Gita summaries - chp 5

Chapter 4 and 5 almost have similar content and deal with Jnana Yoga. Even though the central theme is the same, namely jnana yoga, there are some slight differences in these chapters. In this fifth chapter we see these three topics: I) Nistha Dvayam (2 types of lifestyle) II) Yoga Dvayam (2 types of yoga; Karma Yoga and Jnana Yoga) and III) Sadhnani (preparatory disciplines)

I) Nishtta Dwayam. One must necessarily go through karma yoga for mental purification and through Jnana yoga attain liberation. That self-knowledge alone gives moksha. Without mental purification, self-knowledge is impossible. Without self-knowledge, moksha is impossible. Therefore both mental purification and self-knowledge are important. Everybody has to necessarily go through karma yoga and jnana yoga. But there are some rare exceptions. There might be spiritual geniuses who might have taken janma after mental purification in the previous birth. In some cases, there might even be a person who had incomplete jnana yoga in the previous birth (they are called yoga brasttacharas in the next chapter). Such people do not have to go through karma yoga; they don’t need a guru, and some don’t even need the scriptures. Only explanation we give is that they made 95% of the effort in the previous janma and in this janma they are born and within a short time they are enlightened. In a rare case as mentioned in Aitareya Upanishad where a person gets the knowledge even while lying in a mother’s womb. These are but rare exceptions. Like Ramanujam who discovered so many mathematical theories without going to school, or Mandolin Srinivas who became a great player in a very short while. Just because of one Ramanajun we don’t close all the schools and colleges. The general rule is: karma yoga, sastra and guru are a must. The rule is go through karma yoga (hereafter ky) attain mental purity, enter Jnana Yoga (hereafter jy) and attain liberation.

            Now what type of lifestyle is suited to follow these two stages of sadhana is the question. Krishna talks about two types of life-styles.

Pravruthi marga (lifestyle of activity in society)

Nivruthi marga (lifestyle of withdrawal & seclusion)

Based on these two lifestyles prescribed in the scriptures, a person can have 3 options in terms of ashrama. Each way has its own advantages as well as disadvantages.

Before choosing the one best fit for an individual, the scriptures expects us to know the goals of life, purusharthas, primary goals, secondary goals, routes and destination, means and ends, sadhana and sadhyam. The ends must be clear; the priorities must be clear. That is why when a person is young he goes to a Gurukula and learns about the goals and the means. In those days the Kshatriyas had to learn warfare, a Vaisya had to learn business. But all the people had to learn one thing – the ultimate goal of life. Learning about one’s occupation was only incidental.

This is introduced for everyone – Brahmana, Ksthriya, Vaisya, Sudra – in the brahmacharya ashrama. This is mandatory knowledge and only after this can a person exercise their choice.

A) After brahmacharya ashram he enters Grihastha Ashrama: This is life of activity is society and avoids Sanyasa ashrama. Since veda has cremation rituals, it does not expect everyone to be a sanyasa. One has a family, labours for a living thus contributing to society, and bound by relatives and friends. One can perform the rishi yagna, deva yagna, pitru yagna etc. So one enters into grishasthashrama and remains a grihastha till the end.

Advantages: It very easy to pursue KY in this ashrama. There is a conducive setup, lot of people around, and financial resources. KY requires the help of people and financial resources; whether it is deva yagna pr pitru yagna or manusya yagna. He gradually grows and the mind gets purified from performance of one’s obligatory karmas. But this ashrama does not blend itself to JY where a quieter lifestyle is preferred for one has to learn and meditate. After coming home from work, will anyone feel like reading? He has only energy to watch television and go to sleep. After five days of work, he becomes tired on Saturday and Sunday. That is why it is called a Weekend or weakened! Example: Imagine studying in Central station!!! But there are people who manage to study and work at the same time. Therefore grihastashrama is ideal for KY and may not be ideal for JY.

b) Sanyasa Ashrama: The second possibility is after the study of scriptures in Brahmacharya ashrama he directly enters into sanyasa ashrama. This is not conducive for KY; there is no opportunity for service, no panchamaha yagna, the scriptures prohibits karma for a sanyasi, and he does not have resources. He can only engage in japa, do ashrama work, or serve the guru. Dharmasastras prohibit him from doing the yagna, yaga etc. He cannot grow by interaction with people because of his secluded life. He does not have resources to contribute to anything for he himself is bhiksa! How can he do annadana? Vastradana? Or any dana? He might not have any work to do and lot of time on hand. He does not have to do sandhyavandanam or agnihotra. He does not have a family; so he is spared of earning. So “mental purification” can be difficult for there are no prescribed duties; care must be taken to keep the mind engaged. Since he cannot do yagna he can do japa. Otherwise an idle mind can turn more extrovertish. But for JY this ashrama is ideal.

c) One becomes a grihasta and then later turns to sanyasa; this is one way traffic as there is no coming back vice-versa. Here one can avail the advantages of both KY (in grihasta ashrama) and JY (in sanyasa ashrama). This is ideal except that once an individual enters grihasta ashrama, it is impossible to come get out. Many people enter into activity and they do not know how to get out. So many people even want to work after their retirement; their minds will not come to Vedanta.  A mind which is used to being a workaholic does not know how to withdraw from activities.

Which is the best? It depends on the individual; there is no uniform advice for all people are not the same. But whatever you choose the path is the same. So for Arjuna, Krishna prescribed the first lifestyle to Arjuna: Be a grihastha, follow karma yoga, purify yourself, continue in grihasta ashrama, get detached, follow jnana yoga, attain moksha and even after attaining moksha continue to be in society and do whatever duties you have to do.

Grihasta ashrama à KYà  Mental purification à get viragya à JY through scriptures and guru.

            Suppose a person has sufficient mental purity then he can straightaway enter sanyasahrama and get jnana and moksha. And Krishna’s general advice is: Take any one of these, as it suits you but, whatever be your choice, you have to follow karma yoga first. You have to follow jnana yoga later. sāṅkhya-yogau pṛthag bālāḥ pravadanti na paṇḍitāḥ ekam apy āsthitaḥ samyag ubhayor vindate phalam. It is only childish and not the wise that speak of sankhya (knowledge from abandonment of work) and yoga (detachment from dedicated work) as different. A person well-established in even one of these, attains the end that is common goal of both. yoga-yukto viśuddhātmā vijitātmā jitendriyaḥ sarva-bhūtātma-bhūtātmā kurvann api na lipyate. One who is established in selfless and detached action, who is pure, whose mind and senses are under control, and whose self is identified with the self of all – he is never bound, though he be engaged in work. Therefore it does not matter if one is a grihasta or a sanyasa except he must be involved in purifying his mind and learn to integrate his personality. Astanga yoga is also prescribed for integrating the personality. Once he becomes a jnana yogyata, a grihasta or a sanyasi must approach a guru to gain knowledge. Therefore what matters is jnanam and not ashrama; a grihasta jnani is superior to a sanyasi ajnani.

