CARING THE MIND IN HINDU VEDAS
According to the Hindu Vedas, taking care of the mind involves actively
controlling and disciplining it through practices like meditation,
self-awareness, and ethical conduct, with the ultimate goal of achieving
inner peace by recognizing the true self beyond the fluctuations of the
mind, often described as a chariot driver needing to manage the horses
(senses) pulling in different directions; the mind is considered the key
instrument for attaining knowledge and spiritual liberation.
Key points about mind care in the Vedas:
Mind as a powerful tool:
The Vedas emphasize the mind's immense power to shape one's reality,
highlighting its importance in both worldly actions and spiritual pursuits.
Concept of "manas":
The word "manas" in Sanskrit refers to the mind, often described as the
seat of thoughts and desires.
Controlling the mind:
Vedic texts repeatedly stress the need to control the mind, as an
uncontrolled mind can lead to negative emotions and actions.
The "Chariot Analogy":
A well-known metaphor in the Bhagavad Gita compares the mind to a chariot
driver, needing to guide the horses (senses) with steady reins to reach the
desired destination.
“ Aathmaanam radhinam vidhi sareeram radhamaevathu, buddhinthu saaradhim
viddhi manah prahgrahamaevacha.
Indriyaani hayanaahur vishayaansthaeshu gocharaan, aathmaendriya
manoyuktham bhokthaethyaahur maneeshinaha”. (Kathopanishad ).
In the above slokas, it is very beautifully described as follows:
“ Aatma - ‘soul’ - sitting in the ‘chariot’ like a ‘king’.
Sareeram - ‘human body’ - is likened to the chariot itself.
Budhhi - ‘intellect’ - is the ‘charioteer’ - or the ‘saaradhi’.
Manas - ‘mind’ - is likened to the ‘bridle’ of the horses.
Indriyaani- ‘senses’ (eyes, ears, nostrils, mouth, skin) are likened to the
‘horses’ -which drive the chariot.
Further, these horses always are attracted towards the greener pausters
where ever they exist.
Likewise, human’s senses are always attracted towards -the events and
incidents and activities of life.
Just as horses get satisfied by grazing the greener fields, the human
senses are satisfied by enjoying the events, incidents and activities of
the day to day life.
Bhagavadgita says that the individuals themselves must raise above the
:“senses,mind,intellect , and assume the position of the “aathma swarupam”
- which every human being “is” - in himself or herself.
That means, the human being is not the ‘physical body’- ,which generally
people think, but they are ‘force’ driving the physical body. That is, the
human being is the ‘Aatma’ which drives the body (the force behind the
body). It is that Aatma which makes every human being : see, hear, smell,
taste and feel.
cañcalaḿ hi manaḥ kṛṣṇa pramāthi balavad dṛḍham
tasyāhaḿ nigrahaḿ manye vāyor iva su-duṣkaram Bhagavad Gita 6.34
For the mind is restless, turbulent, obstinate and very strong, O Krishna,
and to subdue it, I think, is more difficult than controlling the wind. The
mind is so strong and obstinate that it sometimes overcomes the
intelligence, although the mind is supposed to be subservient to the
intelligence. For a man in the practical world who has to fight so many
opposing elements, it is certainly very difficult to control the mind.
Artificially, one may establish a mental equilibrium toward both friend and
enemy, but ultimately no worldly man can do so, for this is more difficult
than controlling the raging wind. In the Vedic literature (Katha Upanishad
1.3.3–4) it is said:
atmanam rathinam viddhi sariram ratham eva ca
buddhim tu sarathim viddhi manah pragraham eva ca
indriyani hayan ahur visayams tesu gocaran
atmendriya-mano-yuktam bhoktety ahur manisinah
“The individual is the passenger in the car of the material body, and
intelligence is the driver. Mind is the driving instrument, and the senses
are the horses. The self is thus the enjoyer or sufferer in the association
of the mind and senses. So it is understood by great thinkers.”
