Questions for Swamiji · The correspondence desk
The questions were sent by readers. The answers belong to everyone.
For decades, readers have written to Sri Swami Jyotirmayananda with questions like the one you may be carrying. His answers below are quoted word for word from Dawn in Dusk, a published collection of those exchanges — gathered here so you can search by what's troubling you, not by decade.
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The register of answered questions.
Each answer below is Swamiji's own, quoted word for word from Dawn in Dusk — not a summary and not the Foundation's phrasing. Open any entry to read it in full; filter by the subject on your mind, or search above.
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What makes the mind hang on to the negative thoughts like fear in spite of understanding that it is of no use to keep them? Read Swamiji's answerClose
Swamiji's words
From a practical point of view, don't pursue the defects of the mind, do not try to corner them and do not go after anything that is negative. The more you do, the stronger that negative becomes. You can eliminate negativity in an indirect manner because negativity does not have substantiality. It doesn't exist. But since it doesn't exist in reality, by emphasizing it the mind gives strength to it. So the right approach is to let your whole personality flow. See that in everyday life you are harmonizing yourself by doing a little meditation, a little japa — a little of everything you need to do as a spiritual aspirant, from morning until night. Do not go on thinking of the negative. If at all try to give the mind positive affirmations. Suppose fear comes up again and again. During meditation, when the mind becomes relaxed, impress upon yourself, "I am, after all, not this personality. I am the universal Self. I am the destroyer of fear itself. I am abhaya, fearless Brahman." You should continue your sadhana, and as time passes you allow your personality to become more integrated and let in more positive impressions. Suddenly, what you have been afraid of vanishes, even without your noticing. That's the way all the negative aspects of the mind are to be dealt with. As you recall the story of a teacher who tells the student, "When you practice meditation don't think of a monkey." He never thought of a monkey before during meditation. When he was told he should not, then he thought of nothing else. Negative thoughts, like the monkey, must be allowed to exist and allowed to depart without obsessing over them.
From the Foundation The instruction is indirect: not to attack the thought, but to stop feeding it attention.
Verbatim from Dawn in Dusk, a published collection of questions put to Sri Swami Jyotirmayananda and his replies. Nothing in the quotation above has been paraphrased, shortened or reworded.
Swamiji, while meditating I continue to be distracted by different disturbing thoughts. What can I do? Read Swamiji's answerClose
Swamiji's words
While meditating, different techniques are adopted by aspirants according to their different capacities. For most people the advice is to be a witness to your mind. Do not fight it. That's first and foremost. Simply watch your mind, no matter what thoughts come. If negative thoughts come, don't drive them away by their neck. If positive thoughts come, don't welcome them; just let them be. Automatically the mind will come to a state of relaxation. There is a Chinese saying, "How do you clear glass of muddy water?" The answer: stop stirring it. If you witness the mind and stop stirring it, it will become relaxed. Also, if you find yourself with angry thoughts towards someone, then develop a counter-thought that I am, in essence, all-loving, allforgiving, and am growing in these qualities. Give that positive affirmation and remain detached from the negative within you. If you feel a sense of insecurity, weakness or dejection, think of the opposite. If you feel weak, the counter-thought would be strength. Think of God as Hanuman who jumped the ocean. Think of the power of God. "That power is within me." By counter thought you control your mind. These then, are the two important methods of controlling the mind: sakshibhav (witness the mind) and pratipaksha bhavana (adopting a contrary type of thought and allowing the mind to flow positively). Enlighten your mind, so that it will flow to God automatically. That process must continue day by day.
From the Foundation Two methods, named in his own vocabulary — sakshibhav, witnessing the mind, and pratipaksha bhavana, the contrary thought.
Verbatim from Dawn in Dusk, a published collection of questions put to Sri Swami Jyotirmayananda and his replies. Nothing in the quotation above has been paraphrased, shortened or reworded.
How long should one practice Yoga each day? Read Swamiji's answerClose
Swamiji's words
Much depends upon the time available in your day-to-day life. You as a busy person ought to practice Hatha Yoga exercises for one halfhour, repetition of mantra for fifteen minutes, study of scriptures for one halfhour, and meditation for one halfhour. You may increase or decrease the time allotted to each of these depending upon your daily schedule.
From the Foundation A concrete daily allotment, given to a busy person. Adjust the amounts, not the habit.
Verbatim from Dawn in Dusk, a published collection of questions put to Sri Swami Jyotirmayananda and his replies. Nothing in the quotation above has been paraphrased, shortened or reworded.
