HOLY GITA
CHAPTER TWO
SAMKHYA YOGA OR THE YOGA OF KNOWLDGE
VERSE NUMBER 20:
Text in Transliteration:
na jaayate mriyate vaa kadaachin
naa ‘yam bhootvaa
bhavitaa vaa na bhooyah
ajo nityah saasvato ‘yam puraano
na hanyate
hanyamaane sareere
Text in English:
The atman is
neither born nor does It die. Coming into being and ceasing to be do not take
place in It. Unborn, eternal, constant and ancient, It is not killed when the
body is slain.
COMMENTARY BY SWAMY CHIDBHAVANANDA:
To be born, to
exist, to grow, to change, to decay, to perish—these are the six kinds of
modifications undergone by the body constituted of elements. But the Atman
remains unaffected by these changes.
COMMENTARY BY SWAMY SIVANANDA:
This Self (Atma) is
destitute of the six types of transformation or Bhava-Vikaras such as birth, existence,
growth, transformation, decline and death. As it is indivisible (Akhanda), It
does not diminish in size. It neither grows nor does It decline. It is ever the
same. Birth and death are for the physical body only. Birth and death cannot
touch the immortal, all-pervading Self.
Comments by the
blogger:
We often speak of the yet-to-be-tenth avatar or incarnation
of Sri Vishnu, namely, kalki. What would happen when the lord decides to
annihilate the entire universe? Even this universe is constituted of matter
which has changing pattern of atomic structures. If the structure of the seed
the of the tree that can grow up to say thirty metres in a way, the seed of the
kusa grass is not of the same type. We often speak the revolution in genetic
engineering. One material thing can be changed into another thing by changing
the genes and atomic structure of the matter. What is not possible even on the
material plane is to produce an entirely new atom. What does it mean? Well,
even before the Big Bang and since then, manufacturing of new atom was and is
not possible! Even shrinking of the large tree so that it could be adorning the
drawing room is possible. But production of an entirely new atom in this
universe is not possible. We manufacture so many things with the help of the
atomic structures available, and causing modification in the genetic pattern.
But to cause an increase of the weight of the universe is not possible.
Likewise, even complete annihilation of a single atom is not possible! So we
cannot shrink the universe or cause a diminution in its weight. This is the
case with regard to the universe which is in a constant fluxing mode. And
theoretically it has been proved this universe has an end. Scriptures also
speak of the end of the universe at the end of a yuga or age.
How could this kind of gigantic universe be changed or destroyed
by God as he shows in the Gita itself by showing the Vishwrupa? Well, all God
has to do is to withdraw or annihilate a single atom. The whole universe would
be subject to the rippling effect like the splitting of the atom. And the
annihilation of the single atom would cause the changing of the course of the
planets, and the holocaust would start. And this is shown in allegorical terms
by Vishnu in the Gita as slurping up the entire universe and its beings!
Ok, it sounds very creative! But even on a theoretical
plane, why should the withdrawal or annihilation of a single atom should bring
about the annihilation of the universe? The answer is in the Gita itself. Both
the animate and inanimate things are permeated by God’s self. There is close
affinity between human beings irrespective of religious and national barriers.
And what is more, there is a close affinity between Man and other flower and
fauna. Each individual, whether he is a beggar or a millionaire, a sinner or a
Raja Yogi, a wastrel or a wonderfully creative person; there is a close
affinity between Man and each and every tree and sapling in this world! There
is close affinity between Man and each and every animal in the animal kingdom.
Even harmful virus and bacterium is related to Man in a way the child in the
womb is related to the mother through the ambilical card. This close affinity
extends between all flower and fauna and the course of the planets. As they
say, the even before Nuton, the scientist discovered the theory of attraction of
the Earth at the falling of the apple tossed into the air, the attraction was
there very much, this affinity has been always there whether we discover it or
not. There is a close affinity with each of the planets, even those we are yet
to find out, and Man. This affinity is born of the Self or Soul of the Universe
and its affinity with the individual Soul of the flower and fauna and the
insentient things like earth or rock. There is close affinity between the
flower and fauna and the insentient things and the five elements, air, water,
space, fire and the Earth, of the Universe. By Earth all the planets are
indicated and included. The planets form one of the five elements of the
universe. When a single atom is destroyed or withdrawn, this affinity is marred
and there should be a void as not known to us and different from the void as
known to us now. Even the void and the atmospheric space is one of the five
elements. But the void absolute that would be created by destroying a single
atom would amount to destruction of the close umbilical affinity that exist
between beings and non-beings as afore said. And this destruction or disruption
of the affinity would destroy the universe. This destruction or disruption
cannot be made by the human effort. When Nirbhaya was raped and killed there
was a disruption but there was no destruction of the atom. And that disruption
gave rise to some samskaaraa ( the basic Brahmic unit of measurement of the
action and reaction of the beings) and the rapists should take several births
and deaths as beasts and other things before once again come into the world as
human beings. So, even the act of raping and cruel killing of Nirbhaya did not
destroy the close affinity between her and her rapists! We cannot, by our acts
or non-action, create the disruption of this affinity. Likewise there is close
affinity between the flower and fauna and the other worlds of pitru or
forefathers and the heaven and hell. This is the scheme of God, and He only can
cause a destruction or disruption of this affinity, and then there would be an
annihilation of the universe at the end of the yuga or age of the universe as
found out by the Vedopanishadic saints and sages. Till then the earth and other
planets would stay in course and the flower and fauna would continue to be born
and die and attain salvation or different worlds or planes of consciousness
till salvation or self-realization.
And there can be no
increase or decrease in the universe and its mass and weight is self evident.
How can an atom, which has God’s Atman or Soul could be annihilated? It can
only be split to produce energy. That can be don by human action. But when a
single atom is completely withdrawn or destroyed, there would be a wholesale
annihilating disruption in the plan and scheme of the universe and that would
be the yuga of Kalki or the wholesale annihilation of the universe which even a
million of trillion atom bombs could not produce!
The same is the case with the energy. If the mass and the
weight of the universe cannot be increased or decreased, but can be changed the
name and form thereof, there can be no increase and decrease in the energy and
power of the universe. It also is a proven fact. When human ingenuity can
change one form or energy into another form, destruction and manufacturing new
energy is totally impossible.
Likewise all matter could be reduced to the ash. But the ash
is irreducible, so for as name and form is concerned.
Ok, to annihilate the universe what are the other options
available for God?
The five elements were originally created by God and the
three gunas ( or temperament, to put it roughly) like satvic, rajas and tamas
were created by God in the beginning. And there was perfect equilibrium between
them. And creation started with the Big Bang only when this perfect equilibrium
was disrupted. God can bring about the perfect equilibrium to annihilate the
universe and send it back to the stage when Big Bang had not happened!
According to Dr. S. Radhakrishnan, even the Big Bang was part and parcel of the
evolution of the universe which had been making itself progressively conducive
for the ushering into of the single-cell organism into the universe.
So God can annihilate His universe either by destroying a
single atom and thereby cause the disruption of the universe, or bring about a
perfect equilibrium between the gunas and the five elements!
So, even destruction or creation of a single atom is not
possible to our human ingenuity. We can change the mass and form and name of
matter. We can increase of decrease the mass of any one article, taking from a
pencil to the rocket we send into the air. But we cannot create a new atom or
destroy an already existing atom.
If this is the case of the universe constantly in a flux,
which is seen both as a maya or thought by God and matter, what should be the
nature of God’s Soul that permeates this world? Can we case an increase or
decrease of the same? The soul is immeasurable, timeless and extant and
all-pervading.
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