Gita chapter 8- death, rebirth and moksha

Hari Aum.

So far we have heard Lord Krishna tell Arjuna about the existence of the soul and the obstacles (desire, anger, attachment and aversion) that prevent one from recognising one's identity as the immortal soul. We have also heard Him tell Arjuna of some paths to overcome these obstacles of the mind, namely selfless service (karma yoga) and meditation (dhyana). We have heard Him tell Arjuna to become a yogi of balanced mind ("Yogi bhava Arjuna").

Now in this chapter, Krishna discusses the mysteries of life, death, rebirth and moksha (liberation). He particularly discusses the importance of the thoughts that occur at the time of death and how these determine the destination of the soul in the afterlife. This is the key message of this chapter.

Krishna declares to Arjuna that one goes to whatever being that one thinks of at the time of death. One who thinks of Krishna goes to Krishna.

He says:

"Anta-kale cha mameva, smaran-muktva kalevaram,
Yah prayati sa madbhavam, yati nastyatra samshayah"

Meaning (as per my Guru Sivananda):

"And whosoever, leaving the body, goes forth remembering Me alone, at the time of death, he attains my Being; there is no doubt about this."

He then says:

"Yam yam vapi smaran-bhavam, tyajaty-ante kalevaram,
Tam tamevaiti Kautenya, sada tad-bhava-bhavitah"

Meaning:

"Whosoever at the end leaves the body, thinking of any being, to that being only does he go, O son of Kunti (Arjuna), because of his constant thoughts of that being"

My Guru Sivananda says whatever we spend most of our life thinking about, that is what will come into our mind at the time of our death. In other words, the thoughts at the time of death will be those which predominated in one's mind for the majority of one's lifetime.

There are some people who say we will live our life thinking about worldly things and then think of God at the time of death and thus attain Him. Sadly this technique will not work, according to the yogis. The reason is that the mind is very difficult to control in normal circumstances, and this is even more so, at the time of death. Therefore the thoughts that spontaneously occur in the mind at the time of death will only be those that predominated in the mind during one's lifetime.

Therefore one should be careful about where one directs one's attention and thoughts during one's lifetime. There are some famous stories in the Puranas regarding this-- how one man was lucky (Ajamila) and another man was unlucky (Jada Bharata) in the thoughts at the time of death.

Let me remind you of the story of Ajamila (I've told it elsewhere on this blog but it's such an inspiring story that I'd like to tell it again!).

Ajamila was a good man who turned bad during his lifetime and did many evil actions. He had named his youngest son 'Narayana' (as per the usual tradition of naming one's children after the names of the Divine dwelling within). He had no interest in God, and spent all his time thinking about his wife and especially his beloved child Narayana.

The time of Ajamila's death arrived and suddenly, he saw the messengers of the demi-god of death, Yama, approaching to carry him away to Yama-loka (the realm of Yama where beings are allocated rewards and punishments for their good and bad deeds on Earth).

These beings had a frightful appearance and seeing them, Ajamila was terrified, realising that he was about to die. The thought of being separated from his beloved son was especially painful and he called out to him saying "Narayana!".

As soon as he said 'Narayana', some divine beings of handsome appearance appeared! They introduced themselves to the messengers of Yama (called Yama-dootas in Sanskrit) as Narayana-dootas (messengers of Narayana).

The Narayana-dootas told the Yama-dootas that they would not allow Ajamila to be taken away to the realm of Yama. The Yama-dootas were astounded at the audacity of someone trying to stop them. They asked the Narayana-dootas if they knew who they were and explained that Ajamila was a very bad man who required suitable punishment which their master, Yama, knew very well how to give.

The Narayana-dootas smiled upon hearing this and told the Yama-dootas that Ajamila had taken the holy name of their master, Narayana. They explained that the name of their master, the Supreme Being Narayana, was extremely powerful and auspicious. One utterance of this holy name had wiped out all the sins of Ajamila and therefore he was not to be punished by Yama. The Yama-dootas and Ajamila were both extremely surprised to hear this!

The Narayana-dootas told the Yama-dootas to go to Yama and check with him regarding the truth of their statement. The Yama-dootas reluctantly agreed and, once they had gone, the Narayana-dootas also left.

When Yama, a great devotee of Narayana and a spiritually wise being, heard the complaint of his messengers, he confirmed that what the Narayana-dootas had said was indeed true. He explained to his messengers that he had no power over those who took the holy names of the Supreme Being as it purified them of all sins.

