Bhagwat Gita 2.0

Liberation (Self-realization, Mukti, Moksha, Nirvana)

2008-04-19T23:33:00.000-07:00

Liberation (also known as Self-realization, Mukti, Moksha, Nirvana etc.) refers to achieving a state when one realizes that everything including himself/herself is Brahm. In that state, one becomes free from Maya. In that state, one goes beyond the sensory perceptions and changing mental states to attain permanent bliss.

Reference Verses in Gita

2.55 - 2.61 Krishna tells Arjun how a liberated person lives and behaves.

Maya

2008-04-19T22:56:00.000-07:00

Maya is the process of superimposition by which worldly objects are perceived in the omnipresent Brahm. It is a result of Avidya (ignorance). When one gets liberated, Maya is vanished.

To understand this, consider the process of mirage, when water is perceived in the desert. Another example often used in Vedantic literature is that of a man looking at a rope and thinking of it as a snake.

What we see around us (this world) is not an absolute reality, but a perception by the five senses.

You can argue that even if what you are seeing is an illusion, how come every one also sees the same illusion! How come both you and your friend see exactly the same room, the same chair and the same colors, if they are not real? The short answer is that even your friend (and all that he/she is saying and thinking) is just in your mind.

Soul (Atma, Atman)

2008-04-19T20:16:00.000-07:00

Soul (Atma in Hindi, Atman in Sanskrit) is just another name for Brahm, often used in the context of being present inside living beings.

I don't think there is a one-to-one mapping between Atma and body. It is not appropriate to say there is "one" soul inside every body. This is like saying there is "one" gold inside every gold bangle (gold is like Brahm/Atma, gold bangle is like the body). A more appropriate way to say this would be,"body is made of Atma". Hence, there cannot be a one-to-one transfer of the soul from an old body to a single new body after death.

There is also a colloquial usage of the term "soul" which refers to the integrity or the conscience of a person (as in "selling one's soul"). This seems to stem from the above mentioned belief that there is "one" soul inside every person, that guides him on the right path. I think this is a simplistic way of looking at soul and perhaps the root of much confusion. Decisions and emotions are controlled by brain and mind; soul is simply the underlying building block that makes the whole living being, including his body/brain/mind.

Rebirth

2008-04-14T02:27:00.000-07:00

As discussed in birth and death post, there is no identity left after death. This also means that there cannot be any rebirth, as commonly understood, where Mr. X die today and is born as Mr. Y tomorrow. I think when Mr. X die, his atoms dissolve into the universe. Some of those atoms may be used in Mr. Y, some in Mr. Z and so on. But there is no one-to-one relationship between Mr. X and any other Mr. that comes after him.

What rebirth refers to in Gita and other Vedantic literature, in my understanding, is similar to heaven and hell, which are all experienced in this single life. When you enter into one state of mind (good or bad), you are in a particular life (heaven, hell or earth depending on what the state of mind is). When that state of mind changes drastically, it is like going through intermediate deaths and births, and can totally change the life you are living.

There are multiple references to rebirth in Gita, and they are all explained by this description.

6.41- 6.45 Rebirth (of a yogi) and accumulation of knowledge over many births. The knowledge can be accumulated at different periods in your life and doesn't go away.

8.5 - 8.6 Whatever state of being one remembers at death, O son of Kunti, that state he will attain without fail. I think death here means the end of intermediate phases of life.

8.24 - 8.25 One who passes away in light does not come back. (light here may represent knowledge). One who has attains the absolute knowledge becomes free from frequent changes of state of mind.

14.14 - 14.15 Depending on in which Guna (sattva, raja, tamas) one dies in, he takes birth accordingly.

God (Paramatma, Ishwar)

2008-04-14T02:20:00.000-07:00

There is no God, if understood as a super-human who lives in the sky or heaven, and can do magical things.

For me, the term God is a synonym to Brahm. While the term Atma is often used instead of Brahm
in the context of living beings, the term Paramatma or Ishwar or Bhagwaan is sometimes used when referring to Brahm as something that exists even beyond the visible substances and living beings. But all these terms indeed mean Brahm.

