PROF.
SUDHANSU BIMAL MOOKHERJEE
“The
Gita is one of the clearest and most comprehensive
summaries of the perennial philosophy ever to have been made. Hence its enduring value, not only for Indians, but for all
mankind...The Bhagavadgita is perhaps the most
systematic spiritual statement of the perennial
philosophy.”
–Aldous Huxley
The
Bhagavadgita or Song Celestial, a
Gospel of philosophical Hinduism, is among the greatest religious classics of
the world. Described by James W. Douglas as the “supreme literary expression of
Hinduism,” it is rightly regarded as the quintessence of the Upanishads, that
deathless cultural spiritual heritage of Indians.1 It does not
represent any sect of Hinduism, but Hinduism itself. What is more important, it
does not represent merely Hinduism, but religion as such “in its universality,
without limit of time or space ... ... …”
The
seven hundred verses of the Gita form
Chapters XXIII-XL of the Bhishmaparva of the Mahabharata, one
of the two national epics of
The
Bhagavadgita is later than the early
Upanishads in point of time. But it precedes the development of the six
orthodox Hindu philosophical schools and their formulation in Sutras
(aphorisms). It may, therefore, be assigned to the 5th century B. C. The alteration
of the text during the subsequent centuries cannot, however, be ruled out.
The
Gita together with the Brahmasutras
and the Upanishads, constitutes the Prasthanatraya of the Vedanta. The three form a trilogy and
are looked upon as the basic scriptures of philosophical Hinduism. They are all
highly authoritative. “The Bhagavadgita and the
Upanishads,” observes G. W. Russell, “contain such God-like fullness of wisdom
on all things that I feel their authors must have looked with calm remembrance
back through a thousand passionate lives, full of feverish strife for and with
shadows, ere they could have written with such certainty of things of which the
soul feels to be so sure.”
The
Bhagavadgita, it must be noted, is not
a scriptural work. Nor is it a theological treatise. It occupies a middle
position between scripture and theology and is not so much a philosophical
treatise as a religious classic and in the words of Aldous
Huxley, “contains the poetical qualities of a
scripture as well as the methodicalness of theology.”
The
significance of the Bhagavadgita has
been summed up by a German scholar J. W. Hauer in the
following words, “We are called (in the Bhagavadgita)
not to solve the meaning of life but to find out the Deed demanded of us
and to work, and so, by action, to master the riddle of life.” 3
The
Bhagavadgita is an inexhaustible
store-house of valuable lessons of profound wisdom, which heeded and acted on,
will go a long way to solve the day-to-day problems of our personal lives and
cure the imbalance and hysteria from which the modern man suffers. By removing
the malaise from which the contemporary society suffers, they (the teachings of
the Bhagavadgita) will restore the
balance of our sickly world.
One
of the problems the Gita responds to is the “classic
Hindu identification of action with bondage to a lower self.” Action kindles
passion (the desire for one’s own ends), which, according to the law of Karma,
binds its doer “to the self-centred cycle of his own
deeds.” The Mundaka Upanishad, the earliest Hindu
response to the problem, prescribes total abstinence from work. To attain Moksha (Liberation) one must renounce all activities and
pursue a wholly contemplative way of life. But this is a counsel of perfection,
which cannot be practised. “None can live without
work even for a moment. Natural impulses overpower man and induce him to work.”4
Whether we want it or not, the eyes must see, the ears must hear and the body
must feel as long as we are alive. Lord Krishna, therefore, exhorts Arjuna, “Do always the duty allotted to you. Action is
better than inaction. The physical life itself cannot be sustained without
action.” 5
The
Gita prescribes a golden mean between action with
passion and utter inaction. We must work as long as we live. But we must not
think of the results of our work. We must work in a spirit of detachment, which
alone can open the golden gate to the
The
cultivation of the habit of work in a spirit of detachment will culminate in
the conquest of one’s own mind, which is the greatest of all conquests. A man who has conquered his own mind, has in fact conquered
the whole world. 9 Such a man is the ideal man according to the Gita–a Sthitaprajna or a man with
steadfast wisdom. Such a man remains unperturbed under all circumstances.
