Gita Satsangh, Chapter 10: Verses 9 to 11:

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Gita Satsangh, Chapter 10: The Yoga of Divine Glories(VibhuutiyogaH)

Verses 9 to 11:

 

Macchittaa madgatapraanaa bodhayantah parasparam;

Kathayantashcha maam nityam tushyanti cha ramanti cha. …9

 

9. With their minds and lives entirely absorbed in Me, enlightening

each other and always speaking of Me, they are satisfied and

delighted.

 

Teshaam satatayuktaanaam bhajataam preetipoorvakam;

Dadaami buddhiyogam tam yena maamupayaanti te. ….10

 

10. To them who are ever steadfast, worshipping Me with love, I give

the Yoga of discrimination by which they come to Me.

COMMENTARY: The devotees who have dedicated themselves to the Lord,

who are ever harmonious and self-abiding, who adore Him with intense

love, who are ever devout, obtain the Divine Grace.

 

Teshaam evaanukampaartham aham ajnaanajam tamah;

Naashayaamyaatmabhaavastho jnaanadeepena bhaaswataa. ….11

 

11. Out of mere compassion for them, I, dwelling within their Self,

destroy the darkness born of ignorance by the luminous lamp of

knowledge.

 

Easy references;

 

The Gita Supersite http://www.gitasupersite.org/ contains most of the

commentaries including commentaries in many languages.

 

Adi Shankara's commentary and Swami Chinmayananda's commentary are

available at the advaitin file folder at URL:

advaitin/files

Double click on the folders Sankara1 and Chinmaya to access the files.

[Guest guest]

Namaste Satsanghis:

 

BG - 10.11. Out of mere compassion for them, I, dwelling within their

Self,destroy the darkness born of ignorance by the luminous lamp of

knowledge.

 

To me BG 10.11 is a very powerful verse. Here the Lord is promising

that He who sits within the core of my heart will dispel my darkness

born of ignorance with his jnana-dipena; with the lamp of Knowledge,

in the form of discriminating comprehension .

 

In this context Shankra/Swami Gambhirananda explanation of "bhasvata"

(shining, luminous, bright) is itself bhasvata (brilliant):

 

bhasvata: with the luminous lamp of Knowledge-fed by the oil of

divine grace resulting from devotion, fanned by the wind of intensity

of meditation on Me, having the wick of the intellect imbued with the

impressions arising from such disciplines as celibacy etc., in the

receptacle of the detached mind, placed in the windless shelter of

the mind withdrawn from objects and untainted by likes and dislikes,

and made luminous by full Illumination resulting from the practice of

constant concentration and meditation.

 

Swami Gambhirananda uses the word "heart" instead of "self" to

translate atmabhavasthas, the dictionary meaning of which

is "situated in own being, dwelling in own being". Doing so he

provides a specific location to the residence of the self.

 

I have compiled a few references to "heart" or self from Swami

Chinmayananda's commentary on Katha Up. and from Bhawan Ramana

Maharshi's "Spiritual Instruction".

 

 

 

Swami Chinmayananda/ Katha Upanishad

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Katha Upanishad (II-iv-12/13) describes the Angustha-mdtrah puruso

that resides in the heart as light or jyoti. The following except is

from Swami Chinmayananda's translation and commentary:

 

 

Katha II-iv-12

 

Angustha-mdtrah puruso, madhya atmani tisthati,

Isdno bhuta-bhavyasya, na tato viju-gupsate.

Etad vai tat

 

The person (Purusa) of the size of a thumb, resides in the middle of

the body. Lord of the past and the future, and henceforward (after

knowing Him) fears no more. This is indeed That.

 

Katha II-iv-13

Angustha-mdtrah puruso, jyotir-iva adhumakah,

Isano bhuta-bhavyasya, sa evddya sa u svah. Etad vai tat.

 

That person, of the size of a thumb, is like flame without smoke,

Lord of the past and future. He alone is even today, and will be

verily tomorrow. This is verily That

 

 

Swami Chinmayananda commentary

 

That Purusa or Atman of the size of the thumb who is perceived by the

meditator in his heart as Light or Jyoti, exists immutably through

all times: past, present and future. He exists in all living beings

now, and He will certainly be existing in all forms tomorrow also.

Some sadhaka-s taking this line very literally start imagining "a

thumb-like flame" as though burning bright within their bosom and

meditate long upon it. Personally, this Sadhu had known an individual

who had been imagining this "light" for the past twenty-three years,

and who, recently approached the Swami with a very sad and melancholy

face to complain of his "spiritual fall", since he is not having now-

a days the darsana of his Atman ! ! Friends, this is only one

instance of the desperation of a foolish sadhaka who had come to

believe that his delusory flame-dream created by his imagination is

his Atman! It is dangerous certainly to try to walk the Path of

Knowledge without continuous study of the scriptures and constant

satsanga with real Mahatama-s; we mean, not the palm-reading, star-

gazing, herb-selling-Mahatama that flock the city streets of our

unhappy land now-a-days! Let them be courted by ignorant multitude

that hustle out of the universities of India! But to a true seeker of

Truth and to an intelligent follower of Religion, such Mahatama-s are

more ochre-clothed criminals poisoning the very atmosphere of this

saced land of the Rsi-s. When we shall have a Government, intelligent

enough to feed the country better and provide its people with

sufficient work. We shall have these red monsters wiped out from our

market scene. Till then we must learn to endure what cannot be cured.

