BG 08.12 sarva-dvarani samyamya... cited

Expressions researched:
"asthito yoga-dharanam" |"mano hrdi nirudhya ca" |"mano hrdi-nirudhya ca" |"murdhny adhayatmanah pranam" |"sarva-dvarani samyamya"

BG Chapters 7 - 12

BG 8.12, Translation and Purport:

The yogic situation is that of detachment from all sensual engagements. Closing all the doors of the senses and fixing the mind on the heart and the life air at the top of the head, one establishes himself in yoga.

To practice yoga as suggested here, one first has to close the doors of all sense enjoyment. This practice is called pratyāhāra, or withdrawing the senses from the sense objects. The sense organs for acquiring knowledge—the eyes, ears, nose, tongue and touch—should be fully controlled and should not be allowed to engage in self-gratification. In this way the mind focuses on the Supersoul in the heart, and the life force is raised to the top of the head. In the Sixth Chapter this process is described in detail. But as mentioned before, this practice is not practical in this age. The best process is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. If one is always able to fix his mind on Kṛṣṇa in devotional service, it is very easy for him to remain in an undisturbed transcendental trance, or in samādhi.

Easy Journey to Other Planets

Easy Journey to Other Planets 2:

There is a very common Bengali proverb that says that whatever one does for perfection will be tested at the time of his death. Bhagavad-gītā describes what we should do at the point of our death, when we are giving up this present body. For the dhyāna-yogī (meditator) Śrī Kṛṣṇa speaks the following verses:

yad akṣaraṁ veda-vido vadanti

viśanti yad yatayo vīta-rāgāḥ

yad icchanto brahmacaryaṁ caranti

tat te padaṁ saṅgraheṇa pravakṣye

sarva-dvārāṇi saṁyamya

mano hṛdi nirudhya ca

mūrdhny ādhāyātmanaḥ prāṇam

āsthito yoga-dhāraṇām

"Persons learned in the Vedas, who utter oṁkāra and who are great sages in the renounced order, enter into Brahman. Desiring such perfection, one practices celibacy. I shall now explain to you this process by which one may attain salvation. The yogic situation is that of detachment from all sensual engagements. Closing all the doors of the senses and fixing the mind on the heart and the life air at the top of the head, one establishes himself in yoga." (Bg. 8.11-12) In the yoga system this process is called pratyāhāra, which means, in technical language, "the opposite." Now the eyes are engaged in seeing worldly beauty, so one has to withdraw them from enjoying that beauty and concentrate on seeing beauty inside. That is called pratyāhāra. Similarly, one has to hear the oṁkāra sound from within.

Easy Journey to Other Planets 2:

Actually, we are not subject to death. That is affirmed in the beginning of Bhagavad-gītā (2.20): na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre. We are spirit soul, and therefore we are eternal. Why then should we subject ourselves to death and birth? It is intelligent to think in this way. Those who are Kṛṣṇa conscious are very intelligent because they are not interested in getting promotion to any planet where there is death, despite a long duration of life there. Rather, they want to get a body like God's. Īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ. (Bs. 5.1) God's body is sac-cid-ānanda. Sat means "eternal," and cit means "full of knowledge." Ānanda means "full of pleasure."

As stated in our pamphlet Kṛṣṇa, the Reservoir of Pleasure, if we transfer ourselves to the spiritual world, to Kṛṣṇa's planet or to any other spiritual planet, then we will get a body similar to God's: sac-cid-ānanda—eternal, full of knowledge and full of bliss. So those who try to be Kṛṣṇa conscious have a different aim of life than those who are trying to promote themselves to the better planets in this material world. Lord Kṛṣṇa says, mūrdhny ādhāyātmanaḥ prāṇam āsthito yoga-dhāraṇām: "The perfection of yoga is to transfer oneself to the spiritual world." (BG 8.12)

The spirit soul is a minute particle within the body. We cannot see it. One practices the yoga system to raise the soul to the topmost part of the head. This practice goes on while one is living, and the perfection is reached when one can place himself on the top of the head and then break through. Then he can transfer himself to whatever higher planets he likes. That is the perfection of the yogī.

Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures

Lecture on BG 8.12-13 -- New York, November 15, 1966:

Prabhupāda:

sarva-dvārāṇi saṁyamya

mano hṛdi-nirudhya ca

mūrdhny ādhāyātmanaḥ prāṇam

āsthito yoga-dhāraṇām

We have been discussing about the transmigration of the soul. The... There are different kinds of transcendentalists who are called yogi: jñāna-yogī, dhyāna-yogī and bhakti-yogī. All the yogis, they are eligible to be transferred to the spiritual world. The yoga system is meant for linking our connection. We are eternally connected with the Supreme Lord. Somehow or other, we are now in material contamination. The..., the process is that we have to go back again. So that linking process is called yoga. Yoga, the actual translation of the word yoga means plus, plus, just the opposite of minus. Now, at the present moment, we are minus God, or minus Supreme. So when we make ourself plus, connected, then our human form of life is perfect. So at the time of death we have to finish that perfection. So long we are alive, we have to practice how to approach that point of perfection, and at the time of death, when we give up this material body, that perfection has to be realized.

