Two Rabbits

An old proverb has been quietly waiting for us all along: if you chase two rabbits, both will escape. The frustration in this is familiar. To succeed at almost anything, one has to set a single clear goal, and stay with it long enough for the goal to recognise its pursuer.

In the Bhagavad-gita, Krishna says something almost identical, in the older register of the spiritual life:

"Those who are on this path are resolute in purpose, and their aim is one. O beloved child of the Kurus, the intelligence of those who are irresolute is many-branched."

One aim, gently held

Bhakti yogis, knowing Krishna to be the source of everything that pulls at our attention, settle on a single aim — to think of him, and to act in his service. Held this way, the mind is not so much narrowed as gathered. It begins, finally, to do its one good thing.

Adapted from a reflection by Vaisesika Dasa.