bhagwad geetha

7/18/2019 Bhagwad Geetha

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The Bhagavadgita



The setting of the Gita The setting of the Gita is symbolic of the

battlefield of life, but more importantly, it issymbolic of the battlefield within all of us.

Our life is a constant turmoil betweenpositive and negative impulses, betweenthe pleasant and the better, between ourlikes and dislikes, between the good andthe bad.

Even though the Gita is the record of adialogue centuries ago, it is relevant to anyage since it addresses fundamentalquestions that arise in the human heart.

Through the vista of epic literature, we areable to hear and see the sacred dialogue

between Aruna and !rishna. Aruna"sdespondency is our despondency. #isquestions are our questions. As we readthe Gita, it is as if we are in directcommunion with the great sage embodiedin the personality of !rishna.



A synopsis of the last lecture

$n our last lecture, we saw !rishna"simmediate response to the despondencyof Aruna on the battlefield. #e told himto snap out of it. %This is not thebehavior of a great warrior.&

$f the depression is mild, such words of

encouragement have the desired effect.$n this case, the problem is deeper sinceit is e'istential in nature.

(o !rishna resorts to the highestteaching he can give, namely theessence of the )panishadic teaching of

the immortality of the (upreme (elf. %*ife and death are part of the cosmic

process, +ut the (elf is indestructibleand immortal. $t is not slain when thebody is slain.&



What is the eect of thisteaching?Even this teaching does not

seem to have any effect.(o !rishna makes a pleafrom a worldly perspective. %$fyou abandon your work,

people will forever recountyour abandonment. Andliving such a life is worse thandeath. Therefore, stand upand fight&

This still does not energi-e Aruna to go into battle. (onow begins !rishna"s brilliantdiscourse and a synthesis of

the four yogas.



Karma yoga !arma yoga is one of the brilliant

new contributions of the+hagavadgita. $t is not found in the)panishads e'plicitly.

$t is good to begin withivekananda"s e'planation of themeaning of !arma yoga.

%The word karma is derived from the(anskrit kri meaning %to do&/ allaction is karma. Technically, theword also means the effects ofactions. $n connection to

metaphysics, it sometimes meansthe effects of which our past actionswere the causes. +ut in karmayoga, we have simply to do with theword karma as meaning work.&



%Thus we are all doing karma all the time.$ am talking to you/ that is karma. 0ou arelistening/ that is karma. 1e breathe, thatis karma. Everything we do, physical or

mental, is karma and it leaves its marks onus.&

%1e are responsible for what we are/ andwhatever we wish ourselves to be, wehave the power to make ourselves. $f whatwe are now has been the result of our ownpast actions, it certainly follows thatwhatever we wish to be in the future canbe produced by our present actions/ so wehave to know how to act.&

%There is such a thing as frittering away

our energies. 1ith regard to karma yoga,the Gita says that it is doing work withcleverness and as a science, by knowinghow to work, one can obtain the greatestresults.&



Krishna begins

%$n the path of karma yoga, no effort is ever lost and no obstacleprevails. Even a little practice of this yoga saves one from greatfear. The resolute understanding is single. Thoughts of theirresolute are many2branched and endless.&

%3irmly fi' the thought on the (upreme (elf, and relinquish allselfish desire. To action alone, you have the right, but not to thefruits of action. 4on"t let the fruits of action be your motive.5either should you be attached to inaction. 3i'ed in this yoga,do your work, abandoning attachment and being even mindedin both success and failure. Evenness of mind is called yoga.

Yoga samatvam ucyate



The rst steps of karma yoga

The first step in karma yoga is to fi' the thought on thereali-ation of the (upreme (elf. Thus, the teaching of the)panishads is made the foundation on which the yoga is built.The foundation of karma yoga is the yoga of knowledge, or nanayoga.

The second step is to act but not with a selfish motive. $f wee'amine our life, we find it is full of self2interest. #ow can wework if we are not motivated by self2interest6

4oes this mean we should abandon work6 !rishna emphaticallysays no. 0ou should not resort to inaction either. The ideal is to

work with an evenness of mind, in both success and failure. $sthis possible6



ivekananda gives a personal vie! %$ have been asked many times how we can work if we do not have the

passion which we generally feel for work. $ also thought in that wayyears ago, but as $ am growing older, getting more e'perience, $ find it isnot true. The less passion there is, the better we work.&

%The calmer we are, the better for us, and the more amount of work wecan do. 1hen we let loose our feelings, we waste so much energy,

shatter our nerves, disturb our minds, and accomplish very little work.The energy which ought to have gone out as work is spent as merefeeling, which counts for nothing.&

