Bhagavad-gita 6.6

bandhur ātmātmanas tasya yenātmaivātmanā jitaḥ

anātmanas tu śatrutve vartetātmaiva śatru-vat

 

A voice inside leads me astray;

It steals my life day by day.

I just can’t silence its noise;

Let me find peace in your voice.

 

My dear Lord, some voice inside me goads me to chase pleasures that have turned out to be unsatisfactory—not just once or twice, but hundreds of times. Help me realize that the voice inside me is not my voice. It is not I who want these pleasures.

O all-wise Lord, guide me to recognize that it is something else inside me that has possessed me. And the more I listen to it, the more I discover, to my dismay, that it has repressed me. It has become stronger, and I have become weaker. No matter how much I pander to it, I still feel tormented—indeed, I feel more and more tormented.

Please, O merciful Lord, help me neglect and reject this voice. Help me listen to your voice calmly. Grant me the confidence that you will show me the path to a far greater pleasure than what this dreadful and deluding voice can ever offer. Let that confidence draw me closer to you and strengthen my resolve to turn away from its empty promises.

O omnipotent Lord, let me engage myself in hearing your voice through your words and the words of those devoted to you. By thus immersing myself in your voice, may I turn away from this destructive voice inside me until it becomes impotent and falls silent. May your voice become so dear to me, your presence so satisfying, and your service so fulfilling that no lesser voice can ever lure me away from you again, my unfailing Lord.

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06.06 For him who has conquered the mind, the mind is the best of friends; but for one who has failed to do so, his mind will remain the greatest enemy.