विवेचन सारांश
The Cycle of Creation and Dissolution - Birth & Death
The Eighth chapter of Bhagavad-Gītā is Akśara-Brahmā-Yoga: The Yoga of the indestructible Brahmān.
Today being very auspicious as it is Vaikunta ekadashi we are blessed to listen to this 8th chapter interpretation. The session started with prayers to the Guru, Bhagavān Sri Krishna.
The Akshara Brahma Yoga is a philosophical treatise impregnated with in-depth meanings and is a thought provoking chapter. The chapter gives a very thoughtful insight into the yoga principles and the supreme absolute Brahman.
One can delve into the understanding of not just the art of living but the desirable means to the day of leaving the body. This understanding in reality removes the fear in our minds of this inevitable event which generally one tends to avoid thinking.
This chapter also helps us in positively understanding the event of death and guides us towards leading a better life by following righteous path and adding the value of good deeds in the journey ahead while readying oneself for the final day.
Bhagavān has clearly expressed how one should unwaveringly and constantly remember HIM and attain HIM in the end.
अनन्यचेता: सततं यो मां स्मरति नित्यश: |
तस्याहं सुलभ: पार्थ नित्ययुक्तस्य योगिन: || 14||
O Parth, for those yogis who always think of ME with exclusive devotion, I am easily attainable because of their constant absorption in ME.
Everything in this universe from the smallest atom or the smallest insects will have to keep taking rebirth and that it is not just human beings that are in this cycle of life and death.
आब्रह्मभुवनाल्लोका: पुनरावर्तिनोऽर्जुन |
मामुपेत्य तु कौन्तेय पुनर्जन्म न विद्यते || 16||
In all the worlds of this material creation, up to the highest abode of Brahma, you will be subject to rebirth, O Arjun. But on attaining My Abode, O son of Kunti, there is no further rebirth.
This applies even to Brahma himself for his own life cycle with specified duration of such a cycle which is explained in the scriptures.
8.17
sahasrayugaparyantam, aharyadbrahmaṇo viduḥ,
rātriṃ(m) yugasahasrāntāṃ(n), te'horātravido janāḥ. 8.17
Bhagavān explained about the Sṛṣṭi (creation), and the Pralaya (dissolution) when there is only darkness and there is nothing around us everything is destroyed.
To understand in a simple manner; In the vivechan session we are fully awake and listening and learning. However, once night falls and we are off to sleep it is all darkness and one may not remember anything in that state of inertness and the memory would weaken. When a new day dawns, we start the day afresh with new thinking and new life.
- uttarāyaṇa:
Makara Sankranti is approaching and currently we are in the uttarāyaṇa phase of the calendar. In this phase the Sun is prominently present in the Northern hemisphere and is known as uttarāyaṇa
- dakṣiṇāyana:
When the Sun is present in the southern hemisphere it is dakṣiṇāyana. In case of humans the uttarāyaṇa and dakṣiṇāyana together forms one single year. This one year for humans is considered as one day for Brahma.
Bhagavan said rātriṃ yugasahasrāntāṃ- Yuga here refers to Maha yuga or Chaturyuga.
The Yuga Cycle is a cyclical timeline of cosmic or divine ages. These ages represent the life stages of the universe. The Yuga Cycle is divided into four parts: the Satya Yuga, the Treta Yuga, the Dwapara Yuga, and the Kali Yuga
The calculation of the years is done as follows:
The time frame of each Yuga varies. The four yugas are stated below:
1 Satya-yuga or Satyuga, the Yuga of Truth, also called Krita-yuga, which lasted for 1,728,000 earth years
1 Treta-yuga, the second Yuga, which lasted for 1,296,000 earth years
1 Dwapara-yuga, the third Yuga which lasted for 864,000 earth years
1 Kali-yuga, the fourth Yuga or the age of darkness, which will be for 432,000 earth years
Thus, each Mahayuga, comprising the four Yugas, has a duration of 4,320,000 earth years.
Thousand such caturyuga make a day of Brahmā ji and thousand more will be one night of Brahmā ji. Hundreds of such years of Brahmā ji will be the total life of Brahmā ji.
Brahmā ji is creating and recreating the world which is a continuous process. The Big bang theory that we hear is exactly based on a similar concept of formation of the universe. te'horātravido janāḥ- The earth itself is made of very tiny matter of dust particle and as compared to the earth, we are tiny individuals and further compared to the universe we are much smaller and insignificant particles.
