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ADHYAAY IX
RAJAVIDYA
RAJAGUHYA YOGAM
Introduction
This chapter may be
taken as an extension of the seventh.
The explanations offered there are being continued here. He had promised to give total Gyaana with
Vigyaana (VII - 2). Arjuna’s question to
know about the words He used in the last verse, diverted the course of Shri
Krishna’s speech and eighth chapter was born.
Now, He is reverting to the discussion on Gyaana with Vigyaana (IX - 1),
without any question from Arjuna. Shri
Krishna’s masterly oratory continues up to X – 11. The impact on Arjuna was so great that he
starts praising the Lord and wants to know about His Vibhuti. Shri Krishna obliges.
‘Mayyaaskta Mana’ (VII -
1) in the seventh chapter, is being repeated with greater details here as
‘Manmanaa’ (IX - 34). He had felt sorry
that only one thousands strives to reach Me (VII - 3). The same expression is repeated here (IX -3)
as, ‘The one having no Shraddha in this Dharma is dumped into the cycle of
birth and death’. ‘I am the Prabhava and
Pralaya’ (VII - 6) is repeated in 18th shlokam here. ‘Sanaatana Beejam’ (VII - 10), is ‘Avyaya
Beejam’ here (IX - 18). ‘Na tvam teshu
te Mayee’ (VII - 12), (Neither am I in them nor are they in Me) is explained
further in 4th and 5th shlokam. ‘The ones who surrender in Me, transcend
Maya’ (VII - 14) comes here in different words (IX - 22). (I take care of those who are ever in My
thoughts.) He had said Action is the
basic and sustaining factor of the Nature.
Looked at any plane, Nature is seen to be in continuous and vigorous
activity. Everything, from micro to
macro, the Galaxies, planets, the five basic elements, lives on the earth,
billions of cells in our bodies, are in continuous action.
Thus, this ninth chapter may be seen as a continuation and further
explanation of the seventh. Come in, let
us enter the chapter...
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श्री भगवानुवाच -
इदं तु ते गुह्यतमं प्रवक्ष्याम्यनसूयवे ।
ज्ञानं विज्ञानसहितं यज्ज्ञात्वा मोक्ष्यसेsशुभात् ॥ १ ॥
Shree
Bhagawan said: To, thee, who does not
carp, verily shall I now declare this, the most profound knowledge, united with
realization, having known which, thou shall be free from the unholy.
(IX - 1)
Shri Krishna calls Arjuna as
‘Anasooya’. “I’ll tell you as you are
Anasooya”, He says. Asooya is Jealousy
and Anasooya is one without even a trace of jealousy. Jealousy harms the vision. The world does not appear as it is to one
with harmed vision, neither dose he know the Paramaatman. An untainted vision is vital to get Divine
knowledge.
Secret is always shared with one who is
fit for it. Shri Krishna wants to share with
Arjuna, the ‘Secretive knowledge’, knowledge that will ensure release from the
unholy, as Arjuna being Anasooya, is deemed fit for that.
The world is never seen, by us, as it
is. Its appearance depends on our own
vision. Vision varies from man to
man. There can be as many visions as
there are men. Can a sight be seen
without attachment, with the seer standing aloof from it? That is almost impossible. If an artiste, a botanical scientist, an
environment enthusiast, a timber trader and a traveller on foot see a tree, it
will appear differently to each one of these.
Vision can broadly be of two types, a positive vision and a negative
one; a vision that appreciates and a vision that finds fault. The same person is seen as different by a
friend and a foe. Defects in him, not
noticed by the friend are glaringly visible to the foe. Qualities in him not seen by the foe are
visible to the friend. The work that is
life breath for one is a futile one for another. The varying opinions held people in politics,
religion, economics etc. are due to varying visions.
The defective vision can only see the
inert, material world. Anything higher
and sublime is beyond this vision. It
can only see pain, disparities, grief and tears. A communist, for instance, sees cleavages in
the society and sees a scope for agitation.
Classic creations of literature, art, music and drama are impossible with
a defective vision.
The world appears different to the one
with ennobled vision. Truth is visible to
him. Paramaatman is visible. He can see beauty, Joy and Love. Irrespective of whether one worships or not,
an atheist and a devotee can be identified by his vision. A person with a critical vision is an
atheist, while one with an appreciative vision is a devotee.
