6: अथ षष्ठोऽध्यायः ध्यानयोगः Dhyāna Yogaḥ🔗

श्री भगवानुवाच

śrībhagavānuvāca anāśritaḥ karmaphalaṃ kāryaṃ karma karoti yaḥ | sa sannyāsī ca yogī ca na niragnirna cā'kriyaḥ || 6.1

6.1 Bhagavān says: One who performs his actions without being attached to the fruit (outcome) of his work is a Sannyāsi, and he is truly an ascetic; a Yogi also; not the one who renounces to light the fire and performs no action.

yaṃ sannyāsamiti prāhur yogaṃ taṃ viddhi pāṇḍava | na hyasannyastasaṅkalpo yogī bhavati kaścana || 6.2

6.2 O Pāṇḍava, what is called renunciation, or sannyāsa, you must know to be the same as yoga, or uniting oneself with the Supreme., for never can anyone become a yogī, until he renounces the desire for self-gratification [saṅkalpa].

ārurukṣormuner yogaṃ karma kāraṇamucyate | yogārūḍhasya tasyaiva śamaḥ kāraṇamucyate || 6.3

6.3 A one desirious of achieving the state of yoga or no-mind state, action is said to be the means and for the one who is already elevated in yoga, cessation from all actions is said to be the means.

6.4 Any one is said to have attained the state of yoga when, having renounced all material desires, he neither acts for sense gratification nor engages in result focused activities.

6.5 You are your own friend; you are your own enemy. Evolve yourself through the Self and do not degrade yourself.

6.6 For him who has conquered the Self, the Self is the best of friends; for one who has failed to do so, his Self will remain the greatest enemy.

6.7 For one who has conquered the self, who has attained tranquility, the Supreme is already reached. Such a person remains in this state in happiness or distress, heat or cold, honor or dishonor.

6.8 A person whose mind is contented because of spiritual knowledge, who has subdued his senses and to whom stone and gold are same and who is satisfied with what he is having, is said to be established in Self-realization and is called an enlightened being.

6.9 A person is considered truly advanced when he regards honest well-wishers, affectionate benefactors, the neutral, me-diators, the envious, friends and enemies, the pious and the sinners all with an equal mind.

6.10 A Yogī should always try to concentrate his mind on the Supreme Self; situated in a secluded place, he should carefully control his mind without being attracted by anything and should be free from the feeling of possessiveness.

6.11 On a clean and pure place, one should establish his seat by laying kuśa grass, a deer skin and a cloth, one over another, neither too high nor too low.

tatraikāgraṃ manaḥ kṛtvā yata-cittendriya-kriyaḥ / upaviśyāsane yuñjyād yogamātmaviśuddhaye // 6.12

6.12 Sitting firmly on that pure seat, the yogi should practice the purification of the self by controlling the activities of mind and the senses

samaṃ kāyaśirogrīvaṃ dhārayannacalaṃ sthiraḥ / samprekṣya nāsikāgraṃ svaṃ diśaścānavalokayan // 6.13

6.13 Holding the body, head and neck steady, look at the tip of your nose without looking in any other direction.

praśāntātmā vigatabhīr brahmacārivrate sthitaḥ / manaḥ saṃyamya maccitto yukta āsī ta matparaḥ // 6.14

6.14 Sit with an unagitated mind, free from fear and in tune with Existence, controlling the mind, focusing it on Me and make Me the supreme goal.

yuñjannevaṃ sadātmānaṃ yogī niyatamānasaḥ / śāntiṃ nirvāṇa paramāṃ mat-saṃsthām adhigacchati // 6.15

6.15 Always practising control over the mind and situated in the Self, the Yogī attains peace, the supreme liberation and My kingdom.

6.16 Yoga is neither eating too much nor eating too little; it is neither sleeping too much nor sleeping too little, Oh Arjuna.

6.17 One who is regulated in food, rest, recreation and work, sleep and wakefulness, can reduce misery.

6.18 When the mind is disciplined and one is situated in the Self, free from all desires, then one is said to be situated in yoga.

6.19 As a lamp in a place without wind does not waver, so also the yogī, whose mind is controlled remains steady, engaged in yoga, in the Self.

