Gita Satsangh...Introduction to Chapter 16

[Guest guest]

Dear Satsanghis...

 

May the Light of Truth burn effulgent every moment in your hearts!

 

The introduction below was written for us by our dear Shri Ramji, to prepare us

for the next Chapter of the Holy Gita. My namaskarams to him for his efforts to

share his knowledge with us and for providing us with this forum to study the

Holy Gita in this way.

 

----------

 

Chapter 16: Division of Attributes: Divine and Demonic

 

The Sixteenth Chapter of the Bhagavadgita tells us that it is our duty to work

in co-operation with the universal power of integration - the Divine (Daiva),

and not the (Devil) Asura. The Asura, or the devilish, the demonical power, is

that which pulls us out of ourselves, drives us away from the Self, takes us

away from our own Center, makes the Self the non-self, and converts us into

objects while we are the Subject in ourselves. This is the dark power that works

in a mysterious manner, moving earth and heaven, to transform everything into an

object rather than the subject with a status of its own. The soul within is the

representative of the Universal in us.

 

In the Sixteenth Chapter, we come to a novel revelation that the whole universe

is a play of two forces - the ingoing and the outgoing, powers that urge

themselves forward in the direction of the Center of the cosmos and those that

rush outwardly in the direction of space, time and objectivity. Now, the terms

good and evil, divine and devil are normally associated with ethical values and

the moral assessments in life. But the Gita here rises above the ordinary Human

concepts of good and evil, or even ethics and morality, and takes its stand on a

highly philosophical or metaphysical ground.

 

Everyone and everything has, thus, a twofold urge 'within itself. Often, we are

inspired and roused into a feeling of self-transcendence, a movement towards a

comprehensive grasp and a total experience, by an entry into the center of

things. The more we move away from the center, the more are we heading towards

what we call hell, in the language of the religions; and the heavenly regions

are those stages of experience which tend towards the Center rather than the

circumference and the space-time objectivity. These forces work perpetually,

without a beginning and an end, and they work everywhere, so that nothing is

free from their operations.

 

Here, in this awful struggle between these two forces, we are caught in the

middle, and it is difficult with the strength of our arms and feet to get over

this mire of being pulled equally in two different directions; it is necessary

to have the blessings of the Guru. In one place, the Gita itself tells us that

the only alternative available for a seeker is to approach a competent guide on

this path, and by questioning and self-surrender and service and intimate

communion with him, attain wisdom. The Grace of God simultaneously works in the

case of every seeking spirit, which ardently longs for this enlightenment.

 

Bhagavadgita emphasizes that it is the duty of everyone to get out of the

clutches of these outward-going urges which lodge the consciousness in name and

form, and to endeavor to the best of one's capacity to move towards the Center

which is one's essentiality, rather than the name and the form. The more we go

towards the Center, and this Center is everywhere - the less is the involvement

of consciousness in the name-form-complex, so that, in the ultimate reality of

the universe there is no name and form.

 

The Lord referred to two types of people: those blessed with a divine nature

and those possessing a demoniac disposition. Of these, the former perform

actions enjoined by the scriptures in a disinterested spirit, and thereby attain

liberation. Those possessing a demoniac disposition are mostly Tamasikas who

perpetrate sinful acts. Gita further classifies people by their behavior into

five categories:

 

1 Those who follow the injunctions of the sastras and are also endowed with

faith;

2 Those who lack in faith but respect the scriptural injunctions to some

extent;

3 Those who endowed with faith, but unable to follow the injunctions of the

sastras;

4 Those who lack in faith and lack respect for the scriptural injunctions; and

5 Those who flout the scriptural injunctions with a disdainful spirit.

 

to be continued...

 

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

Pranams

Thank you Ram-ji and Radhe-ji for the introduction. When we talk of a

" practical " aspect of vedanta, this particular chapter from the Gita is one of,

if not the most, important. Of all the chapters in the Gita, this is the one we

as seekers find parts of ourselves reflected, some on the positive side and

unfortunately so, perhaps more so on the negative side as well.

 

Why is this important? Because all the sciptural prowess one can attain is

completely incapable of delivering us the goods if our inner equipment is not

finely attuned to benefit from it - it is akin to being given a mirror that we

eagerly look into to see - for the first time in our lives what our face looks

like - and instead of the image what one sees is the thick covering of dirt

on our eyeglasses - that obscures and distorts the reflection. In this situation

we can incessantly try to keep bringing the same mirror or change different

mirrors in front of our eyes, but the result will be unchanged - the vision will

still be poor in quality. Eschewing the negative tendencies and adopting the

positive ones that are so clearly laid out in this chapter by Bhagwan Krishna

will provide us a lens  " cleanser " - it is then up to us to use that to rub onto

our mirrors and be deliberate, determined and patient as we see the results

unfold.

 

The " rubbing " is best done as a " value " meditation. We can take one value at a

time, either every day or every week, and try to dwell on that value by

autosuggestion - either to imbibe it, if positive, or eschew it, if negative.

