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Other Baba-books
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The original
Sanskrit verses and with comments taken from the writings of
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'And where
there is Yudhishthhira,
1 2a 2b 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18a 18b
"You may ask whether one
would not feel sad when the bodies with which one had moved and lived
for years go out of sight. But for how many have you to lament, in case
it is proper so to grieve! Have you thought of that? Joy and grief are
as day and night. They have to be put up with, gone through. If you
refuse, they won't stop happening; if you desire, they won't start
happening! They are both related to the physical, the material body;
they do not affect the spirit, the soul. The moment you escape from
these two, that moment you are liberated, you have moksha." " Listen to this spoken
chapter in Audio " dhritarāshthra uvāca The Bhagavad Gītā
contains the sacred lore of the spirit. Krishna gave unto mankind,
through Arjuna, the core of the Gītā message on the battlefield at
10:30 a.m. on the Karthika Bahula Amasya day. This was the
day on which the great Mahābhārata war was commenced. Ten days
later, when Bhīshma fell in battle, Sañjaya was informing
Dhritarāshthra of the proceedings on the battlefield.
Dhritarāshthra asked Sañjaya: "Gathered
on the holy plain of Kurukshetra, o Sañjaya,
This was on the Margasira Suddha Ekadasi day. Some consider
this day as the Gītājayanti or the day on which Krishna
vouchsafed the message of the Gītā to Arjuna. But this was the day on
which Sañjaya narrated the story of the battle to Dhritarāshthra. The
Gītā was actually given by Krishna to Arjuna on the Karthika Bahula
Amasya day. - Summer Showers in Brindavan
1979, pp. 158-9 It is all in the Lord's
plan. Consider, for example, how long before the Gītā was spoken, the
Lord had gotten ready a Sañjaya, who could see and hear whatever was
done or spoken at a distance; His mission was to preserve the Gītā for
humanity. - Sathya Sai Speaks II, p. 168 sañjaya uvāca paśyaitām
pāndu-putrānām atra śūrā maheshvāsā dhrishthaketuś cekitānah yudhāmanyuś ca vikrānta asmākam tu viśishthā ye bhavān bhīshmaś ca karnaś
ca anye ca bahavah śūrā aparyāptam tad asmākam The Pāndavas made up for
their inferior military strength by faith in God's omnipotence and
their own impotence! And, so, God Himself led them into the field and
won for them victory from the jaws of defeat! - Sathya Sai Speaks VII, p.
41 ayaneshu ca sarveshu tasya sañjanayan harsham tatah śankhāś ca bheryaś
ca The agonizing years of
torment, hope, and disillusion were over; the moment of decision had
come, though it was sought now, by the sharp edge of the sword and not
the soft words of Lord Krishna. The armies gathered by the Kauravas
from their kingdom and from their allies were standing
face to face with the forces of their Pāndava cousins. Cavalry,
chariotry, elephantry and infantry, eager to start the destruction of
the enemy, the chief actors all accoutered and equipped for the fray!
Conches were blown; trumpets rent the sky with their blare. The air was
tense with hope, fear, anxiety and anger. Blood in a million bodies
became redder and warmer; hearts pounded quicker; arms grasped weapons
in deadly grip. - Sathya Sai Speaks IX, p. 86 tatah śvetair hayair yukte Krishna
and Arjuna also blew their conches on the other side. The great
roar of battle proceeding from the soldiers on the side of the Pāndavas
rent the skies. - Summer Showers in
Brindavan 1979, p. 17 pāñcajanyam hrishīkeśo anantavijayam rājā kāśyaś ca parameshv-āsah drupado draupadeyāś ca sa ghosho dhārtarāshthrānām The Kauravas
represent the demonic nature; the Pāndavas represent the
divine. They are asat, these are sat; one is evil, the
other is good. And there has ever been a struggle between the two. In
this conflict between opposing forces, Krishna (the self, the ātmā)
is
ever
on
the
side
of
dharma - the reality that sustains, not
the delusion that undermines. - Gītā Vahini, p. 3 atha vyavasthitān drishthvā arjuna uvāca yotsyamānān avekshe 'ham sañjaya uvāca Responding to Arjuna's
request, Krishna stationed his chariot in the middle of the two armies.