Meanwhile, Ajamila who had silently witnessed all this was in complete shock. He fervently thanked God for giving him a second chance. His past good deeds had led to him taking the name of "Narayana" at his time of death. This had saved him. He now resolved to live a noble life of penance striving to attain Narayana and succeeded in doing so.

The above story is one of the most famous in the Puranas explaining both 1) the power of the name of God and 2) the impact of the thought at the time of one's death.

 The other key statements that Krishna makes in this chapter are:

1. Think of Him and do one's duty (this will ensure that one thinks of Him at death and that one attains Him--if one has not already attained Him during one's lifetime)

2. All worlds including that of the demi-gods (Indra, Brahma etc) are perishable. Beings in them live and die. The Supreme Being alone is immortal and the source of the perishable creation.

3. Those who attain the Supreme Being attain moksha/liberation. They do not return again to the perishable existence filled with suffering.

4. The Supreme Being is attainable by devotion alone. Krishna says:

"Purusha sah parah Partha, bhaktya labhyastva-ananyaya,
Yasyantah sthani bhutani, yena sarvam-idam tatam"

Meaning:

"That highest Purusha (Supreme Being), O Arjuna, is attainable by unswerving devotion to Him alone, within Whom all beings dwell, and by Whom all this is pervaded".

In summary, the overall message of this chapter is:

Think of God in your lifetime to ensure that you think of God at your time of death. In this way, you will attain God (either while living or in the afterlife) and experience spiritual peace, bliss and wisdom. Think of God by cultivating devotion to God.

To be continued.....

Om Namo Narayanaya

Hari Aum Tat Sat

Completion of purascharana four

Hari Aum.

I completed my fourth purascharana of the ashtakshara mantra in the last few days. I want to write a bit about my experiences with it here. The aim of this is to make the point that spiritual sadhana does produce results even while living an ordinary life as a householder in a city (and that one does not have to be a wandering sadhu in the Himalayas for this). The name of God has a transformative effect in all places.

Since November 2011, by the grace of God and my Guru, Sivananda, not a day has passed without my doing some form of sadhana involving the name of God, specifically the names of Vishnu/Krishna and more specifically, the ashtakshara mantra of Narayana.

Also, since January 2012 till date, I have completed four purascharanas of the ashtakshara mantra. My Guru defines a purascharana as 100,000 x the number of syllables in the mantra. So a purascharana of ashtakshara, the eight-syllable mantra, is 800,000 and I have completed four times this number (actually a bit more, as I've done japa in between the purascharanas too of course).

After completion of this japa portion of the purascharana, my Guru says one can do the required amount of homam (fire ritual), tarpanam (water offerings) and marjanam (water ritual) if possible. If not possible, he says "you can do feeding and charity according to your capacity if you cannot adhere to the above strictly" (i.e. to the post-japa rituals). http://sivanandaonline.org/public_html/?cmd=displaysection&section_id=525

I have done a few homams myself and with the help of a priest during the four purascharanas. I have also done as my Guru advises and donated to various charitable institutions including his ashram in Rishikesh.

What has been the effect of these four purascharanas? What has been the benefit for me in doing them?

Well, after the first three purascharanas, the main effect was feeling much more connected to God, much better at remembering God (which itself is an important sadhana). Also development of the witnessing side of the mind-- the side of the mind that watches what is going on in the rest of the mind (again, a necessary quality in a yogi). I also feel that this practice has improved my character and made me a kinder and more patient person.

The fourth purascharana was more challenging than the others for a variety of reasons. It also took longer to complete (2 years and 3 months approximately; normally takes me under 2 years). This is mostly because I became pregnant and had a baby during the purascharana (the arrival of my daughter has been a blessing though, and looking after her is an important spiritual sadhana for me as I feel that she too is a manifestation of God). It has also been more rewarding in terms of spiritual experiences.

I know yogis say one should not run after spiritual experiences but  rather,  just keep doing sadhana until one attains God. However, many gurus including my own, have also written about spiritual experiences as being useful signposts on the spiritual path. They are not a goal in themselves, but they do encourage one to continue sadhana until the real spiritual goal is attained.

So I would say I had more spiritual experiences in this purascharana compared with the others. I've had some very auspicious dreams of my Guru and God, and some dreams than came true (predictive dreams--I've written about these in other posts). These things never happened before and made me feel my sadhana is definitely having some effect on those aspects of my being that modern science does not yet understand very well (the deeper layers of the mind).

During this purascharana, I also felt inspired to read about the life of Krishna from the beginning to the end as described in the sacred book, the Srimad Bhagavatam which was a useful sadhana in itself (and I also published books on Krishna's life on Amazon, the proceeds of which go towards  the free medical work performed by my Guru's ashram in Rishikesh).

