The
Divine Song
Introduction
The Gita gives in
substantiation of that teaching a universal theology without any sectarian or
dogmatic stance, which would be found congenial by all who are not in the grip
of those narrow loyalties.
Speaking about the
universality and profundity of the teachings of the Gita, Warren Hastings, the
first Governor-General of India (1773-1784), in his Introduction to the
first-ever English translation of the Text by Charles Wilkins (1784) declares
that 'Works as the Gita could live long after the British domination in India
has ceased to exist' and that it contains passages 'elevated to a track of
sublimity into which our habits of judgment will find it difficult to
penetrate'.
A study of this
small Text of seven hundred verses will convince anyone that such an encomium
of the wisdom contained in it is not a misplaced over-estimate.
CONTENTS:
Chapter
I.
Arjuna's Conversion
Chapter
II.
Yoga of Knowledge
Chapter
III.
Yoga of Action
Chapter
IV.
Renunciation of Action in Knowledge
Chapter
V.
Yoga of Renunciation
Chapter
VI.
Communion through Meditation
Chapter
VII.
Communion through Knowledge
Chapter
VIII.
Way to Brahman
Chapter
IX.
Sovereign Secret
Chapter
X.
Divine Glories
Chapter
XI.
The Cosmic Form
Chapter
XII.
Loving Devotion
Chapter
XIII.
The Knower and The Known
Chapter
XIV.
The Three Gunas
Chapter
XV.
All-Pervading Divine Person
Chapter
XVI.
Divine and Demoniac Types
Chapter
XVII.
Three Aspects of Faith
Chapter
XVIII.
Liberation through Renunciation
(Arjuna's Conversion)
Dhritarashtra said:
1. O Sanjaya! What
indeed did my people and the followers of the Pandavas do after having
assembled in the holy land of Kurukshetra, eager to join battle?
Sanjaya said:
2. Then seeing the
army of the Pandavas arrayed in battle order. King Duryodhana for his part
approached the teacher Drona and spoke to him the following words:
3. O Teacher!
Behold this great army of the sons of Pandu, arrayed in battle order by your
talented disciple, the son of Drupada.
4. Here (in that
army) are many brave bow-men of note who are equal to Bhima and Arjuna in
battle - great car-warriors like Yuyudhana, Virata and Drupada;
5. Dhrishtaketu,
Chekitana and the brave king of Kashi; Purujit, Kuntibhoja and Shaibya the best
of men;
6. The powerful
Yudhamanyu, the brave Uttamauja, the son of Subhadra, and the sons of Draupadi
- all these are indeed noted car-warriors.
7. O best of
Brahmanas, I shall mention for your information the names of the distinguished
leaders of our army.
8. Yourself,
Bhishma and Karna, the victorious Kripa, Ashwatthama, Vikarna and Jayadratha the
son of Somadatta.
9. These and many
more brave men, who are ready to lay down their lives for my sake and who fight
with various types of weapons, are present here. All of them are seasoned
warriors.
10. Though
numerically superior, inadequate is the army of ours defended by Bhishma, while
theirs guarded by Bhima is adequate.
11. Therefore do
ye all protect Bhishma remaining in appropriate positions in your respective
divisions.
12. Cheering him
up, the valiant grandfather Bhishma, the oldest of the Kurus, sounded a
lion-roar loudly and blew his conch-shell horn.
13. Thereupon,
conchs, kettle-drums, tabors, trumpets, and cowhorns all blared out suddenly
causing a tremendous sound.
14. Then Shri
Krishna and Arjuna, seated in a great chariot with white horses yoked to it,
blew their celestial conch-shell horns.
15. Shri Krishna
blew his conch Panchajanya, Arjuna blew Devadatta, and Bhima of terrible deeds
sounded his great conch Paundra.
16. Raja
Yudhisthira, the son of Kunti, blew his conch Anantavijaya, and Nakula and
Sahadeva, Sughosha and Manipushpaka respectively.
17. The great
archer, king of Kashi, the mighty car-warrior Shikhandi and Dhrishtadyumna and
invincible Satyaki;
18. The King of
Drupada, the sons of Draupadi, the mighty armed son of Subhadra - all these, O
king, sounded their conchshell horns again and again everywhere.
19. That
tumultuous uproar, resounding in the sky and over the land, pierced the hearts
of the followers of Dhrtarashtra.
20-21. O King!
Arjuna, the Pandava-leader with the banner crest of a Hanuman, on seeing the
followers of Dhritarashtra arrayed for battle and the clash of weapons about to
start, held up his bow and said the following words to Shri Krishna:
Arjuna said:
21-22. O Achyuta!
Please station my chariot between the two armies so that I may have a view, on
the eve of this battle, of all those standing ready to fight, and learn who all
are the persons with whom I have to contend.
23. Let me see all
those who have arrived to favour the evil-minded son of Dhritarshtra in war and
are standing ready to join battle.
Sanjaya said:
24-25. O King
Dhritarashtra! Shri Krishna, to whom Arjuna addressed these words, stationed
that most splendid of chariots at a place between the two armies, confronting
Bhishma, Drona and all those chiefs, and said: "O Arjuna! See these men of the Kuru horde assembled
for battle."
26-27. There he
saw standing in both the armies - fathers, grand-fathers, uncles, brothers,
sons, grandsons, comrades, fathers-in-law and bosom friends. Seeing all these kinsmen
arrayed, Arjuna was overcome with great pity, and said sorrowing:
Arjuna said:
28-29. Seeing
these relatives standing eager to join battle, my limbs are giving way, my
mouth is parching. I get trembling of the body and horripilations.
30. My bow Gandiva
is slipping from my hand. My skin too is burning. I find it impossible to stand
firm, and my mind is, as it were, reeling.
31. O Kesava! I
see adverse omens. I do not feel that any good will come by killing all one's
kinsmen in battle.
32. O Krishna! I
do not long for victory, or kingdom, or enjoyments. O Govinda! Of what use is
kingdom, enjoyments or even life itself?
33-34. Those for
whose sake kingdoms, enjoyments, and pleasures are desired - those very
teachers, fathers and sons, as also grandfathers, uncles, fathers-in-law and
other relatives are here stationed in battle ready to give up their lives and
possessions.
35. Even for the
sovereignty of the three worlds, I do not desire to kill them, though myself
killed - how much less then for this earthly kingdom!
36. What joy can
there be for us by killing these sons of Dhritarashtra? Though they are
murderous villains, only sin will accrue to us by killing them.
37. Therefore, O
Madhava! it is not befitting that we kill our relations, the sons of Dhritarashtra.
How could one be happy by the slaughter of one's own kinsmen?
38-39. O
Janardana! Even if these people, with their intelligence overpowered by greed,
do not see any evil in the decay of families and any sin in the persecution of
friends, why should not we, who are aware of the evil of such decay of
families, learn to desist from that sin?
40. When a clan
becomes decadent, its ancient traditions (laws) perish. When traditions perish,
the entire clan is indeed overcome by lawlessness.
41. O Krishna!
When lawlessness prevails, the women of the clans become corrupt. O scion of
the Vrishnis! When women are corrupted, mixture of classes (promiscuity)
prevails.
42. Promiscuity
results only in hell to those destroyers of the clans, as also to the members
of the clan. For (being without legitimate progeny to perform obsequies), the
spirits of their ancestors fall, deprived of the offerings of rice ball and
water.
43. By the
misdeeds of these ruiners of clans and promoters of promiscuity, the immemorial
traditions of the communities and clans are uprooted.
44. O Janardana!
We have heard that residence in hell awaits men, the religious traditions of
whose clans have been destroyed.
45. Alas! What
great sin have we resolved to commit when we prepared ourselves to destroy our
kinsmen out of greed for the pleasures of a kingdom!
46. Far better
would it be for me if the sons of Dhritarashtra, with weapons in hand, kill me
in battle, unarmed and unresisting!
Sanjaya said:
47. So saying,
Arjuna, with his mind overwhelmed with sorrow, abandoned his bow and arrows and
sat down on the chariot seat.
(Yoga of Knowledge)
Sanjaya said:
1. To him who was
thus overcome with pity and whose eyes were full of tears and bore a bewildered
look, Shri Krishna spoke as follows:
The Blessed Lord said:
2. O
Arjuna! Whence has this loathsome stupidity come upon you in this crisis? It
(this attitude) is unworthy of a noble personage; it is a bar to heaven and a
cause of much disrepute.
3. O
Partha! Yield not to unmanliness! It befits thee not. Abandoning this base
faint-heartedness, rise up, O dreaded hero!
Arjuna said:
4. O Krishna! How
can I attack Bhishma and Drona in battle with my arrows? They are, indeed
worthy of worship, O destroyer of foes!
5. It is indeed
better to live here in this world on a beggar's fare than to prosper by killing
these venerable teachers. The enjoyment of pleasure and power obtained through
the slaughter of these teachers and elders will surely be bloodstained.
6. We do not know
which of the two (alternatives) will be the better - the one that we should
conquer them or the other that they should conquer us. The men on the side of
Dhritrashtra, standing arrayed against us, are the very people after killing
whom we should not care to live.
7. My natural
disposition is vitiated by a sense of pity, and my mind is in utter confusion
regarding my duty. Lord, I beg Thee: tell me with certainty what will lead to
my good. I am Thy disciple. Instruct me, who have taken refuge in Thee.
8. I do not find
anything that can assuage this grief which numbs my senses. Neither the
unchallenged lordship over a prosperous kingdom, nor even the overlordship of
all the Devas can do so.
Sanjaya said:
9. Addressing Shri
Krishna, the master of the senses, Arjuna, though valorous and vigilant, said,
'I will not fight' and sat silent.
10. O King! To him
who was thus sitting grief-stricken between the two armies (instead of
fighting), Shri Krishna said as if by way of ridicule.
The Blessed Lord said:
11.
You are moaning for those who should not be moaned for. Yet you speak like a
wise man. The truly wise never weep either for the dead or for the living.
12.
Never was there a time when I did not exist, nor you, nor these rulers of men.
Nor shall all of us cease to be hereafter.
13.
Even as the attainment of childhood, youth and old age is to one in this
physical life, so is the change to another body (at death) for the embodied
soul. Wise men are not deluded by this.
14.
Contact of the senses with their objects generates cold and heat, pleasure and
pain. They come and go, being impermanent. Bear with them patiently, O scion of
the Bharata race!
15.
O leader of men! That enlightened one who is unperturbed alike in pleasure and
pain, whom these do not distress - he indeed is worthy of immortality.
16.
The unreal can never come into existence, and the real can never cease to be.
The wise philosophers have known the truth about these categories (of the real
and the unreal).
17.
Know that Reality, by which everything is pervaded, to be indestructible. No
one can cause the destruction of this immutable Being.
18.
What is said to perish are these bodies, in which the imperishable and
unlimited Spirit is embodied. Therefore fight, O scion of the Bharata race!
19.
He who thinks him (the Self) to be the killer, and who experiences him (the
Self) as the killed - both of them know not. He (the Self) neither kills nor is
killed.
20.
He (this Self) has neither birth nor death. Nor does he cease to be, having
been in existence before; unborn, eternal permanent and primeval, he is never
killed when the body is killed.
21.
O Arjuna! know this self to be eternal, undecaying, birthless and
indestructible. A person who knows him to be so - whom can he slay or cause
another to slay.
22.
Just as a man gives up old garments and puts on new ones, so the embodied self
abandons decrepit bodies and assumes new ones.
23.
Him the weapons cleave not; Him the fire bums not; Him the waters wet not; Him
the wind dries not.
24.
He cannot be cut or burnt. He can neither be wetted nor dried; Eternal, all-pervading,
immovable and motionless. He is the same forever.
25.
Knowing Him (the Self) to be unmanifest, inconceivable, and unmodifiable, it is
improper to mourn for Him.
26.
In the alternative, even if you hold him (the Self) to be subject to constant
births and deaths, there is no justification, O mighty armed, for your mourning
for him.
27.
For the born, death is unavoidable; and for the dead, birth is sure to take
place. Therefore in a situation that is inevitable, there is no justification
for you to grieve.
28.
Mystery surrounds the origin of beings. Mysterious too is their end. Only in
the interim, between birth and death, are they manifested clearly. Such being
the case, what is there to grieve about?
29.
Some have a glimpse of Him as a marvel, some speak of Him as a marvel, and yet
others hear of Him as a marvel. Yet none understands Him in truth, in spite of
(seeing, speaking and) hearing about Him.
30.
At no time can the Spirit embodied in all beings be slain. Therefore there is
no reason for you to grieve for any one.
31.
Further, even from the point of view of one's own duty, you ought not to
falter. There is no greater good for a Kshatriya than what a righteous war
offers.
32.
O Arjuna! That Kshatriya must indeed be a happy man to whom comes unsought a
war like this, which is an open gate to heaven.
33.
If you do not take part in this righteous war, you will incur sin, besides
failing in your duty and forfeiting your reputation.
34.
Besides, every one will speak ill of you for all time. More poignant than death
is disrepute to a man accustomed to be honoured by all.
35.
The great car-warriors will consider you as having fled from battle out of
fear, and you who have been the object of their respect, will be despised by
them hereafter.
36.
Your enemies will indulge in derogatory speeches against you, belittling your
prowess. What is more painful than that?
37.
O son of Kunti! If killed in battle you will attain heaven; if victorious you
will enjoy the kingdom. Therefore arise, resolved to fight.
38.
Treating alike pleasure and pain, gain and loss, victory and defeat, be ready
for battle. Thus you will not incur any sin.
39.
O Arjuna! What has been declared to you is the Truth according to the Samkhya
(the path of knowledge). Listen now to the teaching of Yoga (the path of
selfless action combined with devotion) by practising which the bondage of
Karma is overcome.
40.
In this path of Yoga - the path of selfless action combined with devotion - no
effort is lost due to incompleteness and no contrary effect of an adverse
nature is produced due to failures. Even a little observance of this discipline
saves one from great fear.
41.
O Arjuna! In those following this path, the Buddhi (the understanding) that has
the nature of producing conviction, is directed towards a single objective. In
those without any spiritual conviction, the understanding gets scattered and
pursues countless ends.
