Om Gurudevaya Namah
What is a mind that is free?
If analyse the quality of thoughts we entertain, we may find it is occupied with a whole lot of subjective thinking – meaning thinking which centres around the ego. So the mind is more often than naught occupied with :-
· thoughts of past – favourable and unfvourable, pleasant an unpleasant
· thoughts of future – favourable and unfavourable, pleasant and unpleasant
· thoughts of current situations – favourable and unfavourable, pleasant and unpleasant
· desires, hopes, expectations
· successes and their sweet fruits
· frustrations, disappointments
· sadness, hurt, guilt, fear, anger, worries and anxieties
· and above all relationships and our roles
This kind of constant preoccupation in the mind is binding – so much energy is locked up, energy that blocks us from experiencing the peace, harmony, contentment and joy of Being which is natural to us.
While in meditation or through breath-control one can train oneself to put aside this vortex of the mind, and enjoy relatively quiet and peaceful states of mind, in which one can see the truth of oneself to be peace and joy, using the knowledge gained through Vedanta sravanam, still until all the beliefs that constitute one’s core identity as an individual are not thoroughly negated as false, one simply cannot enjoy the freedom that one truly is, all the time. Jivan-mukti demands freedom from the hold of all false beliefs.
One can free oneself of one’s false beliefs when :-
1. one acknowledges what they are
2. one recognizes the non-negatable truth of the free self, shining in and thru them
3. one reiterates this truth even when the false beliefs appear to come up and appear as true.
It is not easy to do this. When false beliefs that constitute the core identity as an individual are triggered they seem to have a life of their own, appearing as totally real. These are the impressions, or conditioning or vasanas that one has to take care of.
Depending on the intensity of the vasana, one would have to use any method that works. Here psychological tools and energy healing modalities can be very useful to lessen the intensity or emotion generated by a false belief centered around self-identity which has been triggered. And when the intensity of emotion generated is reduced one will be able to use the knowledge gained through Vedanta sravanam to totally negate the false belief and free oneself of its hold.
This is tapascarya – the highest form of tapas is enquiring into the truth of I. Discovering and living from that truth is to truly be free of the mind.
