Sanatan Dharma | 5. Indriya-Nigraha (sense-control) | Sri Vinod Babaji Maharaj

 

Indriya means organs or senses. Humans have eleven organs. They are classified as:

• Bahir Indriya (external organs): This includes five working organs (hands, feet, mouth, genitalia and rectum) & five sensory organs (eyes, ears, nose, tongue and skin).
• Antar Indriya (internal organ): This refers to the mind.

Excessive indulgence in materialistic pleasures only results in diseases and stress. One’s desire can never be subdued by indulgence. Instead, it keeps becoming stronger like a fire fed with clarified butter. Only through renunciation, one can achieve physical and mental vitality. Spiritual seekers use this physical and mental vitality for practising spirituality, while worldly people can use the same for personal and social welfare.

There are two sides to controlling one’s organs: what should be done by each organ and what should NOT be done by each organ. Since the Creator has provided humans with various organs, each organ has its appropriate function to perform. The same organs can be used to perform lawful actions or may be unlawful actions to incur sin. Let us understand how each of the organs can be controlled:

Working organs

1.1 Hands: As the medium of performing most of our good and bad actions, hands are the most important working organs. When these hands are used to give charity, help others and serve Guru, Govind and Vaishnavas, they become the medium for performing Dharma. But at the same time, one must always be vigilant that these hands never become a medium to perform evil and sinful acts.

1.2 Feet: When the feet are used to visit pilgrimage places, temples and circumambulate pious places, they become the medium to perform Dharma. But one must never let them travel to sinful places or proceed to perform an evil act.

1.3 Mouth: One must speak Truth that too which is pleasing to the ears and beneficial for others. This includes chanting names of God. But one must be careful not to speak provocative, slandering, spiteful or untruthful words. (This is further explained below under Vakya vega).

1.4 Genitalia: To pass urine and lawfully bear children (for the householder) are two functions of the genitalia. Passing urine is essential to regulate the temperature and flush toxins out of the body. Other than householders, people of all other orders (Brahmachāri, Vānaprasthi, etc) are required to abstain from mating. (This is further explained below under Upastha vega).

1.5 Rectum: To pass stool and wind are the functions of the rectum. The abdomen is a very important part of the body. Most diseases occur due to the type of food we eat and its regulation (through the digestive system). The abdominal wind is responsible for the functions of the various organs inside the body. Therefore, regular cleansing of bowels and passing of wind is essential for the proper functioning of the body. A healthy body facilitates even spiritual practices, what to say about individual and social Dharma.

Sensory organs

1.6 Eyes: One must see auspicious scenes such as to see deities, reading scriptures, etc.

But one must abstain from seeing scenes that make the mind impure. Obscene and gory images, scenes of extreme violence, etc are such examples. [Paintings and the decoration that we keep around us affect our thoughts subtly. For instance, if someone looks at a painting of a ferocious tiger every day, his nature will gradually become ferocious too.]

1.7 Ears: One must listen to names of God, discourses about the divine qualities of God, Vedic music (based on Samaveda) etc.

One must abstain from hearing obscene songs, idle chatter, slander and violent music (because such music has a negative impact on our psychology).

1.8 Nose: One must smell auspicious fragrances like that of offered flowers, Tulasi leaves and incense. Smell has a psychological effect. Prolonged exposure to any smell will have its respective effect. Things related to God are pious and auspicious. In contrast, smells of wine, meat, blood, etc will have Tamasik effect on the psychology.

1.9 Tongue: One must accept food only after offering to God. Prasadam is not affected by modes of nature, but as long as one has attraction to certain tastes, one cannot whole-heartedly perceive the food as Prasadam. That is why, the modes of nature of the food affects a person, although it is offered to God. Therefore, one must abstain from eating Rajasik and Tamasik foods. (This is further explained under Jihva vega).

1.10 Skin: It is the nature of the skin to want the touch of dear ones. The experience of touch by different people has different effects on our minds. For example, the touch of a baby induces parental affection, while the touch of a friend induces friendship and a sense of support. The touch of Vaishnavas and Sadhus are extremely auspicious for Bhakti.

But one must abstain from the touch of the opposite gender. In Srimad Bhagavatam, it is said that the senses of a human are so restless that even a grown-up daughter must not sit with her father on the same seat (that is, must maintain a certain bodily distance).

1.11 Mind: Mind is the king of all organs. All organs need the alertness of the mind to perform their actions but the mind can work independently. It is through the mind that one contemplates on worldly matters and with prolonged contemplation, the mind gets attached to those worldly people or things. The power of mind is such that even if a certain worldly pleasure is not physically enjoyed by a person, just the contemplation of such pleasure can have effect on the body.

