Gita summaries - chp 4

This chapter deals with these 3 topics:

I) Avatara Rahsyam (secret behind avataras)

II) Jnana Yoga- the pursuit of self-knowledge

III) Jnana Yoga Sadhanani (preparatory disciplines to be followed for gaining self-knowledge).

I) Avatara Rahsyam: We revere the Vedas and it is not the invention of a human intellect; it comes from the Lord Himself. The Lord created Brahma and gave the vedic wisdom to HIM as symbolized by HIS 4 heads (for each of the 4 vedas). Brahma gave it to his disciples in the guru-sishya parampara. That is why, the primary Vedas are called “Shruthi” (that which is heard). That is why Veda is otherwise called Apauruseya pramanam, that is which not a product of human intellect.

             Then the question is: if the Vedas are not the invention of human intellect, how can we attribute the Vedic mantras to various rishis? We say Vishwamitra has given the Gayathri mantra. It should be understood that mantras are not mantra kartah but they are mantra drastarah. The mantras were already there, given by the Lord and the rishis because of their purity of mind captured the mantras just as television set receives the picture which has been already transmitted by a transmitting station. Television set does not produce the picture. It only brings the already available picture into manifestation. Similarly the Vedic mantras are in akasa and because the rishis were pure they discovered them. So the Vedas are given by the Lord through the medium of rishis.

            Now the next question is Lord take so much trouble to give the Vedas to us?  To teach human beings how to live in the world and make life purposeful. We have got a human body, we have got a wonderful universe; if we lead a proper life – as visualized in the Vedas – we can fulfill all the purusharthas; dharma, artha, kama and finally even moksha. The Vedas are like a manual given by the Lord – a guidebook for humanity. Whenever you buy any equipment, along with that a manual is also given. Whether it is a clock, or a tape-recorder or ear drops there is a small paper with instructions as to how to start using it. The manufacturer knows that unless it is used properly, the user will not get the fullest benefit. Similarly this wonderful universe has been created by the Lord, and this wonderful body-mind complex has been given by the Lord. If we know how to use them properly, we get the maximum benefit of purushartha catustayam.

            This manual teaching is called vaidhika dharma or sanatana dharma. The Lord having given the teaching has allotted certain human beings to maintain the vaidhika dharma. Two groups of people have been allotted the job of maintaining the vaidhika dharma – Brahmanas and Kshatriyas.

            Brahmanas are supposed to maintain vaidhika dharma by learning, living, and propagating. śamo damas tapaḥ śaucaṁ kṣāntir ārjavam eva ca jñānaṁ vijñānam āstikyaṁ brahma-karma svabhāva-jam. Serenity, control of senses, austerity, purity, straightforwardness, knowledge, insight, and faith in the Supreme Being – these are a brahmana’s duties born of his own nature.

            Bhagavan is assigned the task of maintenance of dharma to the Kshatriyas. They are given the task of punishing those people who violate dharma. The very name of Kshatriya indicates the one who destroys ksata – adharma. So the Lord has given the Vedas and he also devised a method of perpetuating and maintaining the Vedas. But what happens is, inspite of taking so much care to avoid problems, we as human beings are capable of destroying the vaidhika dharma. Sankaracharya precisely says this in the introduction to his commentary on the Gita. He says people become more and more extrovert and more and more materialistic. The television occupies most of the time, 24 hours music channels or sports channels. The sense organs go outward and they become defective – people get lost in them on materialistic pursuits. Thus adharma increases and dharma decreases. The Kshatriyas do not protect dharma; they do not punish adharma. In fact they themselves are involved in adharmic activities. Brahmanas are supposed to learn the Vedas but they themselves are ignorant of the four Vedas. When adharma increases Bhagavan says,” I myself will have to come and do the job.” And what is that job? Perpetuation of dharma – vaidhika dharma.

