Sri Bhagwat Gita: Chapter 2, Verses 18-21

अन्तवन्त इमे देहा नित्यस्योक्ताः शरीरिणः । अनाशिनोऽप्रमेयस्य तस्मात्‌ युध्यस्व भारत ॥

य एनं वेत्ति हन्तारं यश्चैनं मन्यते हतम्‌ । उभौ तौ न विजानीतो नायं हन्ति न हन्यते ॥

न जायते मृयते वा कदाचित्‌ नायं भूत्वा भविता वा न भूयः । अजो नित्यः शाश्वतोयम्‌ पुराणो न हन्यते हन्यमाने शरीरे ॥

वेदा विनाशिनं नित्यं य एनं अजमव्ययं । कथं स पुरुषः पार्थ कम्‌ घातयति हन्ति कम्‌ ॥

    

Lord Krishna says, those who believe the soul to be destroy-able or those who believe that the soul is capable of killing others are both ignorant; because the reality of soul is that it’s immortal, perpetual and eternal. The soul can neither kill anyone, nor can it be destroyed by any being.  The human body that you consider as living is only temporary, it is just the outer shell, and the soul that drives it is permanent. 

Lord Krishna addresses Arjun and says the people you are fighting against are already morally and ethically dead due to their bad karmas and poor judgment; you are only doing a formality of physically killing them by holding arms against them. Therefore, hey Arjun, you must at once come out of this perplexity of mind and go for this battle!

Soul is above and beyond the circle of birth and death; its existence can never be reversed and will remain immortal and eternal even if the body that acts as a container for it passes away.

The one who truly understands the permanence and eternity of this soul can never be guilty of or accuse themselves with killing anyone.  That’s why O Partha, how can a person who knows that the soul is indestructible, unborn, eternal and immutable, kill anyone or cause anyone to kill?

Here besides describing the un-destructive quality of soul, lord Krishna is also trying to bring home the point that any karma which is done selflessly, with the purity of soul and for the righteous cannot be judged as wrong or sinful.

Sri Bhagwat Gita: Chapter 2, Verses 16-17

नासतो विद्यते भावो न भावो विद्यते सतः । उभयोरपि दृष्टॊऽन्तस्त्वनयो तत्वदर्शिभिः ॥

    

Here Lord Krishna is explaining the basic difference between ‘Satya’ and ‘Asatya’, the ‘Truth’ and ‘Deception’ that surrounds this human life. Lord Krishna says deception or illusion (also known as Lie) is devoid of all feelings. It is constantly shifting in nature; it changes from one state to another and never settles for one definition. The deception can never rule on anything since it lacks stability and is constantly fluctuating. The deception is creation of our imagination of something that does not exist.

Truth, on the contrary, is never changing and never altering from its all-pervasive state. It never ceases to exist, is omnipresent, is never in scarcity and reverberates with feelings.  Truth continues to exist in all times, and the deception is never tough enough to exist beyond its transitory life span.

In this life, the human body, the relationships, the progress, the society are all examples of constantly changing things hence belong to the category of deception and lie by their very nature. On the other hand air, water, nature, fragrance, one-ness with God, one-ness with soul, are not subject to change and represents truth. They are not subject to death! Hence we should move away from the deception and illusion and stay connected with the truth.

अविनाशि तु तत्विद्धि येन सर्वमिदं ततम्‌ । विनाशमव्ययस्यास्य न कश्चित्‌ कर्तुमर्हति ॥

One should acknowledge and feel the presence of immortal element, the immortal energy due to which this world gains its existence. No one is ever capable or strong enough to destroy it. All things which are connected to almighty with a sense of truth and purity will continue to exist. And all things which are connected to the mortal and illusive aspect of life such as greed, lust, wants, desires, anger will be destroyed sooner or later. We should seek abode with the one who is immortal and not in the mortal and short lived pleasures of this life, which are a mere delusion.

Om Shri Guruve Namah!

Sri Bhagwat Gita: Chapter 2, Verses 12-15

न त्वेवाहं जातु नासं न त्वं नेमे जनाधिपाः । न चैव न भविष्यामः सर्वे वयमतः परम्‌ ॥

देहिनोऽस्मिन्‌ यथा देहे कौमारं यौवनं जरा । तथा देहान्तरप्राप्तिः धीरः तत्र न मुह्यति ॥

मात्रास्पर्शास्तु कौन्तेय शीतोष्ण सुखदुःखदाः । आगमापायिनः अनित्याः तान्‌ तितिक्षस्व भारत ॥

यम्‌ हि न व्यथयन्ति एते पुरुषं पुरुषर्भ । समदुःखसुखम्‌ धीरम्‌ सोऽमृतत्वाय कल्पते ॥

BIG IDEA

To further console distressed and demoralized Arjun, Lord Krishna continues the following words:

At no point in time did I, You or the warriors and kings standing in front of you ceased to exist. They were here several thousand years ago and will continue to exist several years from now.  Meaning the very composition, the very elements of a ‘soul’ are un-destructive and un-destroyable. The soul is immortal and remains in this world forever.