42-44.
O Arjuna! There are people who delight in the eulogistic statements of the
Vedas and argue that the purport of the Vedas consists in these and nothing
else. They are full of worldly desires; paradise is their highest goal; and
they are totally blind in a spiritual sense. They expatiate upon those florid
Vedic texts which describe the means for the attainment of pleasure and power,
which provide attractive embodiments as the fruits of actions and which are
full of descriptions of rites and rituals (through which these fulfilments are
obtained). In the minds of these votaries of pleasure and power, addicted to
enjoyments of the above description, steadfast wisdom (capable of revealing the
Truth) is never generated.
45.
O Arjuna! The Vedas deal with material ends. But you be established in the
Spirit, in the immutable purity of it, having abandoned all material values,
attachment to possessions, and concern with the contraries of life like
pleasure and pain, heat and cold.
46.
What use a pond has got when a whole country is flooded, that much of use only
the Veda has got to a Brahmana who is full of wisdom.
47.
To work alone you have competence, and not to claim their fruits. Let not the
longing for fruits be the motive force of your action. At the same time let not
this attitude confirm you in indolent inaction.
48.
Engage yourself in action with the mind steadfast in Yoga. Abandon attachments,
O Arjuna, and be unperturbed in success and failure. This unperturbed sameness
in all conditions is Yoga. 49. O Arjuna, mere action (with attachment) is far
inferior to action done with the mind poised in evenness. Seek shelter in this
state of unperturbed evenness (which can arise only in a desireless mind in
communion with the Divine). Those who work for selfish gains are indeed
pitiable. 50. One endowed with this unperturbed evenness of mind abandons the
effects of both good and bad actions even here itself. Therefore strive for
this state of Yoga. Yoga is skill in action.
51.
Wise men, established thus in the unperturbed evenness of mind, abandon the
fruits of action, free themselves from entanglement in the cycle of births and
deaths, and attain to the state of freedom from all sorrow (liberation).
52.
When you have overcome the delusions of your understanding sprung from
self-centred attachment, then you attain to a state of indifference towards all
the past experiences and the others yet to be had.
53.
When your intellect, fed up with the bewildering scriptural doctrines and their
interpretations, settles (finally) in steady and unwavering introspection, then
you will attain to real Yoga.
Arjuna said:
54. O Kesava! What
are the signs of a person who has attained to steady wisdom and deep
introspection? How does he speak? How does he sit? How does he walk? (How does
he behave in life generally?)
The Blessed Lord said:
55.
O Son of Pritha! When all the desires of the heart have been abandoned, and the
Spirit finds joyous satisfaction in itself (without dependence on any external
factor) - then is one spoken of as a person of steady wisdom.
56.
Whose mind is not agitated in adversity, who is free from desire, and who is
devoid of attachments, fear and anger - such a person is called a sage of
steady wisdom.
57.
Whoever is without self-centred affection for anything, who rejoices not in
favourable situations and hates not in unfavourable ones - such a person's
wisdom is firmly set.
58.
When a person can withdraw his senses from their objects just like the tortoise
its limbs on all sides, his wisdom is firmly set.
59.
From the abstinent soul sense objects fall away, but not the taste for them.
When the Supreme Truth is realised, even the taste departs.
60.
O son of Kunti! The turbulent senses do violently draw away the mind of even a
discerning person who is earnestly striving on the spiritual path.
61.
Having controlled them all, one should become entirely devoted to Me. He whose
senses are under control, his wisdom is firmly set.
62.
In one who dwells longingly on sense objects, an inclination towards them is
generated. This inclination develops into desire, and desire begets anger.
63.
Anger generates delusion, and delusion results in loss of memory. Loss of
memory brings about the destruction of discriminative intelligence, and loss of
discriminative intelligence spells ruin to a man.
64.
A man of disciplined mind, who has his senses under control and who has neither
attraction nor aversion for sense objects, attains tranquility, though he may
be moving amidst objects of the senses.
65.
On attaining tranquility all one's sorrows come to an end. For soon does the
intellect of a tranquil person become steady.
66.
A man of uncontrolled senses has no spiritual comprehension. He has no capacity
for meditation either. For the unmeditative there is no peace. And where is
happiness for one without peace of mind?
67.
The senses are naturally disposed to move towards their objects. Whichever of
these senses the mind pursues, that sense carries away that mind as a gale does
a ship on the high seas.
68.
Therefore, O mighty Arjuna, he who can completely restrain his senses from
pursuing their objects, has his wisdom firmly set.
69.
What is like night to all ignorant beings, to that Atman consciousness the
self-controlled sage is awake; and the sensate life to which all ignorant
beings are awake, that is like night to this illumined sage.
70.
He into whom objects of desire enter (unsought and causing no perturbation),
even like the ocean that is ever being filled by the rivers but still remains
steady within its bounds - such a person attains to peace, not he who runs
madly after objects of desire.
71.
Whoever has abandoned desires, and moves about without attachments and the
sense of 'I' and 'mine' - he attains to peace.
72.
This, O son of Pritha, is the state of dwelling in Brahman. Having attained it,
one is no more deluded. By abiding in that state even by the time of death, one
is united with Brahman.
(Yoga of Action)
Arjuna said:
1. O Janardana,
if, according to Thee, discriminative insight is superior to action, why dost
Thou enjoin on me this terrible action (of engagement in war)?
2. By seemingly
conflicting words, Thou art confusing my understanding. Speak to me only about
that which will definitely lead to my highest good.
The Blessed Lord said:
3.
In times of yore a twofold spiritual path was taught by me, O sinless one -
that of knowledge for Samkhyas (who are pure contemplatives), and that of
action for Yogis (who combine detached work with devotion).
4.
By non-performance of action a man does not gain the state of spiritual
passivity (or the state of egoless actionlessness called Naishkarmya). By mere
external abandonment (Samnyasa), he does not attain to perfection.
5.
No man can ever remain even for a moment without performing any action. The
impulses of nature deprive him of freedom in this respect and compel him to
act.
6.
He who restrains the organs of action but continues to brood in his mind over
the objects of sensual desire (enjoyed through them) - such a deluded person is
called a hypocrite.
7.
But he who, controlling all sense organs (by the power of his will) and
becoming non-attached, lives a life of communion through dedicated action such
a person excels.
8.
Perform your prescribed duties. For, action is superior to inaction. If you are
totally inactive, even the survival of the body would become impossible.
9. O
son of Kunti! In this world all actions, unless they are done as an offering to
God (or as Yajna), become causes of bondage. Therefore, work for the sake of
God without personal attachments.
10.
In the beginning Prajapati, having created men together with Yajna (selfless
work dedicated to God or Vedic sacrifice) as their duty, declared: "By
this shall you multiply. May this be to you the Cow of Plenty yielding all your
wants!"
11.
"You cherish the Devas with Yajna, and may the Devas in turn bless you
(with rain and other desired gifts)! Thus, mutually cherishing, you shall
attain the highest good.
12.
Worshipped by sacrifices, the Devas will give you the desired objects of
enjoyment. They are verily thieves who enjoy their gifts without giving their
share in return.
13.
Those persons who eat what is left after sacrifice are released from all sin.
But those who cook food for the self alone (without sharing it with others),
such degraded men eat sin.
14.
From food (i.e., from reproductive power sustained by food) creatures are born.
Food is produced by rain. Rain is born of sacrifice, and sacrifice originates
from action.
15.
Works of sacrifice have their authority in the Veda. Veda has been revealed by
the Supreme Being. Therefore the all-comprehending Veda is established in
sacrifice (that is, has performance of sacrifice as its fundamental teaching).
16.
Vain is the life" of that sinful and sense-indulgent person who fails to
fulfil his obligations in this cycle of mutual inter-dependence and service
(which the law of sacrifice implies).
17.
But whoever delights in the Self (Spirit) alone, and is content and satisfied
in the Self, for such a person there is no obligatory duty to discharge.
18.
He has no object to gain here in this world by action. Nor does he lose
anything by abstaining from action. For him, there is no dependence on any
created being for any object of his.
19.
Therefore perform action always without attachment. For, by working without
attachment a man attains the Supreme.
20.
Men like Janaka verily attained to perfection by work alone. You ought to work
for the good of the world (having their example in view).
21.
Whatever the noblest persons do, the ordinary man imitates. The standard they
set, the ordinary men follow.
22.
In all the three worlds there is nothing, O son of Pritha, that is binding on
Me as duty. Neither is there anything that I have to gain, nor anything that I
cannot gain. Still I am always engaged in work.
23.
O son of Pritha! If I did not ever continue in action unwearied, men all around
would have followed My way.
24.
If I were not to work, all these worlds would have perished. I would have been
the cause of confusion among men and of their ultimate destruction.
25.
O scion of the Bharata race! Just as ignorant men do action out of attachment,
so let enlightened ones perform the same unattached, with the good of the world
in view.
26.
An enlightened man should not cause confusion in the minds of ignorant people
(by his conduct), Himself working with equanimity, he should make them
interested in all activities.
27.
Everywhere the dispositions (powers) of Nature perform all works. But deluded
by egoism, man thinks, 'I am the doer.'
28.
But those who know the truth that the dispositions of Nature and the actions
which spring from them are distinct from the Self, do not get attached,
understanding that it is not the Self, but the dispositions of Nature as organs
that settle on the respective objects which too are products of the same
dispositions.
29.
Men, deluded by the dispositions of Nature, get attached to work prompted by
these dispositions. Those who know the whole Truth should not unsettle these
dull-wilted men of imperfect understanding.
30.
Offering all your actions to Me, your mind in unison with the spirit and free
from desires and egotism, you fight without the slightest touch of hatred or
excitement.
31.
Whoever follow this teaching of mine, with their minds full of faith and free
from disparagement, they also are released from the bondage of Karma.
32.
But those who disparage this doctrine of mine and discard it know such
senseless men, blind to all wisdom, as lost.
33.
Even a wise man acts in accordance with his nature. All beings follow their
nature. What can repression do?
34.
It is natural for each organ to feel attraction or aversion in respect of
objects pertaining to each sense. Do not come under their sway, for they are
enemies (of all spiritual aspirants).
35.
One's own Dharma (duty), even though not glamorous, is better than duty alien
to one's growth (Para-dharmah), however well performed. For even death in doing
one's duty leads to one's good, while a duty alien to one's growth is burdened
with the fear of downfall.
Arjuna said:
36. What is that,
O scion of the Vrishni race, prompted by which a man is forced, as it were, to
live a sinful life even against his will?
The Blessed Lord said:
37.
It is lust; it is anger, born of Rajoguna, insatiable and prompting man to
great sin. Know this to be the enemy (in man's spiritual life).
38.
As fire is enveloped by smoke, mirror by dust and the embryo by the placenta,
so is knowledge overcast by lust.
39.
Knowledge, O Son of Kunti, is covered up by this eternal foe of the aspirant
after knowledge - the insatiable fire of lust.
40.
The senses, the mind and the Buddhi are said to be its seat. With these it
veils knowledge and deludes the embodied spirit.
41.
Therefore, O scion of the Bharata race, controlling the senses at the beginning
itself, slay this foul enemy, the destroyer of all knowledge and realisation.
42.
The senses are great, they say. Superior to the senses is the mind, and
superior even to the mind is the intellect. What is superior even to the
intellect is He, the Atman.
43.
Thus knowing Him who is superior even to the Buddhi, and controlling the lower
self with the higher, kill that tough enemy in the form of lust, O mighty-armed
Arjuna!
(Renunciation of Action in Knowledge)
The Blessed Lord said:
1. I
imparted this immortal Yoga to Vivasvan, Vivasvan to Manu, and Manu to
Ikshvaku.
2. O
scorcher of foes! This Yoga handed down from teacher to disciple in succession,
was known to the Rajarishis (royal sages). But owing to long lapse of time, it
was lost to the world.
3.
You are My devotee and friend - thinking thus, I have today declared to you
even that ancient Yoga. For, it is a noble secret (imparted by a teacher only
to a worthy disciple).
Arjuna said:
4. Thy life-time
is later, that of Vivasvan was much earlier. How then am I to understand that
Thou didst impart this doctrine to him?
The Blessed Lord said:
5. O
Arjuna! You and I have passed through many births; I remember them all, but you
do not, O scorcher of foes!
6.
Though birthless and deathless, and the Lord of all beings as well, yet I (the
Eternal Being) take birth by My inherent mysterious Power (Atma-mayaya),
employing the pure or Sattva aspect of My material Nature (Prakriti).
7.
Whenever there is decline of Dharma and ascendance of Adharma, then, O scion of
the Bharata race! I manifest (incarnate) Myself in a body.
8.
For the protection of the good, for the destruction of the wicked, and for the
establishment of Dharma, I am born from age to age.
9. O
Arjuna! He who thus understands the truth about My embodiment and My deeds -
he, on abandoning his present body, is not reborn; he attains to Me.
10.
Freed from passion, fear and anger, ever absorbed in My thought, and ever
dependent on Me - many have attained to My state, being purified by the fire of
knowledge and austerity.
11.
O Partha! Whosoever worship Me through whatsoever path, I verily accept and
bless them in that way. Men everywhere follow my path.
12.
In this world those who entertain desire for the fruits of pious works, worship
the deities. For, in this world of men such actions bear fruit quickly.
13.
According to the aptitudes resulting from the dispositions of Nature (Gunas)
and from works, the social order of fourfold division has been created by Me.
Though I am their originator, know Me to be not an agent but the Spirit
unchanging.
14.
Actions do not affect Me. Nor have I any desire for the fruits of action.
Whoever knows Me to be so, is not bound by Karma.
15.
Knowing thus, the ancient aspirants after liberation performed works. Therefore
you too do work as these ancients did from time immemorial.
16.
What is work and what ‘non-work’ is, is a subject regarding which even the wise
are perplexed. I shall therefore speak to you about work, by knowing which one
is liberated from evil (or the life of bondage in Samsara).
17.
The truth about the nature of 'beneficial work' has to be understood, as also
of 'baneful work' and of 'non-work'. The way of work is difficult indeed to
understand.
18.
