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Sunday, January 16, 2011

BHAGAVAD GITA. CHAPTER XIV. 4 - 8


Gita Series 138: Chapter - XIV. Verse 4 8
Of all embodied beings, prakti is the mother who conceives and I am the seed giving father. Sattva,
rajas and tamas born of prakti, tie down the imperishable soul to the body. Of the three gua-s, sattva
is pure, illuminating and immaculate and binds a soul with joy and wisdom. Rajas is of passion,
avariciousness and attachment and binds a soul through actions and their fruits. Tamas is of
ignorance and binds a soul through delusion, laziness and slumber.

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Prakti has two aspects, combined or samai, the aggregate aspect of my and individual or vyai,
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Prakti has two aspects, combined or samai, the aggregate aspect of my and individual or vyai,
the partial aspect of my on an individual soul. When an individual soul interacts with primordial prakti,
when all the three gua-s remain in equal proportion, the equilibrium gets disturbed and creation
commences. The equilibrium gets disturbed, only when a soul conjugates with prakti, and the creation
comes about in prakti, the womb of all creations. Every creation is born only out of prakti which is
fathered by purua. Hence, Ka says that He is the father and Prakti is the mother of the universe.
Soon after a form is created, it begins the process of evolution, undergoing modifications. During the
process of evolution, one of the three gua-s alone become prominent and accordingly, the character of
a person is determined. Sattva gua means the quality of purity and knowledge. The presence of other
two gua-s is not very prominent in sattva gua as this gua is endowed with the highest purity. Rajo
gua is the activity of passion. Tamo gua is inertia or ignorance. These two gua-s have higher trace of
other gua-s. Gua-s are the inherent qualities of Prakti. Ego and intellect originate from gua-s that are
present in all the evolutes of prakti, but distributed in unequal proportions in each individual. The
predominant gua that prevails in an individual is reflected through his thoughts and actions. Gua of a
person is susceptible to changes, based on his thought process.
Ka says that gua-s are the cause to bind a soul, because creation happens due to the disturbance in
the equilibrium of the three gua-s that happens in prakti, due to the conjugation with a soul.

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BHAGAVAD GITA. CHAPTER XIV. 1 - 3


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Gita Series 137: Chapter - XIV. Verse 1 3


The fourth chapter of Bhagavad Gita is named as guatrayavibhgayoa or the yoga of division of
gua-s. The three gua-s are the essential constituents of Prakti about which, preliminary discussion
was made in the previous chapters. Gua can be explained as quality that determines the quality of a
being. This chapter consists of 27 verses.

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Ka said: I will again discuss about that supreme knowledge, the knowing of which, sages have
attained the final perfection. The one who follows this knowledge merge into Me, are not born at the
commencement of a new cosmic cycle, nor disturbed at the time of annihilation. My primordial nature,
known as the Brahman (Brahma, Lord) is the womb of all beings, where I placed seed of all life. The
creation follows from the union of Matter and Spirit.

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Though, gua-s have been touched upon in the earlier chapters, Ka says that He is going to explain in
detail about the gua-s, again in this chapter. Gua-s determine the nature of a person. There are three
types of gua-s, sattva, rajas and tamas. When sattva gua is predominant in a person, he follows the
path of goodness and remains virtuous. In whom, rajo gua is predominant, he becomes passionate.
Tamo gua means ignorance and the one with tamo gua is sluggish and remains in darkness. The
gua-s are further elucidated in subsequent verses.

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A thorough understanding of gua-s is essential to pursue the path of liberation, as one has to transcend
the gua-s. For transcending anything, one needs to have the knowledge of the object that is to be
transcended. Unless the force of the water current is understood properly, one cannot reach the other
side of the bank safely. If the whirlpool is too powerful, he has no option, except to get sunk. Therefore,
unless the nature of gua-s are thoroughly understood, it is not possible for an aspirant to move beyond
gua-s. If gua-s are not important while pursuing spiritual path, Ka would not have chosen to explain
about the gua-s again. The Lord further says that saints and sages have perfected their knowledge for
final liberation, only by thoroughly understanding the three gua-s. A spiritual aspirant can move to the
status of a saint, only if he thoroughly understands the implications of the three gua-s inherent in Prakti.
The one who thoroughly understands the intricacies of gua-s are eternally liberated and he is not
disturbed even at the time of creation and dissolution of yuga-s (the long mundane period of years).
The primordial nature of the Brahman is called mlaprakti. Prakti at best can be explained as Nature. It
can also be called as my. Prakti in combination with the individual soul, mind, intellect and ego form
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the creation. In fact, soul has to depend on prakti to manifest. Prakti holds the three gua-s or qualities,
sattva, rajas, and tamas and three types of creative actions icch, jna, and kriya (desire, wisdom and
action). At the time of manifestation of origin of life, the prakti beholds the individual soul by its sheer
enticing powers of the gua-s and creative actions (the powers of my or illusion), makes the soul to
manifest. The soul on its own is passive in nature and has to purely depend upon the prakti to get the
karma-s embedded in it to unfold.
Prakti is said to be the kinetic form of energy. This is also known as my or the Brahman with
attributes. Apart from playing a significant role in creation, the prakti plays a vital role in sustaining the
creation. At the time of origin of the universe, the Supreme Self alone prevailed. When the origin
manifests into creation, it first becomes space then air, fire, water and earth. From earth plants, animals,
man etc unfolded. Prakti in its un-manifested form is called avyakta. This is the state of prakti where all
the three gua-s are found in equilibrium. Any change in this equilibrium of gua-s in prakti leads to
desire, wisdom and action. This in combination with ego and intellect give rise to further creation.
Therefore, prakti is the root of all creations. This is also known as the Brahman with attributes or sagua
Brahman. The Brahman is the root of all creations as there in nothing beyond that.
The prakti is potentially a powerful tool that binds the soul to manifest in the form of bodies discussed
above, just to manifest and unfold the karma-s embedded in the soul. When the soul is under the lustful
embrace of prakti, the soul that was part of the Supreme Brahman forgets its own nature, and identifies
itself with ego. The deceptive and illusionary nature of prakti engulfs the soul with all sorts of addictions,
afflictions and confusions and makes the soul totally discombobulated. The subtle body consisting of the
five vital forces, the mind, the intellect and the ten organs is produced from the five basic elements. This
paves the way for the soul to experience the result of actions or in other words it causes karma-s. The
subtle body is of two kinds, superior and inferior. The superior one is the subtle body of hirayagarbha
and the inferior is the subtle body of living beings. The subtle body of hirayagarbha is called as mahat
or the cosmic intellect and the subtle body of living beings is called ego.

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BHAGAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XVII.
11 - 13
BHAGAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XVII. 8
- 10

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BHAGAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XVII. 5
-7
BHAGAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XVII. 1
-4
BHAGAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XVI. 17
- 24
BHAHAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XVI. 13
- 16
BHAGAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XVI. 7 12

Saturday, January 15, 2011

BHAGAVAD GITA. CHAPTER XIII. 29 - 35


Gita Series 136: Chapter - XIII. Verse 29 35
The one who understands that all actions are done by Prakti alone and not by the soul, who merely
acts as a witness, is the beholder of truth. When one perceives, that all the individual entities originate
from the Brahman and disseminate, he becomes one with the Brahman. The Brahman, without
beginning, devoid of attributes and imperishable, dwells in the body, but, neither partakes in any
actions, nor gets tainted. Like the all permeating ether that remains untainted, because of its subtle
nature, the Self, though pervades in the entire body, does not get tainted. Just like the sun illuminating
the entire world, He illuminates the entire ketra. Those who understand the difference between ketra
and ketraja, and the process of liberation from Prakti and its evolutes, go to the Supreme.
Ka begins to conclude this chapter by highlighting his teachings in a concise manner. For example, a
body is considered as the field, where matter originates, evolves and dissolves. The matter cannot
function on its own without energy being infused. The matter remains inert without being activated by
energy. This energy is known as soul. When the energy is infused, actions in the field take place and if
the energy is withdrawn, all the actions come to a close, thereby meaning birth and death. The soul is the
cause for all the actions, but does not involve in any actions. Since the soul acts merely as a witness to
all the actions, it remains the same without any modifications. Soul is the direct representative of the
Self. Innumerable souls constitute the Self or the Brahman or the Lord. In all the individual souls, the Self
remains the same, be it a human or an insect. All these souls originate from the Brahman, sustained by
the Brahman and dissolves into the Brahman. To put it the other way, all the souls disseminate from the

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BHAGAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XVI. 4 6
BHAGAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XVI. 1 3
BHAGAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XV. 18
- 20
BHAGAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XV. 15
- 17
BHAGAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XV. 11
- 14
BHAGAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XV. 7 10
BHAGAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XV. 3 6
BHAGAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XV. 1 2
BHAGAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XIV. 19
- 27
BHAGAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XIV. 14
- 18

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Brahman to get absorbed again into the Brahman during the annihilation of the universe. Ultimately, it is
only the soul that becomes responsible, to cause actions, when manifested through a gross form. Men
bound by ignorance fail to realise this truth and consider, that the body is responsible for all the actions.
Due to delusion, they tend to forget the source for all the actions of the body. Though, the soul is the
cause for all the actions, it is only in the prakti, all the actions take place. Therefore, all the actions are
done only by prakti, deriving energy from the soul. No actions take place in a soul, who is majestically
seated as witness watching the unfolding actions. Ka says that the one, who understands this,
becomes one with the Brahman.
Irrespective of the nature of actions, either good or bad, a soul is not affected in any way. It remains the
same, births after births and at all the times. A soul can be explained as the Brahman Himself or a direct
representative of the Brahman. An individual soul is in no way different from the Brahman, in confirmation
of the theory of His omnipresence. Because of the subtle nature of the Brahman, He remains
omnipresent and is able to pervade every nook and corner of the universe. Even in a physical body, He
pervades everywhere, in every blood cell, every neuron, etc. Only for the purpose of easy understanding,
it is said that He is seated in heart. If He is seated only in the heart, His omnipresence nature becomes
disputable. Ka draws comparison to the sun. Like the sun illuminating the entire galaxy, the soul
infuses energy to the entire body.
A soul gets liberated only if it does not unite with the prakti, because, all the actions take place only in
the field of prakti. When a soul merges into the Brahman ahead of annihilation of the universe, is known
as liberation. When a person understands the difference between purua and prakti; and ketraja and
ketra, based on the above discussions, he gets liberated from the afflictions of prakti and his soul
goes back to its source of origin, the Lord. The source of his understanding could be meditation,
knowledge or devotion. When one purses the path of devotion, he automatically attains knowledge, as a
true devotee becomes very dear to the Lord, who becomes his spiritual master.
CHAPTER XIII OF BHAGAVAD GITA IS CONCLUDED

