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The Art Of Mastering The Self
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By
Vira J. Bhathena
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Through
all walks of life, we have seen that the self has many attributes,
which bring about emotions in human beings that lead to happiness,
joy or ecstacy at certain times, and sadness, contempt or hatred
at other times. They are all temporary emotions that come and go.
Desires, anger, jealousy, greed and sensual pleasures are the biggest
enemies of the self. If there is no control on the self, it can
lead to self-destruction. Hence, calming the mind (Vohu Mano), is
very important to allow the immutable Law of Nature to guide you
to Righteousness.
Let me enlighten you on the thought-provoking comment of one of
the wisest men, Solomon :
" He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty; and he that
ruleth his spirit is mightier than he that taketh a city."
 Anger
only makes matters worse. Those who not only know what self-awareness
is, but have also put in their best efforts to gain spiritual knowledge,
whereby the mind is controlled, they are able to achieve inner peace.
If one puts heart and soul into the various techniques of calming
the mind, it is not at all difficult to master the self. It goes
without saying that no matter what one's status in society is, no
achievement can be great enough if there is no power of self-control.
When the self is conquered, humility automatically follows. An egoistic
person has no control over the self and that paves the way towards
his downfall. Ego also arouses temper-tantrums and the whole human
system goes out of control. The physical body sizzles with fury
and the result could be drastic - violence personified!
The emotions are natural forces like all kinds of desires, and,
because they are natural, many would think it is unnecessary to
control them. Many who would like to control them are not knowing
how to do it, as they do not understand their own nature. Others
would say - 'oh! we accept the good and the bad, that is what life
is all about'. To a certain extent, it is true, since only from
the bad will come out the good. But the pattern that is followed
is more towards continuing with the bad, not realising that the
bad will react. Every action has a reaction and that is what makes
life so difficult. So, because a thing is natural does not mean
that it should not be controlled.
For example: Electricity is a natural force. It givres light but
can also be used for destruction unless it is controlled. We all
know that electricity has tremendous power.
The most detrimental one of all emotions is fear, and, unless it
is controlled, it can lead to all psychic ailments. Fight and eliminate
fear before it eats into you. You need the strength to have self-control.
It is a known fact that the human race is supposed to be the superior
one of all living things, as our Creator has given mankind the intelligence
(buddhi) to rationalise and follow a good moral conduct. But where
are we to-day? What lessons have we learnt from nature? In fact,
we have only destroyed beautiful natural environments, where forests
and plantations are slashed off for selfish means, birds and animals
are cruelly slaughtered, men killing one another for more and more
greed, the crimes are never-ending. Is there any end to the negativity
that surrounds us, the turbulence in the atmosphere created by man?
When will mankind learn to live in harmony? Nature has always nurtured
us so well and we have shamelessly abused it. How much can nature
take? What do we see to-day? Our wrongful actions have caused reactions
in nature in the form of floods, earthquakes, draught, landslides,
storms (tsunamis), etc. We are causing so much disharmony in nature,
so many lives are lost, also by wars and bomb blasts. This is NOT
Reality. Life was created for mankind to have a meaning to bring
joy, in other words, to make it worth living. How can we wipe out
in a day what has been an accumulation of misdeeds over a long period?
We all know that we are living in Kaliyug (the Dark Ages), running
after selfish gains. Until man gets the Sixth Sense, he and he alone
has to pay for the wrongful actions. Until then, he has no peace,
only pieces! There is no genuine love and compassion. We are responsible
for our hateful actions. Hence, in order to conquer the self, one
has to give up demeaning, inhuman qualities, aim for Righteousness
that Divine Law has laid out, and spread happiness.
A man cannot make use of the higher Forces, that is, the divine
power, until he becomes self-controlled. The mind has to be calmed.
No amount of 'lip-service' prayers (which are for selfish desires)
would help, unless the heart is pure, and emotions are controlled
with the aid of the higher Mind. By self-control is meant the control
of the objective mind by the subjective mind. Sensations and emotions
are the manifestations of the objective mind of man. These emotions
can be controlled by the higher (subjective) mind. The subjective
mind is really the 'I am I' of man. It is the self-consciousness
which studies the modes of mind. Until this consciousness is awakened,
there can be no self-control. Thus, we see that it is the objective
mind that dominates and creates disharmony for various selfish reasons,
and the subjective mind remains latent, because it is overpowered
by the objective mind over a period of time. The objective mind
becomes so strong that finally when it cannot cope, the subjective
mind wakes up to correct the situation. We have, perhaps, been indulging
in the sensual pleasures for years, whereby the objective mind holds
complete domination over us, making us feel that sensual pleasures
are important in life. If one feels happy with this situation, nobody
can stop that, until certain drastic circumstances occur, which
call out for help, and the subjective mind intervenes and overtakes
to rectify the wrong. In other words, the subjective mind will only
intervene when Reality sets in, and the sub-conscious mind opens
up avenues of righteous living. One has to be prepared to accept
the change for his own good and for the good of society.
