View source for Bhagavad Gita Ch18 part 50 on 05 June 2022

== Full Transcript(Not Corrected) ==
Om Jananem Shardam Devem Ramakrishnam Jagadgurum
Pada Padmetayo Shritva Pranamami Mohur Moho
Vasudevasutam Devam Kamsa Chanuram Ardhanam
Devaki Paramanandam Krishnam Vande Jagadgurum
Sarvopanishadho Ghavo Dogdha Gopalanandana
Partho Vatsah Sudhir Bhokta Dogdham Geetam Ritam
Mukham Karoti Vachalam Pangum Langayate Girim
Yat Kripatamaham Vande Paramanandamadhamam
We continue our discussion of the essence of the entire Bhagavad Gita.
Yesterday we discussed Bhagavad Gita is an allegory.
Allegory of our life and life is a battlefield.
This world is that Dharmakshetra
and it is a battlefield.
Every millisecond we have to fight
not only for our life
but for our existence,
for our knowledge
as well as for our happiness.
These are the three desires.
Now Bhagavad Gita starts with the first chapter
which depicts the condition of every one of us in this world.
Arjuna was only a representation.
So he was completely merged in grief
and grief is the result of ignorance
and ignorance is called avidya.
What is avidya?
Ignorance of who one truly is.
That I am the Atman.
I am the Divine.
We forget and assume a secondary identification,
non-Atman identification
called body-mind identity
and this ignorance leads to wrong identification.
That's what mad people really mean
and wrong identification leads to wrong decision
and wrong decision leads to wrong actions
and wrong actions inevitably bring undesirable results
means suffering, grief, unhappiness
not only to oneself but to the entire family,
to the society in which we live.
Just look at the present situation anywhere
whether it is in Ukraine, it is only a representation.
Every country, every state, every village,
every family, Kurukshetra war is going on
all because of what? Ignorance.
Ignorance means wrong identification
which literally means I am the body and I am the mind.
I am this small personality called body and mind.
So Arjuna who represents each one of us
took a wrong decision because of ignorance
and because of that his family suffered
and whole society suffered
but then when we realize
then we seek what is the way out of this bondage
and Bhagavad Gita is the answer.
There is a way and it is inevitable
because when we are happy we do not struggle.
We rather do not want to change the situation
and happiness means going beyond time and space
but when we are unhappy then we struggle every millisecond
how to get rid of this unhappiness as soon as possible.
Is there any way? Yes, there is a way
and the inevitable conclusions of every scripture in this world is
go to God, self-realization, know who you are
all mean the same thing.
What it really implies are two things.
First, so long as we remain identified with body-mind
then that is called samsara, transmigration
that is called worldly life.
It is impossible to get out of grief
because it is the very nature of the world
to give both some happiness and some unhappiness
probably more unhappiness than happiness.
So there is a way out.
Yes, complete.
There is a total complete solution
which removes this ignorance permanently.
What is the way to know that I am beyond grief
and to know that we have to understand
we are not the body, we are not the mind
we are not the finite beings
we are the infinite beings
we are God, we are the children of immortality
all these words, different words mean exactly the same
and that is what every scripture has to teach.
Bhagavad Gita as we heard many times
is the essence of all the Upanishads
and the Upanishads is the essence of every scripture
of the Bible, of the Quran
because Hinduism is the practice of Vedanta
according to particular rules, regulations,
methods of worship, etc.
but Vedanta is the very core, the essence
of every scripture
O man, you came from God
your destiny is to reach God
the sooner you try, the better for you
and this is the truth
and there are ways how you can do it.
So every scripture has to teach
Tattva, Purushartha and Hita
What is the Tattva? Truth, reality.
What is the reality?
Each soul is potentially divine.
What does it mean?
You are not the body, you are not the mind
you do not belong to the family
family does not belong to you
you are not your possessions
and this applies to every single creature in this world
then who are you?
You are the immortal, eternal, unborn, undying
Atman, Tattvamasi
so everyone else
and then what is the present condition?
