Category Archives: paryupaasate

Bhagavad Gita Verse 20, Chapter 12

30 Sunday Dec 2012

Posted by in 12.20, ateeva, bhaktaaha, chapter 12 verse 20, dharmyaamritam, idam, mat, me, paramaahaa, paryupaasate, priyaha, shradyadhaanaa, te, tu, uktam, yatha, ye

≈ Comments Off on Bhagavad Gita Verse 20, Chapter 12

ye tu dharmyaamritamidam yathoktam paryupaasate |
shradyadhaanaa matparamaa bhaktosteteeva me priyaha || 20 ||
 
Therefore, those who partake of this nectar of law described here, endowed with faith, keeping me as the goal, those devotees are extremely dear to me.
 
ye : those who
tu : therefore
dharmyaamritam : nectar of law
idam : this
yatha : here
uktam : described
paryupaasate : partake
shradyadhaanaa : endowed with faith
mat : me
paramaahaa : goal
bhaktaaha : devotees
te : those
ateeva : extremely
me : me
priyaha : dear
 
Shri Krishna began listing the attributes of perfected devotees starting from the thirteenth chapter. In this shloka, he concludes this topic by highlighting two key attributes of such devotees: shraddha or faith, and making Ishvara as their ultimate goal, “matparamaahaa”. He terms the teaching of this chapter as the nectar of dharma. We can interpret the word dharma to mean the universal law of nature from the ninth chapter, or also as the nine fold bhaagvat dharma of Prahlaada that was explained earlier in this chapter.
 
Why are faith and goal-setting given such importance in bhakti or the path of devotion? Consider a child who eventually wants to study at one of the top universities in the world. Until he reaches a stage where he can qualify to attend that university, get selected for admission and begin his coursework, he needs to have faith in the notion that graduating from that university will significantly improve his life. That faith will propel him to set the single-pointed goal of academic success, work hard, to keep aside all distractions and to not give up. Only when he actually graduates will he not need faith anymore, because he has achieved what he set out to achieve. But until them, it is only faith in the goal that keeps him going.
 
Therefore, Shri Krishna says that those devotees who have fixed Ishvara as the goal, and that who have unwavering faith in that goal, are extremely dear to him. Devotees who love Ishvara without having known him first are devotees of the highest caliber, since it is more difficult to love something without having first known it. Such devotees, who do not need to become monks but just diligently worship Ishvara with form, are assured of liberation by Ishvara himself. This is the concluding message of the twelfth chapter.
 
om tatsatiti shreematbhagavatgitasupanishadsu brahmavidyaayaam yogashaastre shreekrishnaarjunsamvade bhaktiyogo naama dvaadashodhyaayaha || 12 ||

Bhagavad Gita Verse 3, Chapter 12

12 Wednesday Dec 2012

Posted by in 12.3, achalam, achintyam, aksharam, anirdeshyam, avyaktam, chapter 12 verse 3, dhruvam, kootashtam, paryupaasate, satvatragam

≈ Comments Off on Bhagavad Gita Verse 3, Chapter 12

ye tvaksharamanirdeshyamavyaktam paryupaasate |
satvatragamachintyam cha kootashtamachalam dhruvam || 3 ||
 
And, those who steadfastly worship the imperishable, indefinable, all pervading, inconceivable, unchangeable, immovable and eternal.
 
ye : those who
tu : and
aksharam : imperishable
anirdeshyam : indefinable
avyaktam : unmanifest
paryupaasate : steadfastly worship
satvatragam : all pervading
achintyam : inconceivable
cha : and
kootashtam : unchangeable
achalam : immovable
dhruvam : eternal
 
In response to Arjuna’s question, Shri Krishna earlier described the seeker who worshipped Ishvara as “saguna”, an entity with form. In this and the next shloka, he described the seeker who worships the “nirguna”, the formless Ishvara. Shri Krishna wants to clearly differentiate the formless from the formful, so he provides a list of adjectives to describe the formless Ishvara, to the extent that it is possible to do so.
 
“Aksharam” refers to that which does not decay, that which is imperishable. The seeker negates everything that he encounters as perishable, so only the subject remains. “Anirdeshyam” is that which cannot be described or defined by the speech and mind. “Avyaktam” refers to anything that is not accessible to our senses, something that is invisible. “Sarvatragam” is that which is not limited by space, that which pervades everywhere and everything. “Achintyam” is that which cannot be conceived as a thought by the mind.
 
Anything that is filled with fault is called “koota”. So that by which the defect-ridden maaya and its activities look real is called “kootastha”, the foundation or base on which maaya appears. “Kootastha” also means anvil which denotes changelessness in time. “Achalam” refers to fixity, changelessness in space. “Dhruvam” is that which is eternal and deathless. In this manner, a seeker worships the formless Ishvara.
 
