Bhagavad Gita Sthitaprajna lakshna - Verses 65 & 66, Swami Dayananda Saraswati's Commentary from Gita Homestudy

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prasade sarvaduhkhanam hanirasyopajayate

prasannacetaso hyasu buddhih paryavatishate Verse 65

 

prasade - when the mind is tranquil; asya - his; sarva-duhkhanam - of all the

pain and sorrow; hanih - destruction; upajayate - is born; hi - because;

prasanna-cetasah - of the tranquil minded; asu - soon; buddhih - knowledge;

paryavatishate - is well established

 

When the mind is tranquil, destruction of all pain and sorrow happens because

the knowledge of one who is tranquil-minded soon becomes well established. One

whose mind is under control directs the mind according to his or her will.

Such a person experiences the world through sense organs that are not backed

by likes and dislikes. In this way, the raga-dvesas are neutralised and the

person gains a mind which is cheerful, composed, and tranquil. For the person

whose mind is tranquil, all the duhkhas, pain and sorrow, are destroyed.

Although the plural form of duhkhas is used here, all sorrow is the same. One

person is crying because he lost the kingdom and someone else is crying

because he lost his car. What is the difference between their two sorrows?

Both of them are crying. Does duhkha subject itself to division? No, sorrow is

the same whatever the reason. Whether you lose your kingdom or your hair, the

sadness is the same. What Krsna meant here is that all sorrow, whatever be its

source, is destroyed for the person whose mind is tranquil.

 

In an earlier discussion, we saw the three sources of sorrow - sorrow caused

by people and situations in the external world, adhibhautika-duhkha; sorrow

caused by calamities over which you have no control, adhidaivika-duhkha; and,

finally, sorrow caused by your own body, mind, and senses, adhyatmika-duhkha.

Your own past memories or the condition of your physical body create

adhyatmika-duhkha, whereas the duhkha caused by your brother-in-law is an

example of adhibhautika-duhkha. Any natural calamity is adhidaivika-duhkha.

Krsna said, that these three-fold duhkhas are all destroyed - sarva-duhkhanam

hanih upajayate. Although all duhkhas are destroyed when the mind is tranquil,

the causes for duhkhas themselves do not go away. They are merely incapable of

causing duhkha. The body may experience physical pain, but there will be no

duhkha because the mind is tranquil, prasanna. A tranquil mind means that the

ragas and dvesas have been neutralised. Desirable and undesirable situations

do not cause reactions.

 

All duhkhas are said to be destroyed because the real nature of the self is

tranquillity, and that tranquillity is manifest in the mind. The mind is

stifled only because of raga and dvesa. The fullness of the self, which is its

nature, ananda-svar£pa, is inhibited from manifesting in the mind because of

raga-dvesas alone. The raga-dvesas inhibit the fullness, ananda. When the

raga-dvesas are neutralised, the ananda is uninhibited and the mind is

tranquil. Destruction of duhkha is said to be born, upajayate, here in the

sense that it happens, it takes place.

 

A TRANQUIL MIND MEANS THAT KNOWLEDGE IS NOT FAR AWAY

Does mere tranquillity destroy all forms of duhkha? No, destruction of all

duhkhas can only happen when there is self-knowledge. Duhkhas go away for the

person who has a tranquil mind because the knowledge for such a person is not

far away. We are talking about a sthitaprajna here. This knowledge, the

subject matter of which is atma, self-knowledge, is steady and, like space, it

just stays; it does not move. The earth, air, and everything else moves,

whereas space is always steady. Similarly, the mind of a person with

self-knowledge stays. And because the knowledge stays, the mind no longer

causes any problem. The knowledge stays because there is nothing to oppose or

inhibit it. This means that the very person stays in the form of knowledge.

The mind of such a person becomes a useful instrument. Because the mind is

tranquil, it no longer causes trouble.

 

To gain tranquillity, you have to take care of your raga-dvesas. Whatever is

required is what you have to follow, whether it is karma-yoga or something

else. Only when tranquillity is there does the knowledge stay. This means that

the knowledge becomes clear, having been freed from all vagueness and doubts.

Otherwise, you will always doubt your own knowledge. You will say things like,

'With this kind of mind, how can I say that I know?' The mind itself creates

all kinds of doubts, which is the problem. The mind has to gain the

tranquillity that is the basis for self-knowledge and, to do this, it has to

free itself from the raga-dvesas. Then all the duhkhas go away because the

knowledge stays. Tranquillity is the condition that frees one's knowledge from

all obstructions and because of that knowledge, all forms of sorrow are gone

and the person is said to have gained moksa.

 

nasti buddhirayuktasya na cayuktasya bhavana

na cabhavayatah santirasantasya kutah sukham Verse 66

 

ayuktasya - for the one who is not tranquil; buddhih - knowledge; na asti - is

not there; ayuktasya - for the one who is not tranquil; bhavana ca -

contemplation also; na - is not; abhavayatah - for the one who is not

contemplative; santih - peace; na - is not; ca - and; asantasya - for the one

who has no peace; kutah - how; sukham - happiness

 

For the one who is not tranquil, there is no knowledge. For the one who is not

tranquil, there is no contemplation and for the one who is not contemplative,

there is no peace. For the one who has no peace, how can there be happiness?