            So whenever dharma is under peril or the world is in a catastrophe, then the Lord HIMSELF will come down to earth for protection of dharma. In the form of an avatara; Rama protected dharma by living it while Krishna came to uplift dharma through teaching. The Bhagawad Gita is just another version of Veda; it is no different. The teacher is one and the same. In the beginning of creation, he is called Vishnu, now he is called Krishna. Only the names have changed. Similarly wisdom called Vedas is now called Gita. The Karmakanda and Jnanakanda of Vedas have become Karma yoga and Jnana yoga. Therefore in the beginning of this chapter Krishna says,” Arjuna do not take Gita for granted. You have to respect Bhagavad Gita as much as you respect Veda itself.”

            This information is very important to us; whatever is not clear or obscure in the Gita we use the Vedas for understanding. Gita may appear a bit vague and even contradictory at places. In chapter 3, verse -35 Krishna says: Swadharme Nidhanam Shreyah. You have to do your svadharma even at the cost of your life. The same Krishna in chapter 18 says Swardharman Parityachya. Now confusion arises – should I do svadharma or should I do dharma parityaga? This is just one example. Likewise there are many portions which are seemingly contradictory. When we are not able to arrive at the tatparya of the Gita, the only way out is to go back to the Veda and analyze the Veda. Once you understand the tatparya of Veda then you will understand the tatparya of the Gita also. Therefore we should remember that Veda and Gita are one and the same. The author is one and the same. First, he was Vishnu and now he is Krishna as an avatara

What is the difference between an avatara of the Lord and janma or birth of the human being?

There are 4 main differences:

a) Cause of birth: What is the cause of our birth? When a jiva takes a body, it is because of slavery, because he is under the control of his own punya-paapa-karma. He is karmaavasah, punya-paapa avasah, njnana avasha. In the Gita itself the word avasah is repeatedly used indicating we are helplessly born. We have no control over our next janma also. We are born again and again helplessly. Therefore slavery is the cause of jiva-jnam. Whereas in the case of Ishwara he is not a slave of either ignorance or karma or creation. He is the master and out of compassion he chooses to take a form to bless the world. Jiva-sarira is determined by our punya-paapa. If we have more punya we get good birth and vice versa. All this controlled by karma. In the case of Bhagavan’s sarira, it is not determined by his karma. In fact, he does not have any karma at all. He takes the form according to the necessity of the blessing he wants to bestow on the devotee. He takes any appropriate body for that purpose. If Ravana could only be destroyed by a human body, HE took the body of a human being. For Hiranyakhasupu, HE took the form of Narasimha. He takes the form, does the job and then he withdraws from the form. So Krishna says prakṛtiṁ svām adhiṣṭhāya sambhavāmy ātma-māyayā. I keep the prakruti-creation, my body, under my control.

b) The nature is different: The nature of avatara and janma are different right from birth. Froim the time a jiva is born and until he does, he is baddha-svarupa. Bound jiva – bound my karma, bound by ajnana, bound by moha, bound by the situations of life, bound by time, bound by space, hence baddha-svarupah. In the case of the Lord he is mukta svarupah. He is not bound by anything and ever free. That is why we do not say “He dies”. When Bhagavan goes, he goes back to his original abode as a free entity. In contrast the jiva is bound by karma, ignorance, time, space, moha etc.

c) Mode of method of assuming a sarira: In the case of a jiva, the body is created out of 5 elements. So it has to be conceived in the womb of a mother and mother has to take food. The five bhutas have to contribute to the body. Therefore jiva sarira (manusya sarira) is called bhautika sarira. In contrast in the case of Bhagavan, the intervention of the panchabhutas is not required. With the aid of maya, He can directly assume the form. That is why in the case of Narasimhavatara there is no garbhavasa. Straightaway he appears. Therefore Ishwara sarira is called mayika sarira or abhautika sarira. The method of arrival into the world also differs.

d) Difference in the function: The difference in the function of jiva-sarira and Ishwara-sarira is in the case of the former it is punya-paapa exhaustion. We are all born to exhaust our punya and papa by undergoing sukhanubhava and duhkanubhava. If we start the day with a headache, it is paapa exhaustion. When we get wonderful meals it is punya exhaustion. And the moment one set of karma is exhausted the body drops off. The next set of karma gets ready and another sarira comes and it will last until that karma is exhausted. Punarapi janmam punarapi maranam. This is a sad lot of a jiva whereas in the case of Ishwara the function is not karma exhaustion because the Lord does not have karma at all. Then what is His function? paritrāṇāya sādhūnāṁ vināśāya ca duṣkṛtām dharma-saṁsthāpanārthāya sambhavāmi yuge yug. For the protection of the good, for the destruction of evil, and for the establishment of dharma, I am born from age to age.