I'm feeling tired but happy on completion of this purascharana. I feel an important milestone has been crossed. I plan to take a break and then start the next purascharana in a couple of months. During the break, I will be doing a reduced amount of ashtakshara mantra japa (5 malas). I will also do some different worship during this time-- worship of the Divine Mother. I feel She gives me the strength to do sadhana and I want to thank Her by doing some worship.

I will recite the saptasloki Durga daily during this break, and do some japa of Her mantras. I want to keep the sadhana during my break light and easy so that it feels like a proper break before I start the next purascharana-- this will be a two year commitment (doing 11 malas a day which takes me about an hour) and I want to be able to keep going until the end. I will also be juggling life as a mother of a young child and as a doctor during this time so I know I will need to be very motivated to complete it.

I just want to say one thing before I conclude. I do feel that, japa sadhana even while living an ordinary life as a householder, has an effect. Even while running a household, doing a job, having a spouse, children and other family around, it has an effect. A single recitation of "Narayana" destroyed the sins of Ajamila. Daily recitation of His name and mantra by us does have a powerful effect.

Sadhana is meant for the many, not for the few. It is meant for every single soul who has been blessed with a human birth. It is not meant for just a few yogis in the far-off Himalayas. It can help us who live ordinary lives in ordinary places. It is not meant only for people who live exotic yogi lives eating leaves, waking barefoot in the snow and fasting for days. It is meant for you and me, with all our flaws and imperfections. It can transform us and will transform us. I've experienced some of this transformation and will keep going until the end, God-willing.

Never let anyone tell you a purascharana can only be done if you're willing to commit 6-10 hours a day and nonsense like that. The beauty is that, even if one commits to only one hour of seated japa per day (as I do), this one hour inspires one to think of God very often during the day, even in the midst of other activities. So one spends much more than one hour thinking of God. And remembrance of God purifies the mind and takes one to God.

I would say, do what you can and trust that it will have an effect, because it will. A little recitation daily goes a very long way.

With that, I will conclude this post. I wish you the very best with your sadhana. Keep going and trust yourself-- you are important to God, that is why He/She has given you a human birth. Start some japa sadhana and do it daily and feel the results for yourself. Life is short and time is fleeting as my Guru and the yogis say. Each day that passes without the name of God is a waste. Each day with the name of God is a blessing that takes us towards the experience of the Supreme Blessedness, the state of Self-realisation, of peace, bliss and immortality.

Om Namo Bhagavate Sivanandaya
Om Namo Narayanaya


Hari Aum Tat Sat

Gita chapter 7- refuge in God guarantees spiritual success

Hari Aum.

Towards the end of the sixth chapter of the Gita, Arjuna is very worried. He accepts what Krishna has said so far, i.e. there is a soul that is immortal, blissful and full of knowledge, and that he needs to meditate to realise that this blissful soul is his true nature (not the perishable body and temporary mind which experience suffering).

But there is a serious problem, he feels. He cannot meditate, he cannot control his mind! He says the mind is a terrible uncontrollable thing. What to do? He feels doomed! He worries he will lose out both materially and spiritually by trying to walk the spiritual path.

In this chapter, Krishna lays to rest all of Arjuna's worries related to this matter of mind-control. He tells Arjuna the secret of what to do to guarantee success on the spiritual path.

What is the secret? What is the solution to the dire problem of the mind's delusion by Maya (illusory power of God)?

Here is the answer in Krishna's words.

He says:

"Daivi hyesha guna-mayi, mama Maya duratyaya,
Mameva ye prapadyante, Maya-metam taranti te"

Translation (by my Guru Sivananda):

"Verily, this divine illusion of Mine, made up of the three qualities (of Nature) is difficult to cross over; those who take refuge in Me alone, cross over this illusion."

{The three qualities of Nature that Krishna refers to are sattva (purity, goodness), rajas (activity, desires) and tamas (ignorance)--everything in the material world is said to be a combination of these three principles. In good people, sattva dominates. In wicked people, rajas and tamas dominate}

So there we have it. The secret is to take refuge in God. If we try to walk alone on the spiritual path, doing pranayama/some breathing exercise or something similar as our main practice, we are liable to fail. Krishna Himself says elsewhere that people who walk alone without seeking the help of God are at risk of developing a fall in the spiritual path (often due to spiritual pride in their practice which destroys all prospects of success).

