Shri Bhagavad-Gita 14 страница

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<4:51 &c.

20. 'That,(yoga), wherein by practice, the restrained

mind revels,that wherein the mind perceiving

atma,rests content in atma;'

&c.

21. '

That, wherein one feels infinite intellectual bliss

in excelsis;that, wherein once planted firmly,

no one would be inclined to retire from its

(beatific)experience;'

1. Sri Bhdgavatia, Ill-24-44,

gives another illustration ; ‘ Prasant-

ormir iva udadhih; meaning: like

the ocean with its waves subsided.

22. 'That, which gained, no other is considered a

higher gain;/Aa/, wherein harboured, no afflic

tion,ever so heavy,can agitate one;'

rT &c.

23. 'Know, that is called meditation (yoga),—the

disunion from union with pain ;thcUy into which

one, with misery-less mind, shall positively

penetrate,'

That meditation, wherein, by dint of practice, the

completely abstracted mind feasts, i. e., wherein it gets

transported with ecstatic felicity;

Wherein,the mind, perceiving atma, attains supreme

contentment,leaving nothing else to be desired for;

Wherein is experienced by the intellect,that ineffable

bliss, beyond the range ofthe senses to comprehend.

Wherein,established, one does not desire to give up

the exquisite happinessfelt;

Which (meditation) when achieved,one,even in the

hours of non-meditation, does not think there is any

higher gain ;

That, wherein established, one, whether immersed in

its(meditation's)depths or risen therefrom(yiraiah),is not

shaken by afflictions even as grave as the bereavement

(by death)of bright and good sons etc..

Learn that is called meditation which shall sever

connection with affliction; or meditation is that which is

antithetical to affliction.

Knowing the nature of meditation to be such, one

should enter its portals with the mind steeped in faith (or

certitude), and freed from all embarassments,/,e',, a mind

happy and contented.

&c.

24.'

Completely forsaking all will-born desires, welj

ruling the community of the senses by the

mind.'

&c.

25. '

Slowly and slowly, let one, by force of trained

will(buddhi)^ retire; and fixing the manas^ in

atma,let naught be thought.'

Desires are of twofold character, sparsa-jdh and

sahkalpa-jdh. Sparsajdh are contact-born,i. e., sensation-

born (bodily desires'). Sankcdpa-jdh are will-born or mind-

born,i.e., desires which have a mental origin. The former

are such as cold, heat etc. The latter are such as sons,

land etc. Between these, the will-born desires are abandon-

able in toto. Whereas, the .sensational experiences are

those which cannot be averted. By an effort of the mind,

it may be made to abandon the will-born desires by

making it to cease thinking on them ; and the pains and

pleasures arising from sensations,cold, heat etc., are possi

ble to be resisted by an attitude ofindifference.

Thus, in every wa)', diverting or abstracting the

group of senses from their corresponding (external)

objects,—by slow degress,byeffortsofa wiseresolute will—,

shallthe mind be made to retire from all thingssave atma;

and, rested in atma, nothing shall it think.*

&c.

26. '

From thence and thence to whence the fickle,

unsteady mind rambles,shall it again be forced

back;and placed under the powerof atma alone.'

Whithersoever the mind,by nature fickle,and refusing

to stay in atma, wanders out to cling to its cherished

objects,let effort be made to withdraw it therefrom, and

rested in atma, persuading it to believe (or think) that

therein is found supreme happiness.

Supreme bliss verily comes to that yogT whose

mind hasattained peace,whose rajas-nature has

been calmed, who is stainless and draima-like.'

'Mind in peace' means: mind immovably fixed in

atma,or mind placed in atma.

From this state, it (naturally) follows that the yogi

has had all his stains or sins expunged.

This implies that the rajas-c^aWty(or passion-nature)

has been stilled down (or eradicated).

Hence is he brahma-like. Brahma is atma. Brahma

like is to be re-established in his own true essence.

To such a yogi(or one who has reached the pinnacle

of meditation), comes exquisite transcendent felicity, i. e.,

atma-beatitude.

Hi,translated as'

verily.'is an indeclinable particle,

giving a reason ; meaning that by reason of atma-nature

being essentially blissful,(the yogi attains to" it).