The thumb-like jyoti, recommended by the great Rsi-s, is only to

provide the meditator with a prop to develop his concentration during

the early stages of his practices. The stone idol of Siva is not in

itself Sri Paramesvara. Similarly, the jyoti is but an idol for the

Veddntin to meditate upon during his practices and it is not the

Atman. If an idol is unfortunately stolen away from a temple, it

doesn't mean that God has been stolen away! When a sddhaka has

developed his power of concentration, he enters, by degrees, into the

higher stages of meditation advised by the Sruti, in the various

Upanisad-s, and he ultimately comes to realize his own identity with

his own Atman, the light-power-wisdom-source within himself. The

Self for purposes of meditation for an early seeker, is described as

a "thumb-sized person" dwelling in the heart.

 

Bhagwan Ramana Maharshi on Heart

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This is from his book "Spiritual Instruction"

 

8. What part of the body is the abode of the Self?

 

The heart on the right side of the chest is generally indicated. This

is because we usually point to the right side of the chest when we

refer to ourselves. Some say that the sahasrara (the thousand-

petalled lotus) is the abode of the Self. But if that were true the

head should not fall forward when we go to sleep or faint.

 

9. What is the nature of the heart?

 

The sacred texts describing it say: Between the two nipples, below

the chest and above the abdomen, there are six organs of different

colours*. One of them resembling the bud of a water lily and situated

two digits to the right is the heart. It is inverted and within it is

a tiny orifice which is the seat of dense darkness (ignorance) full

of desires. All the psychic nerves (nadis) depend upon it. It is the

abode of the vital forces, the mind and the light (of consciousness).

(See Appendix to Reality in Forty Verses 18 -19).

 

But, although it is described thus, the meaning of the word heart

(hrdayam) is the Self (atman). As it is denoted by the terms

existence, consciousness, bliss, eternal and plenum (sat, chit,

anandam, nityam, purnam) it has no differences such as exterior and

interior or up and down. That tranquil state in which all thoughts

come to an end is called the state of the Self. When it is realized

as it is, there is no scope for discussions about its location inside

the body or outside.

 

* These are not the same as the Chakras.

 

Question for the group

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Please advise if the heart location described by Bhagwan Ramana and

in Katha Up. is the "Solar Plexus Chakra (Manipura) "; this Chakra is

described below:

 

The Solar Plexus Chakra is located, as its name suggests, between the

navel and heart, at the pericardium (below the breasts at the V of

the ribs). it's name means "Seat of the Soul", or solar network.

 

rgds

 

Hersh

[Guest guest]

Namaste Satsanghis:

 

Before I try to explain the question raised by Sri Hersh, let me

provide you a more detailed discussion on verses 9 to 11. I agree with

Hershji that these verses provide the relevance of 'Bhakti - Devotion'

in advaita.

 

In verse 9, the word 'Maccittah' refers to those special devotees, who,

recognize God as their supreme lover and greatest friend and have their

mind exclusively fixed on Him (VIII.l4; IX.22. Such devotees have no

attraction, attachment or love for anything else than God. Also they

are ever engrossed in the thought of His name, virtues, glory, sports

and being; and who, even while performing ordinary functions of the

body, much less at the time of meditation, never forget God even for a

moment.

 

The word 'Madgatapranah' has been used with reference to those who live

and breathe solely and entirely for God and whose senses also function

for His sake alone. To those devotees even a moment of separation from

God is unbearable. They eat, drink, walk, move, sleep and keep awake,

and carry on all other activities for His sake alone. The subtle

message is those devotees have successfully transformed to become the

Divine Personality and have got rid of their personal interests

(selfish desires) in their activities. They have become aware of the

fact that their welfare and security are fully protected by their

dearest and nearest Friend/Lover/Guide! In verse 22 of chapter 9, Lord

Krishna guarantees the `Yogaksema – Welfare and Security' of devotees

whose thoughts only centered on Him all the time.

 

Loving and faithful devotees of God fondly indulge in discussing with,

and bringing home to, one another the virtues, glory, truth, sports and

mysteries of God on the basis of their personal experiences and arguing

their case with great skill. Reciting and chanting Gods names,

virtues, glory, stories and character and popularizing them through

sermons and discourses and offering praises to God etc, are all

included in speaking of God. Speaking of and discussing the glories of

God can also be done through Satsangh and more we participate and

exchange about His glories, we are likely to get peace and tranquility.

 

In verse 10, the demonstrative pronoun 'Tesam' stands for the loving

and disinterested devotees of God referred to in the preceding two

verses as Budhah and Maccittah etc. Similarly, the adjective

Satatayuktanam represents the aggregate of all the qualifications

mentioned in the preceding verse such

as 'Maccittah' 'Madgatapranah', 'Parasparam Bodhayantah' and 'Mam

Kathayantah.'

 

The intention is to convey that the devotees referred to in the

preceding verse, far from worshipping God out of any desire for

enjoyment, constantly adore Him in the manner stated in the preceding

verse, disinterestedly and with exclusive love, without seeking any

return for their devotion.

 

The Lord infuses into the mind of His devotees the capacity to grasp

correctly the truth relating to the absolute, formless Divinity along

with the secret of Its glory and greatness, as also the truth relating

to His qualified aspect with and without form along with His sports,

mysteries, greatness and glory etc. This is what is meant by conferring

the Yoga of wisdom. It is this Buddhiyoga which has been spoken of in

Chapters VII and IX above as Jnana coupled with Vijnana; and direct

realization of God through this Yoga of wisdom is what is meant by

attaining Him.