6.20 In yoga, the mind becomes quiet and the Self is satisfied by the Self in the Self.

sukhamātyantikaṁ yat tad buddhigrāhyamatīndriyam | vetti yatra na caivāyaṁ sthitaścalati tattvataḥ || 6.21

6.21 Supreme bliss is grasped by intelligence transcending the senses. The person who knows this is based in reality.

yaṁ labdhvā cāparaṁ lābhaṁ manyate nādhikaṁ tataḥ | yasminsthito na duḥkhena guruṇāpi vicālyate || 6.22

6.22 By attaining that Supreme, one does not consider any other gain as being greater. By being situated in the Supreme, one is not shaken by the greatest of misery.

taṁ vidyād duḥkhasaṁ yogaviyogaṁ yoga-saṁjñitam | sa niścayena yoktavyo yogo'nirviṇṇacetasā || 6.23

6.23 When yoga is practiced with determination without devi-ating, the misery by contact with material senses is removed.

saṅkalpa-prabhavān kāmāṁs tyaktvā sarvānaśeṣataḥ | manasaivendriya-grāmaṁ viniyamya samantataḥ || 6.24

6.24 Giving up completely all the fantasies born of the mind, one can regulate all the senses from all the sides by the mind.

6.25 Gradually, step by step, one should become established in the Self, held by the conviction of intelligence, with the mind not thinking of anything else.

6.26 From wherever the mind becomes agitated due to its wandering and unsteady nature, from there, one must certainly bring it under the control of the Self.

6.27 The yogi whose mind is peaceful attains the highest hap-piness; his passion is pacified and he is free from sins as he is liberated by the Supreme.

6.28 The yogi always engaged in the Self and free from material contamination, is in touch with the Supreme and attains the highest happiness.

6.29 The Yogī sees the Supreme situated in all beings and also all beings situated in the Supreme. One established in the Self sees the Supreme everywhere.

6.30 For one who sees Me everywhere and who sees everything in Me, for him I am never lost nor is he lost to Me.

6.31 He who is in oneness with Me in all respects, worships Me situated in all beings and remains present in Me.

6.32 One who, by comparision to his own Self, sees the true oneness of all beings, in both their happiness or misery, is Supreme Yogi in My opinion, Arjuna.

अर्जुन उवाच ।

6.33 Arjuna says: O Madhusūdana, I am not able to see this system of yoga as told by You in the situation of the mind being restless and not steady.

cañcalaṁ hi manaḥ kṛṣṇa pramāthī balavad dṛḍham । tasyāhaṁ nigrahaṁ manye vāyoriva suduṣkaram ॥ 6.34

6.34 O Kṛṣṇa, the wavering mind is agitated, strong and firm. I think it is difficult to control the mind like it is difficult to control the wind.

श्री भगवानुवाच

śrībhagavānuvāca asaṁśayaṁ mahābāho mano durnigrahaṁ calam । abhyāsena tu kaunteya vairāgyeṇa ca gṛhyate ॥ 6.35

6.35 Bhagavān says: O mighty-armed Kaunteya (son of Kuntī), it is undoubtedly difficult to control the wavering mind but by practice and detachment, it can be controlled.

asaṁyatātmanā yogo duṣprāpa iti me matiḥ । vaśyātmanā tu yatatā śakyo vāptum upāyataḥ ॥ 6.36

6.36 For one whose mind is uncontrolled, it is difficult to attain yoga in My opinion. But, it is practical to achieve control over the mind by appropriate means.

अर्जुन उवाच

arjuna uvāca ayatiḥ śraddhayopeto yogāc calita mānasaḥ । aprāpya yoga-saṁsiddhiṁ kāṁ gatiṁ kṛṣṇa gacchati ॥ 6.37

6.37 Arjuna says: O Kṛṣṇa, if a person is engaged in yoga with faith but does not attain yoga because of the wavering mind, what destination does he achieve

6.38 O mighty-armed Kṛṣṇa, does the person who deviated from the path perish, torn like a cloud without any position?

6.39 This is my doubt, O Kṛṣṇa and I request You to dispel it completely. Certainly, there is no one to be found other than You who can remove this doubt.