- 18
BHAGAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XIV. 9 13
BHAGAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XIV. 4 8
BHAGAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XIV. 1 3
BHAGAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XIII. 29
- 35
BHAGAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XIII. 24
- 28
BHAGAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XIII. 19
- 23
BHAGAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XIII. 12
-18
BHAGAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XIII. 7 11
BHAGAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XIII. 4 6
BHAGAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XIII. 1 3
BHAGAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XII. 17
- 20
BHAGAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XII. 13
- 16
BHAGAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XII. 10
- 12

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BHAGAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XII. 6 9

Friday, January 14, 2011

BHAGAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XII. 1 -

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BHAGAVAD GITA. CHAPTER XIII. 24 - 28


Gita Series 135: Chapter - XIII. Verse 24 28

INDIAN EDITION RS.792

Some look for the Self within through meditation, some through jna yoga
and some through karma yoga. Those who are ignorant of these three
paths, merely worship the Brahman by listening to others by considering
Him as the ultimate sanctuary. All of them cease to transmigrate. Arjuna, all
that exist, both movable and immovable, emanated from the union of ketra
and ketraja. One truly realizes the Brahman, only when he perceives Him
as the Imperishable, present in all, that is perishable. He, who thus
perceives the Brahman dwelling equally in all the beings, cannot obviously
destroy Self with the self. He therefore, transcends death.

There are various means to liberation. Though one can pursue any spiritual path, the ultimate is the
realisation of the Brahman. Ka refers to three types of path - the path of meditation using ones
purified mind; the path of wisdom through skhya yoga philosophy; and the path of karma, renouncing
the fruits of actions. All the three types of paths have been elaborated by Ka in the previous chapters.
Those who pursue any of these paths are bound to get liberation, either in this birth or at least in future
births, depending upon the intensity of practice and consequent experience. But, majority of the men do
not follow anyone of these paths with sincerity and dedication. Treading all the paths is equally difficult,
as liberation does not come easily. One has to really struggle hard against the highly potent waves of
materialistic life. One has to have necessary patience, dedication and perseverance to enter the state of
perpetual bliss, before his soul makes its final exit. One can easily realise the state of bliss by himself
from his elated mood.
There is another category of men who are not aware of any of these spiritual paths. They blindly worship
the Lord by listening to what others say, or follow what others do. Interestingly, the original doer himself
may not know the significance of his actions, but he still does it out of absolute faith. The one who listens
to or follows others resolves that it is better to be a spiritual infant rather than to be a spiritual ignorant.
Therefore, he simply follows what others say or do. Even such spiritual infants become eligible to get
liberated, says Ka. This category of men considers Him as the ultimate resort. They merely know that
He is the ultimate sanctuary and their blind faith in Him impresses the Lord. It is not the path that really
matters, but the mind that surely matters. Ka had earlier said that He is more than satisfied with a leaf,
a flower, a fruit and water as offering. Ka only reaffirms His earlier saying here. The Lord makes every
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CHAPTER XII. 1 5
BHAGAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XI. 47 55
BHAGAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XI. 35 46
BHAGAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XI. 32 34
BHAGAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XI. 14 31
BHAGAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XI. 10 13
BHAGAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XI. 5 9
BHAGAVAD GITA.
CHAPTER XI. 1 4
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a flower, a fruit and water as offering. Ka only reaffirms His earlier saying here. The Lord makes every
attempt to stress the importance of purity of mind alone, while seeking Him.
It is not the path that matters, but it is ones faith, perseverance, dedication and religious simplicity that
matters for the Lord. In whatever way He is sought, with utmost sincerity, the seeker gets liberated. It is
only the thought process that matters. Ka further says, all that exists in the universe, arise out of the
union of ketra and ketraja that have been discussed by Him in the earlier verses of this chapter.
Ketra is the field or prakti and ketraja is the knower of the field or purua and their union gives rise to
the phenomenal universe comprising of both animate and inanimate. A person is said to be a Selfrealized person only if he understands His omnipresence. The shell or body undergoes constant
changes. The law of changes and modifications applies only to the external shell forming as a covering
to the soul. The soul within does not undergo changes along with the body, as the soul is beyond
modifications as it is eternal. This can be compared to gold ornaments that have different designs, but
the source of all the ornaments, the gold, always remain the same. A soul or purua is a direct
representative of the Lord. Only the soul infuses the necessary energy to the body to sustain. But at the
same time, without attaining a body, an independent soul cannot function. This is the theory of
interdependency in spirituality.
Ka says that one who understands that the Brahman pervades all the beings, be it animate or
inanimate is truly a realised person. Those who fail to understand this undergo repeated births and
deaths.
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Thursday, January 13, 2011

BHAGAVAD GITA. CHAPTER XIII. 19 - 23


Gita Series 134: Chapter - XIII. Verse 19 23
Know that both Purua and Prakti are beginningless. All modifications and qualities are due to
Prakti. Prakti is the cause for the body and its senses, whereas, Purua is the cause of experiencing
happiness and unhappiness. Purua by being seated in Prakti, experiences the three gua-s.
Attachment to the three qualities is the deciding factor for being born in a good or evil womb. The
Purua in a body is the Brahman and is being spoken of as the witness, guide, the sustainer, the
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Purua in a body is the Brahman and is being spoken of as the witness, guide, the sustainer, the
experiencer and the Supreme Self. He, who thus realizes Purua and Prakti along with the three
gua-s are liberated and not to be born again.
After having explained about knowledge and later about the Brahman, Ka now proceeds to explain
the difference between Purua (soul) and Prakti (Nature). The following explanation is based on
Skhya philosophy.
In the creation of God, there are countless souls (Purua-s) that manifest as the living beings. These
souls do not undergo any changes at any point of time. They do not have energy and will and are passive
in nature. Since it is said to be smaller than an atom, it is not visible even under a powerful microscope.
Though clinically the presence of soul has not yet been established, sufficient research is underway to
interpret the phenomenon. As the soul is considered as the divine secret, the ultimate result of any
clinical study is doubtful. However, elaborate non-clinical studies more or less describe the soul in a
unified voice. Soul is considered as the reflection of the transcendental essence of the Brahman. This
goes to prove the statement that souls do not have energy and will of their own. This phenomenon of the
Brahman soul concept can be explained like the moon deriving its light from the sun. The light of the
moon is illusionary making one to believe that the moon has its own light. However, the fact is that it gets
reflected by the light of the sun. Moon is not self illuminating. So, by and large, the soul and the Brahman
are not different, though there are certain subtle differences. Probably, the one main difference is the
karma. The Brahman is not bound by karma, whereas the individual soul is bound by karma-s. There is
another school of thought (The second and most important part of the Mms or third of the three
great divisions of Hindu philosophy called Vednta either as teaching the ultimate scope of the Veda or
simply as explained in the Upaniad-s which come at the end of the Veda), which advocates that the
Brahman takes the form of Purua or the individual soul, enabling the individual beings to act, but
remains unconnected to the actions or to the results of actions.
Purua is the term used by Skhya school of thought (one of the three great divisions of Hindu
philosophy and so called either from, discriminating in general, or, more probably, from reckoning up or
enumerating twenty-five tattva-s twenty three of which are evolved out of Prakiti the primordial essence
or the first-producer viz. buddhi (intellect), ahakra (ego), the five tanmtra-s, the five mahbhta-s (air,
fire, etc)and mind and the twenty fifth being Purua) and tman is the term used by the Vedntic school
of thought. Both these terms refer to the individual soul. The soul continues to exist in a gross body as
long as the body functions. Once the gross body ceases to function after death, the soul also leaves the
body along with pra which is also known as the vital force. The fate of the soul after death is

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determined by the law of karma that remains embedded in the soul, wherever it goes. Karma is like a
voice recorder in an airplane, where in the results of all the actions and thoughts are recorded. If
someone believes that he is doing an action unaware to anybody, he should always bear in mind that his
actions are recorded in his karmic account. It is to be understood that karma is the result of various
decisions made by the mind that ultimately determines the destiny of the soul after death. That is why
pursuing spiritual path and firmly establishing spiritual progress are considered as essential factors in
reducing the impact of karma. Karmic account is not only historical but also contains long forgotten
evolutionary aspects as well. Therefore, ultimately the soul unfolds its actions in a physical body
depending upon its karmic account. In such a situation, the soul does not undergo any change or
modification based on the fact that it is a mere reflection of the Brahman or the Supreme Spirit. The soul
can manifest only if it is associated with Prakti.
The soul or Purua can manifest only if it interacts with Prakti, which is also known as the Nature or
creative self-unfolding act. This interpretation itself will explain the nature of Prakti. It is only the Prakti
that unfolds the act of creation. When the soul is associated with Prakti, the latter unfolds first into the
subtle non-materialistic form and later into the gross form. The gross form can be identified under three
broad classifications such as sthla (gross), skma (subtle), and kraa (casual). A comparison can be
drawn between an automobile tyre and the three types of bodies. An automobile tyre has an outer
portion made up of rubber, beneath that lies the tube that holds the air inside. A car cannot run without
the effective and coordinated functions of all the three. The outer tyre is the gross body, the tube holding
the air is the subtle body and the air that is the inner most and invisible is the casual body. Similarly,
without these three forms, existence is impossible. These bodies, in reality, are the reflections of the
levels of consciousness. The respective bodies can be recognized only if the consciousness level is
modified, refined and purified. Purer is the level of consciousness higher is the level of spirituality and
finer is the type of body. These three types of bodies are the reflections of the Prakti and this reflection
is known as my or illusion.
The gross body reflects the materialistic world, the subtle body reflects the world of vitality and the casual
body reflects the casual world. These three stages are realized in the three states of awake, dream and
deep sleep. The gross and subtle bodies are the effects of the casual body. The basis of these types of
bodies is the casual body, or the casual manifestation of consciousness. In certain schools of thoughts, a
reference to another state called the fourth state or turya state is mentioned. In fact, this turya state is to
be accepted by all. Only in this state, where the consciousness transcends all bodily afflictions gets
purified and becomes fit enough to be called Cit (the Absolute or the foundational consciousness). The

