ahankaaram balam darpam kaamam krodham parigraham |
vimuchya nirmamaha shaanto brahmabhooyaaya kalpate || 53 ||
On who has given up egoism, force, arrogance, desire, anger, possessions, free from mineness, and serene, is fit for becoming the eternal essence.
ahankaaram : egoism
balam : force
darpam : arrogance
kaamam : desire
krodham : anger
parigraham : possessions
vimuchya : given up
nirmamaha : free from mineness
shaantaha : serene
brahmabhooyaaya : becoming the eternal essence
kalpate : is fit
When the monk has decided to focus on contemplation upon the self, he should take care to not harbour tendencies or traits that are remnants of life in the material world. Shri Krishna enumerates those traits in this shloka, beginning with ahankaara or egoism. Egoism refers to the notion of I-ness in anything that is in the realm of Prakriti. For most people, their body is their self. For some others, it is the intellect. Even if these are temporary, they will become obstacles in meditation. A similar obstacle is the sense of mine-ness or mamataa.
Kaama refers to desire and passion, and balam or force refers to power of desire and passion. If these is are not checked, then the mind will always rush towards some object or the other, and do so with an intensity that is hard to control. Darpam is arrogance, which makes one feel that he is above others, and therefore, can do whatever he wants. This will prevent the monk from following a strict regimen of meditation. Another obstacle in meditation is parigrah, the sense of possessing or hoarding things, which can distract the monk from pursuing his path.
Ultimately, when the monk has done his best to remove all notions of I and mine from his mind, ensured that his surroundings are calm and free of distractions, ensured that likes and dislikes are conquered, convinced himself that the world is nothing but a collection of names and forms, he gets the wonderful reward in the form of serenity or shaantihi. He recognizes his true self as the shuddha saakshi, the pure witness, free from identification from the mind or body. He is now ready for resting in, which is the same as becoming, the eternal essence, brahman.
Showing posts with label darpam. Show all posts
Showing posts with label darpam. Show all posts
Thursday, July 11, 2013
Saturday, April 13, 2013
Bhagavad Gita Verse 18, Chapter 16
ahankaaram balam darpam kaamam krodham cha samshritaahaa |
maamaatmaparadeheshu pradvishantobhyasooyakaahaa || 18 ||
Taking refuge in egotism, power, arrogance, desire and anger, these resentful people hate me, who dwells in one’s own and in other’s bodies.
ahankaaram : egotism
balam : power
darpam : arrogance
kaamam : desire
krodham : anger
cha : and
samshritaahaa : taking refuge
maam : me
aatmaparadeheshu : dwelling in own and other’s bodies
pradvishantaha : hate
abhyasooyakaahaa : resentful people
Shri Krishna starts to summarize the list of aasuri sampatti or devilish qualities by highlighting the primary ones. The foremost devilish quality is egotism. Considering anything other than the eternal essence as the I is egotism. For most of us, the I is our body and mind. This incorrect understanding comes from avidyaa or ignorance of our true nature. In the Mahabhaarata, ignorance is symbolically represented by the blind king Dhritarashtra, and egotism by his first child Duryodhana, the cause of the Mahabhaarata war.
When egotism or the I notion is strong, one tends to impose one’s will on others. This is balam or power. One tends to disregard one’s duties, rules and norms, lose all sense of right and wrong, due to the strength of egotism. This is darpam or arrogance. Their primary aim of life becomes kaama or selfish desire, resulting in krodha or anger when these desires are not fulfilled. Other devilish tendencies such as hypocrisy, pride and ostentation are variations of these primary qualities. We should always be on the lookout for the rise of such qualities in us.
Shri Krishna goes on to say that such people hate Ishvara who dwells in everyone, including the very people who are harbouring these devilish qualities. They never listen to Ishvara who, as the voice of conscience, pleads them to not fall prey to these qualities. They do not follow the instructions of Ishvara as laid down in the scriptures. Instead, they resent him and hate him, as well as those who follow his path by cultivating divine qualities.
maamaatmaparadeheshu pradvishantobhyasooyakaahaa || 18 ||
Taking refuge in egotism, power, arrogance, desire and anger, these resentful people hate me, who dwells in one’s own and in other’s bodies.
ahankaaram : egotism
balam : power
darpam : arrogance
kaamam : desire
krodham : anger
cha : and
samshritaahaa : taking refuge
maam : me
aatmaparadeheshu : dwelling in own and other’s bodies
pradvishantaha : hate
abhyasooyakaahaa : resentful people
Shri Krishna starts to summarize the list of aasuri sampatti or devilish qualities by highlighting the primary ones. The foremost devilish quality is egotism. Considering anything other than the eternal essence as the I is egotism. For most of us, the I is our body and mind. This incorrect understanding comes from avidyaa or ignorance of our true nature. In the Mahabhaarata, ignorance is symbolically represented by the blind king Dhritarashtra, and egotism by his first child Duryodhana, the cause of the Mahabhaarata war.
When egotism or the I notion is strong, one tends to impose one’s will on others. This is balam or power. One tends to disregard one’s duties, rules and norms, lose all sense of right and wrong, due to the strength of egotism. This is darpam or arrogance. Their primary aim of life becomes kaama or selfish desire, resulting in krodha or anger when these desires are not fulfilled. Other devilish tendencies such as hypocrisy, pride and ostentation are variations of these primary qualities. We should always be on the lookout for the rise of such qualities in us.
Shri Krishna goes on to say that such people hate Ishvara who dwells in everyone, including the very people who are harbouring these devilish qualities. They never listen to Ishvara who, as the voice of conscience, pleads them to not fall prey to these qualities. They do not follow the instructions of Ishvara as laid down in the scriptures. Instead, they resent him and hate him, as well as those who follow his path by cultivating divine qualities.
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