Class Summary for Nov 17, 2024 - Bhagavad Gita Chapter-9 ver 7-10 (contd.) and 11-14

 

Compiled by Prasanna Nov 17 2024 PM

The class started off with our Omkar routine followed by prayers and Pranayama & meditation.

We did a recap from our last class on the below topics 

Concept of relation less relationship.

Example of Space & Air: Space is independent, Air is dependent on Space. What happens to the Air does not affect Space at all. The air can be hot or cold, Space is not concerned. Air can be moving or still, Space is unconcerned. Air could be polluted or clean, Space is unaffected.

We can also take the example of Film screen and the film that's being played. The film screen is untouched by the violence / comedy that's being played.

In the same way the actions and thoughts of beings do not affect the Substratum, Brahman. The superimposed beings do not affect Brahman at all.

State of deep sleep

According to Vedanta, states of deep sleep represent conditions of consciousness where experiences are suspended, akin to a union with the highest Self/brahman. These states, such as deep sleep, or trance (samadhi), involve a lack of duality perception due to the mind's inactivity. Although the Self remains present in these conditions, it does not display consciousness or awareness. This understanding highlights the nature of deep sleep as a profound state beyond ordinary perception. The individual is closer to Brahman in this state

We then moved on to the following topics

Yuga and Kalpa

A Kalpa consists of 1,000 Mahayugas, making it a significant measure of cosmic time. And there are four Yugas:

• Satya Yuga: The age of truth and righteousness, lasting 1,728,000 years.

• Treta Yuga: The age of virtue, lasting 1,296,000 years.

• Dvapara Yuga: The age of duality, lasting 864,000 years.

• Kali Yuga: The age of darkness and decline, lasting 432,000 years.

During a Kalpa, the process of creation (Srishti) unfolds, guided by the will of Brahma, who manifests the universe and all its inhabitants. This creative process is followed by periods of maintenance and eventual destruction (Pralaya), overseen by the deity Shiva.

 According to Vedic texts, the creation and destruction of the universe is a cyclic process which repeats itself forever. Each cycle starts with the birth and expansion (lifetime) of the universe which equals to 311.04 trillion years followed by its complete annihilation which also prevails for the same duration of 311.04 trillion years.

The cycle of creation and destruction is crucial in Hindu beliefs, teaching the transient nature of life:

• Brahma: The creator, who initiates the cycle of creation.

• Vishnu: The preserver, who maintains cosmic order during the Yugas.

• Shiva: The destroyer, who dissolves the universe at the end of a Kalpa, allowing for regeneration.

Pralaya, or dissolution, marks the end of a Kalpa, after which a new cycle of creation begins, demonstrating the eternal rhythm of existence.

Jeevatma Paramatma

We are just an instrument and the body of ours needs god to direct our actions, just like a pen by itself can’t write and is just an instrument in our hands. The Jivatma is the body of Paramatma: Paramatma is the soul of the Jivatma. The relationship between the Jivatma and Paramatma is similar to the relationship between the light and the source of light, namely, fire or sun. In one way, the light is a part of the fire or sun. 

Gita does indeed ask one to be balanced in one’s actions – that however is not indifference, but detachment. 

Such detachment ensures that our emotions don’t take over our judgement and become the sole basis of our actions. The Gita urges us to recognize that the emotions that come over us are not always our emotions. To the contrary, they frequently are default emotional responses to external stimuli that if we observe with indifference will pass. Detachment is about letting go of attachment for the sake of a possibly improved situation, whereas indifference often implies apathy or a don't care attitude.

Think of ourselves as the uncut diamond and with this knowledge we should not get upset by setbacks and adversity. Just like a diamond only shines after undergoing the painful cuts to become a shiny diamond from an uncut one. It's OK to be sad and down but we are capable of getting up, taking the next step and moving on.

 We watched a couple of videos of Gurudev on verse 11 and 12 and here is the  meaning.:

Gita  9.11: 

avajānanti māṁ mūḍhā mānuṣhīṁ tanum āśhritam

paraṁ bhāvam ajānanto mama bhūta-maheśhvaram

When I descend in My personal form deluded persons are unable to recognize Me. They do not know the divinity of My personality, as the Supreme Lord of all beings.