6.40 Bhagavān says: O Pārtha, the person engaged in activities for good does not meet with destruction either in this world or the next life; he never faces degradation.

6.41 The person who has fallen from yoga {yogabraṣṭa} after many years of living in the planets of the pious and doing virtuous deeds, takes birth in the house of the virtuous and prosperous.

6.42 Or the Yogī certainly takes birth in a family of wise people. Certainly, such a birth is rare in this world.

6.43 O son of Kuru, on taking such a birth, he revives the intelligence, consciousness of the previous body, and tries again to attain complete success [yoga].

6.44 Due to the practice in his previous life, he certainly gets attracted automatically to yoga and he is inquisitive about yoga and transcends the scriptures.

6.45 And when the Yogī engages himself with sincere endevour in progressing fruther, being cleansed of all incompletions, then ultimately, achieving perfection [saṁsiddhi] after many births of practice, he attains the highest state [parām-gati].

6.46 A Yogī is greater than the ascetic [tapasvi], greater than the wise [jñāni] and greater than the fruitive worker. Therefore, Arjuna, do become a Yogī.

6.47 Of all Yogīs, one who always lives in Me, thinking of Me within himself, who worships Me in full faith, he is the most intimately united with Me in Yoga and is the highest of all Yogīs; that is My opinion.

In the Upaniṣad of Śrīmad Bhagavad Gītā, the scripture of yoga dealing with Brahmavidyā Yogaśāstra, the science of Brahman, in the form of Śrī Kṛṣṇārjuna saṃvād, dialogue between Śrī Kṛṣṇa-Arjuna, this is sixth chapter named, Dhyāna Yogaḥ, ‘The Yoga of the Path of Meditation.’

Look in, create the space of completion before coming to any conclusion! This is the message of this chapter, Dhyāna Yogaḥ. Kṛṣṇa continues His answers from the previous chapter.

Karma, the state of action, or Sannyāsa, the state of renunciation, is not related to your doing. It is directly related to your being. Being a Sannyāsi, a renunciate monk, is not a status, it is a state. Whether you are doing karma yoga or you remain a Sannyāsi is in no way going to affect you. One's inner space, one's being alone matters.

Kṛṣṇa says, 'Just renouncing the sacred fire and not performing one's duty does not mean one is an ascetic or a Sannyāsi.' In those days, fire was the basis for everything; for cooking or for spiritual practice. I can replace the word 'fire' with 'cell phone' for today's age. We can say, 'Don't think that by sacrificing the cell phone and laptop you become a Sannyāsi or a great karma yogi.'

To truly renounce, the mind has to renounce thoughts. Renunciation of the past and the future, by bringing our mind into the present space of completion, is true renunciation.

We may think that we are in control of our mind. But actually, our mind controls us. This is what Kṛṣṇa means by saṅkalpa, self-interest, be-cause the mind wishes to satisfy the senses that it controls. Only when we renounce the mind's control by going beyond the senses can we become a true renunciate.

When Kṛṣṇa talks about 'self', it is the small 'self', the external identity that we confuse with our Self, the real inner core. When we renounce this so-called identity, which is not the true Self, then we perceive our self as the Supreme Self, our true identity.

Listen. I am defining Yoga. Renunciation of the fantasies that we feel we need for self-satisfaction is Yoga. Yoga is the state when our desires, expressed through sensual pleasures, dissolve. We unite with our true Self in this state. In this state, there is no gap between the Divine and us.

This is the state of yoga that Kṛṣṇa talks about—yogārūḍhasya tasyaiva śamaḥ kāraṇam ucyate (6.3), the state of true renunciation where there is no suppression. Instead, there is transformation into completion. The path is no longer towards self or sensory satisfaction. In fact, there is no ‘towards’ or ‘goal.’ The goal is the path itself. When we lead our life with no expectations, the mind cannot speculate or control us.

Kṛṣṇa says next, ‘A person who initially wants to start practicing a yoga system laid down by the sages, should carry out all activities in line with that system. Activities for all other reasons will then cease.’

