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Controlling the turbulent mind (Bg 6.33 to 6.36)
In the previous section, Kṛṣṇa described the process of becoming fully absorbed in Him, and the vision developed by the perfect yogī through this process. The perfect yogī sees the Supersoul in all beings and thus he doesn’t discriminate based on the body. Not only does he see all living entities as part of the same eternal spiritual nature, but he also sees that all living entities are in Kṛṣṇa and that He personally accompanies all of them simultaneously as Paramātmā. In this position, one sees the distress of others as his own, and understands that real welfare is to help others to remember their eternal relationship with Kṛṣṇa.
All of this is also achieved by the devotee through the process of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, but to attain perfection through the process of aṣṭāṅga-yoga Kṛṣṇa just described is very difficult. In this section, Arjuna takes the position of the common man, and rejects this process. This gives Kṛṣṇa the opportunity to open the main arc of the Bhagavad-gītā, entering the description of the confidential process of bhakti-yoga, which allows us to directly come in contact with Him, without all the difficulties of the process of aṣṭāṅga-yoga. The ultimate goal of all yoga processes is to always remember Kṛṣṇa and never forget Him, and the bhakti-yoga process, described in chapters seven to twelve, allows us to directly ascend to this consciousness. For now, however, Kṛṣṇa addresses Arjuna’s immediate question, explaining how we can control the mind.
Text 33: arjuna uvāca
yo ’yaṁ yogas tvayā proktaḥ, sāmyena madhusūdana
etasyāhaṁ na paśyāmi, cañcalatvāt sthitiṁ sthirām
Arjuna said: O Madhusūdana, the system of yoga which You have summarized appears impractical and unendurable to me, for the mind is restless and unsteady.
Text 34: cañcalaṁ hi manaḥ kṛṣṇa, pramāthi balavad dṛḍham
tasyāhaṁ nigrahaṁ manye, vāyor iva su-duṣkaram
The mind is restless, turbulent, obstinate and very strong, O Kṛṣṇa, and to subdue it, I think, is more difficult than controlling the wind.
Text 35: śrī-bhagavān uvāca
asaṁśayaṁ mahā-bāho, mano durnigrahaṁ calam
abhyāsena tu kaunteya, vairāgyeṇa ca gṛhyate
Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa said: O mighty-armed son of Kuntī, it is undoubtedly very difficult to curb the restless mind, but it is possible by suitable practice and by detachment.
Text 36: asaṁyatātmanā yogo, duṣprāpa iti me matiḥ
vaśyātmanā tu yatatā, śakyo ’vāptum upāyataḥ
For one whose mind is unbridled, self-realization is difficult work. But he whose mind is controlled and who strives by appropriate means is assured of success. That is My opinion.
Prabhupāda notes that Arjuna was much more qualified than anyone in our age. He was an advanced kṣatriya, trained in discipline and religious principles; he had a much longer life, and above all he was a pure devotee and a personal associate of Kṛṣṇa. He was not a weak person. This makes his refusal especially significant. If even an advanced personality like Arjuna could not practice the process of mystic yoga described by Kṛṣṇa, what is the possibility that any of us may succeed? The process of mechanical meditation is extremely difficult in this age, whereas Kṛṣṇa consciousness is natural, because it gives the mind direct engagement in the service of Kṛṣṇa.
One point we can notice is that when Arjuna refuses the process of dhyāna-yoga in text 6.33, he does not criticize the process itself. Many great sages attained success practicing meditation in previous ages. It is an authorized discipline, and Kṛṣṇa Himself teaches it, both in the Gītā and in His advent as Lord Kapila (in the 3rd canto of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam). The problem is not the process in itself; it is the agitated mind.
Arjuna elaborates in text 34, describing the qualities that make the mind so difficult to control. He mentions four qualities:
1) Cañcalam: flickering, restless. The mind is unstable by nature, constantly moving from one object to another. Physical objects have limits on how fast they can move, but the mind can go from one side to the other of the universe instantly. This is what is referred to in different passages as the speed of the mind.
