Category Archives: mama

Bhagavad Gita Verse 7, Chapter 15

12 Tuesday Mar 2013

Posted by in 15.7, anshaha, chapter 15 verse 7, eva, indriyaani, jeevabhootaha, jeevaloke, karshati, mama, manahashashthaani, prakritisthaani, sanaatanaha

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mamaivaansho jeevaloke jeevabhootaha sanaatanaha |
manahashashthaaneendriyaani prakritisthaani karshati || 7 ||
 
My eternal fragment, in this world of souls, becomes the individual soul. It draws itself to the mind and five senses, established in Prakriti.
 
mama : my
eva : only
anshaha : fragment
jeevaloke : in this world of souls
jeevabhootaha : becomes the individual soul
sanaatanaha : eternal
manahashashthaani : mind and five
indriyaani : senses
prakritisthaani : established in Prakriti
karshati : draws itself
 
So far, we saw the state of the select few individuals who strive for liberation. Now Shri Krishna summarizes the state of the jeevas, the individual souls who are stuck in the cycle of samsaara, of birth and death. The jeeva, ignorant of its true nature which is infinite, harbours selfish desires with the aim of removing its finitude. In order to do so, it needs to be able to contact and transact with Prakriti. The equipment needed to transact with Prakriti comprises the mind and the five senses. Therefore, the jeeva attracts or pulls these six aspects of Prakriti unto itself.
 
Before we proceed, we need to clarify one point here. The word fragment implies that the eternal essence, speaking as Ishvara, can be broken or divided into pieces. Yet, we know that the eternal essence is indivisible. To solve this confusion, we need to remind ourselves of the examples provided in the thirteenth chapter. We can try to divide space using walls, but space is indivisible. Also, we can lose the sun’s reflection when we break a pot filled with water, but nothing happens to the sun. There is no coming or going of space or of the sun. The limitations, the upaadhis such as walls and pots “as though” try to divide, but cannot do so in essence.
 
The Jnyaaneshwari provides yet another example. It describes an ascetic monk who has taken up a contemplative and solitary life in the jungle. One night he dreams that he is a householder with a wife and kids. In order to provide for his family, he has to work hard at his job to make ends meet. His job causes a great deal of stress to him. But when he wakes up from his dream, he remains the same monk, unaffected by the apparent ties of family life. The dream world is yet another upaadhi or limitation caused by ignorance of his real nature.
 
So then, the jeeva draws a mind and five senses in order to exhaust its desires. However, it still needs a physical body to transact with Prakriti. How does all this happen? We see this in the next shloka.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 6, Chapter 15

11 Monday Mar 2013

Posted by in 15.6, bhaasayate, chapter 15 verse 6, dhaamam, gatvaa, mama, nirvatante, paavakaha, paramam, shashaankaha, sooryaha, yat

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na tadbhaasayate sooryaa na shashaanko na paavakaha |
yadgatvaa na nirvatante taddhaamam paramam mama || 6 ||
 
That in which the sun does not illumine, nor the moon, nor fire, that is my supreme abode. Having attained that, there is no return.
 
na : not
tat : that
bhaasayate : illumines
sooryaha : sun
na : not
shashaankaha : moon
na : not
paavakaha : fire
yat : which
gatvaa : attained
na : not
nirvatante : return
tat : that
dhaamam : abode
paramam : supreme
mama : my
 
Shri Krishna listed the qualifications of a seeker in the prior shloka, and asserted that one who takes his refuge will attain his abode. He now provides the location, the address of that abode. He says that there is no sun, no moon, no fire, in other words, no source of light in his abode. Initially we would feel a little frightened if we take the literal meaning of this shloka. Even cavemen were able to access some light source in the form of the sun, the moon, or fire from a wooden torch. Why would anyone want to go to such a place?
 
The sun, the moon and fire have symbolic interpretations which are extremely relevant here. The sun is the presiding deity of our intellect, the moon of our mind and emotions, and fire of our physiological functions. The one who has sought refuge in Ishvara automatically gives up affinity to his body, mind, intellect, ego (which resides in the intellect) and physiological functions. If this affinity, the root of all our sorrow, is given up, such a person will never again get caught in the wheel of birth of death, in the cycle of samsaara. This is liberation.
 
