Bhagavad Gita | The Essence of Vedanta

-6th chapter: verses 10, 11, 12, 13, 14
-The lecture was given by Swami Tattwamayananda on October 16, 2020.
-10th verse: “A person who wants to be a Yogi should constantly practice concentration and develop a natural tendency to live in solitude.”
-A beginner should not force himself to be in solitude – he should develop the desire naturally by practicing spiritual disciplines. Once he is evolved, he can practice solitude even when he is in the midst of a crowd.
-Spiritual practice is one’s individual journey. The seeker should not discuss his experiences in public, as it can affect his inner progress.
-When spiritual practices are done with a sense of sanctity and sacredness, it has a positive effect on the mind. It becomes tranquil and focused. The seeker does not feel fatigue in his practice.
-When a beginner sits for meditation, his mind may be agitated. This happens because all previous impressions (vrittis) stored in his chittam come to the surface. These vrittis should be restrained by creating counter vrittis through spiritual practices such as karma yoga, prayers, reading of scriptures and holy association. When we meditate, these positive tendencies will also come to surface and nullify the negative ones.
-11th verse: “The seeker should sit on a firm seat in a clean place. The seat should neither be too high nor too low. The seat should be made by placing Kusha grass on the ground, then spreading a tiger/deer skin over it and then spreading a clean/soft cloth on top.”
-Meditation is a universal spiritual practice. Where you sit and what you sit on – these are relative and subject to changes according to time, culture, geography, and availability of materials.
-12th verse: “Seated on that seat, he should subdue wavering of the mind and senses, he should make his mind one-pointed, and he should practice Yoga for the purification of the mind.”
-The mind is made one-pointed by stopping the inner and outer wavering of the mind. One should control inner wavering by developing good samskaras. Prayers and holy association help develop these good samskaras. Over time, the good tendencies become dominant and turn the mind into a friend. External wavering may manifest as fatigue. This can be overcome with inner concentration and by developing positive samskaras.
-13th verse: “During meditation one should sit firmly on his seat with his body, neck and head in a straight line. His eyes should neither be completely closed nor completely open – they should be “as if” gazing at the tip of the nose.”
-During meditation, firmness and steadiness of the body should be a pleasant, natural and effortless experience. This prevents the body from dragging the mind towards itself.
-A beginner will experience darkness within, if eyes are completely closed. If eyes are open, they drag the mind to the external world.
-These instructions are important for a beginner. For one who is highly evolved, these instructions are not very relevant – he can turn his mind towards God irrespective of where he is.
-14th verse: “With a serene heart, free from fear, with his mind controlled, living a chaste life – he should be focused on Atman, as his goal is to realize the Atman within.”
-Vows, disciplines, self-restraint, and purity of life are emphasized for both mendicants and householders.
-A beginner should practice meditation with his body and mind alert, avoiding any form of laziness. When he becomes advanced, he will experience naturally tranquility within. The effort involved in the early stages will be gone. At the advanced stage, he experiences total freedom from fear. He has nothing to fear, as he identifies with the Atman.