The chariot appeared so terrifying to the Kaurava soldiers that they
felt as if the war horses galloped on their hearts. - Summer Showers in
Brindavan 1979, p. 18 bhīshma-drona-pramukhatah The two armies of the Kauravas
and Pāndavas were standing on either side. On the side of the
Pāndavas, there were seven units of armies. On the side of the
Kauravas, there were eleven units of armies. It is not as if Arjuna was
ignorant of the number of units on the Kaurava side and the number of
units on the Pāndava side. Knowing this fully well, Arjuna requested
Krishna to take his chariot and put it right in the middle of the two
armies. When Krishna asked him the reason for this behavior, he replied
that he wanted to determine with whom he should really fight if he
should fight at all. When we examine this in the context in which he
made this statement, we realize that he made this statement after he
had gone with the intention of fighting. Krishna prepared the chariot
and Arjuna prepared all his weapons, including the Gāndiva, and
they were all set for the battle. After reaching the battlefield why
did he change his mind? Was it his weakness or did he become
despondent? He began asking the question as to who will benefit from
the battle and who will get prosperity from the battle. He realized
that the very people for whose sake he was fighting the battle will
probably be killed, so he felt that the battle had no purpose. The
kings want to rule over the people and build up the prosperity of the
people and the kingdom, and if the people are going to be killed in a
battle where is the question of prosperity and a kingdom? After the
entire family and group of people are wiped out, for whose sake was he
going to establish a kingdom and rule over it? Some people have
described this moha or attachment to his kith and kin, and they
named the chapter as vishada yoga. This cannot be described as
a period of internal controversy or discussion within himself. He has
entered this argument within himself to decide between truth and
untruth, between propriety and impropriety. He discussed within himself
the aspect that the Kauravas have been ruling unjustly and the fact
that they have been having untruth and impropriety on their side and
did not himself want to undertake the same impropriety and untruth.
There were certain distinctive features and distinctive qualities on
the side of the Pāndavas and therefore God was also on their side. Here
it becomes clear to us that Krishna was on the side of the Pāndavas
because of their good qualities. If we look at this situation in a
somewhat superficial manner, then we will see that because Arjuna was
thrown into this despondent and confusing situation, an opportunity had
arisen for Krishna to preach the sacred text of Bhagavad Gītā.
If Arjuna did not fall into an introspective and despondent situation
like this, Krishna would not have had an opportunity to preach the
sacred Bhagavad Gītā. Just as we know that pleasure is an interval
between two pains, so also in the interval between two situations,
sometimes good comes about. Krishna here plays the part of a typical
human being and, by making Arjuna behave as a typical human being,
Krishna created a situation whereby the Gītā could be expounded. Man's
life is transient. It is momentary, and in this context Arjuna had a
chance to recognize the permanent truth. - Summer Roses on the Blue Mountains
1976,
pp. 80-1 tatrāpaśyat sthitān pārthah tān samīkshya sa kaunteyah arjuna uvāca vepathuś ca śarīre me Beholding his
grandfather Bhīshma, his guru Dronāchārya, and his
friends and relations, and thinking of the bonds of affection between
him and the people on the other side of the battlefield, Arjuna felt
despondent. His head reeled, his limbs trembled, and the Gāndiva
slipped from his hand. - Summer Showers in
Brindavan 1979, p. 17 Arjuna entered the
battlefield, fully equipped and frantically determined to destroy his
enemies. But, when he stood between the serried ranks in the chariot
driven by Lord Krishna, he saw "my teachers", "my grandfather", "my
kinsmen", "my cousins" and he was moved so much by this sense of I and
mine that he discarded the bow and desired to return, poor and beaten. - Sathya Sai Speaks VII, p.
293 na ca śaknomy avasthātum na ca śreyo 'nupaśyāmi "0 Krishna!" Arjuna cried, "I am forced to wage this
terrible
war against friends and relations with whom I should have been living
in happiness and harmony. My mind rebels against this. The cause for
this is neither the fear of death nor the need to kill my kinsmen." - Summer Showers in Brindavan 1979, p. 17 kim no rājyena govinda ta ime 'vasthitā yuddhe mātulāh śvaśurāh pautrāh api trailokya-rājyasya Overcome by sorrow and
delusion, Arjuna turns from war and keeps aside his weapons; he is
dejected in his chariot, halted between the opposing forces; he turns
this way and that, puzzled and perturbed; he surveys the faces of his
kith and kin; he is overcome by pity.
