The Indian Dharma

In the previous episode, we had witnessed why Bhagawan Krishna picks out King Janaka in particular to illustrate how one can attain the highest “Moksha” through the path of “Karma Yoga”. Of course, this might be a tough path, but King Janaka walked this path with a lot of grit and determination, and this is something that impresses Bhagawan Krishna the most. In the entire Mahabharata text, wherever there are conversations / dialogues involving Bhagawan Krishna, we might not be able to spot Him giving examples of other people much. But here, if Bhagawan Himself has to point out one particular “Jeevatma” called King Janaka, we can understand the significance of King Janaka. Moreover, having said this, Bhagawan immediately trains His guns towards Himself as an example! Perhaps He realizes that He’s talking too much about one “Jeevatma”, which might not be fair, and thus, once again talks about Himself thus, “Oh Arjuna! Look at how I’m performing the “Karma Yoga” – Being your charioteer, has there been a single day wherein I’ve failed to take care of the horses of your chariot? Every passing moment, I caress the horses, feed them with water and straw, and take care of them as my own children. Why do you think I’m doing all these? Do you think “Karma” can even touch me? Yet, if I’m doing all these, I’m trying to illustrate to the world that it is important for each and every individual in this world to perform his / her “Karma” (Actions) meticulously without any hiccups!” 

Saying thus, Bhagawan adds further – “Oh Arjuna! You might ask me a question – If “Karma” doesn’t matter to you, why are you still doing all these? You can sit in a corner and instruct others to perform their “Karma”, can’t you? Now let me give you an answer for this question – Oh Arjuna! If I sit in a corner without performing my duty, do you know what will the world talk about me? People will say thus, ‘Oh! Bhagawan Himself faltered in His duty! If Bhagawan can falter, why can’t we?’ Similarly, Oh Arjuna! You also have a similar stature as me – You’re a king of a territory. If you fail to perform your duty, a hundred other people behind you will follow your example and will try to escape from performing their duties! How can you let this happen? Hence, as a leader, you should be a role model to everyone around you. You should not show the path of escapism to your followers and people. If you run away from the battlefield today without fighting the war, people are not only going to make fun of you, but are also going to consider you as an example and are not going to fight for the cause of “Dharma”! If such a thing happens, how will you protect the “Dharma” as a righteous king? By doing this escapism drama, you are not only going to influence your followers to also perform a similar stunt, but also are going to accumulate all their “Paapa Karma” on yourself! Do you really want this to happen? If you’re not performing your duty correctly, oh Arjuna! Please remember – You’re accumulating your sins! If you’re not allowing others to perform their duty, their sins will also get transferred to you! Hence, my advice to you is very simple – Take your Gaandeepa in your hands and start fighting the war! By doing so, you’re doing your duty towards “Dharma”!”

What a great philosophy is Bhagawan Krishna talking about here! Important learnings for all of us here are as follows: 

1. As a leader, one should be a role model to others – The leader should perform his / her duty sincerely and meticulously and by observing this, people around the leader will also start following suit. 
2. If the leader fails in his / her duty – He / she would set a very bad example for others to follow! People will start escaping from performing their duty, which would result in utter chaos in the organization / workplace / battlefield, or wherever! 
3. If the leader skips his / her duty – He / she would not only accumulate the “Paapa Karma” for himself / herself, but also would accumulate the same of others as well! He / she is not only spoiling his / her own life, but also the lives of others around! 

So for today, let us reflect on all these points explained by Bhagawan Krishna, and let us see how valid these points are to us in today’s context! We shall continue this discussion further in the next episode as well! Stay tuned! 🙂 

In the previous episode, we had witnessed Bhagawan Krishna invoking King Janaka as an epitome for attaining the highest “Moksha” by following the path of “Karma Yoga”. Till now Bhagawan Krishna had explained the theory behind “Karma Yoga” and how it works in reality. However, when Arjuna raised doubts as to whether this is really possible for normal people like us to follow, Bhagawan Krishna invokes the example of how King Janaka attained “Moksha” through the path of “Karma Yoga”. We’ve witnessed one illustration in the last episode as to how King Janaka was steadfast in his “Karma” (Actions) even though his entire kingdom was “illusioned” to be engulfed with fire by Sage Yajnavalkya. We’ve witnessed one important part of this event yesterday, and we shall continue this discussion further in today’s episode. 

Moving further thus, as all the disciples of Sage Yajnavalkya came back to the Gurukula understanding that it was just a mere illusion, they saw King Janaka sitting there steadfast in front of the Guru, without moving an inch! He was entirely focused on the learning and was not perturbed even an inch by the “so-called fire” that spread through the entire Mithilapuri Desham. Upon seeing King Janaka sitting steadfast, Sage Yajnavalkya explains to his disciples, the significance of King Janaka and how he was extremely meticulous in whatever he does. Upon hearing this, King Janaka gives his understanding of the entire situation to Sage Yajnavalkya and the others. King Janaka says thus, “Oh Sage Yajnavalkya! I’m glad that you recognised my effort. However, let me tell you my understanding behind whatever has happened – From the moment you portrayed the entire Mithilapuri Desham on fire, I immediately understood through my power of penance that it was an illusion that you’ve created through your power of penance! Hence, I did not feel the need to move from my place and I understood that my kingdom and my people are safe and secure without any problem!” 

