Gita 04.35 – Knowledge takes us beyond illusion and reveals connection of everything with Krishna

Thank you krishna in his fourth chapter is describing knowledge how the karma yogi by acquiring knowledge through the practice of karma yoga can attain liberation so in the previous verse so this is actually from 4.34 to 42 and the previous verse stated that one should go to a spiritual master to acquire knowledge and now this verse states yaj jnatva when one acquires knowledge from the spiritual master then na punare moham after that there is no more moham, no more illusion evam yasyasi pandava evam in this way yasyasi pandava pandava you will not again fall into illusion oh arjuna yena bhutani aseshani yena bhutani by this knowledge bhutani living beings aseshan actually this aseshena in some rendition of the vitha it comes either way it is you will all living beings constantly or without exception whichever way it is drakshasya atmanyatha mayi you will be able to see drakshasi all living beings atmanyatha mayi atmany in the spiritual conception and in me so this is the first verse in the gita where krishna talks about the specific relationship between him and all living beings of course in 4.6 he has mentioned that ajyopisana bhutanam ishwaropisan bhutanam ishwaropisan that he is the ishwaram the lord of all living beings but still that was a generic reference yes there can be a king and the king is the lord of all citizens the policeman can say that all the citizens here are under me a police inspector may say so what exactly is the nature of the relationship just the controller does not convey the relationship that is one dimension of the relationship lord or master but atmanyatha mayi they are mine this notion the conception of the relationship between the lord and the living entity this will be further developed in the bhagavad gita 15 chapter where mamayivamshojivalokkejivabhutah sanatana in 15.7 it will be explicitly stated that all living beings are my amsa sanatana they are eternally my parts so here krishna is continuing the description of how arjuna is they how arjuna will see all living beings once he acquires knowledge atmanyatha mayi you will see all living beings as souls in me and mine so atmanya it can refer to the soul it can also refer to the supreme lord atmanya if it refers to the soul then you will see all living beings as spiritual and in me this is a very significant word in me so sorry atmanyatha mayi mayi means belonging to me so that actually the purpose of spiritual knowledge is ultimately to see the interconnectedness of all of existence not interconnectedness in the sense of oneness of everything as a absolute non-differentiated spiritual truth which is what many people think of brahman to be but to see various living beings as the parts of the supreme truth as his energies as will be indicated in the 7th chapter verses 4 and 5 but here krishna makes the point that the result of knowledge you will see the result of knowledge is that you will see all living beings in their relationship with me that means now what does the point of their relationship with me mean atmani that they are souls that krishna has already mentioned in 2.12 when he said that all … … when he said i me and all these kings they are all going to live forever so that they are souls krishna has mentioned earlier but specifically for you to see them as souls and further for you to see them in their relationship with me that will require you to acquire knowledge now when we understand or see all living beings in relationship with krishna then we also understand that krishna because all living beings belong to him so he is the well-wisher of all living beings that is supreme well-wisher as krishna himself will state in the bhagavad gita later in 5.29 … … … … … … and the well-wisher of all living beings for arjuna that implies that what krishna ordains is for the best of all living beings if krishna is asking that arjuna to fight the war and to fight against his relatives arjuna should know that there is no malice there is no petty selfishness in krishna's instruction because all living beings belong to krishna and krishna is the greatest well-wisher and so whatever he wants for them, that is actually supremely the best thing for them. This vision is the vision that Krishna further states in this verse, na punar moham, will protect you from illusion. So here, Krishna is talking about a very advanced stage.

By receiving knowledge from the spiritual master, we can attain a stage of illumination that is beyond illusion. Now we all hear classes, read scripture, and by that we acquire knowledge. But often, the knowledge that we acquire, it doesn't stay very strongly in our heart.

We understand, oh, sense gratification leads to misery, but when the temptation for sense gratification comes, again we fall for that temptation. So if we are to not fall for the temptation, then we need to become purified. So Krishna is not just talking about intellectual illumination, but a transformational illusion that takes us beyond the capacity of illusion to reach.

So Krishna will talk about this something similarly. In the, Krishna will talk about it similarly later many times when he says about how those who attain his abode will never come back to this world. And in this way, he stresses the point that we all can attain liberation, we all can come to a stage, as Krishna will say, once you attain my abode, you will never come back here.

So similarly Krishna is saying, not just in terms of transportation to a particular destination, but also here he is talking in terms of elevation to a particular illumination, elevation to a particular level of enlightenment, by which one will not fall back to this world, one will not fall back to illusion. So by serving the spiritual master, we get knowledge. By the mercy of the spiritual master, we get knowledge.

So what is that knowledge? Krishna is telling in two parts over here, yajnatva, once you get this knowledge, napunarmoham, you will not fall into illusion, evam yasisi, as you are right now, as you are thinking, it's fragmented vision, thinking of I and me, I as the body and they as their body, you are separating yourself from yourself, you are separating yourself, that means your current conception of the self, based on which you will act with your actual self. So that is what is unfortunate result of illusion and Krishna is telling that you will not fall into such illusion again and rather you will move towards illumination, towards enlightenment and what is that enlightenment? You will see all living beings in me and as mine and by that you will become, you will act for me and you will act as I act for the, as I desire, for the well-being of all living beings, the ultimate well-being of all living beings. Thank you.