Hindi – Bhagavad Gita Overview Chapter 2 Chaitanya Charan

Transcript

This is an AI-generated transcript and may contain some errors.
Sorry, I got late.
we are looking at the Bhagavad Gita in many discourses, in a series, and not just the essence of Bhagavad but Bhagavad Gita as a guidebook for decision making. We have to decide, when we have a difficult decision, then how can Bhagavad Gita guide And the basic subject of Bhagavad Gita is that Arjuna has to a very big decision that he has two dharmas. One is the don’t fight.
If he follows his family dharma and his Kshatriya dharma, then he fight. Because on the side there are aggressors. So Arjuna to do.
So in the chapter, problem in Arjuna has come to do Kshatriya dharma. That’s why he the battlefield and he has come to do this. But the beginning, first 1.2 If Arjuna enters then 1.2 to 1.20 he is ready.
I have to fight. But after that he from here from 1.21 to 1.46 what happens? He says I will do Kshatriya dharma but what will happen? My family will be destroyed. So what to do now? Arjuna has a problem in Kshatriya dharma.
So will He will fight. will and they can attain glory. And God is saying, you are not going in this direction, you are stopping.
Why? Because there is weakness. When a warrior comes to fight, he says, how will I kill people? I cannot kill them. This is weakness.
So, this is what God says in the second and third verse of the second chapter. And Arjun does the opposite of this. He says, what I am hesitating about, this is not because of weakness, this is because of thoughtfulness.
This is what I am thinking. And he says, if you were in my place, then what will be the result on your clan? Would you have attacked your Guru? Would you have attacked your Dada? Would you have wanted such a victory, so that the kingdom you are getting is stained with the blood of your own relatives? So, what is Arjun saying? That here, there is glory in the Kshatriya religion, we can say, but at what level is it? Here, in the opposite, in the Kula Dharma, there is a lot of destruction. So, you see, here it is good, but here it is so bad.
So, how can I do this? What will you do in this place? And then Arjun says, that even if this Kshatriya… So, this is what Arjun says in 2.4 and 5. And then Arjun goes on to say, but he says, I don’t know what to do. So, my question is, now I am being drawn into these two religions. So, what is the real religion? What is the religion? So, this is the religion.
What is the religion? Here, Arjun asks a very universal question. It is a universal question. He is not asking, what is my religion? What is the religion? What is the religion here? The right thing to do.
What is the right thing to do? And here, his hesitation, his hesitation, he is hesitating. He is hesitating. To show him more things, he says, that even if, suppose, I have two religions, Kshatriya religion and Kula religion.
So, now in Kshatriya religion, this is the highest glory. Even if that is achieved, means, in Kshatriya religion, a person achieves parakashtha, supreme success. What is the highest glory in Kshatriya religion? This person will become the king of the whole world, the king of the earth, or the person will achieve heaven.
From both of these, the loss in Kula religion, the loss that is going to happen, seems expensive. That is why I don’t want to do this. Here, even if earth or heaven, earth or heaven, whatever I get, still, what are these two? Pointless.
These are meaningless. He says, the grief that is making my whole life meaningless, is not going to go. That is why Arjun says, I will not fight.
I will not fight. But here, here, Arjun, there is an important difference. In the first chapter’s 46th shloka, Arjun said, I will not fight.
And in the second chapter’s 10th shloka, Arjun said, I will not fight. In the 9th shloka. So, in both, Arjun is saying the same thing, but there is a very important difference.
Between these two, Arjun, accepts Krishna as his Guru. He takes himself as a disciple. In a way, here, it is a decision that I will not fight.
But here, it is an enquiry. Forceful enquiry. Meaning, until I understand what is right, I will not fight.
Here, the one who is saying I will not fight, in a way, it is not his decision. Suppose, there is a patient who says, I will not take this treatment. In a way, it is his decision.
But, if the doctor says, now you have cancer, you can take chemotherapy or radiotherapy. So, what will be the result of both the treatments? Until I understand that, I will not take any treatment. These two are different.
One is no treatment at all. I am not going to But here, no treatment without clear understanding. Until I understand, I am not clear about what I have to do.
Until then, I will not fight. And after this, God becomes happy. God becomes happy.