Let us also understand what is meant by “upasaanaa” or meditative worship, since that is the theme of this chapter. Shankaracharya gives a long definition in his commentary. Upaasanaa literally means to sit near. Here it refers to the seeker taking on the quality of the object of worship by moving his mind as near to that object as he can. The object of worship should be selected with the advice of the guru and scriptures. It should not be arbitrary. Then the seeker should continuously think about the object, just like an unbroken stream of oil poured from a height.
 
Shri Krishna continues the description of nirguna upaasakaas, seekers of the formless Ishvara, in the next shloka.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 1, Chapter 12

10 Monday Dec 2012

Posted by in 12.1, avyaktam, bhaktaahaa, chapter 12 verse 1, evam, ke, paryupaasate, satatayuktaa, teshaam, tvaam, ye.aksharam, yogavittamaahaa

≈ Comments Off on Bhagavad Gita Verse 1, Chapter 12

Arjuna uvaacha:
evam satatayuktaa ye bhaktaastvaam paryupaasate |
ye chaapyaksharamavyaktam teshaam ke yogavittamaahaa || 1 ||
 
Arjuna said:
Those devotees, constantly united in you, worship you, and those devotees who worship the imperishable, the unmanifest, between them, who is the superior knower of yoga?
 
evam : in this manner
satatayuktaa : constantly united
ye : those who
bhaktaahaa : devotees
tvaam : you
paryupaasate : worship you
ye : those who
cha : and
api : also
aksharam : imperishable
avyaktam : unmanifest
teshaam : between them
ke : who is
yogavittamaahaa : superior knower of yoga
 
The first chapter of the Gita addressed the confusion of Arjuna arising out of his lack of identity, and of not knowing his duty on the battlefield. Chapters two to five explained what is the true nature of the individual, and using karma yoga to purify oneself. Chapter six explained how to remain constantly in one’s true nature through the yoga of meditation. Chapters seven to ten gave us an elaborate description of Ishvara, culminating with the vision of the cosmic form in the eleventh chapter.
 
The theme of this chapter is bhakti yoga, the yoga of devotion to Ishvara. Throughout the Gita, Shri Krishna has said, “perform actions for me”, “become devoted to me”, “make me your supreme goal”. But we have to first know, who is this “me” that is to be worshipped? There are some places in the Gita where Shri Krishna has described himself as imperishable, unmanifest, not visible to our senses. Conversely, he has shown his visible cosmic form to Arjuna in the previous chapter. In India, most devotees worship images of their chosen deities in their homes and temples.
 
So then, Arjuna wants to know, who is the superior devotee? Is it the one who worships the unmanifest, or is it one who worships the manifest? There is a well-known Marathi bhajan (devotional song) that asks the very same question : do I call you saguna or nirguna? Saguna means one with attributes, one that can be seen and felt. Nirguna means one that has no attributes. It is a tough choice for Shri Krishna. He answers the question in the next shloka.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 22, Chapter 9

17 Friday Aug 2012

Posted by in 9.22, aham, ananyaaha, chapter 9 verse 22, chintayantaha, janaahaa, maam, nityaabhiyuktaanaam, paryupaasate, teshaam, vahaami, ye, yogakshemam

≈ Comments Off on Bhagavad Gita Verse 22, Chapter 9

ananyaashchintayanto maam ye janaahaa paryupaasate |
teshaam nityaabhiyuktaanaam yogakshemam vahaamyaham || 22 ||
 
With single-pointed meditation, those who are constantly engaged in my worship, I carry the burden of acquisition and preservation of their needs.
 
ananyaaha : single-pointed
chintayantaha : meditation
maam : me
ye : those who
janaahaa : people
paryupaasate : worship
teshaam : their
nityaabhiyuktaanaam : constantly engaged
yogakshemam : acquisition and preservation of needs
vahaami : carry the burden
aham : I
 
Many commentators compare this shloka to a shining gem located right in the middle of the Gita. This oft-quoted shloka contains Ishvara’s promise to all devotees. Here, Shri Krishna assures us that Ishvara will personally attend to the needs of his devotees. But he also defines the type of devotee that is being discussed here. It is one who is ever absorbed in the contemplation of Ishvara. For such people, there is no fear, suffering, sorrow or lack of anything.
 
Previously, we learned about the “sakaama bhakta” or desire oriented devotee. This shloka describes the “nishkaama bhakta” or desireless devotee. Who is a nishkaama bhakta? It is the one who is only seeking one thing: moksha, liberation. His desire for moksha is equal to no other desire, for that desire will permanently eliminate all other desires. it is a desire for infinitude or poornatva. He has “ananya” or focused goal, other devotees have “anya” or diverse goals.
 
