Bhagavad Gita Verse 15, Chapter 5

18 Sunday Mar 2012

Posted by in 5.15, aadatte, aavritam, ajnyaanena, chapter 5 verse 15, jantavaha, jnyaanam, kasyachit, muhyanti, na, paapam, sukritam, tena, vibhoohu

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naadatte kasyachitpaapam na sukritam vibhoohu |
ajnyaanenaavritam jnyaanam tena muhyanti jantavaha || 15 ||

Neither does the eternal essence accept anyone’s sins, nor anyone’s merits. Ignorance veils knowledge, that is how creatures are deluded.

na : not
aadatte : accept
kasyachit : anyone’s
paapam : sins
na : not
sukritam : merits
vibhoohu : eternal essence
ajnyaanena : ignorance
aavritam : veiled
jnyaanam : knowledge
tena : that
muhyanti : deluded
jantavaha : creatures

In the sequence of shlokas describing the vision of the enlightened seeker, Shri Krishna provided the illustration of the city dweller and also asserted that the eternal essence is separate and distinct from action and its adjuncts including doership, results and enjoyership of result.

In this shloka, he takes us another step further in explaining the distinctness of eternal essence from action. He says that even sin and merit also have nothing to do with eternal essence. He also further says that action, result, doership, enjoyership, sin, merit – the notion that these belong to the “I”, the eternal essence, is termed as ignorance. This ignorance is caused due to our strong identification with the body, mind and intellect.

Let us refer to the Pac-Man example from the previous post. Based on his actions in the video game, the Pac-Man character can gain points (merits) or lose points (demerits). This gaining and losing of points is again based on rules of the video game. It, too, is a fully automatic system that does not require any external intervention to work.

Now, in some places in the Gita, Shri Krisha asks us to offer merit and sin to God. But here it is said that eternal essence does not take sin or merit. So how do we reconcile this seeming contradiction? The key thing to understand here is that the person who thinks he is associated with action, sin and merit is at one level, and the person who has identified himself with eternal essence is at another level. It is just like saying that the points accumulated in a Pac-Man game have no bearing in the real world. The game and the real world are two different realms.

Another way to look at it is as follows. Sin and merit are duality. They are two sides of the same coin, as it were, just like black/white, heat/cold and day/night. When you rise above it, duality has no bearing. Day and night do not mean anything when one is in outer space, when one leaves the earth and rises above it.

Here’s another noteworthy point. Shri Krishna has used an interesting word to refer to ignorant people in this shloka. He calls them creatures. It is a subtle hint that as long as we operate with body identification, we are similar to animals who also operate only at that level.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 14, Chapter 5

18 Sunday Mar 2012

Posted by in 5.14, chapter 5 verse 14, karmaani, karmaphala, kartritvam, lokasya, na, prabhuh, pravartate, saiyogam, srijati, svabhaavaha, tu

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na kartritvam na karmaani lokasya srijati prabhuh |
na karmaphalasaiyogam svabhaavastu pravartate || 14 ||

Neither agency nor actions, in this world, are created by the eternal essence, and neither does it connect actions to results; for nature organizes (all this).

na : not
kartritvam : agency, doership
na : not
karmaani : actions
lokasya : in this world
srijati : create
prabhuh : eternal essence
na : not
karmaphala : results and actions
saiyogam : connect
svabhaavaha : nature
tu : for
pravartate : organizes (all this)

Earlier, Shri Krishna provided the example of the dweller in the city to illustrate the distinction between the eternal essence and the body, mind and intellect. In this shloka, he takes us one step further by saying that the eternal essence is beyond the realm of action. Furthermore, since action implies doership, results and their enjoyership, action and everything that comes with it is in the realm of prakriti or nature. The eternal essence is separate and distinct from action.

Any self-contained system has inherent rules which govern its operations. For example, let us consider the Pac-Man video game. The game is played in a computer that has four buttons which are used to move Pac-Man up, down, left or right. The rules of the game are programmed into the system. If the player manages to get the fruit while evading the monsters, he wins the game. All this happens automatically. It does not require external intervention by any divine or human entity.

But if we take a step back, the Pac-Man character does not really “move” anywhere. It is an illusion created by the computer by projecting the Pac-Man image to different parts of the screen. One who is watching the game very objectively knows that there is no movement of left, right etc.