Lecture on BG 8.12-13 -- New York, November 15, 1966:

So Bhagavad-gītā is describing what should we do at the, at the point of our death, when we are giving up this body, this present body. So for the yogis, dhyāna-yogis, this prescription is recited here, sarva-dvārāṇi saṁyamya mano hṛdi-nirudhya ca. Sarva-dvārāṇi means... This system is called pratyāhāra. In the technical language of yogic system it is called pratyāhāra. Pratyāhāra means "just the opposite." Now, the senses, my eye, my eyes are engaged in seeing the worldly beauty. Now I have to retract from enjoying that beauty, and I have to see inside the beauty. That is called pratyāhāra. Similarly, I have to hear the oṁkāra sound from within. So all the senses are to be stopped in their external activities—that is the perfection of yoga—and concentrate the mind on Viṣṇu-mūrti. Mano hṛdi. The mind is very agitating, so it has to be fixed up on the heart. Mano hṛdi-nirudhya. Nirudhya means just arresting the mind within the heart. Mūrdhni, mūrdhny ādhāyātmanaḥ prāṇam āsthito yoga-dhāraṇām. And in this way, when we transfer the air—life on the top of our head, that is the perfection of yoga. And a perfect yogi, then he fixes up where he shall go. There are innumerable planets, and beyond the planets, there are spiritual world.

Lecture on BG 8.12-13 -- New York, November 15, 1966:

So those who are trying to be in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, their aim of life is different than those who are trying to promote themselves in any of the better planet in this material world. So here Lord Kṛṣṇa says that mūrdhny ādhāya ātmanaḥ prāṇam āsthito yoga-dhāraṇām. This is called the perfection of yoga. If you can transfer yourself... You, you are very minute particle within this body. That you cannot see. But I am, my position is... This is external. This is external. So that is sustaining in the prāṇa-vāyu. And the yoga system, the ṣaṭ-cakra system, is to get the soul from down to the top, tip of the topmost part of the head. This practice go, go on, goes on while we are living, and the perfection is that when we can place my, myself on the top of the head, and by fracture of this topmost head we can transfer into the higher planet as we like. As we like. That is the perfection. A yogi can transfer in either of these planets, wherever he likes. Wherever he likes. So if you like... Just like you are inquisitive to see what is the moon planet, so if a yogi likes: "Oh, let me see what is the moon planet. Then I shall transfer myself to higher planets..." Just like travelers. They come to New York, then go to California, then go to Canada. Similarly, you can transfer yourself in so many planets by this yoga system. But anywhere you go the, the same system, visa system and customs system, there are. So Kṛṣṇa conscious persons, they are not interested in these temporary planets. May be for a long duration, but they are not interested.

1974 Conversations and Morning Walks

Morning Walk -- April 1, 1974, Bombay:

Dr. Patel: That is Goloka dhāma.

Prabhupāda: That is Kṛṣṇa. Yes. Yad akṣaraṁ veda-vido vadanti. That means impersonal. Veda-vido. One who knows Vedas.

Chandobhai: Viśanti yad yatayo vīta-rāgāḥ.

Prabhupāda: Then?

Chandobhai: You see, now He tells all the practice of the yoga.

sarva-dvārāṇi saṁyamya

mano hṛdi-nirudhya ca

mūrdhny ādhāyātmanaḥ prāṇam

āsthito yoga-dhāraṇām

Prabhupāda: Yes, that's... Artificially you cannot saṁyama. If your mind is not fixed-up, artificially you cannot make. Therefore Kṛṣṇa says, yoginām api sarveṣāṁ mad gata... (BG 6.47). One who is thinking of Kṛṣṇa, he is perfect yogi.

Chandobhai: But he has to be yogi at that time, isn't it?

Prabhupāda: Yes. Sarva-dvārāṇi saṁyamya. Just like these boys, they do not go to see cinema, they do not go to restaurant. This is sarva-dvārāṇi saṁyamya. You see? They do not go to anywhere except in the temple. They do not talk anything nonsense, except Kṛṣṇa. This is sarva-dvārāṇi saṁyamya.

Dr. Patel: They should not talk anything else except Kṛṣṇa.

Prabhupāda: Yes. Vacaṁsi vaikuṇṭha-guṇānuvarṇane. So this is sam... Unless you give engagement to the senses, proper, how you can control it? Your eyes want to see beautiful of man or woman. (aside:) Hare Kṛṣṇa. But when you are captivated by seeing the Deity of Kṛṣṇa and Rādhā, then that eyes being engaged otherwise is stopped. That has been explained by Prabodānanda Sarasvatī. Durdantendriya-kāla-sarpa-paṭalī-protkhāta-daṁstrāyate. Protkhāta-damstrāyate. Protkhāta means extracted, the poison teeth. The poison teeth of the tea, uh, teeth of the snake is dangerous. Now, here is a snake. Everyone is afraid, "Oh, snake! Snake! Snake!" But if everyone knows that his poison teeth have been taken away, then there is no more danger. Similarly, these indriyas have been compared with the kāla-sarpa-paṭalī. Kāla-sarpa-paṭalī. But...

Dr. Patel: What do you call?

Prabhupāda: Kāla, kāla-sarpa means the dead(ly) poisonous snake, kāla-sarpa-paṭalī. Everyone knows. As soon as you use some indriya, there is some dangerous result. Tṛpyanti neha kṛpanā bahu-duḥkha-bhājaḥ (SB 7.9.45).