Key to Success = Pujya Gurudev

Mastery of the Mind - Key to Success in All Endeavors

=Pt.ShriRam Sharma Acharya

(Countinue From last Apisode)

Madhusudan, I see no stable foundation for it owing to restless. Restless indeed is the mind, O, Krishna; it is vehement, strong and difficult to bend; I deem it as hard to control as the wind. (Gita 6/33, 34)

Lord Krishna, too, considered the control of mind a difficult task and the Blessed Lord had earlier, in chapter 2, stated: Yatato hyapi kaunteya purushasya vipashchitaha Indriyani pramathini haranti prasabham manaha That is, The turbulent senses, O son of Kunti, do violently snatch away the mind of even a wise man who is striving after perfection. (Gita 2-60)

Indriyanam hi charatam yanmanoanu vidhiyate Tadasya harati pragyam vayurnavamivambhasi That is - For the mind, which follows on the wake of wandering senses, carries away his / her discrimination, as a wind (carries away from its course) a ship on the waters. (Gita 2-67)

Lord Buddha described the fickleness of mind as-

Yo sahassam sahassen sangame manuse jine Aikam cha jaiyya atanam sa vai sangam jutayo .Dhamma Pada- 103)

That is - A person may conquer thousands of people in war thousands of times, but the greatest winner is one who has conquered his own self (mind). True the unsteadiness of the mind in its ordinary state of immersion in ignorance is natural and controlling it extremely difficult, but it is not impossible. Once one understands the harmful effects of the fickleness of the mind and the beneficial effects of its mastery, then it would definitely be possible to move forward in the direction of mental steadiness and steadfastness. Sunrays fall on the body and it is possible to bear them even during extreme hot weather because the rays are scattered. If the same rays are focused at one point by a convex lens, no part of the body will be able to bear that concentrated heat. Any cloth can be burnt by it. A fire can be lit anywhere with that heat. In fact now-a-days, this method is being used for utilization of the solar energy for accomplishing different tasks.

Like the focused power of sunrays, the power of focused mental energy is unlimited. No objective in the life can be achieved with scattered mentality. But if the mind is steadily focused on one goal, its power increases manifold even in an ordinary life. With such a concentrated mind, desires can be fulfilled, plans can be implemented and success can be achieved in any field of endeavor. In the field of spirituality, the mastery of the mind is considered very essential. In the scriptures, mind has been called a foe and a friend, and it has been stated that the controlled mind is equivalent to nectar, Kalpavriksh (divine tree which fulfils all the desires), and the uncontrolled mind is equivalent to a deadly poison. When there is no control over the mind, first of all it seeks sensual pleasures and runs after them. The greed for relishing different tastes of the tongue troubles it. In the field of beauty and youthfulness, it wishes to play with the Apasaras (damsels) of the royal court of Indra. Dance, songs, music, entertainment, holiday tours, picnics, beautiful scenes, scented objects attract it and it wishes to spend most of its time in such sensual indulgences. It wishes to enjoy theatre, cinema, games, club, etc. In order to decorate the body and giving it rest, it compulsively collects the objects of luxury and thus vainly tries to satisfy its ego-driven impulses and fancies. Therefore this fruitless and aimless agitation of the mind must be stopped and it must be mastered. The key to all the siddhis lies in the mastery of the mind, which is bedrock for all sadhanas and yoga practices. It has already been said that the powers of a concentrated mind are limitless. Whatever progress has been achieved by any one in this world, is the result of focused mental energy. A person�s happiness or sorrow, bondage or salvation are dependent on the state of his mind - whether it is restless or steadily mastered. The subtle knowledge acquired by direct perception too is attained through the mind. Discussing the importance of mind, the sages have said "As the spokes of the wheels are arranged at the nucleus of the axle of the chariot, in the same way the knowledge of rik, yaju and sam vedas is established in the mind (shukla yajurveda-34/5)." If the mind becomes pure, steady and single -pointed, the quality of life will change altogether. That is why, it has been said that the one who has conquered the mind can conquer the world.

Thanks GOD,Thanks Sadguru,

Shiv Sharma