&c.

28. '

Ever thus^ vowed to atma,the yogi is cleansed

ofsin,and, with ease,tasteth the endless bliss

of contact(or communion) with brahma.'

Completely vowed to atma, the yogi is delivered from

all the vast past accumulation of sins. And he comes to

enjoy infinite bliss arising from brahma-communion.

Brahma-satnsparsa means:contact with brahma,mean

ing bliss like that of brahma-bliss.

Atyanta^endleas or eversomuch, means limitless.

With ea.se {sukkena) means, without effort {andydsena).

i< 'Thus'or in the manner described in verse 10,ff

That the mature state of meditation is offour kinds,is

now described (verses 29 to 32):—

The meditation-absorbed equal-seer everywhere,

perceives atma abiding in all beings and all

beings abiding in atma.'

Equal-seeing everywhere^ {=.sarvatra sania-darsana\

means the realizing,that atma, wherever it do abide in one

self or in other beings, is of the self-same essence,

looked at from the point of'intelligence' or'consciousness'

(jflana) which is an attribute,equal or common to all atmas.

This is equality,sameness,or agreement which is perceived

when atma-nature is divested ofits matter-connection (/. e.,

atma in its disembodied condition).

Inequality or difference comes from viewing atma in

its matter-conditioned states.

The yogi or he who is ripe in meditation does not

see the differences produced by matter-environments, but

perceives the sameness of atma-nature, wherever it do

abide, by its essential or inherent common attribute or pro

perty of'intelligence'or'consciousness.'Thisis equal-seeing.

Thus the equal-seer is he who perceives the atma in

him to be the same or of the same character, as the atmas

which abide in other creatures,and that other creatures are

equal to himselfin this respect. (In other words, he sees

atmas in all beings aslike his own atma,and sees his atma

as like atmas ofother beings).

The conclusion is that all atmas being ofone essential

nature, when one atma's nature is known or seen, the

nature of all atmas are become known or seen. Thissense

is expressed by the sentence:—

'He isaseer ofsameness everywhere'(VI-29). Referred

to again in :

What this,sameness-seeing meditation(yoga) is, that

Thou hast declared.' {yo-^yam yogah VI-33.

This sameness was what was again alluded to in:—

nirdosham &c)\—'Verily is brahma (atma) stainless and

the satne'^ (V-19).

^ &c.

30. '

Whoso perceiveth Me everywhere, and percei-

veth att in Me,to him I am never lost, nor to

Me is he lost,'*

Even more advanced (in yoga)is he who approaches

nearer to My nature,in the manner declared in the $ruti:—

'Stainless,heattainstosupremeequality(orsameness).'®

Whoso thus realizes that atma-nature, when viewed in

its essence, in its state of purity or exemption from all

good ahd evil,is equal,or comparable, to Me; whoso, so

seeing,realizes again that I am in all atma-principle, and

realizes that allatma-principie is in Me,that is to say,reali

zes that when the nature of atma is known in one instance

(as described)it is known in other cases; to him, who so

realizes his own atma-nature,I do not veil Myself, for My

nature is the same as his. On My part, I lake him who sees

the equality ofhis own nature with Me as My Ownself;

I look upon him to be equal to Myself, and ever reveal

Myselfto his vision.*

The still more mature stage of meditation is (now)

described:—

31. "He,taking his stand in unity, worshippeth Me,

Abidant in all beings,—that yogi,in whatever

condition he be, dwelleth in Me.'

1. Cp. ‘Yastu sarvani Dhutani atma-

ny-ev-Anupasyati&c.’ (Isa:U°: 6).

2. Cp. IV-35.—(Mehkdbhikrama

&?.,) ‘lost? means ‘ lost sight of’, for

says Amatakoga: vinisas-syfd-adar-

sanam.?

3. ‘Niranjanah paramam simyam-

upaiti.? Afund: Up. iii-1-3.

4. Equivalent to: ‘I seek him

who seeks Me,’

Ekatva»t-dsthitak=^& taking stand, or the being

established, in unity, means the eschewing ofall the diffe

rencesarising from material conditions;and theexpanding

ofthe yogi's consciousness'in his meditative moments, so

as to cognize Me as abiding everywhere.

