The Indian Dharma

In the previous episode, we had witnessed Bhagawan Krishna clarifying an important point with Arjuna, who still wants to run away from the battlefield without fighting the war. However, Arjuna’s real intent was not that, but his only query here is that, as Bhagawan Krishna is declaring time and again that He’s the one who executes everything and all of us are His divine instruments, He suddenly gives a choice to Arjuna to choose which path to take. Arjuna’s contention here is that, given Bhagawan Krishna’s stature, it is He who should decide which path Arjuna should take, and He shouldn’t be giving choices to Arjuna to choose from. In this sense, Arjuna says that if Bhagawan Krishna really gives a choice to him for choosing, it would definitely be running away without fighting. However, since Arjuna doesn’t have a choice to make in reality and as he realizes that he is just an instrument in Bhagawan’s divine hands for a bigger mission that He wants to achieve in this world through His divine incarnation, Arjuna wants to leave the choice to Bhagawan Krishna to make! 

So in this context, we should not mistake Arjuna’s intent of telling that he wants to run away from the battlefield out of fear and emotional distress. In fact, at the start of the Bhagawad Gita, Arjuna was overcome by these problems. However, the issue now with Arjuna is not fear. It is about whether he would end up disobeying Bhagawan’s wish and “Sankalpa” (Resolve) if he runs away from the battlefield without fighting the war. However, Arjuna asks further to Bhagawan Krishna thus, “Oh Bhagawan! Even if I want to execute my “Karma” as per your instructions, won’t my sins be a stumbling block in preventing me from advancing further in my spiritual pursuit? Won’t my “Paapa Karma” hinder me from executing my duties? What should I do in that case? How do I overcome this?” 

For this, Bhagawan Krishna gives a very important reply here. The shloka that talks about Bhagawan’s reply is called the “Gita-Charama-Shloka” (The most important shloka in the entire Bhagawad Gita)! I shall first build the narrative and then we shall go into the shloka. Bhagawan says thus, “Oh my dear Arjuna! You do not need to worry about all your “Paapa Karma” and “Punya Karma”! Leave all that to me. I shall take care of everything. You just surrender to my divine lotus feet and perform your actions. Irrespective of whatever stumbling blocks come by, I shall take care of them completely. I shall handle them on behalf of you! Oh Arjuna! Please understand here – I’m the sole refuge to all living beings in this world! I know what kind of “Karma” will haunt each and every living being and I’m the one who protects all of them with my divine “Anugraha”! So Arjuna! Please do not worry! I shall be there with you always at all times to protect you!” 

Bhagawan says thus, 

“Sarva dharmaan parityajya maam ekam sharanam vraja!

Aham tvaa sarva paapebhyo moksha ishyaami maashuchaha!!”

In fact, this is the last shloka of the Bhagawad Gita and is the most important of all the seven hundred shlokas that we’ve seen till now! Bhagawan says further in this shloka thus, “Oh Arjuna! Please leave all the “Upaaya Buddhi” (The thought that you are the doer) behind your “Karma Yoga”, “Gnyaana Yoga” and “Bhakti Yoga” and all the other aspects of “Dharma” that I’ve mentioned till now. Please surrender to me completely! I’m the saviour for you at all times! Oh Arjuna! Please be assured you that by surrendering to me completely, I (“Aham”) shall wash away all your (“Tva”) sins (“Paapa Karma”) completely (“Sarva paapebhyo”), thereby paving the way for you to attain the highest “Moksha”! Oh Arjuna! Please do not worry about anything (“Maashuchaha”)!” 

So for today, let us understand this “Charama Shloka” very clearly and let us absorb its essence into all of our minds. We shall have a detailed discussion on this important shloka in tomorrow’s episode as well! Stay tuned! 🙂

In the previous episode, we’ve had a brief summary of all whatever we’ve discussed as part of the Bhagawad Gita, which Bhagawan Krishna elaborates in detail to Arjuna. We’ve seen all the eighteen “Adhyaayas” of the Bhagawad Gita in detail for over a hundred episodes now and the previous episode marks the conclusion of the same. After narrating everything, Bhagawan Krishna says to Arjuna thus, “Oh my dear Arjuna! Please spare a thought about whatever I’ve said so far. From this, you decide which path you are comfortable to take, so as to progress towards the highest “Moksha”. I leave the choice to you!” As Bhagawan says thus, Arjuna heaves a sigh of relief! This is his initial reaction! So how is Arjuna going to approach things from now on? What is Arjuna going to do? Is he still going to run away from the battlefield or is he going ahead to fight the war? Let us see this in today’s episode! 

