Gita 6.26
Dhyana Yoga
यतो यतो निश्चरति मनश्चञ्चलमस्थिरम् | ततस्ततो नियम्यैतदात्मन्येव वशं नयेत् ||२६||
yato yato niścarati manaś cañcalam asthiram | tatas tato niyamyaitad ātmany eva vaśaṁ nayet ||26||
In essence: The mind will wander—this is its nature. Your practice is not to prevent wandering but to bring it back, again and again and again, without frustration.
A conversation between a seeker and guide to help you feel this verse deeply
Sadhak-Guru Dialogue
Sadhak: "Guruji, my mind wanders constantly in meditation. Sometimes I spend the entire session lost in thought. Am I wasting my time?"
Guru: "Did you notice that you were lost in thought?"
Sadhak: "Yes, eventually."
Guru: "That noticing IS the practice. The moment of recognizing wandering is a moment of presence. You were not 'lost' the whole session—you were lost, then present (when you noticed), possibly lost again, then present again. Each noticing is a success, not a failure. The practice Krishna describes is exactly this: noticing and returning, noticing and returning. You are not wasting time; you are doing the practice."
Sadhak: "But shouldn't I get better at staying present? After years of practice, I still wander so much."
Guru: "Are you noticing the wandering faster than you used to? Do you return more quickly? Do you spend any more time in presence than when you began? Even small improvements indicate progress. And notice: Krishna doesn't say 'after practice, the mind will not wander.' He says 'wherever it wanders, bring it back.' The wandering may continue, but your relationship to it transforms."
Sadhak: "I feel frustrated when I keep having to bring the mind back. The frustration itself disturbs my meditation."
Guru: "The frustration is just more mind activity—another form of wandering. Bring that back too. The instruction is universal: wherever the mind goes—whether to fantasy or frustration—bring it back. Don't add a layer of frustration about frustration. Simply notice: 'Ah, frustration has arisen.' And return. Eventually you'll see that frustration about wandering is as arbitrary as the wandering itself, and it will lose its power."
Sadhak: "Sometimes the mind wanders to really disturbing content—violent or sexual images, unkind thoughts about others. Does this mean something is wrong with me?"
Guru: "The mind contains everything—the beautiful and the ugly, the sublime and the base. In the stillness of meditation, suppressed material sometimes surfaces. This is not failure but cleansing. When such content arises, don't engage, don't judge, don't analyze—simply notice and return to the Self. The content is not you; it is debris floating through awareness. By not engaging, you allow it to release rather than reinforcing it."
Sadhak: "What exactly am I bringing the mind back TO? The verse says 'to the Self alone,' but I don't know what that means practically."
Guru: "Right now, you are aware. Before thought began, there was awareness. When thought ends, awareness remains. That awareness—prior to thought, underlying thought, surviving thought—is what Krishna means by Self. Bringing the mind back to the Self means letting attention rest in the simple fact of being aware, rather than in the objects of awareness. You don't need to know what the Self is philosophically; you only need to recognize that you are aware, and rest there."
Sadhak: "How do I tell if I'm resting in the Self or just in a blank mental state?"
Guru: "A blank mental state is dull, almost sleepy—there is reduced awareness. Resting in the Self is maximally alert—awareness is heightened, not diminished. You are more present, not less. If you find yourself drifting toward blankness, that is wandering too—the mind has wandered to dullness. Bring it back. True presence is vivid, clear, awake."
Sadhak: "Will there come a time when I don't need to bring the mind back—when it just stays?"
Guru: "For most practitioners, the process continues—what changes is its quality. The wandering becomes subtler, the returns more instantaneous, the Self more palpable as home. Eventually, even the subtlest movements are noticed immediately, and return is effortless. But even advanced practitioners describe a kind of continuous gentle return, a constant falling into the Self. Perhaps the highest state is when there is no longer a sense of bringing the mind back because the mind has recognized itself as never having been separate from the Self. But this is not your concern now. Your concern now is: wherever the mind wanders, bring it back."
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🌅 Daily Practice
Practice 'Returning Meditation' for 20-30 minutes. Sit comfortably, close eyes. Begin by asking: 'What is aware of this moment?' Don't answer verbally; just notice that awareness is present. This noticing is the Self. Now simply sit. The mind will wander—this is certain. Each time you notice wandering, gently note 'wandering' (no judgment) and return attention to the simple fact of being aware. That's the entire practice: notice wandering, return, notice wandering, return. Keep a light mental count if helpful: '1' when you first return, '2' the next time, etc. This count measures not failure (how many times you wandered) but success (how many times you returned). After practice, note your count and your approximate average return time. These metrics will improve with practice.
Extend the practice into daily activity with 'Micro-Returns.' Set an intention: Every time you notice your mind lost in thought—whether during work, conversation, or routine activity—gently return attention to present-moment awareness. You don't need to stop what you're doing; you can return while continuing activity. The return might be as simple as feeling your feet on the ground, noticing the sensation of breathing, or simply recognizing 'I am here.' Do this whenever you notice wandering, which might be dozens of times per day. Each micro-return trains the same capacity you're building in formal meditation. Consider keeping a tally—each mark represents a successful return. By evening, you might have 30, 50, or more returns. That's 50 moments of presence reclaimed from autopilot.
End with 'Return Review' and intention setting. Reflect: How was today's morning practice? How many returns? What quality of returning—frustrated or gentle? During the day, how often did you remember to return? Are there specific situations where you get lost most often? What would help you remember to return in those situations? This reflection provides data for improvement. Set tomorrow's intention: 'Wherever my mind wanders—whether to planning, worrying, fantasy, or frustration—I will bring it back to present awareness. This returning IS my practice. Every return is success.' Finally, do one more return right now: notice awareness, rest there for even just 30 seconds, then allow yourself to drift into sleep from that place of presence. Let the last conscious moment of your day be a return to Self.