Swamiji, my job is very demanding and stressful, because I work with many other people. How can I keep my mind under control in tense situation? Read Swamiji's answerClose
Swamiji's words
Practice meditation daily in the morning for at least a half an hour. You can learn the complete technique in my classes here at the Yoga Research Foundation. Receive Mantra initiation and repeat Mantra or the mystic name of God with feeling and devotion. Whenever you have some leisure time, fix your mind on God. Learn the practice of Pranayama or breath control. Breath and mind are interlinked, and by practicing Pranayama, you can calm your agitated mind. Apart from these, you must seek good association, study the scriptures to understand the meaning of life, develop faith in God, and dedicate your life to the service of God through humanity. You will acquire greater inner peace and bliss, and soon, you will be able to control your mind more effectively through regular practice and the development of Vairagya.
From the Foundation A workplace question answered with daily practice — and with pranayama specifically, for a mind already agitated.
Verbatim from Dawn in Dusk, a published collection of questions put to Sri Swami Jyotirmayananda and his replies. Nothing in the quotation above has been paraphrased, shortened or reworded.
What should a person do when his or her mind is affected by grief? Read Swamiji's answerClose
Swamiji's words
Take recourse to repetition of the Divine Name. Repeat the Name with feeling and surrender to the Divine Will. Simply watch your mind with an air of resignation until the momentum of grief subsides. At the same time, take recourse to your reason to suggest to yourself that, "even this will pass away." What you are actually grieving for is not really the main cause of your grief. The ignorance that veils the essential nature of the Self is the cause of all bitter occurrences in life that produce pain. A person must constantly wage war against ignorance by practicing Yoga faithfully.
From the Foundation He does not ask you to stop grieving. He asks you to watch it until its momentum subsides.
Verbatim from Dawn in Dusk, p. 191, a published collection of questions put to Sri Swami Jyotirmayananda and his replies. Nothing in the quotation above has been paraphrased, shortened or reworded.
Is God the same in all religions? Read Swamiji's answerClose
Swamiji's words
God is one for all. Religious teachings are fundamentally the same. The deeper laws of life are the same. A saint, wherever he may be, manifests similar qualities of purity, compassion, endurance and Divine Love.
From the Foundation Four sentences, and the whole of his answer to whether you must leave the tradition you were raised in.
Verbatim from Dawn in Dusk, a published collection of questions put to Sri Swami Jyotirmayananda and his replies. Nothing in the quotation above has been paraphrased, shortened or reworded.
Can we communicate with our loved ones after death? Read Swamiji's answerClose
Swamiji's words
In the natural course of things, there is no need to communicate with the spirits of the dead. Theoretically, communication is possible, and various spiritualistic devices have proven this fact. But from a practical point of view, one should ask this question with sincerity: "Do I communicate with my dear ones even now as they live?" If people were to communicate well with their loved ones, in life, they would not need to communicate with them after death. Most relationships are shallow and superficial; deep within, people hardly understand each other. Being able to communicate with affection demands the healthy development of an integrated personality in which one understands oneself and also has the capacity to understand others. And such communication while one is alive is more in accord with the law of evolution than communication carried on after death. Infusing the realities of the relative world into the minds of departed souls through spiritualistic communication would rather be obstructive to their progress.
From the Foundation The question he answers first is whether we communicate with our dear ones while they are still alive.
Verbatim from Dawn in Dusk, a published collection of questions put to Sri Swami Jyotirmayananda and his replies. Nothing in the quotation above has been paraphrased, shortened or reworded.
How can we promote harmony in the family? Read Swamiji's answerClose
Swamiji's words
Learn to be in touch with your deepest self through the practice of hatha yoga and raja yoga. Hatha yoga trains you to possess a healthy body and raja yoga makes your mind healthy through meditation and yogic disciplines. As you strengthen your psychophysical personality and become highly integrated, you develop an insight into the meaning of life and the ability to empathize with others without being restricted by your own egoistic values. Therefore, you learn to adapt and adjust to the needs of other personalities. A profound understanding of others and their circumstances sustains a durable, affectionate relationship. Thus, you promote harmony in the family and extend this harmony to the world as well.
From the Foundation Harmony in the family begins, in his answer, with your own body and mind rather than with the family.
Verbatim from Dawn in Dusk, a published collection of questions put to Sri Swami Jyotirmayananda and his replies. Nothing in the quotation above has been paraphrased, shortened or reworded.
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