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Self in turya state is the purest form of consciousness. In this stage, the consciousness remains all alone,
without any affiliations.
The Prakti is potentially a powerful tool that binds the soul to manifest in the form of bodies discussed
above, just to manifest and unfold the karma-s embedded in the soul. When the soul is under the lustful
embrace of Prakti, the soul that was part of the Supreme Brahman forgets its own nature, and identifies
itself with ego. The deceptive and illusionary nature of Prakti engulfs the soul with all sorts of addictions,
afflictions and confusions and makes the soul totally discombobulated. This particular stage of the soul is
said to be ignorant or the state of avidy contrary to vidy or knowledge. The pure soul now stands
veiled by the effects of Prakti called my or illusion.
There are three types of gua-s. Gua-s mean qualities or attributes, which form the inherent nature of
prakti. The three gua-s are sattvic or sattva, rajas or rajo and tamas or tamo. In each of these gua-s,
the other two gua-s are also present. Sattva gua is where quality and purity of knowledge attains the
highest level, with the least presence of other two gua-s. This is where spiritual growth begins to bloom.
Rajo gua is predominant when action and passion are predominant. It is associated with earthly plane
and mundane knowledge. It involves higher passions with worldly pursuits. This is where goals are set
and in order to achieve the set goals, attachment, self-conceit, arrogance, unjustness, contempt, slander
and consequent sorrow and miseries are felt. This is the stage where major portion of the karmic
account builds up. Tamo gua is inertia and ignorance. This is associated with much lower planes than
earth. Illusion and ignorance are predominant here. Sluggishness, infatuation, confusion, stupidity,
aversion, recklessness, vulgarity, grief, pain, anxiety, hatred, violence are some of the predominant
qualities of this gua.
Therefore, it is basically the gua that determines the character of a person. A persons character is
determined at the time of birth itself,. If ones karmic account is extremely bad, he will have no liberation
in vicinity and has to undergo repeated transmigrations. Till the entire bad karmic account is exhausted,
he continues to be born to those who are hardcore criminals. One gets confused, whether the person is
a born criminal or a metamorphosed into a criminal. It is neither. It is his karmic account that makes him
to be born in the family of criminals. Karmic account gets embedded as genes at the time of birth. This
also goes to prove the existence of group karma. Group karma is passed on as genetic and hereditary
factors.
Ka says that the one who understands the Lords play gets liberated. Lords play can be realised

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through knowledge and once the knowledge is complete, bliss, realization and liberation follow one after
another paving the way for the final exit of the soul for good.
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BHAGAVAD GITA. CHAPTER XIII. 12 -18


Gita Series 133: Chapter - XIII. Verse 12 18
I shall now explain to you that which is to be known and the knowing of which, one attains the state of
immortality. Brahman, the Lord without origin, is neither Sat nor Asat. He has many hands, feet, eyes,
heads, mouths and ears pervading everywhere. He is the source of all senses, but He is beyond
senses. He is not attached to creation; nonetheless, He sustains His creation. He is free of three
qualities, yet He enjoys them. He exists within all beings as well as outside all beings. He is animate
and inanimate as well. He is both gross and subtle. He is very far, yet He is very near. Though He is
indivisible, yet appears as countless beings. He is the creator as well as the destroyer. He is the
source of all lights and beyond darkness. He is embodiment of knowledge and the goal of knowledge.
He is seated in the hearts of all. This is in brief, nature and object of wisdom and the knower of this
enters into My being.
After having explained about knowledge that is required to realise the Brahman, Ka begins to explain
about the Brahman, the mere knowledge of whom, gives cessation of transmigration. The cessation of
transmigration means, an individual soul merges with the Brahman without having any further births and
deaths. The soul is said to have been liberated, when it merges with the Brahman, as it need not
undergo further pains of birth and existence.
The origin of the Brahman is beyond normal human comprehension. Big Bang theory of Fred Hoyle
describes the cosmic explosion of the space itself. Naturally, a question arises about the period prior to
this cosmic explosion, before which there existed not even space. It was Einstein who found out that
matter and energy are interchangeable. Therefore, for existence both matter and energy are necessary.
Unless matter and energy interact with each other, creation is not possible. It is like soul and nature or
purua and prakti. Therefore, Brahman is the source of energy from which the universe evolved along
with animate and inanimate things. At the time of annihilation, matter and energy that remain as
independent entities merge into a single entity. Energy, soul or purua are the same and matter, nature

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or prakti are the same. When the matter and energy merge together, this combined energy merges with
its origin, the pre Big Bang time or pre-cosmic explosion, which is known as the Brahman. Therefore, the
Brahman is not someone who is merely conceptualized, but a reality of existence. For understanding
and knowing this reality, knowledge discussed in previous verses is required.
The Brahman is both Sat and Asat. Sat means existence or real and Asat means non-existence or
unreal. Asat is also known as my or illusion. My is the power of autonomy of the Lord, without which
existence is not possible. Therefore, both Sat and Asat form two different and opposite aspects of the
Brahman and their independent existence forms the essential nature of creation and sustenance. He has
many faces, hands, etc means His subtle and omnipresent existence. He is the cause for senses which
is in accordance with His creative and sustenance abilities. But the Brahman is beyond senses.
Whenever the senses are active, one is bound to have desire, attachments and associated miseries.
But the Lord is beyond all this and obviously, He is beyond sensory afflictions. Though He is the creator
of senses, he merely witnesses sensory afflictions in the minds of the ignorant. Sensory inputs do not
cause any impressions in the mind of the wise. The Lord never interferes with unfoldment of ones
karmic law and He merely witnesses the karmic law taking its own course in all the beings. He neither
takes pity on those who suffer not gets elated when others seek Him with staunch mind and dedication
by totally ceding their ego. Irrespective of ones knowledge, He continues to sustain everyone by His
automated mechanisms. For example, the same is air inhaled by both by ignorant and wise. As an
embodiment of compassions, the Lord never discriminates.
When evolution of a being takes place, one of the three gua-s become predominant. Gua-s are
constituents of Prakiti viz. sattva, rajas, and tamas or goodness, passion, and darkness. Though these
gua-s originate from Him, He is not affected by gua-s. This is in confirmation of the principle that the
Lord remains immutable under all circumstances. If He becomes mutable, in the whole of universe, only
confusion and disorderliness alone will prevail. Consequent upon His omnipresent and subtle nature, He
prevails both inside and outside of all beings. Realizing Him within is Self-realization and worshipping
Him as different from ones self, thereby creating a distance with Him, is ritualistic form of worship. The
former is the expression of love for Him and the latter is expression of obeisance. Obviously, lover is
more powerful than obeisance. The Lord is always an embodiment of love and compassion. He does
not want to be treated as a stranger. He is always ready to be a friend, philosopher and guide. Ka
assumes all these roles for the sake of Arjuna.
All the existences are nothing but the reflections of the Lord. The beings are perceived as different from

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the Lord due to His illusionary aspect, which is also known as my. When one is able to transcend
my, he realizes the Self-illuminating Brahman. Transcending my is nothing but looking beyond the
beings, their source of origin. Men get deluded by His magic power of my. My is a gauging
instrument in the hands of the Lord, to test ones true spiritual aspirations. If one decides to transcend
my, he has to have perseverance, dedication, unfaltering faith, ability to sacrifice, etc. If one lacks in
any of these primary qualities, he cannot understand the true nature of my, to transcend it. Everything
and everyone originates from Him and ultimately dissolves into Him to reappear again due to His
compassion. This primordial energy, which we call as the Lord of the Brahman, is the source of light.
Brahman alone is Self-illuminating and all other luminaries derive their light from Him only. For example,
the sun draws only a miniscule of His light to sustain our galaxy. Light is always associated with
spirituality as a sincere practitioner is able to realise Him only as Effulgence. If someone is a Selfrealized person, he is also known as an illuminated person. The ultimate end of spiritual path is
illumination, when one leaves behind the darkness of materialistic life.
Knowledge is yet another factor in realizing the Brahman. This knowledge can be attained only through
personal experience. Study of scriptures and listening to lectures alone do not help. They are
undoubtedly the source of knowledge without which, Brahman cannot be understood. Brahman is the
embodiment of knowledge and in fact He is the embodiment of anything that exists. When a person
makes sincere efforts to realize Him, it means the aspirant is moving closer to Him. When the aspirant
moves closer to Him, he automatically derives His qualities. It is like walking towards the other end of the
tunnel, where the rays of light begin to fall on him. Realizing this illuminating Self is attainment of
knowledge. This knowledge alone leads a person to look for Him within. A person who is devoid of this
knowledge continues to search Him in far-off places, wasting his precious time. Spiritual ignorance is
the cause for looking for Him by wasting ones energy, time and money. He is available for free to
everyone and at all the time. He is majestically seated in the heart of all beings, always laughing and just
enjoying the egoistic actions of everyone. He laughs at the ignorance of men for unlawfully taking credit
for the actions executed by them, the source of which is the Lord, who is seated in their hearts.
Ka concludes this section by saying that the above discussion constitutes the true spiritual wisdom
and the one who acquires this Supreme wisdom merges with Him forever, not to be born again.
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Wednesday, January 12, 2011

BHAGAVAD GITA. CHAPTER XIII. 7 - 11


Gita Series 132: Chapter - XIII. Verse 7 11

SHIVA SUTRAS
V RAVI
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Humbleness, sincerity, non-violence, patience, uprightness, service to guru,


purity of mind and body, steadfastness, willpower, renunciation of sensory objects,
devoid of egotism, understanding the inherent pains and evils of life, detachment
from son, wife and home; balanced mind both in favourable and unfavourable
circumstances, staunch devotion to Me, living in solitude, avoidance of social
enjoyment, fixity of knowledge on the Self by ingesting it to the logical conclusion;
all this is known as knowledge. Ignorance is just opposite to this.

