Gitopadesha

 ‘Geetopadesha’ i.e., the Sermons of the Lord and the Maha Vakyas- the Commandments were secretly communicated and passed on from generation to generations.  It was revealed to the first Manu, Sumanvanta but it was soon lost into oblivion over times. Hence, it was told again to the next Manu and the next like that to all the seven Manus, the Seventh Viavasvata Manu is the one who is the Great–great-grandfather of all the human beings of the present eon.

    Thus, our own genealogy as the humans can be easily traced to the earliest sages of repute. These Manus retold the same secret of Reality of Existence and the supreme Truth to their children, or their disciples; and, here, in Dwapara Yuga, the Lord Himself comes here as the Charioteer of his brother-in-law, trusted friend and disciple- the confused mind- Arjuna, in the battle field of Hastinapura. In fact, there is much symbolism ideation, mentation and extra-sensorial perception involved in all these that requires a spiritual exercise. However, as common understanding at elementary level, the epic goes well.It is like moral story taught in primary schools.

   Hence, the Mahabharata War is described as what Sanjaya is narrating (the details of the happenings on the battle field of Kurukshetra) to the blind King Dhrutarashtra. So, it starts with the words: “Sanjaya uvacha...”   (“Sanjaya said. . ”)

   By the Way, Sanjaya, as an incarnate of Vishnu, is endowed with the intuitional eye and not only he could virtually see what was going on in the Battlefield (Armageddon) of Kurukshetra but he could as well read the minds of the people and know what transpired at night. Thus, he could foretell events, as well. In fact, the Lord offered the gift of  eyesight to the blind Dhrutarashtra a chance to see for himself what his own thoughts and actions led to, but the latter rejected the offer and said that he was content with what Sanjaya would narrate as a running commentary of the events. It is more by way of ‘loud thinking’ and an imaginary conversation that the entire Bhagavad-Gita is narrated here rather than what ordinarily we assume! In a way, there is neither the Battlefield nor Shree Krishna and an Arjuna there. It is all what transpires with the individual who introspects about the pros and cons of ones action. Thus, Bhagavad-Gita appears as if somebody has just inserted this episode into the Mahabharata scripture.     

  Since the Bhagavad-Gita is associated with the characters of the epic Mahabharata such as Karna, Dronaacharya, Bheeshmacharya and others, it is necessary to find out who are all there on the Battlefield and their antecedents. In brief, the story as depicted in the great epic Mahabharata is that Sage Vyasadeva, also called Shree Krshna Dvaipayana Veda Vyasa, has three children Pandu, Dhrustrashtra and Vidura. Dhrutarashtra was born blind. Actually, Bheeshmacharya relinquished the throne and Pandu became the King. Pandu belongs to the the lineage of the Ruler of the Earth Pruthu and his descendants Emperor Sagara and  Bharata of Ikshvaku dynasty who worshiped Sun-God. Pandu and Dhritarashtra shared the Kingdom and started their own separate dynasties. Pandu was by birth an afflicted person with a disease called ‘Pandu’- a skin disease. He married Madri and Kunti. Kunti had the blessings of the great Sages for the services rendered to them as a small girl and later on when married to King Pandu, she gave birth to three sons- Yudhisthira, Bheema and Arjuna’ as the blessings of the Gods and the revered Sages. Pandu’s second wife Madri also gave birth to twins- Nakula and Sahadeva, as the blessings of the celestial Physicians- the Ashvin Twins. Thus, all the five children of King Pandu, known as the Pandavas, were still young when Pandu died. King Pandu and his two wives- Kunti and madri, had five children. Another son called ‘Karna’ (born with an ear-stud and a strong diamond chest-cover), also, was born to Kunti. She was gifted with a boon, by way of a Mantra, and the Gods would bless her with children whenever she wished. While she was still a small girl serving the revered Saints and Sages who visited the family, Kunti had great reverence to the Sages. One day, she wanted to test the efficacy of the Mantra and uttered it with reverence to Soorya Deva /Sun–God while taking bath in the river. When she got a child in her arms she was afraid and left to float in the river and rushed home. Fortunately a fisherman saw the child and took it home. Later on this character reaapears in the Mahabaharata. This child later on came to be known as Karna brought up in the company of the Kauravas; but, still supposed to be the eldest of the Pandavas. No body had any reservations about it. In fact none of the Pandavas are the real sons of King Pandu since he incurred a curse as a result of killing a mating pair of deer; and the curse ended his life in the nuptial bed!

          Krishna comes here as the maternal uncle of the Pandavas. Krishna is the cousin of Kunti sister of Yashoda. King Nanda of Dwarka and Yashoda are the foster-parents of Krishna. Vasudeva shifted the child Krishna from the prison in Mathura to Dwarka on the advice of his wife Devaki to replace him with Yogamaya, the female child born to her sister Yashoda soon after birth due to the fear of Kamsa. Thus, Krishna was fond of all the Pandava brothers since the beginning and he took special care of them.

     When Pandu died under mysterious circumstances, may be as a result of the curse, the young children came under the protection of his blind brother Dhrutarashtra. The Blind King who started the Kuru Dynasty and his blind-folded wife Gandhari had one hundred children of whom Duryodhana was the eldest. Both the Pandavas and the Kauravas grew together and had the tutelage under the Royal Sage and Guru Dronacharya. Later on the Pandavas ruled their own Kingdom and conducted Rajasuya Yaga, a sacrificial ritual. They invited all the Kings and Krishna also attended this grand ceremony and blessed them all well. But the pomp and glory of the Pandavas became the cause of jealous Duryodhana who contrived and won all the wealth, including Draupadi, in the gambling.

