Bhagavad Gita Ch15 part 02 on 04 July 2021

Full Transcript(Not Corrected)

OM VASUDEVASUTAM DEVAM KAMSACHANURAMARDHANAM DEVAKI PARAMANANDAM KRISHNAM VANDE JAGADGURUM SARVO PANISHADO GAVO DOGDHA GOPALANANDANA PARTHO VACHA SUDHIR BHOKTA DUGDHAM GEETAM RITAM MAHA MOOKAM KARUTI VACHALAM PANGUM LANGAYATHE GIRIM YAD KRIPATAMAHAM VANDE PARAMANANDAMADHAVAM Yesterday we started the 15th chapter of the Bhagavad Gita. One of the most important chapters in the whole Bhagavad Gita. Here the ultimate summary of this 15th Upanishad is the Mahavakya that you, Jeeva, did not exist, do not exist, will not exist. There is only one truth and that is Brahman. And I am myself, I the Brahman, am myself manifesting in the form of the world and in the form of the Jeeva. It means the whole world consists of the beings with consciousness and without consciousness. And I comprise both. There is truly speaking no object without consciousness. But the consciousness is completely hidden. Whereas in the conscious beings, the consciousness is potentially there but being used for worldly purposes, not much being aware of their spiritual dimension. And in this chapter, the Lord wants to prove the reason for this explanation. And he brings a beautiful comparison between a tree and this whole world called Samsara. And both are compared just as a tree cannot exist without its seed. Seed means cause. So also the world which is existence must have derived its existence from something which is eternally existent and that is called the Paramatma, Brahma, the eternal consciousness, etc. So the Lord, as we mentioned earlier, very briefly we want to recollect, the Lord says, I am manifesting in this world in three ways. As the objective world which is to be experienced, which is being experienced. Then the experiencer, the Jeevatma, with the help of the body-mind instrument. Jeevatma, consciousness plus body plus mind. And everything this Jeevatma experiences is called an object. Even though at the beginning the object appears to be without consciousness but it is nothing but Brahman, therefore it is with consciousness. But because of the limitations, Upadhi, it appears to be unconscious. So in Vedanta, everything is conscious. The mountains are conscious, the rivers are conscious, the earth, the water, the fire, the air and the space. There is nothing which is excluded. Everything is with consciousness. So the Lord says, I manifest as three Purushas, three states of consciousness. Very funny. The lowest type of consciousness is called Kshara Purusha. That is to say an object which is experienced. The whole world which is experienced through the instrumentality of the five sense organs appears to be inert but really not inert for the knowers of truth. Then the second one is the experiencer. Whatever is experienced is constantly changing and whatever is the experiencer, he is unchanging, he is the witness, he is the participant and as a participant he is changing but as a witness he never changes. When this participant is in one particular state, he is called Vishwa or the state is called waking state. If the same Jivatma is experiencing as identifying as participant, it is called dream state. He is called Taijasa and the same one without experiencing anything but yet completely separate as an experiencer. Such a person is called Prajna or the deep sleep state which is called Sushupti state. This is called Akshara Purusha and comprising these two, holding these two within him like a triangle, he is that Paramatma and if our duty is to understand these three and say ultimately all the three are one, one in three, three is three in one and that is the goal and that is to go beyond all gunas. That is the meaning of becoming a Jeevan Mukta or attaining Moksha, becoming free and that is how we come to that final realization. It is to lead us to that final realization and how do we come? Through Bhakti Yoga and what is the Bhakti Yoga? Complete surrender to the Divine Lord. What is surrender? Becoming merged, completely destroying our individuality or as Swami Vivekananda says funnily that we are not individuals, we are duals. We must become individuals that means undividable, eternal, infinite wholes. That's our goal. In this 15th chapter, that's what he is going to say. First of all, see the cause and effect relationship. If we want to know, as I mentioned yesterday, three questions come to every thinking person. What is the cause of this world? Then we know what is the world. Since I am part of the world, then I also know my cause is so and so and therefore I am also of that nature. And third question is how to attain to it? And for that the answer is that you will have to practice Bhakti Yoga and surrender yourself to completely God, merge in Him and this is possible again only by the grace of God and this is what the 15th chapter wants to ultimately tell. This is being beautifully outlined in the last shloka verse, 20th verse. Iti guhyatamam shastram This is the most secret science and he who understands it, knows it, he will become free and that is by the practice of complete surrender to the Divine Lord. So coming back, we