The present you, identified and suffering with the body
is the result of your past
and so also it applies to everybody
but here is a fact
your body, your mind and the entire world
is created by the compassionate Lord
so that you can become a sincere spiritual seeker
and attain the goal
and know who you are
Aham Brahma Asmi
there is nothing, nobody, no world
apart from you
you are everybody
you are everything
to manifest this truth
this divinity
who you are
and now that divinity within you is hidden
to make it manifest
is the goal of life
and this is the supreme purushartha
called Moksha, liberation
Hita
what is the way?
there are four yogas
there are four paths
four yogas
all schools of philosophy
all religions in the world
and every human effort
falls under one of these four yogas
what are those four yogas?
Karma Yoga
Bhakti Yoga
Raja Yoga
and Jnana Yoga
why four?
because every human being
has four faculties
everybody has four faculties
but one of the faculties
either action
or emotion
or will
or intellect
dominate
and use
the other three faculties
never we can separate
one faculty from the other
that means
all the four yogas
will always be there
like the four ways
pathways
lanes
of a motorway
so let us start with briefly
what is Karma Yoga?
what is Karma Yoga?
find out
your duties in life
according to the situation in life
in society
discharge your duties
with love
concentration
rationality
and devotion
and do not be attached
to the actions
to the fruits of your actions
and
do not develop
egotism
offer
each one of your actions
to the Divine as worship
accept
whatever results
the Divine
has ordained for you
this is what Sri Ram Krishna summarized
live like a maid servant
in a rich man's house
love everybody
do all the actions
but
a maid servant knows
I do not belong to this house
I am only
discharging my duties
my home
is somewhere
and I have my own home
and in this context
God is my home
this brief is called Karma Yoga
and Karma Yoga means
the faculty of action
then comes the faculty of will
called Raja Yoga
when will
is
dominating
and is used
to progress in spiritual life
it is called Raja Yoga
practice
the eight limber yoga
outlined in the Patanjali Yoga
Sutras
what are they
Yama
Niyama
Asana
Pranayama
Pratyahara
Dharana
Jnana
and Samadhi
first
Sampragnata Samadhi
then Asampragnata Samadhi
control
all your sense organs
and the body
and the mind
and live
a detached life
thus
gaining complete control
over one's mind
you will realize
that you are the divine soul
called in the Sankhya
Purusha
I am the Purusha
I am not the Prakruti
then comes Bhakti Yoga
Bhakti Yoga
has to do with emotions
so if we use
emotions
if emotions
are dominant
in our personality
we have no choice
but
to use
emotions
but
direct them towards
our ultimate
goal
which is God Realization
which means
direct all the emotions
towards
God
both
personal
as well as impersonal
here are the
brief directions
first of all
control
and collect
and unify
and then direct
all your emotions
towards the divine
develop
a definite
relationship
with God
either as a servant
as a friend
as a parent
as a child
or
develop
lover
beloved
relationship
with God
whatever you do
offer it to the beloved
your breathing
your actions
your thinking
is for the pleasure of the beloved
in this case
it is your personal deity
and in the end
by the grace of the Lord
you will achieve supreme devotion
called Parabhakti
and know
that you
and your beloved
are but one
this is the essence of Bhakti Yoga
in some people
through intellect
not presumed
superficial intellect
which questions everything
which doesn't believe in anything
and which ultimately
codes a terrible ruin
called Nastikattva
no
there is an intellect
it has been well cultivated
but it wants to know the truth
through discrimination
if such a faculty
called this sharp intellect
wise intellect
rational intellect
is developed
and directed
towards the divine
then what should you do
first step
develop a sharp intellect
and
an unbiased rationality
objective rationality
examine everything
world
scriptures
God
my life
other people's life
and try to know
the real nature of everything
if you do that
nothing
no truth
no knowledge
can hide itself
always
practice discrimination
then
give up
what
one comes to know
what you come to know
as undesirable
and ultimately
which leads one
to unhappiness
to grief
to suffering
give that up
and complete control
the sense organs and mind
and develop
intense yearning
for the realization of
your own Atma
in simple words
as Shankaracharya puts it
Viveka
Vairagya
Shamadhi Shatka Sampathi
and Mumukshottam
then the teacher will come
in all these four
yogas
and accordingly
according to the nature of the
recipient
student
guides him
in that particular path
and ultimately
everybody
will be reaching the goal
everybody
will realize he is divine
so this is the essence of
Jnana Yoga
but
Hiram Krishna
tells us
in this Kali Yuga
in this present age
a path of devotion
is more suitable
for most of the people
in this age
but
even in the path of devotion
Bhakti Marga
Sharanagati
complete
dependence
complete faith in God
complete dependence on God
complete surrender to God
is the
final advice
of Hiram Krishna
know that
everything is possible
only by God's grace
now
certain facts about
life
through the allegory
of this
Bhagavad Gita
what is the allegory?