He who sees work in 'no work' and 'no work' in work, he is wise among men. Even
while doing all work, he remains established in Yoga.
19.
Whose undertakings are devoid of self-centred objectives, whose works have been
burnt up by the fire of knowledge - him the wise call a sage?
20.
Without attachment to the fruits of action, ever-satisfied and free from
calculations, he is verily doing nothing, even though engaged in actions.
21.
One who is free from desires, whose mind is well-controlled, and who is without
any sense of ownership, incurs no sin from works, as his actions are merely
physical.
22.
Satisfied with whatever comes without calculations, rising above the
contrasting conditions of life, without any competitive spirit, and alike in
success and in failure, a man, though working, incurs no sin.
23.
In the case of one who is without attachments and the sense of agency, and
whose mind is fully established in the knowledge of God, - his actions, being
done in dedication to the Lord, melt away with their very tendencies.
24.
To one of the above description, the ladle with which the offering is made and
the oblations are Brahman; and the sacrificial rite (which is Brahman) is performed
by the sacrifice who is Brahman, in the fire which too is Brahman. He who is
thus absorbed in work as Brahman, attains to Brahman alone.
25.
Some Yogis perform sacrifices especially wanting to propitiate deities. Still
others offer sacrifice (the Atman) itself as oblation (Yajna) in the fire of
Brahman.
26.
Some offer their organs of knowledge like hearing as sacrifice in the fire of
restraint, while others take in all their sense perceptions as oblations made
in the fire of their respective senses.
27.
Others offer all the functions of their senses and vital energy as sacrificial
offerings in the fire of self-restraint kindled by knowledge.
28.
Likewise others, being of rigid vows and hard practice, offer their wealth,
their austerities, their Yogic practices, and their daily study of the Vedas as
sacrifice.
29.
Others devoted to the practice of Pranayama, regulate the movement of Prana and
Apana, and offer as oblation Prana in Apana, and likewise Apana in Prana.
30.
Some others, who observe regulation of food, make a sacrificial offering of the
Prana as the vital energy present in food stuffs, into the prana as the vital
energy enlivening the body. All these know the true nature of sacrifice and
have all evil in them washed away by Yajna (sacrifice).
31.
Those who partake of nectar, the sacramental remnants of sacrifice, attain to
the eternal Brahman. O Thou the best of the Kurus! For one who sacrifices not,
this world is lost, not to speak then of the hereafter.
32.
Thus many forms of sacrifice are set forth prominently in the Vedas (as paths
to Brahman). All of them spring from work done by body, mind, and speech.
Knowing this, you will attain liberation.
33.
O scorcher of enemies! Sacrifice involving knowledge is superior to sacrifice
with material objects; for, O son of Pritha, all works without exception
culminate in knowledge.
34.
With reverential salutations do you approach them - the wise men who have known
the Truth. Serve them, and question them repeatedly (with due respect, until
your doubts are clarified). These wise men will impart the knowledge of this
divine Truth to you.
35.
They will impart to you that divine knowledge by knowing which you will not
again fall into such delusion; for you will then see all beings in their
entirety in the Self and also in Me.
36.
Even if you happen to be the worst of sinners, you will surely go across all
sin by the raft of divine knowledge.
37.
Just as a well-kindled fire reduces a heap of fire-wood to ashes, so does the
fire of divine knowledge reduce all sins to ashes.
38.
Verily there is nothing so purifying as knowledge in this world. One who is
perfect in Yoga discovers it in oneself in course of time.
39.
A man of deep Faith (Shraddha) obtains this divine knowledge, being full of
zeal and devotion for it and endowed with mastery of the senses. Having
obtained that knowledge, he is established in supreme peace very soon.
40.
An ignorant man without any positive faith, who knows only to doubt, goes to
ruin. To such a doubting soul there is neither this world nor the world beyond.
There is no happiness for him.
41.
O Arjuna! Works do not bind one who has abandoned them through Yoga consisting
in dedication and detachment, whose doubts have been dispelled by divine
knowledge, and who is poised in the Self.
42.
Therefore, cutting asunder the sceptical tendency of the heart by the sword of
divine knowledge, betake yourself to Yoga (communion through sacrificial
action) and arise, O scion of the Bharata race!
(Yoga of Renunciation)
Arjuna said:
1. O Krishna! Thou
praisest in one breath both abandonment of works and communion through their
performance. Now tell me with certainty which of them leads to one's good.
The Blessed Lord said:
2.
Both abandonment of works and communion through works lead to liberation. But
of them, communion through work excels abandonment of work.
3. O
mighty-armed one! Whoever hates not, nor desires, should be known as one
established in renunciation. Indeed, one who is above such contraries is easily
liberated from bondage.
4.
It is only the childish and not the wise that speak of Samkhya (or Knowledge
accompanied by abandonment of work) and Yoga (or communion through detached and
dedicated work) as different. A person well-established in even one of these,
attains the end that is the common goal of both. (That is, in the means they
employ, they look different, but their end or ultimate purpose is identical.)
5.
The state which one attains by Samkhya, that same state is attained by Yoga
too. He who sees both Samkhya and Yoga as one, sees indeed.
6. O
mighty-armed Arjuna! True abandonment of work (which the discipline of Samkhya
implies) is difficult to practise for one who is not accomplished in the Yoga
discipline of detached work. But the sage accomplished in Yoga attains to Brahman
in no long time.
7.
One who is established in selfless and detached action, who is pure, whose mind
and senses are under control, and whose self is identified with the self of all
- he is never bound, though he be engaged in work.
8-9.
I (the Self) do naught; only the senses are occupied with their objects - this
should be the conviction of one who is detached in action and established in
the truth (that he is the Atman), even while seeing, hearing, touching,
smelling, eating, walking, sleeping, breathing, conversing, evacuating,
holding, and opening and closing the eyes.
10.
One who resigns all his actions to Brahma and works without any personal
attachments, is not soiled by sin, as a lotus leaf is not wetted by water.
11.
For the attainment of mental purity, spiritual aspirants (Yogins) perform
action devoid of attachment, with their body, mind, and intellect or even
merely with the senses.
12.
By abandoning the fruits of action a man of restrained mind attains to abiding
peace. But the one with unrestrained mind, being prompted by desire for the
fruits of action, gets bound.
13.
A self-controlled soul, having abandoned all work mentally (in the way
described above), resides at ease (as a witness) in this corporeal mansion with
nine gates, neither working nor causing work to be done.
14.
In regard to all beings in this world, the sovereign soul is not the cause of
the sense of agency, nor of actions, nor of the fruition of actions. It is
Nature that does all this.
15.
The all-pervading Being does not accept the sins or merits of any one.
knowledge of the Divine Spirit is veiled by ignorance, and therefore beings are
deluded.
16.
But in the case of those whose ignorance has been destroyed by the knowledge of
the Atman, to them that knowledge reveals the supreme Truth, as the sun does
the objects of the world.
17.
Those who think of That always, who are ever at one with That, who are deeply
devoted to That, and who look upon That as their goal, get purified of their
sins by divine knowledge and go to the state from which there is no return to
worldly life.
18.
Enlightened men are those who see the same (i.e. the Atman) in a Brahmana with
learning and humility, in a cow, in an elephant, and even in a dog or in an
eater of dog-meat (outcaste).
19.
Even here in this embodied state, the cycle of births and deaths has been
overcome by those who have this vision of sameness in all. Verily, Brahman is
the Unsullied and the Pure. Therefore are those seers of sameness said to be
established in Brahman.
20.
Unperturbed and undeluded, a knower of Brahman, who is established in Him,
neither rejoices at pleasant experiences nor gets agitated at unpleasant ones.
21.
An aspirant who is unattached to the contactual experiences of the external
world, gains the joy that is in the Self within. He enjoys unending bliss with
his mind absorbed in communion with Brahman.
22.
Whatever enjoyments are there born of sense contact, they are sources of
suffering only. For, they are with a beginning and an end. A wise man finds no
delight in them.
23.
Here, even while in the body, whoever is able to withstand the agitation caused
by lust and anger, he is the self-controlled one, he is the happy man.
24.
The Yogin whose happiness is within, whose resting place is within, who
likewise experiences' the light within - he realises himself to be the Spirit
and attains to beatitude in Brahman.
25.
Verily, they attain to beatitude in Brahman who are sinless, whose doubts have
been destroyed, whose self is under their control and who rejoice in the good
of all.
26.
To those self-controlled ones (ascetics) who are free from lust and anger, who
have controlled their minds and who have known their real nature as the spirit
- the attainment of beatitude in Brahman is near at hand.
27-28.
Excluding all sense perceptions; fixing the look between the eye brows;
steadying the flow of Prana (out-going breath) and Apana (incoming breath)
through the nostrils; controlling the senses, mind and intellect; devoid of
desires, fear and anger; and aspiring for liberation alone - a meditative sage
is liberated for ever.
29.
Knowing Me, the recipient of all worship and austere practices, the Supreme
Lord of all the worlds, and the friend of all beings, man attains to eternal
peace.
(Communion through Meditation)
The Blessed Lord said:
1.
It is the man who performs his duties without dependence on the fruits that
deserves to be called a Sannyasin (renouncer) and a Yogin, not the one who
keeps no fire or avoids works.
2. O
son of Pandu! What is called Sannyasa or renunciation knows that to be
identical with Yoga or disciplines of selfless action. For, whoever has not
abandoned subtle hankerings and self-centred objectives, can never become a
Yogi, or a practitioner of spiritual communion through works.
3.
For one who desires to ascend the path leading to the heights of spiritual
communion (Yoga), detached work is the means. For one who has ascended it,
quiescence is verily the means.
4.
When one ceases to be attached to sense objects and to one's actions, then that
one, who has thus abandoned all subtle hankerings and self-centred objectives,
is said to have ascended the heights of spiritual communion (Yoga).
5.
One should uplift one's lower self by the higher self. One should not depress
or downgrade one's self. For the self verily is both the friend and the foe of
the self.
6.
To him who has subdued the lower self by the higher self, the self acts like a
friend. But to him who has lost his higher self by the dominance of the lower
one. The self functions as the enemy, always hostile to him.
7.
In one who has conquered his mind, the Self remains steady and unperturbed in
the experience of the pairs of opposites like heat and cold, pleasure and pain,
honour and dishonour.
8. A
Yogin whose spirit has attained contentment through knowledge and experience,
who is unperturbed, who has subdued his senses, to whom a lump of earth and a
bar of gold are alike - such a Yogi is said to have attained steadfastness in
spiritual communion.
9. Especially
noteworthy in excellence is he who is even-minded in his outlook on friend and
foe, on comrade and stranger, on the neutral, on the ally, on the good, and
even on the evil ones.
10.
Let a Yogin constantly practise spiritual communion, residing alone in a
solitary spot, desireless, possessionless, and disciplined in body and mind.
11-12.
At a clean spot, which is neither too high nor too low, a seat should be made
with Kusha grass, spread over with a skin and a cloth. Firmly seated on it, the
Yogi should practise spiritual communion, with mind concentrated and with the
working of the imaginative faculty and the senses under control, for
self-purification.
13-14.
Holding the body, head and neck erect, motionless and firm, gazing at the tip
of the nose and not round about, fearless, serene, restrained in mind, and
established in the vow of continence, he should sit in spiritual communion with
Me, looking upon Me as his highest and most precious end.
15.
With the mind restrained from going outward to objects and always uniting with
the Supreme in spiritual communion, the Yogi attains to Peace, which is the
summit of bliss and enduring establishment in My state.
16.
O Arjuna! Success in Yoga is not for those who eat too much, nor for those who
eat too little. It is not also for those given to too much sleeping, nor to
those who keep vigil too long.
17.
For one who is temperate in food and recreation, who is detached and
self-restrained in work, who is regulated in sleep and in vigil - Yoga brings
about the cessation of the travail of Samsara.
18.
When the disciplined mind is able to remain established in the Atman alone,
when it is free from longing for all objects of desire - then is it spoken of
as having attained to spiritual communion.
19.
The flame of a lamp sheltered from wind does not flicker. This is the
comparison used to describe a Yogi's mind that is well under control and united
with the Atman.
20.
That state in which the Chitta (mind stuff), with its movements restrained by
the practice of Yoga, finds rest; in which is experienced the joy of the Spirit
born of the higher mind intuiting the Spirit.
21.
In which he (the Yogin) experiences that endless bliss which is beyond the ken
of the senses but is intuited by the purified intellect; wherein established,
one does not waver from the Truth.
22.
Having obtained which no other gain is considered as greater; remaining in
which one is not shaken even by the heaviest of afflictions,
23.
Know that severence of connection with pain as what is designated as Yoga. It
has to be practised tirelessly with determination.
24-25.
Abandoning imagination - born longings in their entirety, restraining all the
senses with the mind on every side, and setting that mind firmly on the Self
under the direction of a steadfast intellect, one should practise tranquillity
little by little, and abstain from every kind of thought.
26.
From whatsoever reason this wavering and fickle mind wanders away, it should be
curbed and brought to abide in the Self alone.
27.
Supreme Bliss wells up in a Yogi, who is tranquil in mind, whose passions are
subdued, who is free from impurities and who is in the Brahmic state.
28.
Thus, ever engaged in making the mind steadfast in spiritual communion and
having all the impurities of the mind effaced thereby, the Yogin easily experiences
the infinite Bliss of contact with Brahman.
29.
The man of spiritual insight, established in same-sightedness, sees the Self as
residing in all beings and all beings as resting in the Self.
30.
He who sees Me in all beings, and all beings in Me - to him I am never lost,
nor he to Me.
31.
Established in the unity of all existence, a Yogin who serves Me present in all
beings, verily abides in Me, whatever be his mode of life.
32.
O Arjuna! In My view that Yogi is the best who, out of a sense of identity with
others on account of the perception of the same Atman in all, feels their joy
and suffering as his own.
Arjuna said:
33. O Slayer of
Madhu! Owing to the fickleness of the mind, I find no way of firm establishment
in spiritual communion through equanimity as instructed by you.
34. O Krishna!
Verily, the mind is fickle, turbulent, powerful and unyielding. To control it,
1 think, is as difficult as controlling the wind itself.
The Blessed Lord said:
35.
