Wishing you all a very Happy New Year! It was wonderful to see everyone.
We started the class with meditation and then learned BG ch. 3 till verse 26.
Today, we reviewed chapters 5 and 6. So far, we were still reviewing last year's shaTkam (6 chapters), in preparation to learn the shaTkam assigned for this year.
We saw that Arjuna asked, what is the best way of performing actions? Should we do them selflessly or just give up doing actions altogether?
Is it truly possible to give up actions? If I am 'sitting' quietly, I am doing something (sitting is an action :). Even if am doing nothing, I am 'doing' nothing :)).
It is simply impossible for us to refrain from actions. Actions are not only physical actions, even thinking thoughts is an action.
So, Krishna said, 'no matter what you do, do your actions being in nirdvandva (without pairs of opposites) - like/dislike; pain/pleasure; hot/cold; high/low; etc.
So, does that mean I shouldn't feel cold in the middle of winter? Not really. Krishna is saying that, do not complain or overly indulge in anything.
To do that, we have to withdraw our senses. Sense organs only draw us to the world outside and give us cycles of pleasure/pain; birth/death; etc.
It means that one has to live like a lotus leaf in water - though it is in water, it doesn't get affected or damaged by the water!
To perform actions in this way, mind and intellect have to be integrated. Because the mind is emotional whereas intellect is rational. When the two are in agreement, it becomes easier for us to perform actions selflessly.
How do we do this? When asked, one of our students said, 'maybe meditation...?' She was on point! The name of the 6th chapter itself is 'dhyaana yoga' where Krishna speaks about meditation to integrate the mind.
The best place to practice that is in the seat of meditation. Krishna explained exactly how to sit and what to do in meditation.
Our students said, 'it is interesting that we already do exactly what Krishna has said in this chapter!' Yes! we follow what Krishna said and try to feel the calmness of the mind.
We all understand what Krishna said, but why are we still unhappy? Our students said, 'it is not easy to apply this always. That's why...' They were totally on point in answering many questions today!!
Yes, our sense organs are constantly running outward and distract us from putting the teachings to practice all the time. The below picture explains our efforts in trying to let go (not!) 🙂
We are exactly like this octopus, constantly thinking we learned but would have faltered elsewhere. So, we have to remind ourselves to be equanimous as much as possible.
The conversations about meditation itself were very interesting. One student said, 'we can't close our eyes and meditate all the time.' Another said, 'we don't need to close our eyes to be aware and alert'. Yes! When we practice with closed eyes, we will get better at keeping the same mindset with open eyes.
Following our hobby or passion can be considered meditation also. When we focus on one thing and do the actions by being in the moment, that is meditation.
When we do not have doership, those actions become selfless actions.
To understand this better, let's say, someone brought some delicious pasta to a get-together. There was a prize for the best dish and everyone voted for the pasta. But no one knew who made the pasta. The person who made it didn't come forward and say I made it... Then who gets the prize?!
Similarly, when we perform our actions without doership, the result of those actions (karma phalam) will not affect us.
This helps us to improve ourselves and the world around us.
The below picture tells a lot about what meditation can do for the world!
The RAW for this week is - to notice yourself and see if any of your actions qualify for meditation.
We heard 2 funny stories about the psychology of people and current events too. Overall, it was a fun class :).
Note: There's a change in the BV calendar. NO Bala Vihar on the 15th, but we WILL have Bala Vihar on the 22nd. See you then.
Regards,
Rashmi.