Moving on further thus, as Bhagawan Krishna concludes His accord, Arjuna thinks for a moment. He now replies back to Bhagawan thus, “Oh Bhagawan! You’ve told me so many things which are very valuable! Now that you’re giving me a choice as to what I want to do, here’s my wish – I would refrain from fighting the war and I would want to take up “Sanyaasam”! I would not want to kill all these people standing in front of me here at Kurukshetra! This is my choice! Oh Krishna! Can I go ahead with this choice?” Upon hearing this from Arjuna, Bhagawan thinks for a moment thus, “Oh wow! Is this the purpose for which I’ve spoken continuously for the past eighteen Adhyaayas? 🙂 If I’m trying to motivate Arjuna to fight, look at what he’s talking about at the end of the eighteen “Adhyaayas”! Thinking thus, Bhagawan replies back very carefully – “Oh Arjuna! If I ask you to choose one way from whatever ways I’ve suggested you to follow, you are coming up with an entirely different way and want to go by it! This is unfair! If I’m giving you a choice, the choice is in between the ways that I’ve suggested!” 

This might sound a bit funny here! For instance, if we’re writing an examination and if we’re given six questions in the question paper and if we’ve to answer any five out of those six, can we bring in a seventh question from nowhere? This is exactly what Arjuna is doing here! 🙂 If Bhagawan has given a question paper to Arjuna with five questions – “Karma Yoga”, “Karma Yoga + Gnyaana Yoga”, ”Gnyaana Yoga”, “Bhakti Yoga” and “Bhakti Maargam” and He’s asking Arjuna to choose from these, rather than making a selection from these questions in the paper, Arjuna is trying to bring a new question called “Escaping from the battlefield” which doesn’t exist in the syllabus at all! 🙂 This is what most of us do in our everyday life as well! If somebody gives us advice on how to go about things, we will end up ignoring everything and charting out a new dimension to execute our actions! We should avoid this, isn’t it? This is what Bhagawan is saying here now. So Bhagawan replies thus, “Oh Arjuna! If I’m asking you to select from the paths that I’ve suggested, you’re bringing in a new path – This is not warranted from a “Kshatrya” prince like you!” Actually, Arjuna’s point is not to escape. Initially, when the Gita commenced, Arjuna was extremely upset and disappointed, wasn’t he? Now, when the Gita is getting over, Arjuna is even more upset and disappointed! Now Arjuna replies thus, “Oh Bhagawan! I’m sad now, not because I want to escape, but for another reason – Before you commenced the Gita, I thought that I’m the decision maker. But after the Gita is over, I now understand that I’m nobody in this world and you are the one who takes all the decisions! Now, if you’re asking me to decide and choose which way I’ve to take, it seems like a joke to me! You’re the one who’s the decision maker! Rather than you taking the decision, why are you wanting me to take a decision again?”
As Arjuna says thus, Bhagawan replies back laughingly – “Oh Arjuna! These are the words I was expecting from you! For these words to come out of your mouth, I had to narrate 700 shlokas! 🙂 Had I not narrated the Gita to you, will these words of surrender come out of your mouth? Hence, I feel that I’ve succeeded in making you understand the real meaning of surrender (“Sharanagathi”) and in making you understand who I am!” So for today, let us understand up to this point, and in the next episode, Arjuna has a doubt once again! We shall witness what that doubt is, and what is Bhagawan’s assurance for that doubt going to be! Stay tuned for an interesting accord! 🙂

In the previous episode, we had witnessed Bhagawan Krishna explaining how this entire world is an embodiment of “Maaya” (Illusion) and how it is very easy for an individual to fall trap into it! People think that the spin that Bhagawan is doing with our “Atman” gives enormous happiness, but little do we realize that all these happy moments are also going to end up in sorrow at some point in time. When there is sorrow we suddenly tend to realize how treacherous life can be in this world, but this realization is very short-lived. The moment we get another happy moment, we tend to forget this sorrow and move again into the state of “Maaya”. This is the cycle of life in this world and this continues perpetually through this entire life, and also across several births. Saying all this to Arjuna, Bhagawan Krishna explains that he should be meticulous in his effort and approach towards Bhagawan in such a way that he is getting freed from this repeated spin that is happening to his “Atman”. 

