Bhagwad Gita Slokas 2.64 & 2.65 (Parisamvad)


Bhagwad Gita Transcribed from Parisamvad at The Yoga Institute.

 Chapter 2, Sloka 64 & 65




But the self-controoled man, moving among objects, with his sense under restraint and free from both attraction and repulsion, attains peace.







In that peace all pains are destroyed; for the intellect of the tranquil-minded soon becomes steady.

Dr. Jayadeva Yogendra:
"Maintaining a stable state of mind is an important thing in ancient literature. Same thing is in the Gita, Upanishads and in Yoga also. We don’t follow this and indulge in all kinds of feelings and cause disturbances. In that disturbed condition, real thinking doesn’t happen and that leads to problems. Getting angry, getting confused – these are dangerous things, but we don’t see any harm  in them. 

 If one is sincerely interested in leading a better life then anger will be an important point. We don’t get free from anger because we have lot of intelligence; we believe certain things to be right and react. This is a simple statement, but very hard to believe or follow. Just reading will not help; we have to integrate it into our mind and have full faith in it – it may take a number of years. 

 There are a few people who have this attitude from childhood and in the end they can do things peacefully and with understanding. These things are rare and to find such persons is also difficult. We get angry on petty things and feel sad. If we want to overcome all this then right from the beginning, we should observe the small small things, face them and not react. 

 We have a lot of reasons not to follow all this - "If I don’t get angry, people will exploit me." To have control on the mind, and to keep the mind at peace in any circumstance is not our goal. We have to make small beginnings. If anything happens at home, don’t react immediately. Observe, understand and peacefully express. We have to train ourselves. When we burst out a lot and people tell us about it, then we start thinking. This habit doesn’t stop, because we don’t consider it to be wrong. We listen, but we don’t decide not to get angry and in small small things. We have to maintain our peace of mind. No sooner we go out of Institute, something will happen and we will get angry and this will continue. It’s not for a little while, it continues for the whole day. Unless we decide that we have to stop these habits and cultivate the positive habits, there will not be a change."

Smt. Hansaji J. Yogendra:

"We have all the reasons to get attached to someone, to hate someone. The  more we are with someone, we get attached. It is a natural phenomenon, but we are supposed to have full control. How to control the senses? Awareness that these things are harmful and not required. When you have a dog in the house, you have to have full control on him. Same with our emotions. Express your love, show your disagreement and gradually a stage should come when nothing disturbs you. Whenever we are suffering we should know we are suffering because of attachment, because of hatred and don’t blame others for our suffering. We have to work on ourself."

About Parisamvad

On every Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, The Yoga Institute, Santacruz holds Parisamvad  sessions - Free interactive sessions that are open to all. These session begin at 7:20 am and end around 7:45 am. 

The Tuesday Parisamvad is dedicated to explanation of the the Bhagwad Gita by our esteemed Gurus, Dr. Jayadeva and Smt. Hansaji.

All are welcome to attend.


Click Here to learn more about The Yoga Institute, Santacruz, Mumbai.

(Picture credit http://www.ishwar.com/hinduism/holy_bhagavad_gita).

Pratipaksha Bhavana, Nispandabhava & Anitya Bhavana (Satsang)



The topic for the Satsang on Sunday, 4th November, 2012 was 'Pratipaksha Bhavana, Nispandabhava and Anitya Bhavana' (English).


Following is the transcript of the speech made by Dr. Jayadeva Yogendra and Smt. Hansaji Yogendra on the topic.

Smt. Hansaji and Dr. Jayadeva Yogendra
“We use this word ‘wisdom,’ what is it? It is this kind of an understanding of the nature of things. We are holding on to certain rigid ideas, and we feel sad, we miscalculate and do wrong things, this should go and it does not. We’ve got a very emotional childish nature; we immediately like it and we want it to stay. 

 You see, in yoga you consciously learn to make the mind a little free, to make the mind broader and larger, and build up a new way of looking at life, this can be done especially from an early age. Once we reach a certain maturity, then we think we are very clever and we are not able to make any change, but many have carried out these kind of techniques and they are able to face up to anything in a very balanced way and have helped the society also. Because life is rattling us all the time, every moment something is happening to our own people, happening to the place we work and what not. We have to learn to accept and carry on, it’s a very simple advise, but we have to test whether we really can follow it. If we can follow it, we will be successful people.”

