Srirmad Bhagavat Gita commentary chapter 3 verse 10

Chapter 3 verse 10

“The creator, having in the beginning of creation created mankind together with attitude of self sacrifice, said, “By this shall you prosper; let this be the milch cow of your desires-kamdhuk (the cow which yields all desired objects)”

Yajna is the attitude of self sacrifice of all actions for the greater good. The Universe originated with conditions such as the nature’s elements such as sun, wind, water etc., working selflessly for benefit of beings. The essential nature of human beings were also to act selflessly. Krishna has an interesting choice of slimily here to compare desire less action as the source of boundless bliss given by the desire fulfilling kamadhenu- the cow which assisted sage vashista to take care of all his needs.

Srimad Bhagavat Gita commentary chapter 3 verse 9

Chapter 3 verse 9

“The world is bound by actions other than those performed for the sake of sacrifice; therefore perform action for the sake of yagna (as an offering or sacrifice to Divine) alone, free from all attachments”

This is a beautiful verse explaining how each individual’s attachment to their actions creates their own attachment to the world and entire world is created and manifested due to the collective attachments of all beings. When action is performed without desires- Nishkaamya karma, then we are rid of this make believe universe around us and we start looking inward and realizing the divine in ourselves. There could not be a more direct instruction from Krishna.

Srimad Bhagavat Gita commentary chapter 3 verse 8

Chapter 3 verse 8

“You perform your bounden duty; for, action is superior to inaction. Even the maintenance of the body would not be possible for you by inaction”

Krishna provides a great example of desire less action. Each cell of the body performs action according to what it has been instructed to do. The instruction is its dharma (duty driven by a purpose) borne out of the prakriti (nature) of that cell or organ (inborn nature of the cell is to sustain until it dies). We don’t need to look far for examples of desire less action. Our body by itself is a great example. Another perspective is that this soul was born in human form for a purpose- a lesson plan to learn a higher order trait which progresses on the path of Moksha (eternal bliss). If we don’t follow the lesson plan, we are bound to repeat the Plan. Nature’s laws would not let us skip grades or lesson plan before proceeding to the next grid in the journey towards Moksha. Action ordained to us therefore has to be performed earnestly.

Srimad Bhagavat Gita commentary chapter 3 verse 4-7

Chapter 3 verse 4-7

“Not by non-performance of action does man reach ‘actionlessness’; nor by mere renunciation does he attain perfection. Verily, none can ever remain, even for a moment, without performing action; for, everyone is made to act helplessly, indeed, by the qualities born of Prakriti (nature).He who restraining the organs of action, sits thinking in his mind of the sense objects, he, of deluded understanding, is called a hypocrite. But whosoever, controlling the senses by the mind, O Arjuna, engages his organs of action in Karma-yoga, without attachment, he excels”

Krishna says that a person cannot achieve peace, happiness and excellence in living by non-performance of action or renunciation of one’s assigned duties but only by restraining the mind and engaging in action without attachment to a particular outcome of that action. Laws of karma goad us to act per our Prakriti or inherent nature or otherwise called Vasanas (tendencies). Action is not our prerogative. Desire less action is the only ‘free will’ we possess. We have to perform action to exhaust our ripened karma (Praarabdha Karma) but how we perform that action determines whether we accumulate even more Vasanas or start exhausting our Vasanas by desire less action. It is as if we want to drain a water tank but keep filling it from another side. How will we ever exhaust the tank of water? This body-mind-intellect complex which is called Prakriti needs to be emptied of all its Vasanas for it to reveal the divine entity in itself. We don’t need to go anywhere to experience bliss. “Just be and act” is enough!

Srimad Bhagavat Gita commentary chapter 3 verse 3

Chapter 3 verse 3

“The blessed lord said: In this world there is a twofold path, as said before, O sinless one; the ‘path of knowledge’ of the saankhyans and the ‘path of action’ of the yogins”

Lord Krishna compassionately understands the confusion of Arjuna who he calls the ‘sinless’ one. Sins are not a concept in sanatana dharma. No action by itself is good or bad. It is the intention of the action which will have consequences according to the laws of karma. Therefore nobody is a sinful creature. Krishna has explained the paths of knowledge and path of yoga in summary in chapter 2. He talked at length about the path of knowledge in previous chapter and he is going to explain the path of yoga in this chapter. Over the ages these paths have been thought of as separate. However both the paths have to converge at some point for the person to attain the divine. We will explore what Bhagwan Krishna enumerates in following verses.

