Gita Satsang - Summary of First Six Chapters by Swami Dayananda's Commentary

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Namaste,

 

On behalf of all of you I sincerely express my appreciation to

Pujyaswami Dayanandasaraswati for providing his commentary to the

benefit of the advaitin list members.

 

regards,

 

Ram Chandran

 

Part A : A Summary of the First Six Chapters

 

 

A SUMMARY OF FIRST SIX CHAPTERS

With the completion of the sixth chapter, the first sa¶ka — a group of

six chapters — of the Gita is over. Although the same topic, `tat tvam

asi,' runs through all eighteen chapters, there is a marked difference

between each of the three groups, as you will see when we take up the

seventh chapter. `Tat tvam asi' is an equation that can be looked at

in terms of these three groups of six chapters, each group called a

sa¶ka in Sanskrit. In the first sa¶ka, the meaning of the word tvam is

analysed, in the second sa¶ka, the meaning of the word tat is

analysed, and in the third sa¶ka, the meaning of the word asi, which

equates tvam and tat, is analysed. Thus, the three groups of six

chapters deal predominantly with tvam-pada-artha, tat-pada-artha, and

asi-pada-artha, respectively.

The six chapters that we have seen so far talk about tvam, `you,' as a

person with dharma-adharma conflict. In the first chapter, Arjuna was

presented in a tight situation, wherein his affections conflicted with

the call of duty. One's duty is one thing and one's affections are

quite another. And Arjuna found himself more moved by the love and

affection he had for the elders of his family than by his duty.

As long as your duty does not come into conflict with your affection,

it is easy to perform your duties. And, if your call of duty is so

pronounced that your affection does not overpower it, you can still

heed to the call and do your duty, meaning that you make your

affection subserve the duty. However, there are also occasions where

the affection gets the better of the duties, resulting in a conflict.

This happens because you cannot dismiss duty just like that; it is

something that you know is to be done; nor can you dismiss your

affections just like that. The very fact that you sometimes go by your

feelings proves that they are equally powerful and are capable of

completely overpowering you occasionally, which is what happened to

Arjuna.

ARJUNA'S PREDICAMENT

Arjuna had a legitimate argument for wanting to get out of this

particular situation because it was one in which a lot of blood would

be shed. Since killing was involved, Arjuna's problem definitely had a

valid basis. His entire predicament, leading to an action on his part,

was presented in the first chapter by Arjuna himself. And, after he

had finished, he sat back in the chariot, prepared to give up the

battle. This was the action.

He had come to the battlefield armed and ready to fight. He had even

asked Krsna to take him to a spot where he could see those against

whom he would be fighting. Until then, there was no problem. But, when

he saw the people involved, he became different; only then did the

problem arise. Only when one faces a situation can one understand the

implications, and Arjuna saw the implications of this particular

situation immediately. He saw that he had to fight against Drona and

Bhisma, and he tried to tell Krsna that this was not proper.

This, then, was Arjuna's predicament, the predicament of `you,' tvam,

the individual, the jiva, who is subject to emotions, to right and

wrong, dharma and adharma, and also to sorrow, soka. Arjuna

represented anyone who gets into a conflict and ends up in a state of

sadness. Because Arjuna wanted to be free of this sadness, he talked

to Krsna. And this talking helped him not to get out of sorrow but to

discover, in the process of talking, a problem that is more chronic to

the human condition than the acute problem that was right there in

front of him.

In front of Arjuna was the problem of having to fight this particular

battle, whereas the more chronic problem was the human problem, `I am

subject to sorrow,' which is also a `you,' tvam, problem. This is

discerning the problem, discovering in oneself a desire for freedom

from the original problem of sorrow. Krsna had the knowledge that

could make one free. Arjuna knew this fact, but he had not drawn upon

it earlier because he had no interest in it before.

The first few years of Arjuna's life had been spent gathering valour,

marrying, and so on. Later, of course, he got involved in all the

problems that resulted in his going to the forest, where he spent

thirteen years with no time for anything but survival and thinking

about how to settle accounts with Duryodhana. With every thorn he

removed from his foot, while walking in the forest, Arjuna was

reminded of the hurt rendered by Duryodhana, whose scheming ways were

responsible for his having to suffer in the forest in the first place.

Therefore, Duryodhana was a much bigger thorn for Arjuna than any of

the thorns he had to remove from his feet.

Arjuna had been born with a golden spoon in his mouth but, still, he

had to suffer this period of exile. The presence of his wife,

Draupadi, in the forest was also a reminder of the account to be

settled with Duryodhana, especially since she had decided not to tie

her hair until the insult she had suffered had been avenged. Thus, her

flowing hair would definitely have been a constant reminder to Arjuna

about the need to get even with Duryodhana. Naturally, then, Arjuna

had no time no chance, to think about atma, Brahman, or anything.

ARJUNA'S LOT IS EVERYONE'S LOT

What is to be understood here is that Arjuna's lot is the lot of any

human being whose mind is possessed, seized by, certain situations.

