Look Within – Talks on the Bhagavad Gita by Swami Venkatesananda.

October 11, 2009

Later in the second part of the Gita, you find some arguments used by

the teacher, Krishna, that sometimes shock you.

Krishna seems to suggest " Go on, fight. Everybody is going to die in

any case. Stand up and fight – don't become impotent here " .

This seems to encourage violence, to suggest that fighting is good; but

if you look at it in the stand point of wisdom, you see a completely

different meaning in it.

Here is a warrior standing on the battle field and he collapses and says

" I won't fight because these are all my friends, I won't

kill them " .

The teacher says " Are you sure that you don't want to kill them

because they are your friends, or because you are afraid? What is the

reason? " (Are you going back to the pub to have another drink

because you want to please your friends or you want to please yourself?)

Can you face yourself? Can you unmask yourself and see yourself for what

you are – not what you think you are?

That is the question. Is that clear?

" These are my friends and therefore I don't want to kill them. I

am terribly interested in promoting their welfare – I want to them

to live long and happily. " Are you sure?

This I think applies to innumerable situations in our life.

Somebody gets drowned in a swimming pool that is manufactured or sold by

your rival. You jump up " Ah, monstrous, this should be

abolished " . Everyone is up in the arms.

What about motor cars? Oh no, no one is bothered, that is accepted. How

many people are killed by the motor cars?

The motor car is my friend – however many people may be hit on the

road. I don't want to say anything against it, but someone died

taking hashis or other drugs, I am up in the arms.

Are you really interested in human welfare? Do you have respect for

human life irrespective of who is killed? Or do you some prejudice which

you wish to cover up with this nice lovely talk?

That is the problem.

To be continued..

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