Mental housekeeping calms the mind.
It’s common knowledge in today’s world that meditation is beneficial. Everyone is doing it, from Oprah to elite athletes, from preschool children to doctorate candidates. The benefits of meditation have been studied by scientists for decades. Spiritual aspirants have been meditating for millennia. Yet despite knowing the value of meditation, many people fail to practice this simple method of mental housekeeping.
A common mistake of novice meditators is to think they must forcefully stop the mind’s thoughts before they can even begin. Beginners don’t realize that a calm mind is the result of meditation—it’s not a prerequisite. Their experience seems to confirm that notion. Trying to stop the mind from thinking makes it even more agitated.
Understanding the Mind
By understanding the mind, we can work with it rather than fight against it. We don’t need to study human psychology to understand the mind. Yogis have been analyzing it for ages. The subject of the mind is so central that many yogic scriptures begin with it:
“Yoga is the control of thought-waves in the mind.” (Patanjali’s Yoga Sūtras I:2)
“Everything in the world is dependent upon the mind, upon one’s mental attitude.” (Yoga Vasishtha I: 11-12)
Simply put, the mind is a collection of mental activities: thoughts, memories, emotions, imaginings, opinions. Eastern philosophers also believe that the impressions of past lives are part of our mental package. Parents can relate to this easily. When they have more than one child, they notice that each child has a different personality. The children share the same parents and upbringing but develop different interests and talents. First as children, and then as adults, they see and react differently to events in their lives.
Sometimes it’s helpful to think of the mind as a separate entity, almost as if it’s another person. This “person” always seems to hanging around, talking to us. You know how it is: someone said something to you a few days ago, and although you parted ways, you’re still continuing the conversation in your own mind. These conversations are going on continually; we’re thinking, planning, hoping, and coping.
The Restlessness of the Mind
The mind is fluid, like water. Rarely stagnant or calm, it’s always on the move. Like ocean water, the mind moves when the winds of experience pass over it. From making your bed (aff link) first thing in the morning to turning out the lights at night—every little thing affects it.
Like a river, the mind is always flowing. It prefers an easy route, turning along the way at every opportunity. When a river is strong, it overcomes obstacles by making a way around or over them. A strong mind does, too.
The problem is that, like a rushing river, a restless mind is not at peace. Mental peace is like the calm surface of a lake before the wind picks up to disturb it. Just as we feel peaceful by observing a calm lake’s surface, we experience peace when the mind is still.
Characteristics of a Pure Mind
A pure mind is recognized by the same qualities that describe enlightenment. It’s devoid of negative emotions like fear, anger, and worrying. A pure mind is calm in the midst of life’s storms, whether those storms rage internally or in one’s environment. A pure mind’s strength overcomes negativity and rests in peace.
When the mind is at peace, we see everything through a happiness filter. We seek and find the silver lining of every cloud. A pure mind sees goodness in others and avoids criticism. It shuns negative thinking because it disrupts the blissful experience of peace.
A pure mind experiences joy spontaneously and for no reason. When I first experienced this I was delighted. Driving in my car, I was struck with the feeling that everything was right in the world. I was smiling, humming cheerfully, and enjoying the moment. I wasn’t thinking, just experiencing happiness for no apparent reason. At the time, I was new to yoga and meditation. But the experience was so profound that I knew I was on the right path.
How to Purify the Mind: Mental Housekeeping
All spiritual practices, such as meditation, purify the mind—they still its restlessness so we can experience inner joy. Sometimes the mind needs a little discipline, like a naughty child. But mostly it benefits from being gently coerced and directed toward activities that nurture lasting happiness. Yogis refer to this process as purification of the mind.
According to my Guru, purification of the mind is like mental housekeeping. He says, “When you first come to yoga, your mind is like a dusty old house. The windows and floors are dirty, and the house smells bad. You’re unhappy in this house because all that dirt is uncomfortable. You can’t find a good place to sit and rest, and you can’t even enjoy looking out the windows because they’re covered in dirt. So you begin to clean.”
Gurudev explains that, like housekeeping, spiritual practices clean up the mind. Meditation is especially effective because it cleans up impurities that we’re not even aware of. Just as a clean house is more pleasant to live in, so is a pure mind. Bit by bit, as the dust washes away, we discover inner joy.
The techniques for mental housekeeping are the same as for increasing your spiritual bank balance: daily meditation, keeping good company, thinking good thoughts, and doing good deeds.
These practices are guaranteed to clean up the cobwebs in your mind. The effects are cumulative: the more you practice, the more you experience peace, joy, and love in your heart and life.
Mental Housekeeping: A Quick and Simple Practice
I’m not asking you to believe every word here, because I know the proof is in the practice. Renew your commitment to mental housekeeping for just ten days while keeping a simple journal. You’ll be surprised to see how quickly the mental cobwebs clear, revealing a joyful light within.
Chityānanda has been a disciple of Svāmī Gurupremānanda Sarasvatī since 1975. She teaches meditation and yoga as a spiritual path in Santa Cruz, California.