            Thus there is difference between Ishwara avatara and jiva-janma at the level of the cause, at the level of the nature, at the level of the method of appearance and at the level of function. The arrival of Ishwara is called avatara. Avatara means one who descends or comes down. In the case of a jiva it is not avatara; the jiva does not descend but he falls. That is why Krishna says: janma karma ca me divyam evaṁ yo vetti tattvataḥ tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti so ’rjuna. O Arjuna! He who understands the truth about my embodiment and my deeds, he, on abandoning his present body is not reborn, he attains to me. Therefore Ishwara’s janma is called divyam janma and His actiosn are divyam karma; ours is called laukikam janma and laukikam karma. This is the first topic of this chapter.

            Now Krishna talks about the main theme of the fourth chapter which is Jnana Yoga. We understand clearly that karma yoga cannot give liberation by itself; it is only a preparatory discipline for Jnana yoga (which alone gives liberation). Karma yoga can only give jnana-yogyata. Through karma yoga an aspirant becomes a yogyapurusa and he is called Sandhana Chatushtya Sampana Adhikari. Then he gains jnana and becomes a panditah. So karmayoga is incomplete without jnana yoga and jnana yoga is impossible without karma yoga. In this chapter Krishna deals with jnana yoga and there are some beautiful and important verses – from the 18 verse to 24 verse. In them we get the essence of jnana yoga. karmaṇy akarma yaḥ paśyed akarmaṇi ca karma yaḥ sa buddhimān manuṣyeṣu sa yuktaḥ kṛtsna-karma-kṛt. He who sees work in “no work” and “no work” in work, he is wise among men. Even while doing all work, he remains established in Yoga. And then it is concluded in verse -24: brahmārpaṇaṁ brahma havir brahmāgnau brahmaṇā hutam brahmaiva tena gantavyaṁ brahma-karma-samādhinā. To one of the above description, the ladle with which the offering is made and oblations are Brahman; and the sacrificial fire (which is brahman) is performed by the sacrifice who is brahman, in the fire which too is brahman. He who is thus absorbed in work as brahman, attains to Brahman alone. Jnana yoga is gaining self-knowledge and begins by asking the question, “who am I?” Why should the scriptures give us this knowledge?  Because according to the scriptures we do not know who we are. So whatever knowledge we have about ourselves is false knowledge or a misconception. Therefore the scriptures have to first negate our knowledge; whatever we think about ourselves is not true.

            The scripture deal with self-knowledge because it knows that we are bound and slaved by time and space. The first misconception or delusion is,” ” I am the body”. That defines your height, weight, parents , gender, nationality, DOB, place of domicile etc. The second misconception is,” I am the mind”. I am educated, or I am ignorant, or I am happy or I am sad, I am angry are self-descriptions centered on the mind. It is so easy to erroneously conclude that “I am the body-mind complex”. The task of scriptures is to first negate these: I am not the body and I am not the mind. The body and mind are temporary incidental instruments given to me to transact with the world. It is like the spectacles. If you are bespectacled and asked to describe what is in front of you, you will enumerate everything except specs. Because of constant use, you erroneously conclude that it has become part of you. The Body-Mind complex (hereafter B/M) are similar, except that they are more intimate to specs. Why is not the body or the mind? Because they are created from Pancha Boothas; born out of 5 elements exactly like the world. The body occupies space, it has got water that gives it a shape, fire principle in the form of body temperature of 98.4 degree Fahrenheit, vayu is the life-breath and then there is prithvi tatvam in the form of the body. We nourish this body by consuming food which is again prithvi tatvam. And it will go back to these five elements whether we like it or not. Therefore a jiva is born out of pancha boothas, maintained by pancha boothas, and resolve into pancha boothas. Therefore body is an instrument, a medium, not myself. Then who am I? Something other than the body! In the same way the mind is also a product of these five elements only. The only difference is that the body is made up of gross matter, whereas the mind is made up of subtle matter. And that is why the food that we consume also influences the mind. Chemicals influence the mind; medicines influence the mind. If there is an increase in salt, some problems arise. From this, it is very clear that matter influences the mind. Therefore mind also must be only matter and therefore we conclude that body and mind are temporary media that I make use of.

