Amrita Bindu Upanishad Lecture 05 on 20 January 2024

Full Transcript (Not Corrected)

We have been studying the Amrita Bindu Upanishad. And in the first mantra, a beautiful help for spiritual sadhana and a most marvellous truth is being explained to us. Everything is the mind. Our bondage is of the mind. Liberation is of the mind. Happiness is of the mind. Unhappiness is of the mind. Goodness, evil, asuri sampath, daivi sampath, divine quality characteristics, demonic characteristics, everything depends upon our mind. That is why in Indian philosophical scriptures, the importance of mind is indescribable. He who has conquered his mind, he has conquered Brahman himself. There is a statement like that. So this Amrita Bindu Upanishad is in the very first mantra telling that my son, my children, my disciples, you understand what is the mind and how to control it. The whole essence, summary of this Amrita Bindu Upanishad is to understand what is the mind, how it is formed and how it can either aid or help or hinder our progress not only in spiritual life but in any field of life. It all depends upon the state of mind that we have. Manohit Vedam Prauktam It is said that there are two types of minds. How many types? Only two. Shuddhancha and Ashuddhamevacha Pure and impure. But we should never understand that 50% of the people are having pure mind and the other 50% completely impure mind. No. It is a division between the divine and the demonic. It is depending upon which quality is predominant. If divine qualities are predominant, it doesn't mean the demonic qualities are absent but they are much less. So just like a powerful man rules everybody, it doesn't mean everybody has no power. Others do not have power. They have but it varies in degrees. But even among all the others, a person may have tremendous power but compared to this first person, that is far less. That is what is meant. So two types of minds are there, pure and impure. Ashuddham kama sankalpa So what is kama? Kama means desire. Sankalpa means what? Determination that I will obtain, fulfill my desire by hook or crook. So the mind which is filled with impure desires and impure sankalpas. Shuddham kama vivarjitam And the pure mind is supposed to be described as one which is devoid of desires. Let us deal so that we can understand clearly. Ashuddham kama sankalpa Most of us fall under this category. Impure mind means what? In simple, direct words, that we are worldly people. Our desires are worldly desires. Even if we are religious and want to believe and believe in God, we use God. We use God as an instrument just to fulfill our worldly desires. So suppose God comes and asks, Why do you go through all this trouble? You know better than anybody that all worldly desires are very temporary and very unsatisfactory. And they create a lot of trouble. Not only they give a little bit of happiness, but it comes with a huge tag, huge price. So why don't you come to me? You will be all the time happy. No, no, no. Now I want only worldly happiness. As I explained in my last class, what is called praise. Dharma, artha and kama. So having desires by itself doesn't do anything. Even a person may have tremendous desires. But if he doesn't do sankalpa, that I will carry it out in practice. I will do whatever it takes to fulfill my desire. That is called sankalpa. That is why I also quoted in the Sandhya Vandana, So kama sankalpa, I know you, that you are the root cause of all my problems. Kamas or desires are not root causes of anybody's problem. But there is a great likelihood that we may determine sankalpa, that we want to put it into action. That is where the problem comes. There is a beautiful saying in English language, that hell is paved with good intentions. Every new year, in the western countries, they are supposed to take a new resolution. But most of them do not practice it. So kamas may be there, but sankalpa is not there. Sankalpa also requires tremendous willpower. Yes, a man says I will practice it. But when it comes to put it into practice, he doesn't have the willpower. So this is tremendous something. So whether we are caught or not caught, whether it is in worldly life or in spiritual life, whether we progress in worldly life or spiritual life, all depends upon the strength of the mind. That capacity to subdue opposing thoughts and to carry out our intentions, that is what makes the difference between great people and small-minded people. Many people want to be like Hitler. I don't know how many people want to be like the president of China. But many people want. If only I can be like that. But you can't be like him, because that person has something very special. I'm not talking good or bad. I'm talking about the power. Itaishwaryana Maharaj used to talk about this, that a person must have a tremendous amount of vision, concentration, even to become evil. That is why we see in our Puranas, which illustrate these psychological facts so vividly, even Rakshasas, Kamas are demonic desires. But there are many Rakshasas also, they desire to