So if we are desireless devotees, if our only desire is liberation which is the attainment of Ishvara, what does Ishvara do for us? Shri Krishna says that Ishvara takes care of “yoga” and “kshema”. Our entire life comprises two major activities: acquisition and preservation. The early part of our life goes in acquisition of knowledge, wealth, family, position and title. This is denoted by the word “yoga”. The later part of our life is devoted to preservation of what we have acquired. This is “kshema”.
 
Many commentators cite a wonderful story to illustrate this shloka. There was a brahmin who had great faith in this shloka, but lost it one day because his family did not get enough alms to have a proper meal one day. In disgust, he tore the palm leaf on which this shloka was written and went out of the house. Later, a boy came to his house with a sack of rations. He informed the brahmin’s wife that her husband had sent her the food.
 
The brahmin’s wife noticed that the boy’s tongue was bleeding. She found out from the boy that it was her husband who had cut off the boy’s tongue. When the brahmin came back, the wife rebuked him for injuring the boy who had delivered the rations. The brahmin, it turns out, knew nothing about the boy or the rations. He quickly realized that it was Ishvara who delivered the food, and that when he tore the palm leaf, it injured Ishvara in the form of that boy. So Ishvara did not just deliver the food, he also carried the rations on his back. This is what is meant by the word “vahaami” which means “to carry”.
 
What is the practical implication of this shloka? If we wholly devote ourselves to the pursuit of Ishvara, we need not spend any time incessantly worrying about our needs. As long as we perform our duties efficiently and in a spirit of service to Ishvara, we will be well taken care of. Ishvara will not just carry our burden of needs, he will also carry all of our worries as well.
 
The culmination of this shloka’s vision is the knowledge that there is no such thing as “my” need or “your” need. If everything is Ishvara and everything is in Ishvara, then he will take care of his own needs, just like our fingers are not worrying about someone taking care of their individual needs.
 
What happens to those who do not worship Ishvara in his infinite nature? This is explained in the upcoming shlokas.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 25, Chapter 4

15 Wednesday Feb 2012

Posted by in 4.25, apare, brahmaagnau, chapter 4 verse 25, daivam, paryupaasate, upajuhyati, yajnena, yajnyam, yoginaha

≈ Comments Off on Bhagavad Gita Verse 25, Chapter 4

daivamevaapare yajnyam yoginaha paryupaasate |
brahmaagnauvapare yajnyam yajnenaivopajuhyati || 25 ||

Some yogis also worship deities through devotion, other yogis engage in worship by offering the self into the sacrificial flame of the self.

daivam : deities
eva : also
apare : some
yajnyam : devotion
yoginaha : yogis
paryupaasate : worship
brahmaagnau : self in the form of sacrificial flame
apare : others
yajnyam : worship
yajnena : self
upajuhyati : engage

In the last shloka, Shri Krishna gave us the ultimate vision of a karma yogi. This person thinks of brahman in everything and every action that he performs; it is 24/7, every second. For seekers who have just begin their journey, such a grand vision is difficult to consistently maintain. So in the following shlokas, Shri Krishna gives us simpler forms of worship for practice, so that we can ultimately build ourselves up to this grand vision.

For most of us it is difficult to comprehend the formless brahman. Therefore, many yogis worship a deity, in other words they invoke Ishvaraa in a particular idol or photograph. This offering of services to Ishvaraa is called “pooja”. Now in pooja, imagination plays an important role. Just like children play the house house game – the better the imagination, better they enjoy it. The process of pooja helps us develop rapport with Ishvaraa.

Once we get into the habit of pooja, we then imagine Ishvaraa in every action that we perform. We can even imagine Ishvaraa in the form of our friend, brother, parents and so on. It helps us to purify our mind and reduce fear caused by our attachments. As our trust in Ishvaraa increases, our fear decreases and we become calmer.

In addition to seekers who worship Ishvaraa, there is another group of seekers that are more thought oriented and more contemplative. They strive to realize the formless brahman through inquiry, contemplation, meditation, and by understanding their oneness with brahman. This form of worship is called jnyaana saadhanaa or spiritual practice through knowledge. It is like the wave surrendering completely to the ocean to realize its oneness with the ocean.

As we study the different forms of yagnyas that we can practice, it is easy to get carried away by the variety and the details. But the key point to remember is this. Any action we perform as part of a yagnya must not ever have even a tinge of expectation of result. If that happens, the yagnya becomes an ordinary, selfish action. The goal is to get better at these practice yagnyas so that we can bring that yagnya spirit into all actions in our daily life.