From the above reply from King Janaka, we can understand one thing clearly – If we’re dedicated with our “Karma Yoga”, we can attain that state wherein we can clearly differentiate between which is true and which is not. When we’re thorough in our subject, nobody can take us for a ride by cheating us, right? Similarly here also, since King Janaka was steadfast in his path of spiritual upliftment, he was clearly able to understand that this was nothing but a “Yoga-Maya” (Illusion created through the power of penance). This is just one example, and there are many more which we can witness, to prove how King Janaka was an extremely scholarly person with a lot of compassion towards the entire creation! Scholarliness and Compassion (Down-to-earth) – This combination is very rare to find in this world, isn’t it? When people become scholarly, they start exhibiting superiority to a great extent, don’t they? However, King Janaka isn’t of that nature! The more scholarly he becomes, the more humble he becomes! The example which we saw above is itself a proof for this statement and this is exactly the reason why Bhagawan Krishna invokes the apt person here to explain how one can attain the highest level through the path of “Karma Yoga” itself, and nothing else is required. If we’re able to perform our actions with complete dedication and surrender to Bhagawan and without expecting the result, we are definitely walking the path of “Karma Yoga”, which will ultimately lead us to the highest “Moksha”! 

Moreover, on a lighter note, it is believed that Bhagawan wanted to praise and appreciate King Janaka, who was His father-in-law during His previous incarnation as Bhagawan Rama. We might be knowing that King Janaka was the father of Mother Sita, whom Bhagawan Rama married, and hence, King Janaka was Bhagawan Rama’s father-in-law. Of course, because Bhagawan Rama was Himself a great and a righteous king, He wouldn’t talk much. His actions will do all the talking, as we’ve witnessed during our previous Ramayana project. Hence, during that time, Bhagawan Rama was unable to appreciate King Janaka, due to His stature. Now as the Krishna-Avatara comes, Bhagawan can talk anything and everything, can’t He? 🙂 Hence, He uses this opportunity to invoke King Janaka and appreciate him for his due efforts towards “Karma Yoga”! This is of course on the lighter side! On a serious note, normally, even Bhagawan Krishna doesn’t invoke any particular individual to appreciate! We can see this across the Bhagawad Gita, or in the Mahabharata or Shrimad Bhaagawatha Puraana – Bhagawan Krishna talks a lot of philosophy but He doesn’t pick names to cite examples of whatever He talks! This is probably because He Himself has exhibited all these philosophies during His previous “Rama-Avatara”! If Bhagawan Himself has shown the way, why should He pick out other individuals to prove His points? However, if Bhagwan has to invoke King Janaka’s name in particular, we can understand how important King Janaka is, in this context! 

So for today, let us understand up to this point and we shall continue this discussion forward in the next episode as well! Stay tuned! 🙂 

In the previous episode, we had witnessed Bhagawan Krishna explaining to Arjuna as to how one should dedicate all actions towards Him and should lead a selfless life. This springs Arjuna by surprise, who asks Bhagawan Krishna as to how this is possible. For this, Bhagawan explains how to dedicate our actions to Him. For instance, if we have to consume food, we’ve to first offer the food as “Neivedhya” to Bhagawan, and only then consume it. If we do so, the food that we consume would automatically become “Prasaadham”, which has Bhagawan’s divine “Anugraha” in it. Similarly, if we’re building a house for ourselves, we should make sure that we allocate considerable space in it for Bhagawan, and should perform our “Nitya-Anushtaanam” and “Thiru-Aaraadhanam” every day. Thus, we should dedicate whatever we do to Bhagawan, and of course we can enjoy whatever result we obtain, in the name of Bhagawan’s divine “Anugraha” towards us. 

Moving on thus, Bhagawan Krishna is going to highlight a very important point here. He is now going to pull out some great illustrations of how certain people have attained the highest “Moksha” through “Karma Yoga”. He says thus, 

“Karmanaivahi samsiddhihi maashruthaa janakaalayaha!

Lokha sangrahamevaapi sampashyan tyatthumarhasi!!”

Bhagawan says through this shloka thus, “Oh Arjuna! Please look at how King Janaka has attained the highest “Moksha” purely through the “Karma Yoga”! King Janaka was a great scholar and lived the life of a “Raja-Rishi”! King Janaka knew exactly what to do and what not to do as a righteous king and through the execution of his duties perfectly, he was able to attain the highest “Moksha”! Moreover, look at me! Even though “Karma” cannot touch me, am I refraining from what I’ve to do? I’m sitting right beside you to teach you all these things! Moreover, I’m performing my duty as your charioteer as well! I’m ensuring that the horses of your chariot are well nourished with adequate food and water. I’m ensuring that your chariot doesn’t have any issues while you will be on top of it and fighting the war! So if I myself am doing my duty, what stops you from doing yours?” 