The yogi or spiritual seeker must be humble, truly humble. One can only be humble before God. The thought of the almighty, all-powerful, compassionate, wise God creates feeling of awe, wonder and humility in us. Therefore, Krishna says, take refuge in Me, in God (we can call God by any name from any spiritual tradition).

He then gives another importance assurance by saying that He Himself strengthens the faith of the devotee so that he/she can achieve whatever goal they desire, whether material or spiritual. He says that people on Earth worship higher and lower deities (to ask them for all sorts of things--money, fame, spouse, children and so on). Some perform elaborate Vedic yajnas to lower deities to acquire these things. Krishna says that it is He who gives human beings the strength to perform sadhana to achieve all their material as well as spiritual goals.

He says:

"Yo yo yam yam tanu bhakta, shraddhaya-architum icchati,
tasya tasyachalam shraddha, tameva vidadhamy-aham"

Meaning (as per Sivananda):

"Whatsoever form any devotee desires to worship with faith--that (same) faith of his, I make firm and unflinching."


He then says:

"Sa taya shraddhaya yuktas-tasya-aradhanam-ihatey,
labhate cha tatah kaman-ma-yaiva vihitan hi tan"

Meaning:

"Endowed with that faith, he engages in the worship of that (form), and from it, he obtains his desire, these being verily ordained by Me (alone).


Firm faith is needed to have success in sadhana. Because firm faith in the deity and the spiritual practice motivates one to actually do the spiritual practice with consistency, regularity and determination. This then grants one the goal one desires, whether material or spiritual.

So He basically says, that as God, He is the true giver of everything-- the faith needed to do a spiritual practice and the result of that spiritual practice (whether material or spiritual).

Also, as God, He is the source of all beings including the lower deities. It is He who gives gifts through the lower deities (such as Indra, Agni etc). However, He gives only that which we ask for. If we ask for material things, that is what we will get. If we ask for spiritual treasures, that is what He will ensure we get.

He also states that people go in the afterlife, to the deity that they worship during their lifetime on Earth. He says that the devotees of lower deities go to them, while His devotees go to Him. This is an important point. So one should carefully choose what one asks for (what one desires) and be equally careful in selecting the being that one approaches to acquire this. Sivananda and other gurus advise us to seek the spiritual goal and to approach only God (not any lower deities) as He alone can grant us true peace, wisdom and bliss.

Krishna also makes the following statements in this chapter:

1) This world consists of two aspects of His nature-- the material and the spiritual. The material aspect consists of eight principles-- the five great elements (broadly described as earth, water, fire, air and space), the mind, intellect and egoism (sense of individual self).

The spiritual aspect is what upholds all the worlds including the material aspect. He is the source of both the material and the spiritual aspects of the universe and it is He who causes them to dissolve back into Him eventually.

2) He says: "There is nothing whatsoever higher than Me, O Arjuna. All this is strung on Me, as clusters of gems on a string". This is a very beautiful and poetic description of the world in relation to God.

3) He then describes Himself a little--although He is everything, He tries to describe a small portion of His manifestation here so that Arjuna (and we) can try to understand this.

He says that He is the:
1. "sapidity in water"
2. "light in the moon and the sun"
3. "syllable Om in the Vedas"
4. "sound in ether"
5. "virility in men"
6. "sweet fragrance in the earth"
7. "brilliance in fire"
8. "life in all beings"
9. "austerity of ascetics"
10. "eternal seed (cause) of all beings"
11. "intelligence of the intelligent"
12. "splendour of the splendid"
13. "strength devoid of desire and attachment"
14. "desire unopposed to dharma (goodness/righteousness)"

4) He states that good people worship Him, and that His devotees belong to four groups as follows:
i) the suffering who want relief from their suffering
ii) those who want material things
iii) those who want the spiritual goal, and
iv) those who have already attained the spiritual goal

All four groups He says are "noble" but the fourth category, the spiritually wise, He says are His "very Self". He declares that He is very dear to the fourth group and they are also very dear to Him.

5) He says that only after many births and deaths, do people's minds turn to Him. After a long time in samsara, people worship Him and attain Him.

6) Those who have a negative character do not worship Him. Such people's wisdom is destroyed by the power of illusion and they perform wrong actions on Earth.

7) The world mistakes Him for a mere mortal though He is the Unmanifest Supreme.

8) He knows the beings of the past, present and the future, but no-one knows Him. Due to cravings and aversions of the mind, beings are deluded at birth and cannot see Him, the true reality behind all things.

9) At the end of many births and virtuous deeds, the wise attain Him and experience the truth that "Vasudeva sarvam iti" (God is everything).