So then, this is the abode of Ishvara, of self realization, of liberation. Having reached there, the liberated person does not come back to the state of ignorance. He never gets deluded again. He never identifies or develops affinity with body, mind, intellect and the world. The duality, the pairs of opposites, the dvandva that was mentioned before, is nothing but the world. For such a person, neither joy nor sorrow, neither pain nor pleasure, neither friend nor enemy, nothing can destabilize him. This is liberation.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 3, Chapter 14

08 Friday Feb 2013

Posted by in 14.3, aham, bhaarata, bhavati, chapter 14 verse 3, dadhaami, garbham, mahadbrahma, mama, sambhavaha, sarvabhootaanaam, tasmin, tataha, yonihi

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mama yonirmahadbrahma tasmingarbham dadhaamyaham |
sambhavaha sarvabhootaanaam tato bhavati bhaarata || 3 ||
 
My womb is the great brahman. In it, I place the seed. From that, O Bharaata, is the birth of all beings.
 
mama : my
yonihi : womb
mahadbrahma : great brahman
tasmin : in it
garbham : seed
dadhaami : place
aham : I
sambhavaha : birth
sarvabhootaanaam : all beings
tataha : from that
bhavati : happens
bhaarata : O Bhaarata
 
According to the theory of karma, each jeeva or individual soul generates new unfulfilled desires or vaasanaas. These vaasanaas are created as a result of karma phala or fruits of action. Each action of eating a sweet creates a new desire to eat a sweet later, for instance. One lifetime is not enough to exhaust these vaasanaas, causing the jeeva to continuously take birth in the world to fulfill its desires. This is the explanation of birth and rebirth of jeevas. But how does the universe itself begin? Shri Krishna describes this topic in extremely poetic language in two shlokas.
 
Ishvara, at the beginning of creation, splits himself into his two aspects. One aspect is Prakriti, referred to here as the “great brahman”, which comprises three gunaas or qualities. Prakriti has the power to generate an infinite variety of forms through innumerable permutations and combinations of its three gunaas. But it is inert. It cannot create the universe by itself. The awareness aspect of Ishvara, the kshetrajnya, is needed to infuse Prakriti with life. This happens when Ishvara places all of the jeevas into Prakriti, just like seeds are placed into soil.
 
Let’s examine this in more detail. How exactly does the jeeva come into contact with Prakriti? It is due to avidyaa or ignorance. Each jeeva’s vaasanaas or unfulfilled desires are caused by its ignorance of its true nature which is infinite. Instead, the jeeva, also known as the Purusha, thinks that it is incomplete, and mistakenly rushes out into Prakriti to make itself complete again. This illusory link between the Purusha and Prakriti becomes the source of its birth and rebirth in the cycle of samsaara.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 2, Chapter 14

07 Thursday Feb 2013

Posted by in 14.2, aagataahaa, chapter 14 verse 2, http://schemas.google.com/blogger/2008/kind#post, jnyaanam, mama, pralaye, saadharmyam, sarge, upaashritya, upajaayante, vyathanti

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idam jnyaanamupaashritya mama saadharmyamagataahaa |
sargepi nopajaayante pralaye na vyathanti cha || 2 ||
 
Those who have taken refuge in this knowledge, and have attained identity with me, are not born even during creation, and not afflicted during dissolution.
 
idam : this
jnyaanam : knowledge
upaashritya : taken refuge
mama : my
saadharmyam : identity
aagataahaa : attained
sarge : creation
api : even
na : not
upajaayante : born
pralaye : dissolution
na : not
vyathanti : afflicted
cha : and
 
Actors who work in the daily soap opera world lead interested lives. If an actor is selected to play a part in a well-established and long running soap, they are overjoyed since their career has just skyrocketed. But once the actor is selected, they are afraid when they read each day’s script, since their role can be killed off at any time by the director. The director and actor have two different visions. The director is concerned with moving the story forward, whereas the actor is concerned with preserving his role.
 
