Bhakti Shastri (127) – Bhagavad Gita Chapter 15 Text 01 to 06

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Thank you very much.
Hare Krishna. Welcome back to the Bhagavad Gita Bhakti Shastri course. We are in the 15th chapter of the Bhagavad Gita.
We are discussing currently the Jnana section. And in this section, Krishna is systematically establishing how Jnana culminates in Bhakti. So, in the 13th chapter, he talked about the six items Purusha, Prakriti, Jnana, Jnana, Kshetra, Kshetra, Jnana.
And based on that, he explained how Bhakti is the ultimate goal of life, how it is by Bhakti that one can understand a proper understanding of this. And that was elaborated further in the 14th chapter through the analysis of the three modes of material nature, by which it was understood that if one wants to transcend the modes, one has to take shelter of devotional service. And the devotional service ultimately culminates in understanding that Krishna is the support, the foundation of Brahman.
Now, after this, after concluding the 14th chapter with emphasising that Bhagavan is superior to Bhakti, then Krishna elaborates on that theme in a different way. He elaborates on the theme of how Bhagavan is the ultimate reality by emphasising how Bhagavan is the ultimate, is the Purushottama, is the greatest person. This chapter is called as Purushottama Yoga.
As Prabhupada translated, the yoga of the supreme person. So, let us look at chapter 15 overview. So, verses 1 to 6 are attain liberation by detachment.
For this, the example of the metaphor of the upside down banyan tree is given. Then verses 7 to 11 say that if one does not attain liberation, then what will happen? There will be bondage and transmigration. Now, in verses 12 to 15, thereafter is, okay, if you want to get out of this bondage and transmigration, how will that happen? That is by Krishna’s mercy.
So, while we are transmigrating material existence, how Krishna assists us in our material existence and in our spiritual endeavour. That is talked about in verses 12 to 15. Then verses 16 to 18 talk about the essence of Vedanta, how Krishna is Purushottama.
This is also called as the three-shloki Gita. And then verses 19 to 20 talk about to know Krishna means to know everything. So, that means Krishna, the same point of the three-shloki Gita is emphasised further in the last two verses where it said that this knowledge of Krishna is the most confidential knowledge and one knows this, knows everything.
So, this is among the shortest chapters of the Gita. The 12th and the 15th chapters both have 20 verses each. So, when both have 20 verses each, that means that both are having significant amounts of information, knowledge, wisdom that is given in condensed and concentrated form in these chapters.
So, we saw how 12th chapter talks about very important concepts about how Brahman, how it is better to worship Krishna personal form than impersonal, how there is a descending ladder of mercy at various levels at which we can practise bhakti and in the qualities of devotees. Those are three things. So, in this 15th chapter, Krishna is talking about through an antiphysical analysis the importance of taking shelter of Him.
So, let’s start with the first verse. So, that means that which is above. So, the roots are above and the branches are below.
is the tree, Banyan tree, Prabhupada translates it as. It is said to be imperishable. means it is said to be imperishable.
are its leaves. So, its leaves are the chandas, the Vedic hymns and one who knows this, this what, this whole tree, means totality is them. which person is Vedavid.
Vedavid means one who is the knower of the Vedas. So, it is significant that Krishna says that the leaves are the Vedic hymns and just knowing the leaves alone is not enough. That means just knowing the Vedas enough, Vedic hymns alone does not make one Vedavid.
To become Vedavid, one has to know the complete tree. So, Krishna has also earlier talked about in 2.45, he said that the Vedas talk about things within three modes. So, go beyond the three modes.
Similarly, he has talked earlier about how the transcendentalist who is going in a multi-lifetime journey, when comes close to perfection, Krishna explains in 6.43 and 44, that such a person is attracted spontaneously by the principles of spirituality and goes beyond Karmakand, goes beyond the range of fruitive activities which are talked about in the Vedic literature. So, therefore, Vedavid. Vedavid means one who is the knower of the Vedas.
The one who is the knower of the Vedas should not just know the Vedic hymns. They are only the leaves within the tree. But the leaves are only one part of the tree.
Along with the leaves, there are so many other parts. And all those other parts which are there with the leaves, they all help in, they all comprise the tree. And to understand the tree, understand its purpose, understand its nature, that is, the one who knows that is the knower of the Vedas.
So, Urdhva-moolam-adhah-shakam. So, what is this tree being referred to over here? One thing is very clear. It is a metaphor over here.
So, metaphor means this tree is used to represent material existence. When we talk about material existence, we are talking about the soul’s existence within matter. So, matter itself is existing always, but matter is not aware of its existence.
Therefore, when you talk about material existence, it is soul’s existence within matter. So, the tree is given as an example to illustrate material existence, the existence of matter, but not just the existence of matter, the existence of the soul within the arena of matter. And the tree represents material existence.
