Category Archives: sarvabhootaanaam

Bhagavad Gita Verse 61, Chapter 18

19 Friday Jul 2013

Posted by in 18.61, arjuna, bhraamayan, chapter 18 verse 61, eeshavaraha, hriddeshe, maayayaa, sarvabhootaanaam, sarvabhootaani, tishthati, yantraroodhaani

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eeshavaraha sarvabhootaanaam hriddesherjuna tishthati |
bhraamayansarvabhootaani yantraroodhaani maayayaa || 61 ||
 
Ishvara is seated in the hearts of all beings, O Arjuna, spinning all beings mounted on a machine by maaya.
 
eeshavaraha : Ishvara
sarvabhootaanaam : in all beings
hriddeshe : in the hearts
arjuna : O Arjuna
tishthati : seated
bhraamayan : spinning
sarvabhootaani : all beings
yantraroodhaani : mounted on a machine
maayayaa : by maaya
 
Quake was one of the first wildly successful multiplayer video games. Any person could participate in the video game as long as they were connected to the Internet. Players were placed in a virtual world where they could form teams with other players from across the world. Players would win points for shooting a member of the opposing team, and lose points if they would get shot. The creator of the Quake game had no influence on the outcome of the game, other than setting the rules of the game when it was created.
 
Shri Krishna says that the universe is like a gigantic video game set in motion by Ishvara. This video game is maayaa, also known as Prakriti, which is comprised of the three gunaas. By itself, maaya is insentient, it cannot do anything on its own. The eternal essence reflected in maaya adds sentience to maaya, it injects life into maaya by becoming the individual soul, the jeeva. In this way, each jeeva loses its connection with the eternal essence, and is stuck in this massive machine, this massive video game known as maaya.
 
So then, how can the jeeva liberate itself from this never ending video game of maaya? Does the jeeva have a chance? Is there any such thing as free will, or are we just slaves of maaya? The clue lies in the fact that maaya is subservient to Ishvara. If we only rely on maaya, if we only spend our lives attached to the material world, we will never have a chance at liberation. But if we direct our efforts towards knowing the true nature of Ishvara, towards contacting Ishvara, there may be a shot at liberation. Fortunately, he is not in some remote heaven, he is seated within us. How should we approach him? This is taken up next.

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 13, Chapter 12

22 Saturday Dec 2012

Posted by in 12.13, adveshta, chapter 12 verse 13, eva : also cha : and nirmamaha, karunaha, maitraha, nirahankaaraha, samaduhkhasukhaha, sarvabhootaanaam, shamee

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adveshta sarvabhootaanaam maitraha karuna eva cha |
nirmamo nirahankaaraha samaduhkhasukhaha shamee || 13 ||
 
He who is without dislike towards all beings, who is friendly and compassionate, who is also without (the sense of) mineness and egoism, who is the same in sorrow and joy, who is forgiving…
 
adveshta : without dislike
sarvabhootaanaam : all beings
maitraha : friendly
karunaha : compassionate
eva : also
cha : and
nirmamaha : without mineness
nirahankaaraha : without egoism
samaduhkhasukhaha : same in sorrow and joy
shamee : forgiving
 
Shri Krishna always elaborates on the practical aspects of his teaching and brings it to the level of the student’s understanding. In the second chapter, he devoted several shlokas to describe the traits towards aspects of one who is established in the eternal essence. Here, he describes the traits of saints and accomplished devotees towards other people, which are easier for us to connect with, and become goals for people like us to strive towards.
 
An accomplished devotee essentially is convinced of two things: that everything in this world is not different than Ishvara, and that the devotee himself is also not different from Ishvara. When he has this outlook, he loses all sense of “I-ness” and “mine-ness”. He never believes that he exists outside of the existence of Ishvara. There is no sense of “I”-ness because only one “I” – Ishvara – exists. There is no sense of possession because everything belongs to Ishvara. It is somewhat similar to the outlook one has towards a large family.
 
So when there is such a universal sense of oneness with everything, the devotee becomes extremely friendly towards everyone. There is no sense of dislike or hatred present in him towards those who oppose him. Instead, he instantly forgives everyone. He is compassionate towards those who are in need. When all sense of duality is gone, the mind does not get agitated in sorrowful situations, nor does it get excited in joyful situations. It maintains a sense of equanimity.
 
