Bhikshu Gita

 

            Bhikshu Gita forms part of Uddava Gita which is the teaching of Lord Krishna to Uddava before His departure from earth and forms part of Srimad Bhagavatam. The teaching is spread over 24 chapters and chapter18 of Uddava Gita is known as Bhikshu Gita.  This contains two parts, former part being the introductory story and the later part the teaching that is called Bhikshu Gita.  Uddava asks Lord Krishna how one can react calmly without retaliating when faced with insults and harsh words hurled by the wicked and when ill-treatment is meted out by others, in the world, in the closing verses (59 & 60) of chapter 17.  Lord Krishna, answering Uddava’s question narrates the story of a mendicant who bore with patience the insults and ill-treatment meted out by others, treating them as the effect of his own past deeds.  The story starts from verse 6 of chapter 18 and the teaching from verse 43. With this brief introduction, let us see the story and teaching.

            In Avanti (Ujjain) there lived a rich Brahmin, who was a business-man.  Though very rich, he led a miserable life being greedy, miserly, and impious.  He treated his family and friends badly and they also did not like him.  He ran into bad times and lost all his wealth and became penniless.  Nobody came to his help or sympathised with him.  Rather they ridiculed him and treated him badly and he was also alienated from his relatives.  Reflecting over his past and repenting his actions and renouncing all material desires and thoughts, he became a wandering mendicant begging for food.  Whatever sorrow caused by any living being, brought about by Providence or coming from his own body, he understood each of them as coming from his own past deeds and are to be experienced without avoiding them or blaming anyone.  Even when troubled by the wicked who wanted to cause his downfall, he remained firmly established in his dharma, abiding in sattvic patience and spoke loudly these words of advice. (verses 6 to 42).

            It is we who super-impose joy or sorrow on conducive and non-conducive situations and on persons or objects, we like or dislike. When those situations occur, we think that they have made us happy or unhappy forgetting that it is our mind that has projected happiness or unhappiness on them in the first place.  Hence all is only a play of our mind and that alone is the cause of bondage or sorrow and liberation or joy.  In life, situations, conducive or non-conducive, pleasant, or unpleasant come to us due to various reasons which are listed as people, presiding deities, body, planets, past actions, and time. Each one of them will be discussed later, in verses 51 to 56. (verse 43)

            The mind alone creates the objects, their qualities, our desires for them and actions to gain them be it our waking world, dream-world, or world of day dreams. Not only the present life but the life hereafter is also governed by the mind. A sattvic mind gets noble birth and revels in higher realms, a rajasic mind gets a mediocre birth and a tamasic mind gets lowest form of births. As Lord Krishna tells Arjuna in Bhagavat Gita (14-18):   

Oordhwam gacchanti satvasthaa madhye tishthanti rajasaah;

 Jaghanyagunavrittisthaa adho gacchanti tamasaah.

Those who are established in Satva proceed upwards; the Rajasic dwell in the middle; and the Tamasic, abiding in the function of the lowest Guna, go downwards.

Athma, the Self, which is of the nature of Consciousness, though coexisting with the active mind, is only a silent witness, without action, lending life to the body through the medium of subtle body that includes mind.   It is like electricity that causes the blades of a fan to rotate, without itself rotating.  Mind is the conditioning that manifests the Self, and the actions, qualities and limitations of the conditioning are falsely superimposed on the Self which makes It appear as bound.  The individual, in Self-ignorance, gives absolute reality to this apparent bondage and suffers further. The indiscriminative mind fancies joy in objects and running after them gets attached.  Right thinking removes all false notions and makes one detached and free. (verses 44 and 45)

            A pure, clear, and focussed mind is controlled and can withdraw from worldly preoccupations and easily absorb and abide in the Self.  This purity, clarity and focus is achieved through engaging in scriptural activities like study of scriptures and performance of actions prescribed by the scriptures and meditation and in selfless activities like charity and, following the five-fold disciplines and five-fold values of Ashtanga Yoga, besides the performance of one’s duties.  Only when the mind has attained the desired purity, clarity and focus, spiritual practices bear the fruit of bonding with God replacing the bonding with the world. A rajasic mind is a restless and agitated one and a tamasic mind is a dull and lazy one and neither of them can benefit from the spiritual practices unless they change to sattvic minds through religious life and karma yoga. A sattvic mind is alert and peaceful and through the above practices can be made to abide in Self. (verses 46 and 47)