Material world in what sense? In the sense that here things are upside down, things are the opposite of the way they should be. Things are the opposite of the way they should be. What does that mean? That things are here not necessarily positive, but they are negative.
So, here in this world, Krishna is not the centre. The soul has usurped the position as Krishna and has become the centre. That, of course, will be talked about in 15.7. Here, the simply the inverseness, the obverseness, inverse and obverse basically mean the reverse, the upside down nature of this world is talked about through the metaphor of this upside down tree.
So, normally the roots are downwards and the branches are upwards in a tree. But here this is a tree where the branches are downwards and the roots are upwards. So, what does this refer to? So, the Acharya has explained and Shri Prabhupada elaborates that actually, where do we see an upside down tree? Normally, no tree is upside down, but we see an upside down tree in a reflection.
If there is a forest and there is a beautiful tree guard, beautiful garden or this beautiful river on the banks of which the forest is there, then the tree on the banks will be reflected and the reflection will be upside down. So, this metaphor implies that our world is like a reflection of the spiritual world, the world that we live in. It is not our world actually, it is our present.
Presently, it is our world. Our world is Krishna’s eternal abode. So, this is upside, this is downside.
And in between, there is the struggle to go from here to there or the struggle to find a better place over here. Aswattham praahur avyayam. Aswattham praahur avyayam.
Avyayam means imperishable. So, as we know material existence itself is imperishable. Material existence is eternal.
It may be manifested sometime, it may not be manifested sometime. Matter is sometimes present, sometimes absent, but it is aware. And then aswattha.
So, aswattha has many meanings. Aswattha. So, one meaning is that, that which will not last.
So, as we discussed earlier also, material existence is eternal, but it is not that we are attracted to material existence per se. We are attracted to material forms. We are attracted to materially beautiful objects.
And those are not permanent. Those are temporary. And because they are temporary, there cannot be lasting happiness in those relationships.
In relationships with other people, with things of this world. Because when we are attracted, are we attracted to the substratum of matter or are we attracted to the soul? Generally, we are attracted to outer bodily forms and the outer appearances. And those appearances will disappear.
They will not last. That’s why they will be suffering. So, aswattha means temporary.
Aswattha can also mean aswatha. Aswatha is a horse. A horse has a habit of being situated on three feet.
So, like that, this world is situated unsteadily. It is ekpada vibhuti. Tripada vibhuti, three parts of it are in the spiritual world.
And then we know that material world is, all of material existence is ekpada vibhuti. It is just ekpada. Pada means vibhuti is opulence.
It is just one-fourth of material, of the totality of existence. And the major portion of the material existence is in the spiritual world. So, aswattham prahur avyayam.
And then chhandamsi yasyaparanaani yastam vedasa vedavid. So, Krishna introduces metaphor by pointing out one fundamental thing that things are upside down over here. So, Sri Prabhupada writes in the Parpot that, for one who is entangled in fruitive activities, there is no end to the banyan tree.
There is no end. Because, as we will discuss, na antam na badhyam na purasthavadim. So, Prabhupada talks about the process of extrication.
We will discuss about the fruits represent the results of the activities. The fruits are dharmarthakaamoksha. So, the Vedic hymns, they offer us, just from the leaves grow the flowers and the fruit.
So, like that, from the Vedic hymns, dharmarthakaamoksha can come about. So, Prabhupada writes that desire is the cause of things being situated in this reflected material light. Desire is the cause.
Desire is the cause of things being situated in this reflected material light. So, there is desire and then there is, there is, that because of our desires to enjoy separate from Krishna, that is how we are placed in the material world and that is how we suffer the perils of material existence. So, the desire is the cause.
And how is desire the cause? Because, just as one needs to look away from the substance, so the real tree, to the reflection. Then, one sees the reflection. So, similarly, the soul who desires to enjoy separate from Krishna, who has a desire to, who has a desire to be, to rejoice in, to delight in matter and material things, that soul, that misdirected desire causes material existence.
And after that, Prabhupada writes that the material reflection has to be cut off and when it is said that a person knows the Vedas, it is assumed that he knows how to cut off attachment to this material world. So, knowing the Vedas again doesn’t mean just knowing the Vedic hymns. The yagi brahmanas knew that, but that was not enough.
One has to know how to cut off one’s attachments to this world. So, adhascha urdhvam, that means, that adha is downwards. Now, Krishna is telling that things are not so simple over here.
Actually, it’s not just, it’s not just a matter of the things being here upside down, but actually things go up and down also. So, some branches go upwards and some roots go downwards also. So, the branches, so the branch is primary, not about the roots over here.