II) From the eighth verse to the twenty second verse, Krishna elaborate on Sadhana dvayam. KY is the sadhana and JY is the sadhyam. A doubt may arise: if one performs actions will it not bind? It depends not on the activity but on the attitude. If karma is done as ishwara arpanam then it will become yoga – non binding one. But if karma is done not as Ishwarapnam, then the very same karma will become bondage. yuktaḥ karma-phalaṁ tyaktvā śāntim āpnoti naiṣṭhikīm ayuktaḥ kāma-kāreṇa phale sakto nibadhyate. By abandoning the fruits of action a man of restrained mind attains to abiding peace. But the one with unrestrained mind, being prompted by desire for the fruit of action, get bound. Therefore a spiritual aspirant must learn to develop a healthy attitude and follow karma yoga.

            JY is the knowledge that I am not the body nor the mind but I am consciousness principle that enlivens everything. It is this conviction that only my senses that is occupied with their object and not I even while I am seeing, hearing, touching, smelling, eating, conversing, walking, sleeping etc. na kartṛtvaṁ na karmāṇi lokasya sṛjati prabhuḥ na karma-phala-saṁyogaṁ svabhāvas tu pravartate. In regard to all beings in this world, the sovereign soul is not the cause of the sense of agency, nor of actions, nor of fruits of actions. It is Nature that does all this.

            An ajnani thinks, “I am the body” and therefore will have problems constantly. Ignoranceà unfulfillment (apurnah)à Kamaà Krodhaà Karmaphallam à Dukha/Shoka. This cycle will continue. Whereas in the case of a jnani, he knows that he is the chaitanyam and he is akartha and abhokta. He is purnah. Therefore he does not require anything to complete himself. Athma does not have varna or ashrama affliation; therefore gain this knowledge and enjoy the inner freedom.

            What is the benefit of this wisdom? vidyā-vinaya-sampanne brāhmaṇe gavi hastini śuni caiva śva-pāke ca paṇḍitāḥ sama-darśinaḥ. Enlightened men are those who see the same (Atman) in a brahmana with learning and humility, in a cow, in an elephant, and even in a dog or in an eater of dog-meat (outcaste). na prahṛṣyet priyaṁ prāpya nodvijet prāpya cāpriyam sthira-buddhir asammūḍho brahma-vid brahmaṇi sthitaḥ. Unperturbed and undeluded, a knower of Brahman, who is established in Him, neither rejoices at pleasant experiences nor gets agitated at unpleasant ones. The benefit of this knowledge is “Samadarsham” – Vision of equality. By vision of equality we mean freedom from attachment/hatred (Raga-Dvesha).

Why do we get attachment and hatred? It is because of a misconception is that the world around gives me happiness or sorrow. Attachment is based on the conclusion that this “object” gives happiness. And Hatred caused the by the conclusion that it gives sorrow. This is erroneous as scriptures advise us; these descriptors of happy and sorrow is our identification. By themselves the world is neither a source of joy nor a source of sorrow. These descriptive tags are added by us, because of our wrong attitude. One might love Michael Jackson’s music and another it might give great unhappiness. The source being the same, it causes different reactions is different people. But for a man who has discovered Brahman within himself, he learns that his nature is Ananda. Since my svarupa is ananda the world cannot improve my ananda or remove my ananda. I do not have raga and dvesha. So this samadharshana is the greatest advantage of a jnani.

III) Sadhanani: Krishna indicates four important sadhanas in the end portion of this chapter. Kama-Krodha jayah; mastery from the prosecution of desire and anger as discussed in chp3 by three ways. Indriya Nigram (whenever there is a possibility of temptation; physically avoid that place), Mano Nigram (nip unhealthy thoughts in the bud and encourage noble thoughts in the mind. Discourage asubha vasanas by encouraging subha vasanas) and Vivekah (proper judgement/discrimination). If at all you should develop addiction, then develop noble addictions. If I do not do japa, I should feel bad. If I do not read at least a chapter of Gita on a particular day I should feel sad.

Vivekah is proper judgement/discrimination. Proper judgement is an understanding the nature of objects in the world and the pleasures derived from them. They are always mixed with pain: Dukha Mishritvam (the pain is directly proportional to pleasure that you derive from the sense object), Athripthivam (dissatisfaction) and bandhakvam (Earlier I needed 2 things to make me happy and now I need 20; scriptures says that I am descending further down!!!). Once I gain mastery over the hold of sense objects on me, I gain “Vairagyam”.

            After Kama jayah, we will see krodha jaya. Krodha is another modified form of kama. Anger is of two kinds:

a) Violent anger bursting out and affecting the surroundings. Some people are not able to keep it inside and it bursts out in the form of curses and expletives. b) Then there is a second type of anger which is not expressed outside but smoldering inside. Sankaracharya says the first step is to manage the anger arising in us (akrodha) and the second stage is not allowing anger to arise at all (ksama).

Tips for managing “krodah”:

Get away from the place

Do something physical (Bang a pillow, clean the house, go to the beach and shout)

Keep the mouth engaged (drink water or have a gum!!!)

Suppressed anger can lead to psychosomatic illness. Find the cause of anger. Each time you fight with someone on a trivial matter and start dating back to 1985 incidents, it means that these conflicts have not be resolved. The suppressed anger can be resolved in various methods but the ultimate solution is Kama jayah which means not expecting anything from the external world. Remember this, any expectation leads to desire and then the chain of samsara. So kama-krodha jaya is a very important sadhana.

            The next three important sadhanas are graded. They are called antharanga-sadhanas which are very close to the gaining of self-knowledge – sravanam, mananam, and nidhidyasanam.

- Sravanam (where you only receive knowledge from a guru and no questions; just have faith in guru and scriptures). Systematic and consistent study on these 7 subjects: nature of jiva, nature of world, nature of god, what is bondage, causes of bondage, what is liberty and causes of liberty.

- Mananam (reflect on the teaching and ask questions humbly to clear doubts; this is at an intellectual level. Doubtful knowledge is as good as ignorance. Suppose there is a live-wire. Someone says,” It is not a live-wire but there is 1% doubt in my mind. Will you ever touch a live-wire which is probably 99% safe?)

- Nidhidyasanam (assimilation of knowledge at an emotional level and making it part of one’s life. The inside beggarliness must go; otherwise it will be lips knowledge and something not felt in the heart. So there is no gap between what I know and how I live).

