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Bhagavad Gita Dhyaanam 6
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Bhagavad Gita Chapter 1 9
Chanting only of Chapter 1 by Pujya Swami Dayananda ji
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Bhagavad Gita - Chapter 2 - Saankhya Yoga 46
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Bhagavad Gita Chapter 3 22
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Bhagavad Gita Chapter 4 Jnana-Karmasannyasa Yoga 30
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Bhagavad Gita Chapter 6 Dhyaana Yoga 15
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Bhagavad Gita Chapter 7 Jnana-Vijnana Yoga 16
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Bhagavad Gita Chapter 8 Akshara Brahman Yoga 17
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Bhagavad Gita Chapter 9 Rajavidya Rajaguhya Yoga 20
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Bhagavad Gita Chapter 10 Vibhuti Yoga 22
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Bhagavad Gita Chapter 11 Vishvarupa Darshana Yoga 10
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Bhagavad Gita Chapter 12 Bhakti Yoga 16
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Bhagavad Gita Chapter 13 Kshetra-Kshetrajna vibhagah yoga 23
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Transcription:
We are studying the Bhagavad Gita, but actually, we are not studying the Bhagavad
Gita. Why? Because, we are looking at our life in the light of the Bhagavad Gita. So,
while we may say that “yes, we are studying the Bhagavad Gita. Yes, we’re studying
Vedanta.” It is strictly not true. You study physics, you study math, you can still be the
way you are and study different subjects which are external to you. You can gain
knowledge. But, when it comes to Bhagavad Gita, Vedanta, the Upanishads, the
mantras, the shlokas, the teaching is like a mirror. The purpose of looking at the mirror
is not to look at the mirror. You can admire the glaze, the reflection, the shine, when the
mirror was made, and the framing of it, but you stand in front of the mirror to look at
yourself. And if the mirror is not able to reflect you clearly, then it’s not doing its job. So,
when you are being exposEd to the Gita or Vedanta for that matter, our earlier
orientation of looking at a subject matter as external, away from me, will kick in. “Yes,
yes, I know all the chapters [Bhagavad Gita], I can chant the shlokas!” Very good for
you. [But], do you see your life in the light of the Gita? The verses that reflect the nature
of the Atma and so on and so forth? That’s the question. So just a very quick recap,
before we go to the eighth chapter.
Recap of Ch 1 – Ch 7
As probably everyone knows, the Bhagavad Gita has 700 verses. And it is right in the
middle of the Mahabharata, the great war that took place 1000s of years ago. And in the
tradition, the Bhagavad Gita is spoken of as Brahma Vidya and yoga shastra. The
knowledge of Brahman, the limitless being, and yoga shastra the discipline of
knowledge that tells you how to live your life, the right values, attitudes, and so on. The
Gita is a Moksha Sastra which means that it reveals what already is, who you already
are. And that Mahavakya is tat tvam asi. So, tvam asi, “you are” What? That’s not very
helpful. You are that, “That” being a pronoun referring to Ishwara.
So, then the way in which the chapters of the Gita are structured, 18 of them, the first
six generally we say are referring to tvam, who is that individual the jiva, who is looking
at Bhagavad Gita, and an inquiry into tvam, which reveals that that jiva, the individual, is
really consciousness. The next set of six chapters 7 to 12, are very heavy on revealing
the glory, the manifestation of Ishwara God, and also the swarupa. And then, the rest of
the 13 to 18 chapters are talking about the equation, that tat and tvam is one that
means you and Isvara are one. In other words, consciousness. And, also the values
and attitudes. that are required for us to assimilate this knowledge.
We have seen in chapter one, the battlefield where Arjuna really discovers his problem
in life. And he not only discovers the topical problem, the one that he has to deal with
and address, but he discovers a fundamental problem below the topical problem. So a
topical problem, is an event based problem, i.e. you have a battle to fight, you have an
appraisal, or you have to fire a few people, or unexpected relatives are coming, or it’s a
lot of family time, and then, you know, secrets that were buried deep, they have
suddenly emerged out and they have to be addressed, or there are property disputes,
or you didn’t get the promotion, or you have been trying for a child and you didn’t get
that, or you have a financial setback. These are all topical problems, right? All of us are
dealing with this on a regular basis. And our lives can go in managing these problems
from one, to another, to another. But, Arjuna with his warrior training and thinking
recognizes that he is stuck whether he wins or loses the war. If he wins, he’s not going
to be particularly happy because that victory is going to be tinged with blood. If he loses,
well, he’s not done well as a warrior, because he’s the best archer in the land and so on.
So this feeling stuck, “No matter what I do, where I do, how I do, I am not enough,”
which stems from our identification with the body mind. Recognizing that I am this much
only, to recognize that this is the problem, people can take years and lifetimes. This is
the fundamental problem that Vedanta addresses. You have made conclusions about
yourself. “I am this human being.” Hey, hello, how did you do that? On what basis? “Oh,
everybody treats me like a human being.” That’s not enough. So, an inquiry is required.
