Shri Bhagavad-Gita 8 страница

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Heis verily the thief who eats what is given by

them without offering it to them.'

Yaiha-bkdvitdhs:Honored or recognized by yajfias,/>.,

worshipped. '

The devas, of whom / am the soul, shall

confer on you whatever enjoyments you may pray for.'

This means that whatever good you receive from them shall

be such as would enable you to worship the devas again

and again.

Ifone should enjoy the gifts granted by them with

the view that they may be worshipped by you in return,

without offering to them beforehand, he is a thief indeed.

1, The lower Gods, the agents of

God, with several functions allotted

to them in creation.

2. Cp: Sr? Bhdgavata. X]. 2-6):

‘Bhajantiye yatha devan deva api

tathaiva tan’. Cp. 7ait: Up: Nardya-

mam, 50th Anuvaka:— ‘yajfia iti

yajfiohi devainam &c.’

Chaurya is larceny. Its dcBnition is thus:—'It is

the intention one forms that property which belongs

to others,and for the use ofwhich they havethe right,is his

own;and (by depriving them of the same, unlawfully)

appropriates it to himself and lives by it'

Hence to an individual of this description, there is not

only the forfeiture ofthe highestaspiration ofman{moksha)

buthe will deserve a journey to the Infernum {nirqya).

The same subject is continued:—

' &c.

13. 'The partakers of Yajfla-consecrated food are

delivered from all evils. But those who cook

for self-enjoyment,—sinners,—incur sin.'

Those who prepare food from money earned, with the

soleobjectofworshippingthe Supreme Spirit,—Who ensouls

Indra^ etc.,(the lower gods),—and who only partake ofsuch

consecrated residual food,become absolved from the aeonic

accumulation of iniquity, impeding the fulfilment, viz., of

the cognition of true atma-nature.

But they, the sinful souls, who fancy that what the

SupremeSpirit,asthe Indwelling Spiritin Indra etc.,grants,

with the view that it may be used for His worship, is for

themselves, and prepare and eat offood with this notion,

eat of sin itself.

Agha=^s\n: is here used to denote the consequences

or fruits of sin.

Adverse to achieving atma-perception, such people

prepare food,eat etc., paving for them the way to infernal

regions.

I. The ruler ofSvarga, the material Elysium.

Again it is shown that everything is traceable to

Yajfia whether it be viewed from the stand-point ofthe

world,or from the stand-point of ^astra^; and it is shown

that the observance of Yajfla is a necessity, and that its

omission is aftended with evil consequences:—

'TcTTH &c.

14. '

From food comeall beings; by rain^ is produced

food ; Yajfla causes rain ; and result of actions

is Yajfla,'

^ &c.

15. '

Know that body [braAma) gives forth action ;

from akshara (the Imperishable=rt^»«rt) comes

body. Hence the all-obtaining body is neces

sary for Yajfla.'

&c.

16. 'Thus is the wheel made to revolve. Whoso,

here,doth not follow it, his is a life ofsin,—he is

a reveller in the garden of the senses,—he

liveth a vain life, O Partha.'

From food,all creaturesspring,and from rain,ofcourse,

comes food. That it is so,the world is witness to.

As for Yajfla causing rain, we know it so from the

authority ofthe Sastras,for it is therein declared:—

Oblations well delivered into the fire, mount up tothe

sun. From the sun is born rain etc,'®

And actions,such as the earning of money etc., by an

agent, result in Yajfla. And actions proceed from the body

{brahmd).

‘I, See note 2, p. 37+

2. Cp. ‘‘ Parjanyo varshati” &c,

Tait: Nardyana 50th Anuveka.

3. Manu. III-76; ‘Agnau pras-ta-

hutis samyag adityam upatishthate &c.

This is also quoted at end of VI-73,

Maitri. Up®. Asiat : Society of Bengal

Edtn. p. 284 (Engl :)

The term brahma (here) denotes the body,an aggre

gate of material particles. That such denotation is sanc-

tioned, may be seen from the Veda-passage:—

From Him,this brahma(matter=the extended

body)name,form,as well asfood are born'^

This use of the term is also found in the Gita:—

My womb is the extensive brahvici(xiv-3). Hence our

interpretation of the passage ^ karma brahmodbhavatti

meaning'that actions proceed from the body'—a compound

of matter—is correct.