Now, if we identify with the various roles or the various parts that we play each day, we will face a fate similar to that of the actor. We experience birth and death every day, every minute, throughout our lives. When we get a new job, for instance, a new “senior manager of marketing” is born. When we lose that job, that senior manager “dies”. If a marriage happens in the family, several new “in-laws” are born. If something goes wrong in that marriage, all those in-laws “die”. If something makes us angry, an angry man is born, and will die in a short while once the anger dissipates. Birth and death are part and parcel of Prakriti’s functioning.
 
Shri Krishna urges us to identify with Ishvara so that we are not disturbed or agitated when any kind of birth or death, even that of our own body, occurs. If the actor has the same vision as the director, he will take the end of his role in good stead and go on to do a wonderful job in his next assignment. If we have removed our ignorance through knowledge, if we have realized our true nature as identical to that of Ishvara, we will see things from Ishvara’s perspective and stop identifying with the ups and downs experienced by our body.
 
How exactly does this creation, this birth take place? Shri Krishna explains next.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 2, Chapter 13

02 Wednesday Jan 2013

Posted by in 13.2, api, bhaarata, chapter 13 verse 2, jnyaanam, kshetragnya, kshetrakshetragnayoho, maam, mama, matam, sarvakshetreshu, tat, viddhi, yat

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kshetragnya chaapi maam viddhi sarvakshetreshu bhaarata |
kshetrakshetragnayorjnyaanam yattajgnyaanam matam mama || 2 ||
 
And also, understand that I am the knower of all fields, O Bhaarata. That knowledge which pertains to the field and its knower, in my opinion, that is (real) knowledge.
 
kshetragnya : knower of the field
cha : and
api : also
maam : I
viddhi : understand
sarvakshetreshu : all fields
bhaarata : O Bhaarata
kshetrakshetragnayoho : field and its knower
jnyaanam : knowledge
yat : that which
tat : that
jnyaanam : knowledge
matam : opinion
mama : my
 
Shri Krishna began the previous chapter by defining two terms: kshetra which means field, and kshetragnya which means the knower of the field, one who knows himself as distinct from the field. In this shloka, Shri Krishna uses these terms to indicate the identity or oneness of the kshetragnya in all kshetras. Let us try to understand this very important point. Like Arjuna did in the first chapter, most of us consider our self, our “I”, as this body, and therefore get stuck in the sorrows of this world. As we understand the message of the first six chapters, we understand that we are the eternal essence which is different than our body. We then understand from the next six chapters that Ishvara is the foundation of this world as the lower Prakriti or matter, and higher Prakriti or consciousness. Now, in this shloka, Shri Krishna says that there is no such distinction between the individual eternal essence and the foundation of this world. There is only one kshetragnya, and any notion of separation is illusory, caused by avidyaa or ignorance. This is the great statement, the mahaa vaakya “Tat Tvam Asi” of the Vedas. You and Ishvara are the same in essence, there is no difference.
 
When we first hear someone say that we are the same as Ishvara, we don’t find it quite logical. We say, how can a body that is five feet eight inches tall be the same as Ishvara who is large enough to contain all the planets and stars of the universe within him? To answer this, we have to first remember that “Tat Tvam Asi” is not meant to be taken literally. Again, let us proceed step by step. First, let us understand the term “upaadhi”. It means something that limits or conditions a more general thing. A wave is an upaadhi of water. A light bulb is an upaadhi of electricity. An ornament is an upaadhi of gold. We can obtain the general thing that the upaadhi limits or hides by a process of mental removal. Mentally remove the wave, and you get water. Mentally remove the bulb, you get electricity. Mentally remove the ornament, you get gold. We can take this even further. Mentally remove the labels Mercedes Benz and Maruti 800 from the word car, and you get metal, rubber, petrol and plastic. Mentally remove the labels Indian and American from the word person, and you get flesh, bones and blood.
 
