The Mind

Is our mind capable of seeing the reality of the universe? Albert Einstein, in Einstein: His Life and Universe, is quoted as having said, “Try to penetrate with our limited means the secrets of nature and you will find that behind all the discernable laws and connections, there remains something subtle, intangible and inexplicable.”

And Maharaj Charan Singh says:

God gave us intellect to carry on the works of this world of phenomena. Beyond that our wisdom cannot reach.… One who relies on reason alone cannot attain true knowledge (knowledge of the Lord). Reasoning is the function of our physical brain.…
God and things spiritual can be realized only by the direct perception of the soul, through contact with Shabd. The soul can perceive clearly without going through the process of reasoning. Our mind is too feeble and limited to comprehend the unlimited and incomprehensible One. It is the Lord’s will that we should rise above cold reason and fly towards him on the wings of love and faith.
_{Divine Light}

Still, we try to make sense of the world with our mind, and it persists in convincing us that its reality should be our reality. But what we seek is something more lasting, more true; we seek an absolute reality, we seek to comprehend “the unlimited and incomprehensible One.” So the problem becomes: How can true knowledge enter a deluded and ever changing mind? How can we transcend the world of relativity and duality?

The Masters explain that while the mind can be subdued for a short period of time through sacrifices and austerities, it cannot permanently be won over in this manner. Since the mind’s nature is impulsive and attached to the emotions, it must find something that is permanent and that brings real bliss in order to control it.

Guru Ram Das as quoted in Jap Ji: A Perspective says:

Every moment the mind rushes about in delusion
and does not, even for an instant, stay in its home.
When the Guru applies the goad of Shabd on its head,
it comes back to inhabit its own mansion.

Guru Ram Das says that the powerful mind, which is always running after material objects, beauty and sensual pleasures, can be subdued through the “goad of Shabd on its head”. This suggests that we can convert the mind that we use to operate in the illusory world into a mind that pulls us inward and upward, towards the unlimited and incomprehensible. This is not so easy because of the very nature of its duality. Kabir Sahib as quoted in Jap Ji: A Perspective says, “This mind is maya, this mind is a divine entity; this mind is also the essence of the five elements.” The mind is both divine and part of maya. It is when the mind becomes subdued through contact with the Shabd the individual becomes capable of seeing Reality clearly.

Kabir continues:

When the mind realizes its essence, it is contented.
One who knows the mystery understands the mind.
Let no one delay the union of the mind with its source.
One finds the Truth when one is absorbed in the Truth.
Our business is with the mind –
one who disciplines one’s mind becomes perfect.

When the mind merges with its source through meditation all impressions are erased and the mind becomes pure. The very mind which dominated the soul can then begin working for the soul.The mind and soul then become obedient to the will of the Lord. And what is the will of the Lord? As Maharaj Charan Singh says in Divine Light: “It is the Lord’s will that we should rise above cold reason and fly towards him on the wings of love and faith.”

With both your body and mind,
sit in the company of the Saints
and you will receive the Nam
that leads you to the true Lord, Satnam.…
Your breath is like a drumbeat,
constantly proclaiming the departure
of the caravan of life.
Radha Soami has docked his ship –
come on board and cross the ocean free of charge.
_{Soami Ji Maharaj, Sar Bachan Poetry}