Category Archives: dhananjaya

Bhagavad Gita Verse 29, Chapter 18

17 Monday Jun 2013

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buddherbhedam dhrityeshchaiva gunatastrividham shrunu |
prochyamaanamasheshena prithaktvena dhananjaya || 29 ||
 
According to gunaas, intellect and fortitude are said to be of three types also. Listen to this, completely and with its distinctions, O Dhananjaya.
 
buddhehe : intellect
bhedam : types
dhritehe : fortitude
cha : and
eva : also
gunataha : according to gunaas
trividham : three
shrunu : listen
prochyamaanam : are said
asheshena : completely
prithaktvena : with their distinctions
dhananjaya : O Dhananjaya
 
To recap the teaching so far, Shri Krishna provided a three fold classification of knowledge, action and the doer. Jnyaanam or knowledge prompts an individual to perform an action. The kartaa or doer is the state of mind while performing the action. Now, although the knowledge or jnyaanam aspect supplies the doer with the target of action, it does not prescribe a plan of action as to how to get that object. Therefore, the buddhi, the intellect, gives the course of action.
 
Once the intellect has determined the course of action, the doer needs to hold on to that course of action, and not arbitrarily get distracted or change its tactics. The quality of holding on to something in spite of obstacles is known as dhriti or fortitude. Shri Krishna says that intellect and fortitude are part of Prakriti’s gunaas. So they also are divided into three types. He proceeds to describe them in the next six shlokas. He also emphasizes that he will give a complete description, without leaving anything out.
 
So then, jnyaanam is the goal, buddhi is the plan and dhriti is adherence to the plan. Even in our daily life we see that different people can get the same outcome through different plans. And some people fail in face of obstacles, while some people persevere. Some people see a roadblock as an opportunity to think outside the box, whereas some people are completely flummoxed. Understanding how to plan and how to stick to the plan has benefits in the material path as well as the spiritual.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 9, Chapter 12

18 Tuesday Dec 2012

Posted by in 12.9, aaptum, abhyaasayogena, atha, chapter 12 verse 9, chittam, dhananjaya, icchaa, maam, mayi, na, samaadhaatum, shaknoshi, sthiram, tataha

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atha chittam samaadhaatum na shaknoshi mayi sthiram |
abhyaasayogena tato maamicchaaptum dhananjaya || 9 ||
 
If you are unable to steadfastly establish your mind in me, then seek to attain me through the yoga of repeated practice, O Dhananjaya.
 
atha : if
chittam : mind
samaadhaatum : establish
na : not
shaknoshi : able
mayi : in me
sthiram : steadfastly
abhyaasayogena : yoga of repeated practice
tataha : then
maam : me
icchaa : seek
aaptum : attain
dhananjaya : O Dhananjaya
 
A student of music does not become a maestro overnight. While watching a concert, we may admire how easily he can handle complex passages on the piano, but we know that the prowess is a result of years, maybe even decades, of repeated practice. In his book “Outliers”, author Malcolm Gladwell emphasizes the “10,000 hour rule”. The key to success in any field is a matter of practising a task for 10,000 hours. Here, Shri Krishna says that if we are unable to constantly fix our mind in Ishvara, we should set aside some time daily and practice doing so.
 
In the sixth chapter, Arjuna admits to Shri Krishna that it is very difficult for someone to keep their mind in Ishvara all the time, and asks for a solution to this problem. There as well, Shri Krishna recommends the technique of “abhyaasa” or repeated practice. In this technique, we first choose an object of worship such as the image of a deity, a spiritual text or a mantra. Then, following the instructions in the sixth chapter, we set aside a fixed time and place every day to meditate upon the object of worship. Whenever our thoughts stray away, we gently bring them back so that we are only thinking about the object of worship. This yoga is known as raaja yoga, ashtaanga yoga or dhyaana yoga.
 
Note that abhyaasa is not possible without its counterpart vairaagya or dispassion towards the material world. Without reducing our stock of material desires, it is virtually impossible to sit in meditation. Each vaasanaa, each unfulfilled desire has the potential to produce a series of thoughts in our mind. When we sit for meditation, these unfulfilled desires start competing with each other to produce thoughts that distract us from the object of worship. Therefore, Shri Krishna advises us to follow abhyaasa and vairaagya together.
 
