Changes

824 bytes added , 16:49, 20 April 2021

m

template+

Line 1: Line 1: +

+

== अध्यायसारः ॥ Summary of the Second Chapter ==

Summary of Chapter 2 is in Gitaartha Sangraha (sloka6) NITYA-ATMAA ASANGA KARMA-iHAA GOCHARAA SANKYA YOGADHEE : I DWITHEE-YEH STHITADHEE LAKSHA PROKTHAA !TAN MOHA-SAANTHAYEH II

Line 27: Line 29:

eternal). The Lord uses two Negatives here , instead of one positive. So, it's slightly confusing, but it is done to lay emphasis. <nowiki>*</nowiki>The above two truths about Body and Soul, were seen (drustah:) have been said by great seers. The property of the body is asat . It cannot be designated as sat. The property of the soul is sat and similarly it cannot be referred as asat. This is the ultimate truth as has been asserted by the word "anta:h" and has been seen by the intellects of truth or sages. Asat denotes perishability. Sat denotes constancy . Thus the conclusion drawn is this "the body is perishable , the soul is constant." Sva:mi Para:shara said , "tasma:t vigna:namruthe: kinchith kacitkada:ciddvija vastuja:tam sadbha:vam e:vam bhavato: mayo: kto: gna:nam yatha: satyamasatyamanyata". [Meaning : "O Twice born(or brahmin) , it is a straight conclusion barring the soul there is no other quantity even in meagre measure that is free of perishability . Thus I have taught you that the soul is that which is the truth . Everything else is asatyam or devoid of constancy.] It has also been mentioned in the Vishnu pura:na "yatu ka:la:ntare:Na:pi na:naya:m

sagnya:mupaiti vai | pariNa:madi sambhu:ta:m tat vastu nrupa taccha kim ? " [Meaning: "Which is that O king , that over the periods of change undergoes no modification in terms of its identity (i.e.. it receives no names) ?" the implication being the soul. The Lord Himself says in 2-18 , "antavanta ime: de:ha:h" [Meaning: These bodies will have an end"] and "avina:shi tu tadviddhi"[Meaning: Know that the soul is indestructible] in 2-17. To achieve something, there is always some struggle involved. To win a race, it needs practice and enduring the rigors of the race. Similarly, a woman gives birth to a child and has to endure pain, but at the end of it , she enjoys the bliss and company of the baby. For doing great in exam, students struggle but it pays off at results time. Krishna is saying the same here to Arjuna, saying even if he avoids this war, he can't escape fighting as a kshatriya. Body's very nature is change. Atma's very nature is unchanging. But how is it that the souls imperishable nature is known? The next verse states this. <blockquote>अविनाशि तु तद्विद्धि येन सर्वमिदं ततम् । विनाशमव्ययस्यास्य न कश्चित्कर्तुमर्हति ॥ २-१७॥</blockquote><blockquote>avināśi tu tad viddhi yena sarvam idaṁ tatam vināśam avyayasyāsya na kaścit kartum arhati ॥ 2-17 ॥</blockquote>2.17. avinasi tu tad viddhi !yena sarvam idam tatam vinasam avyayas-yasya na kascit kartum arhati "That which pervades the entire body you should know to be indestructible. No one is able to destroy that imperishable soul." Krishna explains in this sloka , why the Atma is eternal and never perishes. In the 16th sloka He told about the everlasing nature of the soul and the fleeting nature of the body. In this (17th )sloka He gives the reason for the eternity of the soul and in the 18th sloka the reasons for the perishable quality of body. In this sloka, krishna says that which pervades the body is indestructible. He refers to Soul as unperishable. No one or Nothing can destroy the soul. Why? That's the inherent nature of the soul. Note: The allusion here is that there are NUMEROUS Souls! The soul in one body is different from the soul in another body. This disputes the "Advaitic" theory of only One Soul. ANother intresting thing to note is, Krishna says only a "subtlel" element only destroys a "grosser" element and not in the reverse. For eg: An arrow or a Bullet which is Sukshmam annhilates a Sthulam eg. Man, Elephant etc. But, not the reverse. Using this logic, since Soul is the smallest atom i.e most subtle (Sukshmam), there is nothing or anybody which can perish it, so it is Eternal! THis is the reasoning Krishna mentions here to support the assertion that Soul is eternal. Know that the self in its essential nature is imperishable. The whole of insentient matter, which is different (from the self), is pervaded by the self. Because of pervasiveness and extreme subtlety, the self cannot be destroyed; for every entity other than the self is capable of being pervaded by the self, and hence they are grosser than It. Destructive agents like weapons, water, wind, fire etc., pervade the substances to be destroyed and disintegrate them. Even hammers and such other instruments rouse wind through violent contact with the objects and thereby destroy their objects. So, the essential nature of the self being subtler than anything else, It is imperishable. Agents like fire , water or wind pervade the substances and cause destruction. Striking objects are guided by force cutting the air . Destruction is caused by forces which are subtle essentially. The destroyed objects are gross and manifest.So for destruction to be effected , the destroying agent must be subtler than the object destroyed. The soul is subtler than everything else . Hence it is free of destruction. That is, only sookshmam [minute] will destroy sthoolam [enormity] and as a corollary sthoolam can never destroy sookshmam. Since atman is the tiniest and there is nothing else smaller than atman, it cannot be destroyed. Let us examine the veracity of this Law. A stout rod destroys a small earthen pot. Apparently,it is contrary to the law mentioned now in that the bigger rod destroyed the smaller pot. But actually, the enormity has not destroyed the pot. If that was true then a big bundle of cotton if thrown on the pot should have broken the pot. Similarly, if the rod were just kept on the pot, the pot remains without breaking. So a massive rod alone is not responsible for breaking the pot. Even a throw cannot break the pot as we saw throwing cotton bundle could not break it. So it is seen that a rod and a force are needed to break the pot. This is also not enough. If the pot were at one place and if we swipe the rod with force at another place, the pot will not break. Because a contact between the rod and pot is essential to break the pot. So, we can now conclude that to break a pot, a mass, a force and a contact are needed. Science tells that mass and velocity [or acceleration] produce force or power and this in a minute form acts at the contact point to destroy. We can remember the famous equation E [energy]= m [mass] Xc*2 [velocity]. Thus the law is observed to be true. An invisible minute power destroyed the pot. That is why Sri Krishna says that atman without a smaller entity being available, can never be destroyed. The soul is described as one ten-thousandth part of the upper portion of the hair point in size. The Svetasvatara Upanisad confirms this: balagra-sata-bhagasya satadha kalpitasya ca bhago jivah sa vijneyah sa canantyaya kalpate "When the upper point of a hair is divided into one hundred parts and again each of such parts is further divided into one hundred parts, each such part is the measurement of the dimension of the spirit soul." (Svet. 5.9) In the Mundaka Upanisad the measurement of the atomic spirit soul is further explained: eso 'nur atma cetasa veditavyo yasmin pranah pancadha samvivesa pranais cittam sarvam otam prajanam yasmin visuddhe vibhavaty esa atma "The soul is atomic in size and can be perceived by perfect intelligence. This atomic soul is floating in the five kinds of air [prana, apana, vyana, samana and udana], is situated within the heart, and spreads its influence all over the body of the embodied living entities. When the soul is purified from the contamination of the five kinds of material air, its adhyatmik influence is exhibited." (Mund. 3.1.9) In Tatparya Chandrikai, Swami Desikan says that it's true that Jeevatma is more subtle and Sukshmamam and nothing can destroy it. But, isn't Paramaatma is more subtle (Sukshmam) than Jeevatma. Shastras says that Paramaatma is " Anoraniyan, MahatoMaHiyaan, Atmauhaayaam ...". So, can't Paramatma be the reason for destroying Jeevatma?? Atleast potentially ? (Remember the analogy: SimCard is the atma and Cellphone is the body; Next, with just Simcard, cell phone will not work; It needs to catch signal from Tower to work. Tower is similar to Paramatma. Though in this case, the paramatma is inside Jeevatma and not outside. Another example: Injection. Inserting a needle inside the body is required to put the medicine inside the body. Similarly the needle is like Jeevatma and the medicine inside needle is the Paramatma.) Nammazhwar says "Udal Misai Uyir Enna, Karand Engum Parand Ulan ....", which confirms that Paramatma is inside every Jeevatma. Now the question arises, can't Paramatma destroy Jeevatma ?? This causes a dilemma ! If we say, Paramatma can destroy Jeevatma, then it negates the fact that Jeevatma is indestructible! But, if we say Paramatma cannot destroy Jeevatma, then it negates the fact that Paramatma is "Sarva Shakti" (attributes of Bhagavan). Swami Desikan says that "Paramatma" definitely has the capability to destroy "Jeevatma", since he is Bhagavan. But, Paramatama has taken "Sankalpam" NOT to destroy Jeevatma. {Satyam Satyam Punah Satyam! Udbrhishta Bhujam Uchyateh!... )<blockquote>अन्तवन्त इमे देहा नित्यस्योक्ताः शरीरिणः । अनाशिनोऽप्रमेयस्य तस्माद्युध्यस्व भारत ॥ २-१८॥</blockquote><blockquote>antavanta ime dehā nityasyoktāḥ śarīriṇaḥ anāśino ’prameyasya tasmād yudhyasva bhārata ॥ 2-18 ॥</blockquote>In the last slo:ka , it was clearly established that the soul is to be eternal . In this slo:ka it is being ascertained on the pillars of the holy scriptures that the body which houses the soul is inherently prone to destruction . Basically the arguments in this slo:ka and the last are soul-centric. While the last slo:ka explains the soul's nature of being undestroyed , this one puts across a view of contrasting the eternal nature of soul with the property of destruction inherently dwelling in the body . Hence the Lord advises , "Grieve not . Fight!" (The Lord) now says that the bodies are perishable and the reason for it. The very nature of Body is perishable. He gives three reasons for it in this sloka. The immeasurable (aprameyasya) and