"In life there are ups and downs. Problems come, people change, someone might love you today and hate you tomorrow. The problem is when we have expectations; and then when problems come, we get shaken up to such an extent that we get a heart attack or depression; the whole world starts looking like a bad place. This should not happen.

The world is as it is and we are as we are. But somewhere our Bhavanas (emotions) get disturbed. This is where we have to have some philosophy, some thought on which our life should be based. That is why yoga is called a Darshan Shastra, a philosophical science which deals with what we see.

Once, a king asked the wise men of his kingdom to give him a gift that would make him happy whenever he was sad and make him calm when he got too excited. The wise men gave him a ring which said “This too shall pass.”

This is Anitya Bhavana, where everything is temporary and changeful, nothing is permanent. When we feel that “I know everything” or start feeling comfortable with life, God gives us a shock and we topple down. This is to bring us out of our ego that we know everything. What we think does not matter, there is something else, a law, governing our life and we cannot stop it. So continue gaining more knowledge.

These feelings and the corresponding understanding should come because we get disturbed by our emotions and can come out of it only through emotions. And the technique to stop the mind is Nispandabhava – do not think, just listen, don’t analyse, be quiet.

If we do not want to be unhappy or hurt, nothing can hurt us. So we have to uplift ourselves and bring in balance in ourselves. So when the world starts looking bad and negative, understand that this state is in ourselves. Stop thinking and quieten the mind. Concentrate on slow breathing or a sound. These simple techniques can help. Then bring in the right understanding.

That effort is required. A wise man would say “Don’t worry, everything will be okay.” We also have the same consciousness, why can we not think that way too?"



Q & A
Q. What can be done when others, eg. parents try to change us?
Dr. Jayadeva: At an early age, we have to change or we won’t grow. But after a certain age when we have clarity, we can make judgements and change when necessary or then observe and be balanced.
Smt. Hansaji: Flexibility should remain till we die. We can change, but we can’t impose our ideas on others. If we feel we are 100% correct, fine, but make sure that we don’t bring our ego or likes and dislikes with it, or that will create a problem.

Q. How do we control our mind during adverse situations?
Dr. Jayadeva: We have to cultivate a balanced state of mind and that is an exercise – throughout the day, whenever you get the chance, just enjoy the balanced peaceful state. It can come by viewing nature, keeping the mind without thoughts, by repeating some sentences and words…it can be done in many ways.
Smt. Hansaji: There are two ways. One is preventing the problem. Tell yourself that everyone is justified for their behaviour, according to their nature, Samskaras, etc and not choose to suffer because of them. Fix a time in the morning, afternoon, evening and night t sit quietly and tell yourself to accept things the way they are. The second way is long-term management – when disturbed, use techniques to settle down and quieten yourself.

Q. When everything is changeful (Anitya), then why does the mind not accept something permanent (Nitya)?
Dr. Jayadeva: Because we have Intellect (Buddhi).
Smt. Hansaji: We are ignorant and we should not forget that. So keep learning every time.

Q. How does one deal with one’s emotions when there is a conflict between what you ought to do and what you want to do?
Dr. Jayadeva: We should be realistic, wise and understanding. There is a servant and occasionally he may break a glass vessel. He is scolded for it but he does not get disturbed and says, “Was this particular glassware going to be permanent and last forever? Then why get disturbed?”
Smt. Hansaji: Of course, that does not mean we should be careless, so use the philosophy well.

Q. At times it becomes difficult to keep the mind quiet. What techniques other than Nispandabhava can be practiced?
Dr. Jayadeva: There are many techniques. Every religion tells us of some prayer, some symbolic words. If we can go on pursuing them, then they can help.
Smt. Hansaji: Pooja-Paath (prayer and rituals) can be useful here. If the mind tends to get disturbed, keep a fix time to do them and when you have control over the mind, use it in a constructive way. Other yoga techniques like Asanas, Pranayamas and Kriyas help in settling the mind. Music, a walk in nature, observing birds, trees, animals and the calm atmosphere is also useful.
 