%$t is only when the mind is very calm and collected that the whole of itsenergy is spent in doing good work. 7 The man who gives way toanger, or hatred, or any other passion, cannot work/ he only breaks

himself to pieces, and does nothing practical. $t is the calm, forgiving,equable, well2balanced mind that does the greatest amount of work.&



Krishna continues

%Action should be guided by intelligence,not by self2interest. One who has oinedhimself to buddhi, or illumined reason,and works, is said to be skillful in action.0oga is said to be this skill in action.&

Yogah karmasu kausalam. $n these verses, !rishna outlines his

theory of work and gives two definitions ofyoga. The first is evenness of mind andthe second is skill in action. +oth of these

attitudes have to be combined to gain aproper understanding of this philosophy ofwork. At the same time, we must not beattached to the fruits of our work.



Ar"una asks for a description ofthe perfect sage The very question of Aruna is an indication that his mind has

been engaged and he is slowly coming out of his despondency. !rishna answers8 %1hen all the desires of the mind are put away

and the spirit is content in itself, the sage is said to be of settledintelligence. #e is untroubled in the midst of sorrow and is freefrom eager desire amid pleasures. #e from whom passion, fearand rage have passed away is called one of settled intelligence.#e who draws away the senses from the obects of sense as atortoise draws in its limbs into the shell, his intelligence is said tobe firmly set.&



The psychology of anger 9odern psychoanalysis has revealed that

anger is a manifestation of repressed andsuppressed desires.

9odern medicine has also established thedamage to internal physiology caused bye'cessive anger.

$n the fit of anger, we are confused andissues that have no bearing on thecircumstance are brought in only to addfurther confusion.

$n such a confusion, we forget many

things8 the purpose of life, ourresponsibilities, our goals, and mostimportantly, peaceful co2e'istence withfellow human beings.



$sychology and literature

*iterature is replete with e'amples of this onepsychological phenomenon8 how selfish desire canpossess the mind and lead it to annihilation. This isthe fundamental theme of human life, the question

of %moral choice& in all issues and circumstances.+ut the %moral choice& must be guided byintelligence.

9orality for its own sake is too weak to stand on itsown. One must have a larger perspective with

which to view things and this perspective is providedby intelligence, or illumined reason :buddhi ;.



Krishna continues

%+ut one who is of disciplined mind, who moves among obects ofsense with the senses under control, free from attachment oraversion, such a one attains purity of spirit. 3or the uncontrolled,however, there is no intelligence, nor is there the power ofconcentration. 1ithout concentration of mind, there is no peace.3or the restless mind, how can there be happiness6&

%1hen the mind runs after the roving senses, it carries away allunderstanding ust as the wind carries away a ship on the waters.1hat is night for all beings is the time of wakefulness for thesage. 1hat is the time of wakefulness for all beings is night forthe sage.&

The meaning of the last part is an indication of priorities. 1henthe world is da--led by the glitter of sense obects, the sage isfocused on understanding reality and touching the very substanceof the phenomenon of life. Thus the mind of the sage is asleep towhat the world is awake to. (imilarly, the world is asleep to whatthe sage is awake to.



%ome psychoanalytic insight

!rishna says, %The sage does not hug desires when they arise.5or does he agitate the mind to create them. #e is indifferent tothem. As waters enter the sea, though ever being filled, is evermotionless, so is the mind of the sage with respect to desires.&

3rom his spiritual perspective, !rishna sees desires as part ofthe psycho2biological process.

Aruna intervenes and asks, %$f you think the path ofunderstanding :nana yoga; is better than the path of action:karma yoga;, then why do you urge me to fight6 $ think youhave only confused me by this teaching. Tell me for certain

which path $ should follow.&



The theory of !ork

!rishna now begins his outline of the theory of work. 9anycontemporary thinkers, such as 9ahatma Gandhi, consider this to bethe maor contribution of the +hagavadgita to philosophical thought.