are going to discuss this beautiful point now. So this is... We started actually with the first verse. Here Arjuna never asks a single question. It is all the statements of the Bhagawan, Shri Bhagawan Vacha. The Divine Lord said, Urdhvamolam atashyakam ashwatham prahuraviyayam chandamsi yasyaparnane yah tam veda sah vedavid The Lord said, The speak of an imperishable Ashwathha tree with its root above and branches below. Its leaves are the Vedas and he who knows it, knows the Vedas. The whole essence of the first verse is this first of all, Samsara, the world we live in is compared to a tree. Just for the sake of understanding, it has nothing to do with the tree but it has many similarities with the tree and what type of tree? Not any tree. It is a very special tree. It is called Ashwathha. Ashwathha means what? Shwa means in Sanskrit. The word Shwa is a Sanskrit word. It means tomorrow. Na, Shwa is called Ashwathha. Na means no. Shwa means tomorrow. Something which doesn't remain the same even one moment that is called Shwa. That means the whole world is changing like the water is ever flowing and changing all the time. But this peculiar tree, it is called people tree. I will come back to it very soon. This tree, unlike any other tree, it has its roots above. Above means what? Something which is invisible, unseen. Suppose there is a kite and that kite, the thread of the kite is so long that it appears, goes beyond the clouds so we can see the thread. We cannot see the kite because it is hidden. That is the meaning of above. Above doesn't mean a tall building. There is a roof. We can see the above, a roof. If you take a telescope, you can see it more clearly. That's not the meaning here. It means it is rooted in invisible something which is superior, which is eternal, which is infinite. That is how we have to take it. But all its branches just as a seed is very tiny but when it grows into a tree, it is vast, enormous. As I mentioned yesterday, the example of a banyan tree. Here we are not talking about a banyan tree. We are talking about a different tree. It is called people tree. It is called Ashwatha. But it is a very sacred tree. Many people worship it, Ashwatha tree. Ashwatha tree is one of the sacred trees. And why this example is taken from a tree, that reason also I will give very soon. So there is this tree. Its roots are above but it is slowly spreading. Take a look at a pyramid. The bottom is huge but the top is very, very pointed, single pointed, very thin. It is just the upside down because the root is above. It is very thin. It is invisible. But as it manifests, it grossifies, it becomes larger and larger and it becomes more and more gross, more and more visible, more and more experienceable, more and more knowledgeable. But the invisible root, it is very difficult to understand. Knowledge is very difficult to attain but we have to know. Once we know, I am a tree of Ashwatha because I have been born from the seed called Ashwatha. So also this world has come from God. So the world is nothing but manifestation of God which we will see in this very chapter quite elaborately. How the Lord is manifesting as the world, creating the world, manifesting the world, sustaining the world, taking back the world into Himself as Himself. That we will see later on. Both from the external side and from the internal side. From both sides, the Lord is sustaining from outside, the Lord also is sustaining from inside. Like the parable of the Samudra Manthana. We will come to that explanation when we come to that. Here, the branches are below and the branches have tremendous amount of other branches and those smallest branch, every branch is covered with leaves. What are the leaves? Chandamsi. Chandamsi means Vedas. Veda means knowledge. Knowledge means the knowledge of both the world of the Paramatma. And just as leaves protect and sustain and make the tree live and grow because the leaves have a special quality. The quality is that they create, produce photosynthesis, energy from the directly from the sun and sustains and it makes the tree grow. Not only that, a tree sustains through its flowers, through its leaves, through its bark, through its root, through its trunk, many many creatures. That's why hundreds of thousands of birds, insects, living creatures make a tree as a living whole. Not only it sustains all of them, it also keeps itself alive. Only when the nature becomes disbalanced for some reason, then nature takes over and creates disaster to rebalance the whole lost balance. And he who understands it, he is the true knower of Veda. Who is a true knower of the Veda? He who knows this. We are not talking about the tree. It is an example. Always keep it in mind. It is an analogy. To understand the real nature of this world, it is rooted above. That means he is created from the Divine Lord. Who is Nirkuda, Nirvisesha? Who is Ananta, Avyaya, Sanatana? He is Shashvata. He is the eternal. He is the infinite. He is the imperishable. He is all-pervading. He is all-existence. He is all-knowledge. He is all-bliss. He is crucifying himself. He is manifesting himself. We saw the analogy