            The sense organs and their functioning are controlled by the mind. The eyes cannot see or the ears hear if the mind is not with them.  But the mind is not controlled by the senses.  It can function independent of senses e.g. the mind sees objects in the dream-world with the dream-eyes of the dream-seer. Arjuna tells Lord Krishna in Bhagavad Gita (6-34):

Chanchalam hi manah krishna pramaathi balavad dridham;

Tasyaaham nigraham manye vaayoriva sudushkaram.

The mind verily is restless, turbulent, strong, and unyielding, O Krishna! I consider its control as difficult as the control of the wind.

Lord Krishna also agrees with Arjuna.  The one who conquers this mighty mind is mightier than the mighty and truly victorious. But the mind does not like to be controlled and it also travels at unbelievable speed.  It moves randomly at times from the sublime to the ridiculous and can drive one nuts with worry, fear, stress, and tension. Ignorance of our true nature is the real cause for our false notions and preoccupations. Such a deluded person is led by the uncontrolled mind into making, maintaining, and breaking relations and dividing people into friends, enemies etc.  After listening to the words of the wise, some are transformed while others continue in their deluded way of living.  A sensible man should spend his time in conquering the mind and living in harmony with others. The ignorant man considers himself to be the body and everything related to the body as ‘my’ e.g. my son, my house etc. and rest of the world as ‘not I’ and ‘not my’.  Blinded by these self-created divisions he gets attached, becomes possessive, fights etc.  (verses 48 to 50)

            The body-mind complex of everyone is made up of five elements; space, air, fire, water and earth and Self is one only and beyond this complex and a witness of the interactions of the body-mind complex with the outside world. Not knowing this one Self in all, we do not realise that we are only fighting with ourselves when we fight with others.  When one part of the body hurts another, like teeth accidentally biting the tongue, we do not get angry with the offending part and scold or punish it. When one recognises this fact, he will no longer hurt others or speak to them harshly.    The Self is formless and attributeless and therefore changeless.  The Self being changeless cannot be affected by presiding deities.  Other than the eternal existence, whatever is experienced is only relatively real, an illusion or superimposition on the Self which is its eternal substratum.  Again, if we identify ourselves as body and mind then alone, we are affected by the planets or anything else for that matter.  When our mind is absorbed in the Self or the Lord, then they have no effect on us. Actions take place due to the combination of five factors – body, doer, sense organs of perception and action, the five vital airs and the sentient factor.  The inert by itself cannot act.  The sentient cannot act without body, instruments etc.  Action is possible only with their combination, which is not possible because of their opposite nature.  So, what we see as action has only a relative reality and can never affect the sentient Self.  Time modifies or affects that which is born, or with form or that which is material in content.  The sentient, formless, unborn Self can never be affected by time. (verses 51 to 56)

            With this analysis the bhikshu concluded that the Supreme Self can have no sorrow from anybody, anywhere by any means as It is even beyond the Prakrithi, and infinite and has no association with the pairs of opposites.  It is only the ahamkara that is subject to samsara. The enlightened person has no fear of the material world. And so, he resolved to practice devotion to the Supreme Self following the footsteps of the great sages of old and cross the endless darkness of ignorance by worshipping the lotus feet of lord Mukunda. He continued his wanderings without wavering from his righteous conduct and ignoring any insults or ill-treatment. (verses 57 and 58)

            Lord Krishna thereafter summarised the teaching thus – ‘Other than ourselves none can give us joy or sorrow.  Friends, the indifferent, enemies and samsara are all created by the darkness of ignorance and self-delusion of the person’.  Then He ended the story with a phala sthuthi that one who remembers, narrates, or listens to this teaching will never get overwhelmed by the pairs of opposites. (verses 59 to 62 (end))

Acknowledgement

While concluding the blog, I wish to record my debt of gratitude to the speeches and writings on this text, of:

1)      Swami Tejomayananda, &

2)      Swami Paramarthananda.

