When one is born,

When one is born, the mind is like a blank sheet of paper. As soon as thinking, feeling, and acting starts, the process of tarnishing the mind also starts. The body depends on the life breath (prana), the mind and the desires that agitate the mind. Right and truth are befogged by the needs of manners, fashion, convention, custom, etc., and the individual is thrown into a crowd. The solitude is invaded and taken away. Therefore, the mind must first be calmed and quieted. Only then can the body be healthy and the intellect sharp. The mind is projected at one time only on a single object, not on many. But it is still a conglomeration of thoughts, desires, fancies, imaginings, and the rest. In fact, the mind has inside it, in a nutshell, the entire history of creation. That is the delusion (maya) mould of humanity. Iron has to be beaten flat by iron alone. So too, the inferior, lower mind has to be shaped better by the superior mind. One has to make one’s mind superior and stronger for the task of personal uplift.

- Prashanthi Vahini, Ch 3.