Bhagavad Geetha
Chapter 12
The Bhagavad Geetha is a celestial song rendered by Lord Krishna to
the warrior Arjuna in the battlefield of Kurukshetra. Although the
Bhagavad Geetha as we know is a part of the great epic Mahabharata,
there is no doubt that the principles and teachings of the Geetha
are ancient. In the first three slokas of the fourth chapter,
reference is made to the Lord instructing Geetha to Surya first and
later to Manu and to the fact that from Manu it reached Iksvahu and
thence to others in succession. So the Geetha is beyond the category
of time and it cannot be assigned to a particular point of time,
past or present.
The Bhagavad Geetha is the "milk" of the Upanishads, "drawn" by the
cowherd Krishna with the help of the "calf" Arjuna, for all mankind
to drink and draw sustenance from. It is a text book for all mankind
giving the secrets of spiritual science in clear and simple terms.
The Geetha is a text for spiritual practitioners, for it emphasizes
Sadhana and spiritual attitudes more than anything else. Every
chapter lays down means and methods of reaching the goal of peace
and harmony. Geetha is a boat, which can take man across from the
self-imposed state of bondage to the freedom, which is his nature.
But it will be useful only when the reader has as much detachment as
Arjuna had when Krishna started the discourse. If you have as much
Vishada as Arjuna had, you have the Adhikara to get the teaching,
which removed the Vishada. The Geetha will act on the mental system
only when the symptoms of Vishada are strong. Arjuna, the greatest
bowman of those days, anxious since years to destroy the wicked
Kauravas who had angered him by merciless and systematic vendetta,
suddenly gets disinterested in everything that he thought precious
until that moment. In short, his mind had become ripe for the
illumination. He has the Lord Himself as Guru by his side and he
knows it. He asks Him: "I am struggling in ignorance; I am confused;
I do not know which is Dharma and which is Adharma." He seeks
disciple-hood and lays himself at the Feet of Krishna in self-
surrender! Anyone anywhere who reaches that stage of spiritual
surrender will get the response from Krishna and He will teach the
Githa from the chariot which is driven by Him, that is his own heart.
Really speaking, man has come into this Karmakshetra (field of
activity) only to engage himself in activity, not in order to earn
the fruit of such activity. That is the teaching of Geetha, its
fundamental lesson. Arjuna, the great hero capable of great
renunciation and of great wisdom is deluded by the awful needs of
war and this grief handicaps his activity. He imposes on Atma (ever
untouched by the characteristics of the moving changing world) the
unreal and ephemeral nature of the world and takes this delusion as
true. This is the tragedy not of Arjuna alone but of all humanity.
Therefore the Geetha is of universal and eternal value. To study the
Geetha is to learn the art of swimming across the sea of delusion.
The Geetha is the very voice of Lord Krishna.
The way it begins and the way it ends gives the clue to the subject,
which it expounds. The very first verse starts with the
words, "Dharmakshethre Kurukshetre..", the word Dharma being the
leading word. The last verse speaks of "Yathra Yogeshwarah Krishna"
and this word "Yogeshwara" sums up the Dharma that is being taught.
Thus it is clear that the objective of the teaching in the Geetha is
just this: "Remember Dharma; practice Dharma". Bhagavad Geetha is a
textbook of Dharma in all its aspects. It discusses all the
principles underlying Dharma.
The Geetha, which begins with the Vishada Yoga, ends with Sanyasa
Yoga; Vishada is the foundation and Sanyasa, the super structure.
Vishada (despondency) is the seed and Sanyasa (liberation), the
fruit.
Complete surrender to the Lord, freedom from the shackles, which
bind one with the external world of objects, the observance of good
deeds and virtuous disciplines, these are the principal truths
underlined in the Geetha. The Lord holds forth these as the best
form of training in the deepest secrets of inner progress. The
Lord's command is that each should pursue the Dharma that is laid
down for him; each person should plan his life according to the
spiritual foundations of his culture; he should give up
the 'objective' vision and listen to the Voice of God.
The Geetha is the greatest harmoniser of all Yogas. As a matter of
fact, once the Geetha is made the guiding star of your life, the way
you act will be Karma Yoga, tile way you feel be Bhakthi Yoga, the
way you reason will be Jnana Yoga. It will become automatically so.
What you do must be in line with Dharma; what you feel must foster
Prema; what you think must reveal Sathyam. Then you will be blessed
with Santhi, with even Prasanthi.
The Geethabhavanam (mansion of Geetha) is the mansion of Sathya and
Dharma, erected for the benefit of the world. Study it with faith
and devotion. Experience the curative and restorative effects of its
teachings by actual practice. Understand the Geetha well and
observing its injunctions establish yourselves in the attitude of
Nishkaamakarma. Do all duties as acts of worship, Hari Prasadam.
That is the sole task. Leave the rest to Him: the fruit, the
consequence, the result. Then you receive the Grace of Hari and your
life on earth is sanctified and becomes worthwhile.
-Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba
[Source: Geetha Vahini | Divine Discourse: 24 Jun 1961]
Posted at 11:35 am by saiavatar