become great, like Ravanasura, like Hiranyakashipu, like Bhasmasura, etc. But they do not have the willpower of a Hiranyakashipu, who did tremendous tapasya, of a Ravanasura, who did tremendous tapasya. Greatness comes proportionate to the tapasya. We can say tapasya is sankalpa put to, yoked to willpower, developed tremendous willpower. And that will help, whether you want to concentrate, greatness will be there. And how can concentration be developed? Only through practice. Many years back, a great scholar had discovered something extraordinary. I think his name was Erickson. The name of the book is Peek. P-E-E-K, Peek. I remember, I agree with most of the ideas that the author had written, that anything can be achieved. Everybody has the same power. He did not put it in Swamiji's language, each soul is potentially divine. What does it mean? It means every one of us has what is called infinite knowledge, infinite happiness, infinite existence. So how does an Einstein become an Einstein? Because God has given him the opportunity. It is a human life. God has given him the tremendous kama. I want to do something. I want to become something, to be something. But so many people, 99% of the people, they don't have that perspiration. 100% of people have inspiration. The difference between a great person and others, are they 99% perspiration. That's why somebody has said, what is genius? 1% inspiration, 99% perspiration. What is perspiration? The willpower to doggedly carry on what one wants to do, in spite of repeated failures, which Ramakrishna says, a cough, just a borne cough, it tries to stand up, but it falls down many times, but it doesn't give up. In the course of time, it gets up, and it suckles from the mother, and it falters in steps, then easy steps, then it is as capable as the mother to run equally along with her. Nature has given. Same thing will apply and Shri Ramakrishna used to say, most aspirants' minds are like mush, that is, flattened rice soaked in milk or water, whatever it is. There is no grit, there is no power, and regarding Swami Vivekananda used to say, when farmers go to buy bullocks, how to know which is a useful bullock, energetic bullock? So the farmers know the trick. They will go and touch the tail of the bullock which is lying down, and that which has no grit, whatever, it just looks at the person who is touching the tail. But that bullock, as soon as the person approaches, or if it just happens to touch, it just jumps up and then faces him. And the farmers know this is a very useful bullock. Anyway, the mind power we are talking about. What is all this discussion about? Kama can also be of two types. It could be worldly kama, it could be spiritual kama. But kama is completely useless, whether it is secular or spiritual, unless it is yoked to action and gets fulfilled through righteous action, righteous amount of effort, exertion, and in the right direction. So that is all included in this world, sankalpa. Not only it should be what you call a sankalpa, a mere determination, it will be yoked. How to develop that one? Abhyasai nathu kaunteya, vairagyena jagrahyate. Abhyasa, Abhyasa, Abhyasa. That is what is necessary. So, Shuddham kama vivarjitam. So it doesn't mean in any aspirant, unless he is a God-realized soul, excluding a God-realized soul, everybody else has got kama. Because the only obstacle for God-realization is a worldly desire. If there are no worldly desires, then the person will be completely mukta, free, that very second. But kama are of two types, both worldly and spiritual. First. Secondly, whether it is worldly or spiritual, is completely useless, unless a person tries to fulfill it in the right way. Let it be a person who wants to be a good cook, a good carpenter, a good student, a good housewife, a good officer, a good soldier, a good king, even a good pickpocket. So this is what the first verse itself is. So many meanings are involved here. It is so marvelous. So what did we learn? Mind is everything. Understand what the mind is. Deal with the mind. Mind is of two types. That which is dominated more with worldly desires and that which is dominated more by spiritual desires. And every desire is totally harmless unless it is carried out in practice. So that is called Sankalpam. So Ashuddham Kama Sankalpam means what? That mind which has got Kama but lacks Sankalpa, that is called impure mind. And that which has tremendous grit, that person will be great either in the world or in the spiritual world. It doesn't simply matter. That's what we discussed. Just we want to remove. And then the same fact. So what is the greatness or nature of the mind? Second mantra. What does the second mantra say? First of all, it says it is indeed the mind that is the cause of man's bondage and liberation. The mind that is attached to sense objects leads to bondage while disassociated from sense objects it tends to lead to liberation. So this is what is said by the wise people. Is it the body? To a little bit extent. But mostly it is the mind because the mind is also a