Saying thus, Bhagawan Krishna is now going to conclude His lengthy 18-Adhyaaya accord of the Bhagawad Gita. He now says thus, “Oh Arjuna! Till now I’ve mentioned several points that you need to keep in mind while performing your “Karma” (Actions). I’ve told you whatever came to my mind and I’ve openly shared several secrets of mine with you. Hence, it is up to you to take them and put them to practice!” So before we go further, for our reference, let us have a quick summary of the entire Bhagawad Gita once. It all began when Arjuna put down his “Gaandeepa” bow upon seeing all his family members standing in front of him, including the likes of senior members such as Bhishmachaarya, Guru Dhronachaarya, Sage Kripachaarya, etc. As Arjuna breaks down, Bhagawan Krishna tries to pacify him and bring him back to his normalcy and this is where the entire Bhagawad Gita commences. Firstly, Bhagawan talks about the importance of the “Atman” and how the “Atman” is a permanent entity and the “Deham” being a temporary entity. This is what we referred to as the “Deha-Atma-Viveka-Gnyaanam”. Secondly we witnessed what is “Karma Yoga” and how performing our duty in this world is very important for our spiritual upliftment and also for the upholding of “Dharma” in this world. If we perform our “Karma Yoga” with dedication towards Bhagawan, it automatically takes us towards the “Gnyaana Yoga”. 

Subsequently when Arjuna tried to find a shortcut by escaping the “Karma Yoga”, Bhagawan quickly changed His narrative by saying that “Karma Yoga” will straightaway make us realize the “Atma-Saakshaakaaram”, without going into the “Gnyaana Yoga”. In the fourth “Adhyaaya”, Bhagawan explains how the “Gnyaana Yoga” is a step higher than the “Karma Yoga”, however, one can reach this “Gnyaana Yoga” state only if he / she meticulously fulfills the “Karma Yoga”. The fifth “Adhyaaya” introduces us to what is “Yogam” (Penance / meditation / offering… We can assume it in however way we want). Here, Bhagawan explains how we should perform the penance and He gives some tips. In the sixth “Adhyaaya”, Bhagawan explains the procedure of “Dhyaanam” in detail and how we should sit and perform it by thinking of Bhagawan all through the process. In the seventh “Adhyaaya”, Bhagawan slowly starts revealing Himself to Arjuna as the “Bhakta-Prabhaavam”, wherein he talks about why one should have Bhagawan in thoughts while performing the “Dhyaanam”. 

Subsequently in the eighth “Adhyaaya” we had witnessed Bhagawan introducing the “Bhakti Maargam”. He talks about the white and the black route and how a person who traverses the white path (Bhakti Maargam) never comes back to this world again! In the ninth “Adhyaaya”, Bhagawan explains what is “Bhakti” and how the entire concept of “Bhakti” is centred around Him! In the tenth “Adhyaaya”, Bhagawan shows who He is (The grand “Vishwaroopa Darshan” as part of the “Vibhuti Yogam”). In “Adhyaaya” eleven, Bhagawan continues with the “Vishwaroopa Darshan” and declares that He is none other than “Kaala” who has come to destroy this entire world that is full of “Adharma” at this point. In the twelvth “Adhyaaya”, Bhagawan talks about several other “Maargams” (Paths) other than “Bhakti Yoga” through which one can attain the highest “Moksha”. In the thirteenth “Adhyaaya”, we’ve to understand the importance of our “Shareeram” or “Deham” and how it serves as an instrument to attain Bhagawan. In the fourteenth “Adhyaaya”, Bhagawan talks about the three “Gunas” – “Sathva Guna”, “Rajo Guna” and “Tamo Guna” and how the entire world revolves around these three. In the fifteenth “Adhyaaya”, Bhagawan explains how He is the “Purushotama” of this entire world (“Purushotama Yogam”). In the sixteenth “Adhyaaya”, Bhagawan explains the demarcation that exists between a “Deva” and an “Asura” (Raakshasa). In the penultimate seventeenth “Adhyaaya”, Bhagawan talks about how one should obey the words of the “Shaastras” and the “Vedas” to attain “Moksha”. Finally in the eighteenth “Adhyaaya”, Bhagawan gives Arjuna and all of us a choice. He says thus, “I’ve explained several “Maargams” (Ways) through which you can attain “Moksha”. You can pick and choose which “Maargam” you want and follow it!” 

After hearing all this from Bhagawan Krishna, it is now up to Arjuna to pick and choose, isn’t it? So what is Arjuna going to do now? Has his sadness evaporated after listening to all these eighteen “Adhyaayas” of the Bhagawad Gita? Let us wait till the next episode to witness! Stay tuned! 🙂

In the previous episode, we had witnessed Bhagawan Krishna explaining how He exists inside every living being as a “Yantra”, which keeps swirling the “Atman” round and round. This is the reason why all of us repeatedly keep taking birth after birth in this world. In fact, the “Yantra” works correctly and accurately on our “Karma” and whenever our “Paapa Karma” goes on the higher side, we take our subsequent birth accordingly. Similarly when our “Punya Karma” goes high, we take our next birth accordingly as well. So all these repeated births that are taken by our “Atman” in different physical forms is due to Bhagawan sitting inside us like a “Yantra”, who keeps spinning the “Atman” from time to time! It is at this time, as an ardent “Bhakta” we should put forth a question to Bhagawan – “Oh Bhagawan! I’m sincerely following your instructions on “Karma Yoga” and “Bhakti Yoga”. Inspite of this, why are you still keeping on spinning my “Atman” again and again, pushing me into several births? Why don’t you stop this spin and push me out of this birth-death cycle completely?” The important question here is, are we qualified enough to ask Bhagawan the above question! Are we following Bhagawan’s instructions correctly? Or, are we atleast making a conscious effort to follow whatever Bhagawan is telling us in the Gita? This is for each one of us to think and arrive at an answer! 