The roots are upwards, but the branches go upwards as well as downwards. Now, what does this represent, the roots going upward and downwards? Actually, this represents how the living entity can move up and down in material existence. The creation has begun from Brahma.
So, the roots are up and from there things are moving downwards. So, Brahmaji is the first created living being and the individual souls are also in a relatively pure stage, but from there they fall and then they stay on in material existence and they go through various species and various directions. So, within their transmigration trajectory, that trajectory can go downwards, it can go upwards.
So, the branches here represent how the tree expands. So, that is why, the shakha can move upwards, shakha can move downwards. So, they are nourished by the modes.
So, this is the connection between the previous and this chapter. Every tree needs water for nourishment. So, what is the nourishment? They are developed through the modes, in the form of the modes.
So, we choose particular desires and when we choose those desires, according to the three modes, then accordingly our material existence expands. Accordingly, we move forward in life. So, adhashvuna pravuddha vishaya pravalaha.
Vishaya pravalaha means that vishaya, vishaya is the sense objects. Pravalaha is the twigs. So, vishaya pravalaha refers to that sense objects are the twigs.
So, adhashya mulani anusantatani, Krishna says later on, the roots also go downwards. What does that mean is that the whole tree is very complicated. So, now when we use the word root, we use it in many senses.
One is the root means from where things begin, isn’t it? That’s one. So, what are your roots? That means, okay, where were you existing earlier? Where were your ancestors existing? What is the root of the tree? So, we look at, okay, deep downward, that is the root. So, the root indicates that where we have come from.
Now, if we look at ourselves, we could say our roots are in the spiritual world, we all belong to the spiritual world. Another understanding is that actually, our roots are also in, the roots of all our actions are in desire desires. So, because as I said, thought is the ancestor to the deed, thought is the seed of the deed.
So, what we have to do is, we have to change our thoughts if we want to change our actions. So, if we want to change our actions, and we want to change our thoughts, but conversely, what happens is, if we do certain actions, they affect our thoughts also. So, in that sense, the roots, roots are the conceptions that we have, which make us act in particular ways, they also change.
So, they also go upwards and they also go downwards. So, we go by our karma upwards and downwards, as per our good and bad karma. That is, of course, the reaction that we get.
The other reaction is also that our own inner conceptions change based on how we act. Sometimes we act positively, sometimes we act negatively, and accordingly, we also go up and down. So, अधश्यमूलानि अनुसंततानी कर्मानुबन्धीनि मनुष्यलोके कर्मानुबन्धीनि A person becomes bound by karma.
मनुष्यलोके. मनुष्यलोके is in material existence. So, sorry, in human existence.
मनुष्यलोके. कर्मानुबन्धीनि. अनुबन्धीनि means becomes bound.
So, कर्मानुबन्धीनि मनुष्यलोके. When Krishna is talking about मनुष्यलोके, He is referring to especially the Marthya Loka, where we human beings are present. Now, all living beings are ultimately under the jurisdiction of the Supreme Lord, but the specific laws that we call as the law of karma do not apply in the same way to all species.
So, the principle of cosmic accountability, the principle of we being conscious agents is there, who are responsible for our actions, is there even in the higher planets. But the specifics of the law of karma, the way they apply to us, they don’t apply in that way to people or other species. That’s why generally it is said, if one goes to heavens, one enjoys and then one comes back.
So, if one goes to the hells, there one exhausts one’s karmic reactions in terms of sufferings and then one comes back up. But the future karma is created in the human form, in the earthly planetary system. The devatas are also responsible for their actions and if they offend sages or they do grievously wrong activities, then they also are responsible.
But they have much greater ambit of freedom for action. So, the bondage is created in manushya loka. In this way, living beings are bound in the world of human society.
Manushya loka, Prabhupada translates that as world of human society. So, what is Krishna talking about over here? So, Prabhupada writes that, so the lower parts of the tree are the demigods, whereas lower parts of the branches are the lower species, animals, horses, cows, dogs, cats, etc. And on the upper parts are the higher forms of living entities, the demigods, Gandharvas and many other higher species of life.
Then, Prabhupada talks about the five sense objects. The twigs are sound, form, touch and so on, the sense objects. And then Prabhupada concludes by saying, this planet of human beings is considered the field of activities, karmaharavandini manushya loki.
Now, Krishna says that, don’t get too confused by this, because it is confusing. That the form of this tree, asya means of this tree, iha is in this world. So, in this world, we cannot understand is to be perceived.
We cannot really understand the form of this tree. Why? It is so vast, it is so complex that, nanto nachadir chasam pratishtha. Where is its beginning? Where is its ending? Where is its foundation? This cannot be understood.