Arjuna
is the traveler
he travels with the help of a chariot
called this body
this chariot is pulled by
horses
which represents
sense organs
and there is a chariot here
who is a
intelligent
driver
called Krishna
or Bhagawan
or scripture
or Guru
and the rider
who has
a good chariot
a well behaved horses
and a Sadguru
inevitably
he will reach the goal
and this allegory
has something to
teach us
so this
Bhagavad Gita
is both
a
Preah Shastra
as well as
a
Shreyo Shastra
Bhagavad Gita
is a
true guide
which if
followed faithfully
can give us
both
worldly happiness
as well as
spiritual happiness
and the
first step
but the first step
is
not to
aim at
spiritual happiness
but
by using
our body
mind
to aim at
what
Hinduism
crystal
clearly
outlines as
three Purusharthas
three desirable
human
goals
Dharma
Artha
Kama
and
first
this is called
prayers
this is called
worldly happiness
the world is not
without happiness
when we
complain
that world is
full of suffering
we are not
talking
about wrong belief
we are talking
if the
rules of the
game called
life
are not
followed
implicitly
properly
then the
result would be
suffering
but if we
follow
that is
develop Dharma
righteous
thinking
righteous
attitude
righteous
decisions
righteous
actions
if you
remember
Buddha's
eightfold
teachings
right
discrimination
right
decision
right
speech
right
actions
right
thinking
right
concentration
right
meditation
and right
Samadhi
is more
or less
follows
the yoga
system of
eight
Limbud
eight
steps
which
ultimately
lead to
happiness
between worldly
happiness and
spiritual happiness
Sri Ram Krishna
never made
any distinction
between
householders
and
sannyasins
there are
they are
two
lifestyles
Krishna
never says
never talks
about one is
superior
another is
inferior
he says
these are
two lifestyles
that is why
he defines
Thyaga
as giving up
selfishness
once it is
given up
everything will be
smooth
and it will
lead to
only good
which is
Moksha
liberation
so there is no
conflict
between
worldly happiness
but
worldly
Dharmic
happiness
Dharma
Virudhho
Kamo
Asmi
Bharat
Arshava
Bhagavad
Gita
still clearly
says
is my
own
manifestation
and in any
case
we have no
choice
first
step
is Dharma
second step
is Artha
third step
is Kama
and last
step is
Moksha
we like
climbing
a ladder
you cannot
jump the ladder
one has to
get over
the first
step
step into
the second
and then
over
third
and
finally
one reaches
the roof
there is no
conflict
really speaking
between
Prayaha
and Sreyaha
many people
very
unintelligently
make this
unnecessary
remark
and confuse
people
anybody
who follows
the first
three steps
Dharma
Artha
and Kama
inevitably
they reach
the first
step
and
finally
the
second
step
is
Kama
and
then
Artha
and
finally
Kama
and
finally
the
third
step
is
Kama
and
then
Artha
and
finally
Kama
and
And the rest of the Gita is the answer as a remedy and lead us to Moksha.
