Bhagavad Gita Ch11 part 15 on 28 November 2020

Full Transcript(Corrected)

Recollection:

So, we continue to discuss the 11th Chapter of the Bhagavad Gita.

Arjuna  passes through various emotions.

1. First, the Lord grants him the Divine Chakshu/Divine Vision.
2. Arjuna experiences seeing the universe through the Divine Vision. Arjuna begins to see the universe in the light of Divine vision. What does he experience? He sees God everywhere. Previously, I thought God was somewhere. Now, I see God everywhere. An ordinary human being, a living being, an inert thing, a river, a mountain, or a table is nothing but the Divine Lord Himself. He becomes joyful to experience this.
3. Now Arjuna experiences the destruction aspect. The process of creation, preservation and destruction goes on throughout the world. Billions of creatures take birth and die every millisecond. Billions of new creatures are coming. Arjuna could not swallow the fact of death/dissolution called Pralaya. It creates terrible fear.
4. At the same time, there is a piece of good news. What is the good news? Arjuna does not know the outcome of the war. Sri Krishna assures him. Shri Krishna says, “Do not fear. Your enemies are already dead in time. You act as an instrument. You will be victorious. You will have the fame of winning this war”. What do the sadhakas/spiritual aspirants longing for God's realisation need to remember? God will not only appear as a smiling face of Ista-Devata/Chosen Deity. (We see Shri Ram and Krishna with a mesmerising smile - मन्द मन्दहसितम् Mandamandahasitam.) Arjuna experiences Shiva's Rudra-Tandava-Nithya. We need to take a composite picture of the world. The manifestations and non-manifestations happen simultaneously.
5. Arjuna experiences that death is inevitable. Lord Krishna says, “O, Arjuna, nobody lives forever. Not only Bhishma, Drona, Karna, Duryodhana, Dushasana and Kauravas will die, but your army will also die.” Arjuna gets frightened.
6. The personal, friendly and loving Saumyamurti of Krishna changed to impersonal and Rudramurti. We read in Chandi. The Divine Mother is everything.

Daya roopena samsthita.

Matru roopena samsthita.

(At the same time)

Nasha roopena samsthita.

Laya roopena samsthita.

(Not only, Srishti sthithi laya.)

Srishti sthithi vinasha naam.

Shakti bhute sanatani.

Srishti sthithi vinasha.

Arjuna experiences - the world originates from God, lives in God and goes back to God. What do we need to learn? Our friends and family come together like small sticks in a fast-flowing stream. These sticks separate and rejoin. We separate in time to rejoin again in our next birth. We have not been able to grasp this beautiful fact.

7. Arjuna has Divya-Chakshu granted by Bhagwan Krishna.

          Arjuna is fortunate. Shri Krishna grants him Divine Eyes. Arjuna experiences the Universal Form of the Divine Lord.

न तु मां शक्यसे द्रष्टुमनेनैव स्वचक्षुषा |

दिव्यं ददामि ते चक्षु: पश्य मे योगमैश्वरम् || C11, V8||

na tu māṁ śhakyase draṣhṭum anenaiva sva-chakṣhuṣhā

divyaṁ dadāmi te chakṣhuḥ paśhya me yogam aiśhwaram

Divya-Chakshu means divine knowledge. Chakshu stands for knowledge. What is this knowledge? There is no you or me. Everything is One/Divine Lord. Shri Krishna says, “I am the father, mother, grandfather, protector, sustainer and substratum. I am this whole universe.” That is a difficult concept for us to swallow. We can say Bhagavan Krishna gives this Amrita Vani through Arjuna. Ramakrishna gave the same immortal message through Swami Vivekananda.

Shri Ramakrishna and Swami Vivekananda - Universal Vision:

         Narendra Nath (Swami Vivekananda) wanted to experience God. One day, Ramakrishna touched him. Instantaneously, the whole world started melting away. The individuality of Narendra Nath dissolved. Narendra was fully conscious of it. (That is the difference. We become unconscious if we get dizzy.) Here, Narendra became super conscious. What was it? The many is melting into the One. He could not stand it. He thought that he was losing his individuality. There is another parallel illustration.

Shri Ramakrishna and Swami Vivekananda - A Fly at the Edge of an Amrit-Kalash/Vessel of Spiritual Nectar:

         One day, Shri Ramakrishna pointedly asked Narendra Nath, “Imagine, my child, you are a small fly sitting on the edge of a huge vessel of Amrita/Nectar. How will you drink that nectar? Narendra Nath replied, “I will sit very cautiously on the edge. I will stretch my tongue and slowly lick the Amrita.” Shri Ramakrishna said, “If you abandon all your caution and freely start licking it. What will happen?” “Sir, I will fall and drown in the nectar and may die”, replied Narendra Nath. Instaneously, the correction came. Ramakrishna said, “My child, this is not an ordinary liquid this is Amrita Dhara/Nectar of Immortality. Whoever falls into it will become Amrita/Immortal”. Swami Vivekananda listened to this carefully. He realised this truth later on by his own experience. The moral of this story is that it is impossible to understand these truths except by our own experience.

