How to Control the Mind According to the Bhagavad Gita

The Modern Mind Epidemic: Why You Feel Trapped in Your Own Head

You are likely reading this while feeling overwhelmed. Perhaps your mind is racing with tomorrow’s work presentation. Maybe you are replaying a hurtful comment from three days ago. Or you might be scrolling endlessly on social media, feeling emptier with each swipe.

Whether a student battling exam anxiety, a working professional facing burnout, an entrepreneur juggling a hundred fears, or a homemaker managing invisible emotional labor; you have probably asked yourself one question: Why can’t I control my own mind?

The symptoms are everywhere. Overthinking that turns small problems into catastrophes. Inability to focus for more than a few minutes. Social media addiction that leaves you feeling more lonely, not less. Relationship stress triggered by a single unkind thought. Burnout that no vacation seems to cure.

This is not a small problem. It is the central crisis of modern life.

Remarkably, this exact crisis was described over 5,000 years ago on a battlefield called Kurukshetra. The warrior Arjuna stood before his army but his mind collapsed. He forgot his purpose. He cried. He made excuses. He said to Lord Krishna, “My mind is confused about my duty. I am overwhelmed by weakness.”

In the Bhagavad Gita, this is called Vishada Yoga; the yoga of despair. Arjuna’s mental paralysis is no different from ours.

Aurjun's battlefield was Kurukshetra. Ours is an exam hall, a deadline, a difficult conversation, or a silent room at 2 AM.

The good news? The Bhagavad Gita does not just diagnose the disease. It gives a precise, step-by-step cure on how to control the mind. And one of the world’s greatest living teachers, Swami Mukundananda, has decoded these techniques in his internationally acclaimed book, Bhagavad Gita: The Song of God.

But first, a question many practical-minded readers are asking…

Why Should I Read the Bhagavad Gita If I’m NOT Spiritual & Don’t Believe in God?

“I have no interest in religion. I don’t believe in a deity. Why should I care about an ancient scripture?”

This is a fair question. Here are 6 rational, non-religious answers based purely on psychology, neuroscience, and decision science:

1. It is a manual for decision-making under pressure. The Gita’s entire setting is a person who cannot decide. It offers a framework to separate fear from facts. Fortune 500 executives and Navy SEALs use similar principles inspired from this HOLY MANUAL.
2. It teaches you to observe your thoughts, not obey them. Modern Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) says: “You are not your thoughts.” The Gita said this 5,000 years ago. It gives practical steps to become the witness of your mental chaos.
3. It solves the “focus crisis” of the digital age. One Gita verse explains why your mind jumps from WhatsApp to YouTube to anxiety. It then gives a single technique to rebuild attention span—without chanting or sitting cross-legged.
4. It removes the root cause of stress, not just symptoms. Most stress management says: “Take a deep breath.” The Gita asks: “Why did you create the stress in the first place?” It targets the faulty mental programming, not the surface.
5. It helps you handle criticism and failure. Without any belief system, the Gita teaches a logical method to detach your self-worth from outcomes. You will learn to work hard but stop crumbling when results don’t go your way.
6. It creates inner stability in an unstable world. Relationships change. Jobs end. Health fails. The Gita offers a science of inner resilience that does not depend on external circumstances. This is pure mental hygiene, not faith.

Now, let us go deeper. Below are 5 specific shlokas that Swami Mukundananda highlights as the most powerful techniques for how to control the mind according to the Bhagavad Gita.

Technique #1: The Chariot Model: You Are Not Your Mind

Shloka (Chapter 3, Verse 42):

indriyāṇi parāṇy āhur indriyebhyaḥ paraṁ manaḥ
manasas tu parā buddhir yo buddheḥ paratas tu saḥ

Translation:
“The senses are superior to the gross body, and superior to the senses is the mind. Beyond the mind is the intellect, and even beyond the intellect is the soul.”

Swami Mukundananda’s Explanation:
An inferior entity can be controlled by its superior entity. Shree Krishna explains the gradation of superiority amongst the instruments God has provided to us. He describes that the body is made of gross matter; superior to it are the five knowledge-bearing senses (which grasp the perceptions of taste, touch, sight, smell, and sound); beyond the senses is the mind; superior to the mind is the intellect, with its ability to discriminate; but even beyond the intellect is the divine soul.

Imagine a chariot. The body is the chariot. The five senses are the horses. The mind is the reins. The intellect is the charioteer. And you; the conscious self "are the passenger." Most people live as if they are the horses (senses). If a sense wants pleasure, they run after it. If the mind thinks a scary thought, they believe it. This is why you cannot control thoughts; you have identified yourself with the thinker. The technique is simple but profound: Step back. The next time anger rises, do not say, “I am angry.” Say, “I am observing anger in my mind.” The moment you shift from participant to witness, you regain control.