Intelligence is supposed to direct the mind, but the mind is so strong and
obstinate that it often overcomes even one’s own intelligence, as an acute
infection may surpass the efficacy of medicine. Such a strong mind is
supposed to be controlled by the practice of yoga, but such practice is
never practical for a worldly person like Arjuna. And what can we say of
modern man? The simile used here is appropriate: one cannot capture the
blowing wind. And it is even more difficult to capture the turbulent mind.
Meditation and self-inquiry:
Practices like "Dhyana" (meditation) and self-reflection are encouraged to
quiet the mind and achieve inner peace.
Ethical living:
The Vedas emphasize the importance of ethical conduct, as actions and
thoughts are interconnected, influencing the state of the mind.
How to care for the mind according to Vedic teachings:
Practice "Svadhyaya":
Regular study of scriptures and self-reflection to gain deeper
understanding of the self.
The word ‘adhyetavya’ is derived by adding the suffix tavya in the passive
voice to the root in, meaning ‘to study’, prefixed by Adhi. In a passive
voice the object (karmapadam) becomes predominant. For this reason, the
word ‘svādhyāyaḥ’ which is the object in the sentence
‘svādhyāyo’dhyetavyaḥ’ becomes predominant. Study of the Vedas is a
purifying act subsidiary to the Vedas. It purifies the Vedas as sprinkling
purifies the rice grains. The necessity of this ‘svādhyāyaḥ’ is to acquire
the knowledge of sacrifices, duties of the sacrifices etc. A sacrifice
cannot be performed without its knowledge. So, ‘svādhyāyaḥ’ has its visible
result. In the presence of the visible result, the invisible result (heaven
etc.) is not postulated. Therefore, ‘svādhyāyaḥ’ produces the knowledge of
Vedas in the sacrifice. This knowledge is derived from the power of
sentences having words with optative suffixes such as line etc. that occur
in one’s own Vedas. This knowledge is conducive to performance. The gist of
this discussion is that all verbal urges with their three parts, denoted by
the optative suffix etc. in the sentences conveying injunction, are
prescribed as things to be done by the very ‘svādhyāyavidhi’. The persons
having studied their own Vedas with their branches, understand, from the
optative suffix etc. occurring in their own Vedas which they have learnt
through study, backed by their subsidiary, praiseworthiness (arthavāda),
that sacrifices etc. producing results are to be performed, and they should
perform them. This is what understood here.
Cultivate "Satvik Guna":
Focus on developing positive qualities like purity, calmness, and
compassion.
rajas tamash chabhibhuya sattvam bhavati bharata
rajah sattvam tamash chaiva tamah sattvam rajas tatha
BG 14.10: Sometimes goodness (sattva) prevails over passion (rajas) and
ignorance (tamas), O scion of Bharat. Sometimes passion (rajas) dominates
goodness (sattva) and ignorance (tamas), and at other times ignorance
(tamas) overcomes goodness (sattva) and passion (rajas).
Observe "Yama" and "Niyama":
Adhere to ethical principles like non-violence, truthfulness, and
self-discipline, alongside practices like cleanliness and contentment.
Yama and niyama are a set of moral and ethical principles in yoga that
guide how to live. They are two of the eight limbs of yoga.
Yamas
Ahimsa: Non-violence, or not harming any living beings
Satya: Truthfulness
Asteya: Non-stealing
Brahmacharya: Celibacy or the right use of energy
Aparigraha: Non-greed or non-hoarding
Niyamas
Saucha: Cleanliness and purity
Santosha: Contentment
Tapas: Discipline, austerity, or self-training
Svadhyaya: Self-study, or studying the self and texts
Ishvara Pranidhana: Surrender to a higher power, or contemplation of a
higher power
Yamas and niyamas can help people develop a sense of responsibility,
self-refinement, and integrity.
Engage in "Pranayama":
Breathing exercises to regulate the mind and body.
According to the Ancient Yoga Tradition, the breath and the mind are
closely interconnected and their influence is bidirectional.[2] Modern
science has just started to confirm and analyse this fact in more detail.