8. Arjuna gets the knowledge that Everything is the manifestation of the Divine Lord. Arjuna recognises that there is no other reality besides the Divine Lord Krishna. There is no I, you or anything, living, non-living.

Everything is that One manifesting through names and forms. Arjuna sees that One Divinity pervades everywhere. He salutes The Divine Lord again and again with immense devotion. (Please see the transcript of the Chapter 11, Part 14.)

नम: पुरस्तादथ पृष्ठतस्ते नमोऽस्तु ते सर्वत एव सर्व |

अनन्तवीर्यामितविक्रमस्त्वं सर्वं समाप्नोषि ततोऽसि सर्व: || 40||

namaḥ purastād atha pṛiṣhṭhatas te

namo ’stu te sarvata eva sarva

ananta-vīryāmita-vikramas tvaṁ

sarvaṁ samāpnoṣhi tato ’si sarvaḥ

namaḥ—offering salutations; purastāt—from the front; atha—and; pṛiṣhṭhataḥ—the rear; te—to You; namaḥ astu—I offer my salutations; te—to You; sarvataḥ—from all sides; eva—indeed; sarva—all; ananta-vīrya—infinite power; amita-vikramaḥ—infinite valour and might; tvam—You; sarvam—everything; samāpnoṣhi—pervade; tataḥ—thus; asi—(You) are; sarvaḥ—everything

Translation: O Lord of infinite power, my salutations to You from the front and the rear, indeed from all sides, above, below, left right! You possess infinite valour and might and pervade everything, and thus, You are everything.

Shri Ramakrishna - The First Vision of Mother Kali:

          As we know, Shri Ramakrishna graphically described his first vision. Shri Ramakrishna was extremely eager to have a vision of the Divine Mother. He did not have to wait very long. He described his first vision of the Mother: "I felt as if my heart was being squeezed like a wet towel. A great restlessness overpowered me. I was fearful. That it might not be my fortune to realise Her in this life. I could not bear the separation from Her any longer. I longed for the vision of the Divine Mother. Life seemed to be not worth living. Suddenly, my glance fell on the sword kept in the Mother's temple. I was determined to put an end to my life. When I jumped up like a madman and seized it, suddenly the blessed Mother revealed Herself to me. The buildings with their different parts, the temple, and everything else vanished from my sight, leaving no trace whatsoever. I saw a limitless, infinite, effulgent Ocean of Consciousness. As far as the eye could see, the shining billows were madly rushing at me from all sides with a terrific noise to swallow me up! I was panting for breath. I was caught in the rush and collapsed, unconscious. What was happening in the outside world, I did not know. But within me, there was a steady flow of undiluted bliss, altogether new, and I felt the presence of the Divine Mother. The waves of consciousness started pouring into me. I was struggling not to lose my consciousness. In the end, these waves overpowered me. I became unconscious. On his lips when he regained consciousness of the world was the word "Mother". Interesting to note the paradox - pure consciousness made Shri Ramakrishna unconscious. What does it mean? Is it like a having a fit? Is it possible? No! What really happened, pure consciousness made him lose all sense of duality. The world and God both disappeared and became One pure undivided consciousness.

Coming back to Arjuna:

         Arjuna expresses his wonderment and salutes Shri Krishna again and again. He sees God on his right side, left side, above, below, back and front. Pure Consciousness/God permeates everything. Arjuna’s first reaction is आश्चर्य Ashcharya/wonderment, second reaction is Bhaya/terrific fright. He gets the glimpse of the Divine knowledge but could not retain it. What is his third emotion? Please refer to the transcript of the Chapter 11, Part 14.)

सखेति मत्वा प्रसभं यदुक्तं, हे कृष्ण हे यादव हे सखेति |

अजानता महिमानं तवेदं, मया प्रमादात्प्रणयेन वापि || 41||

यच्चावहासार्थमसत्कृतोऽसि, विहारशय्यासनभोजनेषु |

एकोऽथवाप्यच्युत तत्समक्षं, तत्क्षामये त्वामहमप्रमेयम् || 42||

sakheti matvā prasabhaṁ yad uktaṁ

hey kṛiṣhṇa hey yādava hey sakheti

ajānatā mahimānaṁ tavedaṁ

mayā pramādāt praṇayena vāpi

yach chāvahāsārtham asat-kṛito ’si

vihāra-śhayyāsana-bhojaneṣhu

eko ’tha vāpy achyuta tat-samakṣhaṁ

tat kṣhāmaye tvām aham aprameyam

Translation: Thinking of You as my friend, I presumptuously addressed You as, “O Krishna,” “O Yadav,” “O my dear Friend.” I was ignorant of Your majesty, showing negligence and undue affection. And if, zestfully, I treated You with disrespect, while playing, resting, sitting, eating, when alone, or before others—for all that I crave forgiveness.

