Sankhya Yoga
Chapter 2, Verses 64-65
rāga-dveṣa viyuktais tu
viṣayān indriyaiś-caran
ātma-vaśyair vidheyātmā
prasādam adhigacchati
prasāde sarva-duḥkhānāṁ
hānir asyopajāyate
prasanna-cetaso hyāśu
buddhiḥ paryavatiṣṭhate
It is by moving among the sense-objects, but with the senses subjected to the Self, freed from liking and disliking, that one attains a large and sweet clearness of soul and temperament in which passion and grief find no place; the intelligence of such a man is rapidly established (in its proper seat).
“It is by moving among the sense-objects, but with the senses subjected to the Self, freed from liking and disliking, that one attains a large and sweet clearness of soul.” Here Bhagavan is not saying that one should not enjoy what one has. Everything has been given by God. One should enjoy it.
But one should not become a slave to it. One should not be attached to it! Krishna says that if the God-realised soul comes into contact with the senses and sense objects, or with like and dislike, these are instruments of advancement. He is not subject to the negativity of these instruments. He can utilise these instruments because he has no attachment to these instruments and he seeks no personal gain with them. Because of the process of controlling the senses, he is free. Even if these qualities of like and dislike awaken inside of him, even if they appear for him, it doesn’t mean anything.
Since the realised soul is centred in the Self, since he is centred in God, nothing bothers him. Whatever he does, he is like a child. A child doesn’t bother about things. Christ says in the Bible that if one wants to enter into the kingdom of Heaven, one has to be like a child. A child can ‘like’, and then, the next moment, he ‘doesn’t like’. Children don’t keep grudges; they don’t take revenge. Krishna says, “First you have to discipline the senses.” If the senses are not disciplined, you will be reduced to an animal state. But a realised soul, with a disciplined mind, overcomes everything. By chanting the Divine Names, practising japa and meditation, one is ever remembering the Divine in the daily activities.
Like this, one remains free, because whatever one is doing, one is not attached to it. It will not create more attachment. Even if realised souls move among men, even if they are near people who are negative, it doesn’t affect them. No matter what happens, they are fully centred in the Divine: they are free. They are free firstly from the sense of like and dislike. They are renounced from within.
“… and temperament in which passion and grief find no place; the intelligence of such a man is rapidly established (in its proper seat).” Here Lord Krishna says, “When the senses are disciplined and when there is no way of liking or disliking, then the heart of a devotee, the heart of a sadhak, becomes transparent, becomes innocent, becomes pure.” In that state, one enjoys spiritual bliss. One becomes peaceful in every situation: one stays in the calmness of the Self. The purity of the heart is a direct cause of joy and calmness. The prasad that we offer to God, is the purity of the heart. When one works on oneself and becomes calm, this becomes a prasad which is offered to the Divine. Whatever one does, it is all prasad. It is all a prayer, and it is constantly bringing one to higher and higher states.
Bhagavad Gita
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