In our last post on Chapter 6, we talked about progressing up the learning ladder as a person transitions from a stage of unconscious incompetence to unconscious competence.

In today’s post, we shall discuss how complete focus on a goal can help to achieve it, no matter how difficult it might seem and illustrate the same from an age old story in the Mahabharata.

युञ्जन्नेवं सदात्मानं योगी विगतकल्मषः ।
सुखेन ब्रह्मसंस्पर्शमत्यन्तं सुखमश्नुते ॥६- २८॥

yunjannevaM sadaatmaanaM yogii vigatakalmashhaH .
sukhena brahmasa.nsparshamatyantaM sukhamashnute .. 6.28..

This yogi who is sinless, constantly unites himself with God and so easily enjoys the supreme happiness of contact with Brahman.

vigatakalmashhaH yogii - this yogi who is sinless : evaM - in this way : sadaa – constantly : aatmaanaM – his self : yuNjan.h -thus uniting (with God) : sukhena – easily : atyantaM – eternal, endless : sukhaM – happiness : ashnute – enjoys: (the happiness in the shape of) : brahmasaMsparshaM – contact with Brahman, attainment of God

The yogi constantly identifies himself with God and therefore he gives up all thoughts of the world. He does not have any ego or feeling of “mine”. Attachment to possessions is like a disease. Our problem is that we always want something or the other. Children always want money from their parents. Once a college student phones his parents and says “I need another two hundred dollars.” At the other end, his father says, “I can’t hear you.” The boy SHOUTS, “Two hundred. I need two hundred!” The father says “I can’t hear you.” The operator cuts in, “I can hear him.” The father says, “Good. YOU send him the money!”

A yogi is one who has no thoughts of his body or his possessions or wanting to possess anything for himself. Because of his total focus on the Lord, he realizes God. When he becomes one with God in this fashion, he gets joy which is permanent. Since his joy is fixed on permanence it can never decrease or be taken away from him.

This Sloka can be illustrated by the story of Satyavan Savitri related in the Mahabharata. When Satyavan died, Savitri wanted to get him back. On account of her penance she was able to see Yama and walk with him in the jungle and the world of the dead. Yama spots her walking behind him and he gives her a wish (anything other than Satyavan’s life). Since she is not able to ask for Satyavan’s life directly, she asks Yama for life in its fullness and children for herself and Satyavan and Yama grants it. Savitri then says that without Satyavan, she cannot live life in its fullness and Yama is moved to remove the noose from the neck of Satyavan.

Just as Savitri was determined and did not accept any other boon granted by yama, the yogi too should pursue his goal with determination and not get deviated by the powers that he can gain during penance. Like Savitri, who only wanted to get back Satyavan and nothing else, every desire in this world should be ignored for a higher purpose which is God realization. Savitri asking for Satyavan is like the yogi who wants God realization. Just as Savitri reasons that children are not possible without Satyavan, for a yogi, happiness is not possible without realizing God. When the noose is removed from Satyavan’s neck he becomes free, so too when the noose of ignorance or avidya is removed from the truth or satya this leads to God realization. All of us are always aware that God is present within us. But this knowledge is covered by ignorance and so we become deceived. When we start meditating on God, then this knowledge becomes clear and we realize God, which leads to eternal happiness.

In the same way as a Yogi focuses on God realization, in order to be successful in life, it is necessary to have clearly defined goals. There would be plenty of distractions and easy alternates offered, just as Yama offers to Savitri, but in order to be successful, one needs to keep the goal as the one and only target. No matter what obstacles come in our way, we need to be clear about the goal and be able to think on our feet to be able to achieve it. With this kind of dedication, every goal is possible and attainable!

Once a person realizes God, what will his attitude be? This is explained in the next sloka