Srimad Bhagavat Gita commentary chapter 3 verse 2

Chapter 3 verse 2

“With this apparently perplexing speech you confuse, as it were, my understanding; therefore, tell me that ‘one’ way by which, I, for certain, may attain the Highest”

There is no way Arjuna understands the divine in Lord Krishna. Otherwise his tone would not be like this verse. As well, the “I ness” rules the roost in Arjuna still just like all of us. Years ago, a noble soul named Rajima taught me Srimad Bhagavat Gita over 2 weeks! Her most important criteria for the classes was that we follow strict diet restrictions of sattvik food, take a cold shower every morning and complete the gita saadhana with a selfless project as Guru dakshina. What she was trying to do was to inculcate sattvik grounds in the body and mind to receive the knowledge given to us. Likewise, all of us need to be ready to receive the knowledge being given. Otherwise it just becomes information which just flows through us without any positive impact. Arjuna after listening to entire summary of purna vidya from Lord Krishna in about 60+ verses in chapter 2, is asking Krishna not to confuse him! The beauty of our scriptures is that this readiness aspect has been recognized by all our scriptures and the Guru imparts the knowledge only when the disciple is ready. In some instances such as Bhagavat Gita, it is being imparted as an exception since “war” needs to be fought and hence Krishna leans forward and shares knowledge even though Arjuna is not ready for it.

Srimad Bhagavat Gita commentary chapter 3 verse 1

Chapter 3 verse 1

“Arjuna said: If it be thought by you that ‘knowledge’ is superior to ‘action’ O Krishna, why then, do you, engage me in terrible action?”

Arjuna after having heard Lord Krishna explaining the purna vidya, still in a confused state asks him why he needs to act in this terrible war. There is a key difference between hearing and ‘listening to understand’. Krishna in many verses had indicated to act without a particular expectation of result or not act with desires. However Arjuna has latched himself to a few aspects of what Krishna taught him and inferred that inaction is the right solution here. Arjuna clearly is still in a state of delusion. Readiness of receiving the knowledge is very important. How do you prepare one to be ready to receive purna vidya? Did Arjuna really surrender to Krishna? Is his mind at rest? Is it empty to receive? Let’s reflect on that!

Srimad Bhagavat Gita commentary Chapter 2 verse 71-72

Chapter 2 verse 71-72

“That man attains peace who, abandoning all desires, moves about without longing, without sense of ‘I-ness’ and ‘my-ness’. This is the Braahmika state. Attaining this, none is deluded, being established therein, even at end of life, one attains to oneness with Brahman””

This state for a person when they get eternal peace due to abandoning of all desires without any clinging to the ego is called Braahmika state. Krishna says that if a person gets to a thoughtless, desireless state even at the end of his life, that person would not be reborn and merges with the supreme. Practically thoughtless or desireless state comes with practice and cannot be achieved in your last breadth without having practiced in your life.

“Thus, in the Upanishads of the glorious Bhagavad-Gita, in the science of the eternal, in scripture of yoga, in the dialogue between Sri Krishna and Arjuna, the second discourse ends entitled: THE YOGA OF KNOWLEDGE (SANKHYA).

As I opined earlier, this becomes a chapter of knowledge for those who experience this as a reality. For all of majority others, it is a chapter of “information” or prajnapanam with need to experience this knowledge internally! This completes commentary on Chapter 2 on the auspicious day of Mahashivaratri. May divine grace flow through all of us and around us!

Srimad Bhagavat Gita commentary chapter 2 verse 70

Chapter 2 verse 70

“The man of perfection (Sthita Prajna) attains peace into whom all desires enters as waters enter the ocean, which filled from all sides, remains unmoved, but not the “desirer of desires””

What a beautiful verse and comparison? The ocean gets water fed from all sources but doesn’t move an inch nor gets bloated. Likewise, a person who has reached a steady wisdom or mind does not get affected by desires unlike a person who contains and flames up desires constantly. There is a beautiful sloka as part of the nitya karma-sandhya vandanam ritual which is aakaashath pathitam toyam yada gacchathi saagaram sarva deva namaskaaraha kesavam prathi gachathi- Just like all rain which falls eventually merges into the ocean, likewise all prayers goes to only supreme being. All desires when surrendered to the supreme being just merges into the divine. If this bhaavana or contemplation is done every moment of every day, the purpose of our lives will be fulfilled!