formation or a work of the mind only. As our Sanskaras, so also our body will be there. For the human beings, Manushyanam, Manayeva, mind alone, nothing else. What is it? Karanam. It is the cause of what? Banda and Moksha. Bondage as well as liberation. Now success or failure or victory or defeat or happiness, unhappiness, peace, restlessness. And then the Rishi, whoever it is, is explaining this. What causes the Banda? Banda ya vishayasattam manaha. That mind which has got full of Vishayas, that is objects. Are the objects the cause of bondage? Not at all. But it is the Asattam, attachment. This is my father. This is my mother. This is my husband. This is my wife. These are my children. These are my friends. This is my country. This is my religion. Everywhere, terrible intolerance. One very narrow type of thinking about it. That is why all these things lead to separation, enmity, fighting, wars. What is the difference between Kauravas and Pandavas? So Pandavas, they also have ambitions. They are also. Why? In a way of speaking, we have to reinterpret the whole Mahabharata. Who is responsible for this Kurukshetra war? I am not talking. Of course, we know it is God's will. Krishna says, it is my will. I only created this Kurukshetra war. Categorically, he replies. But then, there is something from another point of view. For our understanding, Yudhishthira was responsible. Some of you may be surprised. How is Yudhishthira responsible for the Kurukshetra war? See, he was invited by Duryodhana. And why was he invited? For what? For gambling. And why did Duryodhana invite him for gambling? I am just prolonging a little bit with spice, so that we can understand it properly. Supposing Yudhishthira was terribly fond of women, then Duryodhana would have said, come brother, I have got beautiful women. Nobody needs to know anything about it. And we will take you to a secret lodge. You can enjoy as much as you want. What do you think? Most of you perhaps will say, Yudhishthira will not fall. I am giving an example. If he had weakness, he would definitely give in. Because weakness means to give in. Or, Yudhishthira was addicted to drinks. Then Duryodhana would say, we will be having drinking parties. Come, first class, 200 years old wine bottles. Our ancestors have prepared. I just want to open it and share it with you. Yudhishthira would have rushed. And supposing, to add a bit of masala. But Yudhishthira, if you want to join my party, you have to renounce your brothers and wife and kingdom. He would have done that. You may question, what are you talking about? But that is exactly what he did. Because he was not addicted to women, not addicted to wine, but he was addicted to gambling. So Duryodhana knew his weakness. Duryodhana was a fast master in studying the psychology of other people, how to make friends, or how to influence people. He knew very well the art of influencing human behavior. So he sent, and you come, let us have gambling. And immediately Yudhishthira came. Why am I emphasizing so much about this? Because it is very necessary to understand things properly. So Yudhishthira came, and as soon as he started, he forgot the whole world, excepting the intoxication of playing, and he lost everything. And then somebody goaded, blamed, Sritarashtra, the father of Duryodhana, that look, this is what is happening. And then immediately, to avoid bad name for himself, he gave a boon to Draupadi, that everything that your husband has lost, I am giving it back to you. So they got back. And they were going back. And again Duryodhana sent the invitation a second time. And then he turned back. And that is where he lost everything. And the condition was, for 12 years, they would be living in forests. And for one year, incognito, they have to live somewhere. But if they are found out, again 13 years. Duryodhana was cock sure that he has ways to find out. He has people who can ferret out all these panchipandavas because they have some special talent. Nobody can hide their talent wherever they go. So this is what I am telling. Objects. Drinks are there. Sex is there. Objects of enjoyment are there. Even in those days, beautiful horses, beautiful chariots, instead of Cadillacs, Rolls Royce, they were the things. People, if we do not know what is going to come after 100 years, we will be wishing only what we so far know about it. So what is the point this great Rishi wants to convey to us in the second mantra? Vishaya Asaktam. The word is Asaktam. Vishaya is not the problem. Asakti is the problem. And as soon as any person comes, what is Asakti here? Asakti means attachment. Attachment means what? Passion. And dispassion is the opposite of passion. So what is this passion? Passion means a person is a slave to whatever things. A person can be a slave to his spouse. A person can be a slave to a matchbox. A person can be a slave to drink. And of course, these are major things. A person may be a slave to name and fame. A person may be a slave to carpets. A person may be a slave to anything. Mahamaya can come even for the