‘Oh Arjuna! You are with an untainted vision. You are Anasooya, free from jealousy. I will share with you the most secretive
knowledge’, declares Shri Krishna. A
strong bonding or relationship is essential for sharing a secret. Relationship based on intellectual
understanding gives rise to questions and doubts, but never cordiality. Relationship based on shraddha or complete
faith is perfectly cordial. Vision with
an active and dominant buddhi raises questions and wants to analyze and
criticize. When buddhi is transcended
and shraddha blossoms, the vision becomes untainted and purified. It is in that a state, a secret is shared and
received.
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राजविद्या राजगुह्यं पवित्रमिदमुत्तमम् ।
प्रत्यक्षावगमं धर्म्यं सुसुखं कर्तुमव्ययम् ॥ २ ॥Of sciences, the highest; of profundities, the deepest; of purifiers, the supreme, is this; realisable by direct perception, endowed with immense merit, very easy to perform and of an imperishable nature.
(IX - 2)
This Gyaana is RajaVidya, that is, like
a King among the Various Vidya. This is a
Great Vidya. There is nothing to be
known on knowing this. He said, (VII -
2) ‘Nothing more remains to be known after knowing Me’. ‘One who knows Me is Sarva Vid, one who knows
everything (XV-19).
This is most secretive, deepest among
secrets. He expresses secrets of His
manifestation from Avyakta to Vyakta form.
From here on, He gradually proceeds towards explanation of Saguna-Sakara
worship (worship of form with attributes.)
This Gyaana is sacred. Great and indestructible. It is Divine.
It is realizable. It is easy and
practicable. That is a test for
Gyaana. It should be easy to be put into
practise. He says in the 26th
shlokam, “Your offering may be anything, a leaf, a flower, a fruit or a drop of
water. A simple condition. Realize that to be Mine and offer. I accept with Joy.” How simple!
I am everything. Everything is
Mine, everything that is seen, heard, smelt, tasted, touched. One who sees Prakriti and not Me can no
attain Me.
That which can be realized, that which
is experienced personally, is knowledge.
Gyaana can not be attained through mere listening. Reading or memorizing will also not help. It has to be a direct, personal
experience. That is why Dharma is very
subjective. It can not taught in a
classroom. There is no shortcut to
Gyaana. Simplified Yog, Ten minutes to Kundalini,
are all sweet to ears, impossible. The
student is benefited by the greatness of teacher. Now a days, a system of initiating a thousand
persons into spiritual path is in vogue.
This may not be of help.
Initiation or Deeksha is ‘giving a sight’. This is very personal experience. Here, self experience is important. Practices and efforts for any number of
years, without a direct experience (anubhooti) is futile. That is hence He calls this most secretive
and is not shared with others. Even if
shared, it is not going to benefit.
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अश्रद्दधानाः पुरुषा धर्मस्यास्य परन्तप ।
अप्राप्य मां निवर्तन्ते मृत्युसंसारवर्त्मनि ॥ ३ ॥
Persons
without Shraddha for this Dharma, return, Oh scorcher of foes, without
attaining Me, to the path of rebirth fraught with death.
(IX - 3)
He described Gyaana using eight unique
terms in the last verse. Now, He calls
the same as Dharma. He again stresses on
the importance of Shraddha. One without shraddha is pushed back into this world
of birth and death again and again. He
can not attain Gyaana. He can not
realize Paramaatman.
Our real nature is Divine. We are quintessence of Him. He is our abode. To return to Him has to be our quest and that
is easier too. We may have taken birth
as any life. Our relationship with Him
is Natural and Eternal. But we have
started regarding the world, a temporary resting place, as our abode. We have started regarding the passing
relationship with the world as Permanent.
We regard our coming to this world as natural and usual. We had no Viveka, when we were born as other
lives and hence there was no option. As
humans, we have been given Viveka. We
are expected to sharpen Viveka with the help of efforts like Satsanga,
Introspection, Swadhyaayam, Dhyanam etc. and realize Paramaatman. But, due to lack of Shraddha, we do not
travel towards Him and are reborn again and again in this mortal world.