            How do I know that they are temporarily used by me? We can also see this clearly from the avastha thriyam; the three states of consciousness. In the waking world, the physical body transacts with the physical world in front. The moment I go into the dream state, the physical body is no more available as a medium and I stop my transactions with the external world. The physical body is the medium to experience the waking state, and the mind is the medium to experience the dream world. In the deep sleep state, there is no body or the mind. There is no emotion or thinking or ego or memory; everything is folded up. You do not use either of the instrument but I am still very much existent as an individual. In this deep sleep state one is abiding in one’s own svarupah. Neither do I function through a physical body, having a physical personality; nor do I function through the mind, having a psychological personality. I just AM as the conscious being. I am SAT and I am CHIT; I am conscious principle ever existent and ever aware. The scriptures use an important logic: whatever is incidental is not my real nature; whatever is permanent alone, is my real nature. For example, if water is hot, the heat in the water is incidental. Temporarily it is hot; while in the case of fire heat is an intrinsic nature. The physical body transacts in the waking world, mind in the dream world. Only in all the 3 states, the conscious principle is available. Therefore, that is my real nature. If Athma is my real nature, what then is the size of my athma? I am fat, dark, thin, fair, tall, short are attributes of the body; these are not my attributes. Since “I” am different from both B/M, the limitations of B/M do not belong to me. Example, in deep sleep you do not experience the limitations of body and mind. During sleep everybody is anantah; everybody is purnah; everybody is nityah. avyakto ’yam acintyo ’yam avikāryo ’yam ucyate tasmād evaṁ viditvainaṁ nānuśocitum arhasi.

            In the deep sleep stage, is the real “I” otherwise we are all dressed up I’s. We have got a banian called mind, and we have got a shirt called body. When we go to sleep, we remove the two and sleep comfortably. When we wake up, we put them on and interact. But I the athma is purnah, I am limitless. I am anantah. It is without any limitations like space; it is akartha also. It does not do any good or bad action. “I” am free from all actions. Here “I” means not the body or the mind as both are only instruments. But “I” the athma is Self. Therefore I am free from all actions (Akarthah). The actions belong to B/M.

            What is the benefit of knowing this? Every human struggle can be traced to ignorance of this fact alone. When I do not know that I am purnah; I am full and complete, then I am going to take his body as myself which is apurna. Therefore ignorance of this fact causes apurnatva. Apurnatva means a sense of limitation. And as long as there is apurnatva, I always struggle to make myself purnah. As a child I start grabbing toys trying to find fullness or fullness through them. Then he grows up to want a real car, house, etc. The struggle continues as Bhajagovinda verse: baalastaavat kriiDaa saktaH, taruNastaavat taruNii saktaH… “When a boy one is attached to sport; when a youth, one is attached to a young women…”

            Once married he finds something still missing and so wants children. Children arrive but still he is not satisfied. He struggles for their education. It is not enough that they complete their education but they should get jobs, get married, have children of their own etc. Though the desires are many, the goal of any pursuit is only one – purnatva. So as long as ignorance is there, problems will never go. Avidya (ignorance) à Apurnah (unfulfillment) à Karma (struggle) à papa-punya -à Sukha-Dukha -à Next janma….thus the cycle of samsara continues. As long as I do not know myself, samsara will continue. But once I follow jnana yoga the greatest benefit is “aham purnah”.

            A wise man is one whose heart is ever full. He never struggles in life; he feels as if life in the world is a game. A wise man (man of realization) whether he has property or not, people alongside or not “sports” in the world while the ignorant man inspite of billions of dollars struggles. A man of realization does not depend on any external thing for his happiness; for he knows he is purnah and nityah and anandah too. So, gain this knowledge; for it liberates. Once ajnanam is gone, apurnatv, kama, karma, punya-paapa and punarapi jnana also goes. The root cause for all our problems is ajnanam. So acquire self-knowledge and all your struggles and sense of limitations will come to an end. You will enjoy true bliss, this is the greatest benefit of self-knowledge.