Now, having undersood what an upaadhi is, and how it can be mentally removed, let us proceed to understand what the word “Asi” in “Tat Tvam Asi” indicates. It is not to be literally interpreted as Tvam (You) Asi (are equal to) Tat (Ishvara). Asi means “are equal to, when you remove the upaadhi”. If we apply this meaning, the mahaa vaakya reads : Tvam (You) Asi (are equal to) Tat (Ishvara) when you remove both the upaadhis of You and Ishvara. I as a human have the upaadhi of the physical body and everything it contains. Ishvara has the upaadhi of the entire universe in its visible form including all the trees, plants, animals, people, stars, planets etc that we see with our senses. If we mentally remove our body as an upaadhi, and we also mentally remove the visible universe as an upaadhi, we are left with the same eternal essence in both cases. That same eternal essence, that same kshetragnya, is present in all kshetras, which are the same as upaadhis.
 
Another meaning of the word “upaadhi” is title or qualification, which can help us understand this shloka in a different way. Let’s say there are two brothers in a house. One of them has a PhD in physics, and the other is a manager in a multinational. When each of them is in their respective offices, they use their titles as part of their job responsibilities. But when they perform a pooja or a holy ritual, lets say, they mentally remove their upaadhis or titles. If they did not remove their titles, their conversation would go like this: “Hey PhD in physics, do this. Hey manager, pour the clarified butter”. They would never see that they are really the same family under the titles that seemingly create differences. This means that removing upaadhis to realize our oneness with Ishvara can be difficult, but it is not impossible. We know how to remove small upaadhis. Shri Krishna will teach us how to remove the biggest upaadhis in this chapter through practical techniques. He says that ultimately, knowledge of the kshetragnya, the kshetras or upaadhis, and how to realize oneness under the kshetras, is the ultimate knowledge that one has to learn, and not any other type of knowledge.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 52, Chapter 11

05 Wednesday Dec 2012

Posted by in 11.52, asi, chapter 11 verse 52, darshanakaankshinaha, drishtvaan, http://schemas.google.com/blogger/2008/kind#post, idam, mama, nityam, roopam, roopasya, sudurdarsham

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Shree Bhagavaan uvaacha:
sudurdarshamidam roopam drishtvaanasi yanmama |
devaa apyasya roopasya nityam darshanakaankshinaha || 52 ||
 
Shree Bhagavaan said:
It is extremely rare (for anyone) to see that form of mine that you have just seen. Even the gods eternally long to see this form.
 
sudurdarsham: extremely rare to see
idam : this
roopam : form
drishtvaan : seen
asi : you have
yat : that
mama : mine
devaaha : gods
api : even
asya : this
roopasya : form
nityam : eternally
darshanakaankshinaha : long to see
 
The Gita uses a lot of the Katha Upanishad for its teachings. In that Upanishad, the young boy Nachiketa approaches the lord of death Yama for spiritual instruction. His most powerful question to Yama is : what happens to the soul after death. Yama tries to distract Nachiketa with boons of wealth and power, but fails. Eventually he responds : “Nachikata, even the gods are even anxious to know the answer to this question, and have never been able to figure this out”.
 
The same language is used by Shri Krishna in this shloka. He says that the gods have desired to see Ishvara’s cosmic form since eternity, but have not been able to do so. It is “sudurdarsham”, extremely difficult and rare to see, it is next to impossible. They may have seen Lord Naarayana in his four-armed form, but not the universal cosmic vision seen by Arjuna. And they will probably not see it in their lifetime.
 
Why is it the case the the gods cannot see this vision? Let’s investigate the nature of gods. They may be more powerful than humans, but they are subject to the three gunaas like every other aspect of creation. Which means that they also are impelled by selfish desires. Even Indra, the king of the gods, starts plotting to remove anyone who has an eye on his throne. So what Shri Krishna means here is that humans, gods, demons, anyone who is part of this creation, will never get to see this cosmic form unless they have a specific quality. Shri Krishna will give a detailed answer to this question soon.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 49, Chapter 11

02 Sunday Dec 2012

Posted by in 11.49, chapter 11 verse 49, dristhvaa, eedranga, ghoram, idam, mama, prapashya, preetamanaahaa, punaha, roopam, tadeva, vimoodhabhaavaha, vyapetabheehee, vyathaa

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maa te vyathaa maa cha vimoodhabhaavo dristhvaa roopam ghorameedrangamamedam |
vyapetabheehee preetamanaahaa punastvam tadeva me roopamidam prapashya || 49 ||
 