Now, with the practice of dhyaana yoga, we only think of Ishvara for a brief period of time each day. How should we continue our spiritual practice throughout the rest of the day? Or, our stock of desires may not even let us sit in one place. Then how should we worship Ishvara? Shri Krishna addresses this next.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 14, Chapter 11

28 Sunday Oct 2012

Posted by in 11.14, abhaashata, avishtaha, chapter 11 verse 14, devam, dhananjaya, hrishtaromaaha, kritaanjalihi, pranamya, saha, shirasaa, tataha, vismaya

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tataha sa vismayaavishto hrishtaromaa dhananjaya |
pranamya shirasaa devam kritaanjalirabhaashata || 14 ||
 
Thereafter, filled with bewilderment, his hair standing on end, Dhananjaya, with folded hands, bowed his head to the lord and began to speak.
 
tataha : thereafter
saha : he
vismaya : bewilderment
avishtaha : filled with
hrishtaromaaha : hair standing on end
dhananjaya : Dhananjaya
pranamya : bowed
shirasaa : his head
devam : to the lord
kritaanjalihi : with folded hands
abhaashata : said
 
So far, Arjuna was reeling under the shock of viewing the cosmic form of Ishvara. Sanjaya paints a wonderful picture of Arjuna’s reaction to this earth-shattering event. Filled with awe and astonishment, Arjuna’s body reacted with goose bumps. Once the extent of the shock receded to some extent, he gained back his faculties and mustered the energy to start speaking again.
 
Another aspect of this shloka is revealed by the phrase “bowed his head to the lord”. Arjuna, scion of the great Kuru dynasty was a proud warrior, one of the finest archers in the land. There were few instances in his life where he faced a situation that would have humbled him. Seeing the entire universe in one tiny corner of the cosmic form put his accomplishments in the right perspective, taking all his pride away. He realized that he was nothing, his greatness was nothing compared to the glory of that infinite Ishvara.
 
So whenever we feel we have accomplished something great, whenever our ego starts to puff up, or even when we feel our personal problems are weighing down upon us, we should do what Arjuna did: fold our hands and bow our head to Ishvara. Our feats and problems are tiny compared to the expanse and power of Ishvara’s universe.
 
Arjuna begins to describe Ishvara’s cosmic form in the next shloka.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 37, Chapter 10

07 Sunday Oct 2012

Posted by in 10.37, aham, api, asmi, chapter 10 verse 37, dhananjaya, kaveenaam, kavihi, muneenaam, paandavaanaam, ushanaa, vaasudevaha, vrishneenaam, vyaasaha

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vrishneenaam vaasudevosmi paandavaanaam dhananjaya |
muneenaamapyaham vyaasaha kaveenaamushanaa kavihi || 37 ||
 
Among the Vrishnis, I am Vaasudeva and among the Paandavas, I am Dhananjaya. Also, among the sages I am Vyaasa and among the seers I am Ushanaa the seer.
 
vrishneenaam : among the Vrishnis
vaasudevaha : Vaasudeva
asmi : I am
paandavaanaam : among the Paandavas
dhananjaya : I am Dhananjaya
muneenaam : among the sages
api : also
aham : I am
vyaasaha : Vyaasa
kaveenaam : among the seers
ushanaa : Ushanaa
kavihi : the seer
 
One of the many names of Shri Krishna is Vaarshaneya, which means one who is born in the clan of Vrishni. The Vrishnis are said to have descended from king Yadu who started the major branch of the Chandravanshis, the lunar dynasty. Being the most prominent of the Vrishni clan, Shri Krishna declares himself as Ishvara’s manifestation.
 
The Bhagavad Gita could never have been possible without Arjuna asking the questions, and without Sage Vyaasa writing the Mahaabhaarata epic. In that regard, Shri Krishna declares both of them as Ishvara’s divine manifestations. Furthermore, both Arjuna and Vyaasa were prominent in their own right. Arjuna was the only undefeated warrior in the Mahaabhaarata war, and also the greatest archer of his time. Sage Vyaasa is credited with having divided the Vedas into four branches, and also with writing the major Puraanaas and the Brahma Sutra.
 