Krishna has talked, Arjuna has talked something similarly in terms of the virat rupa, the vishwarupa, which was displayed in the 11th chapter. And Krishna has said, nantam namadhyam na punah sthavadim, that I don’t know my dear, oh vishwarupa, my dear Lord, where is your beginning, where is your middle and where is your end? So, like that, nanto nachadir chasam pratishtha. Then, asvatthamenam subhirudhamulam.
So, this asvattha is there. So, again, as we have discussed earlier, in this material world, the important thing is not to figure out, figure it out. The important thing is to get out.
Don’t try to figure it out, get out. That’s what Krishna says, don’t try to figure out the whole thing. It’s not very easy to perceive it.
But what we can do is, we understand the basic principle that we are bound here by our attachments. And that is what he says, subhirudhamulam. Mulam is the root subhirudhamulam.
It’s very strongly rooted. Our attachments to this material world are very deep rooted. And therefore, what do we have to do? Asangashastrena dhrudhena chitva.
Asangashastrena. By the weapon of detachment, what do we have to do? Dhrudhena. So, detachment and determination.
Chitva. Chitva means to cut down. We have to cut down this tree with the weapon of detachment.
Asangashastrena dhrudhena chitva. So, shastra is weapon. What is the weapon that we normally use for breaking down a tree? It is axe.
So, we could say axe of detachment. So, asanga is the exact opposite of sanga. Krishna has used the word sanga several times, especially in 13.22 in the Bija Vakya.
So, the bondage of the soul in matter, of the purusha in prakriti is because of guna-sanga. And the soul has to come out of matter, then what is required? Asangashastrena. And asanga is not very easy to develop.
Detachment takes time. Therefore, dhrudhena. One has to be determined.
Even if I don’t become detached today, I will become gradually. Let me just keep persevering. Let me go on determinedly and then eventually it will happen.
Asangashastrena dhrudhena chitva. Dhrudhena means with determination. And then after that, what does one have to do? So, Krishna doesn’t say that okay, that now you are detached from the material world, now job over.
No. That is only part of the story. The other remaining part is atahapadam.
The destination that one attains thereafter. That destination one attains, one will not come back from that particular place. And then what do we have to do after getting to that place? So, even if one has attained a place from which one will not come back, that doesn’t mean that everything is hunky-dory.
Now the story is over in a happy ending. No. Even after that, we have to go further.
What is that? There, what does one have to do? Surrender to that person. Now, who is that person? Krishna just gives a one-line description of that person. Itha pravrtti prasrta purane.
Itha pravrtti prasrta. That means from whom this whole pravrtti, whole material nature has manifested. So, Krishna is here talking about something significant.
He is explaining the point that actually when we are going in the journey of material existence, what keeps us going is our sangha. We discussed how the modes offer the water by which the tree grows. So, we cannot end the tree of material existence, but we can end our entanglement in material existence.
So, just as a prisoner cannot destroy the prison, but a prisoner can end that one’s own sentence in prison by proper behaviour, by whatever, means the prisoner can become released from the prison. So, similarly, the same applies here also. So, what do we do? We cut off our attachment to this world.
So, it is very important. What are we doing? We are cutting our attachment, by detachment, we are cutting off our shackles. We are cutting off what binds us to this world.
We are not necessarily, we are not going to end material existence. Material existence in and of itself will always remain a place of suffering. There will be janma, mrtyu, jara, vyadi, which cannot be changed.
But what can be changed is, how much we suffer because of this janma, mrtyu, jara, vyadi, the greater the bodily identification, the greater will be suffering because of it. And the lesser the bodily identification, the lesser will be suffering. So, once we become detached from material existence, from the misleading varieties of this world, and beauty and the quality that comes with it, and underlies that variety.
So, what happens after that one moves forward and one seeks an eternal destination. This is a very clear indication that the supreme person to whom we have to surrender is not something that we have to be detached from. The Mayavadi idea is that, okay, use the concept of ishta devata, once you use the concept of your own worshipable deity for the sake of getting rid of your entanglement in this world and moving towards the spiritual world.
And then, so once we have become, so right now we are attached to forms, attached to material things. So, okay, then use a deity form. So, get rid of material attachment and eventually become detached from material things.
And then after that become detached from the ishta devata also. And then you merge into the Brahman. Their idea is go beyond Bhagavan to Brahman.
But Krishna is saying that yes, asanga is required, detachment is required. But after one has become detached, one has attained a position from which one will not fall back. That is also not the purpose of perfection.
This is generally paravyoma, the spiritual sky is the place where it is said once we attain it, we will not fall back. But Krishna is very clearly telling that that is not going to be enough. After we attain that, then we have to surrender.
Surrender to that person. What kind of person is that person? Just one significant line here is, that since time immemorial, it has been explained that it is actually, the whole material nature is coming through him, is manifesting through him. Actually, Prabhupada explains that the word asanga is very important because attachment for sense enjoyment and lording it over the material nature is very strong.