Do not be disturbed, and do not be deluded on seeing that, my frightful form. Be fearless, with a pleasant mind, behold again this very form of mine.
 
maa : do not
te : you
vyathaa : disturbed
maa : do not
cha : and
vimoodhabhaavaha : state of delusion
dristhvaa : seeing
roopam : form
ghoram : frightful
eedranga : such
mama : my
idam : this
vyapetabheehee : fearless
preetamanaahaa : pleasant mind
punaha : again
tvam : you
tadeva : that very
me : my
roopam : form
idam : this
prapashya : behold
 
Knowing fully well that Arjuna’s mind could not deal with the fear-inducing cosmic form, Shri Krishna asked Arjuna to not worry, and to remove all traces of fear. He reassured him that it was his friend, charioteer and companion all along, not some other person. Nothing had changed. He used the word “prapashya” meaning “behold”, urging Arjuna not to look away, that the familiar form of Shri Krishna was on its way.
 
Unlike Arjuna, we have not seen the grand sweep and scale of the cosmic form. But, our daily life is part of that very universe, so whatever Shri Krishna says to Arjuna is also applicable to us. The terrors, the destructive forces in the universe usually create fear and agitation in our minds. Shri Krishna urges all of us to go about our lives with a fearless attitude and a pleasant mind, because he is present in everything. Only when we forget this fact will we create fear and agitation.
 
Ultimately, the root of all sorrow and fear is delusion, the confusion between right and wrong knowledge. In Arjuna’s case, it was the delusion created by attachment to his relatives. In our case, it is our attachment to our body, to our possessions, to our family, our job, our position, the list goes on and on. Shri Krishna says “maa vimoodhabhaavaha”, he urges all of us to cast our state of delusion away, and learn to see Ishvara in everything, and everything in Ishvara.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 7, Chapter 11

22 Monday Oct 2012

Posted by in 11.7, adya, anyat, cha, chapter 11 verse 7, dehe, drishtum, gudaakesha, icchasi, iha : this ekastham, jagat, kritsnam, mama, pashya, sacharaacharam, yat

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ihaikastham jagatkritsnam pashyaadya sacharaacharam |
mama dehe gudaakesha yachchaanyaddrishtumicchasi || 7 ||
 
Behold this entire universe now, with moving and non-moving (entities), in one place. Also, besides this, O Gudaakesha, see whatever else you desire in my form.
 
iha : this
ekastham : in one place
jagat : universe
kritsnam : entire
pashya : behold
adya : now
sacharaacharam : with moving and non-moving
mama : my
dehe : form
gudaakesha : O Gudaakesha
yat : whatever else
cha : also
anyat : besides
drishtum : see
icchasi : you desire
 
Nowadays, it is common for families to capture a wedding with a video as well as with photographs. So when a guest drops by a family that has just concluded a wedding, he is hit with a barrage of photos and a DVD of the wedding that could last three to four hours. The guest cannot refuse this demand because the family wants him to experience the entire wedding “right here, right now”.
 
So by using the words “now” and “in one place”, Shri Krishna is pointing out the power of the Vishwa roopa or cosmic form. Arjuna is able to view the entire universe in one place, without leaving his chariot. Moreover, he is also able to view events that take millions of years in a split second. And what is he able to view? Everything including entities that move, and entities that are stable.
 
Now, if someone were to offer us the outcome of all the events that were to take place tomorrow, and if our favourite team was contesting a match tomorrow, we would be most interested in learning the outcome of the match. Knowing that Arjuna was most interested in the outcome of the Mahaabhaarata war, Shri Krishna suggested that even that would be visible in his cosmic form. He refers to Arjuna as “Gudaakesha”, one who has conquered sleep, so that Arjuna would remain alert while watching the cosmic form.
 