O mighty armed one! Undoubtedly the mind is fickle and difficult to be checked.
Yet, O son of Kunti, it can be brought under control by dispassion and
spiritual practice.
36.
My view is that Yoga is difficult of attainment by men of uncontrolled mind.
But for those who have their minds under control, it is possible to attain, if
they strive with the proper means.
Arjuna said:
37. What, O
Krishna, is the fate of a man who. Though endowed with a firm faith, is not
steadfast in his practices owing to distractions, and therefore fails to reach
spiritual perfection?
38. O mighty-armed
Lord! Bewildered in the path of Brahman, support less, does he not lose both
this world and the next? Does he not perish like a rain-cloud rent asunder?
39. O Krishna! My
doubt in this respect has yet to be cleared completely. Indeed! I find none
better than Thee to be that doubt dispeller.
The Blessed Lord said:
40.
O son of Pritha! He does not meet with downfall either here in this world or in
the hereafter. Know for certain, O dear one that one who treads the path of
virtue never goes the way of evil ones.
41.
The fallen Yogi goes (after death) to the spheres of the righteous, and after
having lived there for unnumbered years, is reborn in this world in a pure and
prosperous family.
42.
Or he is re-born in a family of men full of wisdom and spirituality. Re-birth
under such conditions is passing hard to get in this world.
43.
There, O scion of the clan of Kurus! he will regain the spiritual discernment
of his previous birth, and then he will strive harder than ever for perfection.
44.
Even if helpless, he will be driven towards the path of Yoga by the force of
his previous striving. For even a beginner in the path of Yoga goes above the
stage requiring the aid of Vedic ritualism (not to speak then of one who has
made some progress in Yoga).
45.
As for the Yogi striving diligently, he is cleansed of all his sins and gains
spiritual perfection after passing through several embodiments. Finally he
reaches the highest state (which consists in release from the bondage of the
body).
46.
A Yogi (one practising meditation) is superior to a man of austerity; he is
superior to a scholar; he is superior to a ritualist too. Therefore, O Arjuna,
be you a Yogi.
47.
Of all the Yogins, he is the most attuned in spiritual communion, who worships
Me with abiding faith, and with his innermost self fused with Me.
(Communion through Knowledge)
The Blessed Lord
said:
1.
Hear now, O son of Pritha, how one resigned to Me and absorbed in love of Me,
attains to full knowledge of Me through the practice of spiritual communion.
2. I
shall now declare to you in fullness that Knowledge along with Special
Knowledge, (its higher development), by means of which there will remain
nothing more for you to understand.
3.
Among thousands of men, there will just be one here or there striving for
spiritual perfection. From among the aspirants so striving, one perchance knows
Me in truth.
4.
My Nature is divided into eight categories - earth, water, fire, air, sky
(ether), mind (manas), understanding (buddhi), and I-sense (ahamkara).
5.
This, O mighty armed, is My lower Nature. Know that, as different from it, is
My higher Nature forming the source of all Jivas and the support of the whole
universe.
6.
Know that all beings have these two Natures of Mine as their source. I am the
origin and the dissolution of this entire universe.
7. O
Arjuna! There is no being higher than Me. As a row of pearls threaded on a
string, all the worlds are held on Me.
8. O
son of Kunti! In water I am taste; in sun and moon, their brilliance; in all
the Vedas, the sound symbol Om; in the sky-element, sound; and in men, their
manliness.
9.
In the earth element I am sweet fragrance; in fire I am brilliance; in living
beings I am the life-principle; and in austere men, I am austerity.
10.
Know me, O Partha! to be the eternal seed of all beings. In the wise I am their
wisdom and in puissant men, their prowess.
11.
In the strong I am strength uncorrupted by desire and attachment, and in living
beings I am desire not contrary to virtue.
12.
Whatever manifestations there are of Sattva, Rajas and Tamas, they have all
come from Me. They are in Me, not I in them.
13.
Deluded by the mental states accruing from the three Gunas of Prakriti, this
world knows not Me, the Imperishable, transcending these Gunas.
14.
My divine Maya (power) constituted of the three Gunas is difficult to overcome.
Whoever takes refuge in Me alone, in utter devotion, overcomes it.
15.
The lowest type of men, evil, foolish and demoniac in nature, being deprived of
right understanding by Maya, never take refuge in Me with devotion.
16.
O Arjuna, the greatest of the Bharata race! Four kinds of pious men adore Me.
They are the distressed one, the knowledge-seeker, the wealth-seeker, and the
knower.
17.
Among them, the knower (or the man of wisdom), ever communing and single-minded
in devotion, is the best. I am indeed supremely dear to such a knower, and he
in turn is dear to Me.
18.
While all of them are certainly noble, the knower I cherish as My very self -
such is My view. For, ever in union with Me, he is established in the
conviction that I am his highest goal.
19.
At the end of many births (of striving), the knowing one makes Me his refuge,
realising that Vasudeva is All. A great soul of that type is rare to find.
20.
Influenced by their inherent nature and deprived of correct judgement by
numerous desires, people adore other deities with various forms of worship
pertaining to them.
21.
Whichever devotee desires to adore whatever such Deity with faith, in all such
votaries I make that particular faith unshakable.
22.
Endowed with that faith, a votary performs the worship of that particular deity
and obtains the fruits thereof, these being granted by Me alone.
23.
The results accruing to such small-minded people are finite only. Those who
worship the Devas go to the Devas, but My devotees attain to Me.
24.
Without any insight into My transcendental nature, unique and immutable, men of
little understanding look upon Me as a mere human individual, having come into
manifestation from an unmanifested state.
25.
Veiled as I am in My Yoga-maya (Divine Power), I am not revealed to all. This
deluded world does not know Me, the unoriginated and the indestructible.
26.
O Arjuna! I know all beings - past, present and future. But none knows me.
27.
O scion of Bharata's house! From their very birth all beings are deluded by the
bewitchment of the pairs of opposites like pleasure and pain, springing from
the instinctive feelings of attraction and aversion for them.
28.
But those men of virtuous deeds, in whom sinfulness has been effaced - they,
freed from the bewilderment of sense life, worship Me with great steadfastness
in their vows.
29.
Those that strive for liberation from the travails of old age and death in
complete trust and dependence on Me, shall know all about the Absolute, His
spiritual manifestation and His works of spiritual import.
30.
Those who have grasped that I am the spiritual power that sustains all material
manifestations, all divine expressions and all spiritual endeavours - they
continue to know Me as such even at the time of death, their mind being ever
absorbed in Me.
(Way to Brahman)
Arjuna said:
1. O Supreme Lord!
What is Brahman (the Absolute)? What is the Spirit (the Adhyatma)? What is work
(Karma)? And what is that which underlies the material manifestations
(Adhibhuta), and what, the divinities (Adhidaiva)?
2. O Slayer of
Madhu! Who is the Adhiyajna (the spirit underlying sacrifices) that resides in
this body, and how does he do so? How should a man of a self-restraint meditate
on the Supreme Being at the time of death?
The Blessed Lord said:
3.
Brahman is Akshara, the Immutable Being than whom there is none higher.
Brahman's power manifested in every body as the transmigrating self (the Jiva),
is the Adhyatma. The creative act (identified with sacrificial offering), which
brings all beings into existence, is Karma (work).
4. O
noble one! The perishable Nature is the material aspect (Adhibhuta). The cosmic
soul is the basis of all divine manifestations (Adhidaivata); and I verily form
the Adhiyajna, the one object of all worship which men perform with their body
and mind.
5.
Whoever thinks of Me alone even at the time of death, attains to My state on
abandoning the body. There is no doubt about this.
6. O
son of Kunti! Whatever object a person thinks of at the time of death, having
been absorbed in its thought all through, - he attains to that object alone.
7.
Therefore fight, remembering Me always. One who has dedicated his mind and
understanding to Me, shall come to Me alone, undoubtedly.
8.
Thinking of Me continuously, with a mind trained in the practice of spiritual
communion and freed from the tendency to stray away to other objects, one
attains to the Divine Spirit Supreme.
9-10.
He who, with a mind steady and endued with devotion and strength born of
spiritual practice, fixes his entire life-force between the eye-brows at the
time of death, and contemplates on Him who is all-knowing, primeval, subtler
than even an atom, sustainer and director of all, glorious like the sun, and
beyond all darkness of inertia and ignorance - he verily attains to that
Supreme Being.
11.
That which Vedic scholars call the Imperishable (Akshara), which Sannyasins
devoid of worldly attachments enter, desiring which men follow the life of
continence and asceticism, - that state I shall declare to you in brief.
12-13.
Established in spiritual communion by inhibiting all sensations, concentrating
on the heart centre, and drawing up the vital energies to the head, one should
meditate on Me along with the utterance of the single-syllabled mantra Om
denoting Brahman. Departing from the body in this state, one attains
liberation.
14.
He who, with a mind undistracted by other things, thinks of Me constantly every
day - to the Yogi thus ever-attuned, I am easy of attainment, O son of Pritha!
15.
No more is re-birth, no more this home of transience and misery, for those
great-souled ones who have attained to supreme perfection by realising Me.
16.
All the worlds from the realm of Brahma down to the earth are subject to
re-birth. But, O Arjuna, one who has attained to Me is never reborn.
17.
Those who have an understanding of Brahma's day time, which lasts for a
thousand ages, and of his night time, which too is of equal length, - they
indeed understand what a day is and what a night.
18.
At the dawn of the day of Brahma this whole universe comes into manifestation
from the Unmanifest (Prakriti). When the night begins, it dissolves in that
Unmanifest itself.
19.
O son of Pritha! This vast collectivity of beings comes inexorably into
manifestation again and again, dissolving at the commencement of night, and
again coming forth at the dawn of day.
20.
Different from this unmanifested state is the supreme and eternal -
Unmanifested whose being remains unaffected even when everything is destroyed.
21.
Know that state, which is called the Unmanifested and the Imperishable, to be
the ultimate goal of all. That is My supreme abode. Attaining to that, man is
not reborn.
22.
That Supreme Purusha, the abode of all beings and the indweller of them all,
can be attained by unswerving and exclusive devotion to Him.
23.
I shall now tell you, O noblest of Bharatas, of the circumstances, dying under
which a Yogi never returns to this world and also of the time, dying when he is
sure to return.
24.
Fire, light, day-time, bright fortnight, six months of the northern course of
the sun - the knowers of Brahman who depart along this path, attain to Brahman.
25.
Smoke, night and likewise the black fortnight and the six months of the
southern course of the sun - the Yogi departing by this path attains to the
lunar sphere and thence returns.
26.
Verily, these two paths - the bright and the dark - are accepted as everlasting
verities. By the one, the aspirant gains Moksha, the state of non-return, while
the other leads him to rebirth.
27.
O son of Pritha! Whoever among Yogis knows these two paths, they are never
deluded. Therefore, O Arjuna, be steadfast in Yoga at all times.
28.
Knowing this, a Yogi transcends all the meritorious rewards that are prescribed
for the study of the Vedas, for the performance of austerities, and for
charities too, and attains to that primeval state, which is the Supreme Being.
(Sovereign Secret)
The Blessed Lord said:
1. I
shall now declare to you, who are endowed with reverence, that profoundest of
all mystic doctrines and the way to its experience, by which you will be free
from the baneful life of Samsara.
2.
It is a sovereign science, and a profound mystery. Supremely sanctifying, demonstrable
by experience, and yielding imperishable results, it is also easy to perform
and is in agreement with the moral law.
3.
Men without faith in this sacred doctrine (who continue to look upon the body
as the self) fail to attain Me. They remain caught up in Samsara, the eternally
recurring cycle of births and deaths.
4.
All this world is pervaded by Me, the Unmanifested Being. All objects subsist
in Me, but not I in them.
5.
And yet objects do not abide in Me! Behold My mysterious Divine Power! Source
and support of all objects, and yet not abiding in (i.e., not limited by) them!
6.
Know that, as the mighty atmosphere ever abides in space, so do all objects
abide in Me (without restricting or limiting Me in the least).
7.
At the end of a cosmic cycle, O son of Kunti! All beings resolve into Nature
(Prakriti), which is My own, and at the beginning of a new one (after the
period of dissolution or Pralaya is over), I bring them out again.
8.
Resorting to Prakriti (Nature) which is My own Power, I send forth again and
again this multitude of beings that are without any freedom, owing to Nature's
sway over them.
9.
These activities do not in any way bind me, because I remain detached like one
unconcerned in their midst.
10.
Under My direction and control, Nature brings out this mighty universe of
living and non-living beings. Thus does the wheel of this world revolve?
11.
Foolish men, without an understanding of My higher nature as the Supreme Lord
of all that exists, disregard Me manifested in the human body.
12.
Futile are the hopes, futile the works, and futile the knowledge of these men
of perverted understanding who are deluded by their cruel, proud and passionate
nature, characteristic of Rakshasas and Asuras.
13.
But the high-souled ones, endowed with virtues characteristic of Devas,
understand Me to be the Immutable and the source of all beings, and adore Me
with a mind undistracted by anything else.
14.
Strenuous and steadfast in their vows, these ever-integrated devotees worship
Me with devotion, always singing My glories and prostrating before Me.
15.
Others, again, who offer wisdom sacrifice to Me, worship Me the All-inclutive
Whole (All-formed)- as the One, as the Distinct, and as the Immanent in all.
16.
I am the sacrifice (kratu), I am the worship (yajna),I am the ancestral
offering (svadha), I am the medicinal herb. Again I am the Vedic hymn, I am the
sacrificial ingredients. I am the sacrificial fire, and I am the sacrificial
oblation too.
17.
To this world I am the father, the mother, the grandsire and the sustainer. I
am the Holy One to be known, as also the syllable Om, the Rig, Sama and Yajus.
18.
The goal, the support, the Lord, and the consciousness witnessing - all this I
am. I am again the abode, the refuge, and the friend of all, as also their
origin, their dissolution, their ground, their treasure-house and their seed
imperishable.
19.
I give heat, and I send. forth as well as withhold rain. I am, O Arjuna! both
immortality and death, both being and non-being.
20.
