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A simple, modern translation and explanation of the Bhagavad Gita with shloka (verse) meaning

~ Gita Journey is a straightforward, modern, contemporary, basic explanation and commentary of the Bhagawat Gita, with Sanskrit to English word meanings. Each shloka (verse) is explained in detail. An introduction to the Bhagavad Gita along with study resources can also be found here. A summary of each chapter of the Bhagavad Gita is also included. It does not matter whether you are a student, a retiree, a professional, a mom, a dad or a housewife – no prior knowledge is needed.

A simple, modern translation and explanation of the Bhagavad Gita with shloka (verse) meaning

Category Archives: adharmam

Bhagavad Gita Verse 32, Chapter 18

20 Thursday Jun 2013

Posted by skr_2011 in 18.32, aavritaa, adharmam, buddhihi, chapter 18 verse 32, dharmam, iti, manyate, paartha, sarvaarthaanvipareetaan, taamasaa, taamasee

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adharmam dharmamiti yaa manyate tamasaavritaa |
sarvaarthaanvipareetaanshcha buddhihi saa paartha taamasee || 32 ||

 
That by which one understands adharma as dharma, and all things as completely contrary, that intellect is called taamasic.
 
adharmam : adharma
dharmam : dharma
iti : in this manner
yaa : that which
manyate : one understands
taamasaa : darkness
aavritaa : covered
sarvaarthaanvipareetaan : all things as completely contrary
cha : and
buddhihi : intellect
saa : that
paartha : O Paartha
taamasee : taamasic
 
Let’s imagine that there is a house with three rooms, each having a 100 W light bulb. One room is cleaned and dusted daily, so the bulb light shines brightly. All objects in this room are seen crystal clear. The second room is cleaned once every month, so the light from the bulb is partially covered by dust. Some objects in the room are seen clearly, but some are fuzzy. The third room has not been cleaned for several years, so the bulb delivers hardly any light at all, since it has acquired a thick coating of dust and dirt on it. We can barely see any object in this room.
 
Similarly, our intellect, which is like a light bulb, gets covered by the dirt of selfish desires. A raajasic intellect is like the bulb in the second room, with partially obscured light. But the taamasic intellect is like the bulb in the third room. The level of selfish desires is so great that the intellect cannot shine through. Shri Krishna says that such a such a person behaves in a totally ignorant and illogical fashion, confusing what is right with what is wrong. Vipareeta, the word used to describe such an intellect, means topsy turvy, contrary, reverse.
 
Where did such a high degree of selfishness come from? It is nothing but a bundle of vaasanaas, impressions that have been gathered since birth, or even through several lifetimes. It starts with the taamasic jnyaanam, the knowledge or worldview, that presents one object, person or situation as the sole goal of attainment, to the exclusion of everything else. It says, “money is the sole aim of life, everything else is secondary”. So the intellect responds : “let’s rob someone to get this money”, and in doing so, going against all logic, morality, ethics and civility. Each time such an action is committed, its strengthens the vaasanaa for stealing and harming people. Over time, a thick cloud of these harmful vaasanaas coat the intellect.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 31, Chapter 18

19 Wednesday Jun 2013

Posted by skr_2011 in 18.31, adharmam, akaaryam, ayathaavat, buddhihi, chapter 18 verse 31, dharmam, kaaryam, paartha, prajaanaati, raajasee, yayaa

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yayaa dharmamadharmam cha kaaryam chaakaaryameva cha |
ayathaavatprajaanaati buddhihi saa paartha raajasee || 31 ||

 
That by which one improperly understands the difference between dharma and adharma, what should be done and what should not be done, O Paartha, that intellect is raajasic.
 
yayaa : by which
dharmam : dharma
adharmam : adharma
cha : and
kaaryam : what should be done
cha : and
akaaryam : what should not be done
eva : also
cha : and
ayathaavat : improperly
prajaanaati : one understands
buddhihi : intellect
saa : that
paartha : O Paartha
raajasee : raajasic
 
A soldier goes through weeks of bootcamp training. A chef takes decades to hone her craft. Surgeons are in their thirties before they perform their first official operation. A musician can take a lifetime, and still have room to grow. In all these cases, we see that it takes years to fully understand what and how to perform actions in one’s career. Unless such knowledge is gained through a competent teacher, and years of one’s life are put in, the quality of our work output will never reach perfection.
 
Shri Krishna says that the science of action, the karma yoga, needs to be studied with similar dedication and guidance. Unless we learn what is our dharma, what is our duty towards this world, we will be swimming in an ocean of ignorance. Are our actions ethical? Are they carried out for selfish ends or are they performed selflessly? Are they entangling us further in worldly affairs, or are they taking us closer to liberation? We need to understand karma yoga, the science of action, to clearly understand all this.
 
Therefore, one who has not received this knowledge will always be unclear about what is dharma and what is not. Consequently, they will always be confused whether to act or not. Confusion will creep in if we forget our dharma and get swayed by egoism and attachment. Arjuna’s attachment to his family members, the Kauravas, triggered this confusion with regards to his duty as a warrior. Shri Krishna had to teach him the science of karma yoga to remove this confusion. So then, whenever our intellect gets confused about whether to act or not, we can assume that it is raajasic, tinged with selfishness.

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