      I mentioned in my last class. Arjuna says, “O, Lord, pardon me. In the past, before this Vishroopa-Darshna, I was ignorant of Your Supreme nature. You are Srishti-Karta. I overlooked your divinity. I called you by many names when alone or before others as Hey Yadava, Hey Krishna, Hey Sakha, and Yaduvanshaya (Belonging to the lineage of the Yadu family). I might have treated You with disrespect at times. Please forgive me.” There is a beautiful song in Bengali. O, Lord, if you do not reveal Yourself to us. How is it possible for us to know You? Vedas, Upanishads and scriptures are searching only in darkness. Why darkness? Because intellectual knowledge is nothing but pure darkness. Arjuna lived with the Divine Lord and treated Him as an ordinary man, his friend and relative. He failed to acknowledge Krishna’s divinity. Is there any need to ask for forgiveness? No! Because the mother understands her child's mind better than the child himself. Sometimes the child quarrels with his mother but the mother only loves the child much more. Arjuna is feeling guilty. Lord Krishna forgave him long ago. How do we know? Arjuna was calling him all these names and Krishna always used to smile.  

Arjuna says in the end (Chapter 18, Verse 73): It is ‘By Your Grace’ I see your Universal Form.

अर्जुन उवाच |

नष्टो मोह: स्मृतिर्लब्धा त्वत्प्रसादान्मयाच्युत |

स्थितोऽस्मि गतसन्देह: करिष्ये वचनं तव || 73||

arjuna uvācha

naṣhṭo mohaḥ smṛitir labdhā tvat-prasādān mayāchyuta

sthito ‘smi gata-sandehaḥ kariṣhye vachanaṁ tava

Arjun says: O Infallible One, by Your grace my illusion has been dispelled, and I am situated in knowledge. I am now free from doubts, and I shall act according to Your instructions.

sakheti matvā prasabhaṁ yad uktaṁ

hey kṛiṣhṇa hey yādava hey sakheti

Arjuna says, “Hey Krishna, Hey Yadava, Hey Sakheti.”

ajānatā mahimānaṁ tavedaṁ

mayā pramādāt praṇayena vāpi

yach chāvahāsārtham asat-kṛito ’si

vihāra-śhayyāsana-bhojaneṣhu

eko ’tha vāpy achyuta tat-samakṣhaṁ

tat kṣhāmaye tvām aham aprameyam

sakhā—friend; iti—as; matvā—thinking; prasabham—presumptuously; yat—whatever; uktam—addressed; he kṛiṣhṇa—O Shree Krishna; he yādava—O Shree Krishna, who was born in the Yadu clan; he sakhe—O my dear friend; iti—thus; ajānatā—in ignorance; mahimānam—majesty; tava—your; idam—this; mayā—by me; pramādāt—out of negligence; praṇayena—out of affection; vā api—or else; yat—whatever; cha—also; avahāsa-artham—humorously; asat-kṛitaḥ—disrespectfully; asi—you were; vihāra—while at play; śhayyā—while resting; āsana—while sitting; bhojaneṣhu—while eating; ekaḥ—(when) alone; athavā—or; api—even; achyuta—an epithet of Krishna, the infallible one, You do not slip away from Your Swaroopa; tat-samakṣham—before others; tat—all that; kṣhāmaye—beg for forgiveness; tvām—from you; aham—I; aprameyam—immeasurable.

Arjuna says, “O, Krishna, thinking of You as my friend, I presumptuously addressed You as, “O Krishna,” “O Yadav,” “O my dear Friend.” I was ignorant of Your majesty, showing negligence and undue affection. And if, zestfully, I treated You with disrespect, while playing, resting, sitting, eating, when alone, or before others—for all that I crave forgiveness.”

There are two beautiful words in the Verse. Arjuna says, “I did what I did due to negligence and deep love.”

1) pramādāt—out of negligence: I did what I did due to negligence.

2) praṇayena—out of affection/deep love.

achyuta—an epithet of Krishna, the infallible one, You do not slip away from Your Swaroopa. You know who You are. You also know who I am. We see in the Fourth Chapter. Arjuna expresses his astonishment and Shri Krishna answers.

अर्जुन उवाच |

अपरं भवतो जन्म परं जन्म विवस्वत: |

कथमेतद्विजानीयां त्वमादौ प्रोक्तवानिति || 4||

arjuna uvācha

aparaṁ bhavato janma paraṁ janma vivasvataḥ

katham etad vijānīyāṁ tvam ādau proktavān iti

Arjun says: You were born much after Vivasvan. How am I to understand that in the beginning You instructed this science to him?