     Thus, Duryodhana, with the help of Shakuni, his uncle, rigged the game of Dice and cheated the Pandavas of their Kingdom. The Pandavas retired to the forests for Thirteen years along with Kunti, and finally returned to claim their kingdom back as per their agreement. But, Duryodhana had altogether different plans. He thought that he could easily defeat the Pandavas in a wage of war and permanently enjoy the Kingdom all by himself. He challenged the Pandavas to fight and win back their kingdom. In spite of Shree Krishna’s famous ‘anusandhana’, mediation, King Duryodhana denied their legitimate share of kingdom and refused to part with even five villages. Thus, there was no other way but to resolve the conflict by a war, and hence they assembled in the battlefield of Kurukshetra that came to be known as the ‘Great War of Righteousness’ / ‘Dharma Yuddha’. The Pandavas suffered living in disguise, as per the terms of the agreement, and finally returned to claim their kingdom. Having successfully completed these thirteen years of exile, facing many obstacles and dangers instigated by the Kauravas, approached the Kauravas for their share of the kingdom. Duryodhana, however, flatly refused to part with as much land as could be covered by the point of a needle. According to the advice of Mother Kunti and with the inspiration of Lord Krishna, the Pandavas decided upon war and tried to establish their rightful claim on the kingdom by overcoming the Kauravas. Duryodhana and Arjuna, from the side of the Kauravas and Pandavas respectively, were sent to Dwaraka to seek the help of the Yadava hero, Lord Krishna, in the battle. They both found Krishna resting on a couch in His palace. Duryodhana went in and occupied a seat at the head of the couch while Arjuna stood near the feet of the Lord. The moment Sri Krishna opened His eyes, He naturally saw Arjuna first, and then Duryodhana sitting on a chair. After enquiry of their welfare and the purpose of their visit, Sri Krishna, according to the prevailing custom, gave the first choice to Arjuna, because of his age, and also because of His sight of Arjuna first. Krishna asked Arjuna to fulfill his desire by selecting Him unarmed or His powerful army called Narayani Sena. Arjuna, who was a devotee of Sri Krishna, expressed his desire to have the Lord with him, neglecting the powerful Narayani Sena, even though Krishna warned that He would remain a witness, bound by the vow of not participating in battle and not taking up arms. Duryodhana, with great delight, thinking that Arjuna was foolish, expressed his wish for the powerful army to help his side in the battle.

      The entire story of Mahabharata is a maze of events inter-woven in a voluminous book of Eighteen-Cantos: Adi, Sabhaa, Vana, ViraaTa, Udyoga, Bhiishma, DroNa, Karma, Shalya, Sauptika, Strii, Shaanti, Anushaashana, Aashvamedhika, Aashramavaasika, Mausala, Mahaaprasthaanika, and SwargaarohaNa. It requires a bit of wild imagination and extraordinary literary skill and spiritual strength, historical, and philosophical knowledge, and divine grace, too, to weave a story or write* such a voluminous epic keeping track of all the happenings in the royal family of the Grand Sire Gangeya- the nonagenarian Bheeshmacharya, son of Ganga.  If one wants to know more about the details of Shree Krishna, the relevant literature is provided by the same author Veda Vyasa in Shreemad Bhagavata. There are other works like Raghuvamsha, Kumara sambhava, Krishnavataara, and the Shree Krishna Charitamruta or Leeamruta that give a detailed account of the incarnation of the Lord. And, the story behind all that is another story! Since the entire Bhagavad-Gita is the philosophy of life, it is necessary to have the background knowledge of the life and work of the Aryans and it takes us to Ancient Indian History, Vedic Culture, and Philosophy. Further, it becomes more complicated when it comes to the literal meaning of the philosophical terms used here, for they convey something much deeper than what it seems to be at the surface. The concept of God, Bhagavan is beautifully explained here in Shreemad Bhagavatam. Unless a person is deeply spiritual (not just religious) it is impossible to get a proper grasp of this subject. The mind and the senses have to be kept closed and it is mere meditation /dhyan, contemplation and Samadhi or transcendent state of Consciousness getting beyond three realms of earth, sky and heavens / ‘Bhurbhvahsvah’, into the ‘Mahat”, as also, rising from the energy plexus of mooladhaara, svaadhishta and manipura, high into the anahata chakra/ plexus of energy level; rather, when one drops himself from the states of awareness such as jagrata, svapna, sushupti and the transcends deeper and higher, he attains the fourth level (turiya) and mahat at the anahata, vishuddhi, ajnya and sahasraar- the fifth, sixth and the seventh as the turiyaateeta / samadhi, a transcendental state of Consciousness that helps in understanding the Parabhrahman called ‘tat’ / ‘THAT or IT. The entire concept is deeply spiritual (adhyatmic) exercise beyond theoretical knowledge. A micron of dust of practical exercise here is better than a ton of knowledge of the Veda, Upanishads, and the Brahma Sutra. It is something beyond this objective world and has nothing to do with the earthly existence at all. 

Rebirth and Redemption of the Jiva

 Human evolution is a matter of conjecture. What the science speaks of is not very convincing when the scriptures are studied and the problem is well understood. The Gita gives an elaborate description of this.  It has been repeatedly said by some saints that ‘this human form is a rare gift of God and it has a definite purpose’. However, people do not understand such statements. Not all people are happy and successful here in this death knell, mrutyu loka, where whatever is born shall have to die! It is still a wonder why some people seem to enjoy life while most of the people suffer from hunger, poverty and misery. There is no well laid path to success and happiness. But, still people stick on to some principle and eke out a living, hoping that one day it would be all joyful. But, that day will never come. The whole life turns out to be an endless struggle for existence. Nothing gives us everlasting joy, peace, or happiness. Disgusted with this, some people become depressed and commit suicide; and, to end life in frustration and depression is as sinful as living in ignorance.

    There comes in the life of every jiva a time when it is shaken out of its slumber, the land under its feet sinks and it is left shattered to pieces, or made to stand stark naked in the middle of the street, or completely wrecked like what has just happened in the worst floods of Jammu and Kashmir recently. This is the turning point when it, the jiva, turns to the supreme Lord almighty for help and begs for redemption, mukti, or moksha. Many people commit suicide on the face of disappointments, loss, trouble and turmoil, incurable diseases and suffering pain, or seek the guidance of a teacher. Even the rich and powerful, prosperous people are free from depression! This is the time when the jiva seeks liberation from the shackles of repeated births and deaths. May be nobody thinks of God unless he is put in the crucible of fire of life.