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Narada Bhakthi Sutra – 5

 

Sutras 34 to 42

            We had so far seen the first two chapters covering 33 Sutras that described Para Bhakthi, which is the goal to be reached.  Now we shall see the next chapter that describes the sadhanas that take one to the goal of Para Bhakthi.

 Sutra 34

Tasyaaha sadhanaani gayantyaachaaryaaha.

For that (Para Bhakthi) teachers sing (many) practices.

Sutra 35

Tat tu vishayatyaagaat sangatyaagaachcha.

Now that (goal) by renunciation of worldly things and giving up attachment.

               Sutra 34 describes that the various spiritual masters prescribe the several sadhanas through “stuthis” or songs, in a poetic way by using the expression “Teachers sing”.  From the next Sutra, start the sadhanas.

          One of the sadhanas to reach the goal of para-bhakti is by way of renouncing worldly objects and giving up attachment.  Kaivalya Upanishad (Mantra 3) states: “Na karmana na prajaya dhanena tyagenaika amirtatvamanasuh (Not by work, nor by progeny, nor by wealth, but by renunciation alone, Immortality is attained.”).  Renunciation of worldly things is an attitude born of the understanding that the worldly objects have only limited value and that they will not give one that inner peace and contentment. One may intellectually recognize the limited worth of the worldly objects, but may not quite accept it emotionally.  One must renounce the emotional attachment to objects and cultivate the freedom from desire for these objects.  The second aspect of this sadhana is giving up attachment to the beings around in one’s life and to one’s possessions.  As regards relationship to living beings, these are not to be renounced but one’s relationship is to be chastened by freeing oneself from emotional dependence on them.

Sutra 36 

Avyaavritat bhajanaat.

Through uninterrupted (continuous), loving service of the Lord

Sutra 37

Loke’pi bhagavadgunasravanakirtanaat.

By hearing and singing the glories of the Lord even while engaged in worldly activities.

          In Sutra 35, spiritual service was of a negative character.  But in Sutra 36 spiritual service of positive character is prescribed.  The worship that sage Narada is advocating in this Sutra is continuous non-stop worship. Lord Krishna says in Bhagavad Gita (8-14):

Ananyachetaah satatam yo maam smarati nityashah;

Tasyaaham sulabhah paartha nityayuktasya yoginah. 

O Arjuna, to that yogi of constant concentration and single-minded attention, who remembers Me uninterruptedly and for long, I am easy of attainment.

Sage Narada echoes this idea in this Sutra by saying “Constantly remembering the Lord throughout one’s life is an easiest way of attaining Him.”        

          Sutra 36 presents another sadhana, viz., remembering God by listening to the glories of God in stories and by singing His praises always, even while engaging in worldly activities. Sage Narada is here apparently referring to the nine types of bhakthi (Nava-vidha-bhakthi) stated in Srimad Bhagavadam, as follows:

“Sravanam, Kirtanam, Vishno-smaranam, Pada-sevanam,

Archanam, Vandanam, Daasyam, Sakhyam, Athma-nivedanam.”

The nine types of bhakthi listed in the above verse are as follows:

1)    Sravanam – listening to epics and puranas.

2)    Kirtanam – Singing devotional songs.

3)    Vishno-smaranam – Uninterrupted thinking of God as Vishnu or one’s Ishta devata.

4)    Padasevanam – Worship of God’s feet meaning worship of God through service to people.

5)    Archanam – Doing puja or any simple ritual.

6)    Vandanam – Chanting hymns and singing His glories.

7)    Daasyam – Thinking and behaving as God’s servant.

8)    Sakhyam – Acting and thinking with a feeling of love and close intimacy with God as in friendship.

9)    Athma-nivedanam – Surrender of self in intense devotion.