−

indestructible(aNasinah) soul(Sari:riNah) gets a perishable (anta-vantah) body (deha:h) as per it's Karmas. The Soul is eternal (Nityasya). Note: Immeasurable i.e aPrameyasya means something which cannot be comprehended or measured (Prameyam is something we can imagine or comprehend). Ime -> all these i.e which we can see. What? This is the PanchaBhootam out of which Body is made. Anything which is made of panchaBhootam is destructible (eg: take example of Upma, which is a mixture of salt, water, flour etc and has a lifespan of just a day, compared to years of the salt, water, flour etc individually). Whereas, Soul is made of Gnaanam and is eternal. dehAh -> Upachayam (grown) and Apachayam(dimimish). Body is subject to growth and decay. Body has external features like legs, hands,eyes, ears, nose etc, unlike Atma. Atma is sukshmam and is unchanged. The term deha meaning body is derived from the word dih meaning to increase and correspondingly those bodies having increase must also have decrease and therefore are of a perishable nature. The elements combine to form the body dictated by karma ato render service to the imperishable soul to enable the living entity to experience the positive and negative fruits of their actions. In the Brihad- aranyaka Upanisad it is stated: by accruring merit one becomes meritorious. A living entity is forced to accept a body only until all ones positive and negative karma is exhausted and then the physical body is no longer bound to exist in the physical plane. Sareerinah(Jeevatma), Sarirah(Body) -> Sareeram is by it's very nature subject to decay, because it's purpose to exhaust the good and bad karmas of Jeevatma. The body is called de:ha , Sari:ra etc; This principally qualifies that the body is composed of parts . As it is composed of parts , destruction or damage of individual parts means destruction of body. Further , the body is understood to be composed of five elements . As new matter cannot be created from nothingness , its the elements that have transformed into body . To rediscover the elements , its only imperative that the body shed into its elements . Hence , the passing existence of the body is beyond doubt or debate . Sari:riNah denotes the proprietor of the body , that is the soul . A man owns his house. His house could be quite strong or weak, tall or small , vast or compact . If there are holes on the roof of his house , he suffers during rain . Otherwise , he comfortably protects himself . The house , depending on its nature decided the comfort or trouble of its owner. Similarly the body decides the pleasure or pain of the soul .The soul dwells in the body. The bodies are different because of the differences in good or bad actions (karma) of the indwelling soul. Accordingly the soul begets the good or bad results stemming out of his actions through the body. As it is understood that the body is merely an enclosure for the soul , that provides pain or pleasure in accordance to the soul's karma , its again inferred easily that the body cannot exist for ever. It will cease to exist once the pleasure or pain that was consigned to it , to be conferred upon the soul are all exhausted. Hence , it can be concluded that the body is of temporal existence. The body is therefore of transient existence as it is 1.composed of parts (Posseses organs, limbs etc) 2.macroscopic allowing further addition of macroscopic objects like food to enter it ( its not eternal or permanent and its composition is often altered) 3.built or transformed from the five elements (Pancha Bhootam ) 4.only an enclosure for serving on the soul the fruits of pain or pleasure consigned to it. (Vehicle to perform karma) But the soul is eternal because it is 1.not composed of parts 2.not pervaded or added by other macroscopic material 3.a unit in itself and not built from elements (it is pure Gyaana only) 4. the real sufferer/enjoyer of cycles of pain and pleasure through the body (beneficiary of karma) Whatever part of the body falls or decays , the soul remains the same . The cognition of 'I' is independent of the body. Whether the body is put to disease or disability , the 'I' factor always remains unaltered. Pain is sensed in the hand or leg etc; when it comes to body level. But talking at the level of soul , there is no headache of soul or legsore . The soul suffers as a unit . It is not built on any parts. It cannot be transformed into anything new. The conscious is eternal , irrespective of the nature or the state of the body. Experience may come in different forms but ultimately its the 'I' , that forms the focal point of all experience. What is cognized as 'I' is the soul. So, in summary, the three main differences between Jeevatma and Body is that Body is made of PANCHABOOTAMS, Body has external attributes, Body's purpose to exhaust the Karma of the Jeevatma, whereas Soul is "Jnaanam", is "sukshamam". (In the 17th sloka, Krishna reasoned that Atma is Nityam because its is Sukshmam(subtle) and Pervasive. In the 18th sloka, he reasons that Body is temporary because it's made of PanchaBhootas, is a vehicle to exhaust Karma and is subject to change i.e growth and decay. So, in summary, Atma is eternal and Body is temporary). Going by the science elucidated above , its clear that it is not just that the soul is eternal , it "alone" is . The body is bound to perish. So the eternal of eternals , the Lord tells Arjuna , " Your grief is unjustified on any account . Rise and fight." Now a question arises on why Krishna has to go to such depths to explain the temporary nature of the Body. It's well known that Body is temporary and decayable by common observation. However, it is not so and there are reasons to make this much of effort to say. Firstly, atman is not perishable like Him, the Paramatma. This is affirmative comparison. In a negative comparison, the atman is not like the body, which perishes. So, to establish the superiority of atman, destructible body is compared. Just as we come across dos and don ts in our daily life, two types of examples were needed to show the indestructible quality of atman and so comparison with body was necessary. Krishna does so to emphasize that even if Arjuna doesn't battle, the demise of body of his opposition is anyway foregone. Next, krishna also says this to people who are worried about their continued misery, saying the bodily misery is temporary and we have to do our duty. Another reason is, it's a sign for people who spend lot of time and money decorating themselves in a artificial sense and Krishna says irrespective of all the "alankaram" being done to body, it's just artificial and doesn't change it's temporary nature. Importantly, by understanding that body is temporary, Krishna wants us to build "Vairagyam" (Detachment), knowing that Soul is permanent.<blockquote>य एनं वेत्ति हन्तारं यश्चैनं मन्यते हतम् । उभौ तौ न विजानीतो नायं हन्ति न हन्यते ॥ २-१९॥</blockquote><blockquote>ya enaṁ vetti hantāraṁ yaś cainaṁ manyate hatam ubhau tau na vijānīto nāyaṁ hanti na hanyate ॥ 2-19 ॥</blockquote>There is nothing or anybody which can destroy a soul. A soul cannot be killed nor is there anything which can destroy a soul. Thus a Soul is eternal. The two types of people, i.e one who thinks there is something which kills this Atma or that Soul gets killed, are ignorant. Whoever doesn't understand this, doesn't have true knowledge. Now, a moral dilemma arises. In shastras, there are statements which advices us not to treat and kill other Jeevas (animals, humans, trees etc Na Himsyaat Sarva BhutaanI). But, here Krishna says that a Soul can never be destroyed or killed by anybody or anything. Isn't it contradictory? Does the Shastras means "Body" shouldn't be injured and not refers to Soul? Not really, since after the soul leaves the body, body perishes by itself. The reason is, when Shastras warn us not to mistreat or harm other creatures, it means that we shouldn't "separate" a body and it's soul, because we have no right to do it!! (source: Katavalli Upanishad). We may think, perhaps the shastras only ask us not to kill the bodies of other creatures. When Veda says cow slaughter should be avoided, does it mean the body of the cow should not be hurt? This is also not correct. Because, when someone dies, the body is cremated by igniting fire to the body. None calls this as himsa or hurting. So the shastras instruct us not to harm a body which is living or when the soul is inside. Therefore, the implication is that one should not cause maranam [death]. Maranam means mruth prana thyagena. That is separation of atman from the body and the Vedas advise us not to do this separation. So, the correct interpretation of the shastras is that, we are not authorized to separate the soul from the body. Conclusion: 1.The scriptures don't talk of destroying the body alone.(dead body) 2. The scriptures ban unrighteous separation of soul from body. This is called non-violence theory or policy of ahimsa. 3. In case of situations like righteous war, the scriptures allow the action of separaton of soul from body. This is only to establish righteousness . As the soul is indestructible and cannot be destroyed by any agent, its ignorance to think that one can destroy the "very existence" itself even in righteous actions like war. The soul continues to exist even after the action of "killing" known to the world. <blockquote>न जायते म्रियते वा कदाचिन्नायं भूत्वा भविता वा न भूयः । अजो नित्यः शाश्वतोऽयं पुराणो न हन्यते हन्यमाने शरीरे ॥२- २०॥</blockquote><blockquote>na jāyate mriyate vā kadācin nāyaṁ bhūtvā bhavitā vā na bhūyaḥ ajo nityaḥ śāśvato ’yaṁ purāṇo na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre ॥ 2-20 ॥</blockquote>"For the soul there is neither birth nor death at any time. He was not born at the time of kalpa, does not disappear at the end of kalpa. He is unborn, eternal, unchanging and very ancient. He is not slain when the body is slain." The soul never takes birth or dies. The soul is unborn , beyond destruction , without any changes in their intrinsic state and remains FRESH even after being many ages old. It is not formed at the beginning of creation and it is not destroyed at the end of this world. The soul remains even as the body perishes. Soul is -> "ajah:" (unborn), "Nitya:"(eternal), "Sasvatah:"(not subject to modification), "Puranah" (pura-apinavah: -> always fresh;-) ), forever(kadacit). The word purana means ancient. Etymologically it stems from purapi navah meaning old yet new illustrating that the eternal soul although ancient is experienced with every birth as ever new. Thus it has been clarified that the physical body only perishes but never can the eternal soul perish. The 17th sloka dealt with the reasoning that since there is not a smaller entity than the atman, it is indestructible. In the 18th sloka, since the body was a composite of the five elements and since it was growing and waning, it is destroyable. In the 19th sloka, it was told that he, who does not understand this true nature of atman and body, is not a wise man. Having stated so, now in the 20th sloka, Sri Krishna establishes that atman does not undergo any changes whatsoever. In this slokam, Krishna says that Soul is not only eternal and indestructible, but it is not subject to any change, at ANY time. This is to address the doubt Arjuna had on whether the Soul was "indestructible and not subject to change", just now or in last 1000 years and probably it has a "manufacturing and expiry" date?. Krishna says emphatically that soul is "ALWAYS" eternal, unborn, without death and unchanging. Now, we will have a doubt. In shastras, it is mentioned that the lifespan of a human is less than Devas , which is less than Brahma etc.. (eg: 1 human year is equal to 1 day for deva). 4 Yugas = 4,320,000 years * 1000 is the span of Brahma for one kalpa, when Shrusti and Pralayam takes place. Krishna says here, that Soul is never born or dead during any of this times, whether it is Shrusthi, Pralayam, Kalpa or a human life span!! Now, another question arises, since the souls are eternal, are we Paramatma?? No, Jeevatmas are separate from Paramatma. Due to ignorance and material contact, we have lost this true knowledge. Based on our karmas, the soul takes bodies accordingly. In an inanimate object, also soul exists, but it has no way to increase it's understanding. Beyond, inanimate objects is trees, then animals, then human, then devas etc. When it acheives true knowledge, it reaches "paramapadam" to live eternally with Paramatma. Each of this body, gives the soul a potential to gain the true nature of itself. Soul is not subject to the six types of change, like body! But, intrestingly, even though Soul is eternal, it appears to be changing as per the body it takes.It's similar to we wearing different types and colors of dresses every day! Even though we are the same person, our external appearance seems to change as per the dress we wear! This Self (Atman) is destitute of the six types of transformation or Bhava-Vikaras such as birth, existence, growth, transformation, decline and death. As It is indivisible (Akhanda). It does not diminish in size. It neither grows nor does It decline. It is ever the same. Birth and death are for the physical body only. Birth and death cannot touch the immortal, all-pervading Self. The understanding that the eternal soul is never slain is being confirmed by its freedom from the six changes of material existence being: birth, existence, growth, modification, decay and death which are controlling all living entities high and low in the material existence. The Supreme Lord by declaring the eternal soul is not born confirms the absence of any birth and by declaring the eternal soul does not die confirms the absence of any destruction. The word va occurring twice is used in the sense of and as in and the immortal soul does not come into existence by birth. The immortal soul is already by nature itself eternal. So existence by conception is proven false due to the fact the eternal soul is birthless. That which is conceived attains existence after birth; but that which already eternally exists by its own nature cannot be conceived again. This is the purport of this verse. Constant means not subject to modification. This confirms the absence of growth. Eternal confirms the absence of decay. Ancient confirms the absence of ageing ever beyond time the eternal soul is ageless. Thus there is never a repetition regarding the existence of the eternal soul and the six changes of the physical of birth, existence, growth, modification, decay and death mentioned by Yaksa and other expounders of the Vedic scriptures as to the nature of things in this world never is applicable to the eternal soul which factually every living entity born from a womb possesses. The imperishable nature of the soul and the fact that the six changes of the physical body have no influence on it which is the topic presently under discussion has now been satisfactorily concluded and so it is confirmed that the eternal soul does not perish when the body perishes. In the Katha Upanisad also we find a similar passage which reads: na jayate mriyate va vipascin nayam kutascin na vibhuva kascit ajo nityah sasvato 'yam purano na hanyate hanyamane sarire (Katha 1.2.18) The meaning and purport of this verse is the same as in the Bhagavad-gita, but here in this verse there is one special word, vipascit, which means learned or with knowledge. The soul is full of knowledge, or full always with consciousness. Therefore, consciousness is the symptom of the soul. Even if one does not find the soul within the heart, where he is situated, one can still understand the presence of the soul simply by the presence of consciousness. Sometimes we do not find the sun in the sky owing to clouds, or for some other reason, but the light of the sun is always there, and we are convinced that it is therefore daytime. As soon as there is a little light in the sky early in the morning, we can understand that the sun is in the sky. Similarly, since there is some consciousness in all bodies--whether man or animal--we can understand the presence of the soul. This consciousness of the soul is, however, different from the consciousness of the Supreme because the supreme consciousness is all-knowledge--past, present and future. The consciousness of the individual soul is prone to be forgetful. When he is forgetful of his real nature, he obtains education and enlightenment from the superior lessons of Krsna. The soul is full of knowledge, or full always with consciousness. Therefore, consciousness is the symptom of the soul. Even if one does not find the soul within the heart, where he is situated, one can still understand the presence of the soul simply by the presence of consciousness. Sometimes we do not find the sun in the sky owing to clouds, or for some other reason, but the light of the sun is always there, and we are convinced that it is therefore daytime. As soon as there is a little light in the sky early in the morning, we can understand that the sun is in the sky. Similarly, since there is some consciousness in all bodies--whether man or animal--we can understand the presence of the soul. This consciousness of the soul is, however, different from the consciousness of the Supreme because the supreme consciousness is all-knowledge--past, present and future. The consciousness of the individual soul is prone to be forgetful. When he is forgetful of his real nature, he obtains education and enlightenment from the superior lessons of Krsna. The great deluge [pralayam] is called kalpa. At the start of the kalpa, Brahma creates everything in this Universe. At that time also the atman is not created. Nor the atmans perish at the end of a kalpa. When a child is born, at that time an atman chooses that body and is born. Atman is there in everything. It is in this plant and in that pillar. One may wonder how atman can be in those inanimate objects. But if we examine closely, even our body is inanimate and we know atman is there. So, there is atman in all materials also. The only difference is that the atman in our body can develop his knowledge while, the atman in the pillar has no scope for wisdom. The atman in that pillar is there to expend the karma he had acquired and the moment that is over, that atman will depart that pillar and reside in another body. The magnitude of the wisdom of the atman in any body is determined by its past karma. If the wisdom is, let us say, 0%, it resides in an inanimate body like pillar. A slightly higher intellectual makes the soul to take a bird s body or animal s body. More wisdom makes the soul to take bodies of human beings or devas or even a Brahma. So the ranking of the knowledge decides the body that soul will be residing. The up and down in gyana or wisdom is only found in atmans. Once, the soul has taken a body, he tries to develop his wisdom and seek a higher level and ultimately, resides in the Sri Vaikuntam or His abode from where there is no more return for the atman to lower planes like this earth. Thus atman is eternal and never undergoes any change. Sri Krishna calls atman as purana. Pura api navaha puranaha is the Sanskrit meaning for the word purana. It means to say that it is very ancient and at the same time fresh or novel. Atman also is ancient but appears fresh everyday. It is common knowledge that we seek changes so as to avoid monotonous, which can be boring and dull. We rearrange our surroundings. We change our dress. So Arjuna feels that an unchanging and static atman might cause boredom. Sri Krishna allays such thoughts and says that atman is fresh everyday with more and better knowledge. This is a greatness of atman that though he is changeless, he appears afresh every time. Like Sri Aravamudan of Thirukkudanthai [Kumbakonam], Alwar says, every time he visits Him, he finds Him revealing Himself differently. We listen to Sri Ramayana. But every time we listen it refreshes our knowledge. So He now tells Arjuna that by killing Bheeshma, he will not kill the atman of Bheeshma. <blockquote>वेदाविनाशिनं नित्यं य एनमजमव्ययम् ।कथं स पुरुषः पार्थ कं घातयति हन्ति कम् ॥२- २१॥</blockquote><blockquote>vedāvināśinaṁ nityaṁ ya enam ajam avyayam kathaṁ sa puruṣaḥ pārtha kaṁ ghātayati hanti kam ॥ 2-21॥</blockquote>O Partha, how can a person who knows that the soul is indestructible, eternal, unborn and immutable kill anyone or encourage anyone to kill?" Tirumangai Azhwar says in Thirunedundantakam - Munuru(Achit), Pinuru(Jeevatma,Chit), Ponuru (Paramatma). " .. Irrapaturuku enathu!". Paramatma is embedded inside every Jeevatma and Jeevatma is in every material body. One who knows the true nature of soul is eternal understands that he cannot destroy or kill anybody, nor will be make an attempt to kill. Krishna says this to Arjuna to ensure that if he knows this truth, he will understand that he cannot kill Bhishma, Drona etc. Atma is inside Shareeram, temporarily. Soul is "AJAM" (unborn, unchanging)., NITYAM(eternal), AVINASINAM (indestructible), "AVYAYAM" (unchangeable). Whoever realises this gnaanam (i.e a soul is unborn, eternal, indestructible), CANNOT kill anybody and neither will he even attempt to kill i.e "Katam cha purushah paartha!". There are two types of Tattvam - ParaaDarsham, PratyaDarsham. Achit (Lamp, Stone etc) are all Paraaa Darsham. Whereas, human, animal etc is all "PratyaDarsham", because we all have the feeling of "I" (self), which is "Self-illuminating". So possessing adhyatmik intelligence, knowing the soul to be eternal, understanding it to be birthless and deathless being of an inexhaustible nature how is it possible for anyone to commit any act of destruction against the immortal soul which dwells in trillions of various and diverse living entities among the 8 million 400 thousand species of life throughout the billions of material universes. Whom can anyone destroy? How can anyone destroy anyone? Who can cause anyone to be destroyed? No one can! Thus it can be seen that ignorance of the eternal nature of the soul is the cause of all grief by not understanding that the soul is immortal and thinking that the eternal soul perishes when the physical body perishes. Comprehending that what happens to the immortal soul when the physical body ceases to function is factually the withdrawal from an old physical body to enter into a new physical body. So it can be understood that those who have deep regret for the loss of the physical body, serving as it does as the facility for securing and enjoying material pleasures; these living entities should reflect on the futility and temporal nature of material existence rather than trying to eternally exploit their senses. Yaksha poses this question to DharmaPutram in Mahabharat - "What is the most wonderful-AAshcharyam thing in this world" ?? Yudishtra replies that "even though this body has 9 holes, the Jeevatma doesn't fly away and still resides in this body!.. that is the most amazing thing in this world" . Body is "NavaDwara Pura patnam". Yaksha poses another question : "What is even more amazing"? Yudishtra replies that "Seeing so many people die also, a person still thinks he is going to live forever. For eg: Even the pallbearers plan to make a living by carrying dead!". So it is very difficult to come to that realization that the atman is everlasting and the body only perishes. <blockquote>वासांसि जीर्णानि यथा विहाय नवानि गृह्णाति नरोऽपराणि । तथा शरीराणि विहाय जीर्णान्यन्यानि संयाति नवानि देही ॥२- २२॥</blockquote><blockquote>vāsāṁsi jīrṇāni yathā vihāya navāni gṛhṇāti naro ’parāṇi tathā śarīrāṇi vihāya jīrṇāny anyāni saṁyāti navāni dehī ॥ 2-22॥</blockquote>"As a person puts on new garments, giving up used up ones, the soul similarly accepts new material bodies, giving up the old and useless ones." Arjuna has a doubt now, after hearing Krishna mentioning that Atma is Nityam, Indestructible etc , body is temporary and will fall and that one has to bear the pain to achieve the goal. But, human has an attachment by nature with his body, due to the association of being in it. It's natural! So, isn't it normal to show attachment to a body which has given us company throughout the life and not show any dukham to it's demise or destruction?? In response Krishna mentions that Slokam. He says that rather than showing Dukham at the demise of the body, one should express joy! He says, just like a man wears new garments and throws off worn out garments, similarly the Jeevatma casts off one body and takes another. So, isn't it a cause for joy rather than sorrow? So, rather than feeling sorrow of casting away old body and taking new, it should be joyous occasion. In Taittraya Upanishad " Yuvasya .. athisthio... Maanusha Anandah", it says that Youth is the ultimate fountainhead of happiness for human life and when this body has overlasted it's usefulness, so isn't it a joy to shed it? Now, Arjuna had another doubt - If at the end of this life, one gets a worst body e.g. animal etc due to past karmas, isn't it a scary thought? i.e if one gets to wear rags, it would be preferable to wear an old shirt, rather than shedding it and wearing a rag. Krishna says that, Arjuna need not fear, since he is fighting a battle doing his Kshatriya duty and even if he perishes in the battle, he is assured of swargam. So, he need not worry about the next life. Transference of the atomic individual soul to another body is made possible by the grace of the Supersoul. The Supersoul fulfills the desire of the atomic soul as one friend fulfills the desire of another. The Vedas, like the Mundaka Upanisad, as well as the Svetasvatara Upanisad, compare the soul and the Supersoul to two friendly birds sitting on the same tree. One of the birds (the individual atomic soul) is eating the fruit of the tree, and the other bird (Krsna) is simply watching His friend. Of these two birds--although they are the same in quality-- one is captivated by the fruits of the material tree, while the other is simply witnessing the activities of His friend. Krsna is the witnessing bird, and Arjuna is the eating bird. Although they are friends, one is still the master and the other is the servant. Forgetfulness of this relationship by the atomic soul is the