Bhagavadgītā is making us understand how insignificant we are in this life and gives us the understanding to shelve out all the ego and pride and live a clean life devoid of such self deprecating thoughts.
avyaktādvyaktayaḥ(s) sarvāḥ(ph), prabhavantyaharāgame,
rātryāgame pralīyante, tatraivāvyaktasañjñake. 8.18
Bhagavān said everything gets created from the unmanifested to the manifest form by Brahmā ji at the beginning of his day. Hence on the day of Brahmā ji the world is created from the avyaktā-concealed state to vyakta- manifest state. During Brahmā ji'snight the entire manifest forms are merged with the unmanifest.
When there is nothing seen, one cannot use the word ‘nothing’ as it is just a concealed state.
Eg:When we are awake we have good memory and awareness but when one is sleeping our identity is concealed. This is how we experience the nitya pralaya or daily dissolution in our unawakened state or sleep state.
On the first day of Brahmā ji the Sṛṣṭi begins from the concealed and unmanifested and the end of the universe is on Brahmā ji’s night.
Illustration:The life cycle of an insect is 2-3 hours. In a Human’s day how many such insects' life cycle can happen. In comparison for the insect, the life a human is like the one of Brahmā ji’s day and night
Eg: When a lady’s purse is checked in the airports, so many things come out and the entire content becomes vyakta and seen. People wonder how so many things could be stacked in a small purse.
Likewise Brahmā ji has so many things in the Sṛṣṭi and all of them come out and become manifested on his day beginning. In this cycle of creation and dissolution, the gross energy in the world will remain the same and. Even science supports this concept as matter is neither created or destroyed and they only get transformed.
Eg: Mosquitoes are continuously being born and have a short life before they end their life. Thus they undergo numerous generations in a short time frame. The Mosquito also in comparison gets a feeling of the day and night cycle of Brahmāji by comparing it to the day and night cycle of human beings.
Similarly, in comparison to the day and night cycle of Brahmā ji, our life cycle seems too small. In the life cycle, we also do not remember who we were in the past state of life.
rātryāgame pralīyante, tatraivāvyaktasañjñake- Everything is concealed and is not visible on the unmanifested night of Brahmā ji and a new universe is created on his day. When Brahmā ji’s night arrives everything becomes unmanifested and concealed.
bhūtagrāmaḥ(s) sa evāyaṃ(m), bhūtvā bhūtvā pralīyate,
rātryāgame'vaśaḥ(ph) pārtha, prabhavatyaharāgame. 8.19
The entire characters and creatures that are created and which we see around us are included in this phrase and each will have their own specific life cycles.
avaśaḥ- automatically.
Illustration: We are all sitting and listening to vivechan and if someone asks we reply accordingly. But in reality we are also breathing which we do not observe as an action of ours, since it just happens by nature automatically and we do not have any control over it by wishing to breathe or not to breathe.
The process of creation and dissolution also happens automatically and naturally and this cycle will keep happening.
Prabhavati aharāgame-When day comes everything will come into existence and indicates visibility, This appearing and disappearing cycle will continue and never ends. No one knows how long this cycle has been happening in the past nor does anyone know how long it will continue in future.
Eg: We have learnt that water gets converted to water vapour, then to clouds and rain. Water continuously changes its form to ice, water, steam and in all these stages water is present. This is despite the state of water which undergoes transformation into different states.
Likewise irrespective of the cycle of birth and death and the manifest and unmanifest states, one thing remains unchanged which is explained in the next verse by Bhagavān.
parastasmāttu bhāvo'nyo-'vyakto'vyaktātsanātanaḥ,
yaḥ(s) sa sarveṣu bhūteṣu, naśyatsu na vinaśyati. 8.20
'Vyakto'vyaktā sanātanaḥ- Existence has been in eternity in both forms and will not be destroyed any time. Everything around us in the universe this concept is true and nothing can be destroyed.
Eg: In an ocean waves will appear and disappear, but the water remains in its form. When the ocean is calm you cannot see the waves. But when the wave manifests one can see it.
Similarly the creation is comparable to the wave which is seen and when it goes back and the calm water is seen the creation is dissolved.
Eg: When we have old ornaments and the same can be melted and made into a new design, the inherent gold does not change but only the shape and appearance changes.
Similar is the concept of creation and dissolution in a larger scale of time and space. The eternal power which is not unmanifested and not visible is responsible for more creations and ultimately gets dissolved.
Eg: When Tilak ji was in jail he had written a book Gītā Rahasya. When he came out of jail whatever he had written was partially destroyed. However, he was not disturbed and could recreate the entire book as it was in his thoughts.
