Bhakti Shastri (097) – Bhagavad Gita Chapter 09 Text 01 to 02

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Welcome back to our Bhagavad Gita course. We are now coming to the heart of the bhakti section.
As we know, in the 18 chapters of the Bhagavad Gita, the first six chapters talk about the progression from karma to bhakti. And the last six chapters talk about the progression from jnana to bhakti. The central six chapters focus on bhakti itself.
So, in the 7th chapter, Krishna introduced bhakti with mayya, sattva, manah in 7.1, mam, eva, prapadyante in 7.14, and then sadhi, bhuta, adhi, daivam, mam, knowing Him as the Absolute Truth in 7.13. In 8th chapter, there is yoga and ashtanga yoga. And in 8.14, Krishna said that bhakti is easy. By bhakti, I am easily attained.
And He concluded that by practise of yoga, one can attain everything that is attained by all the other paths. And one can also attain the supreme destination. That was the conclusion, 8.28. So, yogi paramsthanam, the yogi will attain the paramsthanam, supreme destination.
By knowing this, so Krishna is not prodded by Arjuna here with any questions at the start of chapter 9. But Krishna, out of the ecstasy of His heart, He has glorified the process that gives the supreme result. And He wants to elaborate that process further. And that’s how He starts in the 9th chapter.
The 9th chapter is called as the most confidential knowledge. This word most confidential comes from 9.2, Rajvidya Rajguhya. Rajguhya is the king among confidential knowledge.
So, Prabhupada translated that as the most confidential knowledge. Generally, it is called Rajguhya yoga also. So, now let’s look at the overview of the 9th chapter.
And then we’ll start with the verses. So, chapter 9 is verses 1 to 3 is developing Kevala Bhakti by knowledge about Krishna. Then 4 to 10 is Krishna’s inconceivable relationship with the material world.
Then, don’t look at the subsections right now. Right now, let’s focus on the main sections to understand the overall flow. 11 to 19 talks about those who understand Krishna in various ways.
So, among them, those who understand devotionally is the best. So, here, the goal is to develop Kevala Bhakti. And we start by understanding about Krishna.
So, Prabhupada writes in his book On the Way to Krishna that all knowledge comes from Krishna, but all knowledge doesn’t begin from Krishna. What does that mean? All knowledge comes from Krishna means whatever understanding we get, ultimately, it is coming from Krishna. But at the same time, all knowledge doesn’t begin from Krishna.
It is not that suddenly we start thinking about Krishna one day. Normally, we observe the world around us and try to make sense of the world and then try to find out where did this world come from. And that’s how we move forward.
So, knowledge in that sense doesn’t come from, it doesn’t begin with Krishna. Our appreciation for Krishna often begins when you observe the material world, see its magnificence, see its mystery, see its mightiness, and then we think where does it come from. Then, from that, we develop an appreciation for the magnificence, the might, and the mystery of the creator of the world, of the source of the world.
So, first section of this chapter, what is the most confidential knowledge? We’ll see it is not just the knowledge of the glory of Krishna, but it is also the knowledge of the glory of the path of love for Krishna, the glory of the path of Bhakti Yoga. So, four to ten talks about Krishna’s relationship with the material world. So, this chapter will first help us establish, help us understand the position of Krishna.
And then after that, we will talk about the position of that process which conquers even Krishna. We understand the supremacy of Krishna. And then after that, we understand the process that conquers Krishna.
My God, what a process it must be. So, then our appreciation for that increases much more. So, four to ten, we’ll start with establishing Krishna’s position by looking at his relationship with this world.
Now, because Krishna’s relationship with this world is complex, it’s inconceivable. So, not all people understand it properly. So, there are different people who understand it in different ways.
That is the second section. That is eleven to nineteen, those who understand Krishna’s position in different ways. And then in that, there are three categories.
Impersonalists mistake Krishna’s body to be material. In 13-14, the Kevala Bhaktas devote themselves utterly to the Supreme Lord. In the 15th verse, they describe three types of people, Ahamgropasana, Pratikopasana and Vishwaroopasana.
Ahamgropasana is I am myself, I am the Brahman. Pratikopasana is the worship of the Devatas as representatives of the Absolute Truth, as representations of the Absolute. Vishwaroopasana is worshipping the Vishwaroopa.
We’ll discuss these three more in detail. And then in 16-19, Krishna talks about Vishwaroopasana a little bit more. Then Krishna in 20-28 establishes how Kevala Bhakti is superior to demigod worship.
So, demigod worship here connects with Pratikopasana. So, Krishna says that all these people are also approaching him, but those who worship him purely are focused on Kevala devotion, they are far better. And then, then Krishna talks further about the glory of Kevala Bhakti by saying, Kevala Bhakti elevates even the most fallen.
So, here the verses, Apichit Sudhiracharo and Mami Parth all these verses come up. The point here is, the whole chapter culminates with the glory of Krishna and the glory of the path of devotion to Krishna. So, the most confidential knowledge is that Krishna is the God of love and he is conquered by those who love him.
So, it is this that is revealed in this chapter in a very sweet way. Let us look at this chapter now from the start. So, we have verse 1. This I will speak to you, Guhyatamam.