To Aruna"s question, !rishna replies, %One may lead a life ofcontemplation or a life of action. +oth properly done, lead one toenlightenment. +ut one must understand that freedom from work is not

gained by abstaining from work. +y mere renunciation of work, you donot attain perfection. $t is impossible to maintain even one"s life withoutdoing some work.&

%One who restrains the organs of action, but continues to brood oversense obects is said to be a hypocrite and only brings misery anddelusion to oneself. +ut he who controls the senses by the mind andengages the organs of action in the path of work is superior.&

This verse is !rishna"s brilliant fusion of nana yoga and karma yoga.



ivekananda e&pands $n order to refrain from falling into

error, one is tempted to refrain from

action altogether. +ut this is

definitely not the way.

ivekananda writes in his inimitablehumorous way, %The cow never tells

a lie and the stone never steals, but

nevertheless, the cow remains a

cow and the stone a stone. 9ansteals and man tells lies, and again,

it is man that becomes god.&



%4o thou thy allotted work,& !rishna instructs,%for action is better than inaction. Even tomaintain physical health, one must be active.+ut learn to work free from attachment.&

%This world is an interdependent world. Allcreatures support each other through mutualco2operation. <oin your mind to a higher causethat enables the welfare of all. $t is in this waythat the great ones of the past have attainedperfection through work alone.&

%1hatever a great person does, others follow.

1hatever standard is set by such a one, theworld rises to that standard. *ook at me Aruna.There is not for me any personal gain from thework $ do, yet, $ continue to work. $f $ did notengage in work unwearied, people would followmy e'ample and the world will fall into ruin.&

%<ust as the ignorant act from attachment to

work, so should the learned act, but without anyattachment and with a desire for the welfare ofthe world. The enlightened person acts in aspirit of yoga and thus sets others to act aswell.&



The main message of theGita Often, we are tempted to run away from our difficulties and take

up a life of the recluse, of e'clusive meditation. This is not anoption recommended by !rishna.

3ew people have the capacity for sustained concentration andso, most of the people who choose the meditative life waste a lotof time in idleness.

The classical adage, %an idle mind is the devil"s workshop& moreor less summari-es the dangers of such an option.

The ideal is to oin the mind to a wider vision, a worthy cause thatenoins the welfare of all, and then to engage the mind and body

in work towards that ideal.

Thi d t t b d



This does not mean we must abandon orpresent work and take up something that hasbeen certified as social service by the world atlarge.

%4o thou thy allotted work,& enoins !rishna.

%=epressing or suppressing desires is notdesirable, for then, these energies onlybecome subconscious to manifest later in alltheir fury. The energies and passions must begiven a higher direction as $ have indicated inthe yoga of work.&

%+etter is thought and action consonant withone"s own abilities and aptitudes than thatwhich is not. Even though this may not bedone perfectly, it is better because actingcontrary to one"s psychological dispositionoften leads to fear.&

Thus, we see that we must take our ownabilities and give them a higher direction. 3orthis, we need not go anywhere. $t is our ownview that must be adusted and enlarged.



What is action?

%1hat is action, what is inaction and what is non2action6 Eventhe wise are confused on these points,& says !rishna.

%#e who sees action in inaction and inaction in action, he is theyogi. 3or one whose actions are free from selfish desire, everywork culminates in wisdom. (uch an individual holds his life asan offering, a sacrifice to a higher ideal.&

%!nowledge as a sacrifice is greater than any material sacrificesince all works without e'ception culminate in wisdom. *earnthat by humble reverence, by inquiry, by concentration , and byservice.&



9ere physical action is not action according to!rishna. =eal action is the process by which werefine wisdom from the crude ore of e'perience.

One may be silent, reflective and outwardly,performing no action, but inwardly, throughintrospection, one is gaining insight and wisdom. (othis is true action.

All e'periences, good and bad, can be used to distilwisdom. The process by which this is done is four2fold8 by humble reverence, by inquiry, byconcentration, and by service.

This is the four2fold yoga oining the paths ofdevotion :bhakti;, of knowledge :nana;, of psychiccontrol :raa; and of work :karma;.



The practice of concentration

To practice concentration of mind, one mustengage the will. 1hat e'actly is will6 1ill is love converted into power. The same

mechanism that leads one to a downfall can alsobe used to raise the level of awareness. The mindshould be fi'ed on the desire to reali-e Brahman.

%As a lamp in a windless place does not flicker, soalso is the mind fi'ed on the (upreme (elf that isnot disturbed by selfish desire. *et the yogi gaintranquility of mind, little by little, by means ofreason controlled by steadiness and having fi'edthe mind on the (elf, let him not think of anything

else. 1henever the mind wanders, let himrestrain and bring the mind to the focus ofconcentration.&



Ar"una intervenes !ith a basic'uestion %This control of mind that you describe is very hard indeed. $t is

as difficult as trying to control the storm,& says Aruna. %0es,& agrees !rishna, %but it can be done with steady practice.

1onderful things can be accomplished through steady practice.$t becomes easier if we constantly remind ourselves of the goalto be attained.&

%Thinking of That, directing one"s whole conscious being to That,making That their whole aim, with That as the sole obect ofdevotion, they reach that supreme state. Even here on earth, theworld of duality is transcended by one whose mind is established

in tranquility.&



As the discourse continues( onecan see Krishna)s mind

ascending in a!areness #is speech begins to reveal that he is now teaching from thelevel of universal Awareness as taught by the )panishads.