Now, Arjun is crying, then why is God happy there? So, how does God become happy? God is not happy because Arjun is crying. God is happy that in such an unexpected place, on the battlefield, for the welfare of the world, for the welfare of Arjun, for the welfare of Rishis, he is getting a chance to share his knowledge. And then, a little smith comes and goes to his city.
He is called Prahalsan Iwabharat. As soon as he becomes a smith, God becomes serious. And then he starts to talk.
And he starts his preaching. And first of all, Jiva Goswami in our tradition, is known as Siddhanta Acharya. He has presented Siddhanta in many ways.
And he does a lot of analysis. So, he comes up with some sutras from Vimamsa. He says, if there is the essence of a book, how do we know that? What is the real message of the book? He says, that you can see five characteristics of the book.
If you want to know the essence of a book. So, what are those five things? First, look at the beginning. What is told in the beginning? For example, a good preacher, a systematic preacher, will say in the beginning, today we will discuss this topic.
So, similarly, what is told in the beginning? In the beginning of that book. Then, what is told in the end? For example, today we will discuss this topic. In the end, you can say.
Third, he says, what is the emphasis on? Sometimes, when we listen to a preaching, we listen to the preacher’s speech. So, we understand that he speaks very loudly. So, this is important.
Emphasis. When we read a text, it is not so clear. But sometimes, even if you forget everything else, just remember this one thing.
So, what is said? This is emphasis. Fourth, repetition. Now, these are all Sanskrit words.
Since I am going to focus on decision-making, I will not go into Sanskrit here. What is said repeatedly? Some preachers repeatedly say that we should distribute books. Some say that we should always be humble.
We should build a temple for God. So, if they say it repeatedly, we understand that this is an important part of their speech. Repetition.
And the last is uniqueness. Uniqueness. So, what has he said that he has not said anywhere else? Even from this, we understand the uniqueness of the book.
Even from this, we can draw a conclusion about its essence. So, why am I telling you this? This is the analysis that Jiva Swami applies to Bhagavad Gita. And when he applies it to Bhagavad Gita, Arjuna, Krishna, the first, so, Krishna’s instructive words.
Krishna says different kinds of words. So, now, in Bhagavad Gita, the first instructive word of God is in 2.11. Before this, in 1.25 and 2.23, it is said that these two are non-instructive. In 1.25, it is said, see, see, So, see, do you want to see? We have come between the two armies.
Now, see who is there. And in 2.23, it is said, Arjuna, And like this, one friend is there, the other friend is a little disheartened. Don’t be so disheartened.
You are strong. Don’t be weak. Fight.
So, in that, God is not giving The first instructive word is in 2.11. So, this is the first. And the last, the last instructive word is in 2.18. After that, in 2.67 to 2.71, in a way, it is fruitful. God is telling what is the glory of the Gita.
And then in 2.72, what is that? In a way, it is at the same place when God asks Arjuna a question. In the whole Gita, Arjuna is asking God a question. Here, God is asking a question.
So, in a way, the last word, both of these are non-instructive. So, let us see, if we have to understand the essence of the Gita, then how can we understand what God has told in the beginning and in the end. So, the first instructive word is अशोचान.
And the last instructive word is माशुचः. So, शोचान and शुचः are the same in a way. So, in that, both have the feeling that you should not be sad, you should not be sad.
So, with this, Jiva Goswami says, with these two, he says, what is the purpose of the Gita? Free everyone from sadness. Free everyone from sadness. This is the purpose of the Gita.
Right now, why is Arjuna sad? Why is he sad? He does not know what the right decision is. He is sad because of that ignorance, because of that attachment. So, how can the Gita remove Arjuna’s sadness? By giving Arjuna the knowledge of what the right decision is, what the right decision is, what the right action is, what is the definition of Dharma? Right now, what does Bhagwan do in this? When he says this, first of all, Arjuna says, I do not know what I should do because my Kula Dharma and my Kshatriya Dharma, these two are pulling me in different directions.
So, Bhagwan says that our identity is at different levels. We can say this in English. One is functional identity.
Our identity is at the level of behaviour. So, right now, our identity can be that I am an engineer, I am a Brahmachari, I am an Indian, I am a middle-aged person, I am this, I am that, I am a mother, I am a wife, I am a software engineer. There can be different identities.