So, it is not easy to become detached. And Prabhupada explains that how Krishna is the source of everything, what he has said over here, so what has been mentioned over here about the supreme person, that applies to Krishna, because Krishna has said already in 10.8, aham sarvasya prabhavo. So, same point.
So, Krishna is referring to himself here in the third person. That means he is referring to himself as that purusha to whom we have to surrender. We will see that Krishna will refer to himself in the first person also shortly.
So, then now Prabhupada makes another twist over here, interesting. As soon as one surrenders to Krishna, one becomes detached automatically from this material existence, from this material extension. What is Krishna saying over here? What is Prabhupada saying over here? Actually, the point that Prabhupada makes is simple here.
The point is that it is a reciprocal process. So, we surrender to Krishna, so we become detached from this world and we surrender to Krishna or we surrender to Krishna and by that we become detached from the world. Both are possible.
So, one is the gradual process, we struggle, struggle, struggle to detach ourselves from this world and when we succeed in detaching ourselves from this world, then we find out, okay, what is the reality beyond this world. Then we come to know about Krishna and then we surrender to Krishna. That is the process which may take even multiple lifetimes.
Karma yoga, jnana yoga, ashtanga yoga, then after that bhakti yoga, gradually. So, this is the jnana section. So, Krishna is giving us that process, yes.
Analyse how this material world is false and after you have become detached from the falsity of this world, then do not become attracted to the false pleasures of this world. Do not become attached to the false pleasures of this world and then thereafter, one can turn towards finding out what is the reality beyond this world. That is a gradual process.
But Prabhupada is merciful in the purport, gives us the devotional service where he says that wherever we are, we can just surrender to Krishna and he will take us, he will take us beyond everything. So, Vasudeva bhagavati bhakti yoga prayojitah janayatyah shivairagyam jnanam jayadah itukam. So, Vasudeva bhagavati, that if we perform bhakti to Lord Vasudeva, then by his mercy, attachment and knowledge arise.
The knowledge that arises is called causeless because that knowledge does not require any material cause to be assimilated. That means, it is not that to understand this knowledge, one has to be super intellectual or something like that. No.
One just has to have a receptive heart and one understands and thereby one moves forward. So, after talking about how to surrender to that supreme person, that means now what Prabhupada is saying is wherever we are, it is not that we have to be detached in order to surrender. From the beginning, wherever we are, no matter how attached we are, we just start the process of surrender and eventually we will attain perfection.
So, now Krishna will conclude this description about the material existence using the metaphor of the tree with one verse which elaborates on the process of surrender. So, nir means without, without prestige, mana and moha, without illusion. Chittusanga dosha, having conquered, dosha, false.
In spiritual knowledge, one is situated in eternity. Vinivrttakamaha. Vinivrttakamaha means given applause.
Prabhupada has been with this. Dissociated, disassociated. That means, we have seen the word vritti.
Vritti means in inclination. Nivritti means going against one’s inclination, giving up. In the Vedic, in the traditional Vedic conception, there are two paths.
There is a pravrtti mark and there is a nivritti mark. So, pravrtti mark is the path of attachment and nivritti mark is the path of detachment. So, it is roughly can be equated with karma kanda and karma sannyas, giving up activity and practising jnana yoga or basically practising path of transcendence, disengaging oneself from this world.
So, pravrtti and nivritti, both these are there. But beyond pravrtti and nivritti is bhakti. So, bhakti involves being in the world but fixing the heart on an object that is beyond this world.
Vinivrttakamaha. So, here what we have to do, we don’t have to renounce the world, but we do have to renounce the desire to enjoy the world. In fact, it is not that we are, the word is nivritti is also used to refer to retirement, nivritti.
You know, a person gets retired and the person says got nivritti, got retired on so and so date or at so and so age or whatever. So, vinivrttakamaha refers to becoming detached from the material desire, the desire for kama, the desire for sensual enjoyment. Why vinivrttakamaha? Because it is the desire for material enjoyment that binds the soul.
We discussed in 13.22 how, why is the soul situated? Because bhunkte, desire to enjoy. Just like a person watching a movie and once the person starts watching the movie, all the emotions of the movie start coming upon the person, anger, fear, terror, joy, whatever emotions are there, they will all come about. But when one is no longer desiring to watch the TV, then those things will not come out.
So, as long as we want to enjoy material existence, so many of these material emotions overwhelm us. But, so vinivrttakamaha, we give up our entanglement with material desires, then we become detached. So, one becomes detached from the dualities.
That means one stays equipoised amidst happiness and distress. And the person who can do this, such a person is amudhaha, such a person is unbuilded. The person is well situated, is not caught up in the material energy.
