In the brilliant saga of the Mahabharata, Vidura, the learned minister of Hastinapur, shares immense teachings of life and ruling in Vidura Niti. The first teaching that stands out among his teachings, is the control of the five senses (sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch) as a foundation to aspire towards mental clarity, and a balanced life. In today’s modern world, with distractions from every corner, Vidura’s advice is a timeless guide to controlling our senses and finding peace of mind.
One of the most compelling verses on sense control from Vidura Niti, found in the Udyoga Parva (Chapter 34, Verse 60), is:
Sanskrit Verse:
षड् इन्द्रियाणां संनादति यद् यद् रजस्तमोभ्याम्।
तद् तद् विद्वान् संनादति येन येन समाहितः॥
Transliteration:
Shad indriyānāṁ saṁnādati yad yad rajastamobhyām,
Tad tad vidvān saṁnādati yena yena samāhitaḥ.
“The six senses are always restless, swayed by passion (rajas) and ignorance (tamas). A wise person restrains them, mastering each sense with focus and discipline”,
This verse emphasizes that the senses, when uncontrolled, are driven by impulsive desires (rajas) and ignorance (tamas), leading to mental chaos. A wise individual, however, exercises restraint, channeling the senses with focus to achieve clarity and purpose.
Vidura’s verse compares the senses to restless horses that lead the mind in multiple directions. Most of us have not learned to control the senses, and if not held in check, they will often lead to distraction, excess indulgence, or confusion. They may lead the eyes to endlessly scroll through screens, or the ears to willingly listen to gossip, and the tongue may extensively demand a variety of unhealthy foods. These urges, acted on through passion or ignorance, will cloud our decision-making and peace of mind. Vidura indicates madness is a virtue for all people, including wise persons who through strict self-awareness and restraint can control the senses, steering them towards higher purposes. The fact that Vidura mentions all senses, counts six senses in this context (the mind being the sixth), corresponds with the Indian philosophical conception of the mind as a sense organ that receives information through the senses.
Three notable ideas to from this verse:
1) Restlessness of senses: The senses tend to follow what is going on around them; they are restless and prone to extremes.
2) Rajas, and Tamas: Passionate urge and ignorance of repetitive habit will dictate the state of the senses.
3) Wisdom through Control: A controlled mind will restrain the senses and see through the distraction of urgent thought processes with clarity and deliberate intention.
Vidura’s emphasis on sense containment and aspects of control are more applicable than ever in the 21st Century. We are in a world with sensory overload—everywhere you turn, there are stimuli (smartphones, social media, streaming services, ads) vying for our attention. The barrage of stimuli we experience on a daily basis often leads to an emotional or mental state of fatigue and/or a detachment from our true needs and focuses. Let’s discuss the application of Vidura’s teachings to modern living with tangible actions for each sense.
- Sight: Curb your Consumption
Our eyes are assaulted with media and images from all angles (a barrage of social media feeds, news, or entertainment). Excessive visual stimulation can result in feelings of comparison to others, envy or become an unhealthy distraction. In order to apply Vidura’s message, be mindful in curbing your consumption. Identify how much time you are spending consuming media; consider limiting this time, curating your media (ex: positive, educational content) and/or taking breaks to rest your eyes. As an example, you could commit to a 20 minute digital detox, each evening, which could better enable you to do more culturally and cognitively meaningful activities, like reading or spending time with family.
- Sound: Choose Your Listening
Ears are likely to be bombarded by noise regularly. Consider your own day and you’re likely to have some form of music (in your apartment, car or workplace), news or podcasts, and likely, work conversations. Many distractions may have negative inputs or be trivial in the grand scheme. Vidura’s admonition to contain our senses is a reminder to be thoughtful in our listening (and monitoring how our thoughts operate). Choose what to expose your brain to by way of sound in your ears, and we can spend our limited mental energy on things that calm or inspire us. Think instrumental music or motivational TED Talk.In conversations, engage in active listening by devoting your full attention to others instead of multi-tasking. This creates a grounding feeling that promotes connection to self and others as well as mental clarity.
- Smell: Grounding through awareness
Although smell may not be as significant as sight or sound, it can affect our mood, feeling, and memory. Strong smells such as pollution or artificial scents can create some discomfort. Vidura teaches us the importance of grounding through senses. Try using natural scents such as oils or flowers to create a soothing environment. For example, you can light a lavender candle when meditating to make you more present and focused.
- Taste: Indulgence in Moderation
Our tongues crave processed, sugary, or fatty foods, heavily influenced by our passion (rajas), and we engage in overindulgence that detracts from our health as well as our mental state. Vidura informs us to indulge in moderation. Learn how to adopt a diet of balance and eat mindfully, instead of eating on autopilot. For instance, understanding how to practice portion control and eating whole foods instead of junk food promotes a sense of restraint in our senses that energizes our body and mind to a sharper state.
5. Touch – Intentional Interaction
Touch is our closest connection to the physical world. Desiring comfort and being a seeker of tactile stimulation can cause both over-comfort (sitting or lounging for hours at a time) and tactile overstimulation (the constant use of the device). This deprives you of typical sensory awareness. Vidura advises purposeful touch through the disciplined practice of intentional interaction – participating in activities where you can be a part of your body and the world around you. These activities could include yoga, gardening, or dancing. To retain body awareness, we need to limit all unnecessary physical comforts and distractions. If you keep pursuing comfort, you will miss out on purpose.
6. Mind – The Greatest Sense
The mind receives and processes all the senses as if it were the sixth sense. When the mind is affected by restlessness (rajas) or lethargy (tamas), it does not remain clear. Vidura advocates for a disciplined practice of meditation and self-reflection. By engaging in a daily, specifically the evening activity of journaling or mindfulness meditation, the mind can be calmed and allow one to make a more informed decision. For example, if there was a daily animation practice of 10 minutes per day with morning meditation, you would find that your day started much more focused.
Vidura discusses a series of modern concerns—mental wellness, being productive, relationships, and sustainability.
Mental Wellness: Limiting the stimulation of the senses will reduce anxiety and stress by decreasing overstimulation. There are now science-based mindfulness interventions based on Vidura’s teachings for improving mental wellness.
Productivity: Limiting sensory distractions will improve concentration, which is important in a multitasking world where information overloads our minds.
Relationships: Intentional listening and mindful encounters will help you develop empathy and form deeper connections with others.
Sustainability: Intentional moderation with taste and touch can reduce our engagement with things and therefore, align with sustainable living by reducing overconsumption.
You could incorporate Vidura’s idea of controlling the senses into your daily life by:
Set Limits: Create and set limits on the amount of time you engage with technology every day.
Be Mindful: Commit to doing one mindfulness exercise every day. This could be meditative breathing or an intentional daily meditation.
Be Intentional: Be mindful about what sensory experiences you allow to influence you—“what you eat,” “what you see,” “what you hear,” “where you physically are.”
Reflect: Maintain regular journal entries to see if, over time, your senses align with your vision.
Start small: Start with one of your senses, e.g. by reducing screen time, then progress to another one.
Vidura Niti’s verse on controlling the senses sparks great wisdom in an otherwise chaotic world. Controlling the five senses and the mind brings clarity of mind, a sense of purpose, and the ability to face life’s challenges with grace. In a world filled with distractions, Vidura re-inspires our reminder that freedom exists in self-control. Let us take to heart Vidura’s wisdom, and apply it to lead lives that are balanced, focused, and peaceful.
Tame Your Senses, Transform Your Life – Vidura Niti’s Secret to Clarity and Success!”
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