Category Archives: nityam

Bhagavad Gita Verse 52, Chapter 18

10 Wednesday Jul 2013

Posted by in 18.52, chapter 18 verse 52, dhyaanayogaparaha, laghvaashee, nityam, samupaashritaha, vairaagyam, viviktasevee, yatavaakkaayamaanasaha

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viviktasevee laghvaashee yatavaakkaayamaanasaha |
dhyaanayogaparo nityam vairaagyam samupaashritaha || 52 ||
 
One who stays in seclusion, eats very little, regulates speech, body and mind, considers meditation as supreme, fully possessed of dispassion.
 
viviktasevee : staying in seclusion
laghvaashee : eating very little
yatavaakkaayamaanasaha : regulating speech, body and mind
dhyaanayogaparaha : to whom meditation is considered supreme
nityam : ever
vairaagyam : dispassion
samupaashritaha : fully possessed
 
Shri Krishna continues describing the lifestyle of a sanyaasi, a monk or a renunciate, which is a recap of ideas covered in the sixth chapter. He says that such a monk like places that are vivikta, meaning isolated, solitary, away from the hustle and bustle of daily life. Such places are conducive for contemplation, since they do not have too many distractions. He is also laghvaashee, eating only the quantity of nutritious food necessary to sustain the body. Eating heavy meals causes drowsiness in the short term, and health problems in the long term.
 
Now even if the mind is placed in quiet surroundings, it will generate thoughts that will eventually result in actions of the body, or in speech. By regulating physical actions and speech, the monk will be able to regulate his mind as well. The end result of all this regulation is two fold. He will be able to fix his mind on the self, which is dhyaana, and will be able to contemplate upon the nature of the self, which is yoga. The nature of the self was expounded in the second chapter to be infinite, indestructible and so on.
 
The quality of dispassion or vairagyam comes up again in this shloka. In the last shloka, it was implicitly mentioned as absence of raaha and dvesha, like and dislike. The level of vairagya cultivated by the monk, however, is much greater than that which is harboured by seekers in early stages of spiritual practice. The monk has rid himself of even a tinge of belief that there is any real happiness to be found in the material world. He is samupaashritaha, fully possessed of the conviction that the self alone is worth pursuing, nothing else.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 9, Chapter 13

09 Wednesday Jan 2013

Posted by in 13.9, anabhishvangaha, asaktihi, chapter 13 verse 9, ishtaanishta, nityam, putradaaragrihaadishu, samachittatvam, upapattishu

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asaktiranabhishvangaha putradaaragrihaadishu |
nityam cha samachittatvamishtaanishtopapattishu || 9 ||
 
Remaining unattached, without identification with one’s son, spouse, home and others, and constant equanimity of mind when favourable or unfavourable (situations) are attained.
 
asaktihi : non attachment
anabhishvangaha : lack of identification
putradaaragrihaadishu : in son, spouse, home and others
nityam : constantly
cha : and
samachittatvam : equanimity of mind
ishtaanishta : favourable or unfavourable
upapattishu : in attainment of
 
Shri Krishna adds three more qualities that help us reduce importance of the kshetra in this shloka. The first one is asaktihi, a detached attitude towards people, objects and situations. Aasakti is extreme attachment whereas asakti is lack of attachment. Only when we are away from our daily routine, perhaps on vacation or on a retreat, do we know our level of dependence, and even addiction, to objects, people and situations. Beginning from a cup of coffee in the morning to television in the evening, we rely on external factors to give us joy, and conversely, experience sorrow when they are not available for our enjoyment.
 
A particularly difficult type of attachment is the strong identification we have with our immediate family and home, which is why Shri Krishna has specifically called it out in this shloka. “Abhishvangaha” is the placement of our future comfort, joy and happiness in our spouse, our children and our home. It is the thought that “in my old age, I do not have to worry, my spouse, or my child will take care of everything, and I can retire in my house peacefully”. This kind of identification is one step worse than attachment, because we do not see any difference between us and our spouse, our children and our home. Any sorrow that affects our spouse becomes our own sorrow. We should of course partake in joy and sorrow with our family members, but only to the extent of our responsibilities. If we go overboard, we will not be able to negate this aspect of kshetra, and consequently, not be able to contemplate the eternal essence. “Anabhishvangaha” is one who can remain detached in this situation.
 