And Krishna begins with a bang. Of course, when just going into the war, Krishna is
Arjuna’s friend, buddy. So, they have cracked lots of jokes, done a lot of back slapping,
etc. Arjuna recognizes that this fundamental problem, “I cannot handle on my own. I
need a teacher and for that I am willing to see myself as a shishya, a student worthy of
being taught.” He asked for shreyas, moksha, and also dharma, what is to be done and
so on.
Krishna starts with a bang, the teaching. There is no reason for sorrow. [There is] no
empathy, no validation, no reassurance, no war strategy, no mantra, no assurance of
victory, nothing. You have no reason for sorrow. What? “Here I am, I have expressed my
whole heart to you. This is what you say?” Of course, Krishna goes on to say that atma
is limitless, has no loss and therefore, there is no reason why you should be sorrowful.
So a few verses on the atma continue, and then he also talks about karma yoga, the
disposition of karma yoga, our attitude to karma, where because we don’t feel in charge,
we want to control the outcome of every action. And from early on in life, we realize we
cannot control a lot. So, the teaching, it’s not advice from Krishna, the teaching is that
you are only the contributor, not the controller of your outcomes. karmaṇy-evādhikāras
te mā phaleṣhu kadāchana
mā karma-phala-hetur bhūr mā te saṅgo ’stvakarmaṇi – 2.47
So, you have a choice with respect to your karma. And, if you bring in kaushalam, a
certain competence in handling your different life situations, by aligning your karma with
dharma and make it as an offering to Ishwara, then you will be ready to understand
what the atma is all about. Additionally, the different things that we resist, situations we
are in, people who are around us, starting with family, okay, then extending to work and
so on and so forth. So, if we bring in a little more acceptance into our lives, recognizing
that all laws of karma are really Bhagavan it’s not really clear, but you know, it’s
introduced, then there will be samatvam, and we will not have these radical mood
swings.
He concludes the second chapter with some descriptions of the wise person.
So now, Arjuna’s interest is very piqued. “Really, if knowledge is the way forward, why
are you asking me to do this ghora karma? I will come with you. We will go to Rishikesh,
it is very close to Kurukshetra. We can just sit there and I’ll be very happy to just listen
to you. So, just teach me and then you know, it’s all good.” So, then Bhagavan Krishna
says karma cannot be avoided by anyone, whoever the person is. And, in fact, there are
two lifestyles: the lifestyle of sannyasa, renunciation, so renouncing your worldly
responsibilities, and the lifestyle of karma yoga, where you have all these different
priorities in life, and you continue to fulfill them, fulfill your responsibilities with your goal,
being moksha. Both for the sanyasi and the karma yogi, the goal is Moksha. Sanyasi is
a fast track, and Karma Yoga is like a scenic route, that’s all. But the goal is one
(Moksha). With respect to karma, he introduces devata and also raga dveshas, not
coming under the spell of very strong likes and dislikes.
Then, in chapter four, Bhagavan Krishna continues by talking about the (teaching)
lineage, and that what he is saying is not something special, only whispering into
Arjuna’s ears. The teaching that he is giving is universal. In fact, it has been timeless
and he mentions a few names such as Vivasvan, and so on. He also speaks about
avatara, a divine incarnation that appears again and again, to restore dharma. And, as a
part of the laws of karma created, the grouping of people according to karma, and
Guna, the four Varna system he speaks about. And he gives a list of different yajnas(fire
ritual offering), but really this list of yajnas is the list of sadhanas that one can do. It
starts from the kind of food you eat, your approach to food, your approach to sense
organs, or the way you do dānam, so this list we have seen. He speaks about the
surrender to the guru and an important verse in chapter four is pointing to the fact that
you were never the karta nor the bhokta, never the doer nor the experiencer. So, he
encourages Arjuna to see that.
Then, in chapter five, which is called sanyasa yoga, he spoke a little bit about a few
qualities- yo na dveṣhṭi na kāṅkṣhati (5.3), the one who does not have dveshas nor any
Kāṅkṣās/ragas/binding desires. That person is nitya sannyasi. And he also points out,
because we all have romantic ideas about sannyasa, and we fancy seeing ourselves in
orange robes. In fact, some of us have that in our wardrobe also, you know, different
shades. And, he points out that if you’re not ready for this lifestyle, then it’s very difficult.