श्रीभगवानुवाच |

बहूनि मे व्यतीतानि जन्मानि तव चार्जुन |

तान्यहं वेद सर्वाणि न त्वं वेत्थ परन्तप || 5||

śhrī bhagavān uvācha

bahūni me vyatītāni janmāni tava chārjuna

tānyahaṁ veda sarvāṇi na tvaṁ vettha parantapa

The Supreme Lord says: Both you and I have had many births, O Arjun. You have forgotten them, while I remember them all, O Parantapa.

An incarnation always brings some of His intimate companions:

            All of them may not have the same role as was in the previous incarnations. Maybe we can say that sometimes one person is made more important than others. At some other point, another person is made more significant. Shri Ramakrishna used to say about Swami Ramakrishnanandaji and Sharadanandaji that they were two of the direct disciples of Jesus Christ - probably Peter and somebody else. We do not know. Swami Vivekananda is considered the Paul of Shri Ramakrishna.

Shri Ramakrishna and Shiva-Linga: Shiva-Mahina-Strotam.

(Please refer to the transcript of The Chapter 10, Part 1.)

           There is a beautiful incident in the life of Sri Ramakrishna. As we know, in Dakshineshwar, there are three types of temples. The main temple, of course, is the temple of the Divine Mother Kali. Then there is a small Radha-Krishna temple on the way. On the backs of the Ganga, there are individual small twelve Shiva temples, six on one side and six on the other side. One day Sri Ramakrishna went to one of the Shiva temples. He was overcome by a bhava/spiritual emotion. So, he embraced the Shiva Linga because Shiva-Linga is the glory of Shiva. (Interestingly, we cannot embrace an image of Lord Vishnu anywhere in this world. But, we can embrace, pour water, and offer Belva leaves on the Shiva-Linga.) Sri Ramakrishna went to the Shiva temple, embraced the Shiva-Linga with great devotion and started singing one of the verses from the Shiva-Mahina-Strotam.

asita-giri-samaṁ syāt kajjalaṁ sindhu-pātre

sura-taruvara-śākhā lekhanī patramurvī |

likhati yadi gṛhītvā śāradā sarvakālaṁ

tadapi tava guṇānāmīśa pāraṁ na yāti || 32 ||

[O, Lord even if Mother Saraswathi takes the entire waters of the ocean as the ink, the branch of a beautiful tree in the celestial regions as Her pen, the whole earth itself as the paper and starts writing Your glories for an infinity of time or eternity. She is not going to come to the end of Your glory.]

          Sri Ramakrishna was singing the stotram and fainted. At that time, people thought that Sri Ramakrishna was a mad person and they might have harmed him. Fortunately, Mathur-Babu happened to be there and understood the situation. He said, “If you desire to keep your head on your shoulders, do not go near him.” He was capable of doing it. They were frightened and moved away. Mathur-Babu stayed to protect Sri Ramakrishna until he regained consciousness.

         Sri Ramakrishna saw so many people staring at him, and he got confused and asked, “What is happening?” Mathur Babu said, “Baba, they all came to see you. I am standing here to protect you from any unexpected harm.” Mathur-Babu did not tell Sri Ramakrishna about the mentality of people.

           There is a beautiful Bengali song:  "Who can know Mother Kali? Even the six schools of philosophy and all the scriptures in the world fail to describe You." The impersonal aspect of The Divine cannot be described. All descriptions relate to the personal aspect of the Divine. We sing Prathasmarana Stotram and Khandana Bhava Bandhana Jag Vandana Vandi Tomaye (You are the breaker of all bondages. Salutations to You) with similar expressions. Mind and speech cannot reach or express God. God cannot be measured. He is infinite and infinity cannot be measured.

The recording time is 30 minutes approx.

Arjuna expresses his gratitude, “O, Lord, You are the infinite. I see Your Universal Form by Your grace only. I might have insulted You. That is all Your Maya. You did not impart that knowledge earlier to me. That is Your Divine Play. You are everything and everywhere. Nothing else exists except You and You only. An evil person tortures or kills others. The evil person and the killed person are You only. If someone thinks that he is the killer or killed, both are ignorant.”

Story of Jesus Christ and A Man: “You fed Me, gifted Me and served Me.”

        Jesus Christ says, “Whosoever has fed a hungry person, gifted clothes to a poor person or comforted a person in distress has served Me.” What does Jesus Christ mean by saying Me? There is a beautiful story to explain this phrase. There was a good and generous person. He died and went to heaven. He met Jesus Christ there. Jesus Christ smiled and lovingly embraced him. Jesus said, “My friend, come, you did so much good to Me.” The man said, “Lord, I do not remember meeting or serving You.” Jesus smiled and replied, “Did not you feed some hungry people?” “Yes, I did,” replied the man humbly. Jesus said, “You fed Me only.” Jesus  asked him, “Did you not gift some clothes to people in need?” “Yes, I did”, replied the man. “That was Me in the form of those people. You gifted to Me,” replied Jesus. Jesus asked him again, “Did you not serve some people in distress?” “Yes, I did,” replied the man. “Those ill people were no one else than Me,” Jesus replied.