Brahm

2008-04-14T01:55:00.000-07:00

Brahm (also written as Brahman) is the fundamental concept (or an axiom) in all these discussions. Brahm is what this universe is made of. Everything is made of Brahm, or even better, everything is Brahm. Brahm itself has no form, it does not change, and is eternal. This is a different term from Brahma, one of the three major Gods in Hinduism.

A very large part of Vedantic texts, including Bhagwat Gita, is full of descriptions of Brahm in several forms. It has been described as divine consciousness, bliss, omnipresent, omniscient, permanent, ultimate truth etc.

The closest analogy I can give is electrons, protons etc which are present in all that we see around, and are same in everything. However, Brahm is probably something more subtle since even electrons and protons are not omnipresent. I am not sure if there is a known physics concept that resembles the described properties of Brahm closely, but energy might be close, and there may be something even closer in quantum physics that I really am not qualified enough to comment upon. But the fact that people like Schrodinger held Vedanta in high regard gives me hope that modern physics may be able to describe Brahm some day. In any case, if you keep recursively dividing the smallest available particles into its constituents, you should eventually end up with something of which everything else is made of. Let's call that Brahm for now, until science progresses enough to give a clearer picture.

Other terms like soul, Atma, Parmatma etc also mean Brahm, but used in different contexts. Even the term God, wherever used, also refers to Brahm only, and not to a superhuman sitting somewhere up in the sky doing magical things.

Birth and Death

2008-04-14T01:31:00.000-07:00

Everything is made of Brahm, which is present everywhere. Forming (or birth) of something is the process of Brahm taking that form*. When we are born, there is no creation, just the change in apparent form. Similarly at death, there is no destruction, but just the change in form. Like a bangle being carved from huge gold stack and melted back into it after some time. Things are carved out of Brahm at birth and merge back into Brahm at death.

My understanding is that there is no residual form of life after death (unlike other people who think that a soul exists that can migrate into other bodies!). I think the term soul used in Vedanta is just another term for Brahm, which is what all bodies are made of, of course. So in some sense, we can say there is a connection between the bodies, but I don't think a one-to-one identity can be established between a dead person and a new born, saying that the soul migrated from one to another. The perceived identity of an individual ends at death.

Since there is no identity left after death, there is nothing left to go to heaven or hell. So there cannot be heaven and hell beyond this earth. Also there cannot be a rebirth in the commonly understood sense of the word.

* Advaita further says that Brahm does not even change. It is only our perception that we see things changing. More on this later, but it does not change the inference above.

Heaven and Hell

2008-04-14T01:14:00.000-07:00

Heaven and Hell are frequently referred to in Gita and other Vedantic literature (as well as in all religious texts). While these are mostly considered as a places, somewhere above and below the earth, where you go after death depending on the amount of good or bad actions you do in the life, I think the actual meaning of the term is actually simpler.

I believe that heaven and hell are something that you experience on earth itself, within your same life (not after death). Heaven and hell are the states of mind; heaven when you feel really pleasant, hell when you feel pathetic. When you do good actions, you go into the pleasant state of mind, that's what is meant by going to heaven. Same for hell.

In 1.42 & 1.44, Arjuna says that by destroying the whole Kauravas family, he will end up in hell. This means that he will feel so much guilt and anguish over killing his own family-members that he will never be able to feel happy after winning the war. That will be the state of hell for him.

Acknowledgments

2008-04-14T00:04:00.000-07:00

I am thankful to many publication houses, websites and scholars whose books I frequently read and refer to. Most notable among these is Gitapress Gorakhpur whose small concise version of Gita (in Sanskrit and Hindi) has been my companion for several years now. I have also read some works of Swami Vivekananda, Vinoba Bhave, Sivananda, Chinmayananda etc. whose writings have influenced my understanding of Vedanta in general and Gita in particular. Among online resources, my alma-mater IIT Kanpur has a great resource for Gita called the Gita Supersite that gives the original Sanskrit text and interpretations of several people. IIT Madras has also built a good resources on Gita. I find the English translations of Gita (Swami Prabhupada) at Ishwar.com very handy. Same is true for the interpretation of Gandhiji made available by James Johnson. If I agree with their interpretations, I will be using materials from these various sources in the chapter summaries here.