+

indestructible(aNasinah) soul(Sari:riNah) gets a perishable (anta-vantah) body (deha:h) as per it's Karmas. The Soul is eternal (Nityasya). Note: Immeasurable i.e aPrameyasya means something which cannot be comprehended or measured (Prameyam is something we can imagine or comprehend). Ime -> all these i.e which we can see. What? This is the PanchaBhootam out of which Body is made. Anything which is made of panchaBhootam is destructible (eg: take example of Upma, which is a mixture of salt, water, flour etc and has a lifespan of just a day, compared to years of the salt, water, flour etc individually). Whereas, Soul is made of Gnaanam and is eternal. dehAh -> Upachayam (grown) and Apachayam(dimimish). Body is subject to growth and decay. Body has external features like legs, hands,eyes, ears, nose etc, unlike Atma. Atma is sukshmam and is unchanged. The term deha meaning body is derived from the word dih meaning to increase and correspondingly those bodies having increase must also have decrease and therefore are of a perishable nature. The elements combine to form the body dictated by karma ato render seva (सेवा | selfless service) to the imperishable soul to enable the living entity to experience the positive and negative fruits of their actions. In the Brihad- aranyaka Upanisad it is stated: by accruring merit one becomes meritorious. A living entity is forced to accept a body only until all ones positive and negative karma is exhausted and then the physical body is no longer bound to exist in the physical plane. Sareerinah(Jeevatma), Sarirah(Body) -> Sareeram is by it's very nature subject to decay, because it's purpose to exhaust the good and bad karmas of Jeevatma. The body is called de:ha , Sari:ra etc; This principally qualifies that the body is composed of parts . As it is composed of parts , destruction or damage of individual parts means destruction of body. Further , the body is understood to be composed of five elements . As new matter cannot be created from nothingness , its the elements that have transformed into body . To rediscover the elements , its only imperative that the body shed into its elements . Hence , the passing existence of the body is beyond doubt or debate . Sari:riNah denotes the proprietor of the body , that is the soul . A man owns his house. His house could be quite strong or weak, tall or small , vast or compact . If there are holes on the roof of his house , he suffers during rain . Otherwise , he comfortably protects himself . The house , depending on its nature decided the comfort or trouble of its owner. Similarly the body decides the pleasure or pain of the soul .The soul dwells in the body. The bodies are different because of the differences in good or bad actions (karma) of the indwelling soul. Accordingly the soul begets the good or bad results stemming out of his actions through the body. As it is understood that the body is merely an enclosure for the soul , that provides pain or pleasure in accordance to the soul's karma , its again inferred easily that the body cannot exist for ever. It will cease to exist once the pleasure or pain that was consigned to it , to be conferred upon the soul are all exhausted. Hence , it can be concluded that the body is of temporal existence. The body is therefore of transient existence as it is 1.composed of parts (Posseses organs, limbs etc) 2.macroscopic allowing further addition of macroscopic objects like food to enter it ( its not eternal or permanent and its composition is often altered) 3.built or transformed from the five elements (Pancha Bhootam ) 4.only an enclosure for serving on the soul the fruits of pain or pleasure consigned to it. (Vehicle to perform karma) But the soul is eternal because it is 1.not composed of parts 2.not pervaded or added by other macroscopic material 3.a unit in itself and not built from elements (it is pure Gyaana only) 4. the real sufferer/enjoyer of cycles of pain and pleasure through the body (beneficiary of karma) Whatever part of the body falls or decays , the soul remains the same . The cognition of 'I' is independent of the body. Whether the body is put to disease or disability , the 'I' factor always remains unaltered. Pain is sensed in the hand or leg etc; when it comes to body level. But talking at the level of soul , there is no headache of soul or legsore . The soul suffers as a unit . It is not built on any parts. It cannot be transformed into anything new. The conscious is eternal , irrespective of the nature or the state of the body. Experience may come in different forms but ultimately its the 'I' , that forms the focal point of all experience. What is cognized as 'I' is the soul. So, in summary, the three main differences between Jeevatma and Body is that Body is made of PANCHABOOTAMS, Body has external attributes, Body's purpose to exhaust the Karma of the Jeevatma, whereas Soul is "Jnaanam", is "sukshamam". (In the 17th sloka, Krishna reasoned that Atma is Nityam because its is Sukshmam(subtle) and Pervasive. In the 18th sloka, he reasons that Body is temporary because it's made of PanchaBhootas, is a vehicle to exhaust Karma and is subject to change i.e growth and decay. So, in summary, Atma is eternal and Body is temporary). Going by the science elucidated above , its clear that it is not just that the soul is eternal , it "alone" is . The body is bound to perish. So the eternal of eternals , the Lord tells Arjuna , " Your grief is unjustified on any account . Rise and fight." Now a question arises on why Krishna has to go to such depths to explain the temporary nature of the Body. It's well known that Body is temporary and decayable by common observation. However, it is not so and there are reasons to make this much of effort to say. Firstly, atman is not perishable like Him, the Paramatma. This is affirmative comparison. In a negative comparison, the atman is not like the body, which perishes. So, to establish the superiority of atman, destructible body is compared. Just as we come across dos and don ts in our daily life, two types of examples were needed to show the indestructible quality of atman and so comparison with body was necessary. Krishna does so to emphasize that even if Arjuna doesn't battle, the demise of body of his opposition is anyway foregone. Next, krishna also says this to people who are worried about their continued misery, saying the bodily misery is temporary and we have to do our duty. Another reason is, it's a sign for people who spend lot of time and money decorating themselves in a artificial sense and Krishna says irrespective of all the "alankaram" being done to body, it's just artificial and doesn't change it's temporary nature. Importantly, by understanding that body is temporary, Krishna wants us to build "Vairagyam" (Detachment), knowing that Soul is permanent.<blockquote>य एनं वेत्ति हन्तारं यश्चैनं मन्यते हतम् । उभौ तौ न विजानीतो नायं हन्ति न हन्यते ॥ २-१९॥</blockquote><blockquote>ya enaṁ vetti hantāraṁ yaś cainaṁ manyate hatam ubhau tau na vijānīto nāyaṁ hanti na hanyate ॥ 2-19 ॥</blockquote>There is nothing or anybody which can destroy a soul. A soul cannot be killed nor is there anything which can destroy a soul. Thus a Soul is eternal. The two types of people, i.e one who thinks there is something which kills this Atma or that Soul gets killed, are ignorant. Whoever doesn't understand this, doesn't have true knowledge. Now, a moral dilemma arises. In shastras, there are statements which advices us not to treat and kill other Jeevas (animals, humans, trees etc Na Himsyaat Sarva BhutaanI). But, here Krishna says that a Soul can never be destroyed or killed by anybody or anything. Isn't it contradictory? Does the Shastras means "Body" shouldn't be injured and not refers to Soul? Not really, since after the soul leaves the body, body perishes by itself. The reason is, when Shastras warn us not to mistreat or harm other creatures, it means that we shouldn't "separate" a body and it's soul, because we have no right to do it!! (source: Katavalli Upanishad). We may think, perhaps the shastras only ask us not to kill the bodies of other creatures. When Veda says cow slaughter should be avoided, does it mean the body of the cow should not be hurt? This is also not correct. Because, when someone dies, the body is cremated by igniting fire to the body. None calls this as himsa or hurting. So the shastras instruct us not to harm a body which is living or when the soul is inside. Therefore, the implication is that one should not cause maranam [death]. Maranam means mruth prana thyagena. That is separation of atman from the body and the Vedas advise us not to do this separation. So, the correct interpretation of the shastras is that, we are not authorized to separate the soul from the body. Conclusion: 1.The scriptures don't talk of destroying the body alone.(dead body) 2. The scriptures ban unrighteous separation of soul from body. This is called non-violence theory or policy of ahimsa. 3. In case of situations like righteous war, the scriptures allow the action of separaton of soul from body. This is only to establish righteousness . As the soul is indestructible and cannot be destroyed by any agent, its ignorance to think that one can destroy the "very existence" itself even in righteous actions like war. The soul continues to exist even after the action of "killing" known to the world. <blockquote>न जायते म्रियते वा कदाचिन्नायं भूत्वा भविता वा न भूयः । अजो नित्यः शाश्वतोऽयं पुराणो न हन्यते हन्यमाने शरीरे ॥२- २०॥</blockquote><blockquote>na jāyate mriyate vā kadācin nāyaṁ bhūtvā bhavitā vā na bhūyaḥ ajo nityaḥ śāśvato ’yaṁ purāṇo na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre ॥ 2-20 ॥</blockquote>"For the soul there is neither birth nor death at any time. He was not born at the time of kalpa, does not disappear at the end of kalpa. He is unborn, eternal, unchanging and very ancient. He is not slain when the body is slain." The soul never takes birth or dies. The soul is unborn , beyond destruction , without any changes in their intrinsic state and remains FRESH even after being many ages old. It is not formed at the beginning of creation and it is not destroyed at the end of this world. The soul remains even as the body perishes. Soul is -> "ajah:" (unborn), "Nitya:"(eternal), "Sasvatah:"(not subject to modification), "Puranah" (pura-apinavah: -> always fresh;-) ), forever(kadacit). The word purana means ancient. Etymologically it stems from purapi navah meaning old yet new illustrating that the eternal soul although ancient is experienced with every birth as ever new. Thus it has been clarified that the physical body only perishes but never can the eternal soul perish. The 17th sloka dealt with the reasoning that since there is not a smaller entity than the atman, it is indestructible. In the 18th sloka, since the body was a composite of the five elements and since it was growing and waning, it is destroyable. In the 19th sloka, it was told that he, who does not understand this true nature of atman and body, is not a wise man. Having stated so, now in the 20th sloka, Sri Krishna establishes that atman does not undergo any changes whatsoever. In this slokam, Krishna says that Soul is not only eternal and indestructible, but it is not subject to any change, at ANY time. This is to address the doubt Arjuna had on whether the Soul was "indestructible and not subject to change", just now or in last 1000 years and probably it has a "manufacturing and expiry" date?. Krishna says emphatically that soul is "ALWAYS" eternal, unborn, without death and unchanging. Now, we will have a doubt. In shastras, it is mentioned that the lifespan of a human is less than Devas , which is less than Brahma etc.. (eg: 1 human year is equal to 1 day for deva). 4 Yugas = 4,320,000 years * 1000 is the span of Brahma for one kalpa, when Shrusti and Pralayam takes place. Krishna says here, that Soul is never born or dead during any of this times, whether it is Shrusthi, Pralayam, Kalpa or a human life span!! Now, another question arises, since the souls are eternal, are we Paramatma?? No, Jeevatmas are separate from Paramatma. Due to ignorance and material contact, we have lost this true knowledge. Based on our karmas, the soul takes bodies accordingly. In an inanimate object, also soul exists, but it has no way to increase it's understanding. Beyond, inanimate objects is trees, then animals, then human, then devas etc. When it acheives true knowledge, it reaches "paramapadam" to live eternally with Paramatma. Each of this body, gives the soul a potential to gain the true nature of itself. Soul is not subject to the six types of change, like body! But, intrestingly, even though Soul is eternal, it appears to be changing as per the body it takes.It's similar to we wearing different types and colors of dresses every day! Even though we are the same person, our external appearance seems to change as per the dress we wear! This Self (Atman) is destitute of the six types of transformation or Bhava-Vikaras such as birth, existence, growth, transformation, decline and death. As It is indivisible (Akhanda). It does not diminish in size. It neither grows nor does It decline. It is ever the same. Birth and death are for the physical body only. Birth and death cannot touch the immortal, all-pervading Self. The understanding that the eternal soul is never slain is being confirmed by its freedom from the six changes of material existence being: birth, existence, growth, modification, decay and death which are controlling all living entities high and low in the material existence. The Supreme Lord by declaring the eternal soul is not born confirms the absence of any birth and by declaring the eternal soul does not die confirms the absence of any destruction. The word va occurring twice is used in the sense of and as in and the immortal soul does not come into existence by birth. The immortal soul is already by nature itself eternal. So existence by conception is proven false due to the fact the eternal soul is birthless. That which is conceived attains existence after birth; but that which already eternally exists by its own nature cannot be conceived again. This is the purport of this verse. Constant means not subject to modification. This confirms the absence of growth. Eternal confirms the absence of decay. Ancient confirms the absence of ageing ever beyond time the eternal soul is ageless. Thus there is never a repetition regarding the existence of the eternal soul and the six changes of the physical of birth, existence, growth, modification, decay and death mentioned by Yaksa and other expounders of the Vedic scriptures as to the nature of things in this world never is applicable to the eternal soul which factually every living entity born from a womb possesses. The imperishable nature of the soul and the fact that the six changes of the physical body have no influence on it which is the topic presently under discussion has now been satisfactorily concluded and so it is confirmed that the eternal soul does not perish when the body perishes. In the Katha Upanisad also we find a similar passage which reads: na jayate mriyate va vipascin nayam kutascin na vibhuva kascit ajo nityah sasvato 'yam purano na hanyate hanyamane sarire (Katha 1.2.18) The meaning and purport of this verse is the same as in the Bhagavad-gita, but here in this verse there is one special word, vipascit, which means learned or with knowledge. The soul is full of knowledge, or full always with consciousness. Therefore, consciousness is the symptom of the soul. Even if one does not find the soul within the heart, where he is situated, one can still understand the presence of the soul simply by the presence of consciousness. Sometimes we do not find the sun in the sky owing to clouds, or for some other reason, but the light of the sun is always there, and we are convinced that it is therefore daytime. As soon as there is a little light in the sky early in the morning, we can understand that the sun is in the sky. Similarly, since there is some consciousness in all bodies--whether man or animal--we can understand the presence of the soul. This consciousness of the soul is, however, different from the consciousness of the Supreme because the supreme consciousness is all-knowledge--past, present and future. The consciousness of the individual soul is prone to be forgetful. When he is forgetful of his real nature, he obtains education and enlightenment from the superior lessons of Krsna. The soul is full of knowledge, or full always with consciousness. Therefore, consciousness is the symptom of the soul. Even if one does not find the soul within the heart, where he is situated, one can still understand the presence of the soul simply by the presence of consciousness. Sometimes we do not find the sun in the sky owing to clouds, or for some other reason, but the light of the sun is always there, and we are convinced that it is therefore daytime. As soon as there is a little light in the sky early in the morning, we can understand that the sun is in the sky. Similarly, since there is some consciousness in all bodies--whether man or animal--we can understand the presence of the soul. This consciousness of the soul is, however, different from the consciousness of the Supreme because the supreme consciousness is all-knowledge--past, present and future. The consciousness of the individual soul is prone to be forgetful. When he is forgetful of his real nature, he obtains education and enlightenment from the superior lessons of Krsna. The great deluge [pralayam] is called kalpa. At the start of the kalpa, Brahma creates everything in this Universe. At that time also the atman is not created. Nor the atmans perish at the end of a kalpa. When a child is born, at that time an atman chooses that body and is born. Atman is there in everything. It is in this plant and in that pillar. One may wonder how atman can be in those inanimate objects. But if we examine closely, even our body is inanimate and we know atman is there. So, there is atman in all materials also. The only difference is that the atman in our body can develop his knowledge while, the atman in the pillar has no scope for wisdom. The atman in that pillar is there to expend the karma he had acquired and the moment that is over, that atman will depart that pillar and reside in another body. The magnitude of the wisdom of the atman in any body is determined by its past karma. If the wisdom is, let us say, 0%, it resides in an inanimate body like pillar. A slightly higher intellectual makes the soul to take a bird s body or animal s body. More wisdom makes the soul to take bodies of human beings or devas or even a Brahma. So the ranking of the knowledge decides the body that soul will be residing. The up and down in gyana or wisdom is only found in atmans. Once, the soul has taken a body, he tries to develop his wisdom and seek a higher level and ultimately, resides in the Sri Vaikuntam or His abode from where there is no more return for the atman to lower planes like this earth. Thus atman is eternal and never undergoes any change. Sri Krishna calls atman as purana. Pura api navaha puranaha is the Sanskrit meaning for the word purana. It means to say that it is very ancient and at the same time fresh or novel. Atman also is ancient but appears fresh everyday. It is common knowledge that we seek changes so as to avoid monotonous, which can be boring and dull. We rearrange our surroundings. We change our dress. So Arjuna feels that an unchanging and static atman might cause boredom. Sri Krishna allays such thoughts and says that atman is fresh everyday with more and better knowledge. This is a greatness of atman that though he is changeless, he appears afresh every time. Like Sri Aravamudan of Thirukkudanthai [Kumbakonam], Alwar says, every time he visits Him, he finds Him revealing Himself differently. We listen to Sri Ramayana. But every time we listen it refreshes our knowledge. So He now tells Arjuna that by killing Bheeshma, he will not kill the atman of Bheeshma. <blockquote>वेदाविनाशिनं नित्यं य एनमजमव्ययम् ।कथं स पुरुषः पार्थ कं घातयति हन्ति कम् ॥२- २१॥</blockquote><blockquote>vedāvināśinaṁ nityaṁ ya enam ajam avyayam kathaṁ sa puruṣaḥ pārtha kaṁ ghātayati hanti kam ॥ 2-21॥</blockquote>O Partha, how can a person who knows that the soul is indestructible, eternal, unborn and immutable kill anyone or encourage anyone to kill?" Tirumangai Azhwar says in Thirunedundantakam - Munuru(Achit), Pinuru(Jeevatma,Chit), Ponuru (Paramatma). " .. Irrapaturuku enathu!". Paramatma is embedded inside every Jeevatma and Jeevatma is in every material body. One who knows the true nature of soul is eternal understands that he cannot destroy or kill anybody, nor will be make an attempt to kill. Krishna says this to Arjuna to ensure that if he knows this truth, he will understand that he cannot kill Bhishma, Drona etc. Atma is inside Shareeram, temporarily. Soul is "AJAM" (unborn, unchanging)., NITYAM(eternal), AVINASINAM (indestructible), "AVYAYAM" (unchangeable). Whoever realises this gnaanam (i.e a soul is unborn, eternal, indestructible), CANNOT kill anybody and neither will he even attempt to kill i.e "Katam cha purushah paartha!". There are two types of Tattvam - ParaaDarsham, PratyaDarsham. Achit (Lamp, Stone etc) are all Paraaa Darsham. Whereas, human, animal etc is all "PratyaDarsham", because we all have the feeling of "I" (self), which is "Self-illuminating". So possessing adhyatmik intelligence, knowing the soul to be eternal, understanding it to be birthless and deathless being of an inexhaustible nature how is it possible for anyone to commit any act of destruction against the immortal soul which dwells in trillions of various and diverse living entities among the 8 million 400 thousand species of life throughout the billions of material universes. Whom can anyone destroy? How can anyone destroy anyone? Who can cause anyone to be destroyed? No one can! Thus it can be seen that ignorance of the eternal nature of the soul is the cause of all grief by not understanding that the soul is immortal and thinking that the eternal soul perishes when the physical body perishes. Comprehending that what happens to the immortal soul when the physical body ceases to function is factually the withdrawal from an old physical body to enter into a new physical body. So it can be understood that those who have deep regret for the loss of the physical body, serving as it does as the facility for securing and enjoying material pleasures; these living entities should reflect on the futility and temporal nature of material existence rather than trying to eternally exploit their senses. Yaksha poses this question to DharmaPutram in Mahabharat - "What is the most wonderful-AAshcharyam thing in this world" ?? Yudishtra replies that "even though this body has 9 holes, the Jeevatma doesn't fly away and still resides in this body!.. that is the most amazing thing in this world" . Body is "NavaDwara Pura patnam". Yaksha poses another question : "What is even more amazing"? Yudishtra replies that "Seeing so many people die also, a person still thinks he is going to live forever. For eg: Even the pallbearers plan to make a living by carrying dead!". So it is very difficult to come to that realization that the atman is everlasting and the body only perishes. <blockquote>वासांसि जीर्णानि यथा विहाय नवानि गृह्णाति नरोऽपराणि । तथा शरीराणि विहाय जीर्णान्यन्यानि संयाति नवानि देही ॥२- २२॥</blockquote><blockquote>vāsāṁsi jīrṇāni yathā vihāya navāni gṛhṇāti naro ’parāṇi tathā śarīrāṇi vihāya jīrṇāny anyāni saṁyāti navāni dehī ॥ 2-22॥</blockquote>"As a person puts on new garments, giving up used up ones, the soul similarly accepts new material bodies, giving up the old and useless ones." Arjuna has a doubt now, after hearing Krishna mentioning that Atma is Nityam, Indestructible etc , body is temporary and will fall and that one has to bear the pain to achieve the goal. But, human has an attachment by nature with his body, due to the association of being in it. It's natural! So, isn't it normal to show attachment to a body which has given us company throughout the life and not show any dukham to it's demise or destruction?? In response Krishna mentions that Slokam. He says that rather than showing Dukham at the demise of the body, one should express joy! He says, just like a man wears new garments and throws off worn out garments, similarly the Jeevatma casts off one body and takes another. So, isn't it a cause for joy rather than sorrow? So, rather than feeling sorrow of casting away old body and taking new, it should be joyous occasion. In Taittraya Upanishad " Yuvasya .. athisthio... Maanusha Anandah", it says that Youth is the ultimate fountainhead of happiness for human life and when this body has overlasted it's usefulness, so isn't it a joy to shed it? Now, Arjuna had another doubt - If at the end of this life, one gets a worst body e.g. animal etc due to past karmas, isn't it a scary thought? i.e if one gets to wear rags, it would be preferable to wear an old shirt, rather than shedding it and wearing a rag. Krishna says that, Arjuna need not fear, since he is fighting a battle doing his Kshatriya duty and even if he perishes in the battle, he is assured of swargam. So, he need not worry about the next life. Transference of the atomic individual soul to another body is made possible by the grace of the Supersoul. The Supersoul fulfills the desire of the atomic soul as one friend fulfills the desire of another. The Vedas, like the Mundaka Upanisad, as well as the Svetasvatara Upanisad, compare the soul and the Supersoul to two friendly birds sitting on the same tree. One of the birds (the individual atomic soul) is eating the fruit of the tree, and the other bird (Krsna) is simply watching His friend. Of these two birds--although they are the same in quality-- one is captivated by the fruits of the material tree, while the other is simply witnessing the activities of His friend. Krsna is the witnessing bird, and Arjuna is the eating bird. Although they are friends, one is still the master and the other is the servant. Forgetfulness of this relationship by the atomic soul is the

