THE HOLY GITA
CHAPTER TWO
SAMKHYA YOGA OR THE YOGA OF KNOWLEDGE
VERSE NUMBER 3:
Text in Transliteration:
klaibyam maa sma gamah paartha
nai ‘tat tvayy
upapadyate
kshudram hrdyaya daurbalyam
tyaktvo ‘ttishtha
paramtapa
Text in English:
Yield not, O Partha, to feebleness. It does not befit you.
Cast off this petty faint-heartedness. Wake up, O vanquisher of foes!
The Lord uses three words, two appellations and one noun.
The noun is “klaibyam” which in exact English translates as impotence. So the
Lord Krishna goes to the extent of calling the transitory weakness and
despondency as downright impotence. He literally says to not yield to
impotence! Such is the importance of the strength of mind. This Atman is not
for the weak in mind is the Upanishadic statement. Strength of body and mind is
a must for the practitioner of yoga. Strength is at the core of wisdom. Indeed
another Upanishadic statement is Knowledge is strength. The converse also is true!
If knowledge brings strength, weakness of mind breeds fear! So, even the
temporary weakness of Arjuna is described as unmanliness or impotence by the
Lord!
But, did the Lord know the strength of Arjuna? The kind of
material he is made of? The Lord knows that full well. That is why he calles
Arnuna in the same sloka or verse as “Partha” (which means the son of Prithi,
Kunti—denoting his high and pure and strong and illustrious lineage) and as “Parantaba”
(which literally means the scorcher of foes!). What more encomium is needed to
prove the mettle of Arjuna? But even he, when yields to despondency, an
inhibiting state of mind, he chides him to not act like an impotent person!
According to the illustrious Swamy Chidbhavananda, “Purusha”
and “Prakriti” mean the noumenon and the phinominon. One becomes feeble to the
extent one depends on the phenomenon and one becomes manly and courageous to
the extent one identifies oneself with the noumenon.
Both “purusha” and “prakriti” are in this world and as well
as within ourselves. I would once again like to draw the attention of the
readers to the article added with the last posting by name, EVOLUTION OF
SPECIES AND CHARLESS DARWIN. There are five fundamental elements in the
universe as well as ourselves. And apart from that, there is “purusha” or “Atman”
or “Soul” in us as well as the Universe. Have no doubt about that. There is a
natural thing which is full of spirit of God. You need not be a theist to draw
from the fund of the “spirit or purusha or the Universal Soul” and get strength.
Jesus Christ says seek, thou shall get. Is it true only in
the case of the theist who have faith in Lord Jesus? Then how could the
atheists also thrive in this world. Because, they also seek, and get what they
seek studiously! Whatever one seeks studiously, one must get it. That is the
Universal Law, which operates both for the faithful and the faithless. The universal
soul has no religious attachment, and our individual soul also has no notion of
religion. Indeed soul is without a religion. It is we who accord to Shiva,
Narayana, Jesus, Allah various religious colours which they do not stand by. And
they are one and several at the same time; one, in the sense for those who understand
the Truth that there is but one God and Creator of this world, and many, for
those who get multifarious notions. Hinduism is not against worshipping many
forms of gods and Gods. You may worship a tree. Or wind or air or fire. No problem.
And if you do not worship, then too, no problem whatsoever!
Just take the case of a non believer: suppose an atheist
goes through all the tenests and practice yoga without worshipping any form,
can’t he attain moksha or salvation? Try to test the veracity of this. Yoga or
meditation is all about continuous concentration. Simply close your eyes and
concentrate between your eyebrows, even if you are not a believer, or even
derider of the faithful as fools, you would get the benefit of concentration. A
believer writes devotional songs and hymns which melt our heart. And a
non-believer writes a lyrical song and it melts our heart. Wherefrom did the
non-believer get his inspiration? For him, he starts with one line, and the
next line comes to him, and the whole lyric is written by him. Wherefrom did he
get the lyric? From the universal soul which has no notion of religion!
What is inspiration? What
is concentration? What is intuition? Have they all been working for all the
believers and non believers? So there is a universal soul which is the
identified as “the witness” by the Rig-Vedic and the Upanishadic saints. They had
no notion of religion. The Rig-Vedic sages and saints had no religion. Believe me!
And they worshiped this world, and in the form of the FIVE ELEMENTS. BUT THEY
KNEW THERE ARE VARIOUS PLANES OF CONSCIOUSNESS. THEY CALLED IT VARIOUS WORLDS!
ALL THE RELVENT QUESTIONS HAVE BEEN ASKED BY THE VEDOPANISHADIC SAINTS AND
ANSWERED FULLY. IT IS FOR US TO HAVE FAITH AND DERIVE MORE BENEFIT THAN THE
ATHEISTS AND MORE EASILY THROUGH THE YOGA OF DEVOTION. PRAYER IS NOTHING BUT A
STRONG THOUGHT. PRYAYER IS ALSO A STRONG FORM OF SEEKING. SEEK, THOU SHALT GET!
TO HAVE BELIEF IN GOD ALSO TAKES MUCH STRENGTH!
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