 

Verse 11 contains the profound statement that the Lord Himself dispels

the darkness of ignorance of the devotee, He seeks to convey that the

devotee need not undertake any other Sadhana for the purpose. The

object is achieved through the mercy of God alone. The word 'Tamah'

qualified by the adjective 'Ajnanajam,' stands for the veiling power of

ignorance that has existed from time without beginning, and due to

which man fails to realize the virtues, glory and character of God. By

the statement "dwelling in the heart I dispel their ignorance" the Lord

reveals the glory of devotion and exculpates Himself from the charge of

partiality. The Lord there by seeks to convey that He constantly

resides in the heart of all as their Inner Controller and yet people do

not feel His presence within their heart; that is why He fails to

dispel the ignorance of their heart. His loving devotees, however, as

indicated in the preceding verse, constantly see Him as if sparingly

present in their heart; it is therefore that He easily dispels the

darkness of their ignorance. As a matter of fact, the light of wisdom

dispels the darkness of ignorance and brings God-Realization at the

same time. If, how-ever, some sequence is maintained between the two

processes, it should be understood that the removal of ignorance takes

place earlier and is immediately followed by God-Realization.

 

Often the question arises in our mind that what do we need to do in

order to get the Divine Grace. The Lord answers this question by saying

that His Grace is there for everyone all the time. Due to our

ignorance, we don't recognize the Divine Presence in our Heart and He

reminds again and again in Gita on His ever presence in our hearts. In

the Nature, everything is plentiful, only those who seek get it and

those who ignore suffer.

 

Harih Om!

 

Ram Chandran

 

 

advaitin, "hersh_b" <hershbhasin@g...> wrote:

>

> Namaste Satsanghis:

> Please advise if the heart location described by Bhagwan Ramana and

> in Katha Up. is the "Solar Plexus Chakra (Manipura) "; this Chakra is

> described below:

>

> The Solar Plexus Chakra is located, as its name suggests, between the

> navel and heart, at the pericardium (below the breasts at the V of

> the ribs). it's name means "Seat of the Soul", or solar network.

>

 

Namaste Hershji:

 

Any reference to Chakra has to come from 'Patanjali's Yoga Sastra,' and

this is my understanding. Someone more familiar with 'Kundalini' may be

able to answer your question.

[Guest guest]

advaitin, "Ram Chandran" <ramvchandran> wrote:

>

> Namaste Satsanghis:

>

> Before I try to explain the question raised by Sri Hersh, let me

> provide you a more detailed discussion on verses 9 to 11. I agree with

> Hershji that these verses provide the relevance of 'Bhakti - Devotion'

> in advaita.

 

**********************

 

Namaste,

 

To add to the excellent description above by Ram-ji, it is

helpful to keep in mind that all the inflections (vibhakti-s) of the

pronoun 'I' (aham) have to be interpreted in the context of Krishna's

standpoint of "aham AtmA" (Gita 10:20), which captures all the Vedic

'mahA-vAkya'-s.

 

************************

 

 

>

> advaitin, "hersh_b" <hershbhasin@g...> wrote:

> >

> > Namaste Satsanghis:

> > Please advise if the heart location described by Bhagwan Ramana and

> > in Katha Up. is the "Solar Plexus Chakra (Manipura) "; this Chakra is

> > described below:

> >

> > The Solar Plexus Chakra is located, as its name suggests, between the

> > navel and heart, at the pericardium (below the breasts at the V of

> > the ribs). it's name means "Seat of the Soul", or solar network.

> >

>

> Namaste Hershji:

>

> Any reference to Chakra has to come from 'Patanjali's Yoga Sastra,' and

> this is my understanding. Someone more familiar with 'Kundalini' may be

> able to answer your question.

>

 

 

**********************

 

Namaste,

 

The following excerpt may clarify the answer:

 

http://www.ramana-maharshi.org/downloads/novdec01.pdf

 

"...Looking at ajna chakra, etc., is not necessary in

this method. It may be helpful in keeping the mind

from going out towards external objects. Concentrate

on the Self without which there are no chakras.

They do not exist without you. You are all of them.

All centers (chakras) are in the Heart. The Heart is

not the anahata chakra. The latter is in the spinal

cord. Heart is I......"

 

 

 

Regards,

 

Sunder

[Guest guest]

Namaskar Sri Sri Ramachandran-ji :

 

Thanks so much for bringing up for discussion 'Bhakti' in Advaita !

Advaita is not the path of Just Jnanis - it is also the path of those

bhaktas who have reached the stage of 'para' bhakti!

 

If 'Bhakti' does not culminate in 'Jnana' such 'bhakti' is only in

the primitive stages ! ( Gauna bhakti) !

 

In 'Gauna' bhakti , the devotee always talks about 'my Krishna' - i

have to serve my 'Krishna', feed my 'Krishna' , offer flowers to

my Krishna ' etc so much so for such a devotee even 'the Krishna'

images of other devotees are your 'Krishna's ! ... However as time

goes on, such a devotee ( gauni) matures in the devotional path and

by the grace of Lord Krishna himself starts 'seeing 'Krishna'

everywhere, not in her 'STONE' image but in every being in the

Universe ! This is the stage of 'Para' or 'mukhya' bhakti !