This is an important point that Bhagawan is focussing on here – We might wonder how King Janaka was so meticulous in performing his “Karma Yoga”, isn’t it? There was a day when King Janaka’s Guru, Sage Yajnavalkya wanted to illustrate to his other disciples the significance of King Janaka. Normally as the daily lesson begins, Sage Yajnavalkya would wait for King Janaka to come and take his seat before the lesson commences. This greatly irked the other disciples as they thought that Sage Yajnavalkya was biased towards King Janaka because he was a king. Hence, Sage Yajnavalkya wanted to teach a lesson to the other disciples. One day as Sage Yajnavalkya commenced the lesson for the day, he created an illusion with the help of his “Tapo-Bhalam” (Power of penance) that the entire Mithilapuri Desha was on fire! Upon seeing this illusion, all the other disciples started running here and there in panic, however, King Janaka did not get up from his seat at all! He did not even move an inch from his place! After running here and there, the other disciples came back to the Gurukula Ashrama tired and frustrated that they had never realized that it was an illusion! 

Upon realizing that the entire fire incident was an illusion, the disciples wanted an explanation from Sage Yajnavalkya as to what exactly happened. To this, Sage Yajnavalkya replies thus, “Oh disciples! Look at the dedication of King Janaka towards the lessons that I’m teaching! When all of you started running here and there, he was the only one who sat down without any panic, even though he is the king of the country! Now tell me the reason behind why all of you ran around in panic! You are all sages, and what do you have under your possession? Nothing, isn’t it? Whereas, for King Janaka, it was his entire kingdom which was on fire, and yet, he did not move an inch! What does this show? It clearly shows King Janaka’s dedication towards learning the lessons. So, this is a big understanding for all of you today as to how King Janaka is not someone who is my favourite student or anything like that! From this incident, it is clearly proven that none of you have the amount of dedication and sincerity in learning the subject as King Janaka has! Hence, instead of feeling jealous about his stature, you should learn the lessons of dedication, sincerity and uncompromising attitude towards his “Karma Yoga”!” 

Such was the reply from Sage Yajnavalkya on King Janaka! Now this is a great illustration that Bhagawan Krishna gives, so as to highlight the important point to Arjuna that it is very much possible for someone to attain the highest “Moksha” through the path of “Karma Yoga”! So for today, let us understand up to this point and in the next episode, we shall continue this discussion further! Stay tuned! 🙂 

In the previous episode, we had witnessed how the world operates as a complete and a well-knit integrated system and how Bhagawan controls its entire operation. All of us being part of this system, have our own roles to play and contributions to make, no matter whether they are small or large. When we take birth in this world, our roles and contributions commence, and it goes all the way till we die. Within this time frame, Bhagawan has also provided us with something called “intellect” with which we can perform our “Karma Yoga” in accordance with how Bhagawan wants us to perform. If we do so according to Bhagawan’s wish, we are automatically paving the way for attaining the highest “Moksha” through our actions. 

“Devaan bhaavayataanena te devaan bhaavayantuvaha!

Parasparam bhaavayantah shreyah paramavaapyasa!!”

Bhagawan explains thus, “Oh Arjuna! If the system has to run smoothly, there should be stakeholders at every touch point. For this, I’ve created the “Devatas”, who will provide the necessary wind and rain for the world to survive. If we’ve to perform the “Homam”, we give the “Aahuti” (Divine offering) to Varuna Bhagawan, who is in-charge of providing rain to the world. Thus, performing the “Homam” is our job, and providing the rain is Varuna Bhagawan’s job. Similarly, we worship Vaayu Bhagawan, whose job is to ensure that the world has adequate wind for sustaining life. Thus, the entire world operates like a cycle, isn’t it? Oh Arjuna! Please understand that you are also part of this large cycle and you have your own contributions to make to this cycle. All I’m saying here is – Join hands with everyone to rotate this cycle and for this activity of yours, I’m granting you the highest “Moksha”! 

“Yagnya shistaashinah santaha muchyante sarva kilmishaihi!

Te taham punjyate paapaaha ya pachantyaatma kaaranaath!!”

Here, Bhagawan Krishna explains clearly thus, “Oh Arjuna! Your entire life should be like a “Yagnya” or a spiritual offering to Bhagawan. Whatever you consume, it should first be offered to Bhagawan. Oh Arjuna! When do you think your entire life will be fruitful? It would be so only if your entire life is dedicated to “Yaaga” and “Yagnya” towards Bhagawan. If you only lead your life for yourself and to satisfy your pleasures, life will not be fruitful! Of course, you should get married and have children – But for what? It is your duty to create the next generation of people, with whom you should join hands and perform your “Karma Yoga” towards Bhagawan’s divine will and wish. Of course, you should build a house for yourself – But for what? To create a considerable amount of space for Bhagawan in that house and to perform the “Nitya-Anushtaanam” and “Aaraadhana”. Hence, in this way, whatever actions you do, should be dedicated to Bhagawan only!” 