of the five bhutas. Five bhutas are nothing but the manifestation of the Atman. More and more grossified. But it is nothing but the Atman. So we come like that to the lowest which is called the earth. From the earth food is grown. From food every living creature is maintained. Even non-living creatures. The mountains come from earth. The rivers also come from earth. And the fire, the air, everything comes from the other five bhutas are there. That is the whole samsara. What is the essence? The root of samsara is divine Lord. Therefore by the law of the cause and effect being the same, the whole universe is also nothing but divine. Since I am part of that world, I am also divine. Therefore the goal of life is to manifest myself. To know myself. Ultimately to become one with God by knowing I am that pure infinite eternal divinity. And he who knows this secret by knowing the root cause, he is Godly Vedavit. Now I will talk about the tree and what a marvelous significance is there. I can do no better than quote from most revered Swami Ranganathanandji Maharaj who has commented upon it. In our Vedic civilization, most of us used to live among the trees in the forest. Vanavasis and secured education in the mid east of the forest. Thus the forest had a great place in our cultural heritage. And so we selected some trees in the forest for special attention, for special adoration. As I mentioned earlier, here I insert a small comment in this quote of Ranganathanandji Maharaj. That is Hinduism always taught people gradually divinize the whole world. Then only you will know your own divinity. You will never know your own divinity unless you perceive the whole world also as a divinity. In order to facilitate, so the commandments are given. First, divinize your mother. She may be ordinary person for everybody. For each one of us, our own mother is a manifest divinity, divine mother. Once, ask Sri Ram Krishna, can one meditate upon God as one's own mother? Sri Ram Krishna says, why not? She is the greatest divinity on earth. We can extend that question. Can we worship our father as divinity? Yes, of course. Can we worship Acharya, our teacher as divinity? Of course. The many books give more emphasis on this. We all have to worship. Then, what is Atithi? The usual meaning of Atithi is a guest, a person who comes without any notice. He is called a guest. Tithi means he who comes with an appointment. Atithi means one who comes without any appointment. Of course, in the olden days, facility was not there. So, they can drop it anytime. That's why people used to grow so many kumdas, pumpkins, etc. Because they can stay there without decaying, without decomposing for many, many months, even years. So, if a guest comes, take out a big pumpkin, make a beautiful curry. And by the way, Indian sweet pumpkin curry is one of the tastiest pumpkin curries in the world. You don't need to add. We are all having sweet teeth. Therefore, naturally, with a bit of rice, with a bit of ghee if possible, this sweet pumpkin curry is used to fulfill. And many people, they keep extra rice and if nobody comes, they keep it in water. They call it watery rice or pantha bhaat or what is called moistened rice. Next morning, it becomes very, very soft. So, add a bit of ginger and pepper and make it first class breakfast. It is very cooling, soothing, energy giving and that is how our people in villages used to live. Nowadays, we have all become used to dirty food. Sorry, I am using that word dirty but any food ordered online is dirty food. Not only that, funny things are there. We get it in YouTube. One pizza wala he came to deliver, stood outside the house, opened the box, ate to his fill. Later on, he said that he was very hungry, he could not hold and then wrapped it nicely and delivered it. Unfortunately, in this instance, the owner was watching the whole thing, videoed the whole thing and the video had become viral. You can observe it. So, it is not like that that a person really has to be made sacred. Food is sacred. Annam brahmeti yajamat. Atithi means any being. Slowly, you extend this, what is called sanctifying everything, looking upon everything as sacred and that is the idea brought here. Choose some mountains, choose some rivers, choose some trees, choose some birds, choose some animals so that our idea of perceiving the divinity extends and gradually I cannot see divinity unless I consider myself also as divine. That is the idea. I continue with the quotation. We selected some trees in the forest for special attention. Those are the Ashwathar peepala trees and these are all very holy trees in our tradition and out of this, our Rishis, more holy, they created a wonderful philosophy. They have created there. They made a big philosophy and that philosophy we get in this 15th chapter that this tree called Ashwathar is not holy merely physically. It should remind us that the whole world like that sacred tree. A tree cannot come without a seed. Seed means here cause. The whole world also must have a cause and that cause is called Bhagawan Paramatma, Brahma, Ishwara, Divine Mother, Srishti, Sthithi, Vinasharaam, Shruti, Bhute, Sanatane, whatever