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मया ततमिदं सर्वं जगदव्यक्तमूर्तिना ।
मत्स्थानि सर्वभूतानि न चाहं तेष्ववस्थितः ॥ ४ ॥
न च मत्स्थानि भूतानि पश्य मे योगमैश्वरम् ।
भूतभृन्न च भूतस्थो ममात्मा भूतभावनः ॥ ५ ॥All this world is pervaded by Me in My unmanifested form: all beings exist in Me, but I do not dwell in them.
Nor
do beings exist in Me (in reality).
Behold My Divine Yoga! Bringing
forth and supporting the beings, My self does not dwell in them.
(IX - 4, 5)
These verses seem to express
contradictory ideas. He talked on the
significance and inevitability of
Shraddha, in the last verse. The
idea expressed here can not be taken in the absence of Shraddha. ‘I pervade the whole world. I am in every life. All the lives are in Me. I create and support lives. Yet, I am not in these lives nor are these in
Me.’ These words appear to be
contradictory. Let us accept His words
with Shraddha and then try to understand.
Shraddha is not perceptible to
others. Only its effect is. A youth bowed down to worship Gautam Buddha,
looked at His eyes and then bowed again.
“Why do you worship?” asked Buddha.
“I have attained what I have been seeking. I have nothing more to attain.” There were a few thousand disciples. How could this young man get what none of
them could? He had never practised any
meditation or other formal spiritual efforts.
Of course, Gautam Buddha’s touch, His eyes were the cause, but more
important was the transformation within this young man. “Please elaborate”, requested Buddha. “I do not know. I am ignorant. But, I experienced a surge of love within me,
as soon as I saw you. A firm belief
(shraddha) that what has happened to Him can happen to me too, erupted in me as
soon as I bowed down and touched you. I
was transformed as I rose up.” He was on
the streets, the next day, begging for food.
The people there knew him as a cruel robber, a killer. The revolutionary transformation inside him
was not visible to the town. He was not
offered food by the town. In stead,
stones and sticks were showered on him.
He was lying on roadside, bleeding profusely, when Gautam Buddha passed
by that way. Gautam Buddha lifted him,
laid on His lap and said, “You are hurt.
Is it too painful?” “The one who
could feel pain, who could experience grief, died at your feet yesterday”,
replied the young man. “You seem to be
dying now”, said Buddha. The disciple
replied, “The one who could die, died while surrendering at your feet. What remains is the one who has no death, who
is eternal.” Oh! What a transformation exploded in him in
seconds, due to blossoming of Shraddha!
Sun and sunlight are one. One is not without the other. Sunlight is called arms of the Sun. Sunlight enters every town, every house. We can say, Sun is there in every corner of
the world. Sunlight envelops the
world. Hence, the world and all the
lives can be said to be in the Sun. At
the same time, the world is not in the Sun and the Sun is not in the world.
If the waves are seen separately, then
waves are in water and water in waves. But,
waves have no independent existence.
There can be no wave without water.
Wave is generated from water and disappears back into water. Water is and waves are not. Thus, neither waves are in water, nor water
in waves.
The utensils are made of clay earth and
hence earth is in utensils. The utensils
are formed and get dissolved in earth and hence are in earth. But, utensils have temporary existence. Earth does not come to an end with the end of
pots. If the utensils are in earth,
these should also be permanent, which is not the case. Thus, we must conclude that the earth is not
in pots and pots are not in earth.
If we accept independent and separate
existence of Paramaatman and the world, then we must conclude that Paramaatman
is in the world and the world is in Paramaatman. The world has always been transient and ever
proceeding towards destruction. The
world appears to be, but is not. Hence
Paramaatman is not in the non-existent world, neither the world is in
Paramaatman. If one looks at the
essence, then only Paramaatman is there.
He only manifests as the transient world.
‘Paramaatman Is. The world and you and me are not.’ These words appear simple and easily
graspable. Whether we have grasped and
realized this or not can be very easily exposed. For instance, if some one appreciates and
praises you, is there a ripple of excitement deep within you? If on the contrary, he criticizes and
condemns, do anger and disappointment or a resolution to convince him rise in
you? If yes, you are taking the world
seriously and ‘it exists’ for you.
