Category Archives: jagataha

Bhagavad Gita Verse 9, Chapter 16

04 Thursday Apr 2013

Posted by in 16.9, ahitaahaa, alpabuddhayaha, avashthaabya, chapter 16 verse 9, dristhim, etaam, jagataha, kshayaaya, nashtotmaanaha, prabhavanti, ugrakarmaanaha

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etaam dristhimavashthaabya nashtotmaanolpabuddhayaha |
prabhavantyugrakarmaanaha kshayaaya jagatohitaahaa || 9 ||
 
Holding this view, these narrow minded, lost souls who engage in acts of terror, rise as enemies of the world for its annihilation.
 
etaam : this
dristhim : view
avashthaabya : holding
nashtotmaanaha : lost souls
alpabuddhayaha : narrow minded
prabhavanti : rise
ugrakarmaanaha : those that engage in acts of terror
kshayaaya : annihilation
jagataha : world
ahitaahaa : enemies
 
If we examine the life of any tyrant, gangster, terrorist or despot, a common theme arises. There was one moment in their life where they realized that using physical force on another person gave them power and joy. In other words, they did not have any regard for the consequences of their actions, especially when it came to harming others. Such people are the embodiment of the aasuric or the devilish tendencies.
 
Shri Krishna now begins to describe such people in great detail. First, he says that such people hold a petty, narrow minded view of the world. If I win, someone has to lose, this is their outlook. They have no sense of connectedness, nothing in common with anyone else. They are nashthaatmaanaha, they are lost souls. They have no concept that there is something beyond the physical body, whether it is god, soul, humanity, nationality, nothing at all.
 
Now when such people don’t have any connection with other human beings, with the rest of the world, they have no qualms in engaging in acts of terror. We nowadays come across people who create and deploy computer viruses, bombs, chemical weapons and so on. It all begins with a seemingly simple notion – that the body is the only truth in this world, and that everything is justified in preserving one’s body at the expense of someone else’s.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 17, Chapter 9

12 Sunday Aug 2012

Posted by in 9.17, aham, asya, cha, chapter 9 verse 17, dhaataa, eva, jagataha, maataa, omkaara, pavitram, pitaa, pitaamaha, rik, saam, vedyam, yajur

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pitaahamasya jagato maataa dhaataa pitaamaha |
vedyam pavitramomkaara riksaam yajureva cha || 17 ||
 
I am the father, mother, support and grandfather of this universe. I am the knowable, the purifier, the syllable Om, and the Rig, Saama and Yajur also.
 
pitaa : father
aham : I am
asya : this
jagataha : universe
maataa : mother
dhaataa : support
pitaamaha : grandfather
vedyam : knowable
pavitram : purifier
omkaara : Om syllable
rik : Rig
saam : Saama
yajur : Yajur
eva : also
cha : and
 
Shri Krishna further elaborates on Ishvara’s infinite all-pervading nature by asserting that he is the father, mother and grandfather of this universe. A father’s nature is to protect the child and to push it to grow. A mother embodies the quality of nurture and impartiality, she will care for even the most misbehaved child. A grandfather is extremely attached to his grandchild and takes great pleasure in demonstrating affection towards the child, whereas the father may sometimes not show affection openly. Shri Krishna says that Ishvara treats every being in the universe like a caring family would.
 
Symbolically, Ishvara as father represents the intelligence behind the creation of the universe. Ishvara as mother represents the substance that creates the universe. Ishvara as grandfather refers to the source of intelligence and substance. It is said that Lord Shiva, when asked for his great grandfather’s name, replied “Shiva”. There is no further cause of this universe other than Ishvara.
 
Another pointer to Ishvara is “dhaata” or sustainer. As we have seen earlier, it is Ishvara in his infinite nature that holds the universe together in a state of harmony, where everything is in its place. Ishvara is also the three Vedas which are ultimate source of knowledge in the universe, the only knowledge that needs to be known. Their essence is captured in the syllable “Om”, which is considered the utmost purifier. In other words, once we see Ishvara in everything, everything becomes pure.
 
