Welcome to the second in series 'Know Mind, Know life'.

Through this blog, we

undertake a journey to understand our greatest friend or foe, the Mind. The
insigths, wherever provided in this blog, are assimlations of thoughts and words
uttered by the great mystics, both living and non-living! Lets commence further our
journey to know more about Mind through conversations between two bosom friends,
scholar Neel and his dearest friend Som! With these thoughts, we now join Som in
his pursuit of success in life!

Som's inquest into mind and path to success!

Som got down from his bike and had a quick glimpse of his watch. It was 7 PM. That
was the time that both Neel and he had agreed for the gyaan (knowledge meet). He
knew that Neel was a man of principles and one of them that he consistently
followed was; he invariably finished his dinner by 7PM.

He walked into the compound and then reached for the door bell, gently pressing
it.The door opened and it was Mr. Pavan, Neels father, with a bright smile on his
lips. "Hey Som, nice to see you after a long time! Come in. Neel's upstairs" he
said as he walked into a small portico and then a big hall, to where Neel's mother
Mrs Vaani was.

"Thanks Mr Pavan, so nice to see you too" as he walked in. As both Mr Pavan and Mrs
Vaani stood with a smile, Som quickly bent down to touch their feet to seek their
blessings.

" Thats fine son Som, so nice to see you.We are delighted with your coming here and
Neel would be mighty pleased to spend his time chatting with his dearest friend"
Mrs Vaani said with a pleasant smile.

"Thanks Aunty. As you are blessed to have a pandit (scholar) son and I too am
blessed to have such a friend as Neel! I cant wait to have this meeting with him
today. I feel it would be key moment in my life"

"Great son, you and Neel, we would not come in between you two, please rush to
catch him upstairs" Neels mother said with a laugh.

Som quickly turned towards the flight of stairs and in a jiffy ran upstairs,the
final steps leading to a hall. He quickly turned to his right to see Neel glancing
through a book, sitting on a beautiful maroon-red carpet laid on the floor,

"Neel, am in time for the agreed meet, yeah !" he said with his voice betraying
excitement, akin to a child that is excited upon getting its box containing a
surprise gift. Som knew that Neel usually went to bed around 10PM and he had a good
2.5 hours time,to understand Neel's views and get his doubts clarified.

"Hey Somy. Come, was eagerly waiting for you !" replied Neel with a beaming smile,
as he kept the book back on the shelf near by. They enjoyed themselves in each
others company. While Som always liked to listen to Neel, awestruck some times with
his deeper understanding of facts of life, Neel loved Som for the excellent
listener he was and also for his keenness to understand newer aspects and
dimensions of life. Som always tried to act on Neel's advice, but knew that lack of
consistency was a matter of concern with him.

Som squatted on the carpet, opposite to where Neel sat and observed that Neel was
sitting in siddhaasan ( a sitting pose, where both the heels are drawn back to meet
at the center near the tip of spine, with the knees maintaining contact with the
ground).
"So Neel, eagerly waiting to understand what can be done for me to get my life on
track for success. You did mention about the mind briefly this morning"

"hmmm.....ok...so before I start now on the mind related matters..i wish to bring
out here are a few posers for you"

"ok"

"what do you mean by success and why is that important to you and how important is
that to you?" posed Neel with a tone getting serious.

"Well, by success I mean, I need to be on a blazing track of growth at work, with

everyone recognising and lauding my potential and the contribution I do. Its
important because, without that recognition, i feel some hollowness in life. I also
look at some excellent and consistent performers and feel dejected that I am not
able to achieve what they achieve.I also need to be recognised in the activities
that I do apart from my work. How important is that for me? Well I have to taste
success NO MATTER WHAT happens" Som said stressing on the last sentence.

"hmmm...I know you very well Somy. I know you have all those feeling somewhere
inside your mind, but I know you struggle with managing a lot of tasks, and the end
result? You end up managing none!" said Neel with a smile.