Guhya is confidential, Guhyatamam is most confidential knowledge. So, actually the word, the chapter title comes from both 9.1 as well as 9.2. 9.1 as well as 9.2, Rajaguhya and Guhyatamam. As we discussed earlier, Guhya refers to confidential, Guhyatara will refer to more confidential and Guhyatamam will refer to the most confidential.
So, Krishna will use this superlative describer Guhyatamam several times in the Bhagavad Gita and in each context we will see that it is used in the context of Bhakti alone. Wherever it is used, Krishna doesn’t, some impersonals try to use, argue that actually Guhyatamam, that actually higher the knowledge of Krishna is higher the knowledge of the personal absolute is the knowledge of the impersonal absolute. But we will see repeatedly that Krishna uses the word Guhyatamam again and again to refer to the personal absolute and the process of devotion to the personal absolute.
So, the most confidential knowledge is not that there is something unborn within Krishna which is to be worshipped. No, it is Krishna who is to be worshipped and that is the most confidential knowledge. So, Pravakshami Anusuyave, oh Arjuna you’re non-envious so I’ll speak to you.
So, generally why does Krishna say that you are Anusuyave, what is the relationship between the two, between Krishna speaking and his, and the Anusuyave point, Krishna has used something similar in the fourth chapter also when Krishna told Arjuna that I’ll speak this knowledge to you. Krishna had told Arjuna that I’ll speak that knowledge which I had given to you Vasman long ago that he has mentioned in 4.1, 4.2 he says how it was lost and 4.3 he says that now I’ll give it back to you, give it once again to you because you are Bhakto Simhe Sakha Cheti. So, devotion and envy are opposite emotions.
Devotion means we rejoice in Krishna’s glory, envy means we burn because of Krishna’s glory. Why do we burn? Because we feel that I want to be glorious, I want to be famous, I want to be great, why is Krishna so great, I want to be great. So, these two are opposites.
In devotion the more we understand Krishna’s glories the more our heart floods with joy. So, when we are in competition with Krishna instead of being a devotion then the more we hear Krishna’s glories the more we feel I want to be like that, why is he enjoying so much. So, actually there is already the envy is there in the heart and if we hear Krishna’s glories more then our envy for Krishna will increase all the more.
That’s why Krishna does not reveal his glories to the envious. Krishna doesn’t want to cause the envious to even to become more offensive, to burn more and to create more spiritual misfortune for themselves. So, therefore Krishna doesn’t reveal his glory to the envious.
Krishna reveals his glory to those who are devoted, those who are devotionally pious. So, when Krishna reveals his glory to them then their attraction to Krishna increases, their animosity to Krishna doesn’t increase because they do have no animosity towards Krishna. So, when it is said that Krishna reveals his glory to those who are non-envious it is not that Krishna wants to hide his glory from anyone nor is it that Krishna wants to keep the spiritual knowledge which he is giving confidential deliberately.
Actually the confidentiality of the knowledge is simply a means to protect those who are envious of him from creating further misery for themselves. So, I’ll speak this to you Arjuna because you are non-envious. How am I giving this knowledge to you? Knowledge and realisation.
Gyaana and Vigyaana. So, Krishna has used this word Gyaana, Vigyaana, this compound twice in the Bhagavad Gita till now. He has used it once in 6.8, Gyaana, Vigyaana, Truptaatma, there he has said that one who has acquired knowledge and realisation that person becomes Truptaatma, that person becomes satisfied and similarly Krishna has used Gyaana, Vigyaana again in the 7th chapter when he’s describing the glory of the knowledge that he is giving there he says in there also he says in 7.2 that Gyaana, Vigyaana, Sahita.
So, he says that there the context of Gyaana, Vigyaana, Sahita means Gyaana, Vigyaana, Sahita. So, there the word Gyaana and Vigyaana don’t come together as neighbourhood words but they are there Gyaana, Vigyaana, Sahita. So, Krishna says that I’ll give this knowledge to you and what will happen by this knowledge? He says actually this is the complete knowledge.
Once you have this there will be nothing more to be got. In fact this word Gyaana and Savigyaana. So, Prabhupada wanted his devotees, his disciples and followers who were scientifically trained to present Krishna consciousness scientifically to the world and for that purpose he wanted them to start a magazine, a scientific magazine and he had suggested a name at that time called Sa Vigyaanam.
So, the devotees from the Bhaktivedanta Institute have been trying to run that magazine by Sa Vigyaanam. So, they said Prabhupada could we call it Vigyaanam? He said no, Sa Vigyaanam Prabhupada said. Vigyaan is simply science.
The word Vigyaan is today used in terms of science but the Bhagavad Gita uses the word Sa Vigyaanam to indicate that actually this is knowledge with realisation. It is Sa Vigyaanam. So, Gyaana refers to theoretical knowledge but it is not just theoretical knowledge.
What the process of Bhakti Yoga offers is not just theoretical knowledge of Krishna’s glories but experiential, transformational realisation of the sweetness of his glories. So, here also Krishna Gyaanam Vigyaan Sahitam. Now here Krishna is saying what will happen when Gyaan and Vigyaan, I am giving you this knowledge.
Gyaan Vigyaan Sahitam, most confidential knowledge. It is with knowledge and realisation. What will happen by that? By this knowledge you will become free from all misery, Ashubhad.
Ashubhad means not exactly misery but inauspiciousness. Inauspiciousness indicates misery in the future it will come. Inauspicious activities that will bring misery in the future.