Adulation and condemnation are all alike to him. Pains and pleasures have no
difference for him. The Bhagavadgita elaborates this
ideal in a number of verses. 10
Nature
compels us to work in one way or another as long as we are alive. The instinct
to work is in fact a part of our being. “The problem of liberation therefore is
not simply one of action, but of right action, and the Gita says action is liberation when one has renounced its
fruits.” 11 We should set before ourselves the ideal of “nishkama karma” i.e, self-less or
disinterested work. We cannot remain without working; because God has implanted
in us the desire to work. Whether we want it or not, we have to work. Lord
Krishna, therefore, tells Arjuna–“What you do not
wish to do through delusion, you have to do against your own will, fettered by
your own acts, which are born of your nature”. 12 Man is driven to
work by the compulsive power of his nature. The heart of man is at the centre of action. All work must be purified of attachment.
It then becomes real “Puja” or worship. But it is
easier said than done. The Bhagavadgita, however,
shows the way. We must sublimate all our acts by surrendering the results
thereof to God. Lord Krishna advises Arjuna,
“Dedicate to me whatever work you do, whatever food you eat, whatever offering
you make (to the gods), whatever you give away in charity ;
austerities you practise.” 13 Once the
hankering for the fruits of one’s actions is conquered, one can easily
concentrate one’s entire being totally upon union with God. This union is
further facilitated by absolute and unquestioning surrender and genuine,
whole-hearted devotion to God.
This
doctrine of absolute surrender to God leads naturally to another conclusion. To
all intents and purposes, man is but a tool in the hands of
God. This has been emphasized by the Gita also in
another context where
The
Bhagavadgita expounds and emphasizes the great
doctrine of the immortality of the soul. It is, according to the Gita, “Unborn, eternal, permanent and primeval” and “is not
slain when the body is slain.”17
It is invincible to weapons. Fire does not burn it, water does not make it wet
nor does air make it dry.18 It is
ever-lasting, all-pervading, unchanging, immovable and the same forever.
19
What,
then, is death? The Gita asserts that it is only a
change of an old and infirm body for a new one. Just as men discard worn out
garments and put on new ones, so also does the soul take a new body when the
existing body is old, infirm and incapable.20
The soul, in other words, is distinct from the physical body. It is deathless.
It has no beginning, no end.
We
hear an echo of this in the Pali literature in the
Buddhist nun, Patachara’s consolation to bereaved
mothers.
“Weep
not, for such is here the life of man
Unasked
he came, unbidden went he home
Lo
ask thyself again whence came thy son
To
bide on earth this little breathing space
By
one way come and by another gone……..
So
hither and so hence–why should ye weep?” 21
The
Buddha too had consoled Kisa Gotami
(Krishna Gautami) in much the same language, who had
lost her only son and requested the Blessed One to bring him back to life.
The
Bhagavadgita clearly anticipates Communism minus its
crudities and cruelties. We read in the Gita that a
learned Brahmin with humility, a cow, an elephant, a dog and a Chandala (an outcaste) are all equal in the eyes of the
sages. 22 The verse in which we read it thus preaches in unambiguous
terms the equality of all life, human and otherwise, and goes beyond Western
Communism, which seeks to bring down all to the same level by oppressive brute
force. In strong contrast stands the above message of the Gita
in which there is no question of coercion and oppression. One can look upon all
as equal only when one realizes the Vedantic teaching
that life is one and indivisible. But this realization comes only after long
years of arduous spiritual training and discipline. It never comes to
most of us. But the Asian, African and European Communists are trying force to
reach this goal. It reminds of a mystic song of Medieval Bengal “Will you fry
the bud of mind in fire? (Nithur garaji tui ki
manas mukul bhajbi aguney?) Instead of
trying to change the heart of man, i.e., change him internally, they are trying
to change him externally. It is a classical example of post hoc ergo propter hoc, of putting the cart before the horse. And
what is the result? After years of massacre–according to recent expert study,
36 million people have been liquidated in China alone since 1949 when the
communists came to power in that country–and repression these countries are as
far from the goal of equality as ever. Their attempt as equality is doomed to
failure unless they change their way, which is wrong on the face of it.
