daivee sampadvimokshaaya nibandhaayaasuri mataa |
maa shuchaha sampadam daiveemabhijaatosi paandava || 5 ||
Divine qualities are considered conducive to liberation, devilish qualities to bondage. Do not grieve, O Paandava. You have obtained divine qualities.
daivee : divine
sampat : qualities
vimokshaaya : to liberation
nibandhaaya : to bondage
aasuri : devilish
mataa : considered
maa : do not
shuchaha : grieve
sampadam : qualities
daiveem : divine
abhijaataha : obtained
asi : you have
paandava : O Paandava
The aim of any spiritual text including the Gita is to lead the seeker onto the path of liberation. Shri Krishna now connects this chapter with the aim of the Gita. He says that we can increase the chances of our success in the spiritual path if we cultivate the divine qualities listed in this chapter, while toning down our devilish qualities. In today’s day and age, it is easy to misunderstand some of these devilish qualities as essential for our survival, that without these qualities we will not get ahead in life. but it is not so.
For instance, take the quality of krodha or anger. Whenever we are in a state of anger, our intellect, our power of reasoning shuts down, as described in the second chapter. Our emotional mind takes over, and makes us perform actions that may harm us in the long run. Therefore, each time we get angry, we weaken our intellect, which is the one faculty that differentiates us from animals, and can take us closer to liberation. Akrodha, the divine quality of keeping our anger in check, prevents this from happening. We have to also keep in mind that we have to conduct self analysis and not apply this teaching to judge some other person.
Shri Krishna also anticipates a question arising in Arjuna’s mind. Arjuna would have thought, am I in the divine qualities camp or in the other one. To this end, Shri Krishna consoles Arjuna. He asserts that Arjuna was always endowed with divine qualities, and that those qualities will most definitely lead him towards liberation. He addresses him as Paandava, to remind him that he comes from a lineage that has always demonstrated these divine qualities.
Showing posts with label maa. Show all posts
Showing posts with label maa. Show all posts
Sunday, March 31, 2013
Saturday, November 12, 2011
Bhagavad Gita Verse 47, Chapter 2
karmanyevaadhikaaraste maa phaleshu kadaachana |
maa karmaphalaheturbhoormaa te sangostvakarmani || 47 ||
You only have authority over action, not ever to the result. Don't be motivated by the result, and don't get attached to inaction.
karmani : action
eva : only
adhikaaraha : authority
te : your
maa : not
phaleshu : result
kadaachana: ever
maa : no
karmaphalahetuhu : motivated by result
bhuha : become
maa : don't
te : you
asangaha : attached
astu : happen
akarmani : inaction
As mentioned earlier, this shloka is probably the most known and oft-quoted shloka in the Gita. There are many chapters in the Gita that go deeper into the layers and layers of meaning packed into this shloka. Given the richness of this shloka, we shall try to understand it to the best extent possible. Since there are several messages in this shloka, let's examine the teaching part by part.
Let's start with the first half of the shloka. The message is as follows. Shri Krishna says that we have authority only over the actions performed by us, but never on the result. In other words, we do not have complete control over the outcome of any activity. As we grow older and spend more time in this world, we know this fact instinctively. But because we forget it, we tend to get disappointed when things don't go our way, or get elated when things do.
Look at our own lives, we can take any number of examples to test this theory. Take a simple thing as catching a bus that has just arrived on the other side of the road. We run to catch the bus. But even in such a simple task, the outcome is not guaranteed. If we are able to catch the bus then all's well. But there are several other outcomes that could occur. The bus may leave before we get to the stop. We could catch the wrong bus. Once aboard, we may not have the fare. Worst of all, we could get hit by a car while crossing the road.
Or consider a complex task as a surgeon performing heart surgery. Take the world's best doctor trained at the world's best college, in the surgery room of the world's best hospital with the world's best surgery team. Even with all these things, that surgeon will never have a 100% success rate.
The outcome of any action is like an equation where we provide some of the variables, but not all of them. In fact, we may not even know all the variables that end up determining the outcome.
So unless we logically convince ourselves that we do not have complete control over the result of an action, we will not be able to learn the main teaching the second half of this shloka. We will tackle that teaching in the next post.
Footnotes
1. "Phala" literally means "fruit". Fruit of a result has a "seed" in it, which has the potential to generate yet another action.
maa karmaphalaheturbhoormaa te sangostvakarmani || 47 ||
You only have authority over action, not ever to the result. Don't be motivated by the result, and don't get attached to inaction.
karmani : action
eva : only
adhikaaraha : authority
te : your
maa : not
phaleshu : result
kadaachana: ever
maa : no
karmaphalahetuhu : motivated by result
bhuha : become
maa : don't
te : you
asangaha : attached
astu : happen
akarmani : inaction
As mentioned earlier, this shloka is probably the most known and oft-quoted shloka in the Gita. There are many chapters in the Gita that go deeper into the layers and layers of meaning packed into this shloka. Given the richness of this shloka, we shall try to understand it to the best extent possible. Since there are several messages in this shloka, let's examine the teaching part by part.