The word “Kavi” means one who is a visionary, one who can foresee what is coming due to the mastery of his academic prowess. Ushana, also known as Shukraachaarya, is revered in the Indian tradition as one of the foremost gurus or teachers. He learnt the technique of reviving the dead from Lord Shiva, also known as Sanjeevani vidya. He later became the guru of the asuraas or demons, but never inherited any of their traits. Shukra-vaar, the day of his birth, is the name used for Friday in India. Shri Krishna declares Shukraachaarya as Ishvara’s expression.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 9, Chapter 9

04 Saturday Aug 2012

Posted by in 9.9, aaseenam, asaktam, cha, chapter 9 verse 9, dhananjaya, karmaani, karmasu, maam, na, nibandhanti, taani, teshu, udaaseenavat

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na cha maam taani karmaani nibandhanti dhananjaya |
udaaseenavadaaseenamasaktam teshu karmasu || 9 ||
 
Nor do those actions bind me, O Dhananjaya. I remain as though indifferent and unattached to those actions.
 
na : not
cha : and
maam : my
taani : those
karmaani : actions
nibandhanti : bind
dhananjaya : O Dhananjaya
udaaseenavat : as though indifferent
aaseenam : sit
asaktam : unattached
teshu : those
karmasu : in actions
 
Earlier in the chapter, Shri Krishna addressed several misconceptions that we have about Ishvara. He asserted that Ishvara cannot be contained in any one part of the universe, in any one object. He also asserted that we need to wait for a long time to Ishvara. Ishvara is accessible at this very moment. What is missing is knowledge that enables us to recognize Ishvara in everything.
 
In this shloka, Shri Krishna addresses another misconception of Ishvara, that he has a personal agenda in each and everyone’s destiny. To that end, Shri Krishna clarifies that Ishvara delegates the functioning of the universe to the laws of Prakriti. He does not personally get involved, nor does he claim credit for the creation, destruction and sustenance of billions of beings in this universe.
 
Our Puranaas contains several stories about the trinity of Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva who are charged with the responsibilities of creation, sustenance and dissolution respectively. They are aided by their consorts. Saraswati provides the knowledge needed for creation. Lakshmi provides the wealth needed for sustenance. Parvati provides the power needed for dissolution. The stories may portray that these deities personally take effort to perform their duties, but at the universal level, they are all part of the fully automatic system of Prakriti.
 
Therefore, the lessons for us here is that we should follow karma yoga because it is a universal law. Like Ishvara, who runs the universe while knowing that it is Prakriti’s handiwork, we too should perform our duties in a spirit of vairagya or detachment, knowing that Prakriti is running everything. If we worry about who will get the credit for our actions, then we will get bound, taking us further away for liberation.
 
So then, how should we use this knowledge to refine our vision towards the world? This is explained next.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 7, Chapter 7

03 Sunday Jun 2012

Posted by in 7.7, anyat, asti, chapter 7 verse 7, dhananjaya, idam, iva, kinchit, maniganaaha, mataha, mayi, na, parataram, protam, sarvam, sootre

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mataha parataram naanyatkinchidasti dhananjaya |
mayi sarvamidam protam sootre maniganaa iva || 7 ||
 
Beyond me there is none other, not even a little. Like beads are pervaded by string, all this is in me.
 
mataha : my
parataram : beyond
na : no
anyat : none other
kinchit : even a little
asti : is
dhananjaya : O Dhananjaya
mayi : in me
sarvam : all
idam : this
protam : pervaded
sootre : on a string
maniganaaha : beads
iva : like
 
In this chapter, Shri Krishna urges us to see Ishvara as the ultimate cause of everything in this universe. To illustrate this point, he poetically portrayed Ishvara as the womb or the seed of everything, enabling us to develop the vision by which we can see Ishvara in everything. In this shloka, he makes us leap to a whole new level of vision by which we can not just see Ishvara in everything, but see everything in Ishvara.
 
Shri Krishna addresses Arjuna as the dhananjaya, the conquerer of wealth, and makes a bold statement. He says that other than Ishvara, there is nothing in this universe. This means Ishvara alone exists in the universe. Other than him, there is nothing else. Through a process that will be taken up in the next topic, we see this universe of names and forms instead of Ishvara.
 
