185. The Most Beloved Devotee



Krishna says, “Those devotees are very dear to Me who do not hate any being, who are friendly and compassionate, who are nir-mama (sans-I) and nir-ahankaar (sans -I am doer), who are balanced in pain and pleasure (sama-dukh-sukh) and forgiving (kshami), who are ever content, self-controlled yogi, having firm conviction, and who have their mind and intellect dedicated to Me” (12.13 and 12.14).

At the outset, this appears to run contrary to Krishna’s earlier assurance that none is dweshya (hateful) and none is priya (dear) to Him (9.29). While His blessings are available to everyone like rain, possessing these qualities is like keeping our bowl upright to collect water.

‘Not hating anyone’ is at the core of the Bhagavad Gita. Earlier Krishna advised us performing karmas (actions) by dropping hatred (5.3). When hatred becomes a part of us, shedding it becomes painful as it makes us lose a part of ourselves. It’s like removing a harmful cancerous tumour, the removal of which will still cause pain to us.

On the other hand, it is essential to drop hatred as it drives our behaviour and actions. Krishna describes forgiveness as a quality that arises from Him (10.4) and as one of the treasures of a divinely inclined person (16.3). Forgiveness is the most effective antidote to hatred. It requires courage, awareness, and compassion to forgive another person. It also arises from the realisation that no one is the ultimate karta (doer) in this world, and therefore there is no need to blame others for the hurt they may have caused us. Forgiveness dissolves hatred and brings peace.

Inculcating samatva (equanimity) in another path to reduce hatred. Cultivating samatva (equanimity) is another path to overcoming hatred. Samatva is not merely treating people equally; it is the recognition that the same human tendencies such as greed, anger, jealousy, and fear -reside in all of us, albeit in different degrees. Often, what disturbs us in others is a reflection of what remains unrecognised or unaccepted within ourselves. Our aversion arises not only from what we see in others, but also from what we are unwilling to acknowledge in ourselves.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

261. Shed the Ahankaar

Image
  K rishna says, “Abandon all dharmas and take refuge in Me alone. I will liberate you from all sins, grieve not” (18.66). While verse 2.14 can be taken as the beginning of the Bhagavad Gita where Krishna advises us to ignore the transient pleasure-pain polarities which are caused when senses meet sense-objects, the verse 18.66 can be considered as the end of the Gita. Krishna uses the word ‘ dharma’ , and he is certainly not referring to religion, faith, or righteousness, as each of these carries different meanings for different people. Bhagavad Gita is not a book of religion but of natural principles that govern our lives. On the other hand, a lot of clarity comes if we take the paradigm or subjective reality as the meaning of dharma . Paradigm is the combination of our opinions, imaginations and understandings about the things around us or the way things are from our point of view. It is like the partial understanding formed about an elephant by a blind person by touching only ...
Read more

258. Sins and Suffering

Image
  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 ...
Read more

259. Tapasya with Devotion

Image
  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...
Read more