 Thus kama-krodha jayah, sravanam, mananam and nidhidyasanam are the four sadhanas given at the end of the fifth chapter. The fifth chapter is called karma-sanyasa-yoga, renunciation of action through knowledge.   

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.

Gita summaries - chp 3

You’ll know that Bhagavad Gita contains the essence of Vedas and given in the form of a dialogue between Lord Krishna and Arjuna in the battlefield of Mahabharata. In the first chapter we find Arjuna very agitated and not able to decide whether he should fight or not. If only Arjuna has this unique problem or it only belongs to that time period then the study of Gita will not give us any benefit. Arjuna’s problem is not restricted to him alone, but to all the human beings in the universe. It does not belong only to that time period but at all times. So the study of Gita becomes relevant to all of us now also.

            Arjuna’s problem was “I belong to these people” (Ahamkara) & “These people belong to me” (Mamakara). This ahamkara and mamakara can be termed the problem of attachment. By attachment I mean psychological dependence on the external world. Once there is this dependence then it leads to various problems for whatever we depend does not remain with us permanently. The loss of that object can cause a big sorrow, even the thought of losing that object can be a great sorrow. The very thought of losing Bhishma and Drona was just a shock and sorrow for Arjuna. Sorrow is directly proportional to attachment. His attachment was so strong that he fell into sorrow and so intense was the grief that he lost his discrimination and became confused. He is a man torn in conflict and does not know what to do and what not to do. He sees dharma as adharma and adharma as dharma which is the problem of moha. The problem of every human being is raga-shokha-moha. Attachment-sorrow-conflict.

This problems afflicts us all. Some days this problem is not intense and intense on other days; this problem persists and only the degree varies. Arjuna feels this problem so intensely that he is not able to think clearly except find a permanent solution. Generally the human mind is this: Whenever one is happy, people don’t think of a solution. And whenever one is sad, one cannot think of a solution as sorrow clouds one’s thinking. We go through our life without addressing this problem. We either forget the sorrow or get distracted. But Arjuna is determined to find a way out of this sorrow; he surrenders to Krishna and accepts HIM as his guru. Krishna the charioteer becomes the Krishna the jagat guru. And Arjuna the master becomes Arjuna the shishya. When we look at Arjuna’s personality we find that he is a very strong person and yet with all his achievements and qualifications – genius archer, dancer, musician, fame, family and wealth -he is not able to solve this problem of attachment. So from the first chapter we realize that worldly achievements do not solve this human problem. And if we are intent to solve this problem we also must surrender like Arjuna to a guru and get this teaching; a Guru upadasam is required.

            The second chapter gives the essence of the entire Gita; Krishna prescribes only one solution for grief and it is athma jnanam alone. aśocyān anvaśocas tvaṁ prajñā-vādāṁś ca bhāṣase gatāsūn agatāsūṁś ca nānuśocanti paṇḍitāḥit. The wise people do not grief and self-ignorance is the cause of sorrow. And self-knowledge alone is the solution. Self-knowledge is not one of the solutions but it is the only solution. This freedom from grief is otherwise called moksha. Moksha is not some imaginary state but a FREEDOM from shokha (grief). But every person is not prepared to enter into this jnanam. He must have certain qualifications. Jnana prapti is the ultimate goal while jnana yogyatha is the immediate goal. So we divide our lives into two stages: jnana yogyatha prapti or the karma yoga and the second stage is jnana prapti. The first stage consists of religious life and the second stage consists of philosophy. What about bhakti yoga? Krishna does not prescribe bhakti as a separate sadhana but it a common factor required both for karma yoga (KY) and jnana yoga (JY). That is why every guru starts the teaching with a prayer. In the second chapter presents Jnana yoga and Karma yoga as Jnana yoga Yogyatha in a nutshell. There Jnana yoga was called as “Sankhya yoga”. When a person follows both KY and JY such a person becomes free from shokha, grief, and he is called “jeevan muktah” who’s description Krishna gives at the end of the second chapter. The Lord says,” Arjuna, once you understand athma jnanam then you will realize that your happiness does not come from Bhishma or Drona or any external factor. Happiness comes only from athamaneva; external factors do not disturb my peace of mind.” It is like having a generator when the power supply goes. Having given the teaching of KY and JY in a nutshell Krishna elaborates the teaching from the third chapter onwards.

            In the third chapter, Lord Krishna elaborates on Karma Yoga (or Jnana yoga yogyatha) and that is why this chapter is titled “karma yoga”.

a) v-1 to v-20 deal with Karma Yoga;  b) v-20 to v-34 deal with Shrestta Aacharah (Lifestyle of an elder to serve as role-model for the next generation), and finally c) The last verses deal with Kama-Krodha jayah, mastering the problems caused by kama and kroda (management of desires and anger). Without learning to manage yourself, managing the world is ridiculous. We will take one by one and sum up.

            The first topic is karma yoga. It consists of two parts: karma and yoga. Here karma means proper action and yoga means proper attitude. A person becomes a karma yogi if his actions are proper and his attitude is also proper. So karma yoga = “proper action” + “proper attitude”.

            Now what do you mean by proper action? In the scriptures three types of actions are mentioned. The first is called Nishkama Karma. These are compulsory action prescribed in the scripture whether he likes it or not. Nishkama means “not based on your likes and dislikes”. If you like it, then wonderful and it you don’t like it then learn to like it and do! There is no question of “I won’t do”.  The second type of karma is “Sakama” karma; those actions for the fulfillment of desires (desires prompted karmas). Actions for acquiring materialistic desires like name, fame, money, possessions etc. And finally “Nishada karma” which are prohibited actions. Of the three the Nishakama karma is best suited for a karma yogi.

            Many karmas for prescribed as Nishkama karmas in the scriptures according to a person’s varna and ashrama. There is one set of karmas uniformly applicable to all and that is Pancha Maha Yagna. These are compulsory and to be practiced by everyone. It consists of:

a) Devah Yagna: Regular worship of Gods in any way a person likes from the simplest to the complex. It could be a complex Vedic human like agnihotra homam and upasana will come under this. The simplest would be offering a few flowers to the Lord and doing namaskar.

b) Pitru Yagna: Worship of one’s parents; either dead or alive. Matru devo bhava, pitru devo bhava is an important injunction irrespective of nature of parents. There is no question of asking whether they are deserving or not.  The “parent” qualification is sufficient enough.

            c) Rishi/Brahma Yagna: Worship of rishis by regular study of scriptures. One can honour our scriptures in two ways: either chanting of slokhas or propagation. It is not merely keeping books on Saraswati puja and having an aarati; you must study the scriptures.

d) Manushya Yagna: Service to fellow human beings, all kinds of social service will come under this.

e) Bootah Yagna: Service to the so-called lower beings; trees (tulasi) and animals (cow). I say “so-called” seeing the human beings and sometimes wonder whether we are superior or lower! We remember their contributions to us. The pancha maha yagnas are the nishkama karmas, to be compulsorily done by every vaidika in the way it is possible.

