(June 15,2013) Peace of Mind and Self-Control

Peace of Mind and Self Control

Divine Life Society Publication: Chapter 10: The Yoga System by Swami Krishnananda

What are we to do when we are in the midst of opposing forces? Many methods are prescribed, but the first one mentioned in the yoga texts is what the patient does when he falls ill. He does not start analyzing his body, but goes to the doctor. It is better for the student to go to the Guru and take the advice of his superior wisdom. Ekatattva-abhyasa is a famous recipe of Patanjali. Ekatattva means 'one reality', 'one objective', 'one target'.Abhyasa is 'practice'. So, his prescription is repeated resort to one concept, one truth.

The 'practice of the one reality', taken in its simplest meaning, may be regarded as a kind of concentration on any given object or one thought. This is, in short, what they call trataka in yoga. Trataka is the fixing of one's gaze, either externally or internally, on a point of attention. Together with this process, a breathing exercise may have to be practiced to calm disturbances in the mind. Expel breath and hold on, and with this, think of one thing alone, is the teaching. 

These practices bring a temporary peace to the disturbed mind - expulsion and retention of breath, and attention on one thing to the exclusion of others. Whatever be the student's effort to carry on his practice internally, there are occasional happenings from outside which cause concern and sometimes agitation. Something has to be done with these sources of trouble and methods have to be adopted for dealing with people. The achievement is to be such that there should be no reaction from persons in regard to oneself. To the extent there is reaction, there is also disturbance.

Patanjali is of opinion that these reactions are due to one's weaknesses and an incapacity for self-adjustment with others. Here I am reminded of a philosopher's saying, 'Give me the will to change what I can, the power to bear what I cannot, and the wisdom to know the difference.' If you can change a thing, there is no anxiety. If you cannot change a thing, there should, again, be no anxiety, for there is no point in worrying about what cannot be done. Anxiety comes in when you try to do a thing which you really cannot do. This is lack of 'wisdom to know the difference' between the 'can be' and the 'cannot be.'

There are the 'good' people, 'bad' people, 'happy' people and the 'unhappy' people. We have daily to deal with these persons when we come in contact with them. What should be our attitude when we meet a good person? Not one of jealousy, for that will not bring peace to the mind. We have to be happy (mudita). There is the story of an ancient philosopher who saw a well-dressed and beautifully ornamented graceful person, and exclaimed, 'how happy I am'! When the latter asked him why he should be happy on seeing another's prosperity, he replied, 'it does not matter whether you have it or I have it. I am satisfied that it is.' The limited mind wants to own things for itself. In existence there is really no such thing as 'belonging'. Things are. 'To belong' is not part of the law of the universe. If we see a good person we should be pleased that goodness exists in the world and not be intolerant because it is seen in another person.

There are also the bad and the wicked ones who do harm to others and delight in others' pain. Though the various laws prescribe different reactions towards these people, Patanjali is mainly concerned with the attitude of a student of yoga in regard to them. He suggests indifference (upeksha) towards undesirable elements. We may ignore the very existence of such a person and by that we get freed from having to deal with evil. It simply does not concern us; our reaction should be such that there will not be any counter-reaction from others, and for this we have to keep a balance of mental attitude. It is not always necessary that we should be judging or passing remarks on people even if we may regard them as a nuisance. Non-interference will obviate many of our troubles in life.

To the happy we should show kindliness (maitri) and to the grieved we should show pity (karuna). This fourfold attitude is meant to avoid mental disturbance due to external causes or the presence of certain persons and things which require of us some sort of relationship with them. Where, however, we have absolutely no relations of any kind, the difficulty does not arise.

Side by side, there is a necessity for the development of dispassion(vairagya) and for continued practice (abhyasa), which two, when carried to perfection, are the whole process of yoga. Pratyahara is not possible without a detached consciousness. Dispassion is not any force exercised by the will, but, rather, an understanding. The yoga texts say that there are various stages of dispassion and one cannot suddenly jump to its pinnacle.

Abhyasa is steadfastness in assiduous practice conducted with patience, unremittingly. The practice is not merely to be regular but also attended with a deep love (satkara) for it. It should be carried on for a protracted period (dirghakala) and without break (nairantarya). The continuity of practice should be full with devotion, for, when it is merely forced on the mind without its liking, it will not lead to success. Even a baby does not like to be controlled by force; it craves for affection. The mind has to be made to understand where its blessedness lies. Unless there is understanding there cannot be love, and without love there is no effort. One cannot blindly be thrust into something and made to have a liking for it. Vairagya and abhyasa are both results of a great understanding (viveka), a discriminative grasp which is the basis of yoga. The appreciation necessary is not merely an opinion that one holds, but a firm conviction. To fix oneself in a perpetual attitude, and not to have varying moods, constantly changing, is abhyasa. There should be a uniformity of conduct on account of perception of a harmony in things.

People change their opinions because their judgments are not correct. Sufferings in life are partly due to one's slavishness to moods and hasty judgments which one makes of persons and things. Spiritual practice is effort at fixity of consciousness. Ekatattva-abhyasa, mentioned earlier, is such steadfastness in one reality, a concentration of oneself on a chosen ideal or a given mode of conduct. It is not easy either to cultivate vairagya or be steady in abhyasa. Hard labour is necessary. To keep oneself balanced in the midst of the tumult of the world is not a simple task. The process of pratyahara will reveal that life is a battle, a struggle for existence.

The mind becomes steady by conservation of energy through these efforts at self-control. When the powers of the senses get attuned to the mind, so that they have no existence of their own apart from the mind which is their source, there is pratyahara.  After a life of long dissipation, the senses come back to their resting place. There is now no flickering of mind but only a steady flame of illumination. It is fully concentrated and moves not from the thought of its goal.

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Peace of Mind and Self Control: Chapter 10 The Yoga System by Swami Krishnananda

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