Adopting one or more of these above modes one can engage in uninterrupted devotion all the time. After stressing self-effort, Sage Narada stresses the importance of Grace of God, Guru and Mahapurushas in the next five Sutras.

Sutra 38

Mukhyatastu mahatkripayaiva bhagavatkripalesaad va. 

Primarily through the compassion of great beings and a little of Divine grace.

Sutra 39

Mahatsangastu durlabho’gamyo’moghashcha. 

But (to obtain) the company of some one great is extremely difficult; it is impossible to know them fully, yet it is infallible in its effect.

Sutra 40

Labhyate’pi tatkripayaiva.

Nevertheless, it is attainable through God’s grace.

          One cannot reach the goal of uninterrupted bhakthi through one’s own efforts alone; one needs help.  Primarily, what one needs is the compassion of a loving, compassionate person like a spiritual teacher, or a saint. It is through their compassion or through a bit of God’s Grace that one’s efforts will bear fruit.

          In Sutra 39 sage Narada warns that finding a proper teacher is extremely difficult and even when the opportunity arises it is not obvious; it is subtle.  Sri Sankara says in Vivekachudamani (verse 3)

 Durlabham trayamevaitad devanugrahahetukam I

Manushyatvam mumukshatvam mahapurushasamsrayaha II

Human birth, mumukshuthvam, the tutelage of a mahapurusha (a great realised person) are difficult to gain without God’s Grace.

Also, one has to be beware of false teacher who tempts the seeker with the promise of an easy path without much sadhanas.  And, there is also the danger of not recognizing a true teacher when one meets him.

          So, sage Naradha states in Sutra 40, that one should seek the Grace of God for getting the proper spiritual teacher. It is by the Grace of God only that one turns a mumukshu.  Again, it is only the Grace of God that will lead him to the right Guru who will guide him in that path. 

Sutra 41

Tasmintatjane bhedabhavaat.

Because between God and His devotees there is no difference.

             ‘Devotee’ in this context means the Para Bhakta and not every devotee. Lord Krishna says in Bhagavad Gita (7-18) that He views the Jnani Bhaktha (Para Bhaktha) as His very Self.  Mundaka Upanishad (3-2-9) states: -“Brahmavit Brahmaiva Bhavathi (The knower of the Brahman becomes Brahman). Para Bhaktha is one who has realized his oneness with Brahman and does not stray from this knowledge in all his activities.  This Sutra is also interpreted as “that the love of God knows no distinction among His children” and so anyone seeking His Grace sincerely, steadfastly, and with single minded devotion will get it with kindness, irrespective of his past before coming to the path of spiritual seeking.

Sutra 42

Tadeva saadhyataam tadeva saaadhyataam.

That alone is to be accomplished; that alone is to be accomplished.

          The repetition in the sutra is to emphasize the point that the sadhana as would enable one to obtain God’s Grace that would ultimately reveal God through the teaching of a spiritual teacher is only to be practiced.  Sadhana clears away all obstructions in the way of understanding the true identity of one’s Self with Brahman. 

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Seek the Lord & save yourself

Bhaja Govindam - 1

Bhaja Govindam is a Bhajan song composed by Sri Sankara Bhagavatpada, whom we shall hereafter refer to as Sri Sankara, in which he has packed the entire essence of Vedanta.  Writing about this work, Rajaji remarks “Sri Sankara has packed into the Bhajagovindam song the substance of all Vedanta, and set the oneness of Jnana and Bhakti to melodious music.”  It is much more than a Bhajan song; it is indeed a philosophical treatise that can be ranked one among the prakarana granthas. The background behind the composition of this work is as follows.  As Sri Sankara was walking in the streets of Kasi with his disciples, they came across an old person of advanced age struggling to learn “Dukrin karane” formula from Panini’s book of grammar “Siddantha  Kaumudhi”.   Sri Sankara felt pity for him as he was spending time at such an advanced age trying to learn a language instead of turning his attention to God, singing His Glory and seeking moksha.  This prompted Sri Sankara to advise through this song this person and similar other persons suffering from various delusions to turn their efforts Godward, drawing their attention to the transient nature of life and hollowness of material possessions. 