Brahm-dkshara sam-udbhavam;theterm akshara (the

Imperishable)refers to jivdtma,the individual soul,for it is

jivdtma, who informs the body and obtains gratification

from food, water etc., and so fortified,is able to engage in

action. Hence the body which serves as the instrument of

jivdtma for work, is said to spring from it {akshara).^

Thus'the all-prevalentbody,'/>.,the bodythatevery votary

of Ydjfla must own,is the inevitable requisite for Yajda.

(From Yajfia,rain ;from rain food and so on,again),is

the wheel set in motion by the Supreme Spirit.

From food comes all beings Bhutas are beings or

creatures,meaningembodied entities(souls=«/;«<»)orsouls

clothed in bodies.

Thus food from rain;rain from yajila;yajfia from

works,performed by a doer ; works from a living body;

living bodies again from food ; is the wheel of ceaseless

antecedents and sequences.

Whoso that is born here,—be he karma-yogiorjfidna-

y• ogi—^follows notthis v/heel,leadsasinfullife by the reason

that he omits to nourish orsupport his embodied existence

by the leavings of Yajfia-dedicated.food.

1. If brakma as interpreted here by

some commentatorses Supreme Spirit,

the Supreme spirit Springing from

Akshara os Spirit, again, would be

meaningless. Some others interpret

it as the Vedas. Both are irrelevant

here.

Aghdyu}i=Y{^ vhose is a life ofsin: means either he

whose life is dfevoted to commision ofsin, or he whose life

is born ofsin. It may mean both.

Therefore he becomes an indriydrdmah-. or he who has

the sensesfor his pleasure-garden,meaning he who indulges

in the delights of the senses.

And therefore he is no dtmdrdmah ; or he who would

revel in the delights of the garden of dtmd(or spiritual

transports of bliss). In other words the person {aghdyuK)

is one who is exclusivelyaddicted to sensuous enjoyments.

Food,not consecrated to yajila before-hand, nourish

ing the body and the mind, provokes rajas (passions) and

tamts(darkness of intellect etc). A man in whom these

dispositions are uppermost, becomes hostile to achieving

a/;»<z-illumination, and finds all his pleasures in the gratifi

cations ofthe senses alone.

(With a necessary body then, which is to be used as

an instrument for Divine Worship,and which has therefore

to be served with food, let one act and fulfil this object.

He who does not do so), albeit his attempt to practice

jildna-yoga,is destined to fail.

'He,therefore, Partha 1 lives a useless life'.

It is now shown that necessity for works such

as the maha-yajfiasS incumbent for the several castes

(varna)" and orders(asrama)*,ceases in the case of that

person who is a mukia,(the liberated), and therefore he is

under no obligation to adopt any Means whatever to accom

plish rt/;«<i-vision.

&c.

17. '

But naughthath he to do whose delight is dtmd,

whose satisfaction is dtmd,and whose content

ment is dtmdj

18. 'Here, neither Work nor No-work serves him

any purpose. For,naughtis therein creation he

hath to depend on.'

cfWRBW. ycin &c.

19. 'Hence,unconcerned, work as ifit were a duty

to be discharged. The person so unconcerned,

verily reaches the Transcendent'

The person who is in need of neither the Path of Wis

dom nor the Path of Action,is naturally he who is atma-

ward. To him 'dtmd is his satisfaction:'i.e., no satisfaction

such as he feels in dtmd, has he for food, water etc,

nothing in fact,save dtmd. 'His contentment is of dtmd'-.

i.e. not ofpleasure-gardens,offlowers,of chandana (sandal

wood etc., paste,smeared over the body),of vocal and ins

trumental music,dancing etc.

To him whose care, whose support, and whose every

thing is dtmd,what need is there to do any work to lead

him to dtmd-cogmt\on, for to him the nature of dtmd is

ever and naturally evident?

Hence hestands in need ofno Means to accomplish for

him dtmd-cogm\\on nor by practising any Means does he

lose anything, for he is no more dependent on any Means,

because a/wa-cognition has,for him,become afait accompli

Means or Paths are for those whose attention has to be

diverted from material objects, but to one who has accom

plished this end, he has no need to resort to any help

which in the shape ofether(akasa)or other differentiation

ofprimordial matter in creation,constitutes the Means;^ for

all Means are intended to create an aversion for all that is

material(phenomenal).