This partial shloka continues next.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 39, Chapter 10

09 Tuesday Oct 2012

Posted by in 10.39, acharam, aham, api, arjuna, asti, beejam, bhootam, cha, chapter 10 verse 39, chara, mayaa, na, sarvabhootaanaam, syaat, tat, vinaa, yat

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yatchaapi sarvabhootaanaam beejam tadahamarjuna |
na tadasti vinaa yatsyaanmayaa bhootam charaacharam || 39 ||
 
And O Arjuna, whatsoever is the seed of all beings, I am that. No moving or non-moving being can exist without me.
 
yat : whatsoever
cha : and
api : also
sarvabhootaanaam : all beings
beejam : seed
tat : that
aham : I am
arjuna : Arjuna
na : it is not
tat : that
asti : there is
vinaa : without
yat: which
syaat : can exist
mayaa : me
bhootam : being
chara : moving
acharam : non-moving
 
Now Shri Krishna begins to conclude the teaching of this chapter. Having provided a long list of Ishvara’s divine expressions, he now gives us a simple formula to recognize him. He says that whatever we come across in the world, whether it is a living or a non-living entity, or whether it is moving or stationary, it has arisen from the seed that is Ishvara. In other words, Ishvara is the cause or the seed of everything in this universe.
 
One way of understanding this is as follows. When we refer to an object, let’s say it’s a book, we say : “This is a book”. There are two aspects pointed out here. First is the book, which is quite obvious. But we also use the word “is” to indicate that the book exists, that the book is visible, and it will be visible to someone else. Shri Krishna says that the very existence of the book, the “is-ness” of the book, is nothing but Ishvara.
 
In other words, this entire universe will not exist without Ishvara. All of the names and forms in the universe use Ishvara are their basis. If we comprehend this, and develop our vision based on this knowledge, we will automatically see Ishvara everywhere, just like we automatically “see” electricity in every electrical gadget.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 10, Chapter 7

06 Wednesday Jun 2012

Posted by in 7.10, aham, asmi, beejam, buddhihi, buddhimataam, chapter 10 verse 7, maam, paartha, sanaatanam, sarvabhootaanaam, tejas, tejasvinaam, viddhi

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beejam maam sarvabhootaanaam viddhi paartha sanaatanam |
buddhirbuddhimataamasmi tejastejasvinaamaham || 10 ||
 
Know me as the eternal seed of all beings, O Paartha. I am the intellect of the intelligent, the radiance of the illustrious.
 
beejam : seed
maam : me
sarvabhootaanaam : of all beings
viddhi : know
paartha : O Paartha
sanaatanam : eternal
buddhihi : intellect
buddhimataam : of the intelligent
asmi : I am
tejas : radiance
tejasvinaam: of the illustrious
aham : I am
 
Previously, Shri Krishna spoke about seeing Ishvara as earthly fragrance, brilliance in fire, life in beings and austerity in the austere. He continues to give a list of his glories in this shloka, beginning with the statement that he is the eternal seed of all beings. He also addresses Arjuna as Paartha, descendent of King Prithu.
 
Earlier, Shri Krishna asserted that Ishvara is the cause of everything in the universe. So then, why is he seemingly repeating himself by the statement “I am the eternal seed”? It is to ensure that we gain the correct understanding.
 
Normally, when any tree grows out of a seed, the seed ceases to exist. In the case of Ishvara, however, the seed is eternal. In other words, the seed is changeless, but the entire content of the universe lies in an unmanifest form in this seed. It manifests itself at various points in the universe’s life span, not just at the beginning. So therefore, we need to learn to recognize the eternal seed and not get carried away or stuck in the level of names and forms.
 
Next, Shri Krishna urges us to recognize Ishvara in intelligence. We admire intelligent people for their ability to think clearly about complex issues without getting swayed by noise. How is their way of thinking different? A glass of clear water lets through more light than a glass of water that is agitated or clouded by dirt. Similarly, an intelligent person‘s mind is less dominated by the sway of emotion, and therefore enables the brilliance of Ishvara to shine through the intellect unhindered. In this manner, Ishvara becomes the intelligence of the intelligent.
 
Finally, Shri Krishna adds tejas or radiance to his list of vibhootis. This radiance manifests in us when when we are in good physical and mental health, when we have slept well, when we are fit. Also, when someone had earned a lot of wealth through self effort, or has performed selfless service, they also have a certain kind of glow. Shri Krishna says that it is Ishvara manifesting in these illustrious individuals in the form of tejas or radiance.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 29, Chapter 5

01 Sunday Apr 2012

Posted by in 5.29, bhoktaram, chapter 5 verse 29, jnyaatvaa, maam, maheshwaram, richhati, sarvabhootaanaam, sarvaloka, shaantim, suhridam, yajnyatapasaam