II) Sakama Karma: These are Karmas or actions born out of one’s desires for material enjoyments. Veda does not condemn possession of a house, car, and material possessions. But follow these three conditions:

a) Let all the desires be legitimate (both the ends and means). Vedas never forbids a person from wanting a house, or car, or phone etc but they say that the desires must be legitimate. Kama is one of the purusharthas and so Veda allows a person to seek for material acquisitions.

b) Let the desires be moderate (allocate some time for spiritual activity also). If you dedicate your entire life for “kamya karmas” then there will no time for spiritual education, so let the desires be moderate. Be content with what you have instead of comparing yourself with your neighbours.

c) Let the desires be non-binding (if they are fulfilled, attribute it to the Lord’s grace. If not fulfilled, accept that too as Bhagawan’s will). If the desires are fulfilled it is God’s blessing and if it not fulfilled it is God’s will. So non-binding, legitimate moderate sakama karmas are allowed but the primary part of karma yoga is nishkama karmas or pancha maha yagna. 

III) Nishida Karma: These are actions one must drop immediately; here and now. You can't wait for an auspicious date or time!!! If you have any negative prohibited karmas then drop them here and now. Therefore Nishkama karma becomes the primary part of karma yoga.

What is “proper attitude”?

- Perform all actions as Ishwara Arpanam. We see work as worship. The greatest advantage of having this pious attitude while working for it will offset boredom for every day you are doing the same thing. With a mind devoted to God, your actions will not be half-hearted at all but full of enthusiasm for what I offer to the Lord will be my best. By this ishwara arpanam attitude, I avoid boredom and have enthusiastic and whether we like it or not our swadharma has to be repeated. If I am a LKG teacher I have to repeat the alphabets each year. If I am cook then everyday “sambar” and “rasam”. An accountant will keep calculating numbers. Any duty is a repetition. Repetition brings boredom and only solution is to change the attitude, ishwara arpanam. This makes you a dharmic kartha

- Receive everything (karmaphallam) as Ishwara Prasada. As I am acting in the world as a kartha on one side, I am constantly reaping the results of my actions from the other side as bhogta.  This kartha-bhogta cycle keeps going on. Often as a bhogta I protest, I resist and ask “Why me? For I do my puja every day, chant every day etc. and why should I have to face this suffering?” Here the attitude becomes very important; remember whatever you get is whatever you deserve And whatever you get is whatever you require at this stage. This is implicit surrender to the will and justice of the Lord is important for a Vaidika. The Lord will not be partial. Whatever I am getting is my karmaphallam and nobody is to be blamed for my present state except yourself. I am not going to blame my family members, neighbours, planets, the devas or the lines on the hand or the letters in my name! And change the spelling. I alone am responsible for my present state. That makes me a dharmic bogtha. This acceptance without resistance is proper attitude. The greatest benefit of this attitude is tranquility in the mind. Resistance is the cause for all sorrow, depression, and fear. Once there is no resistance and only acceptance then tranquility is the benefit. Therefore proper action plus proper attitude with respect to karmaphallam is karma yoga. This karma yoga Krishna presents from four different angles. That is they can be seen from four different standpoints and you can choose anyone standpoint depending upon your maturity level. They are:

a) Take these compulsory karmas or actions as Bhagawan’s commandment or “vidhih” (destiny). The Lord is the master and we are all created beings. Bhagawan has provided this world for our use and HE has put some conditions and duties just as governments put some duties and laws.  As a citizen I have to pay taxes and similarly I have certain duties as a citizen of the cosmos. The Bhagawan stands as a master threatening us. Because most of the people follow the rules only when they are threatened. Most of the people are immature; most of us don’t follow the traffic signals unless there is a cop. We are immature to appreciate the traffic signals voluntarily and so the government has to have a cop to enforce. People require threat to follow the rules unfortunately. Threat is not a healthy sign but initially gross minds require this so that they comply. That is why we say,” he is a god fearing person” instead of saying “he is a god loving person.” So what is karma yoga? It is God’s commandment. At least people will act from fear from going to hell.

b) Once a person becomes mature then the very same duty or karma we look from another angle. A matured person will not accept threats and for such a person KY is an “Yagna” in which one expresses gratitude to the Lord. The Lord has given us so many things for our existence – food, water, air, fire, parents, school etc – and the least we can do is to be grateful. Gratitude is a sign of maturity. Ingratitude is the worst sin for which there is no prayachitam or expiation. So, think of God or thank God before eating your meals. Offer it as “naivedyam” otherwise you are a thief. What is a definition of a thief? A person who takes another person’s property without informing. The word navedanam or naivedyam means acknowledgement of this debt for God has given us the entire world for our use. So do all our compulsory karmas with a feeling of gratitude.

c) If a person is little bit more matured we say karma yoga as a Dharmah; dharma means that which maintains the harmony in creation. The whole creation is interdependent and it is a cyclical process. Matter is neither created nor destroyed and so if we are taking matter from one side we have to give it from the other side.  For the cycle to be complete, whatever I take from creation I have to appropriately return also. The universe is a cyclical process and we must ensure that we play our part as a human being as animals and plants play their parts as they are programmed instinctively by Bhagawan. If a cow eats it gives milk, the tree takes a little sunshine and water and it gives a lot of fruits. All these problems of global warming, ozone depletion, changing climates are all due to man’s grabbing tendency. So, learn to live a dharmic life in which you balance out “receiving” and “giving”. Therefore karma yoga is for maintaining the harmony in creation by the process of give and take. People will not drink or bathe in stagnant water but only in flowing water. Likewise when you receive money or knowledge or wealth share it with others otherwise it will become stagnant and cause sickness to you. That is why in olden day when they had excess money they did a yagna as to distribute wealth. But in present modern life there is no such thing as excess wealth as we have so many avenues to spend. What Krishna says is share; there must be a balance between what you take and what you give back in return. So Arjuna do karma yoga as a dharma; as your contribution to sharing. So the first three standpoints were KY as a Lord’s commandment, KY as a yagna or gratitude to the Lord and now KY as a dharma to maintain harmony.

d) Finally Krishna presents KY as Samskara karma; every compulsory karma prescribed by the scriptures as a samskara. So any rituals like upanayanam, sandhya vandanam, tharpanam, shraddam are seen as samsaras. What is samskara? It is ritual for refining the mind. Samskara is two-fold; guna adanam and dosha apanayam – which is adding positive values and promoting healthy thinking and removing unhealthy ways of thinking or removing bad habits. Krishna calls them “Deivee Sampat” and “Asuree Sampat” in the sixteenth chapter. Even if a person is selfish and does not do KY as a dharma; he can do it for himself for they help refine his mind. Therefore follow karma yoga either as a commandment or a worship or a harmonizing lifestyle or a purifying ritual.