What is Samsara? It is worldly life.
What does it consist of?
Moha, delusion born of ignorance.
Raga and Dvesha, likes and dislikes.
And Shoka, ultimately ending in unhappiness.
What is the problem in Samsara?
Anything that we achieve, that we obtain, any object has three defects.
First of all, no object can give complete and permanent happiness.
Second problem, everything, every object that gives us some happiness
inevitably brings its opposite, unhappiness.
And third, every experienced object, it leads to strengthens the desire for that object.
I want it again and that is called bondage.
So dissatisfaction, bringing in the opposite and strengthening the bondage.
These are the three main defects of any worldly object enjoyed as such without any reference to God.
Now, some of the essential points in the Bhagavad Gita.
Life, as we discussed earlier, this is only summarization.
Life is a battlefield, but it is a righteous battlefield, Dharmakshetra.
One reaps only what one sows.
Nobody can cheat life.
The law of karma is inexorable.
This law of karma rewards everyone according to one's deeds.
That's why Swami Vivekananda used to say that each one of us are the architects of our own future.
What is the role of God?
God is only a manager, the distributor of the results of one's own karmas, good or evil.
And every one of us will recognize this truth sooner or later.
And then only we stop blaming, blaming God, blaming everybody, blaming unknown factors,
but firmly accept our own responsibility and only with that spiritual life will really start.
Everyone, according to Vedanta, will be forced to turn towards God, to manifest one's own inner divinity
and hence fight sooner or later, fight in order to manifest one's true nature.
When one reaches this state, he or she will turn towards one's own scripture,
Christians to Gospel, Muslims to Quran, Buddhists to Tripitaka,
Hindus to Vedas or Upanishads or the Gospel or Bhagavad Gita for guidance and instruction.
Bhagavad Gita starts in the battlefield called Kurukshetra.
It is a war, it is a battle, but this war is only incidental.
Every second in life is a battle for breath, for life, for knowledge and for happiness.
Now what happens?
Arjuna, he thought he was wise and because of the delusion,
he fails to find a remedy for the ills of life.
He could not prevent the war, Pandavas could not prevent the war.
Why can't he find a remedy in this world?
Because unhappiness, duality, combination of the opposites is the very nature of the world,
like the curly tail of a dog.
Remaining in this world, we wish to have permanent, complete happiness is impossible.
Therefore, what to do? Become wise.
Recognize the fact of the world's nature and seek a Guru.
Surrender to Him. There are seven steps. I'll come to that.
So Arjuna, we see in the first chapter, refused to play the game of life because later on,
as Krishna says, your very nature will make you fight because that is your nature.
Nobody can rebel against one's own nature.
Each one of us is an Arjuna, deluded or enlightened.
Deluded is more common. Enlightened is very uncommon.
Like Arjuna, each one of us also have to go through seven stages to receive the divine guidance,
teaching which helps us unfold our real nature.
What are these seven stages?
We get it at the beginning of the second chapter.
First, discovery that there is a problem.
We have a problem. I have a problem and I am the problem.
Hence, I alone am the solution.
There is no other problem. I am the problem.
I think I am the body-mind that is the problem.
What is the solution? I am not the body-mind.
I am the Atman. That is the only solution.
Second, what can I do about it?
Discovery that we are helpless in the hands of Prakruti or three gunas.
Third, let us accept I don't know the way out.
I am completely helpless.
Four, humble enough to seek a wise guide, a wise teacher called Sadguru.
Fifth, accept Him and unconditional surrender with complete faith in Him and His teaching.
Six, only then we become fit to receive the remedy called Upadesha,
the instruction how to play the game of life and get out of the game.
Seven, apply the medication, the Upadesha, practice the teaching and by the grace of God,
in the end, we will be completely free.
Only after Arjuna surrendered,
Sisyas teham shadhim aam tvam prapannam,
then only Krishna opened His mouth, the Jagadguru,
because everybody in this world is an Arjuna and only the Guru of the entire world,
only He knows about the nature of the world,
about the nature of what is beyond the world
and He alone can teach us.