1. This has reference to what ts

known as Praitk-opdsana, or worship

of material symbols. Consult Brahma

outras: (1) Na pratikena etc. 1V-I-4;

and (2) A-pratikalambandt nayati

etc. I'V-3-q.

He indeed is liberated {mukta) whose engagement in

action is notan engagement with a view that it does consti

tute any meansto effectrt^f«a-cognition. Whether one eng

ages in actionasa means,or engagesin it as no means,as in

the case ofa purejHdna-Yogi,engagenent in action is easy,

bereftofdanger,and involvesfundamentally the contempla

tion on the true nature ofdtmd(as ^astras inform);and ac

tion in all cases is therefore desirable, (In the case of the

Jndna-Yogi, action will be showing a good example to the

world,like the action ofthe Supreme Spirit Himself,as will

be shown further on).

Hence always engage in work,disinterestedly, and as

a duty to be discharged,until atma is realized,

AsaktaJi=y!\^o\xtattachment;kdryam=diduty,bound-

en to be discharged. How work may be done without the

egotistic notion ofselfasthe actor isfurther illustrated. So

practising the individual reaches the Trans-

candent(J)aram),i. e., dttnd.

&c.

19^, '

By action alone,did Janaka' and others reach

the supreme perfection.'

As because Karma-Yoga is commended even to those

who are qualified forjAdna-Yoga,the Maharshis or Royal

SageslikeJanaka and others,—who were leaders ofJftanTs,®

reached supreme perfection—viz:realization ofdtmd—by

way of Works alone.

1. See Chk: Up° for Janaka’s

account. Also Brik: Up.

2. Janaka instructed even Suka,

the great Jian], the son of Veda-

Vyasa. (Vide: Mahopanishat, 2nd

Adhyaya).

Thus it has been shownthat for the moksha-aspirant,

who is unfit to tread the Path of Knowledge (/Adna-yoga),

whoistherefore fitto walk the Path ofWorks{karma-yogd),

thelatter isthe necessarycoursefor him toadopt. It has also

been shown,with reasons, that even for the man who is

qualihed to pursuethejildna-yogacourse,karma-yoga(work)

hassuperior advantages overjflana-yoga. (Knowledge).

It will now be shown that karma-yoga has another

aspect:thatofbecoming aninevitabledutyto a certain class

of persons who are specially distinguished and qualified to

practise,(and show)it(to others):—

&c.

20. 'Thou hast, besides, need to work, seeing that

benefit accrues to the world';(for):—

&c.

21. 'What the wise man doth,another doth likewise;

what law he may make,the world follows it.'

Considering from the stand-point that by one's acts

the world is profitted, then oughtest he to act (/. e., act

altruistically.)

Sreshthah :is a wise man,a worthy man,a man of note

and respectability; and is one well versed in Sastras.^

Whatever such a man does, is imitated by all other men.

It may be that it is generally known that a certain act is

one which ought to be performed,yet all men wait to see

how a good man,a leader of society, takes the initiative,

and then they will do it, following suit.

Hence a man ofspecial distinction or character ought

always to show the example to the world, by first playing

himselfthe part in all dutiesassigned to his caste (varnay

and order in life {dframa).' If he should fail to do so, he

commits sin,—the sin ofnot having benefitted the world by

example.

The consequence to himself will further be that he will

slip from the Path ofhis ownjfldna-yoga.

22. 'In all the three worlds,* Partha!* naught is

there(binding) for Me to do; naught is there

not gained or to gain. Yet I am in work.'

In all the three worlds,* where I could,by mere will,be

present in the guise of man,ordeva^or anything I choose,®

there is no work which I am bound to do, for I am the

Lord ofall {Sarvesvarah)* for I havenothing which has not

been gained or which I have to gain by working. Hence

the sole reason why I have applied myself to work(cease

lessly)is for the interests ofthe world.

qfl:lit T &C.

23. '

Did I not, for once,out ofindolence,engage in

work,all mankind,Partha!'will copy My ways

in everyway.'

