Control the tongue through prasadam and Krishna-nama; thereby master all senses and achieve perfection.Listen — Srila Prabhupada Uvaca
Bhagavad-gītā 4.27 — April 16, 1974, Bombay 740416BG-BOMBAY [38:34 Minutes] Bg-04.27_740416BG-BOMBAY Pradyumna: Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. [Prabhupāda and devotees repeat] [leads chanting of verse] [Prabhupāda makes a comment in Hindi] sarvāṇīndriya-karmāṇi prāṇa-karmāṇi cāpare ātma-saṁyama-yogāgnau juhvati jñāna-dīpite [Bg. 4.27] [break] [02:36] Translation: "Those who are interested in self-realization in terms of mind and sense control offer the functions of all the senses, as well as the vital force, breath, as oblations into the fire of the controlled mind." Prabhupāda: Read the purport also.
Pradyumna: "The yoga system conceived by Patañjali is referred to herein. In the Yoga-sūtra of Patañjali, the soul is called pratyag-ātmā and parāg-ātmā. As long as the soul is attached to sense enjoyment, it is called parāg-ātmā. The soul is subjected to the functions of ten kinds of air at work within the body, and this is perceived through the breathing system.
The Patañjali system of yoga instructs one on how to control the functions of the body's air in a technical manner so that ultimately all the functions of the air within become favorable for purifying the soul of material attachment. According to this yoga system, pratyag-ātmā is the ultimate goal. This pratyag-ātmā is a withdrawal from activities in matter. The senses interact with the sense objects, like the ear for hearing, eyes for seeing, nose for smelling, tongue for tasting, hand for touching, and all of them are thus engaged in activities outside the self.
They are called the functions of the prāṇa-vāyu. The apāna-vāyu goes downwards, vyāna-vāyu acts to shrink and expand, samāna-vāyu adjusts equilibrium, udāna-vāyu goes upwards—and when one is enlightened, one engages all these in searching for self-realization." Prabhupāda: Hmm. sarvāṇīndriya-karmāṇi prāṇa-karmāṇi cāpare ātma-saṁyama-yogāgnau juhvati jñāna-dīpite [Bg. 4.27] When one is enlightened, jñāna-dīpite, the light of knowledge is awakened, then ātma-saṁyama-yogāgnau, controlling the senses and offering in the fire of yoga. So the Patañjali system is explained in the purport, that controlling the inner different kinds of..., five kinds of, prāṇa-apāna-vāyu. That is a mechanical system.
That is approved also. That helps controlling the senses. But there is another process that is called this bhakti-yoga system, that not only controlling the senses but to give engagement to the senses. Simply by artificial controlling... Just like a child.
The mind is just like child—sometimes accepting something, sometimes rejecting something. Saṅkalpa-vikalpa. That is the business. So it is very difficult to control the mind.
Arjuna, when he was asked to control the mind by yoga practice, he said, cañcalaṁ hi manaḥ kṛṣṇa pramāthi balavad dṛḍham: "My dear Kṛṣṇa, You are asking me to control the mind, but I think it is impossible. Especially we are in the political field, royal order. We have to deal with so many political subject matter." So he said that, cañcalaṁ hi manaḥ kṛṣṇa pramāthi balavad dṛḍham tasyāhaṁ nigrahaṁ manye vāyor iva su-duṣkaram [Bg. 6.34] "I do not think mind can be controlled. It is very, very difficult, as difficult as to control the breeze or wind, strong wind blowing.