In whatever condition he be means: whether he be

immersed in meditation, or awake froi® out of that state

[vjyutthdna),or whateverhe bein. Theyogisofaradvanced,

seeing hisownselfandseeing all creatures,ever'dwelleth in

Mel i?.,ever seeth Me alone.

Dwelling in Me means: he ever sees Meand Me alone;

i. e., he ever feels-that his atma-nature as well as the atma-

nature of all beings are like Mine.*

The still further advanced stage of meditation is

now stated:—

STRVmsf &c.

32. 'He is to be known as thesuperior yogi, Arjuna I

who, by reason of atma-similitude, looketh

everywhere,on happiness or misery,as equal.'

Atma-similitude consists in the sameness of all atmas

as well as his(yogi's)own, in its native character of all-

pervading consciousness.

Knowing thus that atma has no connection with

happiness or misery,helooks on them asonelike theother,

whether they befal him or befal others;—happiness or joy

in the shape ofa son being born etc., and misery or grief

in the shape ofthat son dying etc.—In other words,it is

the same to him whether other people's sons are born or

die,or his sons are born or die etc.

1. According to Ramanuja, consci-

ousness is rendered finite in bondage,

and recovers its natural infinite state

in freedom.

z. Thisisthe yogi who realises

Vatshnava Parama-pada,(Vide San-

kara’s Commentary).

He who looks on all joy and affliction with such

supreme indifference,is to be classed as the highest yogi.

Queries Arjuna:—

&c.

33. What this sameness-seeing yoga (or doctrine of

meditation) is, that thou hast expounded,

Madhusudana!', I do not, from heedlessness,

understand the exact nature of.'

^ &c.

34. 'Krishna!*,verilyisthe mind wavering,tumultuous,

virulent and wayward. Restraining it,I deem,is

as extremely hard as(catching) the wind.'

(Arjuna said):—I do not comprehend thoroughly the

character ofthe Yoga (or the doctrine ofmeditation,or the

spiritual mode by which one is able to view kosmos as

full ofsoul and as fullofGod),thatthou hast expounded;—

the Yoga of Equality (or sameness, similarity, or resem

blance ofatmas,vijs.,thej^ualityofJivatmason the

one hand viewed from the aspect of intelligence {jftana or

consciousness) being shared by them all as a common

characteristic; and the equality of Jivatmas with Isvara

(God)on the other hand,viewed by the common attribute

ofexemption from work(-bondage=karma)which,emanci

pated souls share in common with Isvara; such Yoga(or

spiritual mode ofseeing things)of'looking equally on all'

{sarvatra samadarsana-yoga), being in direct conflict with

theimmediateevidencepresented,allthe while,byouractual

(phenomenal)experience ofseeing differences(not equality)

among the Jivatmas on the one hand, consisting in the

existence of a variety of natures as represented by the

divine,the human etc., natures; and again the actual evi

dence pfseeing differences(not equality) betweenjivas(in

dividual souls)and Isvara(Universal Soul=God).

1. Abhydsa = Exercise or effort or

exertion or the Practice of Meditation

as laid down in verses 10 ff.

2. Vairdgya= freedom from pas-

sions, contempt for life, dispassion, un-

worldliness, asceticism, non-attach-

ment.

3. Cp. Patanjala Yoga-Siitra I-12.

‘Abhydsa vairigyabhydm tan-niro-

dhah’ also Cf, Bh. Gita. VIII-8 and

XII-9. Vide also Annie Besant’s

‘Path of Discipleship,’ pp: 50-53-

4 Yoga means here the queiscent

State into which by practice &c., the

mind is disciplined. It is the state of

mind freed from all thoughts or trains

of consciousness relating to worldly

concerns. This state of mind func-

tioning purely on the spiritual plane

is called samddhz, when all conscious-

ness of body and self are withdrawn

for the time being. It is the state of

trance, or spiritual ecstasy. (vide, my

Lectures on Inspiration, Intuition and

Ecstasy in 3 Parts).

Not to beabletorealizethe view ofthings that,the Yoga

Thou hast taught,would determine,can only be accounted

for by the fugitive character ofthe mind failing to grasp it.