Inequality is no less rampant in the Communist countries than in their
non-Communist counterparts. We can deny that an uncrossable,
unbridgeable chasm yawns between the Commisars, the
new bureaucrats and the new rich on the one hand and the common citizens on the
other, and the party bosses on the one hand and the cadres on the other?
Thought is regimented, the press and the intellectuals are gagged. “A hundred
flowers do not bloom” as in the democratic countries. Thousands rot in
concentration camps. The party line must be toed unquestioningly. The large
majority of the people eke out a miserable living while an elite minority roll
in luxury. The majority have to do the biddings of the minority. Old classes
have been liquidated no doubt. But their place has been taken by new classes.
These unfortunate and perhaps unforeseen developments are to be blamed on the
eagerness of the Communist leaders for quick results. They have begun from the
wrong end by forcing external changes to the neglect of the internal.
To
accept equality as the Law of Nature and an attitude of equality to all are
possible only for men with discernment, which has to be acquired by strenuous
efforts, by prayers and meditation. Blinkers drop off our eyes when discernment
has been acquired. Ignorance is best dispelled by prayers and meditation. As
Henry Adam puts it, “After all, man knows mighty little, and may some day learn
enough of his own ignorance to fall down and pray.” 23 Through
prayer and meditation alone can man realize that there is no great or small, no
high or low in God’s creation, that every thing and every individual is best in
its and his or her place. The realization does not come quickly, but once it
comes, it lasts for ever. It transforms the person who realizes it and is
reflected in his or her everyday life. It will do away with the storms and
stresses in our lives and make the world a much better and happier place to
live in.
The
Bhagavadgita breathes so profound wisdom of perennial
value in most of its seven hundred verses, wisdom beneficial for the life here
on earth as well for the life hereafter that it is by no means possible to
compress its whole message in a single article. It is certainly not possible
for the present reviewer. A passing reference to some of the other teachings of
the Gita may, however, be made here. Thus, we hear
the Vedic Rishi’s voice in the following verse, which
proclaims the unity of Godhead and demonstrates the catholicity of the Song
Celestial, “As men approach Me, so do I accept them; men on all sides follow my
path, O Partha (Arjuna ).”
24
God,
says the Gita, favours all
earnest and sincere seekers. He grants the heart’s desire of all. “The Gita,” says Dr. S. Radhakrishnan,
“does not speak of this or that form of religion but speaks of the impulse
which is expressed in all forms, the desire to find God and understand our
relations to Him.” 25
God
is one. So too is religion. The religion which is not the religion of all men
is pseudo-religion. But the manifestations of religion are many and varied.