Ka now explains what knowledge is. Knowledge is the basic requirement to


understand creation and the Creator. The knowledge which Ka discusses here
leads to realization of the Brahman. It is not materialistic knowledge, but knowledge of metaphysics.
Knowing about subtle factors of creation is metaphysical knowledge. Science, philosophy and spiritual
belief are the basic constituents of metaphysical knowledge. The kind of knowledge that Ka talks
about, is not out of the boundaries of modern science. For example, consciousness that is spoken of
repeatedly in scriptures is proved to be related to material world. Einstein proved conclusively that
space, time and field are intertwined in their existence and their independent existence is not possible.
Therefore, interdependency in the process of creation plays a very significant role. It was seen in the
precious verses as to how soul alone cannot cause a creation without the help of prakti. What is being
explained today in scientific jargons was already explained in simple terms in sacred scriptures. But at
the same time, rituals of recent origin without any valid reasoning have percolated into the minds of true
spiritual seekers and act as a deterrent factor for pursuing spirituality. To add to these complexities,
religions and spiritualism are often confused leading to ill founded belief that one has to waste money
and time to understand the Creator. As the Lord of the universe, Ka would have foreseen the
commercialization of spirituality and had chosen to explain through Bhagavad Gita, that it is not so.
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Simplicity, sincerity and non-violence, patience; uprightness which arises out of conducting oneself in
righteous manner; service to ones spiritual preceptor this does not merely mean assisting him in all
his religious activities. Being inattentive to the teaching of guru, unnecessary questions to guru,
unnecessary and unwarranted wastage of his time during assembly, etc are considered as disservice to

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ones guru. Purity of mind and body produces more positive energy within. When the mind is clouded
with too many thoughts and their consequent impressions in the mind, the mind becomes compressed,
leaving no room for generation of spiritual energy. The Lords playground is the mind. When it is fully
afflicted, the Lord would never like to be present there. The Lord is the symbol of utmost purity. Two
opposite poles cannot join together, hence the purity of the Lord and impurity of the mind cannot exist
together. Steadfastness is nothing but the inner resolutions made in the mind. Firmness, determination,
faith and repeated positive affirmations are capable of leading a person to the ultimate goal of liberation.
When a goal is set, one may have to face innumerable hurdles in order to achieve the goal. Without
mental stamina, willpower and optimism, it is difficult to cross testing times and hurdles.
Renunciation is spoken of as another important aspect of attaining the Lord. If one is attached to his
family, the primary concern would be their interest in his mind, forcing the eternal connectivity with the
Lord to be relegated to the second place. In the case of such attachments, the tendency is to show
concern for them as they are before him in flesh and blood. On the contrary, though he has understood
that the Lord can be attained only by submerging in His thoughts all the time, not giving rise to any
secondary thought process, in reality the aspirant inherently thinks about something that is before him in
flesh and blood.
Renunciation of sensory objects is the toughest challenge which ultimately may not even be possible.
Vision, sound, smell, taste and touch consume major part of ones life. The lush greenery, the rising sun,
the smell of the rain, etc are bound to affect ones mind as the respective sensory organs provide them
to the brain and this natural process cannot be stopped. There is no other way except to live amidst
Nature. What the Lord says here that one should not get attached to the sensory inputs. One can
continue to see the beauty of the Nature, but one should not get attached to it. Whether it rains or shines,
one should not change his mind-set. One has to consider the sensory organs as the Lords gift and
should use them only for realizing the Lord. It is possible to turn the sensory organs to look within. For
example, listening to the subtle sound that emanates within, the vision through third eye, taste of the
ambrosia, etc.
One should ask within who am I? Until one gets an answer for this question, one should continue to ask
this question. This is what is known as internal search or internal exploration. This happens as a
consequence of turning the sensory organs to look within. When one begins to ask this question to
himself, it implies that he is becoming devoid of egotism. If he is an egocentric person, he will not raise
this question and instead say I am.

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Pains and pleasures of life are realised only through mind. Having born, one has to undergo both
pleasures and pains. There are two factors that cause pleasure or pain. The foremost among them is
ones thought and the second one is his karma, the former leading to the latter. These pleasures and
pains are inherent in a birth. There is none who is devoid of these dyads. Elation at the time of pleasure
and dejection at the time of pain is a normal human process. If one develops a stable mind, he becomes
devoid of emotional swings. Pleasure and pain directly influence the mind and if ones mind is fully
occupied by the Lord, where He alone plays, inputs of pleasure and pain cannot be passed on to the
mind, as the mind is preoccupied. When the whole mind is filled with Lord Consciousness, there is no
place in the mind for other thoughts to get generated.
Devotion is the foundation for higher spiritual practices. When devotion turns into love for Him, the actual
spiritual practice begins. To consolidate his love for the Lord, he has to continue the rest of his life in
solitude. Isolation from the humdrum of life enables the mind to have better focus on the Lord. The level
of concentration is very important to realise Him. When one continues to live a worldly life, his mind gets
preoccupied on commitments as a result of which, the perpetual connection with the Lord is lost. In
social gatherings and religious festivities, absolute joy prevails, where everyones mood is highly
charged with emotions and sentiments, which do not have a place in spiritual pursuit. When one
partakes in such occasions, the lingering moments of joy lasts for a long time and it is difficult for the
mind to get restored to its original sheen. During this interim period, the connection with the Lord also
gets depleted to a great extent. With a weaker connection with the Lord, the mind becomes susceptible
to sensory afflictions, because of its inherent nature.
Ka subtly conveys through these verses, that He can be realized only through ones mind, when the
mind is isolated from other activities. In the present scenario, the teaching of Ka is equally relevant, if
viewed from the angle of mind alone. If one has the capacity to control the mind and isolate it, realization
of the Self is sure to happen. However, this becomes possible only when one has developed a
tremendous willpower, determination and dedication and supplemented with longer durations of
practice. The ultimate result of all this is the pure knowledge, by which alone, the Lord can be realized. It
is also to be understood from Kas sayings, that one should mentally explore the all pervading Lord
within and not otherwise.
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Tuesday, January 11, 2011

BHAGAVAD GITA. CHAPTER XIII. 4 - 6


Gita Series 130: Chapter - XIII. Verse 4 6

LALITA SAHASRANAMA
V RAVI

The concept of ketra and ketraja has been explained differently by sages.
This has also been explained by different Vedic verses. Brahmastra-s have
conclusive proved this with logical reasoning. The five elements, the ego, the
intellect, Unmanifest, organs of perception, organs of action, the mind and the five
underlying subtle elements (tanmtra-s), desire, aversion, pleasure, pain, the
gross body, consciousness, tenaciousness....

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Ka says that sages have explained about ketra and ketraja in different ways.
The fundamental principles of these two however do not change. Gabriel Pradpaka
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has explained this as Ketraja literally means knower (ja) of the field (ketra),
i.e. the individual soul. It is not wisdom except in a symbolic way. This has also been explained through
Veda-s and their denotations, the Upaniad-s. In fact, the entire Upaniad-s are nothing but the
compendium of teachings of knowing the Brahman. Upaniad-s are the source of acquiring the pure
knowledge to pursue the spiritual path with confidence. Though different Upaniad-s advocate different
paths, ultimately, they all explain the formless nature of the Brahman. Bhagavad Gita unravels the
Brahman, through different paths and hence Gita is also considered as an Upaniad. What Ka says
is that understanding of ketra and ketraja are absolutely essential for realising the Self and hence,
these have been praised by the sages and saints through Vedic hymns and elucidated through
Upaniad-s.
Ka, apart from referring to Veda-s and Upaniad-s, also refers to Brahmastra-s. There are three
texts available to the students of Vednta. They are Upaniad-s, Bhagavad Gta and Brahmastra-s. The
last one, the Brahmastra-s was scripted by Bdranrayaa in 555 aphorisms. This ancient scripture
explains in detail about the Brahman and the means to realise Him. This is one of the authentic texts with
exhaustive analysis about Self-realization.
Now Ka proceeds to explain about the Brahman through the next few verses. The five elements are
ka (ether), air, fire, water and earth. Ka calls them as the great elements. Ka begins with these

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five elements as they form the basis of creation. These five elements and their modifications, both gross
and subtle along with internal tools cause a creation. The five basic elements give rise to organs of
perception (jnendriya-s: ears, skin, eyes, tongue and nose), organs of action (karmendirya-s: mouth,
feet, hands, organ of excretion and organ of procreation), cognitive faculties (tanmtra-s: sound, touch,
sight, taste and smell) and action faculties (speech, movement, holding, evacuation and reproduction).
Thus, twenty principles arise out of the five great elements or basic elements. These twenty principles
along with mind, intellect, consciousness and ego give rise twenty four principles that are generally
discussed in creation, particularly in Skhya philosophy (discussed in chapter II of Bhagavad Gita).
Ka chooses to refer to these twenty four principles while expounding creation.
Ego is the worst enemy to Self-realization. Ego is primarily responsible for functioning of gross body and
mind. Ego is the cause I ness. Ego is the deterrent factor to accept the Lord as the creator and the
sustainer. An egoistic mind thinks only about the self and self alone. Ego is to be surrendered to the Lord
for knowing the Self. With egoistic mind, the Lord can never be realised. As already discussed in the
previous chapters, there should not be any secondary thought process in the mind to realise the
Brahman and the ego is the deterrent factor to achieve this goal.
Intellect is the result of ones knowledge and ability. Without intellect one cannot differentiate between the
real and unreal. It is the cause for discrimination. Intellect is a vital component in realizing the Self within.
Only intellect is capable of informing the mind about the Self and enables the mind to pursue the spiritual
path to its logical conclusion. In this context, intellect refers to the capacity to discriminate between the
perishable and the Imperishable.
Unmanifest is also known as avyakta. Prakti in its unmanifested form is avyakta, where, all the three
gua-s lie in equal proportion. It is the first stage of the Brahman that cannot be explained. Brahmastra
(III.ii.23) explains this by saying, that Brahman is unmanifest.
Ka then proceeds to discuss on desire, aversion, pleasure, pain, the gross body, consciousness and
tenaciousness through verses. Desire is the root cause of all the pains as one continues to remain
unsatisfied, as desire is an addiction and longs for more and more. Behind every movement, there is
desire. Desire causes lasting impressions in the mind and prevents the mind from exploring the Self
within. These impressions become so powerful over a period of time and enter the subconscious mind.
When the subconscious mind is affected with impressions, it is staggeringly difficult to come out of its
clutches and the man begins to sink like a ship in the deep sea, without recourse to endurance. Desire,