Similarly Veer savarkarji had written on the walls of the jail, however when he came out it was his thoughts and he recreated them.
The thought was the seed for new creation and similar is the creation which is coming out of the unchanging eternal power like the mind power.
avyakto'kṣara ityuktaḥ(s), tamāhuḥ(ph) paramāṃ(ṅ) gatim,
yaṃ(m) prāpya na nivartante, taddhāma paRāmaṃ(m) mama. 8.21
Eg: Ganesh ji is looked upon by us based on the name that we give like Ekadanta, Vignaharta and so on depending on our mode and purpose of praying. How we perceive Him gives the different names and forms.
Likewise avyakto, the unmanifested and akṣara which are not destroyable are 2 different phrases with similar properties.
taddhāma paRāmaṃ- Understanding this should be the ultimate goal and once we do understand the concept, one will not get stuck in the cycle of life.
Eg: Milk to curds, curds to butter and butter to ghee is possible. However once ghee is formed it can never get back to the original milk form. That is the most attainable state and there is no need to get back to its original form of milk which is perishable.
Likewise once a human being understands the concept and gets converted to akṣara tattva, one will not look back to get into the lower life form. Even if one comes back to life it will be for a purpose only.
Once complete knowledge is attained one can be free from the cycle of life and death and understand the’ parandhama’; the highest abode that one can attain.
puruṣaḥ(s) sa paraḥ(ph) pārtha, bhaktyā labhyastvananyayā,
yasyāntaḥsthāni bhūtāni, yena sarvamidaṃ(n) tatam. 8.22
Ananyayā bhaktyā labhya- How does one attain this state?
Bhagavān gives a simple solution to achieve state which is by having unwavering devotion to HIM. Eg: Once a disciple went to his Guru and asked what is ‘ananya bhakti’. The teacher asked him to come another day. The disciple dutifully came every day and asked the same question. After several days, the teacher finally asked him to come to the riverside where he always went to take bath.
Next day the disciple went to the river to take a bath and got into the river. The teacher suddenly pushed the disciples head into the water so hard that the disciple could not come up on his own. He held his breath for some time but after sometime he couldn't breathe and started struggling. The teacher brought him up from the water. The teacher then asked the disciple about his thoughts when his head was under water in the moment of desperation. The disciple replied that the only thought that came to his mind was that he wanted to come out of water and breathe.
The teacher then gave his observation to the disciple that when drowning he did not want ‘ananya bhakti’ but only wanted air to breathe.
Hence advised that if the same level of desperation which he felt for air to survive is applied through unwavering devotion and with the same measure of desperation that will be ‘ananya bhakti’.
yasyāntaḥsthāni bhūtāni yena sarvamidaṃ- The only means to achieve the supreme is the ‘ananya bhakti’ and this concept is in each one of us. The moon is revolving around the earth and the earth around the Sun and the Sun in the universe. Science talks about gravitational force and similar such concepts. It is the supreme power which is holding all these in place and binding together.
One needs a very strong urge to understand.
yatra kāle tvanāvṛttim, āvṛttiṃ(ñ) caiva yoginaḥ,
prayātā yānti taṃ(ṅ) kālaṃ(m), Vākṣyāmi bharatarṣabha. 8.23
Bhagavān had explained the entire life cycle of a human being. Now, he explains that the way we start our journey after death to reach the ultimate Supreme is of 2 ways for a seeker. This was with reference to the journey after death when Jīvātmā or the Soul exits the body. Both paths are for righteous persons and seekers.
The first is when the Soul of such seekers unites and reaches Brahman and will never return by rebirth. The second is of such seekers when they will come back by rebirth.
There are others who are knowledgeable but do not have the binding of these 2 paths.
Eg:Every seeker like Jnaneshwar Maharaj ji and such sants who have led a pure and good life and have never done any bad deeds.
Another category those who are adharmi’s or inferior beings who are encircled by bad deeds who will be taken away by yama the deity of death.
agnirjyotirahaḥ(ś) śuklaḥ(ṣ), ṣaṇmāsā uttarāyaṇam,
tatra prayātā gacchanti, brahma brahmavido janāḥ. 8.24
- kṛṣṇapakṣa is the time from full moon to new moon the waning phase
- Śuklapakṣa is the time from no moon to full moon
- Agni-when there is light
- jyotir- in day time
- Ahaḥ- In the 6 months time of uttarayana when the sun is on the northern hemisphere
- Śuklaḥ- time from no moon to full moon
dhūmo rātristatā kṛṣṇaḥ(ṣ), ṣaṇmāsā dakṣiṇāyanam,
tatra cāndRāmasaṃ(ñ) jyotir, yogī prāpya nivartate. 8.25
- dhūmo- When there is smoke
- rātristatā- it is night
- kṛṣṇapakṣa- the time from full moon to new moon the waning phase
- dakṣiṇāyana-In the 6 months time when Sun is in the southern hemisphere
However, iIf a person has some materialistic desires or with a different state of mind, such a person will want to come back by rebirth. Only by rebirth can such a person attain a cleaner mind and thoughts. The ultimate aim of life should be to attain the enlightened state instead of thinking of death. One should live life with this in mind.
