Srimad Bhagavat Gita commentary chapter 6 verse 46

Chapter 6 verse 46 

“The yogi is thought to be superior to the ascetics and even superior to men of knowledge through scholarly pursuits; he is also superior to men of action; therefore one should strive to be a yogi” 

This is a very hard hitting verse which essentially clarifies the difference between worldly pursuits and pursuit of God. There is a distinction between a tapasvi and yogi- tapasvi is a person who takes to a life of penance and austerities. A great tapasvi could become a person who has control over his body, mind and intellect- a yogi but not all tapasvi could get there. Likewise, all scholars who religiously pursue the ritualistic portion of our scriptures are called going to reach the state of true knowledge of Self. The same holds for attaining state of non-doer ship of action as true action less actions in this world. Yogi is one who strives for true knowledge of the Self, acts with no attachment or ego and does not identify themselves with the body, mind and intellect but with the higher Self and God principle. No wonder Krishna says that a yogi is superior to all other men. Sanskrit language has words to describe different stages of a person’s evolution which many other languages fail to encapsulate. We should thank our ancestors for what they have given us on a platter to nurture and enjoy. What a great gift!

Srimad Bhagavat Gita commentary chapter 6 verse 45

Chapter 6 verse 45 

“But the yogi, who strives with even more sincere efforts than the past, purified from sins and perfected gradually through many births, then attains the highest goal” 

The Universal truth is valid for everyone. So what are the truth regarding reincarnation, law of karma and law of conservation of mass and energy as well as law of gravity? While the physical laws have been validated and confirmed by modern science, modern religion varies in the aspects of reincarnation and karma. Sanatana Dharma is the Universal way of life and does not conform itself to organized religion. My Guru asks everyone to “discover their own truth”. It is for us to discover how one will approach the law of karma and journey towards Self realization. Once the person realizes that no effort goes wasted in the spiritual journey to realize God, then the righteous path is always chosen in every fork of life’s road.

Srimad Bhagavat Gita commentary chapter 6 verse 44

Chapter 6 verse 44 

“By that very former practice, he is borne on and gets attracted to the highest in spite of himself. Even he, who merely wishes to know yoga, goes beyond the sabdabrahman-(ritualistic principles of the Vedas)” 

Adi Shankara says in his bhaja govindam that even if a Brahman starts by reciting the karma kanda portion of the Vedas and masters the grammer of the Sanskrit language and scriptural part of the Vedas, the spiritual benefit only happens when the person surrenders to the Divine in Bhakti. That is when the knowledge in the Vedas seeps into the being of the person and takes over. In this verse, Krishna points out that if the person has even attempted to taste the glory of the creation and the creator through the discipline of body, mind, and intellect uniting with the Soul either through direct knowledge of the Self, exhausting of tendencies through Yoga or through devotion to the supreme, then they already get ahead of the ritualistic portion of the Vedas. The ritualistic portion of the Vedas leads us to the path of Divine. They are not the ultimate destination in itself. Once the person makes this effort in one life, their path is firmly set on the highest Goal and even if they have false starts in next life, they have to finally be attracted to this spiritual path. This is my own personal experience in this life. Even though later in life, I am blessed to be on the spiritual path by HIS GRACE after the age of 37. Better late than never. Miles to go before I sleep, but overwhelmed by the HIS blessing.

Srimad Bhagavat Gita commentary chapter 6 verse 43

Chapter 6 verse 43

“There (in this rarely attained virtuous birth from previous verse!), he comes to be united with the knowledge acquired in his former body and strives more than before for perfection”

Laws of physics, nature and karma are eternal and apply irrespective of our belief in the law! Positive energy from good attempts in past lives does get transferred to future times per the law of karma and good efforts do not go to waste. With the previous efforts, divine grace creates a situation where our efforts would bear fruit in a very conducive environment. There are so many stories from bharata varsha’s history or itihaasa and puranas which enumerate this universal principle brought to life in various people. The list of such individuals is endless. In fact it is all of us who have existed in the past, present and who will be born in the future. There is a good two part autobiography written by Sri M- who is a contemporary mystic, referring to his previous lives and how he is got an opportunity to pursue his spiritual progress over so many multiple lives. He was just aware of his previous births and several of us are not aware. That is the only difference. There is more to the universe than meets our senses, mind and intellect!

Srimad Bhagavat Gita commentary chapter 6 verse 41-42

Chapter 6 verse 41-42

“Having attained to the worlds of the righteous and having dwelt there for long years, he who had fallen from yoga, is born again in the house of pure and the wealthy. Or, he is even born in the family of wise yogis; a birth like this is very difficult to obtain in this world”

In an earlier verse and chapter, Krishna points to Arjuna that fighting for a kshatriya is a win-win situation considering that if he won the battle, he gets fame in the present life and if he loses the battle and loses his life, he gains merit in the afterlife. Likewise, the Lord is saying that even though attaining self control may be difficult, sincere attempt at this process of achieving body, mind, and intellect’s union with the immutable soul does not go in vain. The journey would continue into the next life with the setup of even better conditions to pursue that spiritual path. Hence it is a win-win situation all around. The person who has been exposed to the spiritual path and has considered it in this life is already blessed and this is the result of several lives of positive action and thoughts. If that is not inspirational for all of us to take the spiritual path, what is?

Srimad Bhagavat Gita commentary chapter 6 verse 40

Chapter 6 verse 40

“The Supreme Lord said: Neither in this world nor in the next world is there destruction for him; who strives to be good, O my beloved son, ever comes to grief”

A guru takes on a disciple as one’s spiritual child and hence here Lord Krishna addresses Arjuna as his son- Taata! All spiritual aspirants get this endearing relationship with God and the Guru thereby offering a protective layer of love, compassion and divine grace. Lord declares that anyone who strives to be on the path of good-dharma, vairagya, viveka and ultimate desire to salvation-mumukshatvam, does not have to fear sorrow in this life or even after death in other lives. Once the person has embarked on this spiritual path under the guidance of a realized master- Guru and God, they will reach the Goal in due time depending on their samskaras and commitment to the path.

Srimad Bhagavat Gita commentary chapter 6 verse 37-39

Chapter 6 verse 37-39

 “Arjuna said: When a man, though possessed of faith, is unable to control himself, whose mind wanders away from yoga, to what end does he- having failed to attain perfection in yoga go? Fallen from both, does he not, perish like a broken cloud, support less and deluded in the path of Brahman? This doubt of mine, please dispel completely; because it is not possible for anyone but you to dispel this doubt.”

Arjuna’s doubt is legitimate that if a person is treading on the path of spirituality and attempts to practice meditation/yoga with utmost faith but unable to make progress due to various reasons, what locus standing will that person have in this world? Wouldn’t they be caught in no man’s land or “trishanku swarg-(story of how sage vishwamitra once helped a king called trishanku to reach heaven even though he didn’t have the merits to get there and the devas didn’t allow him to enter and he was in suspended state forever in between heaven and earth). I am expecting a great answer for this from the Lord in the next few verses. I am just reminded of a deep statement about the nature of knowledge- does one not build on the knowledge gained from kindergarten to college or even in real life. It is not like one loses that knowledge or wisdom to the abyss or vacuum somewhere. While Arjuna’s question is appropriate, we should reflect on fact that any effort done with sincerity will not be wasted. The energy has to transform and transfer to some end!