Thursday, January 15, 2009

Five state of mind by swami Jyotirmayananda

I am here in Morris Library and while taking a study break I came across this "International Yoga Guide" and it has this wonderful article about 5 states of mind by Swami Jyotirmayananda. I am reproducing the essence of that here.

  • Mudha (dull)
  • Kshipta (distracted)
  • Vikshipta (partially gathered)
  • Ekagrata (one pointed)
  • Niruddha (controlled)

The lowest state of mind is mudha or dull state. In this state mind is dominated by gross impurities and increasing tamas (inertia)

The next state is kshipta state, in which mind is distracted under the sway of attachment and hatred (raga and dwesha) and is constantly fluctuating under the influence of rajas (restless externalization). The mind in this state is full of desires and ideas that make the personality ostentatious.

Truly great accomplishments in the spiritual as well as practical realms are not possible in this state, because in order to handle any work successfully, your mind has to be fre of the turmoil of likes and dislikes. If your mind is agitated, you won't be able to do gardening. When you want to sow potatoes, for instatnce, you'll end up sowing turnips. A distracted mind wastes a lot of energy.

Vikshipta is the state of mind that is partially concentrated and partially distracted. It develops as sattwas (purity) begins to dominate rajas. Vikshipta implies that the mind is being gradually disciplined. People who belong to this category in society are considered well-cultured. However they are not yogis, because even though they may be good and virtuous, they behave this way only in a conditioned environment. If they are placed in the situation of great provocation, they will lose their patience. Since they have a limit to their patience, they have not really accomplished mastery over themselves.

When sattwa completely dominate rajas, one develops the fouth state of mind - ekagrata (one-pointedness). Sattwa increased and began controlling rajas in the vikshipta state, but the process had not become complete. In the ekagrata state, the mind is permeated by sattwa. This is the sublime stateof mind in advanced aspiratns. When you enter into the ekagrata state, you begin to experience samadhi (superconciousness), a realm that is most fascinating and inspiring. However it is not easy to enter into samadhi. Your whole personality must change in order to prepare the mind to be tranquil, thereby enjoying what is beyond the mind.

The fifth and the highest state is known as niruddha, the enlightened state of mind that belongs to the fully realized Yogis. In this state, the mind is absolutely controlled because the spirit has transcended the mind, becoming completely established in the transcendental plane.

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