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यथाकाशस्थितो नित्यं वायुः सर्वत्रगो महान् ।
तथा सर्वाणि भूतानि मत्स्थानीत्युपधारय ॥ ६ ॥As the mighty wind, moving always everywhere, rests ever in the Akasha, know thou, that even so do all beings rest in Me.
(IX - 6)
The body and its senses are gross. We are able to see, hear, smell and taste and
know the objects of the world. The gross
senses can experience and know the gross objects and not the subtle ones. The mind, for instance, is subtle and can not
be known through the senses. Similarly,
our hands can hold the gross objects and not the subtle ones, like the wind or
fire or the sky. The British who ruled
over our Nation imprisoned patriots like Tilak and Savarkar. The Government could shut their mouths by
imprisoning these leaders. But, could
they imprison and impede their thinking?
The wind is reliant on the sky for its existence and activity. It pervades the sky. It travels as a hurricane and breeze. It carries sweet and foul scent. But, none of these activities has any impact
on the sky. The wind spreads to a few
hundred kilometers. The sky is subtler
and much more widespread than wind. It
sustains the wind, but is not affected by it.
The Paramaatman sustains the Prakriti,
the world and all the lives. The world
seems to alive and active with changes, growth, experiences of pain and
pleasures. None of these affects the
Paramaatman. The relation between the
world and the Paramaatman is similar to that between time bound activities of
the wind and the unaffected Sky.
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सर्वभूतानि कौन्तेय प्रकृतिं यान्ति मामिकाम् ।
कल्पक्षये पुनस्तानि कल्पादौ विसृजाम्यहम् ॥ ७ ॥At the end of a Kalpa, O Son of Kunti! all beings go back to My Prakriti. At the beginning of another Kalpa, I send them forth again.
(IX - 7)
All the questions rising in man’s mind
ever since he started thinking, are being discussed here. “Is there a cause behind creation of this
world and all the lives therein?” Is
there a common bond between the different, seemingly unconnected objects and
lives in this world? Are the changes,
decay and destruction continuously going on in the world governed by any rule
and cause? Is there a purpose for human
life? Other lives? Do the millions of lives, small and big, take
birth, grow, change, evolve and die, accidentally, without any purpose or under
a definite plan? Thinkers have come out
with so many types of explanations. The
‘No-God’ people deny prevalence of any rule.
‘Chaos’ is the rule according to them.
‘Anarchy’ is another word they attribute to the ways of the world. Even a dishonest thief demands an honest
accomplice, goes an old proverb. Those
advocating ‘anarch’ or haphazardness in creation put forward their arguments
in a systematic and planned way.
If you probe the plant life in jungles,
you will realize inter-dependence of birds and plants. The various organs in the body, apparently different
and independent, are connected through a common life force. In fact, There is only One, manifesting
in various forms. That, quintessence of
the Unmanifested Paramaatman, is called Jeevaatman. It pervades in every life and
inter-connects. That is Life. That is Micro form of Paramaatman. Paramaatman is Macro of Jeevaatman. That manifests in different forms in the
world. In Its absence, the world becomes
inert. Inert has no power to perform any
function. The inert world derives all
its powers from That. The essential
features of the world and all its objects are formation, growth and
deformation. The world is known as Jagat
in Samskritam. ‘Ja’ is to be born; ‘ga’ is to go. Like each one of its various lives, the whole
universe is also gradually moving towards dissolution.
Kalpa is one day of the Brahma. The whole creation starts at the dawn of
Brahma’s day and dissolved again at the dusk.
The whole process of creation and dissolution starts again. There have been two centers where from religions
have born; one is Bharat and the other
Jerusalem. The religions born in
Jerusalem talk about two forces; one to create and the other to destroy, the
God and the Satan. The religions born in
Bharat, talk about One, only One. There
is no second. He creates and He
destroys. The apparently opposite
factors are One. Laugh and cry appear
opposite to each other. The extreme of
laughter is cry and vice-versa.
Similarly, birth and death are one.
The giver of birth is also the giver of death. This is the essence of Hindu or Bharateeya
thought.
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प्रकृतिं स्वामवष्टभ्य विसृजामि पुनः पुनः ।
भूतग्राममिमं कृत्स्नमवशं प्रकृतेर्वशात् ॥ ८ ॥Animating My Prakriti, I project again and again this whole multitude of beings, helpless under the sway of Prakriti.