&c.

24. '

Did I not Myself perform work,all these worlds*

would go to ruin. I would be creating disorder

{sahkard) and working the downfall of all

those creatures.'

I. See note I, p- 15.

2. The ‘‘three worlds” is a world-

conception. Richard Garbe in his

address before the Philological Con-

" gress at Chicago, 1893, says: ‘‘It

may be here remarked, by the way,

that the Pythagoreans, and Ocellus in

particular, distinguish as parts of the

world, the heaven, the earth, and the

interval between them, which they

term, lofty and aerial.”’..................

‘© Pythagoras, as after him Ocellus,

peoples the middle or aerial region

with demons, as heaven with Gods,

and the earth with men. Flere again

they agree precisely with the Hindus,

who place the Gods above, man

beneath, and spiritual creatures flitting

unseen, in the intermediate regions.”

3. This alludes to the mystery of

Divine Avatars, (read Part I. Occi-

dental of my Pagers on Inspiration

etc). God has nothing to gain for

Himself by his ‘ Descents,’ which are

intended as sacrifice and service for

others. The three Lokas or kosmic

regrons are the Deva, the Pitr,*and

the Manushya, Lokas.

4. See note 2, p. 15. This is the

97th name of God.

If I, the Lord ofall, of Will Infallible,and in Whose

command lies the phenomenal display of the kosmos

in its several scenes ofemanation,continuance and imma-

nation ; if I, taking births—seemingly as if it were a com

mon event like the births of other (karma-bound)

creatures,'—for the purpose of benefitting the world,—did

not at any time, out of indifference (say), not act;if I,

having been born in the pedigree ofthe famous man-chief

Vasudeva® (My father), did not conduct Myself in all

seriousness, in the ways and manners adapted to his race

(etc.,), why,all mankind would begin to actlikewise,carried

away with the notion that My ways are the ways ofvirtue,

the worthywaysofthe worthyson ofthe worthyVasudeva®1.

They would thus be put on the way to Infernum by the

mere omission on My part to do a duty,which amounts to

the commission ofthe gravest wrong. Mankind would be

put out of the way ofrealizing atma.

If I did not Myself the customs of the coun

try, mankind would take that as the final verdict as to

what is right. They would desist froih all (right) effort,

and be lost.

If, again,Ifailed to respect the behests of Sastra, by

practising them Myself I would be the author ofcausing a

mixture or turbidity in the races of pure and holy peo

ple.' I would thus be the cause ofsuch men's ruination.

[fthou also, Arjuna! thou the son ofPandu,® thou the

brother of Yudhisthira,® should betake thyself away to

fflana-Yoga(to which class thou belongest),all the worthy

rest of men, moksha-aspirants, would likewise follow thy

example, not knowing that their own stage is not of that

advanced kind as thine is.

1. Cp: Galatians: 4-4:—‘God

sent forth His Son made of a woman,

made under the law.’

2. Abdout caste, read Lect. 1. 39 t0 44.

3. Vide Gene al: Table at end of

Lect : I.

Thus, failing to walk in the Path of Works, mankind

must meet ruin.

Hence, even for the specially distinguished men(who

do not need any action)there is this reason requiring them

to act.

&c.

25. '

Like the unwise,attached to works,act,Bharata I

(but) let the wise,in the interests of the world,

also act, but unattached.'

^ &c.

26. 'Let not be unsettled, the mind ofthe unwise,

attached to works. Let the wise heartily

(jukiah) enter into works,to encourage them.'

The unwise(avidvamsah): are the unlearned in all the

wisdom concerning atma.

Attached to works', are those who wed themselves to

works entirely, who lacking knowledge of atma,are unable

to take up jfiana ; or those who are but fitted to walk the

Path of Works, which to them is the sole Means by which

to achieve atma-illumination.

Let the wise man also behave like the work-attached

person, albeit his possession of full atma-knowledge,and

albeit absence ofinterest for him in the result ofworks,and

who is fit to walk in the Path ofjHana-yoga. For,

He is looked up to by the world as the best pattern

for imitation. To profit the world therefore, by dictating

to it the principles of right and wrong, he must set a

personal example; which is, by himself treading the Path

of Works.