Discovering your root pattern and completing it is the first step towards yoga. Aṣṭāṅga Yoga by Patañjali is a parallel system, not a se-quential system. When each of its parts is acted upon with awareness, every single thing that we do will be in completion with Nature. We will automatically surrender to Nature and attain the true yogic state of samādhi.

Learning yoga means bringing integrity to your body. ‘Yoga’ in Saṃskṛit means ‘uniting’ or to become one with. When we reach the state of yoga, we are in a meditative state of bliss.

You are your own friend; you are your own enemy. Evolve yourself through the Self and do not degrade yourself.

I can say, this single verse is the essence of the whole Gītā. Kṛṣṇa says:

You are your own friend and you are your own enemy. If you know the technique of how to lift yourself by yourself, you will become a friend of your Self. If you let yourself down, you will become an enemy of your-self.

Kṛṣṇa is saying, ‘May you raise yourself by yourself’ If we don’t, we will be our worst enemy. If you have fallen, if you have failed while prac-ticing these words, these teachings, if you have forgotten, don’t worry. Again and again, lift yourself. Don’t feel depressed and don’t have guilt. Don’t get dejected thinking you will not be able to do it. Don’t doubt your self. Again and again, lift yourself.

Internalize this important truth: do not give up on yourself and people! Even if people fail a hundred times, continue to work with them. When you are frustrated at other people’s failure, understand, it is your frustration towards your own failure.

Kṛṣṇa says, ‘May you liberate yourself by yourself. Nobody else can liberate you; uddhared ātmanātmānaṁ nātmānaṁ avasāyadet. If you help yourself, you will your greatest friend. If you don’t, you will be your worst enemy—ātmaiva hy ātmano bandhur ātmaiva ripur ātmanaḥ.’

When we conquer the mind, happiness and distress are both one and the same and we are not touched by it. Now, Kṛṣṇa says, ‘One who has conquered his Self, has already attained the supreme bliss, jitātmanaḥ praśāntasya paramātmā samāhitaḥ, for him happiness and distress, heat and cold, honor and dishonor are all the same, śītoṣṇa-sukha-duḥkheṣu tathā mānāpamānayoḥ (6.7).’

Throughout this chapter Kṛṣṇa emphasizes this one idea, senses, indriya. How can happiness and distress, heat and cold, honor and dishonor be the same for a man?

First thing, when our senses do the work, we decide ‘yes’ or ‘no’ only based on our past experiences, with which we have conditioned our mind and memory. Our intelligence decides based on our root thought patterns.

Whenever our mind is caught in dualities, again and again we fall back to our dilemma, to our instinct level. Here Kṛṣṇa says the person who has achieved bliss is not affected by heat or cold and joy or sor-row—śītoṣṇa-sukha-duḥkheṣu. How do we reach that state? Conquering the senses is not controlling or destroying the senses. If we try to control or destroy the senses, we will only struggle and suffer more. If we try to control our body, that is not going to work either.

Kṛṣṇa says beautifully, 'For one who has conquered the Self, jitātmanaḥ.' When He says Self, He means the whole cognition where the decision-making happens. Mind-Intelligence-Ego is the spot where the decision-making is happening.

We need the science of creating the space of completion to conquer the senses. If we try to work from the wrong side out of incompletion, from the side of the senses, we will never be able to succeed. If we try to create more pressure on the cooker we cannot open the cooker lid. First, we need to put out the fire, the energy supply. Putting out the fire is doing completion with our root patterns. The ego or root patterns or the intelli-gence, the place from where we make decisions, is continuously supply-ing energy to our senses. So all we need to do is to work at the level of the mind, not at the level of the senses to become jitātmanaḥ.

By jitātmanaḥ, He means one has learned the right cognition of com-pletion. A man whose senses are complete, has the ability to make deci-sions for life with clarity. Such a being is jitātmanaḥ, the conqueror of the mind and the self. We don't need to achieve bliss. It is always there within us. If it has to be achieved, there is every possibility it can be lost. Any-thing, if it has to be specially achieved, is not worth achieving. We don't need to achieve anything because the Self has been already achieved. All we need is completion with our Self.

Kṛṣṇa says, 'A person whose mind is content because of spiritual knowledge, who has subdued his senses and to whom stone and gold are the same, is said to be established in Self-realization and is called an En-lightened being (6.8).'