"Bahunam janmanam-ante jnanavan-mam prapadyante,
Vasudeva sarvam iti, sa mahatma sudurlabha"

"At the end of many births, the wise man comes to Me, realising that all this is Vasudeva (the innermost Self); such a great soul (Mahatma) is very hard to find".

This chapter concludes with Him once again assuring Arjuna that:

"Those who strive for liberation from old age and death, taking refuge in Me, realise in full that Brahman (God), the whole knowledge of the Self and all action".

So the overall message of this chapter is that one who takes refuge in God need not fear samsara. Such a person will easily cross samsara with the grace and help of God Himself-- as He says, He strengthens the faith of spiritual aspirants thus helping them to attain the spiritual goal. Indeed, He says that He Himself is the tapas (spiritual practice) of those who walk the spiritual path.

With this encouraging message, let us carry on with our spiritual practices.

To be continued....

Om Namo Narayanaya

Hari Aum Tat Sat

Gita chapter 6- meditation and the practice of the presence of God

Hari Aum.

So far in the Gita, we have seen Krishna tell Arjuna that there is something higher than the body, something that is eternal and blissful-- this is the soul. He has told Arjuna of the need to seek knowledge and experience of one's nature as the immortal soul in order to overcome the pains of samsara (the cycle of birth and death). 

In order to acquire knowledge of the soul, Krishna has advised Arjuna (who represents all of us--humanity) to control the sensual cravings/desires in his mind and also act selflessly for the welfare of society (karma yoga).

Karma yoga is regarded as essential for success in meditation according to my Guru, Sivananda, and other gurus. The gurus say that selfless service of humanity performed as a form of worship of God, without expectation of any earthly reward, purifies the mind and makes it fit for meditation.

So, having explained the need for karma yoga to Arjuna, Krishna now tells him about meditation. He firstly reminds Arjuna that a real sannyasi, a real yogi, is one who has renounced cravings for the fruits of actions, not one who abandons duties/actions.

He then outlines the key points related to meditation. He says one should sit in a clean area, on a suitable cloth. Yogis advise against sitting on the bare ground to meditate as this is supposed to result in a loss of some of the (electrical) energy generated during meditation-- sitting on an insulating material is therefore advised (Sivananda advises wool for example). 

Krishna mentions using sacred kusa grass and then spreading an animal hide such as deer skin or tiger skin (note- animals were never killed by yogis due to the absolutely essential principle of ahimsa/non-violence, but if an animal died naturally, its skin could be utilised to sit on for meditation).

Having described the seat for meditation, Krishna then explains the posture. He says one should sit without moving, holding the head, neck and body erect. One should then practice concentration on the Self or God, keeping this as one's goal. One needs to be fearless and self-controlled while practising meditation, He says. This will lead to attainment of "Nirvana" or eternal peace.

Krishna also declares that a moderate lifestyle is essential for success in mediation. He specifically states that one should not go eat or sleep too little or too much, but get just the right amount of both.

He presents before Arjuna the reason to meditate and attain Self-realisation-- He states that the yogi crosses over the pains of samsara and experiences infinite bliss. 

Some of the famous verses from this chapter are:

"One should raise oneself by one's Self alone; let not one lower oneself; for the Self alone is the friend of oneself, and the Self alone is the enemy of oneself."

Sivananda explains this as meaning that the higher mind is one's friend and should be cultivated and strengthened--this is that part of our mind which is filled with positive noble qualities, which is self-controlled and has devotion to God. The lower mind is that aspect of our mind which drags us down into samsara, which has negative qualities including fear, anger and doubt, which does not allow us to perform spiritual practice/sadhana. Krishna says one should lift oneself by oneself-- here He emphasises the importance of self-effort. This self-effort by the individual then draws the grace of God which helps one attain success on the spiritual path.

and

"Yo mam pashyanti sarvatra, sarvam cha mayi pashyati,
tasyaham na pranashyami, sa cha me na pranashyati."

Meaning:
"One who sees Me everywhere, and sees everything in Me,
never becomes separated from Me, nor do I become separated from him".

This sloka describes the vitally important practice of the presence of God that mystics talk about in both East and West. Here, the devotee tries to cultivate divine vision-- tries to recognise the all-pervading Intelligence that runs this entire universe. One reminds oneself that God is present everywhere, and that all creation, animate and inanimate, resides in Him. In this way, one cultivates the constant remembrance of God-- a practice which leads to the attainment of God. Krishna emphatically declares here that He is always with a person who practices this spiritual technique, and that person is also always with Him.

