This is part two of the adventures in Advaita Vedanta... will you travel with me a while?


Saturday Satsang

Hari OM


Deep within us is a region unaffected by the tumultuous uproar of our daily lives. It remains ever a calm seat of poise and serenity, just like the depth of an ocean. Many great men in the world recognised this region and named it differently.

With whatever name one may call it, all those who have discovered its existence have unanimously declared that diving into its peace and calm invigorates one’s tired mind and soothes tense nerves.

To plunge into the deeper layers of one’s mental make-up is to take leave of all the anxieties and fears of daily life, at least for the time being. To eradicate these disturbing elements from one’s mental atmosphere, one has to practise a great deal of self-control in life.

The unruly thoughts which multiply endlessly should be securely harnessed and the mind trained to glide over to more pleasant thoughts which bring harmony and peace. To achieve this, a sense of detachment from worldly objects is essential, and this must, of necessity, presuppose a re-evaluation of the world and its objects. To this re-evaluation, one should turn all one’s attention when faced with problems, crucial or casual. Problems arise when we fail to view situations from the right perspective.

When we become clouded with ignorance and delusory misconceptions, balance and discrimination disappear from our minds, leaving behind selfishness, lust and anger. This is because we live so much on the superficial level that our inner depth of peace and serenity become alien to us.

Identifying with the ever-changing waves, we have forgotten the real nature of the ocean. Constantly living in the storms of the mind, we are foreigners to our own spiritual tranquillity.



6 comments:

  1. It took me years to learn to control a lot many things ranging from my mood swings to vital attitudes...

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    1. Hari OM
      ...indeed, it can take a lifetime for some... but once understood it is within ourselves take that control, there us such freedom! Yxx

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  2. Thank you so much for this post Yamini.
    I've copied a few lines from above in my diary so that I may absorb your wisdom more fully, so that it may act as breadcrumbs leading me to my tranquillity.
    It's been a busy few days. I've been a tad too salty with the husband and not sure why. After reading the post, I know why. I've been too preoccupied with the waves.
    Time to surrender to the mat, methinks.
    Big hugs of heartfelt gratitude for showing me the way today.

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    1. Hari Om
      so glad you dropped by today, then, Arti-ben!!! I would point out that today's satsang (and each of the next six) are direct words of Gurudev; if I have inherited something of his style and wisdom in my other posts here, that you did not recognise a slight difference in language cadence - then I am humbled and delighted! Yxx

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  3. So true! Nice post.
    We need to take that effort and find the time to be calm; so that we have control of our mind and are able to channelize the energy in a constructive and positive manner.

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    1. Hari OM
      Succinctly summarized! Yxx

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