Chapter I
The Power of Meditation
Taming the mind and the intelligence
Swami
writes,
“See! Everyone in the world has the nature of behaving and acting in
two different ways: one outside and another inside. This is known to all,
though generally people do not show this publicly. Just as people lose even the
little joy that they have worrying over the factions they may have in their
family, so they lose their internal peace when faced with physical obstacles
and troubles.
For example,
consider a cart. It cannot move by itself, can it? It can move only when two
bullocks are yoked to it. And the cart can move safely only when the bullocks
are trained to pull carts and when they are used to the road on which they have
to walk. Instead, if they are ignorant of the process of pulling carts, if they
have not walked on the road, if they have never stepped out of their shed, or
if they have always moved only round and round the post to which they have been
tied, in their own mire, the journey cannot proceed! And the cart will itself
face danger!
So also, the inner
consciousness (anthah-karana) cannot move of itself; it must be attached
to the externally related bullocks, the intelligence (buddhi) and mind (manas).
Then only can it move forward, following the bullocks’ tracks.
So, before the
journey, the bullocks — intelligence and mind — should be conversant with the
road to the village that the inner senses are eager to reach. They must be
trained to proceed in that direction. If this is done, the journey will be easy
and safe.
Instead, if the
draught animals have no knowledge of the pathways of truth, righteousness,
peace, and love (sathya, dharma, santhi, and prema),
and if they have never once trodden that path, the cart, the inner senses
themselves, might come to grief! Even if they are prodded to proceed, they will
only drag the cart to the familiar post and the accustomed mire of confusion,
injustice, cruelty, indiscipline, and falsehood! What then of the journey? When
is the arrival to be?
Therefore,
intelligence and mind have to be taught the art of pulling the cart and moving
steadily along the road. This has to be done by repetition of the Lord’s name (japa)
and meditation (dhyana)."
How beautifully Swami teaches us the following
|
Cart
/ Antahkarana |
Compared
to consciousness for driving home a lesson |
|
Required
to drive the cart / Antahkarana |
2
bullocks/ Mind and intellect |
|
Destination |
Village
(for human beings, SELF realization at ultimate level and Dharmic life at human level) |
|
Pre-requisite
for journey |
1)
Destination must
be clear 2)
Journey must be undertaken with Sathya, Dharma, Shanti, Prema |
|
If
pre-requisite is not fulfilled |
Journey
of human life would be an aimless journey and full of confusion, injustice,
Cruelty, Indiscipline, falsehood |
|
Means for
fulfilling the pre- requisite and for
a safe journey in Spiritual path |
Japa (Repetition of
Lord’s name) and Dhyana
(Meditation) |
Did our Lord not
sing- “Japa Dhyan bina Samyog Nahin”?!
Swami has spoken about Japa and Dhyana as early
as in 1958.
“The secret is: you should “be”, but not be as in
sleep, when you are aware deep down within you, that you are.
Sleep is enveloped in delusion (maya). Awake from that delusion, but
immerse yourself in this sleep that is the real super-conscious state of bliss
(samadhi).
Repetition of the Name and meditation are means
by which you can compel even the concretization of the divine Grace, in the
Form and with the Name you yearn for. The Lord has to
assume the Form you choose, the Name you fancy; in fact, you shape Him so.
Therefore, do not change these two, but stick to the ones that please you most,
whatever the delay or the difficulty.
Flying hither and thither, higher and higher, the
bird has at last to perch on a tree for rest. So too, even the richest and the
most powerful man seeks rest, peace (santhi).
Peace can be got only in one shop, in inner reality.
The senses will drag you along into a mire, which submerges you deeper and
deeper in alternate joy and grief, that is to say, prolonged discontent. Only
contemplation of unity can remove fear, rivalry, envy, greed, desire — all
feelings that prompt discontent. Every other avenue can give only
pseudo-contentment, and a day will come when you will throw away all these
playthings and toys and cry, “Lord! Grant Me unruffled peace.”
(Chithravathi River Bed, Puttaparthi, 1958-02-23)
Love.
