Teachings of Swami Ramdas :
To control the mind, the best and easiest method is to repeat constantly God’s Name. Concentration is attained by fixing the attention on the sound of the Name. As the mind is concentrated there must follow meditation upon the glorious attributes of God. Continuous practice of utterance of the Name and meditation stops the restlessness of the mind and merges it into the blissful, eternal and universal Self. God-remembrance is not possible unless you have an intense longing to realise Him. This intense desire is called bhakti. This longing must so seize your mind that you should feel a sensation of acute pain when you forget God on account of selfish desires. Your actions should also go to purify your mind, i.e. they should be done in a spirit of nishkama (selfless). Purity of mind means freedom from lust, wrath and greed. For, a pure mind alone can see God. Concentration itself is purity.
By the repetition of the Divine Name your mind is not only purged of all its impure thoughts and desires but is also lifted to the loftiest state of consciousness in which you realise your union and oneness with God. Of all the disciplines for controlling the restless mind there is none so easy and efficacious as the taking of the Divine Name. But there is a way in the repetition of it and that is, it must be uttered with full faith and love for it; then only you will feel that the Lord’s Name is very, very sweet. The difficulty with some is that they cannot repeat the Name continuously although they desire to do so. The reason for this is that their love for the Name is not greater than their love for the perishable objects of the world. It is a psychological truth that our mind thinks most of the object which we love most, because, our concentrated love inevitably influences the mind to remember that object. So also, if our mind is fired with an intense love for the Name, this love will automatically enable us to remember the Name constantly. When this love is lukewarm and unsteady, our remembrance of the Name will correspondingly become unsteady and broken.
In order to attain this supreme goal, the aspirant must concentrate all the faculties of his heart and mind and all the powers of his senses and body for breaking down the walls of ignorance that obstruct him from attaining the vision of his true, eternal and divine nature. Life has to be totally dedicated to this lofty purpose. Lukewarm devotion and an interrupted course of discipline and a broken stream of meditation cannot enable the struggling soul to capture and possess the Truth. God-realisation is not an easy-going path. A steadfast faith, unshakable determination and resolute endeavour can alone make him progress towards it and enable him to come face to face with God. No sacrifice should be considered too great to attain this supreme goal. Therefore, it is truly said that heroes alone are fit to walk on this path—that aspirants of undaunted spirit can alone enter upon this adventure.
Perseverance and an unflagging endeavour are the qualities of a true aspirant or seeker of Truth. Lassitude, idleness and heedlessness are the enemies of spiritual progress. Awareness, watchfulness and effort are the true qualities of a Sadhaka. It is true that the ego has to be subdued before Self-illumination can come. It is not an easy thing to put down the ego. A lukewarm attempt and emotional outbursts cannot wipe it out. Self-surrender is not so easy of attainment as many would think.
Source : In the Vision of God