(This is a continuation of the previous Blog post 'Bhagawad Gita - What is in it for you')
Why
gain 'Right Knowledge'?
Sri Krishna starts
the Bhagawad Gita giving a very clear indication of what happens when one lacks
right knowledge and perspectives:
asochyaan anya sochyastwam
prajnaa vaadaamcha bhaashase” B.G Ch .2 Verse 11)
In the absence of
right knowledge and perspectives one would "grieve upon what not be
grieved about and become eloquent in justifying the grief arising out of
delusion". Therefore in the absence
of right knowledge we will become overly concerned about what we shouldn’t be
concerning about and as a result get mired in unnecessary confusion
What
is 'Right Knowledge'
There are three components for 'right
Knowledge'. They are addressed in the different chapters of Bhagawad Gita as
below.
What is the real nature of self?
Sri Krishna
initially uses the sanskrit word 'dehi' , meaning the one who occupies the body
of a living being, to refer to the self. Later on he uses the word 'kshetranja'
, meaning the 'knower of the field' to refer to the same. And finally, he uses
the term 'aatma' to refer to self, meaning the single, undivided presence that appears as soul in all living beings. The key point to note is that the real nature of
self is not even the 'I' consciousness but the pure presence that enlivens the body-mind complex, which is described in Vedanta as 'existence, knowledge and
bliss' (Sat-Chit-Aananda)
"dehi nityam avadhyoyam
dehe sarvasya bhaarata" B.G Ch. 2 Verse 30
"The soul that
occupies the body of living beings is eternal and imperishable"
"achedyoyam adaahyoyam
akledyo soshya eva cha
nitya sarvagata sthaanu
achaloyam sanaatanah
avyaktoyam achinthyoyam
avikaaryoyam uvhyate" " B.G Ch. 2 Verse 24
& 25
"(This soul
that is) indestructible by weapons as well as fire, water or wind, is eternal,
all pervading, unchanging, unmoved (transcends space) and ancient (transcends
time). This self that is not available for sensory perception, nor the conception of the mind is said to never
undergo any modifications"
upadrashtaanumanthaa cha
bhartaa bhoktaa maheswarah
paramaatmeti chaapyukto
dehesmin purusha parah B.G Ch 13 Verse 23
"This indweller
of body is in fact transcendental and is referred to as the supreme self
(pramaatma) who the same time that he is the Lord, the cause, the ruler and the
enjoyer of the field of experience remains as an unaffected witness to it"
The above, in
summary, is Bhagawad Gita's view on the nature of self.
Who is
Ishvara (God) and what is his nature?
All through Bhagawad
Gita, Sri Krishna is addressed as 'Bhagavaan' and his words are identified as
'Bhagavaan uvaacha', 'thus spoke Bhagavaan'. The literal translation of the
Sanskrit word Bhagavaan is 'the resplendent
one'. But there is also a deeper explanation for this word, which is 'one who
knows about the emergence and dissolution of the created world'. The
'ishwara' of Bhagawad Gita is the
permanence that transcends the impermanence of the creation.
ethad yonini bhutaani
sarvaanityupadhaaraya
aham krisnasya jagathah
prabhava pralyasthadaa" B.G Ch 7 Verse 6
"This (Ishwara) is the origin for all the beings and as in it are they sustained. I am
everything in this world including their emergence and dissolution"
mattha paratharam naanyathu
kinchidasthi dhananjaya
mayi sarvamidam protham
sutre maniganaa iva" B.G ch 7 Verse 7
"O Dhanajaya,
there is nothing that exists beyond me. In me are all these strung, like the beads on a necklace"
Now, a question can
come up as to whether the Ishwara is an insentient principle from which all
these has come. To alleviate this doubt,
Krishna describes his nature as:
gatir bhartaa prabhu saakshi
nivaasa saranam suhrut
prabhava pralayasthaanam
nidhaanam bheejam avyayam B.G Ch 9 Verse 18
"(Ishwara is)
the path (of spiritual evolution), the upholder (of the universe), the Lord
(who is enforcer of the rules), the
eternal witness (to passage of time), the place of rest, the refuge and the
benignant friend (to the seeker). (Ishwara is)
the place of origin, place of existence and the place of dissolution as
well as the undiminishing cause for this creation"
And, finally in the
eleventh chapter of Bhagawad Gita, Arjuna is blessed with the vision of Ishwara
in all his splendor.
divi surya sahasrasya
bhaved yugapthuthitha
yadi bhaa sadrisi saasyaad
bhaasathasya mahaatmanah B.G Ch 11 Verse 12
"That great
being (of Ishwara) stood shining forth in a splendor that equaled the glory of
thousand suns rising simultaneously on the horizon"
And, where do we
find such an Ishwara in the world?
ishwara Sarva Bhutaanaam
hriddese Arjuna thishtathi B.G Ch 18 Verse 61
"The Ishwara
dwells in the heart of every single being"
samoham sarva bhuteshu B.G Ch 9 Verse 29
"I am equally
present in all beings"
The above, in
summary, is the view of Bhagawad Gita on the nature of Ishwara.
What
is this world and what are we doing here?