We might have a question here – “If I dedicate everything to Bhagawan, what will I have for myself?” This is exactly what Arjuna asks Bhagawan Krishna too. For this, Bhagawan gives a befitting answer thus, “Oh Arjuna! Of course, you can have something for yourself too. For instance, you can always consume whatever you’ve offered as “Neivedhya” to Bhagawan. That becomes a “Prasadham” for you with Bhagawan’s divine “Anugraha” in it! Similarly, if you’ve to wear a dress, you shall offer it to Bhagawan and once Bhagawan wears it once, you can continue to wear it henceforth. Similarly, if you’re constructing a living space for yourself, create a considerable space for Bhagawan, and the remaining is yours! So in this way, you should live a life that is mutually complementary with Bhagawan! This would enhance your “Bhagawad Chinta” (Thought about Bhagawan) in whatever you do. By doing so, your “Paapa Karma” (Sins) will start coming down gradually! Else, if you lead a selfish life for yourself only, please understand that you’re accumulating your sins more and more!”

Saying thus, Bhagawan Krishna teaches Arjuna and of course all of us as to how we should lead our lives with Bhagawan’s thoughts running all over us! So for today, let us understand this important point and in the next episode, we shall continue this discussion further! Stay tuned! 🙂

In the previous episode, we had witnessed how the world functions as a “System” and how Bhagawan has created it so meticulously. This system is obviously led by Bhagawan, who keeps a cautious and an accurate track of all the “Karma” that each of us are performing here. In due course, we’ve also witnessed how Bhagawan has created items associated with the “Karma” that we perform. We saw an instance about how performing a “Homa” (Spiritual offering) may be considered as a very important “Karma” and how there are enormous things associated with it – For instance, ghee, wooden logs, flowers, fruits, rice, dal, etc. For preparing all these items, we need other people, animals, plants, etc. Hence, all these are closely knit to each other and this is why we say that “Mother Nature” is extremely skillful in terms of its creation! Thus, by creating this system, Bhagawan has given all of us an opportunity to perform our “Karma” in the way He wants us to perform. 

Till now we’ve witnessed how Bhagawan has created all the “Jeevatmas” who work in tandem for achieving something in this world. In the same way, to assist these “Jeevatmas”, Bhagawan has also created the five major elements as well – We have the fire, earth, wind, water and sky. We shall take the same example of performing the “Karma” called “Homam” for Bhagawan as a divine spiritual offering. Of course, as all of us know, the main portion of the “Homam” is performing our offerings to “Agni Bhagawan”. As “Agni Bhagawan” represents the “Fire” element of Bhagawan’s creation, this is taken care of. In order to enable the fire to burn, we need Oxygen, isn’t it? This Oxygen is obtained from the “Wind” element of Bhagawan’s creation. Moreover, the “Wind” element is also necessary for many other things associated with the items that we offer as “Neivedhya” (Offerings to Bhagawan). For instance, if we’ve to offer cooked rice as a “Neivedhya”, we of course require heat to boil it, along with the “Water” element as well, right? If we’ve to move a step backward, rice grains are obtained from paddy, which are grown extensively on the ground. Hence, the “Earth” or “Soil” element of Bhagawan’s creation is of paramount importance. Along with the “Earth” element, we also need the “Water” and “Wind” elements to provide sufficient Oxygen / Carbon dioxide for the paddy to grow. Hence, we can see how this system is closely integrated with the five important elements of the world. 

Thus, we can see how much effort Bhagawan has taken to create so many things for our “Jeevatma” to attain the highest “Moksha”. The “Jeevatma” has to utilize all these resources / facilities provided by Bhagawan to strive and perform our duty correctly with Bhagawan in thoughts and mind, isn’t it? We should understand here that if this entire system has to function correctly, all the elements associated with this system should work in tandem and with accurate integration, isn’t it? Thus, isn’t it our duty to contribute whatever little we can, for the system to run correctly? So now the question here is – How do we contribute to the proper functioning of this system? This is what we call in modern day management as “Systems Thinking” and is gaining a lot of prominence today. 

So how do we apply the “Systems Thinking “ concept to what Bhagawan is explaining here? Let us take an example of a chariot being pulled as part of a temple festival. Many of us might be knowing that the chariot normally will be very heavy and cannot be pulled so easily. We need atleast a hundred or two hundred people coming together to pull the chariot. Many of us might just touch the chariot, worship it and come back without pulling it! Only a few of them might be taking deep breaths, putting in a lot of physical effort and pulling it, isn’t it? 🙂 Of course, this is on a lighter side, but most importantly, we’ve to understand one thing clearly – Because the chariot is extremely heavy, we see how people work in tandem to pull it through. This requires coordination, team effort and focused thinking, isn’t it? This is exactly what happens in the larger world as well – If we’ve to attain “Moksha”, most of the time, we might not be able to do it all by ourselves. We need the help and coordination of many other “Jeevatmas” and also many other associated items to succeed in our mission! 