Moving on thus, Arjuna asks back – “Oh Bhagawan! Whatever you’re saying is very nice to hear! 🙂 However, I’ve never followed anything you’ve said till now in my life! How can I even think of telling you to stop the spin of your “Yantra”? For this, Bhagawan laughs and replies thus: 

“Tameva sharanam gachha sarva bhaavena bhaarata!

Sadpadaadaath param shaantim sthaanam praapyasi shaashvatham!!”

Bhagawan says thus, “Oh my dear Arjuna! Please do not worry! From this minute onwards you’ve started exhibiting surrender to me in all ways, haven’t you? This itself is enough! You are on the track now and you should continue to be in this track henceforth! If you do so, you shall attain the highest “Moksha” by coming out of this spin of this birth-death cycle! Oh Arjuna! You’ve to understand one thing – This world is fully engulfed into the “Maya” (Illusion) and this is why being in the spin is really giving people a lot of happiness! With the “Maya” being extremely strong, it is very easy for a person to be pulled into worldly pleasures and desires! However, this person doesn’t realize that these pleasures that he / she is experiencing are temporary in nature and it is these same pleasures which are going to lead him / her to sorrow as well! Hence, Oh Arjuna! Please do not get into this trap! If you keep following my words correctly, you can easily come out of this trap of “Maya”! You’ve to be meticulous in your attempt and that’s what I expect from you!” 

Saying thus, Bhagawan is now going to conclude His detailed accord, as we’re nearing the 700’th shloka of the Bhagawad Gita! 🙂 He says to Arjuna thus, “Oh my dear Arjuna! I’ve told you whatever I had in my mind to tell. Now it is up to you to follow my words and attain the highest “Moksha”!” So for today, let us understand up to this point and in the next episode, we’re going to see a quick summary of the entire Bhagawad Gita, right from the beginning till what we’ve seen today. So for readers – Even if you would have missed all these previous episodes of the Bhagawad Gita, please do not miss tomorrow’s episode, as we’re going to summarize all the points that we’ve discussed so far! We shall wait till the next episode for this important summary! Stay tuned! 🙂

In the previous episode, we had witnessed Bhagawan Krishna explaining how we should perform our “Karma” with the three “Thyaagams” that He’s lists – We should perform our “Karma” with the thought that we are not the doers. We should perform our “Karma” for upholding “Dharma” and not for any personal gains / brownie points from it. We should perform our “Karma” as our duty and we should never run away from it. Finally, as Bhagawan always says, we should perform our “Karma” not for results or our own name and fame, but for the simple reason that Bhagawan warrants us to do it! Hence, while performing our “Karma”, Bhagawan wants us to keep reminding ourselves of the above-mentioned four important pointers. This is exactly what He wants Arjuna also to do. He wants Arjuna to take the “Gaandipa” and start fighting the war at the Kurukshetra battlefield, not for himself – But to safeguard and uphold “Dharma”. If he shuns away from fighting the war at this time, “Adharma” is going to reign supreme and as a result, the entire world will run into chaos. If such a thing should not happen, Arjuna has to definitely fight against those perpetrators of “Adharma” and it is the duty of every “Kshatrya” to protect his country / territory and his people. 

Secondly, Bhagawan says that Arjuna should not fight the war just because he would be victorious at the end of it. Arjuna has to fight the war with a neutral approach, implying that results of the war aren’t of much importance. The real question here is whether Arjuna is giving his best effort for the protection of “Dharma” through the war. Thirdly, Bhagawan wants Arjuna to fight the war because Bhagawan wants him to do so! This will eliminate the “Kartrutva Buddhi” which means that we would start taking credit for all the success that we encounter in our pursuit! Bhagawan doesn’t like that. He wants us to shun this “Kartrutva Buddhi” completely while performing our actions. Finally, Bhagawan says to Arjuna that he can convert this war itself into Bhakti by fighting it with a sense of surrender to Him! Thus, for all these reasons, Bhagawan Krishna is once again motivating and urging Arjuna to start fighting the war. Moving on further, Bhagawan says thus in the 61’st shloka of the eighteenth Adhyaaya: 

“Ishwarah sarva bhootaanaam hriddheshe ardhvana drishtati!