  Some people admit that they have made a mess of their life. This means, they know they have committed mistakes, knowingly or unknowingly. Whatever the reason, there is always some problem and the solution has to be found out. These problems are of one’s own making and solution lies within his domain. The solution cannot lie outside. But, some people think that these human problems have persisted since the days of Adam and Eve. Every jiva is linked to every other and its environs. The very Adam with Eve (of two extreme principles of Male and Female- the Fire and Water principles, Agni and Jal tattvas) in the Garden of Eden by itself a problem without solution! We forget the fact that God had forewarned Adam not to ask for a company; he cautioned Adam even before granting his wish and asked him to rethink about his request for company (of Eve). But, alas, Adam insisted in having one, whatever the consequences. In fact, Adam went back to the Lord and returned the gift (Eve) twice, only to beg and get her back again. The result is here to see!

    Some great thinkers quote scriptures and speak of lofty principles such as dharma, moksha, etc. They say, life is worth living only when a certain path of dharma is followed and certain rules and regulations are strictly followed. They suggest certain path of salvation and advise us to follow rituals. But, there are so many paths here that no one knows for sure which one is the right one, or the best. It is only the daring, who are willing to take risk, ready to tread the unknown, break the tradition and willing to take a new path, face adverse conditions and serious consequences or even failure, take a new untrodden path and leave a trail that are sure to be amply rewarded at the end with rare gifts such as peace, unbounded joyfulness (mahat-anand), supreme bliss, Liberation (mukti) from further embodiment, and immortality. ‘Free will’ is given to all so that they can choose path suitable to them. There are as many paths as there are seekers.

   As already stated (in the previous blogs),  the jiva that takes an elemental body may appear again and again in any number of forms, anywhere on this earth and may continue to work to fulfill its desires! Ultimately, the jiva feels frustrated since the dreams and desires are never-ending and seek redemption. Finally, 'atmajnyan', or realization comes to the jiva. The truth dawns on the jiva and it realizes the fact that 'neither there is birth nor death' and it is only a transformations of matter and spirit! 

   What prevents anybody from taking birth anywhere is a matter of its (jiva’s) desire and attachments, vasanas, only, and nothing else. The Jiva may move freely since it has no bodily restrictions. Hence, all our understandings are based on sheer ignorance of the reality of existence.

   Thus, there is need for rethinking on all these divisions and distinctions of lands, peoples, their languages, cultures, and traditions. The reality is that nothing is real here. Everything is just the nature of the Mind to divide and disintegrate, dissect and differentiate. This is not the true nature of the jiva. The jiva is in the grip of the fickle mind and its ego rules it. If the buddhi takes over and rules the mind with the help of prajnya, the jiva will be in a position to enjoy its duration of earthly stay and make way for a return journey at the earliest. But, how to get back is the problem. The soul that was pristine pure with atomic weight of less than that of Hydrogen got embodied and is now so embedded in the mire of earthly existence that it has become too gross and heavy to rise above the earth’s surface, let alone exit the earth’s dense atmosphere. The forces that bind the soul to the jiva are very subtle like desire, attachment, anger, ego, and instincts, etc. If it has to gain escape velocity it should become so pure and pristine as it was before; its arrival here as energy, spirit, an electrical spark, a photon, is now gross matter. Atman or soul is just not only energy, but a chidu, the knower of energy (chit shakti), the source of consciousness, and bliss. It is sat, chit and ananda. It is power and has creative energy, knowledge, technology, information, and ability to transform one into another in multitudes of varieties and functions.

Science and Spirituality

    The universe known to us as the ‘solar system’ in the galaxy of ‘Milky Way’ (Ksheer-path) is almost 4.56 Billion years and may last about another 8.44 Billion years. The earth as a planet formed out of the solar flares, solar matter ejected from the outer surface of the Sun consisting of Helium formed out of the mass of Hydrogen that is constantly under high temperature, pressure, fission and fusion. The earth is said to have formed about 0.30 million years after the Sun is formed as a Star and has taken considerably long time to cool, condense, precipitate and form the present earth’s surface full of Oceans (79%) and land masses (21%) with mountains, valleys, forests grasslands and deserts.

   Life appeared over time in the form of algae, fish, plants, birds, animals- reptiles, mammals, primates, and the humans. It is interesting to narrate how life appeared on the earth and more mysterious it is to narrate the birth of man. It is a journey of the soul, an interesting adventure.

   Let’s remember the fact that the jiva that takes an elemental body may appear in any form anywhere on this earth. Further, the jiva taking repeated births may appear in its next life in any form, anywhere without any restriction, whatsoever. It may continue to work to fulfill its desires in the subsequent births, too. Hence, Varaha Mihira may be reborn as Galileo, who in turn, may be reborn as Tycho Brahe, Johannes Kepler, or Isaac Newton, Stephen Hawking, or just a cat or a dog. Nothing prevents the jiva from taking repeated births with new forms. Bhaskara may be reborn as Columbus, Magellan, or Vasco da Gama, provided his desire is to physically go round the earth and see for himself the nature of this world which he could not do in the previous birth! What prevents anybody from taking birth anywhere is a matter of its (jiva’s) desire and attachments, vasanas, only, and nothing else. The Jiva may move freely since it has no bodily restrictions. Hence, all our understandings are based on sheer ignorance of the reality of existence. Ultimately, neither there is birth nor death, but transformations of matter and spirit! 

     Thus, there is need for rethinking on all these divisions and distinctions of lands, peoples, their languages, cultures, and traditions. The reality is that nothing is real here. Everything is just the nature of the Mind to divide and disintegrate, dissect and differentiate. This is not the true nature of the jiva. The jiva is in the grip of the fickle mind and its ego rules it. If the buddhi takes over and rules the mind with the help of prajnya, the jiva will be in a position to enjoy its duration of earthly stay and make way for a return journey at the earliest. But, how to get back is the problem.