This material energy makes us mudhaha. But the person who is situated having this consciousness is amudhaha. And that person padamauvayam tad.
That person will attain the eternal destination, padamauvayam tad. So, what is this padamauvayam? The padamauvayam has been described earlier as the imperishable destination. That will be mentioned in a couple of verses later also as Krishna’s personal abode.
Krishna is referred to this padamauvayam earlier in the 8th chapter. There are several places it has been referred to, but in the 8th chapter it is referred to as, in 2-3 verses, 8.21-22-23, it is referred to as abhyakta-akshit-yuktas-tamaham paramam gata. That is my abode.
What is the nature of that abode? abhyakta-akshit-yuktas-tamaham paramam gata. It is a supreme destination. It is unmanifested.
It is imperishable. So, that supreme abode can be attained by surrender. So, this verse is an elaboration of the previous verse, wherein the previous verse it was stated that, one has to do prapadya, one has to surrender to that absolute truth.
So, how that surrender is to be done is explained in this verse. Now, Prabhupada explains each of these things in his purport. He said that the surrendering process is described very carefully.
The first qualification is that one should not be deluded by pride. Why nirmanam? Because one recognises that, actually I am being kicked by material nature. Material nature is making me dance like a puppet.
I think I can do this, I can do that, but actually I am so fragile, I am so powerless. I am just being made to move like a leaf tossed in the waves of material nature. Therefore, I have to go beyond these waves.
With waves of material nature, that happens when I get an anchor that is beyond the reach of these waves. That anchor is the Supreme Lord. So, we need to be strong enough to admit that we are not strong enough.
We need to be strong enough to admit that we are not strong enough. Many people think that being strong enough means, being strong means never admitting any weakness. Yes, no problem at all, I will just stay calm.
I will stay, I will put on a profile, unflappable profile as if nothing can disturb me. So, yes, in some services, in some professions, even one can put on a face like that if that is required. But the point is we cannot stay artificially, we cannot stay artificially and we can put on a mask for of peacefulness for some time.
But unless there is some shelter within, that mask cannot stay for long. The mask will fall off in the face of the adversities of this world. So, for the conditioned soul, actually to admit that I am weak is very difficult.
For the conditioned soul to imagine that I alone can do whatever needs to be done. That is what the conditioned soul normally thinks about. So, I am great, I am supreme, I am this, I am that.
So, that sort of isolated self-contemplation, whereas where the self-contemplation is not supervised by a responsible guide, it can lead to a lot of problems. So, therefore, what is required is, everybody needs some level of self-confidence. So, bhakti gives us the self-confidence by telling us about the real self and then by giving us the confidence that this self as a part of Krishna is filled with divine potential.
And not only that is the self filled with divine potential, but the self is also loved by Krishna. And Krishna’s omnipotence is also available for a devotee. So, devotee doesn’t lack self-confidence.
The self-confidence is important for a devotee and the devotee has that self-confidence. But that self-confidence is based on an understanding of the self. And that understanding, once it is there, then the self-confidence is fine.
In fact, Prabhupada must have had a lot of self-confidence. You know, we may say that his confidence is in Krishna, that this Krishna is going to share, Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s prophecy is going to be fulfilled. Yes, that is going to be fulfilled, but that I might be the instrument for fulfilling that.
That conviction, that courage of conviction. Later on, once the prophecy is successful and there are disciples from all over the world, it may think that Prabhupada is just sitting on a high asana and enjoying life. Prabhupada was never enjoying life.
He was sleeping only very few hours every day. He was working so hard till then. Prabhupada’s life himself is an example of prapadya, the surrender.
So, nirmana moha. We see Prabhupada, in his Markini Bhagavad Dharma, in the song that he wrote on Dev, Jal Duta, he is himself so humble. He is saying, signed, the most insignificant, unfortunate beggar is Bhaktivedanta Swami.
So, Prabhupada is feeling himself unfortunate and insignificant, but still Prabhupada feels that, no, I want to cue the message of Lord Krishna to these people. And therefore, Krishna, make my words understandable to them. Make me dance according to their tune.
Please manifest as the Shabda Brahman and participate in the revival of the spiritual happiness, in the revival of our awareness of our spiritual identity and in the reconnection of our heart with Krishna, the reconnection becomes the source of unlimited happiness. So, for that, nirmana is required. As long as I think that I am strong enough, I can deal with all my problems, I can deal with my marathas, I can tackle this, I can tackle that, then what happens? Nirmana.
One cannot really be there to help each other. One cannot really be there to seek help of anyone, what to speak of Krishna. So, humility is important.
Nirmana moha. So, moha is illusion. Here, the word moha is not used specifically in terms of tamasic moha, as it was used in the 14th chapter.
