A respectful tribute to Srimad Bhagavad Gita

Today, the Margashira Shukla Yekadashi day, #Gita Jayanti is being celebrated across the globe to commemorate the origin of Bhagvad Gita. It was the day on which the 18-day Great War between Kauravas and #Pandavas broke out. Lord Krishna was asked by a proud Arjun to park the chariot at the centre of the Army. Lord Krishna was a great psychiatrist too and He wanted to make not only Arjun but also the entire humanity understand the nuances of lif...e. Therefore, Lord Krishna wantonly parked the chariot in such a location from where Arjuna could easily view the likes of most revered #Bheeshma Pitamaha, Guru Sri Donacharya, Krupa, #Ashwatthama, apart from his brothers Duryodhana, Dushshasana and a host of others. Another point to be taken note of is that, according to a rough estimate, about one-tenth of the then population of the entire globe, was involved directly and indirectly in that Kurukshetra. While refusing to fight, Arjuna pointed out that with such a huge population being on the verge of destruction, only widows, childless mothers, unmarried girls might remain. At that moment, Lord Krishna just says, “When I am there, who are you to think of birth and death? Why do you think the destruction of this corporal body as the end of life or life-cycle? Why do you think those standing against you are your near and dear? With what authority do you think you are going to fight and you are going to kill everyone?” This has become the universal, non-sectarian and eternal philosophy that touches all aspects of human world. It is historical, philosophical, political, didactic, epigrammatic, sociological and all-in-one work that is beyond the precincts of time, age and class. 

Gita Jayanti is celebrated worldwide by all devotees of Lord Krishna. En-masse recitation of all 700 verses of the Gita are chanted on this day. Some devotees fast on this day as it coincides with Yekadashi Bhajans and special Pujas are performed to mark the special occasion. Discourses, lectures, debates are also held on Gita. 

In Malaysia, the Gita Jayanti Team celebrates the occasion annually.

In Singapore, Gita Jayanti is celebrated on a grand scale for about a month. Each year, a different organisation from among 36 such organisations takes the responsibility of organising the programmes and coordinating with others.

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JADABHARATOPAKHYANA XII

Jadabharata was so prolific and knowledgeable that his logical establishment of truth about certain intricate aspects of life took Rahugana by surprise. As Jadabharata went on speaking, Rahuhana had nothing else to do but hear, understand and assimilate. In fact the situation was such that Rahugana forgot that he was on the way to meeting Kapila Maharshi and that he was a king. On the contrary, Jadabharata remembered that he was the king and Rahugana, by a matter of sheer chance and his Karmic exaltation, had ascended the same throne on which Jadabharata was seated in his past life. Jadabharata says now:

Sa VAsanAtmA viShayOparaktO guNapravAhO vikrutaha ShODashAtgmA|

Chitram PrThangnAmaBhee rUpaBhedamantarbahiShThaha swapuraistanOti||

DuhKham SuKham vyatimishram cha teevram kAlOpapannam PhalamAvyanakti|

Aalingya mAyArachitAntarAtmA swadEhinam samskritichakrakUTam||Sri Madhwacharya’s Bhagavata Tatparya Nirnaya Panchama Skandha||

(There is no word in English for Manas apart from Mind and hence please treat mind in this particular context as Manas.)

Mind is comprising of the Trigunas namely Satwika, Rajasa and Tamasa. Therefore, the mind is home for the qualities, traits or characters emanating from these Trigunas and their innumerable combinations. In the Lingashareera or the human body that possesses Shodashakalas or

sixteen skills, the most important aspect or part is this very mind. Call it the culprit or the beacon of knowledge. Driven by the Samskara or the merits and demerits of previous lives, the mind assigns to the human being various names, shapes like the form of a human, Deva, Asura etc., in accordance with the Papakarmas, the positive or negative energies emanating from human action, thought and deeds. These things may happen in dreams or when the human being is awake. When the being is awake, the mind directs the actions and reactions through the sensory organs and such actions and reactions may be sinful, virtuous, meritorious, pious so on and so forth. By doing so, the mind creates the prospective forms such as Deva, Asura and Manushya to the human being. 