The unwise are the moksha-aspirants, who ignorant of

a thorough knowledge ofatma,are incapable of adopting

thejfldna-yoga method.

They are work-attached(karma-sanginah): or those

who from the persistence of.past habits of doing works,

have inherited the same tendencies, fitting them for that

Path(Karma-Yoga.)

Let not the Intention ofsuch people be unhinged by

preaching to them the existence ofother methods—besides

kar»ui-yoga-hy which atma-cognition may beaccomplished.

What the wise man has to do in these circumstances,

is to seem as if, like the work-attached persons, he is at

heAtlWy(yuktahj with them for work,and that Aar-

nta-yoga alone, with no extraneous help of Jfldna-yoga-, is

sufficient to lead to atma-illumination.

By taking the lead thus in the Karma-Path,he must

inspire other people with love for good works (so that

eventually they may become competent to take higher

steps and reach perfection).

The difference between how the wise man practices

Karma-Yoga,—and how the unwise man—, having been

pointed out,the doctrine ofhow one may act,and yet con

template on disownment ofresponsibility as actor,is now

inculcated.—

&c.

27. All kinds of activities are born ofthe gunds^ of

matter. Whoso is deluded with the egoistic

notion {akahkdra),^ thinks,'I am the doer.'

&c.

28. Whereas the truth-knower, O mighty-armed 1 of

the nature and work of gui^as,^ knowing

thatgunas^ restin gunas/giveth upattachment.'

t. Gunas=qualities of matter, see

note 1, p. 79. See also XIII-20 and

29.

2. Means pride, or intumescence

of seliness, egolsm or egotism. Ahan-

kara, here means the deluded notion

that what is not-self (body) is self

(dima).

In respect to the activities which are displayed by the

three-fold nature of matter,.satva, rajas and tamasj the

man who is blinded by ahahkdra^—fancies that he is the

doer or author,(the agent,the cause, theroot,the spring,or

the fountain of the activities).

.(4^a«^rtra*'=I-ness=the notion ofegoism one feels for

his body,or the mistaken notion thatthe non-self,—body,—

is the self, dtmd.

A man therefore who is under this wrong notion mis

takes the doings ofthe body or the^««aj,^ as dtma's doings.

He thinks,

I am the doer.'

Tatva-vit or truth-knower:is he who is capable of

discerning in work the properties ofthe manifesting

themselves.

Whoso therefore discovers in the manifestations of the

gunasj the gunas^ themselves, will not commit the error

ofthinking,'I am the doer.'

29. 'Deluded by maXtet'sgums,^ they find employment

in the workings of thegunasX The all-informed

wise man shall not disturb the ill-informed igno

rant.'

The ill-informed people attempt atma-realization, but

they are ignorant of the true nature of atma by reason of

their connection with matter,the gums of which obstruct

him. He is naturally drawn to connect himself with the

activities of the gunas and cannot divert these natural

tendencies towards the contemplation ofthe distinct atma-

nature. Hence they are not competent for the Path of

Jndna,but only good enough for that ofKarma.

The all-wise man,again,shall,seeing the capacities of

these sluggish people and theirslow understanding,though

himself a jflana-yogi,shall not try to turn them from their

own easy Path of Action, The danger is that they are on

the watch to follow the lead of wise men ; while so, when

they are not capable themselvesto tread the Path ofJUdna,

but when they find their wise man,above necessityofaction,

they may mistake the wise man,bygiving up action them

selves(and not be able to join the wise man in his ways.)

The conclusion thus is that the leading man,the man

ofwisdom,shall himselfstay in Karma-Yoga; and though

he know from his knowledge ofthe true rt/ww-nature that

dtmd is essentially no actor,shall yet persuade men of less

knowledgethat«/;««-vision is solely possible by the unaid

ed Path of Karma(or action).

It wasalso previously pointed outthateven to ajftana-

yogi,the harma-course was(for reasonsstated)preferable.

Hence men of light and leading {vyapadesjdK) shall

themselves tread the karma-YdXh as a measure, beneficent

to the masses in the world.

The method of practising Karma-Yogahy ascribing

all agency to the gunas,—becausedtmd has been shown to

be a distinct essence—has now been described.