The second section of this chapter is “Shrestta Aacharah” I said KY is required for a seeker to purify his mind and gain self-knowledge. Suppose a person has attained chitta shudhi or jnanam; he has become pure or realized then the question is: should such a person follow karma yoga? Should he continue with svardharma? Daily puja or sandhyavandanam? etc. Technically, it is not required because KY is for chitta shudhi and he has already reached that stage. It is like washing a washed cloth then it will tear or travelling to a destination after having reached your destination. Any sadhana is required only till the sadhya is reached, after reaching the goal the sadhana becomes irrelevant. Arjuna’s asks the question as to whether a pure person or a self-realization must still continue to perform karma yoga. Krishna’s answer is YES. Even though you may have no relevance to karma yoga, one must serve as an example to others particularly the younger generation if you are living in a society. yad yad ācarati śreṣṭhas tat tad evetaro janaḥ sa yat pramāṇaṁ kurute lokas tad anuvartate. He may not require KY but the next generation and those around require this religious lifestyle. The reasons are:                                 

- Dharma – the righteous proper way of life - is a very subtle thing and cannot always be verbally communicated. Children learn less from lectures and more from observations. So, the elders, whether they require or not, must continue to perform karma yoga so as to set an example to the next generation. But once the children are grown up and their personalities are set then you cannot change. You only adjust a crooked plant and give it direction only when it is a young sapling and not when it becomes a tree. These Vedic practices cannot be absorbed once the personality is set in an individual. In fact it has to be imbibed from the womb itself. When the child is too young the parents cannot communicate and the child only observes. You cannot explain as to why do namaskara to a mahatma. But when you do namaskara they will imitate. If the father is a doctor then the child will use every toy as a stethoscope. If the father smokes the child will use a pencil and imitate a smoking action. If the father does puja the child will imitate that also. As someone said; most of the children do not obey the parents they imitate the parents. So even if you are a jnani follow KY so that the next children will follow. Secondly when the elders follow a religious lifestyle then it is an audio-visual teaching and these leave a deep imprint in the young minds.

- Human beings always need a role-model; hero-worship is natural while growing up. The child always looks for a hero to imitate. The biggest role-models are mother, father, teacher, raja, and elders. Otherwise they will continue to run after actors, cricketers, and Michael Jackson. No doubt these people might have some talent but they usually don’t have any values. They are going to divorce today or tomorrow! The children need heroes and parents are the first heroes otherwise they will go to these film stars. So jnani or parents must be a model for them.

- No values or no dharma is absolute. It varies from situation to situation. Rama symbolizes total devotion to parents while Prahlad was instrumental in getting his father killed. We worship both Rama and Prahlada also. Should you object or disobey parents? It is not an absolute value but varies according to situations. Krishna gives the value of Ahimsa throughout the Gita and at the end says,” Arjuna, fight.” Which means Ahimsa is a general rule but there are exceptions. So, any value depends on so many factors. When there are conflicts in dharma it is said “follow the shrettas or elders.” We have to follow someone who has absorbed the spirit of dharma as time and circumstances change in society. Therefore, it is important the elders to follow a lifestyle of karma yoga so as to set an example for the next generation. Whether you require pancha maha yagna or not, they must practice that every day for the sake of others. If the father gets up and takes a bath and does his prayer the child will follow that. Or if he wakes up and reads a newspaper with a bed coffee the child will follow that. So Shretta Aacharah is very important. So Arjuna you fight this war if you are an ajnani; you fight if you are a jnani also.

The third section of this chapter is Kama-Krodha jayah; which is mastery over desires and anger. Krishna only deals with Kama mastery and not krodha; anger is just another modified form of kama. So if we have learnt to handle kama we automatically know how to handle kroda.  Kama can be handled in three ways:

- First control or manage sense organs. There are certain situations that provoke adharmic desires in the mind. Indiryah nigrahah means physically avoiding such places or such situations. Desist from reading certain kinds of books, watching movies or television shows that provoke gross emotions or avoid interacting with very gross people if it is possible. So avoid sensually such situations that can provoke the mind. This is relatively easier as we have to only physically keep away.

- Second control or manage the mind: The mind has the capacity to develop vasanas. Whatever it likes it gets into a groove and the mind gets addicted. It is like making a habit of reading the newspaper daily or watching news on television every day. Always avoid “ashubha vasanas” and encourage “shubha vasanas”. If you are forming some bad habit, break it in the beginning itself. Don’t encourage unwholesome thoughts in the mind. If you discourage such thoughts then they cannot continue. Any line of thought requires our support to continue and bloom. Every thought is like a cycle but don’t keep pedaling “unhealthy” thoughts. If you get Gita addiction then it is a good addiction; encourage them. Like that there may be so many good addictions. This is mano nigrahah.

- Finally, “vivekh”: It is realization of what is reliable and what is not. What is permanent and what is impermanent. Once I understand that the things of the world are impermanent then I will not develop attachment towards them. Because leaning on an insecure thing is going to make me more insecure. If I have vivekah; nitya-adnitya vastu vivekah I will not develop kama to the empirical things of the world. If at all I develop kama then I will develop kama to the Lord so that I will not suffer later. This discrimination is called vivekah. Once we learn to handle kama we will pursue Nishkama karma as sakama karma will be less; chitta shudhi will come and I will have jnana yogyatha; then jnanam and moksha will come.

Gita Summaries - chp 2 (Part two)

The second chapter deals on 4 topics: Saranagati (Arjuna’s surrender); Karma yoga, Gnana yoga, Mukti. In the first part of the summary to this chapter I discussed Arjuna saranagati and Karma yoga. Today I plan to discuss jnana yoga and muktihi.

            But before going into them I wish to add a few points on karma yoga. The word “yoga” in karma yoga means “Samathvam” or “maintenance of equanimity”. The mind loses its equanimity for fear or “anxiety over the future”. The only way forward is for the mind to be prepared to face any kind of future. This mental strength can be developed through devotion to the Lord.  Or the mental equanimity may be disturbed when we are not able to accept certain choiceless situations in the present. Here again the mind must be strengthened to accept present unavoidable situations. This acceptance is also possible through mental strength through devotion of the Lord. Yesterday someone came to me and said,” Swamiji you only said but the future and the present. Nothing about the past for it often disturbs my equanimity.” Regarding the past also I have the same answer as the past comes under choiceless painful situation. The past is gone and there is no way of changing the past. Therefore I have to accept my past and if I don’t have the strength to accept the past then I have to derive strength from the Lord and openly declare,” I have no regret.” We can learn from the past but brooding or regretting or worrying over the past disturbs the mind in the present.  So learn towards past “acceptance” and with regards to present also “acceptance” and with regard to future “preparedness” – all these can be gained through devotion.