 

Ramji describes Beautifully the word ''Maccittah '

 

(In verse 9, the word 'Maccittah' refers to those special devotees,

who, recognize God as their supreme lover and greatest friend and

have their mind exclusively fixed on Him (VIII.l4; IX.22. )

 

May i please add a verse to support your excellent commentary on

this 'word'?

 

cittaM sukhena bhavatApahRtaM gRheSu

yan nirvizaty uta karAv api gRhya-kRtye

pAdau padaM na calatas tava pAAda-mUlAt

yAmaH kathaM vrajam atho karavAma kiM vA?

 

(Srimad Bhagavatam 10.29.34)

 

O Krishna! You've so easily stolen our hearts, which up to now had

been absorbed in our family lives, and our hands, which were busy

with our housework.

 

Now our feet are incapable of taking even a single step away from

Your lotus feet. How can we go back to Vraja? And even if we went,

what would we do there?

 

Ramji describes the word ''Madgatapranah' equally eloquently

 

(The word 'Madgatapranah' has been used with reference to those who

live and breathe solely and entirely for God and whose senses also

function for His sake alone. To those devotees even a moment of

separation from God is unbearable. They eat, drink, walk, move, sleep

and keep awake, and carry on all other activities for His sake

alone.)

 

When the gopis are seperated from their Lord Krishna ,( iIS is

called 'Viraha) they exhibit all these ten states of separation ( or

pangs of seperation)

 

lalasodvega-jagaryas tanavam jadimatra tu

 

vaiyagryam vyadhir unmado moho mrtyur dasa dasa

 

Ujjvala-nilamani, purva-raga division, 9)

 

The ten states are intense longing (lalasa), anxiety (udvega),

sleeplessness (jagarana), emaciation (tanava), inertia (jadata),

impatience (vyagrata), illness (vyadhi- turning pale etc), madness

(unmada), delusion (moha), and longing for death (mrtyu -no desire to

live ).

 

This song is from the 'Viraha Madhuri' of "Prema-Ras-Madira" by

Jagadguru Sri Kripaluji Maharaj.

 

One blessed Gopi in separation of Beloved Krishna tells her plight to

one of her intimate Sakhis.

 

O my dear friend! My eyes are drunk with the 'Syama-Prema-Rasa',

Divine Love of Lord Krishna.

 

I have been blessed with the enchanting vision of Nanda Nandana, the

youthful, handsome Son of Nanda Maharaja. From that very moment

onwards, His captivating smile has robbed me of all wisdom and

soberness! Drowned in the intoxication of His passionate love, my

mind has lost all its propriety and reasoning!

 

Now, day and night only His beauty and charm invade my thoughts. My

heart deeply yearns for His eternal association. I have no peace of

mind, and my soul is restless.

 

My heart is remembering His dalliance over and over again, my mind is

lost in His loving exploits, and my eyes are streaming down the tears

of Divine longing.

 

What can I say more about my madness! Even the Supreme majesty and

opulence of the Lord of Vaikuntha doesn't attract me any more! I have

renounced even 'Mukti', (Liberation) which is sought after by many

great Sages.

 

I only long to become just a hand-maid of My Divine Beloved, Sri

Krishna. Can anyone understand this craziness!

 

( Thanks to my friend pyari_ hari, a great devotee of Lord Krishna)

 

and Ramji Goes on to state

 

(The intention is to convey that the devotees referred to in the

preceding verse, far from worshipping God out of any desire for

enjoyment, constantly adore Him in the manner stated in the

preceding verse, disinterestedly and with exclusive love, without

seeking any > return for their devotion.)

 

Yes! That was the 'bhakti' of the Gopis of Vraja - 'nishkamya

bhakti' - 'Love for Love's sake' - No desire for neither material

benefits not desire for liberation ! what an exalted state of

devotion!

 

There are first and foremost, Salokyam (perception of the Divine)

 

secondly, Sameepyam (proximity to the Divine)

 

third, Sarupyam (identity with the Divine)

 

and finally, Sayujyam (merger with the Divine)

 

 

and the last state is the state of Jnana !

 

and Read Professor-ji web site for the real meaning of 'Sahujyam' in

the word 'Bhavani-twam' in the advaitic sense !

 

 

Salutations to Gopi-Jana vallabha!

[Guest guest]

Hari Om.

 

Dear Adiji,

 

I really enjoyed reading your post a lot. Reading the paragraph below

I realised that I must be a "Gauna Bhakta".

> In 'Gauna' bhakti , the devotee always talks about 'my Krishna' - i

> have to serve my 'Krishna', feed my 'Krishna' , offer flowers to

> my Krishna ' etc so much so for such a devotee even 'the Krishna'

> images of other devotees are your 'Krishna's ! ... However as time

> goes on, such a devotee ( gauni) matures in the devotional path and

> by the grace of Lord Krishna himself starts 'seeing 'Krishna'

> everywhere, not in her 'STONE' image but in every being in the

> Universe ! This is the stage of 'Para' or 'mukhya' bhakti !

 

I want to tell you one little secret about Gauna Bhaktas. This "Your

Krishna" and "My Krishna" thing is not "real fight" ;-) There is no

jealousy or hatred in it at all. It is just pure love. Those are "mock

fights" created to increase Love for Bhagwan. :-) It is just an

excuse. See.. Gauna Bhaktas love to talk about Krishna ALL THE TIME.