Of the many words in
Sanskrit Thesaurus for 'world', the one that fully encapsulates the nature of
the world is 'jagat' which means 'that which comes into being and vanishes'
(jaaayate gachate iti jagat'). Only when
the impermanence of the worldly matter is well entrenched in the mind of a
seeker can he follow the advice:
aagamaapaayino anithyah
Thaam thithikshaswa bhaaratha B.G Ch 2 Verse 14
"(The worldly
experiences) are impermanent, coming into being and vanishing. Therefore, O
Bhaaratha, bear them with great
fortitude"
Sri Krishna uses two
other sanskrit terms, Prakriti and Kshetra, in Bhagawad Gita to refer to world.
The English word 'Creation' owes its root to the Sankrit word 'Kru'. Prakriti
is generally translated as 'Nature' but the literal translation is 'well created'.
Bhagawad Gita offers a definition of Prakriti in the seventh chapter, in terms
of what its composition is.
bhumiraaponalo vayuh
kham mano budhirevacha
ahankaara ideeyam me
bhinnaa prakritirashtatha B.G Ch. 7 , verse 4
"Earth, Water,
Fire, Air, Space, Mind, Intellect and the 'I' Consciousness are the eight
aspects of this Prakriti of mine"
From the gross
physical sense, Prakriti comprises the three states of matter, energy and
space. From the subtle non-physical sense, it comprises the 'I' consciousness
as well as the emotional and thinking powers.
If this is Prakriti,
then the question that arises is, are
each one of us part of Prakriti or of something else? Here is Sri Krishna's answer
to the question:
idam sariram kauntheya
kshetram ityabhidiyate
etad yo vethi tham praahuhu
kshetranja iti tad vidah B.G Ch. 13, Verse 2
"O Kauntheya,
this mind-body complex is said to be the field (prakriti). The one who is aware
of this mind-body complex, is the 'knower of the field' (or Purusha)"
Here is a very quick
way to distinguish between what in us is
prakriti and what is purusha. Everything in us that we can address as
'mine' (e.g. my body, my mind, my intellect, my consciousness etc.) is
prakriti. What we cannot do as such and can only address as 'I' is Purusha.
What does this
Purusha do?
purusha prakritisthohi
bhungthe prakritijaan gunaan
kaaranam gunasangosya
sadasadyonijanmasu B.G Ch 13 Verse 22
"The Purusha,
with its association to Prakriti, experiences the qualia (of Satwa, Rajas and
Tamo gunas). Experience by the
Purusha of the qualia acts as a
cause for the Purusha to be associated again with aspects of prakriti
that produce good (satwa guna dominant)
or evil (tamo guna dominant) experiences"
The qualia of the
experiences that Prakriti delivers is classified into three, viz., Satwa
(enlightening), Rajas (empowering) and Tamas (deluding). It is not necessary
that every experience is exclusively one of these three, but rather is
dominated by one of them. For Purusha to free itself from being drawn
continuously into this endless chain of experiences, the first action is to
associate more with Satwa dominant experiences and minimize the tamas domoinant
experience. Bhagawad Gita has a lengthy discussion on this topic in the
sixteenth and seventeenth chapters.
What does this world
of cause and effect look like? To answer this question, Bhagawad Gita paints
this very beautiful, though somewhat cryptic,
picture in the Fifteenth chapter:
urdhamoolam adha saakham
aswatham praahuravyayam
chandaamsi ysya parnaani
yastam veda sa veda vid B.G Ch 15, Verse 1
"This
(universe) is said to be like a never-diminishing Peepal tree that stands
upside down with its (single) root on top and (multitude of) branches spreading
downward. Its leaves are the verses of Veda. He who understands this is the
(true) knower of Veda"
The enquiry into the
root of the cause and effect chain of this universe leads to one single primary
cause, which is the Brahman. From that root has sprung forth this world, with
its many branches, each of which brings forth more branches. Though there is
birth and death in it, in totality, this universe doesn't diminish but only
transforms from one manifestation to the other. At the end of the branches are
the leaves which are an end in itself, not causing more effects come forth.
And, these leaves are the verses of veda
containing the knowledge of the self, Ishwara and the world.
To better appreciate
the beauty of this metaphor, please see
below a picture of the leaf of a Peepal tree. Every leaf starts
from a single stem, expands in the middle and trails off into a single point. Likewise, the chant of OM, starts with a singular tone, expands and then trails into silence. Only in that silence is the ultimate truth gets eloquently declared.
Why
should one care to know?
Sri Krishna offers a
great reason, again in the thirteenth chapter,
on why one should care to know about the Self, Ishwara, the world and
the inter-relationships between them.
ya evam vethi purusham
prakritim cha gunai saha
sarvathaa varthamaanopi
na sa bhuyobhi jaataye B.G Ch 13, Verse 24
"He who comes
to understand about the purusha (the indweller) and Prakriti (the world) along
with Gunaas (the qualia that defines the type of experience), and is (able to
abide in that) understanding continuously at all time, he is not born again"
The goal is to end
this apparently eternal cycle of experience that are powered by the experience
of Guna and the chain of cause and effects. And, this goal is achieved when one
is established in the Right knowledge.