Organization of Gita2

2008-04-13T22:58:00.000-07:00

This site is (or rather, will be) organized into 18 main pages, one for each of the 18 chapters of Gita. Each page gives a summary of the verses in that chapter, along with an overview and some notes. The site also contains a number of pages (linked from the side-bar) about the concepts (or terms) that are frequently used in Gita and which I felt needed some discussion. Any further discussions about specific issues related to those chapter will be included in separate posts that will be linked from the main chapter posts, and through the side-bar.

Ready to start? Go straight to Chapter 1.

Gita2 is intended to function as a website, rather than a blog. By that I mean that pages will be updated frequently instead of new pages coming up all the time, and are intended to be looked at together, rather than as individual posts. My only reason for choosing blogger for this site was to encourage discussions, which are easier to get going through a blog.

This site is very much a work in progress, and I will keep updating the content, and look forward to the discussions. Here are RSS feeds for posts and comments.

Bhagwat Gita, Chapter 2

2008-04-13T20:50:00.001-07:00

Previous Chapter
~ Start of Chapter 2 ~

Overview
Arjun is confused whether he should kill his own family members in the fight. In 2.11-2.30, Krishna gives him a logical argument, from a knowledge perspective, that Atma is neither born nor killed, but only the body changes. Therefore you should not be worried about killing anyone. In 2.31-2.37, he gives scripture-based arguments that if you die, you will go to heaven and if you win, you will rule the earth. In 2.38 to 2.53, Krishna presents the knowledge from the perspective of actions that you should act without attaching yourself to the results. Interestingly, all these different arguments suggest that Arjun should fight. In 2.55 to 2.72, the characteristics of a liberated person are described.

Translation/Summaries of the verses

2.1 - 2.3 Krishna says such feelings may reflect weakness and will lead to infamy. He asks Arjun to overcome these feelings.

2.4 - 2.9 Arjun repeats that even a win at the cost of killing his friends and family members will not be enjoyable, so he is now confused about his duty, whether he should fight or not?

2.10 - 2.13 Krishna replies: Arjun, your are lamenting over what is not worthy of grief! Never was there a time when I did not exist, nor you, nor all these kings; nor in the future shall any of us cease to be. The soul just changes forms, and wise men are not confused by these changes.

2.14 - 2.15 Feelings of heat and cold, happiness and sorrow are caused by sensory perceptions. They are temporary and should be tolerated without being disturbed. A wise man who is steady in both situation is fit for liberation.

2.16 - 2.18 Krishna continues: What is non-existent never existed, and what is existent will always exist*. That (Atma/Brahm) which pervades the body can never be destroyed. However, the body itself is sure to come to an end. Therefore you should fight.

2.19 - 2.22 Atma neither kills, nor is killed. Atma is never born and never dies, but it is unborn, eternal, ever-existing and primeval. It is not destroyed when the body is destroyed. How can a person who knows this kill anyone or cause anyone to kill? Like a man removes old clothes and gets news ones, Atma also removes old bodies and gets new ones.

2.23 - 2.25 Atma cannot be cut by weapons, burnt by fire, moistened by water or dried by air. It is eternal, all-pervading, stable, immovable, everlasting. Perceived neither by the senses, nor by the mind, it is known as unchangeable. Therefore you should not lament for the body.

2.26 - 2.27 However, even if you consider it to be always coming to birth and dying, even then there is no reason to lament, because what has born will certainly die, and what dies will certainly be born. So why lament over the unavoidable?

2.28 - 2.30 Beings are un-manifested before birth, manifested in the middle state, and un-manifested again after death. Atma inside the body is however never killed, so don't lament.