%$ am the taste in the waters. $ am the light in the moon and thesun. $ am the syllable Om. $ am the fragrance in the earth andthe brightness in fire. $ am the life in all e'istence. $ am the

origin of all. 3rom 9e the whole creation proceeds. !nowingthis, the wise worship 9e, with their thoughts fi'ed on 9e.&

As !rishna"s mind ascends to a higher level of awareness, Aruna asks if he too can have such an awareness.

#e asks, %$f you think $t can be seen, then please reveal $t to me.&



The cosmic form !rishna says, %$t cannot be

seen by the human eye. $ will

give you the divine eye by

which you can see.&

$n the >>th chapter of the Gita,

the visva rupa, or the cosmic

form of !rishna is described.

Aruna is at first frightened.

The poet writes, %$f a thousandsuns were to rise

simultaneously in the morning

sky, that might resemble the

splendor of that vision.&



Ar"una)s song of praise %$ behold Thee,& sings Aruna, %infinite in form on all

sides. $ do not see the end, the middle nor the

beginning. $ see many things. The entire space ispervaded by Thee alone. $ see sons of4hritarashtra rushing towards destruction. Asmoths rush swiftly into a bla-ing fire to perish there,so do these men rush into their own destruction. 7$ have seen what was never seen before and myheart is shaken with fear. ?lease show me your

compassionate form.&

#ere is some amplification on this scene8 %Theconscious element of the mind is birthless anddeathless. 7 This permanent element of the mind,@onsciousness, is nothing but the cosmic mind. $f fora moment, we can identify ourselves with this@onsciousness, 7 we shall know ourselves to beinfinite. 7 $ find that the whole universe is in me.& 2(wami (raddhananda in %(eeing God Everywhere.&



The compassionate form

Then !rishna said, %This universal form is very hard to see andyou have seen $t. Others too can, through unswerving devotionto the (upreme, attain the same state of awareness. $n thepractice of devotion, it is difficult for the mind to focus on theabstract idea which is beyond manifestation, beyond thought,

which is changeless, immobile, and constant. This is quitedifficult for embodied beings.&

%+ut those who worship 9e, meditating on 9e, with unswervingdevotion, also attain to a higher level of awareness. Theessential thing is to give up selfish desire and be dedicated to the

welfare of all beings. =eal devotion is to not have any ill2willtowards any being, to be free from egotism, to be even2minded inpleasure and pain. This is the yoga of devotion :bhakti yoga;.&



The yoga of devotion

This can be said to be the nd main contribution ofthe Gita to the world"s philosophical thought. $nthese verses, !rishna assimilates in a masterly wayall dualistic views into the non2dualistic framework.

As long as one thinks of oneself as an embodiedbeing, a dualistic view will intervene no matter howhard we try to avoid it. One need not lament aboutthat. The essential thing is %to have no ill2will

towards anyone, to be free from egotism, to beeven2minded in pain and pleasure.& This is theessence of devotion.



*uality to plurality

$n the >Bth chapter of the Gita, !rishna moves from duality to plurality. $n this chapter, hegives a detailed view of the (amkhya philosophy. As mentioned earlier, this philosophy isbased on two uncreate principles8 purusha and prakriti, or simply, pure awareness andcreative energy.

!rishna describes, !setrana :the knower of the field; and ksetra :the field;. Afterelaborating on the C cosmic principles of the (amkhya, he gives us his insight into themanifestation of the gunas, or modes of energy.

%As the one sun illumines the world, so does ksetrana illumine the entire field of ksetra.Those who perceive thus through the eye of wisdom attain to the (upreme.&

%The three modes or gunas are the cause of bondage. 4ullness :or tamoguna;, born ofignorance, deludes all embodied beings and gives rise to attachment for negligence,indolence, and sleep.&

%?assion :raoguna; springing from craving gives rise to selfish action. +ut goodness:sattvaguna; being pure, causes illumination, health, and causes attachment forknowledge.&

%1hen the light of knowledge streams forth in all the gates of the body, sattva is said toincrease. 1hen greed, restlessness and selfish activity prevail, raas is said to increase.1hen delusion, negligence and inertia prevail, tamoguna is said to increase. 1hen onerises above these three modes, one attains +rahman. Everything in this manifesteduniverse e'hibits this three2fold nature.&



The three+fold nature ofthings %There are three kinds of work. That work which

should be done, performed without attachment tofruits, is said to be the nature of goodness, orsattva.&

%That work which is done in great strain to gratifyone"s selfish desires is said to be the nature ofpassion, or raas.&

%That work which is done through ignorance, without

regard to consequences, or to loss and inury,without regard to one"s human capacity, is said to beof the nature of dullness or tamas.&



The synthesis of the yogas

!rishna makes a final appeal, echoing his earliermessage of verses BD and B> of the Brd chapter.