Men versed in the Vedas, cleansed of their sins by the performance of
sacrifices attended with the drinking of consecrated Soma juice, pray for
heavenly regions (as the reward for adoring Me with those rites). They go to
the heaven of Indra, attainable by meritorious deeds, and enjoy heavenly
felicities there.
21.
Having enjoyed the varied felicities of heaven for long, they come back to the
world of human beings when their asset of meritorious deeds is exhausted. Thus,
being desire-ridden, the followers of the Vedic sacrificial rites stagnate in
Samsara, the repetitive state of going and returning.
22.
Whoever, being devoted to me solely, engage themselves always in contemplation
and worship of Me - to such ever-steadfast devotees I ensure the procurement of
all their wants (salvation) and the preservation of their assets (worldly
interests).
23.
O son of Kunti! Those devotees who worship even other deities with deep faith,
they also are worshipping Me alone, though contrary to injunctions.
24.
I am indeed the only enjoyer and the Lord of all sacrifices. But they (the
worshippers of other deities) do not understand Me in My true nature (as the
object of all worship). So they fall.
25.
The votaries of the deities go to the deities; of the manes, to the manes; and
of the spirits, to the spirits, while My worshippers come to Me.
26.
Whoever makes an offering to Me with devotion, be it of leaf, flower, fruit or
water - that devout offering by a pure-hearted man, I accept with joy.
27.
O son of Kunti! Whatever you do, whatever you eat, whatever you offer in
sacrifice, whatever you give as charity, whatever austerity you perform - do
that as offering unto Me.
28.
Thus shall you be freed from the bonds of Karma bearing good and evil fruits.
With the heart firmly set on renunciation, you will attain liberation and
thereby come to Me.
29.
I am the same towards all beings. None is hateful, and none dear to Me. But
those who worship Me with devotion dwell in Me, and I too dwell in them.
30.
Even a confirmed sinner, if he worships Me with unwavering faith and devotion,
must verily be considered as righteous; for he has indeed taken the right
resolve.
31.
Soon will he become righteous and attain to lasting peace. No devotee of Mine
will ever perish; you may swear to this effect, O Arjuna!
32.
O son of Pritha! Taking refuge in Me, women, Vaishyas, Shudras, and likewise
even men of inferior birth, attain to the highest spiritual goal.
33.
Then how much more so in the case of holy Brahmanas and also of devoted royal
sages! Having come into this impermanent and unhappy world, engage yourself in
My worship.
34.
Let your mind be absorbed in Me. Be devoted to Me, sacrifice unto Me, and bow
down to Me. Thus, having Me as your highest goal, and united with Me in mind,
you shall come to Me alone.
(Divine Glories)
The Blessed Lord said:
1.
Hear again, O mighty armed one, My words on the Supreme Truth. Desirous of your
good, I want to declare it to you, who are so beloved of Me.
2.
Neither the hosts of gods nor Maharishis (great sages) know my origin, for I am
Myself the origin of all those gods and great sages.
3.
He who knows Me as the beginning less, the unborn and the Master of the worlds
- he among mortals becomes undeluded, and he is freed from all sins.
4-5.
Intelligence, knowledge, sanity, patience, truth, sense-control, mind-control,
pleasure, pain, birth, death, fear and also fearlessness; non-injury, same-sightedness,
contentment, austerity, benevolence, fame and obloquy - all these diverse modes
of the mind seen in all beings proceed from Me alone, their ultimate
sanctioner.
6.
The seven great sages (beginning with Marichi) as also the four earlier ones
like Sanaka and the rest and the Manus likewise are My emanations, being
projections of my thought. All this race of men is their progeny.
7.
He who knows the truth about this manifestation of My Divine majesties and
about My power, gets united with Me in steady and unfaltering communion. There
is no doubt about this.
8. I
am the source of all things, from Me all these go forth - knowing thus the wise
ones worship Me, being filled with ecstatic devotional fervour.
9.
With their minds engrossed and their vital energies deeply involved in Me, they
are ever contented and delighted by mutually conversing about Me and
enlightening each other thereby.
10.
To those who serve Me with delight and are ever steadfast in spiritual
communion, I bestow intuitive understanding by means of which they come to Me.
11.
Out of sheer compassion for them, residing within as their innermost self, I
destroy the darkness born of ignorance in them by the brilliant lamp of wisdom.
Arjuna said:
12-13. Thou art
the Supreme Brahman, the Supreme Abode, the Utterly Holy. Thou art the eternal
divine Person - the birthless and all-pervading Divinity supreme. All the
Rishis proclaim this - the divine sage Narada as also Asita, Devala and Vyasa;
Thou Thyself too dost tell Me the same.
14. O Kesava!
Whatever Thou hast told me, I deem as true. Verily, O Lord, neither the Devas
nor the Danavas know what Thy manifestations are.
15. O Thou the
highest of all beings! O Creator of all! O Lord of all! O God of gods! O Ruler
of the world! Thou art known only to Thyself through self-intuition.
16. Deign to speak
to me in entirety of those divine manifestations of Thy glory, whereby,
pervading all these worlds. Thou abidest in them and beyond.
17. How am I to
know Thee, O Yogin, through constant meditation? In what all aspects shouldn’t
Thou be contemplated upon by me, O Lord?
18. O Janardana!
Tell me again and again of Thy divine powers and majesties; for I am ever eager
to hear more and more of Thy nectarine words.
The Blessed Lord said:
19.
Behold, O best of the Kurus! I shall declare unto you what My divine
self-manifestations are; but I shall mention only the chief of them. For, there
is no end to their details.
20.
O Arjuna! I am the Self residing in the heart of every being. I am their
beginning, their life-span, and their end.
21.
Of the twelve Adityas (suns), I am Vishnu; among the luminaries I am the
radiant sun; among the seven Maruts (winds) I am Marichi; and of the Nakshatras
(asterisms), I am the moon.
22.
Of the Vedas, I am the Sama Veda; among the Devas, I am Indra; of the senses, I
am the mind; and in living beings, I am intelligence.
23.
Of the eleven Rudras, I am Shankara; among the Demigods and Titans, I am
Kubera; of the eight Vasus, I am Agni; among mountains, I am the Meru.
24.
Among the priests, know me to be the chief of them - Brihaspati, the priest of
the Devas, O Arjuna. Among the war-lords I am Skanda; among the water reservoirs,
I am the ocean.
25.
Among the great sages, I am Bhrigu; among utterances I am the mono-syllabled
'Om'; among holy offerings, I am the offering of Japa (silent repetition of
Divine Names); among immovable objects, I am the mount Himalaya.
26.
Among all trees, I am the holy fig-tree; among the divine sages, I am Narada;
among celestial artistes, I am Chitraratha; among perfected souls, I am Kapila
the sage.
27.
Among horses know Me to be the nectar-born Uchchaishravas, among the lordly
elephants, the white celestial elephant Airavata; and among men, persons
endowed with leadership.
28.
Among weapons I am the thunderbolt; among cows, Kamadhenu the celestial cow of
plenty; among progenitors, Kama the god of love; and among snakes, Vasuki.
29.
Among serpents I am Ananta; among water-dwellers I am Varuna; among the manes I
am Aryama; and among the enforcers of law I am Yama.
30.
Among Daityas I am Prahlada; among calculators I am time; among animals I am
the lion; and among birds I am Garuda.
31.
Among purifying agents I am the wind; among warriors I am Rama; among the fish
I am the shark; and among rivers I am the Ganga.
32.
O Arjuna! Of the created objects I am the beginning, middle and end; among the
sciences, I am the science of the spirit; and in debaters lam the power of
correct reasoning.
33.
Among letters I am the letter 'A', among compound word formations I am the
copulative (dvandva). I am also the never-ending Time and the all-seeing Brahma
(the dispenser of the Karmas of all beings).
34.
I am the all-destroying Death, and I am the origin of all that are to come too.
Among virtues considered as female I am fame, fortune, speech, memory,
intelligence, constancy and patience.
35.
Among the Sama hymns I am the Brihatsaman (the Great Chant); among the Vedic
metres, I am the Gayatri; among months, I am Margashirsha (Nov-Dec.) and among
seasons, I am the flower-bearing spring.
36.
I am the dicing of the deceitful, the power of the powerful and the goodness of
the good. I am victory, determination and constancy too.
37.
I am Vasudeva among the Vrishnis and Arjuna among the Pandavas. I am Vyasa
among sages, and Ushana among the far-sighted.
38.
I am the rod of chastisement in the disciplinarians; I am the wise policy in
those seeking success; I am silence in the arts of secrecy; and I am wisdom in
the wise.
39.
Of all beings I am the seed, O Arjuna. Whatever exists in this world, living or
non-living, none of them can be, if I were not.
40.
O great warrior! There is no end to my divine manifestations. What I have
expounded forms only a few of them by way of examples.
41.
Whatever there is endowed with extraordinary glory, attractiveness and vigour,
know all that to be born of a fragment of My power.
42.
But then, of what avail is this detailed understanding of my manifestations to
you, O Arjuna! Supporting this mighty universe with but one single fragment of
My self, I remain unchanged and transcendent.
(The Cosmic Form)
Arjuna said:
1. Thy
instructions on the grand Mystery, the highest spiritual Truth, imparted to me
out of Thy abounding grace, have dispelled my delusion.
2. O lotus-eyed
One! From Thee I have heard at length about the origin and dissolution of
creatures as also about Thy greatness that knows no decay.
3. Thou art, O
Lord Supreme, even as what Thou hast declared Thyself to be. (I understand and
accept it.) Yet I now desire to see that form of Thine as the Lord of all.
4. If, O Lord,
Thou thinkest me worthy of experiencing that immutable form of Thine, then
deign to reveal the same to me, O Thou Master of all Yoga!
The Blessed Lord said:
5.
Behold, O Partha, My manifold forms in their hundreds and thousands - all
divine and all of varied hues and shapes.
6.
Behold the Adityas and the Vasus, the Rudras and the Ashvins, and the Maruts likewise
- behold these marvels unseen by any before, O scion of Bharata's clan!
7. O
conqueror of sleep! Behold here and now the whole of this universe of conscious
and unconscious entities as also anything else you desire to experience - all
abiding as a unity in My body.
8.
You cannot have an experience of Me merely with your physical eye. I therefore
give you the power of divine vision. Behold with that My power as the Lord of
all.
Sanjaya said:
9. So saying,
Hari, the Master of all spiritual powers, now revealed to Arjuna His
transcendent form as the Lord of the universe.
10. Having
countless faces and eyes; exhibiting countless features; provoking wonder;
bedecked with countless celestial ornaments equipped with countless divine
weapons held aloft;
11. Wearing
heavenly garlands and vestments; anointed with celestial unguents and perfumes;
replete with incredible, marvellous features - a divinity boundless and
all-seeing.
12. What
brilliance there would have been if a thousand suns were to blaze forth all of
a sudden in the sky - to that was comparable the splendour of that great Being.
13. There in the
body of that God of all divinities, the son of Pandu then saw the whole
universe - a multiplicity abiding unified in His being.
14. Thereupon
Arjuna, struck with amazement and his hairs standing on end, bowed down before
the Lord and said with hands folded in salutation.
Arjuna said:
15. In Thy form I
see, O Lord, all the Devas and all the varied hosts of other beings - the
divine Rishis, the celestial serpents and likewise Brahma the Lord of creation,
seated on his lotus throne.
16. I see Thee in
Thy all encompassing form everywhere - with myriad arms, myriad trunks, myriad
mouths, myriad eyes. O Lord of all! O the All-formed! I see not Thy beginning,
Thy middle, or Thy end.
17. I see Thee,
boundless Being, diademed and armed with mace and discus, shining everywhere as
a mass of light, and difficult to look at, like the blazing fire or the
incandescent sun.
18. In my view
Thou art the Supreme Imperishable Being to be realised - the world's ultimate
refuge and the guardian of eternal law, most ancient and perennial.
19. I see Thee -
beginningless, middleless and endless; infinite in puissance; of boundless
energy active everywhere; having the sun and the moon for eyes; with a face
luminous like a flaming fire; and with spiritual radiance energising
everything.
20. O High-souled
One! All the three worlds tremble with fear at the sight of this wondrous,
awe-inspiring form of Thine - the one existence that fills all space betwixt
heaven and earth and all the quarters as well.
21. Verily, these
bands of Devas enter into Thee, while others, awe-struck, and stand with hands
joined in salutation. Hosts of sages and celestial singers cry 'Hail' unto
Thee, and extol Thee with hymns of abounding praise.
22. And the
Rudras, Adityas, Vasus and Sadhyas; Vishvas, Ashvins, Maruts and Manes; and the
hosts of Gandharvas, Yaksas, Asuras and Siddhas - all view Thee in utter
amazement.
23. At the sight
of Thy stupendous form, with faces, eyes, arms, trunks, thighs and legs in
myriads, and Thy numerous fangs of forbidding appearance - the whole world, O
mighty one, is trembling in awe, even as I.
24. When I see Thy
form reaching up to the skies and shining in varied hues, when I see Thy face
with mouth wide open and eyes large and glowing bright, I feel shaken to the
core of my being with awe. O All-pervading One! My strength is exhausted and my
mind is without peace.
25. Even by
beholding Thy faces, resembling the fire of cosmic destruction and striking
terror with their fangs, I lose all sense of direction as also my presence of
mind. O Thou the Lord of all and the home of the worlds! Be propitious unto me!
26-27. All these
hosts of kings, along with the sons of Dhritarashtra, Bhishma, Drona and yonder
Kama, as also the principal warriors on our side - all are rushing headlong
into Thy fearful mouth set with terrible fangs. Some are seen with their heads
crushed and caught in the gaps of Thy teeth.
28. As the
swift-flowing waters of numerous rivers rush verily towards the sea, so these
heroes among men are rushing into Thy flaming mouth.
29. As moths swarm
swiftly into a flaming fire and perish, so do these men rush headlong into Thy
mouth to meet with sure destruction.
30. Thou lappest
up all these worlds around, devouring them with Thy flaming mouth. Thy lustre,
striking awe into the minds of all, fills this entire universe with its
radiance and scorches it, O Vishnu!
