Meditation Yoga
Chapter 6, Verse 36
asaṁyatātmanā yogo
duṣprāpa iti me matiḥ
vaśyātmanā tu yatatā
śakyo’vāptum upāyataḥ
If one is not self-controlled, yoga is difficult to attain; but if one is self- controlled, yoga is attained by properly directed efforts.
“If one is not self-controlled, yoga is difficult to attain...” Here again Krishna repeats that if you don’t have control over the mind and the senses, it’s very difficult to practise yoga. It is very difficult because your mind will always drag you, will always pull you towards the outside world, so yoga becomes very difficult! The union between you and the Divine becomes difficult, but not impossible.
“...If one is self-controlled, yoga is attained by properly directed efforts.” So when a sadhak is sitting for meditation, trying to become immersed into his Self, into the Divine Self, he should control his mind. He should not let the mind run left, or right or towards any object. When the mind is subdued, all its turbulent nature, its restlessness, disappears. A controlled mind is easily attained through practise. It is only due to the mind, that one sees the complication of attaining such a state. When the mind is so deeply attached to outer enjoyment, the intellect remains unstable and scattered in all directions, uncontrolled. Then this yoga that Lord Krishna is teaching to Arjuna appears very difficult to do. But if one’s mind is focused on the Divine, through chanting, through continuous repetition of the Divine Name, then this yoga becomes easier. A bhakta, a devotee should try to see the One all-pervading God, the embodiment of eternal knowledge and bliss, as the whole universe. He should not only see God outside of himself, but see the whole universe, all the animate and the inanimate, within his own Self. This is what we do in meditation. We start meditation with visualising. We tell you to imagine something, because imagination is a natural function of the mind, isn’t it? That’s why we tell you to imagine the light. So what do you do? You imagine the light. You create an image of the light. You give the mind a
toy to play with.
Lord Krishna says that it’s easy to control the mind. It’s easy to make the mind renounce all objects of enjoyment and desire. It’s easy to cleanse the mind and fix it on God. It’s not difficult! When the mind is set in a proper direction, through practise, a devotee’s mind instantly becomes calm. First you tell the mind, “O mind, you always create things and run after the things that you create. So, create a Divine image and focus on that!” God manifested Himself in many forms and Names, so that He can allow the mind to focus on His beauty: on the beautiful form of Krishna, on the
beautiful form of Narayana, on Lakshmi Devi, on Jagadamba, on Jesus and on His beautiful Name.
He has given so many beautiful Names – Krishna, Rama, Shiva, Allah, Yahweh – all these are His beautiful Names. And when one is fully absorbed in His Name, one goes beyond the judging mind. Then one will see what will awaken inside one’s heart. One will witness in all hearts the all-pervading, omniscient, all-powerful, supreme, compassionate One; and one will feel the love within the Divine image which is inside oneself. So one becomes a living deity. In this way, one should mentally realise God and see Him within one’s own Self. Then it becomes easy and effortless to always focus the mind on God. If you love someone, is it difficult for you to visualise that person? No. You close your eyes and the person is there in your mind. Even if you don’t want it, the image of that person will be there. So if you love God, in any of His forms, you must reach a stage where the moment you close the eyes, you see Him. The moment you enter the heart, you see Him. The moment a person is in front of you, you perceive the Supreme Lord in that person. In the form of Love, He is present in every part of His creation. Then it will not be difficult to see Him everywhere, in
everything, it will be easy!
When one installs in the mind an image of the Divine, according to one’s choice, and sees Him within one’s heart, and prays to Him mentally doing Manasa Puja –then one is free! You will then see that there is no point in the mind running elsewhere. When someone is in love, the mind always runs towards the beloved: when the mind is trained to see the Lord, it will always run to the Lotus Feet of the Lord. Nowhere else. And automatically one will develop all the divine qualities. Krishna says, “It’s difficult, but it is not impossible! Do it! All you need is effort and constant practise!”
Bhagavad Gita
