Suppose we inherit an old uninhabited house
containing much trash. We might wonder where all that trash came from. But we
wouldn’t spend too much time finding out the source of the trash – we would
just trash it and focus our energy on making the house livable.
We need to adopt a similar pragmatic
approach while dealing with the mind. The mind is the inner house in which we
souls have to live throughout our material existence. Of course, we don’t
inherit the mind at any particular time, but we become aware of it and its
contents when guided by Gita wisdom.
Unlike the physical body, which is made of
gross matter and is visible, the mind is made of subtle matter and is
invisible. So we often don’t even realize that the mind is different from us –
we think its desires are our desires. But Gita wisdom illumines our inner
territory, helping us understand that the mind is our inner covering – a
none-too-congenial covering at that.
Akin to a trash-filled house, the mind is
filled with many trash-worthy cravings. So when some unworthy desire pops up in
our consciousness, we don’t need to analyze too much where it came from. We can
quickly review to check if we had subjected ourselves, intentionally or
unintentionally, to some agitating stimuli. And if we find something, we can
plan to prevent or minimize similar exposure in future. But if we can’t find
the cause – and even if we can – the important thing is not the source of the
trash, but its destination. We need to sweep out the unworthy desires by fixing
our consciousness on Krishna and service to him. The Bhagavad-gita (06.28)
assures that by practicing yoga determinedly we can become fully purified and
situated in everlasting spiritual happiness.
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