Freedom from Sorrow – Peace through Mental Mastery

 Freedom from Sorrow – Peace through Mental Mastery

Dr B.S.Chakravarthy 02/11/2025

After Abhimanyu’s death on the Kurukshetra battlefield, Arjuna sat weeping. Some distance away, Krishna too appeared sad. A passerby asked Krishna, “Arjuna’s grief is understandable – he lost his son. But why are you troubled?” Krishna’s response was profound: “I taught him the entire Bhagavad Gita with such effort, yet Arjuna still hasn’t understood.” This story reveals an important truth. Knowing wisdom is one thing, practicing it in life is quite another.

I have experienced this many times in my own life. We all know what sorrow is. But what is freedom from sorrow? It is not merely the absence of grief – it is a state, a maturity, a vision that can see life comprehensively. Grieving over major problems is natural. But why do we suffer so much even over small matters? This question has made me reflect deeply.

What I have observed is that every person has two worlds. One is the visible external world – our job, family, responsibilities, daily tasks. The second is the internal world within our mind – our beliefs, dreams, fears, hopes, thoughts.

When there is no harmony between these two worlds, sorrow ,friction arises. We act one way externally while being different internally. This duality is the root of suffering and confusion

I remember once having to make an important decision. My heart showed me one path, but society, family, and others’ opinions pointed in another direction. I wore a mask and behaved in ways that pleased the external world. But the restlessness and dissatisfaction that followed were indescribable.

 That’s when I understood – walking with integrity according to our believed values is the true path to contentment.

Watching ants fills me with wonder. Even such tiny creatures clearly know where to find food and where danger lies. They live according to their nature. But humans, supposedly superior beings, often don’t know what’s good or bad.

Even when we know, we don’t practice it. Herein lies the problem. If we have knowledge but lack the ability to implement it, it remains mere information, not wisdom.

We’ve read the Bhagavad Gita, heard prophets’ teachings, know philosophers’ words. But to what extent are we applying their essence in our lives? Even Arjuna, who heard the entire Gita, felt sorrow when his son died.

This is human nature. But drowning in that sorrow, clinging to it – that is our choice. The true capability lies in leaving things where they belong and moving forward.

I have realized something – in this constantly changing world, some struggle, some effort is necessary for survival. This is natural. But when this struggle becomes our entire life, it means we’re living in the midst of sorrow.

If we can accept that we ourselves are responsible for our troubles and pains, half the sorrow diminishes. Because then we take responsibility, not weakness.

This is where mental discipline becomes important. As I mentioned earlier, the mind is like a restless monkey.

 Controlling it, directing it in one direction is very difficult. But not impossible. If we understand the source of our thoughts, if we train our mind, freedom from sorrow becomes possible.

This doesn’t come in a day – it’s a state achieved gradually through continuous effort.

The six inner enemies – desire, anger, greed, delusion, pride, jealousy – these are the real adversaries.

We see enemies in the external world, but the real battle happens within us. If we can conquer these internal enemies, no matter what hardship comes in the external world, we can remain stable.

This is the true meaning of freedom from sorrow.

What I’ve understood in this journey is that wearing masks is easy, *but removing them is true capability.*

 We must adapt to circumstances, but not abandon our core values and beliefs.

The goal is not to act for the external world, *but to bring harmony between our internal world and the external world.* When this happens, we emerge from duality, and sorrow also diminishes.

This is what self-realization in the light of knowledge-fire means.

Knowing our true nature, accepting our strengths and weaknesses, exploring the source of our thoughts – these are all paths to freedom from sorrow.

 If we gradually train our mind, learn from every experience, leave things where they belong and move forward, sorrow cannot touch us.

Truth be told, I’m still on this journey. Every day brings new challenges, new situations. Sometimes sorrow comes, disappointment arises.

 But now I have clarity – recognizing these feelings, accepting them, but moving forward without drowning in them.

This is the path I’m learning toward freedom from sorrow. It’s not a journey that gets completed, it’s an ongoing process. But walking this path, the peace, clarity, and joy we find are immense.