After all the discussion about mind-control and meditation, Arjuna complains to Krishna that it is all too much for him. He is not confident that it can even be done! He tells Krishna that the mind is extraordinarily difficult to control and attempting to control it is "like trying to control the wind". Krishna listens and agrees that it is indeed a challenge. However, He declares that it very much can be done through a combination of "abhyasa" (practice) and "vairagya" (detachment from worldly things).

Arjuna then raises another doubt/worry. He asks Krishna what happens if one tries to meditate, tries to walk the spiritual path, but fails in reaching the goal in one's lifetime. Does one not lose out, he asks. Lose out both materially and spiritually?

Krishna provides a reassuring answer to this question too. He declares that:

1. Those who strive to do good/walk the path of yoga, will not be destroyed in this world or the next. They will experience rewards for their good deeds in the afterlife.
2. They will then be reborn on Earth in good families and get the opportunity to re-start their yoga practice and attain success. Krishna declares that nobody who does good will come to harm.

Having reassured Arjuna, Krishna tells him that a Self-realised yogi has reached a better state that people of great intellect/action (but who do not have the knowledge of the immortal Self or God). He therefore says: "yogi bhava Arjuna" i.e. "Be a yogi, Arjuna".

He then declares that, among yogis, those who practice the path of devotion excel (this is the final sloka of the sixth chapter). He states:

"Yoginam-api sarvesham, madgatena-antaratmana
shraddhavan bhajate yo mam, sa me yuktatamo matah"

Meaning (as per Sivananda): And among the yogis, he who full of faith and with his inner self merged in Me, worships Me is deemed by Me to be the most devout".

This last sentence of the sixth chapter mentioning His devotee paves the way for the next six chapters (7 to 12 inclusive) which discuss bhakti yoga, the path of devotion, as a means to attain Self-Realisation.

To be continued....

Om Namo Narayanaya

Hari Aum Tat Sat

Gita chapter 5- the sage and the beautiful message of true equality

Hari Aum.

In the fifth chapter of the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna discusses the qualities of a self-realised sage as one who performs all actions but with inner renunciation (non-doership; without egoism).

He tells Arjuna that a true sage is one who has controlled the mind, who is free from sensual/selfish desires, who is free from anger, whose mind is not disturbed by the pairs of opposites found in the world (e.g. heat and cold, pain and pleasure, honour and dishonour, success and failure etc).

An important quality of the sage is that he/she, while identifying with the divine within, constantly works with joy for the welfare of other living beings ("sarva-bhuta hite ratah").

Such a person does not identify with the body, the mind, the senses or the intellect but only with the divine Self within. Thus, despite being fully active and involved in external activities for the welfare of others using the body, mind and intellect, such a person feels that it is only Nature (a part of God) who is acting, not themselves. Due to their lack of egoism, they do not create any karma (good or bad) with their actions. Their actions are divine and karma-less, and thus they attain God (state of eternal peace/liberation).

Krishna once again emphasises that performing actions with a sense of renunciation is better than giving up actions from the perspective of spiritual progress.

He says:

"Brahman-yadhaya karmani, sanga tyaktva karoti yah,
Lipyate na sa papena padma-patra-ivambhasa"

Meaning (as per my Guru Sivananda):

"He who does actions offering them to Brahman (God), and abandoning attachment, is not tainted by sin, just as a lotus-leaf is not tainted by water."

Krishna also emphasises the ability of the self-realised sage to see God alone everywhere and in everyone. Thus, a self-realised sage does not regard anyone as beneath him/her-- all are worthy of reverence because all are part of God.
He says:

"Vidya-vinaya-sampanney brahmaney gavi hastini,
Shuni chaiva shvapake cha pandita sama-darshina"

Meaning (as per Sivananda):

"Sages look with an equal eye on a brahmin endowed with learning and humility, on a cow, on an elephant and even on a dog and an outcaste"

(Note- outcaste here refers to unethical persons who are of tamasic/negative nature. It does not refer to the birth-based caste system that has been practised over the recent centuries in India which has not been sanctioned by the Hindu scriptures)

He next says:

"Ihaiva tairjitah sargo yesham samye sthitah manah,
Nirdosham hi samam Brahma tasmad-Brahmani te sthitah"

"Even here (in this world), birth (everything) is overcome by those whose minds rest in equality. Brahman is spotless indeed and equal; therefore they are established in Brahman (God)".

Krishna thus greatly emphasises the importance of treating all living beings with respect and reverence, while recognising the presence of God in them all. He says that, not only should we treat other human beings with respect, we should also recognise His presence in animals and unethical persons.

