The mind cannot dwell on God if it is immersed day and night in...

"The mind cannot dwell on God if it is immersed day and night in
worldliness, in worldly duties and responsibilities; it is most necessary to go into
solitude now and then and think of God. To fix the mind on God is very difficult, in
the beginning, unless one practises meditation in solitude. When a tree is young it
should be fenced all around; otherwise it may be destroyed by cattle." This was the
third commandment of Sri Ramakrishna. The tradition of retiring into solitude is
immemorial. As soon as his temple duties were over Sri Ramakrishna would retire
into the surrounding jungle for practising meditation. Most of his disciples
wandered off to the Himalayas, and to various other holy places to perform hard
austerities. Many early Christian holy men took to the deserts and engaged
themselves in a life of unceasing prayer and contemplation. Later they became
known as the desert fathers. Christ went into the desert and prayed for forty days.
Sri Ramakrishna used to say: "The rishis of old attained the Knowledge of Brahman.
One cannot have this so long as there is the slightest trace of worldliness. How hard
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the rishis laboured! Early in the morning they would go away from the hermitage,
and would spend the whole day in solitude, meditating on Brahman. At night they
would return to the hermitage and eat a little fruit or roots. They kept their minds
aloof from the objects of sight, hearing, touch, and other things of a worldly nature.
Only thus did they realize Brahman as their own inner consciousness." Religion
apart, solitude is a need felt in all thoughtful vocations. Great writers, scientists,
artists - all labour hard in solitude. In every case solitude is a thing that cannot be
dispensed with. When we see that even in secular life solitude is so necessary, we
must pause to ask : how much more earnestly should not the religious seek it? As
soon as we think about solitude the first thing that comes to our mind is a place
which has the least disturbance: no people, no sounds, no duties and responsibilities,
and above all no worries or anxieties - relatively speaking a place which affords us a
sense of restfulness and freedom. Solitude is a place where we can afford to be
ourselves. In our day to day life, rarely have we a chance of being ourselves.
Invariably we are forced to act and react according to the dictates of society. Our
attitudes, likes, dislikes, duties, responsibilities, relationships, desires and
expectations - all these influence our behaviour forcing us to be other than what we
would like to be. Such a situation is not conducive to prayer and contemplation.
However this is only the external and easier part of solitude. True solitude is to live
for God, with God, in God. Solitude is a way of living totally dependent on God. If
one goes to a lonely spot with an abundance of provisions it does not become a
solitary life but turns out to be a pleasant picnic. To be worthy of its name one
should not be looking forward, even unconsciously, to a return to the worldly way
of life. Solitude is a state of mind devoid of imaginations and thoughts and
memories excepting that of God. The specific word Sri Ramakrishna used was
nirjanata i.e. a place where there are no people. He is not referring merely to the
absence of people or to the absence of noise. Primarily he is indicating that one
should give up dependence on any person or thing except God. He says: "If you
desire to live in the world unattached, you should first practise devotion in solitude
for some time, a year, six months, a month, or at least twelve days. During this
period of retirement, you should constantly meditate upon God and pray to Him for
Divine love. You should think that there is nothing in the world which you may call
your own, that those whom you consider as your own are sure to pass away some
day or other. God alone is really your own. He is your all-in-all. How to obtain Him?