Similarly, one who sees the world from the absolute standpoint of the eternal essence knows that in reality, there is no action. Action only exists from the standpoint of nature or prakriti. And if action only exists in nature, so does doership, enjoyership, and connection of actions to their results. It is a self-governing automatic system.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 13, Chapter 5

16 Friday Mar 2012

Posted by in 5.13, aaste, chapter 5 verse 13, dehee, eva, kaarayan, kurvan, manasaa, na, navadvare, pure, sannyasya, sarvakarmaani, sukham, vashee

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sarvakarmaani manasaa sannyasyaaste sukham vashee |
navadvaare pure dehee naiva kurvanna kaarayan || 13 ||

Having mindfully renounced all actions, the conqueror remains established in bliss. The embodied one, in the city with nine gates, neither acts nor causes to act.

sarvakarmaani : all actions
manasaa : mindfully
sannyasya : having renounced
aaste : remains established
sukham : bliss
vashee : the conqueror (of mind and senses)
navadvaare : with nine gates
pure : city
dehee : the embodied one
na : not
eva  : ever
kurvan : acts
na : nor
kaarayan : causes to act

Having spoken about the karmayogi’s vision, Shri Krishna now provides an illustration of the enlightened seeker’s vision in these shlokas. The picture he paints here is that one who identifies himself with the eternal essence, knows that he is only a dweller in the body, just like the resident of a city knows that he is a dweller, who is totally distinct from the city.

Imagine that you move into a new city for a job. As part of the move, you begin to utilize the city’s services such as water, electricity, garbage collection, telephone, cable etc. But while you utilize these services, you know that you are a resident of the city. You don’t begin to think that you are directly responsible for running the city. For example, when you someone picks up the garbage, it is part of the city’s services. You are in no way “running” the services.

Similarly, the enlightened seeker knows that he is the eternal essence, which is a dweller in the body and separate from the body. The body is pictorially depicted as a city with nine gates, each gate being an orifice (ear, nostril, eye) and so on. So when the seeker uses his hands, for example, he knows that the body, mind and intellect are operating independently. The enlightened seeker is in actuality, doing nothing at all. Just like the resident knows that the city’s services operate by themselves, and he is just a witness, similarly the enlightened person knows that the self is just a resident in the body, totally separate from the body.

Another indication of the seeker’s state is that he has complete control of his senses, and that he has mentally renounced the notion of doership. He knows that it is the body, mind and intellect that is performing action. This is indicated in the first part of the shloka. The end result is that the seeker, knowing that he is separate and distinct from the actions of the body, mind and intellect, lives in complete bliss.

Footnotes

1. Adi Shankaraachaarya in his commentary of this shloka gives an indicator that differentiates an enlightened seeker from an ordinary seeker. Let’s say we ask someone the question: “where are you sitting?”. If the person answers “on a chair” etc, then he is an ignorant seeker. If he answers “I am always sitting in the body”, he is an enlightened seeker.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 12, Chapter 5

15 Thursday Mar 2012

Posted by in 5.12, aapnoti, ayuktaha, chapter 5 verse 12, kaamakaarena, karmaphalam, naishtikeem, nibadhyate, phale, saktaha, shaatim, tyaktvaa, yuktaha

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yuktaha karmaphalam tyaktvaa shaantimaapnoti naishtikeem |
ayuktaha kaamakaarena phale sakto nibadhyate || 12 ||

One who is established in yoga, who has given up the result of action, attains everlasting peace. One who is not established in yoga, who has attachment to results due to desire, gets bound.

yuktaha : one established in yoga
karmaphalam : result of action
tyaktvaa : who has given up
shaantim : peace
aapnoti : attains
naishtikeem : everlasting
ayuktaha : one who is not established in yoga
kaamakaarena : due to desires
phale : results
saktaha : attachment
nibadhyate : gets bound

In this shloka, Shri Krishna compares and contrasts a karma yogi and a materialistic person. While both perform the very same action, and could very well get the same result, their attitude towards the work is different. One who follows karma yoga maintains the attitude that “I am not attached to the results”, whereas the materialistic person does not maintain this attitude.

The ignorant person does action for sake of the result. He does not find joy in work itself. If the result is favourable, he gets extremely elated. But this happiness, and in some instances, peace of mind, is temporary. The minute a result of actions becomes favourable, he gets extremely dejected and disappointed. But the karma yogi does not wait for the result of the action to give joy. He finds joy in the work. The peace that he attains is driven from within, rather than from without.

It is this mental attitude that differentiates the karma yogi from the materialistic person. The easiest way to gauge our progress towards karma yoga is to constantly monitor our state of mind. If we get agitated for long periods of time when we receive the result of our action, it is an indication that we have generated an attachment to the result, which in turn indicates that the ego is strong.