So, Mokshase Ashubhad. That means you will not do any activities which will lead to misery in the future. So, Krishna does not necessarily say that you will become free from all misery now.
In this world we cannot become free from misery entirely immediately. It is like when we are sick. We all have to undergo suffering because of the sickness.
But if we are taking the treatment then gradually as we keep taking the treatment we will become free from sickness. We will become free from disease and then we will become free from misery. So, if at the time of sickness we do activities which aggravate the sickness then the misery will increase.
But if at that time we take the proper medicine then what will happen is the disease will gradually be cured. We won’t be doing anything which is going to increase our misery. So, in that sense Yajnaatva Mokshase Ashubhad.
Mokshase Ashubhad. You will become free from inauspicious activities which lead to misery. So, Mokshase Ashubhad.
Now, you may wonder how can Krishna give Jnana and Vijnana. Normally, knowledge is what we can get and realisation is, knowledge is what someone else can give but realisation is something what we have to get. So, how can it be said that Krishna will give knowledge and realisation both.
Actually, ultimately realisation is something which we only have to get but Krishna can give us the process by which we can gain realisation. So, when the process is given then that process helps us to apply it. So, Jnana is like the diagnosis and Vijnana is like the prescription.
If we need, when we go to a doctor, doctor I am having pain in the stomach and then the doctor gives an elaborate 45 minute talk about the different kinds of problems that can be there in the stomach which cause pain and then gives us an explanation of what is the specific problem that is in our stomach also. He says now you can go, your time is over. What? I don’t want to just know what is wrong.
I want to know how it can be said right. A diagnosis is not of much use without the prescription. So, Krishna says Jnana and Vijnana means that he gives diagnosis and prescription and when the patient takes a prescription then by that the patient will get cured.
So, Vijnatva, Moksha se Ashubhad will become free from misery. Moksha se Ashubhad and when we become free from misery we become supremely happy by that. So, that will come gradually.
Now, let us look at Sri Prabhupada’s purport briefly. So, Prabhupada explains over here that now I will speak the glories. Prabhupada starts by talking about hearing.
Krishna is speaking. So, the glories of hearing he mentions first in his purport and then Prabhupada gives a summary of what has been going on in the Bhagavad Gita and then idam jnanam. So, now idam tu te guhyatamam pravakshan in surya ve jnanam.
So, idam is in the first line, jnanam is in the third line. Idam jnanam. So, Prabhupada is explaining to us what is this idam jnanam.
Krishna has used a similar word in the previous chapter’s last verse idam viditva. After knowing this that once you understand this, oh Arjuna, then you will get all the results of jnana, tapva, yoga, everything and not only that you will get something more also. You will get the paramsthan also.
So, Krishna is saying that you will get all this just by the practise of, by understanding this knowledge. Of course, understanding includes realisation. So, as the chapters flow forward, increase, we will develop, we will see that Krishna is actually referring to bhakti yoga itself.
So, Prabhupada explains that right away in the purport. He says that idam jnanam refers to the knowledge of pure devotional service and he lists the nine elements, shravanam, kirtanam, vishnu, smaranam. And then Prabhupada talks about spiritual realisation.
So, jnanam is simply to understand the living entity is not material, is not sufficient. That is just jnanam. But vijnanam, he says, that will be the beginning of spiritual realisation.
So, to recognise the difference between the activities of the body and spiritual activities of one who understands that he is not the body. That is the difference between the two. And then Prabhupada explains anasuya ve.
Now, going back to the overview, now this chapter is actually very similar to the 7th chapter. The 7th chapter actually also has similar sections. 7.1 to 3 is talking about the glory of the knowledge that Arjuna is being given.
If we start from mayy asat tamanah, first verse ends with tashrunu, hear about it. Then it is jnanam, it talks about the concept, first talks about this knowledge will help you to become attached to me. Second talks about this knowledge is complete.
Actually, it is jnanatvani, you will have nothing more to learn. Third verse says that this knowledge is very rare. Manushyanaam sahasreshu.
That is the first three. So, similar to the first three verses over here. Then the second section talks about Krishna’s relationship with the material world.
That is from verses 4 to 12, 13. It talks about how material and spiritual energies of Krishna are there and it talks about how Krishna pervades material existence. And then it talks about how Krishna is beyond the three modes, the master of the three modes.
Then after that is Krishna’s, how different people approach Krishna in different ways, how different people understand Krishna. So, there we discussed about 13, 14 talks about how surrender to Krishna one can become liberated. 15 talks about those who don’t surrender, nishkrtina.
16 to 19 talks about those who surrender and become jnanavan. Then 20 to 23 talks about those who worship the devatas. 24 talks about those who worship, those who are attracted to the impersonal Brahman as the highest reality.
And then 25 to 30 talks about how knowledge of Krishna liberates. So, the similar pattern is seen over here. Here also, 1 to 3 is the glory of knowledge.
4 to 10 is Krishna’s relationship with this world. Then 11 to 19 is the relationship of how different people understand him. And then the same thought flow is there or similar thought flow is there, but all the concepts are developed deeper.
As we move forward, we will see that. The concepts are developed deeper. And then 20 to 23 talks about, 20 to 28 actually talks about comparing demigod worship and pure devotional service.