Real-Life Example for a Working Professional:
Your boss sends a harsh email. Your mind immediately reacts: “He hates me. I will be fired.” Instead of acting on that thought, pause. Tell yourself: “My mind is producing a fear-thought. I am not that thought. My intellect will now decide the real response.” Then reply professionally, not emotionally. You have just used the Gita’s first technique.

Technique #2: The Undisturbed Lake: How to Stop Mental Reactions

Shloka (Chapter 5, Verse 20):

na prahṛṣyet priyaṁ prāpya nodvijet prāpyāpriyam
sthira-buddhir asammūḍho brahma-vid brahmaṇi sthitaḥ

Translation:
“Established in God, having a firm understanding of divine knowledge and not hampered by delusion, they neither rejoice in getting something pleasant nor grieve on experiencing the unpleasant.”

Swami Mukundananda’s Approach:
The state of equanimity; neither rejoicing in pleasure nor lamenting pain; is the highest ideal of Vipassanā meditation, reached through rigorous training. Yet the same state is naturally achieved through devotion, when we surrender our will to God. Swamiji teaches, that uniting our will with the divine allows us to accept both pleasure and pain as His grace.

Consider the farmer: when a wild horse arrived, neighbors called it good luck. He said, “Good luck, bad luck—it is God’s will.” The horse ran away, then returned with twenty more, then his son broke his leg. Each time, the farmer responded, “Pleasant or unpleasant, it is only God’s will.” When the king’s soldiers came to recruit all young men for war, the farmer’s son was left behind because of his broken leg. Divine knowledge reveals that our true self-interest lies in giving pleasure to God, and when self-will merges into divine will, equanimity arises as the natural symptom of transcendence.

Real-Life Example for a Student:
You studied hard but failed an exam. The uncontrolled mind says, “I am worthless. I will never succeed.” Apply this shloka: Acknowledge the disappointment (that is natural). But refuse to let it define your identity. Tell yourself: “Failure is an event, not a person. My intellect remains steady. I will analyze what went wrong and improve.” This single shift prevents the shame-spiral that destroys months of motivation.

Technique #3: The Tortoise Method: Withdrawing the Senses

Shloka (Chapter 2, Verse 58):

yadā saṁharate cāyaṁ kūrmo ’ṅgānīva sarvaśaḥ
indriyāṇīndriyārthebhyas tasya prajñā pratiṣṭhitā

Translation: “One who is able to withdraw the senses from their objects, just as a tortoise withdraws its limbs into its shell, is established in divine wisdom.”

Swami Mukundananda’s Explanation:
Desires can never be extinguished by fulfilling them—just as pouring butter on a fire makes it blaze hotter, not cooler. The Śhrīmad Bhāgavatam confirms that sense gratification only strengthens cravings instead of ending them. Think of an itch: scratching brings momentary relief but makes the itch return more intensely. However, if you tolerate the itch patiently, it gradually loses its power and fades away.

The same applies to desires—chasing them keeps you trapped in an endless cycle of disappointment. The wise person learns to withdraw from unnecessary desires, just as a turtle pulls its limbs inside its shell at the first sign of danger. Once the disturbance passes, the turtle emerges again calmly. This is the secret of mastering the mind: retract when needed, engage when appropriate, and never feed the fire of craving.

Real-Life Example for an Entrepreneur:
You are closing a deal, but your phone buzzes with 10 notifications. Your old mind would check each one. Apply the tortoise method: For the next 45 minutes, declare your senses “withdrawn.” Turn off notifications. Close extra tabs. Tell your team you are unavailable. Now your entire mental energy goes to one task. You will finish in 45 minutes what used to take 3 hours. This is mind management in action.

Technique #4: The Steady Flame – Eliminating Mental Oscillations

Shloka (Chapter 6, Verse 19):

yathā dīpo nivāta-stho neṅgate sopamā smṛtā
yogino yata-cittasya yuñjato yogam ātmanaḥ

Translation:
“Just as a lamp in a windless place does not flicker, so the disciplined mind of a yogi remains steady in meditation on the Supreme..”

Swami Mukundananda’s Insight In this verse, Shree Krishna gives the simile of the flame of a lamp. In the wind, the flame flickers naturally and is impossible to control. However, in a windless place, the flame becomes as steady as a picture. Similarly, the mind is fickle by nature and very difficult to control. But when the mind of a yogi is in enthralled union with God, it becomes sheltered against the winds of desire. Such a yogi holds the mind steadily under control by the power of devotion.