He gives humanity a message of true equality. There is no high or low here, neither based on gender nor on birth, nor on education, nor on anything else. All races, all people, and indeed all living beings are equal. So He declares! All self-realised sages experience this truth. And all spiritual seekers, who desire to attain the spiritual goal/God, are advised to practice cultivation of this divine vision while on the spiritual path.

Those who look down upon others in any way cannot progress on the spiritual path. We cannot look down upon even persons who society regards as adharmic (unethical). We can only say that they are divine souls who are evolving in their own way, towards God. We do not have to hang out with them (as spiritual seekers we are advised to cultivate satsanga; positive, good company) but we cannot look down upon them.

My Guru, Sivananda, and many other true gurus also practised this teaching in their own lives and advised their disciples to practice this. Sivananda used to say "See God in all. Bow down in reverence to all" (He used to say one can bow down mentally; it need not be physical always!).

It is not always easy to practice this, particularly towards those who are unkind to us. We may find it difficult to see God in those who manifest many negative qualities. But we should try our best not to reciprocate with negativity. As far as possible, we should not respond unkindly to those who are unkind to us.
We can tell ourselves that God undoubtedly exists in their hearts too, as He exists in the hearts of all. And one day, they too, will surely realise the divine within and manifest this divinity. As this is the destiny of all beings say the yogis. From the divine we have all emerged. To learn to manifest this divinity, we have come to this Earth. And one day, we will all surely manifest our true divine nature.

The purpose of all spiritual practices is only this-- to connect with the divine within.

Let us therefore try our very best to abandon all prejudice. Of course we must reject adharma (wickedness) within ourselves and outside ourselves in society. We must stand up against it when we have to. Being a doormat is not being spiritual. But, having said that, let us maintain goodwill towards all, recognising that all beings have God within.

Let us follow Lord Krishna's wise advice and try our best to see God in all-- in all human beings, in all animals, plants and all beings (this is only possible as a result of much mental purification e.g. by prolonged repetition of the holy names and mantras of God). This will enable us to live peacefully here on Earth and also help greatly in our attainment of the spiritual goal, God-realisation.

To be continued....

Om Namo Narayanaya

Hari Aum Tat Sat

Gita chapter 4: divine, karma-less actions

Hari Aum.

I'd like to discuss the key messages of chapter 4 of the Bhagavad Gita.

Just to recap, in the first three chapters we have seen Krishna tell Arjuna the following:

1. Soul: There is something called the soul. Humans are not just bodies--their real nature is the soul. The soul is immortal, eternal, unmanifest. It cannot be grasped by the senses, the mind or the intellect. It is beyond all these. It is present everywhere. Unlike the body, the soul cannot be cut, wet, dried or burnt.

So, why don't we humans feel we are the soul? Why do we feel we are the body? Krishna gives the answer:

2. Desire: Sensual selfish desires in the mind hide the soul. Desire when unfulfilled leads to anger. Desire and anger agitate the mind, ruin its calm and rob one of the awareness of the soul, the Self, of God within us.

So can we give up all actions and just sit in one place and think about the soul? Krishna says no. He says:

3. Action: No human being can remain alive without action. The mind is active. The body is active. As long as a person lives, the mind and body are active. So, action is not to be given up. But desire for a specific result of the action must be given up. Desire or attachment must be given up, not action.

Desire is the problem(selfish desires that is), not action. Desireless, selfless actions lead to one gaining knowledge of one's true nature as the immortal soul, as being one with God (Self-realisation). Selfish desires and the resulting selfish actions bind us to samsara. Selfless desires and the resulting selfless actions free us from samsara.

In summary, it is our desire or motivation behind our action that matters.


Chapter 4: Krishna as God and performance of divine karma-less actions

So now let's look at chapter four of the Gita.

Until now Krishna has talked in an abstract sense about the soul--known as the Atman (in Sanskrit). He has not revealed too much about Himself so far (though He does say in Chapter 3 that if He did not perform actions, the whole of creation would perish).

Now, for the first time, He begins to reveal His divine nature, His position as God, the protector, the creator and dissolver of the Universe. He also tells Arjuna more about how to perform action as a form of yoga. In chapter 3, He emphasises the importance of giving up attachment. In chapter 4, He tells him about the need to perform actions for the welfare of others and also while giving up the sense of ego/individual doer-ship.

He tells Arjuna that He is Ishwara, the lord of all beings. He mentions His Maya (power of illusion), saying that He uses this when He takes birth (He is unborn, deathless-- yet, using His Maya, He appears to be born).

