Mastering My Negative MindBy Sewa Singh

This concept of three discrete modalities of mind has been a priceless gift. When I first heard Yogi Bhajan sharing this technology, I was so addicted to my negative mind that I could not even really conceive of the other two states of being. I excused my preponderance of negative thoughts by suggesting to myself that they came from some mysterious positive origins. What a joke on myself. I similarly deluded myself into thinking I had some skill with the neutral mind by imagining a mysterious process where the negative thoughts were really an expression of the neutral mind. Wow, what an excuse for more obnoxious argument with self and everyone around me!

My first breakthrough came because Yogiji described the values and functions of the negative mind. When I realized that, in spite of all the anger, powerlessness, fear and bitterness behind the negativity, it actually had some value in human survival and a protective function in my life, I began to truly accept this aspect of myself.

Only when I stopped disliking my negative mind, could I begin to acknowledge and nurture my positive mind. Previous to this I unfairly characterized people expressing a strong positive mind as naïve, weak and in great danger. By recognizing the value, function and blessing of the positive mind within myself, I began to embrace the concept of “See God in all, or don’t see God at all.”

So acceptance of some of the least admirable aspects of myself was the beginning of the process of shedding these barriers to kindness, caring and compassion.

Accept the sacred origins of both your protective negative mind and hope-filled positive mind and the neutral mind effortlessly begins to appear. The neutral mind is the most elusive, yet most powerful of the three. It is the mind that allows us to “see the faults of others and then un-see them.” It is the mind that gives us the vision to see the diagonal solution in every problem. It is the mind that allows us to drop our small experience of self and replace it with the vast acceptance of the Infinite variety so exquisitely expressed at every level in nature.

If the neutral mind is nurtured by our ability to drop all addiction to the positive/negative mind dance of duality, comprised of endless conversations, dramas, arguments and battles, tranquility of being is the guaranteed result. The most effective technology to train oneself to dwell in the peace and radiance of the neutral mind is Nam Simran.[1] It is an incredible process to fluidly connect with the sacredness of being that is our core nature. It can be done anywhere, any time, even in dreams. It stops the endless duel between positive and negative minds. It connects us to the Etheric Divine through the process of awareness and to the sacredness of our material Reality through the act of breathing. In this way you dissolve duality and integrate the finite with the Infinite. Inhale Sat, exhale Nam. What an amazing gift.

Sewa Singh Khalsa is one of Yogi Bhajan’s early students. He has acted as a counselor for many couples and individuals, basing his approach purely on the teachings of Yogi Bhajan. He is also an accomplished artist and his work can be seen on www.sikhphotos.com. He lives in Seattle, Washington, with his wife, Sewa Kaur.