And then again, there it was primarily focussing on knowledge of Krishna. Now, here it is kevala bhakti, devotion to Krishna and how that liberates even the most fallen. So, there are remarkable similarities in these two chapters.
Let’s move forward to the next verse now. su-sukhaṁ kartum avyayam rāja-vidyā rāja-kuriyam So, he is the king of knowledge and he is the most confidential knowledge. And he is supremely pure.
pavitram idam uttamam Uttamam means which is beyond the darkness of this world. pratyakṣāvagamam dharmam It gives us a realisation. su-sukhaṁ kartum avyayam But actually it is su-sukhaṁ kartum It is joyfully performed.
Now, actually Prabhupada’s purport goes over each of these points very systematically. So, here also Krishna is speaking about the glory of this knowledge. So, there also Krishna spoke about the glory of this knowledge in the 7.2 also.
Nothing more to be known. So, we will see that, we discussed earlier, chapters 3 and 5 are similar in their overall thought flow and conceptual division. And similarly, chapters 7 and 9 are similar in their thought flow and their conceptual division.
But in each of these cases, we will see in 5th chapter, Krishna goes deeper in the explanation of Karma Yoga than what was in 3rd chapter. And here, in 9th chapter, Krishna will go deeper in the explanation of Bhakti Yoga than what was in the 7th chapter. So, rāja-vidyā The word rāja-vidyā It can be broken in two ways, the compound word.
It can be the king of knowledge or it can be the knowledge of kings. What is the meaning? Knowledge of kings means, Krishna has earlier told in 4.2 that this knowledge is to be acquired by the rāja-rishis, the great saintly kings. So, knowledge of the kings.
Now, why of the kings? Actually, is Bhagavad Gita meant only for the kings? Are all of us also kings? Or is Bhagavad Gita meant to make people into kings? What is the meaning of saying that it’s knowledge of the kings? Actually, the idea is, the Bhagavad Gita doesn’t talk of renouncing the world. The Bhagavad Gita talks about living in the world and acting in the world and pursuing liberation, pursuing transcendence by acting in the world. And acting in the world is the primary prerogative of the kshatriyas.
The brāhmaṇas are a little bit more distant from the world. The brāhmaṇas are important. The Bhagavad Gita does respect the brāhmaṇas.
And it is said that the brāhmaṇas are the persons who give this knowledge. We’ll see that in the 18th chapter when Krishna talks about the characteristics of the brāhmaṇas. But, the brāhmaṇas can give knowledge but the kshatriyas implement the knowledge through their social policies, cultural policies, economic policies.
The knowledge is implemented. So there is knowledge that is given and knowledge that is implemented. Both are important.
So who does the implementation? It’s primarily the kshatriyas. Kshatriyas need to have knowledge. Kshatriyas are anyway going to act.
There are always people who, no matter how the social condition is, whether it’s degraded or exalted, there are always going to be people of kshatriya inclinations. That means people who are going to manage, delegate, lead, rule. So, if those people are not spiritually educated, then they will act according to their own ideas.
And that will lead to complications. It will lead to troubles, greater and greater. So if they are spiritually guided, then they will be able to act properly.
And they will also be able to set up systems by which this knowledge can be shared with others. So, the idea is not to limit or monopolise the knowledge of the particular community, but the idea is to strategise so that the knowledge is most effectively distributed. So, the kshatriyas are the people who are going to influence the world.
So, if they are inspired by the knowledge of the Bhagavad Gita, then they will be able to give the knowledge to everyone. So, Rajya Vidya. So, it is the Vidya of the Rajas, the knowledge of the kings.
Other ways, it is also the king of all knowledge. In the 10th chapter of Krishna, I will say also that ādhyātmavidyā vidyālāṁ I say that among the different kinds of Vidya, I am ādhyātmavidyā. ādhyātmavidyā means I am the spiritual knowledge.
Because the spiritual knowledge is the best of all knowledge. It is most intimately connected to us. It gives the best result to us.
So, there are different kinds of knowledge, but the king is the most powerful. King can bring about the most transformation. So, among the different kinds of knowledge that can bring about transformation, this is the knowledge that can bring about the greatest transformation.
We can have knowledge of nuclear physics. And with that knowledge of nuclear physics, whole city can be destroyed. But with all the power of the most powerful bombs that can be made by nuclear physics, the bad habits of even one person cannot be destroyed.
Whatever inclinations that they are there, no, they cannot be destroyed. Even if their physical bodies are destroyed, that mental inclination will still be there. And in the next life when they are born, all those mental inclinations will still continue.
But when we acquire spiritual knowledge that has such transformational potency that that can destroy, without leaving even a trace. It can eradicate and eliminate all the negative behavioural traits, all the bad habits of people. This is Raj Vidya, the most powerful knowledge.
Prabhupada explains from another perspective that actually there are many philosophers in the Vedic culture. So, among the principal philosophers in India are Gautama, Kanada, Kapila, Yajnavalkya, Chandilya, Vaishvanara. And finally, there is Vyasadeva, the author of Vedanta Sutra.
So, Prabhupada is giving a rough listing of names over here. These are the people who have given the various branches of knowledge. Kapila has given yoga, like that.
There are six philosophers Prabhupada is mentioning, roughly, not every, precisely. It’s not that each of them is necessarily the founder of the six systems or the most prominent system at all. But Prabhupada is giving a listing of some of the most prominent six.