He utters two lines that are famous all over the world today, His promise:

"Yada yada hi dharmasya, glanir bhavati Bharata, abhyuthanam adharmasya, tadatmanam, srijamy-aham."

and

"Paritranaya sadhunam, vinashaya cha dushkritam, dharma samsthapanarthaya, sambhavami yuge yuge".


The first line means: "Whenever dharma (goodness/righteousness) begins to decrease and adharma (badness/wickedness) begins to increase, then I appear."

The second line means: "To protect good people and to destroy evil people, I am born in every yuga (age)"

He tells Arjuna that He Himself does not have any desire for the result of actions and that actions do not bind Him in any way.

He says that people who perform actions without selfish desires, and who calmly accept whatever result comes (whether success or failure) having given their best, break the bonds of karma.

He then speaks another sentence which is also very famous today:

"Brahmarpanam, Brahma-havir, Brahmagnau, Brahmana-hutam,
Brahmaiva tena gantavyam, Brahma-karma-samadhina"

The above sloka basically says that Brahman/God is everything. It says that, in every action, the doer is God, the action itself is God, the thing that is being acted upon is God. It says that, one who cultivates this divine outlook, this vision of seeing God alone everywhere in everything, will attain God (knowledge of one's true nature as being one with God).

Krishna then tells Arjuna that selfless actions or actions performed as a sacrifice for the welfare of other living beings are essential. He tells him that such acts of sacrifice destroy one's sins and help in the attainment of God. He says that even this world is not designed for those who do not sacrifice for others, let alone the next world.

He gives examples of various actions that can be done to purify oneself, including yogic breathing exercises (pranayama), control of the senses (e.g. by eating moderately/with control) and charitable actions (such as donation of wealth to those in need). Such actions he says result in purification of the mind and acquisition of spiritual wisdom.

Krishna then emphasises the importance of acquiring spiritual wisdom, saying acquiring this is the highest sacrifice.

He declares that those who have great faith (in God and the spiritual path), who are dedicated to it, who control their senses, will acquire spiritual wisdom and thus experience great peace.

By contrast, He says, those who are full of doubts (about anything beyond material life), who have no spiritual knowledge or the desire to acquire it, destroy themselves. They do not experience happiness, either here or hereafter.

He concludes by telling Arjuna to use the sword of knowledge to destroy his doubts and take refuge in yoga (God and the spiritual path).

So to summarise chapter four, the key messages are:

I) Perform actions for the sake of others as a form of spiritual practice, as a sacrifice-- as this leads to purification of the mind (removal of selfishness) and attainment of spiritual knowledge, the knowledge of God.
Also perform action without ego, knowing that it is God acting through us, all our power and abilities come from God alone. We can do nothing without Him.

So actions should be:

1. Without attachment (without craving a specific result)

2. Selfless, an act of sacrifice for the wellbeing of others

3. Without egoism (the sense of doer-ship)

One should not feel that 'I' am doing the action. One should feel that I am able to act due to the grace of God; it is God acting through me and through everyone. We need to cultivate the feeling that we are instruments of God. This also means we should not feel that we are 'helping' anyone when we perform good acts. Rather, we should feel we are worshipping God who is present in other living beings when we perform noble acts.

Actions that meet the above three criteria become divine, karma-less actions (even good karma is binding, it keeps us in samsara-- we have to go beyond both good and bad karma). Such divine actions lead to the attainment of spiritual wisdom, of God. Not easy, but we have to try. God Himself will undoubtedly help us to perform such actions if we ask for His help in this.

II) Krishna is Ishwara, the Supreme Being-- He Himself acts without selfish desire, for the welfare of the world. He asks us to take inspiration from Him and thus attain Him, the state of spiritual wisdom and everlasting peace.

By the way, I am reminded of the famous prayer to Narayana based on point 1. above:

Kayena vacha, manas-endriyairva, buddhyat-manava, prakriti-svabhavat,
Karomi yadyat, sakalam parasmai, Narayana-yeti samarpayami.

This means:

"Whatever I say, whatever I do, with my mind, senses, intellect and my entire being, that I offer to God/Narayana as worship". This prayer perfectly encapsulates the goal of divine karma-less actions that we are trying to perform as spiritual seekers.

Sivananda says we should pray to God to request that He make us fit instruments for His purpose. The above prayer is one example, requesting God to accept what we do as His worship and asking Him to make us His instruments so that we may lead a divine life here on Earth and thus attain Him.

To be continued...

Om Namo Narayanaya
Om Krishnam vande Jagadgurum

Hari Aum Tat Sat