In the previous chapters, Sri Krishna taught us about the nuances of atma, the tenets of Bhakti, Buddhi, Karma and Jnana yogas. In chapter 7 i.e. Jnana Vijnana yoga, Sri Krishna starts to unravel his magnificent cosmic form, by showcasing his existence in the universe around us. In this chapter, Sri Krishna continues to impart the divine knowledge to his creation through Arjuna. At the onset of the chapter, he explains the reasons for doing so:
श्रीभगवानुवाच ।
इदं तु ते गुह्यतमं प्रवक्ष्याम्यनसूयवे ।
ज्ञानं विज्ञानसहितं यज्ज्ञात्वा मोक्ष्यसेऽशुभात् ॥ 9.1॥
The Supreme Lord said: O Arjun, because you are not envious of Me, I shall now impart to you this very confidential knowledge and wisdom, upon knowing which you will be released from the miseries of material existence.
The keyword is the one related to confidentiality and the infinite wisdom encapsulated in this knowledge. As observed from previous chapters of Srimad Bhagwad Gita, the focus is to elevate ourselves and escape from the cycle of births and deaths.
Similar to chapter 2 i.e. Sankhya Yoga, I have a huge problem at hand where I found atleast 3 verses that could be the representative verse for this chapter. There are many repeated and recurring themes across the chapters and hence, I am settling for this verse which I feel is very important.
राजविद्या राजगुह्यं पवित्रमिदमुत्तमम् ।
प्रत्यक्षावगमं धर्म्यं सुसुखं कर्तुमव्ययम् ॥ 9.2॥
This knowledge is the king of sciences and the most profound of all secrets. It purifies those who hear it. It is directly realizable, in accordance with dharma, easy to practice, and everlasting in effect.
Sri Krishna’s advice on why this knowledge is very important and implications thereof. The details about the knowledge provide the path towards the realisation but the motivation i.e. why should one learn or study this Vidya is the more critical one. The existence of the universe is based on enquiry. One always wants to know or rather should know the reasons and Sri Krishna gives us the complete clarity on why we should pursue this Vidya.
In this chapter, we observe the recurrence of certain themes. For example, in the previous chapter, we study the essence of time. Sri Krishna further expands on that concept in this chapter.
सर्वभूतानि कौन्तेय प्रकृतिं यान्ति मामिकाम् ।
कल्पक्षये पुनस्तानि कल्पादौ विसृजाम्यहम् ॥ 9.7॥
प्रकृतिं स्वामवष्टभ्य विसृजामि पुन: पुन: ।
भूतग्राममिमं कृत्स्नमवशं प्रकृतेर्वशात् ॥ 9.8॥
At the end of one kalp, all living beings merge into My primordial material energy. At the beginning of the next creation, O son of Kunti, I manifest them again. Presiding over My material energy, I generate these myriad forms again and again, in accordance with the force of their natures.
This verse not only provides the clarity on the cycle of creation and annihilation of the universe, but also provides another reference to the omnipresent nature of the Parabrahma Swaroopa. Personally, I find this is yet another extension of the unraveling of his cosmic form which is further accentuated by this wonderful verse from Sri Krishna. This was my preferred verse for this chapter, until I decided the objective or motivation is slightly more important.
पिताहमस्य जगतो माता धाता पितामह: ।
वेद्यं पवित्रमोङ्कार ऋक्साम यजुरेव च ॥ 9.17॥
Of this universe, I am the Father; I am also the Mother, the Sustainer, and the Grandsire. I am the purifier, the goal of knowledge, the sacred syllable Om. I am the Ṛig Veda, Sāma Veda, and the Yajur Veda.
In fact the preceding verse is yet another example of the ongoing Yajna called the universe where every single form is a reflection of him i.e. Parabrahma
अहं क्रतुरहं यज्ञ: स्वधाहमहमौषधम् ।
मन्त्रोऽहमहमेवाज्यमहमग्निरहं हुतम् ॥ 9.16॥
It is I who am the Vedic ritual, I am the sacrifice, and I am the oblation offered to the ancestors. I am the medicinal herb, and I am the Vedic mantra. I am the clarified butter, I am the fire and the act of offering.