Thus, performing our actions meticulously is the only way through which we can attain “Moksha”, and this is the significance of the “Karma Yoga” which Bhagawan Krishna is explaining to Arjuna here. So for today, let us understand this concept of “Systems Thinking” very clearly and let us wait till the next episode to take this discussion forward! Stay tuned! 🙂

In the previous episode, we had witnessed how all “Jeevatmas” in this world have a definitive role to play and how each one of us have a significant contribution to make for the betterment of this world. Bhagawan Krishna explains this to Arjuna to drive home the important point that he, as a “Kshatrya” warrior, has to live up to the occasion and fight for “Dharma”, which is his duty and contribution to the betterment of the world. In similar lines, all of us have our own small roles to play in terms of upholding our “Sanaatana Dharma”. All these roles are of course controlled by Bhagawan, who has skilfully allocated the right roles for the right people. Just like how a government spurts the economy by coming up with several infrastructure projects wherein thousands of people get employment, Bhagawan too spurts the world by giving “spiritual employment” for all of us! 🙂 So this is something that all of us need to understand. 

Moreover, we’ve also witnessed yet another important pointer that even for a “Gnyaana Yogi” to tread this tough path, “Karma” becomes important. For performing the “Gnyaana Yoga”, our physical body is important. To nurture and maintain our physical body intact, we need to perform the “Karma Yoga” which is necessary for it. Hence, even for a “Gnyaana Yogi”, there is no escape route from the “Karma Yoga”. Thus, while performing the “Karma Yoga”, many associated items / tasks become significant. For instance, if a Brahmana Rishi has to tread the path of “Gnyaana Yoga”, he / she has to perform the associated “Karma” for it – For instance, if the Rishi wants to perform something that would enhance world peace, he should perform the associated “Yagnyas” and “Homas”. For performing the “Homas”, the Vedas and Upanishads are required. This is why Bhagawan created the four Vedas – Rig, Yajur, Sama and Atharvana Vedas. For each and every purpose in this world, there is a remedial measure prescribed in the Vedas, and we’ve witnessed this in our earlier episodes as well. 

Thus, as the Vedas and Upanishads are created to perform specific Homas / Spiritual Practices to attain specific purposes, there are other physical materials that are required to perform the Homas, isn’t it? For instance, we need the fire (“Agni Bhagawan”) to be worshipped as part of the spiritual practice. For the fire to be grown, we need ghee. For obtaining the ghee we need milk. For obtaining milk, we need cows. This is why Bhagawan has created a “Jeevatma” called “cow” and this is why the cow is revered and worshipped as part of our “Sanaatana Dharma”. Similarly, for developing the fire, we need wooden logs and also the dung of cows. Where would the wooden logs come from? We need trees, don’t we? This is why Bhagawan has created enormous species of trees. Similarly, we need many other “Dhravyas” that are needed to perform the “Homa” and all these “Dhravyas” have a specific origin in nature, don’t they? Hence, for everything and anything in this world, nature has a remedy and an origin. For instance, if we are required to construct a building, we require so many materials like water, sand, cement, bricks, etc., isn’t it? Where do we get sand from? We obtain it mostly from river beds, don’t we? Where do we source water from – Obviously from many natural water sources like rivers, underground water, lakes, ponds, etc. which store rain water, isn’t it? 

Hence, if we have to go deeper into everything that we perform in this world, there is a connection to nature. This is why Bhagawan Krishna clearly explains that for every “Karma” (Action) that is performed by us in this world, there are “n” number of associated actions that many people perform around us. We might or might not be aware of all these associated actions, but these things take place simultaneously! This is how a “system” or  “machinery” is created in this world and Bhagawan is the director of this large system! So for today, let us understand this concept clearly and we shall wait till the next episode to continue this discussion further! Stay tuned! 🙂

In the previous episode, we’ve come across a very important point from Bhagawan Krishna as He explains how the path of “Karma Yoga” might be tough and long, but still it is the one which is feasible for normal people like us. Rather than taking the “Gnyaana Yoga” path to reach the “Atma-Saakshaakaaram”, wherein this path might be a shortcut, but is like walking on a thin knife-edge, the “Karma Yoga” path is still better to take, even if it is circuitous. In modern-day leadership and management context, this translates to putting the due effort to succeed in whatever task we undertake, rather than finding out shortcuts to succeed. This has become the talk of the town today, as we witness many people in our society around us trying to find easier ways of making money and a good living. Of course, on one hand we have people like us who are qualified enough to work with a good organization and earn money, whereas, on the other hand we have some crude and uneducated people like our listless politicians whose only job is to loot others and make money and a luxurious living! The ultimate motive of such listless and useless people is to somehow make money, find loopholes in the law and cheat others to score personal brownie points. If these people have to earn money through legitimate ways and means, they are totally unqualified and unfit for the same and such people are a real burden to this Mother Earth, isn’t it? Hence, the point here is very simple – There’s no shortcut to success! We’ve to put in the effort, perform our duty meticulously with complete surrender to Bhagawan, and results would automatically come with His divine “Anugraha”! As ardent followers of our “Sanaatana Dharma”, this should be our strategy moving forward! 