2.31 - 2.37 Also, considering your duty as a warrior, you should fight since there is no better good for you than a righteous war. Only lucky warriors get chance to fight such wars which will lead you into heaven. However, by avoiding your duty to fight, you will incur sin and disgrace. For a man of honor, disgrace is worse than death. Other people will think you were afraid and say bad things about you. What can be more painful? If you die, you will go to heaven. If you win, you will rule the earth. So get up and fight.

2.38 - 2.41 Fight for the sake of fighting, without considering happiness or distress, loss or gain, victory or defeat - and by so doing you shall never incur sin. So far I have advised you from a knowledge perspective, now listen to me from an action perspective, by following which you will become free from the bondage to actions. No effort taken on this path is lost, and even a little advancement can save one from great fears. Those who are resolute on this path have a clear aim, but those who are not have a multi-branched intellect (confusion between choices).

2.42 - 2.46 Men of small intellect get attached to rites and rituals of the Vedas*, performing them for gratifications. They are confused by the material gains and lack a resolute intellect to focus on Brahm. Arjun, go beyond the three modes of material nature described in the Vedas, free yourself from the pairs of opposites, and from all anxieties for gain and safety, and be established in the self. Utility of Vedas to a person who knows the essence behind them is only as much as the utility of a well when there are floods of water all around.

2.47 - 2.48 You have control over the actions, never on their fruits. Let not the fruits of actions be your motive, nor become attached to inaction. Perform your duty equipoised, O Arjun, even-minded in success and failure. Such equanimity is called Yoga.

2.49 - 2.50 Action (as commonly understood, done for results) is far lower than Yoga of wisdom (defined in previous verse), so take refuge in wisdom. Pitiable are those whose make fruit their motive. A man of wisdom becomes free from both virtue and vice, so devote yourself to Yoga. Yoga is skill in action.

2.51 -2.53 The wise, possessed of knowledge, having abandoned the fruits of their actions, and being freed from the fetters of birth, go to the state which is beyond all evil. When your intellect will go beyond the mire of delusion, then you will attain indifference as to what has been heard and what has yet to be heard. When your intellect, that has been confused by hearing different things, shall rest stable in concentrating on the self (Atma), then you will attain Yoga.

2.54 Arjun asks about the characteristics of a such man who is stable in wisdom and self-absorbed.

2.55 - 2.57 Krishna says that a liberated man has a purified mind, free of all desires, and fixed in the divine consciousness (Brahm). Such a man is not affected by external happiness and sorrow, good and evil, and instead finds bliss within himself. He is free from attachment, fear and anger.

2.58 - 2.61 Senses are very strong and can distract even the wise individuals who try to control them. Just removing the senses from their objects of perception is not enough since the yearning still remains. But by experiencing something much higher (Brahm), even this yearning is removed and such a man can control all his senses.

2.62 - 2.68 Thinking about objects of the senses develops an attachment to them, attachment leads to craving, craving leads to anger, anger leads to delusion, delusion leads to loss of memory, that leads to ruin of reasoning/intellect, which results in falling back. However a person who is free from all likes and dislikes controls his senses, even if traversing through sense-objects, and attains lasting peace. An undisciplined person can not have intelligence or steady mind, without which there is no peace, and without peace there is no happiness. Like a water-boat is swept away by strong wind, intellect can be drifted by the senses when mind is focussed on any of them.

2.69 What is night for all living beings is day for the self-controlled. What is day for all living beings is night for the introspective sage.*

2.70 - 2.72 Like an ocean remains still in spite of continuous inflow of rivers, the man who remains unaffected by the flow of desires, instead of trying to fulfill them, attains peace, being free from the ego (sense of "I" and "mine"). This is the state of a man who has realized Brahm, after which he is not deluded.

~ End of Chapter 2 ~

Next Chapter

Notes

* 2.16 This essentially implies that things that are of temporary existence (such as body) are actually non-existent.

* 2.42-2.46 A major proportion of the Vedas is related to rites and rituals, which are prescribed for different situations. Following these rituals blindly for material gains has been derided in this chapter. However, there are also other sections in Vedas (such as Upanishads) that deal with spiritual knowledge (similar to Gita).

