[Advaita-l] Who Doesn’t Have Arjuna’s Question? Those who are off the Training Wheels!

[Sundar Rajan]

Namaste,

This post continues from my earlier post, *“Why Is Meditation Hard?”* in
the Tesla=Dhyana series
(
https://quantumviewpoint.blogspot.com/2025/10/what-is-common-between-arjuna-and-yuval.html
)

There we saw how both Arjuna and Yuval Harari confessed the same problem —
the mind refuses to obey.

Here we ask the natural follow-up:
* Who doesn’t have Arjuna’s problem? Anyone?*
If everyone struggles with restlessness, who are the rare ones whose minds
have become truly steady?

“O Kṛṣṇa! The mind is restless, turbulent, strong and obstinate.
I think controlling it is more difficult than restraining the wind.”
— Bhagavad Gītā 6.34

*The answer is simple: Those are the ones off the training wheels.*
They have moved from preliminary effort to true *Dhyāna* — the stage where
meditation begins to meditate itself.

For better viewing of this post, see the blog post:
https://quantumviewpoint.blogspot.com/2025/10/beyond-training-wheels-who-doesnt-have.html
------------------------------
Measuring the Inner Journey

To treat meditation as a real discipline, we need a yardstick.
Vedānta offers *Neti Neti* (“Not this, not this”) — a process that removes
externals such as posture or duration and reveals three internal measures:

• *Absorption* – Was I truly focused and present?
• *Peace* – Did calm arise naturally?
• *Bliss (or Joy)* – Did a quiet pleasantness well up from within?

These three — Absorption, Peace, Bliss (APB) — form the inner compass for
judging an inward session.
------------------------------
>From Effort to Stillness

Progress is not a straight climb.
There is a *gap* between disciplined concentration (*Dhāraṇā*) and
spontaneous absorption (*Dhyāna*).
Many plateau here, mistaking focus for meditation.
Path Goal Reach
Secular meditation Calm within the self Up to Dhāraṇā (trained
concentration)
Spiritual meditation Seeing the Self beyond the self Begins at Dhāraṇā →
blossoms into Dhyāna

“The Lord made the senses outgoing; therefore, man looks outward, not
within.” — Kaṭha Upaniṣad 2.1.1
Our awareness is born extroverted; turning it inward is like reversing
gravity.
Until the spiritual center awakens, practice remains helpful — but not yet
liberating.

------------------------------
>From Effort → Pull

“Driving the mind inward, as a shepherd drives sheep into the pen, is not
meditation.
True meditation arises from the natural inwardness (*pratyak-pravāṇatā*) of
the mind, caused by an inward pull.”
— Swami Bhajanananda (Vedanta Society of Southern California)

At first we *push* the mind; eventually something *draws* it home.
When that inward pull awakens — from the depth often called the spiritual
heart — meditation stops feeling like effort and becomes a gravitational
slide toward stillness.

In Tesla terms, this is when *autopilot* engages: you were steering
manually; now awareness moves on its own.
------------------------------
“Dhyāna Is a Secret” — The Jagadguru’s Mandate

“*Dhyāna is a secret. *The Guru imparts it only after examining the
disciple’s competence. Readiness decides what can be given.”
— Jagadguru Śrī Abhinava Vidyātīrtha Mahāsvāmin, *From Sorrows to Bliss*

Meditation cannot be mass-produced.
Grace reveals itself only when a qualified teacher sees readiness in the
seeker.

When a student protested that controlling the mind was impossible, the
Jagadguru replied:

“The mind does not wander when one feels there must be no error.
Why should it wander if such seriousness is brought to dhyāna also?”

Seriousness of purpose (*śraddhā*) is itself a channel of Grace.
The mind obeys when the heart values stillness more than distraction.
The point is simple: the mind *can* be trained — if the heart values
meditation as deeply as the salary packet.
------------------------------
The Inner Dashboard — Dhāraṇā to Dhyāna
Refer to the Meditation Stages Monitor:
https://godzillaborland-arch.github.io/meditation-stages-monitor-app/

This phase of self-effort (*abhyāsa* and *vairāgya*) can be summarized:
Stage Power Source Description APB Range
1A Scattered Mind Self-effort Restless, distracted, fleeting calm 0–25 %
1B Building Foundation Routine + discipline Short calm windows, guided
aid 25–40
%
1C Emerging Stability Mature *abhyāsa* Longer focus; first inward pull 40–49
%
Crossing Point ≈ 50 % Grace begins Awareness flows *taila-dhārāvat* — “like
a steady stream of oil” → Dhyāna Zone

At that crossing, effort transforms into receptivity.
Meditation begins to meditate itself.
------------------------------
Tesla = Dhyāna (Analogy)
Component Inner Meaning Tesla Parallel
Lifetime Charging Guru’s Grace (*karuṇā*) Supercharger Network
Full Self-Driving Inward pull (*pratyak-pravāṇatā*) Autonomous Navigation
Sensor Calibration *Abhyāsa* + *Vairāgya* Repeated feedback loops
Firmware Update Study + Reflection Cognitive retraining
Silent Cabin Mode Inner *mauna* (stillness) Engine off; motion within

Grace is the hidden algorithm that activates when enough training data —
discipline and devotion — have been supplied.
------------------------------
Bridging the Gap — The Role of the Yogic Guru

Self-effort ripens into receptivity only when purity and maturity invite
the Guru’s *karuṇā* — the compassion that completes what discipline begins.

A Self-realized Yogic Guru:

   1.

   Implants the goal of the path — direct realization of the Self,
   transmitting not just method but meaning and inspiration.
   2.

   Initiates the path through their *Tapahśakti* (power generated by
   spiritual austerity).

Practice steadies the mind.
Dispassion frees it.
Grace drives it home.

Grace powers the vehicle; discipline builds the chassis.
When both align, meditation drives itself — straight toward the Self.
------------------------------

*References*

• *Bhagavad Gītā 6.34*
• Swami Bhajanananda — Vedanta Society of Southern California
• *From Sorrows to Bliss* — dialogues and essays of Jagadguru Śrī Abhinava
Vidyātīrtha Mahāsvāmin
• *Kaṭha Upaniṣad 2.1.1*

Previous posts:
https://godzillaborland-arch.github.io/QuantumView/Advaita-L_Posts.html
------------------------------

In this essay, we explored the mystery and role of Grace — when “training
wheels” give way to self-driving awareness.
In the next essay in the *Tesla = Dhyāna* series, we’ll explore further the
role of Grace and how it fits the Tesla=Dhyana metaphor

— Sundar Rajan
*The Sanctuary Project / Tesla = Dhyāna Series*

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