To talk about Krishna some dialogues and play material is needed (e.g.

in ordinary play there are love scenes, jealousy scenes, anger scenes,

fight scenes). Like a musician creates different patterns from same

notes on the fly to establish the Raga, Gauna Bhaktas create different

Krishna themes on the fly as an excuse to talk about Him and to be

with Him all the time. That way they all get to enjoy Him more.

However, the biggest secret is the one who enjoys these mock fights

the most is Krishna Himself :-) He only creates those and just lets

Bhaktas think that they are creating them. Makhan-chor is really

mischevious, He does it ALL and stays apart from it like He did

nothing! However, Bhaktas are not any less smart. They figure this out

too but just go with His game for His Joy ;-) It is mutual acting and

playing. Lot of Fun it is !!!

 

Love,

Padma

[Guest guest]

Padma-ji!

 

Thank you so much for your kind words ....

 

Yes, 'jealousy' is a very common trait more so among women and

specially when it is revolving around the 'Love' for Beloved 'Murali-

Manohara' or 'Citta-chora' or 'Gopi-krishna ' or 'Radha-krisha'

 

may i pleae recall a beautiful poem by Sri Vidyapati wherein he

explains this sentiment - Smt. Radharani's jealousy?

 

Radharani has to deal with her jealousy. Krishna is the lover of all

women (representing all humanity), and she cannot hope to keep him

all to herself.

 

He promised he'd return tomorrow.

And I wrote everywhere on my floor:

"Tomorrow."

 

 

The morning broke, when they all asked:

Now tell us, when will your "Tomorrow" come?

Tomorrow, Tomorrow, where are you?

I cried and cried, but my Tomorrow never returned!

 

 

Vidyapati says: O listen, dear!

Your Tomorrow became a today

with other women.

 

Translated by Azfar Hussain

 

**********************************************************************

 

Padma-ji ? Have you heard of 'CHANDRAVALI' ? one of the cowherd

gopis ? She is Radharani's chief Rival ! Her Love for Lord Krishna

was far superior to Smt. Radharani ! She always said ' Lord Krishna

is my heart' and never said Like Smt. Radharani ' I am in Lord

Krishna's heart'

 

And Chandravali's answer to that (speaking to a sakhi who is telling

her to be more like Radha), using a metaphor, is:

SoDazyAs tvam uDor vimuJca sahasA nAmApi vAmAzaye

tasyA durvinayair muner api manaH zAntAtmanaH kupyati |

dhig goSThendra-sute samasta-guNinAM maulau vrajAbhyarcite

pAdAnte patite'pi naiva kurute bhrU-kSepam apy atra yA

 

Stop trying to persuade me to be meaner to Krishna! And don't even

mention the name of that other gopi, what to speak of comparing her

to the full moon with all its sixteen phases. Her wicked behavior

would drive even a tranquil-hearted monk to anger. Fie on her! The

prince of Gokula, the most virtuous of the virtuous, who is worshiped

by all the people of Vraja, falls down at her feet, and yet she won't

even give him the time of day!

 

( chandravali means many moons ! and Smt. Radha is always compared to

the Full moon)

 

so much for rivalry! But Our beloved Chitta-CHORA enjoyed all

this 'attention and adulation'

 

**********************************************************************

In Venu Gita , The gopis are said to be even 'jealous' of

Muralidhara's flute . But this 'jealousy is also tinged with

admiration!

 

The Gopis ask the Flute:

 

gopyaH kim Acarad ayaM kuzalaM sma veNur

dAmodarAdhara-sudhAm api gopikAnAm

bhuGkte svayaM yad avaziSTa-rasaM hradinyo

hRSyat-tvaco `zru mumucus taravo yathAryAH

 

 

Dear gopis! What indescribably auspicious activities

did the flute perform in previous lives that it can now

freely enjoy the leftover nectar of Damodar's lips,

which is truly the property of us gopis.

 

 

The flute answered thus (according to a Hindi poet):

 

"My Sadhana was in no way different from that of a full-fledged,

sincere and persevering spiritual aspirant.

 

It started with my sacrifice and renunciation

of my beautiful abode of bamboo bushes

where I had been enjoying with my near and dear ones.

 

My body was subjected to severe austerity (it was cut to size).

My Mano-Nasha took place as my 'Man' - meaning also the maundage

(a unit of weight called 'MAN' in Hindi) was all removed from

inside and I was made hollow.

 

I had also Granthi - Cheda i.e., my knots were cut

(to make me, smooth). Last but not the least,

I always bowed to and accepted my Lord's desire as paramount.

 

Whatever tune or Raaga my master wanted me to play,

I played it and never exercised my own will in choosing the tune.

It was only then that my master Krishna accepted

me and took me to his lips".

 

--- Swami Shantananda Puri of Sri Shivananda Mission

 

Source: SCRIPTURAL TEXTS

Text No. 8: Srimad Bhagavatam by Swami Shantananda Puri

 

http://www.geocities.com/radhakutir

 

**********************************************************************

Padma-ji : you are right! Lord Krishna plays ! He plays the field (

to use an american expression! ) and all his victims are 'Abala

Naris' who love , adore and worship HIM and love to play into His

divine Hands ! ( any pun intended is purely for fun) !

 

Sri Lalita plays ! SO DO i !