Kṛṣṇa is speaking of qualities of a Master, which are techniques. If we practice them we will reach the same enlightened state. Kṛṣṇa says repeatedly, 'Vijitendriyaḥ', one who has won his senses. All we have to do is understand where our incompletions, root patterns lie. Beyond the ego or root patterns we have ātman, Self. Just the presence or the light of the ātman radiates.

Kṛṣṇa gives directions for the practitioner of Yoga, the Yogī. These are practical guidelines to help us with how to sit and meditate. These are not essential qualifications for Enlightenment. For this path, looking inwards is the only way.

Controlling the senses requires controlling the mind. Controlling the mind requires control of thoughts. Controlling the thoughts requires integrity. When we continuously live integrity, we will become aware of the thoughts happening in our inner space.

Constantly listening to our own inner space is the beginning of integrity. If our inner space says that there is nothing more to listen, if only silence is there, we have achieved integrity. We need to stay in the present moment by refusing to move to the past and future and we need to disconnect thoughts. I call this Unclutching.

To facilitate this, Kṛṣṇa stipulates the conditions. We should go to a secluded place to 'look in', just to be away from disturbances. The most important thing is to be relaxed. Sthira (stable) and sukha (pleasurable) are the basic essentials of any meditation posture. Finally, Kṛṣṇa says, ‘Focus on Me, manaḥ saṁyamya mac-chitto. Make Me the Supreme goal, yukta āsīta mat-paraḥ (6.14).’ He means our true Self.

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 that we are living. The meeting of these two lives is what I call Yoga.

Yoga manuals will not tell us what Kṛṣṇa tells Arjuna here. Guide-lines on sleeping or eating too much or too little is in no way a prescribed method for yoga. Kṛṣṇa talks about āhāra, meaning food that is taken in through our five senses, not just the mouth. Pratyāhāra, one of the eight limbs of yoga, is the control of sensory inputs. It means going be-yond these āhāra, beyond the sense objects, so that the higher levels of Consciousness can be awakened. The main aim of all Yoga is to reach the level of our being.

Kṛṣṇa talks about two important things: practice with determination and practice without deviating from the prescribed way. Both are key elements to experience Yoga. After a few days of practice it is easy to fall into inertia, tamas. Our mind has been programmed with our old rou-tine. Determination driven by the quest to experience the Truth is what will give us the energy to practice Yoga.

Next, Kṛṣṇa emphasizes that yoga should be practiced in the prescribed way. All eight parts of Yoga need to be practiced, simultane-ously. Even one part of Patañjali's Aṣṭāṅga Yoga will take many lifetimes to achieve, given the modern man's mindset.

Please listen! Yama is Integrity. Niyama is Authenticity. Āsana, Prānāyama, Prayāhara, Dhārana are Responsibility. Dhāyana and Samādhi are Enriching.

That is why Kṛṣṇa says, 'Self is satisfied by the Self in the Self, yatra caiva ātmanātmānaṁ paśyann ātmani tuṣyati (6.20).' All of this has to happen together, not part by part. When one aspect is complete, all others also become complete. This is the state of pūrṇa, complete completion. Nothing can be taken away or added to its state of completeness. No joy can make it more blissful, no sorrow can make it less blissful. One becomes centered in bliss.

We need conviction and intelligence to be established in the Self. Intelligence cannot happen without a strong intellectual base. Śāstras help us get rid of these doubts intellectually. Now, Kṛṣṇa emphases on an important spiritual quality, perseverance. We need to be more patient and persevere in our efforts for the real change to happen. Kṛṣṇa says the true Yogi reaches the state of ultimate bliss, Divine Consciousness by his identification with the Absolute.

Kṛṣṇa says that the realized person, yoga-yuktātmā (6.29), sees the Supreme in everyone and everything. He sees everything situated in the Supreme and all beings situated in the Supreme. The Yogi is in touch with the higher Self and is in bliss.

When we experience the Truth, we see everything in ourselves and ourselves in everything. The moment we understand that we are deeply, totally connected to the whole Universe, we really start living in the space of completion, Living Advaita.