Therefore, it is very important to abstain from the contemplation of worldly matters and pleasures. Instead, the mind should be repeatedly focused on performing actions of Dharma and contemplation of God. (This is further explained below under Mano vega).

One’s actions are often guided by one’s emotions and the natural urges of the human body. In Upadeshamrita, Sri Rupa Goswami says there are 'six natural urges' in a human body:

“Vāco vegaṁ manasaḥ krodha-vegaṁ
jihvā-vegam udaropastha-vegam,
Etān vegān yo viṣaheta dhīraḥ

sarvām apīmāṁ prthivīṁ sa śisyāt."

Meaning: A sober person who can tolerate the urge to speak, the mind’s demands, the actions of anger and the urges of the tongue, belly and genitals is qualified to make disciples all over the world.

These natural urges in a human body can cause adverse effects in one’s life. By focusing on controlling these urges, one can achieve over-all sense control. Hence, let us understand how to control these six urges:

1. Vākya vega: It is the urge to speak. Sometimes, people feel an urge to say unpleasant things, although they know its adverse consequences. For example, if someone points out one’s mistake, although the person knows he is wrong, he feels an urge to retaliate. Or sometimes, one simply makes a spiteful remark to provoke others.

This kind of urge to speak creates a lot of riffs in families and between friends. A thoughtless remark can break a good relationship between two people. A spiteful remark can cause some people to even commit suicide. Therefore, it is very important to control one’s speech.

2. Mano vega: It is the urge of mind. The mind is naturally inclined towards worldly matters. Also, it is very difficult to focus the mind on a subject for a very long time. Within a second, it can jump from a string of thoughts to a completely different topic. In Bhagavat Geeta, Arjuna asks:

“Chañchalaṁ hi manaḥ kṛiṣhṇa pramāthi balavad dṛiḍham
tasyāhaṁ nigrahaṁ manye vāyor iva su-duṣhkaram”
(Bhagavat Geeta 6.34) 

Meaning: The mind is very restless, turbulent, strong and obstinate, O Krishna and to subdue it is, it appears to me, more difficult than controlling the wind. 

Krishna says:

“Asanśhayaṁ mahā-bāho mano durnigrahaṁ chalam
abhyāsena tu kaunteya vairāgyeṇa cha gṛihyate”
(Bhagavat Geeta 6.35) 

Meaning: Lord Krishna said: O mighty-armed son of Kunti, what you say is correct; the mind is indeed very difficult to restrain. But by practice and detachment, it can be controlled. 

As long as the mind is attached to material pleasures, the mind will be naturally attracted to their contemplation. Sometimes, such attachments can be a source of stress and anxiety. Maybe, one doesn’t want to think about those stressful things, but still the mind keeps brooding over the topic in loops. This leads to further mental agitation. Therefore, with detachment and practice, one must gradually control the mind.

3. Krodha vega: It is the urge of anger. Although only highly spiritual saints can be totally free from anger, one should atleast try to avoid speaking or acting out of anger.

It is the most dangerous enemy among the six enemies of mind. It causes highly devastating consequences. When the mind is blinded by anger, it cannot think straight. Anger distorts the thinking process. At that time, one might overlook important facts and act without thinking about its consequences.

In Srimad Bhagavat Geeta, Arjuna says:

“Atha kena prayukto ’yaṁ pāpaṁ charati pūruṣhaḥ,
Anichchhann api vārṣhṇeya balād iva niyojitaḥ.”
(Bhagavat Geeta 3.36)

Meaning: Arjun asked: Why is a person compelled to commit sinful acts, even unwillingly, as if by force, O Krishna?

Krishna replies:

“Kāma eṣha krodha eṣha rajo-guṇa-samudbhavaḥ,

mahāśhano mahā-pāpmā viddhyenam iha vairiṇam.”

(Bhagavat Geeta 3.37) 

Meaning: The Supreme Lord said: It is lust alone, which is born of contact with the mode of passion, and later transformed into anger. Know this as the sinful, all-devouring enemy in the world.

Also, anger is one of the three gates to hell, as declared by Krishna.

“Tri-vidhaṁ narakasyedaṁ dvāraṁ nāśhanam ātmanaḥ,
kāmaḥ krodhas tathā lobhas tasmād etat trayaṁ tyajet.”

(Bhagavat Geeta 16.21)

Meaning: There are three gates leading to the hell of self-destruction for the soul—lust, anger, and greed. Therefore, one should abandon all three.

How to control anger? When one gets angry, he should immediately stop talking and leave the place. In this way, highly devastative actions can be avoided. When his mind is subdued in some time, he must carefully analyze the situation and plan the best course of action without offending others. In this way, with patience, anger can be controlled.