Prakasham cha pravittam cha moham eva cha pandava. There, the word moha was used specifically to refer to the illusions created by tamo guna. But here, moha is general.
Thinking that I am the body, thinking that bodily things are related with me and they are mine in the sense that I am not just the caretaker, but the proprietor of those things. This is all illusion. So, one has to be free from illusion.
Nirmana moha jita sang dosha. The modes create dualities and those dualities become false, which bind us in material existence. But jita sang dosha.
One is freed from that. Then, adhyatmanitya vinivrttakamaha. One stays always in spiritual consciousness and one stays free from lust.
Vinivrttakamaha. Then, dvandvairvamukta sukha dukkha sangyair. Dvandvairvamukta is that one stays free from dualities.
And such a person can attain the ultimate perfection of life. So, Prabhupada writes, one has to cultivate knowledge of what is actually his own and what is actually not his own. So, it’s important Prabhupada acknowledges that there is something that is our own also.
What is our own? Actually, our spiritual advancement, our bhakti, our connection with Krishna is our own. You know, Bhaktivedanta Thakur says, Krishna, I am yours and you are mine. What other wealth do I want? So, we have a connection with Krishna and our mamatva or mamata, our affection, our sense of possessiveness, rather than being rejected as rebellious and as illegal.
Actually, Krishna bhakti dovetails it by to harmonise it with Krishna’s supreme understanding. So, when we do that by supreme proprietorship. So, Krishna himself becomes the property of his devotees.
So, that is that connection with Krishna which we have right now that is our most precious property. All the other wealths will come and go, but this wealth if we maintain throughout our life, then we will attain eternal existence by the grace of this wealth, by the grace of Krishna that will come and we hold on to this wealth properly throughout our life, sincerely. So, this is the process of surrender.
Vinivritta kama is a significant word here. Retire, as I mentioned, retired. And vinivritta is retirement.
Vinivritta is totally retired. That means no chance of coming back. Vinivritta kama, completely retired from eternal existence.
So, when we talk about retirement of lust, what is it based on? We become lusty because we see this form is attractive, this form is not all that attractive. That form is very attractive. So, all this is duality and this duality is caused by the hope of pleasure and the fear of misery.
So, we have to convince ourselves that I am done with lust now, that lust can never make me happy. Lust is worse than my worst enemy, especially when the lust makes me act in anti-devotional, anti-spiritual ways. So, therefore, once I understand, vinivritta kama, I am done with lust.
Nothing doing. Nothing doing. The Vedic culture does not encourage divorce, but actually it does encourage divorce of the soul from matter.
That is a divorce which is essential for our happiness. Divorce the bondage of the soul to matter. Rip it apart.
And that will lead to supreme liberation. So, now Krishna will start talking about himself in the first person. So, na tad bhāsayate sūryo na śiṣāṅko na pāvakaḥ yad gatvā na nivartante tad dhāma paramammamā na tad bhāsayate sūryo That abode, which is that abode, which is talked about in the previous verse, this will be attained by surrender.
So, that is not illuminated by the sun. na Å›iṣāṅko na pāvakaḥ It is not illuminated by the moon or by the fire. yad gatvā na nivartante But having gone there, one doesn’t return back.
Why? tad dhāma paramammamā That is my supreme abode. So, Krishna is referring to himself in the first person over here. In the Purushottam Yuga, when he is focussing on the material world, he is talking about himself in the third person.
But when he focusses on himself, focusses on that which is beyond this world, then he talks about himself in the first person. So, he says, that is my abode. So, what is this indicating? That it is not illuminated by all these things? It indicates that this abode is self-luminous.
It does not depend on anything for its illumination. Now, it’s not that the sun, moon and fire are not there. They are there in the spiritual world, but they are not needed.
In this world, without those things, there will be darkness. And darkness will lead to confusion and helplessness. But in the spiritual world, there is no darkness.
In the spiritual world, everything is self-luminous. But, when the moon is there in the sky, that is simply to enhance the sweetness of the rasa. That is to enrich the background for the pastime.
To make the setting of the pastime more wholesome, more appealing and more enriching for that pastime. So, it’s simply the setting. So, they are not needed for illumination.
Sun, moon may be there. They are not needed for illumination. In this world, unlike that, they are needed.
Now, Prabhupada, interestingly, translates it also not just as fire, but fire and electricity. Now, somebody may wonder, you know, there is no electricity mentioned. How can Prabhupada add electricity over here? So, in the Isopanishad, we discussed in one of the purports from the, I think, Mundaka Upanishad, there is a similar word, na tadbhasate suryo na shashanko na pavaka.
And there, the word viddhita is also there. Viddhita is electricity. So, that is also mentioned elsewhere in the Upanishad.
