​How can we cultivate gravity for controlling the mind, as told in the Gita 17.16?

Answer Podcast

Transcript

This is an AI-generated transcript and may contain some errors.
So, how can we cultivate gravity in our practices in our life so that we can control the mind as the Bhagavad Gita 17.16 tells. Actually, the Sanskrit word is mauna. manah prasad samyakta mauna matra vinigraha mauna literally translates as silence.
Like we have mauna vrata. But it is interesting that Prabhupada, that Krishna is using mauna to describe not the austerity of speech, but austerity of the mind. Normally, we consider speaking and silence as functions of the speech.
But it is not coming there, it is coming here. So, here when he is referring to mauna, we may have our tongue as silent, but if our mind is screaming, I do this, why don’t you do this, why is this happening? And our mind is screaming and shrieking, we will have no peace. So, in that sense, at a deeper level, the purpose of silencing the tongue is to silence the mind.
And the mind is that mind is something which is always going to be active. We cannot just tell the mind don’t think anything. The mind is always going to think something.
But, the way to silence the mind is to silence the irrelevant chatter of the mind. The irrelevant chatter means the mind thinks of this, thinks of that, all those things, that sort of things, stop it. So, just like in a classroom, the purpose is not to be silent constantly.
The purpose is silence so that what the teacher is speaking can be heard properly and understood. So, silence is itself not the purpose of a classroom. Silence for the purpose of learning, that is the purpose of the classroom.
So, similarly, mauna as say calmness of the mind or silence of the mind is not just for the sake of silence. It is for the sake of purpose. For us, as spiritualists, for us, we want to serve Krishna whether directly through sadhana or indirectly through our services, through our worldly responsibilities, whatever it may be.
So, in that sense, if we are serious about what we are doing, if we are grave, now grave does not necessarily mean having a sullen face like sometimes if a patient is in a grave condition, that means they may die, they are in a very serious condition, that time everybody has a sullen face. That is not the idea of gravity. Gravity means that we are purposeful.
We are aware that what I am doing is important and I have to do it well. So, if I am studying and while I am studying, suddenly some Facebook notification comes up or second thing, third thing, fourth thing, that means what is happening? What I am doing, I am not taking it very seriously and that is why I am letting myself get distracted by small small things. So, I am lacking gravity over there.
So, to a large extent, gravity is related with purposefulness. We are not just meant to be with a sullen face, but we are meant to be serious about our purpose and gravity about purposefulness comes by associating with those who are grave. So, if I am studying scripture and if I feel it is boring, let me read something else, let me do something else, but I see others are studying scripture seriously and then when they talk, we say, oh, they have understood so many things, I can understand these things, I can understand, I can move forward.
Then we also feel inspired. Let me also study. So, one way to get gravity of purpose is by associating those people in the mind.
That means that we sit down and write for ourselves. Why is studying scripture important for? 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 reasons like that and then keep that ready with us, ready with us, maybe in a smartphone or in a diary or whatever and whenever we are doing some activity, at that time remind us, I am doing this because this, this, this reasons and then that intellectual impetus will bring some sobriety to the mind will make the mind sober and even if the mind doesn’t become sober, at least our intelligence will be sober and then even if the mind goes here and there, we will drag it back. So, Krishna says, wherever, whenever the mind wanders, bring it back under the control of the self.
That we will do, how? In the previous verse 6.25 says, if our intelligence is sustained by conviction. So, we have to associate with serious devotees associate with those who are grave and also use our intelligence to cultivate gravity and that’s why having something written is helpful because when I am just studying scripture, at that time there are so many different thoughts going on in the mind, at that time the intelligence will not be able to recollect why am I doing all this? But if I have something written already, then I will be able to summon it, I will be able to get it, grasp it and I will be able to use it well.