Real-Life Example for a Homemaker:
You are cooking dinner. Your mind is simultaneously: worrying about a child’s grades, resenting a spouse’s comment, planning tomorrow’s chores, and scrolling your phone. This is a flickering flame. Try this for 10 minutes: Cook with complete attention. Feel the vegetables. Smell the spices. Do nothing else. You will notice a strange peace. That peace is the “windless flame.” Practice it daily, and your baseline anxiety will drop noticeably.

Technique #5: The Practice of Abhyasa & Vairagya – The Ultimate Formula

Shloka (Chapter 6, Verse 35):

śrī-bhagavān uvāca
asaṁśayaṁ mahā-bāho mano durnigrahaṁ calam
abhyāsena tu kaunteya vairāgyeṇa ca gṛhyate

Translation:
“Lord Krishna said: O mighty-armed son of Kunti, the mind is undoubtedly restless and very difficult to control. But it can be controlled by constant practice (abhyasa) and detachment (vairagya).”

Swami Mukundananda’s Core Teaching:
Shree Krishna responds to Arjun’s comment by calling him Mahābāho, which means “Mighty-armed one.” He implies, “O Arjun, you have defeated the bravest warriors on the battlefield. Can you not defeat your own mind?” Notice that Shree Krishna does not dismiss Arjun’s concern. He does not say, “Arjun, what nonsense are you speaking? The mind can be controlled very easily.” Instead, He fully agrees that the mind is indeed restless and difficult to control. However, He reminds Arjun that many things in life are difficult, yet we remain undaunted and move forward. Sailors know the sea is dangerous and storms are possible, but they never find those dangers a sufficient reason to remain ashore. Similarly, the difficulty of controlling the mind is not an excuse to give up. Shree Krishna then assures Arjun that the mind can be controlled by two powerful tools: vairāgya (detachment) and abhyās (practice).

Vairāgya means detachment—the mind runs toward objects of its attachment, toward directions it has been habituated to running in the past. Eliminating those attachments eradicates the unnecessary wanderings of the mind.

Abhyās means practice—a concerted and persistent effort to change an old habit or develop a new one. Practice is the key to mastery in every field. Typing is a mundane example: a beginner types one word per minute, but after a year of practice, their fingers fly at eighty words per minute.

Similarly, the turbulent mind must be made to rest on the lotus feet of the Supreme Lord through abhyās. Take the mind away from the world—that is vairāgya. Bring the mind to rest on God—that is abhyās. Sage Patanjali gives the same instruction: abhyāsa vairāgyābhyāṁ tannirodhaḥ (Yog Darśhan 1.12) “The perturbations of the mind can be controlled by constant practice and detachment.”

Real-Life Example for Anyone:
You have an urge to check Instagram while working. Abhyasa means: every time the urge comes, you notice it and return to work. Not angrily. Just firmly. Vairagya means: you see the urge as a passing cloud. You do not label it “bad.” You simply do not obey it. Do this 50 times today. By day 30, the urge weakens. By day 90, you have a new mind. This is not theory. This is neurology.

Your Daily Mind Management Checklist (Based on the 5 Techniques)

Here is a practical routine derived from Swami Mukundananda’s teachings. No prior spiritual experience needed.

Morning (5 minutes before checking your phone):

• Sit quietly. Observe your breath for 2 minutes.
• Say to yourself: “I am not my thoughts. I am the observer.” (Technique #1)

Midday (Before a high-focus task):

• Withdraw senses: Phone on silent. One tab open. One task. (Technique #3)
• If stress rises, tell yourself: “This is a passing wave. My intellect is steady.” (Technique #2)

Evening (When mental exhaustion hits):

• Identify one “mental wind” from today (a worry, a resentment, a desire).
• Practice 10 minutes of single-pointed activity (cooking, walking, cleaning) with full attention. (Technique #4)

Ongoing (All day):

• Every time the mind runs to a useless thought, gently bring it back. No self-criticism. Just practice. (Technique #5)

FAQs

1. Do I need to believe in God to benefit from Swami Mukundananda's teachings?
No. His approach to mind management is practical and scientific. The five Gita techniques above—like the Chariot Model and Tortoise Method—work purely through psychology and conscious habit change. Faith is optional; results are not.

2. How much time do I need to practice daily?
Start with just 10–15 minutes. Morning: 2 minutes of observing your breath. Midday: 5 minutes of single-tasking. Evening: 5 minutes of reviewing mental patterns. Consistency matters more than duration.

3. Are the JKYog apps really free?
Yes. The Radha Krishna Bhakti app and JKYog Divine Love & Devotion app are completely free. JKYog On-Demand is a premium subscription service for ad-free, exclusive content.

4. Where can I learn more?
Visit swamimukundananda.org or jkyog.org for free resources, live classes, and Swamiji's book Bhagavad Gita: The Song of God on Amazon.

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