- this should be your only concern." "It is good that you should often retire into
solitude in a place away from either men or women; a place where you may be left
absolutely to yourself, praying to the Lord with a yearning heart for true knowledge;
a place where you may stay at least for three days, if not more, or for at least one
day, if not three." In solitude we must be able to give up dependence on books,
music, and even the comfort of a well laid out routine. It may be difficult at the
beginning but that is what one should be able to achieve. Only then can one turn to
God for everything. Solitude, ultimately, is complete surrender to God. Naturally
this involves living in the simplest manner possible. Silence is the very heart of
solitude. Silence is not making the mind empty; it is the art of emptying the mind of
all worldly thoughts and filling it with spiritual thoughts, thoughts of God. True
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silence is to feel the divine presence intensely and constantly. In solitude one is
forced to confront oneself. For many this is most painful. One can easily know one's
capacity, weaknesses, what thoughts are predominant etc, how much time we are
capable of keeping silent and thinking of God. There are many distractions all
around us. Solitude is a great help in acquiring concentration. Without concentration
it is impossible to progress in either secular or spiritual life. Man's greatness in any
field is an indication of his or her power of concentration. Sri Ramakrishna says: "But
one must go into solitude to attain this divine love. To get butter from milk you must
let it set into curd in a secluded spot: if it is too much disturbed, milk won't turn into
curd. Next, you must put aside all other duties, sit in a quiet spot, and churn the
curd. Only then do you get butter. Further, by meditating on God in solitude the
mind acquires knowledge, dispassion, and devotion. But the very same mind goes
downward if it dwells in the world. Only when we try to practise concentration do
we find how difficult it is. The famous psychologist Eric Fromm equates
concentration with solitude. He says: "The most important step in learning
concentration is to learn to be alone with oneself without reading, listening to the
radio, smoking or drinking. Indeed, to be able to concentrate means to be able to be
alone with oneself - and this ability is precisely a condition for the ability to love. If I
am attached to another person because I cannot stand on my own feet, he or she may
be a life saver, but the relationship is not one of love. Paradoxically, the ability to be
alone is the condition for the ability to love. Anyone who tries to be alone with
himself will discover how difficult it is. He will begin to feel restless, fidgety, or even
to sense considerable anxiety. He will be prone to rationalise his unwillingness to go
on with this practice by thinking that it has no value, is just silly, that it takes too
much time, and so on, and so on. He will also observe that all sorts of thoughts come
to his mind which take possession of him. He will find himself thinking about his
plans for later in the day, or about some difficulty in a job he has to do, or where to
go in the evening, or about any number of things that will fill his mind - rather than
permitting it to empty itself." (The Art of Loving) However difficult, the only way is
to practice and persevere. In the world we take many things for granted. Only when
we try to live a simple life in solitude do we appreciate our blessings. Consequently
we learn to be grateful for the many blessings of life. Solitude also helps us
appreciate the goodness of others. Solitude is man's most valuable treasure. It will
not be wrong to say that, rightly practised, solitude bestows both physical and
mental health. Above all solitude gives us the opportunity for reflecting on the most
important questions of life. Who am I? Why am I here? What is life? What is its
meaning? What is my goal? What do I really want? How am I supposed to lead my
life? How am I to respond to the vagaries of life? What are my priorities, my
weaknesses? How can I improve myself? Solitude is a great boon making us turn our
attention inward and giving us an opportunity to ponder over these important
questions of life and evolve a plan of action. However it is not easy to live in
solitude; we cannot just make a quick plan and go! It needs long, and often many
years of conscious preparation. Real taste for solitude is generated only when the
clamourings of the senses are silenced and the senses themselves are rudely shocked
out of their gear through the blows the mind receives or the sufferings the body
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endures. When this taste develops and is directed towards God a greater part of the
battle is won. But mind being what it is, it requires constant watching and hard
practice. There are three types of solitude: 1)external, 2)internal, and 3) with the Self.
Sri Ramakrishna was very emphatic about having recourse to solitude for the
purpose of practising spiritual disciplines. He says that one should practise
meditation in the forest, in a secluded corner of the house or in the mind. When one
has an opportunity one should retire to an undisturbed place, preferably a quiet and
beautiful place; places of natural beauty have a great power of calming and uplifting
the mind. That is why many holy temples were built in places of great beauty - on
the tops of great mountains, in deep forests, on the banks of mighty rivers etc. We
have already discussed a little about this type of external solitude. One can and must
have daily solitude right in one's house. A sincere aspirant should set aside some
time daily for spiritual practice. He should sit in a quiet corner of the house and
should try to call on God, even if it be for a short time only. He should consider this
period of time absolutely as his own and should never allow anyone or anything to
interfere with his practice; he should call on God whole-heartedly feeling that he has
no one whom he could call his own except God. This is the internal and daily
solitude. Then comes real solitude, living with Atman or Self. Solitude with Atman is
to feel the presence of God constantly and uninterruptedly. This comes only after
long and hard spiritual practice and as the result of the grace of God. Once a man
has achieved this he has nothing more to do. He lives enjoying His presence always.
