Magazine - Year 2018 - Version 2
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Language: ENGLISH
Establish yourself in Yoga and perform action as per Yugadharma - 2
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Establish yourself in Yoga and perform
action as per Yugadharma - 2
In 41st ïloka of chapter 2 of the Gita, Lord says - Vyavas³y³tmik³ buddhirekeha kurunandanaA Bahuï³kh³ hyanant³ïca buddhayo”vyavas³yin³mAA Meaning: In this yoga O beloved son of the Kurus, the spiritual intellect is single-pointed and determined. But the intellect of those full of material desires indeed has endless diverse branches.
Here Lord intends to convey that people full of material desires do not consider dharma to be their duty but consider it as a business. So long as their desires are fulfilled by the devotion to God, He exists; otherwise, there is no God for them. Such people have been called by the Lord unwise and their intellect unstable (divided in endless diverse directions).
Lord says further (ïlokas 42 – 44) – ‘O Arjuna! Men of limited understanding deliver flowery speeches; they take pleasure in eulogizing the words of the Vedas, advocating that there is no goal better than attaining heaven. Full of sensual desires, they deliver speeches which promise good birth as the reward of one’s specific actions, and prescribe various specific rituals for the attainment of heavenly pleasure and power. The minds of those, who are much attached to sense enjoyments and material pleasures, are drawn away by such teachings; they do not attain spiritual intellect to focus their minds on Supreme Lord.
Lord’s words (though spoken to Arjuna) fit very well for the present-day so-called scholars of scriptures. How can a man engrossed in crass materialism but delivering flowery discourses and aiming to achieve pleasure and power think of self-realization? Majority of the so-called religious people today fall in this category. Ramakrishna Paramhansa used to describe this type of intellect as ‘Patwari buddhi’ (meaning – the record-keeping intellect). ‘By renouncing so much, you get so much’ – instead of keeping such an account of good deeds and their rewards, it is better to renounce all the desires. Only such an intellect is desirable. That is why Lord says to Arjuna (45th ïloka) – ‘O Arjuna! The Vedas deal with the three attributes (of the material world). Be above these three attributes (sattwa, rajas and tamas).
Free yourself from the duality and the thoughts of acquisition and preservation, and be established in the Self.’ Acquisition of the unattainable is called ‘yoga’ and preservation of the acquired things is called ‘kshema’. Lord advises Arjuna to abandon both yoga as well as kshema and be independent; that he should perform his duty and forget about its results. Now we come to the most important ïloka of the Gita, whose paeans of praises have been sung for the ages. This ïloka, representative of Karmayoga, has been inspiring the masses for thousands of years.
Karmanyev³dhik³raste m³ phaleÌu kad³canaA M³ karmaphalahetur bh¿rm³ te saògo”stvakarmañiAA 47/2 Meaning: You have the right to perform the action, but not for its fruits. You should not be motivated by the fruits of actions, nor be attached to inaction.
The elucidation from 47th to 53rd ïloka is truly the essence of the Gita; it is the real interpretation of Yoga. Lord is saying – ‘you have the right to perform action only; whether you get its results or not is not your concern; that is, you have no right to claim the fruits.’ Some scholars call this sentence as a super-sentence. However, the Gita should be understood sequentially from the beginning to the end. Here the Teacher of the Gita is trying to covey that a person is not the performer of action; the Supreme power gets it done through him/her. As soon as the disciple realizes this truth, the desire for fruits of action automatically vanishes from the mind. This also makes the desire for right to action and consequent ego, disappear from the mind. Lord is trying to explain to Arjuna that the s³dhaka should free himself from the three attributes (sattva, rajas and tamas) of material world and surrender all his actions at the feet of Supreme Being. He should merge his resolve with that of His resolve; and also merge his consciousness into His Consciousness.