Our functional identities can be different. Right now, Arjuna has one functional identity. One is his behavioural identity, that he is a Kshatriya.
And the second behavioural identity is that he is Kurnandan. He is a member of a Kula. He is a part of a Kula.
So, these are the two identities. And right now, according to every identity, it is our duty. If there is a mother, a father, then it is the duty of the mother and the father.
If there is a doctor, then it is the duty of the doctor. If there is an Indian, then it is the duty of the Indian. So, in this way, according to every identity, it is our duty.
So, in a way, when God asks Arjuna about Dharma, what is Dharma? What is right work? So, in the second chapter of Bhagavad Gita, God does not even mention the word Dharma. It is not like that. Sometimes, a person asks a question and the person who gives the answer, he thinks that this question is related to my question or not.
It may seem like that. So, sometimes, what happens is, generally, the best way to answer a question is to first answer the question and then explain the answer. It is very simple.
If someone has a question, answer it and then explain the answer. If someone says, suppose, if someone asks a question, suppose, if we break our fast on Ekadashi, can we fast on Ekadashi the next day? So, first say yes or no and then explain the answer. Generally, it is better this way.
Yes or no. But sometimes, some questions are very difficult, not only complex, they are a little volatile, provocative. Suppose, someone asks, did we go to the moon? Or, if someone asks such a question, especially from a scientific background, someone will give an answer, someone will say, no, we didn’t go.
So, what Prabhupadaji just told is not that simple. Prabhupadaji has given different explanations. So, sometimes, when the question is volatile, it is better to first set the background so that the answer can be understood.
So, first, Prabhupadaji says, the moon, which is mentioned in the scriptures, and which is seen with the eyes, is not just one moon. It is mentioned in the scriptures about heaven. So, we cannot see heaven, nor can we see the moon.
We see a contrast of the moon. So, it is a complex. So, first, we have to explain and then give an answer.
If we give an answer beforehand, then if that person doesn’t like the answer, then his mind will be closed. Our answers should open people’s minds, not close people’s minds. We have to give such an answer that the person’s mind opens and he thinks of other things.
Otherwise, his mind will be closed. You people think like this. It is of no use.
So, what is God doing? First, he is giving a background to Arjuna, so that he can give an answer. So, what is the essence of Parshupabhumi? It is that duty arises duty arises from identity. duty arises Our duty, the thought of our duty comes from the thought of our identity.
That is why, what is our duty? What is our religion? To understand this, what is our identity? Understand this first. First, understand identity. First, understand identity.
Then, understand duty. That is why, what is God doing here? First of all, what does he do? First of all, he says, you have different identities on a behavioural level. But, apart from these behavioural identities, you have a fundamental identity.
A fundamental identity. And what is that? That you are a soul. Not only you are a soul, every person here is a soul.
And God does not reject the behavioural identity. He does not reject it. Now, God identifies this.
God identifies the fundamental identity. God does it in 2.13. He does it in 2.12 and also in 2.13. But, immediately after that, God also identifies this in 2.14. If Arjun is not a body but a soul, then how is Arjun the son of Kunti? He does it twice in the same shloka. What is this? This is also related to behavioural identity.
So, God does not reject the behavioural identity. The functional identity is not rejected, but is subordinated to the fundamental identity. The fundamental identity is more important.
This does not mean that behavioural identity is not important at all. Say, if I go to America, and if I go there, I am going to teach the Bhagavad Gita. So, I will tell there that we are actually souls.
But, when I will be in immigration, and I will be asked, where are you from? I am a soul. I don’t belong to this world. I am a soul.
I am not from this world. I cannot say that. Then, I will have to show my behavioural identity with my Indian passport.
So, we cannot reject the behavioural identity. But, we should not work only on the basis of behavioural identity. We should also remember our fundamental identity.
In a way, we can say that our identity in the Bhagavad Gita is a multi-level identity. Multi-level means our identity is at different levels. So, first of all, you should understand what your real identity is.
You are a soul. And then, we can say that after this, this is the basic identity. But, what is the need of this? What is the essence of this? What is its relevance? What is its fundamental identity? So, first of all, God is telling us that God’s purpose is that you should not grieve.
Why is Arjuna grieving? Because he is thinking that in this war, if I do my Kshatriya dharma, then what will happen? All my relatives, my senior relatives, whom I respect, all of them will be destroyed. They will all die. So, God… Now, a soul can have many qualities.
