Category Archives: na

Bhagavad Gita Verse 57, Chapter 2

24 Thursday Nov 2011

Posted by in 2.57, abhinandanti, anabhisneha, ashubham, chapter 2 verse 57, dveshti, na, praapya, prajna, pratishthitaa, sarvatra, shubha, tasya, tat, yah

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yah sarvatraanabhisnehastattatpraapya shubhaashubham |
naabhinandanti na dveshti tasya prajna pratishthitaa || 57 ||

He who remains without affection everywhere, is not elated in gain, and is not dejected in loss, his wisdom is steady.

yah : he who
sarvatra : everywhere
anabhisneha : without affection
tat tat : those
praapya : receive
shubha : gain
ashubham : loss
na : not
abhinandanti : elated
dveshti : dejected
tasya : his
prajna : wisdom
pratishthitaa : steady

In the prior shloka, we saw how a person of steady wisdom responds to joyful and sorrowful situations that he encounters in life. In this shloka, Shri Krishna points out how that person responds to beneficial and adverse outcomes of his expectations.

This shloka uses an interesting word “anabhisneha”, which means without affection. The root of this word is “sniha” which means “to stick”. Most of us tend to get stuck to objects, people and situations that we encounter in our lives. And it is that stickiness which gets us into trouble.

An example from the corporate world would be a consultant who is hired for a 3 month assignment verses a full time employee who is given a similar assignment. The consultant comes in, does what she is supposed to do, submits her report and moves on to the next assignment, without getting entangled in office politics. Whereas the employee gets “stuck” to the job and gets entangled in all kinds of office politics, who he should align himself with, etc.

So therefore, if one remains unattached and works towards a goal, he gains the objectivity to remain the same whether he succeeds or fails in accomplishing that goal. He knows that he was there before that success or failure happened, he was there during it, and he will be there after it as well. Therefore whatever happened can be easily dealt with. In no way does he let any adverse outcome demotivate him.

How can we apply this practically? For example, if we worked hard for a project and someone criticizes us, internally we should remain steady and evaluate whether the criticism is valid or mean-spirited. If it is valid, we take the feedback positively. If it is mean-spirited, we ignore it. But if we are too attached to the work, we will lose our equanimity each time someone criticizes us.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 40, Chapter 2

07 Monday Nov 2011

Posted by in 2.40, abhikrama, api, asti, asya, bhayaat, chapter 2 verse 40, dharmasya, mahataha, na, naasha, pratyavayaha, svalpam, traayate, vidyate

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nehaabhikramanaashosti pratyavayo na vidyate |
svalpamapyasya dharmasya traayate mahato bhayaat || 40 ||

Here, there is no loss of effort, nor is there any negative result. Even a little of this knowledge protects one from the most massive fear.

na : no
iha : here
abhikramanaasha : loss of effort
na : not
asti : happens
pratyavayaha : negative result
na vidyate : does not happen
svalpam : a little
api : also
asya : this
dharmasya : this knowledge
traayate : protects from
mahataha : massive
bhayaat : fear

As mentioned before, we are all set to embark upon the practical aspects of the Gita teaching.

Now, whenever we are about to begin a project, a few doubts or fears may arise in our minds. Two of the most common fears are (a) what will happen if I don’t follow the steps exactly? and (b) what will happen if I make a minor mistake and the whole thing backfires?

Consider a student who has left the comfort of his home to pursue higher studies abroad. Now, he usually has to learn how to cook since his mom is not around to cook anymore. If he tries to prepare a meal, it will usually come out wrong because the steps were not followed correctly. Or worse still, it may totally backfire and yield a negative result – he may burn the food which will set off a fire alarm.

Moreover, for most Indians who hold the Gita in high reverence, we may harbour a notion that any teaching of the Gita needs to be followed to the letter, like a priest who recited mantras at a puja. And if we don’t do this, we will incur sin.

Shri Krishna reassures Arjuna that the teaching of buddhi yoga is absolutely risk free. It will not result in “abhikrama-naasha” or error caused by not following the steps correctly. It will also not create “pratyavaha dosha”,  i.e. yielding a negative result.