The shloka provides a necklace as an illustration. This necklace comprises a string and a series of knots in the string, which appear as beads. So, if we were to view this necklace, we would register it as a string and beads. But our intellect would tell us that it is nothing but the string with some modifications in the form of beads.
 
Similarly, Shri Krishna says that Ishvara pervades the entire universe just like this string pervades the entire necklace. When we apply our intellect, the necklace and the beads disappear, as it were, and only the string remains. Each bead contains the string, but the string contains all the beads. In other words, the string is all-pervading. With the knowledge that Shri Krishna imparts in this chapter, we should strive for piercing through the world of names and forms and only seeing Ishvara.
 
Is there a practical advantage to viewing the world in this manner? If we can begin to develop this vision, then all our so-called problems with objects, people and situations will disappear, because we will realize that the ultimate cause of everything is Ishvara. If everything is Ishvara, there is no concept of any duality, including joy or sorrow. It is all Ishvara.
 
Shri Krishna understands that such a vision is hard to develop. Our vision is used to seeing the tangible and not the intangible. So in order to help us in this path, he gives us some pointers that will help us see his glories or vibhootis.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 41, Chapter 4

02 Friday Mar 2012

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yogasannyastakarmaanam jnyaanasanchinnasanshayam |
aatmavantam na karmaani nibhandanti dhananjaya || 41 ||

One who has renounced actions through yoga, one who has severed all doubts through knowledge, such a self-poised person is not bound by actions, O conqueror of wealth.

yoga : yoga
sannyasta: one who has renounced
karmaanam : actions
jnyaana : knowledge
sanchinna : severed
sanshayam : all doubts
aatmavantam : self-poised
na : do not
karmaani : actions
nibhandanti : bind
dhananjaya : O conqueror of wealth

Shri Krishna now begins to conclude the fourth chapter with this shloka. He re-emphasizes that one who follows the path of karma-sanyaasa, or renunciation of action, is liberated from all bondage. He refers to Arjuna as Dhananjaya, which means conqueror of wealth, because Arjuna had accumulated massive wealth from conquests of kingdoms. Also, he had gained wealth in the form of knowledge from Shri Krishna.

One who has attained the knowledge of self-realization acts without a sense of doership and enjoyership of action. It is important to note that renunciation of action refers to renunciation of doership and enjoyership, not renunciation of the action itself. Actions continue to happen. Furthermore, this yoga or prescribed methodology needs to be learned from a teacher, it is difficult to learn on one’s own.

Shri Krishna also reiterates the knowledge of self realization dispels all doubts in the seeker’s mind. Till this knowledge is attained, doubts such as who is the doer of action, who is the enjoyer of results, what is the relation of the self to action will remain. One who has gained this knowledge and dispelled all such doubts is called “aatmavant” or one who has gained knowledge of our own self.

A classic example here is that the space in a pot thinks that it is the pot. Once it knows that it is space, it immediately realizes that it is not subject to modifications like big or small, brown or white, moving or stationary and so on. From that point on, any change to the pot will not affect the space in the pot. Similarly, once our doubts vanish, our actions will not bind us.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 49, Chapter 2

15 Tuesday Nov 2011

Posted by in 2.49, anviccha, avaram, buddhau, buddhiyoga, chapter 2 verse 49, dhananjaya, doorena, hi, karma, kripanaah, phalahetavaha, sharanam

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doorena hyavaram karma buddhiyogaaddhananjaya |
buddhau sharanamanviccha kripanaah phalahetavaha || 49 ||

Selfish action is far lower than unselfish action, O Dhananjaya. Seek refuge in the knowledge of equanimity. Pitiable are those who are motivated by results.

doorena hi : far
avaram : lower
karma : selfish action
buddhiyogaat : unselfish action
dhananjaya : O Dhananjaya
buddhau : knowledge of equanimity
sharanam : refuge
anviccha : seek
kripanaah : pitiable
phalahetavaha : those motivated by results

So far, Shri Krishna described the performance of unselfish actions while maintaining equanimity of mind. In this shloka, he expresses his views on individuals acting with a selfish motive. To indicate his level of contempt for them, he calls them “pitiable”.