(IX – 8)
He, on reaching Me, is not born
again. The ones, who bind with Prakriti,
the one who identify self with the inert world, are born again and again. All the lives have body, manas and
Buddhi. Only the man is bestowed with
Viveka, the discretionary intelligence.
The other lives have no choice.
Man has. What is the choice
before him? He may realize self to be a
drop of the Eternal, Omniscient or regard self as Prakriti, destructible and
transient. He may regard self as
physician entity, or a bundle of emotions or a bunch of thoughts or the One
beyond all these, the One which is the Cause behind these, the One which
bestows power to these to function. He
may regard self to be the ‘possessor’ of all that he earned (money, position,
fame etc.) using the body, mind and intellect or regard all these as belongings
of the world, offered to him as means to serve the world and regard self as
His. He has choice of the paths he can
take in his life. His life sojourn may
be towards the world and its objects or towards the Paramaatman. ‘The ones journeying towards the world are
sent back again and again into the world by Me’, says Shri Krishna.
The other forms of life have no
choice. Their paths and journey are
predestined. The rock evolves into
plant, the plant into insect life, gradually evolving as animal life. These are in the grip of Prakriti and have no
choice. Human birth is got at the end of
this long travel. Attainment of human
birth does not automatically ensure his liberation. He has the liberty or choice to work towards
liberation. He may choose to continue in
the clutches of Prakriti. The ones
reliant on the world, the Prakriti, for pleasures and comforts, remains
entangled in the web of Prakriti. He
remains in the cycle of pleasures and pains, births and deaths. The journey towards Whole, the Light, the
Eternal is Joyous and the one choosing this is Liberated.
In a way, all the men seek the
Paramaatman. Everyone seeks wealth,
power. What for? To gain pleasures and happiness, to gain a
sense of security. He does not want to
be lost. He wants to gain
permanency. He builds house, mansion
with safety, more safety only with a hope to prevent self from
destruction. All his efforts to protect
self from diseases is also with the same hope.
The fear of death is also caused by his wish to survive for ever. At the root of all his efforts is his wish to
attain the eternity, the state of undiminished Joy. The efforts may be in wrong direction,but
intention definitely is Paramaatman.
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न च मां तानि कर्माणि निबध्नन्ति धनञ्जय ।
उदासीनवदासीनमसक्तं तेषु कर्मसु ॥ ९ ॥These acts do not bind Me, sitting as one neutral, unattached to them, Oh Dhananjaya!
(IX - 9)
One is not bound by his actions, but
only by the attachment with his actions.
His feeling of ‘I am the doer’ binds him. The Paramaatman does everything, but is not
bound. He stands aloof, detached from
His actions. Actions are Leela, a game
for Him. Creation, Protection and destruction
are all Leela for Him.
Can one act without attachment? Probably in sports, Yes. There is a chance of disappearance of ‘me’
and experience of Joy in sports. The life
could be taken as a sport and detachment developed. (In the modern world, even sport has become a
matter of life and death. Sports has
become a stressful activity.) Any work
can be turned into a play, lovely and joyful game if the attitude is
tuned. Taking care of a child is a
lovable, enjoyable activity for the mother, while it is a work, a tiring one
for the nurse. It gives joy to the
mother, but stresses the nurse. The
mother never tires, but the nurse requires rest and a holiday to be recharged. (As per Christian belief, the God created for
six days and rested on the seventh.)
When a work becomes Leela or a game, there is no tiring and no need for
rest. In Hindu thought, The Paramaatman
is called Paramaanadam (Zenith of Joy) and Nityaanandam (Ever Joyous). There is no scope here for grief, tears and
chest beating. Only Joy. Only Bliss.
That is the Goal. That is the
Ultimate refuge.
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मयाध्यक्षेण प्रकृतिः सोयते सचराचरम् ।
हेतुनानेन कौन्तेय जगद्विपरिवर्तते ॥ १० ॥Oh Son of Kunti! By reason of My proximity, Prakriti produces all these; the moving and the unmoving. The world wheels round and round, because of this.
(IX - 10)
The king does not do anything. He merely sits on the throne. The minister issues ordinances. The officers and other employees execute
these ordinances. But, from whom did the
minister derive power to issue edicts? On
whose authority do the officers work to implement those edicts? The king, of course. The powers are vested with the minister as
long as the king wishes. Without the
king, the minister becomes powerless.