The value of this value-based meditation is manifold - lending greater

perspective to our lives, enriching our vision, and reducing our stress as a

result - all of which promote cheer to our heart and clarity to our minds - both

of which serve to reflect in our antahkarnam the vision of Vedanta. It will be

great if different members contribute uplifting articles, anecdotes, etc for

each of these values as these are unfolded by Bhagwan Krishna.

 

Hari OM

Shri Gurubhyoh namah

Shyam

 

--- On Sun, 10/18/09, Radhe <shaantih wrote:

 

 

Radhe <shaantih

Gita Satsangh...Introduction to Chapter 16

advaitin

Sunday, October 18, 2009, 6:30 PM

 

Dear Satsanghis.. .

 

May the Light of Truth burn effulgent every moment in your hearts!

 

The introduction below was written for us by our dear Shri Ramji, to prepare us

for the next Chapter of the Holy Gita. My namaskarams to him for his efforts to

share his knowledge with us and for providing us with this forum to study the

Holy Gita in this way.

[Guest guest]

Shyam <shyam_md wrote:

>>>> It will be great if different members contribute uplifting articles,

anecdotes, etc for each of these values as these are unfolded by Bhagwan

Krishna.

 

This is a great suggestion. Often times we would have read a scriptural work

from cover to cover but our own behaviors in daily life leave a lot to be

desired. It would be very helpful if members came up with suggestions

(scripturally prescribed or otherwise) for cultivating the divine qualities.

For example, to cultivate the notion of detachment one could talk about the

notion of treating the world as wealth and ourselves as the trustees- so to

safeguard and cherish and share and nurture is our duty but not to 'own' it

[this was brought up by Sadaji or Shyamji in an ongoing thread]. Anger and

jealousy are such common attributes, how does one learn to sublimate them?

Patience and compassion are such noble virtues, how does one exercise these

on a daily basis?

 

Best Regards,

Veena.

 

On Wed, Oct 21, 2009 at 3:49 PM, Shyam <shyam_md wrote:

 

>

>

> Pranams

> Thank you Ram-ji and Radhe-ji for the introduction. When we talk of a

> " practical " aspect of vedanta, this particular chapter from the Gita is one

> of, if not the most, important. Of all the chapters in the Gita, this is the

> one we as seekers find parts of ourselves reflected, some on the positive

> side and unfortunately so, perhaps more so on the negative side as well.

>

>

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

Namaste:

 

Thanks Shyamji for summarizing the importance of this Chapter in the context of

practical Vedanta. In the very last chapter (Chapter 15) Lord Krishna asks

Arjuna to transcend from the pair of opposites and become firmly established in

purity. Almost all scriptures of the world religions want the human beings to

retain the quality of goodness and erase all devilish wicked thoughts and

actions. When the mind gets pre-occupied with the pairs of opposites such as

pleasure and pain, good and evil, hot and cold, etc., they project the egoistic

sense of `Me' and `Mine.' . " Lord Krishna wisely asks Arjuna to forsake the

triad of qualities and give up the sense of `Me' and `Mine.' Purity is evolved

through spiritual sadhana by first transforming from Tamasik to Satvik and be a

Satvik without oscillations. When the mind purification is complete the seeker

will be able to transcend the non-existing pluralities. Rightly so, Gita

doesn't give any time framework for this transformation.

 

In chapter 16 Lord Krishna focuses on the two extreme postures of the pairs of

opposites – the Divine and the Devilish side of the human personality. Once

again the primary focus of the Sadhaka (seeker) is to retain the True Divine

Nature and discard completely the Devilish side of the personality. Only after

learn to retain the Divine personality, the Sadhaka will be able to transcend

the self-created and non-existed pairs of opposites. Gita in the previous

chapters describe the Divine virtues with greater details and how those

Purushothamic (Divine) qualities will help the Sadhaka to gain peace and

tranquility. Here are some key divine virtues that are stated in the scriptures

for the seekers to practice:

 

Righteousness (Honesty, Truthfulness)

Telling the truth and knowing the Truth is a fundamental part of being a human

being. It is the foundation of communication between each other and is the

mother of trust and grandmother of respect and loyalty. An honest heart defines

our integrity and tells people something about us that words simply could never

express. Honesty should be expressed always for things both great and small.

Anything less is deception. Honesty can be painful sometimes but is always

appreciated and honored when the pain subsides. Honesty invokes trust and

respect from those who have experienced or have heard of our honesty.

 

Compassion (Love everyone and Hate none):

Compassion for one another provides a foundation for healing. There are many

times in life when unfortunate things happen that make us feel alone and

forsaken. When we are compassionate we are sharing in a person's painful

feelings and are compelled to help relieve the pain as our own. When we have

this type of true heartfelt compassion and empathy for people in fragile and

vulnerable times, we can help them generate all the strength and healing they

need to conquer any negative situation. Our compassion will never be forgotten

because we were there for them when they needed it the most. An immense sense of

satisfaction and pleasure can be the only result of knowing that we made a

difference in someone's life by just simply showing that we genuinely care.