* 2.69 means that a person who has controlled his senses is focused within himself and not the external world. He does not care about day and night.

Bhagwat Gita, Chapter 1

2008-04-13T20:49:00.001-07:00

~ Start of Chapter 1 ~

Overview

This chapter describes the tense situation in the battlefield, where Pandavas and Kauravas are poised to fight each other. Arjun realizes that he is about to fight his friends and family members and becomes confused whether he should kill his own family members for the sake of winning a fight!

Translation/Summaries of the verses

1.1 Dhratrashtra, father of Kauravas, who is blind and cannot see the fight of Mahabharata directly, asks Sanjay about what is happening in the battlefield of Kurukshetra*.

1.2 - 1.6 Sanjay describes the strength of the Pandavas by naming the strong warriors on their side.

1.7 - 1.11 He continues further, saying that Kaurava's side is also very strong, including many great warriors and protected by Bhishma.

1.12 - 1.19 Different warriors show their strength in the field by loudly blowing their conchshells, trumpets etc.

1.20 - 1.30 Arjun (one of the Pandavas) looks around the field and finds that the many in the side of Kauravas that he is going to fight are actually his friends and relatives. He becomes disheartened, confused, feeling weak and seeks guidance from Krishna (his charioteer and advisor).

1.31 - 1.37 Arjun asks Krishna: What good is it to win the fight and kingdom if he has to kill so many of his relatives. He would not like to kill them for even the whole universe. Even though Kauravas are blinded by greed and are ready kill Pandavas, he does not want to kill his own kinsmen (Kauravas).

1.38 - 1.47 Arjun continues: By destroying the whole family, the family virtues and traditions will be destroyed resulting in corrupt progenies. He does not want to commit this heinous sin and go to hell*, and would rather preferred to be killed by the Kauravas. With that, he drops his bow and sits down.

~ End of Chapter 1 ~

Next Chapter

Notes

* Many scholars say Kurukshetra refers to human body where the good (Pandava) and the evil (Kaurava) forces (or emotions) are fighting each other. I don't think this analogy is intended in the original text. Instead, the first chapter is just describing the actual situation in the battlefield, which sets the stage for the ensuing dialogue between Arjun and Krishna described in the subsequent chapters.

* See post on Heaven and Hell for a discussion on this term.

Purpose of Gita2

2008-04-13T20:44:00.000-07:00

Bhagwat Gita (also spelt in English as Bhagawat/Bhagavad Gita/Geeta) is arguably the most read and respected book in Indian philosophy. Not surprisingly, thousands of saints and scholars have written about it.

Most of the existing translations or treatises on Gita are written from a theistic point of view, explicitly or implicitly assuming the presence of God. However, from my own limited understanding of the book, you don't have to be believer-in-God to really appreciate it. I am an atheist, yet the book makes a lot of sense to me. For me, Gita is not a message of the God or anything like that, but simply a good philosophical book. A very good one actually, that makes me think and say "wow" every time I pick it up. This blog is an attempt to discuss Gita from this atheistic perspective, relying not on the authority of the book, but on the rationality of its arguments.

I am by no means an expert on the subject. But having read the book a few times along with some other literature on Vedanta, I wanted to move beyond mere reading the texts. In this website, I will try to write what I understand from the verses of Gita, hoping to clarify my thoughts in the process of writing, as well as learn other points of view through the discussions here. I hope you will not be shy in expressing your views.

About the name Gita2? to signify that we are taking a second (or an alternative) look at Gita (besides the fact that I happen to be a computer scientist who is getting used to putting 2.0 behind everything)! Like the name or not, one thing that you can feel good about is its relatively small size (gita2.blogspot.com) compared to most other names available now, so that you can easily type it in the address bar :)

This site is very much a work in progress, and I will keep updating the content, and look forward to the discussions. Here are RSS feeds for posts and comments.

Learn about the structure of the blog, and get started.