Braamayan sarva bhootaani yantraarudaani maayayaa!!”

Here, Bhagawan explains thus, “Oh Arjuna! Please understand that “Ishwara” (Bhagawan) exists inside the hearts of every living being! So what does this “Ishwara” do by sitting inside every living being’s heart? He has a “Yantra” (An instrument) with Him, upon which He places the “Atman” of every living being. For instance, if the “Yantra” is in the form of a “Chakra”, Bhagawan is placing the “Atman” of every living being on top of this “Chakra” and spinning it round and round! Thus, this spin that Bhagawan is doing, creates the “Maaya” (Ilusion) that living beings go into and come out every time! Oh Arjuna! Please realize that this spinning exercise is the one because of which you are repeatedly taking birth in this world again and again. As an ardent “Bhakta”, what should you be doing? You should be telling Bhagawan – “Oh Bhagawan! Please stop this spinning! Enough of this game of placing my “Atman” on top of this wheel and rotating it! Let me come out of this constant spinning!” However, all the living beings are of the thought process that this spinning exercise is so beautiful and exciting in nature, and are not prepared to come out of it! This is the problem! Hence, as an ardent “Bhakta”, you should be in a position to instruct Bhagawan to stop the spin and throw you out of it!” 

What a deep philosophy is Bhagawan Krishna talking about here! This is a profound truth that He is establishing with regards to the birth-death cycle and how “Jeevatmas” like us are completely entangled into this cycle! So for today, let us spare a thought about this and through our actions, let us try and request Bhagawan (if not command Him) to stop this vicious spin of our “Atman” time and again to push us into several births and deaths in this world! We shall wait till the next episode to continue this discussion further! Stay tuned! 🙂

In the previous episode, we had witnessed Bhagawan Krishna talking about how our “Nitya-Karma” aids us in our progress towards the “Bhakti Maargam”. This is part of the last (Eighteenth) “Adhyaaya” of the Bhagawad Gita and in this course of discussion, we’ve also discussed a few myths circulating amidst all of us with regards to performing / not performing our “Nitya Karma”. Just because we’re following the “Bhakti Maargam”, it doesn’t mean that we sacrifice on our “Nitya-Karma” and go into it. Performing our “Nitya-Karma” every day reduces our “Paapa Karma” continuously. Only when our “Paapa Karma” comes down, we will be able to sustain in the “Bhakti Maargam”. Else, our efforts would start dissipating with time because our “Paapa Karma” will start acting like a stumbling block, thus preventing us from marching ahead. This is like constantly picking up all the weeds from a paddy field, so that the main crops grow without getting spoilt by these weeds. Even if we forget to pick up the weeds for a day or two, they will grow to such an extent that all the underground water gets sucked in, and as a result, the main crops get decayed due to lack of water. Hence, just like how in agriculture, picking up the weeds are very important, our “Nitya Karma” is also very important to pick out the weeds of our “Paapa Karma”. 

Moving on further, Bhagawan Krishna explains thus, “Oh Arjuna! Please remember one thing – Even when you’re wanting to traverse the path of ‘Bhakti Maargam’, there will be several obstacles that might come your way. It is not as easy as you think. However, that doesn’t mean that you will not put any effort and sit in the corner, blaming the obstacles for your lack of progress. You’ve to put in your effort, however, the resultant of your actions is decided by me! 🙂 Oh Arjuna! You might remember that I mentioned this earlier – When you perform your actions, it is not you who is the doer. The doer is somebody else. You are just a mere instrument in my divine hands! Now I shall tell you who is the doer of your actions – In fact, as you might think, there is no one doer. There are many – Your “Atman”, your “Praana-Vaayu”, your “Indriyaas”, your “Deham” and finally “Paramatman”! Even if one of these do not get involved, no action of yours is going to fructify!” 

Now, how valid is this important point that Bhagawan Krishna is stressing upon here? Let us discuss a few examples! For instance, if I’m wanting to go for a job interview tomorrow morning – I’m well-prepared for it and I have the complete confidence that I can crack the interview quite easily. However, what if I get a heart-attack tonight as I go to bed? My “Praana-Vaayu” is stopping to cooperate, isn’t it? Hence, can I still proceed to go to the interview hall tomorrow? The answer might be a “No”! Rather than going to the interview hall, I might end up going to the hospital! 🙂 Secondly, even if my “Praana-Vaayu” is cooperating well enough and I start my journey to reach the interview hall the next day – Suddenly I start feeling feverish, giddy and I’m about to faint on the floor! What happens now? Even if all the others cooperate, my “Deham” is not willing to! Hence, I might again end up in the hospital bed, instead of landing at the interview hall! Now, assume that my “Praana-Vaayu”, “Atman”, “Deham” are cooperating very well and I’m meticulously getting ready to travel to the interview destination the next day! Now, what happens if my flight gets delayed or if my flight gets cancelled at the last minute? I might still not be able to reach my destination, isn’t it? So what happened here? The divine “Anugraha” of the “Paramaatman” goes missing! Hence, even if my “Praana-Vaayu”, “Atman”, “Deham”, etc. cooperate properly, and if the “Paramatman” does not, then my actions would end in failure! 