This is very similar to the preferred verse of Chapter 4 i.e. ब्रह्मार्पणं ब्रह्म हविर्ब्रह्माग्नौ .. Both these verse 9.16 and 9.17 are encapsulated in these beautiful verses from Vishnu Sahasranama.
भूर्भुवः स्वस्तरुस्तारः सविता प्रपितामहः ।
यज्ञो यज्ञपतिर्यज्वा यज्ञाङ्गो यज्ञवाहनः ॥ VSN.104 ॥
He is the one who transcends the 3 lokas, makes us tide over the cycle of births, grandfather of everyone, protects, conducts and carries forward Yajna.
Specifically 9.16 is best captured in this verse from Vishnu Sahasranama
यज्ञभृद् यज्ञकृद् यज्ञी यज्ञभुक् यज्ञसाधनः ।
यज्ञान्तकृद् यज्ञगुह्यमन्नमन्नाद एव च ॥ VSN.105 ॥
The meaning of this verse almost matches the meaning of verse 9.16 above.
As I am writing this series, I am now more and more convinced that Vishnu Sahasranama is perhaps distilled form of Srimad Bhagwad Gita where we are celebrating the omnipresence of the cosmic consciousness, Parabrahman. Verses 9.18 and 9.19 further expand on this concept about the manifestations of cosmic form of Sri Krishna in the physical realm.
Verses 9.20 - 9.21 encapsulate and reaffirm the knowledge about how one attains certain births, expend their karmas and take rebirths.
However, one of my preferred verses of this chapter is reaffirming yet another concept from previous chapter i.e. Chapter 5. Do everything as a sacrifice to the almighty and absolve yourself about the same.
यत्करोषि यदश्नासि यज्जुहोषि ददासि यत् ।
यत्तपस्यसि कौन्तेय तत्कुरुष्व मदर्पणम् ॥ 9.27॥
Whatever you do, whatever you eat, whatever you offer as oblation to the sacred fire, whatever you bestow as a gift, and whatever austerities you perform, O son of Kunti, do them as an offering to Me.
In other words, Sri Krishna continues to advises us to perform karma with a simple thought: This is part of an ongoing sacrifice to the all-pervading Parabrahman. This concept is part of our daily / regular anushtana where we mean that every single action of ours is offered at the lotus feet of Narayana
कायेन वाचा मनसेन्द्रियैर्वा बुद्ध्यात्मना वा प्रकृतेः स्वभावात् ।
करोमि यद्यत्सकलं परस्मै नारायणयेति समर्पयामि ॥
1: (Whatever I do) with my Body, Speech, Mind or Sense Organs,
2: ... or using my Intellect, Feelings of Heart or (unconsciously) through the natural tendencies of my Mind,
3: All those, I do for the Supreme Being (without sense of attachment to the results),
4: (And) I Surrender them to the Lotus Feet of Sri Narayana.
This is reaffirmed by Sri Krishna in the last verse of the chapter.
मन्मना भव मद्भक्तो मद्याजी मां नमस्कुरु ।
मामेवैष्यसि युक्त्वैवमात्मानं मत्परायण: ॥ 9.34॥
Always think of Me, be devoted to Me, worship Me, and offer obeisance to Me. Having dedicated your mind and body to Me, you will certainly come to Me.
To summarise the chapter, Sri Krishna continues to unravel his cosmic form, reaffirm that all actions should be done as a sacrifice and surrender to the all-pervading supreme Parabrahman while amplifying the need to understand and implement the knowledge to elevate ourselves out of this cycle of births.
Please do share your view on the choice of shloka and my interpretations thereof. I would like to get your thoughts and feedback and maybe we discover something hidden in Srimad Bhagwad Gita.
Sarvam Sri Krishnaarpanamastu
Verses and meanings from:
- https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/
- https://greenmesg.org/
Previous Chapters:
- Arjuna Vishada Yoga
- Sankhya Yoga
- Karma Yoga
- Jnana Karma Sanyasa Yoga
- Karma Sanyasa Yoga
- Dhyana Yoga
- Jnana Vijnana Yoga
- Akshara Brahma Yoga
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