Chapter 6.2 Dhyana Yoga (Yoga of Meditation) - Slokas 16-32
Who benefits the most and who does not in the art of Meditation ?
Lord Sri Krishna continues:
Sloka 16
“Verily, Yoga is not possible for him who eats too much, nor for him who does not eat at all, nor for him who sleeps too much, nor for him who is always awake”
Sloka 17
“Yoga becomes the destroyer of pain for him who is moderate in eating and recreation, who is moderate in exertion during his actions, who is moderate in sleep and wakefulness”
You all will agree that moderation is the key for success in anything, especially an advanced art like meditation. Bhagavan here specifically talks about moderation in eating, sleeping, recreation and physical activity. To such a person, Sri Krishna says that “Yoga becomes the destroyer of pain”. That is because the Dhyana Yogi is not conscious of bodily discomforts and mentally he is not distressed by happenings outside since his focus is on the Self.
“Eat sumptuously in the daytime but at night, let your food be sparse and easily digestible”- Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa
Sloka 18
“When the perfectly controlled mind rests in the Self alone, free from desire for all objects, then one is said to be “united” (yuktah) (established in Yoga).
Sloka 19
Yathaa dipo nivaatastho nengate so pama smrtaa
Yogino yata cittasya yunjato yogam aatmanaha
“As a lamp placed in a windless place does not flicker”, is a simile used to describe the Yogi of controlled mind, practicing Yoga in the Self”
“Yathaha” (Just as) “dipam” (lamp) “nivaathasthaha” (placed in a windless place). This is a beautiful simile describing the mind of a Yogi in meditation. The “lamp that does not flicker” represents the steady and illumined mind of a yogi, who has controlled his mind and is totally focused in the Self.
After becoming single pointed, the stages of progress accomplished in Dhyana Yoga are explained in the next four slokas;
Sloka 20 – 23
20. “When the mind, restrained by the practice of yoga, attains quietude, and when, seeing the Self by the self, he is satisfied in his own Self”
21. “When the Yogi feels that infinite Bliss, wherein established, he never moves from Reality”
22. “Which having obtained, he thinks there is no other superior to it, he is not moved even by heavy sorrow”.
23. “Let that be known: the severance from the union-with-pain is Yoga. This yoga should be practiced with determination and with a mind steady and not despairing”.
One thing is common to all of us. We all want endless happiness and we want to avoid physical and mental suffering in our lives at any cost. That is what happens to a person, who sincerely practices this “Dhyana Yoga” (Yoga of Meditation). Sri Krishna beautifully calls this “duhkha-samyoga-viyogam” (disconnection from union with pain). The Yogi feels “infinite Bliss” (endless happiness) and he does not think that there is anything better than that state of mind. His mind is steady in quietness and any amount of “heavy sorrow” does not bother him.
But, what if the mind wanders while in meditation? Bhagavan Krishna gives the practical solution;
Sloka 24 – 26
24. “Abandoning all desires born of sankalpa, and completely restraining the whole group of senses by the mind from all sides.”
Sloka 25
Shanaih-shanair uparamed budhya dhrithi – grihitayaa
Aatma samstham manah krtvaa na kincid api cintayet
“Little by little, let him attain quietude by the intellect held in firmness: having made the mind established in the Self, let him not think of anything”
Sloka 26
Yato-yato nischarati manas canchalam asthiram
Tatas-tato niyamyaitatu aatman eva vasham nayetu
“By whatever cause the restless and the unsteady mind wanders away, let him restrain it from that, and bring it back to be under the control of the Self alone”
In these three slokas underlie the essence of meditation. Meditation being the highest form of prayer, it is difficult for a new initiate to sustain. Sri Krishna realizes our difficulty and accepts that the mind is restless and unsteady. Bhagavan advises the meditator to be firm in his conviction and little by little, bring the mind to focus on the Self (Atman) and to not think of anything else. It is common for any meditator to find the mind to wander away once he (she) sits on the seat of meditation. He may sit quietly after a good night’s sleep with the best intention of progress in meditation. But after five minutes, when a person is focused and chanting let us say “Krishna, Krishna” silently, his mind starts wandering to unwanted thoughts. It starts thinking, “ I hope the bank approves my loan or I forgot to make that phone call, etc.”. This experience is very common. Lord Krishna says if the mind wanders away, the meditator needs to very gently bring it back to the Self. (“Shanaih (gradually) “Shanaih” (gradually) “uparamedhu” (let him attain quietude).
