Becoming free from the distractions of the mind

One realization I found particularly useful in my spiritual life is understanding that the mind is a separate entity from myself. Even if just intellectual, this realization can go a long way.

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One realization I found particularly useful in my spiritual life is understanding that the mind is a separate entity from myself. Even when we finally understand we are not the body, we tend to still identify with the mind. Thus, this realization, even if just intellectual, that the mind is something else, goes a long way.

Prabhupāda speaks about that quite frequently in his books: just like the soul is covered by the body and senses, it is also covered by the mind, intelligence, and ego. Thus, in the same way we understand we are not the body, we should also understand that we are also different from the mind and even the material intelligence.

The mind functions like a mechanical entity, more like a computer. Just like a computer runs the software we install on it, the mind processes the impressions and stimuli we put into it. The maze of desires that frequently pops out of it is just the result of everything we previously put there. The voice we hear inside our heads is thus nothing more than an echo of everything we saw and experienced in the past.

When we understand that, we start to see the mind as a separate entity, like a child walking beside us. The child may run here and there, want different things, kick and scream, but we understand that we don’t need to do everything the child wants. One who can detach emotionally from the situation can just observe the bursts of emotion of the child without directly identifying with them.

Similarly, the mind goes here and there, becoming attracted by different things. If we accept all these desires of the mind as our own, we will have serious troubles, but as soon as we learn to see the mind as a separate entity, we can learn to detach emotionally from it and just observe how it runs here and there, without being very much affected by it. When we can do that, we can just observe the workings of the mind as a neutral party. Eventually, we can even start seeing the mind as part of Kṛṣṇa’s energy and be amused by its workings.

One of the reasons we identify so strongly with the mind is that it is the mechanism that allows us to enjoy this world. In the allegory of King Purañjana (in the 4th canto of Srimad Bhagavatam), the mind is described as the Queen, who helps the king to enjoy life. It’s mentioned that “When the Queen talked loosely, he also talked loosely, and when the Queen walked, the King walked behind her. When the Queen would stand still, the King would also stand still, and when the Queen would lie down in bed, he would also follow and lie down with her. When the Queen sat, he would also sit, and when the Queen heard something, he would follow her to hear the same thing. When the Queen saw something, the King would also look at it, and when the Queen smelled something, the King would follow her to smell the same thing. When the Queen touched something, the King would also touch it, and when the dear Queen was lamenting, the poor King also had to follow her in lamentation. In the same way, when the Queen felt enjoyment, he also enjoyed, and when the Queen was satisfied, the King also felt satisfaction.” (SB 4.25.57-61)

This description tells of our own situation when we identify with our minds and our material desires. In this case, the swings of the mind translate into physical activity. The mind wants to smell something, and we immediately go there. The mind wants to look at an attractive person, and we look there; the mind wants to eat something, and we follow it by eating it. In this way, we find ourselves in a helpless situation, forced to constantly follow the mind in jubilation and lamentation, just like the king.

Krsna explains that to escape from this cycle, we need to use our intelligence. However, material intelligence can’t help much with that, since it is subservient to the mind. In the allegory of Puranjana, for example, the figures of the mind and material intelligence are amalgamated in the figure of the Queen. This illustrates the very intimate relationship between the material mind and intelligence, where the mind desires and the intelligence makes plans of how to satisfy such desires. The soul becomes thus just a helpless hostage of both. That’s why Kṛṣṇa also says that both the mind and intelligence (as well as the senses) are the seating places for the lust that enslaves the soul.

What is the solution then? We need to purify our intelligence by receiving pure transcendental knowledge and associating with advanced devotees. This association awakens our spiritual intelligence, which is related to the soul. This spiritual intelligence, operating according to the guidance of the sastras, the spiritual master and saintly persons, is the mechanism that can help us to become free from the dictations of the mind, and eventually from this material world.

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