The mind that is clean is serene

Our high-speed stress-filled urbanized culture makes peace of mind a wanted but elusive commodity. Many people think that going to a peaceful setting such as a beach or a mountaintop will give them peace.

That may provide some relief, but it neglects that which is essential for peace of mind: purification. The Bhagavad-gita (06.27) indicates that the mind that is clean being freed from worldly passion is serene.

Why is that?

Because a clean mind doesn’t get caught in infatuations over innumerable trivial things, as does an unclean mind. Impurities make us imagine that possessing and enjoying the good-looking things of the world will give us pleasure. And this imagination indentures us to endless complexities and anxieties caused by the attempts to fulfill those desires. Even when our peace is disrupted by problems that come by themselves, without our attempts to fulfill desires, those problems are karmic reactions to past indulgences in impure desires.

When our mind is clean, it can focus on those material things that are truly important and stay undistracted amidst alluring or agitating environs. Moreover, a clean mind can meditate easily on the supreme spiritual reality, Krishna, who is the source of all serenity. And significantly, devotional meditation is also the most effective process for cleaning the mind, for Krishna is supremely pure and purifying.

Such meditation may be easier in natural retreat centers than in passionate metropolitan hubs. But it is easiest in places where Krishna’s presence is most manifest vibrant spiritual centers like temples, be they in urban or rural settings. And to the extent we cultivate devotion for Krishna, to that extent increases our capacity to meditate on him in all settings. Being pleased with our sustained meditation, Krishna makes his presence manifest everywhere, thus making serenity a constant reality.

Bhagavad Gita Chapter 06, Text 27L

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