Every Guru is just an instrument, a representation,
a pipe through which that Upadesha stream starts flowing.
Then only Krishna started and that teaching of Krishna starts with the eleventh verse of the second chapter
and it starts with
asho chyan anva sho chesto,
you are grieving for those who need not be grieved.
You are thinking of Bhishma Drona,
I am going to kill them,
whether you kill them or not.
You are not really the killer.
Their own karma is the killer.
Time, when the time comes, time is the killer.
Body and mind, they will not survive.
Already they are one foot in the grave,
so you cannot kill them really.
Why?
Because you are talking not about Bhishma, not about Drona,
you are talking about their bodies.
Bodies are unreal, temporary and they are born, they change, they become old.
Whether you kill them or not,
body itself will dissolve into its constituent elements.
This is the law of nature.
So you are grieving for those who need not be grieved.
Why?
Because Bhishma is Atman, Drona is Atman.
You are Atman.
Everybody is an Atman.
Duryodhana is an Atman.
So the problem is not Duryodhana,
the problem is your own karma
and the remedy is your own karma.
Overcome evil karma with good karma
and the scripture gives you the right guidance,
what is evil karma, what is good karma,
how to overcome evil with good
and then karma phala, both good and evil are given up through practice of yoga.
You will know that you have nothing to do with body,
with mind, with world, with actions,
with the results of actions, with spiritual practice.
Everything is only like a huge dream
and that is the teaching every scripture gives.
So to go beyond samsara
which consists of obtaining moksha or self-knowledge
is the Tattvarya, is the goal of every scripture,
is the goal of all life, all evolution
and this can be achieved, this goal moksha, liberation, self-knowledge
not by any effort because finite effort cannot produce infinity.
That is why the 66th verse of the last chapter, Sarva Dharmaan Parityajya,
give up this vain effort of yours,
completely surrender yourself to me.
Surrender means what?
Total identity with myself.
The finite gives up the finiteness
and identifies with infinity.
That is the only solution.
Mahasuchaha, so do not grieve, starts with Ashochya and ends with Mahasuchaha.
Do not grieve because you are not removing the grief,
you are removing the very cause of the grief
but how to attain this total surrender?
Follow any suitable path.
Once Guru will tell you what is your nature,
which guna is prominent,
which samskaras are prominent
and which path is good,
whether he has to follow Karma Yoga, Bhakti Yoga, Raja Yoga or Gnana Yoga.
All paths lead to the same goal.
This is what is supported by the Lord.
Ye atha mam prapadyante tan tathaiva jamyam
By whichever path a man sincerely struggles, strives to reach me,
I run to him and hug him to my bosom and release him from samsara.
Whatever be the path, provided one is sincere,
everyone without exception would reach me alone, even evil people.
Why?
How can anybody, an evil person, a cruel person,
a pitiless person, a heartless person,
a tormentor of the whole world,
how can he become divine?
Because my dear, I alone am.
I alone exist.
Brahman alone is.
I am Brahman.
Therefore, the goal of life is to know who I am really is.
Aham Brahmasmi.
Every Jeeva is Brahman.
But because of Maya, we have forgotten our true nature.
But we are all seeking that God alone.
God means our own Self.
This seeking and gradually progressing towards our goal is called evolution.
And evolution progresses in three stages.
First external, that is body-brain complex reaches its pinnacle,
which is called human birth and there is no need for further biological evolution.
Then internal, two stages.
The first stage of internal evolution is development of first intellectual, rational,
then aesthetic and finally moral.
Expand yourself.
Identify yourself with everybody.
Not only humans, living, non-living, animals, birds, plants.
And nowadays, because of the blessings of science,
people are able to understand this and they are growing.
But the third evolution, it is a lonely evolution.
I cannot take even a single person.
My father, my mother, my wife, my husband, my children, my friends, my co-religionists.
