the bubble mind in Brahman — the ocean of
knowledge — and enjoy supreme bliss.