 

This whole world is a 'play - we are all actors/actresses ! The

director of this Divine leela is none other than

 

Jaya Radha Madhava ! Gopi Jana vallabha ! Sri Murali Manohara!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

-- In advaitin, "pjoshi99" <pjoshi99> wrote:

> Dear Adiji,

>

> I really enjoyed reading your post a lot. Reading the paragraph

below

> I realised that I must be a "Gauna Bhakta".

>

, Bhaktas are not any less smart. They figure this

out

> too but just go with His game for His Joy ;-) It is mutual acting

and

> playing. Lot of Fun it is !!!

>

> Love,

> Padma

>

[Guest guest]

advaitin, "hersh_b" <hershbhasin@g...> wrote:

 

Question for the group

Please advise if the heart location described by Bhagwan Ramana and

in Katha Up. is the "Solar Plexus Chakra (Manipura) "; this Chakra

is

described below:

 

The Solar Plexus Chakra is located, as its name suggests, between

the

navel and heart, at the pericardium (below the breasts at the V of

the ribs). it's name means "Seat of the Soul", or solar network.

 

rgds

Hersh

 

Namashkar Hersh! May i please answer your question ! This is what

i 'unearthed'

 

http://www.beezone.com/Ramana/heart_and_mind.html

 

Ramana: "The jiva is said to remain in the Heart in deep sleep, and

in the brain in the waking state. Heart is not the muscular cavity

which propels blood. It denotes in hthe Vedas and the scriptures the

centre whence the notion 'I' springs. Does it spring from the ball of

flesh? It does not, but from somewhere within us, from the centre of

our being. The 'I' has no location. Everything is the Self. There is

nothing but the Self. So the Heart must be said to be the entire body

as well as the universe, conceived as 'I'. But to help the abhyasi we

have to indicate a definite place in the universe, or the body, dor

it. So this Heart is pointed out as the seat of the Self. But in truh

we are everywhere; we are all that is, and there is nothing else".

 

 

 

----

----------

Ramana: "Atma is the Heart itself. Its manifestion is in the brain.

The passage from the Heart to the brain might be considered to be

through the sushumna, or nerve (nadi) with some other name. The

Upanishads speak of pare leena, meaning that the sushumna or such

nadis are all comprised in Para, i.e. the Atma nadi. The Yogis say

that the current rising up to sahasrara (brain) ends there. That

experience is not complete. For Jnana they must come to the Heart.

Hridaya (Heart) is the Alpha and Omega".

 

Cohen: From the Heart the body sprouts. The energy, life and

consciousness, the only prime elements of the body and likewise of

the universe, stream out of the Heart by the first channel, or nadi,

straight to the head (Amrita Nadi) from which they run down to all

parts of the body through various nadis. ...Because all the nadis

from the body end in the sahasrara, the Kundalini yogi, the Hatha

yogi, and in fact all yogis, who practise pranayama take the

sahasrara to be the terminal point of their sadhana; whereas the

Dhyana yogi, also called Raja yogi, Vichara yogi, etc. adds one more

state for the complete and absolute Emancipation. The last stage runs

through the Para nadi, also called Amrita nadi, because, being of the

purest sattva, it is extremely blissful and leads straight to the

Heart.

 

 

 

----

----------

Ramana: The Heart is not physical; it is spiritual Hridaya = hrit +

ayam, which means 'that is the Centre". It is that from which

thoughts arise, on which they subsists and where thry are resolved

are the content of the mind and they shape the universe. The Heart is

thus the centre of all. It is said by the Upanishads to be Brahman.

Brahman is the Heart".

 

Cohen: "Thoughts are (the products as well as) the contents of the

mind" is significant; it make the mind not simply manas, as it is

usually wrongly translated in Indian metaphysics, but the

consciousness which produces, contains and perceives the thoughts,

synonymous wiith the Heart or Brahman.

 

"Verily as space is boundless, so is the ether within the Heart. Both

heaven and earth, fire and air, the sun and the moon, also the

lightning and the stars, and whatever is, as well as whatever is not

in the universe, all are within the vacuity (Heart)". Chandogya

Upanishad, IX, i.3)

 

 

 

----

----------

Ramana: "How to realise the Heart? There is no one who even for a

trice fails to experience the Self. He is the Self. The Self is the

Heart. When asked who you are, you place your hand on the right siide

of the chest and say 'I am'; thereby you unnowingly point out the

Self. The Self s thus known".

 

 

Devotee: "Should I meditate on the right chest in order to meditate

on the Heart?"

 

Bhagavan: "The Heart is not physical. Meditation should not be on the

right or the left. It should be on the Self. Everyone knows "I am".

It is neight within nor without, neither on the right nor the

left: "I am" - that is all".

 

**********************************************************************

 

i hope this helps !

[Guest guest]

Namaste Satsanghis:

 

A question came-up recently in one of Gita Satsangh class with regard

to how many battalions were present in the Mahabharta War. Answer is

18, ie, 11 on Kaurva's side and 7 on Pandava's side. Another

question came up about where is Bhagavad Gita described in the epic

Mahabharta. The Bhagavad Gita is described in Bhishma Parva, Section

6 of Mahabharta. Why is the number 18 so important? It is one page

explanation from "The Bhagavad Gita" by Swami Chidbhavananda - I

thought you might like it.

