Friday, July 22, 2005

Harnessing

...the Mind

The Mind. Man. Manas. Manu. Manidan. Manushan. Manush. Manisha. Manishi. Mansi, Mana or even Manam Pochu! It's an ocean in which we live and die. Just as fish are born in water and die and are again born and die. Man is born in the ocean of the mind and the cycle continues...till he gets out of it into the quiet expanse of stillness.
In Manikkavasagar's Tiruvasagam, now made famous by Ilaiaraja, there is a beautiful verse: Pullagi, Poondagi, Puzhuvagi, Maramagi, Palvirugangalagi, Paravaiyai, Pambagi...vallasurar agi, Munivarai, Devarai...ella pirappum pirandilaithen.
A beautiful line which outlines evolution. Mind is at the end of this evolutionary process. First Nothing or rather Everything - the essence. Then manifestation of light, sound, gases, rocks, sand, water, fire, air, space - can see the transformation getting subtler than the first. Just as everything is in invisible space, we are living, rather thinking in an invisible ocean called mind. Anything vast and wild has to be harnessed. For we do not need all of the mind to put the thread into the needle. Just as we do not want all of the river's water to quench our thirst!
So taking that little bit out of the ocean of the mind is called harnessing the mind. Just as one harnesses wind energy, electricity or ocean thermal energy.
Leaving the science of the mind to itself and coming to the fundamentals of using it for our day to day life, the body can be likened to a pot and the mind to water. When the pot is leaking or constantly shaking, all the water is either drained out or spilled and wasted. The first step to harness the mind is to bring the body to a state of stillness. There are innumerable ways - exercise, Hatha Yoga and all forms of focussed physical activity. One has to also watch the wasteful movements of the body that happen unconsciously by force of habit - shaking legs, or any part that moves unnecessarily and without control. Proper diet and sleeping habits also have a big role to play.
After the body, another way to harness the mind is Pranayama. Prana is the life force that flows in and out of the body. In this case, the breath is the vessel and prana is the essence contained in it. The prana also contains in it the mind. So when I regulate my breathing, get more and more conscious of it, I am aware of the flow of thoughts in and out of me. Instead of wasting my mind in a fit of anger, I just have to inhale and exhale deeply to hold my mind in my control. That will help me to respond, rather than react. In response, I am having my mind in my hands and using it according to my discretion. In reaction, I lose control of the situation and things happen on their own.
I now seem to be falling in line with Patanjali who outlined the Ashtanga Yoga in the Yoga Sutra. It is everything about harnessing the mind. Yama and Niyama - do this and don't do this, eat this and don't eat this etc. all to maintain a steady state of mind. Then is Asana - a lying down posture or a stoop also bends and warps the mind accordingly. The person gets in tune with a warped flow of thought that in turn makes him take warped decisions. The result too is warped. In a perfect healthy posture, the person is in tune with the best that is possible and the subsequent thoughts, action and results are the best.
Pranayama is the fourth. If not regular breathing practise, at least a constant watching of breath is possible at all times, silently, without even your neighbour's knowledge.
Then comes Pratyahara: Reactions to outside situations. Boss shouts. I fume within. It's a mind game and the energy flow is wayward. But Boss shouts. I maintain my cool. I am able to quietly correct my mistake or point out where the problem actually is.
Dharana: Total focus in the work at hand. Stringing beads or checking out the drops of liquid in a pippette at the laboratory. That's where our friend Robbie comes in when he says being in the lab makes him meditative! Dharana helps to increase mind power. Just like a parabola that helps focus the solar energy which otherwise is spread out, a focussed mind is like a parabola that can analyse, pick and choose with sheer brilliance. That's where our dear friend Vinayaka comes in - symbolic of a sharp mind, keen eyes, wide ears to listen, a trunk that can pick up a needle or lift a log of wood. Such a mind can break barriers in the progress of work. So he is Vighna Nashana Vinayaka - destroyer of obstacles.
Dhyana: Meditation. When body is still and the mind is quiet, like a placid and crystal clear lake, the innate brilliance of the individual just shines. They become the reflector of what they see, throwing light at all times. A meditative mind is at peak performance at all times. Wakes when it has to, sleeps well when it has to, work when it has to, has fun when it has to. Celebrates and enjoys life.
Samadhi: Well, now we have crossed the mind and gone beyond it. Remaining in bliss, just like the tall mountains, the flowing rivers, the roaring oceans, the green trees, the many coloured flowers, the fighting and struggle of the animals or the Yogi in a state of unalloyed bliss. Doing nothing. Just being.

*****

20 comments:

Ganesh said...

well explained, but will comment on this later, need time to digest :)

Swahilya Shambhavi said...

Ha Ha Ha.

Robbie said...

Swahilya:
I returned home and slept for 2 hours and then decided to check your blog out for I knew I was in for something special this time. I wondered what you will end up writing as a response and I was really surprised at the indepth analysis that went into your post.
I am really flabbergasted with the amount of effort that must have gone into constructing this post and I feel really special on reading this. THANK YOU!
I love your analogy of the mind with that of water. If I remember right, sherlock holmes describes the brain as an empty attic, according to him you can only fill it with so much of information (this is in response to watsons observation that holmes knows nothing about anything else other than what he required for his profession. Now as I am typing this I realize that the mind and the brain are two different things and your explanation perfectly fits for the mind. The liquid state of mind is a perfect description, it can get leaky, when we do not keep it contained, amazing analogy swahilya.
Let me try and summarise your observations here.
Inorder to harness the mind, we need to have
1. control over the body
2.regulate breathing patterns which would inturn bring about emotional control
3.maintain posture
4.think before we react to situations
5.focus on a problem at hand which would enable clear analyses
6. reflect on our activities and search deep inside our minds for solutions i.e, meditate
and finally
7. When we cross all these levels then comes enlightenment about the various truths and along with it eternal satisfaction of having conquered the quest within.