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beyond ones capacity is all the more dangerous, which induces a person to satiate his desire even by
foul means. This is where the crimes originate.
Like and dislike is another factor that affects the mind and cause significant impact in life. It leads to
hatred and antagonism that affect the mental peace. Pleasure and pain is primarily responsible for
subversion of otherwise a peaceful mind. When there is pleasure, there is bound to be pain and this
alternates in ones life. Pleasure leads to addiction and pain leads to frustration. Addiction and
frustration cannot keep the mind in equanimity. Without a calm mind, spiritual pursuit is impossible.
The gross body arises out of conjugation of soul with nature, also known as prakti. Consciousness is the
essential factor of creation. Consciousness with its infinite potency manifests as matter. According to Dr.
David R. Hawkins, the important statement about the infinite field of consciousness is that it represents
the Absolute by which all else can be calibrated as to degrees of being relative to it. The Self, indicative
of the presence of the Divine as immanent, is sometimes referred to in classical literature, as Universal
Mind. By transcendence, the ego-self is replaced by the non-ego Self. This phenomenon has been
traditionally termed Enlightenment.
Tenaciousness is explained further in later chapters. Tenaciousness is another modification of the mind
depending upon the evolution and predominance of a particular type of gua in a person. Ka
continues to explain Creation in the next few verses.
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Monday, January 10, 2011

BHAGAVAD GITA. CHAPTER XIII. 1 - 3


Gita Series 130: Chapter - XIII. Verse 1 3
Chapter XIII of Bhagavad Gita is known as Ketraketrajavibhgayoga. Ketra means body and
ketraja means soul. This chapter is considered very important for all spiritual aspirants as Ka
dwells at length about His formless form. This chapter is highly useful for all meditators as well. This
chapter has 34 verses, though some mention 35 verses. The difference is due to the inclusion of first
verse of this chapter wherein Arjuna expresses his desire to know about Purua, Prakti, the field
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knowing and the knowledge that is to be known. Ka explains this Arjuna.


Arjuna, the body is only a field, where all the actions take place and is known as ketra and the one
who realises this is called ketraja. Know Me as ketraja in all the ketra-s. Knowledge about ketra
and ketraja is wisdom. Now, I will give you a brief about ketra and its nature, its modifications, its
origin and ketraja and its glory.
Ka begins by saying that a ketra or body is nothing but a play field, where ketraja known as the
soul plays. Ketraja or the soul is the source of energy of ketra or body to function. Apart from
providing energy for the body to function, soul is simply seated as witness watching the unfoldment of
actions in the body. Actions of the body unfold due to ones karma. Karma is embedded in the soul. The
soul and karma always stay together, but are not connected to each other. The ketraja, hereinafter
referred to as soul, is not perishable, whereas ketra, hereinafter referred to as body is perishable. A
body cannot exist without a soul, whereas soul can exist with body. A soul becomes capable of merging
with the Brahman, only if its embedded karma is emptied. A soul is a direct representative of the Lord or
the Brahman. In creation, Lord or the Brahman is the highest authority, beyond whom nothing exists.
When a soul exists in a body it is known as jvtman. tman means individual soul and jva means the
body. Jva and tman combine together and cause a jvtman to exist. The combination of all the souls
that exist in the universe is called Paramtman. Paramtman is the Brahman or the Lord, from whom all
the individuals arise and into whom all the individual souls dissolve at the time of annihilation. Except at
the time of annihilation, all the souls do not become eligible to get absorbed into the Brahman, except
where the souls do not carry any karmic account with them. Irrespective of the karmic account, whether it
is good or bad, soul should not carry any karmic account with it, to become eligible for liberation.
An individual soul is also known as purua and the Brahman is known as Purua. The difference
between purua and Purua is the difference between self and Self. Self is the Lord and self is an
individual soul. A purua cannot take a shape and form on its own. Only when a purua conjoins with
Prakti, a creation takes place. Prakti can be explained as the absolute and independent power of the
Lord. Purua is the static energy of the Lord, from which Prakti originates. Prakti is the kinetic energy
of the Lord. Without the kinetic energy of the Lord, creation cannot take place. For the sake of
convenience Purua can be treated as the masculine energy and Prakti can be treated as the feminine
energy. Unless these two energies come together, a creation cannot take place. A body is considered
sacred because, it is the result of conjugation of Purua and Prakti. Sheathing the purua within, prakti
evolves, in the form of a shape and form. Only prakti undergoes changes and the purua does not.

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Purua continues to be a witness, comfortably seated within, watching the activities of the body and
consequent accrual of karmas arising out ignorance and ego. As long as one does not realise the
Brahman, one continues to be bound by duality and bondage. Knowledge does not actually modify an
object. It only removes the ignorance relating to that object. Realization of the Brahman alone leads to
becoming Brahman.
Ka says that one who understands this process of creation and evolution is ketraja, who is nothing
but the Lord Himself. Understanding this process is also known as wisdom, which leads to realising the
Self. With these preliminaries, Ka now proceeds to go into the details.
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Saturday, January 8, 2011

BHAGAVAD GITA. CHAPTER XII. 17 - 20


Gita Series 129: Chapter - XII. Verse 17 20
He, who neither rejoices nor hates, nor grieves, nor have desires and who renounces both good and evil
actions is dear to Me. He, who treats friends and foes alike, honour and disgrace alike, balanced in heat
and cold and pleasure and pain, praise and blame, observing silence, contended, no sense of
ownership, devoid of fixed residence and always engaged in devotion with a stable mind is dear to Me.
Those who follow these gracious principles of life, declared by Me so far, reposing full faith in Me and
insouciant with fruits of their actions are extremely dear to Me.
At the end of this chapter, Ka sums up the qualifications for being dearer to Him. Rejoice is the result
of having acquired a desired object and hatred and frustration is the result of not acquiring the desired
object. The cause for such intense variations in the mind is the desire. Unsatisfied desires lead to evil
thoughts, making the mind subvert. Since the spiritual advancement happens only in the mind, a
subverted mind cannot be a ground for spiritual unfoldment. When the result of any action, be it good or
bad, is surrendered to the Lord, one is able to get rid of ego or I ness.
When one sheds his ego, a friend or a foe does not make any difference for the aspirant. In the higher
realms of spirituality, ego gradually gets transformed into universal brotherhood. For that aspirant, all are
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equal and he always comes forward to help those, who are in distress. His heart is filled with
compassion and kindness. During his normal actions, someone could appreciate him and someone
else could disgrace him. He will not be enthralled by those appreciative words and he will not be
disgraced by anguishing words. This is because he has surrendered his ego to the Lord. He has no I
consciousness. Further, his equalitarian attitude does differentiate organisms as friends or foes. His
mind has undergone complete transformation, as s result of which he does not think about any dyads.
The calmness of the mind is directly related to slow breathing. If ones mind is agitated, one can observe
that his breathing becomes faster. A person who has destroyed I me mine is absolved of fear. Fear
is yet another factor that affects the mind. It is said, be not afraid of the universe. As long I ness
prevails, fear also prevails.
Yet another factor of the mind is silence. It is said that silence is golden. Spiritual illumination occurs only
when one is able to feel the pure awareness of stillness and vastness of the Supreme Silence. During
the period of silence, ones perception gets transformed and his mind gets cleansed and he becomes
gradually aware of the inner transformation that unfolds intimately and empathetically. It is said that all
final spiritual reference is to the silence beyond sound...It can be spoken of as the great silence, or as
the void, or as the transcendent absolute. The inner silence automatically happens during intent
meditation. During the inner silence, the aspirant finds his mind and body wiped out of existence and he
becomes awakened.
When one gives importance to I me mine, the quality of the ownership also prevails. This is home is
mine, this is my car, this land belongs to me, that property is mine, etc. are the resultant factors of
ownership. Once a property is owned, the human tendency is to multiply it. Then the mind becomes
seriously engaged in planning and gives no room for spiritual aspiration. A true spiritual aspirant does
not need a place of his own. He becomes a vagrant going from one place to another. Spirituality does
not exist in palatial places, lawns and grounds. Spirituality does not exist in huge gatherings. Spirituality
does not exist in dance and music. Spirituality exists within, that can be realised in a few minutes of
solitude and silence. Spirituality does not exist in a group of minds, but in an isolated mind. Spirituality
cannot be bought or sold. It is not a commercial venture. Spirituality is a benevolent attitude, where ones
purified consciousness alone should rule.
Ka completes this chapter by saying that one should repose complete faith in Him. One should not be
concerned with the fruits of his actions, as the fruits of actions are surrendered to the Lord. The Lord
says that true devotees are very dear to Him. Concern to fruits of actions gives rise to egoism

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selfishness. This chapter exclusively deals with the purification of mind, where true devotion begins to
dawn. It is up to the aspirant to follow the spiritual path to its logical conclusion, the final liberation. All the
pleasures of the body are only temporary. The ignorant ones indulge in all sorts of evil thoughts and
actions as a result of which they are not able to redeem themselves from the pains of transmigration.
CHAPTER XII OF BHAGAVAD GITA IS CONCLUDED
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Friday, January 7, 2011

BHAGAVAD GITA. CHAPTER XII. 13 - 16


Gita Series 128: Chapter - XII. Verse 13 16

LALITA SAHASRANAMA
V RAVI
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He who does not hate anyone, who is friendly and compassionate to all, who
does not change with pleasure or pain, who is forgiving by nature, who always
remains contended, who has mentally united with Me, who has subdued his mind,
senses and body, who has a firm resolve and has surrendered his mind and
reasoning to Me, who always stays calm and unconcerned with circumstances,
who is devoid of fear, who needs nothing, who is pure in thoughts and actions, who
is devoid of distractions, who is devoid of egoistic attitude, that devotee is dear to
Me.