This work contains 31 verses of which the first one is considered the pallavi, to be sung in chorus at the end of each verse.  This and the subsequent twelve verses are composed by Sri Sankara himself and this part is called “Dwadasa Manjarika Stotram”(a bouquet of 12 flowers).  The fourteen disciples inspired by the Guru’s song, sang each one verse on the same theme and this part of fourteen verses is called the “Chaturdasa Manjarika Stotram”(a bouquet of 14 flowers).  Pleased by their efforts, Sri Sankara added to the work of 27 verses, another four verses in conclusion, to make in all 31 verses.   The work is also referred to as “Moha Mudgara”.  The word Moha means delusion. Mudgara means ‘hammer’. Together, Moha Mudgara means the remover or destroyer of delusion. It is called so because each verse gives a heavy blow to the excessive value one attaches to the worldly possessions and so naturally there is no softness in the tone of this composition to emphasise the urgency in the situation.  As per Swami Paramarthananda the work has one point programme- ‘Mumukshu bhava” {become a seeker of moksha)

Verse 1

Bhajagovindam bhajagovindam govindam bhaja mudhamate |

samprapte sannihite kale nahi nahi raksati ḍukṛnjkarane ||

Worship Govinda, worship Govinda, worship Govinda, oh fool! When the hour of death approaches, the formula of grammar will not save you.

Sri Sankara starts straightaway advising the old man to spend his last days contemplating the Lord rather than wasting on learning the grammar.  The study of grammar stands for all secular knowledge referred to as apara vidya that can be of help in the material life only.   For spiritual upliftment one should turn to Para vidya, the knowledge by which Brahman, the supreme could be known.  In short Para vidya is the spiritual knowledge for moksha purushartha and apara vidya is the material knowledge that one seeks for the other three purusharthas;  dharma, artha, kama purusharthas.  It is the Para vidya that leads one to spiritual realization that bestows immortality and eternal bliss.  The glory of spiritual knowledge, Para Vidya, is thus emphasised by Swami Vivekananda who says “Spiritual knowledge is the only thing that can destroy our miseries for ever; any other knowledge satisfies wants only for a time.  It is only with knowledge of the spirit that the faculty of want is annihilated forever.”

‘Bhaja’ stands for worship with devotion, surrendering oneself to Lord.  It can be in any one of the nine ways as enumerated in Nava vidha bhakthi in Bhagavatham.

1.     Sravanam (Listening to Lord’s glory)

2.     Kirtanam (Singing Lord’s glory)

3.     Smaranam (constantly thinking of Lord)

4.     Padasevanam (Adoring the feet of the Lord in a spirit of self-obliteration)

5.     Archanam (worshipping the Lord with Vedic hymns)

6.     Vandanam (Paying obeisance to the Lord)

7.     Dasyam (Serving the Lord)

8.     Sakhyam (Invoking the Lord as a friend)

9.     Atma nivedanam (Offering oneself in total self-surrender to the Lord)

Govinda is one of the names of Lord Vishnu, as given in Vishnusahasranamam.  It has also other meanings as Sri Sankara gives in his Bhashya;

1.     One who has realized the substratum, or the very essence – the Truth.

2.     One who protects the cattle, or the very essence behind the all living beings.

3.     One who confers speech – or one who enlivens all sense organs

4.     One who is known thru the Vedas – the supreme Reality indicated by the Maha Vakyas

So Govinda here stands for the Supreme Brahman.  It is also significant that the name of Sri Sankara’s Guru happens to be Govinda i.e.Sri Govinda Bhagavat pada.

The repetition of bhajagovindam thrice signifies: 

1.     First, to seek guru. Seek a capable guru.

2.     Second, to seek knowledge. Seek the knowledge that leads to self-realization.

3.     Third, to seek Govinda.  Contemplate on Govinda, the Supreme Brahman

Lord Krishna assures in Gita (8-5):

Anta kale cha mameva smaranmuktua kalevaram

Yah prayati sa madbhavam yaati nasty atra samshaya

And whosoever, departs from the body remembering Me alone, at the time of death, he attains My Being: there is no doubt about this.