cause of one's changing his position from one tree to another or from one body to another. The jiva soul is struggling very hard on the tree of the material body, but as soon as he agrees to accept the other bird as the supreme adhyatmik master--as Arjuna agreed to do by voluntary surrender unto Krsna for instruction-- the subordinate bird immediately becomes free from all lamentations. Both the Katha Upanisad and Svetasvatara Upanisad confirm this: samane vrkse puruso nimagno 'nisaya socati muhyamanah justam yada pasyaty anyam isam asya mahimanam iti vita-sokah "Although the two birds are in the same tree, the eating bird is fully engrossed with anxiety and moroseness as the enjoyer of the fruits of the tree. But if in some way or other he turns his face to his friend who is the Lord and knows His glories--at once the suffering bird becomes free from all anxieties." Arjuna has now turned his face towards his eternal friend, Krsna, and is understanding the Bhagavad-gita from Him. And thus, hearing from Krsna, he can understand the supreme glories of the Lord and be free from lamentation. <blockquote>नैनं छिन्दन्ति शस्त्राणि नैनं दहति पावकः । न चैनं क्लेदयन्त्यापो न शोषयति मारुतः ॥२- २३॥</blockquote><blockquote>अच्छेद्योऽयमदाह्योऽयमक्लेद्योऽशोष्य एव च । नित्यः सर्वगतः स्थाणुरचलोऽयं सनातनः ॥२- २४॥</blockquote><blockquote>nainaṁ chindanti śastrāṇi nainaṁ dahati pāvakaḥ na cainaṁ kledayanty āpo na śoṣayati mārutaḥ ॥ 2-23॥</blockquote><blockquote>acchedyo ’yam adāhyo ’yam akledyo ’śoṣya eva ca nityaḥ sarva-gataḥ sthāṇur acalo ’yaṁ sanātanaḥ ॥ 2-24 ॥</blockquote>"The soul can never be cut to pieces by any weapon, nor burned by fire, nor moistened by water, nor dried by the wind." "This individual soul is unbreakable and insoluble, and can be neither burned nor dried. He is everlasting, present everywhere, unchangeable, immovable and eternally the same." The concept of indestructibility of the soul that was already spoken from 11 to 17 is being reiterated here for the sake of emphasis. Soul cannot be cleaved, burnt, wetted or dryed by weapons, fire, water and air respectively. It is not capable of being pervaded by them and cleaving, burning, wetting and drying are actions which can take place only by pervading a substance. Krishna says the same thing in both verses 23 and 24, only with a different wording. Why?? Because, this is important and he wants to reemphasize the truth of such import, by repeating and stressing on it. No Weapons can cut this soul! Fire cannot burn this soul! Water cannot drown or destroy this soul! Air cannot dry or destroy this soul! Why? Because soul is pervaded inside everything! Now a question will arise - Isn't this pervasion, omnipresence a characterisitic of only Paramatma?? Not really. Paramatma is indeed omnipresent, but Jeevatma also has pervasion(sarvagatah). The significant difference is that, numerous jeevatmas pervaded throughout the substances of this world and at any single time, single place, a jeevatma can only pervade only one place, unlike Paramatma who pervades across space, time and place. Now, Arjuna has another doubt. Ok, a soul cannot be cut, burnt or destroyed in any way. But, will a soul will subject to perishment over course of time? Will it change its nature, svabhavam over time?? Krishna says NO. Self is eternal. It is Stable, Immovable (achalah) and primeval (Puratanah). Another important point here is that Krishna says Self is always having knowledge(achalah) and it doesn't change or get any new knowledge. What makes humans and other beings behave differently is due to this knowledge being hidden or covered due to karmas, just like a Sun gets temporarily obscured by clouds. Though the two slokas appear to be repetitive, the 23rd sloka talks of implements, if any, to destroy atman and the next sloka says the atman is indestructible. It is our experience in our schools also that important points are reiterated by teachers so that they are remembered always. Here, Sri Krishna also a Teacher par excellence, wants Arjuna to remember these noble qualities of atman, and so reiterates. This will clear any doubts Arjuna has. In the first place, He says that no weapons are there to cut the atman. Fire cannot burn it. Water cannot wet it. Here it should be understood that the atman couldn t be dissolved by water. Air cannot dry it. In the next sloka Sri Krishna says about the everlasting nature of atman, which we had seen earlier. But, in addition He makes another statement that atman is pervading or permeating all over. We have heard that only Paramatma or God only is all pervading and omni present. How, then, atman can have this quality? The interpretation by elders is that when an atman is in a body, by its power of wisdom or knowledge it is pervading in the entire body without a gap. Same atman when takes another body as its residence, pervades that body fully. Like this many bodies are fully pervaded by the atman, at different times. This is a major difference between the Paramatma and the Jeevatma. While, the former permeates all bodies always and simultaneously, the latter occupies different bodies at different times. It is said that certain yogis have that power to have their atman present in more than one body at the same time. Normally, atman is present in one body only. Arjuna accepts that it is all right the atman cannot be dissolved by water or burnt by fire and so on, but it is possible, he doubts, that the atman might fade on its own and disappear. Sri Krishna says that the eternalness is natural to atman. Still not convinced, Arjuna feels that the atman may change its characters with time. He wants to know whether atman s swabhavam or characteristics undergo change. Sri Krishna says that the swabhavam of atman is gyana or intellect. In other words it is gyana swaroopy, a personification of wisdom. This never changes. A fresh doubt comes in the mind of Arjuna. We find knowledge is neither uniform nor complete and we take efforts to develop. So how it is justified to say that the knowledge of soul is not changing? Our elders have explained this. All atman have total wisdom but when in a body, the knowledge exhibited is limited by the past karmas. So the brightness is reduced by the karmas. We dig the earth at a place for water. Water gushes out. Water was already present there and by digging at the right place the water sprang up. Similarly, the gyana or knowledge is already in the soul and by our efforts we try to bring out and become more knowledgeable. Like Sunshine being reduced by the clouds or the umbrella. So, the atman s gyana is also permanent.

Line 40: Line 42:

"If, however, you think that the soul [or the symptoms of life] is always born and dies forever, you still have no reason to lament, O mighty-armed." In the previous slokas, Krishna emphasized the body is different from Soul and says to Arjuna not to worry about this temporary body and fight in the war. . But in this sloka and the next two slokas, Krishna indulges in "Adbhukgamavadam" , where he changes tact , In this you argue your point agreeing with the point what your opponent is imagining. So, Sri Krishna argues assuming that the body and soul are same, as thought by Arjuna. If both are same also Arjuna should not mourn at the killing of Bheeshma or Drona. Because, as the body falls, the soul also dies according to the assumption of Arjuna. He should not now worry where the soul is going, to hell or heaven, as the soul is no longer there after the body is slain. So, here he says, Arjuna .. Ok, even if you consider Atma is identical with body and is "NityaJatam"(constantly born) and "NityamMurtam" (Constantly dying), even then (tatah pi), you should not feel grief. Why? The only constant in this body is CHANGE! We don't always remain a kid, a boy,a youth or so on. Even things around us, change constantly! Now, Arjuna says, he is not worried about change, but death. Krishna says, why worry about death? Arjuna says, he is worried to be separated from everybody or others separating and the unknown stage after death. Krishna laughs and says, if Arjuna is considering body and soul as one and the same, what is there to worry about death, because once the body perishes, it's the end of body and soul! This is a good example of how ignorance can cloud us with fear. For e.g. when we get hurt etc, we are scared, but the expert Medics are calm and repair us without any fear. A surgeon is not scared to operate or seeing blood etc, but we are scared. Why? Because the surgeon is an expert. This shows that ignorance is the root of this fear. Another reason is "experience".. Lack of awareness is also another reason for fear. For eg. if we are familiar with a misery or a disease etc, it is no longer a reason for fear. So, if Arjuna thinks body and soul are one and the same, change is inevitable and there is no reason to worry. Similarly, the question of Swargam, Narakam doesn't arise, because if Arjuna considers body and soul are one and the same, there is no swargam, Narakam. Arjuna now has another doubt - "We" know the change in One body i.e from infant to old age, but when we shed one body and take another body, we are not aware of the old body and that is a reason for fear, since the past and future are unknown. Krishna responds that, if we remember every past life, then we will end up being inundated with past memories and past relationships, which will end us drowned in samasaram, without any chance of redemption. Only great yogis and gnaanis have this power of rememberance, since it doesn't disturb them. So, Krishna says that birth and death are inevitable for the body, whose nature is modification and there is no need to feel grief. Krsna sarcastically addressed Arjuna as maha-bahu, mighty-armed, because He, at least, did not accept the theory of the Vaibhasikas (a school of philosophy which does not accept soul), which leaves aside the Vedic wisdom. As a ksatriya, Arjuna belonged to the Vedic culture, and it behooved him to continue to follow its principles. <blockquote>जातस्य हि ध्रुवो मृत्युर्ध्रुवं जन्म मृतस्य च । तस्मादपरिहार्येऽर्थे न त्वं शोचितुमर्हसि ॥ २-२७॥</blockquote><blockquote>jātasya hi dhruvo mṛtyur dhruvaṁ janma mṛtasya ca tasmād aparihārye ’rthe na tvaṁ śocitum arhasi ॥ 2-27 ॥</blockquote>"One who has taken his birth is sure to die, and after death one is sure to take birth again. Therefore, in the unavoidable discharge of your duty, you should not lament." Krishna says that whatever is originating, it's destruction is certain and whatever is perishable, it will inevitably originate. Arjuna now has a doubt. If he wins the war and whatever is born is going to perish, it means the win will also be temporary. So, why even battle?? Similarly, shouldn't a person who has recuperated from disease is happy, should he be, because his recuperation is ultimately temporary? Krishna responds saying that, this efforts are required for clearing of the trouble for that period, which is natural and there is no confusion or wrong about it. Similarly, it's Arjuna's responsibility to fight his way from the current situation, rather than running away. Now another doubt comes up - Is something coming up from nothing or is it coming up from something ; This two types of arguments are called - Sat-kaarya Vaadham and Asat-kaarya Vaadham. e.g. To take an analogy, it's the difference between Discovery and Invention. Discovery is something which is already there and been identified for use (eg> country, columbus discovering America). Invention is creating something which was not there previously (eg> Telephone). But, really speaking, the components of telephone was always there and it's only been arranged in a new way. e.g Wool.Thread strung together becomes a Cloth. Similarly, something can come out of something and nothing (this is Satkaarya Vaadham) and when it perishes, it doesn't go away. but is transformed. eg. when a pot is broken, even though the Pot is destroyed, it creates the clay (broken into clay pieces). Similarly, when a body perishes, it takes a different form. It is evident that death of the physical body is inevitable to whatever is born and that there is no way to escape from this physical termination of the body. Similarly rebirth is unavoidable once one's physical body has died. How can something which has been lost become again? It is conceivable that something which has already been to become again; but it is inconceivable for that which has never been to become. Therefore there is nothing that can come that has not been. What is known as birth and death is but just different modifications of an ever existing condition. Yarn and other materials exist but when they are woven into a fabric that is a particular arrangement of the yarn itself, it receives the name cloth in its modified state. Even the asat-karya-vadis who follow the fallacious hypothesis that existence comes from non-existence should admit the ever existing state, for what we know as cloth to them is a new creation but is factually the same old yarn only in a new form which has been created. It is not sagacious or well thought out to assume that a new substance has come into being simply because of a modified condition. Thus coming into existence and disappearing from existence are modified states of an ever existing reality. One of the conditions of this modified state is its appearance called birth and another condition being its diametric opposite is known as death which by disappearing this ever existing reality passes into. For a substance which is intrinsically metamorphic the process of modification is essential. As in the case of a clod of earth, transformed into clay, transformed into a pot, transformed into dust and transformed back to earth again. The manifestation of a subsequent condition is but a modification of a previous condition and that same subsequent condition becomes a prior condition of another subsequent condition. Reasoning in this way it can be understood that it is natural that successive modifications take place in regards to creation and destruction of physical bodies which cannot be avoided and there is no reason to lament due to this. If there is some slight grief which may be apparent by the passing from a prior modified state to a subsequent modified state even this grief need not arise in the case of living entities such as human beings because... and the next verse 28 clarifies why.<blockquote>अव्यक्तादीनि भूतानि व्यक्तमध्यानि भारत । अव्यक्तनिधनान्येव तत्र का परिदेवना ॥ २-२८॥</blockquote><blockquote>avyaktādīni bhūtāni vyakta-madhyāni bhārata avyakta-nidhanāny eva tatra kā paridevanā ॥ 2-28 ॥</blockquote>"The [five elements made] body is not capable of revealing the past [but] middle [present] revealed. Future not revealed, Oh! Bharatha, where is then need for grief?" All created beings are unmanifest in their beginning, manifest in their interim state, and unmanifest again when they are annihilated. So what need is there for lamentation? Note, slokas 26,27,28 are all based on the assumption that body and soul are the same and Krishna presenting that even assuming this false assumption is true, even then one should not get disturbed by the death or destruction of this body. Take for eg: Pot, clay, mud are three different forms of the same thing and one thing transforms into another in it's cycle of formation and destruction. Atleast for Pot, we know what form it will take (mud, clay etc), when it gets broken. But, for human, we wouldn't know for sure what it's future state be, after death. After death, it may take a better form. Arjuna asks, whether it's possible to know what the past or future states would be? Krishna responds that, we won't know our past or future, but only our present. This body which is made up of PanchaBhootams(Bhootani) is "Avyaaktaani" (unknown) in the past; Our current state(madhya) is known (Vyaktaani); Our future i.e after death (Nidhana) is unknown(Avyaktaani). So, there is no point in grieving about the future stage. Do remember that this sloka is based on the assumption that body and soul are same and Krishna is presenting it from this point of view and letting Arjuna know, even with this assumption, there is no point in grieving(paridevana) about future or past. Accepting that there are two classes of philosophers, one believing in the existence of soul and the other not believing in the existence of the soul, there is no cause for lamentation in either case. Nonbelievers in the existence of the soul are called atheists by followers of Vedic wisdom. Yet even if, for argument's sake, we accept the atheistic theory, there is still no cause for lamentation. Apart from the separate existence of the soul, the material elements remain unmanifested before creation. From this subtle state of unmanifestation comes manifestation, just as from ether, air is generated; from air, fire is generated; from fire, water is generated; and from water, earth becomes manifested. From the earth, many varieties of manifestations take place. Take, for example, a big skyscraper manifested from the earth. When it is dismantled, the manifestation becomes again unmanifested and remains as atoms in the ultimate stage. The law of conservation of energy remains, but in course of time things are manifested and unmanifested--that is the difference. Then what cause is there for lamentation either in the stage of manifestation or unmanifestation? Somehow or other, even in the unmanifested stage, things are not lost. Both at the beginning and at the end, all elements remain unmanifested, and only in the middle are they manifested, and this does not make any real material difference. And if we accept the Vedic conclusion as stated in the Bhagavad-gita (antavanta ime dehah) that these material bodies are perishable in due course of time (nityasyoktah saririnah) but that soul is eternal, then we must remember always that the body is like a dress; therefore why lament the changing of a dress? Why then is it seen that even men possessing intelligence lament in this world? It is simply due to ignorance about the true nature of the eternal soul. Having this theme in mind the abstruseness of the eternal soul is being given, in the next slokam <blockquote>आश्चर्यवत्पश्यति कश्चिदेन- माश्चर्यवद्वदति तथैव चान्यः । आश्चर्यवच्चैनमन्यः श‍ृणोति श्रुत्वाप्येनं वेद न चैव कश्चित् ॥ २-२९॥</blockquote><blockquote>āścarya-vat paśyati kaścid enam āścarya-vad vadati tathaiva cānyaḥ āścarya-vac cainam anyaḥ śṛṇoti śrutvāpy enaṁ veda na caiva kaścit ॥ 2-29 ॥</blockquote>In the previous three slokas, Krishna expatiated about not being concerned about Body and how it is temporary. Arjuna is now baffled that he is unable to comprehend this reality and is still scared. All of us are in the same boat, including the great Jnaanis, even though the jnaanis are in a higher plane of understanding. The power of this bodily conception is very difficult to overcome. Krishna responds to this fear of Arjuna: This amazing (Aasharyavati ) nature of soul is known/seen (Pashchati) by only one among crores and only one among crores talks(Vadati) about it and then only one among crores hears (Shrunoti) about it and then only one among crores will really understand(veda) and realise the soul exists and that body is temporary. This shows that it's only the rare among the beings that truly realises the Atma and not everybody can get away from this bodily allure and conception. Sri Krishna says that one in a crore [ten million] see atman, one in a crore only hear about atman and one in a crore only talk about him. But it is much more rare to find a person who understands atman. This may cause a doubt in us that there is no one knowing about atman. So there is nothing like atman. Because, if anything exists, then at least some persons should know about it. We talk of Mount Everest. Very few persons would have seen it. From them we understand it is there. We believe an object only if someone who had seen the object tells us. So, Arjuna doubts whether there is an atman, as nobody has seen it. Sri Krishna replies that He did not say there was no one who had seen the atman, but it is very, very rare to find a person who had seen atman. Such a person is a noble one, who can be followed. This second chapter unlike the first one is quite difficult to follow, for everyone learning Gita. Because the soul is abstract and it has no form to recognize nor are there any similar substance in the world to identify. But constant studies and thinking can slowly make us to understand. We are able to conceive God, as many forms are available. But for atman there are no icons. A beginning is now made and by continuous efforts we can refine our knowledge about atman. We shouldn't get distressed by this! How to overcome this rarity?? Our lives are totally consumed by material being. It needs dedication to reflect about our selves (Atma), focus our efforts on it and be dedicated. For eg: if a boy is given to solve a PHD maths problem, he cannot solve it. He needs to complete schooling, Graduate, masters, PHD, before he can solve it. But, at the same time, if he reached adult age, it doesn't mean that he can solve it, unless he is in the Maths field. So, this requires not only "age" & experience, but to study in that field. Similarly, in our lives, we need continued focus in the reflection of the truth about atma to understand this truth. Simply, by living in material life and diving once in a while into adhyatmik pursuit isn't going to help. When we put effort, the Lord too will reach his hand to guide us. Infact, knowing about Atma is difficult, because it's not seen, heard etc. Atleast dieties in temples, we can see and relish and celebrate fesivals etc, whereas for our atma this is not possible. So, this is difficult. Among innumerable beings, someone, who by great austerity has got rid of paap and has increased his merits, realises this self possessing the above mentioned nature, which is wonderful and distinct in kind from all things other than Itself. Such a one speaks of It to another. Thus, someone hears of It. And even after hearing of It, no one knows It exactly that It really exists. The term 'ca' (and) implies that even amongst the seers, the speakers and hearers, one with authentic percepetion, authentic speech and authentic hearing, is a rarity.<blockquote>देही नित्यमवध्योऽयं देहे सर्वस्य भारत। तस्मात्सर्वाणि भूतानि न त्वं शोचितुमर्हसि ॥ २-३० ॥</blockquote><blockquote>dehī nityam avadhyo ’yaṁ dehe sarvasya bhārata tasmāt sarvāṇi bhūtāni na tvaṁ śocitum arhasi ॥ 2-30 ॥</blockquote>