The third quality mentioned here is “samachittatvam”, maintaining equanity of mind in favourable or unfavourable situations. Shri Krishna has stressed this qualiti repeatedly in various contexts. Even in the very beginning, in the second chapter, he praised equanimity by saying “samatvam yoga ucchyate”. Now, he urges us to maintain this attitude at all times. This can only work if we figure out how to prevent our mind from labelling situations as favourable or unfavourable. One way of doing so is to submit all the results of actions to Ishvara as an offering, and accept any situation as a blessing from him. We can also train our mind through intense meditation to stop this sort of labelling.

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 6, Chapter 9

01 Wednesday Aug 2012

Posted by in 9.6, aakaashasthitaha, bhootaani, chapter 9 verse 6, iti, mahaan, matsthaani, nityam, sarvaani, sarvatragaha, tathaa, upadhaaraya, vaayuhu, yathaa

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yathaakaashasthito nityam vaayuhu sarvatrago mahaan |
tathaa sarvaani bhootaani matsthaaneetyupadhaaraya || 6 ||
 
Just like the mighty wind travels everywhere, established in space, so too, all beings reside in me, understand this.
 
yathaa : just like
aakaashasthitaha : established in space
nityam : eternally
vaayuhu : wind
sarvatragaha : travels everywhere
mahaan : mighty
tathaa : so do
sarvaani : all
bhootaani : beings
matsthaani : reside in me
iti : in this manner
upadhaaraya : understand this
 
The key teaching of the chapter is that Ishvara pervades everything, that all beings are sustained by Ishvara but Ishvara is not contained in any of them. To illustrate these statements, Shri Krishna compares Ishvara to space. He says that space enables everything to exist within it, like wind, for example. In the same way, all living and non-living entities dwell in Ishvara.
 
First, let us understand the nature of space. It is indivisible, which means that even if we try to divide it by building walls, we cannot do so. It does not get affected by what it contains. A flower generates fragrance when fresh and odour when it decays. But both those qualities do not get transferred to space, since space has no qualities. It also pervades everything. Over 99% of an atom is empty space. And it is infinite. No object can ever contain space.
 
Similarly, Shri Krishna says that Ishvara is infinite, indivisible, pervades everything, and remains unaffected by what he sustains. How does this help us? Knowing that Ishvara is everywhere reduces our sorrow, delusion, fear, likes and dislikes. If everything is Ishvara, and if we also know that we are in Ishvara, there is nothing to fear or like or dislike. That is how we get liberated.
 
There is a story in the Ishvaavaasya Upanishad. The gods tried to have a race with Ishvara. But wherever they ended up, Ishvara was already there. Another interpretation of this story is that the senses also tried to outrun Ishvara, but could not. It is like trying to race with space. It is a futile effort, because space is all-pervading. So is Ishvara.
 
Now, just like we see the blue sky with our eyes, we also see things and people on this earth being created and destroyed. We know that the blue colour is an illusion, but do we really understand that creation and dissolution is an illusion as well? This is taken up next.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 31, Chapter 3

08 Sunday Jan 2012

Posted by in 3.31, anasooyanto, anutishthanti, api, chapter 3 verse 31, idam, karmabhih, maanavaaha, matam, me, muchyante, nityam, shradhvavantah, te, ye

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ye me matamidam nityamanutishthanti maanavaaha |
shradhvavantonasooyanto muchyante tepi karmabhih || 31 ||

Those who always execute this teaching of mine, with faith and without objection, they too are freed from all actions.

ye : those
me : my
matam : teaching
idam : this
nityam : always
anutishthanti : execute
maanavaaha : people
shradhvavantah : faith
anasooyanto : without objection
muchyante : freed
te : those
api : too
karmabhih : actions

As we have seen so far, if we are bound to actions and objects, we will never be able to realize the eternal essence, which is the ultimate goal prescribed by the Gita. So in this shloka, Shri Krishna begins to conclude the teaching of karmayoga by reassuring us that it will free us from all bondages while we are engaged in action.

Prior to the Gita coming into existence, people heralded a misconception that spiritual realization was the domain of a select section of society, and could be achieved only through the accomplishment of extremely secret and arcane rituals. The Gita proposed a radical new method of realization where anyone regardless of their background can get the same result while performing any and all actions.