-
Gītā Vahini, p. 10 pāpam evāśrayed asmān Many people argue and
say that God could do anything, and they say that God should have
avoided the war by his own sankalpa. Here we must notice that
Krishna was not willing to use his own divine strength for the benefit
of mankind directly. He was living as human beings do and he wanted to
use the normal human methods by which to control various actions. - Summer Roses on the Blue
Mountains 1976, pp. 48-9 yady apy ete na paśyanti kula-kshaye pranaśyanti ...the words of God always
represent truth, and whatever He does is an act of dharma. His
words constitute and His actions constitute dharma. There is
nothing in the world that He wants or that He has to do. All actions of
His are undertaken for the good of the people. Our duty is to do what
He asks us to do without question. We have no right or the capacity to
question or enquire into the actions of the Lord ... Whatever He does,
it is for our good. In the eyes of God, there is no difference between
one and another. In this context, He gets neither angry nor pleased.
The Pāndavas did not fight the battle, nor did they plan the
battle. Victory cannot be ascribed to them. Krishna is the one
who made them fight and achieve victory. It is very difficult to
understand His līlās. - Summer Showers in
Brindavan 1978, p. 37 adharmābhibhavāt krishna The Srutis
(scriptures) have declared that the destruction wrought by war may lead
women away from the path of virtue and bring social disorder. - Summer Showers in
Brindavan 1979, pp. 17-8 sankaro narakāyaiva It would be better to
live on alms than to fight for a kingdom and be responsible for this
great sin and repent later ... Arjuna also was telling Krishna that it
is better to beg for food and live than to achieve victory by killing
all those who are near and dear. - Summer Showers in Brindavan 1979, p. 18 doshair etaih kula-ghnānām utsanna-kula-dharmānām
Dharma
is the moral code, the experience of sages, the controlling discipline
that checks the mind and the senses. There are many such brakes
operating on man: vyakthi-dharma (controls affecting the
individual as such), sahaja-dharma (controls affecting the
nature of man, as man), āśrama-dharma (controls affecting the
stage of life, like student, householder, ascetic), varna-dharma
(controls pertaining to the fulfillment of the duties cast upon man as
a limb of the community), etc. All these brakes are complementary, they
do not cause confusion, they help progress, each in its own way.
Krishna reminded Arjuna of his varna-dharma as a kshatriya,
and
also
of
his
sahaja-dharma as a jīvi (an instrument
in the hands of the Lord). Besides these, there is also the
visesha-dharma (obligations on special occasions or when faced with
special situations). You must therefore walk warily towards the goal. - Sathya Sai Speaks IV, p.
292 aho bata mahat pāpam yadi mām apratīkāram sañjaya uvāca Thus the great hero
Arjuna entered into a state of despair. His dejection proceeded from
his concern for the preservation of dharma and his anxiety to
strictly obey God's command. Dharma, which is concerned with
the welfare of all, should override the dictates of mamakara
(attachment), which confines itself to the interests of one's kith and
kin. That dharma which relates to societal well-being should be
held higher than man's duty to a few and therefore should not be
sacrificed for the latter. The attachment one has for one's relations
may be compared to the clouds that suddenly gather in the sky and
disappear in no time. Dharma, however, is that which sustains
this earth. Thus, Arjuna felt dejected out of his anxiety to protect dharma
and adhere to God's injunction as indicated in the srutis. Had
Arjuna merely felt sorry for his kinsmen, it might have been only vishada
or dejection; but since he felt agonized for the sake of the protection
of dharma and obeying the word of God, his mental state is
described as vishada yoga or the yoga of righteous
despair. -
Summer Showers in Brindavan 1979, p. 18
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"The
division of the
Bhagavad Gītā into various chapters is only meant to suit our
convenience. The entire text has an inseparable and indivisible organic
unity. All the chapters are interdependent. The human body consists of
various limbs and organs, but they cannot have an independent and
isolated existence. In the same way, the Omnipresent Divine Reality of
the Paramātmā constitutes the "central theme of all the
chapters of the Gītā and interconnects them." - Summer Showers in Brindavan 1979, p. 122 