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Ka begins to elaborate the qualities of a devotee. Hatred is the biggest enemy of


mankind that leaves lasting impressions. Swami Vivekananda said, Every thought of hatred which you
may have thought, even inside a cave, is stored up and will one day come back to you with tremendous
power in the form of some misery. When hatred is shed, friendliness and compassion follow
automatically. This leads to the ultimate level of understanding, that the whole universe is nothing but the
manifestation of the Lord. Hatred is like a poison that ultimately kills a person. Hatred causes huge
mental affliction and makes the mind totally maculate. An impure mind cannot stay connected with the
Lord, like fire and water, purity and impurity cannot stay together. Either one of them has to prevail. For
realizing the Self, a pure mind is absolutely essential. If one learns to forget and forgive, his mind always
remains tranquil and sets the right atmosphere for establishing link with the Lord.
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Emotion is the root cause for bondage and attachments. Pleasures and pains are parts of ones life.
Everyone has his own tales of pleasures and pains. If one changes his mental outlook according to the
circumstances he is in, it is a clear sign of mental perturbation. A perturbed person can never
concentrate. For him, the mind swing is high leading to lack of concentration. Another fact is desire or
wants. If one develops desire, it is very difficult to come out of it. First, the mind will aim for a single
object. When he gets that object it will look for another. If he is not able to get what he has desired, it
leads to anger and frustration. Beyond a point, he may not be able to withhold his anger. When the
threshold limit is crossed, his mind becomes totally out of control and paves the way for his downfall. The
union with the Lord is possible only if the mind is calm. Agitated mind can never attain spiritual
perfection. Therefore, subjugation of the mind is important, as every thought originates in the mind. If the
mind is turbulent, it smites the senses directly prompting the person to indulge in evil activities. Mind is
the ultimate cause to control senses and the body. Throughout Bhagavad Gita, Ka repeatedly talks
about the mind, as the whole of spirituality happens only in the arena of mind.
Another requirement in spirituality is positive affirmation. Repeated positive affirmations lead to firming
up of resolutions. Since the concept of surrender has to happen through the mind, repeated positive
affirmations make things happen. That is why, Ka wants minds of His devotees to be surrendered to
Him. If surrender is made in true sense, the Lord will ensure that His devotees minds do not waver. True
surrender means surrendering ones intellect also to the Lord. After surrender is complete in all respects,
one does not need to think about anyone else apart from the Lord. Whatever the actions a surrendered
devotee performs, the results go to the Lord. Fruits of actions accrue, only if ego prevails. Obviously, ego
cannot exist in such devotees, because he does not have any room in the mind to think about anything
else apart from the Lord. His entire mind is pervaded by the Lord and Lord alone.
Pleasures and pains are part of ones life, which is determined by ones own actions. Whatever is sown
today is reaped tomorrow, is the principle of karmic theory. When one surrenders to the Lord
consciously, he is not bound by karmas. Pleasures and pains are only for the body. When mind is
imbibed with the thought of Lord, mind cannot entertain either pleasure or pain. Such a person
experiences both happiness and sadness without differentiation. Happiness and sadness arise only if
one gets attached to the fruits of his actions. Further, his mind is not with him as he has already
surrendered his mind to the Lord who is beyond all the dyads. Such a person does not fear for anything
or anybody. The qualities of the Lord have already pervaded him. He is like the Lord, but not the Lord.
iva Stra describes this state of the aspirant as he appears like iva. For him, there are no

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requirements, as he remains in the state of perpetual bliss. Such a person cannot think abominably, as
he has surrendered his free will to the Lord. For him, there is no distraction of mind, as his mind is not
with him; it is with the Lord.
Ka says such a person, who has truly surrendered unto Him, is very dear to Him. Who will not love this
person who always helps others, does good to others, does not require anything for him, compassionate
and cheerful all the time? After all, the Lord is the embodiment of all these qualities.
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BHAGAVAD GITA. CHAPTER XII. 10 - 12


Gita Series 127: Chapter - XII. Verse 10 12
Even if you are unskilled to practice this yoga, be absorbed to work for Me and this will perfect you.
Even this is not possible, subdue your mind, take refuge in Me and surrender the fruits of all your
actions to Me. Knowledge is superior to practice, meditation is better than knowledge, renunciation is
superior to meditation, as peace follows renunciation immediately.
Ka spoke about connecting Self and self in the previous verses. The difference between Self and self
has been beautifully explained by the living master Gabriel Pradpaka The Self, through His
inconceivable Power becomes limited and contracted out of His Free Will. When He turns into atomic,
from a spiritual viewpoint (not material), He is known as soul. He appears as innumerable limited
individuals or atomic selves despite He is only One. The limited individuals are the souls, which are
atomic in size. And when a soul is provided with a inner psychic organ (intellect, ego and mind), it is
known as a full-fledged soul.
The realisation of this Oneness is yoga and whenever Ka refers to yoga, it means only this mental
contemplation. If one is not able to connect Self and self, as a remedy Ka suggests repeated practice
to attain perfection in this yoga. Even this is not possible, a simple solution is offered by the Lord.
Control the mind by subduing the senses and surrender the thought process to the Lord. Surrendering to
the Lord is an important process that has been often not understood properly. Surrender means the
destruction of ones ego by surrendering the same to the Lord. Egotism is the cause for differentiating
between the Self and self. For the spiritual aspirants, the ego works in a different way. In the beginning of

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his spiritual journey, the aspirant puts in his best efforts as a result of which he moves closer to the Lord,
in stages. When someone is closer to the Lord, naturally, His qualities begin to dominate in him. This
can be explained as the difference in temperature at the base of a mountain and its peak at a high
altitude. When one approaches the peak, he begins to feel the biting cold that prevails at the peak. In the
same way, one begins to feel the effulgence of the Lord, when he moves closer to Him. At this point, an
unsteady aspirant becomes deluded by the subtle changes that takes place in him and fails to pursue
the path to its logical conclusion. He pulls himself backwards, becomes more egocentric, misguides the
society and ultimately ends up in catastrophe. Surrender is not a ritual, but a contemplation that has to
happen in a serene mind. Ritualistic surrender is only a formality and could possibly infuse the concept of
surrender in ones mind. It is also wrong to say that one should not continue with his routine life after
surrendering to the Lord. After surrender, any action performed by the aspirant becomes the act of the
Lord as a result of which he is not affected by karma. Probably, this saying of Ka also conveys that
karma is the criteria to decide on ones liberation. The results of surrender is closeness to the Lord that
ultimately leads to an understanding that the aspirant is nothing but a tool in the hands of the Lord. The
purpose of surrender can be explained as a process to transcend the innate evolutionary limitations of
ego. The end result of surrender may seem to be slow, but the endeavour of the thought process never
becomes futile.
Surrender is a precondition to renunciation. In fact, renunciation begins when the concept of surrender is
perfected. Most of the times, renunciation is an automatic evolution of surrender. Most of the aspirants
are always under confusion whether to follow this process or that process. They switch from one spiritual
preceptor to another. They tend to believe that whoever draws a better crowd is the best spiritual master.
An unstable mind is an indication of lack of self-confidence and faith. Wandering mind can never pursue
the right spiritual path. With an unstable mind, proper meditation cannot be pursued. Without a proper
meditation, the concept of renunciation will not be complete as meditation leads to proper inner
exploration. If everything is renounced, nothing is left for egotism. The proper way to liberation is
knowledge, meditation and renunciation one after another. If the aim for liberation is true and conclusive,
one has to be a patient and be a silent observer, as the eternal peace is the logical derivative of this
process, which ultimately leads to bliss and the ultimate liberation.
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Thursday, January 6, 2011

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BHAGAVAD GITA. CHAPTER XII. 6 - 9


Gita Series 126: Chapter - XII. Verse 6 9
Ka continues. Arjuna, but, those whose minds are steadfastly fixed on Me, surrendering all their
actions to Me and always thinking about Me through single minded devotion, worship My form, I
quickly free them from the cycles of transmigration. Therefore, fix your mind and intellect on Me and
without any doubt, always abide in Me. If you cannot steadily fix your mind on Me Arjuna, then attain
Me through repeated practice.
True devotion is nothing but ones faith. Visualization of the Lord is not possible to everyone, because of
the inherent weakness of the mind. But, it is possible for everyone to concentrate on an object that is
placed before them. Instead of visualization, a process that has to happen in a serene mind,
concentration is a better choice, as the pressure on the mind gets reduced. One has to simply connect
ones mind on the idol before him. The idol already has a form hence the tough task of visualization is
reduced. Now the aspirant has the Lord before him and all that the aspirant has to do is to establish a
two way communication with Him, Who has now attained the form of the idol or picture. The aspirant has
to now surrender all his actions to the Lord, who is now seated in the idol. The idol should not be treated
just an idol and instead, as the Lord Himself. The idol that can be seen when eyes are open should also
be seen when the eyes are closed. This becomes possible by absolute concentration on the idol. The
idol worship ultimately paves way for contemplation of the true form of the Lord, the formless form.
The depth of devotion depends upon ones ability to function on behalf of the Lord. Unless ones ego is
totally pruned and surrendered to the Lord, one cannot function on behalf of the Lord. As long as ego
exists, I also exists. This I has to be dissolved unto the Lord and only then, the union between Self and
the self can take place. If one becomes devoid of ego, he becomes like the Lord as a result of which he
is not bound law of karma. When there is no I and only Him, karmas do not accrue. Karma accrues only
on account of ego. Yoga means the mental union between Him and I ness. When such union takes place,
his transmigration ceases to exist and the yogi is not born again. He is now known as yogi as he has
mastered the art of yoga, the union of Him and I or the Self and the self.
Ka stresses the importance of steadfast mind and intellect. Ones ego can be surrendered only if
mind is fixed on the Lord all the time. Intellect is a tool that purely depends upon the mind. Only due to the
intellect, one can distinguish between perishable and Imperishable or Infinite. Ordinary knowledge is not