Srimad Bhagavat Gita commentary chapter 2 verse 69

Chapter 2 verse 69

“That, which is night for all beings, in that the self-controlled man keeps awake; where all beings are awake, that is the night for the Sage (Muni) who sees”

This sloka is another curve ball for me. The only way I can understand is that night is used as a metaphor of avidya or lack of knowledge. When the common person is living without knowledge of Self or avidya or darkness, the realized person is in light and when there is awareness all around, the self realized person can rest assured as if it is his night. The champion wall street investor-Warren Buffet usually says that when everyone is afraid, he invests and when everyone is flocking to buy stocks, he stays away. The Oracle of Omaha must have read the Bhagavat Gita or some version of it! Are there other ways to think about this verse?

Srimad Bhagavat Gita commentary chapter 2 verse 68

Chapter 2 verse 68

“Therefore, O mighty armed, his knowledge is steady whose senses are completely restrained from sense objects”

A tamil proverb goes “A vegetable drawn on a black board or slate will not be helpful in cooking”. Likewise, bookish knowledge of vedanta or any spiritual knowledge is useless until it is put to real test. Mind control is the biggest test for spiritual knowledge turned into practice.

Srimad Bhagavat Gita commentary chapter 2 verse 67

Chapter 2 verse 67

“For, the mind which follows in the wake of the wandering senses carries away his discrimination, as the wind carries away a boat on the waters”

The biggest issue in meditation is the ability to control the mind and its thoughts. One can traverse the world in our thoughts while being in one place. This is a beautiful example by Krishna of the ability of the mind to drift away listlessly just like the boat drifts in the wind in the waters with gay abandon. There is nothing much to say about this but lots to experience. I am personally struggling to get my mind under control during daily bouts of meditation. All bookish knowledge is useless until this mind control happens. Seeking divine grace for mind control!

Srimad Bhagavat Gita commentary chapter 2 verse 66

Chapter 2 verse 66

“There is no Self knowledge to the unsteady mind and to the unsteady mind no meditation; and to the person who does not meditate there is no peace; to the person without peace, how can there be happiness?”

Krishna uses the word “Bhaavana” for meditation or contemplation. In other words, the person who doesn’t search inward for the Self within through contemplation and meditation, their mind goes everywhere and becomes unsteady and where the mind is not steady, there is no peace and when there is no peace of mind, the person cannot be happy. I had to look up Bhaavana and found out that it is a pali word used extensively by Buddhism for mind related matters. The interlink of different schools of thought and ways of life in Bhaarata varsha seems to be rooted in the same Sanatana dharma principles.

Srimad Bhagavat Gita commentary chapter 2 verse 64-65

Chapter 2 verse 64-65

“But the self-controlled man moving among objects with his senses under restraint and free from both attraction and repulsion, attains peace. In that peace all pains are destroyed; for, the intellect of the tranquil minded soon becomes steady”

Again a contemplative trip in Sanskrit words- Krishna uses the word “prasada” to mean attainment of peace in the mind vs. “Shanthihi” which is often used in the Vedas and Upanishads. What he is trying to indicate here? When the mind is at rest or peace, one gets the biggest gift from the divine which is nothing but divine grace. What better “prasada” or gift could one receive than mental peace and control from the effect of the external objects/senses? Krishna brings his narrative back to Sthitha Prajna-one who is of steady wisdom. He again defines that person who has a steady intellect borne out of a calm mind. Self awareness and Self control are 2 major traits in modern business world lingo called “Emotional Quotient”. There was a time when Intelligence quotient ruled the roost in the business and academic world but then the correlation between academic performance and business world success was not high enough. So there was a need to look at other predictors of success. The western world need not have looked far- they could have looked at our Vedas, Upanishads and Ithihasa to gain those insights for EQ. What about the western world for that matter? Even people born in Bhaaratha varsha need to reflect on our scriptures! The gold mine of knowledge and life guide is available in the open for us to tap into. Let’s go and be a “gold digger” of self knowledge!

