How to control the senses? How do we keep our senses in our control? And why is it required? Let’s try to understand this through a small story. In a city, there was a small watch repair shop. The owner of the shop had two sons. The owner used to bring his elder son with him to the shop. Slowly over time, elder son learned the skill to repair watches, and he became an expert in it. Along with that also he developed pride that he can repair watches like no one does, and he felt only he could repair. And only I can repair really, he became an expert in watch repair.
If we link this story from reverse, he developed ego “I me myself” mentality, and due to this he fell in mode of passion. After some time, the owner also started to bring his young son also to his shop. The owner had just started to bring his small son to his shop, that in a few days the owner died. Now both the brothers began to take care of the shop. The elder brother had pride that he can repair watch like no one does, and he started behaving impolitely with his small brother, scolding, chastising etc.
Also the elder brother started to do some intoxication because his senses were not in control. He became a servant of his senses. He started to fall down, and over time he fell from mode of passion to mode of ignorance. After some time, elder brother thought that he is an expert mechanic in watch repair, while his younger brother does nothing. So he divided his shop between him and his brother.
Now, no one visited the shop of small brother, and it was almost empty. And there was a huge crowd in elder brother’s shop. Huge Crowed. But because he had developed pride and also wrong association, and as his senses were not in his control, therefore he started doing arbitrariness in his work. He had no specific time for opening his shop, sometime he opened his shop, and sometimes he didn’t. Customers became frustrated by his behavior. He didn’t behave nicely with his customer. He used to remain in intoxication, because of which he made mistakes in his work.
While his small brother, with full devotion and focus, started working on whatever he had learned from his father. He tried to learn to repair watches, and gradually he learned to repair watches nicely. Slowly over time, he kept on learning and gradually his shop also started to function, and people started to visit his shop also.
From this story we learn that if our senses are not in our control, then we can face failure even after being successful. We cannot become successful simply. In life in order to be successful we must have our senses in our control. But is it so easy to control our senses? Definitely not. But if we follow the instructions of Lord Krishna, as he instructs in Bhagavad Gita then definitely we can get control over the senses. Lord Krishna says in Bhagavad Gita chapter 3 text 41.
O Arjuna, in the very beginning curb this great symbol of sin [lust] by regulating the senses, and slay this destroyer of knowledge and self-realization. It means that is from where it is generated, the starting point, i.e. from where it starts, right from that time, control your senses and knowledge and self realization. And slay this destroyer of knowledge and self realization.
If you don’t do this, it will slay your knowledge. Remember this, so Before it destroys your goal, you destroy it. You just destroy it. And How? Destroy it from the very beginning, by practice. If you endeavor, you'll be successful. Surely, you will be able to get control over your senses. By endeavor, a soft rope can also make impressions on a hard rock. So if we start to endeavor to control our senses, then can’t our senses get in control? Surely we will be able to do. Only we have to do practice, we have to correct our lifestyle, we have to regulate it.
You have to keep in mind. If u want to control senses, you have to start from the very beginning. Some fools say that initially let your senses enjoy whatever it wants to, when it will be bored, then try to regulate it. No, keep in mind if you put oil in fire, it would flame more and not get extinguished. If we have itching in our hand, and we itch it, then by doing so itching increases, and not decreases. In the same way if we start satisfying our senses its thirst increases, just like by putting oil in flame, intensity of flame increases.
Therefore, in beginning, if instead of putting oil in flame if we put water, then? The flame gets extinguished. Therefore, from the very beginning we must try to control the senses.
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