Summary:

In this session, we explore the difference between meditation and contemplation as discussed in the Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 6, Verses 14-17. Meditation (dhyānam) is described as a mental action for purifying the mind, while contemplation (nididhyasanam) is a means of knowledge to reveal the already true limitlessness.

The session delves into the results of meditation and contemplation, emphasizing the development of trust in Ishvara's infallible order as a path to peace and tranquility. It discusses the concept of absolute peace and cautions against mistaking it for constant bliss.

Practical lifestyle recommendations for successful meditation are provided, including moderation in eating and sleeping habits. The importance of mindfulness in activities is stressed, with guidance on becoming more deliberate and gaining mastery over sorrow or sadness from Vedantic perspective.

Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 6, Verse 14: 

प्रशान्त-आत्मा विगत-भीः ब्रह्मचारि-व्रते स्थितः ।
मनः संयम्य मत्-चित्तः युक्तः आसीत मत्-परः ॥ ६-१४॥
praśānta-ātmā vigata-bhīḥ brahmacāri-vrate sthitaḥ ।
manaḥ saṃyamya mat-cittaḥ yuktaḥ āsīta mat-paraḥ ॥ 6-14॥
…being the one whose mind is tranquil, who is free from fear, established in one’s commitment to the life of a brahmacārin, may (that) meditator sit thinking of Me, having Me as the ultimate goal, while withdrawing the mind from everything else.

In previous session we asked what is the difference between meditation and contemplation. Let's answer this…

• What is difference between Meditation & Contemplation:
  1. Meditation (dhyānam):
     • Mental karma whose subject matter is Ishvara. Every action is finite, thus gives finite results.
     • Purpose: Antahkarana-shuddhi – which involves cleaning up the mind of it's distortions, biases, judgements, employing japa, looking at past hurt arising, seeing how Ishvara relates to your life. All of this is for sake of becoming ready for knowledge. 
  2. Contemplation (nididhyasanam):
     • It is Pramana-pravrtti (using means-of-knowledge to see the reality) through: Listening, reflection, contemplation. Contemplation doesn’t fall under “karma” (gives limited results), but under Pramana-pravrtti, whose purpose is to reveal what’s already true (limitlessness).
     • Involves: Seeing your relationship to Ishvara. Rephrasing what you heard in own words.
  3. Action vs Knowledge:
     1. Category of Meditation (Dhyana):
        • Action: Purusha-tantra (Only becomes true when use free-will).
          • When situation presents itself, you have possibility of:
            1. kartum shakyam (do something)
            2. akartum shakyam (not do anything)
            3. anyatha kartum shakyam (do it differently).
          • EG: Can choose to meditate for X minutes, not meditate, meditate differently.
     2. Category of Contemplation (Nididhyasana):
        • Knowledge: Vastu-tantram (Is already true, independent of your free will)
          1. When your understanding is keeping with what-is, it’s knowledge:
             • Water remains water regardless of whether someone believes it to be Coke or Fanta. When you see it as bottle of water, and not Fanta/Coke, it’s called “knowledge” (or vastu-tantram; your understanding is true to the object).
               • SUMMARY: Your mind has to capture what’s already true. Water remains independent of your faculty of choice.
             • However knowledge of bottle will still give limited knowledge because it’s vijatiya-bheda (if it’s X, it’s not Y). Wishing to know anything within universe, will give limited knowledge.
             • Atma: The only knowledge which can be limitless in nature is Atma, because Self is already free of limitation. When Self is captured for what it is, that’s called “knowledge”.
          2. Role of free-will: Used to sit down and listen to means-of-knowledge. While listening, you’re not applying free-will to remove ignorances. Else would’ve removed it long time ago. In fact using free-will interferes with the knowledge helping transform your life. EG: Choosing to reject something just because it’s not comfortable for you.
        • SUMMARY: Vastu-tantra means: What you know is determined by nature of the object, and not by your opinion or what you think it is. Knowledge is type of vastu-tantra, but not all knowledge is vastu-tantra, because vastu-tantra specifically means “true knowledge”. If someone thinks that earth is flat, and they call that “knowledge”, that’s not vastu-tantra.
  4. In reference to VERSE 14:
     • Mat paraḥ (attaining Me): Nididhyasana.
     • Mat cittaḥ (dwell upon Me): Meditation. Dhyana.
• NEXT VERSE: What is result of meditation & contemplation?

Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 6, Verse 15: 

युञ्जन् एवं सदा आत्मानम् योगी नियत-मानसः ।
शान्तिम् निर्वाण-परमाम् मत्-संस्थाम् अधिगच्छति ॥ ६-१५॥
yuñjan evaṃ sadā ātmānam yogī niyata-mānasaḥ ।
śāntim nirvāṇa-paramām mat-saṃsthām adhigacchati ॥ 6-15॥
Always connecting the mind in this manner, the meditator, the one whose mind is mastered, gains the peace, which is centred on Me (which is in the form of an absorption in Me), which is the ultimate liberation.