Rightly does the Atharva Veda say, Ekam jyothi bahuda vibhati, i.e., the
same light appears as many. 26 Light, though one, appears different,
we know, to different persons according to circumstances. It is thus yellow to
a man with jaundice and dark to one with dark glasses on. The Vedas say
elsewhere that sages call the One (God) by many names. 27
The
presence of God in all things, all beings, all places and at all times and His
acceptance of whatever is offered to Him with sincere devotion are among the
finest teachings of the Gita. Krishna thus tells Arjuna, “The man who visualizes Me everywhere and in
everything is not lost to Me. Nor am I lost to him. The Yogi, ‘who established
in oneness (with Me)’ worships Me in all beings, lives in Me, all his
activities not withstanding.” 28 We read further in the Gita that God accepts whatever the pure in heart offer him
with devotion–a leaf, a flower, a fruit or even water. 29
The
Gita further emphasizes that everyone, whether pious
or otherwise, a saint or a sinner will be liberated if he has wholehearted love
for God and unquestioning faith in Him and worship Him with single-minded
devotion. Krishna’s final exhortation to Arjuna
is–“Abandoning all duties come to Me alone for shelter. Be not grieved, for I
shall release thee from all evils.” 30 Absolute self-surrender to
God is the key to the portals of the city of God. A man with all his
imperfections, all his defects and drawbacks, has nothing to fear. Devotion to
God will burn away the dress and leave him purified, if the vilest man worships
Me with single-minded devotion, he must be reckoned as righteous, “for he has
rightly resolved.” 31 He becomes righteous before long and obtains
lasting peace. Kaunteya (son of Kunti,
i.e., Arjuna), know it for certain that my devotee perisheth not. 32
What
a heartening, what a consoling message! God does not abandon anyone, not even
the vilest and most hardened criminal or the worst sinner, if he has faith in
God and love for Him. Every sinner has a future. Once a sinner, not always a
sinner. Did not the highway robber Ratnakara become
sage Valmiki, the traditional author of the Ramayana,
through his faith and single-minded devotion to Rama
(God)? The Gita does not condemn the sinner to
perdition as scriptures of some other faiths do. Many of the problems of our
inner lives will be solved if we imbibe the spirit of the Gita.
It will give hope, faith and courage to us and help us to look upon life and
its problems with equanimity unperturbed.
It
has been rightly enjoined that the Gita, which has come
out of the mouth of Padmanabha (Lord Vishnu) should
be studied well and carefully. The study of other scriptures is superfluous.
Gitah
sugitah kartavyah
Kimanyaih
sastravistaraih
Yah swayam
Padmanabhasya
Mukhapadmat
vinihsritah.
1
Sarvopanishado gavo
dogdha gopa1anandonah
Partho
vaisah sudhirbhokta dugdham gitamritam mahat.
2
S. Radhakrishnan-The Bhagavadgita,
p. 13.
3
S. Radhakrishnan-The Bhagavadgita,
p. 14.
4 The
Bhagavadgita, III,
5
5
Ibid III, 8
6
Ibid II, 47 and
48
7
Ibid III 9 and
19
8 Tr.
M. K. Gandhi quoted in Vincent Shean, Lead Kindly
Light, pp. 190-91. The original verse is-
Isavasya
midam sarvam yetkincha jagatyam jagat
Tena tyaktena bhunjithah ma gridhah kasyasvi ddhanam.
9 Cf.
Jitam jagat kena mano hi yona
–Sankaracharya.
10 The
Bhagavadgita, II, 55–72 and XII, 19
11
James W. Douglas in Gandhi Marg (New Delhi), April
1971, p. 94.
12 The
Bhagavadgita, XVIII, 60.
13
Ibid IX, 27.
14 Ibid
XVIII, 65.
15 The
Bhagavadgita, III,
27.
16
Ibid XVIII,
61.
17 Ibid
II, 20.
18
Ibid II, 23.
19
Ibid II. 24.
20
Ibid II, 22.
21
Psalms of the Sisters-Ed. Mrs. Rhys Davids, p. 78
22 The
Bhagavadgita, v. 18.
23 Henry
Adams–Quoted in S. Radhakrishnan, The Bhagavadgita, p. 181.
24 The
Bhagavadgita, IV, II (Tr. S. Radhakrishnan)
25 S.
Radhakrishnan–The Bhagavadgita,
pp. 158-59.
26 The
Atharva Veda, XIII, 3, 17
27
Ekam sadviprah bahudha vadanti
28 The
Bhagavadgita, VI, 20-31 29
29 Ibid
IX, 26
30
Ibid XVIII, 66 (Tr. S. Radhakrishnan)
31 Ibid
IX, 30
32 Ibid
IX, 31