(Image Courtesy Mahanidhiswami)

Our Personal Elevation Or Deterioration Is Our Responsibility

उद्धरेदात्मनात्मानं नात्मानमवसादयेत् |
आत्मैव ह्यात्मनो बन्धुरात्मैव रिपुरात्मन: || 6.5||

uddhared ātmanātmānaṁ nātmānam avasādayet
ātmaiva hyātmano bandhur ātmaiva ripur ātmanaḥ|| 6.5||

Shloka Translation
BG – Ch. 6- Ver. 5:

Do not degrade yourself; instead, uplift yourself. Because you are the only one who can be both your friend and your foe.

Explanation

We are the ones that elevate or degrade ourselves. Nobody can take our place on the road to God-realization. Saints and Gurus point us on the right direction, but we must go it ourselves. Before this one, we’ve lived many lives, and God-realized Saints have always been here on Earth. God makes sure that God-realized Saints are always present in every era to guide and inspire serious seekers.

According to Shree Krishna, the mind has the power to benefit us the most as the biggest benefactor of the soul; on the other hand, being our greatest opponent, it also has the potential to destroy us the most. A tamed mind can accomplish many good things, yet an untamed mind can degrade consciousness with the most terrible thoughts.
Take charge of your own destiny. You are the one who put yourself in this circumstance. With the correct education and work, you can redeem yourself. You must accomplish everything yourself in every element of life.

Verse & what we can learn

When you use your personality — body, mind, and intellect – to further your own goals, you are your own best friend. When you utilise the same equipment to go downward, you become your own worst enemy.

When Shree Krishna says “use the mind to elevate the self,” he means “use the higher mind to enhance the lower mind.” To put it another way, we must manage the mind with our intellect.

To acquire knowledge and to implement that knowledge in life one needs to be mentally and physically active and healthy and for that daily meditation is a great tool.

There are various types of meditation like Buddhist meditation, heartfulness meditation, mindfulness meditation, meditation for stress, and each meditation benefits are countless. There are also numerous meditation techniques for beginners which help in practicing daily meditation so go ahead and start your journey towards a peaceful and balanced life.

In the Next verse, Shri Krishna tells Arjuna more about the mind.

Let’s learn to live with “The Gita” via Meditation Affinity…