So it is,indeed. For,even in matters of ordinary expe

rience,the naturally fickle mind eludes the attemptsofman

to fix it on to a certain thing. The mind powerfully twists

and tossesthe man about,and irresistibly flies away whither

soever it pleases.

While such is the case in matters of ordinary

experience,how much more difficult would it not be to

govern the mind and bend it so as to dwell on atma,—a

matter of in-experience!? I believe that to control the

mind is as difficult a work as that ofattempting to oppose

a (fragile) fan against the fierce blasts of wind blowing in

the face.

Thou hast thus need to teach me the way how to

control the mind. ,

Sri Bhagavan(Lord Krishna)responds:—

&c.

35. '

Doubtless,O mighty armed!the roving mind is

difficult to subdue; but by industry^ and dis-

passion*, Kaunteya!it is governable.'®

wmrsRT &c.

36. '

My belief is that yoga* is hard to be won by

him of ungoverned mind ; but can be won by

him of mind mastered, using (proper) means

(therefor).'

That it is difficult to arrest the mind,which by nature

is of a roaming character, is beyond denial. But the

possibility oftaming it anyhow depends upon generating

in the mind a love(or liking)for atma by accustoming it

to reflect on its(atma's excellences), and an aversion (or

dislike) for objects other than atma, b> presenting before

its imagination the inherent imperfections ofthose objects.

By him who has notsubjugated the mind,yoga^is cer

tainly difficult to achieve,but it yogaofspiritual equa

lity, or the cognizing sameness of spirit everywhere), is

feasibleto him who gains control over mind,by using proper

methods.

Mind-control is attainable by the performance of the

already described Wisdom-based Karma-Yoga,—which is

worshipping Me—.

Arjuna asks again, in order to understand well, the

greatness(or virtue)of(Karma-)yoga,he had already heard

about,in the verse:

'In this there is no loss ofeffort' &c.,(II-40).

The greatness of Karma-yoga there described is cer

tainly that which embodies atma-wisdom (or that which

involves atma-wisdom) within it, and culminating in yoga

(meditation or atma-union by meditation). That great

ness ofyoga itself,* (is what Arjuna now asks:)—

wm: &c.

1. See note 4, p. 212.

2. The meaning is that the nature

of Karma-yoga declared inLecture III

should not be considred as in any way

differing from what is taught here ;

for Karma-yoga is that which has calm

atma-meditation for its culmination,

previous to @tma-revealment,

37. '

Which way goeth he, Krishna! who,ardent,yet

for want ofapplication, hath his mind moved

away from yoga, and (hence) doth not reach

yoga-perfection ?'

•

38. '

Is he,cutofffrom both(ends),lost,likea divided

cloud,unfixed {apratishtho),and unenlightened

in the Path of Brahma?

&c.

39. '

Thou art fit, Krishna! to thoroughly clear this

doubt of mine. None else,save Thee, have I,

to cut this doubt asunder."

One may ever so enthusiastically embark on yoga,but

if he lack persistent application, his mind is liable to be

distracted therefrom, and he must fail to reach perfection

in yoga. What will be the fate (^a^t) ofsuch a person?

Doth he not get lost or disappear like a broken bit of

cloud leaving one big mass ofcloud behind, and failing to

unite with another in front?

What is meant by the double loss('cut offfrom both',

see text).? The one is the non-fixture {apratishtho) and

the other is non-enlightenment or ignorance of the Path of

Brahma {brahmanahpathivimudhatva).

The first loss is the failure to secure svarga,' the fruit

appropriate for works performed. Works(or karma) per

formed with that object in view,liberally promisethatfruit.

But works are done by this person with nosuch intent;

and hence he forfeits the (material)fruit on the one side.

The second loss consists in the'

ignorance ofthe Path

of Brahma.' This means that the (spiritual) Path (/. e.,

doing works with no regard to reward, and contemplating

on selfand God etc.,) is begun to be trodden,but the nian

fails to pursue in it steadily, and strays away. So he is

cut offfrom this side.

When,then,one is so cut off from both ends, is he

lost or not lost?

This doubt of mine, Krishna!*, Thou canst clear.

Thou art Omnipresent and Omniscient. Thou canst there

fore cut my doubts asunder.