The embodied soul, once assuming an elemental body is destined to stay here. This is the understanding of Sri Madhvacharya that prompted him to state that “there is no salvation to the earth-bound jiva” and it can never utter the word ‘aham brahmasmi’. But, there is nothing wrong in the mahat vakya, the ultimate principle. Whether a student passes the examination with a 100% score or not, the goal is already set. It is left to the jiva to attain to the state of perfection. Sri Madhvacharya probably had in his mind only the fishermen of Udupi and Malpe. But, did he not visit Sringeri nearby and take the darshan of the Divine Mother Shree Sharadamba seated on Shree Chakra or even Sudarshana for that matter. The Divine Mother Sharadamba at Sringeri near Udupi blessed a number of devotees with profound knowledge and salvation, liberation, but do the Vaishnavaites turn a blind eye and deaf year to all these?

   It is quite strange that the disciples of Sri Madhvacharya never utter a word about these fundamental instruments of creation and liberation. Sharada-Chatushtiya or Shree Chakra, inner sacrifice (antar-yajnya) or Transcendental Meditation (atindriya dhyana) are not practiced by those who loudly profess so much of devotion, Bhakti. Actually, it is said that Bhakti and Jnyana as anyonya had two off-springs by name Viveka and Vairagya. When Jnyan deserted Bhakti due to its ego and intolerable behaviour adhering to ritualism and sensuousness, the kids- Viveka and Vairagya also left. This is the sad predicament of the jiva, too

The True Path - Sat-nyas

   Our existence on this planet is almost a miracle! It has no logical or rational explanation. Mysteries surround our birth and death. So far, no plausible explanation is forthcoming for our existence. It seems ‘no purpose is served merely eating and sleeping, whiling away time in seeking joy in extraneous things’. Moreover, all our thoughts and actions, attitudes, behaviour, problems of hunger, disease, old age and death are not in our hands. Life is full of and probabilities. Nothing is certain here. What we see and believe may not be true at all! Things have to be seen in the background of an unstable earth, a vast expansive universe that is ever on the move, a universe of no known magnitude or dimension, and of illusory nature bound by Time and Space. In fact, this Time that creates Space by its movement is by itself an illusion! If Time is illusion, the space created by it as well as the objects that fill it and endure are also illusion. Illusion of illusion is delusion. Thus, there is no end to this delusion, ignorance.

    We, as the humans, should realize the fact that we are nothing but specks of dust, star-dust, at that! Thhis is evident from our birth charts. These jivas or vibrant life-forms are like sparks of fire flying out of flames. Once we realize ‘who we are’, where do we come from, and where do we go from here when we die, or how we give up one mortal body and take another soon after, the ‘Reality’ dawns on us. We are truly the spiritual entity- the atman, embodied in an earthen shell like a clay pot susceptible to leakage and breakage. Symbolically, a pot filled with water is broken at the time of cremation of the dead bodies. This signifies the fact that the inside and the outside separated by an earthen shell is no more, and everything is one! 

    However, the purpose of our existence is yet to be defined. The ancient scriptures are our best guides. But, we neither have the complete texts of these, nor do we ever understand their coded language. The story of the arrival and departure of a jivatman on this planet is narrated here. It is an autobiography of the soul. Thus, the soul only speaks here. It is an intuitional knowledge obtained from parame vyoman in yogic trance.

   A clear understanding of the spiritual aspects, like any other discipline, calls for deeper contemplation, focused attention, perseverance, determination and steadfastness, a keen interest, concerted effort, and serious practice of yoga, and devotion to Guru. There should be a sense of purpose in life in order to attain to the highest level of existence and enjoy supreme bliss that is possible for any human being. Spiritual journey is more arduous than the journey in the material and sensuous world. Material world is also hazardous full of uncertainties, failures, disappointments, disillusionment, and frustrations. It is endless, with countless wants, insatiability, cravings for more and more, and finally, ordained to repeated births and deaths. The spiritual path is no less unpredictable and hazardous- full of unknown twists and turns and glaring mysteries, secrets, and coded secret words (mantra) that may often lead to doubts and dis-beliefs, and sudden loss of faith and interest.

   Another hazard of this spiritual journey is that the sadhaka moves slowly away from the lower, ‘here’, the physical, material, concrete, the sensible, logical, rational and sensuous gibbering towards the higher, ‘there’, metaphysical, spiritual, abstract, nonsense, rather senseless(?), and silence. Worldly people are prone to treat this as madness. Most of the teachings of Great Masters are based on these principles and still people run to them! It seems paradoxical that people want solace in times of their distress and look to these renunciates, but do not want to follow their teachings in their daily life! For instance, if one tries to become a Swami Raghavaendra Tirtha, one should strictly follow in his footsteps and take to sanyas at the early age. If one follows his footsteps, the first casualty would be his wife and the next, his mother. As we know, Raghavaendra Swamy’s wife Saraswati Bai committed suicide jumping into well and mother died in distress. In fact, most of the cases of mystics there are untold misery and sufferings before reaching to higher spiritual power.Moreover, nothing such as success is guaranteed here.

  The teachings of Acharyas like Shankaracharya, Madhava (Vidyaranya), or Badarayana will never be understood unless one experiences the way of life they lived. Shankara experienced untold misery and things have changed over time. It seems thus impossible for a common man to come to spiritual field, adhyatma, giving up the hearth and home, sensuous worldly life. Nobody wants to leave the cosy life of comforts and take to a life f a recluse and severe askesis (tapas). Hatha yoga is out of question. Even those who have tried and succeeded to some extent have suddenly fallen from grace!

     What we mostly see around us as spiritual seekers or teachers of yoga are not what they should be, with exception, of course. Self-Realization (Atma sakshatkara) is not easy. Those who have attained to this highest state of spiritual state, pure consciousness, do not have any interest in worldly affairs for they have crossed the Mental-mental state of evolution and have stepped into Spiritual realm (See Aurobindo) after discarding their mundane existence, albeit, they spend time here till they cast off their physical body. They live a life of absolute bliss unaware of the happenings to other earthlings. This should not be construed as a selfish way of life since these blessed souls have been emancipated, redeemed, or liberated! They rejoice in Brahmn consciousness.