It is this surrender that is the prescribed yoga for man. It is a grand endeavor of transforming nara (human being) into narayana (Supreme Being) and the merging of Soul into the Supreme Soul. Understanding the essence of 47th ïloka is the beginning of this endeavor. In 48th ïloka, Lord says – Yogastha¡ kuru karm³ñi saòga® tyaktv³ dhananjaya | Siddhyasiddhyo¡ samo bh¿tv³ samatva® yoga ucyate|| Meaning: O Dhananjaya! Being steadfast in yoga, perform action abandoning attachment and remaining equipoised in success and failure. This equanimity of mind is called yoga. Abovementioned three instructions of Lord – Be steadfast in yoga, abandon attachment and remain equipoised in success and failure – take us to the root of sankhya yoga. If we want to solve the complexities of life, then we will have to learn to work keeping ourselves established in yoga. It is this method that can make us an excellent artist of living life, an excellent manager and an excellent householder. When Pujya Gurudev taught us yugas³dhan³ of social service, he repeatedly stressed the need for doing work keeping ourselves steadfast in yoga, abandoning attachment to the material world and remaining equipoised in all circumstances. Even if we want to live as householders, we will have to keep this ideal in our minds for successful running of our families.
A unique expression has appeared in this ïloka – ‘saòga® tyaktv³ dhananjaya’ (O Dhananjaya! Perform action abandoning attachment). Dhananjaya is the famous title of Arjuna. Why has Lord addressed him by this name? Its answer is very interesting. The literal meaning of Dhananjaya is – A victorious person who has conquered the treasure of wealth. He could have called him Partha or even Arjuna, but here the talk of establishing in yoga abandoning the attachment with material resources is being done, so He preferred to address him by this name. He says – ‘O Dhananjaya! You have won the treasure of wealth; you are an accomplished man, prosperous and brave, but you should abandon the attachment to all these traits. You should imbibe equanimity. Balance is the key – remain equipoised whether the task at hand is complete or incomplete or you received its fruits or not. This is true Yoga. Instead of adopting the extreme lines, it is better to choose the middle path. This is not possible without relinquishing the attachment to sense objects.’ Lord says further – ‘O Dhananjaya! The action done with its fruits in mind is far inferior to the yoga of wisdom. Therefore, seek refuge in wisdom of equanimity; wretched are they whose motive is the fruit.’ (ïloka 49/2) In this ïloka, a specific word – ‘yoga of wisdom’ has been used. It is not a matter of play to acquire the wisdom of equanimity. One, who is able to do so, has been called Sthitpragya – the detailed explanation of which has been given in 18 ïlokas of the second half of this chapter on Sankhya Yoga. Lord says that the action done with steadfastness in yoga is not only the highest form of action but full of wisdom.
In the context of materialistic matters too this kind of action is very powerful and effective. The reason is, such actions are filled with the knowledge and resolve of the Lord Himself. That is why Lord says further – Buddhi-yukto jah³tºha ubhe suk•ta duÌk•te | Tasm³d yog³ya yujyasva yoga¡ karmasu kauïalam || 50/2|| Meaning: When one performs actions with the wisdom of equanimity, one can get rid of the results of both good and evil deeds; therefore, devote yourself to this yoga; this yoga is synonymous with the skill in action. Indeed, such actions are the means of liberating oneself from the bondage of good or bad deeds. Lord says that the wise men possessing spiritual intellect having abandoned the fruits of their actions liberate themselves from the bondage of birth and death and achieve eternal bliss (ïloka 51/2). When your enlightened intellect crosses beyond the mire of delusion, then you will become indifferent to what has been heard and what is yet to be heard (ïloka 52/2). When your intellect that has been perplexed by what you have heard, will become stable and steady in the Self, then you will attain Self-realization (ïloka 53/2). What a beautiful answer to the curiosity of Arjuna! After many ups and downs, Yogeshwar Shrikrishna brings his disciple Arjuna to a point where he seems to be not only overcoming his despondency but moving forward in the direction of becoming a yogi or achieving selfrealization. After getting awakened, Arjuna wants to know how he can become a yogi who is one with God.
With this question of Arjuna and its answer by the Lord begins the final and most important context of Sankhya Yoga – ‘O Keshava! What are the signs of Sthitpragya (the one who has attained steady wisdom and whose consciousness has merged with Superconsciousness)? How does he speak? How does he sit? How does he walk?’ We will continue with the description of Sthitpragya Yogi in the next issue of this magazine.