The ascription or attribution of agency to the gunas

is thus:—

Reflect, that dtmd from its essential nature,cannot be

actor,butaction comestoitfrom itsconjunction with matter.

(It is actorship not natural but derived or borrowed).

Hence in association with matter{prdptaY, there is actor-

ship; in the absence ofsuch association {aprdptay,there is

no actorship.

1. Prepidzprdpia = agreement

and difference; or srdpta, positive pre-

miss, corresponding with the universal

A proposition ‘All 4 is B.’ The

aprapla is negative premiss, corres-

ponding with the converted 4 propo-

sition ‘ All not 2 is not A.’ Its appli-

cation to the present case is thus :—

‘Atma becomes actor when in contact

with the ga#as’; ‘not contact with

the guzas, is no actorship to atm.’

Atma is thus, ser se, no actor.

It is nextshown how works may be viewed by attribu

ting authorship thereof—an attribution hitherto considered

with reference to the gunas/—to Bhagavan, the Supreme

Spirit,theall-Soul,—a considerationjustified bythefactthat

all atmas constitute His body,and are related to Him in

the relation ofthe guided and the Guide.

&c.

30. '

With mind,a/wa-absorbed,rest all works in Me.

Rid ofdesire and'

my-ness', and of(mental)

fever, fight.,

In Me, the Inner-Soul of all living beings, place all

thy acts; with thy mind rt/w«-engrossed, desireless (of

fruit for work done), destitute of the vanity of'my-ness,

and free from feverish (cankering) care, fi

ght,i. e., dis

charge all 5>astra-enjoined duties.

Ae/hj'dtma-chetasd^with, the mind atma-absorbed i. e.,

all thought absorbed in the contemplation of the nature of

dtmd as proclaimed by hundreds of Sruti-texts, such for

example as:—

Penetrating the interior, the Ruler of all creatures,

the all-Soul etc.'^.

* Him, the Penetrator into the interior,the Author(or

Actor)etc.,®'

1. Vide: note 1, p: 67.

2. ‘Antah pravishtassasta jana-

nim sarvatma.’” Zaz/: drag, WI-11-2.

3. ‘*Antah pravishtam kartaram

etam.’ Jail: Aran. III-11-2.

ntaro Yam-atm4 na veda, Yasy-atma

sarlram, Ya dtmanam antaro yama-

yati Sa ta Atmaantarydmy-Amritab.’

Bri: Up. V-7-22, Kanva-patha,

* He, Who is seated in atmi, Whois interior to atma,

Whom atma knows not,to Whom atma is body. Who rules

in the interior of atma,(He)is thy Indwelling Governor

(Guide),and Immortality {i.e.. Giver ofImmortality)etc';*

declaring that atma constitutes the body ofthe Supreme

Spirit{Pardma-purushay,and is subject to His direction,

He being the Director or Guide.

Likewise do the Smritis alsodeclare,asfor example:—

'The Supreme Ruler ofall'* &c.

The Gita itself will be fbund further on to say:—

'{Sarvasyachaz~ham fi

'f.):—In the heart of all,indeed,

I am enthroned, and from Me is memory (smriti) and

reason (xv-IS).

'{Tsvaras-sarva-bhfiidndm —Isvara,Arjuna!dwells

in the heart-region of all creatures, whirling them by His

mdyd(wonderful power),(as ifthey were) mounted on a

machine.'(xviii-6i.)

As a necessary inference, therefore,from the consider

ation that dtmd constitutes My body,and derives all ener

gies(or powers)from Me,do thou surrender all acts to Me,

the Supreme Spirit, imagining that they are all done by

Myself. In other words,letall acts be done as acts of Wor

ship paid to Me.

Also, be nirdfih, desireless,i.e., remaining withoutany

expectancy offruit for work done.

Nirmainah=to be free from the idea of 'my-ness' or

owning an act for oneself.

Thy (mental) fever thus cured {vSgata-jvarah), do

hghting and all the round of duties(that the sacred Edicts

make binding on thee).

Thus ought thy reflections to run:—'My Soul{Atma)

is the Supreme Spirit,and therefore, He, my Atmd, is the

Author(or Actor). The Lord of all, the Master of all, it

is He,Who causes acts being done—acts of worship to

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