Hari Aum.
The Gurus of all spiritual traditions warn their students not to waste time. They tell us that time is a precious resource that cannot be got back.
What constitutes a waste of time? Well, the Gurus would say anything that does not lead us Godwards is a complete waste of time.
Out of every twenty-four hours, the problem is that we often find ourselves wasting time idling away in complete pointless pursuits and following utterly absurd trains of thought. The annoying thing is that it is very difficult to be one hundred per cent disciplined all the time. It is hard to control the wayward mind all the time. Overdoing it can lead to the mind rebelling like a difficult toddler and going completely off the spiritual path.
So, one has to handle the mind with infinite patience. Not easy at all. Those of you who have small children are probably familiar with their random, completely out-of-the-blue tantrums. It is impossible to reason with very small children as this faculty has simply not yet developed in them. It can be a nightmare for the poor parents who are trying to convince a toddler to do something sensible, like get to bed on time for example (they often try to resist sleep even when very tired).
One needs a combination of kindness, firmness and above all, patience (a lot of patience) to deal with a very small child and their endless tantrums (as my experience in dealing with my three-year-old has shown me).
The human mind, even in adults, sometimes goes into a time-wasting, disobedient mode. There are times when we need to let it do exactly that-- be a little bit disobedient. And times, when we need to coax it into being productive.
But the bottom line is that the time we waste in pointless, unspiritual activities will never come back. That is a sad fact. We need to therefore get our act together and plan our time, plan our day, in such a way that it is productive, at least on some level.
Sivananda wrote out some suggested daily spiritual routines for his students and tweaked these to make them suitable to various stages of life. The link below is his 'routine for busy people'. There are various other suggested routines in the same section of the website. One need not follow his recommended routine to the letter but this can inspire us to make our own timetable of daily activities that is suited to our specific circumstances. This will help ensure that the mind is compelled to do something useful every day.
I have had a habit of writing out a timetable of daily activities for a long time. This served me well when I was a student and has been helpful in managing my time now that I have a variety of commitments. I do find this useful and would highly recommend trying this out (if you are not doing this already). Of course, when one is on holiday or having a relaxing 'downtime' day, one may choose not to have a timetable and just let the day unfold naturally. But in general, having some sort of timetable helps get the most out of one's day, and thus over time, enables one to make the most of one's time on this planet.
Om Namo Narayanaya.
Hari Aum Tat Sat
Hello Dr. Vishnupriyaji,
ReplyDeleteI have started a japa practice but frankly I find keeping count very difficult- with including a Mala I find that I am so worried about maintaining the rules of keeping it above the navel and out of aight and so on that I am unable to focus my mind on my mantra. Would it be wrong to set a timer for approximately how long it takes to say thr mantra 108 times and use that as an approximate? My mind easily gets caught up with rules and I don't want that to overshadow my focus on saying the mantra with full devotion
Hello,
DeleteIt's great to hear that you have started the japa practice-- well done! There are usually a few teething issues initally when one gets started but things will fall into place gradually and become comfortable.
About keeping count of mantra recitations, it is perfectly fine to use a watch or timer. If you know how long it takes you to say the mantra 108 times, it is fine to recite the mantra for that period of time.
Just to add, people who use a japa mala (like myself) use a special 'japa mala bag' which ensures the mala stays both out of sight and above the navel (it is often held near the heart /anahata chakra while chanting). These are available from various yoga stores and suit many people; however a timer is equally acceptable (Sivananda says both methods are fine in his book 'Japa Yoga').
Well done again for starting your journey on the wonderful path of mantra japa. May God and Guru bless you with every success, both spiritual and material, and the firm determination to keep going with the practice until you achieve your goal.
Om shanti
Vishnupriya
Thank you vishnupriyaji! 😊 I wish I had seen the post about selecting a good day to start off before I started but anyday we begin can be a good day if we do it with devotion and love for Ishvara, no?
ReplyDeleteI am the kind of person who can get tormented by rules and whcich rules are the "right rules" and i become fearful if they are not followed exactly and it distracts me from being loving. After all I am seeking moksha not a divine rule book no? If I only focus on the rules and lose sight of God then what is the point, this is how I feel.
That's not to say one shouldn't have any rules... of course a person will concentrate better if the environment is set up well, society should have some rules to prevent adharma, etc. So it's not that I am an anarchist but I am just someone who doesn't want to get stuck in shouldn't and should which easily goes and gets lodged in my mind.
Thank you for the encouragement and thr inspiration. I feel truly blessed to have these thoughts this mind and this body which can investigate independently and seek Bhagavaan.
You're most welcome. That is very much my view too...rules have a role but they are definitely not everything. Cultivating devotion or love for Ishwara is the key.
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