He is saying there are many. But actually, there is such an abundance of knowledge, so much wealth of knowledge. But what is the most precious in that knowledge? That is, this knowledge is given.
It says, King of all, I say that. So, actually, Vedanta Sutra, what Vyasadeva does is, he basically responds to and refutes all the systems of philosophy that are there in the Vedic culture. So, Jnaya, Sankhya, Yoga, Vaisheshika, all these philosophies are there.
He refutes all of them. And he establishes Vedanta as the conclusion. So, that is what is the way in which Vedanta is established as the king of all knowledge.
And that same Vedanta is explained over here in a concise and accessible way by Krishna. So, in that sense, Rajya Vidya. And then Prabhupada explains Rajya Guhyam.
Why Rajya Guhyam? Most confidential knowledge. It is the king among all confidential knowledge. Because he says, first of all, most people are in the bodily concept of life.
They don’t know anything about the soul at all. Because they don’t know anything about the soul, they live just like animals. Then, there are some people who come to know about the soul.
Those who come to know about the soul, they may also be caught up in impersonal conception. But among the people who come to know about soul, there are some who come to know about the Supreme Soul also. And the bond of love that can bring eternal ecstasy to both of them.
The Lord is eternally ecstatic, but the more the souls he has in the spiritual world, the more his ecstasy increases. And the soul has no ecstasy when it is in the material world. Soul goes back to the spiritual world and there is ecstasy.
So, actually, this is the way, this knowledge is going to produce the supreme ecstasy. And that’s why it’s called most confidential knowledge. So, Prabhupada explains that in the Rajya Vidya, Rajya Guhyam.
So, second chapter has talked about the soul. And then, slowly after that, the thought of the Bhagavad Gita has been developing about how one can act at the level of the soul. How does one realise the soul? Not by jnana or just by renouncing the world, contemplating I am the soul, I am the soul, not like that.
He says, act in this world with detachment. And gradually by that, internal realisation will come. And when one acts in this way with detachment and gains internal realisation, by this gradually one moves forward till eventually one comes to the platform of understanding that there is a supreme soul with whom I have to relate.
And by loving him, there is supreme happiness. So, basically, from the third to sixth chapters, the focus has been on the Atma. How to get Atma Gyan, to realise Atma.
And Krishna has not been the focus till then. From the seventh chapter onwards, Krishna is becoming the focus. In Ashtanga Yoga also, in the eighth chapter, also it is being described how Krishna should be made the focus.
And then in the ninth chapter, now Krishna becomes the focus and devotional path becomes the focus entirely. This is Rajaguniya, most confidential knowledge. And then, pavitram idam uttamam.
So, pavitram idam uttamam. So, it is supremely purifying. So, here Prabhupada quotes from the Padma Purana.
Let us look at the verse here. We will discuss about this verse more in detail when we study Bhaktira Samritsindhu. But I will just mention it.
aprarabdha phalam paapam kootam bijam phalon mukham kramenaiva prayetam vishnubhaktiratatmanam So, aprarabdha phalam paapam. Aprarabdha means that which is not yet become fructified. So, when we talk about sinful reactions, they can be in various stages.
The technicalities we will discuss later. But basically every action that we do is sowing a seed. And when the seed is sown, eventually it will grow.
And it grows into a sapling, small. And then it grows into a tree and then it gives fruits. Now this is a tree whose fruits we have to accept.
We can’t avoid it. The law of karma, if you put it that way, what you sow, as you sow, so shall you reap. That’s what is said in the Bible.
So, this is also talking about the same metaphor itself. Every action that we do is like sowing a seed. Sowing a seed and it is going to produce reactions.
We can’t avoid the reactions. To give a cooking metaphor, if we say, jo pakaya hai, wo pachana padega. Whatever you have cooked, you will have to eat it.
We can’t avoid it. So, of course, there is a process of bhakti yoga by which it is possible. But generally, otherwise, whatever action we do, the reaction has to come.
So, here, Vishnu is describing that the actions that we do, Purana is describing here, that they can be in different stages, the reactions. So, prarabdha means that which has already come. So, for example, we have a particular kind of body.
So, some of us are good looking, some of us are not so good looking. Some of us may have healthy body, some of us may have sickly body. So, all this difference is because of the prarabdha karma.
The karmic reactions are coming to us. A prarabdha means that which has not yet come. But it is going to come.
And beyond that there is kutam bijam phalon mukham. So, kutam bijam. Kuta means very tiny.
It is not even a seed form. It is less than a seed form. And bijam means it has become a seed, it is going to grow.
And phalon mukham is about to fructify. So, actually it is described, kramenaiva praliyeta. Praliyeta is destroyed.
Kramenaiva, systematically, all of these are destroyed. Vishnubhaktirathamanam. If one engages in bhakti, bhakti destroys all these.
Just as a seed that is fried will not fructify, similarly, the process of bhakti frees us from the sinful reactions because it fries the karmic seeds. So, that is why it says, pavitram itamuttamam. Pavitram.
Pavitram means that it purifies. It is pure and it purifies. So, it purifies us of our sinful reactions.
Of course, it purifies even of our sinful tendencies. It is of course there. Here Prabhupada is explaining that whatever paapa we have done, the reactions will be purified.