31. Deign to tell
me who Thou art with this awe-inspiring form. To Thee, O Supreme Lord my
salutation and also my prayers for Thy grace. I wish to know more about Thee,
the Primal Being, as also of Thy purpose here, of which I am in ignorance.
The Blessed Lord said:
32.
I am the mighty world destroying Time, engaged here in annihilating all beings.
Even without you. not one of all the warriors arrayed in these rival armies
shall survive.
33.
Therefore arise! Win renown! And destroying your enemies, enjoy the prosperous
kingdom. For, these warriors have already been slain by Me. Be you but an
instrument thereof, O thou master-bowman, Arjuna.
34.
Kill Drona and Bhishma, Jayadratha and Karna, as also these other heroic
warriors, who are already doomed by Me. Fight on, and you shall conquer the
enemies in battle.
Sanjaya said:
35. Hearing this
declaration of Krishna, Arjuna, with his frame trembling, saluted Him again and
again with joined palms. Prostrating himself before Him in utter awe, Arjuna
addressed Him in faltering voice.
Arjuna said:
36. Rightly do the
worlds rejoice and delight in glorifying Thee. In Thy presence the Rakshasas
melt away in fear in all directions, while the hosts of Siddhas bow in
adoration.
37. O High-souled
one! Why should they not bow down to Thee who art the highest of all beings and
the primal cause of even Brahma the creator! O Infinite One! O Lord of all Gods
and the Abode of all the worlds! Thou art that Imperishable Being who is both
existence (effect condition) and non-existence (causal state) as also that
which is beyond them both.
38. Thou art the
first of all divinities and the most ancient of all beings. Thou art the
ultimate haven of rest and safety for the worlds. Thou art both the knower and
the known as also the supreme Abode. O Thou of countless forms! By Thee the
whole universe is pervaded.
39. Manifested as
Vayu the god of winds, as Yama the god of death, as Varuna the god of the seas,
and as the moon with the hare-mark on the face - Thou art the Progenitor of all
and the source of him as well. Hail, hail unto Thee a thousand times! Hail, and
hail again and yet again.
40. Salutations
unto Thee, the All-formed, from before, from behind and from all directions!
Infinite in puissance and limitless in might, Thou pervadest everything and
Thou art verily the All.
41-42. O
undecaying One! If, without knowing Thy greatness and taking Thee only to be a
friend, I have, out of ignorance or love, alone or even in company, addressed
Thee discourteously in fun, while playing relaxing, sitting or feasting, with
words such as, "O Krishna! O Yadava!" - I beseech Thee, O Boundless
One, do pardon me for the same!
43. Thou art the
father of the world - of all that is moving and unmoving. Thou art the object
of its worship, the most venerable of its Teachers. In all the worlds there is
not another equal to Thee. Much less one greater, O Thou of incomparable
puissance!
44. Therefore
greeting Thee with my body stretched in prostration, I beseech Thee, O
worshipful Lord, to be gracious unto me. Bear with me as a father with a son,
as a friend with a friend, and as a lover with his beloved.
45. Seeing this
form unseen before, I am overjoyed but my mind is also perturbed with fear.
Reveal to me that other familiar form of Thine and be gracious unto me, O Thou
God of all gods, and Indwelling Spirit of the worlds.
46. I desire to
see Thee as before crowned with a diadem, and holding a mace and discus in
hand. Deign to assume that four-armed shape, O Thou of a thousand arms and of
universal form!
The Blessed Lord said:
47.
Out of My grace, I have, by My divine power, revealed to you this transcendent
form of Mine - infinite, primeval, radiant and all-inclusive. Never has it been
seen by any one before except by you.
48.
Except by you (on whom My grace has been bestowed), none in this world of men
could see Me in this Cosmic Form - be it by Vedic study, by sacrifice, by good
works, by rituals, or by severe austerities.
49.
Fear not; nor be bewildered at seeing this awe-inspiring form of Mine. With
fear assuaged and a heart full of joy, behold now this. My familiar form,
again!
Sanjaya said:
50. Saying thus to
Arjuna, Krishna revealed again his own familiar form. Having thus assumed that
gentle form the Exalted One comforted the awe-struck Arjuna over again.
Arjuna said:
51. Seeing this
gentle human form of Thine, O Janardana, I am now composed and restored to my
natural slate of mind.
The Blessed Lord
said:
52.
This form of Mine which you have seen is extremely difficult to behold. Even
Devas themselves are ever eager to see it.
53.
Neither by Vedic study, nor by austerities, nor by charities, nor by sacrifices
could one behold Me in the way you have done.
54.
But, O Arjuna, thou great warrior! Through unswerving devotion this form of
Mine may be known in truth and in reality, may be experienced and entered into.
55.
Whoever works for Me, looking upon Me as the goal; whoever is My devotee, free
from attachments and from antagonism to any being - such a man, O son of Pandu,
shall enter into Me.
(Loving Devotion)
Arjuna said:
1. There are Thy
ever-steadfast devotees who love and worship Thee in the above way (as the
Divine Person); there are again others who contemplate on Thee as the
Imperishable Unmanifest (Impersonal Absolute) - which of these has a greater
understanding of Yoga.
The Blessed Lord said:
2.
Those I consider as the most perfect in Yoga, who, with their minds fixed
intently on Me in steadfast love, worship Me with absolute faith.
3-4.
Those who are devoted to the Imperishable (the Impersonal Absolute) - who is
the firm support of the world and is also undefinable, unmanifested,
transcendent, motionless, eternal and all-pervading, - even they reach Me
alone, striving with their senses controlled, and with mind tranquillised and
set on the welfare of all.
5.
The obstacles facing those devoted to the Impersonal Absolute are far greater;
for the way of any unclear ideal is difficult for an embodied being (the
body-centred man) to understand or follow.
6-7.
But, O son of Pritha, soon will I lift from this ocean of death-bound worldly
existence, those whose minds are ever set on Me - those who abandon to Me the
fruits of all their actions together with the sense of agency thereof, and who
worship Me, meditating on Me as their sole refuge and their only love.
8.
Fix your mind on Me alone; let your reason penetrate into Me; without doubt you
will then abide in Me alone for ever more.
9.
If you are unable to fix your mind steadily on Me (even at the start), then try
to reach Me through the systematic practice of concentration.
10.
If you are not capable of practising systematic concentration, then devote
yourself whole heartedly to works of service to Me (consisting in external
worship and discharge of duties for My sake). Thus working for Me, man can
attain to perfection.
11.
If even this is too difficult for you to perform, then taking refuge in Me, and
thus controlling the mind, give up the fruits of all your actions (recognising
Me as their agent and enjoyer).
12.
Than (a mere formal) practice of disciplines, a clear intellectual
understanding (of the doctrine) is better. Than such understanding, meditation
is better. Even better than meditation is the abandonment of the fruits of
action. For, such abandonment (of the fruits of works and sense of their
agency) is immediately followed by peace.
13-14.
Friendly and compassionate to all and without any touch of hatred; devoid of
possessiveness and arrogance; ever content and contemplative; alike in
happiness and misery; self-controlled and firm in conviction; dedicated to Me
with all his heart and all his soul - dear to Me is a man who is thus devoted.
15.
Who causes fear to none and whom none can frighten, who is thus free from the
agitation of the moods caused by euphoria, anger, and excitement - such a
person too is dear to Me.
16.
Desireless, pure, resourceful, unattached, unworried and without any sense of
self-centred agency - a devotee thus endowed is dear to Me.
17.
He who is free from elation, anger, sorrow, and craving, who neither seeks the
pleasant nor shuns the unpleasant - dear to Me is the man who is thus devoted.
18-19.
Alike to friend and foe, alike in honour and insult, alike in heat and cold,
alike in praise and blame - unattached, contented, homeless, and steady in mind
- dear to Me is a man who is thus devoted.
20.
Whosoever even seeks to follow the virtuous path to Immortality thus set forth,
with a mind full of faith and acceptance of Me as their supreme goal -
exceedingly dear to Me are men who are thus devoted.
(The Knower and The Known)
The Blessed Lord said:
1.
This body, O son of Kunti, is called the Ksetra, the field (because the fruits
of action are reaped in it). He who knows it (as his property) is the Ksetrajna
or the Spirit who knows the field. So say those versed in this subject.
2.
Know Me, O scion of the Bharata race, to be the Ksetrajna (the Spirit) in all
Kshetras (bodies). The knowledge of the distinction between Ksetra and
Ksetrajna alone is real knowledge according to Me.
3.
Hear from Me in brief what the Kshetra is, of what nature it is, what its
modifications are, and from what causes what effects have sprung. Also know who
the Kshetrajna is and what his powers are.
4.
In many and different ways have the Rishis sung about this subject in metres of
varying description. The well-reasoned and definitive aphorisms of the
Brahma-sutras too have discussed it.
5-6.
The five great elements, the I-sense, the intellect, and the Unmanifested (Root
Matter); the ten organs along with the mind as the eleventh, and the five
objects of the senses; desire, hatred, pleasure and pain; the body,
consciousness, and will - such is a brief description of the Kshetra with all
its modifications.
7.
Freedom from self-importance, unpretentiousness, non-violence, patience,
straight-forwardness, service of the teacher, cleanliness, stead-fastness, and
self-control;
8.
Abhorrence of sensuality, self-effacement and perception of evil and misery in
birth, death, old age and sickness;
9.
Detachment from property and family members, non-identification with them and
their fortunes, and constant evenness of mind in favourable and unfavourable
situations;
10.
Practice of unswerving devotion through contemplation on Me as one's 'own' (or
on Me in non-separation), resort to solitude and abhorrence of vulgar company;
11.
Constant application to the study of spiritual texts and practice of spiritual
disciplines, and a clear comprehension of the goal of spiritual enlightenment
and the destiny of man - all these described before constitute knowledge; what
all is opposed to it is ignorance.
12.
I shall now declare the Object which ought to be known, by knowing which one
attains to immortality. It is the Supreme Brahman, the eternal Being who cannot
be described either as existent or non-existent (in the way sense-bound
material objects are described).
13.
His hands and feet are everywhere. His eyes, ears and mouth grasp everything.
His face is in all directions. He is the transcendent Spirit, enveloping all
that exists.
14.
By His power the faculties of the senses function, but sense organs He has
none. He is the support of all things, but they do not affect Him. He
transcends Nature and its functions, but these constitute the objects for His
enjoyment.
15.
He is within and without all beings. Though unmoving. He looks like one moving
(because He is everywhere). He is both far and near - far to the ignorant, and
near to the knowing ones. Owing to subtlety. He cannot be known like gross
objects.
16.
He, (the Brahman) whom aspirants seek to know, is the impartible Whole, yet
does He seem to dwell in all beings as if divided into many. He is the
generator and supporter of all beings, and their devourer too.
17.
The self-luminous light of consciousness revealing even all that is luminous.
He is beyond obscuration by the darkness of ignorance. He, the light of
knowledge. He, the quest of knowledge. He, the way to whom is knowledge - in
the innermost recess of all beings is He established.
18.
Thus has been briefly expounded what the Kshetra (material Nature) is, as also
what constitutes knowledge and the object of knowledge. My devotee who
understands these verities becomes worthy of My state.
19.
Know both Prakriti (Nature) and Purusha (Spirit) to be beginningless, eternal
verities. Know also that all changeful objects and attributes (that constitute
the world of daily experience) are sprung from Prakriti.
20.
Prakriti is the cause of the formation and functioning of the body and the
senses, while it is the Purusha that experiences pleasure and pain, joy and
sorrow.
21.
Seated in bodies, which are the products of Prakrti, the Purusa enjoys the
objects and qualities born of Prakriti. Attachment to these objects is the
cause of the Spirit getting embodiments in evil or exalted wombs.
22.
In this body there is also the Transcendent and the Supreme Spirit, who is
described as the Supreme Self and Sovereign Lord, the unconcerned Witness, the
Sanctioner, the Supporter and the Enjoyer.
23.
Whoever thus knows the Purusha (Spirit) and Prakriti (Nature) along with its
effects, will never be born again, whatever be his mode of living.
24.
There are some who perceive the Atman within themselves by the practice of
meditation with a purified mind. There are also others who approach Him through
the discipline of knowledge or of work.
25.
There are still others, who, being unfit to follow the disciplines described
before - for they lack the knowledge of the Yoga Shastra and the Vedas -, adopt
forms of worship (devotional disciplines) under instruction from teachers or
elders. Full of faith in these instructions heard, and following them sincerely
as their only refuge, they too certainly overcome the cycle of births and
deaths.
26.
O thou the best of the Bharata clan! Whatever there is born - whether moving or
unmoving - it has come into being due to the union of Kshetra (body) and
Kshetrajna (Spirit).
27.
He really sees who perceives the Supreme Lord alike in everything - as the
Imperishable Substance abiding amidst perishing phenomena.
28.
For, he who perceives the Lord's presence alike everywhere no longer works
against his own spiritual well-being (by mistaking the ego for the true
spiritual Self as men in ignorance do). He therefore attains to the Supreme
Goal.
29.
He is the real seer who perceives that Prakriti (i.e.. one's body-mind born of
Prakriti) alone is doing all works and that the Atman. the true spiritual self.
is the actionless witness.
30.
When one perceives the manifold objects as centred in the One and as evolved
from It as well - then he attains Brahman.
31.
That highest Self. being the immutable and unoriginated Spirit beyond Nature,
is free from all action and stain, though dwelling in the body.
32.
Just as the all-pervading Akasha, because of its subtlety, is not stained by
anything, so this Atman, though abiding in all bodies, is never affected by any
impurity.
33.
Just as the single sun illumines the whole universe, so the (one) Indwelling
Spirit enlivens all bodies (with self-consciousness).
34.
Whoever perceives by spiritual insight the distinction between Kshetra (Nature)
and Kshetrajna (Spirit) as also the freedom of the Spirit from the hold of
Nature, they reach the Supreme.
(The Three Gunas)
The Blessed Lord said:
1. I shall now expound to you again that knowledge relating to the Supreme Being, the most exalted of all forms of knowledge, by gaining which all sages passed from this state of bondage into the highest perfection.
2.