sake of one matchstick. Some persons are ready to lose everything in this world. So that is what the second mantra wants to convey. Bandhaaya Vishaya Asaktam. What is the point? I have taken so much time to illustrate. Vishaya is not the problem. The problem is slavery. We completely sell ourselves so that we become eternal slaves to these Vishayas. That is the problem. So what happens is that anybody who becomes a slave to any desire that means desire cannot exist separate from the object of desire. So, in fact, we cannot desire unless there is an object that we have experienced. We cannot desire, for example, that there will be an aerial personal car where it will be there. I just sit there and then it will master where can I take you. Like the Persian magical carpet. I want to take me to America, to Mars. Okay. I will take you. AI can do marvels, many marvels. But what we forget is what can make marvels can also do just the opposite. Something can create, something can also destroy. So something can give happiness, same thing can also give us terrible unhappiness. So, very clearly we need to understand that the problem is not the world. Problem is not ourselves. Problem is not our mind. Problem is our mind telling to itself and to others. I cannot live without this. I want this. I am prepared to do anything. That means I am prepared to be a slave for this one. That slavery is called deep attachment. But you know what is the marvelous psychological fact. So the same deep attachment can also be the savior. So how if deep attachment is diverted or it is focused upon God, focused upon higher spiritual ideals. That is what Shri Ram Krishna used to say, we change the direction and that will lead to whatever we want. So here something very important. When we become slaves to an object, that object will be ever separate from us and we will be slaves forever unless by the grace of God, by the grace of holy people, we happen to wake up. But if we are deeply attached to God, naturally some Prabuddhas, means otherwise people, over wise people, you are saying attachment is the bondage. No, not even attachment is the bondage. This is the psychology. Then what is it? Attachment to an object which is Jada or which whose other name is bondage. Attachment to bondage makes us bound. Attachment to freedom makes us free. For example, Ramakrishna said, Mother, I want only motiveless devotion only to your lotus feet. And what is the lotus feet of the Divine Mother? That is called freedom. God means freedom. In fact, one name of God is Sarvatantra Swatantra. That is absolutely free. And only a free person can give freedom to others. Just as a moneyed person can give money. A musician can teach music. A good cook can teach how to prepare good dishes. But this is the most important thing. God is another name for freedom. World is another name for bondage. So it is even, first what did we say? Kamas are the bondage. Desires are the bondage. Then what did we progress from there? No, no. Desires are not the causes of bondage. But attachment to the objects of desires is the bondage. Then we said, no, no. That is, we have to improve it further. What is that? It depends upon what manner of object is it freedom? Then it will give us freedom. Is it something whose nature is bondage? Then we will be bound. And this is what he is telling in the second line. Vishaya here by proxy have been given the name of worldly objects or the objects which bind us. Why? What is bondage? Bondage means limitedness. Unlimitedness is called complete freedom. This is a beautiful concept. So we are limited by hunger. We eat food. We remove the hunger which is limitation. We become unlimited. And that is what is called happiness from not having that limitedness called hunger. But we are bound by innumerable limitations. That is why it is impossible by that time we remove the limitation of one and we can do it only for a short time and that too incompletely. And that is why spirituality is needed. That is how Sankhya Karika starts. So in the fourth part of the second line Muktam Nirvishayam Smritam Muktam Completely free. What is it? Nirvishayam. Vishaya means bondage. Nirvishaya means freedom. So those who are completely free from bondage, they are called free. That means what? In gross terms what it means is we have to give up what is called all the Vishayas. How to give up? It is simply I cannot sit. I heard marvelous talk today. I will give up all bondage. That is not going to work out. So first we have to start in a gross way. What is it? Find out first of all. Analyze oneself. Find out what are the things to which we are slaves. And it can be physical or mental. Physical means I want to eat something. I want to smell something. I want to touch something. I want to see something. I want to hear something. You see in China I heard a news several years back that a person was madly fond of iPhone and his parents either do not have or refused to give. So this young man an adolescent he sold his one kidney just to be able to buy one version of the