−

Atma (it resides in body); Nityam->Eternal ; "Na Tvam sochitu arhasi".. THis is a common refrain of Krishna in many slokas, which implies that "you do not grieve"! Here Krishna says that Self(Jeevatma) exists in everyone's body and even when all this bodies perish, the atma(s) in them do not perish. Note that, Krishna says there is Jeevatma in everyone's body and it's not that ONE atma pervades all bodies! This is in response to Arjuna's doubt: 'I am understanding about the perishability of body as per krishan's slokas below. Now, everybody in this world seems different. One person varies from another in appearance, personality, esteem, joys and sorrows etc. So, is there a difference in the Jeevatmas nature too among people? i.e is one jeevatma's nature different from another?? Is one jeevatma eternal and the other not? ". In response, Krishna tells this sloka that the atmas residing in all bodies are eternal and do not perish, when the body perishes. Now, another question arises, when the bodies are different (color, sex, creed, appearance etc), how come the atma is same?? To remove this doubt only Sri Krishna tells that the atman or dehi in every body or deham is eternal. We are witnessing changes on the body but the soul remains the same. To understand this we should examine closely our daily habits and experiences. We see variety of persons. Some are fair, some black, some tall, some short, some females, some males, some animals, etc. but all these differences do not change our habits. One may be a millionaire and another a poor. But both see with their eyes only and hear with their ears. There is no difference in these functions. Educated or illiterate, one has to eat with his mouth only. So, God has not permitted any difference in certain basic functions. We eat varieties of food and vegetables. They remain so till what we eat reaches the throat. After this the body assimilates them as protein, vitamin or carbohydrates. This is scientific fact. We do not eat as such fat or proteins. So, all differences are in the external appearance only, such as brinjal [butter fruit] or lady s finger [okra]. The body, however, takes only the essence. So, only those, which appear different, are all destroyed and atman, which is identical in every creature, is eternal. So Arjuna need not to worry that he may be destroying a destroyable atman. So, in this sloka Krishna says, that Arjuna need not show grief. (Note that as per bodily conception of relations, we do have to show compassion, affection etc, but if we limit to just bodily ideas, then we end up being selfish about self, family etc, but if we look at if from jeevatma conception, our compassion will not be limited just to few, but to everybody! and it will also ensure we understand the sense of duty without getting over emotional and binding). If we distinguish atman from body, then we can be of real help to not merely our relatives but to everyone suffering. Relatives are body related. Only a perspective that all atmans are same can make us render help to all. That is why in any calamity, there are some persons who concentrate on the things to do and do not go emotional. Such duty minded persons are of real help. Though the soul is immortal, violence is not encouraged, but at the time of war it is not discouraged when there is actual need for it. That need must be justified in terms of the sanction of the Lord, and not capriciously.<blockquote>स्वधर्ममपि चावेक्ष्य न विकम्पितुमर्हसि । धर्म्याद्धि युद्धाच्छ्रेयोऽन्यत्क्षत्रियस्य न विद्यते ॥ २-३१॥</blockquote><blockquote>sva-dharmam api cāvekṣya na vikampitum arhasi dharmyād dhi yuddhāc chreyo ’nyat kṣatriyasya na vidyate ॥ 2-31 ॥</blockquote>"Considering your specific duty as a kshatriya, you should know that there is no better engagement for you than fighting on religious principles; and so there is no need for hesitation." In the previous slokas Krishna adviced that Arjuna should not show love and undue attention to the body, since it is temporary. In this slokam, he focusses on the importance of doing one's dharma. As a Kshatriya, it is Arjuna's duty to fight. There is no other way for Moksham for a Kshatriya. Now, there is a seeming "controversy" here. Here, Krishna says to Arjuna that he has to fight the war, if he wants to gain Moksham. In some quarters, Gita is incorrectly potrayed as a "war goading" book, which resulted in Mahabharat war. The question is, is "fighting war" the only way for Arjuna to gain moksham?? Not exactly. Krishna is telling Arjuna to do his Dharma. And Kshatriya's duty is to fight a "righteous" war and not run away. Had Krishna given Gita to a non-kshatriya, it would have been a different dharma (and not war). Another question, doesn't war involve killing and pain to other beings?? So, how would it be construed as a path to Moksham?? The reality is, there are different kinds of "Himsa" in this world (e.g. for example surgery on a body, mental agony, woman giving birth to a child etc, grabbing property from a family etc). Himsa is something which gives pain not just for the present but also in the future. So, in this war, all the warriors who are fighting get "veera" swargam. As long as Arjuna is fighting a war justly and also a just war(whose end is just) then it's his dharma and is assured of Moksham. Out of the four orders of social administration, the second order, for the matter of good administration, is called ksatriya. Ksat means hurt. One who gives protection from harm is called ksatriya (trayate--to give protection). There are two kinds of svadharmas, specific duties. As long as one is not liberated, one has to perform the duties of that particular body in accordance with religious principles in order to achieve liberation. When one is liberated, one's sva-dharma--specific duty--becomes adhyatmik and is not in the material bodily concept. In the bodily conception of life there are specific duties for the brahmanas and ksatriyas respectively, and such duties are unavoidable. Sva-dharma is ordained by the Lord, and this will be clarified in the Fourth Chapter. On the bodily plane sva-dharma is called varnasrama-dharma, or man's steppingstone for adhyatmik understanding. Human civilization begins from the stage of varnasrama-dharma, or specific duties in terms of the specific modes of nature of the body obtained. Discharging one's specific duty in any field of action in accordance with varnasrama-dharma serves to elevate one to a higher status of life.<blockquote>यदृच्छया चोपपन्नं स्वर्गद्वारमपावृतम् । सुखिनः क्षत्रियाः पार्थ लभन्ते युद्धमीदृशम् ॥ २-३२॥</blockquote><blockquote>yadṛcchayā copapannaṁ svarga-dvāram apāvṛtam sukhinaḥ kṣatriyāḥ pārtha labhante yuddham īdṛśam ॥ 2-32 ॥</blockquote>"O Partha, happy are the kshatriyas to whom such fighting opportunities come unsought, opening for them unhindered the doors of the ~~heavenly planets~~." The impending war is happening by itself, on its own, without any solicitation on the part of Arjuna. Thus when it happens he and his brothers will be fighting on the side of righteousness which constitutes the means for acquiring heavenly happiness without obstacles. Such a war can only be fought by the most fortunate of ksatriyas and Arjuna should understand his good fortune. Krishna continues mentioning about the importance of Dharma here. He says Arjuna is facing this war, not out of his own making, but by "yaddrachaya" (Fate, God's grace), which is a gateway to heaven, which is a blessing for the great and righteous Kshatriyas. Now that question arises, which "swargam" is Krishna referring to here? Is it Indra lokam etc?? No. Krishna is referring to Moksham here. **This also point out to how to qualify a decision - Before we engage ourselves in any work we will have to see these points: Is this legally allowed? After starting the work, will there be need for any unlawful activities? Is the objective a virtuous one or evil? Is there precedence by elders? These four points are required to be examined before we embark on any activity. In the present context, the fighting of this war has to answer all these quest <nowiki>**</nowiki> Referring to Dharma Yuddham - The Lord himself went to war against tyrannical demons to protect Dharma. For e.g. Rama, Nrusimha, Vamana etc. In the Parasara-smrti or religious codes made by Parasara, the great sage and father of Vyasadeva, it is stated: ksatriyo hi praja raksan sastra-panih pradandayan nirjitya para-sainyadi ksitim dharmena palayet "The ksatriya's duty is to protect the citizens from all kinds of difficulties, and for that reason he has to apply violence in suitable cases for law and order. Therefore he has to conquer the soldiers of inimical kings, and thus, with religious principles, he should rule over the world." Considering all aspects, Arjuna had no reason to refrain from fighting. If he should conquer his enemies, he would enjoy the kingdom; and if he should die in the battle, he would be elevated to the ~~heavenly planets~~ whose doors were wide open to him. Fighting would be for his benefit in either case.<blockquote>अथ चेत्त्वमिमं धर्म्यं संग्रामं न करिष्यसि । ततः स्वधर्मं कीर्तिं च हित्वा पापमवाप्स्यसि ॥२- ३३॥</blockquote><blockquote>atha cet tvam imaṁ dharmyaṁ saṅgrāmaṁ na kariṣyasi tataḥ sva-dharmaṁ kīrtiṁ ca hitvā pāpam avāpsyasi ॥ 2-33 ॥</blockquote>"If, however, you do not perform your duty of fighting for dharma, then you will certainly incur paap for neglecting your duties and lose your reputation as a fighter." In the previous two slokas, Krishna explained to Arjuna that it is imperative for him to follow his dharma as Kshatriya and fight the war which has come upon him as "yaddhrachaya" (thru divine chance) and that by doing so, he will achieve Moksham. In this sloka and the next, Krishna says the paap that will befall Arjuna if he does NOT fight the war. By listing the difficulties and sorrows he would encounter if he slipped from his expected duty, Sri Krishna is encouraging him to fight. In any act we have to state the benefits by doing that and the ill effects by not doing. By judging both one

+

Atma (it resides in body); Nityam->Eternal ; "Na Tvam sochitu arhasi".. THis is a common refrain of Krishna in many slokas, which implies that "you do not grieve"! Here Krishna says that Self(Jeevatma) exists in everyone's body and even when all this bodies perish, the atma(s) in them do not perish. Note that, Krishna says there is Jeevatma in everyone's body and it's not that ONE atma pervades all bodies! This is in response to Arjuna's doubt: 'I am understanding about the perishability of body as per krishan's slokas below. Now, everybody in this world seems different. One person varies from another in appearance, personality, esteem, joys and sorrows etc. So, is there a difference in the Jeevatmas nature too among people? i.e is one jeevatma's nature different from another?? Is one jeevatma eternal and the other not? ". In response, Krishna tells this sloka that the atmas residing in all bodies are eternal and do not perish, when the body perishes. Now, another question arises, when the bodies are different (color, sex, creed, appearance etc), how come the atma is same?? To remove this doubt only Sri Krishna tells that the atman or dehi in every body or deham is eternal. We are witnessing changes on the body but the soul remains the same. To understand this we should examine closely our daily habits and experiences. We see variety of persons. Some are fair, some black, some tall, some short, some females, some males, some animals, etc. but all these differences do not change our habits. One may be a millionaire and another a poor. But both see with their eyes only and hear with their ears. There is no difference in these functions. Educated or illiterate, one has to eat with his mouth only. So, God has not permitted any difference in certain basic functions. We eat varieties of food and vegetables. They remain so till what we eat reaches the throat. After this the body assimilates them as protein, vitamin or carbohydrates. This is scientific fact. We do not eat as such fat or proteins. So, all differences are in the external appearance only, such as brinjal [butter fruit] or lady s finger [okra]. The body, however, takes only the essence. So, only those, which appear different, are all destroyed and atman, which is identical in every creature, is eternal. So Arjuna need not to worry that he may be destroying a destroyable atman. So, in this sloka Krishna says, that Arjuna need not show grief. (Note that as per bodily conception of relations, we do have to show compassion, affection etc, but if we limit to just bodily ideas, then we end up being selfish about self, family etc, but if we look at if from jeevatma conception, our compassion will not be limited just to few, but to everybody! and it will also ensure we understand the sense of duty without getting over emotional and binding). If we distinguish atman from body, then we can be of real help to not merely our relatives but to everyone suffering. Relatives are body related. Only a perspective that all atmans are same can make us render help to all. That is why in any calamity, there are some persons who concentrate on the things to do and do not go emotional. Such duty minded persons are of real help. Though the soul is immortal, violence is not encouraged, but at the time of war it is not discouraged when there is actual need for it. That need must be justified in terms of the sanction of the Lord, and not capriciously.<blockquote>स्वधर्ममपि चावेक्ष्य न विकम्पितुमर्हसि । धर्म्याद्धि युद्धाच्छ्रेयोऽन्यत्क्षत्रियस्य न विद्यते ॥ २-३१॥</blockquote><blockquote>sva-dharmam api cāvekṣya na vikampitum arhasi dharmyād dhi yuddhāc chreyo ’nyat kṣatriyasya na vidyate ॥ 2-31 ॥</blockquote>"Considering your specific duty as a kshatriya, you should know that there is no better engagement for you than fighting on religious principles; and so there is no need for hesitation." In the previous slokas Krishna adviced that Arjuna should not show love and undue attention to the body, since it is temporary. In this slokam, he focusses on the importance of doing one's dharma. As a Kshatriya, it is Arjuna's duty to fight. There is no other way for Moksham for a Kshatriya. Now, there is a seeming "controversy" here. Here, Krishna says to Arjuna that he has to fight the war, if he wants to gain Moksham. In some quarters, Gita is incorrectly potrayed as a "war goading" book, which resulted in Mahabharat war. The question is, is "fighting war" the only way for Arjuna to gain moksham?? Not exactly. Krishna is telling Arjuna to do his Dharma. And Kshatriya's duty is to fight a "righteous" war and not run away. Had Krishna given Gita to a non-kshatriya, it would have been a different dharma (and not war). Another question, doesn't war involve killing and pain to other beings?? So, how would it be construed as a path to Moksham?? The reality is, there are different kinds of "Himsa" in this world (e.g. for example surgery on a body, mental agony, woman giving birth to a child etc, grabbing property from a family etc). Himsa is something which gives pain not just for the present but also in the future. So, in this war, all the warriors who are fighting get "veera" swargam. As long as Arjuna is fighting a war justly and also a just war(whose end is just) then it's his dharma and is assured of Moksham. Out of the four orders of social administration, the second order, for the matter of good administration, is called ksatriya. Ksat means hurt. One who gives protection from harm is called ksatriya (trayate--to give protection). There are two kinds of svadharmas, specific duties. As long as one is not liberated, one has to perform the duties of that particular body in accordance with religious principles in order to achieve liberation. When one is liberated, one's sva-dharma--specific duty--becomes adhyatmik and is not in the material bodily concept. In the bodily conception of life there are specific duties for the brahmanas and ksatriyas respectively, and such duties are unavoidable. Sva-dharma is ordained by the Lord, and this will be clarified in the Fourth Chapter. On the bodily plane sva-dharma is called varnasrama-dharma, or man's steppingstone for adhyatmik understanding. Human civilization begins from the stage of varnasrama-dharma, or specific duties in terms of the specific modes of nature of the body obtained. Discharging one's specific duty in any field of action in accordance with varnasrama-dharma serves to elevate one to a higher status of life.<blockquote>यदृच्छया चोपपन्नं स्वर्गद्वारमपावृतम् । सुखिनः क्षत्रियाः पार्थ लभन्ते युद्धमीदृशम् ॥ २-३२॥</blockquote><blockquote>yadṛcchayā copapannaṁ svarga-dvāram apāvṛtam sukhinaḥ kṣatriyāḥ pārtha labhante yuddham īdṛśam ॥ 2-32 ॥</blockquote>"O Partha, happy are the kshatriyas to whom such fighting opportunities come unsought, opening for them unhindered the doors of the svarga loka." The impending war is happening by itself, on its own, without any solicitation on the part of Arjuna. Thus when it happens he and his brothers will be fighting on the side of righteousness which constitutes the means for acquiring heavenly happiness without obstacles. Such a war can only be fought by the most fortunate of ksatriyas and Arjuna should understand his good fortune. Krishna continues mentioning about the importance of Dharma here. He says Arjuna is facing this war, not out of his own making, but by "yaddrachaya" (Fate, God's grace), which is a gateway to heaven, which is a blessing for the great and righteous Kshatriyas. Now that question arises, which "swargam" is Krishna referring to here? Is it Indra lokam etc?? No. Krishna is referring to Moksham here. **This also point out to how to qualify a decision - Before we engage ourselves in any work we will have to see these points: Is this legally allowed? After starting the work, will there be need for any unlawful activities? Is the objective a virtuous one or evil? Is there precedence by elders? These four points are required to be examined before we embark on any activity. In the present context, the fighting of this war has to answer all these quest <nowiki>**</nowiki> Referring to Dharma Yuddham - The Lord himself went to war against tyrannical demons to protect Dharma. For e.g. Rama, Nrusimha, Vamana etc. In the Parasara-smrti or religious codes made by Parasara, the great sage and father of Vyasadeva, it is stated: ksatriyo hi praja raksan sastra-panih pradandayan nirjitya para-sainyadi ksitim dharmena palayet "The ksatriya's duty is to protect the citizens from all kinds of difficulties, and for that reason he has to apply violence in suitable cases for law and order. Therefore he has to conquer the soldiers of inimical kings, and thus, with religious principles, he should rule over the world." Considering all aspects, Arjuna had no reason to refrain from fighting. If he should conquer his enemies, he would enjoy the kingdom; and if he should die in the battle, he would be elevated to the svarga loka whose doors were wide open to him. Fighting would be for his benefit in either case.<blockquote>अथ चेत्त्वमिमं धर्म्यं संग्रामं न करिष्यसि । ततः स्वधर्मं कीर्तिं च हित्वा पापमवाप्स्यसि ॥२- ३३॥</blockquote><blockquote>atha cet tvam imaṁ dharmyaṁ saṅgrāmaṁ na kariṣyasi tataḥ sva-dharmaṁ kīrtiṁ ca hitvā pāpam avāpsyasi ॥ 2-33 ॥</blockquote>"If, however, you do not perform your duty of fighting for dharma, then you will certainly incur paap for neglecting your duties and lose your reputation as a fighter." In the previous two slokas, Krishna explained to Arjuna that it is imperative for him to follow his dharma as Kshatriya and fight the war which has come upon him as "yaddhrachaya" (thru divine chance) and that by doing so, he will achieve Moksham. In this sloka and the next, Krishna says the paap that will befall Arjuna if he does NOT fight the war. By listing the difficulties and sorrows he would encounter if he slipped from his expected duty, Sri Krishna is encouraging him to fight. In any act we have to state the benefits by doing that and the ill effects by not doing. By judging both one