One quality of a soul is that it is a part of God. So, God is not emphasising that. Here, God emphasises one characteristic of a soul.
And what is that? It is indestructible. Again and again, he tells us that a soul is not indestructible. It means whatever you are grieving, do not grieve that.
And God clarifies this even more. na tvam socitum arhasi na socitum In reality, I think it is 25, 26, 28, 30… God says this four times. yātasya hi dhruvam uttir No, it is 29.
God says this four times. God says this in many shlokas. There are four shlokas.
I don’t remember the exact number. God says na tvam socitum arhasi So, what does it mean? If you understand the knowledge of the soul, then at least it means whatever you are grieving, it is not worthy of grieving. Because it is indestructible.
It is a soul. The soul is indestructible. And we can say that the soul will not be destroyed.
I have accepted this. But the body is going to be destroyed. When the body is destroyed, it is going to be grieved.
So, how do we find out about it? So, now, from this aspect, we can see that the fundamental identity of God is from 2.11 to 2.30. From the 11th shloka to the 3rd shloka, the soul is indestructible. It is indestructible. What is the result of this? After this, we can see the Gita from different perspectives.
And when we see it from different perspectives, we can understand it in different ways. After this, the next shloka is from 31 to 37. In this, if the soul is indestructible, then what does it mean? What does it mean? What does God actually do? Let’s do it this way.
This implications, what is the result of this? Of soul’s indestructibility. So, God speaks on two levels. 31, 37 and 38, 53.
So, on one level, He says that you can attain heaven. And on the other level, you can attain liberation. So, this is the knowledge of the soul.
Knowledge, if it is not used, then it is of no use. So, how He is using the knowledge, we will tell you now. First of all, both of these, the first section, 31 to 37, actually, for both, for Arjun, it is suitable, it applies for Arjun and it is applicable for Arjun’s enemies as well.
First of all, what does God say? He says that Kshatriyas are actually Sukhina Kshatriya Partha Labhante Yuddha Mitrushyam The kind of war which is a religious war, by attaining this, the Kshatriyas become happy. Because, Hato va praapse se sargam, Jitva va bhoomshase mahi Because, if you die in such a war, then also, what will happen? You will attain heaven. And if you attain yash, then you will attain earth.
So, now, we will try to understand what God is saying. So, Arjun has already told that Kul Dharma is getting destroyed because of Kul Dharma. So, God has answered that those whom you are actually worrying about, their destruction is not going to happen.
So, in a way, Arjun’s concern, 11 to 30, Atma Gyan, what is God doing with this? With this, Arjun’s worry about his Kul, his worry about his Kul, that he is addressing to God. God is telling him that whatever you are thinking that you will destroy your Kul, that destruction is not going to happen. Vasaam se jeernaan yatha vihaaya Because, like a person leaves old clothes and takes new clothes, similarly, the Atma leaves old clothes and takes new clothes.
Now, when we talk about something, so, the level of clarification depends on the level of the knowledge of the audience. How much clarification we need to do, that depends on how much the audience already knows. What does it mean? If someone does not know what Atma is, we may be talking about Bhagavad Gita, what is the message of Bhagavad Gita? Is it devotion or knowledge or meditation? We may be discussing this.
And, if someone asks, what is the need to read Bhagavad Gita? So, what happens? This is a level mismatch. This is a mismatch of level. Similarly, if we want to understand what is the message of Bhagavad Gita, then why to read Bhagavad Gita? This is very preliminary.
We should understand this first. So, Arjuna and Krishna, when they are talking, there is a deep connection between them. And, both of them have grown up in a culture of Tattvajnaan.
So, it is not that Arjuna did not know Tattvajnaan. But, Arjuna, at that time, what to take from Tattvajnaan and what not to take. He was not able to understand that.
Similarly, in the first chapter, when Arjuna argues, then Arjuna also mentions hell. So, it is not that Arjuna does not have the knowledge of the next birth. He has the knowledge of the next birth.
But, in this birth, what will happen in the next birth? What will be the result? About that, Arjuna has a little delusion. Actually, delusion is illusion. What is confusion? So, suppose there is a doctor.
