Rooted Sangha: The Bhagavad Gita | Chapter 2 | Verses 44-45 - What pulls us away from steadiness
- sjholisticyoga
- 4 days ago
- 4 min read
This week in sangha, we continue discussing The Bhagavad Gita for Daily Living by Eknath Easwaran. Each week, I will do my best to summarise the parts of the book we discuss. Please refer to https://www.sjholisticyoga.co.uk/post/what-is-the-bhagavad-gita if you need a grounding in what The Bhagavad Gita itself is.
I cross-reference with other versions of the Bhagavad Gita, so sometimes the translations differ from Easwaran's.
When the mind is pulled outward
Last week, Krishna introduced the idea of acting with evenness of mind, and we explored the difference between a steady, single-pointed mind and one that is scattered in many directions.
In these next verses, Krishna gently shows Arjuna what pulls the mind away from that steadiness.
SRI KRISHNA
44. Those whose minds are carried away by the pursuit of pleasure and power cannot develop the steady concentration needed for spiritual awareness. Krishna points to something very familiar here.
When the mind becomes absorbed in outcomes, rewards, or the promise of something better in the future, it loses its centre. Attention is constantly pulled outward, chasing what has not yet arrived or trying to hold on to what cannot last.
Easwaran explains that this is not a judgment, but an observation.
The more we are driven by what we hope to gain, the harder it becomes to remain steady in the present moment. The mind becomes restless, divided, and easily unsettled.
This is not because anything is “wrong,” but because attention has been dispersed.
The forces that shape our experience
SRI KRISHNA
40. The scriptures describe the three gunas. But you should be free from the action of
the gunas, established in eternal truth, self-controlled, without any sense of duality
or the desire to acquire and keep.
Here, Krishna introduces the gunas. As Easwaran notes, there is no easy translation for the word guna in English; the best we have is that the gunas are three qualities of nature that influence how we think, feel, and act. Everything in life is shaped by these shifting forces.
We have sattva, tamas and rajas.
Sometimes there is clarity and balance (sattva).
Sometimes heaviness or inertia (tamas).
Sometimes restlessness and activity (rajas).
These are not personal failings. They are movements of nature.
Easwaran reminds us that the aim is not to eliminate these qualities, but to recognise them without becoming completely identified with them.
Not being pulled in every direction
Krishna’s instruction is simple, but not easy.
To be free from the pairs of opposites - pleasure and pain, gain and loss, success and failure - is to remain steady even as life continues to move. This does not mean becoming detached or indifferent. It means not being pulled in every direction by what is constantly changing.
To be rooted in the Self is to remember that there is something in us that is not shifting in the same way as our thoughts, moods, or circumstances.
A reflection for practice and daily life
These verses invite us to notice what tends to pull our attention away from steadiness.
We might recognise moments of restlessness, when the mind reaches forward, chases an outcome, or tries to control what has not yet happened. We might notice moments of resistance, where we push away discomfort or try to hold on to what feels good. The practice is not to stop these movements.
It is to see them clearly, and to return, again and again, to a place of steadiness within. Over time, this simple act of noticing begins to loosen their grip.
Journal reflections
What tends to pull my attention away from the present moment most often?
Can I recognise moments when I am being driven by the promise of a future outcome?
How do I experience the “pairs of opposites” in my own life — pleasure and discomfort, success and failure?
What helps me return to a sense of steadiness when I feel pulled in different directions?
Giving Back
After covering room and fuel costs, all proceeds from Rooted are being saved to support a local cause, to be chosen together later this year - as a small act of Bhakti yoga, the yoga of devotion in action.
On 21st September, we made our first donation (£110) to Kettering Samaritans.
On 23rd December, we donated £100 to Johnny's Happy Place, a wonderful mental health support cafe in Kettering.
We agreed that our next beneficiary will be The Green Patch, Kettering. There is currently £90 in the pot!
Going Forward
Next week, we will continue Chapter 2. If you would like to join us in person, do get in touch or book online. If you would like to buy the book, click the image below for options.
Please Note:
My thoughts draw on teachings from the Bhagavad Gita, a sacred text within Hindu philosophy. I share my reflections as a yoga practitioner and teacher, not as a scholar or religious authority. My intention is to explore how these teachings can be lived and contemplated within contemporary practice, and always with the utmost respect for their cultural and spiritual roots.
Om Shanti.
Vicki x
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