[To be continued]
[Note: This is the translation of Hindi version of ‘Yug Gita’ (Part 1) by Dr. Pranav Pandya, published by Sri Vedmata Gayatri Trust, Shantikunj, Haridwar (2003)]
In 41st ïloka of chapter 2 of the Gita, Lord says - Vyavas³y³tmik³ buddhirekeha kurunandanaA Bahuï³kh³ hyanant³ïca buddhayo”vyavas³yin³mAA Meaning: In this yoga O beloved son of the Kurus, the spiritual intellect is single-pointed and determined. But the intellect of those full of material desires indeed has endless diverse branches.
Here Lord intends to convey that people full of material desires do not consider dharma to be their duty but consider it as a business. So long as their desires are fulfilled by the devotion to God, He exists; otherwise, there is no God for them. Such people have been called by the Lord unwise and their intellect unstable (divided in endless diverse directions).
Lord says further (ïlokas 42 – 44) – ‘O Arjuna! Men of limited understanding deliver flowery speeches; they take pleasure in eulogizing the words of the Vedas, advocating that there is no goal better than attaining heaven. Full of sensual desires, they deliver speeches which promise good birth as the reward of one’s specific actions, and prescribe various specific rituals for the attainment of heavenly pleasure and power. The minds of those, who are much attached to sense enjoyments and material pleasures, are drawn away by such teachings; they do not attain spiritual intellect to focus their minds on Supreme Lord.
Lord’s words (though spoken to Arjuna) fit very well for the present-day so-called scholars of scriptures. How can a man engrossed in crass materialism but delivering flowery discourses and aiming to achieve pleasure and power think of self-realization? Majority of the so-called religious people today fall in this category. Ramakrishna Paramhansa used to describe this type of intellect as ‘Patwari buddhi’ (meaning – the record-keeping intellect). ‘By renouncing so much, you get so much’ – instead of keeping such an account of good deeds and their rewards, it is better to renounce all the desires. Only such an intellect is desirable. That is why Lord says to Arjuna (45th ïloka) – ‘O Arjuna! The Vedas deal with the three attributes (of the material world). Be above these three attributes (sattwa, rajas and tamas).
Free yourself from the duality and the thoughts of acquisition and preservation, and be established in the Self.’ Acquisition of the unattainable is called ‘yoga’ and preservation of the acquired things is called ‘kshema’. Lord advises Arjuna to abandon both yoga as well as kshema and be independent; that he should perform his duty and forget about its results. Now we come to the most important ïloka of the Gita, whose paeans of praises have been sung for the ages. This ïloka, representative of Karmayoga, has been inspiring the masses for thousands of years.
Karmanyev³dhik³raste m³ phaleÌu kad³canaA M³ karmaphalahetur bh¿rm³ te saògo”stvakarmañiAA 47/2 Meaning: You have the right to perform the action, but not for its fruits. You should not be motivated by the fruits of actions, nor be attached to inaction.
The elucidation from 47th to 53rd ïloka is truly the essence of the Gita; it is the real interpretation of Yoga. Lord is saying – ‘you have the right to perform action only; whether you get its results or not is not your concern; that is, you have no right to claim the fruits.’ Some scholars call this sentence as a super-sentence. However, the Gita should be understood sequentially from the beginning to the end. Here the Teacher of the Gita is trying to covey that a person is not the performer of action; the Supreme power gets it done through him/her. As soon as the disciple realizes this truth, the desire for fruits of action automatically vanishes from the mind. This also makes the desire for right to action and consequent ego, disappear from the mind. Lord is trying to explain to Arjuna that the s³dhaka should free himself from the three attributes (sattva, rajas and tamas) of material world and surrender all his actions at the feet of Supreme Being. He should merge his resolve with that of His resolve; and also merge his consciousness into His Consciousness.