−

has to conclude to perform an action. Krishna terms this war as "Sangraamam" and not "Yuddham", in this slokam. Why? Because the war has already started and the armies ready to battle! Yudhdham means it could start even next day or after. But sangramam means that is already started and when both sides are aligned and ready to fight. Peace efforts could have been initiated before start of a fight but not after it had started. Such efforts before the fight began would be appreciated; but after it had started any such efforts would be branded as act of cowardice. So Sri Krishna cautions that if Arjuna decided to withdraw from the war, he will be defamed and then he would also be slipping from his expected dharma, resulting in paapa to accumulate. So by abandoning the fight he will fail in his swadharmam, that is his duty as Kshatriya to fight, and lose kirti or fame. Even if he does not care for the fame, paap or paap will accrue for slipping from swadharma. Sri Krishna lists the two, swadharma and kirti, as necessities for life in this world and in the nether world. Sri Krishna uses the words dharmyam sangraman, which means fight performed righteously. This war is for establishing dharma, it is to be performed legally and the outcome also is for dharma, a high objective. Since Arjuna, desirous of preservation of dharma, this is a holy and upright war. The word sangramam is used instead of yudhdham. . Why? Because it is as per the law, dharma shastras, the results are worth it. If he doesn't fight this battle - all the fame(Keerti) he achieved in the past as a warrior will be gone, giving up his "svadharma" as a Kshatriya, he will incur Paapa (Paapam Avaapsyaasi). If through injudicious sentiment or bewildered ignorance Arjuna should fail to perform his prescribed duty as a ksatriya by fighting for the sake of righteousness; he would lose a most excellent opportunity of attaining the heavenly spheres, he would lose his reputation as a hero and he would have to accept great impure reaction.Losing Fame and Name (Keerti) is a big loss in this Lokam for a Kshatriya and Arjuna will lose it, if he doesn't battle. Not only that, even in the other worlds, Arjuna will be at loss, since by shirking his duty , he incurs paap and doesn't gain swargam. Karma Yogam basically is doing one's duty as per his "ashrama dharma" (Varanaashrama) and that leads to Bhakti Yogam. If Arjuna is shedding his basic duty, he is not doing either Karma or Bhakti yogam and that leads him to paap. **Abide by swadharma is what is advocated.<blockquote>अकीर्तिं चापि भूतानि कथयिष्यन्ति तेऽव्ययाम् । सम्भावितस्य चाकीर्तिर्मरणादतिरिच्यते ॥२- ३४॥</blockquote><blockquote>akīrtiṁ cāpi bhūtāni kathayiṣyanti te ’vyayām sambhāvitasya cākīrtir maraṇād atiricyate ॥ 2-34 ॥</blockquote>"Creatures will always speak of your infamy, and for a respectable person, dishonor is worse than death." In this slokam, Krishna continues detailing the ills which would befall if Arjuna runs away from the war. He says that Arjuna will lose his honor and reputation as great warrior which he gained from all times (avyaayam) and be (kaithshyanti) ridiculed by all people (Bhutaani) that he has run away from the battle. This infamy will be worse than death for somebody as honored and reputable as Arjuna. For a wise man, discrimination(vivekam), courage, bravery, calmness and caution all need to be prevalent. Arjuna cannot say that he doesn't care about his reputation and run away. It may be ok for a common man, but for a great personality like Arjuna with a legacy of honor, it will come off poorly. Not only will happiness and fame elude him if he disregards his duty as a ksatriya but the world opinion of those competent to judge and those incompetent as well will chastise him and speak of his act of disgrace public and privately. They will say Arjuna was a coward for when the battle was about to begin he gave only excuses and retreated hastily from the battlefield. The Supreme Lord Krishna is telling him that forever history will brand him for cowardice. If Arjuna was to reply that what the public think is of no consequence to him, the Supreme Lord neutralises that by stating that for a person of honour possessing the qualities of heroism, determination, puissance, courage etc. which are all contrary to cowardice to have to accept infamy is worse than death. If he was to acquire disgrace of this kind death for him would certainly be much better. If reasoning further one was to present the question of how ignominy could attach itself to one who is already a renowned hero and whose resignation from the battle field is prompted only by motives of respect for elders and compassion to friends and relatives then the next verse 34 neutralises that argument.<blockquote>भयाद्रणादुपरतं मंस्यन्ते त्वां महारथाः । येषां च त्वं बहुमतो भूत्वा यास्यसि लाघवम् ॥२- ३५॥</blockquote><blockquote>bhayād raṇād uparataṁ maṁsyante tvāṁ mahā-rathāḥ yeṣāṁ ca tvaṁ bahu-mato bhūtvā yāsyasi lāghavam ॥ 2-35 ॥</blockquote>"The great generals who have highly esteemed your name and fame will think that you have left the battlefield out of fear only, and thus they will consider you irrelevant." "Astaana Sneham" - Showing compassion to the wrong places and towards the wrong people, like Arjuna is doing by showing compassion etc towards Duryodhana etc. In this slokam, Krishna responds to Arjuna's doubt from the previous slokam. Arjuna asks how can he get dishonor when he is withdrawing from the battle only out of love and compassion towards his relatives and avoiding bloodshed. Krishna responds about Arjuna(Tvam), the mahaarathis(warriors like Duryodhan, Karna) etc will think (manyate) that out of fear (bhayaat) that you ran (uparatam) from the battle (ranaat) and for those (yesham bhutvah) who have been thinking greatly (bahumata) of you, will think in the futurue (yaasyasi) lightly (laagavam) of you and treat you with contempt. Despite going through many humilations in losing the kingdom through treachery etc, Arjuna and other pandavas didn't lose their honor or reputation as great warriors among the common people, because they behaved with honor! Now, running away from the battle, would make him lose all the reputation. There is a thin dividing line between "patience and compassion" and "cowardly and weak". If somebody is very patient and tolerant, it can be sometimes miscontrued as weakness and cowardliness. In this case, it's possible that great understanding souls like Bheeshma and Drona would understand Arjuna's dilemma, but "Duryodhana and Karna etc" would not think it that way. Now, Arjuna says, he doesn't care about what Duryodhan etc thinks and would prefer to not battle. Krishna says, it's not just about Duryodhana, but even the common man will perceive Arjuna as running away from battle and not doing his duty. We should thus understand to differentiate between mercy and patience on one hand and incompetence and cowardice on the other.<blockquote>अवाच्यवादांश्च बहून्वदिष्यन्ति तवाहिताः । निन्दन्तस्तव सामर्थ्यं ततो दुःखतरं नु किम् ॥२- ३६॥</blockquote><blockquote>avācya-vādāṁś ca bahūn vadiṣyanti tavāhitāḥ nindantas tava sāmarthyaṁ tato duḥkha-taraṁ nu kim ॥ 2-36 ॥</blockquote>"Your enemies will describe you in many unkind words and scorn your ability. What could be more painful for you? This slokam is also advising Arjuna not to show "Astaana Sneham". His enemies(ahitAh) will talk (vaadan cya) a lot (Bahun Vadishyanti) of unkind and fabricated (avAcya) words. His abilities (saamarthyam) will be vilified (nindantah). For Arjuna who is so proud about his prowess and "Gandhivaam" would not be able to suffer this ignominy of being humilated by his enemies with slanderous remarks. That is what Krishna is warning Arjuna against. When a friend or wellwishers pass remarks like it, we can tolerate it, because they are close ones. But, when a enemy is vilifiying, a warrior like Arjuna cannot bear it. Now, Arjuna may think, Ok, so what if my enemies poke fun at me. Krishna also gives a vieled warning here, saying that Arjuna may then get provoked and fight the war and if he does so, then he will be potrayed as someone who is fighting due to being slighted and not for the people. A question may arise : Krishna himself "ran away" from battle with Jarasandha and went and built Dwarka city. Arjuna may have the question on why he is suggesting Arjuna to fight and not quit. Sri Krishna was born in Gokulam and after ten years, He lived in Mathura for some years. But King Jarasanda invaded Mathura several times. Seventeen times he invaded and Sri Krishna defeated him every time. Sri Krishna requested His brother Sri Balarama, to go to west seashore and reclaim land from the sea and establish a new city of Dwaraka. Sri Balarama did not agree. When next time Jarasanda invaded Mathura, Sri Krishna ran away from Mathura. Arjuna remembered this incident. But there are two main differences in the two incidents. Firstly, rules, which we follow, cannot be applied on the Lord. Secondly, Sri Krishna had vanquished Jarasanda several times and He was merely acting as though He was running away from Jarasanda out of fear. Here, for Arjuna this is the first time to fight with these people. So, how can he run away and compare this with Sri Krishna s action?<blockquote>हतो वा प्राप्स्यसि स्वर्गं जित्वा वा भोक्ष्यसे महीम् । तस्मादुत्तिष्ठ कौन्तेय युद्धाय कृतनिश्चयः ॥२- ३७॥</blockquote><blockquote>hato vā prāpsyasi svargaṁ jitvā vā bhokṣyase mahīm tasmād uttiṣṭha kaunteya yuddhāya kṛta-niścayaḥ ॥ 2-37 ॥</blockquote>O son of Kunti, either you will be killed on the battlefield and attain the ~~heavenly planets~~, or you will conquer and enjoy the earthly kingdom. Therefore get up and fight with determination." "Tasmad Uttishtha Kaunteya" - Thus! exhorts Krishna to Arjuna to Stand up with determination (krta) to fight (YuddhAya), in this slokam. If you get killed, you will achieve Swargam (Hatoh VA prApasyasi Svargam) and if you win, you will enjoy this worldly kingdom (jitA vA bhoksyase mahim). If you don't fight, you will not achieve either glory here nor in other worlds. He addresses Arjuna as "Kunti Putra" (Kaunteya), because Kunti is renowed for her courage and devotion. In addition, Kunti is Krishna's dear aunty and as such it becomes Krishna's responsibility to protect Krishna. Related comments: Some may say that Asoka gave up war and violence, whereas Krishna is prompting Arjuna for war. Asoka actually gave up wars etc, after fighting numerous wars. Whereas Arjuna's Dharma here is to wage war against Kauravas to protect his people and ensure the kingdom is not ruled by crooked Kauravas. In addition, when both opposition factions are in agreement to call of war, it may make sense to back off (eg: Alexander and Paurus etc), but in this case, there is no such signal from Kauravas. Another question is, Arjuna didn't have similar qualms when warring with Kauravas in the past (Virata yuddham during vanavas), but why is he having the fear now?? In the past, he didn't have to worry about killing Drona or Bheeshma or other close relatives, so there was no issue.<blockquote>सुखदुःखे समे कृत्वा लाभालाभौ जयाजयौ । ततो युद्धाय युज्यस्व नैवं पापमवाप्स्यसि ॥२- ३८॥</blockquote><blockquote>sukha-duḥkhe same kṛtvā lābhālābhau jayājayau tato yuddhāya yujyasva naivaṁ pāpam avāpsyasi ॥ 2-38 ॥</blockquote>2-38: Sukha-dukhe samEy krtva, lAbhaAlabhau jayaAjayau, tathO yudhAya yujasva, naivam pApam avApsyAsi. This begins the prelude to KARMA YOGAM section. Krishna says Arjuna will not incur sun (Naivam pApam avApsyasi), if he just engages in war just for the sake of war (YuddhAya yujasvya) and not with sense of attachment or results. What attachment or results is Krishna referring to here - be equanimous in joy and sorrow i.e no need to feel joy by killing enemies or felling them or no need to feel sorrow in felling opponents such as Bhishma etc. We cannot equate Joy and Sorrow as one, but the feelings and reactions which emanate in the face of joy and sorrow - those feelings is something we need to control and look at it with some sense of detachment. The same sense of equanimity should also be there in the face of gain and loss, victory and defeat. This is in response to Arjuna's lament that he doesn't care about kingdom, winning etc and doesn't want to fight. In response, Krishna said that Arjuna should fight , since it's his duty, which will result in his gaining heavenly kingdom (Moksham). In this slokam, Krishna says that Arjuna should fight as a sense of duty and not get disturbed by dualities such as joy & sorrow, victory & defeat, gain&loss. This is a important qualification for a KarmaYogi! Krishna says that Arjuna should fight as a Karma yogi, as a sense of duty, without consideration or attachment or disturbed by gain or loss, victory or defeat etc and when he does it, there will be no incurring of paap. He who acts for his own sense gratification, either in goodness or in passion, is subject to reaction, good or bad. Knowing the immortal eternal soul to be that which is distinct and independent from the physical body, uncontaminated with the qualities pertaining to the material existence but connected to those qualities which are adhyatmik in nature and eternal; maintaining an equipoised mind in the various conditions of pleasure and pain, loss and gain, victory or defeat being devoid of any fruitive desire or hankering for any reward or remuneration, such as going to the heavenly worlds, fight this righteous battle as a matter of duty which needs to be discharged. One who is situated in wisdom with their mind properly composed in this manner while executing their prescribed duties will incur no impure reactions and thus will be eligible for salvation from material existence. Immoral reactions is the root of all suffering and the cause of perpetual bondage in the cycle of birth and death in the material existence. Arjuna is baffled on how he can do it. Krishna points out that as Rama in the previous avtaar, he followed this same principles!!<blockquote>एषा तेऽभिहिता सांख्ये बुद्धिर्योगे त्विमां शृणु । बुद्ध्या युक्तो यया पार्थ कर्मबन्धं प्रहास्यसि ॥२- ३९॥</blockquote><blockquote>eṣā te ’bhihitā sāṅkhye buddhir yoge tv imāṁ śṛṇu buddhyā yukto yayā pārtha karma-bandhaṁ prahāsyasi ॥ 2-39 ॥</blockquote>"Thus far I have described atman to you through analytical study. Now listen as I explain it in terms of working without trivial results. O son of Pritha, when you act with such knowledge you can free yourself from the bondage of karma." This sloka starts the KARMA yogam section, where krishna expounds on Karma yoga. Gita is the extraction of the sayings of Upanishad. Upanishad - UPA(near), Nishana(getting to Brahman) . Upanishad tells us the reality of Brahman and the ways to reach close to Brahman. The ways it propounds is Karma Yogam, Jnaana Yogam, Bhakti Yogam. In this it's generally considered that Bhakti Yogam is primary and Karma and Jnaana Yogam are it's ancillary i.e for Bhakti, one needs Karma and Jnaana anushtaanam as pre-requisites. nstead of practicing each separately, it is better to have one as the pradhanam [main] and the other two as angam [branches or ancillaries]. Just like in our degree courses we have one subject, say Chemistry, as main and study say, mathematics and physics, as ancillaries. Similarly, if one decides to seek Moksham through Karmayoga, then one has to have Gyanayoga and Bhakthiyoga as ancillaries. But there is a difference. In the education system, pass in the main can be done without studying the ancillaries. Whereas, in seeking Moksham, if Bhakthiyoga has to be practiced, then one has to practice Karmayoga and Gyanayoga. Without these two, a person cannot practice Bhakthiyoga. Upanishad says - Atma Drashtavaya, Stortavyaa, mantvyaya, nidhistavyaaya - i.e we should constantly, deeply, exclusively hear about the lord for reaching him. Question is, we also need to know how to conduct ourselves in this world, while we seek to achieve salvation(Moksham). The primary requirement for it is to realise that body is temporary and soul is eternal and salvation lies in getting out of the cycle of birth and death. If one doesn't realise this, then it's not possible to get away from this never ending cycle and we will be forever caught in this web of material existence. So, the first step is to realise that Soul is eternal and body is temporary. To realize Paramatma, atman has to listen about Him. Then, contemplate on what was listened to. Then meditate without interruption , but with concentration. Such continuous meditation is called Bhakthi and this results in merging with the Paramatma. This will make the atman to feel happy in union with and sorrow in separation from God. Thereafter, the soul departs this body and this world and reaches Moksham and remains with Him in eternal happiness. It is a stairway to Moksham. All born cannot immediately go for Moksham. In this world lots of good things are to be done and this life has to be happily spent. But the objective should be to reach Moksham after this life without the perils of another birth. When will this thought come? First, one should realize that this body is perishable and atman is indestructible. If one thinks atman and body are same, when body perishes, atman also will perish and then there would be no need for Moksham or worry about rebirth. So, this basic knowledge that atman and body are different is essential. Not merely accepting that they are separate, it should be firmly believed that atman is eternal and body is destroyable. Further, it should be realized that in this life happiness and sorrow are mixed. The natural feeling of the atman is always happy. But when inside a body in this earth, mixed feelings are unavoidable. So, the objective should be to get the everlasting happiness, its natural quality. This pursuit is necessary. Next step is to know that Soul is owned(adimai) by Paramatma and we are not owners or independent. This realization about atman and body is the first step in the stairway. This step alone cannot take to the top. The next step is to realize that this atman is servant of God. Paramatma is the ruler and atman is ruled. Therefore, atman has to cling to the Feet of the Lord. Instead of saying that Karmayaoga, Gyanayoga and Bhakthyoga are various paths to reach Moksham, Bhakthyoga is the main. Visiting temples, chanting His names and helping His devotees, will all constitute Bhakthiyoga. For this as main one needs Karma [action] and Gyana [knowledge]. These are needed in any activity. Ways to reach the lord are Karma, Jnaana and Bhakti Yogam. Rather than saying three yogams are seperate and independent, we can say Bhakti yogam is the primary way to reach lord and this involves singing, chanting, visting holy places, helping others, being close to devotees etc. Bhakti yogam has two angas, karma and Jnaana - it requires discipline and knowledge. It is similar to - for riding a vehicle, one needs knowledge that vehicle requires petrol etc to run, need to operate clutch and brake together, brake to stop the vehicle and in addition one needs the skills to operate the vehicle. Similarly for Bhakti, one needs knowledge and discipline. ANd to even start this course, the primary pre-requisite is the basic knowledge that Atma is Nityam and Body is temporary. Krishna has followed the same pattern. From slokas 2-12 onwards to sloka 2-30, Krishna has emphasized that Atma is Nityam and temporary nature of the body. From Slokams 2-39 to 2-51, Krishna expounds on Karma Yogam and after that he expounds Jnaana Yogam and in Chapters 7,8,9 he expounds on Bhakti Yogam and in the later chapters he explains the ways for Moksha. So, Geeta has been laid out in this manner - Initially in the second chapter (slokas 12 to 30), it tells us the nature of the soul and the temporary nature of body, since this is the primary pre-requisite. Next, it explains the ways of Karma Yogam i.e how to do our duties. NExt, it explains Jnaana yogam (knowledge). Next, it explains Bhakti yogam (which needs knowledge of soul, how to do our