Moreover, Bhagawan Krishna continues to ask some tough questions to Arjuna thus, “Oh Arjuna! Look at this irony of life – If you’ve to become a “Gnyaana Yogi”, you’ve to sit and meditate, isn’t it? You’ve to bring your mind under focus and control. For this, you need a “Deham” (Physical body)! If you’ve to meditate properly with complete focus, your “Deham” should also co-operate equally. For this, you’ve to nourish and maintain your “Deham” properly, and for this you need wealth. Now, you’ve to again earn wealth to sustain your living, isn’t it? Earning wealth for your sustenance again becomes part of your “Karma Yoga”! Hence, Arjuna! Look at this irony – Even for a “Gnyaana Yogi” to succeed in his pursuit, he needs to go through the “Karma Yoga”! Hence, please understand one thing very clearly – You cannot escape from your duty, come what may! You’ve to perform your duty and with this effort, you may try to go through the “Gnyaana Yoga” path later on!”

Saying thus, Bhagawan continues further thus, “Oh Arjuna! It is for this main reason that I’ve created this entire world! All the “Jeevatmas” in this world, including you, have a role to play in this world. By performing your duty in this world, you’re participating for the betterment of this world. Your contribution is very important. Just like yours, the participation and contribution of every “Jeevatma” in this world is important! This is the setup that exists and you’re also part of this setup only. You cannot escape this at any cost!” 

Now this is an important point that Bhagawan is stressing here – To understand this better, let me give a simpler example. Let us imagine that our country is entering into a recession or a downward economic cycle. What will the government do to spurt the economy again? The first focus would be to increase spending on developing infrastructure like highways, airports, building bridges, flyovers, etc. thereby improving connectivity. We might wonder what is the connection between addressing a recession / economic downturn and developing infrastructure and connectivity across the country. If such projects are taken up on a massive scale, the government is pumping in a lot of money into these projects, which would give an opportunity for people to get employment to earn a living. For instance, if there’s a highway project being executed, many thousands of people will get jobs in construction and other associated activities, isn’t it? Thus with this, people will get money in hand, which contributes directly to disposable income. With this income, people’s purchasing power will increase and they will go and start buying a lot of items. With this, the production of goods and services will increase, thereby, resulting in the revival of the economy, isn’t it? Similarly, when infrastructure projects like highways, bridges, airports, etc. are taken up, demand for construction items like steel, cement, bricks, sand, etc. will start growing, isn’t it? Hence, the manufacturing sector gets a big boost in terms of demand for their products, isn’t it? This is how the government runs the economy and this is exactly how Bhagawan also runs the world! He has created this world with all of us in it, and each of us have a role to play in terms of betterment of this world. This forms part of our “Karma” and if we do it selflessly, we realize the “Atma-Saakshaakaram”! 

So for today, let us understand up to this point and in the next episode, we shall take it further for discussion! Stay tuned! 🙂

In the previous episode, we had witnessed Bhagawan Krishna modifying His explanation a bit, to suit Arjuna’s smart question of skipping his “Karma Yoga” somehow and straightaway going to the “Gnyaana Yoga”. In order to make Arjuna understand that without passing through the “Karma Yoga” stage, it is impossible to go to the next level of “Gnyaana Yoga”, Bhagawan Krishna comfortably removes off the “Gnyaana Yoga” from the entire scheme of things, and explains that one can attain the “Atma-Saakshaakaaram” by traversing through the “Karma Yoga” itself. This comes as a shocker for Arjuna and from now onwards, it is high time that he shuns this idea of somehow escaping from the battlefield to perform penance in the forest! 

Moving on thus, Bhagawan Krishna further convinces Arjuna – “Oh Arjuna! Please understand one thing – I’ve created certain people who are fit for “Karma Yoga” and I’ve created certain other people who are fit for “Gnyaana Yoga”. Most of us would fall into the first list wherein “Karma Yoga” is the only option. For instance, tell me one child on this earth who is starting to meditate with Bhagawan in mind, right from day one of birth! It is not possible, isn’t it? Thus, whenever the child cries for milk, rolls on the floor / bed upside down with some sort of a purpose, etc. – It is all part of the “Karma” of the child. Thus, all of us are born with “Karma” only. Hence, if such is the case, how will we be able to transcend to the “Gnyaana Yoga” so easily? The basic prerequisite for practising “Gnyaana Yoga” is complete control of senses. Right from childhood are you trained to do this? The answer is “No”! Thus, for normal people who do not have control over senses, “Karma Yoga” is the best path to realize the “Atma-Saakshaakaaram”. The “Gnyaana Yoga” path is only for those who have attained that level of sense control!” 

