Part 3: Bhagavad Gita Chapter 6🔗

Yoga is cessation of the mind. The word yoga means uniting with the Divine. To reach the Ultimate, the goal and the path is the practice of Yoga. We have two lives in us. One is the life we want to live – the dream. The other is the life in reality – the life we are living. The meeting of these two lives is what is called Yoga.

The goal is uniting with the Ultimate or experiencing the ultimate spiritual energy, or the Divine and realizing our inherent nature. The path is dropping the mind, which means going beyond thoughts. We are spiritual beings having a human experience; we are not human beings having a spiritual experience. This is the truth. Bliss is our very nature.

The mind pulls us towards the temporary happiness that we experienced by pursuing sense pleasures. For example, we may like a particular sweet. We are attracted to its taste. When we sit down to eat it, for a few minutes our mind seems to stop thinking about it. There is a sense of peace when we are eating the sweet. Actually, we are at peace because the number of thoughts has come down for those few minutes. But we think the peace we experience is due to the sweet its

Understand that there is nothing wrong with liking the taste of the sweet. But if we think that the sweet is the cause of our fulfillment, then the problem starts, because the next time the same sweet may not give us the same experience of fulfillment.

We do not trust our inherent body intelligence. We run our body according to the mind or according to our desires and senses. Otherwise, why would we stay up in the night watching television when our body is begging for some sleep? Why would we overeat? Has anyone seen any animal ever overeat?

They eat according to their body intelligence. When the body signals that it needs food, they eat. When the body signals that it needs sleep, they sleep. We have forgotten how to relate with our own body intelligence.

We do not need to sleep for as long as most of us do. There are periods in our sleep — the dream and deep sleep states. It is the deep sleep state that gives us energy and rejuvenates us. This state can be achieved through meditation as well. In the course of an eight-hour sleep cycle, we are in the deep sleep state only for a couple of hours. That is why even a few minutes of meditation can actually refresh us as much as a few hours of sleep

Our mind is like a lake. When we throw a stone in a lake, many ripples will be created. If we want to stop these ripples, we cannot put our hand in the lake to try to smoothen out the ripples. Instead if we just watch the lake, and ensure no more stones are thrown in, the ripples will disappear and the lake will become still. If we just relax and watch our mind with complete awareness, then no new thoughts will be created.

There is a beautiful story described in Śrīmad Bhāgavatam. Devatā, the demigods were oppressed by the demons and appealed to Bhagavān Viṣṇu for help. According to His directions, the demigods were to churn the ocean of milk. During the churning, many products emerged out of the ocean of milk including a deadly poison. Bhagavān Śiva came to their rescue. He drank the poison but did not completely take it in. He just held it in His throat.

Listen. When the churning of the milky ocean started, everyone was waiting only for the nectar. That is why, when the poison emerged, it was a suffering for them. But Bhagavān Śiva was waiting for the poison also, that is why it could not bring suffering to Him.

Life is like the churning of the ocean of milk where we are churned, pulled towards the desires and pushed away from the fears. There are various products that emerge out of the churning, out of the decisions and choices we make in life. Some of these products appear pleasing while others appear dangerous like poison.

When we exist with responsibility without taking in the poison or throwing it out, meaning without running towards the desires or running away from the fears, we become Śiva and live life blissfully irrespective of what comes our way.

• What are the two lives living in us?
• What does Kṛṣṇa say is the goal?
• What does Kṛṣṇa say is the path?
• What is one way for the number of thoughts to come down for a few minutes?
• Is it wrong to like the taste of the sweet?
• Is our body intelligence the same as our mind and senses?
• What are the 2 forms of sleep?
• The rejuvenation we get from meditation, is it the same as what the dream sleep gives us or what the deep sleep gives us?
• How do we ensure no new thoughts are created in our mind?
• Why were the Devatā, the demigods, churning the ocean of milk?
• When the churning of the milky ocean was happening, why was Śiva different to the Devatā?
• Why is life like the churning of the ocean of milk?

Hold Vaakyartha sadhas on what in life appears dangerous like poison. For each example, discuss some options on how to live without taking in the poison or throwing it out.