name you wish to give it to it but it is that one undefinable and indescribable, eternal infinite reality. This is how our Rishis had made a big philosophy and so I am giving you one example to make this point clear. Tulasi is a very sacred deity. It is not a leaf. It is a deity called Tulasi Mata. Similarly, a bull is not an ordinary bullock. It is the carrier of Lord Shiva and then as soon as you remember that, it is nothing but Shiva. Shiva's carrier cannot be non-Shiva. Could be only of the nature of Shiva. There is wonderful philosophy involved. This banyan tree in this instance has become even more holy when Buddha sat under this tree and attained illumination. From that time onwards, this banyan tree began to be called as the Bodhi Vriksha or the tree of illumination. Thus, Hinduism from the very beginning is giving an attempt to each one of us that slowly, gradually it will take many many lives but you have to consider everything as divine and when you have succeeded ultimately you realize that everything is divine. Everything is Brahman and then I promised yesterday I will bore you a little bit with the description. Shankaracharya excels in his poetic description. He excels himself. You know, Shankaracharya's works can be divided into three. The major portion is called his commentaries on the major Prasthanatraya, 10 Upanishads, Bhagavad Gita and Brahma Sutras. That is the first type of the work of Shankaracharya. Second, he has written several types of small text books on Vedanta. These are just what is called partial explanation of the Vedantic truths. Upadesasasri, Vivekachudamani and then Atma what is called Atmagnana etc. etc. and so many hymns also Prathas, Puranas etc. These are purely Vedantic works and these are called Prakaranakranthas and hundreds of Prakaranakranthas are attributed to Shankara. This is the second works of Shankara. What is a Prakaranakrantha? It is not pure 100% Vedanta but some important points of Vedanta are chosen and then they are presented in greater elaboration for the sake of better understanding but even if we study one Prakaranakrantha, it will take us to the same understanding as studying the commentaries. In fact, we don't recommend for anybody, most of the people excepting a few Sannyasins, study of the Bhashyas because 90% of the Bhashyas are even more devoted only to refuting the opposite arguments of the opposite parties and it doesn't interest us. It is not very practical for us. He had to do that in order to propagate Advaita Vedanta in those days but what interests us is the Prakaranakranthas. Vivekachudamani for example is a complete work. You don't need to go anywhere. One Vivekachudamani will give you the entire essence of Vedanta in all its beautiful outlined, detailed outlines. The third type of work Shankaracharya has gone through is what we call Stotra literature. Beautiful Stotras on every aspect of God as Vishnu, as Shiva, as Shakti and as Ganesha, as Kartikeya. Also as Krishna, as Rama. But apart from that, it is what is called pure Vedantic hymns like for example Prathasmarana Stotram or to get Vairagya Bhaja Govindam Stotram. It is called Moha Mudgara also. And then beautiful hymns upon Divine Mother Bhavani and then He says Gatistvam Gatistvam Tvameka Bhavani O Mother, I have no other refuge excepting You, the Bhavani, Bhavani and Bhavani. We are taking recourse to that and that is most wonderful. And I have to insert here if you study the Moha Mudgara, Bhaja Govindam that is enough for salvation. Then why do we study others? Kalakshepa. For the sake of keeping Satsanga, keeping our mind high etc. we are going on doing it. Shankaracharya has written commentaries upon 10 important Upanishads and in fact they add one more. It is Kaivalya Upanishad, I think. It is most wonderful. But now I take up the Kato Upanishad. There is a reference to it that exact tree. And here he excels himself, goes into ecstasies and writes what is the nature of the Samsara in incomparable, beautiful poetic expression nobody else can excel it. This is called Samsara Varnana. A description of the Samsara as we are all experiencing it in our life. I will just read it because the very Sanskrit recitation is so beautiful. I know many of you do not know Sanskrit language but you can enjoy it or put up with me for my sake until I complete it. It won't take a long time. I promise it. Sanskrit recitation. Means here, this is the sixth chapter in the Kato Upanishad Dviti Adhyaya. That is what he says. You know, Kato Upanishad has got two Adhyayas with three chapters sub-sections each. In the last section, sixth section he is trying to tell us about this. The Kato Upanishad starts with Sanskrit recitation. So this is the description of the Samsara by him. Sanskrit recitation. Sanskrit recitation. Sanskrit recitation. Sanskrit recitation. Sanskrit recitation. Sanskrit recitation. Sanskrit recitation. Sanskrit recitation. Sanskrit recitation. Sanskrit recitation. Sanskrit recitation. Sanskrit recitation. Sanskrit recitation. Sanskrit recitation. Sanskrit recitation. Sanskrit recitation. Sanskrit recitation. Sanskrit