Control the Mind

Control the Mind

by Swami Sivananda

If you take pure food, you will have a pure mind. Mind is formed out of the subtlest essence of food. If you have purity of mind, you will remember God or Atman. If you always remember God or Atman, the knots of the heart, viz., Avidya, Kama, Karma (ignorance, desire and action) will be rent asunder. You will attain Moksha.

That form which the infinite, all-pervading Atman has assumed through its power of imagination is called mind. Mind creates and destroys. It creates the whole universe by its power of imagination. It is the creator and enjoyer of all happiness and miseries. It is the cause for bondage and liberation. Mind is all. It is everything. It is your true friend and bad enemy. It causes various attachments. It is filled with various base desires and appetites. The highest mind is a rare friend and benefactor because it imparts true counsels in the way of obtaining the supreme Goal of life. The higher mind becomes your guiding Guru. Hear its sweet, small voice and follow its instructions. The voice of the pure mind is the voice of the God. It is an infallible voice. In the Gita (VI-5 &6) you will find: A man should uplift himself by his own self, so let him not weaken this self. For this Self is the friend of oneself and this Self is the enemy of oneself. The Self is the friend of the Self for him who has conquered himself by the Self. But to the unconquered Self the Self is inimical (and behaves) like an external foe. There is no other vessel on this earth to wade the ocean of Samsara than the mastery of the lower instinctive mind.Your character depends upon the quality of thoughts held in your mind and the mental pictures and ideals entertained by you. If your thoughts are of a base nature, you will have a bad character. If you entertain noble thoughts, sublime ideals and holy pictures, you will have a magnanimous character. You will be a centre of joy, power and peace. If you develop the practice of cultivating sublime divine thoughts, all base thoughts will perish by themselves gradually. Just as darkness cannot stand before the sun, so also evil thoughts cannot stand before the sublime thoughts.

Control the Mind – Discipline, Awareness, and Inner Freedom

Control the Mind is one of the most important teachings in spiritual life. The mind is the center of thoughts, emotions, desires, memories, fears, hopes, and reactions. If the mind is restless, life becomes restless. If the mind is peaceful, life becomes peaceful. Therefore, the one who learns to control the mind learns the secret of strength, balance, and inner freedom.

The uncontrolled mind is like a wild horse. It runs toward sense objects, old memories, future worries, likes, dislikes, and endless desires. One moment it seeks pleasure, another moment it fears pain. One moment it is excited, another moment it is depressed. A person who follows every movement of the mind becomes weak and dependent on outer conditions. Control the Mind means bringing this scattered force under wise guidance.

Mind control does not mean destroying the mind or suppressing it harshly. The mind is a useful instrument when it is trained. It can think clearly, love deeply, concentrate powerfully, and realize truth. The problem is not the existence of the mind, but its lack of discipline. Just as a river becomes useful when its waters are directed, the mind becomes powerful when its energy is properly guided.

Control the Mind begins with observation. Many people are ruled by thoughts because they do not watch them. Anger arises, and they immediately speak harshly. Desire arises, and they immediately follow it. Fear arises, and they stop acting wisely. The first step is to pause and observe: “What is happening in my mind?” This awareness creates distance between the person and the mental movement.

The senses are closely connected with the mind. The eyes, ears, tongue, skin, and nose constantly pull attention outward. If the senses are uncontrolled, the mind becomes scattered. Therefore, moderation is necessary in food, speech, entertainment, pleasure, and social activity. Sense control is not hatred of life; it is intelligent use of life. It protects mental strength.

Control the Mind also requires purity of thought. Thoughts are seeds of action. Repeated negative thoughts create harmful habits, while noble thoughts create noble character. A seeker should replace anger with patience, jealousy with appreciation, fear with faith, and selfishness with service. The mind becomes what it repeatedly thinks. Therefore, thought discipline is essential.

Regular meditation is a powerful method for mind control. In meditation, the seeker sits quietly, watches the breath, repeats a sacred name, or focuses on a noble idea. At first, the mind may wander many times. This is natural. The practice is to bring it back gently again and again. Each return strengthens inner mastery. Slowly, the mind becomes calmer and more obedient.

Control the Mind also needs discrimination. The mind often runs after what is pleasant, not what is beneficial. It chooses temporary pleasure over long-term peace. Discrimination helps a person ask, “Will this thought or action lead to freedom or bondage? Will it purify me or disturb me?” Such questioning prevents the mind from blindly following desire.

Good company plays an important role. The mind absorbs impressions from people, books, conversations, media, and surroundings. If one constantly lives among restless and negative influences, the mind becomes disturbed. Noble company, inspiring study, prayer, silence, and association with sincere seekers strengthen mental purity and discipline.

Control the Mind is also supported by selfless action. When a person serves others without selfish expectation, the mind becomes less centered on “I” and “mine.” Service reduces ego and expands the heart. Work done as duty and offering purifies the mind and makes it fit for meditation and knowledge.

The greatest obstacles to mind control are desire, anger, laziness, fear, pride, and attachment. These should not be ignored. A seeker must recognize them clearly and deal with them patiently. Desire can be reduced by contentment. Anger can be controlled by forgiveness. Laziness can be overcome by discipline. Fear can be weakened by faith. Pride can be softened by humility.

A controlled mind brings many benefits. It improves concentration, speech, conduct, relationships, health, and spiritual practice. A person with a disciplined mind does not react blindly to praise or blame. They do not become proud in success or broken in failure. They remain steady because their peace is not completely dependent on outer events.

Control the Mind is necessary for self-knowledge. Vedanta teaches that the true self is beyond the body and mind, but this truth cannot be realized by a scattered mind. The mind must become pure, calm, and subtle. Then it reflects the light of the self clearly, just as a clean mirror reflects the face.

Daily practice is very important. A few minutes of meditation, careful speech, moderate food, honest work, noble reading, prayer, and self-reflection can gradually transform the mind. At night, one may ask, “Did I control my thoughts today? Did anger rule me? Did desire pull me? Did I act from wisdom?” Such reflection strengthens awareness.

In the end, Control the Mind is the doorway to peace, strength, and liberation. The mind can be a servant or a master. If it rules the person, there is bondage. If it is guided by wisdom, there is freedom. Through observation, discipline, meditation, purity, selfless service, and discrimination, the mind becomes calm and powerful. A controlled mind becomes a friend on the path to truth and self-realization.

Philosophy of Desire