V: 22, 23

Chapter 5, Verses 22, 23

"Senses touch objects.
Pleasures are like wombs
That bear sorrow.
They are transient.
Not in them
Do the wise find lasting joy.
Yogis who are able to master,
Here on Earth,
Impulses of selfish desire,
Anger and fear
Rest in the Self
And are truly at peace."

Sri Krishna Prem:

"By dwelling upon the Light of the Eternal, you will find that the pleasurable or painful sensations which accompany daily living, though unchanged in themselves, have in some quite indescribable way become different. They will lose their power to enthrall, that is, to lead you into blind reaction. No longer will the sensations be the masters, smashing their way brutally into consciousness and demanding knee-jerk reaction.

The teaching that was given at the end of the third chapter about the control of selfish desire now begins to come to frution. Previously, you had no means of dealing with unwelcome sensations, but Stoic indifference [Titiksha]. When the present plateau is reached, you have only to concentrate to establish yourself in the inner fortress where the winds of selfish desire do not blow. A great gain has been achieved. Instead of grimly setting the teeth in a posture of resistance, only a relatively small effort is needed to take up your position within. Once you do so, victory is assured."

[Stoic endurance can backfire, as in the case where feelings are denied. It wasn't until I absorbed the teachings of Buddhist teachers Pema Chodron and Jack Kornfield about eleven years ago that I learned about the importance of embracing unwelcome sensations, and in giving them space to sing their songs, learned how to take up my position in that inner fortress of spacious awareness, from which everything arises, and into which everything subsides. It doesn't work for me all the time, but practice makes perfect :o)]

A friend:

"Often it feels as if these teachings have been written about and for me. It feels so deeply personal, and why shouldn't it? We all share this crazy, wonderful, fantastic experience called LIFE."