iPhone. Because what happens you know after six months a new version will come or after one year. And then will he sell his second kidney also or lung also? That is the problem. So, It is easier talked, easier said, easier described than really to do it. Some are bound physically. Varieties are bounded. Others are duty bound. Some are time bound. Some are family bound. Some are spouse bound. Some are economically bound. Some are politically bound. These are just a few descriptions. But the biggest bondage is slavery. Unable to control the mind. So we have talked about what is called if I get this I will be all the time happy. So superimposition. If I can get my dream girl to marry then it is called Shobhanadhyasa. Whole life I will be very happy. As if you are not going to change. That lady also is not going to change. Then we superimpose joy and sorrow. Sukha and Dukha. By our opinions. I don't like some people. I like my religion. I hate the other religion. My religion is best. This is called superimposition. No religion is best. Every religion is good, as Ramakrishna says, to take one to the other. That is how difficult it is to get rid of this attachment. That is beautifully described here. Attachment to objects makes us dependent or slaves to them. We are forced into sin. Prompted by compulsivity. Some people cannot help but compulsively they have to drink, compulsively they have to smoke, compulsively they have to eat, compulsively they have to do many, many, many things. That is why when Bhagavan was trying to teach, Earlier to that Arjuna, having heard Bhagavan's teaching, he had a question. पापं चारति पूरुषः अनिच्छिन्नपि वार्षनेय बलाद इवन्योजितः So we will come to the Sri Bhagavan's teaching. कामयेश क्रोधेश प्रजोगुण समुद्भभः महाशनो महापाप्मः विध्धि एनं यवैरिनम So the object, what is he telling? So Arjuna was asking that how we our good mind, our discriminative mind understands that we should not come under the sway of any object. But as if somebody puts a gun behind us and drives us to do what even though we know that it is not good and we are going to suffer, makes us do what is called helplessly. We have to be compassive. What is the reason? That was the question. पापं चरति पूर्षः So people commit terrible sins including killing. अनिच्छिन्नपि Even though they are very good, they know whatever should be done, what should not be done. मलादि वनियो जितः As if they are forced to do it. And then what is Bhagawan saying? You are absolutely right. But there are some things. And of those things, two things. कामयेश क्रोधयेश. काम means desire, intense irresistible desire, क्रोध. When desire is thwarted, frustrated, that turns into क्रोध. Whether it is a person, event or whatever. And this काम, क्रोध are born of उच्छिगुण, प्रजोगुण. And what is the nature of this काम and क्रोध? महाशनो. They will never be satiated, however many times you do that. महापापमा. And they lead to the greatest sin that is possible including killing of parents, killing of Guru, killing of women, killing of pregnant women, killing of fetuses. Therefore, Arjuna, know that to be your viree. And then this same thing I repeated. It is only for our manana. There is a beautiful book which Ramakrishna versed upon Swami Vivekananda. Once Ramakrishna said to Swamiji that I want to listen to Astavakra Samhita. And Swamiji knew about it. He protested. No, no. That is a book which says I am God. I don't believe that I am God. Ramakrishna smilingly said I am not asking you to read. I am asking I want to hear so you can read beautifully. Your part is only just to read. Now come to think of it. Somebody reads. Do you think without hearing he can read? I don't know. If he is an advanced yogi, adept yogi, he might be able to switch off his mind. Just only focus it upon the reading aspect of it. No. This Astavakra is telling. In the very second Janaka Maharaja had asked so how do I get mukti? For that he is answering. Muktim ichchasi chait thatha. My dear child, if you want liberation. Muktim ichchasi chait. If you really desire mukti. Vishayan Vishavat tyaja. Vishayan means objects which tempt us. Vishavat tyaja. Consider them as veritable hala hala poison. And then you have to give them up. Is it easy? Kshama arjava daya atosha satyam piyushavat bhaja. Piyusha means amruta. So try to think kshama infinite patience, arjava straightforwardness, paya compassion, tosha satisfied with whatever comes and finally satyam. Never deviate from the path of truthfulness. And these qualities piyushavat. It is very nectar because they are the only antidote for this poison. And then Shankaracharya in his Vivekachudamani, he tells something marvellous. He says so should we call all the objects of the senses as poisonous? He says no. There is no comparison at all. Even to call them poison will be doing injustice to these vishayas. Why? He says the sense objects are much much more powerful and dangerous than even poison. Is it so? Yes. How? doshe na tevro vishayaha krishna sarpa vishadapi visham nihanti bhoktaram prashtaram chakshu saapyayam So tevro vishayaha. That