            I wish to add one more point regarding karma yoga. Shankaracharya adds one more element in his commentary on karma yoga which he called “samadi yoga” on verse -39. He adds Astaga Yoga of Patanjali along with karma yoga. The aim of Astaga yoga is to balance the extrovertedness of the mind because a karma yogi is involved in action. Ultimately I have to come to myself to discover my true nature and an extrovert mind cannot get into self-enquiry. So along with karma yoga we add Astaga yoga so that mind can develop introspection. In the scriptures also various Upasanas are prescribed that are meant for mental withdrawal. Not only should the mind learn to go outside but it should also learn to withdraw inside from external objects and actions. The mind should learn to be comfortable with people and also be comfortable without people; comfortable doing actions and comfortable not doing any action. So karma yoga is balanced with samadi yoga which will later help the spiritual aspirant when he is ready to enter jnana yoga. Even the daily Sandhyavandanam is meant for such a training only; early in the morning he learns to be with himself and after a busy day he learns to withdraw into himself in the evening.

            Then what is the culmination of karma yoga? What is the final benefit expected through karma yoga (KY hereafter). Otherwise people will ask the question, how long should I remain in KY and when am I fit to enter jnana yoga (JY hereafter). Karma yoga should make a person jnana yoga yogyatha; makes a person fit for self-enquiry.

            What is the fitness required to embark on JY? Like the fitness needed to join the army; certain height, weight, chest measurements etc. Or what is the fitness to join IIT? Or fitness to join Sanskrit college as a student?  For all these certain qualifications are needed and similarly what are the qualifications to enter JY through KY. The fitness is four fold which is well known in the sastras as “Sandhana Chatushtaya Sampathi” where Krishna hints in this chapter. yadā te moha-kalilaṁ buddhir vyatitariṣyati tadā gantāsi nirvedaṁ śrotavyasya śrutasya ca. What are those qualifications?

            a) Discrimination is the capacity to differentiate between what is bondage and what is freedom; between what is dependence and what is independence. If this discrimination is not there then we will not have proper priorities in life. We will go on from one dependence to another dependence or keep increasing the number of dependences. In the name of technology we are increasing the number of dependences in our life. Earlier lack of a few things could make us unhappy but now lack of many things makes us unhappy.  When we have many possessions we call it success but Vedanta says: if you need more things to be happy, or dependent on many things for your happiness, then you have become weaker.  Greater the dependence the weaker a person is. So what a materialistic person says “success” our scriptures say is a “failure” for he has travelled from dependences to more dependences. Therefore we don’t even know how to discriminate between success and failure. Discrimination is to understand the priority and the priority is: I must depend on myself more and more and less and less on outside people, situations and objects. I may use different objects and it is different from depending on them. And if a person has this discrimination then he has got nitya-anitya vastu viveka or banda-mukti viveka. Once this discrimination the second step is a natural consequence and that is dispassion.

b) Dispassion: Dispassion is not leaning on things. Because I learn more and more that I should not depend on people or situations for if I lean on them I am going to become more bound. When I lean on anything for my happiness, when it goes away then I fall. Therefore giving up dependences and giving up leanings is dispassion or vairagyam; it is not hatred but giving up leaning.

c) Discipline: The third qualification is discipline. For whatever activity we undertake, we only have these tools of body-mind-intellect as instruments either to achieve material success or spiritual success. Since these are the instruments I have, I have to keep them in fit condition just like before any music concert what do the musicians do. They will keep on adjusting the tambura, violinist will keep on adjusting the tension of the strings and the mrudhagam player will be knocking. The body-mind complex are just tools and I must learn to discipline them. The body must be kept fit, and the body should not be an impediment. Sense organs must obey me and not drag me everywhere. I should not have an emotionally weak mind; I should learn to experience emotions but I should not be carried away or be overwhelmed by emotions. The intellectual discipline is the capacity to logically think, have language skills to understand the scriptures. So discipline at these levels is essential: physical, senses, emotional and intellectual. This fourfold discipline is the third qualification.

d) Desire: The desire for freedom is “mumukhistvtam”. There are so many people who are addicted to people and objects that they don’t want freedom. You talk to a smoker to quit and give all the scientific reasons and cause of early death, he will say,” I don’t mind dying.” A person said,” I was reading a book that kept talking on evils of smoking. And so I gave up? What? I gave up reading!” Once addiction comes it will justify the weakness. Similarly there are a lot of people who are slaves of people and objects and they are happy about their slavery. And they proudly claim,” I would like to be a dasa.”  Our scriptures say: all the best and continue to be a samsari. But they warn that when you suffer a loss of people or thing, don’t cry and complain that the Lord has no eyes or has no ears. The scriptures have always warned that dependence will lead to sorrow. And if I have sincere desire for independence or freedom then it is called “thrivra mumukhsthvam”.

            Once a person has gained these fourfold qualifications at least to some extent then jnana yoga yogyatha has come and he is ready for entering jnana yoga. Now I will enter into jnana yoga (JY) topic. The purpose JY is the discovery of Self-dependence or Independence. I should discovery security in myself; I should discover happiness in myself without requiring artha, kama, and dharma from outside. In fact I should discover artha, kama, and dharma in myself. What the scriptures say is this: we have got a lower nature and we have got a higher nature. Para Prakruthi and Apara Prakruthi. And now we are functioning only at the lower level and from the perspective of the lower level which we call “Ahankara” or “jivatma” and we are bound and we are dependent, and we are miserable. It makes me “kartha” and “Bogtha”.What the scriptures wants us to discover our higher nature, para prakruthi. Depending or discovering on which we need not seek security or purnatvam outside. Therefore JY is discovering our true selves. We know self with small s what we write in the bank cheque. That is the miserable self and having one or two lacs in the savings account. Here we are talking of a different Self with a capital S. How to discover this? For this I will discuss two fundamental concepts on which we can enter into analysis.

The first principle is: I the experiencer and am a conscious being different from whatever I experience. This is the foundation of Vedanta. The Experiencer is always different from the experienced. Subject is always different from the object. This is a simple law which we experience in our day to day life. This eye can see every object in the world. I can see every one of you in the hall; I can read every word in the book. My eyes can see everything except itself. With the tip of the finger you can touch anything in the world but it cannot touch itself. I will give you a modern example. Your phone can call any number except one number which is itself. Even with the imported phone or the costliest phone you cannot get this number. Therefore the subject is never subject to objectification. The subject cannot become object and the object cannot become the subject. The subject is ever the subject and the object is ever the object. Therefore, the experiencer is always different and distinct from the experienced.

