In BG 6th chapter Krishna describes techniques used by dhyana yogis to control the mind. After hearing all that, Arjuna responds in the 34th verse, saying(BG 6.34)
cancalam hi manah krsna
pramathi balavad drdham
tasyaham nigraham manye
vayor iva su-duskaram
Arjuna says the mind is very fickle. It keeps jumping from one thought to the other frantically like a possessed monkey. It simply cannot stay calm in one thought for long. And if we try to control it? Arjuna says Pramathi — meaning it is turbulent. Even though we may try to control it, it doesn’t stay calm. And what if we forcefully control? Arjuna says it is Balavad — mind is very strong. We cannot forcefully control the mind — it is not weak. It is much stronger than our willpower & determination. So what if we try to gently coax it into submission? Just like sometimes, children when they cry, we can calm them with soft and gentle words. But the mind is drdham — very obstinate. It is not possible to sweetly tame it. To give an understanding of the extent of the mind’s power, Arjuna says Tasya nigraham manye vayor iva sudushkaram — controlling the mind is like controlling the wind. Who can control the wind? With all the technological advancement and being the most powerful nation in the world, a few years ago when a hurricane hit New York City, all that the government could do was to issue a warning to citizens to remain indoors. After the hurricane hit, there was a power black in many parts of the city for several hours. So many buildings were damaged. All that they could do was silently wait & watch till the hurricane blew over. It is not possible to control the wind. Similarly not possible to control the mind. Who is saying this? Not some useless vagabond in the street. Arjuna — a great devotee, ruler & warrior. To be a warrior requires immense powers of concentration, focus & mind control & enormous willpower. Warring is a matter of life & death. A moment’s inattention and the fight will be over. Arjuna was not an ordinary warrior. He had defeated even Lord Shiva in battle. Imagine his level of concentration & willpower. It is said that when Drona was training the Pandavas & Kauravas in the art of war, he tied a bird to a tree. Dronacharya asked each of the Kauravas & Pandavas to come & take aim one by one at the eye of the bird with a bow & an arrow. After taking aim, he asked them what they were seeing. Someone said he saw a bird on a tree, someone said he saw a bird on a tree in the middle of the garden etc. When Arjuna’s turn came & Dronacharya asked him what all he could see after taking aim at the eye of the bird, Arjuna said he could see only the eye of a bird. Such was Arjuna’s powers of focus & concentration. No wonder he was such an acclaimed warrior — the best one, in fact. Such an Arjuna is saying that the mind is uncontrollable like the wind. So what hope is there for us?
For common folk like us, controlling the mind is a very big task. We tend to fret a lot over it. It seems so important. So we should expect Krishna to respond to Arjuna with several pages of explanations on how to control the mind. Maybe even a few chapters dedicated to how to control the mind. At least some 20 verses on this subject will be needed. Isn’t it? Surprisingly though, Krishna responds to Arjuna with only two verses. In two verses Krishna dismisses Arjuna’s statement & Arjuna also accepts it & moves on! Wow! What is that secret technique which Krishna describes to Arjuna to control the mind? Something exotic? Something unheard of? Well not really. The simplicity of Krishna’s answer can actually leave us bewildered. We can be left wondering “is that all?” Some may also wonder whether Krishna has actually understood the magnitude of our problem. Krishna begins His reply by acknowledging what Arjuna has stated. Krishna says(BG 6.35)
asamsayam maha-baho
mano durnigraham calam
abhyasena tu kaunteya
vairagyena ca grhyate
O mighty-armed one, without a doubt the mind is very difficult to control & is flickering. So Krishna has fully understood the problem & empathizes with us. So what is the solution? Two things, Krishna says. Abhyasa and vairagya. It couldn’t be simpler. With just these two things, it is possible to control the mind. Too simple to believe. Practice & renunciation. In the next verse, Krishna says that it is possible to control the mind provided it is upayatah — our endeavour is appropriate. Meaning with correct practice & correct vairagya, we can control the mind. If we speculate some method & concoct our own vairagya, it is not possible. This is actually the secret. The correct abhyasa or practice & correct vairagya has to be followed.