+

has to conclude to perform an action. Krishna terms this war as "Sangraamam" and not "Yuddham", in this slokam. Why? Because the war has already started and the armies ready to battle! Yudhdham means it could start even next day or after. But sangramam means that is already started and when both sides are aligned and ready to fight. Peace efforts could have been initiated before start of a fight but not after it had started. Such efforts before the fight began would be appreciated; but after it had started any such efforts would be branded as act of cowardice. So Sri Krishna cautions that if Arjuna decided to withdraw from the war, he will be defamed and then he would also be slipping from his expected dharma, resulting in paapa to accumulate. So by abandoning the fight he will fail in his swadharmam, that is his duty as Kshatriya to fight, and lose kirti or fame. Even if he does not care for the fame, paap or paap will accrue for slipping from swadharma. Sri Krishna lists the two, swadharma and kirti, as necessities for life in this world and in the nether world. Sri Krishna uses the words dharmyam sangraman, which means fight performed righteously. This war is for establishing dharma, it is to be performed legally and the outcome also is for dharma, a high objective. Since Arjuna, desirous of preservation of dharma, this is a holy and upright war. The word sangramam is used instead of yudhdham. . Why? Because it is as per the law, dharma shastras, the results are worth it. If he doesn't fight this battle - all the fame(Keerti) he achieved in the past as a warrior will be gone, giving up his "svadharma" as a Kshatriya, he will incur Paapa (Paapam Avaapsyaasi). If through injudicious sentiment or bewildered ignorance Arjuna should fail to perform his prescribed duty as a ksatriya by fighting for the sake of righteousness; he would lose a most excellent opportunity of attaining the heavenly spheres, he would lose his reputation as a hero and he would have to accept great impure reaction.Losing Fame and Name (Keerti) is a big loss in this Lokam for a Kshatriya and Arjuna will lose it, if he doesn't battle. Not only that, even in the other worlds, Arjuna will be at loss, since by shirking his duty , he incurs paap and doesn't gain swargam. Karma Yogam basically is doing one's duty as per his "ashrama dharma" (Varanaashrama) and that leads to Bhakti Yogam. If Arjuna is shedding his basic duty, he is not doing either Karma or Bhakti yogam and that leads him to paap. **Abide by swadharma is what is advocated.<blockquote>अकीर्तिं चापि भूतानि कथयिष्यन्ति तेऽव्ययाम् । सम्भावितस्य चाकीर्तिर्मरणादतिरिच्यते ॥२- ३४॥</blockquote><blockquote>akīrtiṁ cāpi bhūtāni kathayiṣyanti te ’vyayām sambhāvitasya cākīrtir maraṇād atiricyate ॥ 2-34 ॥</blockquote>"Creatures will always speak of your infamy, and for a respectable person, dishonor is worse than death." In this slokam, Krishna continues detailing the ills which would befall if Arjuna runs away from the war. He says that Arjuna will lose his honor and reputation as great warrior which he gained from all times (avyaayam) and be (kaithshyanti) ridiculed by all people (Bhutaani) that he has run away from the battle. This infamy will be worse than death for somebody as honored and reputable as Arjuna. For a wise man, discrimination(vivekam), courage, bravery, calmness and caution all need to be prevalent. Arjuna cannot say that he doesn't care about his reputation and run away. It may be ok for a common man, but for a great personality like Arjuna with a legacy of honor, it will come off poorly. Not only will happiness and fame elude him if he disregards his duty as a ksatriya but the world opinion of those competent to judge and those incompetent as well will chastise him and speak of his act of disgrace public and privately. They will say Arjuna was a coward for when the battle was about to begin he gave only excuses and retreated hastily from the battlefield. The Supreme Lord Krishna is telling him that forever history will brand him for cowardice. If Arjuna was to reply that what the public think is of no consequence to him, the Supreme Lord neutralises that by stating that for a person of honour possessing the qualities of heroism, determination, puissance, courage etc. which are all contrary to cowardice to have to accept infamy is worse than death. If he was to acquire disgrace of this kind death for him would certainly be much better. If reasoning further one was to present the question of how ignominy could attach itself to one who is already a renowned hero and whose resignation from the battle field is prompted only by motives of respect for elders and compassion to friends and relatives then the next verse 34 neutralises that argument.<blockquote>भयाद्रणादुपरतं मंस्यन्ते त्वां महारथाः । येषां च त्वं बहुमतो भूत्वा यास्यसि लाघवम् ॥२- ३५॥</blockquote><blockquote>bhayād raṇād uparataṁ maṁsyante tvāṁ mahā-rathāḥ yeṣāṁ ca tvaṁ bahu-mato bhūtvā yāsyasi lāghavam ॥ 2-35 ॥</blockquote>"The great generals who have highly esteemed your name and fame will think that you have left the battlefield out of fear only, and thus they will consider you irrelevant." "Astaana Sneham" - Showing compassion to the wrong places and towards the wrong people, like Arjuna is doing by showing compassion etc towards Duryodhana etc. In this slokam, Krishna responds to Arjuna's doubt from the previous slokam. Arjuna asks how can he get dishonor when he is withdrawing from the battle only out of love and compassion towards his relatives and avoiding bloodshed. Krishna responds about Arjuna(Tvam), the mahaarathis(warriors like Duryodhan, Karna) etc will think (manyate) that out of fear (bhayaat) that you ran (uparatam) from the battle (ranaat) and for those (yesham bhutvah) who have been thinking greatly (bahumata) of you, will think in the futurue (yaasyasi) lightly (laagavam) of you and treat you with contempt. Despite going through many humilations in losing the kingdom through treachery etc, Arjuna and other pandavas didn't lose their honor or reputation as great warriors among the common people, because they behaved with honor! Now, running away from the battle, would make him lose all the reputation. There is a thin dividing line between "patience and compassion" and "cowardly and weak". If somebody is very patient and tolerant, it can be sometimes miscontrued as weakness and cowardliness. In this case, it's possible that great understanding souls like Bheeshma and Drona would understand Arjuna's dilemma, but "Duryodhana and Karna etc" would not think it that way. Now, Arjuna says, he doesn't care about what Duryodhan etc thinks and would prefer to not battle. Krishna says, it's not just about Duryodhana, but even the common man will perceive Arjuna as running away from battle and not doing his duty. We should thus understand to differentiate between mercy and patience on one hand and incompetence and cowardice on the other.<blockquote>अवाच्यवादांश्च बहून्वदिष्यन्ति तवाहिताः । निन्दन्तस्तव सामर्थ्यं ततो दुःखतरं नु किम् ॥२- ३६॥</blockquote><blockquote>avācya-vādāṁś ca bahūn vadiṣyanti tavāhitāḥ nindantas tava sāmarthyaṁ tato duḥkha-taraṁ nu kim ॥ 2-36 ॥</blockquote>"Your enemies will describe you in many unkind words and scorn your ability. What could be more painful for you? This slokam is also advising Arjuna not to show "Astaana Sneham". His enemies(ahitAh) will talk (vaadan cya) a lot (Bahun Vadishyanti) of unkind and fabricated (avAcya) words. His abilities (saamarthyam) will be vilified (nindantah). For Arjuna who is so proud about his prowess and "Gandhivaam" would not be able to suffer this ignominy of being humilated by his enemies with slanderous remarks. That is what Krishna is warning Arjuna against. When a friend or wellwishers pass remarks like it, we can tolerate it, because they are close ones. But, when a enemy is vilifiying, a warrior like Arjuna cannot bear it. Now, Arjuna may think, Ok, so what if my enemies poke fun at me. Krishna also gives a vieled warning here, saying that Arjuna may then get provoked and fight the war and if he does so, then he will be potrayed as someone who is fighting due to being slighted and not for the people. A question may arise : Krishna himself "ran away" from battle with Jarasandha and went and built Dwarka city. Arjuna may have the question on why he is suggesting Arjuna to fight and not quit. Sri Krishna was born in Gokulam and after ten years, He lived in Mathura for some years. But King Jarasanda invaded Mathura several times. Seventeen times he invaded and Sri Krishna defeated him every time. Sri Krishna requested His brother Sri Balarama, to go to west seashore and reclaim land from the sea and establish a new city of Dwaraka. Sri Balarama did not agree. When next time Jarasanda invaded Mathura, Sri Krishna ran away from Mathura. Arjuna remembered this incident. But there are two main differences in the two incidents. Firstly, rules, which we follow, cannot be applied on the Lord. Secondly, Sri Krishna had vanquished Jarasanda several times and He was merely acting as though He was running away from Jarasanda out of fear. Here, for Arjuna this is the first time to fight with these people. So, how can he run away and compare this with Sri Krishna s action?<blockquote>हतो वा प्राप्स्यसि स्वर्गं जित्वा वा भोक्ष्यसे महीम् । तस्मादुत्तिष्ठ कौन्तेय युद्धाय कृतनिश्चयः ॥२- ३७॥</blockquote><blockquote>hato vā prāpsyasi svargaṁ jitvā vā bhokṣyase mahīm tasmād uttiṣṭha kaunteya yuddhāya kṛta-niścayaḥ ॥ 2-37 ॥</blockquote>O son of Kunti, either you will be killed on the battlefield and attain the svarga loka, or you will conquer and enjoy the earthly kingdom. Therefore get up and fight with determination." "Tasmad Uttishtha Kaunteya" - Thus! exhorts Krishna to Arjuna to Stand up with determination (krta) to fight (YuddhAya), in this slokam. If you get killed, you will achieve Swargam (Hatoh VA prApasyasi Svargam) and if you win, you will enjoy this worldly kingdom (jitA vA bhoksyase mahim). If you don't fight, you will not achieve either glory here nor in other worlds. He addresses Arjuna as "Kunti Putra" (Kaunteya), because Kunti is renowed for her courage and devotion. In addition, Kunti is Krishna's dear aunty and as such it becomes Krishna's responsibility to protect Krishna. Related comments: Some may say that Asoka gave up war and violence, whereas Krishna is prompting Arjuna for war. Asoka actually gave up wars etc, after fighting numerous wars. Whereas Arjuna's Dharma here is to wage war against Kauravas to protect his people and ensure the kingdom is not ruled by crooked Kauravas. In addition, when both opposition factions are in agreement to call of war, it may make sense to back off (eg: Alexander and Paurus etc), but in this case, there is no such signal from Kauravas. Another question is, Arjuna didn't have similar qualms when warring with Kauravas in the past (Virata yuddham during vanavas), but why is he having the fear now?? In the past, he didn't have to worry about killing Drona or Bheeshma or other close relatives, so there was no issue.<blockquote>सुखदुःखे समे कृत्वा लाभालाभौ जयाजयौ । ततो युद्धाय युज्यस्व नैवं पापमवाप्स्यसि ॥२- ३८॥</blockquote><blockquote>sukha-duḥkhe same kṛtvā lābhālābhau jayājayau tato yuddhāya yujyasva naivaṁ pāpam avāpsyasi ॥ 2-38 ॥</blockquote>2-38: Sukha-dukhe samEy krtva, lAbhaAlabhau jayaAjayau, tathO yudhAya yujasva, naivam pApam avApsyAsi. This begins the prelude to KARMA YOGAM section. Krishna says Arjuna will not incur sun (Naivam pApam avApsyasi), if he just engages in war just for the sake of war (YuddhAya yujasvya) and not with sense of attachment or results. What attachment or results is Krishna referring to here - be equanimous in joy and sorrow i.e no need to feel joy by killing enemies or felling them or no need to feel sorrow in felling opponents such as Bhishma etc. We cannot equate Joy and Sorrow as one, but the feelings and reactions which emanate in the face of joy and sorrow - those feelings is something we need to control and look at it with some sense of detachment. The same sense of equanimity should also be there in the face of gain and loss, victory and defeat. This is in response to Arjuna's lament that he doesn't care about kingdom, winning etc and doesn't want to fight. In response, Krishna said that Arjuna should fight , since it's his duty, which will result in his gaining heavenly kingdom (Moksham). In this slokam, Krishna says that Arjuna should fight as a sense of duty and not get disturbed by dualities such as joy & sorrow, victory & defeat, gain&loss. This is a important qualification for a KarmaYogi! Krishna says that Arjuna should fight as a Karma yogi, as a sense of duty, without consideration or attachment or disturbed by gain or loss, victory or defeat etc and when he does it, there will be no incurring of paap. He who acts for his own sense gratification, either in goodness or in passion, is subject to reaction, good or bad. Knowing the immortal eternal soul to be that which is distinct and independent from the physical body, uncontaminated with the qualities pertaining to the material existence but connected to those qualities which are adhyatmik in nature and eternal; maintaining an equipoised mind in the various conditions of pleasure and pain, loss and gain, victory or defeat being devoid of any fruitive desire or hankering for any reward or remuneration, such as going to the heavenly worlds, fight this righteous battle as a matter of duty which needs to be discharged. One who is situated in wisdom with their mind properly composed in this manner while executing their prescribed duties will incur no impure reactions and thus will be eligible for salvation from material existence. Immoral reactions is the root of all suffering and the cause of perpetual bondage in the cycle of birth and death in the material existence. Arjuna is baffled on how he can do it. Krishna points out that as Rama in the previous avtaar, he followed this same principles!!<blockquote>एषा तेऽभिहिता सांख्ये बुद्धिर्योगे त्विमां शृणु । बुद्ध्या युक्तो यया पार्थ कर्मबन्धं प्रहास्यसि ॥२- ३९॥</blockquote><blockquote>eṣā te ’bhihitā sāṅkhye buddhir yoge tv imāṁ śṛṇu buddhyā yukto yayā pārtha karma-bandhaṁ prahāsyasi ॥ 2-39 ॥</blockquote>"Thus far I have described atman to you through analytical study. Now listen as I explain it in terms of working without trivial results. O son of Pritha, when you act with such knowledge you can free yourself from the bondage of karma." This sloka starts the KARMA yogam section, where krishna expounds on Karma yoga. Gita is the extraction of the sayings of Upanishad. Upanishad - UPA(near), Nishana(getting to Brahman) . Upanishad tells us the reality of Brahman and the ways to reach close to Brahman. The ways it propounds is Karma Yogam, Jnaana Yogam, Bhakti Yogam. In this it's generally considered that Bhakti Yogam is primary and Karma and Jnaana Yogam are it's ancillary i.e for Bhakti, one needs Karma and Jnaana anushtaanam as pre-requisites. nstead of practicing each separately, it is better to have one as the pradhanam [main] and the other two as angam [branches or ancillaries]. Just like in our degree courses we have one subject, say Chemistry, as main and study say, mathematics and physics, as ancillaries. Similarly, if one decides to seek Moksham through Karmayoga, then one has to have Gyanayoga and Bhakthiyoga as ancillaries. But there is a difference. In the education system, pass in the main can be done without studying the ancillaries. Whereas, in seeking Moksham, if Bhakthiyoga has to be practiced, then one has to practice Karmayoga and Gyanayoga. Without these two, a person cannot practice Bhakthiyoga. Upanishad says - Atma Drashtavaya, Stortavyaa, mantvyaya, nidhistavyaaya - i.e we should constantly, deeply, exclusively hear about the lord for reaching him. Question is, we also need to know how to conduct ourselves in this world, while we seek to achieve salvation(Moksham). The primary requirement for it is to realise that body is temporary and soul is eternal and salvation lies in getting out of the cycle of birth and death. If one doesn't realise this, then it's not possible to get away from this never ending cycle and we will be forever caught in this web of material existence. So, the first step is to realise that Soul is eternal and body is temporary. To realize Paramatma, atman has to listen about Him. Then, contemplate on what was listened to. Then meditate without interruption , but with concentration. Such continuous meditation is called Bhakthi and this results in merging with the Paramatma. This will make the atman to feel happy in union with and sorrow in separation from God. Thereafter, the soul departs this body and this world and reaches Moksham and remains with Him in eternal happiness. It is a stairway to Moksham. All born cannot immediately go for Moksham. In this world lots of good things are to be done and this life has to be happily spent. But the objective should be to reach Moksham after this life without the perils of another birth. When will this thought come? First, one should realize that this body is perishable and atman is indestructible. If one thinks atman and body are same, when body perishes, atman also will perish and then there would be no need for Moksham or worry about rebirth. So, this basic knowledge that atman and body are different is essential. Not merely accepting that they are separate, it should be firmly believed that atman is eternal and body is destroyable. Further, it should be realized that in this life happiness and sorrow are mixed. The natural feeling of the atman is always happy. But when inside a body in this earth, mixed feelings are unavoidable. So, the objective should be to get the everlasting happiness, its natural quality. This pursuit is necessary. Next step is to know that Soul is owned(adimai) by Paramatma and we are not owners or independent. This realization about atman and body is the first step in the stairway. This step alone cannot take to the top. The next step is to realize that this atman is servant of God. Paramatma is the ruler and atman is ruled. Therefore, atman has to cling to the Feet of the Lord. Instead of saying that Karmayaoga, Gyanayoga and Bhakthyoga are various paths to reach Moksham, Bhakthyoga is the main. Visiting temples, chanting His names and helping His devotees, will all constitute Bhakthiyoga. For this as main one needs Karma [action] and Gyana [knowledge]. These are needed in any activity. Ways to reach the lord are Karma, Jnaana and Bhakti Yogam. Rather than saying three yogams are seperate and independent, we can say Bhakti yogam is the primary way to reach lord and this involves singing, chanting, visting holy places, helping others, being close to devotees etc. Bhakti yogam has two angas, karma and Jnaana - it requires discipline and knowledge. It is similar to - for riding a vehicle, one needs knowledge that vehicle requires petrol etc to run, need to operate clutch and brake together, brake to stop the vehicle and in addition one needs the skills to operate the vehicle. Similarly for Bhakti, one needs knowledge and discipline. ANd to even start this course, the primary pre-requisite is the basic knowledge that Atma is Nityam and Body is temporary. Krishna has followed the same pattern. From slokas 2-12 onwards to sloka 2-30, Krishna has emphasized that Atma is Nityam and temporary nature of the body. From Slokams 2-39 to 2-51, Krishna expounds on Karma Yogam and after that he expounds Jnaana Yogam and in Chapters 7,8,9 he expounds on Bhakti Yogam and in the later chapters he explains the ways for Moksha. So, Geeta has been laid out in this manner - Initially in the second chapter (slokas 12 to 30), it tells us the nature of the soul and the temporary nature of body, since this is the primary pre-requisite. Next, it explains the ways of Karma Yogam i.e how to do our duties. NExt, it explains Jnaana yogam (knowledge). Next, it explains Bhakti yogam (which needs knowledge of soul, how to do our