The words used to describe both types of seekers bear closer scrutiny. “Yuktaha” literally means yoked or established. In this context, yuktaha means one whose mind is yoked to the intellect. In other words, the mind is under the guidance of the intellect. In contrast, “ayuktaha” is one whose mind is not yoked to the intellect. It follows the direction of the mind and the senses. This difference in the orientation of the mind determines the fate of the seeker.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 11, Chapter 5

14 Wednesday Mar 2012

Posted by in 5.11, aatmashuddhaye, api, buddhyaa, chapter 5 verse 11, indriyaihi, kaayena, karma, kavalaih, kurvanti, manasaa, sangam, tyaktvaa, yoginaha

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kaayena manasaa buddhyaa kevalairindriyairapi |
yoginaha karma kurvanti sangam tyakvaatmashuddhaye || 11 ||

Solely with body, mind, intellect and senses does the seeker perform actions, casting off all attachment, for the purification of the self.

kaayena : with body
manasaa : mind
buddhyaa : intellect
kevalaih : solely (without a sense of mine)
indriyaihi : senses
api : only
yoginaha : seeker
karma : actions
kurvanti : perform
sangam : attachment
tyakvaa : cast off
aatmashuddhaye : purification of self

In the previous shloka, Shri Krishna explained how a karma yogi offers his actions to Ishvara. But how exactly does he do that? Shri Krishna in this shloka says that the karma yogi continuously keeps the thought that the body, mind, intellect and senses – all these are the property of Ishvara, given by Ishvara. Therefore, all the work done is for the benefit for Ishvara, and not for the ego.

The Gita teaches that the body, mind, intellect and senses are not really “ours”. But due to our conditioning, we come to think that they are ours. We then begin to do things for their benefit. For example, the tongue likes sweet food, so we undertake actions to satisfy it by eating things that may not be healthy from a long term perspective. When actions are done for the satisfaction of body, mind, intellect and senses, the sense of “mine-ness” develops and the ego gets strengthened. We then begin to serve the ego.

In this regard, let us recall example of the CFO we had encountered a while ago. As long as the CFO thinks that she is working for company, things will go smoothly. But if she begins to think that working for herself, starts misusing the company’s funds as her own funds, she gets into trouble. Similarly, a karma yogi treats his body, mind, intellect and senses as instruments of Ishvara. When that attitude comes, all actions and their results also get offered to Ishvara. In this manner, the seeker detaches himself from the body, mind, intellect and senses from the ego,  and attaches them to Ishvara. This is what is meant by “casting off all attachment”.

Now, let’s examine the second part of shloka where Shri Krishna talks about purification of self. What happens when karma yogi continues to dedicate actions to Ishvara? His mind gets cleared of all selfish desire, and his ego begins to lose its power. The end result is that the mind is purified of all vaasanaas – which is what is meant by “self” in the shloka. Purification of mind brings the karmayogi closer to self-realization.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 10, Chapter 5

13 Tuesday Mar 2012

Posted by in 5.10, aadhaaya, ambhasaa, brahmani, chapter 5 verse 10, iva, karmaani, karoti, lipyate, na, paapena, padma-patram, saga, sangam, tyaktvaa, yaha

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brahmanyaadhaaya karmaani sangam tvyaktvaa karoti yaha |
lipyate na sa paapena padmapatramivaambhasaa || 10 ||

Having offered all actions to the eternal essence, and having cast off attachments, he who performs actions does not get tainted by sins, just like water does not taint a lotus leaf.

brahmani : eternal essence
aadhaaya : offered
karmaani : all actions
sangam : attachment
tvyaktvaa : cast off
karoti : perform action
yaha : one who
lipyate : taint
na : do not
saha : him
paapena : sins
padma-patram : lotus leaf
iva : like
ambhasaa : water

Previously, we came across the vision of one who has realized the self. He knows that he is not the doer of all his actions. But what about the one who has not realized the self, and who is still working to sublimate his selfish desires? What is his vision?

In this shloka, Shri Krishna says that the person who has not realized the self (that includes most of us) offers all actions in a spirit of devotion to Ishvara. Shri Krishna reiterates that if one has selfish desires, karma yoga is the ideal path to follow. The karma yogi works for a higher ideal such as Ishvara, but one who does not follow karma yoga works for the ego.

Shri Krishna brings Arjuna back to karma yoga with this shloka. Arjuna harbours desires, therefore Shri Krishna does not want him to jump straight into the yoga of renunciation, which is a totally different level.

Now, let’s go a little deeper into the topic of attachment. Attachment can happen at four levels : attachment to the result of an action (I want a reward for singing this song), attachment to the action (I will sing a song only in my way), attachment to the sense of doership (I am singing this song) and attachment to the sense of non-doership (By not singing the song, I am the non-singer of this song). The first three are relatively easier to comprehend. The fourth one arises when one has not properly understood the notion of akarma or inaction from the fourth chapter.