Mayi sarvani karmani samnyasya dhyatmacetasanirasir nirmamo bhutva yudhasva vigatajvarah

Ye me matam idam nityam anutisthanti manavahsraddhavanto nasuyanto mucyante te’pi karmabhih.

%=esigning all your works to 9e, with yourconsciousness fi'ed in the (elf, being free fromdesire and egotism, fight, free from any mentalfever. This is my philosophy of life, and whoeverfollows this teaching will also be released from thebondage of work.&



The essence of the Gita

These two verses contain the essence of the Gita. The humanmind has four faculties8 thinking, feeling, willing and restraining.<ust as thinking can be taken to a higher state as illuminedreason, so also feeling, willing, restraining can be taken to higherlevels.

The method for raising each faculty to a higher state is calledyoga. The four yogas, nana, bhakti, karma and raa, correspondto the four faculties of the mind, namely thinking, feeling, willingand restraining.

1hen !rishna refers to %my philosophy of life,& he means thefour2fold combination of all these yogas.

This is his masterly stroke. This is his magnificent synthesis ofall philosophical thought. The human brain should not bedeveloped in a one2sided fashion but must be e'ercised in thisfour2fold way giving a higher e'pression to each of its fourfaculties.



The secret of secrets (o !rishna says, %=esigning all your works to

9e :bhakti;, with your consciousness fi'ed inthe (elf :nana;, being free from desire andegoism, fight :karma;, delivered from mentalfever :raa;. This wisdom, more secret than allsecrets, has been given to you by 9e. ?leasereflect on this and do as you choose.&

#ere is the fundamental principle of choice inlife. 1e are given the highest wisdom andnow must choose. 5o one can be coercedinto goodness.

%#ave you listened carefully Aruna6& !rishnaasks. %1ould you like me to repeat anything6&

Aruna replies, %Gone is my delusion.

Through your grace, my doubts have beendispelled. $ shall carry out your word.&



The message of the Gita

Thus ends the +hagavadgita. (o profound and valuable is itsteaching that it has acquired the status of an )panishad and it isreferred to as the +hagavadgita )panishad.

#owever, it can be said to include all the other )panishads in itas well as much more, encompassing all religious, moral and

philosophical traditions in a universal synthesis. To re2iterate, the Gita"s contribution to philosophy is its

introduction of the four yogas and its assimilation of allphilosophies ranging from the plurality of the (amkhya to thenon2dualism of the )panishads. As such, it absorbs into it the

yoga of reason :nana yoga; and the yoga of restraining :raayoga;.



The personality of Krishna

1hat is impressive about the whole piece is the

personality of !rishna. #e is, as it were, the very

embodiment of the universal teaching he is giving.

The message is given on the battlefield, not in thesolitude of a forest hermitage, or a secluded

mountain cave.

(tand in the middle of the battle of life and be calm,

think clearly and act from the higher standpoint.This is !rishna"s message. #e himself is the superb

e'ample of the teaching put into practice.



ivekananda !rites %#e is the most rounded man $ know of,

wonderfully developed equally in brain andheart and hand. Every moment of his is alivewith activity, either as a gentleman, warrior,minister or something else. 7 3ive thousandyears have passed and he has influencedmillions and millions 7 9y regard for him is forhis perfect sanity. 5o cobwebs in that brain, no

superstition. #e knows the use of everything,and when it is necessary to assign a place toeach, he is there. 7 Then that heart 7 Thatwonderful mind That tremendously active life!rishna preached in the middle of thebattlefield. %#e who in the midst of intenseactivity finds himself in the greatest calmness

and in the greatest peace finds intense activity,that is the greatest yogi, as well as the wisestman.& $t means nothing to this man the flyingof missiles about him. @alm and sedate hegoes on discussing the problems of life anddeath.&



Gandhi on the Gita

%1hen disappointment staresme in the face and all alone $see not one ray of light, $ goback to the Gita. $ find a

verse here and a verse thereand $ immediately begin tosmile in the midst ofoverwhelming tragedies andmy life has been full of

e'ternal tragedies and ifthey have left no visible scaron me, $ owe it all to theteachings of the Gita.&

bhagwad geetha

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