46. Content with the Self



Arjuna wanted to know about sthita-prajna (one with coherent intellect or stoic) who has attained samadhi (established in self) and how a sthita-prajna speaks, sits and walks (2.54).

Krishna replies that the sthita-prajna casts off all desires of the mind and is content in the atma (self) by atma (2.55). When we are content with ourselves, desires as well as motives automatically disappear. As desires drop, all our actions (doing) become nishkaam-karma (unmotivated actions).

Krishna sets standards and benchmarks to guide our comparison-seeking mind, which naturally looks for reference points against which to measure our progress on the spiritual journey.

Our basic desire is to be different from what we are, as we get bored too quickly. This is captured in economics as “satisfied desire (need) no more motivates us”. Basically, everyone uses it as a tactic on everyone else, making it difficult to attain sthita-prajna. For example, consumer product companies introduce new products/models regularly, as they know that we want to have a different model every now and then.

A point to be noted is that, if we are not content with ourselves, how can we expect others, including family, to be happy or content with us? On the contrary, how can we attain joy from someone who is incapable of making themselves self-content.

Dropping desires requires a deep-seated awareness that every chase for pleasure is like chasing a mirage. Secondly, as per principle of polarity, every pleasure nurtures a seed of pain which grows in due course of time. Contemplation of our life experiences would invariably confirm this fundamental truth. The practical way to drop desires is to consciously reduce their intensity and see for ourselves the peace this practice brings to us.


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