Yogic breathing exercises are known as Pranayama and are considered a form
of meditation in itself, as well as a preparation for deep meditation. They
promote physical well-being and self-awareness, improve lung and cognitive
capacities, reduce blood pressure, anxiety, and other psychosomatic
patterns, probably by increasing the parasympathetic tone. In addition, one
recent study highlighted that conscious breathing might promote top-down
emotional regulation through the prefrontal cortex network with the limbic
system.
In this systematic review, all 14 selected studies highlight the
behavioural and neurophysiological changes after the practice of YBT.
indicate that Surya Bedhana pranayama would improve language in individuals
with aphasia. Of note, most people have the left hemisphere responsible for
language. From a neuroscientific perspective, the nostrils have a
cross-wised interaction with the brain hemispheres and Surya Bedhana means
to breathe in through the right nostril and breath out through the left
nostril (with or without Kumbhaka or air retention). However, in this
research, they combined a breathing technique called Rechaka, when
exhalation and inhalation have a proportion of 2:1, respectively, which is
known to calm the mind (in fact, they noticed reduced anxiety and
depression among participants). These results are consistent with others
suggesting that alternation of nasal airflow through the nostrils modulates
contralateral activation of brain hemispheres and that prolonged expiration
compared to inspiration may increase parasympathetic activity.
Literature has shown that theta oscillation in the frontal cortex
correlates to mindfulness meditation and parasympathetic dominance. found a
significant decrease of theta activity during BhPr, although, in their
discussion, they claimed that it was increased. They also found a
hypersynchronous activity in the high gamma range in the left medial
temporal lobe after the practice of BhPr, which was defined as
high-frequency biphasic ripples. A previous study reported that ripples in
the medial temporal lobe are associated with neuroplasticity and human
memory consolidation but this is a polemic topic. While some authors claim
that fast oscillations could predispose meditators to seizures and that
gamma oscillation is related to default mode network in frontal areas,
others show that long-term practice of meditation bilaterally induces
high-amplitude gamma synchrony in EEG recordings over the parieto-temporal
and midfrontal cortical areas. In humans, the intracortical theta (4–8 Hz)
oscillation is associated with attention modulation and verbal and spatial
memory tasks.
Patãnjali does not name any breathing technique; he only explains the state
of Pranayama and its aspects. In contrast, the Hatha Yoga Pradipika,
written by Svātmārāma enumerates names eight types: Surya Bhedana Kumbhaka,
Ujjayi Kumbhaka, Siktari Kumbhaka, Sitali Kumbhaka, Bhastrika Kumbhaka,
Bhramari Kumbhaka, Murccha Kumbhaka, and Plavini Kumbhaka, highlighting the
importance of air retention. The late Swami Kuvalayananda includes KB, one
of the ShatKarmas or the six classical cleansers in this list and B. K. S
Iyengar claims that Murccha and Plavini are no longer in vogue. From the
perspective of the Himalayan Lineage of Samaya Srividya Tradition, Nadi
Shodhana (alternate nostril breathing) is considered a Pranayama and
Kumbhaka, an advanced technique
Yoga-based respiratory techniques are millenary practices, and quite
widespread through oral and written tradition until present days. However,
much yet has to be done for a better scientific understanding of their
effects on the human brain. In-depth studies focusing on specific aspects
of the practices such as retentions, prolonged expiration, attention on
fluid respiration, and abdominal/thoracic respiration should better
elucidate the effects of YBT. {From a total of 1588 articles, 14 attended
the criteria. They were critically compared to each other and presented in
a table divided into study; country; sample size; gender; age; objective;
technique; outcome.}
K RAJARAM IRS 8225
On Sat, 8 Feb 2025 at 04:35, Jambunathan Iyer <[email protected]> wrote:
> One of the easiest ways of improving one's mental health is to take good
> self care. Beginning the day with good and regular self-care habits is
> good for optimum mental health. It also helps us to effectively manage
> time well and helps us to finish our work within time.
>
> N Jambunathan Rengarajapuram-Kodambakkam-Chennai-Mob:9176159004
>
> *" What you get by achieving your goals is not as important as what you
> become by achieving your goals. If you want to live a happy life, tie it to
> a goal, not to people or things "*
>
>
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