is terrific poison, intense poison. Vishayaha. It is even more virulent poison. Any object that attracts us. Krishna sarpa vishadapi. Black cobra. Krishna means black. Sarpa here means cobra. And it emits. So this there is one snake in South Africa. It is called Mamba. And once it discharges that poison enough to kill 50 people on the spot. Krishna sarpa vishadapi tevro vishayaha doshaha. The defect. Poison kills. And then what does he say? Who? Shankaracharya. Where? Vivek Choudamani. This is the 77th verse. visham nihanti bhoktaram Visha destroys, kills only the person who drinks it. Bhoktaram. But what about the vishaya? Drashtaram chakshushapayam. You hear something. You see something. You smell something. You taste something. You touch something. Even just seeing from a distance. You don't need even to go near. They will kill you. Is it true? Absolutely true. Is there any example? Yes. Very familiar example. If we study Bhagavatam or any Purana we know what it is. Now in Bhagavatam there is a story of Ajamila. What happened? He was a marvelous Brahmin youth. Completely devoted to Vedashastra. Leading a most pious life. Let us not forget it. But some samskara was there. One day he went to a forest and then there was a low caste couple. They were enjoying each other. Husband and wife. And they were naked. And this person happened to see that low caste woman not clean, very ugly and but that sight at that second overpowered him. I don't know how he did it. He either killed her and drove her away. Or he married that woman. He had many children. And he completely deviated from his Brahminical practice. And then in the end what is called youngest son of his he named him as Narayana. And then when the last Yamadutas were about to come then he was very fond of this youngest child Narayana and he uttered the word Narayana. Immediately Vishnu Dutas came, drove away the Yamadutas and took him to heaven. You may look like that. Oh! God's name is so powerful. This incident is quoted to glorify the name of God. But we miss the inner meaning of it. Remember, all the marvelous Samskaras were there. But some past Samskara was there and it became fructified at that moment in the forest and then he had no option but at the end having gone through he had remembered Oh my God! Where was I born? And what had happened to me? How did I come? How did I slip to this lowest state? And then he must have just Narayana recollected him, reminded him that such a high pious state I have fallen down. At that time his what you call regret that I have fallen must have been terrible. Bhagawan doesn't see all those things. He saw my child is really truly repentant. That is why Bhagawan Krishna says What happens? My devotee will never perish. And this person was the greatest devotee. He slipped like Vipradasa, another great South Indian saint. He also had fallen into the clutches of a Vaishya. So these are all marvellous stories. It is not merely empty uttering of the word Narayana. Immediately God comes running. He knows. My child at last he has turned his face towards me. He wants to come to me. And then he uttered with that utmost faith O Lord, I know you can save me. And God will never regret. Once as Rama says, anybody tells to me O Rama, I belong to you. Henceforward I will never give up that person even if that person wants to slip away from me. That is why my name is Achyuta. So these Vaishyas are much much more virulent than any of the Vaishyas because Vaishya has to be actually to be taken in. And after some time it works. And let a person look at something. How much time will it take? Within fraction of a second, the person might become completely mad, completely enslaved. That is why just by the very glimpse of it such is the power of the Vaishyas. And then Shankaracharya in the earlier verse, 76th verse, he says something marvellous. He says Naraha Panchavi Anchitaha Kim That is there are five animals, species and they all counter death. They all fall or attain death by coming into contact because they are slaves to one one sense organ. And what to speak of a human being who has not one but five sense organs and all of them 150% functional. What are these elements? A deer, elephant, a moth, a fish and the black bee. So the deer, Harina is supposed to, Kuranga, it is called Kuranga, is supposed to be slaved by musical sound. So if somebody plays a flute, it is said. Anyway, as an example. And what about the elephant? A male elephant is caught because it tries to run after a female elephant. That is the Sparsha, Shabda Sparsha. Then the moth. The moth means a kind of insect. When there is light, what happens? It is called Rupa. Rupa. Then the fish. Fish is what purpose? So it gives a bait and then immediately it smells and then it comes and falls. And then the black bee it wants honey. As soon as it gets honey, that is the taste, Shabda Sparsha, Rupa, Rasa, Gandha. All the five. So every animal can be killed, can be caught by tempting them with any one of their what is called, to whichever Vishaya, they are weak