Lets say there is a large family living under one roof. Everyone has a part to play: some people work to bring in money, some are students, some take care of the house etc. Now, there is a large TV in the living room and anyone in the family can watch it. But, if one person starts monopolizing the TV and prevents others from watching it, what would you call that person? Wouldn’t you call him selfish and pitiable? Well, the world we live in is no different than this large family. Any selfishly motivated actions eventually causes more harm than good.

Now, all of us will agree that acting in an unselfish manner is a good thing, in theory. But we very rarely practice it in our lives. Why is this so? The most common argument is that if we become unselfish, other selfish people will take advantage of us and we will probably “lose” in life.

So how do we address this argument? Acting with an unselfish attitude does not mean that we become weak-minded wimps. If someone is obstructing us from performing our svadharma, we should deal with that individual in a firm manner appropriately. And if we truly practice equanimity of mind while performing actions, we will respond to the situation using our intellect and not our emotions. Therefore we will not do something rash and harmful to the situation at hand.

Therefore, the teaching of Karmayoga encourages us to slowly change our attitude to one of unselfish action, and maintain equanimity of mind while performing actions.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 48, Chapter 2

14 Monday Nov 2011

Posted by in 2.48, bhootvaa, chapter 2 verse 48, dhananjaya, karmaani, kuru, saatvam, samaha, sangam, siddyasiddhyoh, tyaktvaa, uchyate, yoga, yogasthaha

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yogasthaha kuru karmaani sangam tyaktvaa dhananjaya |
siddhyasiddhyoh samo bhootvaa samatvam yoga uchyate || 48 ||

Perform action, established in yoga, and discard attachment, O Dhananjaya. Remain balanced in success and failure. Yoga is defined as equanimity.

yogasthaha : established in yoga
kuru : perform
karmaani : action
sangam : attachment
tyaktvaa : discard
dhananjaya : O Dhananjaya
siddhyasiddhyoh : in success and failure
samaha : balanced
bhootvaa : remain
samatvam : equanimity
yoga : yoga
uchyate : defined

This shloka pushes further the teaching of Karmayoga by advising us to begin discarding our attachments to objects in the material world. Obviously, we will not be able to totally discard all our attachments in one day. This will take a long time. However, Shri Krishna asks us to slowly start treading on this path. Why is he asking us to do so? He wants us to diminish our hankering for the outcome of our actions, and the only way to do that is by reducing our attachments to the material world.

Consider a mother who takes care of her 5 year old child. She gets extremely attached to it and develops lots of expectations: my child will take care of me when it grows up, it will become a doctor etc. If those things don’t happen, she will generate lots of sorrow for herself. But a nanny taking care of a child will not be attached to it. She will perform her svadharma by taking good care of child. However, she will have zero expectations from the child, and therefore she will be able to maintain equanimity in action.

The only difference between the mother and the nanny is their attitude – one is attached, one is unattached. And the one that has attachments has expectations for the future, the other does not.

Now in this shloka we encounter Shri Krishna defining the term “yoga”. It has nothing to do with arcane rituals. It has nothing to do with complex physical postures. It is a surprisingly simple and practical definition: equanimity of mind during performance of action. It is how the nanny operated in the earlier example.

So what is the practical technique to cast off attachments? How do we actually do this? We have to rid ourself of all expectations and worries about the future, as well as memories of the past. If we eliminate constant thinking about past and future, we can channel all that energy into the present moment and into executing the task at hand.

We probably have experienced instances in our lives where we were so joyfully and blissfully immersed in our work that we forgot where we were and what time it was. But those experiences were few and far between. By going deeper into each and every task we perform, no matter how big or small the task, we will minimize past and future thinking, which will enable us to remain balanced regardless of success and failure. This is the true definition of yoga.

To recap, our toolkit contains 3 techniques: reducing unnecessary thoughts, improving quality of thought, and focusing on the task and hand. We can practice this teaching with mundane tasks, and move on to more complex ones. Next time we wash dishes, lets give each movement of the hand our single and undivided attention, and try to sustain it while washing each and every dish. Give it a shot, see what happens.

Footnotes

1. There are four kinds of attachment: attachment to result (I want a reward for singing this song), action (I will sing a song only in my way), doership (I will song the song, not anyone else), non-doership (I am the non-singer of this song).