Bhagawan Krishna continues further thus, “Oh Arjuna! Please remember – If you traverse the “Gnyaana Yoga” path, there is extremely very little margin for error. One mistake you make, and you’ve to start from the beginning once again! Do you have the patience and perseverance for this? For instance, if you’re sitting and meditating, one slip of your mind into some worldly pleasures, and you’re gone! Your priorities will drastically shift once and for all, and it would be very difficult for you to regain whatever you’ve lost! “Gnyaana Yoga” is like walking on a knife edge and is not as easy as you think! I can tell you hundreds of examples wherein people have undertaken this path and failed miserably! Even great sages have fallen prey to the mind and with that one slip, they’ve entered into desires, anger, etc., which would completely thwart your progress!”

Even in our daily lives we come across a common situation – To reach a destination from our home, we might have two routes – One might be a shorter route, but with a lot of potholes or traffic on the road and the other might be a longer route but the road conditions might be good and with lesser traffic. Now which one do we choose? Normally we might prefer the longer route, even though there is a shortcut, isn’t it? Why do we do so? It is solely because we do not want to get stuck up somewhere and thereby fail to reach our destination. Rather, it would be better if we traverse a longer route, but with utmost safety and surety that we would reach our destination comfortably. This is exactly what Bhagawan is also explaining here – The path of “Gnyaana Yoga” might be deemed to be a shortcut and might be tempting to take! However, this shortcut is like a road full of potholes and heavy traffic. One slip and we would end up meeting with an accident, isn’t it? However, the “Karma Yoga” is a circuitous path, but the road is clear and good. Hence, it is always safe for us to traverse the path which guarantees safety, isn’t it? Hence, Bhagawan Krishna advises Arjuna that it is better to take the path of “Karma Yoga” and attain “Atma-Saakshaakaaram”, even though the process might take time and effort. 

In leadership and management we always keep saying – “There is no shortcut for success”, isn’t it? This is exactly what Bhagawan Krishna is teaching us through the Bhagawad Gita! So for today, let us understand this point clearly and this is something which is applicable to all of us as well. We shall continue this discussion in the next episode as well to have an in-depth understanding on this point! Stay tuned! 🙂

In the previous episode, we had witnessed how one cannot bypass the “Karma Yoga” to enter into the “Gnyaana Yoga”, even though the latter might sound to be quite simple and tempting. This is primarily because we do not have complete control over our senses and our mind. By performing our actions (“Karma”) selflessly without expecting the result and by dedicating them to Bhagawan, we shall slowly attain control over the mind, which in turn will stop running behind the worldly pleasures that our senses would want to experience. This is exactly what Bhagawan Krishna is cautioning Arjuna. We’ve witnessed how Arjuna smartly asked Bhagawan Krishna whether he can still find a way to escape from the battlefield and go to the forest to do deep penance like several other sages. However, Bhagawan Krishna promptly strikes him down by saying that he wouldn’t be able to do penance at all, and “Gnyaana Yoga” isn’t the right path for him. This is primarily because, Arjuna, being a “Kshatrya” will easily get tempted if Duryodhana and Karna provoke him and make fun of him for being a coward! In that stage, Arjuna’s ego would definitely flare up and he would once again want to come to the battlefield to fight them down! Hence, Bhagawan is of the opinion that it is better for Arjuna to perform his “Karma Yoga” (Fighting the war), rather than escaping from his duty! 

Now, as Arjuna is asking such smart questions, Bhagawan Krishna slightly tinkers with the stepwise progression that He was talking about till now. Until this moment, Bhagawan was talking about the sequence as follows: 

“Karma Yoga” -> Control of our senses -> Clarity of mind & mind control -> “Atma-Gnyaanam” -> “Gnyaana Yogam” -> “Atma-Saakshaakaaram” 

Now the progression undergoes a slight modification here. Bhagawan Krishna says thus, “Oh Arjuna! You’re getting confused, aren’t you? Now let me simplify the progression for you a little bit! Oh Arjuna! Let me tell you now – If you keep performing your duty (“Karma Yoga”) properly with full dedication and surrender to me, you would automatically go to the level of “Amta-Saakshaakaaram”! Keeping the “Gnyaana Yoga” in the middle is confusing you a lot and you’re trying to deviate from the sequence, aren’t you? Now take it from me – Do your “Karma Yoga” properly. All the other aspects in the sequence will automatically be taken care of!” With Bhagawan Krishna’s words, now we can see that the sequence undergoes a major modification – The “Gnyaana Yoga” component is now completely taken off! The revised sequence is as follows: 

“Karma Yoga” -> Control of our senses -> Clarity of mind & mind control -> “Atma-Gnyaanam” -> “Atma-Saakshaakaaram” 