But this is possible only if one had been thinking all along about the Lord. So Sri Sankara chides this man as a fool for, not realising death may knock at his door at any time, he is foolishly busy in acquiring secular knowledge, without engaging fully in spiritual pursuits thinking of the Lord and Lord only, and tells him it is high time he becomes a teevra mumukshu.  A teevra mumukshu is one for whom moksha is the only goal unlike the mandha, madhyama  mumukshus for whom moksha is one of the goals only.   This verse is to be sung in chorus at the end of each subsequent verse.

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Sakama & Nishkama Bhakthi

Gita essays – 16

Sakama bhakthi and Nishkama bhakthi are the two motive based divisions of bhakthi.  In Sakama bhakthi, the motive is the finite goal of artha and kama purusharthas. In Nishkama bhakthi the motive is the infinite goal of moksha purushartha.  After describing the bhakthas who worship the Lord in different ways, Lord Krishna starts talking about Sakama bhakthi and Nishkama bhakthi. He points out that the sakama bhakthas are stuck up in samsara, however religious they are and also well-read in scriptures, in verses 20 & 21.

The knowers of the three Vedas, the drinkers of soma, purified of all sins, worshipping Me by sacrifices, pray for the access to heaven.  Having reached the sacred world of Indra, they enjoy the celestial pleasures, of the Gods in the heavens. (9-20)

Having enjoyed that vast heavenly world, they come back to the world of mortals when their punya is exhausted.  Thus, the seekers of sense pleasures who have taken to the ritual of the Vedas are subject to birth and death (9-21)

These sakama bhakthas are versed in the three Vedas, have performed many yajnas, including soma yaga offering soma rasa to Agni and partaking the soma rasa as prasada.  They are great bhakthas who have earned enormous punyam but they are after the pleasures of Svarga only, which they get.  This stay in Svarga  earned through their punyam  gets exhausted through enjoyment in their stay.  They cannot earn fresh punyam there as all the worlds except bhuloka are bhoga bhoomis and ony bhu loka is karma bhumi.  So they have to return to earth and start earning fresh punyam, as directed by their prarabhdha. This cycle of coming and going will continue choicelessly, if they do not change their goal and seek the Lord instead of praying for sensual pleasures and worldly objects.

After explaining that samsara is the fate of sakama bhakthas, Lord talks about nishkama bhakthas who worship Lord with ananya bhakthi.  He assures that He will take care of the yoga and kshema of those dedicated bhakthas.  Yoga stands for securing what one does not have and kshema stands for preserving what one has got.  If one’s life is analysed, it can be seen that all one’s energies are spent in acquisition and preservation of things. These the Lord assures He will take care of, for these stead-fast bhakthas who seek His Grace and Grace alone and whose thoughts are on Him and His glory alone.   This means that for such bhakthas who have renounced all their worldly pursuits seeking His Grace, their worldly well-being will be taken care of by the Lord.

Sakama bhakthas do elaborate rituals even for the finite benefit of heavenly pleasures for a limited time.  So for the infinite benefit of total liberation from the cycle of birth and death, how elaborate and involved the ritual should be, if one wonders, Lord allays their fears.  He says that what is offered in worship is not important but how it is offered is important.  He will happily accept and be satisfied with even a fruit or a flower or a leaf or even with little water when it is offered with total devotion and a pure mind.  We have the examples of:

1)    Sabari, in Ramayana, who offered fruits only and that too after tasting to choose the choicest fruits, which Sri Rama accepted with relish

2)    Gajendra, in Bhagavatham, who offered flower only when he surrendered to Lord Vishnu, which he accepted gladly and saved Gajendra from the clutches of the crocodile

3)    Draupadi, in Mahabharatha, who could offer only a green leaf which Sri Krishna happily accepted to save the pandavas from the wrath of sage Durvasa.