And actually the reactions to our paapa come in form of both. Sinful reactions come as sufferings and they come also as further desires. Just like when a person drinks, then two things happen.
Person will get some physical effect of that and along with that the desire to drink will become stronger. The same way, we get both kinds of reactions. One is physical, one is outcomes of what happens to us and second is what also happens to us internally in terms of the same tendency getting strengthened.
So, both will be removed by the process of bhakti yoga. So, pavitram itamuttamam. It is transcendental.
It is beyond the darkness of this world. And then, pratyaksha badhamam dharmyam. So, Prabhupada says over here, it is so perfect that one can perceive the results directly.
What are the right results? That if anybody has a chance, feels some transcendental presence, pleasure and very quickly becomes purified of all material contamination. This is C. So, what is the pratyaksha badhamam that we experience? It is pleasure and purification. We can see these two things quite quickly.
Now, we may say that, oh, I feel pure when I chant, I feel pleasure and pleasant when I chant. But it doesn’t last. After some time, I start feeling impure.
After some time, I start feeling no pleasure. So, is the result temporary? No. Bhakti gives us the result, but we have to engage in bhakti.
If I don’t engage in bhakti, then I don’t experience the result. So, it is not that we can experience these results independent of bhakti. See, if I have got an anti-gravity strap, some sort of anti-gravity jacket, which enables me to float up.
Now, I can see that I am floating up because of the anti-gravity jacket. But then if I say, when I take it off, I fall down. Does that mean that the anti-gravity jacket doesn’t work? No.
The proof of the anti-gravity jacket working is in both things. That when we have it on, it helps us to counter gravity and float. And secondly, when we take it off, we fall back.
So, the point is that pleasure and purification we will experience when we are in Krishna consciousness. When we are engaging in devotional service. If we are not engaged in devotional service, then we can’t experience this.
When we can’t experience this, that is also a confirmation. In a negative way, but also a confirmation. So, when a doctor says, this is your disease and this medicine will cure you.
If I take the medicine, it cures me. If I don’t take the medicine, my suffering increases. That also, in one sense, proves the efficacy of the medicine.
That not taking the medicine is leading to the continuation or the aggravation of the suffering. So, purification and satisfaction. These are the pratyakshavagamam.
So, bhakti, there are these three pramanas. Pratyaksha, anuman and shabda. So, pratyaksha is sensory perception.
Anuman is mental speculation. And shabda is scriptural revelation. So, among these, we consider shabda to be the most authoritative.
And that is definitely true. It’s essential that shabda is the most authoritative. But actually, what does pratyakshavagamam mean? It’s not just pratyaksha, it is pratyakshavagamam.
That means, that it is directly experienced. So, there may be some sensory perception, but it’s more of an experience of the heart within. Now, how does the experience of the heart take place? When we talk about realisation, we get the realisation.
So, what essentially is realisation? Realisation essentially means that which is a reality, we accept it to be a reality. So, this world is dukkhalaya. When we experience some great misery, some great calamity, our scripture says to this world, isn’t it dukkhalaya? Padam, padam, padam, there may be danger at any step over the earth.
So, actually speaking, that is one level of realisation. That which is a reality, we accept it to be a reality. But, there are many people who experience calamities and disasters, and then based on that they say that God is so cruel or God doesn’t exist.
Now, people basically come up with three conclusions when they see suffering. If they have not studied scripture, God is negligent, God is malevolent, or God is non-existent. Negligent means He doesn’t care for you.
Malevolent means He is causing the suffering. He is evil-minded. Or, non-existent means He doesn’t exist only.
So, people come up with these ideas when suffering comes upon them. If they have not understood the nature of this world, if they have not studied scripture, or not understood the nature of this world, then this is what happens to them. And when this happens to them, what is the result? They become apathetic or averse towards God.
But, on the other hand, if we study scripture, then the sufferings that we experience, yes, there is suffering in this world, it’s a reality, but beyond that there is a higher reality, that is, the reality of God’s love. And that is the supreme reality. And it is that reality which we should aspire for.
So, the Bhagavad Gita reveals to us a higher, richer reality, and invites us to come to that reality. So, when we understand scripture properly, then realisation inspires us. Yes, it’s true that this world is a place of suffering, but let me take shelter of Krishna, because therein there is a greater reality, a richer reality, and that will give me shelter, that will give me solace, that will give me succour, that will give me strength, that will give me a sublime attitude, which will help me to face, go through these situations properly.
So, that means, there is sense, now what am I trying to prove by this, explain by this? We discussed sensory perception, mental processing, it can be mental speculation, or it can be mental contemplation also, conceptualisation also, whatever, there is a mental activity, thinking about it, and then there is scriptural revelation. So, what is realisation essentially? Realisation comes when we do the mental contemplation in such a way that we harmonise our sensory perception with the scriptural revelation. Now, don’t get confused by the big words, I’m putting it simply over here, that realisation comes when we do anuman in such a way that it harmonises our pratyaksha with shabda.
Let me repeat, we perceive something with pratyaksha, so I perceive that there is suffering in this world. Now, shabda is telling me that there is suffering in this world. So, when I do my reasoning, the word anuman doesn’t necessarily always have to have negative connotation.
