May 19 – Bhagavadgita Chapter 6; Verses 6.33-6.34 (Day 140) Adhyatma Yoga, Yoga of Meditation

 May 19– Day 140

Verse 6.33-6.34

अर्जुन उवाच ।

योऽयं योगस्त्वया प्रोक्तः साम्येन मधुसूदन ।

एतस्याहं न पश्यामि चञ्चलत्वात्स्थितिं स्थिराम् ॥ ६-३३॥ 

Arjuna uvācha
yo ’yaṁ yogas twayā proktaḥ sāmyena madhusūdana
etasyāhaṁ na paśhyāmi chañchalatwāt sthitiṁ sthirām (33) 

அர்ஜுன உவாச¹ |
யோ‌யம் யோக³ஸ்த்¹வயா ப்¹ரோக்¹த¹: ஸாம்யேன மது⁴ஸூத³ன |
ஏத¹ஸ்யாஹம் ந ப¹ஶ்யாமி ச¹ஞ்ச¹லத்¹வாத்¹ஸ்தி²தி¹ம் ஸ்தி²ராம் ||33|| 

Arjuna said:

33. This Yoga of equanimity taught by Thee, O Krishna, I do not see its steady continuance, because of restlessness (of the mind)! 

Commentary: As the mind is restless, impetuous and unsteady I find it difficult to practice this Yoga of equanimity declared by Thee.  O my Lord, I cannot have steady concentration of the mind, as it wanders here and there in the twinkling of an eye. 

चञ्चलं हि मनः कृष्ण प्रमाथि बलवद् दृढम् ।

तस्याहं निग्रहं मन्ये वायोरिव सुदुष्करम् ॥ ६-३४॥ 

chañchalaṁ hi manaḥ kṛiṣhṇa pramāthi balavad dṛiḍham
tasyāhaṁ nigrahaṁ manye vāyor iva su-duṣhkaram (34) 

ச¹ஞ்ச¹லம் ஹி மன: க்¹ருஷ்ண ப்¹ரமாதி² ப³லவத்³த்³ருடம் |
த¹ஸ்யாஹம் நிக்³ரஹம் மன்யே வாயோரிவ ஸுது³ஷ்க¹ரம் ||34|| 

34. The mind verily is restless, turbulent, strong and unyielding, O Krishna! I deem it as difficult to control as to control the wind. 

COMMENTARY: The mind ever constantly changes its point of concentration from one object to another. So it is always restless.

Krishna is derived from Krish which means ‘to scrape’. He scrapes all the sins, evils, and the causes of evil from the hearts of His devotees.  Therefore, He is called Krishna.

The mind is not only restless but also turbulent and impetuous, strong and obstinate. It produces violent agitation in the body and in the senses. The mind is drawn by the objects in all directions.  It works always in conjunction with the five senses.  It is drawn by them to the five kinds of objects.  Therefore, it is ever restless.  It enjoys the five kinds of sense objects with the help of these senses and the body. Therefore, it makes them subject to external influences.  It is even more difficult to control it than to control the wind. The mind is born of Vayutanmatra (wind root-element).  That is the reason why it is as restless as the wind. 

Commentary by Swami Venkatesananda (verses 33-34): 

Anyone who has endeavoured to fix the mind knows how difficult it is; if the object of our attention is outside, and sensuously attractive, perhaps it compels our attention. Anyone who has tried to focus the attention on an idea or an ideal within oneself will appreciate what Arjuna says here! An otherwise passive mind becomes suddenly active; the otherwise placid lake of the mind becomes agitated; and the mind takes us farther away from the inner ideal than we ever imagined it could!

The power of delusion, of ignorance, of animal desires and instincts, is so strong that any attempt at controlling the mind is seriously resented by it. It is the experience of many that “since beginning to concentrate and meditate, the inner impurities seem to have grown”. We seem to be farther from God now than before we even thought about him.

It is good to know that it is a step towards God, a sign of progress! The inner devil has been disturbed, shaken from his complacent existence as the Lord of our inner world. Like an angry cat at bay, he is now fighting with his back to the wall – he is cornered!

The fight is hard and long-drawn, but let us fight the good fight with faith in the Lord, for once the mind itself is offered at the feet of the Lord, to serve him, it will become our best friend. This is the symbolism of Hanumān (the son of wind – wind and mind are the same, only the ‘m’ is upside-down) in the Rāmāyana. This restless ‘monkey’ (the mind) is invincible, wise, and heroic, and is able to work wonders, once it is made to serve the Lord. 

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