towards. What to speak of? A human being who is attached to all the five senses and 100%. So the question is, how can we free ourselves from the sense objects? Swami Vivekananda has this to say. First of all, he says, what is the nature of our mind? First of all, he says, the mind can be compared to a monkey. This is in my words, not his words. Then it is drunk. Then it is stung. Then it is possessed. So first of all, it is a naturally restless monkey. Then it is drunk. Drunk of what? Desires. And then stung. Stung with the scorpion of jealousy. Then it is possessed of pride. What to speak of such a mind? How difficult it is? And that is what Arjuna also asks. O Krishna, you are talking about controlling the mind. So I consider it how difficult it is to catch hold of space. So difficult it is to catch hold of the mind. The moment you run after it, it has already disappeared. And then Bhagavan says, It can be controlled. How? Abhyasa. Repeated practice. For how long? It may take thousand births. Thousand lives. Doesn't matter. Million lives. Doesn't matter. But mere Abhyasa will not help. It must be coupled with Vairagya. Then, And here Swami Vekananda gives us some hints. What does he say? We have to seize this unstable mind and drag it from its wanderings and fix it on one idea over and over again. This must be done. By power of will, we must get hold of the mind and make it stop and reflect upon the glory of God. Remember, earlier I was talking about Erickson's beautiful book called The Peak. And he says, Similar ideas to Hindu ideas, excepting they don't accept the Punarjanma, that anybody can develop greatly their potentiality provided they have Abhyasa and Vairagya. Vairagya means what? Don't allow the mind to deviate from here and there. Don't give it up. But go on doing Abhyasa and Abhyasa makes a tremendous difference. It's a marvelous book. Nearly, I think, 20 or 30 years back that book has come. So, Swami Vekananda says that we must seize this unstable mind and drag it from its wandering over and over again. Abhyasa. The easiest way to get hold of the mind, there is a technique, is to sit quiet and let it drift where it will for a while. Wherever it wants to go, don't control it. But just watch it. Witness it. Hold fast to the idea I am the witness. Watching my mind drifting because the mind is not I. Marvelous ideas. Psychological facts. What is it? We are experiencing is not we. If you are experiencing a table, you are not the table. If you are experiencing the body, though you may think I am the body, whatever you are experiencing is not you. So, you are not the body. You are experiencing happiness, unhappiness, good and evil, positive and negative thoughts. Therefore, you are not the mind. That is called witnessing. We have to practice how to be a witness. So, let me be a witness. Then, see it, think as if it were a thing entirely apart from yourself. Identify yourself with God and never with matter or with the mind. Picture the mind as a calm lake stretched before you and the thoughts that come and go as bubbles rising and breaking on its surface. Marvellous suggestion. Just see it. Imagine a beautiful lake. I am sure all of us have seen lakes somewhere or the other. And then you think that I am that lake or it is God. And then every lake will have bubbles. So, what is it? The mind is like a calm lake. But so many thoughts will come. Those thoughts are compared to waves, bubbles. They come, they go. A small wave, a little bigger wave depends upon the wind. So, Swamiji says that make no effort to control the thoughts but merely watch them and follow them in imagination as they float away. And if you follow them, what happens? They will invariably lead to their homes. That means the secret. Oh! This is the memory which created this particular thought wave. Ah! That is why my mind is disturbed so much. This is one way of controlling it. So, psychologists, modern psychologists employ various methods. One of the methods that they employ is called free talk and drooling. What is free talk? The psychologist makes you comfortable, almost lulls you to half sleep and asks you don't think what should I say, whatever comes uncontrolled, let your thoughts flow. Then good, bad, the problem, everything will come out and these psychologists are trained to detect them and ferret them out and point them out to them so that the patient who is unaware now becomes aware and he can control them. So, that is one. And then, as I said earlier, as we go on observing them, if we can do it ourselves, then what happens? Whatever we experience, slowly, my identity with the thoughts becomes less and less and less. Beautiful thing. So, follow them in your imagination. This will gradually lessen the circles, for the mind ranges over wide circles of thought and those circles widen out into ever increasing circles as in a pond when we throw a stone into it. This is a marvelous technique. We will talk about it in our next class. May Ramakrishna Holy Mother and Swami Vekananda bless us all with Bhakti. Jai Ramakrishna.