To achieve mastery of any activity requires discipline. Ask any athlete, musician, trader or in fact anyone. Anything less and you are still a student. Only those with discipline become masters of their art. And when the art is that of living, then to succeed we all make some tough and restrictive decisions on how we use our time and our bodies. Duty calls, and the to-do list is never empty. So we forgo certain indulgences in order to get better use out of our time and bodies. That’s how we succeed at the art of living.
Similarly, when the art is that of self-mastery on a path of transcendence, then similar discipline is required. Forgoing some pleasures in order to gain more time means that the alternative is sweeter. Self-discipline may be bitter in the beginning but sweet in the end, like long term investing. It pays off to think long term. And on the journey of ultimate transcendence, the goal is liberation from the cycle of repeated birth and death, and even in this life, the liberation from the demanding mind and senses. If we can – in this lifetime – find a way to achieve real peace of mind on a regular and repeated basis, then we will be laying the foundation for the ultimate liberation because a peaceful and happy mindset is in the mode of goodness, or “sattva guna”. And this mode is the platform for liberation to “suddha-sattva” or pure goodness or transcendence.
Time management, along with regulation on a daily basis, plus sense management or disciplining the senses, all add up to the lifestyle that is required to attain liberation and the perfection of yoga. The secret is a regulated lifestyle. In other words, some degree of self-discipline and structure is crucial. The eightfold yoga process, called “ashtanga yoga” begins with the application of “yama” and “niyama”, or do’s and dont’s. In other words regulation of one’s daily habits is the very beginning of the yoga path. Everything else, like “asana” and “pranayama” what to speak of “samadhi” at the end, all depend on laying the healthy foundation of a life regulated by adopting the good and removing the bad actions and objects of attention.
Total renunciation is not for everyone, yet some degree of restriction or discipline is the middle way that enables one to control the mind and senses, with, for example, little rewards after fasting from any object of sense gratification. This is what is meant by regulated sense gratification. The middle way means we refrain from austere or artificial attempts at renunciation while allowing for that which will be favorable to attaining our goal of mastering the mind and senses. That is what mastery ultimately means – master your own mind and senses and you will be able to use this body and mind as a tool for your ultimate goal of liberating consciousness from the need for a body altogether.
The Bhagavad Gita actually explains that once attachment and aversion are mastered, and the senses are controlled, then we actually have the key to attracting the mercy of the gods, if you wish to use mythic terms. The goal of yoga, for example the activation of pineal and pituitary potential, and the release of the drops of nectar from the pineal gland that empower the yogi and provide the transcendent state of consciousness, this goal can be achieved only by one who has first mastered the mind and senses.
This body/mind is a tool and certain activities will assist it and others will hinder it in attaining the ultimate goal for which it was built, namely liberation and transcendence. Much of it is a science, where actual hormones are released in the brain under the right circumstances. And the rest of it is subtle science, or metaphysics, being able to receive the power from a higher source, whether the sun, the cosmic rays, or some source of power greater than us, personalized as ones deity or higher self, called Paramatma (supersoul) in Sanskrit. This godhead is known also as Krishna, Rama, Vishnu, Narayana, and by multitudes of other names that describe the characteristics of the godhead or original causeless cause of all causes, or the source.
Whatever yoga practice you pursue, or path you walk to freedom and liberation from the dictates of the mind and senses, as well as from the body in the end, all self-mastery requires the basic practice of discipline, which means doing the needful whether the senses like it or not, and avoiding the foolish, even if the senses find it attractive. Yet to acquire this ability to master the mind and senses, we require a higher taste for something more valuable. Not everyone will discover some thing more valuable than sense gratification. For the poor (whether in wealth or knowledge) food is said to be heaven.
Those on the platform of the senses may not know of the higher pleasures, gifts, states of consciousness that are like nectar and against which other sense pleasure pale in comparison. Some yogis apparently attained such gifts as a bi-product of their meditation, where any food they desired was available to them by the mystic art of instant attraction from a distance. And remember this is merely a small side effect on the way to the real goal, namely discovering ourselves as consciousness beyond the limits of the body altogether.
Of course, if you don’t know there is more on offer, you will never get the inclination to aspire for it, so deep knowledge of consciousness is crucial. Along with a searching curiosity perhaps. Nihilism today says just enjoy the body and senses since that’s all we can measure and experience in the real world. Yet this is the opposite of those who aspire toward transcendence via yoga and meditation. The yogi is one who has knowledge of the arts by which one can tap the nectar of immortality, even in this lifetime, if you just care to learn about the pineal and the hormones released under the right yoga practice with time.
Rejuvenation and cessation of ageing are just some of the results of getting it right. So consider what real pleasure is and then choose yours on whatever level you are able to comprehend your reality. It’s up to you and how much you know or don’t know about yourself and your real potential in this valuable human form of life. Once you know and have glimpsed the possibilities, that higher taste will make it easy to control the mind and senses via the regulated principles of freedom.
Bhagavad Gita ch2:64
रागद्वेषविमुक्तैस्तु विषयनिन्द्रियैश्चरन् ।
आत्मवश्यैर्विधेयात्मा प्रसादमधिगच्छति ॥ ६४ ॥
rāga-dveṣa-vimuktais tu
viṣayān indriyaiś caran
ātma-vaśyair vidheyātmā
prasādam adhigacchati
rāga—attachment; dveṣa—detachment; vimuktaiḥ—by one who has been free from such things; tu—but; viṣayān—sense objects; indriyaiḥ—by the senses; caran—acting; ātma-vaśyaiḥ—one who has control over; vidheyātmā—one who follows regulated freedom; prasādam—the mercy of the Lord; adhigacchati—attains
TRANSLATION
One who can control his senses by practicing the regulated principles of freedom can obtain the complete mercy of the Lord and thus become free from all attachment and aversion.
COMMENTARY
It is already explained that one may externally control the senses by some artificial process, but unless the senses are engaged in the transcendental service of the Lord, there is every chance of a fall. Although the person in full Kṛṣṇa consciousness may apparently be on the sensual plane, because of his being Kṛṣṇa conscious, he has no attachment to sensual activities. The Kṛṣṇa conscious person is concerned only with the satisfaction of Kṛṣṇa, and nothing else. Therefore he is transcendental to all attachment. If Kṛṣṇa wants, the devotee can do anything which is ordinarily undesirable; and if Kṛṣṇa does not want, he shall not do that which he would have ordinarily done for his own satisfaction. Therefore to act or not to act is within his control because he acts only under the direction of Kṛṣṇa. This consciousness is the causeless mercy of the Lord, which the devotee can achieve in spite of his being attached to the sensual platform.
Reference: Bhagavad Gita As It Is translation and commentary by Swami A. C. Bhaktivedanta, original 1972 Macmillan edition (www.prabhupadabooks.com)
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