Q. How to develop a good feeling towards a person who keeps hurting you.
Dr. Jayadeva: If you have decided not to get hurt, then you can manage it. But whenever someone hurts you then immediately you get the feeling of hurting the other individual; that you cannot control.
Smt. Hansaji: This is a tug of war. Someone wants to hurt you, don’t get hurt. If they say something hurtful, take it as a joke. The problem is that we are always ready to feel hurt by others. Become strong. It should be a challenge that if a person is hurting you, then you should enjoy it. Then see how the other person disappears.
 
 Q. If someone is unhappy because of debt, what to do?
Dr. Jayadeva: In the beginning, we get a shock but then we should also understand the laws of nature. This is ..some people can’t forget this unhappiness and some people see, understand and go on with their work.
Smt. Hansaji: When we are unhappy, we should think of a worse situation and work. Even if we get one Roti a day to eat, thank God and do not choose to suffer.
 




Satsang is an open meeting held every Sunday from 9:30 to 10:30 am at The Yoga Institute, Santacruz East, Mumbai. It involves an interesting presentation to the public, made by the students of the Teacher Training Course. Each week, a new presentation of a Yogic concept is made in a simple way through skits and decoration for the general public, followed by a short speech from our Gurus, Dr. Jayadeva and Smt. Hansaji Yogendra.

Patanjali Yoga Sutra Ch 1 Sutra 14 (Parisamvad)


Patanjali Yoga Sutra
Transcribed from Parisamvad at The Yoga Institute.

Chapter 1, Sutra 14





Sa-Tu-Dirghakala-Nairantarya-Satkara-Asevitah-Drdhbhumih

It becomes firmly rooted when it has been habituated for a long time, without interruption and with sincere belief.

Sa : that (practice)
Tu : however
Dirghakala : for a long time
Nairantarya : without interruption
Satkara : with devotion, sincerity, respect, positive attitude
Asevitah : Pursued, cultivated
Drdhabhumih : Solid foundation


Dr. Jayadeva Yogendra:

“The sutra gives an importance to Abhyasa (perseverance) of the highest kind. Our efforts are absolutely meager and we don’t succeed or even care. Here, the person is very very clear about gaining that kind of mental attitude and result.

So it is that kind of determination, clarity and certainty. There is no other thought except to achieve the goal. We sometimes come across such examples in different areas. During the Kargil war, a commander asked a team of soldiers to capture a certain very strategic area. They struggled and probably lost half of their men but the orders were to continue. Ultimately there was only 10% of the original team left, but they succeeded. So that spirit is needed. Abhyasa is full-hearted, continuous, non-stop effort.

So to make Abhyasa your cornerstone, you have to practice yoga. It requires extreme faith, respect and totality. One single order and we are just after it. But we just have these things to read, none of it is in practice. Not even the simplest thing like Asana. Tradition says that if you sit in the same place at the same time every day for a year, you will gain what you want. But these are just stories…We, in the deep of our hearts, do not have the determination."

“The problem is that we take things half-heartedly. When learning yoga, there is only half interest, when practicing, there is quarter interest. It is just ‘touch and go’ so naturally, the good of yoga does not come. But if we have a single thing which is done sincerely, it could bring results. As they say, by sitting in Sukhasana every day even for 15 minutes, at the end of the year, you will be a different person.”


“The sutra tells us how we should pursue in yoga.

1. Efforts for a long long time: We should not have anxiety about the result. Many times we complain that I have been practicing for 4 days but did not reduce or see the result. This result oriented mind is very negative and should be avoided. Just be positive and walk the path.

2. Without interruption: It should become part of your personality. Yoga is not like other subjects that we can say I studied for 4 hours today.

3. Have full respect and faith: Do not have a doubting mind. With full dedication, get established in the work you have taken in hand.

The human mind gets bored very easily. However, yoga is not boring, in fact, it deals with life, it is interesting. Efforts have to be applied in these three directions.”



About Parisamvad

On every Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, The Yoga Institute, Santacruz holds Parisamvad  sessions - Free interactive sessions that are open to all. These session begin at 7:20 am and end around 7:45 am. 

The Friday Parisamvad is dedicated to explanation of the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali by our esteemed Gurus, Dr. Jayadeva and Smt. Hansaji.

All are welcome to attend.


Click Here to learn more about The Yoga Institute
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