Burst Thirty One (For the Young):
Manage Your Mind
When we catch cold or have some gastric trouble, we immediately take care of our food and bring the disorder under control. That is on the physical plane. What do we do when our mind gets upset? What are the options before us when there is anger, depression, boredom or lack of motivation in us?
Very often, the eyes see something or ears hear something, and the mind is disturbed. No wonder the advertisement industry takes full advantage of this. The media bombards us with sensations. People gossip and it causes various waves to rise in the lake of our mind. In the absence of these external factors, our own memories can work up a disturbance in the zone of our emotions. What do we do?
We need to care for this friend inside us – our own mind. With love and attention, we need to get the mind’s cooperation in walking the right path. Such self-education leads to better conduct on our part in many situations and brings peace to us.
Inner freedom is a state of mind, nothing else. When our attachments do not exceed limits, we experience the serenity of inner space. We need to intelligently correct our senses (eyes, ears, tongue and so on) and hold them back from their instinct-driven ways. When we can calm these senses, which otherwise are like wild horses, we have a special power within us and that power bestows upon us the joy of liberation.
Let us cut off some of our false attachments, if that is the right thing. Let us give up some others when it is better to do so. Let us remove them from the store of our memories in some other cases. These attachments are the root causes of much of our agitations. These are the knots in the fabric of our thoughts. The garland of attachment that looks very beautiful to our mind is itself the hanging rope many a time for the self (soul).
Managing the mind is – to a great extent – managing its numerous attachments. In discovering right relationships with objects and persons, we uncover the treasure of happy living.
Swami Chidananda
Tuesday, September 07, 2004