Arjuna says:

पितासि लोकस्य चराचरस्य त्वमस्य पूज्यश्च गुरुर्गरीयान् |

न त्वत्समोऽस्त्यभ्यधिक: कुतोऽन्यो लोकत्रयेऽप्यप्रतिमप्रभाव || 43||

pitāsi lokasya charācharasya

tvam asya pūjyaśh cha gurur garīyān

na tvat-samo ’sty abhyadhikaḥ kuto ’nyo

loka-traye ’py apratima-prabhāva

pitā—the father; asi—You are; lokasya—of the entire universe; chara—moving; acharasya—nonmoving; tvam—You; asya—of this; pūjyaḥ—worship-able; cha—and; guruḥ—spiritual master; garīyān—glorious; na—not; tvat-samaḥ—equal to You; asti—is; abhyadhikaḥ—greater; kutaḥ—who is; anyaḥ—other; loka-traye—in the three worlds; api—even; apratima-prabhāva—possessor of incomparable power

            In the 7th, 9th and especially the 10th Chapter -  the Lord categorically declares, “I am the father. I am the mother. The universe comes out from Me. I am the creator, sustainer and destroyer of the universe.” Arjuna hears these teachings from the Lord. Arjuna says (in this Eleventh Chapter), “I believe it. It is merely an intellectual knowledge at the moment. I wish to experience this.” The Divine Lord grants him Divya-Chakshu. (Divya-Chakshu means spiritual insight.)

Translation: Arjuna says, “You are the Father of the entire universe, of all moving and non-moving beings. You are the most deserving object of worship and the Supreme Spiritual Master/most venerable teacher. When there is none equal to You in all the three worlds, then who can possibly be greater than You, O Possessor of incomparable power?

pitā—the father; asi—You are; lokasya—of the entire universe: You are the Father of the entire universe.

chara—moving; acharasya—nonmoving: What does moving and non-moving mean? Living creatures such as humans, birds, animals, and insects move, and some like trees and plants do not move. So, there are moving and non-moving living creatures. The mountains and the earth appear to be non-moving. According to Vedanta, the whole universe is made up of five elements. What are these five elements? Space, air, fire, water and earth. (These five cosmic elements are non-living and non-moving for a scientist.) Hindus worship these five elements. Five temples of South India known as  Akashalinga, Vayulinga, Agnilinga Jalalinga and Bhulinga worship five cosmic elements. These temples are dedicated to Lord Shiva. The universe is a manifestation of the Divine Lord. How can anyone make a distinction between the living and non-living?  Everything is divine. We can recollect an incident from the Life of Shri Ramakrishna.

Shri Ramakrishna and a Jumping Stone:

         One day, Shri Ramakrishna narrated an incident to his devotees. Shri Ramakrishna said, “One day, I was walking on the banks of the Ganga. I felt as if someone was following me. I looked back, but nothing was there. I walked a bit further and got the same feeling that someone was behind me. I looked back. I was astonished. I saw a big stone jumping and following me. I rubbed my eyes and looked at it. I started walking again. What do I see? The stone was jumping and following me.” Later on, he said,” Who can dare to understand the Divine Play? What is living, and what is non-living?” Everything is divine. That is why: Hindus worship mountains, rivers, animals, plants and nature. A lion, a tiger, a snake, a cow, and a humble mouse are associated with our Deities. We worship them with reverence.

pitā—the father; asi—You are; lokasya—of the entire universe: Arjuna says, “You are the originator of the universe.

tvam—You; asya—of this; pūjyaḥ—worship-able: O, Lord, You are the originator, mother, father, grandmother, grandfather and everything. You are the most deserving object of worship In the world. cha—and; guruḥ—spiritual master: You are the spiritual Master/ venerable teacher. We chant a beautiful verse:

मातृ देवो भव।पितृ देवो भव।

आचार्य देवो भव।अतिथि देवो भव॥

Maathru Devo Bhava Pithru Devo Bhava

Aacharya Devo Bhava Athidhi Devo Bhava.

Honour thy Mother as God. Honour thy Father as God.

Honour thy Teacher as God. Honour thy Guest as God.

(Taittiriya Upanishad [तैत्तिरीय उपनिषद्])

guruḥ—spiritual master; garīyān—glorious: You are the greatest teacher. Why? Who created the Vedas? Bhagawan. Who propagated the Vedas? The Divine Lord/God. How do we know? We read in the Mundaka Upanishad.