Srimad Bhagavat Gita commentary chapter 2 verse 62-63

Chapter 2 verse 62-63

“When a man thinks of objects, attachment for them arises; from attachment desires is born; from desire arises anger…

From anger comes delusion; from delusion, loss of memory; from loss of memory, the destruction of discrimination; from destruction of discrimination, he perishes”

Lord Krishna talks about the fall of a human being even when the person is still alive from a body standpoint. I have heard a concept of ladder of fall or reverse ladder – once you set your senses on external objects of the world, attachment happens for that object which takes one step by step on a downward spiral staircase! That attachment to object leads to desire, non fulfillment of that desire leads to anger. Anger prevents one from thinking straight and leads to delusion. Delusion leads to loss of sanity or one’s intrinsic memory borne out of all of our previous Samskaras (tendencies). Loss of memory leads to destruction of discrimination. Lord Krishna here uses the word “Buddhi” interchangeably with “Viveka” which is the word in Sanskrit for discrimination. With that, he is indicating to us that if Buddhi-which is intellect in English is not use for appropriate discrimination between the “real” and “unreal”, then that intellect is pretty much non-existent or dead! Krishna packs so much power into these 2 verses that I decided to combine them both for commentary. This is a drop the mic moment for him. There is no more words to add to these verses. All this commentary is just noise- mere words or blabbering of the mind and intellect. Reflection on these divine words is necessary for all of us.

Srimad Bhagavat Gita commentary chapter 2 verse 61

Chapter 2 verse 61

“Having restrained them all, He should sit steadfast, intent on Me; his wisdom is steady whose senses are under control”

The ability to lose the mind and intellect and drawn oneself to Self is the act of meditation or samaadhi and that’s what Lord Krishna is urging Arjuna to do. Stillness of body leads to stillness of mind and Intellect. Ramana Maharishi says that you cannot control the mind using the mind itself. So it is important to drop the mind to get to Self. For this to be an experiential reality needs tremendous discipline of the body, mind and Intellect and above all divine grace! We all need to start somewhere. Well begun is just well begun “not half done” in this case!

Srimad Bhagavat Gita commentary chapter 2 verse 60

Chapter 2 verse 60

“The turbulent senses, O son of Kunti, do violently carry away the mind of a wise man, though he may be striving to control them”

Thank God- Oh Lord Krishna. You let us a breather and acknowledged that controlling the senses is very difficult. Even a wise man is led astray by the controlling senses which we want to try and control. The striving part is important and the key word. Efforts have to continue to get control of the senses through constant reflection and centering of the mind. Praying to the divine for Grace in this process would be great.

Srimad Bhagavat Gita commentary Chapter 2 verse 59

Chapter 2 verse 59

“The objects of the senses turn away from the abstinent man leaving the longing behind; but his longing also leaves him upon seeing the supreme”

Lord Krishna continues the similarity drawn in the previous verse to the tortoise withdrawing its senses, when the person withdraws their senses, the senses in turn as well doesn’t bother him (poetic way of thinking about it as if sense organs and objects exist outside a person’s gambit!). He also points out that by drawing into the supreme residing in the Self, his longing for sense objects outside of him/her is left behind. My highly limited Sanskrit understanding was laid bare today again when I tried to make out the meaning of this verse without looking at the English translation! There are so many facilities in the modern world we take for granted such as English translation of such great scriptures by great masters and easy accessibility of the same. Let’s count all our blessings! Gratitude to our Guru and Guru parampara and to our Parama Guru- Sriman Narayana or whichever favorite form or formless we want to think of the supreme being!

Srimad Bhagavat Gita commentary chapter 2 verse 58

Chapter 2 verse 58

“When like the tortoise, which withdraws its limbs from all sides, he withdraws his senses from the sense objects, and then his wisdom becomes steady”

Lord Krishna stresses the importance of not getting affected by the sense objects- touch, see, feel, hear and taste. A person of steady wisdom dwells in the world of sense objects without being affected by them. He eats and drinks to quench his thirst and hunger and treats it like a disease to be treated-nothing more.

Srimad Bhagavat Gita commentary Chapter 2 verse 57

Chapter 2 verse 57

“He, who is everywhere without attachment, on meeting with anything good or bad, who neither rejoices or hates, his wisdom is fixed”

Further defining what a person with steady wisdom is, Lord Krishna points to the person who does all action and meets all instances of life, people or interactions with equanimity. The situations don’t bother this person who neither celebrates success nor is pained by failure. Easier said than done!