"Yes Neel, apart from my work and my family related responsibilities, I play
cricket, do social services, go to a gym, learn music..etc but I realize I am
unable to juggle all these responsibilities well and thereby not able to give a
best shot at anything" complained Som.

"okay....I understand your situation very well Somy. You know what, most of the
people in this world are in the same situation as you are, everyone's trying to be
a manager of things around them. But people are not aware that you can't control
things 100% around you at all even if you are a great manager. Even in a family of
just 2, you cant hope to control the situation in the family fully. What to speak
of the situation in your workplace or for all those tasks you talked about?

" Yes, very true indeed. But, what are you hinting at?" Som looked curiously at
Neel.

" At work if you would need to manage 100 people or 1000 people, it means you'd
need to manage 100 minds or 10000 minds.But if you have no management over your own
mind, your managing the 1000 minds is going to be a disaster.If in the process of
managing a situation, we end of destroying the minds, which is very much prevalent
now, then that's not what should happen, as the very purpose of managing is for
everyone to be happy".

"hmmm"

"When you know no external situation can be controlled fully, what do you think
helps someone to be successful?. Most people operate in this world thinking that
their aspiration would take them to where they want to go. But whats the big deal
about having aspirations? Everyone has it. You would hardly find anyone without
aspirations.Even a begger aspires to become the richest begger" chuckled Neel."Did
you read that news item where a begger died with around 6 crore in properties?"

"Yes I did, Neel. But, do you mean to say we dont have to have aspirations in
life?"

" What I meant to say is that only aspirations won't take you anywhere. It's just
the starting point.But being successful in life is all about managing yourself
internally before managing things and situations around you. If people managed by
you are not happy nor see their potential coming out, then even if you are able to
manage something its only by accident, as many people try to manage by throwing
their weight around.When you manage a situation the people involved should feel
fulfillment by being around and before that, you should feel wonderful being there"

"Hmmm" nodded Som."If that has to happen, what do I do?"

" You need to look deeper inwards. When I say inwards, its not only you as a body
or mind, but beyond it as well"

"Beyond mind as well?"

"Yes. Remember your operating mind is born along with your body. When you were a
child, this physical body was only this small, now it has become this big. What you
call as'body' is just made of food, that you obtained from a piece of earth. So
your body is just a load of food converted into your body over a period of time.
Similarly what you call your 'mind'is but a load of impressions that you picked up
from outside. Then comes a question. Who or what is gathering this body or mind
over time?"

"You mean something more internal than mind"

"Yes.Something inside that is more fundamental but never comes into experience. We
will call it 'self or the soul' for now"

"Is that something like another mind inside?" Som enquired with rapt interest.

"Yes, the inner mind!"

"Okay. what about the inner mind? What can I do with it and how?" Som was keen to
go the root of it all. As he spoke, he observed that Neel has been sitting in
siddhaasana for a long time now and marvelled mentally at his friends ability to
accomplish that. Years of practice he thought.

"And heres an announcement for you!!" said Neel in a loud voice with a halo of
knowledge around him

"What announcement" said Som gaping at Neel with wide open eyes.

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" Now let me tell you categorically that there are as many as three inner minds!"

"Three inner minds!" shouted Som with a sense of astonishment." Am finding it

difficult to control one and we have to deal with three more of them ?"

"ahhahaha ...Somy. Its not so complicated.We have three inner bodies. The first one
is the real you called as the 'Svarupa shareera' (original body) which is beyond
nature and is pure! On top of that is the linga Sharira or kaarana shareera (causal
body) which is the
first contact with nature, as the causal body is made of elements of nature. One
more body above that is the sookshma shareera (the subtle body) which is what we
travel from one planet to another when the gross body is abandoned. These three
bodies are ultra microscopic in size"
"oh wow! And each of these bodies have minds of their own?"

