In the previous discourse I discussed the process of acquiring knowledge. And in the discourse before that I explained the seven types of devayoni. They all come within the scope of ekendriya. To have a clear understanding of this stage of ekendriya, some discussion on the mind stuff is required.

While analysing the nature of the mind, I remember something which is not totally out of context. In Bengali the Saḿskrta word mana (mind) is pronounced “mon” and not “man.” The letter “a” (অ) has three styles of pronunciation. saḿvrta, vivrta and tiryak.

The Saḿvrta style of pronunciation is [[ক-অ. The vivrta is ক্, অ and the tiryak is কো-অো]]. Take the word “aman” for instance: “a” is pronounced in the Saḿvrta style and “ma” in the tiryak style. Take another example: “kakhan”. Here the letter “ka” is pronounced in the saḿvrta style while “kha” is pronounced in the tiryak style. In the languages of Bihar, Angika, Maithili and Magahi, “ma” is pronounced as [[“mo-a”]].

However mind is a particular ectoplasmic state. Here I do not often use ectoplasm or endoplasm. Mind is a flowing entity which wants to surround to engulf any object. What do you do with the object of a person whom we love so much? You want to control that object or that person according to your mental will. Each and every mother wants her son to be within her control. If her child goes out of control she complains, “Well, my son used to be obedient to me, but no more – nowadays he is under the control of his wife.” So everyone wants to control objects or human beings. This is the actual state of psychic affairs. Then what is ekendriya? When you develop a fascination for a particular object or person your mind encircles it. In this process of expansion your mind develops a special liking for the object or person it comes in contact with. This occurs when the internal saḿskára of the person or the object is in perfect adjustment with your own samskaras. You notice that the rhythmic vibration of that entity and your own psychic rhythm are parallel (there is no imposition from anywhere) and you develop a love for it. I have already explained to you the difference between “fascination” and “love”.

What is the actual import of ekendriya? At first the mind is drawn towards the entity in a particular way – it flows unhindered across the boundary of liking and enters the sphere of love. At that time the mind neither has the desire nor the scope for any distraction whatsoever. All it wants is to flow towards the object it loves. If it encounters a second entity on the way it will ignore it, so strong is its one pointed pursuit for its object of love.

Ucát́an man ná máne bárań,
Shudhu tári páne chut́e yáy.

[The mind is extremely impatient – it listens to no one,
But rushes towards its object of love.]

So the mind moves towards that Supreme One. You may know some people whose minds always run after money. You might have asked them to sit down for a while and have a chat, and been surprised by their excusing themselves, saying they were so busy and had to rush off to the stock exchange. If their pursuit of money is hampered in any way, if it eludes their grasp, if they are totally severed from it, their minds will lose their base and they will die.

All crude objects on which people base their hopes and aspirations will certainly disappear one day, for the nature of this relative world is “Yah ágacchati sah gacchati” – “Whatever comes, goes.” When people are deserted by their crude objects of desire they are eaten away by frustration and disappointment, and die a miserable death.

I heard that once, when the currency was devalued, a wealthy jute merchant suddenly died because all the aspiration of his life were based on money. He could not face the prospect of having to part with his cherished object of desire.

This is ekendriya. One should concentrate one’s mind on the Supreme One to the exclusion of all mundane objects; for they can give no lasting support. To come and go is their intrinsic nature.

If one focuses all the flows and moods of the mind on a certain object, idea or philosophy to fulfil one’s hopes and aspirations, can that be called ekendriya? You know in the past in India there was a debate on the theory of pure non-dualism (vishuddha advaetaváda) which continued for a long time. Today this theory has been almost totally rejected. Those who accepted it as their cherished philosophy, investing all their accumulated mental energy on its different branches and ramifications, met a tragic end. They discovered that the trunk of the tree, in whose branches, twigs and foliage they had been taking shelter, had been felled! They joined the ranks of the living dead, their hopes and aspirations shattered forever. The life of a person obsessed with philosophical theory, who denies the existence of Parama Puruśa, is bound to become wrought with frustrations. That’s why in the ekendriya stage it is unwise to accept any physical object or intellectual doctrine as one’s object of ideation.

When an intellectual doctrine is proven invalid in the battle of logic, and ultimately shown to be dogmatic, what happens? The characteristic of dogma is to expand more and more. Do you know what expands when it is cut? The answer is a pencil, a pond and dogma. If someone tries to root out a dogma from people’s mind they tend to use even more dogma to justify their present dogma. Even when they are defeated they refuse to accept defeat. There are some so-called scholars who meet with a crushing defeat, yet never admit to being defeated. They call it a “voluntary retreat”. So, if you accept any mundane object or any dogmatic idea as the goal of your life, you will find yourself locked in the darkest dungeon.

The real spirit of ekendriya is this: the mind, having discarded all physical objects, ideas and dogmas, embraces the Supreme One as its supreme and only goal.