Because Karma Yoga is not negotiable. Initially, it is deliberate, bringing in the attitude of
kaushalam, the competence in handling whatever life has to bring. This is not
competence regarding a particular skill, which of course, one can work towards, but that
whatever I do, I align it with dharma, and I offer it to Ishvara. This takes a while. And, a
deeper abiding acceptance, balance with regard to whatever happens in life. So,
wherever you are, whoever you are with, you are fine. Right now, we have lots of
conditions attached to my day, and everything. “I will be happy when…” that’s where it
starts. “I will be happy if I’m able to attend class. I will be happy when I lose weight. I will
be happy when my children do the homework. I will be happy when people make less
noise on the road.” You know the trend. So, we are always placing conditions on our
happiness and the few times that we are happy then, “Actually, why am I happy?” I can’t
allow myself to also be happy. “Like nothing in particular has happened you know, did I
get up from the other side of the bed? Maybe I should try more of that. I think the left
side is what usually works for me.” We are the ones who have placed this condition on
oneself, that unless the condition is fulfilled, I cannot allow myself to be happy. Right?
So, if you see people who are seemingly happy for no reason, either they are children
or they’re crazy eccentric people and we will be dismissive of them. Or, you will ask the
person “look at how tragic our society has become. Oh, you look really happy. So what’s
happening? You found something new, somebody new or you got a raise? Or what?”
So, chapter five is highlighting the need for vairagya and yoga. There’s a lot of
description about yoga in the sense of karma yoga, the right attitudes, qualities, etc.
Then, chapter six, we saw, dhyana yoga, yoga here being the topic. [There are] 18
topics in the Gita depending on the predominant theme that has been covered in each
topic/chapter. So in chapter 6, a life of moderation has been emphasized, in addition a
few verses related to breathing and so on. Chapter six gives us a very nice third
definition of Karma Yoga. Kaushalam and samatvam have been spoken of in chapter
two. In chapter six, the dissociation from the constant association with
duḥkha/sadness/sorrow we have [is spoken about]. May you dissociate from your
association with sorrow- duḥkha-sanyoga-viyogaṁ (6.23). We have already seen this,
I’m not elaborating. It closes with saying that punya is important and Śraddhā is
important for the one who wants to know.
We recently saw chapter seven, Jñāna-vijñāna-yogaḥ, where there is a shifting of
gears. And Bhagavan introduces himself, because who else but Bhagavan to introduce
himself. And, he speaks about his different manifestations eight fold, para prakriti, apara
prakriti. And, the ones who are able to cross over Māyā Shakti are the ones who know.
There have been references to meditate on me, and to think about me, offer things to
me etc. Not because Bhagavan is arrogant, this is for one’s own sake. Our sense of
separation from everything is so strong and not grounded in reality. But, it causes us
lots of pain and sorrow. “I feel disconnected.” It can happen between family members,
like you’re trying to get your point across and the person doesn’t get it, or they are trying
to explain and you just can’t see their point of view, with our office colleagues, with
partner, friends, etc, all the time. Yes, there are moments of connection but there are
moments where you don’t feel connected. You know, because you see the other as
separate from you. We never question “is that person really separate from me?”
Vedanta will reveal to us that it is just nama-rupa, name and form. And yes, the name or
form is different, but that which sustains the name and form is one, it is you, it is
Brahman, and it is the atma. We struggle with this. The surrender to Bhagavan can only
happen when you know Bhagavan. So four types of bhaktas were spoken of and then at
the end of seventh chapter, he said that the ones who are prayāṇa-kāle ’pi (7.30) at the
time of departure, departure means a final departure, departure from this realm. At that
time, if the mind is absorbed in Me, then they will know me because that is really our
search.
It’s not necessarily an articulated search. You know, our search for perfection is really
the search for the infallible. Infallible means that which has no defect. It’s an unspoken
search. And we project that on everything from childhood onwards. So, we expect our
parents to be perfect, that they should have no defect. They should always be available
for us. We expect that of the best friend, definitely the boyfriend/girlfriend, partner,
children. And children are looked upon as products. A series of product development. “I
have to make a good product with lots of inputs. [I want a] perfect child and all that I
could not do in my life my child should be able to do.” That struggle is there. That
perfect, even today as it is, is not perfect because some conditions [are there] and we
don’t even know what those conditions are and just by chance if those conditions are
achieved, still we are seeking. So now, calling it for what it really is, is that the search for
the infallible is a search for Bhagavan that is there in every human heart. It may not
have been articulated. And once you know “ah, that’s really what I’m looking for. And in
limited names and forms, my heart will never be satisfied.” helps me because I can take
the pressure off people and situations to be free from defects. Everything has its
defects, including this body mind. So, some people, also situations, have a defect. I
have a defect, you have a defect, and we live with it. That’s fine. No problem. “I am not
struggling with you all the time. I don’t need to. Because only Bhagavan is infallible, or
all that is infallible is Bhagavan.”
So now, the eighth chapter, Akshara-brahma-yogah. The topic is Brahman, the limitless
being who is Akshara. Akshara means there is no decline for this Brahman. It begins
with a few questions from Arjuna.