recitation. Thankfully, the Sanskrit has come to an end. I hope and I wish you enjoyed it really. But even this most marvellous, I could not refrain from chanting it because I find it the most poetical expression of what? The condition in which we are all helplessly being carried, helplessly being thrown hither and thither and we are not aware of that fact. Now, Ranganathanji Maharaj has translated it. I am literally lifted it up and copied it here. I am going to read it. The nature of the Samsara. But this being English, listen carefully. Try to understand the meaning. I am going to break it into each different component. This Ashwathatri consisting of unbroken and manifold miseries of birth, death and grief. No need to comment upon it. We all know birth, death, growth, disease, decay and death, the sixfold change. Then, changing its nature every moment, like the products of magic, waters of the mirage or a city formed by cloud formations in the sky, Gandharva Nagara, being of such nature as these to be perceived only to vanish next moment and become ultimately non-existent like a tree, insubstantial like the stem of the plantain tree. I hope you understand it. Peel the outside peak and inside there is a white one. Take it off. Then there is something inside. Take it off. When you come to the end, you will find nothing. Onion also is exactly like that. Many of you know by experience. A samsara is worthless, mithya, it is substanceless like the pit of the plantain tree. So, insubstantial like the stem of the plantain tree. The subject of doubt-ridden conclusions by the intellects of many hundreds of sceptics. How many people say, there is God, there is no God. There is a God but He is a partial God. There is a jealous God. There is a God who is eternally boiling with anger, finding the slightest opportunity to smash everybody to atoms. No, it is not like that at all. This is the Shankaracharya translation. Being of such nature as these to be perceived only to vanish again and become ultimately non-existent like a tree. Insubstantial like the stem of the plantain tree. The subject of doubt-ridden conclusions by the intellects of many hundreds of sceptics. Ask any scientist. He says, nature. Ask him, what is nature? He says, nature is nature. That's all. He can't tell anything. So, the mysterious, uncertain phenomenal fact to seekers of scientific truth. Receiving its substantiality from the Supreme Brahman as ascertained by Vedanta. What does Vedanta say? That it is not rootless. The whole of nature is coming out of Parabrahman which is pure consciousness. It is eternal. It is immortal. It is infinite. Issuing from the seed of avyakta. Comes from out of the undifferentiated, therefore unobjectifiable nature. Constituted of avidya, ignorance, desire and action. Having for its sprouts, Hiranyagarbha cosmic mind, which is Brahman in its manifested form and which combines in itself the two powers of knowledge and action. Having for its trunk, the various subtle bodies of all living beings. Acquiring its pride of stature through getting irrigated by the waters of the respective sense desires of these living beings. Having for its tender buds, the objects perceived by the intellect and sense organs. Having for its leaves, the knowledge contained in the Vedas, the Smritis, all religious and social laws and duties, Nyaya and sciences collectively and spiritual instruction. With lovely flowers consisting of sacrifice, charity, austerity and various other deeds. Endowed with diverse tastes such as the experiences of joy and sorrow. Having innumerable fruits on which living beings subsist. With its secondary branches consisting of all our tendencies. Well grown by being irrigated with the waters of the respective desires of beings and fastened firm by the interwining. With the nests built by birds, namely the world's beginning with what is called Satyaloka, the plane of truth. Built by all living beings from Brahma downwards towards the lowest world called Patala. Reverberating, what is the world doing? Reverberating with the diverse and tumultuous sounds rising from the joys and sorrows of beings due to their pleasures and pains resulting from dancing, vocal singing, instrumental singing, joking, clapping on the shoulders, laughing and pulling. All joys. No! Crying with exclamations. Alas! Release me! Release me! I am suffering. I am old. I am decrepit. I am suffering, etc. This tree of Samsara, relative existence, whose nature is such as to rizzle constantly, that means changing constantly, like the leaves of the Ashwadha tree due to the winds of desire and action is to be destroyed by the weapon of non-attachment forged by the realization of the unity of Brahman and Atman as taught by Vedanta. Abba! We have come to the end of the translation and this is the most wonderful translation. When you get time, go again and again, both keeping side by side. The translation of the Shankaracharya Sanskrit and keeping the Sanskrit, if you can enjoy a little bit, this is the nature of the world. What is it? In essence, what did we discuss? That beginning from Brahma Loka, ending with Patala Loka, the