Did you ever hear the story of the genie and the lamp?

The possessor of the lamp rubs or polishes the lamp

and out comes the genie to grant him every wish.

This is a metaphor for life.

The conscious mind is the owner of the lamp.

The polishing of the lamp is the disciplining and training

of the mind – through yoga and meditation

The genie is the subconscious mind- the inner storehouse of power -- which must be directed.

You can have every wish come true- if you first possess, then polish the lamp.

The lamp is the mind itself.

The story goes that the lamp is old and tarnished

and the genie is hidden.

the possessor does not even know that there is a genie inside.

Then lo, accidentally or not, he begins to polish the lamp a little and out comes the genie to be commanded.

The genie is not begged, not given contradictory commands

– as most people do to their unpolished minds.

The genie is ruled, like you must rule your mind.