This mind, which is made up of the will of the Lord and the Nature (five elements), stays and embraces the human body in which it stays. Under the influence of the uncontrollable Time that invariably brings with it the feelings or senses of mirth, wrath, distress, saddity or variations and combinations of these senses. This further creates heaps and heaps of bliss, ecstasy, sin, displeasure, dejection, depression, unhappiness and discomfiture that keep repeating in human life and that is what is the cycles of Karma, the cycles of birth and death from which there is no escape at all. (To be continued. If you like it, kindly share it)

JADABHARATOPAKHYANA - PART XI

The transformation that Emperor Bharata undergoes from his royal life to that of Bharata Muni, Deer and then to Jadabharata is something fictitious despite being factual. Now, Jadabharata begins analysing the questions of Rahugana, who lost no time in realising that Jadabharata was not what or how he appeared physically. Rahugana asks Jadabharata to further explain the total, unparalleled, indescribable and unintelligible independence, compared to all other beings, including other deities. Rahugana wanted to know why the Jeeva or the being does not have the Kartrutva. Jadabharata replies: "It is very simple. The thoughts in a being arise due to Sattwa, RajO and TamO GuNas or varied combinations of these three Gunas or qualities or traits. The fact is that no being has any control over these qualities as they are derived from Karmas, which are predetermined and predirected by the Lord.

TaThaiva rAjannurgArhamEDha vitAnavidyOruvijrumBhitEShu|

Na vEdavAdEShu hi tattwavAdaha prAyENa shudDhO nu chakAstisADhu||

The Kalpasutra and other scriptures might extol that the most auspicious, expensive and meritorious Yagas that a Gruhastha performs are driven by his own Karma, which is not entire true. It is relatively true. It is more an exterior and outwardly perception. Lord alone prompts the Jeeva to perform the Yagna and receives all the offerings himself.Jeeva will consume or experience whatever the Lord 'wills and delivers' of his own judgement. Not all can clearly understand that what is outwardly conceived is falsification and that the inward effect, impact and merit is beyond perception. Only those who have learnt the intricacies of Shastra can understand a little about this secret of Karma Yoga and others cannot even understand an iota of this hard truth. 

Garuda Purana further affirms: 

Na vEdEShwalpabudDheenAm Brahmatattwam sameekShyatE|

MalhAbudDhistu vEdEShu pashyEd Brahmaiva kEvalam||

For those semi-knowledgeable, who are unaware of culture and tradition, the Vedic concepts like 'SwargakAmO yajEta' etc., that state that through Aradhana or devotion to Hari alone, the inducement to perform Yaga arises in one's mind, cannot be realised at all. Only those aware of culture and tradition can know such things through VAkyasamanvaya or correction of sentences and Padasamanvaya or correlation of words. This is because each sentence, word and syllable in spiritual texts convey different meanings, depending on one's inherent Karma Yoga and the related capacity to decipher the intricacies. (To be continued....)

ORIGIN OF KARTIKEYA

TapyamanE TapO dEvEsEndrAha sagnipurOgamAha|

SEnApatimabheessantaha pitAmahamupAgaman||

With Lord Shiva engaged in a deep penance in Himavatprabhavashikhara, prominent deities like Agni, the Fire God, along with Lord Indra, went to Pitamaha Brahma, with a hope to secure a capable chief commander. Agni, Indra and other deities saluted Lord Brahma and said: 

“Lord, earlier, Lord Shiva earlier handed over a commander in the form of an embryo and retired to Himalayas, along with Umadevi and is presently engaged in an arduous penance. Please think what we should do next to secure an efficient chief commander for the welfare of the universe, for punishing the evil and protecting the pious. You are well aware of the method involved and the secret behind the issue. You are the only savior for us.”

Brahma, the Lord of all the three worlds, listened to the appeal of deities, consoled them with sweet words and said: 

“Oh deities, there is no escape for you from the curse ‘Na prajAha swasupatnishu” — there is no chance for you to beget children from your wives — delivered by Umadevi. That is a true statement. There is no doubt in this. Therefore, henceforth you will not beget sons from your wives. Destroyer of enemies and chief commander of the army of deities will be none else than the one Lord Agni would beget from most mystic, sky-flowing Ganga Devi. Being the eldest daughter of Himavanta, Goddess Ganga will naturally look after the child born for Lord Agni from her. That will not enrage Uma either. It is because, hasn’t that radiation of the prospective chief commander in the form of embryo originated from the union of Shiva and Uma? Uma too will be impressed if that divine child is borne by her elder sister. There can be least doubt about this.”” 

Rama, after hearing the sweet words of Lord Brahma, they felt that their wish had been realised, saluted and worshipped Lord Brahma again. All the deities went to Mount Kailas, which was bound by springs, streams and mines of various ores, and offered prayers to Lord Agni, as advised by Lord Brahma, with the intent of securing a chief commander: 

“Yagneshwara, please accomplish this task for the sake of all deities. Please release the radiation of Lord Shiva, which is in the form of an embryo of Kartikeya, into Ganga River.”

“May that be so. I will do as you have told me.” Pledging that way in front of all the deities, Lord Agni took the radiation of Lord Shiva, went near Akasha (sky) Ganga and told her: 

“Oh Shylaputri, please bear this Retas of Lord Shiva in your womb as such an act of yours will please the deities.”