Those who have attained unity with My nature through this knowledge are not
born again even at the beginning of a new creative cycle, nor are they
subjected to the distress of dissolution.
3.
The Great Nature Prakriti is like a womb to Me. I deposit therein the germ of
creation, the creative impulse, out of which everything comes into being.
4. O
son of Kunti! All creatures. whatever might be the womb from which they are
born, have really the Great Nature as the womb - the source of their origin.
And I am their father, the bestower of the seed.
5.
The three Gunas as Sattva, Rajas and Tamas born of Prakriti, bind down the
immortal soul to the body in its embodied state.
6.
Among these, Sattva is luminous and harmonious due to its essential purity. It
binds the soul, O sinless one, with the feeling 'I am happy, I am full of
knowledge.'
7.
Know Rajas to be passion-based, and productive of longings for unattained
objects and attachment for those in one's possession. It binds the (actionless)
soul, O son of Kunti, by entangling it in action through the feeling 'I am the
doer.'
8.
As for the Guna known as Tamas, it is ignorance-born and is productive of
delusion in all beings. It binds the soul, O scion of the Bharata clan! with
the obsession of a disposition characterised by negligence, indolence and
sleepiness.
9.
Sattva enslaves one to a mood of joy and happiness, and Rajas to one of
activity, while Tamas, which veils up knowledge, fills one with negligence and
laziness.
10.
Overpowering Rajas and Tamas, Sattva prevails (sometimes); suppressing Sattva
and Tamas, Rajas becomes dominant; and likewise dominating over Sattva and
Rajas, Tamas holds the field.
11.
When through all the senses, which are the portals of the body, knowledge,
happiness and similar characteristics manifest, then indeed it should be
understood that Sattva is dominant.
12.
Avarice, extroversion, ceaseless planning and execution of works, restlessness,
desire for enjoyments - these arise when Rajas prevails.
13.
When Tamas dominates, there is lack of intelligence, lack of effort, negligence
and delusion.
14.
If one dies when Sattva is prevailing dominant, then one attains to the pure
regions of the knowers of the Highest.
15.
Those who die when Rajas dominates are born among those attached to action
(men); and likewise those dying in Tamas are born in the wombs of creatures
without reason (animals).
16.
Virtuous actions promote spirituality and purity (Sattva), while the Rajas-dominated
ones result in pain, and the Tamas dominated ones in ignorance.
17.
From Sattva arises knowledge and from Rajas, avarice. Negligence, delusion and
also ignorance are the products of Tamas.
18.
Those established in Sattva evolve to higher goals, while those abiding in
Rajas remain in the mid-course. Steeped in evil tendencies, the Tamas-dominated
ones degenerate.
19.
When the subject (Jiva) recognises the Gunas alone as the agent in all actions,
and himself as transcending the Gunas - then he attains to My state.
20.
The embodied spirit (Jiva), having transcended the Gunas from which the body
has sprung, gains deliverance from the miseries of birth, death and old age,
and attains to Immortality.
Arjuna said:
21. Lord! What are
the marks of one who has transcended these three Gunas? How does he behave? And
how does he rise above them?
The Blessed Lord said:
22.
O son of Pandu! He who shows no aversion to knowledge, activity, or delusion
when any of them is dominant, nor longs for them when absent;
23.
Who remains like an unconcerned witness and is unperturbed by the Guna-born
sense objects; who knows that it is only the Guna-born senses and mind that act
and enjoy (and not his real self); who remains unwavering in all situations;
24.
Who is self-poised alike in pleasure and in pain; who makes no difference
between stone, iron, and gold; who is the same towards the loving and the
hating; who is unmoved by praise and blame alike;
25.
Who is alike in honour and in humiliation; who views a friend and a foe alike;
who has abandoned all sense of agency - such a person is said to have
transcended the Gunas.
26.
He who serves Me through the communion of unswerving and exclusive devotion,
transcends the Gunas and attains fitness to become Brahman.
27.
Indeed, I (Krishna, the God of love and grace, or the Pratyagatman the true
Inner Self), am the basic support of Brahman - of the incorruptible state of
Moksha, of the Eternal Law and of unending Bliss.
(All-Pervading Divine Person)
The Blessed Lord said:
1.
The scriptures speak of the eternal Ashvattha, the World Tree, whose roots are
in the Most High, branches in the lower regions, and leaves in Vedic hymns. He
who knows it, understands the Veda really.
2.
Nourished by the Gunas and covered with the budding foliage of sense objects,
its branches spread into regions high and low. Stretching forth on the ground
below in the world of men, are its secondary roots, entangling man in the
bondage of action.
3-4.
For one involved in worldly life, the form of the World-Tree is not visible,
nor its origin, nor its end, nor its foundation. Cutting asunder the firmly
rooted Ashvattha (World-Tree) with the powerful axe of non-attachment, and
saying, "I seek refuge in that Primeval Person from whom this eternal cosmic
activity has streamed forth", man should seek that Status, attaining to
which there is no more return to this life of Samsara.
5.
They who are free from pride and delusion, who have no attachments, who are
ever absorbed in spiritual pursuits, who are free from all worldly desires, who
are unaffected by the varying situations of pleasurable and painful nature -
such persons, freed from ignorance, attain to the Eternal State.
6.
That the sun does not illumine, nor the moon, nor the fire; (for it is the
Light of Pure Consciousness). Having attained It, the Spirit does not return
again to the life of Samsara. Such is My Supreme Abode.
7. A
fragment of Myself, immortal in nature, having become the embodied spirit in
the world of the living, attracts to Himself the mind and the five senses born
of Prakriti.
8.
When he gets a new body or abandons an old one, the Jiva, the lord of the body,
moves, carrying them (the mind and the senses) with him, as the wind carries
smells from their seats (in flowers and the like).
9.
In identification with the senses like hearing, sight, touch, taste and smell,
this Jiva experiences their respective objects.
10.
The deluded do not recognise the Spirit (Jiva) when, in identification with the
Gunas, he tenates or leaves a body, or when he experiences objects through it;
but those endowed with the eye of wisdom do.
11.
The striving contemplatives perceive the Atman within themselves, but not the
impure and the unregenerate, though they be striving.
12.
That light of the sun which illumines the whole universe, which is present in
the moon and in fire likewise - know that splendour to be Mine.
13.
Entering the earth by My spiritual energy, I sustain all beings residing in it.
As the watery moon, I nourish all herbs.
14.
Based in the body of living beings, I manifest as the digestive Fire,
Vaishvanara, and in combination with the vital energies known as Prana and
Apana, digest the four kinds of food taken by them.
15.
I abide in the hearts of all. By My' will both the dawn and effacement of
memory (of past births) and of supersensuous knowledge take place. The original
teacher of the Vedanta I am, as also the knower of all Vedas.
16.
It is well known that there are two types of Purushas (spirits or categories) -
the Kshara or the Perishable and Akshara, the Imperishable. The Kshara consists
of all the Jivas in embodiment who are subject to change, while the Akshara
consists of the collectivity of liberated Jivas who remain aloof from changeful
matter and are unaffected by it; (or in the alternative, the Creative Power
Maya-shakti, which is the source of all falsity and the cause of endless
Samsara).
17.
But there is yet another Purusha, known as the Supreme Being or the
Purushottama, who is the highest of spirits, and who pervades all the three
worlds and sustains them.
18.
As I transcend the Perishable and am also superior to the Imperishable, I am
well-known as the Purusottama (the Supreme Being) in both the Vedic and secular
literature.
19.
He who knows Me in this way as the Purushottama, he understands the true nature
of this Totality, and he loves and adores Me with his whole being.
20.
O sinless one! This spiritual doctrine, the most profound of all in the sacred
lore, has now been revealed by Me. A true understanding of it makes a man
really wise and established in a sense of total fulfilment.
(Divine and Demoniac Types)
The Blessed Lord said:
1.
Fearlessness, purity of heart, steadfastness in knowledge and devotion,
benevolence, control of the senses, worship, study of scriptures, austerity,
uprightness;
2.
Non-violence, truthfulness, freedom from anger, renunciation, tranquillity,
aversion to slander, compassion to living beings, freedom from sensuality,
gentleness, modesty, steadfastness;
3.
Vigour, patience, fortitude, harmlessness, freedom from vanity - all these, O
scion of the Bharatas, are present in those born to a divine heritage.
4. O
son of Pritha! Pretentiousness, arrogance, overweening pride, wrath, rudeness,
as also insensitiveness to spiritual values - all these are found in those born
to a demoniac heritage.
5.
It is deemed that the divine heritage leads to liberation and the demoniac to
bondage. Grieve not, O son of Pandu! You are born to a divine heritage.
6.
In this world there are two types of creation, the divine and the demoniac. The
divine heritage has already been described. Now hear from Me what constitutes
the demoniac heritage, O son of Pritha.
7.
Men of demoniac nature know not what should be done and what should be avoided.
Neither purity, nor good conduct, nor truthfulness is found in them.
8.
According to them nothing is ultimately real in this world. It is Godless and
without any moral basis. Being born of sexual union, what else but lust can be
said to be its cause?
9.
Holding such views, these lost souls - these men of little understanding-
given, as they are, to cruel deeds opposed to general well-being, appear as
agents for the destruction of the world.
10.
Steeped in insatiable lust, motivated by hypocrisy, vanity, arrogance and
avarice, given to corrupt and impure ways of life, they work in pursuit of
false values entertained through delusion.
11.
Obsessed with numerous cares all through life, looking on sex indulgence as the
highest aim, convinced that there is no higher purpose in life than this;
12.
Bound with a hundred cords of hopes and expectations, and enslaved by lust and
anger, they strive to accumulate wealth in improper ways for the fulfilment of
their sensuous desires.
13.
"Today I have gained this object, tomorrow I shall gain that object of
desire too; I have this much wealth now, much more will be mine hereafter;
14.
"This enemy has been slain, the others too I will soon destroy; I am the
master; everything is for my enjoyment; I am the successful man, the powerful
man, the happy man;
15.
"I am wealthy and high-born; who is there like unto me? I will perform
sacrifices, I will make charity, and I will rejoice" - deluded thus by
ignorance;
16.
Gripped by numerous bewildering thoughts, entangled in the meshes of delusion,
and ever given to sex .indulgences, they are degraded into states that are
loathsome and full of suffering.
17.
Vain-glorious, stubborn and intoxicated with the pride of wealth, they perform
for mere show Yajnas that are so in name only, being done without the observance
of the commandments of the scriptures.
18.
Dominated by self-conceit, prone to the use of force, arrogant, lustful and
choleric, these traducers of virtue violate Me, dwelling in them and also in
others.
19.
These vicious men, oppressive cruel and sinful as they are, - are always hurled
down by Me into demoniac wombs in life after life in the transmigratory cycle.
20.
O son of Kunti! Falling into demoniac wombs, in life after life, they go to
still lower states of degradation, without attaining Me.
21.
Lust, anger and greed - this triad leads to the destruction of man's spiritual
nature. They form the gateway to hell; they should be abandoned.
22.
If a man is free from these three, the gateways to hell, he can work out his
own good and reach the highest goal.
23.
He who abandons the commandments of the scriptures and lives as his desires
prompt him, he attains neither spiritual perfection, nor worldly happiness nor
liberation.
24.
Therefore let the scriptures be your norm in determining what should be done
and what not. Understand the injunction of the scriptures first and then set
yourself to work.
(Three Aspects of Faith)
Arjuna said:
1. There are
persons who offer worship full of Faith, but without observing scriptural
injunctions while doing so - of what nature is their Faith? Is it born of
Sattva, Rajas or Tamas?
The Blessed Lord said:
2.
The Faith of embodied beings, which is rooted in their natural disposition
(derived from the impressions of past births), is of three kinds - those of the
nature of Sattva, of Rajas and of Tamas.
3. O
scion of the Bharata race! The Faith of everyone is according to his natural
disposition (derived from past impressions). Man is constituted of his Faith.
What his Faith is. that verily he is.
4.
Those endowed with the quality of Sattva worship the Devas; those with Rajas,
the Yakshas and the Rakshasas; and those with Tamas, the spirits of dead
ancestors and the elementals.
5-6.
Vain, conceited and moved by powerful passions and attachments. they perform
various terrible mortifications contrary to scriptural injunctions. Thus do
these senseless men torture their own bodies and Me dwelling in them. Know such
persons to be of demoniac resolve.
7.
Even the food dear to these three types is of three different kinds. The same
is the case with worship, austerity and charity. Hear from Me about this
distinction regarding them.
8.
Persons who are Sattvika by nature like foods that promote longevity, vitality,
energy, health, happiness and cheerfulness, as also those that are juicy, soft,
nourishing and agreeable.
9.
Persons who are Rajasa by nature like foods that are bitter, sour, salty,
excessively heating, pungent, burning and thirst-producing as also what bring
on uneasiness, depression and disease.
10.
Persons who are Tamasa by nature like foods that are stale, tasteless, putrid,
decayed and unclean, and constitute the leavings of others.
11.
That worship is of the nature of Sattva which is in accordance with scriptural
injunctions, and which is performed by one not with an eye for its fruits but
merely out of the feeling that it is one's duty to perform it.
12.
O scion of the Bharata race! Know that worship to be of the nature of Rajas,
which is performed with its fruits in mind and for vain display.
13.
That worship is of the nature of Tamas which is not sanctioned by scriptures,
which is without gift of food, without the chanting of holy Mantras, without
sacramental presents and without sincere faith.
14.
Service of the Devas, holy men, teachers, parents and wise persons, as also
observance of cleanliness, uprightness, continence and non-injury - these
constitute austerities pertaining to the body.
15.
Speaking only words that are inoffensive, true, pleasant and beneficial, as
also regular recitation of scriptures, constitute austerity pertaining to
speech.
16.
Serenity of mind, gentleness, moderation in speech, self-control, and purity of
heart - these are called austerity of the mind.
17.
This threefold austerity, performed with the highest faith, by men who are not
motivated by expectations of reward and who are established in mental
equipoise, is declared to be of the nature of Sattva.
18.
The austerity that is performed with much show and ostentation, and having in
view recognition, praise and adoration as a pious man by others, is said to be
of the nature of Rajas. It is unstable and leads to no permanent good.