Anuman basically means that we are using our mental faculty, the subtle body’s faculty, mental faculty, and when we use that mental faculty, what happens by that? If that mental faculty is used arbitrarily, without any basis in scripture, then we speculate and come up with various kinds of ideas. But when we use it systematically, then we get a deeper understanding. So, anuman, when it is shastra moolak, it is said to be vichar.
Vichar is systematic reasoning, contemplation. So, anuman, when it is shastra moolak, shastra moolak means when it is rooted in scripture, when it is guided by scripture, then it is actually vichar. So, anuman, if it helps us to harmonise our pataksha with shabda, then it is vichar, and that will lead to realisation.
So, realisation doesn’t come by suffering. Realisation comes by our response to suffering. Sometimes we may hear of some stories of some devotees who get some cancer or something, a terrible disease, and then during that time of disease, they take shelter of Krishna very intensely.
And they practically transcend the suffering. And then, in the association of devotees, very wonderfully, they leave Krishna consciousness. So, is it that their cancer made them serious in Krishna consciousness? You know, actually, and should somebody or other devotee feel that, oh, if I got cancer also, then maybe I’ll become serious about my devotional service.
I’m not serious right now. No, cancer cannot produce bhakti. Cancer doesn’t produce bhakti.
Bhakti only produces bhakti. Bhakti sanjayate bhakti. Actually, cancer can be an impetus for one to take shelter of Krishna.
But it is one’s attitude and the mercy of devotees and mercy of Krishna ultimately, which will enable us to wholly take shelter of Krishna. There are many people who, when they get cancer, instead of taking shelter of Krishna, they may take shelter of resentment. Resentment against Krishna.
Oh, why did Krishna do this to me? Then what will happen at that time? They don’t get that positive result at all. That cancer may cause them to go away from Krishna also. So, as devotees, some devotees feel, maybe I should also pray that I get some disease where I shall become serious.
No, there’s no need for us to pray like that because, you know, we want to serve Krishna even in this world. There is so much to be done for his mission in this world. And when we pray for suffering like this, it may well end up that when the suffering comes, we may find the suffering is too much.
Why did Krishna do this to me? So, rather than praying that let the sufferings come upon me, what we should pray is that generally all of us have our different zones. We can have our comfort zone, we can have a stretch zone and we can have a panic zone. Comfort zone means that is the zone where we are doing everything comfortably.
You know, somebody can lift 10 kg weight and somebody is giving half kg weight to lift. Aarams, those things are lifted very easily. There is nothing great about that.
So, that is comfort zone when everything is within our capacity. Stretch zone is something slightly beyond our capacity when we are lifting weights. So, at that time, if I can lift 10 kg and if I lift 11 kg, then my muscles get stretched a little bit.
And by lifting slightly above my capacity, the capacity of my muscles also improves. Similarly, if we do a little bit more service than what we can do, then if we try to take up more responsibilities for Krishna than what we can, then that will help us to grow. And what does this panic zone mean? If I can lift 10 kg and somebody is going to put 25 kg on me, I am thinking that this whole thing is going to fall on me and my bones are going to break.
Who knows what will happen to me? So, when we have too many things to do, there is panic zone. And we start getting crushed under that. So, we don’t want to go into panic zone.
But at the same time, we don’t want to be in comfort zone also. So, there is stretch zone which we want to be in. So, rather than praying to Krishna that please give me suffering because suffering can put us in panic zone and not be able to do anything, respond properly.
So, we can pray to Krishna that please help me to engage in services which stretch me out of my comfort zone, which put me in stretch zone. So, by taking up a little more struggle in our services, we can make steady spiritual advancement. So, why am I discussing about these three zones right now? The point which I was making is that about realisation.
So, when we do anuman in such a way, when we think, when we do our reasoning in such a way, that our prataksha harmonises with our shabda, then we get realisation. Then we get realisation. So, So, actually speaking, when we render devotional service to Krishna, as we will see in the 10th chapter, So, if we are sincerely rendering devotional service to Krishna, if we are studying scripture, we are chanting the holy names, then when we face challenges in life, at that time, Krishna will give the right intelligence by which we will be able to do this harmonisation.
What is the harmonisation? The harmonisation of prataksha with shabda. So, we will be able to do this harmonisation of prataksha with shabda when we are using our intelligence properly and our intelligence is guided by scripture and it is guided by Krishna’s mercy. So, that’s what So, whatever experiences we get, we should try to see how the inferences from those experiences are harmonisable with scripture and by that sort of using of our intellectual faculty, we will make steady spiritual advancement.
Now, Krishna lastly goes, su-sukham kartum avyayam. Su-sukham. Su-sukham means it’s joyful.
Why is it joyful? Because Krishna himself is a source of joy. Krishna is a source of joy and when we connect with Krishna, that naturally brings joy to us. And so, Prabhupada quotes from the Vedanta Sutra over here.
Prakash is karmanya-bhyasat. So, karmanya-bhyasat. So, by engaging in the right kind of activities, that is devotional activities, abhyasat, what will happen? Prakash’s illumination comes when doubts goes away.
And Prabhupada quotes the story of Narada Muni. Now, what is Prabhupada saying over here? How one experiences ecstasy. So, So, So, it is described how by taking prasad of the Lord, when he took the uchishta of the Mahabhagavats from whom he was hearing, who were staying in the vicinity of where he was staying during the chaturmasya, what happened? Anumodito, dvijayi, those dvijas, those twice-born people, Anumodito, he took their permission and then took prasad.
