188. In Tune with Existence
K rishna says, “To whom praise and insult are the same, who is silent, content with anything, who is not attached to a place of stay, stable-minded -are dear to Me (12.19). Those devotees who follow this nectar of wisdom ( dharma ) declared here, endued with shraddha (trust), regarding Me as supreme -are exceedingly dear to Me” (12.20). At its core, the game of praise and insult is the play of ahankaar which gets elated with praise and hurt with insult. When we are centred in the self which Krishna earlier called atma-vaan , praise and insult lose their ability to affect us. This concludes the 12th Chapter of the Bhagavad Gita titled ‘ Bhakti Yoga’ ( yoga of devotion). For easy adoption, a nine-fold path for bhakti is given in Ramayan by Lord Rama to his devotee Sabari . These include Satsang (company of saints), Katha (listening to stories of Paramatma ), Sewa (service), Kirtan (singing), Japa (chanting) etc. These are relevant and practiced even today. This ...