Hence, we can clearly see here that if we’ve to perform an action successfully, the cooperation of these five elements are extremely important! This is why Bhagawan Krishna is emphasizing this point repeatedly that for any action in this world, we are not the sole doers. Of course, our effort is important and there’s no doubt about that. However, there are a few elements that are beyond our control and we’ve to acknowledge their contributions too, in making our actions successful or not! So for today, let us understand this point very clearly and we shall wait till the next episode to continue this discussion further! Stay tuned! 🙂

In the previous episode, we had discussed Bhagawan Krishna talking about the significance of the “Nitya-Anushtaanam” or the “Nitya-Karma” that we’ve to perform every passing day. This is as part of the last “Adhyaaya’ (Eighteenth) wherein Bhagawan says that both “Karma” and “Bhakti” are important to attain “Moksha”. In other words, Bhagawan stresses upon the fact that “Bhakti” doesn’t happen if we’re not performing our “Karma” properly. This is where we resorted to clarify a very important point in the previous episode – Some of us might have a feeling that we are traversing the “Bhakti Maargam” which is the best way to reach Bhagawan Krishna, and in this pursuit, we are not required to perform our “Karma Yoga” in the form of our “Nitya Karma” and “Nitya Anushtaanam”. This is a wrong notion that many of us have. Of course, “Bhakti Maargam” is of the highest level and if we’re trying to walk this path, it is excellent! But, in no place Bhagawan mentions that we can compromise on our “Nitya Karma” and perform the “Bhakti Yoga”. In fact, we’re going to continue this discussion forward in today’s episode as well, as there are quite a few misconceptions around this point which are floating around us. 

Hence, to the first myth that we’ve raised, the answer is very simple – Performing “Bhakti” without performing the ‘Nitya Karma” like “Sandhyavandanam”, “Amaavaasya Tarpanam”, etc. is of no use! It is like adding a “one” in front of 4 “zeros” (00001). However, if we’re performing our “Nitya Karma” along with “Bhakti”, it is like adding a “one” behind 4 “zeros” (10000), which has a higher value! 🙂 The idea behind this is very simple – As I’ve mentioned in the previous episode as well, we are saddled with heavy loads of “Paapa Karma” over several births! The more we’re performing our “Nitya Karma” every day, we are slowly washing out our “Paapa Karma”, which acts like a stumbling block, preventing us from performing the “Bhakti Yogam”. The more we clear these hurdles, the easier it becomes for us to walk the path of “Bhakti Maargam”. Thus, we’ve to have the simple understanding here that Bhagawan has mandated us to perform our “Nitya Karma” every day, so that it serves as an opportunity to clear off all our bad deeds step by step! 

More than this, some of us might have this thought too (Myth) – “Oh! We’ve absorbed all whatever is being spoken about by Bhagawan Krishna as part of the Bhakti Yoga! We are following all these aspects already in a meticulous manner and as a result, we’ve already reached a very high level in our spiritual upliftment! Hence, we are not in the lower levels anymore wherein, we’ve to keep performing these “Nitya Karma” matters every day!” For this, let me tell one thing very clearly – The very idea that we’ve risen up several notches in spiritual upliftment is utter nonsense! We’re all still in extremely lower levels of spiritual upliftment. First, let us shun this thought that we’ve risen spiritually. If we’ve really risen like this, we would never make such tall claims in the first place! Hence, all these arguments indicate an attitude of mere escapism from the duties that we’ve to perform! 

