“I’m making a failed attempt at mindful dishwashing,”
exclaims an exasperated Ruth Whippman in an Op-Ed in the New York Times:
What’s this world coming to when we’re having a ‘mindful
moment’ and we still feel miserable, not having found the happiness we think we
deserve? What’s the value of meditation if it only makes us all the more aware
of our mundane reality?
Is it any wonder that we would want to retreat from a world
that offers news of constant strife? What have we to look forward to? A world
of uncertainty, a lackluster economy, a people divided, everyone talking past
one another, hurtling slogans and accusations, and never connecting nor really
listening to one another.
With these burdens weighing upon us, meditation doesn’t seem
to be enough. Maybe it’s downright ineffective! At the end of her article, Ms.
Whippman evokes some studies which conclude that the results of meditation are
“underwhelming” and that it might only “bring some small benefits. . . .
compared with pretty much any general relaxation technique at all, including
exercise. . . .”
Uh-oh! I can see millions of folks bailing. Is the
multibillion-dollar meditation industry about to implode? Haven’t we already
had enough game-changing moments this year. Maybe we’ve forgotten what
meditation is for. Or perhaps we never fully understood it’s purpose to begin
with. This is a opportunity to take a closer look at what meditation is all
about.
“Mindfulness,” explains Ms Whippman, “is supposed to be a
defense against the pressures of modern life.” Well don’t tell Arjuna that. His
mindful meditation took place on a battlefield. The Bhagavad Gita, which was
spoken by Sri Krishna to the warrior prince Arjuna, is the original and
superlative guide to meditation. A few points:
* Firstly, the Bhagavad Gita helps us understand that our
existence is beyond the temporal body and mind.
“Never was there a time when I did not exist, nor you, nor
all these kings; nor in the future shall any of us cease to be. As the embodied
soul continually passes, in this body, from boyhood to youth to old age, the
soul similarly passes into another body at death. The self-realized soul is not
bewildered by such a change.” Gita 2:12-13
* At Arjuna’s inquiry, Krishna goes on to describe the
qualities of those who live the spiritual life, so that we may ourselves
understand what to strive for.
“One who is not disturbed in spite of the threefold
miseries, who is not elated when there is happiness, and who is free from attachment,
fear and anger, is called a sage of steady mind.” Gita 2:56
“One who can control his senses by practicing the regulated
principles of freedom can obtain the complete mercy of the Lord and thus become
free from all attachment and aversion. For one who is so situated in the Divine
consciousness, the threefold miseries of material existence exist no longer; in
such a happy state, one's intelligence soon becomes steady.” Gita 2:64-65
* Meditation helps us to regulate our senses and mind to
attain inner peace.
“A person who is not disturbed by the incessant flow of
desires—that enter like rivers into the ocean which is ever being filled but is
always still—can alone achieve peace, and not the man who strives to satisfy
such desires.” Gita 2:70
“For one who has conquered the mind, the Supersoul is
already reached, for he has attained tranquility. To such a man happiness and
distress, heat and cold, honor and dishonor are all the same.” Gita 6:7
“He who is temperate in his habits of eating, sleeping,
working and recreation can mitigate all material pains by practicing the yoga
system.” Gita 6:17
* The Gita gives us a true understanding of detachment from
worldly affairs and provides insight on how to rise above the dualities of
life.
“The intricacies of action are very hard to understand.
Therefore one should know properly what action is, what forbidden action is,
and what inaction is.” Gita 4:17
“He who is satisfied with gain which comes of its own
accord, who is free from duality and does not envy, who is steady both in
success and failure, is never entangled, although performing actions.” Gita
4:22
“The Blessed Lord said: One who is unattached to the fruits
of his work and who works as he is obligated is in the renounced order of life,
and he is the true mystic: not he who lights no fire and performs no work.”
Gita 6:1
* Meditation helps us to see God working in our lives and to
reawaken our relationship with that Supreme Transcendent Personality.
“That very ancient science of the relationship with the Supreme
is today told by Me to you because you are My devotee as well as My friend;
therefore you can understand the transcendental mystery of this science.” Gita
4:2
“For one who sees Me everywhere and sees everything in Me, I
am never lost, nor is he ever lost to Me.” Gita 6:30
“I am the source of all spiritual and material worlds.
Everything emanates from Me. The wise who know this perfectly engage in My
devotional service and worship Me with all their hearts.” Gita 10:8
My article is not meant to criticize Ms. Whippman. Her
general assessment is correct. The meditational process is difficult and even
Arjuna has his doubts about it. But Krishna goes on to explain how we can
achieve success in our meditation. He puts it quite succinctly to Arjuna in several
places in the Gita. most notably:
"And of all yogīs, he who always abides in Me with
great faith, worshiping Me in transcendental loving service, is most intimately
united with Me in yoga and
is the highest of all." Gita 6:47
“Always chanting My glories, endeavoring with great
determination, bowing down before Me, these great souls perpetually worship Me
with devotion.” Gita 9:14
In our times, the kali-yuga (the age of rampant quarrel,
greed, cheating and hypocrisy), the most potent and satisfying meditation is
meditation on God’s holy names. God’s names are abundantly found in traditions
all over the world. Especially recommended is the maha-mantra, the great mantra
of peace: Hare Kṛiṣhṇa, Hare Kṛishna, Kṛishna Kṛishna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rāma,
Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare. It’s freely given. It can be sung, chanted
softly on pray beads or it can even enhance one’s silent meditation by saying
the mantra in the mind. The meditation is most effective when performed with
humility and gratitude, and complimented with works of devotion.**
All quotes from Bhagavad Gita As It Is by A.C. Bhaktivedanta
Swami Prabhupada.
Sankirtana Das, (ACBSP) is an award-winning author and
storyteller. For more about his book Mahabharata: The Eternal Quest, a
‘cinematic’ rendition of the ancient epic, see www.Mahabharata-Project.com