Guru-Shishya-Parampara/Teacher-Disciple-Tradition:

ओं । ब्रह्मा देवानां प्रथमः संबभूव विश्वस्यकर्ता भुवनस्य गोप्ता ।

स ब्रह्मविद्यां सर्वविद्याप्रतिष्ठामथर्वाय ज्येष्ठपुत्राय प्राह ॥ १ ॥

oṃ | brahmā devānāṃ prathamaḥ saṃbabhūva viśvasyakartā bhuvanasya goptā |

sa brahmavidyāṃ sarvavidyāpratiṣṭhāmatharvāya jyeṣṭhaputrāya prāha || 1.1.1 || Mundaka-Upanishad

[Brahma was the first among the Devas. He is the creator of the universe and the protector of the world. He taught the knowledge of Brahman, on which all knowledge rests, to his eldest son.]

Spiritual knowledge propagates through Guru-Shishya-Parampara/Teacher-Disciple tradition. We praise this tradition.

Sada Shiva Samarambham Sankarachaarya Madhyamam

Asmat aacharya Paryantham Vande Guru Paramparaa"

[From the first Guru, Sada Shiva, in the middle is Shankaracharya. My Guru is in the end. I bow in front of this Guru lineage. The first Guru is Brahman.]

In our case, we can say: Brahman -> Narayana -> Vedavyasa -> Shuka Brahma Rishi-> Goudapadacharya -> Govindacharya -> Shankaracharya -> Shri Ramakrishna. The Eternal First Guru is only the Divine Lord. He is the greatest teacher in the world.

na—not; tvat-samaḥ—equal to You; asti—is: There is no one equal to You/The Divine Lord. No one can be compared to You. You are everything.

abhyadhikaḥ—greater; kutaḥ—who is; anyaḥ—other; loka-traye—in the three worlds; api—even; apratima-prabhāva—possessor of incomparable power: When there is none equal to You in all the three worlds, then who can possibly be greater than You, O Possessor of incomparable power?

Bhagwan Krishna declares at the very end of the Tenth Chapter

यद्यद्विभूतिमत्सत्त्वं श्रीमदूर्जितमेव वा |

तत्देवावगच्छ त्वं मम तेजोंऽशसम्भवम् || C10, V41||

yad yad vibhūtimat sattvaṁ śhrīmad ūrjitam eva vā

tat tad evāvagachchha tvaṁ mama tejo ’nśha-sambhavam

[Whatever you see as beautiful, glorious, and powerful, know it to spring from Me but a spark of My splendour.] We must learn to say, “O, Lord, I do not exist. No one else exists. You manifest in the form of the universe - only You exist.” There are good qualities in each individual. We should never feel envious, degrade anyone or harm anyone. This reminds me of a beautiful story told by Shri Ramakrishna.

1. Mother Parvati is everywhere - Maa, Baby Ganesha and a Cat.

         Some people have very shallow ideas about Lord Ganesha. Shri Ramakrishna narrated a story of Ganesha from the Puranas. Why is Ganesha one of the greatest gods? How did He become one of the greatest knowers of Brahman?

        When Lord Ganesha was a small child, Mother Parvati loved Him like any other Mother. One day Ganesha was playing outside. He saw a cat passing by the side. He got hold of the cat and started playing with the cat in a very rough way. The cat got injured, and at last, the cat managed to escape with scratches all over its body.  

    As Ganesha got hungry, He went inside to eat his dinner. He was surprised to see that Mother Parvati's body was full of scratches and wounds. When Ganesha saw his Mother, He felt terrible pain. He loved his Mother very much. He used to consider his Mother as the Divine Mother.

He asked, "Mother, who did this to You?

Mother replied, "Why are you asking? You have done this to Me.

Baby Ganesh said, "When did I do this?

Mother replied, "When you scratched the cat, then you scratched Me because I dwell in all beings - I am सर्वांतरात्मा Sarvantaratma. Yaa Devi Sarvabhutesu, Matrarupena sansthitha.

Baby Ganesha understood - "My Mother is all-pervading, and everything is the manifestation of My Mother."

So when He grew up, he could not marry because he saw his Mother in all women - as Mother Parvati resides in all human beings.  

Sri Ramakrishna says: “You should look upon every female as your mother.” It does not mean only mother. O, Lord, You are the female, the male, a baby, a young man, an elderly man and everything. Bhagwan manifests as the world but does not undergo any change. Yes! It is only a divine play of light and shadow.

