A Bhakta's response to the blog

April 6, 2011

I had emailed my blog to a few close friends and relatives and invited comment. Got this from my cousin sister in Sydney.

It is endearing to see you express your Rajasic attachment to Bhagavad Geeta in the form of the blog page that you have created to explore the meaning of Geeta in everyday mundane matters.

As an intense and committed disciple of Bhakti-Yoga, I desist from my conditioned tendency to entering into intellectual discussions on the sacred subject of Bhagavad Geeta. This is because through continued satsang of and service to my ShriGuru, I have come to relish the sweet pastimes and glories of the Supreme Lord. Once you start relishing the nectar of Bhakti......any intellectual discussion feels bland and tasteless.

However, for my dear brother, I am choosing to make an exception....only because I trust him to have an open mind....through which perhaps I can transmit the wonderful and glorious message of Bhakti, as I have come to realize and relish.

As highly educated souls, our tendency is to intellectualize Bhagavad Geeta. Your blog is an example of that. So, what's wrong in doing so? From mundane (intellectual) perspective - nothing wrong, if anything, you may even get to hear few 'waah ! waah!'. However, from the perspective of a devotee - it's plain foolish. Because it's like scratching the surface of Geeta and getting so distracted by its lustre that you completely miss out on the real treasure that is hiding between the lines and chapters of Bhagavad Geeta.

Yes, Geeta does explain and describe human behaviour systematically, completely and thoroughly. But, it does so as a background to and with the view to explaining and describing the human potential - the true purpose of human life, the true nature and duty of our soul - which is to (actively) develop the love for the Supreme Lord and to be continuously engaged in serving Him through remembering Him, His pastimes, His glories and His names.

It is very common to see intellectuals (easterners or westerners) commending, applauding and doing "waah waah" at a Swami's talk or explanations about Bhakti (Love for the Supreme Lord) and Bhagavaan (Supreme Lord). Sadly, while the theory is understood *at intellectual level) and applauded, there is no effort made to actually realize Bhakti or Bhagavaan. Because, doing so requires engaging oneself in simple, non-intellectual acts such as chanting the holy names and it also demands giving up our egos by surrendering completely to a pure devotee. Bhakti (the love for the Supreme Lord) is awakened ONLY by pleasing and seeking the blesssing of a pure devotee. Impossible to do when you identify yourself as an intellectual. And to make matters worse (for an intellectual, that is) - the ultimate objective of developing Bhakti (love for the Supreme Lord) is also Bhakti (to be continuously engaged in loving devotional service of the Supreme Lord). How can that be appealing to an intellectual mind!

No wonder, it is said that highly intelligent (educated) mind is a hindrance to Bhakti.

So, my dear brother, it is your humble sister's humble request that please do reflect on what I have said and please do consider diving deeper into the sweet nectarian ocean of Bhagavad Geeta to discover first hand - the pearls of Bhakti, rather than be content playing on the shores - howsoever beautiful may be the shells scattered there.

Given my cousin's conviction, I will not make this a topic for 'intellectual debate'. The approach of some masters is steeped in Bhakti that does not encourage discussion and that is fine for them and their devotees. I cannot specifically say whether she read this post on Bhakti or whether that triggered this response.

What I love is her engagement and willingness to contradict. In the same spirit, dear readers, by all means, bring it on. Where applicable, I will counter if I need to.

Hari Om and Namaskar till the next time.

Geeta Dhyānaṁ 2 - Vyāsā's Vast Intellect

January 7, 2013 Previously on Geeta Jayanti, I had posted on the eternal debt of gratitude to Mother Geeta that is the basis of Geeta Dhyānaṁ. I love Param Pujya Gurudev 's commentary on the Geeta Dhyānaṁ. Pujya Gurudev's commentary is after the introduction to the Bhagavad Geeta in the commentary on Chapters 1 & 2 published by the the Chinmaya Mission. I personally believe it should be a book by itself. After invoking Mother Geeta, we now pay tribute to the wise Vyāsa Rishi - the Guru whose Jayanti marks Guru Pūrnima every year. Pujya Gurudev starts His tribute to Veda Vyāsā in his commentary on the 1st verse of the Dhyānaṁ. Vyāsa, the father of the Vedās, who, first collected, edited and published the Veda texts and who thereafter, gave us the dialectics of Vedānta in his Brahma Sūtra, himself a great man of realization, was indeed well fitted for the job. The ancient seer had both the mastery of the theoretical science of religion - Hinduism and also the practical expe

In every field, let Dharma flourish - क्षेत्रे क्षेत्रे धर्म कुरु

August 9, 2012 Swamini Vimalanandaji has done a series of talks at the Ahmedabad Management Association (AMA) called "406 SMS – Sure Mantras for Success from Bhagwad Geeta" (item 406 at this AMA link ). In this she has a very interesting take on the 1st line of the Bhagavad Geeta. धर्मक्षेत्रे कुरुक्षेत्रे १-१ dharmakShetre kurukShetre 1-1 <i> on the holy plain of Kurukshetra... </i> Swamini turns that slightly and says, क्षेत्रे क्षेत्रे धर्म कुरु - kShetre kShetre dharma kuru. Swamini goes on to establish that we can use this mantra to make that: "In every aspect of society, must be pervaded by Dharma" Hari Om and Namaskaar until the next post

Geeta in Literature - IF by Rudyard Kipling

September 12, 2011 I came across a nice YouTube video that is an animation of Rudyard Kipling reading his famous poem IF . The full text sourced from wikisource is below: If you can keep your head when all about you Are losing theirs and blaming it on you; If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you, But make allowance for their doubting too: If you can wait and not be tired by waiting, Or being lied about, don’t deal in lies, Or being hated, don’t give way to hating, And yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise; If you can dream—and not make dreams your master; If you can think—and not make thoughts your aim, If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster And treat those two impostors just the same: If you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools, Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken, And stoop and build ’em up with worn-out tools; If you can make one heap of all your winnings And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss, And los

Everyday Geeta

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