The Secret to Wisdom Isn't Choosing Your Head or Your Heart—It's Forcing Them to Agree.

Many people do not know the difference between the mind and the brain. We use the terms almost interchangeably, but I believe they are two distinct, powerful forces within us. Understanding them is the first step to a healthy life, because the conflict between them is the source of all our problems.

In my view, it's simple:

• The mind is concerned with emotions. It tells us what it likes and what it does not like.

• The brain is concerned with logic. It tells us what is good and what is bad.

And every second of our lives, we are caught in the struggle between these two.

The Car Showroom and the Hotel: A Tale of Two Decisions

Let's imagine you go to a car showroom to buy a car. You see 50 different models displayed. As you look at them, your mind will instantly focus on just one or two cars. It will tell you, "I like this one." The mind does not care about the price, the fuel efficiency, or if it can fit your family. It just knows what it likes.

But your brain will gather information. It will ask about the cost, the loan options, the parking space, and whether it suits your needs. After a few days or a week of analysis, the brain will come to a conclusion about which car is good for you. And very often, you will observe that there is no connection between the car your mind liked and the car your brain chose as the best.

It happens in every part of our lives. We go to a hotel, and our mind wants to eat some heavy, delicious food. But our brain tells us that we will get a stomachache if we eat it and advises us to eat something else. This confusion—whether to do what is liked by the mind or to do what is prescribed as good by the brain—is the biggest enemy to our mental peace.

The Two Paths of Life: The Heart-Led and the Head-Led

I believe we can classify most people in the world into two categories based on which force they follow.

1. The Mind-Led Person:
These are the people who live as their mind desires and do not bother much about their brain. Think of a "mischievous" child who plays well, enjoys themselves, and is always happy. They do a thing only if they like to do it. But because they don't use their brain to think about what is good or bad, they may get struck up in life and get hurt when they grow up. At some point, they may decide to stop living by the mind and start using their brain. Then, they become successful and achieve name and fame, but they will not be happy or peaceful because they are no longer doing what their mind desires.

2. The Brain-Led Person:
These are the intelligent children who always obey elders, get good marks, and act smartly. They never do anything their mind desires; they only do what is "good." But at some point in their life, they will realize they never got to enjoy life. They will decide to stop being so intelligent and start living to their heart's content. People will say they are "nice" but "don't know how to live smartly."

Most of us fall into one of these two categories, and irrespective of which one it is, we will not have peace, satisfaction, or joy. We will always have plenty of worry, anger, and fear. The reason for this is the constant fight between the mind and the brain.

The Third Path: The Way of the Wise Brain

So what is the solution? When the brain and the mind operate separately, we get confusion. When the brain and the mind function together, we get wisdom. A wise person is someone whose brain and mind take the same decision. They never have this confusion.

From now on, whenever you take a decision, you must come out of these two separate approaches. My advice is to think and decide with wisdom.

• If you want to take an intelligent decision (from the brain), you must first pacify and convince your mind using your brain, and convert it into a decision that is also liked by your mind.

• If a decision is to be taken as per your conscience (from the mind), you have to pacify your brain using your mind and convince it that this is a good decision.

Thus, for every decision you take, if you reconcile the mind and the brain and keep them on the same line of thought, you will never worry about your past or fear your future. You can live a peaceful and satisfied life. This is what I call the "wise brain."

The Golden Rule for All Decisions

There is just one condition for living as per the mind's desire. Our decision should not affect any other person’s mind or body. If we keep this in mind, our decisions will always be correct.

Many of us only think about which decision will give us the most benefit. We are not concerned about whether our decision will affect others. But if we take decisions that harm others, and they curse us, that curse will affect us and our life. The reason many people go up fast and then suddenly have a steep fall is because their progress was made by affecting the minds and bodies of many others.

Therefore, each and every decision we take should be liked by our mind, should be good for us, and also should not adversely affect others. If we live our life this way, our progress may be slow, but we will never fall down.

Even if you have a small company with ten employees, you can split your hair with worry. But some gurus manage ashrams in 120 countries and deal with all sorts of problems, yet they remain peaceful and calm. The secret is that they make all their decisions based on their wise brain.

To start, practice by writing down your small decisions on a piece of paper.

• What is the decision liked by my mind?

• What is the decision liked by my brain?

• What are the likely effects of each? Who will be affected?

• What are the benefits and drawbacks?

Analyze this on paper. If we practice in this way, slowly we will be able to take such decisions just by analyzing them in our mind, and we too can become wise.