Hare Krsna,
My humble realization is that mode of goodness attracts goodness, mode of passion attracts things of passion, and mode of ignorance attracts worthless pursuits. A peaceful mind is attained in the mode of goodness (or pure goodness). It is like a clear still water of a lake. When the water is clear, still and calm, we can see deeper into the bottom of the lake. Mode of passion is like dirt on the water surface that obstructs our vision of the depth of the lake. Mode of ignorance makes us simply blind to the existence of the lake. Mode of passion is a result of immense sinful reactions and conditioning of many lifetimes.
In BG 14.7, Lord Krsna explains to Arjuna that “the mode of passion is born of unlimited desires and longings, and because of this the embodied living entity is bound to fruitive actions.” On the other hand, “the mode of goodness, being purer than others, is illuminating, and it frees one from all sinful reactions. Those situated in that mode become conditioned by a sense of happiness and knowledge.” (BG 14.6)
Being a struggling sadhaka (aspiring devotee), I can totally relate to a turbulent mind. It stifles contemplation, making it difficult to hear and assimilate properly. I may chant for two hours early in the morning and later watch five minutes of worthless sense gratificatory stuff on internet. But the mental impression created from those five minutes lingers in my mind longer as compared to the impressions created by the chanting of the Holy Name. This proves that I am still far away from attaining a truly peaceful mind. Everyday is a struggle; it’s a struggle to balance bhakti and detach my mind from everything mundane. More often than not, it is a losing battle. I have kind of resigned myself to accept that attaining a completely peaceful mind in a state of pure goodness is something that I may never see in this lifetime. Alas!
But I need to keep trying; keep picking myself up. I have faith that Krsna is pleased by my sincere endeavor to please Him more than the result itself. This is similar to the pastime of Mother Yasoda trying to bind little Krsna with a rope. No matter how much she tried, the rope would fall short of two fingers’ length every time. Finally, Lord Krsna, out of His supreme mercy and compassion, allowed Himself to be bound, and thus allowing Himself to come under the control of His devotee. I hope Krsna is equally merciful to me (especially in the glorious Lord Damodara month where the Lord is believed to be exceptionally merciful).
In every incarnation, the Lord appeared to annihilate the demons. Krsna killed many demons during His manifest pastimes; Lord Rama killed ten-headed Ravana; Parasurama killed the ksatriyas twenty-one times with His axe, Lord Nrsimhadeva killed Hiranyakasipu with His nails, Lord Varahadeva killed Hiranyaksa, and so on. But Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu did not kill any demons in His manifest pastimes on this planer. Rather He killed the demoniac tendencies within us. He did not carry any weapons like club, sword, disc, etc., like His other incarnations. His weapons are the Holy Name and Srimad Bhagavatam.
Srimad Bhagavatam (Canto 1 Chapter 2) beautifully describes how can rise above the mode of passion and ignorance.
(SB 1.2.17-21)
“Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the Personality of Godhead, who is the Paramātmā [Supersoul] in everyone’s heart and the benefactor of the truthful devotee, cleanses desire for material enjoyment from the heart of the devotee who has developed the urge to hear His messages, which are in themselves virtuous when properly heard and chanted.”
“By regularly hearing the Bhāgavatam and by rendering of service to the pure devotee, all that is troublesome to the heart is almost completely destroyed, and loving service unto the glorious Lord, who is praised with transcendental songs, is established as an irrevocable fact.
“As soon as irrevocable loving service is established in the heart, the effects of nature’s modes of passion and ignorance, such as lust, desire and hankering, disappear from the heart. Then the devotee is established in goodness, and he becomes completely happy.
“Thus established in the mode of unalloyed goodness, the man whose mind has been enlivened by contact with devotional service to the Lord gains positive scientific knowledge of the Personality of Godhead in the stage of liberation from all material association.
“Thus the knot in the heart is pierced, and all misgivings are cut to pieces. The chain of fruitive actions is terminated when one sees the self as master.”
Therefore, there is hope. There is hope that we can be free of the influence of the mode of passion and ignorance. Even mode of goodness is also binding. However, the process of bhakti-yoga is so powerful that it frees us from the effects of all the three modes. As I mentioned earlier, mode of passion is like dirt accumulated on the surface of the lake. Similarly, we have dust accumulated over the mirror of our minds over many lifetimes. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu therefore advises us to chant the Holy Name of the Lord – congregationally and individually.
“All glories to the Śrī Kṛṣṇa saṅkīrtana, which cleanses the heart of all the dust accumulated for years and extinguishes the fire of conditional life, of repeated birth and death. This saṅkīrtana movement is the prime benediction for humanity at large because it spreads the rays of the benediction moon. It is the life of all transcendental knowledge. It increases the ocean of transcendental bliss, and it enables us to fully taste the nectar for which we are always anxious.” (Sri Siksastaka 1)
Therefore, simply by chanting the Holy Name of the Lord, we too can achieve a mind purified of all passion (like Vidura). We will then be able to hear and contemplate better “the many narrations of the spotless pastimes of the Lord.” Thereby leading us to faster spiritual advancement and Krsna consciousness.
Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare | Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare
All glories to Srila Prabhupada!
Krsna Katha 