THE HOLY GITA, CHAPTER NUMBER 06, DHYANA YOGA OR THE YOGA OF MEDITATION, VERSE NUMBER 36

THE HOLY GITA

CHAPTER NUMBER 06

DHYANA YOGA OR THE YOGA OF MEDITATION:

VERSE NUMBER 36

Text in Transliteration:

asamyataatmanaa yogo duspraapa iti me matih

vasyaatmanaa tu yatataa sakyo ‘vaaptum upaayatah

Text in English:

Yoga is hard to attain, I concede, by a man who cannot control himself; but it can be attained by him who has controlled himself and who strives by right means.

COMMENTARY BY SWAMI SIDBHAVANANDA:

The man of self-control is he who either thinks wholesome thoughts or does not allow mentation of any kind taking place in himself. He strives by right means who applies himself steadily to practice and non-attachment.

SRI RAMAKRISHNA AS QUOTED BY SWAMI SIDBHAVANANDA:

“In those days when I took to spiritual practices I would first cleanse the mind of all earthly thoughts, make it as pure as purity itself and then invoke the presence of the Lord in it. May you also do the same!”

COMMENTARY BY DR.S.RADHAKRISHNAN:

While there is earth to lie upon, why trouble about bed?   When one’s arm is readily available, why need pillows? While there is palm of one’s hand, why seek for plates and utensils? When there is atmosphere, the bark of trees etc., what need is there of silks? (Bhaagavata, II, I)

Arjuna asks what happens to the soul who attempts and fails. Defeat is temporary: He who starts well reaches the End.

 COMMENTARY BY SWAMI SIVANANDA:

Uncontrolled self: he who has not controlled the senses and the mind by the constant practice of dispassion and meditation. Self-controlled: he who has controlled the mind by the constant practice of dispassion and meditation. He can attain Self-realisation by the right means and constant endeavour.

Comments by the blogger:

Here yoga means Meditation. For those who cannot control their mind and indulge in sensual pleasure in an unlimited way, Meditation is the last thing he could indulge in. The whole of the universe has umpteen number of treasures. Prakriti gives what is strenuously sought by beings. If I seek sensual pleasures, I put myself to the attainment of the same in a thorough way with enough means. Nature also allows such person and gives what is sought. If there is a sand quarry mafia who put itself to taking daily sand in five hundred lorry loads while there is the licence for just fifty lorry loads, Nature gives at her own cost. If the sandalwoods mafia fells five hundred trees instead of fifty trees as per the license, the forest does not immediately punishes the culprits. Punishment comes much later in the form of drought which affects all who were not vigilant in checking the unscrupulous felling of trees. When there is unhindered cultivation nature strikes much later in the form of floods in which who were all responsible to maintain a watchful eye and failed in their duty including the general public. Whatever sense objects vigorously sought by one Nature gives without hesitation. This is how we have middle-class rich people and multi millionaires who have amazing wealth and money that could last for seven generations. All these people seek from Nature or prakriti assiduously through continual meditation of seeking without any let or hindrance. These are the people who have sought through unhindered and assiduous meditation from nature what they possess. They have meditated through wrong means.

Sri Krishna says Meditation of the proper sort for the Self-realisation is performed, it can be attained by him who have controlled themselves unlike the people noted above, and these people have strived through right means. As Dr.S.Radhakrishnan cites materially, their attitude to the senses and sense objects of this world is: when there is earth to lie upon, why trouble about bed? When one’s arm is readily available, why need pillows? While there is palm of one's hand, why seek for plates and utensils? When there is the atmosphere, the bark of trees, etc, what need is there of silks?

When our wants from Nature or Prakriti is irreducible minimum as cited above, Nature would facilitate the attainment of the realisation of one’s Self readily. All it takes is stern control of one’s mind.