This verse is Krsna's way of praising a tranquil mind, that is, prasannata.

The word ayukta, here, means a person who does not have the cheerful, tranquil

mind that was discussed in the previous verse. The ayukta is one who has not

taken care of his or her raga-dvesas sufficiently. It must be clearly

understood that what is being said here is in no way meant as a judgement. If

this is not understood correctly, a problem of self-judgement can arise as you

listen to the Gita and the Vedanta-sastra. 'I am useless!' you may say.

Because there is already a tape inside, the self-criticism begins immediately.

All that the Swami has to do is utter one negative statement and this inner

tape switches on automatically - 'Because I am an ayukta, I will never get

this knowledge.'

 

Since the tendency is to judge yourself, you must know that what is being said

in the Gita is not meant as criticism; its sole purpose is self-understanding.

If, having heard what the Gita says, there is something to be done, it is to

be done. There is nothing more to it than that. If raga-dvesas are there, they

are to be taken care of, that is all. The word buddhi, here means knowledge of

the self, that by which you understand the self, the atma. Adequate knowledge

does not take place for one whose mind is in the hands of raga-dvesas. For a

yukta, the raga-dvesas are neutralised and there is no problem, whereas for an

ayukta, raga-dvesas are there, causing his or her knowledge to be inadequate.

In addition to the knowledge being inadequate, the pressure of the

raga-dvesas, more often than not, will drive the person towards the desirable

objects to be gained and retained and those that are to be avoided and

eliminated. There is nothing right or wrong about raga-dvesa pursuits. This is

just to explain how the pressures of ragas and dvesas work. Because of the

natural tendency of the mind towards objects of raga-dvesas, there is no

yearning for or commitment to self-knowledge. There is time only to nurse

one's ragas and dvesas. Even if you try to read the Gita, your raga will keep

clamouring at you - 'What are you doing? What kind of book are you reading? It

is not going to fulfil any of your likes and dislikes. I have so many things

to interest you.' In this way, the raga-dvesas seated inside you, demand your

attention so much so that if you begin reading the Gita, you will either fall

asleep or feel like doing something else!

 

DESIRES STIFLE ONE'S INTEREST IN SELF-KNOWLEDGE

Raga-dvesas being there, one's interest in the pursuit of self-knowledge will

necessarily be stifled and one's commitment inhibited. Even if you want to

contemplate upon the self in order to get rid of some of your problems, the

pressure of raga-dvesas makes contemplation very difficult. You find that you

are unable to sit with yourself even for a short period of time. For the one

who cannot sit with himself or herself, who cannot contemplate, who cannot

pursue self-knowledge quietly, there is no composure, no tranquillity.

Whereas, for the one who contemplates upon oneself, for the one who can stay

with oneself, there is tranquillity and love of oneself. Thus, the more one

can be with oneself, the more tranquil one will be. We are not talking about

the commonly known self here. We are talking about the real self - the self

that is beautiful. The more you begin to understand, the more you begin to

love the self. The self, atma, is not other than yourself; therefore,

self-love comes. And because the self is absolute, the love for it is

absolute. There is a lot of talk about the necessity of developing self-love.

But how can you develop a love for this limited self that you have with its

crippling raga-dvesas? Without feeling love for yourself, you cannot sit with

yourself and, when you cannot sit with yourself, there is no tranquillity -

all of which implies an absence of peace and contentment, asanti.

 

HAPPINESS CAN ONLY TAKE PLACE IN A TRANQUIL MIND

A person may say that he or she does not want peace and contentment, santi,

but wants only happiness, sukha. One may say, 'Some people may want santi, but

I am an enterprising person. I want pleasures, joy, and happiness. For me

santi is useless!' But, all sukha, all happiness, is possible only in a

tranquil mind. When you cannot sit with yourself, naturally you are agitated.

And when you are agitated, where is the possibility of sukha for you? When you

are agitated, there is no sukha. How can a person who is asanta, who does not

have santi, pick up any sukha? There is no way! Sukha is only with yourself.

Therefore, the more you can stay with yourself, the more tranquil you are, and

the more tranquil you are, the happier you are. Happiness, then, is another

word for tranquillity. Only the tranquil person can discover happiness. In

fact, such a person discovers happiness even in small things. He or she does

not require a talk show to be happy. Everything in the world becomes amusing

to the person who is tranquil. If you have tranquillity, the whole world is a

continuous joke. You require nothing; it is all there, free of charge. Just

open your eyes and you see the joke! When inner tranquillity is there, you

require nothing to be happy, whereas if it is not there, happiness cannot even

be bought. 'Happy hour' does not buy you happiness; it only robs you of your

money. It may be a happy hour for the owner of the bar, but not for anyone

else. For both, you and your family, it is definitely an unhappy hour. When

you cannot stay with yourself, where is the possibility of sukha for you? One

has to take care of ragas and dvesas. Otherwise, they are a nuisance.

Therefore, whatever is to be done to take care of them must be done. This may

imply karma-yoga, listening to the teaching, sravana, or further analysis,

manana. How the knowledge takes place, what is required for it to become

steady, sthira, and why it can be so unsteady, asthira, is what is being

discussed in these verses.