"Yes! They have their minds. As the causal body is made of nature, it forms a
covering owing to which our inner svarupa mind cant express itself outside. The
mind in causal body and the subtle body are the ones that would influence our mind
in this gross body"

" Oh Neel. This is getting a bit heavier for me, though very interesting"

Just as he spoke, Som could smell a delicious aroma of pakkoda's wafting in the
air." We will take a break now!" he shouted. "Your mother has prepared her famous
pakkoda's!" exclaimed Som. "Are we going to get some?" asked Som, happy and excited
imaging how tasty they would be.

"Why not?. Amma should be coming any moment with....there she is with the pakkodas"

Neel's mother and father each carried a plate of pakkodas with chuttney (a paste
made of coconut kernal and spice)for the friends

"Amma, Appa thank you thank you, thanks a lot for your famous pakkodas" Som ran up
profusely thanking them and took both the plates from Neels parents.

"You are welcome Som. I knew how you liked those when you had it the last time at
our house. Neel also loves them, but he never seeks us to do what he likes. He eats
what we cook.I would have been happier had he asked" said Amma with a smile.

"Thats fine Amma. Am happy to have these now along with Som and you all" said Neel.

Som ate the first pakkoda applying some chuttney and immediately blurted out
"mmmmmm...yummy, out of the world Amma. God bless you!" Everyone laughed and Neels
parents then went back downstairs. After the sumptouous snack interval, both went
for a quick hand wash and were back to pursue the purpose of their meet.

"Somy, the reason i explained these subtle mind is, for anyone to understand the
meaning of meditation and its amazing impact on us, we need to have some backgound
on our friend, the Mind. Do remember, what I explained to you is the briefest that
I could manage, as this topic with all its subtleties and nuances, can be
incredibly mind bogging and massive!"

"okay ....great man"

"however, we will stop this for the day. I will let you assimilate this knowledge
to begin with. We would meet tomorrow morning at 7Am at the park bench, where we
usually meet. I would then talk about our operating mind and the amazing world of
our mind. How can we use this mind to bring out our potential, by connecting with
our inner minds"

"Oh super my guru!! You were amazing today! I would contemplate on your discourse
today. There was a lot for me to learn! Honestly one of the best I have heard in
years! I will eagerly look forward to our meet early morning tomorrow!"

So saying Som and Neel got up and slowly climbed the stairs down and after Som
thanked Neels parents for the pakodas, he slowly walked out of his house to his
bike, mulling over the topic of the day in his mind.

As he drove away, satisfied with his learning for the day, he wondered about the
insights he would get the next day. He was however unaware of an amazing live
demonstration of powers of the inner mind his dear friend would demonstrate, that
would thrill him to pieces !!!
The blog continues for part 3: This part would cover, different aspects of mind,
its ways, subtleties and nuances, the centering of mind, working with mind akin to
working on a pet to behave, amazing powers that it can bestow when understood and
maneuvered under the able guidance!

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I would now approach the topic at hand in two ways. One, which I would call the
corporate trainer's or a performance coach approach and two the aadhyaatmic
approach which I would call the inner reengineering approach. The corporate
trainer's or a performance approach first. For anyone to be successful in any
venture, given that a person has the core knowledge of the venture, the four things
that invariably spell success are 1) applied intelligence to a job at hand, 2) an
eye for details 3) dedication towards completion and 4) Consistency. Peak
performers are CONSISTENT at what they do. You would have heard that 'we are what
we repeatedly do'. You need to analyse your activities that you do knowingly or
unknowingly, every day, and list them out. It could be everything from what time
you wake up, at what time you go for work, how you start your work, how you
communicate, how you track and monitor, how you delegate, how you maintain your
energy and enthusiasm during the entire day ..etc.

Remember these activities make you what you are and what you will be. These are
your habits. Now that you realise your habits are not resulting in the success you
expect, its clear that there are some or many activities you do consistently, that
are hurdles for your success. The day you identify them and replace them with those
activities which the successful people do in your area of work, is the day when you
are getting back to the path of success. Hang on, not fully yet though"

"what more needs to be done then?"

"You'd have heard of the saying 'it takes 90 days to form a new habit'. Haven't
you?" checked Neel.