No.
It is the journey of the alone to the alone and that is called spiritual evolution.
So biological, internal and spiritual.
All will know the truth and will be liberated.
As Ramakrishna says, there are infinite paths.
Now, some of the important points we are going to discuss in slight detail.
It is hard to understand, but that is the truth.
Gita tells, Upanishads tell,
Yatha Karma Yatha Shuddha, whatever is one's knowledge, whatever is one's understanding,
whatever is one's decision, whatever is one's actions and that alone will happen.
We cannot suddenly jump out of ourselves, but there are infinite paths to the infinite.
That is what Sri Ramakrishna says, Jato Maut Tato Pauth.
For a child, for a Hindu child, one way.
For a Christian child, one way.
For an Islamic child, Muslim child, one way.
For a Buddhistic child, one way.
For a grown-up person, one way.
For a man, one way.
For a woman, another way.
For an old man, old woman, one way.
For an Aasthika, one way.
For an Aasthika, one way.
There are infinite paths, but every path of these infinite paths leads only like an infinite
number of doors leading into the same space within, which is Brahman.
Here are some points we have to keep in mind.
Whatever is happening in this world is the play of God.
When we are in the initial stage, when we do not know that I am Brahman, but I do believe
in the scriptures and the scriptures tell me that the creator of this world is God and
everything happens by His will.
This is made clear that we have seen, Ishwaraha Sarvabhoothanam Hridyeshe Arjuna Tishtati
Brahmayan Sarvabhoothani Entra Rudhani Mayaya.
I'll give the illustration.
And it is every day happening and it's happening in everyone's life.
You go to bed and straight away you may not go to deep sleep state.
Usually there would be a dream world and in that dream world you create the entire.
You are the one.
You are that conscious being who creates the entire dream world in which you divide yourself
into three parts.
You, the subject, just like in the waking state and the entire world consisting of everything
else, others' bodies, others' minds and in almost innumerable, countless plants, insects,
animals, houses, roads, cars, everything, subject and object.
You divide yourself into subject and object.
But there is a third factor.
You also remain as a witness consciousness, witnessing, remembering and that is what you
remember upon your waking up.
Upon waking up, two things happen.
First of all, you recollect through memory what dream you had and then you say in that
dream some good happens, some evil happens, some happiness comes, some unhappiness comes
and then you will see everything there.
But when you are dreaming, you think somebody came and hurt you.
Somebody came and criticized you.
Somebody came and loved you.
Somebody came and gave you happiness.
Everything is just like waking state.
But upon waking, you think you only in the form of your tormentor, you only in the form
of your friend, your beloved, you yourself divided into good and evil and you experienced
both of them.
But upon waking up, it is all unreal.
That is the first thing.
Secondly, there is nobody else excepting you and whatever happened in that dream world
is happened, has happened because of your will.
With this illustration, if you can understand that this waking world is also like a dream
world.
But just as in the dream world, we can never understand.
Even if you are listening to my Gita talk and I am telling that everything is your own
making, the law of karma, you will not believe.
But if you believe in God, you say it is the will of God, it is the play of God.
It is a play because you don't understand it is a play at that time.
But upon waking up, I am that God and I played and it is absolutely fine.
Okay, because if it is a play, death is okay, birth is okay, happiness is okay, unhappiness
is okay.
I can kill the entire world and yet do not feel regret in a play.
But if it is real only because we think it is real, that is where problem comes, conflict
comes, unhappiness comes.
So, in this waking state, which we call the waking state, which wise people call it drama,
Leela of God, it is a drama, it is a cinema.
When we wake up to reality, then only we can understand it is all because of Ishwara's
will, my will, because I and Ishwara are one upon waking up, not now.
But so long as we are here, we happen to develop faith in God and we say whatever is happening
in this world is the will of God and since God is good and God created me, He can never
torment me, make me unhappy, if at all He is doing, it is for my own good.
Like any mother punishing a child, only later on the child understands it is for my good
because my mom loves me.