duty, knowledge) and next it explains ways for Moksham. In this slokam, "esa te abhihitA SANKHYE!" - note, esA te i.e in the slokas (2-12 to 2-30), i have explained (abhitha) the philosophy of Sankhye!. Sankhya means "buddhi" and Sankhyam is "the Atma which is understood by Buddhi" and Sankhye is the philosophy which describes the real nature of the soul (i.e it is nityam, it is eternal). I.e i have explained about Sankya Yoga(the true nature of the soul). 'Sankhya' means 'intellect,' and the truth about the Atman, which is determinable by the intellect, is 'Sankhyam'. Concerning the nature of the self which has to be known, whatever Buddhi has to be taught, has been taught to you in the passage beginning with, 'It is not that I did not exist' (II.12) and ending with the words, 'Therefore, you shall not grieve for any being' (II.30). Krishna says - "yayA buddhyA yuktah" - that buddhih (intelligence) by which , "Karma bandham prahAsyasi" you can released from bondage of reaction - that knowledge (Karma yogam) will be explained to him. The disposition of mind (Buddhi) which is required for the performance of works preceded by knowledge of the self and which thus constitutes the means of attaining release, that is here called by the term Yoga. It will be clearly told later on, 'Work done with desire for fruits is far inferior to work done with evennes of mind' (II. 49). "buddhir yoge tv imAm srunu" - Now Listen(Srnu) about yogE buddhi (karma yogam). What Buddhi or attitude of mind is required for making your act deserve the name of Yoga, listen to it now. Endowed with that knowledge, you will be able to cast away the bondage of Karma. 'Karma-bandha' means the bondage due to Karma i.e., the bondage of Samsara. 'Sankhya' means 'intellect,' and the truth about the Atman, which is determinable by the intellect, is 'Sankhyam'. Concerning the nature of the self which has to be known, whatever Buddhi has to be taught, has been taught to you in the passage beginning with, 'It is not that I did not exist' (II.12) and ending with the words, 'Therefore, you shall not grieve for any being' (II.30). The disposition of mind (Buddhi) which is required for the performance of works preceded by knowledge of the self and which thus constitutes the means of attaining release, that is here called by the term Yoga. It will be clearly told later on, 'Work done with desire for fruits is far inferior to work done with evennes of mind' (II. 49). What Buddhi or attitude of mind is required for making your act deserve the name of Yoga, listen to it now. Endowed with that knowledge, you will be able to cast away the bondage of Karma. 'Karma-bandha' means the bondage due to Karma i.e., the bondage of Samsara. Now question comes up, Arjuna is not intrested in fighting. So, why is Krishna talking about Sankha Yogam, Karma yogam etc, rather than just exhorting Arjuna to fight?? Krishna first explains thru Sankha Yogam that Souls are eternal and body is temporary, thus killing in a just war is not sinful and Arjuna shouldn't go weak at the thought of killing relatives etc. Next, Krishna addresses the concern of Arjuna about not being intrested in fruits of war etc, by talking about Karma Yogam and explaining that Arjuna need not fight for fruitive results, but a Saadhanam for Moksham. Waging just war is a Kshatriya Dharma and is his karma yogam. Karma Yogam: Introduction: One can do a thing anywhere, or as prescribed in vedas or not prescribed according to vedas. But, if one performs a duty in a "loukeeka" fashion, one doesn't get any benefit other than material benefits. But, if one does one's duty as per the viddhi of vedas, eg> when we bath at home, under a tap etc, there is no additional benefit, apart from cleaning body. But, if we take a dip in ganges and other temple pushkarinis, the body not only gets cleaned, but we are also blessed with washing away of paap. Why? Because it's prescribed in vedas. What constitutes Karma yogam - All our daily activities, eating, sleeping, working, helping etc basically constitute Karma yogam. Simple? Right? Yes. But, this needs to be done as per the prescription of Vedas and not do anything which is NOT prescribed in the vedas. And it needs to be done in full faith and spirit and also NOT with sense of attachment. For eg: if one takes bath in Pushkarini, without any belief in it's powers, then it will not help. Again, What is Karma yoga? It is eating, sleeping, working, etc. Nothing extra is required to be done. But these activities are to be done as prescribed in shastras. This is very important. If we do our activities according to the dos and don ts of shastras, it is karmayoga. If we do karma yoga we are sure to attain Moksham. Shastras are instructions given by God. He has told that He liberates the one who faithfully follows His instructions. Once we have that belief that we are acting according to the stipulations of the Lord, He also will erase all our paap and make us to reach our natural state of happiness,Moksham. In these instructions one is asked to eat, sleep and work. Nowhere the shastras ask us not to do anything else. The person instructed [by shastras] could be a bachelor or married or sanyasin or a beast or bird. Whoever be, if the prescribed action is performed with a firm belief that this will yield Moksham, that result will be achieved. A bath in this pond with a belief that it will only remove my body dirt, then this action will not get Moksham. But same action with a firm belief that I will get Moksham, by bathing in this pond, will get Moksham. So a steadfast belief is to be there along with the vidhi. So: Karma Yogam constitutes: <nowiki>*</nowiki> Performing duties which are prescribed and NOT doing anything which is against prescribed <nowiki>*</nowiki> Belief in it and doing it as Bhagavan's viddhi that it's a means for moksham. (eg: not having faith while bathing in holy waters, but just doing it because it's prescribed!) (eg: Marrying, having kids, performing family duties etc should be done as Karma yogam, since it is prescribed and do it as a means of moksham i.e just as duty). Karma can be divided into three: <nowiki>*</nowiki> Nitya Karma - to be practiced daily. Tharpanam, Daana-Dharama(Charity), Festival celebration <nowiki>*</nowiki> Naimitika Karma - to be performed due to certain reasons or in certain occasions <nowiki>*</nowiki> Kaamya Karma - Doing things with desire for material benefits, to achieve certain goals eg: passing exam, marriage etc All these karmas or actions are stipulated. These have to be done uninterruptedly. Performing annual ceremonies [shraddham] for deceased forefathers [pithru], celebrating festivals, etc. are all Karma yoga. Why Sri Krishna is encouraging Arjuna to fight? Because it is stipulated for him. He is asked to do what he learnt. So, Karma yoga can be performed by anybody. Sri Krishna lauds the greatness of Karma yoga in the next sloka.<blockquote>नेहाभिक्रमनाशोऽस्ति प्रत्यवायो न विद्यते । स्वल्पमप्यस्य धर्मस्य त्रायते महतो भयात् ॥२- ४०॥</blockquote><blockquote>nehābhikrama-nāśo ’sti pratyavāyo na vidyate sv-alpam apy asya dharmasya trāyate mahato bhayāt ॥ 2-40 ॥</blockquote>2-40: nehA-abhikrama nAso-asti ! Pratya-vAyo na vidyate! svalpam apya-sya dharmasya! trAyateh mahato bhayAt! "In this endeavor [karma yoga] there is no loss or lessening for a little advancement on this path and can protect one from the most dangerous type of fear." In this slokam, Krishna expounds the benefit and greatness of Karma Yogam. Just like a Parent tells a kid that what glory would be, if he achieves 99% marks , to intrest the kid in studying, similarly Krishna tells the greatness of Karma Yogam to Arjuna, before explaining the details of Karma Yogam. "NehA abikramoa-Nasao Asti" - There is no loss in this Karma yogam. eg. unlike leaves which "lapse", this doesn't lapse. It "carries" over it's benefits. For eg: if we follow for sometime and discontinue, the benefits of whatever we did will not lapse. One percent of work done in Krishna consciousness bears permanent results, so that the next beginning is from the point of two percent, whereas in material business, without a hundred percent profit there is no success. or it's like writing an exam- attempt an answer but even if you do not get the right answer or not complete it, even then the examiner puts marks based on how much you wrote correctly. "pratyavAyo na vidyate" - Another fear is, if we stop karma in between, we incur paap etc. Arjuna is scared that incuring paap would make it a bigger issue and invite additional paap. Krishna says here that, there is no need to fear and it does not happen that way, as long as one performs duties with selfless spirit as a sense of duty for Moksham and not for material gains etc. "Svalpma apsya Dharmasya" - Even performing a little will still help. Atleast do svalpa! (how kind of krishna!) "TrAyateh Mahatoh BhayAt" - Doing the above can protect one from the greatest danger and fear of samsara. The Supreme Lord Krishna reveals that even the slightest, most minuscule effort made regarding this karma yoga of performing actions without desiring fruitive results is never in vain. The word abhikrama is derived from arambha meaning any beginning as in any effort. The word nasa means destruction as in loss of, thus the effort itself is the means to a guaranteed result. Not even is failure accrued when a righteous action is begun but is unable to be completed due to circumstances and absolutely no negative effect will accrue even when a righteous action is interrupted at its very commencement. Even a the most minute righteous action performed without desiring fruitive results saves one with adhyatmik knowledge from the great fear of the endless cycle of birth and death in the material existence. This same view is further elaborated later in chapter six, verse 40 describing that in this world or the next there is no loss or dimunition for the aspirant.<blockquote>व्यवसायात्मिका बुद्धिरेकेह कुरुनन्दन । बहुशाखा ह्यनन्ताश्च बुद्धयोऽव्यवसायिनाम् ॥२- ४१॥</blockquote><blockquote>vyavasāyātmikā buddhir ekeha kuru-nandana bahu-śākhā hy anantāś ca buddhayo ’vyavasāyinām ॥ 2-41 ॥</blockquote>"Those who are on this path[ with Moksham as objective] are resolute in purpose,

and their aim is one. O beloved child of the Kurus, the intelligence of those who

Line 225: Line 227:

astiti vadinah

"Men of small knowledge are very much attached to the flowery words of the Vedas,

−

which recommend various trivial activities for elevation to ~~heavenly planets~~,

+

which recommend various trivial activities for elevation to svarga loka,

resultant good birth, power, and so forth

Through all these slokas, Sri Krishna is instructing that all actions should be

Line 234: Line 236:

accumulated is not permanent.

What was comfortable yesterday may be irritating today. Thirdly, we are His

−

servants and so we should accept only what He ordains. Our service also should

+

servants and so we should accept only what He ordains. Our seva (सेवा | selfless service) also should

only be for His pleasure.

By aspiring for lowly results, our attribute as His dependent is maligned.

Line 527: Line 529:

celestial worlds with heavenly delights.

The words anyad astiti vadinah defines those who contend that no higher goal

−

exists beyond the ~~heavenly planets~~.

+

exists beyond the svarga loka.

The word kamatmanah defines those whose minds are always seeking enjoyment

engrossed in material sense gratification.

Line 1,216: Line 1,218:

for anything it would be limited but if God Himself grants it would be profuse.

So, instead of praying God to grant this or that, we should leave all our

−

requirements to His judgment and devote ourselves in His service. This is a basic

+

requirements to His judgment and devote ourselves in His seva (सेवा | selfless service). This is a basic

tenet of Karma yoga.

In the preceding 47th, 48th and 49th slokas, Sri Krishna explained the difference

Line 1,384: Line 1,386:

He sprinkles water, which is His compassion, on the entire route to make the Atman

feel comfortable. Nammalwar wanted to reach the Holy Feet of the Lord and remain

−

in service in

+

in seva (सेवा | selfless service) in

Vaikuntam. We also can cling to the lotus feet of the Sri Kalamega Perumal praised

by Alwar. Such is the splendor His murti or vigraha and all should come here and experience

Line 1,430: Line 1,432:

constitutional position as the

eternal servitor of the Lord, and thus knows the position of the Personality of

−

Godhead, engages himself in the transcendental loving service of the Lord.

+

Godhead, engages himself in the transcendental loving seva (सेवा | selfless service) of the Lord.

Consequently he becomes qualified

−

to enter into the Vaikuntha ~~planets~~, where there is neither material, miserable

+

to enter into the Vaikuntha loka, where there is neither material, miserable

life nor the influence of time and death. To know one's constitutional position

means to know also the sublime

position of the Lord. One who wrongly thinks that the living entity's position and

the Lord's position are on the same level is to be understood to be in darkness

−

and therefore unable to engage himself in the devotional service of the Lord. He

+

and therefore unable to engage himself in the devotional seva (सेवा | selfless service) of the Lord. He

becomes a lord himself and thus paves the way for the repetition of birth and

death. But one who, understanding that his position is to serve, transfers himself

−

to the service of the Lord, at once becomes eligible for Vaikunthaloka. ~~Service~~

+

to the seva (सेवा | selfless service) of the Lord, at once becomes eligible for Vaikunthaloka. seva (सेवा | selfless service)

for the cause of the Lord is called karma-yoga or buddhi-yoga, or in plain words,

−

devotional service to the Lord.

+

devotional seva (सेवा | selfless service) to the Lord.

2.52

yada te moha-kalilam buddhir vyati-tarisyati

Line 1,981: Line 1,983:

the Lord, thinking himself unworthy of the happiness; he realizes that it is due

only to the Lord's grace that he is in

−

such a comfortable condition and able to render better service to the Lord.

+

such a comfortable condition and able to render better seva (सेवा | selfless service) to the Lord.

−

And, for the service of the Lord, he is always daring and active and is not

+

And, for the seva (सेवा | selfless service) of the Lord, he is always daring and active and is not

influenced by attachment or aversion.

Attachment means accepting things for one's own sense gratification, and

detachment is the absence of such sensual attachment. But one fixed in Krsna

consciousness has neither

−

attachment nor detachment because his life is dedicated in the service of the

+

attachment nor detachment because his life is dedicated in the seva (सेवा | selfless service) of the

Lord. Consequently he is not at all angry even when his attempts are unsuccessful.

A Krsna conscious person is always steady in his determination.

Line 2,200: Line 2,202:

thousands of births. One crocodile grabbed the elephant while five crocodiles in

the form of organs have seized the Alwar. So organs are a great menace to all

−

including the Nithyasuris who are doing intimate service to the Lord at Vaikuntam.

+

including the Nithyasuris who are doing intimate seva (सेवा | selfless service) to the Lord at Vaikuntam.

−

We see persons doing very noble service to the Lord in temples. But they are not

+

We see persons doing very noble seva (सेवा | selfless service) to the Lord in temples. But they are not

free from the power of senses. We are daily witnessing the fights for position and

greed for money in such

Line 2,285: Line 2,287:

snkeertan singing His names- or listening to His stories or talking in praise of

Him or going to temples and involving in sacred activities there, are all efforts

−

to place our organs in His service. This will with His blessings, enable us to

+

to place our organs in His seva (सेवा | selfless service). This will with His blessings, enable us to

control the organs. Disciplining organs will pave the way for atman darshan. We

can also follow this simple and easier method.

Line 2,319: Line 2,321:

The king was able to control

his senses because he was a true devotee of the Lord and engaged all his senses in

−

the service of the Lord. The word mat-parah is most significant in this

+

the seva (सेवा | selfless service) of the Lord. The word mat-parah is most significant in this

connection. How one can become

a mat-parah is described in the life of Maharaja Ambarisa. Srila Baladeva

Line 2,325: Line 2,327:

"mad-bhakti-prabhavena sarvendriya

-vijaya-purvika svatma-drstih sulabheti bhavah." "The senses can be completely

−

controlled only by the strength of devotional service to Krsna."

+

controlled only by the strength of devotional seva (सेवा | selfless service) to Krsna."

So in conclusion one cannot be in transcendent meditation without controlling the

senses. And that controlling the senses is not possible without devotion to Lord

Line 2,419: Line 2,421:

adhyatmik opportunity being drowned again and again in samsara the endless cycle

of birth and death in the material existence. So we should devote all our mind and

−

activities at the service of Lord to ensure our mind does not go astray due to

+

activities at the seva (सेवा | selfless service) of Lord to ensure our mind does not go astray due to

sense objects and material gratification. The senses require real engagements, and

−

if they are not engaged in the transcendental loving service of the Lord, they

+

if they are not engaged in the transcendental loving seva (सेवा | selfless service) of the Lord, they

will certainly seek engagement in the service of materialism. In the material

world everyone, including Lord Siva and Lord Brahma--to say nothing of other

−

demigods in the ~~heavenly planets~~--is subjected to the influence of sense objects,

+

demigods in the higher loka--is subjected to the influence of sense objects,

and the only method to get out of this puzzle of material existence is to become

Krsna conscious. One who is not, therefore, in Krsna consciousness, however

Line 2,501: Line 2,503:

It is already explained that one may externally control the senses by some

artificial process, but unless the senses are engaged in the transcendental

−

service of the Lord, there is every

+

seva (सेवा | selfless service) of the Lord, there is every

chance of a fall. Although the person in full Krsna consciousness may

apparently be on the sensual plane, because of his being Krsna conscious, he has

Line 2,518: Line 2,520:

the loss of all sorrow surely arises.

In the 62nd and 63rd slokas Krishna showed how by not engaging us in God s

−

service we fall from grace down the steps and get destroyed. The 64th sloka

+

seva (सेवा | selfless service) we fall from grace down the steps and get destroyed. The 64th sloka

however told us that by serving and

singing in praise of Him, we can climb up steps to reach higher echelon.

Line 2,700: Line 2,702:

"As a strong wind sweeps away a boat on the water, the wandering senses are

followed by the mind; such a mind carries away a man s intelligence."

−

Unless all of the senses are engaged in the service of the Lord, even one of them

+

Unless all of the senses are engaged in the seva (सेवा | selfless service) of the Lord, even one of them

engaged in sense gratification can deviate the devotee from the path of

transcendental advancement.

Line 2,759: Line 2,761:

capacity to prevent the wind from

blowing in the opposite direction. He is mightier than the wind, the Sun, the

−

fire, ~~the planets~~, this Universe and He is Sriman Narayana. By devoting ourselves

+

fire, different lokas, this Universe and He is Sriman Narayana. By devoting ourselves

to Him, our mind and senses

would all get controlled. The boat also would reach its destination.

−

Therefore, surrendering our organs in His service is the best way to control and

+

Therefore, surrendering our organs in His seva (सेवा | selfless service) is the best way to control and

discipline our mind and organs.

Thirumangai Alwar imagining himself as a girl is being invited by her girl

Line 2,824: Line 2,826:

control the organs and mind and have atman darshan.

As enemies are curbed by superior force, similarly, the senses, can be curbed

−

not by any human endeavor, but only by keeping them engaged in the service of the

+

not by any human endeavor, but only by keeping them engaged in the seva (सेवा | selfless service) of the

Lord. One who has

understood this, is called sadhaka, or a suitable candidate for liberation.

Line 3,013: Line 3,015:

man--one who has lost all inclinations for material sense gratification, although

the desires are present. Because he remains satisfied in the transcendental loving

−

service of the Lord, he can

+

seva (सेवा | selfless service) of the Lord, he can

remain steady, like the ocean, and therefore enjoy full peace. Others, however,

who fulfill desires even up to the limit of liberation, what to speak of material

Line 3,020: Line 3,022:

powers, are all unhappy because of unfulfilled desires. But the person in Krsna

consciousness is happy in the

−

service of the Lord, and he has no desires to be fulfilled. In fact, he does not

+

seva (सेवा | selfless service) of the Lord, and he has no desires to be fulfilled. In fact, he does not

even desire liberation from the so-called material bondage. The devotees of Krsna

have no material desires, and therefore they are in perfect peace.

Line 3,165: Line 3,167:

all these years, it is not late to start even in the final phase of life. We

can involve ourselves, even at the ripe old age, in selfless service to others,

−

society, country or world. We should dedicate such activities as service

+

society, country or world. We should dedicate such activities as seva (सेवा | selfless service)

to God.

Any work we do as long as it is not self-centered and without ego and it is

Prthvi

367

edits

Changes

Sankhya Yoga (साङ्ख्ययोगः) (view source)

Revision as of 16:49, 20 April 2021

Navigation menu

Search