All beings enter a constant state of change when they take abode in this human body. They switch various forms and appearances right from being a baby to an adolescent, to youth and eventually attain old age; hence there is nothing in this world which is constant or unchanging. We are all in the continuous state of entropy every second progressing forward from order to disorder. The Soul keeps changing bodies just like body changes clothes. Learned and patient people understand this process of constant change and do not lament over mere loss of body.

Anything which is produced from the combination of sensuousness and material presence is only short lived and transitory. Just like various seasons come and go, happiness and sorrows are continuously changing hands with each other. In such a world where nothing is constant, one should understand the very transient nature of this world and witness various phases, ups and downs of life with great patience and tenacity without getting too absorbed in it.

Those who are able to perceive and sustain the state of happiness and sorrow with the same detached outlook, without getting too attached to the finer details or too affected by the final outcome, truly deserve and achieve salvation in this life!

THE TAKEAWAYS

Our over indulgence into worldly things, materialism, lust, wants, and affection only gives birth to worries, fear and lamentation. We are lost in a constant chase of desires and those in turn give us back more frustration and emptiness. It’s a continuous cycle that never ends and we keep running in circles trying to find the end.

As humans we need to be more analytical, patient and detached towards the worldly attractions and temptations. We need to work hard to acquire pragmatism and knowledge to be able to treat every situation in life with an unwavering and neutral mind.

When we will attain the level-headedness where the probabilities of good and bad, suitable and unsuitable, favorable and unfavorable will not have a positive or negative impact on us, we will reach the state of salvation!


Om Shri Gurave Namahe!

Sri Bhagwat Gita, Chapter 2, Verse 9-11

संजय उवाच-

एवम्‌ उक्त्वा हृषीकेशं गुडाकेशः परंतप । "न योत्स्य" इति गोविन्दम्‌ उक्त्वा तुष्णीं बभूव ह ॥

तम्‌ उवाच हृषीकेशः प्रहसन्‌ इव भारत । सेनयोः उभयोः मध्ये, विषीदन्तम्‌ इदं वचः ॥

श्री भगवान उवाच-

अशोच्यान्‌ अन्वशोचस्त्वम्‌ प्रज्ञावादांश्च भाषसे । गतासुन्‌ अगतासुन्श्च नानुशोचन्ति पण्डिताः ॥

THE BIG IDEAS

Sanjay narrates to Dhritrashtra –

Completely perplexed and clueless after the prolonged, overwhelming session of analysis-paralysis between the right & wrong, the ethical & unethical, moral and immoral and the just & fair, Arjun in a state of panic declares to Lord Krishna, “I am not going to fight this battle!”, and goes into complete silence.

His senses are completely numbed by the thought of killing his own kin, Gurus, distant relatives and like a capable lawyer Arjun scrutinizes various aspects of this war and puts together a brilliant case based on invincible logic & thorough evaluation of the kind of results this mass destruction is going to bestow upon the human society. Tearful, timid, emotional and awestruck Arjun reaches the final decision of not fighting this battle and put his bow and arrow down in complete state of despair.

At that moment, amidst the deafening sound of battleground packed with countless warriors on both sides, and tension reverberating in every particle, Lord Krishna gently smiles and says the following words:

Lord Krishna Says –

Hey Arjun! You are mourning for those who are not worthy of sorrow! Though you are talking like intellectuals, scholarly, learned and pundits but your behavior is in total conflict with the theory you are preaching; because the true scholarly and learned, DO NOT lament the loss of any living or dead thing in this world. They are above and beyond the tangible and live a liberated life free of all kinds of regrets and lamentation for materialism.

THE TAKEAWAYS -

Here the very first teaching of  Bhagwat Gita by Lord Krishna evokes a great thought process and acts as a catalyst to examine the following issues in our day to day lives: -

1.       The presence or absence of the art of keeping your patience, calm and self-control intact when all odds are against you and you are swimming against the tides is what makes or breaks a person in difficult times.  Only he who keeps his mind, cognitive abilities & conscience above all odds will sail through rough tides and set this life up for success.

The fact that lord Krishna could smile through the wavering, conflicting circumstances, kept the integrity in his thoughts and mind fully composed led him to successfully evaluating & resolving the situation; And the fact that Arjun let the environment & his senses take complete command over his brain and emotions, led him to the state of utter confusion, mental chaos and loss of self-confidence.