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enough to understand this difference as Infinite is not objective and cannot be seen. To understand the
Infinite and subtle, one needs to have knowledge much beyond the ordinary perception. This Supreme
knowledge is called intellect. Intellect has the capacity to discriminate between the Lord and His my.
My is also Lords play and He uses this tool to evaluate a person. Intellect also manifests faith, which
is yet another tool for Realization. If one is not able to fix his mind on the Lord all the time, the Lord says
that this can be surely achieved by persistent practice. Practice always leads to perfection.
Ka says that path pursued is not important, but the goal is important. The path may be devotion,
austerities, meditation, etc, but ultimately the aim of an aspirant is to get liberated by merging with the
Brahman. Liberation is important, because the existence is always painful.
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BHAGAVAD GITA. CHAPTER XII. 1 - 5


Gita Series 125: Chapter - XII. Verse 1 5
The XII chapter of Bhagavad Gita is known as the Yoga of Devotion or bhakti yoga and has twenty
verses.
Arjuna said: Some devotees have fixed their minds on you and worship You all the time and yet other
devotees adore You as the imperishable and formless Brahman. Of these two, who is the best knower
of yoga?
Ka answers: Those who fix their mind on Me all the time, meditate and worship My form with great
devotion and faith are considered as the best yog-s by Me. However, those who control their senses,
have to be equalitarian, concern for others, and adore Me, the Brahman as their own self also attain
Me. But, it is difficult for those, whose mind is attached to My Brahman form; because oneness with
Me is attained with difficulty for the embodied beings.
Arjuna asks Ka about the confusion that prevails in the minds of many. The question is whether to
worship the Lord with form or without form (Brahman with attributes or without attributes).
There are two options to attain the Lord. One is the devotion, the ardent love for the Lord. Devotion is not

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something by which one keeps distance from the Lord. The love for the Lord has to blossom within the
heart and mind leading to perpetual thought about the Lord. There are instances where devotees drape
winter clothing to the idols of the Lord, thinking that the biting cold could affect the Lord. Their mind is so
engrossed with the Lord as a result of which they tend to forget that the Lord is beyond all this. This is a
typical case of devotion, transforming into love. The other option is to control the mind and meditate on
the formless Brahman. This is more difficult than the path of devotion, primarily because one is going to
visualize the formless form. One needs to have a thoroughly cleansed mind that is devoid of any
secondary thought processes. The inherent nature of the mind is to go after the senses and one has to
have strong will power to subdue the mind.
In both the paths, one has to surely tread the spiritual path with utmost care. The main drawback while
pursuing the path of simple devotion is its wrong understanding. It is not spending only a limited time
before the form of the Lord and during rest of the time never even think about Him. This is not considered
as devotion but a routine ritual for the sake of it and does not serve any useful purpose. Ka had
already said in the previous chapters, that what He needs is only pure devotion. He is not concerned with
materialistic offerings.
Between the two options to worship the Lord in a manifested form with steadfast mind and faith and
the second one is to meditate on the Lord as Unmanifest. In the second option, apart from faith and
steadfast mind, one needs to have absolute self-control, treating everyone alike, and concern for all the
beings. In the second option, ones wisdom and intellect play an important role in realization. This is
because one needs to have firm faith and understanding of the omnipresence nature of the Brahman.
When the Brahman exists everywhere, why search for Him elsewhere, when one can explore Him within
own self. Ka says that mere devotion with steadfast mind is sufficient to attain Him, than fighting
against the inherent nature of the mind. Ka also says that as long as one attaches importance to his
physical body, he may not be able to attain the Lord that easily, basically because his mind is also
concerned with his body. His mind gives rise to secondary thought process. The Lord alone does not
occupy this mind, but also his body, thereby making the realization process complicated.
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Wednesday, January 5, 2011

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BHAGAVAD GITA. CHAPTER XI. 47 - 55


Gita Series 124: Chapter - XI. Verse 47 55

Kundalini Unravelled
Manblunder

Ka said, Pleased with you I have shown My yogic splendor My Supreme,


effulgent, primal and cosmic body that was not seen by anyone before. Arjuna,
this form of Mine cannot be seen by anyone else other than you, even through
study of Veda-s, performance of rituals, austerities, gifts, actions, penances, etc.
Do not be afraid for having witnessed such a terrifying form of Mine. Dispel fear
from your mind and happily contemplate My four-armed form.

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Sajaya said, Having spoken to Arjuna thus, Vsudeva (Ka) showed Arjuna,
His gentle form and consoled the frightened Arjuna.

Arjuna said, Ka, seeing You in this gentle form, I have regained my composure.
Ka said, The form of Mine that you are seeing now (Viu form) is extremely difficult to see and
even gods are longing to see this form. Neither study of Veda-s, nor penance, charity, and rituals will
help in seeing this form of Mine. Only by single-minded devotion, I can be seen in this form and even
merge into My form. The one who performs all his duties for My sake, absolutely depending upon Me,
devoted to Me, free from attachments, free from maliciousness attains Me.
The Brahman cannot be attained by study of Veda-s. The essence of Veda-s is highly disguised and
extremely difficult for normal human understanding. Upanishads (Upaniad-s) play a vital role in making
a person to understand about the Brahman. Upaniad-s are explained as setting at rest ignorance, by
revealing the knowledge of the Brahman. Even Upaniad-s can only impart knowledge about the
Brahman but, they by themselves cannot reveal the Brahman. Even ones spiritual preceptor cannot
show the Brahman. It is only the mind of the aspirant that can realise the Brahman. Brahman can be seen
only by the spiritual eye and not by the biological eyes. Rituals and gifts and charities are introduced in
later times only to develop positive attitude. They do not mean anything beyond laying the most needed
strong spiritual foundation. It is essential to have a purified mind. If the mind is afflicted, it originates
different thoughts. Mind by nature cannot be made without thoughts. Whatever one thinks, let that thinking
be about the Lord. If thought of the Lord is made perpetual, the ego gets dissolved. This is called
devotion. This is the love for the Lord. Even astral beings are deluded by my. The cosmic form of the
Lord is nothing but my of the Lord. With His my form, the Lord loves to play with His devotees. A
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Lord is nothing but my of the Lord. With His my form, the Lord loves to play with His devotees. A
typical example of the Lords play is cowherdesses of Vindvana, companions of Ka's juvenile
sports.
Bhagavad Gita is the only treatise where the Lord Himself criticises unfounded rituals. Rituals beyond
ones capacity begin to cause negative impact on the aspirant. Rituals have too many rules and
regulations that are to be strictly adhered. Rituals cannot be simplified and modified so as to suit to
modern times. At the same time, rituals are not a precondition to know the Brahman. Some aspirants
become ritual addicts. They will not be able to even begin their spiritual journey. Without traversing the
spiritual path, liberation cannot be attained. Brahman can be realised both in comfort and in discomfort.
It is not the place and mantra that matters in spirituality. Primarily it is the knowledge that is important
followed by ones ability to purify his mind. Ka says that not only one can envision His auspicious
form, but also merge into it. Vision of the Divine is a myth, whereas envision of the Divine is a reality.
The whole of chapter XI is be looked as the Lords play, also an indirect reference to the doctrine of
analogy. Ka tests Arjunas capabilities by roasting him in His fire of my. The test is a prelude to
what Ka is going to say to Arjuna in the closing chapters of Bhagavad Gita. As Arjuna is a seasoned
student of Ka, he was able to pass the test. Arjuna remained un-afflicted by the cosmic form of the
Lord, though he was afraid and recovered later and Ka therefore decides to impart the ultimate
knowledge through the closing chapters of this timeless epic.
THE END OF CHAPTER XI
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Tuesday, January 4, 2011

BHAGAVAD GITA. CHAPTER XI. 35 - 46


Gita Series 123: Chapter - XI. Verse 35 46
Sajaya said, Hearing those words of Ka, Arjuna trembling with folded
hands, bowed to the Lord again and spoke to Him with shaky voice.
Arjuna said, Ka, the world becomes rapturous on listening to Your

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Arjuna said, Ka, the world becomes rapturous on listening to Your


praises, scared demons flee, the Siddha-s bow to You. O, the Great Soul,
why should they not bow before You, who is greater than Brahm, the god of
creation. (Brahm looks after the act of creation and is controlled by
Brahman, the Supreme Lord, who is also known as Brahma.) You are the
abode of this universe, eternal, both manifest and unmanifest and much
INDIAN EDITION
beyond these both too. You are primordial, the ancient and the ultimate
RS.792
resort of this universe. You are both knowledge and the knower. It is You,
who permeate this universe in different shapes and forms. You are Vyu, Yama, Agni, Varua, Moon,
Brahm, no, the father of Brahm himself. I offer my obeisance to You, thousands of times, again and
again. Obeisance to You from Your front and back and from all Your sides. You are limitless in power
and omnipresent.
I have addressed You as Ka, Ydava, Friend considering You only as my friend, unaware of Your
greatness. I seek Your forgiveness for the inappropriate words that I have used while playing, resting
or eating together either privately or even in the presence of other friends. You are the father of this
world for both animate and inanimate, worthy of worship and the Supreme master. You have no
equals in the three worlds and You are the nonpareil power. Therefore, Lord, I prostrate at Your feet
and please show mercy on me for my transgressions and forgive me just like a father forgives his son,
a friend tolerating another friend and a spouse putting up with his beloved.
I have rejoiced in Your Vivarpa form that was never seen before. But, at the same time, I was
disturbed and frightened. O, Lord, therefore please bless me with Your magnificent divine form with
four arms, with club, chakra (disc), conch and lotus and adorned with a crown. O, Lord, with thousands
of arms, appear again in Your four armed form.
Arjuna was so frightened on seeing the cosmic form of Ka. This is evident in the way in which he
spoke, with a lot repetitions. He was repeatedly praising the Lord and was clearly fumbling for words.
The magnificence of Vivarpa form got embedded very deeply in the mind of Arjuna. For example,
Arjuna knows pretty well that the Brahman or Brahma or the Lord is incomparable. Because of the
bewildered mental condition of Arjuna at that time, he could have drawn this comparison. Otherwise, a
person of Arjunas caliber would not have ever attempted to draw this comparison.
Arjuna was a close playmate of Ka. During those playful days, Arjuna did not realise Kas
magnificence. Arjuna gradually begins to realise Ka only during war preparations. Within a short span

