Ayurveda Initiative For Global Health

Meditation Yoga Chapter 6, Verse 19 yathā dīpo nivātasthe neṅgate sopamā smṛtā yogino yata-cittasya yuñjato yogam-ātmanaḥ Motionless, like the light of a lamp in a windless place, is the controlled consciousness of the yogi who practises union with the Self. Here Lord Krishna says that when the mind is restrained by the practice of yoga, it becomes “motionless, like the light of a lamp in a windless place.” When people have faith and are surrendered, nothing can move them. No disturbance of the outside reality can deviate them from their aim. They are fully in control. Bhagavan Krishna says that the focus and concentration of the disciplined mind of a bhakta, of a devotee, is so fixed on God in meditation that it doesn’t move to anything else. When you are absorbed in that reality, you are not thinking of when you will finish your meditation. And you don’t set your alarm clock next to you, because your mind, even while you’re sitting in meditation, will be sitting on the al...

Meditation Yoga Chapter 6, Verse 18 yadā viniyataṁ cittam ātmany-evāvatiṣṭhate niḥspṛhaḥ sarva-kāmebhyo yukta ity-ucyate sadā When all the mental consciousness is perfectly controlled and liberated from desire and remains still in the Self, then it is said, “He is verily in yoga.” “When all the mental consciousness is perfectly controlled...” Then the mind is focused on the Divine and one is free. The mind is not jumping left and right, thinking about what one has to eat; or one is falling down asleep, and so on. The mind is not running to the outside reality. When one is “…liberated from desire and remains still in the Self, then it is said, ‘He is verily in Yoga.’” When one is absorbed within one Self, within the Divine Consciousness, one’s vibration is changed and one gets exclusively established in Narayana, who is the supreme peace, supreme bliss. In such a state, one overcomes all outer attractions. One is detached from everything which is perishable and from the worl...

Meditation Yoga Chapter 6, Verse 17 yuktāhāra vihārasya yukta ceṣṭasya karmasu yukta svapnāvabodhasya yogo bhavati duḥkha-hā Yoga becomes the destroyer of sorrow for one who is moderate in food and recreation, who is temperate in actions, who is moderate in sleep and wakefulness. “Yoga becomes the destroyer of sorrow for one who is moderate in food and recreation.” When people have control over their diet and their leisure time, this shows that they have control over the senses, the body, and the mind, and so they enter the Samadhi state in meditation. They show their purity, their clarity, their faculty of concentration, their willingness, liveliness, their willingness, excitement, and enthusiasm for doing their sadhana. “...temperate in actions...” Controlling the food and the sleep affect what you reflect externally. If people have no control over food, they overeat and get heavy; then they can’t even do any asana postures. “...who is moderate in sleep and wakefulness.” ...

Meditation Yoga Chapter 6, Verse 16 nāty-aśnatas-tu yogo’sti na caikāntam-anaśnataḥ na cāti svapnaśīlasya jāgrato naiva cārjuna Verily this yoga is not for him who eats too much or sleeps too much; neither is it for him who gives up sleep and food, O Arjuna. Eating too much food induces sleep and laziness and creates various disorders in the body, due to the accumulation of undigested matter. The body only needs a moderate amount of food. When you eat too much, not all of it gets digested and the excess stays in the body and creates imbalance. Then you can’t concentrate while doing meditation. That’s why some people need a siesta after eating. Abstaining from food also acts on the mind, the senses and the vital organs. When the sadhaks, the devotees sit for sadhana, their mind is focusing on food. If you say, “Today I will not eat!” That day the food will look much more appealing than usual, the smell will be stronger than usual, and your stomach will start growling. This w...

Meditation Yoga Chapter 6, Verse 15 yuñjann-evaṁ sadā’tmānaṁ yogī niyata-mānasaḥ śāntiṁ nirvāṇa paramāṁ mat-saṁsthām adhigacchati Always putting himself in yoga by controlling his mind, the yogi attains to the supreme peace of Nirvana which has its foundation in Me. “Always putting himself in yoga by controlling his mind.” The one who controls his diet, who controls what he puts into his body, who controls his mind, such a yogi “attains to the supreme peace of Nirvana which has its foundation in Me.” Here Bhagavan says that the foundation of Nirvana is in Him, but it is not Him! Nirvana is just one state of Realisation. Many people say that the state of Nirvana is the ultimate state, but actually the ultimate state of Realisation, the supreme state, is beyond Nirvana. Nevertheless, Lord Krishna says here that when one has reached a certain purity, by controlling the mind, the diet, the body and the senses, then through meditation one enters into the state of Nirvana. Contro...

Meditation Yoga Chapter 6, Verses 13-14 samaṁ kāya-śiro-grīvaṁ dhārayann-acalaṁ sthiraḥ saṁprekṣya nāsikāgraṁ svaṁ diśaś-cānavalokayan praśāntātmā vigata-bhīḥ brahmacāri vrate sthitaḥ manaḥ saṁyamya mac-citto yukta āsīta mat-paraḥ Holding the body, head and neck erect, motionless; the vision drawn in and fixed between the eyebrows; not regarding the regions; the mind kept calm and free from fear; the vow of Brahmacharya observed; the whole controlled mentality turned to Me, one must sit firm in yoga, wholly surrendered to Me. Here Bhagavan Krishna says that during meditation, one must keep the spine straight, with the neck and the head, all in one line. One has to be “motionless, the vision drawn in and fixed between the eyebrows.” This means that with deep concentration, without following any outward impulse or distraction, one has to focus: the gaze must be “fixed between the eyebrows.” Lord Krishna says that the eyes should not be fully open or closed but semi-closed (li...