Apart from this, some people have another thought process – “Oh! When we perform the “Sandhyavandanam” and several “Yagnyams” and “Tarpanams”, we pour water from our palms as part of the procedure. Where does this water go? Of what benefit is this procedure to anybody? Does this really reach our “Pitru Devatas”? The water is only going to the ground, isn’t it?” For this, we’ve to have a deeper understanding here – Yes, of course, the water that we pour as part of the “Tarpanam” procedure merely goes to the ground. Moreover, by doing these procedures, we are not going to accumulate any “Punya Karma” as well, as these are part of our fundamental duties for our departed parents and grandparents. Yet, what is that we’re going to gain here? It is very simple – Imagine that we’re wanting urgent cash to the tune of Rs. 30,000 and we’re requesting a friend to lend us this money. This friend makes a bank transfer of the amount and we’re going to the ATM to pick up the cash. So can we say that the currency notes that our friend had deposited in his bank account should be the same as the currency notes that we receive from the ATM machine that we’re obtaining cash from? That friend is putting cash into his bank account and this is like us performing our “Tarpanam” with the water. However, the same currency notes do not reach us, isn’t it? This is where we’ve to understand that the water that we pour as part of our “Tarpanam” gets converted into the palatable food items for our “Pitru Devatas”. The “Mantras” that we chant along with the pouring of water will transform this water into the food that is consumable for the “Pitru Devatas”. Hence, it is important that we perform all these “Nitya Karma” without fail and this is the real significance behind performing them!

Moreover, we are performing all these “Karma” because Bhagawan warrants us to perform, isn’t it? Hence, when we take the effort to perform them correctly, Bhagawan’s heart is going to be happy! With Bhagawan being happy with our actions and sincerity, He is automatically going to hand-hold us into the “Bhakti Maargam”, isn’t He? This is where our “Nitya Karma” helps! So, from this episode, the key learning for all of us is that, we should never forsake our “Nitya Karma” for anything else, even if it is walking the path of “Bhakti Maargam”. Our “Nitya Karma” always comes first and it should have the top priority! So for today, let us understand this point very clearly and let us wait till the next episode to continue this further! Stay tuned! 🙂 

In the previous episode, we had witnessed Bhagawan Krishna talking about the three categories of all kinds of actions that we do, which is as part of the seventeenth (Penultimate) “Adhyaaya”. In these lines, we’ve witnessed an example wherein Bhagawan classifies “Aahaaram” (Food) into three types – “Saathvika Aahaaram”, “Raajasa Aahaaram” and “Taamasa Aahaaram”. We’ve seen which kinds of food items come under these three types of “Aahaaram” in detail. In this way, Bhagawan classifies “Shraddha” (Dedication) into three types – “Saathvika Shraddha”, “Raajasa Shraddha” and “Taamasa Shraddha”. Bhagawan also classifies “Dhaanam” as “Saathvika Dhaanam”, “Raajasa Dhaanam” and “Taamasa Dhaanam”. Similarly, in the entire seventeenth “Adhyaaya”, Bhagawan classifies many such items into these three categories. 

Moving on further, we now enter into the last “Adhyaaya” of the Bhagawad Gita, the eighteenth “Adhyaaya” wherein Arjuna asks a very important question to Bhagawan Krishna thus – “Oh Bhagawan! There are two terms called “Thyaagam” and “Sanyaasam, which are quite common in usage. What are they? Do you think these two are implementable in reality? Moreover, I have another doubt – Many people say that it is very dangerous to perform our actions, because, there might be aftereffects for those actions, which would lead us to accumulate sins (“Paapa Karma”)! Is this true?” This is a very important question from Arjuna, which Bhagawan sorts to clarify. Bhagawan explains thus, “Oh Arjuna! Irrespective of whoever says what, your “Karma” is very important to be performed! You should never leave it at any point of time. I do not know whether performing your “Karma” would lead you to accumulate sins or not and I do not want to get into all those arguments! Performing your actions as per the “Shaastras” are very important and you should meticulously try and implement whatever the “Vedas” and “Shaastras” are telling. This is very important and this is what will lead you to “Bhakti”!”

This answer from Bhagawan Krishna is extremely important for all of us too – For instance, “Nitya Karma” like “Sandhyavandanam”, “Tarpanam” during “Amaavaasya” (No moon day), “Tarpanam” during “Grahanams” (Solar / Lunar Eclipse times) are of paramount importance. One might ask a question here – “Oh! I’m so engrossed in “Krishna-Bhakti” all the time. Do I still need to perform all these “Nitya Karma”? Of what use are these “Nitya Karma” items to me if I’m fully following the Bhakti Maargam towards Bhagawan? For this, Bhagawan Krishna has a very important explanation – “Oh Arjuna! Please understand – You are born in this world with some innate “Vaasanas” that you’ve accumulated through your previous births! These “Vaasanas” have come to you through your “Paapa Karma” that you’ve performed earlier. These “Vaasanas” are so powerful that they can keep pulling you down every now and then from the “Bhakti Maargam”. Hence, you need to keep cutting down on these “Vaasanas” on a continuous basis. This cannot happen overnight or within just a single day. You need constant interventions to cut them down. Thus, in order to do so, you need to keep performing your “Nitya-Anushtaanams” or “Nitya-Karma” on a regular basis. The more you’re meticulous and systematic in your “Nitya-Karma”, this would serve as a timely intervention to cut down your “Vaasanas” and thereby strengthening your path towards the “Bhakti Maargam”! Oh Arjuna! Please remember one thing clearly – Commencing the “Bhakti Maargam” is easy, but sustaining it is very difficult! Hence, in order to ensure a long-time sustainability in the “Bhakti Maargam”, you need the timely interventions in the form of your  “Nitya-Karma” in terms of your “Sandhyavandanam”, “Yaagas”, “Yagnyams”, etc.!” 