3rl Bhagavan*(Lord Krishna) replies:—

siTg^ &c.

40. '

Neither here nor in the next (world), Partha!

is there destruction for him. Verily none,Belov

ed! who is a doer of good work, goeth the

evil way.'®

Neither here(in the present life) nor there (in the life

to come) is there loss for him, who, in all earnestness

engages in yoga,but who may fall away therefrom.

Destruction means deprivation or forfeiture of the

material enjoyment ofsvarga,on the one hand, and spiri

tual(Brahma-)enjoymentson theother hand,eitherofwhich

he could have aspired for.

Destruction means the intervention of undesirable

obstacles,in the shape ofevils.

But,when one has performed even a little ofthe yoga

of this super-excellent character (described already), he

will not indeed find himselfat a loss, neither in the past,

nor the present,nor the future.

How can it be so? Answer:—

&c.

41. '

The yoga-fallen, on attaining to the realms of

the meritorious, and having dwelt there for

long years, is well-born again in a family of

well-to-do people {srimatam)'

Whatever was the desire which diverted one from pur

suing to the very end the Path of Yoga,that desire will find

its fulfilment,—and exquisitely enhanced manifold,—in

the regions of those men who did most virtuous deeds:

He enjoysthere to the utmost limitofhis capacity to enjoy;

-^that enjoyment extending over a considerable period.

This, by virtue of the yoga, which he trod and left(un

finished).

After enjoying there to his utmost, his capacity for

more pleasure comes to an end. And then he is again re

incarnated in a family of pure and prosperous souls, quali

fied for prosecuting Yoga.

To be thus born in favorable environments, is also

due to the efficacy of the Yoga which the disciple began to

tread but swerved therefrom.^

&c.

42. '

Or,he is born in a family of wise yogis, but

this kind of birth indeed is in this world most

seldom merited.

If he had diverged from Yoga almost at the stage of

fruition, he is (now)born in a family of illuminated sages

(yogis), or those who are themselves versed in the Science

of Yoga and can indoctrinate others too in it. In both

these cases,difficult among mankind is such re-incarnation

viz\(i) that of being born among the yoga-fit, and (2) of

being born among the yoga-full. When it doth take place,

itis a result ofthe efficacy ofYoga pursued to a certain ex

tentalreadyand discontinued for(some reason or the other).

Here picketh he up,the memory-link connected

with his previous body;thence again,O Son of

Kuru!doth he strive towards(yoga)-perfection.'

&c.

43 'By the previous habitalone,is he attracted into

it(yoga),even involuntarily.'

In the re-incarnation that comes, he gets back the

yoga-memory or links ofreminiscence connected with the

habits cultivated in his previous body,—when,like one

roused from slumber, he again presses on towards yoga-

consummation,without encountering further obstacles.

The affiinities ofthe old yoga-practice are such as to

impel him forward in that course,instinctively as it were,or

as it were out ofhisown power(notto continuethe process).

Verily the power and greatnessofYoga,is well-known

to be such.

&c.

44. '

Even he who hasthe(mere)desire to know Yoga

passes beyond the name-great^(sabda-brahma).'

Even he who may not actually embark on Yoga,but

is a mere inquirer, resumes such inquiryif he had dis

continued the same on a previous occasion(orincarnation).

And he gradually comes again to walk the Path of Karma-

yoga, and eventually transcends the name-great, [or the

vast expanse of matter which is the cause of names and

forms {sabda-brahmd)\

Sabda-brahma signifies matter,for itis the great matter-

stuffin its manifested modification which getsto be named

(sabdita)as devas, men,earth,the sky,svarga, etc. Hence

that which is nameable is the.name-great(matter-stuff.)

1. Mame-great or the innnite :

which consists in having names and

forms. The Namieless-Great is the

Omnipresent Spirit, in contrast with

the name-great (matter-stuff)

Even the mere inquirer as to what Yoga is, acquires

merit, and ultimately passes beyond sabda-brahm. This

means that he becomes unfettered from matter's coils, and

attains to atma, the sole harbour ofintelligence and bliss

{jftana and atianda), or that which cannot be named as

can be named those objects as are matter-moulded, such

as deva, man etc.