(Please refer to the commentary about Sankalpa in 6.1, sloka 2).
In this regard, we need to discuss what our “mind” is. Swami Chinmayanandaji describes the mind as “a flow of thoughts” (like the river is a flow of water).
Our mind will have good thoughts and not so good (or bad) thoughts. Our mind is like a highway where expensive vehicles like BMWs and Mercedez Benz cars may be travelling along with an old Volkswagen and massive eighteen wheel trucks. One cannot demand, “only my new Lexus car should be allowed in this highway”. That is not practical or possible.
Swami Tejomayananda, in his lectures, humorously says “Our mind (thoughts) is like a box of tissue papers. When you remove a tissue paper, “plop”, another one pops up”. Our mind comes up with endless thoughts, one after another.
In meditation, one should gently try to direct the flow of thoughts towards the Higher Self. Thoughts should never be suppressed. Otherwise, they may rebound and unwanted results can occur. The goal is to minimize the number of thoughts by focusing on one thought. It can be mentally chanting of “Om” alone or any one of the following mantras of your Ishta Deva (preferred deity).
If unwanted thoughts occur, it is advisable to just observe them as a “Sakshi “or “witness”. Gradually, gradually (shanaih, shanaih) as Sri Krishna says, the unwanted thoughts become powerless and fall away. Also, it is advised to stick to one mantram to get the maximum benefit.
“Police the traffic of thoughts” – Swami Chinmayananda
According to experts, a human mind thinks about 70,000 thoughts per day. Bhagavan Ramana Maharishi says in his “Upadesha saaram”, that every thought depends on the individual “I” (the ego) thought. So, all thoughts can be simply classified into only two types of thoughts – “aham” and “Idam” (“I” thought and “this” thought). Here, the “I” thought represents the individual ego. When we serially conduct “Self-enquiry into the Truth” (“Nija Vichaaranam” as Bhagavan Ramana would say), in deep meditation, even the individual “I” thought (ego) falls down, and finally only the (Higher Self) “Aham” remains (“I am” The Self).
“Ayi patat yaham nija vichaaranam” – Upadesha Saaram verse 19
Sloka 27 -28
27. “Supreme Bliss verily comes to the Yogi whose mind is quite peaceful, whose passion is quietened, who is free from sin, and has become Brahman”.
28. “Constantly engaging the mind this way, the Yogi, freed from sins, easily enjoys the Infinite Bliss of contact with Brahman”.
“Shanta rajasaam” refers to the quietening of the mind due to giving up “rajasic” (desire prompted) thoughts and actions. That Yogi is freed from sins (“akalmasam”) and Realizes his true nature and becomes Brahman. Brahman as per our scriptures is the all-pervading Reality.
The next four slokas describe how the Yogi sees himself in this divided world and how Bhagavan considers the Yogi in relation to Himself.
Sloka 29 - 32
29. His mind being harmonized by Yoga, he sees himself in all beings and all beings in himself; he sees the same in all”.
30. “He who sees me everywhere and sees all in Me, he never becomes lost to Me, nor do I become lost to him”.
31. “He who, established in oneness, worships Me abiding in all beings, that Yogi lives in Me, whatever may be his mode of living”.
32. “That Yogi, O Arjuna, is regarded as the supreme, who judges pleasure or pain everywhere, by the same standard as he applies to himself”.
In these four slokas, Lord Sri Krishna tells us that the Realized Yogi sees himself in all others in this vast universe. In fact, The Lord says that the Dhyana Yogi is always with Bhagavan Himself when he starts seeing this Unity of life. He also assures us that His devotee will never be lost in the wilderness of life and death cycles (samsara), since “he lives in Me” (Sri Krishna).
In the rest of Chapter 6, Arjuna asks Bhagavan Krishna some very important questions:
Sri Krishna answers them in extensive detail.
We will see those details in Chapter 6.3.
Hari Om!
Dr.Shanmugam