Gita Satsangh, Chapter 10:Verses 24 to 26

[Guest guest]

Namaste Satsanghis:

 

Here are the additional three verses in continuation of the Gita

Satsangh. These verses again describe the Divine Vibhuti. I

encourage new members feel free to participate in the Satsangh

through questions and comments. This is a great (rare) opportunity

for all of us to share our thoughts and insights in a friendly

atmosphere. Please come forward.

 

 

Purodhasaam cha mukhyam maam viddhipaartha brihaspatim;

Senaaneenaamaham skandah sarasaamasmi saagarah…24

 

And, among the household priests (of kings), O Arjuna, know Me to be

the chief, Brihaspati; among the army generals I am Skanda; among

lakes I am the ocean!

 

Brhaspati is the preceptor of Indra, the celestials, the family

priest greatest repository of learning and wisdom, the foremost of

all the priest of the world and the head of the Angirasas (sons of

Angira). Therefore Bhagavan Sri Krsna calls him His own self. Skanda

is also known by the name of Kartikeya. He has six heads and twelve

arms. A son of Lord Siva, he is the chief of the generalissimo of the

gods. It is therefore, that the Lord declares him to be His very

self. Among all seats of water in the world the ocean is the largest

and is believed to be their lord. Hence the ocean is their chief

representative; and it is therefore that the Lord declares it to be

His own self.

 

Maharsheenaam bhriguraham giraamasmyekamaksharam;

Yajnaanaam japayajno'smi sthaavaraanaam himaalayah.,,25

 

Among the great sages I am Bhrigu; among words I am the monosyllable

Om; among sacrifices I am the sacrifice of silent repetition; among

immovable things the Himalayas I am.

 

Maharsis there are many; their distinctive marks and the names of the

ten most prominent of them are given below: - "The mind-born sons of

Brahma are all independent in the matter of birth and endowed with

supernatural powers. That which is not bounded by limits, in other

words, that which is infinite in extent, and which, though all-

pervasive, is yet visible to us, is called Mahat. Those wise men who

having transcended the limits of the human intellect depend entirely

on Him who is infinite in virtues (Mahantam Rsanti), are called

Maharsis. Bhrgu, Marici, Atri, Angira Pulaha, Kratu, Manu,

Daksa,Vasistha and Pulastya-these are the ten principal Maharanis.

They all sprang of their own will from the mind of Brahma and are

possessed of supernatural powers. Because God Himself appeared

through Brahma as these seers, they are called Maharsis.* (Vayu-

Purana LIX. 82-83,89-90).

 

Bhrgu is the chief of all great seers. He is a great devotee of God,

highly enlightened and full of spiritual glow: hence the Lord

declares him to be His own self. The substantive 'Gir'(the

uninfected form of Giram) denotes a word expressive of meaning, and

the word OM, also known as the Pranava is termed as the one syllable

(VIII.l3). Of all significant words Pranava stands the foremost; for

it is an appellation of God (XVII. 23}. The repetition of this word

brings God-Realization and there is identity between word and its

meaning. Hence the Lord speaks of the Pranava as His own self.

 

Japa or repetition of the Divine Name involves no violence in any

form, and the practice of Japa leads to the direct perception of God.

The Code of Manu also speaks very highly of Japa. Hence 'Japayajna'

excels all other forms of sacrifice, and it is to bring out the

superiority of 'Japayajna' to every other offering that the Lord

calls it His very self. That which has a fixed position or is

immovable is called 'Sthavara'. Mountains, because they are

immovable, fall under the category of 'Sthavaras'. The Himalayas are

the foremost of them all. It is the most sacred place for the

practice of austerities and is helpful in the attainment of

liberation. The divine sages Nara and Narayana performed their

austerities on the Himalayan peaks. On top of this, the Himalayas are

the ruler of mountains. Hence the Lord speaks of it as His very self.

 

Ashwatthah sarvavrikshaanaam devarsheenaam cha naaradah;

Gandharvaanaam chitrarathah siddhaanaam kapilo munih…26

 

Among the trees (I am) the peepul; among the divine sages I am

Narada; among Gandharvas I am Chitraratha; among the perfected the

sage Kapila.

