What Keeps the Mind Balanced? | Essence of the Geeta | Episode 89

You are listening to the essence of the Gita. In this episode, Swamiji explains how meditation quietens the mind, helping deep-rooted impressions fall away and revealing the bliss of the self. By constantly returning to the higher, we learn to free ourselves from inner bondage. What is the effect of meditation on a sincere, unrelenting practitioner? Bhagawan says that such a yogi, what happens to such a yogi? He says prashantamanasam, one of peaceful mind. Sukham utsuprimost happiness comes to such a person who prashantamanasam, whose mind has been totally subdued and the mind which has been totally conquered or the mind which is totally inspired, see negative language we don't like, and has become completely quiet, not forced into quiet, prashantam, willingly become quiet by the gain of the absolute. Peace comes to such a person and how does it happen? Shanta rajasam, one whose rajas, we know that tamas, ignorance, rajas, agitations. More than that, there's a lot of meaning of rajas. One whose desires, likes, dislikes, agitations, distractions, restlessness has come to diminish and is quietened. Brahma-Bhutam akalmasam, one who's free from all kalmasa means vasanas. In that, when your rajas, your external activities and the restlessness of your mind comes down outside when you're not reacting, your vasanas are getting eliminated. And when inside you expose your mind to peace, even your deep-rooted vasanas are being eliminated. Your deep-rooted inhibitions, lack of confidence, inabilities, all of them is getting washed away and therefore free from kalmasam, from impurities, additives to yourself. Brahma-Bhutam, one becomes Brahman and the word Brahman means infinite. In fact, entire Vedanta is in this, one verse. The entire spiritual path is there in this. Quieten the restlessness of your mind by dedicating yourself to the highest and as your existing impressions get washed away, whether it's through karma yoga or dhyana yoga. And when your mind has come to the state of quietitude, the bliss that is first reflected in it is so spectacular, so beautiful. And being peaceful bliss, it is not some excitement when you say spectacular. It is that peaceful bliss. It comes to the person from all sides. Yogi evam sadha-yunjan. Yogi in this way, constantly balancing,yunjan, striving, yunjan, holding on to what? The supreme self. Such a mind always balancing. Means, your balancing means constantly remembering your goal and not ever wavering from your goal. The atma. Every time your mind goes, krishna krishna. Every time your mind goes, rama rama shiva shiva. It's so interesting. I used to tell the children the story of Krishna and especially one story, the Bhattatthi story and how the gopis said krishna krishna krishna krishna krishna. And you know when the little kids, even in Bal Vihar, especially when you have 50-60 kids there and one starts talking, then everybody starts talking. In London, I have this Bal Vihar teacher and I used to watch her. The more you scream at them, first only they are loud, you scream, they become louder and you can go on screaming. All she would say, krishna krishna krishna krishna. Immediately the children would become quiet. Train your mind also. The moment it goes, hariyom hariyom hariyom also. Do you know how difficult it is to wake up especially young teenagers or even growing children. These days girls more than boys. And in our dorm, every dorm parent or dorm matron says the most difficult part in the morning is to wake up the children. Then some of them have to literally go there and wake them up, get up, get up, put on the light, get up, get up and still they will roll and they will put the blanket and they will go to sleep. So I taught them my grandmother's trick. My grandmother was a very gentle woman. And whenever she had to wake us up, especially during examinations early in the morning, she would just say, beta, si krishna krishna, beta, si hariyom. You cannot but say. And the moment you said hariyom or you said krishna krishna, that moment you would be awake. Therefore keep your mind shamed by his need. Going to sleep krishna krishna, where it is going somewhere else and getting noisy. Krishna krishna. Om Namah Shivaya. Om Namah Shivaya. If it's sleeping. Om Namah Shivaya. Om Namah Shivaya. Om Namah Shivaya. Om Namah Shivaya. Om Namah Shivaya. Om Namah Shivaya. Sadatmanam yogi vigata kalmasah. That yogi free from both ignorance and ignorance produced delusion. Vasanas, desires, Sukhena Brahma Samsparsham easily freed from sins and easily enjoys what? Atyantam Sukham Ashnude. Attains supreme happiness. Atyantam means unlimited. If you say supreme most, It's like children say, you know, the bestis tis tis tis tis tis tis tis tis tis tis. Here little children's language, you know, it's always in extremes. We had one of the little boys around, you know, if you had a conversation with him, everything was bestis tis tis tis tis tis tis tis tis tis. Not with that word, but always it was, everything was just that, you know. So you find that enthusiasm, so atyamtaam sukham ashnute. And how does he get it? With Brahma's Parasham. Just by the contact with Brahman. You know, contact means our language. We understand happiness only when that tasty object touches our tongue. When our eyes contact something, beautiful. So we only understand happiness by contact. In that reference it is called as Brahma's Parasham. You know, when all these thoughts are dwindling away and when you are as though coming closer and closer to yourself and realizing that all your limitations are falling off and you are coming closer and closer to the infinite and just when you just contact like that salt doll you melt into it. Now let us see Hanuman Chalisa in a different light. Lies and Jeevan, that which revives you and what can revive you and keep you interested and not distracted or go into sleep in meditation like Lakshman went to sleep in coma. When the Guru devotee like Hanuman from the mountain of Faith Drona bring this life giving herbs and Jeevani which goes Swami Tulsidas Ji says that when love is poured into anything you can't go to sleep nor can you think of anybody else and when that happens and your mind is on that and that and that you get Brahma's Parasham. Ramchandra Ji embraces Hanuman Ji. There is another beautiful story in the Ramayana to point out to you that what you know when Ramchandra Ji was born to Kaushalya and all the midwives or the maids or her