We come to a most beautiful verse. Arjuna says:

तस्मात्प्रणम्य प्रणिधाय कायं प्रसादये त्वामहमीशमीड्यम् |

पितेव पुत्रस्य सखेव सख्यु: प्रिय: प्रियायार्हसि देव सोढुम् || 44||

tasmāt praṇamya praṇidhāya kāyaṁ

prasādaye tvām aham īśham īḍyam

piteva putrasya sakheva sakhyuḥ

priyaḥ priyāyārhasi deva soḍhum

tasmāt—therefore; praṇamya—bowing down; praṇidhāya—prostrating; kāyam—the body; prasādaye—to implore grace; tvām—your; aham—I; īśham—the Supreme Lord; īḍyam—adorable; pitā—father; iva—as; putrasya—with a son; sakhā—friend; iva—as; sakhyuḥ—with a friend; priyaḥ—a lover; priyāyāḥ—with the beloved; arhasi—you should; deva—Lord; soḍhum—forgive

tasmat pranamya pranidhaya kayam

prasadaye tvam aham isham idyam

piteva putrasya sakheva sakhyuh

priyah priyayarhasi deva sodhum

Translation: Arjuna says: Therefore,O adorable Lord, bowing down and prostrating before You, I implore You for Your grace. As a father tolerates his son, a friend forgives his friend, and a lover pardons the beloved, please forgive me for my offences.

We see three beautiful examples in this verse.

1. Father/Mother and a Child: The parents patiently put up with the ignorant child's pranks. The child kicks his mother, and in return, she hugs him.
2. A friend with a Friend: A friend should understand and forgive his friend. How could a friend ever get angry? If any friend gets angry and takes offence, we should know that the person is not a friend at all.
3. A lover and the beloved: A lover should never get angry with the beloved. Why? Because there is no place for anger in pure love. The lover should see - Everything that the beloved does is nothing but pure love play.

We have discussed a beautiful story of Sage Bhrigu.

Story of Lord Venkateshwara:

(Please refer to the transcript of the Chapter 10, Part 8.)

Venkateswara, is known by various other names. He is the Hindu God Vishnu. Venkateswara is the presiding deity of Tirumala Venkateswara Temple located in Tirupati, Sri Balaji District, Andhra Pradesh, India.

           Briefly, the legend is like this. Once, the sages wanted to decide - who is the greatest among the Trinity of Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva. The Sages gave this project to Rishi Bhrigu to accomplish.

        Rishi Bhrigu went to the King of Swarga-Loka Indra. Indra ignored him. Bhrigu cursed Indra that he would be only referred to as an egoistic soul all over the universe. Next, he visited Lord Brahma and Lord Shiva. Brahma and Shiva ignored him as well. He got angry and said, "Your devotees will worship You as Lingam."  

         At last, Bhrigu went to Lord Vishnu at Vaikuntha. Lord Vishnu was sleeping on Adhishesha, and Goddess Lakshmi was at His feet. When Bhrigu arrived, he saw Lord Vishnu’s feet and felt humiliated. Enraged, he kicked Vishnu in His chest with his right foot. (Bhrigu has a third eye on his right foot.) Awakened by this, Vishnu saw Bhrigu. Lord Vishnu apologised, served him with great hospitality and started massaging his feet. (During the process, Lord Vishnu pressed out the eye of his right foot. As a result, Bhrigu’s arrogance disappeared.)  Bhrigu was pleased and ordered the sages to perform rituals to Vishnu.  Seeing this, Devi Lakshmi felt that Bhrigu insulted Her indirectly by hitting Vishnu on His chest. (She lives in the heart of Lord Vishnu as a beautiful jewel named Kaustubha/Sri-Ankita.)              Lord Vishnu tried to console Her. Lord Narayana said, “Devi, Brighu is our child. You are his mother. Mothers do not get angry when a child does something wrong. Please forgive him. But Devi Lakshmi decided to leave Vaikuntha.

Goddess Lakshmi descended on Earth and settled in disguise. (Lakshmi is the goddess of wealth.) Vishnu soon arrived on Earth searching for His consort. It is a beautiful long tale. In short, Lakshmi was born as a princess, and Lord Vishnu was born as a son of a poor lady. His name was Srinivasa. Both fell in love and decided to get married. Srinivasan/Vishnu needed to borrow riches from Kubera to get married. He promised to repay the loan with interest. How? By the help of His devotees. Thousands of devotees donate money, jewellery, hair etc. at this temple. (Donated hair is sold to make wigs all over the world.) Lord Venkateswara temple is the wealthiest temple in India.

                Lord Vishnu -  Venkateswara  is the presiding deity of Tirumala Venkateswara Temple located on Tirumala Hill in Tirupati, Sri Balaji District, Andhra Pradesh, India. (मला Mala means hill and तिरू Tiru means Shree.) Every year, hundreds of thousands of devotees donate a large amount of wealth at the Tirupati Temple. The above legend provides the reason for it. Lord Vishnu is paying the interest of His debt from Kubera.  So every year with great difficulty and with the help of His devotees, He pays only the interest, the capital remains the same.

What is the symbolism of the story?

          If the Lord pays off the capital, He will not stay here but return to Vaikuntha. The devotees would like Lord Vishnu to stay here. Why? The Lord blesses us and fulfils our desires. We delightfully donate some money, hair, jewellery, land etc. towards His debts. So that He continues to stay with us.

