Recorded at the Vedanta Society of Western Washington on July 23, 2017.

In this lecture, Swami Bhaskarananda examines meditation as presented in the Bhagavad Gita, beginning with the distinction between ordinary uses of the word and meditation understood as a rigorous spiritual discipline. Drawing on Patanjali's Yoga Sutras, he defines meditation in its highest sense as consciously bringing the mind beyond its thought formations so that the divinity ordinarily obscured by identification with the body, mind, and ego can manifest directly. Using the analogy of waves and the ocean, he explains that individual minds appear separate because of identification with their particular forms, while their underlying reality is the one Divine Reality. He then traces references to meditation in the Vedas and Upanishads before turning to the Bhagavad Gita, particularly its sixth chapter, Dhyana Yoga. Swami Bhaskarananda also emphasizes the Gita's teaching of Karma Yoga: performing actions without attachment to their results and offering one's work to God as a means of purifying the mind and preparing it for spiritual realization.

The second half of the lecture focuses on the Bhagavad Gita's practical instructions for meditation and the difficulties encountered in controlling the mind. Swami Bhaskarananda describes the qualifications and conditions it recommends, including self-control, freedom from excessive desire, moderation in food, sleep, recreation, and work, a clean and solitary place, an erect and steady posture, and sustained concentration upon the indwelling Divine. The concentrated mind is compared to the unflickering flame of a lamp in a windless place. Addressing Arjuna's complaint that controlling the restless mind seems as difficult as controlling the wind, he emphasizes repeated practice and detachment from sense objects, explaining that whenever the mind wanders it must patiently be brought back to its spiritual focus. He also discusses the Gita's assurance that sincere spiritual effort is never wasted: even when realization is not attained in one lifetime, good actions and spiritual practice contribute to continued development. The lecture concludes by noting the close relationship between the meditation teachings of the Bhagavad Gita and Patanjali's Yoga Sutras, both of which present disciplined practice, control of the mind, and perseverance as essential to the attainment of spiritual realization.