Very recently the External Affairs Minister, Sushma Swaraj urged that the Bhagavad Gita be declared a ‘Rashtriya Granth’. She added that the Prime Minister has already given it the stature of a national granth by gifting it to US President Barack Obama. Swaraj also advised psychiatrists to read and prescribe the Gita to patients suffering from depression. Let us therefore ponder on how (and why) this ancient book is so relevant even today. Every literate Yogi in India carries with him a small edition of this profound classic. The Bhagavad Gita has influenced many great thinkers. India can shed the radiance of her spiritual glory through this inspired classic. It is a gospel of contemplation combined with action. A great warrior (Arjuna), overcome by sorrow at having to fight those whom he cares for, is given a lesson of a lifetime by his charioteer and guide (Krishna). Over 18 chapters, the Gita portrays an intense analysis of life’s emotions and ambitions. Krishna asks Arjuna to fulfill his Kshatriya (warrior) duty, for establishing Dharma. It is a universal scripture - applicable to people of all temperaments, for all times. It is a book of sublime thoughts and practical instructions on Yoga, devotion, Vedanta and action. The entire knowledge of the cosmos is packed into a mere 700 concise verses. The Bhagavad Gita is the essence of the four Vedas, one hundred and eight Upanishads and the six systems of Hindu philosophy. The Gita says that Nature, with her infinite variety and inexorable laws, is evolved into the singular reality through a cosmic delusion, ‘Maya’ - the mirage that makes the one appear as many, embracing their own individuality, form and intelligence and existing in apparent separation from their creator. Just as a dreamer differentiates his one consciousness from many dream beings in a dream world, so God, the cosmic dreamer, has separated His consciousness into all the cosmic manifestations, with souls individualised from His own one being endowed with the ego to dream their personalised existences within the Nature ordained drama of the universal dream. The main theme throughout the Gita is that we should be ‘indifferent’, renouncing the ego that has been ingrained in us through ignorance. By renunciation of all desires springing from the ego and its environments, which cause separateness from the spirit, and by reunion with the cosmic dreamer through ecstatic yoga meditation, man detaches himself from and ultimately dissolves the compelling forces of Nature that perpetuate the delusive dichotomy of the self and spirit. In meditation, the cosmic dream delusion terminates and the ecstatic dream being awakens in oneness with the pure cosmic consciousness of the Supreme Being - ever-existing, ever-conscious, ever-new bliss.
The Gita tells us that we can take great pleasure in our work; the work itself is more pleasurable than the result. Do not let the fruit be the purpose of your actions, do not be attached - do your duty, and you will earn your fruit. In other words, enjoy the pleasure of the journey, rather than always thinking of the destination. Great artists, great warriors and great scientists do what they do because the process of creation itself is so pleasurable for them. The awakened sages call a person wise when all his undertakings are free from results. A good part of the Gita is about managing emotions and attachment. Further, it says that it is better not to imitate another’s life. While a warrior could see the farmer’s life as peaceful and happy, and a peasant could see the warrior’s life as energetic and active, both are equally important. Instead of looking at the greener grass on the other side, look at doing the best with your abilities. It is better to live your own destiny imperfectly than to live an imitation of somebody else’s life with perfection. Never lose sight of your goals. Struck by confusion, we often give up our dreams and goals, so that we could be a better ‘somebody’. We are kept from our goal not by obstacles, but by a clear path to a lesser goal. The Gita says that we should treat everyone and everything the same. If you start acting as nice to your foe as your friend, you would have lesser guilt or emotional ghosts to fight within you. He alone sees truly who sees God in every creature - he does not harm himself or others. ‘Do good without expecting anything in return’ - the Gita goes to great lengths to treat this subject in its various forms. It makes this virtue a lot more practical and logical, rather than merely flagging it as a moral. A gift is pure when it is given from the heart to the right person at the right time and at the right place, and when we expect nothing in return. Always keep doing and acting - never run away from your duty; do not get stuck in over-analysis. We, especially the ‘knowledgeable’, have a bias for gaining knowledge rather than acting on the knowledge; we seek great comfort in talking and analysing something rather than acting upon it. The immature think that knowledge and action are different, but the wise see them as the same, the Gita says. Concluding on this, the Gita says, you keep doing your duty in the best way you can and there will always be a bigger power, a cosmic consciousness, that will protect the truth.
When you dedicate your doing and your being to God, you will forever be free from fear, worry and sorrow. You will experience freedom and joy. Today’s beings sorely need the deep spiritual comfort emanating from the teachings of the Gita. Mahatma Gandhi said, “When doubts haunt me, when disappointments stare me in the face, and I see not one ray of hope on the horizon, I turn to Bhagavad Gita and find a verse to comfort me; and I immediately begin to smile in the midst of overwhelming sorrow. Those who meditate on the Gita will derive fresh joy and new meanings from it every day.”
The wisdom of the Gita is encapsulated in the following lines, known as ‘Gita Saar’:
Whatever happened, happened for (the) good
Whatever is happening, is happening for (the) good
Whatever will happen, (that) will be for good as well
What have you lost? Why are you crying?
What did you bring with you, which you have lost?
What did you produce, which was destroyed?
Whatever was received, was received from here
Whatever was given, was given here
You brought nothing when you were born
You are taking nothing with you when you die
Whatever is yours today was somebody else’s yesterday…and will be somebody else’s tomorrow.
Change is the law of the Universe.
The Gita has a threefold reading - the material, astral and spiritual - which is applicable to man at all levels of his being - the body, mind and soul. Incarnate man is encased in a physical body of inert matter, which is animated by a subtle inner astral body of life energy and sensory powers; and both his astral and physical body have evolved from a causal body of consciousness, which is the fine ‘covering’ that gives individual existence and form to the soul. The material interpretation of the Gita pertains to the physical and social duties and well-being of man; the astral is from the moral and psychological standpoint - man’s character resulting from the astral Nature-born sensory and life-energy principles that influence the formation of habits, inclinations and desires; and the spiritual interpretation is from the perspective of the divine nature and realisation of the soul.
The impermanent has no reality; reality lies in the eternal. Those who have seen the boundary between these two have attained the end of all knowledge.
Dr. Rajesh Bhola is President of Spastic Society of Gurgaon and is working for the cause of children with Autism, Cerebral Palsy, mental retardation and multiple disabilities for more than 25 years. He can be contacted at rabhola@yahoo.com
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