Taking off from the previous issue, it comes out that mind is the carrier of Karmic imprints from one life to the other. They find reflection in our usual run of life as and when congenial ground is available. If, however, mind maintains its sense of order, when all its functional tools — buddhi, ahamkara, and manasa work in coordination with each other as a unified organism, it could very well modify the karmic track. Mind could reflect upon itself, identify and acknowledge its inherent trends, and employing buddhi, make necessary amends if any desired.
The paradox, however, is that mind usually remains flirting with huge volume of randomly generated thoughts. Such a scattered mind loses its sense of order. Consequently, in the first place, it fails to maintain the sense of alert necessary to invoke its own empowerment tool — buddhi for due diligence. Second, it doesn’t allow the focus necessary to mindfully frame one’s priorities in life. Third, it doesn’t leave scope to put in one’s whole towards the tasks in hand, and with obvious consequences.
What’s the way out? Applying simple meditative technique, one could let the mind settle down. Once, Gautam Buddha was going somewhere. On the way he felt thirsty. He then asked one of his disciples to get water from the nearby stream. As the disciple approached the water stream, a stray animal had just crossed it, making the water muddy. The disciple could not serve dirty water to his Guru, and so he returned back empty handed. After a while Buddha asked his disciple: “Why did you not get me water?” “Sir, water was muddy.” Responded the disciple. “Go again. By this time, muck must have settled down,” directed Buddha. Thereafter when the disciple approached the water stream, most of the muck had already settled down. He still waited for a while till all the muck settled to fetch clean water.
Remember, just like a water stream, mind remains engaged in uninterrupted flow of randomly generated thoughts. It is something like a wild monkey unmindfully jumping from one branch of a tree to the other. Such a scattered monkey mind becomes totally disoriented. On the way, often, negative and unpleasant thoughts and feelings, real or imaginary, intrude mind-space to make it even more restive, which further compounds the problem. It is said that human mind deals with somewhere between 60 to 70 thousand thoughts every 24 hours. Lot of them are inconsequential, some of them even negative. Caught up in its melee, mind loses the sense of alert necessary to optimally use its own empowerment tool. Not to say anything about coordinated working of the functional tools of mind.
If, however, we let the thoughts naturally flow in and flow out for a while, without paying any attention to the nature of thoughts, mind will come to rest, as muck settled down in the water stream. Once mind gains restful state, its sense of orderliness begins to gain ground. Having acquired this status, when you turn your attention inwards, you may be able to figure out the true nature of your individualistic mind, with all its positive and negative tendencies. Pursuing the meditative process further in right earnest, you may be able to purify your mind of all its negative karmic imprints, which otherwise disorient your thought process and thereby, your conduct. Following purification of mind, its full landscape with its wholesome powers shall become accessible.
You may then begin to look at the issues in hand holistically and with an open mind, free from any preconditioning whatsoever. Having attained this status, wherever you pay attention, you will be able to visualise things in the right perspective, and therefore, shall be able to pick up most appropriate lead. That by itself would be enough to set the course of life better.
Becoming equipped thus, you may no longer remain slave to your mental tendencies. You rather become the master of your mind and begin to use it rightfully as you will apply proper forethought before getting into an act. You may then consciously deny grounds congenial to fruition of negative karmic imprints if any in store. For, you will be able to discriminate between “what you want” and “what is right” and accordingly make choices. Also reframe the defining principles of mind in such a way that buddhi remains in active mode all the time. Evidently then, nothing will move without due diligence. To sum up, you are the architect of your own destiny. The issue continues…
The writer is an astrologer, vastu consultant and spiritual counsellor. Write to him at G-102, Bharat Nagar, New Friends Colony, New Delhi – 110 025
Tel: 91-11-49848475/9818037273
Email: pioneerqueries@bharatastro.com
Website: www.bharatastro.com