It is this surrender that is the prescribed yoga for man. It is a grand endeavor of transforming nara (human being) into narayana (Supreme Being) and the merging of Soul into the Supreme Soul. Understanding the essence of 47th ïloka is the beginning of this endeavor. In 48th ïloka, Lord says – Yogastha¡ kuru karm³ñi saòga® tyaktv³ dhananjaya | Siddhyasiddhyo¡ samo bh¿tv³ samatva® yoga ucyate|| Meaning: O Dhananjaya! Being steadfast in yoga, perform action abandoning attachment and remaining equipoised in success and failure. This equanimity of mind is called yoga. Abovementioned three instructions of Lord – Be steadfast in yoga, abandon attachment and remain equipoised in success and failure – take us to the root of sankhya yoga. If we want to solve the complexities of life, then we will have to learn to work keeping ourselves established in yoga. It is this method that can make us an excellent artist of living life, an excellent manager and an excellent householder. When Pujya Gurudev taught us yugas³dhan³ of social service, he repeatedly stressed the need for doing work keeping ourselves steadfast in yoga, abandoning attachment to the material world and remaining equipoised in all circumstances. Even if we want to live as householders, we will have to keep this ideal in our minds for successful running of our families.
A unique expression has appeared in this ïloka – ‘saòga® tyaktv³ dhananjaya’ (O Dhananjaya! Perform action abandoning attachment). Dhananjaya is the famous title of Arjuna. Why has Lord addressed him by this name? Its answer is very interesting. The literal meaning of Dhananjaya is – A victorious person who has conquered the treasure of wealth. He could have called him Partha or even Arjuna, but here the talk of establishing in yoga abandoning the attachment with material resources is being done, so He preferred to address him by this name. He says – ‘O Dhananjaya! You have won the treasure of wealth; you are an accomplished man, prosperous and brave, but you should abandon the attachment to all these traits. You should imbibe equanimity. Balance is the key – remain equipoised whether the task at hand is complete or incomplete or you received its fruits or not. This is true Yoga. Instead of adopting the extreme lines, it is better to choose the middle path. This is not possible without relinquishing the attachment to sense objects.’ Lord says further – ‘O Dhananjaya! The action done with its fruits in mind is far inferior to the yoga of wisdom. Therefore, seek refuge in wisdom of equanimity; wretched are they whose motive is the fruit.’ (ïloka 49/2) In this ïloka, a specific word – ‘yoga of wisdom’ has been used. It is not a matter of play to acquire the wisdom of equanimity. One, who is able to do so, has been called Sthitpragya – the detailed explanation of which has been given in 18 ïlokas of the second half of this chapter on Sankhya Yoga. Lord says that the action done with steadfastness in yoga is not only the highest form of action but full of wisdom.
In the context of materialistic matters too this kind of action is very powerful and effective. The reason is, such actions are filled with the knowledge and resolve of the Lord Himself. That is why Lord says further – Buddhi-yukto jah³tºha ubhe suk•ta duÌk•te | Tasm³d yog³ya yujyasva yoga¡ karmasu kauïalam || 50/2|| Meaning: When one performs actions with the wisdom of equanimity, one can get rid of the results of both good and evil deeds; therefore, devote yourself to this yoga; this yoga is synonymous with the skill in action. Indeed, such actions are the means of liberating oneself from the bondage of good or bad deeds. Lord says that the wise men possessing spiritual intellect having abandoned the fruits of their actions liberate themselves from the bondage of birth and death and achieve eternal bliss (ïloka 51/2). When your enlightened intellect crosses beyond the mire of delusion, then you will become indifferent to what has been heard and what is yet to be heard (ïloka 52/2). When your intellect that has been perplexed by what you have heard, will become stable and steady in the Self, then you will attain Self-realization (ïloka 53/2). What a beautiful answer to the curiosity of Arjuna! After many ups and downs, Yogeshwar Shrikrishna brings his disciple Arjuna to a point where he seems to be not only overcoming his despondency but moving forward in the direction of becoming a yogi or achieving selfrealization. After getting awakened, Arjuna wants to know how he can become a yogi who is one with God.
With this question of Arjuna and its answer by the Lord begins the final and most important context of Sankhya Yoga – ‘O Keshava! What are the signs of Sthitpragya (the one who has attained steady wisdom and whose consciousness has merged with Superconsciousness)? How does he speak? How does he sit? How does he walk?’ We will continue with the description of Sthitpragya Yogi in the next issue of this magazine.
[To be continued]
[Note: This is the translation of Hindi version of ‘Yug Gita’ (Part 1) by Dr. Pranav Pandya, published by Sri Vedmata Gayatri Trust, Shantikunj, Haridwar (2003)]