Gita 9.12:

moghāśhā mogha-karmāṇo mogha-jñānā vichetasaḥ

rākṣhasīm āsurīṁ chaiva prakṛitiṁ mohinīṁ śhritāḥ

 With futile hopes, futile actions and futile knowledge, the ignorant people with their minds distracted, only adopt the demoniac, monstrous and delusive nature.

Class Summary for Nov 10, 2024 - Bhagavad Gita Chapter-9 ver 7-10

Summary by Srii

The class started off with our Omkar routine followed by prayers and Pranayama & meditation.

We did a recap from our last class of verses 3,4 and 5 of Chapter 9.

We watched a couple of videos of Gurudev on verse 5 and 6 and discussed the explanation & meaning.

Message and Key Pointers from the videos:

Continuing the strain of His arguments in the previous stanza here He says, “NOR DO THINGS EXIST IN ME,” although “I DWELL NOT IN THEM.” Now here he says that in the Infinite, never has the finite ever risen!

The Self “BRINGS FORTH AND SUPPORTS ALL BEINGS” just as the ocean gives birth to, supports and nourishes all the waves in it. “AND YET,” says Krishna “I, MYSELF NEVER DWELL IN THEM.” Just in the same way the ocean can cry that “I am never the waves.” The mud is the womb of all pots, the sustainer of their shapes, the nourisher of their forms, and yet, none of the pots, nor all the pots put together, can ever define or give a total knowledge of the mud.

Concept of relation less relationship.

Example of Space & Air: Space is in the position of a substratum to Air. The air is superimposed on Space. Space is independent, Air is dependent on Space. What happens to the Air does not affect Space at all. The air can be hot or cold, Space is not concerned. Air can be moving or still, Space is unconcerned. Air could be polluted or clean, Space is unaffected.

In the same way the actions and thoughts of beings does not affect the Substratum, Brahman. The superimposed beings do not affect Brahman at all.

Lord sys O ARJUNA, that the winds curl, swirl and whirl around everywhere in space; the space supports and envelopes them everywhere, and yet, they do not ever limit the space.

 This beautiful example, when meditated upon by any seeker, if he has at least an average amount of intellectual comprehension, will enable him to define, in his own mind, the right relationship that exists between the Self and the non-Self. The Real supports the unreal; the unreal seemingly lives… through its history of misery and sorrows, fleeting joys and passing pleasures… in the Real and yet, the unreal can never condition the Real.

When the wind is moving, the space need never move. None of the qualities of the wind is the quality of the space (Akasha). Compared with the outstretching Infinite space, in which the universes keep on revolving, at a speed measured in light years, the atmospheric disturbances are only up to the height of a few miles off the surface of the globe.

In the infinite vastness of the Real, the arena of disturbances caused by Its flirtations with Its own assumed self-ignorance, is only a negligible area… and even there, the relationship between the false and the Real is the relationship between the fickle breeze and the Infinite space.

We then recited the verses 7 8,9 and 10 :

Subjective Analysis:

The underlying message is about how God is not responsible for actions performed by beings, even though no action can take place without God's presence: 

 

• Verse 7: Explains that God manifests beings again at the beginning of each creation 

When a cosmic cycle ends, all living beings dissolve into Krishna's original material energy, and at the start of a new creation, he again manifests them according to their inherent nature 

• Verse 8: Explains that God generates beings in accordance with their natures 

Krishna emphasizes that he is the presiding power over this material energy, generating diverse forms of life repeatedly through this energy. 

• Verse 10: Explains that God does not directly create life forms, but instead uses His energies and appointed souls to do so 

Explains that the material world operates under Krishna's direction, with various energies and souls performing their roles as per his will, similar to how a government functions through its appointed official

Key Points:

•  Cosmic cycle:The verses allude to the concept of "Kalpa" - a cosmic cycle where creation, preservation, and destruction occur repeatedly.  
• Non-duality: Krishna is portrayed as the ultimate reality behind all manifestations yet remains distinct from them. 
• Divine play:The idea of Krishna "playing" with creation, signifying his creative power while maintaining a detached perspective.

Verses 7-10 essentially explain that Krishna, as the supreme being, is the source of all creation, and at the end of a cosmic cycle, everything merges back into his primordial energy, only to be manifested again during the next cycle of creation; highlighting that he is the underlying force behind the entire universe, overseeing its continuous cycle of creation, preservation, and dissolution, without directly engaging in the act of creation himself, but through his divine energy