The Paramaatman presides over and Prakriti creates under His
authority. World is ever changing. The changes are caused by Prakriti, but She
owes the power to the Paramaatman. The
machines perform various functions. The
causal energy is electricity. It is expressed
through the machines. The power is with
Paramaatman and is manifested through the Prakriti. Creation and all the changes in this world
are caused by Prakriti, which in turn derives the powers fro Paramaatman. The lives, which bind with Prakriti, get
entangled in this cycle of changes. The
ones who bind to the Paramaatman on realizing that these changes are at the
plane of Prakriti, are liberated from the cycle of changes and are one with
Paramaatman.
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अवजानन्ति मां मूढा मानुषीं तनुमाश्रितम् ।
परं भावमजानन्तो मम भूतमहेश्वरम् ॥ ११ ॥Unaware of My higher state, as the great Lord of beings, fools disregard Me, dwelling in the human form.
(IX - 11)
Shri Krishna says, “One who can not see
the Divine, the Paramaatman, in His human form or Avatara, the Unmanifested
Brahman in the manifested form is an ignorant fool.” He has talked in similar tone in other
contexts in the Gita. In VII-24 and XV-18,
He says, “the ignorant do not know My Divine Form.” Man gets a body due to and according to his
actions in previous lives, his own vasanas.
He is reliant on his body and the Prakriti. The Lord chooses on His own to take a body
and descends down upon this earth out of His Love for the humans. He is independent of Prakriti. He comes to emancipate man, to guide him how
to live and not be bound by Prakriti.
The Ignorant, unfortunately does not realize this.
‘They insult Me’ says Shri Krishna. Is He sad at being insulted? Yes, not because He was underestimated and
regarded as a mere human with common traits, but because man tends to accept
his own blemishes and lower traits by refusing to attribute Divinity and
regarding Shri Krishna as ‘a common folk like anyone else’. By this he closes the path towards his
emancipation and that is the cause of His sadness. The media is overworking to facilitate
this. They search for and highlight
every perverted happening in every nook and corner of the world. They spare no effort to show in bad light,
anyone admired by many. The common man
continuously fed on these negative ‘news’ comes to regard his own blemishes and
silliness as too common and pleased at his ‘current status’. He disregards any effort at change and growth. This is ‘ignorance’ and cause for His
sadness. (If you seek your own
betterment and growth, stay away from news and other channels.)
These same men idolize and chase anyone
performing tricks, miracle, claiming to be ‘superman’. In this again, they shun efforts towards self
development and hence are ignorant too.
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मोघाशा मोघकर्माणो मोघज्ञाना विचेतसः ।
राक्षसीमासुरीं चैव प्रकृतिं मोहिनीं श्रिताः ॥ १२ ॥Of vain hopes, of vain acts, of vain knowledge, and senseless, they verily are possessed of the delusive nature of Rakshasa and Asura.
(IX - 12)
This is rather a continuation of the
previous shlokam. Those nurturing futile
hopes, involving in unworthy activities and accumulating junk knowledge are
without discretion (Aviveki). They
acquire demoniac and Tamasik traits.
They are plunged in darkness of delusion and ignorance.
Man has a special feature not in other
lives. The other lives are
predictable. Man is not. If a cow is Sattvika, then all the cows are. You won’t find a violent cow. Mixed traits are also very rare to find. Human is not that. You can find all shades of humans, right from
the worst to the best, the meanest to the noblest. There is a Samskrita subhasitam which says
there are four broad types of humans. 1. Ordinary human, one who does not usually harm
others, neither does he good to others.
He may help others if he himself is not harmed in any way. 2. The
animal type, who will not hesitate to harm others, if beneficial in some way to
self. 3.
The demon type, who derives a sadistic pleasure through harming others,
even if there is no benefit, on the contrary, there is harm to self. This type of men indulge in acts unworthy
both to self and others. 4. The God type, who is ever ready to serve and
benefit others, even at the cost of harm to self. We can find thousands of combinations of
these four basic types in a human society.