Now we can see that the “Gnyaana Yoga” component is taken off from the sequence! This is because Arjuna has discovered the short-cut to attain Bhagawan, isn’t it? He’s smartly asking whether he can completely leave behind the “Karma Yoga”, catch the “Gnyaana Yoga” and attain “Moksha”. This is not going to be possible at all for normal people like Arjuna and all of us as well. I’m sure we would also be having this same short-cut in our mind, so that we can escape from performing our duties! For all of us, Bhagawan Krishna smartly revises the sequence wherein the “Gnyaana Yoga” component is completely removed off from it! This implies that people like us who have our “Rajo Guna” and “Tamo Guna” dominating most of the time, have to pass through the “Karma Yoga” without fail! There is virtually no way out! Hence, the point here is very simple – If we’re destined with our duties, we’ve to perform them meticulously and through that, we would be able to attain “Atma-Saakshaakaaram”, rather than escaping from our duties and sitting to meditate on Bhagawan. 

This is a very important point that Bhagawan is stressing here, and for today, let us understand it very clearly. For instance, if we have our duties like “Sandhyavandanam”, “Chanting our regular prayers”, performing our “Shraadha Karma”, etc. for being born in this world, we’ve to meticulously perform all these actions without escaping from them. We shall have an important discussion on this particular point in the next episode before moving on further with what Bhagawan Krishna has to say! Stay tuned! 🙂

In the previous episode, we had witnessed Bhagawan Krishna getting slightly angry with Arjuna, who only tries to escape at every instance! While Bhagawan explains a bit about the “Gnyaana Yoga”, Arjuna gets tempted immediately to leave off the “Karma Yoga” and switch to the “Gnyaana Yoga” by closing his eyes and sitting in the forest! However, Bhagawan Krishna ups the ante against Arjuna all of a sudden and asks him a tough question – How would he be able to meditate without achieving control over senses? If he goes now and sits in the forest, what if Karna and Duryodhana come and provoke him? If such a situation happens, which is quite inevitable, how will Arjuna react? Will he be able to ignore both of them and prioritize the “Gnyaana Yoga”? Arjuna would definitely not be able to do this! The moment Duryodhana comes and provokes, Arjuna would fume with anger and will try to retaliate, isn’t it? So what will happen to the priority of Bhagawan, with which he would commence the “Gnyaana Yoga”? 

Of course, this is not to blame Arjuna, but this is the characteristic of a “Kshatrya” warrior. For great warriors like Arjuna, fighting and protecting the country from “Adharma” should be the topmost priority. Their fierce characteristics will force them to go on the offensive if someone provokes them, and this is their innate nature. Hence, for such people, will “Gnyaana Yoga” be of any effect? Whereas, for great sages, who are involved in penance for years together, focusing on Bhagawan as they sit in a place would be easier. Thus, we’ve to understand one thing clearly again – If someone tells us that Bhagawan Krishna has induced Arjuna into violence and war, here is the answer to them – Bhagawan Krishna induces Arjuna into fighting the war, because it is his “Karma” and nothing else. In fact, the entire “Karma Yoga” is all about seeing Bhagawan through the actions that we perform. All of us have our own duties to fulfil in our lives and we cannot compare one’s duties with another’s. Even professional commitments become part of our duties only. For instance, if I’m a professor in an academic institution, I should perform my duties as a professor with my 100% effort, dedicating it to Bhagawan. However, just because I’m seeing someone meditating for a long time and spending a lot of time in spiritual practice in temples and places of worship, I might get tempted because this person seems to be getting more opportunities to spend time in Bhagawan’s vicinity! However, can I leave my duty as a professor and come and join this person in performing meditation and other spiritual practices? If I do so, immediately the next moment, I would start thinking of how I would have been if I had continued to be a professor in my institution! My mind and senses would be uncontrollable, wouldn’t they? This is where we’ve to realize that the route to attain Bhagawan for different people would be different. This is why Bhagawan is advising us to perform our duty sincerely and meticulously by dedicating them to Him, and if we do this correctly, we would automatically become eligible to go to the next level of “Gnyaana Yoga” as time progresses. 

Thus, the fundamental aspect that we’ve to consider here for the “Gnyaana Yoga” is complete control of our senses and mind. For this to happen, performing the “Karma Yoga” is very important, and this is perhaps the only way to do it. While performing our actions dedicatedly to Bhagawan, slowly and steadily our mind will start coming under control. If our mind comes under control, our senses will also slowly cease to run behind worldly pleasures and desires. If we’re reaching this stage, we shall be able to sit to meditate with 100% focus. However, if we simply sit to meditate, just because we do not have interest in performing the “Karma Yoga”, it is only mere escapism and nothing else! This is exactly why Bhagawan Krishna is getting angry at Arjuna. It is very clear here that Arjuna, being a “Kshatrya” warrior, will easily get carried away by his ego when someone provokes him from the opposite camp. Thus, Bhagawan advises Arjuna that the only way for him to walk the spiritual path is by performing his duty (fighting the war)! 

So for today, let us understand the in-depth meaning behind Bhagawan Krishna’s words and we shall continue this discussion forward in the next episode as well! Stay tuned! 🙂