4)    Kannappa Nayanar, the ignorant hunter, who carried water in his mouth and offered in all faith and sincerity  to Sivalinga along with the roast meat which he had tested by tasting,  was acclaimed by Lord Siva as a great devotee and blessed with moksha.

Lord also explains ananya bhakthi for Arjuna’s benefit in verse 27

Oh Arjuna, whatever you do, whatever you eat, whatever you offer (as oblation), whatever you give (in charity), whatever austerity you practice, do it all as an offering unto Me. (9-27)

Such a nishkama bhaktha is a karma yogi as well as karma sanyasi as he acts without ego and with a sense of surrender to Lord and renounces concern for fruits of action. Lord declares that such a bhaktha will be free of bonds of karma, punyam and papam, and will attain Him.

Lord Krishna has been talking of Nishkama bhakthi and worship of Saguna Brahman in first person singular. But as Dr. Radhakrishnan says “It is not the personal Krishna to whom we have to give ourselves up utterly but the Unborn, Beginningless, Eternal who speaks through Krishna”.   Lest it be mistaken that all His words apply only to the worship of Lord Krishna alone, Lord clarifies that they apply to whatever Devata one worships with faith and single-minded devotion. But they worship in ignorance if they worship that Devata, not knowing the Supreme it represents. To add emphasis to His statement, He also adds that He is the Lord of all yajnas, and to whomsoever oblations are offered, they all reach Him only and He is the real receiver and enjoyer of all offerings. As they do not know Him in reality as Supreme Brahman, they return again and again to the world of mortality.  Lord has no preferences or partiality in respect of His bhakthas.  He treats them all equally.  They attain from Him what they seek.  If they worship and are devoted to Devas, then they go to the world where the Devas are and enjoy the benefits and pleasures there until their exhaustion of punya and return to the mortal earth.  The same way, worshippers of Pitru devatas go to pitru loka and return; and the votaries of Bhuthas go to the loka of Bhuthas and return.  But only those who seek the Grace of the Supreme Brahman only, attain Him and suffer no return at all.  Attaining Him is realizing the Jiva Brahma Ikyam even during lifetime as Jivan mukthi, i.e. realisation of the identity of one’s Real Self as the Supreme Brahman, even before one’s death.  So in this context Lord Krishna says as Supreme Brahman that such a bhaktha is in Him and He is also in such a bhaktha.

 

Ananya bhakthi is a great purifier, Lord Krishna points out. However vile or vicious one’s past be, if one sincerely repents his wicked ways and turns a new leaf as an ananya bhaktha that person too can attain the Lord.  So the past should not be held against such people and they be treated as righteous, once they repent and mend their ways to become sincere, single-minded nishkama bhakthas.  We have the example of saint Arunagirinathar who was a wayward youth chasing women of ill-repute. Thanks to his sister, he sincerely repented his ways and wanted to end his life when he was saved by Lord Muruga and became His great devotee.  Ananya bhakthas of the Lord who have surrendered to Him totally can attain the highest goal of moksha, irrespective of their caste and sex as well. We have the examples of Karaikal ammayar and Nandanar, ranked and revered among Nayanmars and Sri Andal and Thiruppanalvar, adored among the twelve Alwars to illustrate sex and caste is no bar to earn Lord’s Grace and Liberation through ananya bhakthi. So Lord tells Arjuna to become a bhaktha and how to become a bhaktha, Lord beautifully portrays in the concluding verse of this chapter on what he termed earlier as the “greatest knowledge and greatest secret”.

Swami Paramarthananda splits this formula into five stages.  I give below the Lord’s  advice split in stages on the above lines.

“!) Become My bhaktha, maybe even for the worldly goal at the first instance

2) Convert Me as your supreme goal, gradually changing from means to goal and then to primary goal.

3) Be always humble, never become arrogant over your spiritual progress, for whatever that is achieved is through My Grace only

4) Keep Me always in the mind i.e. never forget Me as the goal

5) Convert your very life into a form of worship of Me

Following these five steps sincerely, you become My ananya bhaktha; and you will certainly attain Me.”

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