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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: lokasya

Bhagavad Gita Verse 43, Chapter 11

26 Monday Nov 2012

Posted by skr_2011 in 11.43, abhyadhikaha, anyaha, api, apratimaprabhaava, asi, asti, chapter 11 verse 43, charaacharasya, gareeyaaan, guruhu, kutaha, lokasya, lokatraye, na, pitaa, poojyaha, tvam .asya, tvatsamaha

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pitaasi lokasya charaacharasya tvamasya poojyashcha gururgareeyaan |
na tvatsamostyabhyadhikaha kutonyo lokatrayepyapratimaprabhaava || 43 ||

 
You are the father of this universe, of all that is moving and non-moving. You are most worthy of worship, and the greatest teacher among teachers. There is none like you. How could anyone be superior than you in all the three worlds, O one of immeasurable impact?
 
pitaa : father
asi : is
lokasya : universe
charaacharasya : moving and non-moving
tvam : you
asya : are
poojyaha : worthy of worship
cha : and
guruhu : teacher
gareeyaaan : teachers
na : not
tvatsamaha : like you
asti : is
abhyadhikaha : superior than
kutaha : how
anyaha : other
lokatraye : in the three worlds
api : also
apratimaprabhaava : unsurpassable impact
 
Arjuna describes the characteristics of an ideal parent in this shloka. Who is an ideal parent? Any parent should obviously provide physical and emotional nourishment to their children. But ideal parents also become the greatest gurus, the greatest teachers, for their children. Only when parents teach the right knowledge and values do they become worthy of being worshipped by their children. Symbolically speaking, Ishvara is the ideal parent because he is the ultimate cause of this universe that is made up of sentient and insentient objects.
 
Arjuna also refers to Ishvara as the ultimate overlord of the three worlds. Traditionally, we think of these three worlds as referring to heaven , hell and earth. Another meaning of the three worlds is the three states in which we exist. In the day, we exist in the waking state where our intellect, our faculty of logic and reason is active. In the night, we go into our dream state, where our intellect is shut off but our mind creates whole new dream worlds. We then go into a state of deep sleep, where neither the mind nor the intellect functions.
 
Though we keep going through all three states daily, the sense that “I exist” is common. The Mandukya Upanishad uses this analysis to reveal the nature of the eternal essence. In this shloka, Arjuna asserts that Ishvara is with us as the “I am” principle in all of these three states of waking, dream and deep sleep. To this great being, Arjuna surrenders his ego by declaring that there is nothing else in the entire universe like Ishvara.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 14, Chapter 5

18 Sunday Mar 2012

Posted by skr_2011 in 5.14, chapter 5 verse 14, karmaani, karmaphala, kartritvam, lokasya, na, prabhuh, pravartate, saiyogam, srijati, svabhaavaha, tu

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na kartritvam na karmaani lokasya srijati prabhuh |
na karmaphalasaiyogam svabhaavastu pravartate || 14 ||

Neither agency nor actions, in this world, are created by the eternal essence, and neither does it connect actions to results; for nature organizes (all this).

na : not
kartritvam : agency, doership
na : not
karmaani : actions
lokasya : in this world
srijati : create
prabhuh : eternal essence
na : not
karmaphala : results and actions
saiyogam : connect
svabhaavaha : nature
tu : for
pravartate : organizes (all this)

Earlier, Shri Krishna provided the example of the dweller in the city to illustrate the distinction between the eternal essence and the body, mind and intellect. In this shloka, he takes us one step further by saying that the eternal essence is beyond the realm of action. Furthermore, since action implies doership, results and their enjoyership, action and everything that comes with it is in the realm of prakriti or nature. The eternal essence is separate and distinct from action.

Any self-contained system has inherent rules which govern its operations. For example, let us consider the Pac-Man video game. The game is played in a computer that has four buttons which are used to move Pac-Man up, down, left or right. The rules of the game are programmed into the system. If the player manages to get the fruit while evading the monsters, he wins the game. All this happens automatically. It does not require external intervention by any divine or human entity.

But if we take a step back, the Pac-Man character does not really “move” anywhere. It is an illusion created by the computer by projecting the Pac-Man image to different parts of the screen. One who is watching the game very objectively knows that there is no movement of left, right etc.

Similarly, one who sees the world from the absolute standpoint of the eternal essence knows that in reality, there is no action. Action only exists from the standpoint of nature or prakriti. And if action only exists in nature, so does doership, enjoyership, and connection of actions to their results. It is a self-governing automatic system.

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