| Refining
the Mind |
 |
By Swami Bhoomananda Tirtha
[Morning
Talks]
Harih
Om Tat Sat. Again
I am on the subject of assiduous saadhana the seekers must
do. My dear children, you must always remember this
important point: In the whole of your life, you must
constantly have your mind, your personality, your individual
life in focus. Remember: every interaction proceeds from
you, from your own personality – not from the body that is
physical but from the mind that is sentient.
To
see you, I must look at you. When I look at you the
impression made is in the mind, not in the eyes. This is
true of interactions through all other senses also. So, the
impulse to act arises in the mind and the result also ends
in the mind.
This
mind has got two aspects. Firstly, it produces or generates
independent thoughts and feelings. These feelings may be
good, bad, noble, ignoble, expansive or constricting. This
is one part. Another part is the outcome of thoughts and
feelings generated by external inputs through the senses. As
the mind receives inputs from the world, these imprints or
impressions become part of the mind. So, one is generated or
created by the mind itself, while the second effect
is generated or created by others.
What
are the ‘others’? They are the objects of the world. You
see an object. It is, let us say, something very beautiful
and useful. Now, when you see it, though the object does not
speak for itself, because of the input or imprint it brings
to your mind, you feel like possessing it. So the objects
and their imprints generate desire in you. Actually, then
also the mind is the generating element; but it reacts and
the reactional thought results in the upsurge of a desire.
When
you interact with people, they speak and you hear. They
speak independently. It is an action independent of you.
When they speak and you hear, their words generate some
feelings – love, hatred, fondness, dislike, allurement,
resentment and the like.
So,
on analysis you find that the mind independently goes on
generating thoughts, feelings and emotions, and also
reactively produces them. In both processes we develop
emotions – likes, dislikes or fear. The next point you
have to understand is that when the emotion or the emotional
difficulty is generated by the mind either independently or
in the form of a response to the input received from others,
the focus is again on the mind.
This
vacillating mind – changing from one state to another –
has periods of respite which is free of both likes and
dislikes and other opposites. These are periods between two
changes, however brief they may be. Thus it is evident that the mind stuff has the power to
outlive and override any psychological crisis.
What
I want to tell you is that your mind
has got the potential to remain unruffled and sublimate
whatever it produces or whatever reactions arise in it.
To think that your mind is a weakling and reactions
produced by the others are stronger is wrong.
Whether
it is a problem of fear, of love, of hatred or of
intolerance, understand that the emotions are always
generated by the mind and the mind has got the deeper
capacity to set it right also. Every time your attention
should be to observe the mind and see that the mind
sublimates, gets enriched, and becomes better and nobler
with every reaction. There cannot be any failure in this
effort. The question is, “Do you want such a lofty
mind?”
Of
course while doing saadhana there might be occasions when
suddenly you flare up and misunderstand others. That can
happen. I am not saying that it is wrong. But
whenever it happens don’t try to take on a defensive stand
saying, “It happened. What is there? I am right”.
Whenever
you say, “I have a trouble, I feel resentment, I feel
insecure, I feel challenged or I feel apprehensive”,
understand that these are your own mental notes. Nobody else is creating these
notes in you. May be these notes arise in the form of a
reaction, but they are nevertheless your own mental notes.
You alone will be able to set right and sublimate these
notes. And sublimation of the mind is absolutely possible.
In
fact, spiritual life and saadhana consist only in this
constant process of mind sublimation, self-sublimation. And
what is the result? The
outcome will be expansion of the mind, flexibility of the
mind and capacity of the mind to dissolve all kinds of
agitations.
Once
this point is clear, dear children, tell me: Is there any
time, is there any occasion, when you have no opportunity
and compulsion to do your saadhana and improve the mind?
This path of self-saadhana is one that will make you the
greatest emperor of the world wherein nothing of the world
can subdue you or conquer you.
The
mind becomes invincible, not by pride, not by delusion, not
by indifference or insensitivity, but by virtue of
refinement, expansion and elevation it is able to muster and
preserve.
Harih
Om Tat Sat.
* * *