   The most important point to be noted here is what Sri Krishnananda, Shivananda Ashrama, Hrishikesh, says: “Nothing that comes from outside is of any help in attaining to the knowledge of the Self.’ thousands of teachers and preachers go on talking and talking without any substance. Many do not know what they are talking about. This can be verified from their life style. If some boast of 50,000 followers, some boast of 400 ashrams all over the world; some say, they have never read a scripture in their life but still talk like, “devil quoting the scriptures’. The truth is very simple: “If i suffer from stomach pain, i only should take the medicine”. Unless i learn to sit in a place for just two minutes a day nothing is possible. The first step is taken when you take a crash course in Transcendental meditation and ashtanga yoga. It must be remembered, the first four steps of Patanjali yoga sutra such as self-control (yama), discipline (niyama), an aversion to sensuous life (pratyahara) and surrender to the 'Will of the Lord' (Ishvara pranidana) can never be followed in this worldly life of ours. Nobody can ever attain to the highest 'Samadhi', remaining in worldly life lecturing on philosophy and religion. This is the reason why interested persons leave everything and rush to Himalayas and undergo tremendous hardships. We want bed tea and timely breakfast, lunch and dinner and friends to chat, and at the same time aspire for enlightenment! Lo! There are wandering preachers and swamijis who advice us to stay in family and practice yoga! The result is riding two horses- one loukika or worldly and the other paramarthika or other-worldly (the two horses- one black and the other white, called suti and asuti) at the same time. Living alone in an isolated place with a an attained person, study of scriptures, meeting good people in satsang, dharana and Samadhi are very important for attainment, realisation of the Self ('atma jnyan') and emancipation.

The Lord manifests in different Forms and Functions

बहुनि मे व्यतीतानि जन्मानि तव चार्जुन | तान्यहं वेद सर्वानि न त्वम् वेत्थ परंतप॥ (४. ५)

 Meaning, O Arjuna Parantapa! You and I have taken many births and I know them all but you do not know them.

   पूर्णमदः  पूर्णमिदम् पूर्णात् पूर्णमुदुच्यते | पूर्णस्य पूर्णमादाय पूर्णमेवावशिष्यते॥

   Meaning, “That (‘tat’) is Full” (purnam / wholeness / Complete) or perfect and this jiva which manifests from ‘That’ parabrahman is also complete, full. This is the fundamental principle, mula tattva. The Veda holds the key. Every atom (kana) is complete in its structure, composition, quality and its function. So also, every cell (jiva kosha) is complete, fully knowledgeable and functions. The child in the mother’s womb is as complete as the mother and father, the parents themselves. Nothing is incomplete, nothing is imperfect here. That is the reason why it is said, “Child is the Father of man”. “God is man by proxy”. The secret of the cosmic entity, the universe, is very beautifully explained by Shree Krishna in a simple Mantra or Formula or Sutra. “I am That”. This means that there is nothing other than Shree Krishna as supreme Consciousness in this cosmos, the universe or the material world. It is the “One”, appearing as ‘many’. ‘One becoming many’, just as one full moon appearing in a thousand lakes.

एकोहम् बहुस्याम् | I am One, I shall be many, said the Lord. (Rkveda)

मम योनिर्महद्ब्रह्म तस्मिन् गर्भं दधाम्यहं। संभवस्सर्वभूतानां ततोभवति भारत॥ (१४. ३)

सर्वयोनिषु कौंतेय मूर्तयः संभवंति याः। तासां ब्रह्म महद्योनिरहं बीजप्रदः पिता॥(१४. ४)

  Meaning, “My womb is the great Brahma; in that I place the germ of ‘desire’; thence, O Arjuna, is the birth of all beings! Whatever forms are produced, O Arjuna, “in any womb whatsoever, the great Brahma is their womb” and “I am the seed-giving father”. Bhagavan Shree Krishna narrates how the universe is created.

   It is interesting to note that the Lord, as Vishnu pervades the universe as pure Consciousness. Bhagavan Shree Krishna is ‘poorna-prajnya’ and as such He knows all. He pervades the universe as ‘kaal’ (Time). He is ‘Akasha’ (space). He accommodates everything. Hence all are in Him! Everything is an indivisible part of Him, amshatmika. Nothing exists without Him since He is the support of all that exists. He asserts that “He only exists, and nothing besides Him”.

    I Am One and Only, no second to Me. Eko’ham adviteeyam | He thought and desired, rather, decided to become many. Thus, He said unto Himself- "I shall be Many", bahusyam | There is no limitation of time, space, causality or any dearth of resources with Shree Mahalakshmi within and besides Him for creation. Thus, He himself manifested in multifarious forms and functions to become Vasudeva, Sankarshana, Pradyumna and Aniruddha and ordained them to manifest His form as the Sages, saints and tapojanah, devi and devata, manes and humans and animals of all sorts.This is how creation manifested from Him, Lord Narayana. He created and entered into creation. Tat srushtvaa tat eva anupravishat | He, the supreme Lord, Bhagavan Shree Krishna manifests in different forms  from the power of Maya. All the eight principles- space, air, fire, water, earth, mind, mentation, intellect, and ahankar are the manifest powers of the Lord. These are the eight principles of Nature (ashta prakruti). He is the”Be all and end all”. Everything is the manifest forms of the supreme Lord and nothing else. Sarvam khaluvidam brah,maa||

   Everything that manifests from Him, the Lord, has the same powers of creation, sustenance, dissolution, however in a kinchit or limited way. What the Lord created, man also creates, but the powers of the latter are limited to his ability, unlike the Lord who is mahat, ‘bruhat’, vast! Man also excels in his intellect in his own limited sphere. This is the reason why man cannot keep quiet even for a second and is always engaged in some work or the other. When the jiva realizes its true nature, it merges in Him, ceasing to remain separate!

Who is Vedavyasa?