19.
The austerity performed through the practice of self-torture under the
influence of perverse theories or done for the destruction of another, is
spoken of as Tamasa by nature.
20.
That gift which is made out of a sheer sense of duty, without expectation of
any kind of return, at the proper time and place, to a fit recipient, is said
to be of the nature of Sattva.
21.
The gift which is given in consideration of some gift in return, or with some
fruit to be reaped in future, or in a grudging mood - that is considered to be
of the nature of Rajas.
22.
The gift that is made at an improper time and place, to an unworthy recipient,
unceremoniously and in a slighting manner - that is said to be of the nature of
Tamas.
23.
Om Tat Sat - these are the three symbolic designations of Brahman. By these
were ordained the Brahmanas, the Vedas and the Yajnas in ancient times.
24.
Therefore the followers of the Vedas always start their ordained works like
sacrifice, gift, and austerities with the utterance of Om.
25.
Various forms of sacrifices, austerities and charities are performed without
any desire for the fruits by seekers after liberation, along with the utterance
of the syllable Tat (That).
26.
O son of Pritha! The syllable Sat is used in the sense of reality and goodness.
It is also used to indicate an auspicious rite or act.
27.
Steadfastness in sacrifice (or worship), in austerity and in charity is called
Sat (good). Any action connected with these is also called Sat.
28.
O son of Pritha! Whatever is performed as a sacrifice, charity, or austerity
without Faith - in fact anything done without Faith - is declared to be Asat
(not good). It is of no significance here or in the hereafter.
(Liberation through Renunciation)
Arjuna said:
1. O mighty-armed
One, famed as the destroyer of Keshin and the conqueror of the senses! I desire
to know the true nature of Samnyasa, and as distinguished from it, of Tyaga
too.
The Blessed Lord said:
2.
Abandonment of all desire-prompted actions is Samnyasa (renunciation) according
to the wise. Men of discernment speak of the abandonment of the fruits of all
actions as Tyaga (relinquishment).
3.
Some wise men say that all action is to be abandoned as evil. Others maintain
that good works like worship, charity and practice of austerity are not to be
abandoned.
4. O
the best of the Bharata race! Hear my conclusive view on this subject of Tyaga
(relinquishment). It is said that there are three types of Tyaga.
5.
Works like sacrifice, charity and austerity should not be abandoned. They
should be performed; for sacrifice, charity and austerity are indeed purifying
for the wise.
6. O
Son of Pritha! Even these works are to be performed without attachment and
desire for their fruits. This is My settled and decisive view.
7.
It is not at all proper to renounce works that ought to be done as duty. Their
abandonment out of delusion is considered to be of the nature of Tamas.
8.
Those who give up work out of a dread of physical suffering, out of a feeling
that it is painful, they, performing relinquishment of a Rajasa nature, do not
obtain the results of true relinquishment.
9.
But, O Arjuna! That relinquishment is considered as Sattvika which consists in
giving up attachment and thoughts of returns in respect of works, and which is
done with the feeling that it is an obligatory duty that must necessarily be
performed.
10.
The relinquisher (Tyagi), if he is endowed with the qualities of Sattva, wisdom
and conviction in regard to the spiritual ideal, never avoids duties merely
because they are unpleasant, nor does he get attached to works that seem
pleasant to him.
11.
It is not indeed possible for any embodied being (i.e., one with
body-consciousness) to abandon works in entirety. So all that one can do is to
abandon the fruits of action. One doing so is called a Tyagi (a relinquisher).
12.
Regarding those who have not relinquished their desires (atyaginam), they reap
after death the fruits of their actions performed with desire. They are of
three sorts - 'unpleasant' like degradation into animal life or stay in
purgatory for the very wicked; 'pleasant' like attainment of heavenly
felicities for the virtuous; and mixed' as in human birth, for those who have
Karmas of both these types to their credit. But Samnyasins (true renouncers)
will have none of these.
13.
Learn from me, O mighty armed! about the five causal factors required for all
actions as described in the Samkhya, the philosophy of spiritual illumination,
which is the ultimate purpose of all actions.
14.
One's body which is the seat of action, the ego claiming to be the actor, the
several instruments of actions (like the senses, the mind etc.), the varied and
the distinct types of movements involved, and finally the unknown factor (or
the deities presiding over the senses) as the fifth - these are the five causal
factors.
15.
These are the five causal factors involved in all actions, good as also bad,
which men undertake with this body, speech and mind.
16.
That being so, he whose imperfect understanding makes him think that the self
alone (or the unlimited and unrelated Atman) is the agent involved in work - he
verily sees not, being perverted in outlook.
17.
He who is ever established in the feeling 'I am not the agent' and whose mind
is consequently unsullied by attachments - he kills not really, nor is he
bound, even though he annihilates all these beings.
18.
Knowledge, object of knowledge, and knower - these constitute the threefold
incitement to action. And the three constituents of action are the instruments
of action, the purpose of action, and the agent.
19.
In the philosophy dealing with the Gunas and their evolutes, knowledge, action
and agent are each divided into three according to the preponderance of each
Guna in them. Hear of them also as they are.
20.
That knowledge by which one is able to see a unitary unmodifiable Essence,
undivided among the divided, - know that knowledge to be of the nature of
Sattva.
21.
That knowledge which apprehends all beings as a multiplicity with mutual
distinction and in their separateness only, without any apprehension of an
underlying unity - know that knowledge to be born of Rajas.
22.
That by which one dogmatically holds on to a part as if it were the whole (or
looks on the body, an effect, as the whole man) - a view which is irrational,
untrue and silly - that knowledge is said to be born of Tamas.
23.
Work of the nature of duty done by one without hankering for fruits, and without
attachment, or passion or hate - such work is spoken of as born of Sattva.
24.
But work that is done by a person merely for the gratification of his desire,
and with great strain and a feeling of self-importance is said to be born of
Rajas.
25.
And that work which is performed under delusion, without any regard to
consequences, loss, injury to others, and to one's own capacity - is said to be
bom of Tamas.
26.
A 'doer' (an agent of an action) who is without any attachment and sense of
pride and self-importance, who is endowed with steadiness and zeal, and who is
unruffled in success and failure - such a doer is said to be of the nature of
Sattva.
27.
A 'doer' who is swayed by passion, who is keen on the fruits of his actions,
who is covetous, cruel and impure at heart, and who is subject to elation and
depression in success and failure - such a doer is said to be of the nature of
Rajas.
28.
And a 'doer' who is unsteady, vulgar, arrogant, deceitful, malicious, indolent,
despondent, and procrastinating - such a doer is said to be of the nature of
Tamas.
29.
Hear now, O Arjuna, of the threefold division of the intellect and of the power
of determination on the basis of their constituent Gunas - hear of them
severally and in their totality.
30.
O son of Pritha! That intellect is said to be of the nature of Sattva which
grasps the distinction between worldliness and renunciation, between the moral
and the immoral, between what should be feared and what should not be, and
between knowledge and freedom.
31.
O son of Pritha! That intellect is said to be of the nature of Rajas, which
takes a distorted and confused view of the moral and the immoral, of what
should be done and what should not be.
32.
O son of Pritha! That intellect is of the nature of Tamas, which, covered by
the darkness of ignorance, understands the immoral as the moral and thus
reverses all values.
33.
O Son of Pritha! That power of determination is of the nature of Sattva, by
which the mind, the vital energy and the senses are held in control through
unswerving concentration.
34.
That power of determination is of the nature of Rajas, by which one holds on to
duty, pleasure and wealth with passionate attachment, motivated by the desire
for their fruits.
35.
That power of determination is of the nature of Tamas, due to which one of
perverted intelligence does not give up sloth, fear, grief, despondency and
frenzy of sense indulgences.
36-37.
Hear from Me now about the three kinds of pleasures, O the greatest of the
Bharata clan! That pleasure is said to be of the nature of Sattva which is
gained by long practice of disciplines, which puts an end to all sorrows that
man is heir to, which is like poison in the beginning but nectar-like at the
end, and which springs from the serenity arising from the consciousness of the
Atman.
38.
That pleasure is declared to be of the nature of Rajas, which is born of the
union of the senses with their objects, which seems nectar-like in the
beginning but turns to be poison in the end.
39.
That pleasure is of the nature of Tamas, which springs from sleepiness, sloth
and heedlessness, and which is delusive in its effect on the spirit from
beginning to end.
40.
Nowhere, be it in this world or in the heavenly regions of the Devas, is there
any being who is free from these three Gunas of Nature (Prakriti).
41.
O great hero! The duties of Brahmanas, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas and also of Shudras
have been divided according to the qualities born of their own nature.
42.
Serenity, control of the senses, austerity, purity, straight-forwardness,
knowledge, insight, and faith in the Supreme Being - these are a Brahmana's
duties born of his own nature.
43.
Prowess, splendour of personality, unfailing courage, resourcefulness,
dauntlessness in battle, generosity, leadership - these are a Kshatriya's
duties born of his own nature.
44.
Agriculture, cattle-rearing and trade form the duty of the Vaishya springing
from his own nature, while the natural duty of a Shudra consists in subordinate
service under others.
45.
By being devoted to one's own natural duty, man attains to spiritual
competency. Now hear how devotion to one's own natural duty generates spiritual
competency.
46.
From whom all beings have emanated and by whom all this universe is pervaded -
by worshipping Him through the dedicated performance of one's duty, man attains
to spiritual competency (Siddhi).
47.
One's own duty, even if without excellence (i.e. inferior) in the scale of
worldly values, is more meritorious spiritually than the apparently
well-performed duty of another. For, no sin is incurred by one doing works
ordained according to one's nature (that is, in consonance with one's own
natural evolution).
48.
O son of Kunti! Do not abandon the duty that is natural to you, even if some
imperfections are incidental to it. For there is no undertaking without some
imperfections, even as there is no fire without a covering of smoke.
49.
Completely non-attached, self-subdued, and desireless, an aspirant attains the
supreme perfection of transcendence of work through renunciation.
50.
Now hear from Me in brief how one, who is established in the perfection of
transcendence of work, attains to Brahman, the highest consummation of
knowledge.
51-53.
Endowed with a purified intellect, established in self-control, abandoning the
life of the senses as also attachments and antagonisms; frequenting solitary
places, reducing food to the minimum; having speech, body and mind under
control; ever meditative; endued with dispassion; abandoning conceit, violence,
lust, anger and possessiveness; selfless and tranquil, he becomes fit for
beatification in Brahman-consciousness (Atman-consciousness).
54.
Brahma-become (established in Atman-Consciousness), tranquil in spirit, free
from grief and passions, and regarding all beings alike, he gains supreme
devotion to Me.
55.
By devotion does he come to know Me - both my extent and My essence. Knowing Me
thus in truth and in reality, he enters into Me at once.
56.
Though performing every kind of work always, he who has taken refuge in Me
shall, by My grace, attain to the eternal and indestructible state of Moksha
(spiritual liberation).
57.
Mentally resigning all actions to Me (in respect of their fruits and agency),
devoting yourself intensely to Me, and ever practising the communion of
intellectual love, be you ever established in the thought of Me.
58.
If you are thus ever in communion with Me in mind, you will overcome every
obstacle. But if, out of self-conceit, you do not listen to Me, destruction
will be your fate.
59.
Vain is your resolve not to fight, born as it is of self-conceit. Nature will
compel you.
60.
O son of Kunti! Duties which your natural tendencies have imposed upon you, but
which out of delusion you refuse to do, even that you will have to perform by
the compulsion of Nature.
61.
O Arjuna! The Lord dwells in the heart of all beings revolving them all by His
mysterious Power Maya, as if they were objects mounted on a machine.
62.
O scion of Bharata's clan! Seek refuge in Him, making a total surrender of your
being - body, mind and soul. By His grace you shall attain to supreme peace and
the everlasting abode.
63.
Thus have I imparted to you wisdom which is more secret (profound) than all
that is secret (profound). Reflecting over this whole teaching, do as you think
fit.
64.
Listen again to My supreme word, the profoundest of all spiritual teachings.
You are well beloved of Me; and so I shall tell you what is beneficial to you;
65.
Let your mind be engrossed in Me. Offer worship to Me. Be resigned to Me.
Beloved as you are of me, I pledge in truth you shall come to Me alone.
66.
Abandoning (after sincere trial) dependence on all Dharmas (or human efforts at
moral and spiritual upliftment), come to Me as the only Refuge. Grieve not; I
will deliver you from all sins.
67.
This should on no account be imparted to those who do not practise austere
living, who have no devotion to Me, who cavil at Me, and are devoid of the
discipline of service.
68.
He who teaches this supremely profound doctrine among men devoted to Me, having
thereby offered to Me the highest form of loving service, shall undoubtedly
come to Me alone.
69. No
man can do anything more pleasing to Me than he, and nor shall any one on earth
be dearer to Me than he.
70.
It is My view that he who studies this conversation between us should be regarded
as adoring Me with a sacrifice of knowledge.
71.
Even a man who listens to this holy conversation between us with deep faith and
receptivity shall attain to liberation and the happy regions open to righteous
men.
72.
Has this teaching been heard by you, O Arjuna, with a concentrated mind? Has
all delusion born of ignorance been dispelled from you, O Dhananjaya?
Arjuna said:
73. My delusion
has been dispelled and my memory restored by Thy grace, O Undecaying Lord! I
now stand firm, with all my doubts cleared, ready to execute Thy command.
Sanjaya said:
74. Thus have I
heard, with my hair standing on end, this wonderful conversation between
Krishna and the high-souled son of Pritha.
75. Thus did I, by
Vyasa's grace, directly hear Krishna, the Lord of Yoga, Himself teaching this
Yoga, profound and supreme?
76. Again and
again, O king, does the memory of that sacred and astounding dialogue between
Keshava and Arjuna come to my mind, causing no end of joy.
77. Again and
again does that most wondrous form of Hari arise in my mind, generating great
astonishment and endless thrills of joy?
78. Wherever there
is Krishna, the Lord of Yoga, accompanied by Arjuna wielding the bow - there
reign good fortune, victory, prosperity and sound policy. Such is my conviction.
Shri Krishnaarpanam astu
