Vagaries of the Mind
The mind is like a clean mirror. It has no intrinsic power of its own to directly experience the sense objects, except through the concerned sense organs. For instance, it can see only through the eyes and hear only through the ears but can neither see nor hear by itself independently. Consequently, the offenses committed by the senses are reflected in the mirror of mind. No blame attaches to the mind per se. It is the association with the wayward senses that pollutes the mind. According to the scriptures, the mind is subject to three kinds of pollution: mala [impurities like lust, anger, & greed], vikshepa [mental oscillation], and avarana [veil of ignorance].
What is mala? Man commits many offenses, knowingly or unknowingly, not only in this life but also in previous lives. The imprint of these actions is carried by the chitta [memory] life after life, like the dust accumulating on the surface of a mirror day after day. Thus the mirror of man’s mind gets covered up by such dirt, called mala. On account of this mala, man is unable to see clearly the reflection of his real identity in the mirror of his mind. Hence, it is necessary to cleanse the mirror of the impurities covering it. This cleansing is done by regulating one’s food and other living habits including recreation.
The Lord dwells in every one as Vaiswanara [the digestive fire] and digests the different kinds of food that is consumed. If you eat food without first offering it to God, you will be affected by all the impurities and defects present in it. On the contrary, if you offer the food to the Lord before eating, all the impurities in the food are thereby eliminated. This helps the process of gradually cleansing the mind of its impurity or dirt called mala.
The second distortion of the mind called vikshepa is due to the constant wavering of the mind, like the movements of the reflected image in a mirror that is kept moving or shaking frequently. To control this waywardness of the mind, one should undertake various spiritual practices like meditation, prayer, and the nine modes of devotion mentioned in the Scriptures… If you discharge your duties properly and lead your lives on these lines that broaden and purify your minds and hearts, your mind will automatically become free from the distortion of vikshepa and you will acquire steadiness and concentration of mind without the need for any other spiritual disciplines.
The third distortion of the mind is avarana. This may be likened to a thick cloth covering the mirror of man’s mind, that does not permit any reflection whatsoever of the image of the self. Thus, while mala does not enable us to have a clear and correct image of the self, and while vikshepa results in seeing the self as wavering, avarana altogether hides the reality–self, and makes one identify himself wrongly with his body. What exactly is the thick cloth that covers the mirror of one’s mind? This cloth is made up of the arishadvarg [the gang of six internal enemies of man]–kama [desire], krodha [anger], lobha [greed], moha [attachment], mada [pride], matsarya [jealousy, envy]. …The best means to remove this thick cloth of avarana is to develop love for all. Love is God, live in love.
Source: Discourse by Sri Sathya Sai Baba, 1990
Indian Culture & Spirituality–Vagaries of Mind, P. 78
