Will devotion to Krishna correct psychological issues like Depression? How?
A Girl devotee (Name hidden) asked like this:
i am taking medicine for depression now tell me how do bhakti sothat my depression go away and never come again or if come again no matter but before it attack me again help me to become too much poweful sothat nothing can take me away from my Krishna or from being his servent nothing nothing i want to love Krishna n serve him all time or all birth whatever happen to me… plz help
REPLY:
Devotion can check psychological issues if handled properly and at the same even cause a few psychological issues if not handled properly.
Does this seem unbelievable?
If I explain this, you will understand.
GENERAL CAUSE FOR THE SMALL PSYCHOLOGICAL ISSUES
(1) Our life style should include variety of activities for the good health of the psychology. For example, if you do the same activity for more than two hours, it causes inefficiency because your brain gets tired with the same kind of work. So, you should change your activity after a certain period.
(2) For example, if you chant more than 16 rounds at the same time, it reduces the efficiency in even the chanting process. It is even good to chant 8 rounds at a time, take a small break and then continue chanting of the next 8 rounds.
(3) So, those who perform similar work for a long period are affected by loss of interest in that activity. That is why, the companies give promotions to the employees periodically.
(4) If you perform too much of activities at the same time, that too affects the efficiency of brain. Because, the brain can properly concentrate in only work at a time. At the same time, the same work should not be done for a long period. So, the best recommendation is to change the works every one or two hours, but do only one work at a time.
(5) Dealing with too much of worries at the same time cause psychological issues. So, one should classify the available problems in the sequence of more serious, less serious, like that. Attend the the problem that should be attended immediately. Then, try to solve other problems one by one. Keep the less serious problems to be attended at the end. If you try to solve all the problems simultaneously, your brain loses its stability.
(6) Most of us concentrate only in leading a life without problems. To avoid the problems, they do not take up the tasks that are sensitive or difficult. They like to lead a life of “easy going” without much risks. What is wrong in desiring to lead a risk-free life? Yes. It is the wrong setting of psychology. Since we are used to easy tasks without risks, when we face a big setback in life, we become destabilized and lose all our hopes in life. Thus, he loses problem solving ability. So, one should take some risks in life by trying new things. Even the ants troubleshoot in their life and save food for future to face unexpected non availability of food in future. How can a man expect a smooth going life? So, expecting a problem-free life too is a wrong psychological setting.
(7) Getting brainwashed is also a psychological setting and weakness that shuts the doors for wider thinking. For example, a bogus spiritual personality may keep a certain group of followers in his ashram(!!) giving good food, shelter, dress, enjoyments, etc and brainwash his followers all the time as if he is the avatar of God. Since they are able to hear only his brainwashing preaching all the time, their brain is bombarded by the similar concepts repeatedly that makes a psychological setting to believe that he is really an avatar of god. These followers will always praise their master in the public gatherings that makes the visitors too to believe that the godman is an avatar of god. Thus, getting brainwashed is also a psychological setting.
(8) If a person is living with negative minded people, he too becomes negative minded. This is the power of association. So, association too helps in the psychological setting.
(9) If a person hears everything others advise, he too get confused leading to psychological imbalances. So, he should hear, but, evaluate everyone’s advice and then fix a clear view for himself. This makes the psychology clear.
(10) Expectation is the first enemy for good psychology. Though we need to expect something, we should not expect only the positive outcome. So, expecting only the positives in life is also a cause for psychological agitations.
HOW DEVOTION HELPS IN OUR PSYCHOLOGY?
As said above, one’s psychology is affected because of expectations. However, a devotee entrusts himself to Krishna and remains peaceful. He just performs his duties and leaves the results to Krishna. He accepts whatever effect he gets for his work. So, a devotee has no feeling of failures and hence no agitations. He is stable even in success because he considers it as the gift of Krishna. He does not consider himself as the winner or loser. So, he need not get agitated.
So, for a good psychology and particularly to avoid depression, entrust everything to Krishna and be stable in all conditions.
When you entrust yourself to Krishna and also consider all the happenings in life are the outcome of your karmic reactions, you will not feel to have achieved or lost something. You will learn to bear them.
Depression comes only when something pressurizes our mind continuously. A love failure may make you to think of the other person and the failure all the time. A loss in your business may also make you think of the loss all the time. The repeated failures in the interviews may also make you worried. Such deeper thoughts of failure causes depression of mind. Some times, the lonely life, boring job, lack of appreciation from others may also lead to depression of mind.
You can avoid getting affected by depression and also get relieved from depression if you entrust yourself to Krishna and consider all the incidents as the outcome of everyone’s past karma.
Just trust Krishna and be relieved that he will not let you down. Even if He gives you some loss, it will not be a loss, but, Krishna may have some different plans for you. So, wait and grab that alternative given by Krishna.
And, chanting with a focused mind helps in relieving the devotee from stress and depression. Offering the food to Krishna and honouring His prasadam relaxes your mind because you are aiming to satisfy Krishna by sacrificing your time and choice of food. This sacrifice relaxes the mind.
When we speak to others about Krishna, it relaxes our mind. Have you ever tasted the freeness in our feeling whenever you are doing some help to someone? Yes, helping others frees our mind.
Similarly, sacrificing our time, resources, etc for Krishna definitely relaxes our mind.
Thus, proper following of devotion helps in boosting our psychology.
No doubt in it.
HOW WRONG CHOICES IN DEVOTION AFFECTS PSYCHOLOGY?
This is also important.
If you accept a self made bogus person as your guru just seeing his attractive speech, you will see his real colors even while you are alive. So, when the person whom you trusted as a genuine person is found to be a bogus guy, you lose your taste in your life. You start to doubt all other spiritual personalities. So, you go for a secluded life without the people around you.
If you follow Rajo guna or thamo guna bakthi to the aggressive demigods , you will always fear whether those demigods will punish you if you commit any offenses.
If you follow many gods, you will end up in not satisfying any god that results in frustration. This too may affect your psychology.
This is also the effect of wrong way of following devotion.
So, it is always good to follow devotion to Krishna through genuine devotees or vaishnavas who come under bonafide sampradhayas and also have good sense control.
Right following of devotion relieves you from agitations since you will not consider yourself as a doer. This will greatly help in having a good psychology.
Just entrust yourself to Krishna and be relieved. Your depression will vanish in a few weeks or months.
All the best.