friends were there especially her maid was there and she gives the news to her that you have a baby boy the mother doesn't see the child first by the time she gets out from that pain and then she is told Kaushalya Mata in her joy doesn't know what to give her tells her what can I give you ask of anything I'll give you she says just give me this baby in my hand and when she got the baby in her hand the Brahma's Parasham even when Shivji comes and dressed as an astrologer otherwise he will not get to break the line this queue breaking Shivji and Kaushalya Ji stop and if you're an astrologer you get priority. So when he told such nice nice things to Kaushalya about Ramchandra Ji she also knows that she has to give something as Dakshina as gift. So she says okay astrologer enough enough now you tell me what is it that you want and Shivji says you see I've seen his palm can you first you know there's something on his feet also I want to see and he holds and he holds it. She says what's taking you so long? See Kaushalya Mata was not like Yasoda Maiya she gives Krishna to Putana also take take my Krishna but Kaushalya is a prince so she holds on to him okay okay now enough don't touch him and afterwards he's looking at his feet he told what what he says then Kaushalya Ji says sir sir can you also show me what's there so Kaushalya Ji also goes and touches so she says why does the apprentice want to touch him then the ending she says what Dakshina should I give he said just let me see his feet again are you what is this Brahmas parasha whether it is Sagun Brahma or Nirgun Brahma Sukena Brahma Samsparashan Attyantam Shsukam Ashnute attains supreme bliss that's why whenever that portion comes where Shivji is telling Parvati that Ramchandra Ji picked up Hanuman and embraced him again and again Shivji says because Hanuman is avatar of Shivji So Sukha Uma Jai Nai Barna he says that bliss Uma I cannot describe So Attyantam Sukha Mashnute you cannot tell what it is you have to only experience it how come he gets that permanent blissful reality and that supreme happiness you know why because he finds supreme love everybody talks about love love love love love what do they know what love is today infatuation is called as love sensuality is called as love affect yourself otherwise through karma yoga in stages you perfect yourself but both have to gain knowledge both have to be free from likes and dislikes is it clear now? see how clear Bhagawan is and now Bhagawan goes to say that why Bhagawan says that sannyas is difficult means the path of sannyas is difficult it's better for you Arjuna to take to the path of karma yoga and how he said both leads they look like different paths one is renunciation of action other is infat jyosha yaj sarva karmani with great enthusiasm you do the work so how can both lead to the same thing therefore Bhagawan says that yoga yuktaha vishuddh atma one who is devoted to the path of action and through action has attained detachment and therefore vishuddh atma of purified mind means freedom from the internal pressures of vasanas vijit atma one who has conquered his mind and jitendra yaha one who has conquered his senses now whether he is walking the path of sannyas or whether he is walking the path of karma yoga one who has already done all this he walks the path of sannyas the path of renunciation sarva bhutatma bhutatma and one who has discovered that the self has the self in all the beings sarva bhutatma bhutatma that the self in me is the self in every being everything such a person kurva na pe na lipyate such a person has no sense of doership who is doing for whom parim brahmaarpanam brahmaavir brahmaagno brahmaanautam one who sees the one self in everyone such a person even if he acts or even if he does not act he is doing nothing at all which means his actions produce no vasanas no results, no bondage and therefore kurva na pe na lipyate and Gurudev gives a beautiful expression like a signature on running waters nothing can ever stay in him to leave behind a vasana such a fluid man of knowledge and renunciation who works in this world only because his heart like the river melts for the well-being of everyone and doesn't think that I am doing anything for anyone it is only for the one self that everything is being done by whom, by the self and therefore kurva na pe na lipyate the self doesn't do anything but even as an individual you work whether in the spirit of karma yoga or a realized master who only works out of love and fulfillment both do not get bound and therefore karma yoga vishishthe now he says kurva na pe na lipyate so naturally but you know you say one side that action bond you said that but realized master even if he does any action how is it that he does not get bound now Bhagawan points out now even how food and diet can be used to calm the mind and to purify the mind Bhagawan says he says there are others apare niyatahara niyatahara means regulated food now food should not only be considered as eating with your mouth the food that we require to sustain this body there are many other foods we eat through our eyes our ears our nose our tongue also and our skin also that's why nowadays people who use all these cosmetics people are saying that whatever you can't eat with your mouth should not go on your skin you use all these chemicals on your skin so can you imagine what you are eating through your skin after your tongue is only skin turned inward and the biggest sense organ is your skin in Ayurveda really speaking everything medicine also goes through the skin the climate affects it and nowadays the scientist are now beginning to discover it's not genes and of course they love in America to use this word you know computers for idiots or you know not beginners but they use that you know some people have written it is environment you stupid they write such books because the environment is experienced through your skin so what do you take in is called as food so in the larger sense that what all you take in niyatahara you regulate what should go inside now even the food that we eat for because of hunger in the stomach it's meant for our sustainance of the body and a long and healthy dynamic life and it is food that goes to make up this body therefore what we eat how much we eat when we eat all goes to make up the body and whatever happens at the body when you are sick your mind gets disturbed or not so mind and body and when your mind is stressed your body gets sick or not so there is a body mind link also know