I hope I have done justice with my summary. I simply loved reading this post, one of the best posts I have ever read from anyone so far!

Robbie said...

Swahilya:
I don’t know if you would like me giving you assignments everyday, but I just thought of a very interesting topic,” DESIRE". I got reminded of this topic from one of stories about Buddha that I read in a comic book as a kid.
Let me tell you the story if you don’t mind. So, here goes…
A king (somewhere in the present Bihar) goes hunting to the jungle. He chases a deer deep into the jungle in vain. When he is returning back to the city he sees a beautiful girl. She is all that a man could ask for, extremely beautiful and brought up with good vices. He asks the girls father for her hand in marriage. The father gleefully agrees to the proposal and a date is fixed for the marriage. The king is floating in ecstasy; he dreams everyday about what his life after marriage would be like. The day before his marriage, a messenger from the girl’s father informs him that the girl was dead. She had died of a bacterial disease of some sort. The king gets very depressed on hearing this. For days he is possessed by grief for a woman he had just seen once and dreamt about everyday ever since. The king’s grief reflects on his kingdom and the whole country is immersed in sorrow. Buddha pays a visit to the king and subtly explains to him about DESIRE and releases him from the attachment and the king finally sees light.
I hope you liked the story, I am sure you must have heard it before; sorry if this was a repetition. I just felt like sharing this with you…

Ganesh said...

Robbie Adengappa!!
swahilyaji ki ji Robbie nalla kelvikaranna sandhosham

A Dreamer... said...

Swahilya,

It was a lovely post and gave me lots to think. Robbie has summarized it so effectively....

Sowmya

hari said...

Hi Swahilya,

That was fabulous. Reading it again and again and slowly digesting and experiencing your statements within was indeed a divine experience.

Mind = Ocean of water. Taking the exact amount we require = Harnessing the mind = meditation.

Vow. you made the definition look so simple. I am really missing some quality time with you.

hari said...

Hey robbie,

If Swahilya is the Volcano of spiritualism, you seem to be the perfect spark that makes her erupt into a flow of divine lava, engulfing the blogworld into a state of bliss.

Swahilya Shambhavi said...

Hi Robbie: Thanks for that overwhelming response and the interest you show. I am absolutely comfortable when you give me topics to blog on. So it can be more precise that way. Your summary is perfect. One more point I left out was 'Contemplation' - constant contemplation on the truth of existence - just thinking how this body, what's all this dressing, eating, sleeping, playing, studying why? Why and Why kind of contemplation and what is the truth? makes the mind more meditative and quiet.
I will come up with a post on 'Desire' Hope I do justice as my jeans and kurta are drenched. I am like a sponge now at my office for night duty. Rare heavy rain in Chennai!

Swahilya Shambhavi said...

Ganesh: Kelvikaranna enna artham?
Balasoumi: Thanks for dropping by.
Hari: It seems as if everybody is overflowing with bliss.orreee kulluurruthu. rains i mean

Robbie said...

swahilya:
take your time,you dont have to post it right away, you can relax and post it whenever you feel comfortable. It is just a suggestion my friend, no sweat...

Ganesh said...

Swahilya
I guess its a typo
robbie ungakitta nala vishayamellam
theringchakarannu solla vandhen.
He is asking all the right question
and you are giving wonderful answers.

Anonymous said...

Wonderful piece. I'm a YOGA teacher and it was an inspiration and very true. Thank you.

CeCe

Swahilya Shambhavi said...

@Ganesh, OK.
@CECE: Thanks.
@Robbie: No sweat, it's always fun.

Harshadanand said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Harshadanand said...

Mind and Brain are two wheels that keeps the chariot of life going. Mind Desires and Brain Discerns and help give shape to desires for better or worse and life goes on.
For Enlightenment, Mind and Brain are not needed. When we go beyond Mind and Brain, we experience the inner subtle world, vast, infinite and eternal. As long as we remain our physical body centric, the inner world remains illusive and beyond reach. We have to reconnect with nature and become Whole. We emerged from the Whole(Brahman)but our Mind and Brain distanced us from the Totality of the Whole and fragmented us to an Egocentric Human Being. It is this disconnection that subjected us to all the worldly sufferings.

PARASHER

Swahilya Shambhavi said...

Thank You Parasher. That was so clearly explained.

Harshadanand said...

Namaskar Swahilyaji: This is in response to your comment on my blog "Cosmic Creation....The reference to past lives is purely to achieve a panaromic view, not visible through physical eye, of my Cosmic Existence.It is very essential for final merging with The Source (The Brahma). Without knowing the Beginning and the final end of Cosmic Existence all spiritual efforts in present life cycle becomes redundant. For example we accept that there is a river known as Holy Ganges even without ever going there and take a dip.We are told that it originates from Gangotri and after a long journey through India merges with the Ocean.If we fly over it at an altitude that we can see the Beginning and The End of Holy Ganges that is like encountering and experiencing The Truth.Same goes with my life cycles that I like to view the Beginning and Where it will end without knowing When! All life cylces that I have lived so far are like day and night (Birth and Death)The past, present and future
is relative to Space Time. Once we understand and experience our Cosmic Existence, we go beyond Space Time. The secret of our Existence is hidden in Jnan Karma Sanyas Yoga chapter 4 of Bhagwad Gita. I was lucky to have an opportunity to Travel whole of India extensively by car marketing and promoting Horlicks
I came in contact with variety of Sadus and Sanyasins that influenced my thinking. We may continue our discussion further if u are interested. I am sure with our spiritual interaction we learn and share our experiences to enrich our understanding. Hari Om Tatsut
Parasher

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