Those who gather trivial information in
the name of knowledge, those who nurture flimsy hopes and those who indulge in
wasteful efforts are ‘idiots’, not mere idiots, but idiots soaked in tamasik
and demoniac attitude. They remain
plunged in intoxicated delusion. Shri
Krishna’s comments in this regard are severely harsh. Any hope, action or knowledge should be
accepted only after verifying if it is good, useful and self-elevating.
Which is a futile hope? ‘If I hang a black stone tied to a black rope
near the front door, my house will be protected from evil forces’. ‘A black thread tied around my wrist will
protect me.’ Futile hopes these?? We do not have such hopes?? We might feel these words of Shri Krihna are
not meant for us. ‘The occurance
yesterday was favourable and tomorrow will also be same.’ This is a futile hope. ‘That happened to him unfortunately. But, it won’t happen to me.’ This is a futile hope. ‘Something unexpected and unfavourable
happened yesterday. It won’t repeat
again.’ This is futile hope. Viveka is not to hope.
Which is an unworthy act? Getting angry, exhibiting jealousy, spending
time in petty talks and entertainment, etc. are some. There are umpteen such acts we know to be
unworthy, yet perform daily. That money
will bring pleasures is a futile hope and all efforts put in at the instigation
of a ‘life mission of money earning’, are unworthy acts. That assets and property will ensure security
and protection of life is a futile hope.
Every effort towards asset building is an unworthy act. That ‘fame will establish me permanently in
the hearts of people’ is a futile hope.
All circus tricks based on this hope are unworthy acts. To know ‘who am I?’ is discrete act. To show ‘who I am’ is an unworthy act. Efforts to sublimate and surrender ego is
discrete act, while the same to establish and boost ego is an unworthy act.
What is waste knowledge? We might have gobbled up a thousand
books. If there is no rise or ennobling,
at least a ripple within, then all these books are mere junk. Only that which causes transformation within,
is knowledge.
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महात्मानस्तु मां पार्थ दैवीं प्रकृतिमाश्रिताः ।
भजन्त्यनन्यमनसो ज्ञात्वा भूतादिमव्ययम् ॥ १३ ॥But the great-souled ones, O son of Pritha! possessed of Divine Prakriti, knowing Me to be the origin of beings, and Immutable, worship Me with a single mind.
(IX - 13)
He briefed the traits of an ignorant
idiot in the last shlokam. Now, He
identifies a Mahaatman, or a Noble person.
‘He will seek the company of Divine attributes. He will surrender to Nobility. He will discard pettiness.’ The Divine attributes have been explained in
the sixteenth chapter in the shlokams 1, 2 and 3. Theses traits are not specific to any
individual or a community, but are universal.
It is up to the man whether or not to allow these to cause an imprint on
self. One who agrees to be influenced by
these traits is surely elevated towards the Divine.
It is one thing to create something new
and another to discover an existing one.
Anything created new is bound to be destroyed. These Divine traits are eternal. These have existed ever. Man has to discover and accept these. If he regards these as Paramaatman’s and
accepts, he becomes simple and humble and progresses towards Him. If he believes to have earned these through
own effort, he develops Ahankara or arrogance and drifts away from the
Paramaatman. The moment he says, ‘I
speak only the truth,’ he develops pride.
These traits spring and flourish in one who regards these as His.
Gita speaks of ‘Ananya Bhava’ on many
occasions. VIII-14, IX-22, XII-6,
XIV-26 are the shlokams wherein Ananya Bhava has been discussed. Ananya is antonym of Anya. That which is not Anya is Ananya. Anya is ‘the other’. Ananya is ‘the Only’. There is no other. Ananya bhava is ‘nothing else but Him’. There is nothing else in the world. Nothing else but Him is desirable and attainable. There is no work other than effort to attain
Him. There is no space in mind and
thoughts for anything other than Him.
There are two ways. One is to search for Him within, the place
where He dwells, meditate on Him and know Him.
It is a tougher way. The other
way is to ‘see’ Him and nothing else, wherever the eyes gaze; perform every action for Him; and recieve as His Grace any and every
experience. This is an easier way.
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सततं कीर्तयन्तो मां यतन्तश्च दृढव्रताः ।
नमस्यन्तश्च मां भक्त्या नित्ययुक्ता उपासते ॥ १४ ॥Glorifying Me always and striving with firm resolve, bowing down to Me in Devotion, always steadfast, they worship Me.