So therefore, Shri Krishna urges us to overcome any misconceptions, barriers and objections we may harbour against this teaching. Some may say, this teaching is too simplistic. Others may say, it goes against whatever preconceived notions they have about religion. Or that it is not achievable and so on. Whatever be the objection, Shri Krishna wants us to put the teaching into practice and try it out for ourselves.

Now, as he is about to conclude the teaching of karmayoga, Shri Krishna anticipates a problem. He knows that even for people who are ready and willing to take this path will run into obstacles. He covers this topic in the next shloka.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 15, Chapter 3

23 Friday Dec 2011

Posted by in 3.15, aksharasamudbhavam, brahma, brahmodbhavam, chapter 3 verse 15, karma, nityam, prathishthitam, sarvagatam, tasmaat, viddhi, yajne

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karma brahmodbhavam viddhi brahmaaksharasamudhbhavam |
tasmaatsarvagatam brahma nityam yajne pratishthitam || 15 ||

Know that actions arise out of the Vedas, and that the Vedas arise out of the imperishable (eternal essence). Therefore, yajna is always established in that all-pervading eternal essence.

karma : actions
brahmodbhavam : arise out of the Vedas
viddhi : know
brahma : Vedas
aksharasamudhbhavam : arise out of the imperishable
tasmaat : therefore
sarvagatam : all-pervading
brahma : eternal essence
nityam : always
yajne : yajna
pratishthitam : established

Shri Krishna reveals the connection between yajna and the eternal essence in this shloka. Here he says that yajna is an integral part of the eternal essence, because it is born out of the Vedas. Symbolically, the Vedas represent the “rule-book” of the universe, and so yajna becomes an essential law embedded in the universe.

In the second chapter, which was an overview of the entire Gita, Shri Krishna pointed Arjuna to the ultimate goal of life – realization of the eternal essence. In this chapter, Shri Krishna connect karmayoga to the eternal essence. He explains that karmayoga is a means, a technique, to realize the eternal essence, because the eternal essence created the rules of the universe.

So in summary, the teaching of karmayoga so far is : Actions are of two types,  selfless and selfish. Selfish actions bind us to wordly objects, and selfless actions do not. Therefore, Shri Krishna urges us to move gradually from the level of inaction to selfish action first, and then from selfish action to selfless action or yajna. Only through acting in the spirit of yajna will we move forward on the path to realizing the eternal essence.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 30, Chapter 2

28 Friday Oct 2011

Posted by in 2.30, arhasi, avadhyaya, ayam, bhaarata, bhootani, chapter 2 verse 30, dehe, dehi, nityam, sarvaani, sarvasya, shochitum, tasmaat, tvam

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dehi nityamavadhyooyam dehe sarvasya bhaarata |
tasmaatsarvaani bhootani na tvam shochitumarhasi || 30 ||

This eternal and imperishable body-dweller dwells in all bodies, O Bhaarata. Therefore, you should not grieve for any or all beings.

dehi : body-dweller
nityam : eternal
avadhyaha : imperishable
ayam :  this
dehe : bodies
sarvasya : in all
bhaarata : O Bhaarata
tasmaat : therefore
sarvaani : all
bhootani : beings
tvam : you
shochitum : grieve
na arhasi : should not

With this shloka, Shri Krishna concludes the topic of the eternal essence. Now, having followed the teaching so far, we would probably have some questions. Let’s try to address some of them.

So if we were to ask ourselves “I have studied the Gita for a while now, what is the message in a nutshell so far?”. Or in management-speak “What is the net-net?”. It is this shloka. Therefore, even if we may not remember all the shlokas about the eternal essence, we should not forget this shloka.

Here’s another question: “We have covered the entire first chapter, as well as some part of the second chapter. Where is God in all of this?” We have purposely avoided the word “God” in our discussions because Shri Krishna has not yet uttered that word in any teaching so far. As we proceed through the Gita, Shri Krishna will bring up this topic at the appropriate time. For now, if we go to a place of worship like a temple, we can still continue to pray to God, knowing that the eternal essence is an integral part of God as well.