What is the correct practice? Prabhupada has said we must attentively hear while chanting. So we may argue that that is my problem. I am not able to control the mind while chanting. Well, that is called abhyasa sir. Abhyasa means we have to practice.
Just as we practice cycling. I remember once I was watching a young boy holding a cycle while a small boy learnt cycling. One was holding the cycle so that the boy on the cycle wouldn’t fall down. Boy 1 would cycle while boy 2 would hold the cycle & run along. Most of us would have learnt cycling this way. So these two boys were going up & down the road. After some time, boy 2 got tired & suddenly he let go of the cycle without any warning. Poor boy 1 lost balance & landed up in a ditch & started crying. Boy 2 picked him up very calmly & coolly told boy 1 “ why are you crying? It is not possible to learn cycling without falling down”! Moral of the story is that practice is the phase where we will keep failing but keep trying. As we keep trying we will keep getting better at it. If we don’t fail while trying, then that means it is no more abhyasa. We have become experts then. So in the stage of abhyasa, like a boy 2 falling off, we will keep failing but we have to keep practicing until we perfect it. Most important thing is that we should not stop trying. If we stop trying to hear our chanting thinking anyway I can’t control so let the mind free & somehow finish chanting 16 rounds, then we will never be able to control the mind.
But practice alone is not enough. It has to be accompanied by vairagya. Vairagya means we have to be controlled in what we eat, how much we sleep, when we sleep, when we eat, what we eat, what we read, what we take pleasure in etc. Even the body influences the mind. That is why in dhyana yoga, the yogi starts with the body by controlling various airs within the body. Eating, sleeping & mating are also very decisive in making the mind calm or agitated. If mating is avoided, mind becomes calm. If we reduce eating & sleeping mind becomes calm. If we eat prasadam mind becomes calm. If we eat meat & drink wine, mind will be agitated. As devotees, we are insulated from most of these agitating substances. Over & above these, we have to be careful about how much prasadam we honour, when & what. Srila Prabhupada recommended only one heavy meal a day. Morning & evening prasadam should be very light — only just to subdue the sensation of hunger — not to fill ourselves upto the nose. And evening prasadam should be taken as early as possible. We should go to bed as early as possible. You will notice that if you had a later dinner, day by 8 or 9 pm OR if you had a very heavy dinner, then next day morning when you start chanting, your mind will be racing like a sports car. Or actually a mad monkey — to be more precise. And you will feel very drowsy. Anyone can try this as an experiment. For evening dinner, Just have some fruits or green salad. Have your milk & go to bed by 8.30pm. Next day when you wake up, you will feel fully fresh & just see how your mind is far more composed. After a few days of this routine, one day have a late heavy dinner. Observe how your mind acts like a first class prancing chimpanzee the next day morning.
So we on the one hand, have to follow a very disciplined life (vairagya) & on the other hand we must everyday remember to endeavor to practice hearing while chanting. With these two, we will be able to soon control the mind. Disciplined life means we must get up daily at the same time, we must honor prasadam at the same time daily, we must sleep at the same time daily, we must read at the same time daily etc. The more we are disciplined, the easier to control the mind. If we are not disciplined, we leave our clothes scattered, we eat at anytime of the day, we eat whatever comes to our sight etc., then mind will also be scattered.
So in essence the key to control the mind is two — abhyasa & vairagya. And don’t expect it to happen overnight. Krishna says yah sodhum prak sharira vimokshanat — one who is able to control the mind before he leaves his body is a perfect yogi. So it is a lifelong endeavor. If we are able to control the mind before we leave the body, it is a great achievement. Keep trying. Keep practicing.
Suvyakta Narasimha Dasa is Senior Vice President & Project Director, Vrindavan Chandrodaya Mandir World’s Tallest Skyscraper Temple. He has been serving the mission since 18 years.
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