Gita Acharan

  K rishna asks, “O Arjuna, have you heard Me with a concentrated mind? Has your ignorance born out of delusion ( sammohan ) been destroyed?” (18.72). These are the final words of Lord Krishna in the Gita. Firstly, ignorance is always born out of delusion. There are two fundamental delusions we are subject to. One is caused by the three gunas ( yoga-maya ) (7.25) and the other by polarities of longing and aversion (7.27). ‘ Yoga-maya ’ separates the manifested lower nature ( apara-prakriti ) and unmanifested higher nature ( para-prakriti ) which prevents us from knowing Him ( Paramatma ) as unborn and imperishable (7.25). This ignorance can be destroyed by knowledge of the self (5.16). The second delusion arises out of our belief that we can attain happiness through our senses. The polarities of longing and aversion are generated when senses meet sense-objects (2.14) and these polarities create delusion (7.27). The solution is not to get attached to external sensual pleasures and ...

  K rishna says, “This (the Gita) is never to be spoken by you to those who are not austere ( a-tapaskaya ) or to those who are not devoted ( a-bhaktaya ). It should also not be spoken to those who are averse to listening and especially not to those who cavil at Me” (18.67). The spiritual journey toward unconditional love and eternal joy is both adventurous and, at times, lonely. In this path we are expected to shed all the beliefs we gathered in our lives. We are also expected to shed the sense of attachment to our physical possessions, feelings and relationships. That’s why very few reach the destination (7.3). Hence, one should pursue it like tapasya with devotion. On the contrary, when it is pursued out of curiosity, it leads to the illusion of knowledge which increases ahankaar . Coming as ‘the existence’, Krishna mentioned about not caviling at Him. It is the path of accepting and embracing all the diverse and seemingly contradictory aspects of existence without any cavil, w...

  O ne of the common fears of humanity is about committing sins ( paap ). Every culture has evolved around the concept of sin, and the common belief is that all our suffering is due to sins committed in this life or previous ones. Religions thrive on our guilt of committing sins. Even Arjuna’s despondency is because of his belief that he will incur sin by slaying his elders, teachers and relatives. That’s why Krishna elaborates on this issue on various occasions in the Bhagavad Gita. Firstly, Paramatma takes no account of anyone’s virtue or sin. It is the problem of human beings who are deluded as their knowledge is covered by moha (delusion or ignorance) (5.15). Secondly, one hoping for nothing, with a controlled mind and body, doing mere bodily actions, incurs no sin (4.21). Even if we are the most sinful of sinners, we shall safely cross the sea of sin by the raft of wisdom (4.36). The wisdom is realising ‘That’ by which we will see all beings in the self (4.35). Thirdly, for ...

  K rishna says, “Hear again My supreme instruction, the most confidential of all. I am revealing this for your benefit because you are very dear to Me (18.64). Always think of Me, be devoted to Me, worship Me, and offer obeisance to Me. Doing so, you shall come to Me. This is My promise to you, for you are very dear to Me” (18.65). These verses are not stand-alone. Instead, they are the culmination of what was being told earlier when Krishna said, “Remember Me all times ( Sarveshu-kaleshu-maam-anusmara ) and fight. With mind and intellect absorbed in Me you shall without doubt come unto Me” (8.7). The riddle of ‘remembering Him all times’ is solved when Krishna said, “United with the self, one sees the self in all beings and all the beings in the self, he sees the same everywhere (6.29). He who perceives Me everywhere and sees all in Me, I am never lost, nor is he ever lost to Me” (6.30). Krishna further says, “Abandon all dharmas and take refuge in Me alone. I will liberate ...

  ‘ T he existence’ doesn’t expect us to behave in a particular manner. It gives us the freedom to make our own choices. But the consequences of the choices we make are subject to the natural principles enumerated in the Bhagavad Gita. The same is reflected when Krishna says, “Thus, I have explained to you this knowledge that is more secret than all secrets. Ponder over it deeply and then do as you wish” (18.63). This verse dispels the notion that Krishna is compelling Arjuna to fight. Instead, at the end of the Gita Krishna offered him the freedom to choose. This verse comes in the background of Krishna telling Arjuna, “Because of ahankaar if you think ‘I will not fight’, your resolution will be in vain. Your nature will compel you to fight” (18.59). Another aspect is that Krishna always told us to drop our desires and wishes, but here he says do as you wish. These aspects need to be kept in mind to understand this verse. Firstly, ahankaar ( aham-karta or I am doer) is responsib...

K rishna says, “The Supreme Lord dwells in the hearts of all living beings, and by His maya (cosmic delusion) makes all beings revolve as if attached to a yantra (machine)” (18.61). This is another way of saying that we are just a nimitta-maatra - an instrument in the hands of the Almighty. Krishna explained the same differently when He said that even if Arjuna, out of ahankaar , thinks that he will not fight, his nature will still compel him to fight (18.59). We will be driven to do karmas , even when we don’t want to, out of our swa-bhaav (material nature) (18.60). ‘Existence’ is the coherence of the manifested, like the perishable physical entities, and the unmanifested which is eternal but can’t be perceived by our senses. Krishna earlier explained this through the example of a string of pearls. The pearls represent the manifested and the invisible string represents the unmanifested. Together, they form a beautiful necklace. Krishna called this invisible force as ‘Supreme Lor...