First gate-keeper to liberation: Self-control

Sage Vasishtha:

In order to cross this formidable ocean of samsara, one should resort to that which is eternal and unchanging. He alone is the best among me, O Rama, whose mind rests in the eternal and is, therefore, fully self-controlled and at peace. He sees that pleasure and pain chase and cancel each other, and in that wisdom there is self-control and peace. He who does not see this sleeps in a burning house.

He who gains wisdom of the eternal here is freed from samsara and he is not born again in ignorance. One may doubt whether such unchanging truth exists! If it does not, one comes to no harm by enquiring into the nature of life; seeking the eternal will soften the pain caused by the changes in life. But, if it exists, then by knowing it one is freed.

The eternal is not attained by rites and rituals, by pilgrimages nor by wealth; it is attained only by the conquest of one's mind, by the cultivation of wisdom. Hence everyone - gods, demons, demi-gods or men should constantly seek the conquest of the mind and self-control which are the fruits of wisdom.

When the mind is at peace, pure, tranquil, free from delusion or hallucination, untangled and free from cravings, it does not long for anything nor does it reject anything. This is self-control or control of mind - one of the four gate-keepers to liberation.

All that is good and auspicious flows from self-control. All evil is dispelled by self-control. No gain, no pleasure in this world or in heaven is comparable to the delight of the self-control. The delight one experiences in the presence of the self-controlled is incomparable. Everyone spontaneously trusts him. None hates him.

Self-control, O Rama, is the best remedy for all physical and mental ills. When there is self-control, even the food you eat tastes better, else it tastes bitter. He who wears the armour of self-control is not harmed by sorrow.

He who even while hearing, touching, seeing, smelling and tasting what is regarded as pleasant and unpleasant, is neither elated nor depressed - he is self-controlled. He who looks upon all beings with equal vision, having brought under controlled the sensations of pleasure and pain, is self-controlled. He, who, though living amongst all is unaffected by them, neither feels elated nor hates, even as one is during sleep - he is self-controlled.