            By applying the first principle we can derive many corollaries which is whatever I experience that I am not:

            a) The whole world is experienced by me. Therefore, I am not the world. The world is an experienced object. We will have no difficulty understanding this and everyone will nod the head. I understand this clearly; I am not the book, I am not the pen, I am not this desk. This everyone knows and we will extend this further. For those we are new to Vedanta the following would be difficult to accept. My submission is if you don’t accept it now but don’t reject it also instead keep it pending for a while. You will accept it one day or the other.

b) My body is also experienced by me as much as the world. As clearly as I objectify the world, as clearly as I experience the world, I am experiencing this body also. So Vedanta concludes that I am different from the body I experience. Modern Science itself says that the body is made up of matter. According to our scriptures also, the world is made up of five elements and so is the body. Air, fire, water, space and of course lot of earth is there! The body is born out of the elements, sustained by the elements and resolves into them at the time of death. Body is just like a wave in the water of ocean. Just as a world is an experience-able object so too is the body which is an experience-able object. How do you experience the body? You feel numb sitting down on the floor a long time; your body feels hunger etc. So if the world is not me then certainly the body is not me. The first casualty is the dearly held body.  This body to which you take so much trouble to slim down, go to a gym or beauty parlour and pampering it all the time, Swamiji you have dismissed in one sentence! That is why I am saying don’t reject this notion straightaway but keep it pending for a while. Next is the mind it is even more difficult to accept.

c) Vedanta applies the same law to the mind; whatever I experience that I am not. Mind is also something you experience all the time. That is why you say,” Today my mind is calm and I understood the class. Yesterday it was too agitated and it did not follow a thing. So, you can have a confused mind, determined mind, ignorant mind, understanding mind, rejecting mind, accepting mind etc. It is not that I know the mind but it is that I alone know my mind, nobody else knows. Since your mind itself is changing so fast, you always end cribbing, “no one understands me”!!! Therefore mind is an object of experience and as much a part of the world as any other object. This is also scientifically provable that mind is subtle form of matter. That is why when the mind is OFF they give an electric shock which is energy or they give some drugs if you are depressed etc. This indicates that the mind is another form of matter and influence-able by outside matter including food. Applying the first principle we dismiss the mind also as an object different from me. So after the study of Vedanta the body is included in the world, the mind is also included in the world; I am different from both body and mind and I am making use of them. For a wise man the body is a medium just like a spectacle. For instance: Is spectacles a part of me or not? Is it a subject or an object? It is so close to me that I almost mistake it to be a part of me. For a wise man the body is a temporary shell, temporary medium and used for a few years and to be lost after some time. The body is a rented residence. Only difference is that the number of years of lease is not known. It is brought from punyam or paapam as the case may be. For a wise man the mind is also a temporary medium of use. In fact we keep both this mediums off and on. Do you know when we keep the body and mind aside?  In sleep I am very much there but I am not using the media of body or mind. Therefore I don’t experience the world in sleep. In the morning you wake up, take the media and experience the world by having bed coffee!  By taking the first law we discover I am not the body and the mind, then who am I? I am the conscious principle different from the body-mind complex. What is my nature? Let us explore law 2 on which we have to build up further.  What is my nature is what I have to find out?

The second principle: All the experienced attributes or properties belong to the experienced objects and never to the subject, the experiencer. For example: Take this cloth in front. Then you are experiencing its attributes. It is of orange colour, it is this thick, and it is a cotton cloth. The colour, material, thickness are all attributes belonging to the object (the cloth) and not to me (the experiencer or subject). You never say,” I am orange colour.” So any property you experience it always belongs to the object of that experience; its attributes don’t belong to you. And if you don’t experience, then you won’t know about it. So any property you experience you know it belongs to experienced object. So the corollary is that the experiencer does not have any property. In fact, you are free from any attributes. You are the “subject” and “nirgunah” (free from attributes). My body is an object and it has its own attributes. The mind is an object and it has got its own attributes. The world is an object and it has got its own attributes. All the experienced attributes or properties either belong to the world, or to the body, or to the mind. None of them belong to “I” the experiencer. Therefore aham nirgunah asmi. Once we have come to the nirgunah “I” then we can draw many corollaries:

a) Every object in this world has got a “time” location or a “time limitation”, like it existed from 1930 to 1990. Before that object was not there and after that the time period the object was dissolved. People are born on a certain date and time at a certain date. Applying the second principle the time location belongs to the object and not to me, the experiencer. I am free from the property of time location. Who am I? I am not the body or the mind (the objects) but the conscious experiencer principle. I am not bound by kalah; I am timeless, free from “time” location. So naturally I am free from birth, I am free from growth, I am free from decay, and I am free from death; as all these are caused by time alone – birth, growth, decay, death are all caused in time. Every object located in time has all these stages. I, who is not located in time, is free from all of them.

b) Any object located in “time” is either a cause or an effect. And if I am not located in time then I am NOT the cause (Kartha) nor the effect (Bogktha); neither karyam nor karanam etc.

c) Just as every object has time location as its property; it has space location has another property. Any object and you’ll ask: where is it? Where (space) and when (time) are frequently enquired in any conversation. If I say,” Gita class”; you will ask,” Swamiji where and when.”  The second property is space location and since I am free from all property I am free from space location also. Therefore I am not bound my space. If I am not bound by space then I can say I am all-pervading; I am undivided; I am one (for how many all-pervading things are possible? Only one is possible). A thing which is all-pervading is motionless (it cannot move) and therefore I am free from any kind of action for action requires motion. So I am akartha etc. Krishna says; nityaḥ sarva-gataḥ sthāṇur acalo ’yaṁ sanātanaḥ. The athma is our true self is ETERNAL, it is ALL-PERVADING, it is CHANGELESS, it is MOTIONLESS. ajo nityaḥ śāśvato ’yaṁ purāṇona hanyate hanyamāne śarīre. You are free for birth, growth, decay, death. Even when the body is destroyed, you the higher self is not destroyed. Once a person discovers this athma as “aham” this knowledge alone we call as “Aham brahman asmi”or the knowledge of purnatvam or fullness.  

Once a person discover I am BRAHMAN; the eternal ATHMA then he realizes he is only using the body/mind complex temporarily. He is not worried about death; not worried about separation because he knows that the body is a temporary medium (it has to come and then after sometime it has to go away). dehī nityam avadhyo ’yaṁ dehe sarvasya bhārata tasmāt sarvāṇi bhūtāni na tvaṁ śocitum arhasi. Your sorrow is not because of arrival or departure of the body, but your sorrow is because you identify with your body. You cannot accept your mortality but you accept everyone else’s! So death itself is not the cause for sorrow but “I am mortal” is the problem. All my sorrows are because of identification with this body/mind complex. But once I know I am not the body-mind then I don’t have this sorrow or problem of mortality. I don’t have to worry about “after death travel” once I clearly understand I am the all-pervading athma. Therefore I am sat-chit-ananda swarupa or brahma swarupah. This is the essence of jnana yoga.