śuklakṛṣṇe gatī hyete, jagataḥ(ś) śāśvate mate,
ekayā yātyanāvṛttim, anyayāvartate punaḥ. 8.26
- The śukla path is also known as devayāna or leading to the supreme
- The kṛṣṇe path also known as pitṛyāṇa or leading to the pitṛ.
The devayāna will take the seeker to Brahma loka whereas the pitṛyāṇa will take the seeker back to the materialistic world.
The ones on the first paths are enlightened and the ones in the pitṛyāṇa is still stuck in the materialistic world which is holding them back in this world for rebirth
Eg: Bhīṣma Pitāmaha had the boon of dying at his desired time. He could have left the world when he was hurt in the war but was lying down on the bed of arrows waiting for the right time of uttarayana.
One reason that we can comprehend was for teaching the world the power of keeping the oath given to the father. By respecting his father he showed how he had the boon of death when he desired.
He also taught how even following the path of brahmacharya and being celibate he could become so powerful, sustaining all the pains despite his good life as a respected person in the kingdom with all the comforts.
He wanted to prove the significance of the vedas where it says that leaving the body in uttarayana is a pious way. One should strive to have this kind of patience even by bearing the pains. These are the lessons that he wanted us to know and reach the supreme power.
The final moment is very important but how this moment will be depends on how the entire life has been lived. Bhīṣma Pitāmaha's life is an example for us as he lived and followed the dharma.
naite sṛtī pārtha jānan, yogī muhyati kaścana,
tasmātsarveṣu kāleṣu, yogayukto bhavārjuna. 8.27
yogī muhyati kaścana- Yogi does not get deluded by all these concepts and paths as described.
Even having the knowledge of these 2 paths a real sant who is in constant connection with Bhagavān will not get bogged down by all these. They just get reborn and live their lives, follow the path of devotion and ultimately go back.
Bhagavān explained this for our benefit and advised Arjuna to just follow the path of Yoga. Here Yoga means not just the ashtanga yoga but the Jnana, Bhakti and Karma yoga taught by Bhagavān to arjuna. One needs to always keep Bhagavān in mind with full devotion.
Bhagavad Gītā is a complete yoga Śāstra, a science to be practiced. Everything directs us to devotion.
Eg: A mother is walking with the child. The child holds the mother’s finger. In a big crowd, the child asks to be held by the mother instead. When a mother holds the hand the grip is firmer and will never leave the child’s hand.
Likewise when one thinks of Bhagavan all the time and follow:
तस्मात्सर्वेषु कालेषु मामनुस्मर युध्य च |
मय्यर्पितमनोबुद्धिर्मामेवैष्यस्यसंशयम् || 7||
Therefore, always remember ME and also do your duty of fighting the war. With mind and intellect surrendered to ME, you will definitely attain Me; of this, there is no doubt.
If one follows this, HE will hold us and take us through the right path and we need not worry about anything. One should carry out dhyana or meditation, japa and tapa which will help us to think of HIM all the time. Whichever deity we show devotion to, it reaches Bhagavān.
vedeṣu yajñeṣu tapaḥsu caiva,
dāneṣu yatpuṇyaphalaṃ(m) pradiṣṭam,
atyeti tatsarvamidaṃ(m) viditvā,
yogī paraṃ(m) sthānamupaiti cādyam. 8.28
We are all learning Bhagvadgītā, learning scriptures, and carrying out good deeds, performing yagna, tapas, charity and so on. Whatever fruits that a person reaps by following such religious activities and following the scriptures, those are much lesser as compared to being a yogi.
This also does not mean one should stop doing all such good practices. The reason is that these are the first steps toward going to be a yogi. To be a yogi is the final step and one has to start somewhere and continue the journey of devotion even if it means several births before we reach the Supreme Soul.
The session concluded with a prayer.
Question and Answer:
Prabodhji
Question: I have read the example of ghee in many scriptures. In these generally a lot of molecular changes happen and they cannot always be in the same state. The Gold example appears more relevant.