The essence is: Kubera is the wealthiest person by proxy. What does it mean? Whenever we meet a wealthy person, we should salute the person and think. How did he acquire his wealth? He must be an intelligent and hard-working man. (Intelligence and hard work are the main requirements to achieve anything.) Of course, he must have done some noble deeds in this life and previous lives. Having wealth is not a bad thing. However, two conditions must be fulfilled. 1) Firstly, we should not acquire wealth through crookedness, cleverness, or by hook or crook. 2) Secondly, we must remember - that everything belongs to God. We should offer our money back to God. How? In the form of service to humanity. A wealthy person is noble - when these two conditions are fulfilled. If not, he will go through terrible suffering and eventually learn his lesson. For all of us, an extraordinary manifestation in the form of wealth, knowledge, intelligence, or any form is the manifestation of the Divine Lord.

अदृष्टपूर्वं हृषितोऽस्मि दृष्ट्वा भयेन च प्रव्यथितं मनो मे |

तदेव मे दर्शय देवरूपं प्रसीद देवेश जगन्निवास || 45||

adṛiṣhṭa-pūrvaṁ hṛiṣhito ’smi dṛiṣhṭvā

bhayena cha pravyathitaṁ mano me

tad eva me darśhaya deva rūpaṁ

prasīda deveśha jagan-nivāsa

adṛiṣhṭa-pūrvam—that which has not been seen before; hṛiṣhitaḥ—great joy; asmi—I am; dṛiṣhṭvā—having seen; bhayena—with fear; cha—yet; pravyathitam—my mind trembles with fear; manaḥ—mind; me—my; tat—that; eva—certainly; me—to me; darśhaya—show; deva—Lord; rūpam—form; prasīda—please have mercy on me; deva-īśha—God of gods; jagat-nivāsa—abode of the universe.The universe is created and sustained by You. You pervade in the universe everywhere.

Translation: Having seen Your universal form that I had never seen before, I feel great joy. And yet, my mind trembles with fear. Please have mercy on me and again show me Your pleasing form, O God of gods, O Abode of the universe.

That is a beautiful description. Arjuna is frightened. He enjoyed the Universal Form for some time. But he is terrified now and can not hold it any longer.

Shri Ramakrishna and Swami Brahmanandaji:

          I remember an incident from the life of Swami Brahmanandaji. One day, Swami went to the Dakshineshwar temple. He sat down and started meditating. Swami did not get any joy and became restless. So, he got up and returned to the room of Sri Ramakrishna. Ramakrishna asked, “My son, why did you return so soon?” “I cannot concentrate and meditate today. My mind is restless”, replied Swami. (Imagine! If Swami Brahmananda could not meditate. So, we should not blame ourselves when our minds wander around.That does not mean that we relax. It means it is a common factor, and we should train our minds with repeated practice. In the sixth chapter, the Lord says, “O, Arjuna, the mind is difficult to control like blowing wind. Constant practice and renunciation can control the mind”.)

Arjuna's mind could not hold this divine form. Because it created joy, surprise and a very high emotional mode of fear. Arjuna says:

Arjuna says:

किरीटिनं गदिनं चक्रहस्त- मिच्छामि त्वां द्रष्टुमहं तथैव |

तेनैव रूपेण चतुर्भुजेन सहस्रबाहो भव विश्वमूर्ते || 46||

kirīṭinaṁ gadinaṁ chakra-hastam

ichchhāmi tvāṁ draṣhṭum ahaṁ tathaiva

tenaiva rūpeṇa chatur-bhujena

sahasra-bāho bhava viśhva-mūrte

Translation: O Thousand-armed One, though You are the embodiment of all creation, I wish to see You in Your four-armed form, carrying the mace and disc, and wearing the crown.

kirīṭinam—wearing the beautiful diadem/crown; gadinam—carrying the mace; chakra-hastam—disc in hand; ichchhāmi—I wish; tvām—You; draṣhṭum—to see; aham—I; tathā eva—similarly; tena eva—in that; rūpeṇa—form; chatuḥ-bhujena—four-armed; sahasra-bāho—thousand-armed one; bhava—be; viśhwa-mūrte—universal form.

O, Lord, You are with billions of hands, legs, bellies, faces, mouths, heads, eyes and billions of ears. What does it mean? Every creature is none other than the manifestation of the Divine Lord. Arjuna is terrified.

viśhwa-mūrte—universal form: Arjuna says, “I behold You as Vishwamurti by Your grace.

rūpeṇa—form; chatuḥ-bhujena—four-armed: “Please withdraw Your Universal Form. O, Abode of the Universe, please be gracious to me. I wish to see You in Your pacifying, joy-giving Four-Hands-Form with conch, disc, mace and lotus.

Many people misinterpreted this verse. We will discuss this in our next class.