There are three stages of sadhana to acquiring or grasping this knowledge: Shravanam, Mananam, and Nidhidyasanam.

Shravanam is learning under a guru and applying these two principles. Arriving at “I am the purna athma” is the purpose of learning and using a teacher for guidance is shravanam. Every Upanishad discuss about “athma vidya” or “athma jnanam” only.  Krishna gives a bird’s eye-view of jnana yoga in this second chapter which HE will elaborate later in the following chapters. The second chapter is only a trailer. Consistent and Systematic study of scriptures under the guidance of a competent Acharya.

Mananam is the second stage of learning for the removal of any doubts that we may get when we study the teaching. There might be doubts that will not allow us to accept this teaching. If I say that you are all-pervading then you will ask me,” Swamiji, are you alright?” Swamiji, I am sitting on a chair and I am not even hall-pervading. So your rational intellect, it is an educated intellect, and it will ask umpteen questions; remember Vedanta is not a matter of belief but a subject for understanding. That is the difference between ritualistic portion and Vedantic portion. In karmakanda every ritual is a matter of belief; do this humam or ahuti and there is no rational explanation given. You just have to perform them without questions like a shardam etc. But Vedanta is a matter of understanding and if there is even the smallest of doubts it is not knowledge and it will not benefit me. It is like one mosquito in the net and that is enough to disturb the sleep. So manamam is the stage of raising questions and getting answers from the guru. Vedanta is not afraid of logic or is it afraid of Science.  

 Nidhi Dyasanam is the third stage of learning which assimilation of the teaching and making it part of my life. This knowledge must be available to be when I grow old and when I have fear of death or when I suffer loss of money etc. If I am not to be afraid of mortality, that is only possible through this knowledge, “Aham purnah asmi”. This assimilation is for the purpose of making this knowledge useful for me is nidhidyasanam. Through shravanam, mananam and nidhidyasanam a person becomes a jeevan mukta. The uniqueness of Gita teaching is it promises liberation here and now, in this life itself. WE don’t promise freedom after death as other religions proffer; it is here and now. If Vedanta does not work then you can throw it away, it is a challenge given by our scriptures.

When Krishna tempts Arjuna with a “jeevan mukta” then Arjuna becomes curious about such a person. He asks,” How does a free person look like? How will be walk? How will he talk?  As Arjuna thinks a liberated person will have physical challenges. We also see some pictures of jnani and they show a halo behind his face. Then we look at the mirror is something is happening behind our head…..laughter. Understand clearly that no halo will come and if you see something then go to an eye doctor.  The halo is only a symbolic representation. Body will remain as body and hunger will remain as hunger and thirst will remain as thirst. Don’t think after you become a realized person you will see some special objects all around. There is no change in the physical body, there is no change in the world and everything will remain the same but this response to different situations in life will be different. There will be no differences in experiences also. Even jnanis will face different kinds of people, some may even criticize and some glorifying etc. A jnani or jeevan mukta still has no control as to the situations he will encounter but in any circumstances he will not lose his “samathvam” or “equanimity”. A jnani is happy in himself. To be happy and complete in myself then I don’t need anything. Not that he hates anything but he is comfortable in every situation. So all this spiritual discipline is only to CHANGE YOUR RESPONSES and not change the situations. He realizes that he needs nothing to be happy for he is “purnah” himself. Let people/things be around, I will be fine. Let them not be there, I am fine too. Let conducive situation be there, I am fine and let unconducive situation be there then also I am fine. Because of this athma jnanam he is free from raga, dvesha, bhaya, kroda. In the first chapter we saw that samsara is due to raga -shokha-moha. Once there is attachment (Raga) there is a constant fear of losing. So each time you get a telegram you are scared or when family member come late from office you are scared and think of the worst possibility of accident or injury. Even when everything is fine you have fear that someone will keep “dhristi” or evil eye. And whether you like it or not we have to lose that object of attachment someday through death. Then I become “kroda” anger with the person or situation that caused the separation. That is why some people turn atheist when they lose a loved family member. Like,” I went to the temple daily and I did all the pujas and why should God inflict this tragedy on me.” So as long as attachment is there, there will be fear. And when there is no attachment there will no fear; and hence no anger. There is no sadness also as I was happy with the object and also happy without the object for I have discovered happiness in myself. Imagine if I enjoy such a mind then no one can blackmail me and no situation will disturb me.

Krishna gives two examples to show the difference between a wise and free man and an ignorant and bound person. They are like day and night. yā niśā sarva-bhūtānāṁ tasyāṁ jāgarti saṁyamī yasyāṁ jāgrati bhūtāni sā niśā paśyato muneḥ. Though both of look the same, eat the same and walk the same; there is a huge difference. An ignorant person is a slave of the world while the wise person is a Swami. That is why they call a sanyasa Swami so and so Ananda; only a master can have ananda at all times. The opposite of Swami is aasami in Tamil (laughter). You need write dukham to their names for their very face is full of sorrow. Swami has a blooming face while aasami has a gloomy face. Krishna gives the lecture with a smiling face while Arjuna’s face is full of sorrow (samsari).

The second example Krishna gives is āpūryamāṇam acala-pratiṣṭhaṁ samudram āpaḥ praviśanti yadvat tadvat kāmā yaṁ praviśanti sarve sa śāntim āpnoti na kāma-kāmī. A wise person is compared to an ocean and a samsari is compared to a pond. An ocean is ever full and does not depend upon the rivers and the rains. While in the case of a pond a little flood and the banks are broken. Little rains and the pond dries up. A wise person like an ocean, let different experiences come and go but they don’t affect him. Let some people criticize or throw stone, he is not affected. Neither is he affected with praise etc while an ignorant person is at the top of the ceiling one moment and the next moment he is flat on the ground. He is so helpless as favourable situations and unfavourable situations toss him around between happiness and sorrow. A person can become wise in two stages: first karma yoga and then jnana yoga. If a person follows these two then he too can become a jeevan mukti.

These are the four topics of this chapter – Arjuna saranagati is from verse-1 to verse-10, jnana yoga is from v-11 to v-38, karma yoga is from v-39 to v-53 and mukti is from v-54 to v-72. Thus the entire essence of the Gita is given in the second chapter and since jnana yoga is the central theme of this chapter the chapter is titled “Sankhya yoga” which is another name for jnana yoga.