Patanjali Yoga Sutra - II - 11

Meditation is the solution

Dhyana Heyaha Tadvrittayaha
The mind moves in waves called vrittis or the chitta vrittis/ These waves can be quietened by constant practice of meditation. You might find yourself at the cross roads of life sometime and too many paths beckon at the same time. during such moments, dropping all the search and chasing of ideas, quiet moments of being in meditation can quieten the mind.
- Swahilya Shambhavi

Patanjali Yoga Sutra - 35

Merging the mind with the object of perception

Vishayavati Va Pravrittiruthpanna Manasah Sthithinibandhini

How to bring the mind with waves and tides high and low into one's control? Patanjali is explaining many ways for this and in this Sutra, he says the mind can become merged with the object of sense perceptions.
There are five main senses of the mind. They are sight, taste, touch, smell and hearing. Merging with the object of sense perception is focussing on something that the eyes sees for instance, a river or the sky. With practice, the mind becomes steady. Same is to listen intensely to something, whether it is music or spoken words, the prattle of a child, the humming of a bee - any sound. Through being totally with a sip of water or a mouthful of food and getting into the taste, the mind quietens down. Smelling an aroma, or touching an object and putting one's mind fully into feeling that object of touch can bring a state of tranquility that keeps the mind as one whole piece.
- Swahilya Shambhavi. (swahilya.soulmate@gmail.com) Fitness, Satori

Patanjali Yoga Sutra: 32-33

The Taming of the Shrew

Tat pratisedartham Eka Tatwa Abhyasaha
Maitri Karuna Mudita Upekshanam Sukha Dukha Punya Apunya Vishayanam Bhavanataschitta Prasadanam
When I was writing out the headline for this post, I remembered William Shakespeare's drama - The Taming Of The Shrew. In fact, bringing the mind to sit quietly with the consciousness is an effort similar to the taming of the shrew.
After Patanjali describes the nine impediments to the unity of the mind with the consciousness and the four ways in which the impediments are revealed, in the subsequent Sutras he presents solutions to bring the mind back to order.
In the 32nd Sutra, Patanjali says, the individual should take up practice of following or contemplating upon one principle - Eka Tatwa Abhyasaha.
The Eka Tatwa can be - Aham Brahmasmi - I am that Brahman, Tat Twam Asi - You are That, Pragnyanam Brahma - Consciousness is Brahman and Ayam Athma Brahma - This Soul is Brahman. Brahman here means consciousness.
This is however a contemplation on the supreme truth of existence. The single truth practice can be done as enumerated in the next Sutra.
The truths that can be practised are Maithri - Friendliness towards those that give you happiness, Karuna - Compassion towards those who may be causing misery to you, Mudita - Joy towards those who may be doing good things and Upekshanam is an indifferene when we may come across someone visious and beyond the ken of our efforts to reform.
Cultivating these four habits can help in calming the mind from its habitual reactions such as jealousy when someone is happy, hatred towards someone suffering with an attitude of, "They deserve it," anger when someone is able to do great things that are impossible by us and delving on the misdeeds of others or trying to judge their actions.
These outbound and natural tendencies of the mind can lead us to misery. Converting them to compassion, friendliness, joy and a centred approach will help the mind to remain placid at all times. - Swahilya Shambhavi. (swahilya.soulmate@gmail.com) Fitness, Satori