This is all the meaning of jiva, individual, the meaning of the word

`you' — tvam-pada-artha. That I am hurt is `you.' That I am subject to

sorrow is `you.' That I am called upon to do certain duties, having

been born as a person into certain situations, is also `you.' And that

I am not able to fulfil these duties is `you,' as well. Why am I not

able to fulfil them? Because my affections are different from my

duties, which is also `you.' Therefore, all problems are

`you-problems' alone.

Arjuna recognised this problem in the battlefield when he saw all the

implications of the impending war. He knew that no one really wins a

war, that both sides are always losers. Even if you have victory, the

loss is very big. That Arjuna saw this very well was clearly

demonstrated when he said, in so many words, `Even though, I may get

back the kingdom and have all kinds of comforts and enjoyments at my

command, they would all be stained with the blood of such great people

as Bhisma and Drona — rudhira-pradigdha-bhogas. If, in order to buy

this pleasure, I have to kill all these people, what a cost it is!'

This clearly shows that Arjuna thought that the battle was not a

worthwhile activity on any grounds.

Having concluded that the battle was not worthwhile, his next thought

was, `What, then, is worthwhile?' If you cannot see anything

worthwhile, you get frustrated and become a drop-out. Dropping out

itself is due to frustration, the frustration that comes from

realising that what is commonly pursued is not worthwhile. Nothing

else being very clear, the person may just drop out of everything

altogether and, taking a guitar in hand, live the nomadic life of a

wandering musician. A drop-out can become a simple hobo also — all

because of frustration.

Here, Arjuna's frustration was not due to a psychological problem. The

problem was much more than that. Arjuna was a man of valour, a man of

courage, culture, and education — a man who was highly worshipped by

everyone. Because he was already known as a great man, he no longer

needed to prove himself on the battlefield or elsewhere. He did not

come from a dysfunctional family to have psychological problems. He

was a normal person whose life was functional all the way. In fact,

since he was a prince and a worthy person as well, he had grown into

much more than an average person. Even so, Arjuna was a person — which

is what people tend to forget.

REGAINING THE KINGDOM WAS NO LONGER IMPORTANT

Arjuna was a human being with affections and, because of these

affections, he could not see anything worthwhile about fighting.

Therefore, he could not avoid the question, what is it that is

worthwhile? Arjuna knew the answer to this question because he was

born into a culture that had a value for self-knowledge. That was why

his father had gone to the forest, in fact. Arjuna also had known

other people who pursued this knowledge. But, even though he knew such

knowledge existed, he had not been drawn to it previously for the

reasons we have already seen. Now, however, he found that he had no

reason to fight, that regaining the kingdom and all that went with it

would not solve the problem.

If Arjuna had not known about the knowledge, he would have had no

place to go and nothing worthwhile to pursue. But he did know there

was a direction. He knew the problem could be solved by gaining

sreyas, moksa, and that there was no other way of solving it. He also

knew that, to gain the knowledge, he had to become a sisya, a

disciple, which meant he had to have a teacher. Knowing Krsna as he

did, Arjuna knew that he would find no better teacher anywhere.

Therefore, he said to Krsna straightaway, `I am your disciple. Please

teach me all that is to be taught, so that, I may gain sreyas —yat

sreyah syat niscitam bruhi tanme sisyah te aham sadhi mam tvam

prapannam.'

Arjuna's problem is to be understood within the meaning of the word

`you,' tvam-pada-artha, because the conflict belongs to `you,' tvam,

alone. There is no problem whatsoever for Brahman, Isvara, as we shall

see in the second sa¶ka of the Gita, which talks of the

tat-pada-artha. Isvara, has no problem; the individual, jiva, has the

problem and the individual has the jijnasa, the desire for knowledge.

Until now, Arjuna's life had been worthwhile; even though it required

a battlefield, it had helped him. And, here, on the battlefield he had

a desire for the knowledge. No one else on the battlefield had this

desire, it seems, least of all Duryodhana. Fortunately, for Arjuna,

Krsna was also on the battlefield. Arjuna could talk to Krsna, and,

because he was ready for this knowledge, Arjuna found a teacher in

Krsna. How do I know Krsna was a teacher? Because he taught Arjuna; he

did not say, `Shut up and fight!' and leave it at that. Although,

Krsna did say something similar to Arjuna in order to encourage him to

do his duty, he taught him. If he had not, there would be no Gita.

Instead, Krsna could have responded to Arjuna's request to teach him

by giving Arjuna whatever psychological pep talk it would take to get

him to fight. But Krsna did not do this; with utmost seriousness, he

began teaching Arjuna.

First, Krsna told Arjuna that there was no reason for sorrow — asocyan

anvasocah tvam — and then proceeded to prove it in the remaining

chapters of the Gita. He told Arjuna that the wise people do not

subject themselves to sorrow, whereas he, Arjuna, is subject to

sorrow, in spite of talking words that smacked of wisdom. Krsna was as

much as telling Arjuna here that he was not as wise as his words would

indicate. He did this, so that, Arjuna would listen to what he had to

say. From the second chapter onwards, then, Krsna taught Arjuna what

the nature of tvam and tat is, and then talked about the connection

between the two.