So, in that sense, it’s not wrong. But, the point of this Prabhupada’s translation is, to make it clear that, to convey the point. The point is that this is self-luminous.
And because it is self-luminous, so, therefore, it does not need any other source of illumination. So, that is the point. The point is not to split hair over details.
So, Krishna will say, oh, there is no fire over there, but maybe matchstick is there. Maybe some other source of light is there. Now, we can, if you want to just make a comprehensive, exhaustive list of all the sources of light, then that can itself be a long, long, long list.
Krishna is not making a comprehensive listing of all the sources of light and saying that, no, this is not that, this is not that, this is not that, this is not that, this is not that. That’s not the point. Krishna is giving a generic list of, Krishna is making a generic statement, giving the major sources of light and saying that they are not needed in the spiritual world.
So, in the Vedic times, electricity might not have been so common. People, when they wanted, they could use mantras also to create luminosity. But in general, today, when people talk about light, most people don’t think about the sun first.
Most people think of the power switch first. Light means power switch. Light doesn’t necessarily mean the sun.
So, electricity, of course, ultimately nothing but recycles sunlight. Without sunlight, none of our power plants, not just solar power plant, but hydel power plants, thermal power plants, none of them could have existed if the sun was not there. So, the power car, the electricity ultimately recycles solar energy.
So, in that sense also, it’s not wrong, it is inclusive. So, this is not an exhaustive list. This is a representative list that is inclusive of other things also.
But along with that, an important point is that whenever a translation of an ancient book is done, then there are two aspects to balance. One is precision and the other is relevance. Precision means, what does it precisely, accurately, technically mean? And relevance is, how does that have any bearing on the value of the current readers? How does it add value to their lives? How does it benefit them? So, that is important to recognise.
The relevance part, so, generally speaking, precision and relevance both are important. So, now, for Srila Prabhupada, in some cases, he tilts more towards relevance than precision. Because he has to make sure that, as Prabhupada would say that, people have no inclination to read books.
And I want to make sure that in every page, they get the essential message of Krishna consciousness. So, that is why he tends to make sure that the basic points get adequate coverage in his purports, get the fundamental essential essence of Krishna consciousness. When they get repeatedly stressed in his purports and then repeatedly hammered into our consciousness, then they will get deep rooted over there.
So, to focus on the side of relevance, what Prabhupada does over here is, he includes electricity. Because the point is, it is not a precise matter of what all is there in the list. That is not the point.
The point of the verse is to say that there is no need for any external source of illumination. And that is well conveyed by saying that electricity is also not required. So, now, this can also be taken slightly in a symbolic sense, that the sun is associated with fire.
Now, fire is associated with speech. Sorry, the sun gives illumination by which we see forms. We are able to see things.
So, means that which cannot be perceived with the eye. The moon is associated with the mind. That which cannot be conceived by the mind.
Fire is associated with fiery speech. That which cannot be described by the words. So, that which is invisible, that which is indescribable and that which is inconceivable.
Such is my abode. And that is the, what is the characteristic? Once one goes there, one does not come back from that abode. And then Prabhupada writes that one should be captivated by this information.
What is this information in the spiritual world? Just like a person who hears about a better place, then often that captivates a person. One of the reasons why many people, say, from India go to America is because they hear something about America. And they say, oh, it’s a land of plenty and prosperity and freedom and so many things.
And that’s what attracts them to go there. So, when we hear of something attractive, if we hear it seriously, then it develops a desire for us to go there. So, same way, when we hear of the spiritual world, actually, it should develop naturally our attraction.
Oh, is there such a place? Even if I go to America, it’s not that my life will be problem-free. But actually, if I surrender to Krishna, if I attain his spiritual world, then that is why, once I go there, then no coming back to this miserable material world. Therefore, that is how one should go beyond.
And then Prabhupada writes, as far as detachment is concerned, one cannot become detached from the attraction to the material world simply by dressing himself in the saffron cloth. He must become attached to the devotional service of the Lord. And therefore, one should take it very seriously that devotional service is the only way out of the false representation of the real world.
It’s the only way out. So, important point is, spiritual advancement is not a matter of dress. It is a matter of the heart.
The dress can help us to develop the right disposition of the heart. But ultimately, it’s a matter of the heart. So, what we have to do is, the important thing is to become attached to devotional service.
Even when a devotee takes sannyas, the purpose of that is to become more attached to devotional service. etāṁ sāsthāya parātma-niṣṭhāṁ As Chaitanya Mahāprabhu quoted the vrata of the Avanti Brahmana, He says that, I’ll cross over the insurmountable material existence by holding on determinately to the devotional service of the Lord. So, the more we become attached to Krishna, the more we’ll become liberated from the material world and ultimately, we will attain the spiritual world.
And that is the ultimate perfection of life. Thank you very much.