VOICE OF THE RISHIS-65

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PRIYA BHAGAVAT BANDUVULLARA!

 

VOICE OF THE RISHIS: 65

 

COURTESY: SHRI RAPARLA JANARADHANA RAO

 

" PARI PRASNENA SEVAYAA "

 

--BHAGAVADGITA 4-36

 

" Question repeated by (Pari Prasnena) and serve yourself

(sevayaa) " . There is a misnomer among some people that questioning

the teacher is wrong and undesirable (Guru Ninda) and is fraught

with various curses. This is not. This concept is not at all

Vedic. This is to be eschewed. Socrates is known as the wisest man

adopting the questioning method and Plato his celebrated disciple in

his book `Dialogues' records all the questions and answers in the

last moments of his master.

 

In this text of Gita, we learn that we should first be obedient and

humble before the guru, prostrating before him (tadviddhi

pranipatena) and then by repeated ways of questioning serve yourself

(Pari Prasnena Sevayaa), in toto. Otherwise disciples would get

caught into the impenetrable dark chambers of quack gurus of various

dangerous cults, find no wayout, and grasp in the totalitarian,

authoritarian and autocratic clutches of undesirable gurus.

 

Questioning or reasoning power is there embedded in vedic culture,

as `Tarka' (logic) and `Meemamsa' (rational understanding from parts

of veda (vedaangaas). At the end of each chapter in Bhagavadgita,

the end recital goes on stating it as Sree Krishna Arjuna Samvade

(Dialogue, or discussion between Krishna and Arjuna) Yoga Sastre " .

Thus it goes on arguing as the representative of man (nara) Arjuna

goes on questioning Lord Krishna, and even has the guts to say

before the Lord " The more you teach, the more I am confounded " . To

this great guru, Jagadguru Krishna smilingly answers " You are to

learn it step by step " . Bhagavadgita is a great dialogue.

Kathopanishad is yet another dialogue on the otherworld, which is

ever intriguing to mankind that took place between Yama the Lord of

Death and the great sage Nachiketa.