So therefore, the karma yogi strives to transcend all four levels of attachment by offering results, actions, doership and non-doership to Ishvara. When he acts in the material world with such a vision, he does not accumulate any further desires, just like a lotus leaf does not get wet even though growing in water.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 8-9, Chapter 5

12 Monday Mar 2012

Posted by in 5.8, 5.9, ashnan, chapter 5 verse 8-9, gachchan, grihnan, jighran, manyeta, nimishan, pashyan, pralapan, shrunvan, shvasan, sparshan, svapan, tattvavit, unmishan, visrijan, yuktaha

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naiva kinchitkaromeeti yukto manyeta tattvavit |
pashyan-shrunvan-sparshan-jighran-ashnan-gachchan-svapan-shvasan || 8 ||

pralapan-visrijan-grihnan-unmishan-nimishan-api |
indriyaaneendriyartheshu vartanta iti dhaarayan || 9 ||

Never do I perform any action – in this manner asserts the one established in yoga, who has realized the eternal essence. 

Seeing, hearing, touching, smelling, eating, moving, dreaming and breathing; speaking, discarding, grasping, opening and closing of the eyelids. All this is the senses interacting with the sense objects – this is his understanding.

na : not
eva : ever
kinchit : anything
karomi : I act
iti : in this manner
yuktaha : one established in yoga
manyeta : asserts
tattvavit : who has realized the eternal essence

pashyan : seeing
shrunvan : hearing
sparshan : touching
jighran : smelling
ashnan : eating
gachchan : moving
svapan : dreaming
shvasan : breathing

pralapan : speaking
visrijan : discarding
grihnan : grasping
unmishan : opening eyelids
nimishan : closing eyelids
api : even during

indriyaani : senses
indriyartheshu : sense objects
vartanta : interacting
iti : this
dhaarayan : understanding

In prior shlokas, we learned that one who has realized the eternal essence understands that he is not the enjoyer and doer. So to make this as explicit as possible, Shri Krishna provided a detailed illustration of that teaching in this shloka. Here, he gives a comprehensive list of all activities performed by the body, mind and intellect. By providing this illustration, Shri Krishna demonstrates that one who has realized the eternal essence knows, in fact asserts, that he is not doing anything, and all these activities are happening automatically through the body, mind and intellect.

Having looked at this list of activities, we say  – yes we understand that blinking, hearing, dreaming and so on is automatic. But what about the process of thinking? Shri Krishna says that even the process of thought also happens automatically. Till such time as the ego is sublimated, it drives our mind to generate selfish thoughts. As the ego gets sublimated through karma yoga, selfish thoughts slowly transition to selfless ones. But the self , or the “I”, is just the witness of all these actions for one who has realized the eternal essence. Till then, the “I” thinks that it is the doer.

Only one who has realized the vision of the eternal essence truly knows that he is not the doer. What then, should be the vision of the karmayogi who wants to ultimately have this vision? This topic is tackled in the next shloka.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 7, Chapter 5

11 Sunday Mar 2012

Posted by in 5.7, api, chapter 5 verse 7, jitendriyaha, kurvan, lipyate, na, sarvabhootaatmabhootaatmaa, vijitaatmaa, vishuddhaatmaa, yogayuktaha

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yogayukto vishuddhaatmaa vijitaatmaa jitendriyaha |
sarvabhootaatmabhootaatmaa kurvannapi na lipyate || 7 ||

One who is established in yoga, who has conquered the mind, body and senses, one who sees his own self in all beings, even while acting is not tainted.

yogayuktaha : established in yoga
vishuddhaatmaa : one with pure mind
vijitaatmaa : one who has conquered the body
jitendriyaha : one who has control over senses
sarvabhootaatmabhootaatmaa : one who sees his own self in all beings
kurvan : while acting
na : does not
api : even while
lipyate : tainted

Imagine that a new factory has opened up in a small town, and the public has been invited to take tours of the factory. In one such tour, we have a businessman, an environmentalist, an engineer and a musician. As he is walking through the factory, the businessman’s first thought is about the amount of profit that this factory generates. The environmentalist thinks about the pollution caused by the factory. The engineer marvels at the brand new machines. And the musician loves the rhythm generated by the clanking machines. One’s vision gives an indication of how one’s mind works.

In this shloka, Shri Krishna illustrates the vision of one who is acting with the spirit of karma yoga. Even while acting, that person does not generate any further desires, because he has the same vision that a renouncer has. He sees the eternal essence everywhere, in himself as well as in everyone else. And like the example we saw earlier, his vision indicates that his entire personality, including his mind and intellect, have gained the knowledge of the eternal essence.