  Most ofus have seen the picture that shows Sage Vedavyasa dictating Mahabharata epic to Lord Gabapati, who, it is said that, wrote it with a broken tooth of his, that too, under a condition that the sage should not falter or slow down, or pause while dictating the epic! Here the question is who are these Sage Veda Vyasa is and Lord Ganapati! In fact, the real name of Vedavyasa is Shree Krishna Dvaipayana, (the Omniscient Shree Hari Narayana, or Badarayana) and Lord Ganapati (with an elephant head- symbolic of keen eyes and sharp ears representing complete awareness, pure Consciousness). Incidentally, the terms Veda and Vyasa mean the circumference and the radius connecting the centre, focus. In other words, the all encompassing, all-pervading, supreme Lord Vishnu only is this 'Veda Vyasa' or Vyasa deva!
  The Bhagavad-Gita comes as an interlude in Bhishma parva of the epic Mahabharata. It is actually a sort of a monologue, loud thinking of the Learned Sage. It appears as if a dialogue between Bhagavan Shree Krishna as ritambhara-prajnya (pure Consciousness) and Arjuna as manovikalpa (the blemished Mind- full of ego, desire, attachment, anger, and jealousy). But, when we go through the text of the Gita we find that Lord Shree Krishna is imparting his disciple Arjuna about the true nature of the jiva and the transient nature of the world. The Gitopadesha is set to melodious tune making it a ‘divine song’! (Shree Vidyabhushana Teertha has given a musical rendering of this Gita, CDs are available).

   As regards the scripture that has come down to us since the beginning of creation, as a dictation given by Lord Himself, Shree Krishna Dvaipayana, taken down by the scribe, none other than the Deity of the Elements (gana), Lord Ganapati, is an intriguing one! First, it is difficult for us to understand how the supreme Lord Shree Krishna, an avatara of Mahavishnu of Vishnu purana speaks and, second, how a Deity mad of clay and life-force infused into it by the mythological character Devi Parvati of Shiva Purana as Ganapati, writes it! Further, if at all He the Lord Ganapati pulls out his tooth (danta) and uses it as his pen. It is open to question ‘where and what did he inscribe! There is no question about the existence of this spiritual text, but where is its original script? These questions- that of Vyasa and Ganapati, the Mahabharata and the Gita, the characters that are mentioned here, etc. raise a number of doubts! We are not sure as to the very origin of the divine song! Whether the Gitopadesha was imparted in the Kurukshetra battlefield for eighteen days, or only eighteen verses are imparted to Arjuna in a whisper in order to encourage him to fight, or whether it is intended to us the fools in search of eternal happiness and bliss living in a transient world governed by limitations of time, space, and causality? That way, the very author Revered Omniscient Sage Veda Vyasa, the renowned author of the Brahmasutras and the Eighteen Epics (Puranas), is also a myth besides his scribe an elephant-headed Ganapati! But, then what is the truth? When t here exists neither a Veda Vyasa a person to dictate, nor a Ganapati to take the dictation who is writing what? It is important to note that the terms Veda and Vyasa mean the radius and Circumference in a circle, i.e. the center connected to periphery symbolically representing the ‘totality’ of ‘Knowledge’. The writer is the Deity of the basal plexus, the very support of all that exists as muladhara prajnya. Al the living beings, the jivas exist because of this power (mula adhara Shakti)! The living beings are supported by this power! As a deity of basal plexus (muladhara prajnya) He is seated at the base of everything that exists. He has written these words of the Lord, Gita as a ‘divine song’, on the Tablet of the Heart of the very jiva that seeks divine guidance/   

   Now, the question arises as to who the author Lord Shree Krishna Dvaipayana is, and what is conveyed by him. The Gita covers all aspects of creation, sustenance and dissolution. This totality of knowledge is possible only to Bhagavan.

    All the characters that appear in the epics, may it be, Mahabharata, Ramayana, or the Srimad Bhagavata, are totally unconvincing to a discerning mind and intriguing to common man since they are not born as humans! Neither the Fatherless Pandava, nor the hundred Kourava are ever born or die, as the Lord Himself proclaims! Bhagavan Shree Krishna is narrating all about “Who He Is” and “What He has created” in this ‘Divine Song’, the Gita! In fact, He, the Lord, explains in great detail the nature of this world, the magical way He has created it, and what all we think and believe as this phenomenal objective world (jagat). He proclaims that, “He is the Purusha (person) responsible it!” He even goes to the extent of saying that “He puts the seed of creation and enters His creation, and exists at the core of the substance as the ‘Self’!

    Thus, we have a challenging task here to try decode the secret, to know and understand the nature of the transitory world, as well as, our own true nature! Whoever clearly understands this will have nothing to worry or regret and will always be happy and joyful.

    The Gita is proclaimed by the Bhagavan as the secret knowledge of brahmn, the brahma vidya, and a means to attain to brahmn, the yoga shastra. This is the spiritual essence of the Gita. The source of this scripture is unknown and it is extremely difficult to understand the Verse 1 of Chapter IV where the Lord says that, “He imparted this Knowledge to Vivasvan, the Sun God (who is supposed to be 4.56 billion years old!)”. Further, it much intriguing to note that He proclaims that He is unborn and eternal!

  The spiritual essence of the Gita is god-visioning- vishvaroop darshan, visioning His virat svaroop and knowing His diverse manifest forms! It is a mysterious experience to the one who is attained siddhi purusha. There is no other way of experiencing this divine bliss than to take to spiritual practice as advised by the Lord here. Gita anushthana marga is the best way to realize the supreme! Even contemplation, meditation on one or two verses a day will ultimately lead the spiritual sadhaka to attainemnt! Hence, it is intended to give selected verses in the following with a brief explanation.The method of gita upasana is given by the Lord Himself as a yogacharya! There is nothing one can add, advise, or instruct besides what the Blessed Lord says (Bhagavan uvacha).

    Meditation on the spoken words of the Bhagavan is enough to experience supreme bliss. It is better to keep always a copy of the Gita in the pocket and read a verse or two and contemplate on it whenever one is free from the botherations of the worldly affairs. The effect of this spiritual practice is there to see within a year or even much earlier. In the last verse of the last chapter of the Gita, Sanjaya says, “Success is assured where the Bhagavan Himslef leads the one who is daring and acts!”  