Srimad Bhagavat Gita commentary chapter 2 verse 56

Chapter 2 verse 56

“He, whose mind is not shaken up by adversity, and who, in prosperity does not hanker after pleasures, who is free from attachment, fear and anger is called a Sage of steady wisdom”

Further Lord Krishna defines a “person of steady mind” as one who endures the pair of opposites- adversity, prosperity, pleasure or pain. The person is free from attachments to body, mind or results of action. They are able to be even knelled and does not show fear or anger. I was just leafing through srimad bhagavatam yesterday especially in the Uddhava Gita portion and Krishna repeats this exact knowledge to Uddava as well. This reminds me that important information is repeated again and again until the receiver gets the message and acts on it. No wonder Adi Shankara said a person takes a billion lives to get out of the cycle of birth and death. It is a blessing that we are at least contemplating on this divine knowledge. Praise be to the Lord!

Srimad Bhagavat Gita chapter 2 verse 55

Chapter 2 verse 55

“Lord Krishna said: When a man completely casts off, O Arjuna, all the desires of the mind and is satisfied in the Self by the Self, then is he said to be one of steady wisdom.”

I have read a lot of self help books including one on how to be happy more than 15 years ago. I don’t recollect any of the contents of that book. Much later I have been blessed to understand that happiness is a state of mind. A couple of concepts come to mind when I read this verse. Could one person not be bored with themselves? How can the person lead a stress free life? The answer to both questions is what Krishna is calling a person of steady mind-sthitha prajna; The person should be happy or satisfied in themselves all alone and to be stress free not be clinging to desires of the mind or body. Goal in life is then to have your own company to be your best company and your actions in itself to be your mission and that’s it. Then “You are That”!

Srimad Bhagavat Gita chapter 2 verse 54

Chapter 2 verse 54

“Arjuna said: What, O Keshava, is the description of him who has steady wisdom and who is merged in the super conscious state? How does one of steady wisdom speak, how does he sit, how does he walk?

Again, Arjuna asks the characteristics of “Stitha Prajna”- Sanskrit term for someone who is firmly existing in stillness of mind or wisdom. Arjuna is asking for an “Idiot’s guide to a realized being”. “Upa” in Sanskrit is a very important word which means “near”. Upasana, Upanishad, Upanayana. Arjuna has been very near Lord Krishna and has been working with him a number of years of his life. In fact, he has already been told about what a sthita prajna is in the previous 40+ slokas but he is asking the question again. Krishna has infinite patience and compassion to still be calm and explain to Arjuna what does it take to be a stitha prajna! We will find out soon?

Srimad Bhagavat Gita commentary chapter 2 verse 53

Chapter 2 verse 53

“When your intellect, though perplexed by what you have heard, shall stand immovable and steady in the Self, you shall attain Self-Realization”

About10 years ago, I was told not to worry about learning the Gita in the Sanskrit version if you didn’t know Sanskrit already. It was great advice for me at my spiritual journey state. I am using as I have indicated earlier, Swami Chinmayananda’s transliteration into English but recently I have also made it a practice to at least read the sloka in Sanskrit. Today the English translation doesn’t do justice to the Sanskrit words in my opinion. Krishna uses the word that if “Buddhi” is steady, then you reach the state of “Yog” which is union of body, mind, Intellect at the least and Soul if you take it further. When Swami Chinmayananda uses the words Self realization, he is probably going all the way to integration with the Soul from an union of Body, Mind and Intellect. The debate of these 2 states in my mind would have been lost if I hadn’t read the Sanskrit verse and reflect on it. As well, Self is being used inter changeably with Buddhi which I believe is Intellect. It is time for some reflection here but these choice of words probably exhibits the receiver’s state of consciousness.

Srimad Bhagavat Gita commentary Chapter 2 verse 52

Chapter 2 verse 52

“When your intellect crosses the mire of delusion, you shall attain to indifference as to what has been heard and what is yet to be heard”

Krishna describes the state of living constantly in the meditation of the Self which goes beyond the body, mind, Intellect and beyond Sattva, Rajas and Tamo gunas. The external environment- people and material things don’t affect the person anymore. This state makes the person indifferent to what people would say or do. Not because they don’t care, their empathy and compassion are at such high levels that they completely understand the other person’s perspectives and don’t get affected by pair of opposites as mentioned in prior slokas. The delusion mentioned here is that we are one’s body, mind and intellect. We are not and it has to be an experiential reality. For now, let’s fake it to make it!

