THE HOLY GITA
CHAPTER NUMBER 10
VIBHUTI YOGA OR THE YOGA OF DIVINE MANIFESTATIONS:
VERSE NUMBER 35
Text in Transliteration:
brrhatsaama tathaa saamnaam gaayatree chandasaam aham
maasaanaam maargaseersho ‘ham rrtoonaam kusumaakarah:
Sanskrit words and phrases and their meaning:
Brrhatsaama = Brihatsama; tathaa = also; saamnaam = among Sama hymns; gayatee = Gayatri; chandasaam = among metres; aham = I; maasaanaam = among months; maargaseersah: = Margasirsha; aham = I; rrtoonaam = among seasons; kusumaakarah = the flowery season.
Text in English:
Of the Saman hymns I am the Brihat-Saman; of metres I am Gayatri. Of month I am Margasirsha and of seasons I am the flowery spring.
COMMENTARY BY SRIMAT SWAMI CHIDBHAVANANDA:
Music is one of the means to approach God. Among the Vedas, the Saman abounds with hymns set to music. Both Siva and Narayana are said to be very fond of the Saman hymns. Ravana the Demon pleased Siva by singing the Saman hymns. In this Veda again that portion known as the Brihat-Saman is the best. The combination of music and sublime matter have made it so.
Metre is characteristic of poetry. The Vedas contain various types of metres, the Gayatri metre among them being the foremost. Adoration to the several Deities comes in the forms of their respective Gayatri. The Devi Gayatri, the Rudra Gayatri, the Brahma Gayatri, the Paramahamsa Gayatri and several other Gayatris may be found in the Vedas.
There is a special merit in the month of Margasirsha. The time before the sun-rise is called the Brahma-muhurtam, the favouorable time for spiritual practices. An earthly year is a day for the Deavas. Margasirsha is the month in December-January in which the Brahma-muhuurtam is contained. The worship of God done in this month has a salutary effect on the mind. The Lord therefore extols this month as a special attribute of His.
The life of the vegetable kingdom and that of the others too to some extent, get suspended in the snowy winter; but in the spring they get reanimated. Men and beings beam with fresh life and activities. So the Lord describes Himself as the Vasanta or flowery spring among the seasons.
COMMENTARY BY SRIMAT SWAMI SIVANANDA:
Brihatsaman is the chief of the hymns of the Sama-Veda. Brihat means ‘big’.
Margasirsha: From the middle of December to the middle of January. This has a temperate climate. In olden days it was usual to start with this month in counting the months of the year. The first place was given to this month.
Kusumakara: the beautiful flowery season, the spring.
(Note from the blogger: Dear Readers and visitors to this site, for the last couple of weeks I haven't been blogging. Please bear with me. I am a diabetic. And my blood sugar level shot up all of a sudden. What with my age it was quite a while before I could get it under control. And I hope to be coming up with my regular postings in the days to come.)
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