           The third topic of this chapter is Jnana Sadhanani: What are the preparatory disciplines required to gain this knowledge? Krishna talks about four disciplines. Even though there are many, four are highlighted here:

a) Guru Upadasam: Nothing will work without a guru. When even simple game like tennis or football needs a coach, what to talk of spiritual pursuits? One requires a live (must be contemporary), wise, trained in guru-sishya parampara as one’s guru. The sampradaya or methodology is very important. Guru is one who can teach the shastras. Some say athma is the guru. We do not accept that because athma cannot teach, as it is akartha and abhokta. Some say the world is a guru which again is fallacious. The world being the same we interpret the world and situations as per our minds and one’s background. And any person belonging to the past generation cannot be my guru; they cannot teach me because for upadesha to happen a live person is required. Therefore we require contemporary, live, wise person, who has not only the wisdom, but who has got the method of communication called sampradaya. My guru can teach me according to sampradaya only if he had a guru. So a person who has come from guru-sishya parampara is what one requires. But if you revere a Mahajnani you can only do namaskara to him and go away. You can seek his blessings but not his guidance. We should only approach a guru who has come through this parampara for he knows the methodology.

b) Shradda: The second discipline Krishna mentions is shradda or faith in the teacher. The teacher cannot go wrong; full stop must be one’s attitude. If the teaching looks illogical, I put the blame entirely on my lack of grasping and not being able to understand. But on no account I put the blame either on the teacher or the scriptures. I will wait for an opportunity to clarify my doubts. I must learn to approach the guru with humility,” this portion appears illogical to me because of my inability to grasp it”. If there is still confusion, again I put the blame on myself and seek clarification from the teacher. Arjuna asks the same question in chp3, chp5, and even in the last chapter and not once does Krishna lose his temper. On the other hand, he answers the question cheerfully and presents them differently. He even compliments Arjuna for asking intelligent questions!!!!! A guru always has infinite compassion. Therefore approach the teacher with humility and with faith that the teacher will not go wrong. This attitude is called shradda.

c) Commitment: The third discipline Krishna emphasis is tatparatva. śraddhāvāḻ labhate jñānaṁ tat-paraḥ saṁyatendriyaḥ jñānaṁ labdhvā parāṁ śāntim acireṇādhigacchati. A man of deep faith (shradda) obtains this divine knowledge, being full of zeal and devotion for it and endowed with mastery of the senses. Having obtained the knowledge, he is established in supreme peace very soon. Tatparatva means commitment. A half-hearted attempt will not give success in any field. Take an expert carnatic singer or violinist; they must have practiced for hours and for years to reach that level of proficiency. We will think God has been partial towards him but if you interview him, he would say that he worked for years together, day in and day out practicing for 8 hours a day. A sportsman trains so hard, if worldly achievements require commitment, spiritual achievements can never be gained casually. Sincerity is required. Spiritual studies can never be a hobby or a casual retirement age occupation. Put in your efforts whole heartedly.

d) Self-Mastery: Finally the fourth discipline is samyatendtiyah. Spiritual discipline is done with the help of body and mind. Your body and mind are the only tools you have for acquiring self-knowledge. So keep them in good condition; for you to hear, ears must be okay. The mind must be calm etc. So, if my instruments are not under my control, then I cannot attain the goal. For an aircraft each time, it must be air worthy and similarly road worthy. Otherwise it will be like going to Badrinath in a vehicle where the brakes fail or something wrong with the steering wheel or tyres. Therefore, train your body and mind to be spiritual worthy. In fact the entire yoga sastra called astangayoga is meant for this self-integration only. Like before a concert the violinist will tune his instrument, the mridangist his mridangam. Unless there is integration, the concert will not be good. Similarly if the mind is thinking of something, the mouth speaks something else and the body is doing something else, nothing can be achieved. Therefore, integrate your sense-organs, have shradda, be committed, go to a teacher, gain jnana and be free.