Thought Culture-Part II

Quieter the mind, the more sensitive and subtle it becomes. With the increasing subtlety, the mind then becomes more and more alert, and thus capable of detecting even those thoughts which are in their budding stages. Such an alert and vigilant mind is the greatest possession one can ever have in this otherwise ephemeral world. The high price to be paid for this attainment is the merciless eradication of all vices, conscious cultivation of the noble virtues, and all the time being aware of the various states of the mind.

Let us remember that every negative thought entertained 1) disturbs the mind 2) brings in undesirable reactions from the world 3) adversely affects everyone 4) leads to suffering after death in the form of various painful experiences in the lower worlds and 5) brings us back in this world to the lower wombs in the future births.

Therefore, it becomes clear that the little gains or pleasures derived after compromising with our ideals are no gains at all. Knowing this the wise ever stick to the path of righteousness.

As a student the great saint Sadhu Vaswani was brilliant. He stood first in almost every examination. At one such examination, he topped the class with 73 percent while the second rank holder had got only 65 percent. The answer sheets were returned to the student. When Vaswani tallied his marks he found that he scored only 63 percent and not 73. Immediately he went to the teacher and pointed out the mistake and requested the teacher to declare the second rank holder to be the first. The teacher was amazed seeing the truthfulness of the child.

May we keep the sanctum sanctorum of our heart ever pure and holy through goodness practised in thought, word and deed. This alone is the right choice to have a noble character.

About the author

This article is written for the Vedanta Vani Magazine of Chinmaya Mission