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MENTAL BALANCE
become. It is the wealthy people who become insane, lose their sleep and commit suicide. It is they who have to take tranquillisers to get a sound sleep. Unlimited production and consumption of material commodities is the root cause of our mental imbalance. We have to do some serious thinking on this subject. Industrially advanced countries tell us that they are capable of relieving us of all kinds of miseries. But even these countries have lost the sense of direction. They have gone astray and are groping in the dark. They themselves badly need mental balance and peace of mind.
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Of course, we have to satisfy the needs of the body and to support our families. The desire to satisfy these needs is a natural desire. We do not deny this fact. As a matter of fact we have never done so. But, at the same time, we have never accepted sadhana as a pastime or recreation. Sadhanā has a purpose. It gives us encouragement, it makes our vision clear and provides us with permanent values of life.
The practitioner of sadhanā is always active He labours to provide himself with the means of life. At the same time he is aware of the fact that he has to avoid miseries which accompany his activities. He wants to shield himself against the reactions to his actions. He dissolves his delusions and attempts to obtain right vision. He is clear about what leads to misery and what gives happiness. That is why he is capable of maintaining his mental equilibrium. Emotional imbalance is the special characteristic of the modern man. He is awfully perturbed. His experiences are continuously punctuated by sweetness as well as bitterness. Sometimes he commands self-confidence and at other times he loses it. This is the result of mental imbalance.
Mental balance implies freedom from attachments and aversions. It also implies a sense of equality. Prekṣā meditation brings about a sense of equality. In it the practitioner feels pleasurable as well as painful sensibilities. But he tries to strike a balance between them. He tries to maintain and strengthen his equanimity. He aspires to be a pure spectator and to command pure knowledge.
The practice of self-exertion does not disturb the ordinary
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