 

Number 18, 108, 1008 and 10008 are all multiples of number 9, which

is a mystic number. All multiples of 9 added together ultimately

become number 9. This can be verified (16X9=144; 1+4+4=9) The mystic

number 9 is arrived thiswise: The universe is constituted of the

three factors - time, space and causation; The universe is

constituted of the three gunas (ingredients) - sattva, rajas and

tamas; The universe is constituted of the three functions -

creation, preservation and destruction. Thus three times three

making nine has become a mystic number. It exhausts the definition

of the phenomenal universe. Twice nine or eighteen makes Mahabharata

scheme complete. The eighteen portions (Parvas) in the epic define

in detail the career of man on earth.

 

The eighteen chapters in the Gita make yoga philosophy complete. The

eighteen days "warfare makes the warriors" exploits complete.

Eighteen are the divisions of the armies on the contending parties -

Pandavas and Kauravas. The one having seven divisions and the other

eleven. Thus all the human forces mobilized were eighteen in number.

The Mahabharta is thus exposition of the human possibilities and

achievements graded into eighteen, thus multiple of nine, a mystic

number. The higher multiples of it signify further ranging into

divine regions.

 

Om Tat Sat

 

Ram Chandran

[Guest guest]

Namaste Ramji.

 

But we Indians (others also I am sure who have an affinity for

numerology) tend to take this too far.

 

Here is a classic example in Matha Amritanandamayi Devi's biography

written by one of Her devotees (ex-devotee now, I understand). Her

reported dob is 27th September 1953. I say 'reported' because I am

not sure if her parents, who are fishermen from a remote village in

Kerala, really bothered to remember such trivialities like the date

of birth of one of their many babies. Obviously, they didn't know she

was going to be the world's Ammachi. 27 totals 9, September is 9,

1953 totals 9 - All three 9's added together ends up in 9. The

biographer was obviously more enthusiastic. He mentioned the birth-

time as 9.09 a.m. as though he was holding a watch in his hands, and

an accurate one at that, at the time of the event. He knew

numerology! The only surprise - why he did he stop at the minutes

and not go into the seconds.

 

I have great respect for Mother as I have expressed in my several

writings here. I don't know if Mother has read the biography. If

She has, She has really smiled and pardoned the fellow for his

ebullient enthusiasm.

 

Ramji, this is just an aside and I don't mean to comment on the lofty

thoughts of Sw. Chidbhavananda.

 

PraNAms.

 

Madathil Nair

_____________

 

advaitin, "Ram Chandran" <ramvchandran>

wrote:

>

> Namaste Satsanghis:

>

> A question came-up recently in one of Gita Satsangh class with

regard

> to how many battalions were present in the Mahabharta War. Answer

is

> 18, ie, 11 on Kaurva's side and 7 on Pandava's side. Another

> question came up about where is Bhagavad Gita described in the

epic

> Mahabharta. The Bhagavad Gita is described in Bhishma Parva,

Section

> 6 of Mahabharta. Why is the number 18 so important? It is one page

> explanation from "The Bhagavad Gita" by Swami Chidbhavananda - I

> thought you might like it.

>

> Number 18, 108, 1008 and 10008 are all multiples of number 9,

which

> is a mystic number. .............

[Guest guest]

Namaste,

 

On 14/11/05, Ram Chandran <ramvchandran wrote:

>

>

> Number 18, 108, 1008 and 10008 are all multiples of number 9, which

> is a mystic number. All multiples of 9 added together ultimately

> become number 9. This can be verified (16X9=144; 1+4+4=9) The mystic

> number 9 is arrived thiswise:

>

 

** This explanation is interesting, but I feel there must be something more

to the popularity of 18, 108, 1008, etc in our parampara. After all, other

multiples of 9 like 27 or 63 are nowhere near as popular. Also what you have

mentioned above, regarding the digits adding upto 9, is true only in the

base-10 number system that was developed in ancient Bharatavarsha, though I

am not sure if the system was in widespread use at the time of the

Mahabharata. If one uses, say a base-8 system, the same would be true not

for 9 but for 7. Somehow, I find it difficult to accept that the "mystic"

properties of a number should depend on the number system chosen.

 

The same for Mata Amritanandamayi's biography mentioned by Nair-ji. Why

should the biographer use the western calendar for Mataji's date? What if

the Kaliyuga samvat was used, or the Vikram Samvat, or the Malayalam era?

And why Indian Standard Time? Wouldnt astrology be more accurate if the

local time of the place of birth was used instead?

 

Pardon me if all this sounds like nitpicking. Otherwise, this discussion has

been most enriching!

 

Hari Om

Ramesh

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

Namaste Rameshji.

 

Do you know they celebrate Ammachi's birthday on the English date of

Her birth? Normally, Keralite Hindus celebrate birthdays on their

star days when the Sun transits the same zodiacal sign where it was

at the time of birth. Ammachi was born at a time ruled by the

asterism kArtikA. So, the celebrations should take place when the

nirayana Moon is in kArtikA star in the Malayalam month Kanni (Kanya)

[when the Sun transits nirayana Virgo (KanyA rAsi)].

 

As for astrology, they don't use the standard time anywhere in the

world. The local time at the place of birth is first calculated from

the standard time to derive the siderial time of birth at the given

longitude. Ascendant is then calculated on the siderial time for the

given latitude as siderial time gives the exact positions of all

zodiacal signs (rAsIs) at the time of the event at that

longitude/latitude. This is scientifically precise. However, the

standard time is used to calculate the positions of planets as all

our almanacs/ephemeres are prepared for standard time.

