5. Gita Reflections

Gita Reflections

vO;Drknhfu Hkwrkfu

O;Dre/;kfu HkkjrA vO;Drfu/kukU;so r= dk ifjnsoukAA

(Gita 2/28)

The Secrets of Manifest & Unmanifest Swamini Samatananda

Beings unmanifest in the beginning, and unmanifest again in their end seem to be manifest in the middle, O Bharata. What then is there to grieve about?

Gita Reflections

In the Second chapter of the Geeta Bhagwan Krishna gives various philosophical and logical reasons as to why there is no reason for Arjuna to grieve. As we saw in the first chapter of the Gita how Arjuna is so overpowered by grief that it renders him helpless and incapacitated to see the facts of the given situation. He comes to the verge of giving up all actions and escaping from a situation which demanded firm action for the sake of dharma and truth. In such a scenario, when Arjuna realises his helplessness and ignorance in understanding his dharma, he humbly surrenders at the Feet of Sri Krishna and requests him to enlighten him. Seeing the utter grief and despondency that has taken over Arjuna’s mind and intellect Bhagwan Krishna very compassionately enlightens him at various levels as to why there is no scope for Arjuna to grieve and why its is fully justified that Arjuna pick up his Gaandiva and get ready to fight the war.

Sri Krishna first reveals to Arjuna that the Atma of all individual Jivas is eternal and imperishable. It is beyond the limitations of time, space and object. Therefore if Arjuna fears that his Grandsire, his Acharya and his entire clan, will die and he will become instrumental in bringing about their death then this thought is baseless as the Atma is never born and neither does it die. In fact

Bhagwan says that there never was a time when Arjuna ceased to exist, nor did Bhagwan himself or any other person ever ceased to exist. They were always there as the pure existence, self efful-

Gita Reflections

gent blissful life principle.

Further to this philosophical understanding, keeping in mind the common man’s uderstanding where Arjuna himself too stood, Bhagwan goes on to say that even if you look at it from the body’s point of view, even if for you today the body is real even then O Arjuna! there is no scope for you to grieve. Bhagwan Krishna then goes on to give a vivid explanation as to why even from the point of view of the body which as though appears to be real, there is no justification for grief. In fact the physical manifestation is a blessing that reveals the the truth behind all manifestations.

Avyaktaadini bhootaani:

The Geetacharya says all that is manifested today was unmanifest before. All names and forms have basically risen from the ‘Unmanifest’. This ‘Unmanifest’ is not a void or nothingness but it is the pottential life principle in its seed form which is blissful and eternal. Unfortunately, the Jiva being ignorant is totally unaware of the divine unmanifest. This is a consequence of our own gross vision. Whenever there is a manifestation, the manifestation being so beautiful, unique and innocent, one gets so carried away by its physical form, that very rarely a person is curious to know from where has this beautiful form come from? How is it throbbing with life? How is it an embodiment of joy? When ever a child is born how many people are curious to know who the Divine Creator is? In fact, if we were to look at any manifestation, be it a

Gita Reflections

human being, animals, birds, trees, mountains, rivers or even the five elements everything aroud us that has manifested, tells us the story of the ‘Unmanifest’. But, sadly we are so obsessed with our desire to want and enjoy everything that is, that we fail to recognise and appreciate the Creator and his Maya Shakti which has the pottential seeds of the entire creation. Here Bhagwan Krishna is pointing out to that Unmanifest which is our ‘home’ from where we all have come. This home of the Unmanifest is divine

and complete. Knowing and awakening in this ‘Cause’ is what a human being should aim for. Getting thoughtlessly carried away with the manifestation is bondage and realising the Truth from where everything has manifested is the direction of Moksha.

Vyakta madhyaani Bharat:

All that has manifested is an in-between play of the waves rising from the Unmanifest and going back into the Unmanifest. Standing on the beach we often see the continuous play and dance of the waves. A wave is born, it slowly grows, reaches its peak and then as though vanishes as it reaches the shores. So also, all living beings are born, they go through a process of growth, reach the peak of life and its energy and then slowly start to decay and then one day they die. This birth and death is nothing but manifesting from the unmanifest and then going back into the unmanifest. This entire play of Maya is a show where in we all have come. The knowledge of the Causal Truth does not deny us from enjoying this show of God. In fact the world is a beautiful place,

Gita Reflections

it is our privelege to be here. We should make the most of it by knowing this world, interacting with the world, serving everyone around, giving love to all, but the only important thing is to be aware of the ‘Cause’ from where we have come, that cause being our very own nature of pure existence, self effulgent bliss.

Avyakt nidhanaanyeva:

Bhagwan says that all that has manifested, one day it all must go back into the unmanifest. This is the law of creation. Everything moves like the spokes of a wheel. Unmanifest-manifest-Unmanifest. Not being aware of our real address we get deluded by the physical names and forms. We come to see ourselves as limited and get entangled in the cycle of desires and fulfillment of these desires. Have a holistic understanding of the physical world and it’s substratum.

Tatra ka paridevana:

Knowing this truth of life where is the scope of grief or lamenting for anything. Grief, happiness and sorrow is the price that we pay for our ignorance, our individual likes and dislikes, our non-acceptance of situations. As long as the Jiva exists so long we will continue to lament and grieve. Therefore awake to the Truth.

