Gita 08.09 – Systematic contemplation begins with tangible information
Bhagavad Gita 8.9 here Krishna is describing the attributes of the supreme person on whom we are to meditate he is the wisest he is extremely wise actually the previous words describe that we should meditate on the supreme paramam purusham abhyasa yoga yuktena cetasana anyagamina paramam purusham divyam yatiparthanu chintayan so it stated that paramam purusham divyam anuchintayan that divine person was transcendental we should meditate on him systematically so how that chintan is to be done thoughts don't exist in a vacuum thoughts they may be subtle but that does not mean that they are not real or there are no real processes involved for the growth of thoughts they need some input based on which they get thoughts get strength and then they grow if we are told think about the medulla oblongata and if that's the first time we have heard the word medulla we will probably not be able to think about it much we may think this sounds like a roman or latin term or we may think that this refers to something which is maybe some extinct species or something like that now if you tell further that it is a part of the human body it's a very critical component of our anatomy the more information we get that can act as a stimulation for the contemplation of course information is necessary but not sufficient for contemplation because sometimes if you don't find some information interesting then we can't read something about say triple integral calculus we have that information but unless we have some great interest or zeal for mathematics it is rare that we will be contemplating on triple integral calculus for any time apart from the time when we are actually studying that subject or giving exam on that subject so we have the information but we do not have the interest over there so information is still necessary without that contemplation becomes largely an imagination and that imagination can often be very uninformed or even ill-informed uninformed means we don't know anything about it ill-informed means there are wrong things about it and that's how much contemplation on God is uninformed or ill-informed and so it doesn't lead to any productive discussion even when atheists condemn God deride God they don't know anything they don't know exactly God they don't know who God is often they have what they beat is a caricature of God which doesn't resemble the object of worship of the of the theists so here Krishna gives us tangible information based on which we can worship God so here in his states that there is but here in he says that Kavim the supreme being is wise so people consider those consider some people very wise say somebody like Einstein or Emerson or Thoreau or people like that they're wise so Krishna is the original wise person the supremely wise person Kavim Puranam is the primeval being Govindamadi Purusham Tamahambha he's the Adipurusham there is no one older than him Kavim Puranam Anusha Sitaram Anusha Sitaram he is the person who does Anushasan he's the controller there are different people who have different levels of control but Krishna has the supreme control he's Anusha Sitaram Anoranyam Sam Anoranyam he is smaller than the smallest this is one of the inconceivable attributes of God usually when we think of somebody as a controller we think that person may have to be big to be able to control but Krishna doesn't have to be physically huge he is of a moderate size actually he doesn't have to have huge biceps his form is very aesthetically appealing visually pleasing not that of a gigantic muscular person but of a aesthetically pleasing person and he is now of course here Krishna is talking about Anoranyam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam Sam So where do we go to the light beyond the Tamas? That is mentioned in this verse that there is a supreme light that is Aditya Varnam. It's not just a light, but it is a Chintrupam, it is a person who is supremely effulgent. So these attributes of Krishna enable us to meditate on him in a sustainable and transformational way and thus we can come closer and closer to him and ultimately attain him.