So, this is what Bhagavad Gita wants to tell, Ishwara is playing with Himself, not with
us.
So, whatever is happening in this world is the play of God.
That is the teaching of the Bhagavad Gita, Upanishads, Puranas, every scripture because
if any religion says God is the creator, God is the maintainer, they will be forced to
make this statement, God also is the destroyer and whatever God does can never be evil because
by definition God is Sarva Mangala Mangaliya.
Second, whatever happens is right and good, everything that happens.
Am I being tortured?
That's right, that's good.
But at that time of experiencing, we may not understand but later on we understand, wisdom
dawns, yes that's good and then we come to understand nobody can help anybody excepting
God.
Even Guru cannot help, He can bless us, He can give us the right direction, He can wish
us well but we ourselves have to make effort not to obtain but to enjoy what we obtain
by the grace of God.
See Ramakrishna used to say a little bit funnily that one has to set milk into curds, churn
butter and take that butter out and make it a Rasagulla and take it to the mouth and the
fellow is not prepared even to open the mouth, so one has to catch hold of the throat and
open that fellow's mouth, push that Rasagulla inside, take out a piston and push it down.
Such is the laziness we all go through, really we are all lazy, Tamasik people, not that
we don't act but we act in the wrong way, we travel in the wrong direction.
Even if the experience is unhappiness again and again, rarely we wake up but everyone
will be woken up sooner or later.
So whatever happens is right and good and I mentioned a story of a king who had a minister
who used to say everything is good.
So one day the king decided to go on a hunting expedition and the prime minister has to
accompany him and when the prime minister entered into the presence of the king, the
king happened to sharpen his sword and accidentally he cut off his thumb and the minister on seeing
this, he said very good, very good, very good and the king got angry, unable to understand,
throw this minister into jail because when I am suffering from this, my thumb is cut
off, he says it is very good but when the minister was being taken away into the jail,
he said very good, very good, very good.
The king in spite of that, he went on a hunting trip, he was caught by some peculiar religious
sect who are accustomed to sacrifice human beings so they kept him prisoner overnight.
Next morning they bathed him, decorated him while they were about to offer him to the
goddess, suddenly they noticed his finger was cut and it is a defective offering so
they said this offering is not good enough, it must be a perfect offering, leave him and
the king was glad to escape with life and limb, came back and then he understood what
the minister said, very good, very good and then he ordered the minister to be released
and when the minister came, asked him, I understand now that my cutting my finger is very good
but when you were being sent into the jail, you said very good, how can you explain it
and the minister said smiling, don't you see, had you not put me in jail, I would have been
with you and I would have been caught and I would not have been alive now, it is only
because you put me in the jail, I escaped the dire fate, hard for us to understand but
whatever happens, it is the right thing and it is good for us and karmaphala is good,
if we are suffering that is good because that will awaken us in course of time, then no
one can help anyone except God, can somebody eat for me, can somebody sleep for me, can
somebody worry for me, can I help anybody, one of the greatest truths Swami Vivekananda
exposed in his karma yoga is that everybody deserves and he gets what he deserves, good
or evil, happiness or unhappiness, nobody can help this world, anybody in this world
because it is God who created, it is God who maintains and supports and helps, nobody else,
I myself am helpless, I cannot help anybody but if I do some good as an act of worship
then that will be do good to me, if I help somebody not with the idea that I am able
to help but with the idea it is a grand opportunity for me to serve God, Shiva Jnana Jiva Shiva,
then that will hasten my spiritual progress and I will get out of this samsara bandhana sooner,
so no one can really help anyone except God and God will be gracious to us if we pray,
he will definitely bestow his grace, he is in fact ever ready to bestow his grace but
Sri Ramakrishna has used to say the grace of God is always blowing like a southern breeze
but one has to unfurl the sails that means struggle, self effort is necessary, so each
one of us have to struggle to receive the ever blowing grace of God and to convert it into
true knowledge which is to know that I am divine, I have no bondage, I have no unhappiness,
