The Mind – An ever-rolling wheel

Patanjali calls it citta-srotah, the stream of mind. It is continuously filled with various interactions, experiences, and images. Modern psychologists called this a stream of consciousness. The stream has to be channelized in order to contemplate

We find several metaphors in our puranas to describe our mind. One purana says that God created the mind as a wheel whose nature was to keep rolling. The rim of the wheel is called 'nemi' in Sanskrit and the place where it stops is called 'naimisham'. Many stories were narrated by Suta to the sages in the sacred Naimisha forest (in the present day UP). Symbolically, it refers to a state of mind which has quietened from the incessant quest for things. It is the right frame of mind for any serious learning or for a spiritual quest. The wheel set in motion by the creator is said to have stopped there. It is also a forest, 'aranyam', which means a place where there is no 'rana', bustle of human noise. The mind needs to withdraw from noise to contemplate.

Vedanta examines the mind and identifies four levels. The first level (manas) is a mere cognition of an object through senses. The second level (buddhi) is evaluating and identifying the thing seen. The third level (aham) is the notion of 'I' in every person. Whatever is seen or experienced becomes 'my' knowledge. Finally, the fourth level (cittam) is that of recalling stored information. All these interactions are recorded in the form of thoughts. Patanjali shows how the mind continuously moves like a stream of thoughts, except in deep sleep. Patanjali calls it citta-srotah, the stream of mind. It is continuously filled with various interactions, experiences, and images. Modern psychologists called this a stream of consciousness. The stream has to be channelised in order to contemplate.

In the olden days, information was limited, and access to knowledge was limited. There was time to contemplate (otherwise known as tapas). Today, as we sit at home, our mind is bombarded by an information explosion. It has led to a surfeit of information and cluttering of mind. A great bonanza but also a great burden. Our attention-span is reduced to a few minutes so as to accommodate many other bits of information from several quarters. Digesting all such information is a stupendous task.

People start their day looking into messages from different social media and get drifted by what others say. How to avoid getting drifted? A flood of information disturbs us and, in some cases, leads to anxiety, despair or cynicism. Can we not discard most of them? We cannot set all the ills of the world right. Let us define our capabilities and work hard in that field. Keep the mind healthy. This is what the present-day psychologists advise in mindfulness meditation. Just analyse the feelings, emotions and disturbances caused by information and set the mind in order. This is what Patanjali's yoga is all about.

(Writer is former DGP, Andhra Pradesh)