whole is what is called Samsara. What is its nature? Consisting of Sukha and Dukha. Who are the beings who experience? All Jivas. All Jivas are classified into the human beings, the animals, the birds, the insects, etc. etc. Even trees, etc. etc. And what is the nature? Sometimes enjoying and then shouting, singing, etc. Sometimes crying, Oh! Save me! Save me! And it is constantly changing. That's why it is called Samsara. Samsara means constantly moving, constantly changing. I am tempted to insert here for the sake of people who want to understand it. There is a philosophy called existential philosophy and I don't go into all the ramifications but what is important is this philosophy, it posits the idea that we are helpless, we have no choice excepting one. What is that choice? We can decide to commit suicide. Otherwise, why we are born, how we are born, where we are born, in which society we are born, how we are growing up and how we experience, this is all as if somebody has written the script and that is the philosophy says. Based upon this philosophy, there was a great soul and he studied also Buddhism and based upon this, combining these two, he has written a beautiful book called Siddhartha. The author of this book, most famous book is called Hermann Hesse. I think if I am not wrong, he was an Austrian-born great author. One of the greatest books I have enjoyed together and he came to Varanasi. That's why I remembered it. And then, there was a person who was seeking enlightenment and he went through various experience of samsara, of householder's life, of brahmachari's life, of anaprastha life. He could not get enlightenment. Finally, he came to Varanasi and there he was observing there was a boatman and he was attracted to this boatman and the boatman was seemed to be an enlightened person and then the Siddhartha, that was the name of the seeker. Siddhartha is, by the way, another name for Gautama Buddha. So in this secretly, Gautama Buddha has been depicted as the Siddhartha and he came to this person, sat under his feet and said how did you happen to get this knowledge? And the Guru told him that this river taught me everything that I know. And what did this river teach you? He says you will come with me and few days he taught him how to row the boat, how to ferry passengers from this side to other side to again to this side and then said my child, now you row the boat and observe the water and you will see, keep an vigilant eye and observe and you will be enlightened like me. And then Siddhartha went on observing. So he said when he is playing the boat, boat is coming from the other side to this side this side to other side, the water is constantly flowing. Sometimes there are flowers, sometimes fragrant flowers, sometimes beautiful lights left by so many devotees, sometimes rotting corpses, carcasses of different animals, floating also. The river is indifferent and by observing he learned the art of observing without becoming attached, without becoming what is called critic. I like these beautiful flowers. Oh, this is a rotten carcass and I don't like it. It is very unpleasant experience. No, just watch it. Good floats away. Bad also floats away. Ultimately he mastered the art of becoming aware of change without getting involved. In other words, he became one of the greatest witness without being identified with participating with what he was experiencing and in course of time he became enlightened and this is the essence of that book called Siddhartha by Herman Hesse. If you get time, go through it. With this background summary I have given and now we know what is the nature of samsara constantly changing. That is why Sarati iti samsaraha. Constantly moving, that's why samsara. Another name for world is Jagat. Gati. Gati means movement. Movement means change. Change means nothing remains the same. So the whole world obtained that name Jagat because it doesn't remain even for a billy second. First billy second, followed by the second billy second, third by the followed by the third billy second, etc. etc. and this is the whole samsara like this tree which can be uprooted, which can be destroyed but by what? By the axe. What is the axe? Non-attachment. What is non-attachment? Enjoy everything. Experience everything. Enjoy sukha. Enjoy dukkha but as a witness. Only when I become a witness I can experience it. I can enjoy it and then in course of time I know who am I. I am the Atman. I am the Brahman. I am the Nirguna Parabrahman. This is what the meaning of this one. So samsara means continuously facing problems and running about to get rid of the problem and this struggle is another name for samsara but we don't want to have problems. We don't want to solve the problems but we want to solve the problem of samsara once for all. When? Only when we understand that samsara is a problem until we think that there is a solution. We go on struggling and entering into deeper and deeper problems and one day by God's grace each one of us will realize samsara is the greatest problem and it is a problem and that is its nature. Problem is its nature. So if it is its nature it