Srimad Bhagavat Gita commentary chapter 2 verse 51

Chapter 2 verse 51

“The wise, possessed of knowledge, having abandoned the fruits of their actions and freed from the fetters of birth, go to the state which is beyond all evil.”

Possessing the knowledge of the Self and acting with evenness of mind in Yoga leads one to act without expecting a particular result and is not enamored or clamoring for results. When this state of mind and existence is attained, whatever action we do is done with no attachment and hence there are no consequences different from laws of karma and nature. No additional tendencies called otherwise as Vasanas accumulate due to these desire less actions. This is the essence of Karma yoga but summarized here in this Sloka. I believe Krishna will cover this topic again in chapter 3. I am not reading ahead but going from memory of the past! Not a good thing is it?

Srimad Bhagavat Gita commentary chapter 2 verse 49-50

Chapter 2 verse 49-50

“Far lower than the yoga of wisdom is action, O Dhananjaya, Seek thou refuge in wisdom; wretched are they whose motivation is the fruit.

Endowed with the wisdom of ‘evenness of mind’, one casts off in this life both good deeds and evil deeds; therefore, devote oneself to yoga. ‘Skill in action is yoga’”

Krishna gives another perspective on yoga besides being stillness of mind. He says having a still mind without getting motivated by just the fruit of the action, makes oneself so skilled in action that they are able to discard both good and evil deeds in this life and realize their self. This ability to act without expecting the fruits of the action in a stress free manner is called Yoga- “highly skilled action”. I listened to a very interesting Guru called Sri M yesterday and he mentioned about how over the ages the vedantins have discarded the importance of yoga calling it a distraction but it is important to combine the concepts of Advaita and Yoga to lead a fulfilling life. This translates to residing in the self but focusing on action with expecting a particular result and optimizing energy levels by bring body, mind and soul in union.- Yogaha Karmasu Kausalam!

Srimad Bhagavat Gita commentary chapter 2 verse 48

Chapter 2 verse 48

“Perform action O Dhananjaya, abandoning attachment, being steadfast in yoga, and balanced in success and failure. Evenness of mind is called yoga”

I was just wondering that Krishna introduced the word Yoga a few slokas before this in verse 40 and now he has given a very simple definition of Yoga, Evenness of mind is called Yoga. Yoga has also been defined as dexterity in action-coming together of body, mind and intellect towards an action and hence evenness of mind as well. My guruji has also said that all actions, feelings and thoughts are our own responsibility. There is a tendency to shy away from action when one becomes disoriented due to extreme sadness or loss of enthusiasm for work. Krishna has urged us and Arjuna to wake up from that slumber and action without attachment to a particular result with a steady mind not worried about success or failure of that action. I am so proud of the legacy of our history, scriptures and lineage that we have been able to preserve this ultimate knowledge, try imbibing it and pass it on to next generation.

Srimad Bhagavat Gita commentary chapter 2 verse 47

Chapter 2 verse 47

“Thy right is to work only, but never to its fruits; let the fruit of action be not your motive, nor let thy attachment be to inaction”

This is the most famous Sloka of the entire Bhagavat Gita in recent times. I have never approached this Sloka after having read the 1^st 46 Slokas and entire 1^st chapter. Having done that now, the sloka makes complete in itself as a great crescendo of all the teachings thus far from Krishna. The wrong interpretation of the Vedas would lead one to believe that one needs to seek pleasures and lordship in this world. Krishna is imploring one’s right only to stress less action focused on job at hand without expecting “a particular” result. All actions will have result. The clinging to a particular result or expectation is the cause of all grief. Corollary of this Sloka is that he is also asking one not to attachment oneself to “inaction”. Sometimes I have wondered if walking away from challenges is the best option and now Krishna is clearly asking us NOT to walk away from action. One can walk away from desires but not focused action without expecting a particular result. If there was ever one Sloka to imbibe all our lives, this one would be it. However I have realized that every word of Krishna is important to listen and follow!