Let's start with the first half of the shloka. The message is as follows. Shri Krishna says that we have authority only over the actions performed by us, but never on the result. In other words, we do not have complete control over the outcome of any activity. As we grow older and spend more time in this world, we know this fact instinctively. But because we forget it, we tend to get disappointed when things don't go our way, or get elated when things do.
Look at our own lives, we can take any number of examples to test this theory. Take a simple thing as catching a bus that has just arrived on the other side of the road. We run to catch the bus. But even in such a simple task, the outcome is not guaranteed. If we are able to catch the bus then all's well. But there are several other outcomes that could occur. The bus may leave before we get to the stop. We could catch the wrong bus. Once aboard, we may not have the fare. Worst of all, we could get hit by a car while crossing the road.
Or consider a complex task as a surgeon performing heart surgery. Take the world's best doctor trained at the world's best college, in the surgery room of the world's best hospital with the world's best surgery team. Even with all these things, that surgeon will never have a 100% success rate.
The outcome of any action is like an equation where we provide some of the variables, but not all of them. In fact, we may not even know all the variables that end up determining the outcome.
So unless we logically convince ourselves that we do not have complete control over the result of an action, we will not be able to learn the main teaching the second half of this shloka. We will tackle that teaching in the next post.
Footnotes
1. "Phala" literally means "fruit". Fruit of a result has a "seed" in it, which has the potential to generate yet another action.
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Bhagavad Gita Verse 3, Chapter 2
klaibyam maa sma gamah paartha naitattvayyupapadyate |
kshudram hridayadaurbalyam tyaktvotishtha parantapa || 3 ||
Don't yield to this effeminate behaviour, O Paartha, it is not worthy of you. Cast off this petty weakness of heart and arise, O scorcher of foes!
klaibyam : effeminate
maa sma gamah : do not yield
paartha : O son of Prithaa
etat: this
tvavi : in you
na : not
upapadyate : not worthy
kshudram : petty
hridaya: heart
daurbalyam : weakness
tyaktva : cast off
uttishtha : arise
paran-tapa : O scorcher of foes
Shri Krishna, an expert motivational speaker, used a "carrot and stick" approach towards Arjuna here. Let's first look at the stick or negative aspect, followed by the carrot or positive aspect.
One of the worst things you can call a warrior is effeminate. Even young boys playing sports will get upset when someone says 'Hey! You throw the ball like a girl!". So imagine how Arjuna felt when Shri Krishna called him effeminate. Moreover, using the adjective weak-hearted to describe Arjuna was another jolt to the usually courageous and lion-hearted warrior.
But Shri Krishna also appealed to Arjuna's better qualities. By addressing him as "Paartha", he reminded Arjuna of his esteemed and respected mother Prithaa (Kunti), and how she would feel if Arjuna shirked away from war. Shri Krishna also reminded Arjuna of his battle prowess, that he was called a "scorcher of foes".
The final point in this shloka is the powerful Sanskrit word "utthishta", meaning arise, which evokes Swami Vivekananda's famous statement "Arise! Awake! and stop not till the goal is reached!'. Arjuna is instructed not just to arise physically, but also to lift his mind from the depths of delusion to a higher plane of intelligence.
kshudram hridayadaurbalyam tyaktvotishtha parantapa || 3 ||
Don't yield to this effeminate behaviour, O Paartha, it is not worthy of you. Cast off this petty weakness of heart and arise, O scorcher of foes!
klaibyam : effeminate
maa sma gamah : do not yield
paartha : O son of Prithaa
etat: this
tvavi : in you
na : not
upapadyate : not worthy
kshudram : petty
hridaya: heart
daurbalyam : weakness
tyaktva : cast off
uttishtha : arise
paran-tapa : O scorcher of foes
Shri Krishna, an expert motivational speaker, used a "carrot and stick" approach towards Arjuna here. Let's first look at the stick or negative aspect, followed by the carrot or positive aspect.
One of the worst things you can call a warrior is effeminate. Even young boys playing sports will get upset when someone says 'Hey! You throw the ball like a girl!". So imagine how Arjuna felt when Shri Krishna called him effeminate. Moreover, using the adjective weak-hearted to describe Arjuna was another jolt to the usually courageous and lion-hearted warrior.
But Shri Krishna also appealed to Arjuna's better qualities. By addressing him as "Paartha", he reminded Arjuna of his esteemed and respected mother Prithaa (Kunti), and how she would feel if Arjuna shirked away from war. Shri Krishna also reminded Arjuna of his battle prowess, that he was called a "scorcher of foes".
The final point in this shloka is the powerful Sanskrit word "utthishta", meaning arise, which evokes Swami Vivekananda's famous statement "Arise! Awake! and stop not till the goal is reached!'. Arjuna is instructed not just to arise physically, but also to lift his mind from the depths of delusion to a higher plane of intelligence.
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