2) Pramāthi: agitating, turbulent. Not only does the mind quickly move from one thought to another, but it also creates disturbance, which can be fatal for the yogī practicing meditation.
3) Dṛḍham: obstinate. Even when we receive good instruction and we decide to follow it, the mind resists, and as long as the mind opposes it, we have to live with an enemy.
4) Bala-vat: strong. As we well know, once the mind decides to go in a certain direction, the pull can be very strong and difficult to resist. Even an intelligent person can easily fall under its control.
Arjuna compares the mind with the wind, which is subtle, flows everywhere, is powerful and practically impossible to stop. Even if one can remain seated, there is no guarantee that the mind will remain still, and if the mind is not peaceful, the yoga practice becomes mere imitation. Just as one cannot control the wind, Arjuna concludes that it is also not possible for him to control the mind through this method.
In his purport, Prabhupāda mentions a very important analogy for understanding our conditioned condition, which comes from the Upaniṣads. The body is like a chariot that moves around. We may think we are controlling this chariot, but we are actually just a passenger. The chariot is pulled by the senses, which are compared to horses. The horses are tied to the reins (the mind) and the reins are held by the intelligence. Since the intelligence is the main driver, it has to be purified by transcendental knowledge. Only then can it help us. The mind, however, is so strong that it can overpower the intelligence, and thus even when we decide to follow the transcendental process, we still have to persistently fight the whims of the mind.
Prabhupāda captures perfectly this struggle in his purport:
“The individual is the passenger in the car of the material body, and intelligence is the driver. Mind is the driving instrument, and the senses are the horses. The self is thus the enjoyer or sufferer in the association of the mind and senses. So it is understood by great thinkers.” Intelligence is supposed to direct the mind, but the mind is so strong and obstinate that it often overcomes even one’s own intelligence, as an acute infection may surpass the efficacy of medicine. Such a strong mind is supposed to be controlled by the practice of yoga, but such practice is never practical for a worldly person like Arjuna. And what can we say of modern man?”
In this context, Kṛṣṇa’s answer in texts 6.35-36 is important. Kṛṣṇa does not lower the standard of the practice. The yoga process He described is what it is, and if one wants to achieve success in it, one has to follow it the way He described. This is more important and universal than it may sound at first.
Every process of self-realization brings certain difficulties, because they all involve controlling the mind. The process of Kṛṣṇa consciousness may be much easier than aṣṭāṅga-yoga, but it is not free of struggle. Just as Arjuna concluded that the process of meditation Kṛṣṇa describes is almost impossible to perform, we may have difficulties even following the basic process of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. The answer given by Kṛṣṇa is thus not just for Arjuna, but for every single transcendentalist that experiences difficulties on the path of self-realization.
The first point is to not lower or dilute the process, and risk making it ineffective. Instead, we should try to elevate ourselves by cultivating the two qualities Kṛṣṇa mentions: abhyāsa (repeated practice) and vairāgya (detachment).
Controlling the mind is similar to the process that siege armies would employ in the Middle Ages. A castle may look impenetrable at first, but if supplies are cut off and the walls are constantly bombarded with rocks and other projectiles, eventually the castle will fall. It may take a very long time, but even the most formidable forts can be captured through this process.
Similarly, we may not be able to chant purely, or even attentively, on the first day. In fact, it may take many years. However, as we insist on the practice, we gradually purify ourselves and undermine the obstinacy of the mind. At the same time, the process of mental renunciation explained by Kṛṣṇa in the previous chapter while working for Him, combined with regulative principles, gradually starves the mind of new material attachments. If we keep the siege long enough, the mind eventually surrenders.
In his purport, Prabhupāda gives details on the execution of the process of devotional service. The main principle is to always hear about Kṛṣṇa. No matter at which stage we are, from beginner to advanced, this is the first priority. The more we hear about Kṛṣṇa from bona fide sources, the more we become attached to Him, and detached from everything that distracts us from Him. This is the root of the repeated practice Kṛṣṇa mentions, that gradually brings us to vairāgya: detachment from matter and attachment to Kṛṣṇa.