can never be destroyed so there must be some way to get rid of samsara not to solve the problem but to dissolve the problem and there is only one way to know that everything is Brahman. So Brahma Gnanam is the only remedy. It is the only remedy. Only a person who looks upon samsara as a problem, he alone would turn to his attention to this Brahma Gnana so that he can get free and become free. That is called Moksha. So samsara dosha darshan is required for the purpose of even generating what we call desire for Moksha. Sri Ramakrishna says very beautifully remember every sentence of Sri Ramakrishna that issued from his mouth is nothing but Paramaveda Mahavakya. It comes from the depths of his realization that I am Brahman. What does he say? Some people who do not accept his words says first go and enjoy the hog plum of the samsara and when you find no remedy for the colic that you suffer from then come to me. Ramakrishna has given the analogy of a hog plum. It is very tasty, tempting put it in his mouth for a fleeting second you get a beautiful khatta meeta that is sweet and sour taste and you enjoy it very much. The rest is big seed inside and a skin which you can't eat and the pulp is very small and that is very tasty and then afterwards it gives colic and when you suffer from colic you find no remedy then come to me I will show you the way. Ramakrishna never said go to hell simply he said that my child you are not ready and go and experience, suffer and jeevan is called suffer jeevan ek safar hai suffer very much and then when you apply all remedies that are known to you and when you don't find anything satisfactory then come to me because only then you will accept my words. Therefore Krishna begins the 15th chapter beautiful description of samsara samsara means change samsara means shadurmi sixfold changes, birth and death old age and disease decay and death, association and dissociation you are united with somebody and you are separated with somebody you are united with friends and after some time they become enemies that is called separation from the friends and you become united with enemies, your critics your tormentors, people who give you suffering and after some time again somehow you become friends and again it is changing continuously, friend into enemy, enemy into friend. This is called the nature of the samsara and that is why Vivekachudamani at the very beginning it posits something which we have gone through selected verses of Vivekachudamani in quite a detail I would say like that now let me recollect here before we move on and compare why Bhagawan Krishna was comparing Samsara Vriksha to this Ashwatham there are many common things there many more are there and that is what Shankaracharya has given us which I have just now read with translation but we will take a chosen few about 10 and then we will discuss about them then we will proceed in this most marvellous 15th chapter. Before that before studying, undertaking the study of any preliminary work of Vedanta first thing our ancient Rishis stipulated is called Anubandha Chatushtaya four questions you have to ask. First of all what is the result I want to achieve? Then am I a fit person to undertake this? If I have the desire but I am not fit many people want to become Prime Ministers of India or UK or Presidents of United States or China etc but do they have the qualifications? Desire is there overwhelming desire but is there any appropriate qualification? For that purpose Adhikaritva is discussed. Who is an Adhikari? Who is a fit person? And then if I want to achieve something for example, if I want to become a musician, I must study musical books books on music, not on chemistry, not on physics not on maths, not on poetry, not even on bhajans but on music. Then what is the relationship between the book and the subject matter of the book which will give me adequate knowledge so that I can achieve my purpose and it is a most wonderful analysis applicable to any subject. Do I want to become a doctor? Am I fit? Are my eyes ok? Or am I having that bodily energy to spend 16-18 hours in study even practicing? Can I be a neurosurgeon? Can I stand on my feet for 20 hours for a major surgery and can I successfully complete without losing my energy, without fainting, without losing my concentration because the life of the patient is plight. And then I must study that particular subsection of the medical science which will make me fit to be a neurosurgeon and then that subject many people might have written I must choose a particular textbook which is easier for me to understand and it is the most comprehensive book, up-to-date information is given, not an old book which has been written so many years back. All these things is called Anubandha Chatursthaya. Then having acquired Anubandha Chatursthaya, I must make myself Adhikari. What is the Adhikaritva? Sadhana Chatursthaya Sampatthi. We will talk about it in our next class next Saturday. Om Vasudevasutam Devam Kamsa Chanuram Ardhanam Devaki Paramanandam Krishnam Vande Jagadgurum. May Sri Ramakrishna, Holy Mother and Swami Vikananda bless us all with Happiness. Thank you.