Here, Kṛṣṇa gives a promise. He says that for anyone who sees Him in everything and who sees everything in Him, He is always available. Neither Kṛṣṇa is lost to him nor he is ever lost to Kṛṣṇa (6.30) . See the Divine in everything and automatically, you will relax. You will no lon-ger fight because you will see everything around you as Divine, including yourself. What is there to fight with then? You will simply relax.

The root of God is love. The root of God lies in seeing Him in every-thing. Have the courage to go deep inside and love. We will start feeling the common thread of Existence in all that we see.

Kṛṣṇa further explains the state of an enlightened person, who is one with the Divine Consciousness. Arjuna introduces the word 'difficult or su-duṣkaram'. He says that the mind is wavering and difficult to control like the wind, vāyor iva sa su-duṣkaram (6.34). Arjuna is actually asking about problems of future generations also.

Here, Kṛṣṇa has to answer from the same plane that Arjuna asks the question. Just as one thorn is used to remove another thorn, Kṛṣṇa has to give Arjuna a technique—practice and detachment; to support the idea that it is difficult to control the mind. Masters give meditation techniques so that we try them and ultimately realize that meditation, dhyāna is our natural state, and there is nothing to be achieved.

Understand the word ‘detachment’. Whether we say ego or mind, it is just the collection of thoughts. In the present, we cannot have thoughts because the very moment we think, the present has slipped into the past. Either we fear losing the carefully constructed inner image in our own eyes or we are greedy to develop a better outer image in the eyes of society.

Listen. Any identity or image that we create about ourselves that is less than the idea of our being God, is a false identity. If we have the courage to detach ourselves from the certificates of society and drop these images, then we can embrace the Divine.

Detachment is the direct technique that Kṛṣṇa is giving here. Detachment at the root level will lead to detachment from everything else. Detachment from the ego or the images will lead to detachment from desires. This is detachment from the past and future. This is being ‘Unclutched’.

Kṛṣṇa declares that it is possible to achieve Self-realization by stilling the mind, if one intensely practices completion. Here, Arjuna asks, what happens if we start with faith but somewhere, we fail in controlling the mind? This situation will happen. When we start off, we will face failure in our attempts to complete with the mind.

Arjuna wants Kṛṣṇa to give an assurance that Enlightenment is possible for all kinds of people; that even if a person starts practicing intensely but fails due to the wavering mind, it is still possible to attain the Divine Consciousness, Brahman.

Kṛṣṇa assures Arjuna that there is no destruction either in this life or the next life for one who is on the right path, the path of Yoga. Even a small amount of practice of this yoga will save us from the cycle of birth and death. Any yoga practiced will give us tremendous benefit.

Listen, any movement of the body with a strong intention will cause that intention to get deeply inscribed into our bio-memory and muscle-memory. If we move our body with the thought of bliss, the bliss emotion gets recorded in our system. If it is anger that moves our body, the anger emotion gets recorded. This is such an important and beautiful Truth. Don’t miss it!

Kṛṣṇa talks about how we choose everything in our lives, including our birth, when and where we are born and our parents. Our birth is not just an accident; it is an incident that we choose. Whatever we choose at the moment of death will become reality in the next birth. Here, Kṛṣṇa gives the assurance and promise to Arjuna, to the humanity that a person who has performed virtuous activities takes birth in a family of wise people or in a prosperous family. His pious activities will earn him a place among the higher worlds.

Kṛṣṇa promises that whatever we have learned in one life does not get wasted. We start from where we left off. Our vāsanas, our mind-set in one birth, continues into another. He also promises that if we keep practicing, trying, we will be cleansed of all sins and reach the highest state. Such a person, Kṛṣṇa promises, will reach Him.

Kṛṣṇa implies: We need to practice yoga, the path that leads to to self-completion, the path that leads to Kṛṣṇa, with dedication, persever-ance, with integrity and authenticity. There is no other way, no short cut. Once you do your bit, the Master promises deliverance. He promises that you will be one with Him.

Just look in, be complete you will experience the eternal bliss, Nitya-ānanda. Let us pray to that Ultimate Energy, Parabrahma Kṛṣṇa to give us all the Eternal Bliss, Nityānanda.