This was the way he rendered devotional service. He was serving them and he also took their prasad. He just took once, but why that happened? The contamination of the heart were destroyed.
So, consciousness became purified. And the inclination of the heart towards the Lord increased. So, uchi is attraction.
So, attraction of the Supreme Lord awakened. They have the same taste which they had. So, this is So, there we see Narada Muni.
Now, let us try to understand this point which I said about doing the reasoning which will harmonise our pratyaksha with shabda. So, Narada Muni was born in his previous life. He was born in you could say quite sorry circumstances.
You know, for a child to be born to a mother who is just a maid servant and to not have a father, to not even know the father, that is quite a sorry situation. In today’s world, there are so many single mothers. And it is a great struggle for them to take care of the children.
And the father is not there for whatever reason. The father is a divorce, or the father is just abandoned, or the father has somehow passed away. You know, so for a small child, the single mother, the mother is practically the whole and soul of existence.
And if that mother dies, what is left for the child then? It is a devastation. You know, the only person the child knows is the mother. And the mother has died.
So, that can make a person totally, it can make a person helpless, it can make a person senseless with fear, senseless with rage, senseless with confusion. All these things can happen. But what will the person do? But none of these happen to Narada.
Why? Because, you know, he had time to time devotional service, he had heard scripture, and the Lord gave intelligence. What was that intelligence? That intelligence enabled him to do pratyaksha, to do anuman, reasoning, that harmonises pratyaksha with shabda. So, he had heard from the great sages how the ultimate goal of life is to surrender to the Lord and to the Lord alone.
And He is our only and ultimate shelter. So, as long as he had his mother, he was attached to his mother, his attachment to his mother is not necessarily bad. It’s important for a child to have a nourishing environment.
And it is aparadharma. There is paradharma and there is aparadharma. Aparadharma is important as long as we are living in this world.
But aparadharma should not lead us to neglect of paradharma. Aparadharma is our worldly duties. Paradharma is our transcendental duty towards Krishna.
So, apara and para should go harmoniously. And now, Narada Muni had already got this ruchi prajayate. Narada boy, we are talking about.
Not Narada Muni now. He is a boy till now. Ruchi prajayate.
He has got the ruchi. But, you know, his mother is there. His mother loves him and he loves his mother.
He will take care of his mother. But then his mother passed away. So, Prabhupada writes, this is the way a soul is brought to Krishna.
So, what happened is, because that would have put him on the platform where he would have to balance both apara and paradharma. But then, when his mother passed away, what happened was, many people, they can, when they have no shelter in this world, they can go to the level of adharma. They can go to atheism.
Why did God, I only had my mother and God took my mother away also. Why did God do such a thing to me? I don’t believe in God. I hate God.
That can very easily happen to a person. But it didn’t happen. Why? Because of the devotional service that he had performed.
Because of the mercy that he had got from the great saints. And he was able to do anumam that harmonises prataksham chakta. What was his harmonisation? What was the reasoning that brought about the harmonisation? He said that actually, you know, what would have been a distraction for me from the practise of paradharma? Now that has gone away.
Now, I have nothing to do. No one to distract me from focussing exclusively on the Lord. And fearlessly this child, he started going towards the north and he found a sanctuary for meditation and started meditating wholeheartedly.
So in this way, we see that if one can do this, if one renders devotional service and attracts the mercy of Krishna and the devotees, then no matter what great calamity comes in life, one can do prataksham, one can do the anumam, and the reasoning which will harmonise the prataksham chakta. And that’s how he got deep darshan of the Lord, continued the purification and eventually became Narada Bhava, the great devotee. So in this way, this is how the process of bhakti wonderfully works.
And Prabhupada goes further, the same point, how the whole process went on. And then dharmyam. Dharmyam means the path of religion.
And this is Prabhupada elaborating, that is based on the eighth chapter. And how do we know dharma? ācāryavān puruá¹£ho vedo that one who is in association with the great ācārya, that person can understand, not otherwise. Then lastly, Prabhupada concludes by talking about how it is so sukham? That’s not the last point, the second last point.
He says that anybody can do it anywhere. Just he has to hear, chant, take prasad. One can offer just a leaf, Tulsi leaf to the Lord.
It’s very easy to do such things. And the last point Prabhupada makes is it is eternally existing. This is the explanation of avyaya.
Avyaya means that actually bhakti will continue on eternally. We develop a relationship with Krishna and this is what we will do forever. Why? Because Krishna is so attractive and we are so naturally attracted to Krishna.
The relationship with Krishna will continue eternally. It’s on and on and on. So this word avyaya is very important because impersonalists have the idea that bhakti is to be transcended.
They consider bhakti to be like a ladder. Now we are at a lower level, it will go to the higher level. So once you use a ladder to climb up, then there is no need for the ladder.
Kick the ladder away. So like that, once you have meditated on the Brahman and understood that you are the Brahman, then there is no need for a conception of a form. You can go beyond the form.
But the Bhagavad Gita doesn’t suppose avyaya. This is imperishable. This is eternal.
And in this way, Prabhupada explains very systematically in this purport. So the glory of bhakti is that it can help us to moksha-sevashubha, help us to become free from all miseries and attain the supreme happiness, the supreme auspiciousness. We will continue in our next class.