How to become a dhīraḥ? #SelfControl #Intelligent #Sober #Steady #Focused #GopalKrishnaGoswami #GKG

2 Sept 2023 · 3 min

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In this spiritual lecture, the speaker explains the concept of dhīrā—being unwavering and undisturbed—in the Bhagavad‑gītā. Krishna instructs that a true devotee must remain steady in happiness and distress, victory and defeat, honor and dishonor. The speaker emphasizes that such steadiness is impossible while one is identified with the body and its material desires, because duality and constant fluctuations are inherent in material life. To become dhīrā, one must renounce attachment, constantly remember Krishna’s desire for steadiness, and transfer consciousness from the body to Krishna. Through regular practice of Krishna consciousness, remembrance of the spiritual master’s guidance, and conscious detachment from bodily identification, a devotee can develop the strength to remain undisturbed and realize their true identity beyond the material body.

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Krishna says, who's unwavering and undisturbed through all these reactions of the material qualities. This position where you become unwavering and undisturbed is called in Sanskrit the position of a dhīrā. Dhīrā means one who's undisturbed. Now when you don't have spiritual knowledge, one is very easily disturbed. When you get something what you want, you're happy, and when you don't get something what What you don't want, you become sad. Kṛṣṇa says in Bhāgavad-gītā, mātraḥ sparśaṣte kāunteya sītoṣṇa sukha-dūkha-dā, erga māphāino nityaḥ stamtaḥ tatra sakṣva-bhārata. He says, "O Utsanapandu Kuntī," He says, "You must become undisturbed in happiness and distress, victory and defeat, honor and dishonor." So you can only become undisturbed when you are not overjoyed when you get what you want. Then you also learn not to lament when you have something is lost. So we have to learn to be undisturbed. You have to realize that in the material world there will always be duality. You cannot avoid duality. That means today you may be honored, everyone might say, boy, you're such a good, nice devotee, but tomorrow you may be dishonored. Today you may get what you want, tomorrow it may not happen. So the so-called concept of happiness, distress, victory, defeat, pleasure, pain— this is the result of identification with the body. But one, we have to get out of this bodily identification. So we have to become a dhīrā. Now some of you may say, but this is very difficult, Sudhna. It is difficult, but practice makes a man perfect. If you constantly remember that Krishna wants me to become a dhīrā, my spiritual master wants me to become a dhīrā, and you renounce attachment, then it will be easy to become a dhīrā. As long as one is conscious about the body. He acts for sense enjoyment and he is identifies with happiness and distress. But when one transfers this consciousness to Krishna, then this bodily identification stops. So once you recognize that you're not this body, then you do not accept the dictations of the body. Therefore, it is important to understand this knowledge so that we can understand our true identity and keep reminding ourselves about the true identity. So Somehow or the other, we, by practice of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, we obtain the strength to become adhīra.