Answer: All the examples are symbolic and one need not take them literally. Nothing can explain the Brahma tattva clearly and understandably. If one has to explain what a tree is, one can show a tree, but not in a class in school where it can only be by drawing of a tree. Similarly it is just an illustration as a thinking aid to understand the abstract concept.
Dhirajji
Question: One can worship any of the deities. No where Bhagavān said that the one who worships any god will reach him and if one worships HIM only one can reach him.
Answer: It matters what we want. If one’s devotion is on Shivji and if such a person is forced to show devotion to Krishnaji, the person may not feel the connection. Any devotion will lead the worshipper to the ultimate Parabrahma tattva. Swamiji says where our devotion is directed is dependent on how we have been brought up and all these gods should be thought of as different departments and thought of on those lines.
Komalji
Question: Everyone comes with their own karma it is said. How is the sanskar transferred from one life to another
Answer: When the Soul is entering the body it has completely forgotten the memory of the past birth and associates only with the body. When changing the body the feel of the past karma and experiences will remain in the Soul.
Beenaiji
Question: There are 2 uttarayan and Śuklapakṣa to attain the Brahma abode only by completely thinking of Bhagavan. Next the explanation is on smokey and dakṣiṇāyana.
Answer: It will be either or and nothing can be in the middle. kṛṣṇapakṣa in uttarayan also and in such circumstances there are other factors which influences the conditions.
अन्तकाले च मामेव स्मरन्मुक्त्वा कलेवरम् |
य: प्रयाति स मद्भावं याति नास्त्यत्र संशय: || 5||
Those who relinquish the body while remembering ME at the moment of death will come to ME. There is certainly no doubt about this.
Also, there are not only swarga and deva loka and such others. There are many lokas and the parameters vary to know where one may land after leaving the body. The Garuda purana gives a detailed explanation about all this. However, we are only discussing what is in Gita wherein it may not be Brahma loka but any other loka.
Rajibji
Question: Difference between Manah and chitta. What is tattva darshi?
Answer: Whatever is our antahkaran consists of 4 parts.
The Vedanta describes the mind as the antahkarana chatushtaya, the fourfold inner instrument that resides in the subtle body. It has four aspects
- Manas
- Chitta
- Buddhi
- Ahamkāra.
Of these the mind is the part which makes the sankalpa (the Ideation) vikalpa (Choice). A decisive mind on what to do and what one wants which works as the conscience.
The part that takes the decision is Buddhi.
Whatever outcome happens and influences an impression on the anatahkaranma is the chitta.
Eg: Among 2 friends one has helped the other and the person is very happy and has a good impression about the person effect is on the ‘chitta’. If someone does bad also the impact is on chitta. The impact on chitta gives the feeling of ‘I’ which forms the ego. Chitta is required to be devoted to Bhagavān.
Eg: In stagnant water if one keeps throwing things it will become soiled. Instead if you keep adding clear water, the water becomes clean. Whatever one offers to the mind will affect the chitta.
So if one offers the mind to Bhagavan the chitta becomes clean and clear. Tatvadarshi is one who can see within the other. Between 2 people the tattva is the same among all. If one is able to go beyond the physical form and understand the other from within such is called the tattva darshi.
Soumendraji
Question: Everyone wants to be liberated in life. One can understand Karma, bhakti and jnana yoga. In Gurukul days everything was taken care of. But we have to take care of the materialistic requirements. In such circumstance can anyone attain deliverance in this life
Answer: Once there were 2 disciples and were taught about liberation by doing meditation. Both sat under a tree and started meditating.
After some days the teacher came to see the students. One student asked the teacher when he will get moksha. The teacher counter questioned him and asked him to count and tell the number of leaves on the nearby tree. The disciple replied that there are many leaves and he is not able to count. The teacher told him that he can get moksha after a number of rebirths equivalent to the number of leaves on the tree. Hearing this the disciple loses interest and gives up the resolve to meditate.
The second disciple is also asked the same question by the teacher. The disciple , however, feels positive about his efforts as he feels that the number of leaves on the tree are finite and hence at some point of time he can definitely get moksha and get liberated from the life cycle.
He is confident he is on the right path and that is enough. One has to just go for what is required and try to be on the right path.
Om tatsaditi śrīmadbhagavadgītāsu upaniṣatsu
brahmavidyāyāṃ(m) yogaśāstre śrīkṛṣṇārjunasaṃvāde
akṣarabrahmayogo nāma aṣṭamo'dhyāyaḥ
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