However, with all this going on, there seemed to be no response from Arjuna. What could be the reason? We shall see next.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 1, Chapter 11

15 Monday Oct 2012

Posted by in 11.1, adhyaatma, ayam, chapter 11 verse 1, guhyam, madanugrhaaya, mama, mohaha, paramam, sangitam, tena, tvayaa, uktam, vachaha, vigataha, yat

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arjuna uvaacha:
madanugrhaaya paramam guhyamadhyaatmasangitam |
yattvayoktam vachastena mohoyam vigato mama || 1 ||
 
Arjuna said:
Out of compassion for me, you have spoken about the supreme secret known as the knowledge of the self. By those statements, my delusion has been destroyed.
 
madanugrhaaya : out of compassion for me
paramam : supreme
guhyam : secret
adhyaatma : knowledge of the self
sangitam : known as
yat : that
tvayaa : you have
uktam : spoken
vachaha : statements
tena : by those
mohaha : delusion
ayam : this
vigataha : destroyed
mama : my
 
We begin the eleventh chapter with Arjuna’s words. He recalls the root cause of his panic attack from the first chapter which is moha or delusion which caused confusion between his duty as a warrior and as a family member. He now says that his delusion has been dispelled. How did that happen? It is only because Shri Krishna revealed the knowledge of the self, Adhyaatma vidyaa, to Arjuna, the answer to the question “who am I?”
 
When Arjuna understood his true nature as the self, the aatmaa, the eternal essence, he came to know that the self does not kill or be killed, it is neither the doer of action or the enjoyer of the results. He then realized that even if his body died, or his body killed another body, nothing would happen to the eternal essence in each of those bodies. Given the power of this knowledge to destroy the biggest delusion about who he was, he terms it “paramam” or supreme. And since it requires a sincere student and a rare teacher, he terms it “guhyam” or secret.
 
Now, we may think that there was something special in Arjuna that qualified him to receive this supreme knowledge. Arjuna was humble enough to acknowledge that it was purely out of compassion that Shri Krishna showered his grace upon him and gave him this knowledge. Only through the grace and compassion of Ishvara and a qualified guru can one receive this knowledge.
 
Another aspect of the teaching was Ishvara’s involvement with the universe. Arjuna highlights it in the next shloka.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 41, Chapter 10

11 Thursday Oct 2012

Posted by in 10.41, ansha, avagaccha, chapter 10 verse 41, eva, mama, oorjitam, sambhavam, satvam, shreemat, tat, tejaha, tvam, vaa, vibhootimat, yat

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yadyadvibhootimatsatvam shreemadoorjitameva vaa |
tattadevaavagaccha tvam mama tejonshasambhavam || 41 ||
 
Whichever entity is endowed with majesty, prosperity and also energy, you should understand that all those as born out of a fraction of my power.
 
yat : whichever
vibhootimat : endowed with majesty
satvam : entity
shreemat : prosperity
oorjitam : energy
eva : also
vaa : and
tat : all those
eva : and
avagaccha : understand
tvam : you
mama : my
tejaha : power
ansha : fraction
sambhavam : born out of
 
Since it is difficult for someone in our time to identify with Puraanic expressions of Ishvara, Shri Krishna gives us a simple suggestion. He says that anything that appeals to our mind and senses, any object or person that is endowed with grandeur, perfection, knowledge and power, anything that inspire awe and wonder is Ishvara’s expression. So we are free to choose anything that meets this criteria.
 
So if we live in India, the Taj Mahal becomes Ishvara’s expression and in USA, the Grand Canyon. If we like western classical music, the Mahler Symphony No. 9 in D Major becomes Ishvara’s vibhooti and if we like Indian classical music, a rendition by Bhimsen Joshi. An engineer can admire marvels such as the tallest building in the world or the space shuttle. And all of us can admire the thousands of nameless people who are working in NGOs to better the world as yet another expression of Ishvara.
 
Now, Shri Krishna makes another important point here. If we add up all the glories in the universe, that glory is but a fraction of Ishvara’s glory. Just like we always think of a country’s government whenever we see a police officer, we should always think of Ishvara whenever we see or think of any of his expressions. Arjuna had asked the question as to how he could know Ishvara. With this shloka, Shri Krishna has provided the answer. We use the visible expression to remind us of the invisible Ishvara.
 
What should we do? Whenever we see something wonderful and glorious, we should remember that the glory is coming from Ishvara, not from that object or person. Next, we should remember that Ishvara is infinitely more powerful and glorious than the object or person. In this manner, we will be able to maintain a constant awareness of Ishvara.