Furthermore, Shri Krishna reminds us that such knowledge is not possible without first bringing the body, mind and senses under control. Actions performed by such an individual do not “taint” him. Only when the sense of doership and enjoyership is present can actions can taint someone, in other words, cause further desires to sprout. When the ego behind actions has gone away, then those actions do not generate further desires.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 6, Chapter 5

09 Friday Mar 2012

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sannyaasastu mahaabaaho duhkhamaaptumayogataha |
yogayukto munirbrahma nachirenaadhigachchati || 6 ||

For renunciation, O mighty-armed, is difficult to attain without yoga. The contemplative person established in yoga swiftly attains the eternal essence.

sannyaasaha : renunciation
tu : for
mahaabaaho : O mighty-armed
duhkham : difficult
aaptum : to obtain
ayogataha : without yoga
yogayuktaha : established in yoga
munih : contemplative person
brahma : eternal essence
nachirena : swiftly
adhigachchati : attains

In this shloka, Shri Krishna says that for a seeker that has not fully exhausted his desires, bypassing the first stage of karmayoga will make attainment of the eternal essence difficult. The best option is to start with karmayoga, because like the yoga of knowledge, it too will yield the same result of self-realization.

To understand this, let us examine a different question: Why are there so few PhDs in the world? It takes a certain kind of person to obtain a PhD. One has to be ready to spend most of their life in a lab. One has to do what it takes to get their experiment right. They have to survive on their petty stipend for several years. And all this is for the sole objective of discovering something that benefits mankind.

Similarly, not many people can minimize their worldly activities so much that they retire to an ashram to gain knowledge from a teacher. For most of us, the pull of our desires is so strong that we will continue to work in this world. Therefore, liberation has to come from our actions, not through renunciation.

Furthermore, Shri Krishna also mentions a caveat about action. One should not perform actions just like that. Karmayoga advocates thoughtful action, where one thinks before one acts. The biggest obstacle in moving forward spiritually is our ego. It creates selfish desires that move us towards the material world. So when we performs actions thoughtfully, in other words, when we ensure that our actions are performed without attachment towards the result, our selfish desires automatically get slowly eliminated.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 5, Chapter 5

09 Friday Mar 2012

Posted by in 5.5, api, cha, chapter 5 verse 5, ekam, gamyate, pashyati, praapyate, saankhyaih, saankhyam, sah, sthaanam, tat, yah, yat, yogaih, yogam

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yatsaankhyaih praapyate sthaanam tadyogairapi gamyate |
ekam saankhyam cha yogam cha yah pashyati sah pashyati || 5 ||

One who obtains the state of bliss through knowledge, also reaches that same state through yoga. He who sees knowledge and yoga as one, that person sees (correctly).

yat : one who
saankhyaih : through knowledge
praapyate : obtains
sthaanam : state of bliss
tat : that
yogaih : through yoga
api : also
gamyate : reaches
ekam : as one
saankhyam : knowledge
cha : and
yogam : yoga
cha : also
yah : the person who
pashyati : sees
sah : that person
pashyati : sees

In this shloka, the words yoga and knowledge need further elaboration to get at the underlying meaning. In the context of this chapter, they mean yoga of action (karmayoga) and yoga of knowledge through renunciation (karma sannyaasa yoga) respectively. Having added this context, the shloka now reads as follows: one who obtains the state of bliss through the yoga of knowledge, also reaches that same state through the yoga of action. In the wise person’s view, both of these are one. It is like two passengers boarding a train from different stations. Both reach the same destination.

Let us dig deeper to understand what is common between renunciation and action. Imagine that two people are striving for self-realization. One person performs karma yoga, but does not think carefully about how he performs his actions. Without proper thought and discrimination, his actions become selfish and his vaasanaas increase. Ultimately, he does not attain his goal.

The other person decides that he prefers renunciation. He goes to an ashram to lead the life of a monk. But even thought he has renounced the material world, he keeps thinking about his life in the material world. He too, does not attain his goal, because his desires prevent him from properly absorbing his teacher’s teachings.

In both cases, renunciation and action do not work because they are missing the key ingredient – knowledge. Unless one uses discrimination while performing action, or maintains the knowledge that I am not the doer prior to renunciation, the goal is not attained by either person. Therefore, Shri Krishna urges wise people to keep discrimination in the picture while considering either stage of the path.

Having reassured Arjuna that both stages yield the same outcome, Shri Krishna next addresses why karma yoga is more appropriate for Arjuna.