Kṛṣṇa concludes this section by reinforcing the basic point of this chapter: the importance of controlling the mind. If the mind remains uncontrolled, progress is difficult. However, as we control the mind through absorption in the devotional process, success comes closer.
The word upāyataḥ (by appropriate means) is significant. Some say that all roads lead to the same goal, but this is ludicrous. We need to practice a bona fide process, which effectively directs the mind towards Kṛṣṇa, learned from a genuine teacher.
In Prabhupāda’s conclusion, the proper means for this age is Kṛṣṇa consciousness, the process inaugurated by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. That’s the process recommended by all the ācāryas in the disciplic succession. We may not be able to sit alone in the forest and perform aṣṭāṅga-yoga, but we can attain perfection by engaging the mind through the process of hearing, chanting, remembering, and serving Kṛṣṇa. This is the process that gradually converts the mind into a friend that assists us in the devotional process, instead of just an enemy that drags us down in the direction of the sense objects.
Main points in the purports of Śrīla Prabhupāda:
“Arjuna said: O Madhusūdana, the system of yoga which You have summarized appears impractical and unendurable to me, for the mind is restless and unsteady.”
a) Arjuna rejects the system of mystic yoga offered by Kṛṣṇa out of a feeling of inability to follow it. Although Arjuna was qualified in so many ways, he was a practical man involved with the management of the state. In our age, people live in constant struggle, have very short lives, and are not serious about self-realization. We are thus much less qualified than Arjuna.
b) Modern people try to practice yoga in schools, but they don’t really know what the goal of the process is. Their practice becomes thus just a form of imitation that brings no spiritual benefit.
“The mind is restless, turbulent, obstinate and very strong, O Kṛṣṇa, and to subdue it, I think, is more difficult than controlling the wind.”
a) The senses are like the horses, the mind the reins, and the intelligence the driver of the chariot. The intelligence is supposed to direct the mind, but the mind is so obstinate that it often overcomes the intelligence. This is especially true for people involved in practical worldly matters like Arjuna. One may artificially try to consider friends and enemies the same, but true mental equilibrium is very difficult.
b) This strong mind is supposed to be controlled by the practice of yoga, but this is not possible for a person perplexed with the difficulties of modern life. What is the solution then? We should follow the process prescribed by Lord Caitanya, chanting the holy names in humility and fully engaging the mind in Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
“Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa said: O mighty-armed son of Kuntī, it is undoubtedly very difficult to curb the restless mind, but it is possible by suitable practice and by detachment.”
a) Kṛṣṇa acknowledges Arjuna’s argument, but He insists that it is possible to control the mind through practice and detachment. Practice means performing the nine types of devotional service in Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
b) Detachment means detachment from matter and engagement of the mind in spiritual activities. This means detaching the mind from activities not connected with Kṛṣṇa and attaching it to activities performed in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. This is much more practical than the mechanical yogic process.
c) We should give special importance to the process of hearing. By constantly hearing about Kṛṣṇa we become automatically attached to Him. This spiritual attachment is called pareśānubhava and comes without separate effort, just as hunger is automatically destroyed as we eat.
d) The process of devotional service is like curing a disease by a combination of treatment and diet. Hearing about Kṛṣṇa is the treatment, and eating only prasāda is the diet.
“For one whose mind is unbridled, self-realization is difficult work. But he whose mind is controlled and who strives by appropriate means is assured of success. That is My opinion.”
a) Without adopting the proper treatment and detaching the mind, it is very difficult to achieve self-realization. Yoga is like a fire, and material enjoyment is like water. We cannot light a fire while pouring water on it.
b) Without mental control, yoga is a waste of time, and there is very little chance for us to control the mind through meditation alone. The suitable practice for us is the practice of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. This is the only practical process to control the mind in our age. A devotee immersed in Kṛṣṇa consciousness achieves the result of yoga practice without separate effort.
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« The Song of God—Volume 1, chapters 1-6
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