Hello Svami. Your writing on the mind is truly lovely. I especially enjoy two of your ideas: regard the mind ‘as a separate entity;’ and “The mind is fluid, like water.”
Refugees—around the globe—receive a lot of attention nowadays.
It occurs to me anyone in possession of a ‘dirty’ and restless mind is a refugee.
Endless desires or endless woes compel the attached human to wander far and wide in a hopeless search for peace and contentment.
A restless mind is quite the burden… Thank you.
Thank you for your nice comment, Rob. I’d never thought of the refugee analogy before, but it’s a good fit. Namaste.
In yoga one meditates to become the Truth.
When I first started on the yoga path, I remember the Guru spoke about the importance of cleaning the mind. But instead I went about “spring cleaning” other things, clutter, old and outdated objects, etc. He was referring to the “inner mind”, egoic notions, personal desires and replacements of more and more. The more you have in there, the less room you have for God and the less peace you experience. A clean mind that meditation brings is peace and joy.
Thank you, Sue. There’s certainly a tendency for us to clutter up our minds in the same way that we add clutter to our homes. We have to be just as diligent in both cases! Namaste.
“ …I knew I was on the right path.” Svāmī, this is precisely what I remember happening to me. From the first time I met Him, I have had a strong feeling about my Guru. There were times that the mind would wander off, but the “inner pull” back to the path has always won out. Blessings to you for your hard work.
Love, John
Thank you, John. Most spiritual aspirants feel that inner attraction to the path that you mention. And it can be very persistent! Yogis consider that a sign of very good karma. Namaste.
Another anology may be this: Starting with a glass of dirty water (Me), pour in a glass of pure water, and as the dirty water leaves the glass you’re left with a pure glass. If you’re regular about this practice you are bound to get the fruit, that or you’ll get darn thirsty. Saints say to enjoy pure sparkling water. Here is something I read today. “All your karmic impressions lie buried in the sushumna, the central nerve. Sometimes when you are in a powerful temple or in the place of a Siddha or in the presence of your Guru, these impressions become active. They rise to the conscious surface just to be expelled from your mind, just to leave your mind pure by their exit.” Tony
Great analogy and quote, Tony! Thank you. Namaste.
This is excellent, very organized and helpful. We all need to remember to weed the garden of our minds.
Thank you, Mary. I like the analogy of weeds in the garden. It reminds me of the parable of the sower in the New Testament. Namaste.
It appears that putting my mind aside for a time, in meditation, leads to a peaceful and happy life in all conditions. How great is that.
Thank you, Gary. It is great — and so easy and effective. It never ceases to amaze me how difficult it is to convince people to meditate. If they only knew! Namaste.
I shall choose to witness my mind as much as possible. Thoughts come and go. I do not want to empower them.
Thank you for chiming in, Tim. I wish you every success! Namaste.
Some people think the mind is what defines them. A great mind has usually had a good education and experiences that develop and shape it. Why would one want to calm, or switch off, the very thing that defines them, and most of all, provides accolades and a good income (job)? I’ve heard people worry that if they switch off their mind, they might lose the key to switching it back on again.
Hello, James, and thank you for joining the conversation. I chuckled when I read your comment about people fearing the process of “switching off their minds.” How do they sleep at night? If they don’t switch off the mind at night, they would never sleep, and then they’d go insane (acquiring a new and less desirable definition of themselves). It seems much riskier to sleep than to meditate. In meditation, you have complete control while you watch the mind settle into peacefulness. Namaste.
From Baba, “Keep yourself aware of your supreme inner purity. The divine light within you cannot be affected or bound by any fancy that may arise in your mind.” — meditation is how to keep aware of the divine light, supreme inner purity.
I witnessed children as infants, being this “purity” of steady communing. And witnessed how they gradually became conditioned to be fascinated by objects (colors, mobiles, rattles) and later by thoughts and feelings. Meditation is to reverse the conditioning.
Lovely article, thank you.
Eliz
Thank you for your comment, Elizabeth. Interesting … I hadn’t thought of meditation as “reverse conditioning,” but of course it does just that! It’s takes something powerful like meditation to handle that task. Conditioning can be very stubborn to remove. Good insight! Namaste.
Dear Svami,
The mind is the key, and I am glad you wrote this blog. Re a pure mind: “It shuns negative thinking because it disrupts the blissful experience of peace.”
That is so … sensible; and yet we sometimes think that we “have a right” to criticize
something. Thus, we malpractice our own selves. Amazing!
Thanks………
Thank you, Richard. I like your phrase “we malpractice our own selves.” Yes, it is amazing what troubles we can get ourselves into without even trying. Namaste.
“Meditation is especially effective because it cleans up impurities that we’re not even aware of.”
Sitting for meditation is like sitting in your car as it goes through the carwash. You observe what’s happening while your car is automatically cleaned. Regular washing is the key.
I like your analogy, Roxie. But, when you’re in a car wash, you get to see the dirt get washed away. The value of meditation is that it even washes away dirt so deep and old that you can’t see it. Namaste.