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of time, Arjuna had the opportunity to have Vivarpa darana of the Lord. This had become possible for
Arjuna because of his unshakable faith in the Lord as his spiritual master. Even a perfected student like
Arjuna could not withstand the grandeur of effulgence of the Lord, nothing need to be said about other
aspirants. The blinding effulgence of the Lord can never be seen directly through biological eyes. That is
why scriptures never talked about appearance of the Lord in His primordial Self illuminating form. Even
for Arjuna, the Lord did not show His Self illuminating form. Vivarpa form of the Lord is basically His
mighty my form. Had Ka chosen to reveal His Self radiating form, the whole world would have been
burnt to ashes.
Arjuna was so scared of the cosmic form of the Lord, he pleads with the Lord to appear in His original
Viu form. The form of Viu is always considered very auspicious. After witnessing the cosmic form of
Ka, Arjuna longs to see the auspicious form of the Lord, with which he is very familiar. Arjuna knows
pretty well, that if he continues to have this kind of mind set, he cannot win the battle. Arjuna wanted a
calm mind to win the battle. An agitated mind never offers solution and on the contrary gives more
trouble, as an agitated mind loses its capacity to think properly to arrive at the correct decision.
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BHAGAVAD GITA. CHAPTER XI. 32 - 34


Gita Series 122: Chapter - XI. Verse 32 34
Ka answers Arjunas queries. I am the mighty time that is capable of destroying the worlds and I
am out to destroy these men. Even without you, all the warriors in the enemys camp will die.
Therefore, you fight, conquer your enemies and enjoy the glory of being victorious and enjoy the
pleasures of kingdoms. Your enemies have already been killed by Me and you are only an
instrument. I have already slain Bhma, Droa, Jayadratha, Kara and other brave warriors. Do not
be afraid. Just fight and you will win the battle.
Ka answers to Arjunas main question who are you? Ka says that He is time, the exclusive factor
that determines every moment of individual beings. Time in association with karma decides the creation,
the nature of sustenance and the mode of death of every individual. But the time factor is applicable only
to mortals. The duration of a period of time is said to vary, depending upon the planes in which one lives.
For example, one day for a human could be just an hour at the astral level. There are several astral

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planes. When one goes still further, one day of earth could be one minute and one second, etc. Only the
Lord is beyond time. Those who are bonded by time are bound to die at some point of time. That is why,
scriptures determine the time period even for the creator god, Brahm. Only the Brahman alone is
beyond time, as time also, like the rest, originates from Him. Brahman is the Reality that cannot be
controlled by anything else, basically because, everything else only originates from Him and sustained by
Him. Brahman is called compassionate because, He not only creates, but also sustains what is created
by Him. He sustains all His creations with great love and care. If His love is reciprocated, the award is
liberation.
The next statement of Ka is very significant. Arjuna while witnessing the cosmic form of the Lord had
said that he saw his spiritual masters and preceptors entering into the ghastly mouth of the Lord with
their cadavers. What Arjuna saw inside the cosmic form of the Lord was the omen of death of these
warriors. Therefore, it implies that the Lord is aware of what is in store for the future of every single
being. It also means that the Lord is so compassionate by taking care of every single individual. The
Lord makes a reference to only four of the warriors, who are closely associated with Arjuna. Ka says
that the time had come to end the lives of the four along with many other soldiers who took part in the
battle. Arjuna is being used by the Lord only as a tool to slain them. If it was not Arjuna, the Lord would
have used someone else in his place. Their life span will not cross that particular time limit, irrespective
of who is going to slain them. In a war like situations, for example floods, volcanoes, draught, etc we see
many people die at the same time. When many are killed at the same time, not only their individual
karma-s manifest, but their group karma-s also manifest in causing huge causalities. Arjuna was not
aware of these facts at that time, as Ka had not told Arjuna all this in detail before unraveling His
cosmic form.
Since the time to shed their gross bodies had already matured for these warriors, Ka says that
Arjunas karmic account will not affected by killing his preceptors, gurus, relatives, etc. It is always
considered that killing ones own guru attracts the severest punishment under karmic law. Ka says
that Arjuna is not going to kill them in this battle, as their time of death has already been decided by their
karmic account and at the appointed time they have to necessarily die. Hence it is believed that the Lord
acts through someone to execute all His acts. On the other hand, if Arjuna takes credit for killing his
masters and relatives, he will be bound by karma, as he takes unlawful credit. All the credit should go to
the Brahman is one of the foundational principles of spirituality.
Jayadratha was married to the only daughter of Dhtarra. The latters sons were engaged in the battle

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with Arjuna and his brothers. Jayadratha kidnapped their wife, when Arjuna and his brothers were away.
However, she was safely rescued and as a punishment, he was tonsured and let out with a stern warning
by Pava brothers.
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Monday, January 3, 2011

BHAGAVAD GITA. CHAPTER XI. 14 - 31


Gita Series 121: Chapter - XI. Verse 14 31
Arjuna is completely wonder struck and with goose bump all over his body, bowed to the Lord with great
reverence and with folded hands said to the Lord:
I see in Your body, all gods and multifarious beings, Brahm (who is in charge of creation) seated on
His lotus seat, all saints, sages and celestial serpents. You are endowed with countless arms,
stomachs, mouths and eyes with forms extended on all directions. I see no beginning, no middle and
no end to this form of yours. I see You with crown, club and chakra (cakra), in a mass of effulgence of
blazing fire and sun that glows all round, which is difficult to look at. You are the endless Supreme,
worthy of knowing, the ultimate abode of all, and the protector of dharma. I see you without a
beginning, middle and end with unlimited power and endowed with countless arms, having sun and
moon as Your eyes, the blazing fire as Your mouth and burning the universe with Your effulgence.
You pervade the entire space between heaven and earth in all directions. The three worlds (heaven,
earth and the space in between) tremble with fear on seeing this awesome form of Yours.
I saw many gods entering You, some with folded hands and other reciting Your various names and
glories. Many maharii-s (great sages) and Siddha-s are praising You through hymns and praying for
peace. The eleven Rudra-s, twelve ditya-s, eight Vasu-s, the Sdhya-s 1, forty nine Marut-s,
Vivedeva-s2, two Avinkumra-s, ancestors (pit-s), gandharva-s, yaka-s, demons and Siddha-s
look upon you with bewilderment. The whole world trembles on seeing this form of Yours with many
mouths, eyes, arms, thighs, feet, abdomens and Your terrible teeth; so do I. O, Viu, upon seeing
Your blazing form reaching the heavens, multicoloured, having your mouth wide open, the fearful

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eyes, I am frightened, lost my self-control and find neither peace nor courage. Your faces are
frightening because of the teeth that flare like fire at the time of annihilation of the universe. I am
totally confused and find no solace. Please be kind to me, O, Lord of gods.
All those sons of Dhrtarra3 along with some other kings are entering You. Bhma, Droa and
Kara4 with many other warriors on our side also rushing headlong into Your dreadful mouth. Some
got struck between the gaps of Your teeth and were crushed. Like rivers entering sea, these warriors
enter your flaming mouth. Like moths rushing towards flame and get themselves burnt to death, these
people enter your mouth and get destroyed. You consume all beings with Your fierce mouths,
encasing the entire universe within your splendid effulgence.
Lord, tell me who You are with such a terrible form? I offer my obeisance to you; be kind to me. I am
eager to know You, but, I am unable to comprehend Your actions.
The whole narration of Arjuna is self explanatory.
1

Sdhya-s: They were twelve in number and were born to Dakas daughter Sdhya, the consort of
Dharma. The names of Sdhya-s differ between pura-s. Commonly known names are Manas,
Anumant, Pra, Nara, Apna, Bhakti, Bhaya, Anagha, Hasa, Nryaa, Vibhu and Prabhu.
2

Vivedeva-s: They were ten in number and were born to Dakas daughter Viva, wife of Dharma.
Their names differ according to Manvantra-s. Sometimes Vivedeva-s is used to mean all the gods.
According to Manu, offerings should be made to them daily - these privileges having been bestowed on
them by Brahm and the Piti-s, as a reward for severe austerities they had performed on the Himlaya.
3

Dhrtarra: The blind king of Hastinapura and their hundred sons are known as Kuru-s, against whom,
the battle is waged by Arjuna. Please refer chapter I for more details.
4 Bhma,

Droa and Kara: The patriarch Bhma and the master Droa are the common preceptors of
both Pava-s and Kaurava-s. These two were the greatest warriors on Kauravas side. Kara is the
elder brother of Pu princes (Arjuna and his brothers), being the son of the god Srya by Pith or
Kunt, before her marriage with Pu. Afraid of the censure of her relatives, Kunt deserted the child and
put it in the river, where it was found by a charioteer named Adhiratha and nurtured by his wife Rdha.
Hence Kara is sometimes called Staputra or Staja, sometimes Rdheya, though named by his foster
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parents Vasuea.
When Arjuna sees in the cosmic form of the Lord, the entry of these men headlong, it is meant to mean
the entry of their dead bodies into the Lord. This also means that what is to happen in future is already
stored within the Lord. When Arjuan says that he has seen ancestors within the Lord, it means that the
past is also within the Lord. It is also important to note that everything happens within the cosmic form of
the Lord and no action takes place and nothing exists outside His cosmic form. The whole of creation,
sustenance and dissolution and the three factors of time, past, present and future also happen within His
cosmic form. The Brahman or the Lord encompasses the entire universe.
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