The pragmatist among us would ask “All this abstract stuff is well and good, how do we apply it in our daily life?”. And the answer is – stay tuned! The topics will become more practical starting with the next shloka. All we need to remember is the examples from these shlokas: the eternal essence is like the sun, actionless and changeless. It is like the water that pervades the entire cloth. And it is like the car-dweller who occupies and leaves the car once it is old.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 26, Chapter 2

24 Monday Oct 2011

Posted by in 2.26, arhasi, atha, cha, chapter 2 verse 26, enam, evam, mahaabaaho, manyase, mirtam, nityajaatam, nityam, shochitum, tathaapi, tvam, vaa

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atha chainam nityajaatam nityam vaa manyase mritam |
tathaapi tvam mahaabaaho naivam shochitumarhasi || 26 ||

But on the other hand, if you believe that this (eternal essence) constantly takes birth and dies, then also you should not grieve, O mighty armed.

atha cha : but if
enam : this (eternal essence)
nityajaatam : constantly being born
nityam : constantly
vaa : or
manyase : believe
mritam: die
tathaapi : then also
tvam : you
mahaabaaho : O mighty-armed
na : not
evam : this
shochitum : grieve
arhasi : should

Shri Krishna imparted the teaching of the eternal essence to Arjuna in the shlokas we’ve been seeing. Now, the teaching becomes slightly less abstract and a little more “down-to-earth” as it were. Shri Krishna understands that people like us may find it hard to comprehend the notion of imperishability. Our mind will find a hard time comprehending that something was never born/created, and something will never die/get destroyed.

For example, we may think of the Earth as relatively imperishable, but even then we know from our school geology class that it was formed billions of years ago out of cooling of gases.

Therefore, Shri Krishna says : “O Arjuna, even if you cannot comprehend that the eternal essence is imperishable, it is ok, you can also believe that the eternal essence, which is present in human bodies, undergoes birth and death with the body”. In the next few shlokas, Sri Krishna will convince Arjuna that his grief is unfounded even if he accepts that the eternal essence undergoes birth and death.

We may have a question here: Why did Shri Krishna begin his teaching of the Gita by describing the eternal essence? Isn’t it a complex, abstract topic that all of us, including Arjuna, would have a hard time understanding? Couldn’t he have started with something simpler?

Here’s a possible answer. What is described as the eternal essence is the goal, the final result of the Gita teaching. Like a good teacher, Shri Krishna described the end goal to his students before describing the means to attain that goal. Any good teacher will always describe, elaborate upon, and glorify the end goal in the first lecture of a course. This will generate interest, curiosity, focus and dedication from the student. The student may not necessarily understand everything about that goal, but that is ok.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 21, Chapter 2

19 Wednesday Oct 2011

Posted by in 2.21, ajam, avinaashi, avyayam, chapter 2 verse 21, enam, ghaatayati, hanti, kam, katham, nityam, paartha, purushaha, saha, veda, yaha

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vedaavinaashinam nityam ya enamajamavyayam |
katham sa purushaha paartha kam ghaatayati hanti kam || 21 ||

Whosoever knows this (eternal essence) to be imperishable, eternal, birthless and changeless, how can that individual, O Paartha, slay or cause anyone to be slain?

veda : knows
avinaashinam : imperishable
nityam : eternal
yaha : whosoever
enam : this
ajam : birthless
avyayam: changeless
katham : how
saha : that
purushaha : individual
paartha : O Paartha
kam : who
ghaatayati  : cause to be slain
hanti : kill
kam : who

Imagine that you are operating a laptop that is connected to a printer. You open a document on the laptop and click the print button. The laptop sends a signal to the printer, and the document gets printed.

Now imagine that the laptop and the printer have egos and can think for themselves. The laptop will say “I initiated the printing action” whereas the printer will say “I was the receiver of the printing action”.

But in reality, an electric current went from the laptop to the printer, which then caused the printing to happen. So, an engineer would never say “the laptop caused the printing to happen”. It was all a play of electricity.

So here, what Shri Krishna is trying to say is that “this”, the eternal essence does not act and nor does it get impacted by any action, just like electricity does not really act. It empowers material objects to act without actually acting. Therefore a wise person will never think that the eternal essence can slay or kill or act at all. It is like the sun.

The refrain is clear: “You are the eternal essence – birthless, changeless, eternal and imperishable. The eternal essence does not slay, nor does it get slain.” It is repeated throughout the Gita because it will take a significant effort on our part to truly understand and internalize this message.