Yoga is the cessation of mind -- chittavrittinirodha

[Guest guest]

I told you that Patanjali is just mathematical. In a single sentence, "Now the

discipline of Yoga," he is finished with you. This is the only sentence that has

been used for you. Now he takes it for granted that you are interested in Yoga

not as a hope but as a discipline, as a transformation right here and now. He

proceeds to define:

 

Yoga is the cessation of mind.

 

This is the definition of Yoga, the best. Yoga has been defined in many ways;

there are many definitions. Some say Yoga is the meeting of the mind with the

divine; hence, it is called Yoga -- Yoga means meeting, joining together. Some

say that Yoga means dropping the ego, ego is the barrier: the moment you drop

the ego you are joined to the divine. You were already joined; only because of

the ego it appeared that you were not joined. And there are many definitions,

but Patanjali's is the most scientific. He says, "Yoga is the cessation of

mind."

 

Yoga is the state of no-mind. The word "mind" covers all -- your egos, your

desires, your hopes, your philosophies, your religions, your scriptures. "Mind"

covers all. Whatsoever you can think is mind. All that is known, all that can be

known, all that is knowable, is within mind. Cessation of the mind means

cessation of the known, cessation of the knowable. It is a jump into the

unknown. When there is no-mind you are in the unknown. Yoga is a jump into the

unknown. It will not be right to say "unknown"; rather, "unknowable."

 

What is the mind? What is the mind doing there? What is it? Ordinarily we think

that mind is something substantial there, inside the head. Patanjali doesn't

agree -- and no one who has ever known the insides of the mind will agree.

Modern science also doesn't agree. Mind is not something substantial inside the

head. Mind is just a function, just an activity.

 

You walk, and I say you are walking. What is walking? If you stop, where is

walking? If you sit down, where has the walking gone? Walking is nothing

substantial; it is an activity. So while you are sitting no one can ask, "Where

have you put your walking? Just now you were walking, so where has the walking

gone?" You will laugh. You will say, "Walking is not something substantial, it

is just an activity. I can walk. I can again walk and I can stop. It is

activity."

 

Mind is also activity, but because of the word "mind" it appears as if something

substantial is there. It is better to call it "minding" -- just like walking.

Mind means "minding," mind means thinking. It is an activity.

 

Osho: The Path of Yoga

 

 

 

 

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