 

Let us conclude this here as this is a digression from the GItA topic

we are discussing. Should you have any questions, please write to me

directly.

 

PraNAms.

 

Madathil Nair

_____________________

 

advaitin, Ramesh Krishnamurthy

<rkmurthy@g...> wrote:

>> The same for Mata Amritanandamayi's biography mentioned by Nair-

ji. Why

> should the biographer use the western calendar for Mataji's date?

What if

> the Kaliyuga samvat was used, or the Vikram Samvat, or the

Malayalam era?

> And why Indian Standard Time? Wouldnt astrology be more accurate if

the

> local time of the place of birth was used instead?

[Guest guest]

Namaste all.

 

Here are some stray thoughts on BG 10: 9-11.

 

I have used the feminine here as Devi is my iStadevatA –

Consciousness – the creator, supporter and destroyer of all

creation.

 

BG 10-9

 

maccittAh - Every thought is She, everything perceived with the mind

behind the sense organs is She. There is nothing other than Her.

 

madgataprAnah – Prana also means the life force and vital airs.

Every pulsation, movement in or of my body is She. My whole body and

the life processes going on in or on it is, therefore, She. Each

batting of the eyelid, each muscular twitch, sensation of the gastric

fire, every movement, everything is She. My life is She. There is a

beautiful hint here for meditators to visualize the Devi or the Lord

in the passage and spreading of their breath throughout every

particle of the body. Each inhalation and expiration is an offering

unto Consciousness (She) by Consciousness (me). This applies to all

physical sensations. No need, therefore, to restrict oneself to the

breath.

 

parasparam mAm bodhayantah – Letting one another know about Me.

Oh Ma, where is one another when You alone are there!? To whom

shall I speak? Where is me other than You? Yet, I speak and sing of

You only always!

 

kathayantah ca – Yes, each word I speak is vAgIshwari Herself! There

is no other word other than Her.

 

nityam tuSyanti ca – What more delight can there be than always

being Her.

 

ramanti cha – Virtually swimming in that delight of being Her.

 

The delight in tuSyanti is the happiness which doesn't leave anything

to be desired any more. (Courtesy: Sw. Prakashananda in his

interpretation of BG in my native Malayalam).

 

That is being RamA (a name of the Devi) and Bh. RamaNa all at the

same time! Or, are they any different? What a fool I am! Being Her

is the consummation of all happiness here.

 

Like a teenager, who is always preoccupied with his love, the devotee

is immersed in Her. But, there is a distinct difference between

teenage absorption in love and the losing oneself described here.

Here, the love has resulted from a logical understanding that She is

the ultimate origin, pervader and operator of everything seen (Ref:

Chapters 7 and 8) and, therefore, everything is She. She then takes

care of Her devotees totally. Yogakshemam vahAmyaham.

 

BG 10-10

 

teSAm tam buddhiyogam dadami….yena te mAm upayAnti - To those

described above, I grant them the ultimate knowledge whereby they

verily become Me. The granting is only by way of figure of speech.

The result is spontaneous like the blossoming of a flower. There is

no granting and becoming as two consecutive processes. The bud is

the flower. Where is then time to wonder what has preceded or

followed what?

 

BG 10-11

 

The anukampa here is not the type of compassion we normally talk

about. In the advaitic sense, there is no one to shower compassion

or receive it. Light need not have compassion to remove darkness. It

is the very nature of light. Consciousness (Devi) Herself, Who we

are, is the Light that lights up everything for us whereby everything

shines after Her. Yet, we are groping in the darkness of our

ignorance chasing the will-o'-the-wisp of finite happiness in the

world of reflections that shines after Her. A very funny situation.

We are Her by our very own true nature. She is our atmabhAva. The

ones described in Verse 9, constantly immersed in Her, spontaneously

realize this Truth. Avidya is then effectively undone like the

disappearance of darkness at sunrise. The Sun cannot complain of

darkness, can he? He doesn't have to remove darkness either. There

is no darkness where he is. We are the Sun, yet we complain of

darkness! That is the darkness born out of our ignorance of the

truth that we are the Sun. There really is no darkness but it is

misapprehended by us is then the inherent theme of this verse which

beautifully employs the two commonly considered (misunderstood!)

opposites of light and darkness to reveal a great advaitic truth.

 

PraNAms.

 

Madathil Nair

[Guest guest]

Namaste Sri Nair-ji,

 

advaitin, "Madathil Rajendran Nair"

<madathilnair> wrote:

> maccittAh - Every thought is She, everything perceived

> with the mind behind the sense organs is She. There is

> nothing other than Her.

>

> madgataprAnah – Prana also means the life force and vital

> airs. Every pulsation, movement in or of my body is She.

> ..... My life is She.

 

 

What a beautiful interpretation!

I cannot but say it - Wow!

Nair-ji, I loved your song.

After all, I am in love with Her even as you are!

 

 

Warm regards,

Chittaranjan

[Guest guest]

YET, NO COMPETITION OR JEALOUSY IN THIS LOVE BECAUSE YOU ARE SHE!

THANKS AND REGARDS.

 

Nair

________

 

advaitin, "Chittaranjan Naik"

<chittaranjan_naik> wrote:

>......> After all, I am in love with Her even as you are!

>