One is an experienced doctor. The other is a new doctor. Now, the new doctor knows that there is a patient who has all these diseases.
If he gives this medicine, he will be cured. But, he has this complication. This medicine can have this side effect.
So, now, the knowledge that the senior doctor has, the junior doctor also has that knowledge. But, at that time, what all things are to be seen, that experience is not there. This point is there, that point is not there.
But, the senior doctor says, this can also happen. Earlier, I have seen that it has this effect. Yes, this is true.
So, Krishna is not so much informing Arjuna as reminding Arjuna in the Bhagavad Gita. So, in the Gita, the senior doctor, even if he is a new doctor, he has good knowledge, he has studied well. So, he also knows everything.
But, at that time, he is not knowing which point is important. So, the purpose of the Gita, what is God doing in that? It is not so much informing as reminding. Arjuna also has self-knowledge from the beginning.
But, what will be the result of that self-knowledge? If we are born again, then what will be the result of which work in the next birth? There, Arjuna has become a little fascinated. Yes, there will be a difference in medicines, there will be a result. But, what will be the result of which medicine? To understand that, one needs good knowledge and experience.
So, that is there. So, God… Now, Arjuna, in reality, as I told you, Arjuna has mentioned the next birth twice. Once, he mentions hell in the first chapter, mentions heaven in the second chapter, in 2.8, and 1.44, I think.
But, so, the chapter says that Arjuna’s vision is farsighted, but not farsighted enough. Arjuna is also farsighted. He is thinking about the next birth.
But, not farsighted enough. So, God is helping him. So, when we tell Arjuna that वासांसि जीर्णान्य थाविहाय that the body will become old and a new body will be found.
So, after this, there is no need to clarify Arjuna more for God. What does it mean? The Bhishma and Drona you are worrying about, they are old now. If their body goes away, they will not be destroyed.
Their… They will get a new body. And, he is a good person. He is a devotee.
He is a righteous person. Even though, due to this problem, he has to fight against the Kauravas. He has to fight for the Kauravas.
But, he is a righteous person. That is why, he will not be destroyed. He will be destroyed here.
Because, what will happen here? He will be free from his old body. He will be free from his old body. And, what will happen to him in the next birth? His… His… He will become rich.
He will go to heaven or he will attain God. So, how does it happen? When we attain knowledge, then, one feature of knowledge… There are different results of knowledge. There are benefits.
Knowledge helps us better see the future as much as it can be seen. What is the future? What is going to happen in the future? No one can say with guarantee. But, we can say to some extent.
When someone has knowledge… Suppose, someone does not know that smoking is bad. So, I mean, smoking was a fashion in all movies at the age of 30-40. So, now, the one who has knowledge knows that smoking will spoil your health.
Your liver, lungs, lungs will get spoilt. So, it will happen to everyone at the same time. It is not necessary.
Some people may get it in 5 years. Some may get it in 50 years. But, it is going to happen.
So, knowledge… When we have knowledge, it increases our clarity about the future. What is going to happen in the future? About that, clarity increases. So, let us see Arjuna’s understanding of the future.
What is going to happen in the future? Before the Gita. Before the Gita and after Gita. Let us keep it here.
11 to 30. After this section. Let us go till 37.
What is Arjuna thinking? Warriors. What will happen to the warriors? And what will happen to Arjuna? Arjuna is thinking what will happen to all the warriors? What will happen to them? They will be killed. I will kill all of them.
Not only they will die, but I will kill them. And what will happen to them? I will go to hell. naraken yatam vaso bhavati tyanushu shramah Those who destroy the family, they go to hell.
So, Arjuna is seeing the consequences of his actions. But, what does God say? He says, if you will fight, the warriors, first of all, he said, none of the people here will be destroyed. All of them are immortal.
So, here he says, elevated to new bodies. Now, in a way, Arjuna’s concern was not just the specific violence of fighting. It was the violence of fighting against his venerable relatives.
Now, some people say that Arjuna was peaceful and God made him fight with violence. Now, first of all, God did not incite Arjuna. But, it is important to say that Arjuna was peaceful.
It is to be said that the commander of the army was peaceful. It is good to be peaceful. But, peacefulness is one thing.
It does not mean never to fight. It is the duty of a warrior to fight. Arjuna fought a lot.
