Bhagavatgita adetailed study chapter12 Bhakthiyoga

[Guest guest]

9. aTha chittham samaaDhaathum na Saknoshi mayi

sThiram

 

abhyaasayogena thathaH maam icChaaapthum Dhananjaya

 

Oh Arjuna, if

you are not able to fix your mind firmly on Me, try to reach Me by abhyasayoga,

repeated thinking.

 

The possible doubt that may arise in the

mind of an aspirant is that, is it possible to concentrate on God steadfastly

and if it is not, what should one do. This is answered by Krishna

next., ' If it is not possible to establish the mind in meditation on the Lord,

try again and again.' This is termed as yoga by Krishna,

abhyasayoga. Abhyasa or repeated effort in fixing the mind

in one object becomes a yoga which results in concentration. `Maam

iccha aapthum , `wish to reach out to Me' says Krishna

 

10.abhyaase api asamarTho asi mathkarma paramobhava

 

madharTham

api karmaaNi kurvan sidDhim avaapsyasi

 

If you are not

able to control your mind by practice then do all actions as though they are

mine and do them for my sake.

 

But this is

easier said than done as Krishna Himself accepted earlier, the mind is most

fickle and impossible to control,'mano dhurnigraham chalam.' So what is

the alternative? Krishna says, `Do not

despair, if you are not able to practice control of the mind, do all your

actions for My sake, . matkarmaparamobhava,

devote yourself to do My work.' Renounce the agency of action to Him, casting

of the attitude of ` I ` and ` ` `Mine.'

This is the same as wahta was expressed

in the sloka yathkaroshi yath aSnasi

in chapter 9 sloka 27.

There is a beautiful sloka in

Kulasekhara's Mukundamala, garland for Mukunda.

 

Jihve kirthaya kesavam

muraripum chetho baja sridharam

paaNidhvandva tham archaya achyuthakaThaah

srothra

dhvaya tvam srnu

krishnam lokaya lochanadhvaya hareH

gachchaanghriyugma aalayam

jighra ghraana

mukundhapaadha tulaseem murDhan nama

aDhkshajam.

 

Oh my tongue, sing the glory of Kesava ,the destroyer of the demon Mura,

oh mind think about Sridhara, my two hands, worship Him, my two ears hear the

stories of Achyutha, my two eyes, see

Krishna, my two feet go to the temple of Hari ,oh nose smell the tulasi offered

to His feet and oh head, bow down to Him.

If one can train his faculties this way

it becomes easy to think of the Lord all the time. But caught in the samsara is this possible? What about

catering to the needs of oneself and one's family. If a man in his prime of

life spends all his time in this manner who will feed him and his family? It

may be alright for one who has finished his duties and leads a retired life.

This may be the thought that comes uppermost in our minds. Even for those like

us Krishna provides a solution

 

11.aTha ethath api asaktho asi karthum madhyogam

aaSrithaH

 

sarvakarmaphalathyaagam

thathaH kuru yathaathmavaan

 

 

If you are not

able to do even that give up the fruits of all actions with mind devoted to Me. .

 

.

Whatever one does it should be done as an offering to

God and the result of the action should be renounced. This is possible only for

a yathaathmavan, one who is endowed

with self control. That is, one who has

given up all idea of `I ` and `mine. What Krishna means here is that whatever

you do according to your position on life, should be done as offering to God, `sarvam narayanaayethi samarpayaami.'

The same attitude was stressed in the chapter of Karmayoga but here it is not

mere Karmayoga but Karmayoga coupled with bhakthi which becomes easier.

 

 

12.Sreyo hi jnaanam abhyaasaath jnaanaath Dhyaanam

viSishyathe

 

Dhyaanaath

karmaphlathyaagaH thyaagaath SaanthiH

Anantharam

 

Knowledge is superior

to mere practice.Meditation is superior to knowledge and giving up the fruits

os action is even more commendable as it results in peace.

 

The last

alternative outlined above, that is karmphlathyaga,

is lauded to be the best by Krishna. He says,

knowledge,jnana, is superior than repeated efforts without discrimination,

abhyasa, meditation Dhyaana, guided by knowledge is even

better,. But renunciation of the fruits of action, karmaphalathyaga, is the best as peace results from it..

 

The question that arises in the mind is that whether the renunciation of

the fruit of action is so easy or so commendable than dhyana, abhayasa and jnana.

It is definitely not that easy. But it is praised because even an ignorant man,

provided he has faith and devotion, can be induced to give up the fruit of

action as it is ingrained in the human

mind that result of action is not entirely in his control, that is, there is a

many a slip between the cup and the lip. So by giving up the fruit of action he

places his trust in the Lord and slowly gives up his desires thinking that Lord knows best what is good

for him and will give it unasked. This

leads him to think about Lord more and more and

realizes that whatever he does

belongs to Lord. Then he tries to concentrate on the Lord more and more

and this practice induces him to acquire knowledge and discrimination. So the renunciation of

the fruit of action finally culminates in peace that is born out of jnana