The next shloka contains a series of pointers to Ishvara which are considered the foundation of bhakti or devotion.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 26, Chapter 8

23 Monday Jul 2012

Posted by in 8.26, aavartate, anaavrittim, anyayaa, chapter 8 verse 26, ekayaa, ete, gatee, hi, jagataha, mate, punaha, shaashvate, shuklakrishne, yaati

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shuklakrishne gatee hyote jagataha shaashvate mate |
ekayaa yaatyanaavrittimanyayaavartate punaha || 26 ||
 
For, bright and dark, both these paths have been known since eternity. By one, the traveller does not have to return, by the other, he has to return again.
 
shuklakrishne : bright and dark
gatee : paths
hi : for
ete : both these
jagataha : worldly
shaashvate : eternal
mate : have been known
ekayaa : one of these
yaati : traveller
anaavrittim : does not have to return
anyayaa : the other
aavartate : has to return
punaha : again
 
Shri Krishna spoke about two paths that the jeeva takes after death: the “bright” path that goes to the abode of Lord Brahma, and the “dark” path that goes to the abode of the moon. He now reaffirms the difference between these two paths by saying that those who travel by the bright path are liberated, whereas those who take the dark path are born again after spending time in the abode of the moon. He also states that these paths have been established since time immemorial.
 
These two paths take care of two categories of people. One category is those who perform good actions as well as single pointed devotion – they attain the abode of Lord Brahma. The other is those who only perform good actions – they attain heaven. But absent from this list are those who perform negative actions that harm others and themselves. What happens to them?
 
Shri Krishna has omitted the path of such people, probably because he assumes that one who is interested in following the path of karma yoga is putting forth effort to eliminate negative and destructive actions from his life. More information on the path taken by such people is provided in the Srimad Bhagavatam.
 
So then, what is the significance of these two paths to us? This is taken up next.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 6, Chapter 7

31 Thursday May 2012

Posted by in 7.6, aham, bhootaani, chapter 7 verse 6, etat, iti, jagataha, kritsnasya, prabhavaha, pralayaha, sarvaani, tathaa, upadhaaraya, yoneeni

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etadyoneeni bhootaani sarvaaneetyupadhaaraya |
aham kritsnasya jagataha prabhavaha pralayastathaa || 6 ||
 
Both these are the wombs of all beings, understand this. I am the source as well as the dissolution of the entire universe.
 
etat : both these
yoneeni : wombs
bhootaani : beings
sarvaani : all
iti : this
upadhaaraya : understand
aham : I
kritsnasya : entire
jagataha : universe
prabhavaha : source
pralayaha : dissolution
tathaa : as well as
 
Having described both his lower and higher nature, Shri Krishna says both those natures combine to create everything in this universe. This creation is described poetically as the “womb” from which everything originates. The lower nature and higher nature are both needed to create this universe. Furthermore, everything that is created is also sustained and ultimately dissolved into Ishvara. In other words, Ishvara creates, maintains and dissolves the entire universe.
 
Let us now understand the deeper meaning of this shloka. But before we proceed, let us first understand what is meant by cause and effect. When we hold a piece of cloth, what do we see? We see its color, its texture, its shape and so on. But if were to go back in time, we would see that cloth come from cotton threads, which came from a cotton plant, which came from a cotton seed, which at some point came from the earth. So the cause of the cloth was the earth, and the effect is the cloth.
 
Unfortunately, our minds have been conditioned to focus on the effect, and not on the cause. We see the cloth and its attributes, but do not even think about the cause, because that requires our intellect to come into the picture. Most economic, social and political movements tend to fail because they only focus on the symptoms and not the cause. For example, imprisoning small-time drug dealers does not stop the drug trade, because the demand for drugs will push some other person into dealing drugs.
 
Now let us look at this shloka from the standpoint of cause and effect. If we were to trace the ultimate cause of anything in this universe, it eventually comes back to Ishvara’s lower and higher natures. Therefore, Shri Krishna is asserting the fact that Ishvara is everywhere. Even though our eyes cannot see the form of a deity in front of us, our intellect will tell us that the ultimate cause is Ishvara. Our eyes give us jnyaanam or knowledge of the effect, our intellect provides us with vijnyaanam, which is the vision of the cause.
 
In mythology, this intellectual vision is depicted as the “third eye” of Lord Shiva that turns everything into ashes. This eye is a metaphor for developing equanimity of vision. If we learn to behold Ishvara as the cause of every object that we see, we will automatically begin to see Ishvara everywhere. So therefore, this shloka urges us to exercise our intellect so that we can see Ishvara everywhere.
 
Seeing Ishvara in everything is a huge milestone in the spiritual path. What is the next milestone?