Take Farhan, who has been offered a job in another city. He asks his mother, who says to stay. He asks two friends: one says go, the other says wait. He watches a video by a man who says money decides everything. After a week of asking, Farhan knows less than he did on the first day.
Many of us have been Farhan. The Gita has a plain answer for this. A mind with many voices is not settled by more voices. It is settled by one clear aim, held steadily. Here we see what the Gita says, why the voices pull us apart, and what to do about it today.
One aim, or branches without end
बहुशाखा ह्यनन्ताश्च बुद्धयोऽव्यवसायिनाम् ॥ २.४१ ॥
On this path, O descendant of Kuru, the resolute intellect is single. The intellects of the irresolute are many-branched and endless.
The Lord tells Arjuna that on this path the settled intellect is one. The intellects of those who have not settled have many branches and no end (Gita 2.41). Think of a tree. Each wish grows a branch, and each branch grows more. Farhan wants to be safe, to earn well, to please his mother, to be free and to be admired. Those are five branches, and he is trying to follow all of them at once.
The settled resolve is not a rigid opinion. It is one aim that all the small decisions serve. When the aim is clear, many choices become easy.
Why the voices pull us apart
The Lord also says why a mind scatters. There is talk that sounds lovely and promises enjoyment and power, and people who think nothing else matters. Those whose minds are carried away by it, and who hold on to enjoyment and power, cannot settle the mind (Gita 2.42–44).
This is not only about other people. Advice that promises comfort, status or success pulls us because something in us already wants those things. The voice outside meets a voice inside. When both are loud, the mind cannot choose.
What a steady mind stands on
समाधावचला बुद्धिस्तदा योगमवाप्स्यसि ॥ २.५३ ॥
When your intellect, which has been confused by many teachings, stands unshaken and firm in samadhi, then you will attain yoga.
The mind that was confused by many teachings stands firm when it rests in the Self, says the Lord, and then it is in yoga (Gita 2.53). The Self here is the part of us that does not change, which is taught in The Imperishable Self. A steady person stands on that, and not on the latest opinion.
This does not mean shutting the ears or refusing every kind of advice. The Gita says that when the mind has crossed its confusion, it is no longer carried away by what it hears (Gita 2.52). Advice is still welcome. It just does not rule.
An example
Back to Farhan. One evening he sits down and writes one line: "This move must help me look after my family and keep learning." Then he reads each piece of advice against that line. His mother's worry is about the family, so it stays. His friend's word about the salary matters only so far as it serves the family. The video's talk of money as the only thing falls away. He has not found a magic answer. He has found a measure, and the voices fall quiet.
The job is still his to choose. What the Gita gives him is the steadiness from which to choose.
The choice stays with you
The Gita does not decide for Farhan. At the very end, after giving the whole teaching, the Lord says to Arjuna: reflect on this fully, and then do as you wish (Gita 18.63). He gives a footing and leaves the choice in Arjuna's hands. So a settled aim is not obedience to the loudest voice, or even to the wisest one. It is something you reach by thinking a matter through, and then it is yours. Farhan's line about his family is his own, and that is why it holds.
A practice for today
Write one sentence: what must this decision serve? Read each piece of advice against it. For one day take no new advice on the matter. In the evening write one line about what you now see more clearly.
Questions readers ask
Does the Gita say not to take advice?
No. Even Arjuna asks Lord Krishna to tell him clearly the one path (Gita 3.2). What the Gita says is that advice cannot be the centre. The centre is the settled aim (Gita 2.41).
How do I know my aim is not just a wish?
An aim that rests on enjoyment and power keeps the mind scattered (Gita 2.44). An aim that comes from the steady part of you settles it (Gita 2.53). If the aim stays the same when the outcome looks bad, it is the second kind.
What if I choose wrongly?
On this path no effort is wasted, and no reverse result arises. Even a little of it protects from great fear (Gita 2.40). A sincere start is not lost.
Is this only for big decisions?
No. The same scatter happens in small ones. A day's plan, a purchase or a reply can each be settled by asking what they serve. Practise on the small ones, and the large ones become easier.
Going deeper
For the verses in order, see the detailed reading. For the finer points, see the deeper reading. The next teaching, on acting without gripping the result, is in Action Without Claiming the Fruit.