My Gurudev Sri Tinkodi Goswami Maharaj used to say that when one boils milk, at first the milk rises and overflows from the vessel. But when the milk is simmered and condensed, then the milk does not overflow anymore. Similarly, when the materialistic samskaras are strong, it is difficult to control anger. But one must practice with patience and gradually, it will become easy to control it.

Once, Sage Vishwamitra, who was born in a Kshatriya family, performed very intense penance so as to become a Brahmin. He achieved great heights of Yoga and acquired many divine powers. Then he visited the assembly of great sages of the time and requested them to declare him a Brahmin formally.

All the sages said that if Sage Vashishtha, the greatest sage among them, gave permission, he could be declared Brahmin by the assembly of sages. So, Sage Vishwamitra went to Sage Vashishtha to present his request. However, Sage Vashishtha refused to give his permission.

Sage Vishwamitra was very angry. He thought that Sage Vashishtha wanted to belittle him intentionally and hence, refused his request. At first, he didn’t say anything, but from time to time, he approached Sage Vashishtha with the same request. Every time, Sage Vashishtha refused to give his permission.

At last, Sage Vishwamitra became blinded by anger. He vowed to perform a Vashishtha Māran Yagna (a Māran Yagna is a Vedic sacrificial ritual to kill someone. In this case, the Yagna would be performed to kill Sage Vashishtha). But the problem was who will be powerful enough to become the chief priest of such a Yagna?

He decided that only Sage Vashishtha was powerful enough for this job. Therefore, he visited Sage Vashishtha and requested him to become the chief priest of a Yagna he intended to perform. Sage Vashishtha asked him which Yagna he wanted to perform. Sage Vishwamitra replied that it was a Vashishtha Māran Yagna!

Sage Vashishtha calmly agreed to it and asked when he wanted to perform the Yagna. Sage Vishwamitra was surprised to see the calm composure and self-sacrifice of the great Sage. How could someone calmly agree to perform a Yagna to kill himself?

Sage Vishwamitra was humbled. He folded his hands in prayer and said, “I don’t want to become a Brahmin anymore. Please forgive me and have mercy on me.”

Sage Vashishtha was pleased to see his humility. He said, “Now you have truly become eligible to become a Brahmin.” Therefore, anger is a great hindrance in spirituality and a prime reason behind sinful deeds.

4. Jihva vega: It is the urge of taste. Every person has a like and dislike for various foods. It is only natural to be attracted to one’s favourite food in its presence. But sometimes, the greed of taste can compel a person to eat what should not be eaten. It can be anything from a food forbidden by the doctor to something unlawful according to the Vedas like Uchhista (food made impure by another person’s saliva) or meat. Hence, the urge of taste can result in diseases as well as negative inclinations (due to Uchhista or meat since they are Tamasik in nature). One can refer to the shlokas 8 to 10 of the 17^th chapter of Bhagavat Geeta for reference.

5. Udar vega: It is the urge of hunger. Hunger can cause a similar result as the urge of taste. When one is extremely hungry, it is difficult to restrain oneself from eating any available food. But one must remember the consequences of eating forbidden food.

6. Upastha vega: It is the urge of the genitals. According to the Vedas, there are four Āshrams (orders) in a Vedic society: Brahmacharya (celibacy), Grihastha (householder), Vānaprastha (dweller of forests) and Sannyāsa (renunciation).

Brahmacharya order is for students. Until one entered the householder life, every person was supposed to observe a life of celibacy and acquire knowledge according to their Varna (caste). Only the householder is allowed to indulge in sense gratification but not without restriction. The duty of a householder is to gradually control his senses while also providing the society the next generation of citizens, that is, bearing children and educating them about their duty towards the society. But after 50 years of age, according to Vedas, one must leave the householder life and contemplate on spirituality, while living off wild fruits and vegetables found in forests to control his senses. 

Finally, when his mind becomes completely detached from the worldly matters, he must forsake his bodily identity and enter the order of Sannyāsa. This was the way of life in Vedic society. Unfortunately, now people are running blindly in search of more and more sense gratification, oblivious to their duties towards nature, family, society and God. 

It is important to control the senses in order to achieve anything in one’s life. It is very difficult to control the mind. Except for highly spiritual people, it is only natural for the mind to experience attraction towards worldly pleasures. But one should persevere to control his external organs atleast. Even if the mind urges to eat what should not be eaten, atleast refrain from actually eating it. Even if the mind urges to do something unlawful according to the Vedas, atleast refrain from actually doing it.

For such sense control, one needs knowledge (about the adverse effects of sense indulgence) and determination. One might fail to maintain his determination and indulgence in sense enjoyments, but as soon as he regains his conscience, he must again resolve to abstain from indulgence. Through practice, gradually, one will surely be able to completely control his senses.