yo na hrishyati na dveshti na shochati na kaanshati |
shubhaashubhaparityaagee bhaktimaanhyaha sa me priyaha || 17 ||
He who neither rejoices nor hates, neither rejoices nor grieves, he who has given up good and bad, he who is (such a) devoted person, he is dear to me.
yaha : he who
na : not
hrishyati : rejoices
na : not
dveshti : hates
na : not
shochati : grieves
na : not
kaanshati : desires
shubhaashubhaparityaagee : given up good and bad
bhaktimaan : devoted person
yaha : he who
saha : he
me : me
priyaha : dear
In the previous shloka, Shri Krishna described the attitude of a perfected devotee towards the performance of actions. He now elaborates upon the attitude of a perfected devotee towards situations, objects, thoughts and emotions that he encounters. These may come to him either as a result of his actions or as a matter of course in his daily life.
When we usually encounter a situation or obtain an object, we are either attracted to it, repulsed by it or are indifferent to it. Attraction generates desires that are stored in our mind, and repulsion generates negative desires, a list of things we would like to stay away from. If we eventually get the favourable object, or hold on to the favourable situation long enough, we become "harshita", we rejoice. But if we lose that object or situation, which is bound to happen sometime, we become "shochita", we grieve. Attraction, revulsion, desire, hatred, joy, grief - this is how most of us usually operate.
The perfected devotee, however, has tackled this problem at its root. He has stopped labelling any object, person, situation or thought as either good or bad, because it is exactly this labelling that starts the chain reaction of attraction, desire, joy and sorrow. He is like the model student who does not label his teacher's feedback as good or bad, whether it be praise or criticism, because he has the utmost faith in his teacher. The perfected devotee accepts all objects and situations as Ishvara's blessings, does what he has to do, and moves on. Shri Krishna says that one who accepts whatever comes with way due to his faith and devotion to Ishvara, is dear to him.
Showing posts with label kaanshati. Show all posts
Showing posts with label kaanshati. Show all posts
Wednesday, December 26, 2012
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
Bhagavad Gita Verse 3, Chapter 5
jneyah sa nityasannyaasee yo na dveshti na kaanshati |
nirdvandvo hi mahaabaaho sukham bandhaatpramuchyate || 3 ||
He who does not hate anything, nor expects anything, know him to be an eternal renouncer. For one who is free from duality, O mighty-armed, he happily casts off bondage.
jneyah : know
saha : that
nitya : eternal
sannyaasee : renouncer
yaha : he who
na : does not
dveshti : hate anything
na : does not
kaanshati : expect anything
nirdvandvaha : free from duality
hi : for
mahaabaaho : O mighty-armed
sukham : happily
bandhaat : bondage
pramuchyate : casts off
During the time of the Mahabhaarata war, and even now, there existed a fixed ideal of what it means to become a renouncer, which was that one runs away from the world to some remote place. Shri Krishna needed to change that ideal completely. So he defines what it means to be a renouncer or sannyaasi in this shloka. A renouncer is one who completely gives up his ego, not external objects and situations.
In that regard, Shri Krishna says that if we have three qualities: freedom from hatred, expectation and duality, that person is a true renouncer. Firstly, if something is obstacle to happiness, or someone is giving us sorrow, we generate hatred for that person or object. Secondly, if we always keep thinking that we will become happy in the future, we generate expectations, taking consciousness away from the present and into the future. Finally, if we only get attracted to certain aspects of our existence, the other aspects will torture us and bind us. This is what is meant by duality.
So therefore, one who has become free from these 3 qualities has truly renounced the material world, even if he continues to perform his duties. This is a high standard indeed. Having clarified the definition of snanyaasi, Shri Krishna compares a sannyaasi to a karmayogi in the next shloka.
nirdvandvo hi mahaabaaho sukham bandhaatpramuchyate || 3 ||
He who does not hate anything, nor expects anything, know him to be an eternal renouncer. For one who is free from duality, O mighty-armed, he happily casts off bondage.
jneyah : know
saha : that
nitya : eternal
sannyaasee : renouncer
yaha : he who
na : does not
dveshti : hate anything
na : does not
kaanshati : expect anything
nirdvandvaha : free from duality
hi : for
mahaabaaho : O mighty-armed
sukham : happily
bandhaat : bondage
pramuchyate : casts off
During the time of the Mahabhaarata war, and even now, there existed a fixed ideal of what it means to become a renouncer, which was that one runs away from the world to some remote place. Shri Krishna needed to change that ideal completely. So he defines what it means to be a renouncer or sannyaasi in this shloka. A renouncer is one who completely gives up his ego, not external objects and situations.
In that regard, Shri Krishna says that if we have three qualities: freedom from hatred, expectation and duality, that person is a true renouncer. Firstly, if something is obstacle to happiness, or someone is giving us sorrow, we generate hatred for that person or object. Secondly, if we always keep thinking that we will become happy in the future, we generate expectations, taking consciousness away from the present and into the future. Finally, if we only get attracted to certain aspects of our existence, the other aspects will torture us and bind us. This is what is meant by duality.
So therefore, one who has become free from these 3 qualities has truly renounced the material world, even if he continues to perform his duties. This is a high standard indeed. Having clarified the definition of snanyaasi, Shri Krishna compares a sannyaasi to a karmayogi in the next shloka.
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