Yoga as Freedom from Duality and Designation  47
When a person is situated on the practical level of spiritual realization, it should be understood he is actually situated in  yoga . It is not that one should continue to attend  yoga  classes and yet remain the same throughout his life; there must be practical realization. And what is the sign of that practical realization? The mind will be calm and quiet and no longer agitated by the attraction of the material world. Thus self-controlled, one is not attracted by the material glitter, and he sees everything—pebbles, stones or gold—as the same. In the material civilization, so much paraphernalia is produced just to satisfy the senses. These things are produced under the banner of material advancement. He who is situated in  yoga  sees such paraphernalia as just so much rubbish in the street. Moreover:
suhṛn-mitrāry-udasīna-madhyastha-dveṣya-bandhuṣu sādhuṣv api ca pāpeṣu sama-buddhir viśiṣyate
“A person is said to be still further advanced when he regards all—the honest well-wisher, friends and enemies, the envious, the pious, the sinner and those who are indifferent and impartial—with an equal mind.” (Bg. 6.9) There are different kinds of friends. There is  suhrt , who is by nature a well-wisher and is always desiring one’s welfare.  Mitra  refers to an ordinary friend, and  udasīna  is one who is neutral. In this material world someone may be my well-wisher, friend or neither friend nor enemy but neutral. Someone else may serve as a mediator