Therefore, Shri Krishna informs us that there is absolutely no excuse for holding back in implementing these teachings due to fear of any sort. Even if we practice a little bit of this teaching, it protects us from the most massive fear – the fear of death.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 31, Chapter 2

30 Sunday Oct 2011

Posted by in 2.31, anyat, api, arhasi, avekhsya, cha, chapter 2 verse 31, dharmyaat, kshatiyasya, na, shreyaha, svadharmam, vidyate, vikampitum, yuddhaat

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svadharmamapi chaavekshya na vikampitumarhasi |
dharmyaaddhi yuddhaacchreyonyatkshatriyasya na vidyate || 31 ||

Furthermore, you should not be disturbed when you consider your duty, because there is no other glory for a warrior that a righteous war.

svadharmam : your duty
api : furthermore
cha : and
avekshya : consider
na : not
vikampitum : disturbed
arhasi : should
dharmyaat : righteous
hi : because
yuddhaat : than war
shreyaha : glory
anyat : any other
kshatriyasya : for a warrior
na vidyate : there is not

Shri Krishna now begins a fresh topic in these next few shlokas. He deals with the issue of svadharma, or one’s own duty. It is important to remember that although Shri Krishna has addressed these shlokas to a mighty warrior, each of us has to interpret what they mean for us.

So, what exactly is one’s duty? In this context, it is not something we have to do because someone else is forcing us, or because the so-called caste system says so.

Duty is work that one enjoys doing, has the aptitude and training for doing, and is not illegal or unethical. The practice of medicine becomes a svadharma for a doctor when he or she finds joy in the work, has completed medical training, and uses it for the betterment of society. Education becomes svadharma for students when they find joy in attending classes and studying for exams.

Note that the same person could have more than one svadharma. For example, a woman could be a mother at home, and executive at work.

One may ask, “I have the training and aptitude for my profession. I certainly do not perform any  illegal activities. But I don’t find joy in my work. It is a drudgery for me, I only do it so that I can earn a living. How do I find joy in my work?”. Shri Krishna has anticipated this question and will give us the trick for addressing this question very soon.

Let’s also understand why Shri Krishna chose to introduce the topic of svadharma right after concluding the topic of the eternal essence. As we saw earlier, most of us are not at the advanced stage of spirituality where we have the ability to perceive the eternal essence in all beings, even though we may have an abstract or theoretical understanding of it by now. We are people with professions, jobs, careers and responsibilities. We are not in a position to retire to a monastery. Most of our day is spent in work.

Knowing this, Shri Krishna is gently introducing us to a more practical method of accessing the eternal essence. In this method, we can continue to lead our daily lives and still orient ourselves to accessing that eternal essence. As a side effect of this, we will also find joy and fulfillment in our work.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 29, Chapter 2

27 Thursday Oct 2011

Posted by in 2.29, aashcharyavat, anyaha, api, cha, chapter 2 verse 29, enam, eva, kashchit, na, pashyati, shrunooti, shrutva, tathaa, vadati, veda

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aashcharyavatpashyati kashchidenamaashcharyavadvadati tathaiva chaanyaha |
aashcharyavachchainamanyaha shrunooti shrutvaapyenam veda na chaiva kashchit || 29 ||

Some perceive this (eternal essence) as a wonder, and similarly indeed, others speak of it as a wonder; it is a wonder that some hear about this, and after hearing about it, some understand this and some do not.

aashcharyavat : as a wonder
pashyati : perceive
kashchit : some
enam : this
vadati : speak
tathaa : similarly
eva : thus
cha : and
anyaha : others
shrunooti : listen
shrutva : hearing
api : also
enam : this
veda : know
na : don’t

Shri Krishna was getting ready to conclude the topic of the eternal essence. Therefore, he wanted to remind Arjuna about it, and also instill a sense of deep curiosity and interest in him. In this shloka, Shri Krishna did both of those things.

Four types of spiritual seekers are pointed out here. Firstly, there are seekers who have heard about the eternal essence through the Gita or through other means. Usually, most of them will hear about it and forget about it. But there will be some that will become interested in it, and will want to hear more – this is the second category. Of those seekers, some will try to gain an intellectual understanding about it and having done so, will be so enthralled with it that they will keep speaking about it to other people. This is the third category.

But the most devoted and advanced seekers will ultimately perceive the eternal essence directly, and the perception would have occurred without any sense organs. When this happens, there would be no words to describe it. The closest one could come to describing it is when we see something so wonderful that it renders us speechless, like a breathtaking painting or a waterfall.

Note that the meter has changed in this verse to indicate its importance.