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bhoktaram yajnyatapasaam sarvalokamaheshwaram
suhridam sarvabhootaanaam jnyaatvaa maam shaantimrichhati || 29 ||

Having known me as the recipient of sacrifices and austerities, as the controller of all worlds, and as the well-wisher of all beings, (he) will attain peace.

bhoktaram : recepient
yajnyatapasaam : of sacrifices and austerities
sarvalokamaheshwaram : controller of all worlds
suhridam : well-wisher
sarvabhootaanaam : of all beings
jnyaatvaa : having known
maam : me
shaantim : peace
richhati : attain

In the prior two shlokas, Shri Krishna provided a preview of meditation. In this shloka, he gives us the objective of meditation. In other words, this shloka tells us what one comes to know in the state of meditation. This shloka is a preview of the topic covered in the seventh chapter to the twelfth chapter, which is the elaboration of Ishvara.

The goal of meditation is to realize the eternal essence. It is akin to a wave that realizes its identity with water. In this manner, the wave realizes that it is no longer the finite entity that it once was. It is one wave but also it is many waves. It is the entire ocean. Similarly, once the meditator realizes oneness with brahman or the eternal essence (water) , he attains Ishvara (ocean).

Who exactly is Ishvara is covered in the chapters seven through twelve. Only few of his attributes are covered here. First, he is the cosmic enjoyer or the cosmic recipient. Any work that is performed for the welfare of society is automatically dedicated to Ishvara. This was the theme of the third chapter on karmayoga where we are advised to act in a selfless manner, and dedicate the results of our actions to a higher ideal. Ishvara is the highest ideal possible because he encompasses the entire cosmos.

Next, Ishvara is called the controller of all beings. Through prakriti or maaya, Ishvara manifests as the laws or rules by which our lives as well as the lives of plants, animals and inert objects are governed. We saw earlier that the universe functions through inherent laws such as gravity and electromagnetism. In that regard, Ishvara through these laws controls us.

Finally, Ishvara’s laws are fair. They treat everyone equally. They work without any expectation or ulterior motive. They also work non-stop, just like our heart beats and our breath functions all the time. In this manner, Ishvara is the highest well-wisher and friend of all beings. If we too make friends with Ishvara, which is another way of saying that we work in the best interest of the world, we do not have to worry about our well-being. Ishvara takes care of us.

So therefore, one who comes to know the eternal essence, and realizes his unity with Ishvara during meditation, attains peace. This is the concluding message of the fifth chapter of the Gita.

om tatsatiti shrimadbhagavadgitasu upanishadsu brahmavidyayaam yogashastre shrikrishnaarjunasamvade
karmasanyaasayogonaamo panchamodhyaahaha || 5 ||

Bhagavad Gita Verse 69, Chapter 2

04 Sunday Dec 2011

Posted by in 2.69, bhootaani, chapter 2 verse 69, jaagrati, jaarti, muneh, nishaa, padhyato, saa, samyami, sarvabhootaanaam, tasyaam, yaa, yasyaam

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yaa nishaa sarvabhootaanaam tasyaam jaagarti samyami |
yasyaam jaagrati bhootaani saa nishaa pashyato muneh || 69 ||

That which is night for all beings, the balanced individual is awake in that. And that in which all beings are awake, the person of contemplation views as night.

yaa : that
nishaa : night
sarvabhootaanaam : for all beings
tasyaam : in that
jaagarti : is awake
samyami : balanced individual
yasyaam : and that
jaagrati : are awake
bhootaani : all beings
saa : that
nishaa : night
pashyato : views
muneh : person of contemplation

Here we encounter one of the most poetic shlokas in the second chapter, again, having several layers of meaning. Let us try to understand it to the best of our ability. First, let’s consider an example that will make the understanding of this shloka easier.

When a lay person and a professional artist enter a museum, both of them find joy in appreciating the works of art. The lay person may get excited about seeing how accurately an artist has painted a portrait. But the professional artist may find joy in more subtler aspects of the very same painting, e.g. what brush strokes were used, which time period was the painting commissioned in, what were the influences and so on – aspects that the lay person is probably totally oblivious to.

So therefore, in this shloka, Shri Krishna is speaking about two groups of individuals: ones who maintain the state of equanimity and ones who don’t. Both groups have to live in this world of material objects, and both of them have to face ups and downs in life. The key difference in both groups is their vision.

For most individuals, the world of material objects is their end goal, they are “awake” to it, and the eternal essence is like night to them. But for the individuals of equanimity, the world of material objects loses importance – that world is like night to them. They are awake to the timeless, changeless eternal essence.