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Tell me, what are you doing now, Mind by Mahendranath Battacharya (1843 - 1908) Timeline English version by Rachel Fell McDermott Original Language Bengali Yoga / Hindu : Shakta (Goddess-oriented) 19th Century Tell me, what are you doing now, Mind, sitting there with a blind eye? There's someone in your own house but you're so oblivious you've never noticed! There's a secret path with a small room at the end -- and what an amazing sight inside: caskets filled with jewels that you never even knew about. There's a lot of coming and going along that path. Go, upstairs, to the highest room, and you'll see the moon rising. Premik says excitedly, Keep your eyes open; if you want to be awake in yoga you must travel this secret way.     -- from Singing to the Goddess: Poems to Kali and Uma from Bengal, Translated by Rachel Fell McDermott Amazon.com   / Photo by Isaac D /	Themes   Moon         Recommended Books Singing to the Goddess: Poems to Kali and Uma from Bengal, Translated by Rachel Fell McDermott
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Commentary by Ivan M. Granger

I love the way Mahendranath Battacharya addresses this poem to his own mind as a third person -- a rather dim-witted third person, at that. The poem becomes a sort of self-instruction while, at the same time, it gets its audience laughing. The Mind is commonly imagined to be in charge, the source of knowledge but, instead, Battacharya (like his fellow Bengali poet, Ramprasad) sees it as the fool messing everything up with its obliviousness and inability to notice what is in its "own house." The "someone" who has crept into his house is the ego, the thief.

This poem reflects the Tantra practices of Mahendranath Battacharya which emphasizes a very precise knowledge of subtle energetic pathways that must be traversed by the Kundalini energy when it is awakened.

The "secret way" that goes "upstairs" is the shushumna, the central energetic pathway associated with the cerebrospinal axis. This is the pathway followed by the awareness, in the form of the Kundalini Shakti, when it is awakened through spiritual practice and devotion.

The "small room at the end," the "highest room" is the mystical chamber (sometimes called the Bridal Chamber) contained in the bowl of the skull. It is here that the Kundalini (the Goddess Energy) joins in union with Siva (the Divine Masculine Energy), producing enlightenment and spiritual ecstasy. This is the real treasure of life, the radiant wealth each of us carries hidden within us, "caskets filled with jewels." Find this room and "you'll see the moon [of enlightenment] rising!"

Ivan M. Granger's original poetry, stories and commentaries are Copyright © 2002 - 2009 by Ivan M. Granger.
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