 

The holy fig tree is held to be the ruler of the kingdom of plants

and the most sacred of all trees; hence the Lord declares it to be

His very self.

 

For the marks of a Devarisi or celestial sage the reader is referred

to the commentary on verses 12 and 13 above, where they have been

already discussed. Narada is the chief of all such Devarisis. Besides

this, he is a great devotee, a highly enlightened soul and an expert

revealer of Mantras. Hence it is that the Lord declares him to be His

very self. For a detailed account of Narada to the reader is referred

to the footnote below the commentary on verses 12 and 13.

 

The Gandharvas are a particular class of celestial beings. They are

celestial musicians and actors. In the celestial regions they are

considered to be most handsome and attractive in appearance like

abode of the Gandharvas or Gandharvaloka and is situated above the

abode of the Guhyakas and below that of the Vidyadharas. Like the

gods and the manes, there are two varieties of Gandharvas-earthly and

celestial. A human being ascending to the abode of the Gandharvas by

dint of his merits after death is an earthly Gandharva; while he who

is a Gandharva from the beginning of a Kalpa is called a celestial

Gandharva. The celestial Gandharvas are again divided into two

classes-Mauneyas and Pradheyas. Two of a sage Kasyapas wives bore the

names of Muni and Pradha respectively. Most of the Apsaras and

Gandharvas took their birth from them. Sixteen celestials Gandharvas -

 

Bhimasena, Ugrasena, Suparna, Varuna, Gopati, Dhrtarastra,

Suryavarca, Satyavak Arkaparna, Prayuta, Bhima, Citraratha, Alisira,

Parjanya, Kali and Narada, being the progeny of Muni, are called

Mauneyas. Another group of fourteen Gandharvas:- Siddha, Purna;

Barhi, Purnayu, Brahmacari, Ratiguna, Suparna, Visvavasu, Sucandra,

Bhanu, Atibahu, Haha, Huhu and Tumburu, being born of Pradha, are

called Pradheyas(Mahabharata, Adi, LXV). Among them, Haha, Huhu,

Visvavasu, Tumburu, Citraratha and others are more prominent than the

rest; and Citraratha is considered to be the ruler of them all.

Citraratha is highly proficient in celestial music, and a master of

this art. It is therefore, that the Lord calls him His very self.

Accounts of these Gandharvas are contained in the Agni, Markandeya,

Vayu and Kalika Puranas, the Mahabharata, Adi-Parva and other

scriptures.

 

A 'Siddha' is one who has attained supernatural powers of all kinds

obtaining on the physical and astral planes, and is fully endowed

with noble virtues such as righteousness, wisdom; glory and

dispassion ate. There are thousands of such Siddhas, Kapila being the

foremost of them all. Lord Kapila is a direct manifestation of God.

He took his descent from the womb of Devahuti, wife of the great Yogi

Kardama, in order to impart divine knowledge to his mother. At the

time of his birth the Creator, Brahma himself, made his appearance in

the hermitage of Kardama and said to Devahuti:- 'Held in high esteem

by the teachers of Sankhya, this lord of the Siddhas will enhance

your glory and will be known throughout the world by the name of

Kapila'. * (Srimad Bhagavata III.19)

 

Kapila is eternally endowed by nature with virtues like knowledge,

glory, righteousness and dispassion etc. There is none among the

Siddhas who can even stand comparison with him, much less excel him.

It is therefore that the Lord calls sage Kapila His own self.

 

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,

There are no Sankara1 and Chinmaya folders at that link or atleast I don't see

them. Anyone else has this problem?

 

 

Ram Chandran <ramvchandran wrote:

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.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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[Guest guest]

Namaste

 

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

available at the advaitin file folder at URL:

advaitin/files

First click and open the folder:

<Bhagawad Gita Commentaries and References>

 

Then click on the Gita related folders such as Sankara1 and Chinmaya

to access the files.

 

Harih Om!

 

Ram Chandran

 

 

advaitin, karmic hindu <karmic_hindu

wrote:

>

> namaste,

> There are no Sankara1 and Chinmaya folders at that link or

atleast I don't see them. Anyone else has this problem?

>