     The Gita is said to be an unheard divine song (anahata dhvani), rather, heard within as antardhvani and, as such, an unwritten scripture. It speaks of ‘Self-Realization’ (Atmabodha)asrevealed by Bhagavan Shree Krishna. It has come down to us from almost beginning of the Creation when Bhagavan revealed it to the Sun, Vivasvan, 4.56 billion years ago! Even the Planet Earth came into existence after a lapse of 0.3 million years from out of the condensation of the solar flares! Today we are living almost at the close of the seventh manvantara, called the Vaivasvata manvantara. Each manvantara has four yugas, viz kruta or satya, treta, dwapara and the kali with four quarters (charana) each, together lasting 4 320 000 years. Six manvantaras have already gone by and seven more are to come after the close of our kaliyuga running now! Hence, we are in the first charana of the Kali yuga, the last quarter of the vaivasvata manvantara, and, three yugas- krita, treta, and the dvapara have already gone! With the close of this Kaliyuga, the vaivasvata manvantara will come to an end and a new manvantara and its first yuga will start. At the end of each yuga will apear a divine person, mahapurusha, purushottama, an avatara purusha like Shree Hari Narayana, Sri Ram, Shree Krishna, the Buddha or a Kalki as stated in the Vishnu purana. There are already twenty-five avataras of Vishnu Bhagavan of which ten are very popular! Thus, the entire creation and dissolution will go on till the last, the fourteenth manvantara, after which there will be total dissolution of Creation and the Creator Brahma will go to sleep! (See Vishnu Purana). 

   The Gita begins with words, “Bhagavan Uvacha”,  meaning, “the Blessed Lord said”, and, as such, these are the words of the supreme Lord. Hence, there is no question of an author or a publisher to this  “Autobiography of Lord, Bhagavan Shree Krishna”. He, the Bhagavan is the script writer, director, producer of the Universe, and the ultimate destroyer!  In a sense it is as though the scripture does not exist at all! Who will write what even when the Sun is yet to be born and where is the earth or its creatures? These are only spoken words sung in a melodious tone, rather, a divine song, that’s all! The authorship of this divine song, ‘Bhagavad-Gita’ attributed to Bhagavan is quite intriguing! However, this portion of the scripture is believed to be taken out of the Shanti Parva of the famous epic Mahabharata by Sri Shankaracharya and placed before us as Srimad Bhagavad-Gita. As a part of the epic, supposed to be authored by Sage Vedavyasa, that too, with the help of a scribe believed to be none other than the Deity of Learning and the Lord of all Ganas, Lord Ganapti. Thus, Sage Veda Vyasa is dictating the text to a divine person Ganapati. ‘Veda Vyasa’ is in fact the pen name of Shree Krishna Dvaipayana for having classified the voluminous Veda of a lakh verses into four divsions! However, there are no such persons, either a Vedavyasa, or a Ganapti is the mystery!! The mystery deepens when Bhagavan Shree Krishna says in Chapter X vibhuti yoga that sage Veda Vyasa is none other than Himself! Shree Krishna Bhagavan, also known as unique, advitiyam, second to none, the dvaipayana, like an island!  Further, who is the scribe? Is there any person like Ganapti? It is well known from the epic Shiva Purana which describe Lord Ganapati as one who was made in clay, like a doll and life-force breathed unto Him by Parvati, the Mother Earth! Hence, there is no such person as Ganapati at all!. In that sense of the term, all living beings are made of clay like Ganapati ans sustained by the food obtained from soil! Even Lord Shiva, supposed to be the Father of Ganapati is also our Father, Pashupati natha. Neither there is a Sage Vedavyasa, nor the Lord sitting here as Ganapti, and whence and where comes a Mahabharata or the Bhagavad-Gita? It is all in the Mind! Utmost, it is the ingenuity of an intellectual to indulge in these metaphysical aspects and present these spiritual texts like these!   

 As the mythological account goes, the Bhagavad-Gita comes as an interjection in the Bhishma parva of the great epic Mahabharata due to the condition laid down by Lord Ganapati who was taking the dictation of the epic Mahabharata from Vyasadeva. The condition was that Vyasadeva should go on dictating the text while Ganapati, the scribe, goes on writing. However, the omniscient Lord Ganapati was faster and Vyasa got stuck at some stage for want of suitable matter for dictation and thought about Arjuna’s reluctance to fight was surging! He had to speak something and he blurted out the Gita which he remembered, quickly without waste of time, lest the scribe should leave! So, Vyasadeva, Sri Krishna Dvaipayana narrated the Gitopadesha that was first imparted to Vivasvan, Surya deva, at the beginning of creation!

  Thus, here comes this short ‘adhyatma bodha’ in the form of “Sri Krishna’s advice to Arjuna”. Later on we will find that this is not even a dialogue or a conversation between two persons, but a monologue that appears like a dialogue between the embedded ‘Soul’ (jivatman) lamenting for its sad state, in confused mind (personified here as Arjuna, born as result of the Indra mantra uttered by Kunti), and the latter seeks guidance from the supreme Lord, Poorna-prajnya, (pure consciousness), personified here as Shree Krishna paramatman (seated within as the Self!).

   In fact, this entire episode is totally unconnected with the main text of the Mahabharata war and the battle field ‘Kurukshetra’ is a field, ‘kshetra’, known to only the ‘kshetrajnya’. Finally, the ‘kshetra’ and ‘kshetrajnya’ (jnyata and jnyeya) become one- Shree Krishna as the Field as well as the Knower of the Field. Whether it is Shree Krishna, Vyasa, or Ganapati, the ‘knower’ and the ‘known’, the preceptor and the perceived, are one. Jnyan, chit, consciousness, or the “sat” is the ultimate reality; all else is its manifest forms. Hence, the Lord proclaims, “I only exist and nothing exists besides Me!”