(IX - 14)
Every moment of our lives is a testing
moment. We may see ‘devil’ or the
‘Divine’ in the person we come across.
We may take a favourable and successful experience as His Grace or ‘my
achievement’. A painful or unfavourable experience
may be considered as Gift of God (Prasada) or plunge in self pity and
grief. A favourable, pleasant experience
may be taken as a flash of His Light and feel humble or jump, celebrate with
wild excitement at achievement and self glory.
A failure may be taken as His blessing and be happy or grumble at His
‘betrayal’. The first choice exhibits a firm
conviction in His devotion. That is the
humble bowing before Him; a hearty Hymn
sung in His praise; a real way of
worshipping Him.
Mansoor was a Sufi saint. Beautiful flowers had bloomed on both sides
of the way he was passing by. He joined
palms and looks to the sky and worships.
“There is no mosque here. Whom do
you worship?” ask his disciples.
“Flowers have blossomed. His
Grace is exhibited through these flowers.”
This is his Bhajan. As he walks
further, there is Sun rise. He is
excited and bows down and worships with all humility. “Oh!
What a brightness! Nothing to
match His blessing.” The Muslims feel
Mansoor is into idolatory. They thrash
him and pluck out his arms and legs.
Mansoor, in his last moments looks at the sky and smiles. “We are beating you. Why do you smile”? “He is so Gracious and merciful. He is waiting to hug and welcome me. His Divine embrace is waiting for me as soon
as I fall here. If you had not helped by
beating, reaching Him would have been delayed.
That is His compassion.” That was
his conviction in devotion.
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ज्ञानयज्ञेन चाप्यन्ये यजन्तो मामुपासते ।
एकत्वेन पृथक्त्वेन बहुधा विश्वतोमुखम् ॥ १५ ॥Others, too, sacrificing by the Yagna of Knowledge (i.e., seeing the Self in all), worship Me the All-Formed, as One, as Distinct, as Manifold.
(IX - 15)
Hunger is same for all. The satisfaction derived upon eating is also
same. But, tastes vary and hence food
varies. Similarly attitudes, devotion,
potential etc. also vary from individual to individual. The world is an ever-changing one. Man is never contented in any of his
experiences. But, when he turns away
from the world and strives to and progresses towards the Divine, he attains total
contentment. As his tastes and attitudes
vary, his efforts towards the Divine also vary.
Here Shri Krishna mentions two types of efforts. One is the path of knowledge and the other
path of Yoga; one is Advaita and the
other Dvaita.
We all hail from different backgrounds
and stand in different levels. Starting
points of our journeys are different.
Hence the paths have to be different.
But, the destination is One.
There is uniqueness in this journey.
Neither the path nor the traveller will be there once the destination is
reached. There is a complete merger.
There can be as many paths as there are
men. The Hindu has realized this and
hence there is no fight on the path adopted.
There are few common methods and paths, in the search for the Divine. Paths have not been prescribed here. Every one may choose his own path. He is at liberty to change his path or
discover a new one, to suit own attitude.
It is not wrong to regard the path chosen by self is a right path. It is wrong and Un-Hindu like to regard own
path as the ‘only right way’. Violence
takes birth in mind with this thought.
This seed of violence turns into brutal blood shed, once he wants
everyone else to choose the same path.
It has been less in Bharat and other east Asian countries, but every
page of American, African, Arabic and European history in the past 1,500 years
has been soaked in human blood, because of such a thought. The efforts by Christianity and Islam to
proselytize populations in these countries have evoked brutal wars and massacre
of millions in these countries.
In Dhyaana Yoga, he tries to search the
Divine essence within self. He puts
Viveka or discretion into use and removes whatever obstacles. He attains Bliss once he could merge self
with That. In the other path, self is
regarded separate from the Paramaatman and He is perceived as ‘Mother’ or
‘Father’ or ‘Ruler’ or ‘Child’ or ‘Friend’ or ‘Lover’ or ‘Servant’ and
worshipped. The seeker dedicates
everything to Him and totally identifies with Him. The seeker sees the diversity in the world is
as His manifestation and serves with all the instruments at his disposal. ‘The paths are different. But, all those reach Me’ says Shri Krishna.
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