Moderation is the Key to Meditation – Dhyana Yoga 16

नात्यश्नतस्तु योगोऽस्ति न चैकान्तमनश्नतः ।
न चाति स्वप्नशीलस्य जाग्रतो नैव चार्जुन ॥६- १६॥

The Lord now describes the regulations that a yogi must follow in the next two verses.

naatyashnatastu yogo.asti na chaikaantamanashnataH .
na chaatisvapnashiilasya jaagrato naiva chaarjuna .. 6.16..

Arjuna, this yoga is neither for one who overeats, nor for one who starves himself. It is neither for one who sleeps too much, nor for one who is always awake.

arjunaH – Arjuna : yogaH – this yoga : na tu – neither : asti - is : atyashnataH - for him who overeats : na cha – nor : ekaantaM anashnataH - one who does not eat at all : cha - even so: na - not: : atisvapnashiilasya – for him who is always sleeping : na cha - nor: jaagrataH eva - one who is always awake.

In this Sloka, a yogi is advised not to overeat. This is because, when a person eats too much, then it also causes excessive thirst. Once the stomach is filled with food and water, it becomes heavy and the person becomes sleepy. Overeating can also cause indigestion and all this will affect concentration. On the other hand, when a person eats nothing and starves himself, then he keeps thinking about food and loses concentration. He also becomes too weak to sit and meditate. So people who eat too much or too little cannot practice meditation.

A Sardarji, and a Madrasi were doing construction work on top of a high rise building. Each day, at lunch break, they were complained since they were sick and tired of finding the same packed lunches everyday. One day, the Madrasi opened his lunch box & said, “Idlis again!! If I see Idli once more, I will jump off this building”. The Sardarji also opened his box and said, “Chappathis again! If I see Chappathis once more, I will jump off this building”. The next day, the Madrasi opens his lunch box, sees Idlis and jumps off the building and dies. The Sardarji then opens his lunch, sees Chappathis, and jumps and dies. In their funeral, the Madrasi’s wife is crying. She says, “If I had known, he was so bored of Idlis, I would never have packed it”. The Sardarji’s wife says, “I don’t know what to say, he packs his own lunch!!”.

It is said that too much of anything is good for nothing. The Lord says the same here in the context of regulating our diet. The Lord also advocates the yogi to regulate his sleep. When a person sleeps too much, he becomes lazy and inert. When he does not sleep at all, he becomes drowsy and sleepy and loses alertness. So people who sleep too much or too little cannot practice meditation.

A moderate approach is something that one can adopt not only to meditation, but as a way of life itself. When one uses  Selective moderation, we end up with more time and energy to tackle important issues and one can be successful when we  learn to combine moderation with single-mindedness and determination.

Using the technique of moderation, we are able to conserve and divert resources towards important objectives. Also  active moderation, wherein we take deliberate steps to reduce excesses can be used to break out of  repetitive habits and even addictions and substance abuse. Such habits cannot be kicked in a single step but can be conquered through moderation.

Moderation, therefore is the key not only to Meditation but also life at large

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