The message is loud and clear here – For all those people out there who are trying to question the need to perform our “Sandhyavandanam” regularly – Bhagawan Krishna has a straightforward and a hard-hitting answer! So for today, let us understand this very clearly and we shall continue this discussion in the next episode as well! Stay tuned! 🙂

In the previous episode, we had witnessed Bhagawan Krishna explaining the different kinds of “Aahaaram” that we need to avoid – This comes as part of the discussion wherein Bhagawan classifies “Aahaaram” into “Saathvika Aahaaram”, “Raajasa Aahaaram” and “Taamasa Aahaaram”. As we know, “Saathvika Aahaaram” is nothing but a complete balanced diet with the right amount of nutrients in it. However, “Raajasa Aahaaram” is something wherein there is excessive amounts of salt, sugar, cholesterol, fat, etc. in the food. “Taamasa Aahaaram” is something wherein the food has got stale, emitting a foul smell, has been cooked before several days with added preservatives, and the one which hasn’t been offered as “Naivedhya” to Bhagawan. We should have a detailed discussion on these kinds of “Aahaaram” as we move on with the last part of the Bhagawad Gita. 

In today’s context, this assumes a lot of significance because we have the habit of having “Fast foods” and “Junk foods”. Now what are “fast foods”? Fast foods are those items which are quite popular in restaurants today across the world that are excessive in oil, fat, cholesterol, carbohydrates and salt. Moreover, fast foods also may contain several types of salts other than the normal Sodium Chloride that we employ for cooking, such as “Soda”. Restaurants normally use “Soda” for cooking so that, even if the consumer eats a small quantity of the food, he / she feels full! In other words, this “Soda” salt is employed to limit consumption. It might be a good idea commercially, but there are enormous health implications that we might have, if we consume such foods which have chemicals in them. Firstly, such chemicals are carcinogenic in nature, which means, on a longer run, regular consumption of such foods will lead us to having cancer. Secondly, in the short-term, our stomach gets spoilt. In other words, our digestive system gets into a problem and we may land up into diseases that are caused due to indigestion. Hence, we need to be extremely careful with the food that we consume outside our home. 

Moreover, in today’s scenario, we have the culture of consuming “frozen foods” as well. This is exactly what Bhagawan Krishna wants us to avoid! When we say “frozen foods”, it obviously means that these foods were cooked several days ago and are stored in freezers so that they do not get spoiled. However, the problem here is that, for foods not to get spoiled, food manufacturing companies add a lot of preservatives. These are chemicals like vinegar (Acetic acid) which make sure that there is no foul smell emitted from the food items. Excessive usage of such chemicals may alter the original taste and the nutrient content of the food item itself. This is the potential danger that all of us face in everyday life today. For instance, if we go and buy a bottle of pickle from a shop, all that I’ve said here stands validated. In those days, we had the practice of making pickles at home itself, however, with the change in lifestyle and priorities, we’ve shunned such noble practices of cooking food items at home as much as possible. 

Thus, the point here is that if we have such food items like “fast foods”, “frozen foods”, etc. we are automatically consuming “Taamasa Aahaaram”. This is why if we look at people who are strict followers of our “Sanaatana Dharma”, they will never consume food outside of their homes. Even if they are on a long trip, they would limit themselves to consuming natural foods like fruits and vegetables, but will never consume food from outside restaurants. This is because, if they do so, their “Sathva Guna” will start coming down and their “Rajo Guna” and “Tamo Guna” will start seeing a rise! These are the value systems that exist in our great Bhaarata Desha and we need to admire them atleast, if not following them, Of course, we shall make a conscious effort to follow these value systems to the maximum extent possible. Saying thus, of course I’m not saying that we should completely stop going to restaurants and food joints. All I’m saying here is that we can limit our visits to such places for some special occasions or some unavoidable circumstances. But as far as possible, it would always be better to consume home-made food items, which obviously would be mostly “Saathvik” in nature to a larger extent. 

So let us think about this important point for today, and let us try to put this into practice slowly in whatever capacities we can. We shall wait till the next episode to witness the next important point that Bhagawan is going to explain! Stay tuned! 🙂