"Well, i faintly remember hearing that, but never really took it serious"

"I have seen it work! Once you identify the habits of successful people and string
them in your routine, follow them without fail for a straight 90 days! It doesn't
matter, if you miss those tasks for one day. However, this is where people with
weak minds quit, worrying about not being able to continue it for one day and end
up getting to the lifestyle they had earlier and remain unsuccessful in life! One
day miss or a two day miss over the period of 90 days hardly matters. Consistently
do those activities, day by day, and by the end of 90 days, there is a BRAND NEW
YOU".

"Great Neel, though I would have read it or heard it somewhere, coming from you
makes is special, as your words and your tone have the capability to spur me to
achieve it" he said with determination writ large on his face.

"Somy, easier said than done. We will make it work, you know how? We will have a
call on your tasks, every week end, to check your tasks and your progress. With
this kind of monitoring people invariably change themselves, is what the researched
coaching manual says"

"Thats a good idea Neel! That way, I would be in touch with you and there will be
this added responsibility to report to you every week, that would make me steadfast
on the path towards success!" said out Som loudly, again excited that this time he
would leave no chance for failure!

"Great Somy. So be it. I will schedule a call every Sunday morning between 10-11
am, if that works for you"
"Sure it will. It works. I have to make it work !" said Som with a twinkle in his
eye.

"Okay...so thats about a brief on the Corporate trainers approach. Now I would deal
with the 'Adhyaatmic or the inner reengineering approach"

"Wow...please go ahead"

"Somy if you observed the first approach, you'd notice that the approach only talks
about steps that aim to bring discipline in your approach, without any changing of
your core for the better. I mean the applied intelligence is taken as what you
possess. However, could you increase your intelligence? Could you increase your
dedication? Could you increase your curiousity and alertness thereby the dedication
to the work on hand? These are never discussed"

"Yes, i do see that, hence I am more keen on the adhyaatmic approach"

"Yes, this approach does a reengineering to bring out your ability hitherto unknown
to you! You could do the first approach and aid it with the second thus
guaranteeing success!"

"Hmmm...sure"

" Now lets understand what mind is and its ways. What is mind? Is Mind brain? Where
is it located?"

" I dont think I am good at definitions. You have to tell me that my guru" said Som
with a wink.

"ok...lets understand. Did you know that mind is matter? Mind is not brain. Brain
is the area of operation of the mind when awake. When in deep sleep, mind is at the
heart, which is where you as a soul are. WHen you are in the dream stage, the mind
is at the place where the tongue ends and the neck part begins, known as place of
indrayoni, near the thyroid gland."

"oh wow! I didnt know that mind has so many places of operations" said Som.

"And what does the mind do, when at the heart and the indrayoni ?" queried Meera.

" At the heart, the mind is withdrawn from senses, thus providing no sense
experience, non awareness of the I part or ego and thereby non awareness of the
sorroundings. At the indrayoni, there is a small subtle screen, where the dreams
are played out, akin to how it gets projected on a screen in a theater. The mind
stays there during the REM ( Rapid Eye Movement) stage and provides us the vivid
experiences in dream. Here the mind is not fully withdrawn from senses"

" Thats interesting" quipped Radha.

"Yes and you also need to understand that the dream stage provides proof that
humans are not independent"

"How so?" queried Som.

"In our waking stage, whatever happens, we attribute it to us saying I did this, I
did that. But in dream, know one claims that he made this scene appear in his
dream, or willed to have a particular experience" continued Neel.

"Yes, if I had independence to dream, I would summon all world beauties in my

dream" winked Som laughing out loudly.

"Oh Som, you and your wild imaginations" chorused both Radha and Meera.

" Somy if you are done with your imagination, there is much more about mind to
bring out yet. As i said mind is matter. Did you know that of the food we eat, one
gross part gets assimilated in the body to nourish the organs forming blood,
another gross part gets discharged as a waste and the third subtle part joins the
mind in its nourishment. Now, whether the food results in nourishment of the mind
or in the degeneration of mind, depends upon what kind of food you eat.