- 33The Art Of Man Making

Pleading For a Life of Service

P.P. Gurudev Swami Chinmayanandaji

The Art of Man Making

When the young man of action was told that he must “fulfil his duties at least for the guidance of the world” (lok sangrahamevaapi), he might be tempted to wonder how his personal actions will affect the world of man.

Krishna explains, Whatever a great man does, that initiated by others. What he demostrated by his actions, that alone people follow. We, as a generation today, do not realize how our licentious actions are leaving behind a trail for the coming generations to follow. The majority of people only initiate. They have not the originality to plan and act independently. “Whatever great men do, that is followed by others” (yad yad acharti shreshthah tat tadeva itaro janah))

And everyone is great” (shreshthah) to someone at least. Thus, even an uneducated beggar is shreshthah to his children. The more educated we are, the more people look up to us. There is an increase in load of responsibility upon the l:eaders” to live a chaste, pure and ideal life-else others will blindly follow them, and the entre community will be sharettered with internal disintegration and moral dissipation. History text books scream the truth of this law of life in the stories of the mighty men of excesses and their times.

In short, moral beauty, cultural glory, national integrity, creative productivity, disciplined progress and such other virtues must always come from the top to the base of the social ladder. Revolu-

The Art of Man Making

tion comes from the bottom to the top.; evolution proceeds from the top and seeps down to the lowest level.

“Whatever the great one (shreshthapurushah) demonstrates in his life (sa yat pramanam kurute), that alone the world follows” (lokastadanu vartate)-meaning, not what the leaders say, but what they do alone is demonstrative enough for the masses to follow.

Krishna telling about himself says that even though he has nothing to gain in the world , yet he keeps on tirelessly working. “Else people follow my way of life will learn to idle away their days, and destroy themselves with mental dissipations.” If Krishna is considered as the pure Self, he must continuously, by his presence, illumine all physical, mental and intellectual experiences....else “I will be the cause for confusions” (sankarasya cha karta syaam) in individuals and “of distruction of these people” in the community. Krishna says, Just as the unwise act with attachment, O Bharata, so should the wise, wanting to guide the world, act without attachment. Let the wise one, without selfish desires and vanity, act in the same tempo of sincerity, self-application and intense zeal in the service of the world. Voluntary work in service programmes must be undertaken and worked out with as much careful efficiancy and diligent application as we work for any worldly profits.

Here an enthusiast may immediately be tempted to declare that all selfish actions should end. Krishna insists that such confusions should not be created in the mind of the immature who are now acting vigorously under the compulsion of their ego and

The Art of Man Making

desires. He says, One should not unsettle the understanding of the ignorant, who are attached to action. The wise must himself steadily act, and should engage the ignorant in all work.

The majority work enthusiastically under the impulse of their ego-sense for the fulfillment of their desires. The dynamism of activity is a sacred force and so we should not halt them in their work and confuse their minds. Once they stop their efforts they will sink into sad inertia-into Tamas. The wise man should join them and working with them slowly, by example, make them work selflessly for the service of the community. The youth of a nation should exemplify themselves in the purity of their actions and in the vigour of their efforts; others watching them will come to imitate them slowly-without losing the tempo of their daily efforts.

Krishna declares the difference in the actions in the wise and the unwise. All actions are performed by the modes of the mind (Prakriti). The fool whose mind is deluded by egoism thinks, “I am the doer”.

Actions are expressions of Vasanas, and the quality of Vasanas determines the quality of performance at the body level. But the ignorant one, identifying with the thoughts and the body (ahamkar vimoodhaatma), considers that “I am the doer” (kartaham iti manyate). Hence he is ever tied down to his work-with no freedom to act well and enjoy fully.

One who has the true sinight into the modes of the mind and

The Art of Man Making

the actions precipitated by them, understanding that Gunas as “sense-organs” move among Gunas as “objects”-he no longer gets attached to them-this, declares the Lord, is all the difference. A child may play with a balloon-its father may also play. When the balloon ursts, the child cries, the father roars with laughter; the child plays in ignorance’ while the father plays with the ‘knowledge’ of the perishable balloon; he was expecting this to happen at any moment.

Similarly the wise man knows full well that the Gunas as ‘sense-organs’ play among the Gunas as ‘sense-objects’ . The Vasanas determine both our equipments of enjoyment and the object of enjoyment. So he who realizes this truth is never caught in the infatuation of the world game (na sajjate).

The Lord emphasises Those who are completely deluded by the modes of their mind (Gunas) remain attached to those Gunas and their actions; the man of perfect knowledge should not unsettle the people of dull wit and imperfect knowledge. This was already said by Krishna earlier and he now repeats it for emphasis.

As a recapitulation we may enumerate the main points of the arguments: (1) At least for the guidance of the world every educated and cultured man must dynamically act in the field of selfless service. (2) The Lord has no duty to perform, yet He does work to keep the world in order. (3) A wise man should in no way discourage others from the per-

The Art of Man Making

formanc of the duties by renouncing actions himself or by calling upon men to do so. On the other hand, the wise man should perform all duties himself and encourage and inspire all others in the community to do so. (4) A man of wisdom should never unsettle men attached to vigorous activity by a sudden renunciation of all their duties.