2.       We should practice what we preach. Knowledge & preaching are not to be housed in our brain or in our tone alone but needs to be constantly reflected in our ACTIONS. Knowledge is pure information until we put it to direct use for solving and interpreting day to day experiences. It has true meaning, true impact and existence only when it becomes a part of us through our behavior and help us have a positive impact on our surroundings.   

HARI OM! 

Bhagwat Gita - a Divine story of Mental Conflict & Emotional Catharsis - My First attempt to describe it in Hindi - Dedicated to my Guru Swami Yogi Anand Ji.

Sh. Guruve Namaha, Om Namo Bhagvate Vasudevaye Namaha!

भगवान के मुख से गाया हुआ अद्भुत अनूठा ,अतुलनीय ग्रन्थ है भगवत गीता ज़ैसा कि हम बरसों से सुनते आयें हैं ,भगवत गीता अधर्म पर धर्म की जीत की गाथा है ,बुराई पर अच्छाई की विजय की कहानी है।अनैतिकता पर नैतिकता और कुनीति पर नीति की पराकाष्ठा का वर्रण है। लेकिन अगर गहराई में उतर कर देखें तो व्यक्तिगत स्तर पर भगवत गीता का यह ज्ञान स्वयं पर स्वयं की ही जीत की भी व्याख्या है। इन्द्रियों पर मन ,मन पर बुद्धि और बुद्धि पर आत्मा की विजय का शंखनाद है। हम सभी के अन्दर चल रहे वैचारिक अंतर्द्वंद्व और समाज द्वारा बोई गई धारणाओं के मायाजाल और चक्रव्यूह में घिरने की कहानी भी है भगवत गीता।

हम सभी आज किसी न किसी रूप में किमकर्तव्यविमूढ अर्जुन के समान हैं जो सही -गलत ,धर्म -अधर्म ,व्यवहार कुशलता और कर्तव्य एवं अधिकारों की भीड़ में पूरी तरह से दिशा भ्रमित हैं। रोज़ ,दिन की सुबह के साथ हम एक नए कुरुक्षेत्र में प्रवेश करते हैं और दिन के ढलते ढलते या तो विजयी या परास्त होकर घर को लौट आते हैं। यहाँ गौर देने वाली बात यह है कि 'विजयी 'और 'परास्त 'होने की परिभाषा भी हमने खुद ही निर्धारित कर ली है अपने अपने परिवेश और अनुकूलता अनुसार।

सही -गलत,नैतिक अ -नैतिक का निर्णय भी केवल इन्द्रियों और मन के सुपुर्द है। जो इन्द्रियों को लुभाए वही सही ,और जो मन को प्रसन्न करे वही श्रेष्ठ। बुद्धि के इस्तेमाल की तो अक्सर नौबत ही नहीं आती ,बुद्धि भी पूर्ण भ्रमित अवस्था में कहीं अन्धकार में गहरी नींद सो रही है। ऐसे में आत्मा के अस्तित्व को तो भूल ही जाओ।बहुतों को तो उसके होने पर भी संदेह है।

यह गीता का ज्ञान यूं तो हमें अपनी संस्कृति से विरासत में मिला था लेकिन बिना परिश्रम किये यूं ही मुफ्त में मिल जाने वाली किसी भी वस्तु की तरह हमने इसके महत्व और प्रतिष्ठा को समझना या सहेज कर रखना ज़रूरी नहीं समझा। अब जब कलियुग के गहरे अन्धकार में खुद को भी देख पाना मुश्किल हो रहा है और हमारी सांस्कृतिक धरोहर धूल में लिप्त हो चुकी है ,अपने ही रचे मायाजाल में हम दुखी भ्रमित ,उदासीन और बीमार रहने लगे हैं। नितांत आवश्यकता है उसी ज्ञान के स्रोत का उस प्रकाश का जिसे देखने पर अर्जुन जैसे कुशल योद्धा की दिशा भ्रमित बुद्धि भी जाग उठी थी। ऐसे में हमें भी ज़रुरत है एक ऐसे सारथी की जो मुश्किल की घडी में ,विषमताओं से घिरे हम आम लोगों का अपने शील ,धैर्य , ज्ञान और बुद्धिमत्ता के बल से मार्ग दर्शन करे ,सत्य का साथ देने की प्रेरणा दे ,सामाजिक विषय -विकारों से मुक्ति दिलाये और भ्रम से ब्रह्म की और ले चले। और ऐसा सारथी एक गुरु से बेहतर कोई नहीं हो सकता। ऐसा साध्य भगवान से बढ़कर कोई नहीं।

गुरु के सानिध्य और भगवान द्वारा दिए गए सामर्थ्य का भी अद्भुत वर्रण है भगवत गीता। भाग्यशाली हैं वह लोग जो भगवान के विस्तारित ज्ञान को समय रहते जानकर सीख कर ,महसूस करके अपने जीवन की गति और गंतव्य दोनों को बदल सकते हैं।