I am infinite, I have no bondage, then all of us, there is no exception, there is nothing
called Naraka or hell, yes there is but temporary corrective measure is called hell and all
of us will reach the goal, all of us will know that we are God and we become free, this
is one of the greatest contributions of Vedanta, there is nobody, believer, non-believer, good
person, evil person, everybody will achieve the same knowledge ultimately, then what about
this so called evil people and that is where Vedanta tells us crystal clearly that if somebody
seem to be giving us unhappiness, seem to be killing us as it is happening now at present,
I always take the present incidents as a shining examples to understand Vedanta, it is cruel,
people think it is cruel to say, it is God's will that people are dying there and everybody
is dying, both parties are dying, not only one party but even if one party happens to
be suffering only, it is not the will, it is the will of God and the will of God is
a law of Karma, a law of Karma is we have forgotten what we have done and in spite of
that we are not awakening, we are not understanding, we are not analysing and then we are not waking
up to the truth that there is God and we come from God, our destination is to go to God
and this fact we are not able to understand, if it is a fact that God created, creation
means he himself is manifesting with different names and forms just like a waker, as soon
as he creates a dream world, he is manifesting in the form of his own individuality as well
as entire dream world, only upon waking up there is no God, there is no world, it is
me who has been imagining as though I split myself into these three subject, object and
the witness, similarly there is nothing but God and God is playing with God, God is playing
with himself, there is no I or you or he or she or it, so there is no question of anybody
being excluded, there is no question of God created some people so that they will never
attain, such a stupidity can never be admitted, if clay has become ten pots, no pot is without
clay, all the pots, their true nature is clay, different names, different forms, different
purposes, utilities are only temporary phenomena, ultimately they all break down, ultimately
they will go back into their constituent element that is called the clay, so nobody will be
left out, all of us will reach the goal, know that we are God and become free but if we
are a little bit intelligent, we understand the rules of this game called life and follow
the rules meticulously, then perhaps a progress will be sooner and we attain to that state,
we return home very soon, that's what Sri Ramakrishna says, some all the children are
out for play, some return back at noon to enjoy the fresh lunch prepared by mother,
some are absorbed, they return two three hours later and get the same food but a little bit
cold perhaps, I should not say, some people come only at midnight and Sri Ramakrishna
adds if some child doesn't come at midnight, mother will break all the toys and forcibly
take that child to her bosom, bring him home, wash him, put on fresh cloths, feed him nice
food and puts him to bed so that he can have a second play next day, nobody will be excluded,
this is a great contribution of Hinduism and when once a person knows Aham Brahmasmi and
life is meant for that only, as I mentioned earlier, my body, my mind and the entire world
are the instruments through which in course of time, I come to know that I am Brahman,
the Guru will come, he will say the word that Tattvamasi and I realise by my own experience,
you are right and then only Guru will disappear, Sadhana will disappear, Sadhya will disappear
and I realise I was never in bondage, I was only dreaming, perhaps dreaming and I am ever free,
I am the child of immortality, this is called Moksha or liberation and there would be no more
rebirth and this is the essence of Bhagavad Gita, it is called Brahma Vidya, essence of the Upanishads
leading us to know who we are and make us completely free. With this, we have completed
the very essence of the Bhagavad Gita, especially yesterday's and today's talk are most important,
if you have heard it and understood it and kept it in memory, you have understood really speaking
the essence of all the Upanishads, past, present and future.
From next classes onwards, I propose to take up some of the Upanishads one by one and discuss
about them in the light of the Gita, in the light of the teachings of Sri Ramakrishna's life and
teachings, Swami Vivekananda's life and teachings and all the great saints like Ramana Maharshi,
etc. Probably, I will start with Prashna Upanishad. May Sri Ramakrishna,
Holy Mother and Swami Vivekananda bless us all with Bhakti. Jai Ramakrishna.

[[Category:Bhagavad Gita]]