The Divine Plan that has been in existence from the time Creation
began, has shown the right path, which leads to divine bliss. The
understanding can only come if the mind is not agitated, and is
willing to accept the Natural Laws existing from time immemorial.
One must learn to attune the individual mind to the Universal Mind.
Only then, the vistas of Universal Consciousness will open, and
Self-Realisation will dawn on those who are ready to face the Truth
laid out in this Divine Plan. All scriptures explain the same Divine
Laws, but man turns a blind eye to them, when his ego or sensual
pleasures are to be satiated. Hence, if you wish to help yourself
to attain self-control, learn to calm the mind. In other words,
practise meditation. The mind has to be trained to conquer itself
first and then the self.
Lord Krishna said to Uddhava, his disciple: 'The Mind the remembers
Me constantly gets dissolved in Me'. That is the mode of meditation
advocated by the Bhagavata. 'Meditation is the soul of spirital
life. A life without meditation is like a horse without reins or
a boat without rudder. The mind has to be trained to conquer itself.
It is the mind that is the cause of man's bondage; it is the mind
that is the cause of his freedom.'
Buddhism, for instance, is based on the supreme enlightenment, gained
by Lord Buddha in meditation. He had, through constant meditation,
been able to unfold the inner world of Reality, and lay out the
eight-fold noble path.
Mira, the great saint and singer, who was always at Lord Krishna's
feet, sang in praise of her Master, soaked in divine bliss. Wanting
to know the difference between praying and meditating, Mira had
questioned her grandfather (she had lost her parents early in life).
He told her: 'When we talk to God, it is prayer, and, when God talks
to us, it is meditation'. Mira's whole life was a continuous dialogue
between her Soul and her Beloved (Lord Krishna). She had full control
of her life, as her heart was pure and blissful. Great have been
those souls who were able to master the self.
The purpose of meditation is to set in motion those processes that
lead to the restoration of one's well-being - physical, mental and
spiritual. Concentrate on the nature of your inner self, which is
all bliss. Concentration is the driving force in meditation. You
meditate on your chosen deity, by learning first to still the mind.
Let your body relax and remove all disturbing thoughts. It is in
the silence that you can gain self-knowledge. It is a question of
giving up the wrong, distracting thoughts, feelings and actions.
The only progress is to intensify the thought of the 'Sat', the
real, good and auspicious, which is the very core of our inner self.
According to Swami Vivekananda: 'Meditation is the means and the
method by which the soul unveils the layers of ignorance covering
it, and discovers the essential divinity of its own being, by a
three-fold process of sravana (hearing), manana (reflection) and
nididhyasana (meditation), being equipped with what is known as
sadhana chatushtaya (four-fold prerequisites of spiritual life).
This can be described as spiritual unfoldment leadingto self-knowledge.'
He further says: 'In the language of the bhakta (devotee), meditation
is a process in which the individual soul pours out of its own being
into the divine, like the unbroken flow of oil from one vessel to
another and empties itself in the latter as the river flowing into
the sea. It finds itself safe and secure under the protection of
the divine, in being held fast in the bosom of the divine.'
In this case, meditation acts as a link to establish a connection
between the individual soul (jivatman) and the super soul (paramatman).
He also emphasises on the most sacred sound and symbol 'Om'. He
considers it 'the holiest of all holy words, the mother of all names
and forms from which the whole Universe sprang. It is the first
manifestation of divine wisdom'.
The reason why I have stressed on meditation is that it is the best
technique to help you to conquer the self. You can make it a constant
spiritual struggle in silence. This will lead you to self-reflection,
which will give you self-realisation. You will find that the self
belongs to the Universal Self, and that all is One in the Universe.
There is only Unity and no diversity.
I would like to bring to your attention that Mazdayasna (Zoroastrianism)
lays great emphasis on meditation, and its three functions are good
thoughts, good words and good deeds. Our holy scripture, Avesta,
stresses on the positive constructive thoughts, words and actions
- 'Hu-mata, Hu-ukta and Hu-varshta'.
Lord Zarathushtra meditated on top of Mt. Ushidarena, and, after
nearly fifteen years, got Divine Wisdom. He conquered emotions and
everything harmful, and proclaimed to the world the Zoroastrian
religion and its tenets. His religion, like all true religions,
is a Universal Religion.
After the Divine Revelation, Zarathushtra prays to Ahura Mazda,
the Creator and life-giver, as known to us: 'Daao Ashaa Vangheush
Mazda-o-Manangh-ho' (grant us purity through Righteour MInd).
Make true meditation your way of life and succeed in the art of
mastering the self.
On this note, I wish you all 'Navroze Mubarak'.
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