So, Arjuna’s hesitation was It is important to understand what it was. Arjuna’s hesitation is not general aversion to violence. Some people say, no matter what happens, I will never raise my hand on anyone.
Okay. And, suppose someone is committing atrocities against your family, will you never raise your hand? Now, it is not good to raise your hand But, violence is a virtue. Non-violence is a virtue.
But, it cannot be a default decision at all times. It is not that I will always be non-violent. It is not that Arjuna became non-violent because of Geeta.
Arjuna’s concern was not this. Specific fear of violence against His fear was what will happen if I attack my elders? What will happen those whom I should respect? So, this is what he did. This is clear to us in 2.4 which says, Katham Bheeshma Maham Sankhe Dronam Chimadusudana So, he says, these are all my relatives.
But, how can I attack them? So, especially for them, God says, if you fight, then you will be elevated to a better destination. Sorry, Bheeshma and Drona will go to a better destination. They will be elevated.
They will be liberated. And then, this is in 2.11 to 2.30 that their next body will be created. And there, he also says, in 2.21 what is it? 2.21 Nahanti Nahanyate Neither are you killing nor am I trying to kill you.
The destruction of the body is going to happen according to the laws of nature. That is why, here, God is indicating that you will not feel any bad karma. So, here, the family concerns, the worries about the family, he is telling them that it will be good.
Their destruction is not going to happen. And then, God has told you here, heaven and earth. You will attain heaven or you will fight.
If you follow the Kshatriya religion, then you will attain heaven or you will get earth. If you win, then heaven. Otherwise, if you lose, actually, let’s put it a little more clearly.
Here, there are three things. Win, heaven. If you follow the Kshatriya religion, the destruction of the family is not going to happen.
But, if you follow the Kshatriya religion, you will attain heaven. If you win, you will get earth. If you lose, you will get heaven.
And, in this way, both will attain heaven. Both will attain heaven if you follow the Kshatriya religion. But, if you do not follow the Kshatriya religion, then what will happen? Krishna says that what will happen to you? You will get infamy.
You will be defamed. And, he says that you are thinking that you will not attack your enemies with great politeness. But, the world is not going to see this.
What will the world see? You have become a coward. That you did not fight as a coward. This will defame you.
And, you will not be defamed, he says. Because, you did not do your duty. What will happen because of this? You will commit sin.
So, in this way, here, God is not specifying hell specifically for Arjun. But, if he commits sin, he will go to hell. This means that God is making Arjun’s view completely upside down.
Arjun thinks that if I fight, then I will go to hell. God says that if you do not fight, then you will commit sin. In this way, God completely reverses Arjun’s view.
And, here, in a way, God answers Arjun’s question. But, God wants to get more knowledge from the first group. Therefore, he goes one step ahead.
God does not want Arjun to reach heaven. Krishna has two aims. Arjuna, do the right thing and do the right thing with the right intention.
Both are there. And, right motivation. What is the motivation? So, the right motivation, what is it? God will clarify it more and more.
We will see that in the next lecture. In tomorrow’s lecture, we will see the second half of the second chapter of Gita. How God answers Arjun’s question.
So, in conclusion, today, we discussed three things. First of all, how Arjun, in the first two chapters, what was Arjun’s decision? That, I will not fight until I get clarification. This was the first point.
Then, I want to understand what religion is. And, for that, first of all, what does God say? Under our behavioural identity, there is our spiritual identity. And, there, the fundamental identity, God tells us about it.
Why? To clarify about family religion. That your family is indestructible. So, what you are worried about, you don’t need to worry about it.
And, the third point is that your basic identity is that you are a soul. But, we cannot always act on the level of a soul. We have to act on the level of behaviour.
So, on the level of behaviour, on which level should you act? You should do Kshatriya Dharma. You should do Kshatriya Dharma with self-knowledge. So, what will happen by doing Kshatriya Dharma? He says, if you do it, if you do it, you will get Kshatriya Dharma.
And, if you don’t do it, then you will get sin and inauspiciousness. In this way, on one level, God has given Arjuna the guidance of what to do in this chapter till now. Does anyone have any question? Before we end, Thank you very much.
Shreemad Bhagwat Gita Ki Shila Prabhupada Ki Gaura Bhakti Vrindaki Utai Gaura Pramanandi