We’re kept from our goal not by obstacles, but by a clear path to a lesser goal

Question

I've found very many references to "We’re kept from our goal not by obstacles, but by a clear path to a lesser goal" being from the Bhagavad Gita, but haven't found any references to where in the text. Does anyone have a reference?

Answer 1

I searched for the quotation in internet, which had given result that it was Robert Brault, who quoted this.

We are kept from our goal, not by obstacles, but by a clear path to a lesser goal.

https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/875504-we-are-kept-from-our-goal-not-by-obstacles-but

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There was no direct reference to this quotation in Bhagawad Gita, but a combination of the following 2 slokas will give the desired result.

According to Sri Ramana Maharshi, mind is a bundle of thoughts. Whenever one sits for doing meditation on an object/sound, etc, mind will start moving from one thought to another,ie., noodling..

It is quite common in the beginning. The person has to keep on trying to bring back his attention to the meditation part. Slowly mind accustoms to staying on a single idea. It is a battle royal (Sri Ramana Maharshi).

यः सर्वत्रानभिस्नेहस्तत्तत्प्राप्य शुभाशुभम्।

नाभिनन्दति न द्वेष्टि तस्य प्रज्ञा प्रतिष्ठिता।।2.57।।

The wisdom of that person remains established who has not attachment for anything anywhere, who neither welcomes nor rejects anything whatever good or bad when he comes across it.

If the practitioner, vexed with distractions, gets frustrated and decides to give up meditation and engages himself/herself in another issue, the desired object cannot be achieved.

ध्यायतो विषयान्पुंसः सङ्गस्तेषूपजायते।

सङ्गात् संजायते कामः कामात्क्रोधोऽभिजायते।।2.62।।

In the case of a person who dwells on objects, there arises attachment for them. From attachment grows hankering, from hankering springs anger.

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Let us come back to our quotation.

We are kept from our goal, not by obstacles, but by a clear path to a lesser goal.

If we get dejected, frustrated by our initial failures in meditation and give up, it amounts targeting a lesser goal, but not a higher goal, for which we have to strive hard, with perseverance.