&c.

. 45. '

The sedulously exerting yogi becomes assoiled

ofsin; and obtaining perfection after many

births,' thence passes on to the Supreme State.

Such is the greatness or virtue ofthis Yoga that merit

goes on accumulating as man passes through many an

incarnation,and purifying him by disengaging him from all

defilement.

Thus does he become more and more competent for

prosecuting Yoga. And,by force ofstrenuous effort, des

pite(failures or breaks),he surely makes his way to the

Supreme Goal.

Thesuperiority,above all others,of that yogi, who has

chosen the Highest of human Ambitions(atma-realisation)

is now stated:—

&c.

46. •The yogi ranks higher than the tapasvis, higher

yet than the jfldnis; higher is he than the

karmis. Hence,Arjuna! becomethou the yogi.'

As Yoga(or The Path)leads to the highest aspiration

of man,it is greater than what is attainable by the austere

and ascetic mode of life itapas); greater than what is

attainable by various kinds of knowledge^ inferior to atma-

knowledge, (this is the jfldni meant here); greater even

than whatisattainable by performers of Asvamedha* and

other Veda-writ ritualistic ceremonies(the karmls).

Hence the yogi is superior to the tapasvis, to the

jfldttis and to the karmis.

" Thou, Arjuna!,become,therefore, this(kind of)yogi.

So far, thus, the subject relating to(or how to acquire)

atma-intuition (or atma-knowledge) as preliminary to the

Higher knowledge(Para-vidya=God-intuition,or God-wis

dom or Theosophy) propounded by Frajapati in the

(Upanishad)passages,(Chh:Up. VIII-7,et seqCJi,has been

discoursed upon. This verse is a eulogy on this Higher

Theosophy.

&c,

47. '

Even more beyond the yogis and ofall,is hesaid

to be the most superior who,in faith,and with

his inmost manas immersed in Me, worship-

peth Me.'**"

4. Lit: horse-sacrifices, a cere-

mony emblematic of the immolation

of a horse, by a king ambitious of

universal empire. See Yajur-Vedua,

22nd to 25th Chapters. They are not

real sacrifices, but emblematic cere-

monies. After certain prayers have

been recited, the victims are let loose

without injury. If the animals are

actually immolated, they are in turn

said to wreak their vengeance on the

Sacrificer. Vide, Skdgavata ; 1V-28-

26: ‘I am yajfia-pasavoznena sam-

jiiapta ye 2 dayaluna, kuth@rais chic-

chiduh kruddh&h smaranto 2 mIvam

asya yat.”

3 The reader is referred to

Ramanuja’s Proem to Lec: III and

the Table of Vidyais appended at end

of Lec: III.

By See Proem to Lect. III; this

verse is introductory to the 2nd Divi-

sion of Bhagavad-gita, the Bhakti-

yoga, Lectures (VI to XII). See

Proem to Lect ? XII and XII-2,

The genitive case of the word yogindm has the force

of the ablative yogibhyah \yogindm thus meaning not

of the yogis, but beyond the yogis.(The ablative case gives

the sense that the yogi of this verse is not one amongstthe

four kinds of yogis described (in the twenty-ninth verse,ff.

ante),but is thefifth above and beyond,and superior to,the

four kinds.

The description of the four kinds ofthe yogis is as

contained in verse(sarva-bhutastham etc.,):—

Perceives Atma abiding in all beings etc., (vi-fp.)

and following verses:(vi-30,31 and 32).

As the yogi referred to in this verse,does not fall as

one of this four-fold classification, the genitive case has

not the force ofspecifyingaclassamongthosealready men

tioned.

Apisarveshdm,—'and ofaif'. refers to those mentioned

in verse forty-seven, viz the tapasvis etc., Likewise here,as

ofthe y/otdyogindm,thegenetive caseofthe wordsarveshdm,

has theablative force,for reasons the same as stated above;

in this case meaning thatthis yogi(described in this verse

and the following lectures, vii to xii, viz., the bhakta, the

Lover of God)is greaterthan all the yogis(verses 29 to 32)

and the tapasvis etc.,(verse effp

In comparison with this yogi,they are all,by inferiority,

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