123. Beyond the Comfort Zone

A couple of centuries ago no one in Europe knew about the existence of the Americas. When Columbus reached there, it was beyond his comprehension that there was a massive continent waiting to be discovered. As his knowledge was limited to the geography of the day, he mistook it to be Asia and the rest is history.

While explaining such a phenomenon, contemporary psychology speaks of two modes of thinking called System One and System Two. These correspond to the mind (mann) and the intellect (buddhi). Krishna earlier said that intellect is superior to mind and mind is superior to senses (3.43). The mind is automatic, spontaneous and responsible for our physical survival. Intellect invests significant effort and attention in addressing complex issues. We often use ‘mind’ for the activities of ‘intellect’ to obtain instantaneous results or conclusions. Such conclusions are bound to be flawed - like those of Columbus - because they lack solid evidence, as gathering evidence is the role of intellect.

Arjuna too was using mind for an issue that required intellect and asks Krishna “Due to my restless (chanchal) mind, I am unable to comprehend the eternal state of yoga of equanimity taught by you (6.33). The mind verily is restless, turbulent, strong and obstinate; I consider it as difficult to control as the wind” (6.34).

Arjuna’s state of mind is limited to the knowledge that the mind is restless and arrived at the conclusion that it is difficult to control. These conclusions of Arjuna are based on his past experiences. However, experiences of the past limit our ability to see beyond what our senses perceive.

Incidentally, Arjuna’s question is not his question alone, but that of the entire humanity. We are all broadly of the opinion that the path is difficult. On one hand, Krishna’s assurance of infinite bliss (6.28) lures us but the fear of the unknown pulls us back to our comfort zone.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

261. Shed the Ahankaar

Image
  K rishna says, “Abandon all dharmas and take refuge in Me alone. I will liberate you from all sins, grieve not” (18.66). While verse 2.14 can be taken as the beginning of the Bhagavad Gita where Krishna advises us to ignore the transient pleasure-pain polarities which are caused when senses meet sense-objects, the verse 18.66 can be considered as the end of the Gita. Krishna uses the word ‘ dharma’ , and he is certainly not referring to religion, faith, or righteousness, as each of these carries different meanings for different people. Bhagavad Gita is not a book of religion but of natural principles that govern our lives. On the other hand, a lot of clarity comes if we take the paradigm or subjective reality as the meaning of dharma . Paradigm is the combination of our opinions, imaginations and understandings about the things around us or the way things are from our point of view. It is like the partial understanding formed about an elephant by a blind person by touching only ...
Read more

258. Sins and Suffering

Image
  O ne of the common fears of humanity is about committing sins ( paap ). Every culture has evolved around the concept of sin, and the common belief is that all our suffering is due to sins committed in this life or previous ones. Religions thrive on our guilt of committing sins. Even Arjuna’s despondency is because of his belief that he will incur sin by slaying his elders, teachers and relatives. That’s why Krishna elaborates on this issue on various occasions in the Bhagavad Gita. Firstly, Paramatma takes no account of anyone’s virtue or sin. It is the problem of human beings who are deluded as their knowledge is covered by moha (delusion or ignorance) (5.15). Secondly, one hoping for nothing, with a controlled mind and body, doing mere bodily actions, incurs no sin (4.21). Even if we are the most sinful of sinners, we shall safely cross the sea of sin by the raft of wisdom (4.36). The wisdom is realising ‘That’ by which we will see all beings in the self (4.35). Thirdly, for ...
Read more

259. Tapasya with Devotion

Image
  K rishna says, “This (the Gita) is never to be spoken by you to those who are not austere ( a-tapaskaya ) or to those who are not devoted ( a-bhaktaya ). It should also not be spoken to those who are averse to listening and especially not to those who cavil at Me” (18.67). The spiritual journey toward unconditional love and eternal joy is both adventurous and, at times, lonely. In this path we are expected to shed all the beliefs we gathered in our lives. We are also expected to shed the sense of attachment to our physical possessions, feelings and relationships. That’s why very few reach the destination (7.3). Hence, one should pursue it like tapasya with devotion. On the contrary, when it is pursued out of curiosity, it leads to the illusion of knowledge which increases ahankaar . Coming as ‘the existence’, Krishna mentioned about not caviling at Him. It is the path of accepting and embracing all the diverse and seemingly contradictory aspects of existence without any cavil, w...
Read more