व्याधि (Illness) and प्रयाण काल (time of departure)

व्याधि (Illness) is one of the severe tests of साधना (sAdhanA). As long as the mind is rooted in the "I am the body" idea, it gets severely affected by bodily illness. In the Yoga SUtra, व्याधि (illness) is reckoned as the first obstacle to Yoga (among 9 such obstacles). Yet, illness can also be a very interesting time to experiment in the inner laboratory. The very nature of pain can be examined, and slowly through the practice of प्रत्याहार (pratyAhAra), one can start to see pain at a distance and its connection to the perceiver of pain.  Recall that in the Bhagavad GItA II.14, SrI KRShNa tells Arjuna

मात्रास्पर्शास्तु कौन्तेय शीतोष्ण सुखदु:खदा: ।

अागमापायिनोऽनित्यास्तांस्तितिक्षस्व भारत ॥

The contact between the senses (which are the measurers)  and the sense objects (the measures, hence मात्रा:), O Son of Kunti, result in cold and heat, or pleasure and pain. They have a beginning and end (they come and go) and are transient, therefore endure them, O BhArata!

At the time of illness the mind should be made strong. Swami ShivAnanda has wonderful advice on how to do this when the mind becomes weak during illness and can more easily succumb to desires of various sorts. Strengthening the mind during illness is a preparation for प्रयाण काल (the time of departure from the body). In the Bhagavad GItA, SrI KRShNa tells Arjuna that whatever a man thinks of at the time of his death, that indeed he attains after leaving the body. Therefore, meditation on प्रणव (PraNava) or OmkAr is highly recommended at the time of leaving the body. This certainly leads to Brahman. However, how will the mind be made firm in this remembrance if it is not steady at other times?

Slowly in sAdhanA it is realized that the times when the body is hale and hearty are the best times for sAdhanA that should not be wasted. Those are the times to make the mind firm in meditation on प्रणव (PraNava). Times of illness are like 'dry runs' when the mind's firmness is tested. One may sincerely pray that the time of departure be painless and that the mind may easily rest on प्रणव (PraNava) or one's इष्ट देवता (Chosen Ideal), but it is wiser to practice and not assume it will be so.

Recall in this context, SrI Adi ShankarAcArya's Bhaja Govindam verse

मा कुरु धनजनयौवनगर्वं हरति निमेषात्काल: सर्वं ।

मायामयमिदमखिं हित्वा ब्रह्मपदं त्वं प्रविशविदित्वा ॥

Do not be proud of wealth, people (relatives and friends) or youth for Time steals these in the twinkling of an eye. Knowing all this to be MAyA (that which is not, hence Unreal on account of being transient) and giving it up, enter the state (or feet) of the Lord.

When bodily afflictions destabilize the mind it is indeed difficult to maintain equanimity, let alone focus on the object of meditation. But it seems critical to keep up the practice to the maximum extent possible, irrespective of external circumstances, for the reasons noted above. Of course, it is only through practice towards the goal of having the mind rest on प्रणव (PraNava) or one's इष्ट देवता (Chosen Ideal) at the time of प्रयाण काल (the time of departure from the body) that the ultimate goal of सहज समाधि (sahaja samAdhi)  resulting in जीवन्मुक्ति  (jIvanmukti) is attained.