 

Awareness (Understanding):

An Understanding heart openly welcomes knowledge and wisdom. Understanding the

ways of the world and our role in it leads to true self-fulfillment and is

quintessential to our existence. Understanding simplifies the complexities in

life and leads to a fuller more satisfying life's journey. Understand the truth

and live in it's full abundance.

 

Contentment (Peace and Happiness):

The reward for contentment is peace and happiness for ever! Contentment is only

possible for the one who possesses the Discriminating Intellect to know the

difference between the real and unreal. Those who seek the unreal (temporary)

happiness will be disappointed when the happiness disappears with the time!

Happiness that is everlasting is within and it can't come from external sources!

 

Western philosophers had for some time been contemplating the notion of

opposites. Anaximander posited that every element was an opposite, or connected

to an opposite (for example water is cold and fire is hot).

 

The seeker has to evolve and progress in upward movement on the ladder towards

spiritual maturity. Maturity occurs as each one of the divine virtues is

gradually ingrained in the personality, both as a natural and spiritual process.

Additionally, there are practical conscious steps any person can engage in to

invest conscious effort in developing any one of the individual virtues. There

are some virtues that one can easily cultivate and nurture until they become

dynamic integral parts of the personality. When we are able to comprehend or

realize the nature of the human mind and how it works, we find this to be true.

The dweller within the temple (the human body) is our true self. Moreover, that

essential, true, pure self is the soul or spirit, which is often referred to as

the Individualized Spirit.

 

This long and arduous natural process takes place as the spirit within the human

body undergoes countless experiences of evolution, in innumerable physical forms

or bodies, over billions of years. It is this very process that modern

scientists, especially psychologists, call the natural evolution process.

However, they use the term without knowing or understanding its origin and

basis. It originates from soul or spirit's existence in the lower worlds when

spirit occupies a different physical body at different times in its evolution.

This is based upon the Law of Cause and Effect in correspondence with the soul's

use of freewill. Evolution therefore, pertains more to the soul than to the

physical body. It is my personal understanding that the evolution of the

physical body is dependent upon the evolution of the entity that dwells within

that body. In this case, we refer to the spirit or soul.

 

If we had no choices to make and had no freewill, we would be free from the

effects of our thoughts, words, desires, and actions. We should focus upon how

we use our freewill in making decisions or choices and what effects result from

such choices. The development of the divine virtues is an integral part of such

focus and use of freewill. Possession of these virtues has a great impact upon

how we use our freewill. It influences what choices we make in life and vice

versa. That is to say, how we use our free will or what choices we make in life

affects the process by which we obtain divine virtues and subsequent or

corresponding merits.

 

In brief, what we do and how we do it determines what divine virtues are

ingrained in our soul-mind entity or personality over a long duration. For

example, if we substitute anger with tolerance and control of negative impulses,

the opposing divine virtue of patience builds within our personality. If we

ensure that our life is free of vanity, arrogance, self-centeredness, and

self-pity, we build the divine virtue of humility in our personality. In order

to build divine virtues, we must first study, learn, or observe the lives of

those people who have or had such virtues. There are plenty of examples in

Ramayana, Mahabharata and Puranas illustrating the outcomes of persons who

possessed the Divine and Devilish virtues.

 

The process of building divine virtues, as taught by true mystics since time

immemorial, explains how these virtues naturally grow in the soul-mind

relationship as one evolves on the spiritual ladder. It is the duty of the

indwelling spirit to impress upon the mind the spirit's inherent true nature as

a divine entity. Such impression cannot take place unless and until the human

mind has passed through various stages of growth, experience, and development.

The human mind must experience transformation from being a crude mind to

becoming a fine mind. This theory and practice is based upon the premise that by

nature, the soul (spirit) is divine. Being divine, the soul inherently possesses

divine qualities but the mortal human mind has these qualities over-shadowed.

 

Gita in chapters 16, 17 and 18 pursue describing the process of building divine

virtues and realize our True Divine Nature.

 

As we all know that the Gunas change by person and by time and all of us are

bound by their influence on how we behave. Gita also provides clues to how we

can improve our behavior by disciplining the body, mind and intellect. The key

Divine virtues are listed below for quick reference. (By no means this list is

complete)

 

1. Fearlessness

2. Pure heartedness

3. Wisdom to discriminate between real and unreal

4. Compassion and kindness (charity)

5. Self-restraint

6. Austerity

7. Honesty

8. Non-violence (ahimsa)

9. Truthfulness

10. Aversion to Fault finding

11. Equanimity

12. Absence of greed

13. Gentleness

14. Modesty

15. Determination

 

We will likely learn more through the verses of chapter 16 which will be

discussed in the coming weeks.

 

With my warmest regards,

 

Ram Chandran

 

advaitin , Shyam <shyam_md wrote:

When we talk of a " practical " aspect of vedanta, this particular chapter from

the Gita is one of, if not the most, important. Of all the chapters in the Gita,

this is the one we as seekers find parts of ourselves reflected, some on the

positive side and unfortunately so, perhaps more so on the negative side as

well.