om mind
Finding awareness, greater calm and
a path to a happier, more fulfilling
life through meditation. By Swami
Nishchalananda
T
he yogic texts tell us that ‘identification is the cause of
bondage and non-identification is the key to wisdom’.
What does this mean? Basically, it means that rigid
self-identification (identification with the ego) keeps
us bound in fixed ways of thinking and behaviour.
By ceasing to totally identify with our personality we allow space
for a fundamental dimension of our being to reveal itself. Self-
identification moves on to a deeper level, our perspective changes
and we start to have a more objective attitude to our ‘own’ mind.
As a direct result of this we are gradually freed from the fetters of
emotional and mental conditioning.
There is no end to thought patterns and mental fluctuations. We
can’t stop the mind thinking, just as we can’t stop the heart beating
(at least without suffering disastrous consequences!). The mind by
its nature is always active both in daily life and even when we sleep.
Though the mind is necessary in order that we can live and
function in the world, from the point of view of wisdom, it is also
the veil which prevents deeper understanding. We need it — and
yet it is an obstruction to insight. All mystical paths, including yoga,
tell us that to realise the profound depths of our being we need to
‘see’ beyond the conditioned functioning of the mind. Indeed, the
one definition of yoga recorded in the classical Yoga Sutra tells us
in no uncertain words: yoga is the cessation of the patterns
of mind.
This defines yoga, not so much as a practice, but as a state of
being. It is a fundamental premise of yoga that the ‘practice’ of
yoga can also lead to the ‘experience’ of yoga.
From another tradition, the native American Yaqui shaman Don
Juan says: Only when the inner dialogue stops can the hidden
parts of our self be seen and revealed.
In many other mystical traditions we find almost identical
statements
You may say, ‘this is all very well, but my mind is still in a
constant state of chatter’. So, how to stop it, let alone to see
beyond it?’
The path of yoga proposes two complementary approaches:
n stilling the mind.
n dis-identification with the mind.Stilling the mind
First of all, we practice yoga, following any path, or paths, that suit
our particular temperament. In the modern world, hatha yoga is
very popular. Practicing any of the techniques does help to still
the mind. During our very first yoga class we discover this to be
so. This stillness of mind may not last very long – as soon as we
finish our practice we are again assaulted by our anxieties and
preoccupations. But at least we have had a taste. We realise that
calming the mind does give us a deeper sense of joy, clarity and
even meaning.
Other paths of yoga – such as mantra yoga or kriya yoga –
may suit us more. They all have the same aim: to still the mind.
You may also seriously undertake the practice of dhyana yoga, or
meditation, which helps us to delve into the deeper levels of the