JADABHARATA - PART IX

(In the previous episode, Jadabharata was clarifying on the concept of Jeevanmrityu tattwam and in this instance, he analyses the word ‘swaswambibhava)

The Shloka is:

SwaswamiBhAvO Dhruva yESha Yatra tarhyachyutE krutyayOgaha||

Jadabharata tells Rahugana: “The difference between the Sw2ami and the Bhrutya or the Lord and Servant is temporal. If this difference was permanent in nature, then I could have transacted with you as a servant. You could order me too.”

The word “TarhyachyutE(a)sAviti” leaves no suspicion about what Jadabharata was trying to prove. The permanent Lordship rests with one and only Achyuta. He is called as Achyuta because He is not susceptible to “chyuta” or decline, decrease or destruction. “A” serves here as the qualifying vowel that coverts the word “Chyuta” into an antonym. The Shashwata Bhrutyatwa or permanent servant-hood is seen in us — the humans, including Jadabharata and Rahugana. Although the world transacts all business and relationships with the disguised perception or mistaken notion of Swamy-Bhrutyatwa, in reality, none other than Achyuta, Lord Vishnu, can either be a permanent Swami or a permanent servant. Garuda Purana clearly states “SwAmitwam tu HarErEva muKhyam”. Swamitwa stays permanently and independently with Lord Hari. He is synonymous of Swamy. Similarly, to a certain extent, the Swamitwa stays permanently with other deities as well. However, their Swamitwa is not ‘independent’. The Swamitwa of deities is ‘swAmitAgataha” or a status bestowed upon them by Sri Hari. Jadabharata tells Rahugana:

“Oh Rahugana, the Lordship in persons like you is purely temporary and meant only for worldly activities. Tell me whether there is such an unconditional, unbiased, unprejudiced Lordship or Kingship among human kings. All their rank and file, status, pomp, glory and command are temporary and fully restricted to human world for worldly affairs. Due to Karma, a person may become King today and a servant tomorrow. Such differences do not occur among deities, according to Garuda Purana” (To be cont…..) 

EMERGENCE OF KARTIKEYA - BIRTH OF TARAKASURA

This is an auspicious month called Karteeka. Deepotsava is a common and sacred instance in all temples, mutts and religious institutions as it is considered highly meritorious. Even in individual houses, Deepas are invariably kept in front of the Tulsi Brindavan and the main threshold. Karteeka is a word, according to Scriptures, derived out of Star Krittika. As there are six deities representing this holy Star, who all fed breast milk to Skanda, he came to be known as Kartikeya, a person brought up by six Krittikas. Because these deities were six in number and each of them was yearning to breast feed Skanda, he wore six faces and thus became ShaDAnana, where shat means six and Anana means faces.

Background

The story of Kartikeya is mentioned in Skanda Purana, Bhagavata, Mahabharata and other holy Texts.

Diti, one of the wives of Sage Kashya, wanted to avenge the destruction of demons. Demons Hiranyaksha and Hiranyakashipu were sons of Diti from Sage Kashyapa and Sihmike, was her daughter. Diti also had several other demons. Sihmike married a Danava called Viprachitti (Vishnu Purana). Later, during the Great Churning of the Milky Ocean (Samudra Mathana), all the children of Diti died. Dejected, distressed and depressed Diti then pleaded with her husband Sage Kashyapa: “Oh great Sage, your own sons, the deities, have become very strong. They have killed all my sons. Please provide me with a son, who will be very brave, powerful, courageous and long-living. He should be able to kill Indra.” Sage Kashyapa said “Be it so” (Tathastu). However, the sage added: “You should be very pure. Wish you good luck. Do a tapas (penance) to beget a son.”

Diti launched a severe penance at a place called Kushaplava Kshetra. Indra came to know about the intention of Diti and joined her in disguise, pretending to serve her. He was serving her with high dedication, conviction, compassion and commitment. Diti, unaware of the intrinsic intentions of Indra, once said “My child, there is no one to lend any sort of support to you. I am doing penance only to clear this situation. You will soon have a younger brother as my penance will soon be over.” Being fully aware of what Diti had in her mind, Indra continued to serve without giving her a clue about his intentions, albeit waiting for an opportunity to subvert the plans of Diti. (To be contd…)    

JADABHARATA - PART VIII

King Rahugana was dumbfounded with the eloquence and logical reply that Jadabharata was giving. Jadabharata was sharp, non-committal and straight forward. He never bothered about the status of Rahugana. Jadabharata said:

Jeevanmrutatwam niyamEna rAjannAdyantavad yad vikrutasya druShTam|

SwaswAmiBhAvO Dhruva yESha yatra tarhyachyutE(a)sAviti krutyayOgaha ||

VishEShabudDhErvivaram manAk cha pashyAmi yannavyavahAratO(a)nyat|

Ka Eeshwarastatra kimEshitavyamaThApi rAjan karavAma kim tE||

"Oh king, you are telling that I am like living dead. But, life and death are for a living person (Chetana) and not for me. So long as life remains in this body, it is existence and the moment some unbearable distress happens, it is as worse as death. However, this state is common to all living bodies or beings. Why are you attributing it to my body alone? You are also pointing out that I have disobeyed the orders of a King. But, who is the King who can order? You are not eligible to do that. It is only the Lord of Lords Sri Hari who can order. Deities can order under his instructions. Therefore, kings like you cannot order.

It is only coincidental and commercial necessity to identify a person from among the common people as a king. I do not see anything else anywhere because, who has become a natural king on earth? Who are subjects? You may say that although unnaturally, you have become a king because of your Karma or deeds of past life. I concede that point. That is why, I am obeying your orders to the best of my capacity. But, when I become the king due to my Karma, you will have to obey my orders too." (TO BE CONTD...)

STORY OF JADABHARATA - PART VI - TRYST WITH THEOSOPHY

During his previous life as emperor of Bharat, Jadabharata was the custodian, protector and ultimate shelter for all devotees of Lord Vishnu. When he was reborn, the world, including King Rahuguna, who was himself a very pious, spirituous and virtuous devotee of Lord Vishnu, mistakes him to be insane. This is stated in Garuda Purana and cited by Sri Madhwacharya in his Mahabharata Tatparya Nirnaya:

AshEShaBhagavatpriyANAm nikEtaha sa yEva BharatO mAnuShApEkShayA|

TatkAlasThitaBhaktEShu mAnuShEShvruShaBhAtmajaha|

VarO(a)pi DhikkrutO rAjnA suhrudA VaiShNavEShwapi||Iti GAruDE||

King Rahugana had cynically commented to Jadabharata: "You are not the only person carrying this palanquin," Jadabharata replies:

TwayOditam vyaktamavipralabDham Bhartuhu sa mE syAd yadi veera BhAraha|

Ganturyadi syAdaDhigamyamaDhwA peeveti chAsau na vidAm pravAdaha||

"Oh brother, did you not mean that I haven't carried the weight at all by your sarcastic statement that 'you have carried the palanquin for too long all alone'? What you said was what exactly happened because, if I was the one to have carried the weight and I was the only person to have walked the distance, then what you said would have been contradicted. In reality, it is Lord Hari who independently carries the weight and independently walks through all terrains. But, your contention that I am a buxom person isn't right. My physique might be buxom. I am not. In fact, it is mentioned in Garuda Purana too: "BharaNAdikrudDhaririti chintayan nrupamabraveet". Hari alone is capable of independently carrying any weight and walking any distance. (TO BE CONTID...)

STORY OF JADABHARATA - PART IV - TRYST WITH THEOSOPHY

During his previous life as emperor of Bharat, Jadabharata was the custodian, protector and ultimate shelter for all devotees of Lord Vishnu. When he was reborn, the world, including King Rahuguna, who was himself a very pious, spirituous and virtuous devotee of Lord Vishnu, mistakes him to be insane. This is stated in Garuda Purana and cited by Sri Madhwacharya in his Mahabharata Tatparya Nirnaya:

AshEShaBhagavatpriyANAm nikEtaha sa yEva BharatO mAnuShApEkShayA|

TatkAlasThitaBhaktEShu mAnuShEShvruShaBhAtmajaha|

VarO(a)pi DhikkrutO rAjnA suhrudA VaiShNavEShwapi||Iti GAruDE||

King Rahugana had cynically commented to Jadabharata: "You are not the only person carrying this palanquin," Jadabharata replies:

TwayOditam vyaktamavipralabDham Bhartuhu sa mE syAd yadi veera BhAraha|

Ganturyadi syAdaDhigamyamaDhwA peeveti chAsau na vidAm pravAdaha||

"Oh brother, did you not mean that I haven't carried the weight at all by your sarcastic statement that 'you have carried the palanquin for too long all alone'? What you said was what exactly happened because, if I was the one to have carried the weight and I was the only person to have walked the distance, then what you said would have been contradicted. In reality, it is Lord Hari who independently carries the weight and independently walks through all terrains. But, your contention that I am a buxom person isn't right. My physique might be buxom. I am not. In fact, it is mentioned in Garuda Purana too: "BharaNAdikrudDhaririti chintayan nrupamabraveet". Hari alone is capable of independently carrying any weight and walking any distance. (TO BE CONTID...)