This is the state of perfection. Br Lawrence says: "Having found in many books
different methods of going to God, and divers practices of the spiritual life, I thought
this would serve rather to puzzle me, than facilitate what I sought after, which was
nothing but how to become wholly God's. This made me resolve to give the all for
the All: so after having given myself wholly to God, to make all the satisfaction I
could for my sins, I renounced, for the love of Him, everything that was not He; and
I began to live as if there was none but He and I in the world. Such was my
beginning; and yet I must tell you, that for the first ten years I suffered much: the
apprehension that I was not devoted to God, as I wished to be, my past sins always
present to my mind, and the great unmerited favours which God did me, were the
matter and source of my sufferings. When I thought of nothing but to end my days
in these troubles (which did not at all diminish the trust I had in God, and which
served only to increase my faith), I found myself changed all at once; and my soul,
which till that time was in trouble, felt a profound inward peace, as if she were in
her centre and place of rest. Ever since that time I walk before God simply, in faith,
with humility and with love; and I apply myself diligently to do nothing and think
nothing which may displease Him." How long should one practise solitude? Sri
Ramakrishna remarks, "If you ask me how long you should live in solitude away
from your family, I should say that it would be good for you if you could spend
even one day in such a manner. Three days at a time are still better. One may live in
solitude for twelve days, a month, three months, or a year, according to one's
convenienceÑand ability." This advice he gives to householders who cannot devote
all their time to God. What then to speak of aspirants who have forsaken their all for
the sake of God? Sri Ramakrishna's advice on how to practice solitude: he exhorts :
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"When you practise discipline in solitude, keep yourself entirely away from your
family. You must not allow your wife, son, daughter, mother, father, sister, brother,
friends, or relatives near you. While thus practising discipline in solitude, you
should think , `I have no one else in the world. God is my all'. Continuing, Sri
Ramakrishna remarks, "The mind is like milk. If you keep the mind in the world,
which is like water, then the milk and water will get mixed. That is why people keep
milk in a quiet place and let it set into curd, and then churn butter from it. Likewise,
through spiritual discipline practised in solitude, churn the butter of knowledge and
devotion from the milk of the mind. Then that butter can easily be kept in the water
of the world. It will not get mixed with the world. The mind will float detached on
the water of the world." But solitude frightens. What is the cause of this fear? Man
has long been accustomed to live in groups, in constant activity and turmoil. He is
addicted to the charms of society so much that he finds it difficult to live alone.
Swami Vivekananda says: "Can a man who has been used to the turmoil and the
rush of life live at ease if he comes to a quiet place? He suffers and perchance he may
lose his mind." The Brihadaranyaka Upanisad gives a description of how Prajapati
also, at the beginning of creation, was deluded and afraid. It says : In the beginning
this (universe) was only the self (Viraj), of human form. He reflected and found
nothing else but himself. ... At this he was afraid. Therefore even now a solitary one
is afraid. He then reflected, "As there is none else than myself what am I afraid of?"
On reflecting thus fear left him, for what was there to fear? It is from a second entity
alone that fear comes." Sankara in his commentary on these verses says : "Because
this Purusa was endowed with a body and limbs, he was afraid of his extinction,
owing to a false notion. And as, in our case, the way he adopted to get rid of this
false notion, which was the cause of fear, was by acquiring the right knowledge of
the Atman." Sankara here states that we too are deluded by the false notion of our
extinction with the death of the body and the only way to get over this fear is to
know our Atman in its true perspective. And right knowledge can be acquired by
contemplating in solitude on the teachings of the scriptures. One may go mad if one
enters into solitude unprepared. Certain thoughts, memories, may become
prominent, even obsessive. That is why without some preparation one is not advised
to go into solitude. It is possible that many people attuned as they are to the hectic
life of the present civilization may feel one with the idea expressed in Cowper's
poem :
O Solitude, where are the charms
That sages have seen in thy face?
Better to live in the midst of alarms
Than dwell in this horrible place.'
(Alexander Selkirk, Stanza 1.)
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The same rule applies to retired life also. Many people plan in their
imagination to spend longer periods of time in spiritual practice after retirement.
This becomes possible only if one starts preparing early in life. Sri Ramakrishna's
advice for the spiritual aspirants to retire into solitude now and then is a
commandment. Some may think of it as unnecessary by touting the name of Karma
Yoga; others by saying that after all the mind is the root cause of bondage and
liberation, therefore, if we can watch the mind it would be fine. All this may be true.
Or it may be we are just deluding ourselves; and we can only do so at the cost of our
spiritual life. Hence retiring into solitude now and then is indispensable.