• What is result of meditation & contemplation? śāntim nirvāṇa-paramām mat-saṃsthām adhigacchati
  • You enjoy certain amount of tranquility, peace, cheerfulness. Whereas non-understanding, brings restlessness, which we can’t stand, so it motivates the search.
• How to find relative tranquility, peace, cheerfulness? (Developing trust in Ishvara)
  • Upon birth, you come with 100% trust, as need to survive. But people who you trust totally, are all-over (contradict what they say/do, inattentive). Over time, lose trust. Distrust spills into adulthood.
  • How to recover the trust? The only place you rediscover trust is in infallibility of Ishvara (in form of laws, that always work, doesn’t make mistakes, world is not random, no action goes wasted). And in this trust is your peace, tranquility.
    • In other words, whether your actions produce pleasure or pain, it’s coming from infallible order that doesn’t make mistakes. Neither punished/rewarded. Order is impersonal/unbiased.
    • Worried about tomorrow?
      • If you’re worried of being untreated fairly tomorrow, then weak trust in Ishvara’s infallibility.
      • Correction: No matter what happens, there’s a connection to some unseen cause. Gives peace.
    • Can convert to prayer: “Whatever comes to my life, let me have capacity to see it’s impersonal”.
  • SUMMARY: You develop trust by recognizing Ishvara’s impersonal laws, always caring for you. Teacher tells you world is not illusion, but isha vasyam sarvam idam; all that is here is Ishvara.
• Once gain relative peace, then ready for absolute peace. What is absolute peace? (paramām śānti)
  • Truth of Me (limited knowledge-power) and Ishvara (all knowledge-power; from which all forms manifest) is Awareness. There’s a difference and sameness. There’s no second thing. Is there any vision that can improve on “You are limitless, the whole”? No.
  • Discovered via nididhyasanam (which involves Pramana-pravrtti; Using words of Vedanta to re-understand your relationship with Ishvara.).
  • Caution:
    • Don’t mistake “absolute peace” with mind being in one constant state of bliss.
    • Also can’t give attribute of “bliss” to Awareness, else can’t have not-bliss (99% of your life). Only way to understand Awareness is “It’s attribute free”.
• NEXT VERSE: For anyone to meditate successfully, a certain lifestyle is recommended…

Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 6, Verse 16: 

न अति अश्नतः तु योगः अस्ति न च एकान्तम् अनश्नतः ।
न च अति-स्वप्न-शीलस्य जाग्रतः न एव च अर्जुन ॥ ६-१६॥
na ati aśnataḥ tu yogaḥ asti na ca ekāntam anaśnataḥ ।
na ca ati-svapna-śīlasya jāgrataḥ na eva ca arjuna ॥ 6-16॥
Meditation is not for one who eats too much or for one who does not eat at all; nor indeed, Arjuna! (it is) for one who sleeps too much or who is always awake.

• Having a healthy relationship with food. If constantly eating, or overeat, takes energy away from brain (brain-fog), tired.  Similarly, if starve yourself in name of a yogic-lifestyle, equally brain can’t function optimally.
  • Tip: Before eating, prayer to bring in order of Ishvara and food.
• Sleeping too much / always awake:
  • Developing sensitivity for how much rest body needs to function optimally throughout day. Also not waking up too late that you feel guilty.  
  • Can’t sleep? Ruminating on things you have no control over. Know what you can control, think solution mode. Write it out.
• NEXT VERSE: Same idea…

Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 6, Verse 17: 

युक्त-आहार-विहारस्य युक्त-चेष्टस्य कर्मसु ।
युक्त-स्वप्न-अवबोधस्य योगः भवति दुःखहा ॥ ६-१७॥
yukta-āhāra-vihārasya yukta-ceṣṭasya karmasu ।
yukta-svapna-avabodhasya yogaḥ bhavati duḥkhahā ॥ 6-17॥
For one who is moderate in eating and other activities, who is mindful in all activities, (and) to one’s sleeping and waking hours, (for such a person) meditation becomes the destroyer of sorrow.

• Moderate in eating: Spoken in V16.
• Mindful in activities:
  • Person has become more deliberate. Less mechanical (habitual pattern that prevents you from thinking fresh each time).
  • How to become more deliberate?
    • “What evidence do I have that this is an absolute fact?”. Unless intercept, mind will settle with what’s easy.
    • Mindfulness is NOT about feeling into your body, observing taste of food in your mouth, swallowing the food, etc. It’s impractical in real life, you likely won’t persist in it.
• Duḥkhahā: For this person with moderation, meditation helps one gain mastery over sorrow.
  1. Relative mastery over sorrow:
     • Doesn’t mean never having feeling of sadness. But if don’t keep check on your stories – they build on, becoming more dominant. What generally makes a depressed person is one has lost sight what was original though that caused the initial sadness. Eventually becomes series-of-related-thoughts. Lost touch with what’s working in my life.
     • Solution (for depression/grief/sorrow/sadness):
       1. Get specific. What are you feeling anxious/sad about?
       2. Japa. Brings mind back.
       3. YOU CONNECTION TO ISHVARA: See your connection to Ishvara. You play a very important role in grand scheme of things. You’re given opportunity each day to find solutions.
       4. TRUSTEESHIP: You have no right to abuse or load your body-mind, as you’re a trustee for a length of time, not an owner. Trusteeship comes with responsibility. Ownership brings abuse.  Prevalent in legal system: That’s why suicide is consider a crime. Or you pay taxes.
       5. PRAYER: Converting helplessness to action via prayer.
  2. Absolute mastery over sorrow/grief:
     1. BG2.11: Wise people don’t grieve for those who come and go. Doesn’t mean insensitive. Wise person knows the only truth is Atma (unchanging, eternal). While mind is meant to change. This is samatvam (equanimous mind).
     2. DOESN’T MEAN CONSTANT HAPPY STATE: Vedanta growth doesn’t mean making mind in a constant happy state (else give self hard time, and nobody can relate to you). Task is to deal with what’s infront of you, intelligently. Mind is meant to change states.
     3. RELATIONSHIP TO SORROW: If there is grief, don’t stop it. Let it. Then bring in Ishvara’s order. Unnatural: Denial of sorrow / Stuck in grief.
• NEXT VERSE: How to manage desires?…

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Recorded 12 July, 2024