  It may surprise the sadhaka if it is stated that “there is neither a vyasa who is dictating the Gita, nor is there a Ganapati taking down the dictation!” It is, at best, a dialogue between ‘paramatman’, the pure Consciousness (chit) and the blemished soul, a vibrant mind (chittavrutti), full of attachment, ego, anger, etc. The distressed mind Arjuna is seeking guidance from ‘purna-prajnya’, Shree Krishna. All the characters depicted here (in the epic Mahabharata) are just characters with blemished souls, may be, that seek emancipation form their embodied states. In fact these characters are not like us, the human beings on earth, since the earth is yet to be born at the time when the Lord is imparting the gitopadesha to Vivasvan (Ch. IV. verse 1). Vivasvan is Surya deva stated to be 4.56 billion years old. There are lots of secret codes, symbolism, metaphors, similes, and words that hold many secrets in the Gita.

The Song of God

    The Bhagavad-Gita is a beautiful poem that can be put to melodious tune and hear the supreme Lord speak about Himself as to ‘Who He Is’, as also, ‘What this Creation Is’, ‘Who these Jivarashi are’, and having come a long way from Him ‘How to Reunite with Him’. There is also a ‘Secret of all secrets’ (guhyatama guhyam) here as ‘the Lord Himself says’! He reveals brahmavidya and yogashastra to us all through Arjuna (a deluded Mind!).The supreme Lord imparts this ‘Adhyatma vidya’, Atmajnyan, so that the earthlings as jivarashi find solace in distress and revert back to their pure and pristine state, a satte of ‘oneness’ with the Lord. This is what this Gita is all about!

   The supreme Lord, takes by His hand all His earnest devotees and leads them Step by step to ‘kaivalya’. He reveals ‘how to get reunited with Him’ through ‘karmasanyasayoga’, bhaktiyoga, jnyanayoga, dhyanayoga, and nirasaktiyoga and total surrender (prapatti)! In fact, He, the Lord, Bhagavan Shree Krishna, makes us realize ‘who we the hapless jivas are’ in the first six chapters of the Gita through imparting ‘atmajnyan’ and ‘brahmavidya’. And then, He describes ‘His true nature of formless, attributeless and eternal, immortal and immutable state’, as also, ‘the diverse manifest forms’(Bhagavad-svarupa) in the next six chapters. Then, He explains ‘how to reunited with Him with the help  of yoga’. It comes thus as a yogashastra in the last six chapters. This is also a treatise on the principle of tattvamasi !

   The beauty of this divine song is that Bhagavan Shree Krishna is narrating ‘Who He Is’! Hence, this may well be treated as An Autobiography of God. This is a unique unwritten scripture handed down to us, albeit, many authors have twisted and narrated the story according to their own understandings. The printed copies are full of alterations and insertions than what Bhagavan said initially! Many authors have used this scripture to promote their own interest as missionaries laying stress on any one of the concepts such as karmayoga, bhaktiyoga, jnyanayoga or dhyanayoga and have established their own schools! It is strange that none of these schools of thought has ever attempted the last secret of muktiyoga for fear of losing their clients! In fact, the importance of the Gita lies in this last Chapter where the supreme Lord insists that “One who is interested in liberation, emancipation, mukti should give up all worldly pursuits, develop vairagya, and return to isolated places for penance or deep meditation, contemplation on brahmn”. There is no salvation for an embedded jiva from metempsychosis, cycle of births and deaths! Once born here in this death knell (mrutyu lok) all jiva are bound to suffer old age, sickness and death. All are afflicted souls. The cause of suffering is ‘desire’ due to ‘avidya’ and the eternal bondage ensues as a result of the actions and reactions and their consequences. The solution lies in the ‘Realization’ of the true nature of the ‘Self’. Bhagavan Shree Krishna stands here as Yogacharya and teaches step by step how to practice yoga, asana, pranayama and attain to ‘samadhi’.

    Ultimately, ‘realization of the Self’ in the state of samadhi is extremely important! However, there is a word of caution here. The Bhagavad-Gita is like a mirror. One sees his own face as an index of his mind! When a school boy or girl who sings Chapter 10 or 11 of the Gita during Gita abhiyan week gets applause is so innocent as to know the meaning and import of what is sung by him/her on the stage! An adult who is in a dilemma as to the right situation may take recourse to Gita and may find a solution to the problem. Not all are interested in nirasakti yoga, or sanyas. Life is to enjoy and there is no problem in enjoyment. However, the problem is one of disillusionment, misery, unhappiness, and disappointments even after attainment of the desired objects! Every jiva is born in ignorance (avidya), lives in ignorance (avidya), and dies in ignorance! This ignorance or avidya i.e. knowledge covered by desire, attachment, ego, and arishadvargas is the problem. This ignorance cannot be removed unless the jiva takes recourse to Shree Krishna’s teachings. Whether one has lived a successful life or suffered and seeks redemption, the Gita is the only answer if one seeks emancipation, mukti from repeated births and deaths. The Gita starts with the revelations of secrets of creation and ends with dissolution. The relevant verses are given in the text.

   There are several intriguing questions about the scripture presented to us, its author, subject matter, meaning and purport of what the Bhagavan said, etc. All these are all taken up for an in-depth analysis as a spiritual inquiry (nidhidhyasana) here. It is indeed a meditation on God, ‘Gitopasana’. The credit of retrieving these God’s own words as an invaluable guide to mankind from the Shanti Parva of the great epic Mahabharata goes to the credit of Sri Shankaracharya. However, the very authorship of the epic is open to question? These words spoken by the Supreme Lord, Bhagavan Shree Krishna, is definitely not of any ordinary person, but of a mahapurusha, an avatara of Mahavishnu. In fact, the Lord is addressed by several names in the Gita as Govinda, Madhusudhana, Achyuta, Ananta, Devesha, etc. In fact, there is a whole lot of a thousand names in the ‘Vishnu sahasranama’ as an adjacent scripture retrieved along with the Bhagavad-Gita! These two scriptures are, indeed, redeeming the jiva from its state of transient existence! The entire scripture is of mythological nature attributed to Sage Veda Vyasa whose very name is an intriguing matter! The relevant verses are quoted here for reference to prove the points. These are matters of esoteric nature and require practice of yoga to understand. The authorship attributed to Sage Veda Vyasa is taken up first and the following picture gives us an idea.