Meditation Yoga Chapter 6, Verses 11-12 śucau deśe pratiṣṭhāpya sthitam-āsanam ātmanaḥ nāty-ucchritaṁ nāti-nīcaṁ cailājina kuśottaram tatraikāgraṁ manaḥ kṛtvā yata-cittendriya kriyaḥ upaviśyāsane yuñjyād yogam-ātma viśuddhaye He should set his firm seat in a pure spot, neither too high, nor too low, covered with a cloth, a deer skin, and sacred grass; seated there with a concentrated mind, and with the workings of the mental consciousness and the senses under control, he should practise yoga for self-purification. In these verses, Bhagavan Krishna explains that it’s important to have a fixed place to meditate and a proper seat, or asana, to sit on. “He should set his firm seat in a pure spot.” Even though you should be comfortable, the seat should not be too soft: it has to be firm. In ancient times, yogis used a wooden seat or a stone slate as a base for their asana. “... neither too high, nor too low.” The seat should not be too high, because if you are sitting too high a...

Meditation Yoga Chapter 6, Verse 10 yogī yuñjīta satatam ātma‌naṁ rahasi sthitaḥ ekākī yatacittātmā nirāśīr aparigrahaḥ Let the yogi continually practise union with the Self, sitting apart and alone, with all desire and idea of possession banished from his mind, self- controlled in his whole being and consciousness. “Let the yogi continually practise union with the Self.” Here the term ‘yogi’ refers to the bhakta, the spiritual practitioner who is doing yoga, the one who is longing for God. The yogi, who has reached perfection through yoga is seated in the Self focusing on God Himself alone. “Sitting apart and alone, with all desire and idea of possession banished from his mind:” When one has a controlled mind and doesn’t have any sense of possession or any attachment to any kind of desire, then, one is eligible to sit in meditation. Here Krishna was talking to people who are on the spiritual path, who are longing for God. He says, “Find a suitable place to practise meditat...

Meditation Yoga Chapter 6, Verse 9 suhṛn mitrāry-udāsīna madhyastha dveṣya bandhuṣu sādhuṣv-api ca pāpeṣu sama-buddhir viśiṣyate He who is equal and impartial in action to a friend, an enemy and to a neutral person, also to a sinner and a saint, he excels. A self-controlled person who is centred in God finds no difference anywhere. Once one has perceived the Divine within one’s own Self, one doesn’t judge anyone, since one is fully absorbed in the service of God, and finding Him everywhere. Someone who truly loves, doesn’t see any differences. This happens to people in daily life. When you are freshly in love with someone, even if it is the worst person in the world, everything is perfect! All is good! You are in seventh heaven – I would not say in the seventh heaven, but on the seventh cloud – and there you are so intoxicated with this love, that you don’t see any of the differences between you, so you don’t have any judgements. But when you fall out in love, when you fall...

Meditation Yoga Chapter 6, Verse 8 jñāna vijñāna tṛptātmā kūt‌astho jitendriyaḥ yukta ity-ucyate yogī sama-loṣṭāśma kāñcanaḥ The yogi, who is established in the knowledge of the Self, tranquil and self-poised, master of his senses, regarding alike earth, stone and gold, is said to be firmly in yoga. For the one who has self-control, who sees the oneness everywhere and perceives the Divine equally, there is no difference between “earth, stone and gold”, because the source of everything is God Himself. One who has conquered oneself is above the duality, heat and cold, honour and dishonour. In such a state of oneness with the Divine, these people live in the world. They see the worldly objects, they experience everything which is connected to the body, the mind and the senses, they experience everything which is coming and going in life, yet they are not touched by anything. Even though they are living amidst the duality and the diversity of the outside world, there are no unh...

Dyaana Yoga Chapter 6, Verse 7 jitātmanaḥ praśāntasya paramātmā samāhitaḥ śītoṣṇa sukha-duḥkheṣu tathā mānāpamānayoḥ When one has conquered the mind and attained the calm of perfect self-mastery; when one has transcended the dualities of cold and heat, pleasure and pain, as well as honour and dishonour; then one is firmly established in the Supreme Self. Here Lord Krishna explains that when one has realised that all sense objects of this world are an illusion, one runs away from such attachment, finding no happiness in it; in this way one controls the senses. When the mind and the senses are controlled, they don’t run after the sense objects, so one can direct the senses to where one wants; this is ʻself-masteryʼ. If the mind and senses are under control, they can be focused on God, on the image of the Divine, which will lead one towards God-Realisation. The ones who are completely surrendered to God, the ones who are fully absorbed into Brahman, through the control of the ...

Meditation Yoga Chapter 6, Verse 6 ndhur-ātmā’tmanas tasya yenātmaivātmanā jitaḥ anātmanastu śatrutve vartetātmaiva śatruvat The mind is the friend of one who has conquered the mind. But for one whose mind is uncontrolled, the mind remains hostile, like an adversary. So again, Lord Krishna keeps repeating in different ways that one who has conquered the body, and the senses, whose mind is always focused and fully under control, easily redeems himself from worldly existence and attains God-Realisation. Whereas the “…one whose mind is uncontrolled, the mind, remains hostile, like an adversary.” In this state, one is a slave to the mind, the senses and the body. It’s like a person who is sick, because he has lots of poison inside him. These people do everything to oppose their own spiritual growth, because of egoism, sense of possession, attraction and repulsion, lust, anger, and greed: they fall victim to these sinful acts due to the mind. They become their own adversary. Nobody can make...