74
THE PATH OF PERFECTION
The nature of the mind is flickering and unsteady. But a self-realized  yogī  has to control the mind; the mind should not control him. At the present moment, the mind is controlling us ( go-dāsa ). The mind is telling us, “Please, why not look at that beautiful girl?” and so we look. It says, “Why not drink that nice liquor?” and we say, “Yes.” It says, “Why not smoke this cigarette?” “Yes,” we say. “Why not go to this restaurant for such palatable food? Why not do this? Why not do that?” In this way, the mind is dictating, and we are following. Material life means being controlled by the senses, or the mind, which is the center of all the senses. Being controlled by the mind means being controlled by the senses, because the senses are the mind’s assistants. The master mind dictates, “Go see that,” and the eyes, following the directions of the mind, look at the sense object. The mind tells us to go to a certain place, and the legs, under the mind’s directions, carry us there. Thus, being under the direction of the mind means coming under the control of the senses. If we can control the mind, we will not be under the control of the senses. One who is under the control of the senses is known as  go-dāsa . The word  go  means “senses,” and  dāsa  means “servant.” One who is master of the senses is called  gosvāmī , because  svāmī  means “master.” Therefore, one who has the title  gosvāmī  is one who has mastered the senses. As long as one is servant of the senses, he cannot be called a  gosvāmī  or  svāmī . Unless one masters the senses, his acceptance of the title  svāmī  or  gosvāmī  is just a form of cheating. It was Rūpa Gosvāmī who thus defined the meaning of the word  gosvāmī . Originally, Sanātana Gosvāmī and Rūpa Gosvāmī were not  gosvāmīs  but were government ministers. It was only when they became disciples of Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu that they became  gosvāmīs . So  gosvāmī  is not a hereditary title but a qualification. One becomes so qualified under the directions of a bona fide spiritual master. Only when one has attained perfection in sense control can he be called a  gosvāmī  and become a spiritual master in his turn. Unless one can master the senses, he will simply be a bogus spiritual master.
This is explained by Rūpa Gosvāmī in his  Upadeśāmṛta  (1)::
Determination and Steadiness in Yoga
75
vāco vegaṁ manasaḥ krodha-vegaṁ jihvā-vegam udaropastha-vegam etān vegān yo viṣaheta dhīraḥ ṣarvām apīmāṁ prthivīṁ ṣa śiṣvāt
“A sober person who can tolerate the urge to speak, the mind’s demands, the actions of anger, and the urges of the tongue, belly, and genitals is qualified to make disciples all over the world.” In this verse Rūpa Gosvāmī mentions six “pushings” ( vegam ). This pushing is a kind of impetus. For instance, when nature calls, we have to go to the toilet, and we cannot check this urge. So this urge is called  vegam , a kind of pushing. According to Rūpa Gosvāmī, there are six  vegams .  Vāco vegam  is the urge to talk unnecessarily. That is a kind of pushing of the tongue. Then there is  krodha-vegam , the urge to become angry. When we are pushed to anger, we cannot check ourselves, and sometimes men become so angry that they commit murder. Similarly, the mind is pushing, dictating, “You must go there at once,” and we immediately go where we are told. The word  jihvā-vegam  refers to the tongue’s being urged to taste palatable foods.  Udara-vegam  refers to the urges of the belly. Although the belly is full, it still wants more food, and that is a kind of pushing of the belly. And when we yield to the pushings of the tongue and the belly, the urges of the genitals become very strong, and sex is required. If one does not control his mind or his tongue, how can he control his genitals? In this way, there are so many pushings, so much so that the body is a kind of pushing machine. Rūpa Gosvāmī therefore tells us that one can become a spiritual master only when he can control all these urges.
Etān vegān yo viṣaheta dhīraḥ sarvām apīmāṁ pṛthivīṁ sa śiṣyāt:  
    “One who can control the pushings and remain steady can make disciples all over the world.” The word  dhīra  means “steady, sober.” Only one who is a  dhīra  is qualified to make disciples. This all depends on one’s training. Indeed,  yoga  means training the mind and the senses to be fixed on the Self. This is not possible by meditating only fifteen minutes a day and then going out and