Interpretations of Bhagavad-gita
It has become a luxurious fashion of the day along with the progress of material civilization, that everyone can make his interpretation of the great Indian philosophy called the Bhagwat Geeta. This concise form of vedic knowledge known as the Geetopanisad is acknoledged by all sections of transcendental scholars in India specially, as the cream of all Upanisads and that of the Vedanta Sutras also. Scholars and Acharyas like Sreepada Samkaracharya and some of his followers also could not leave out this very important book of knowledge, although such scholars of the Mayavad school did not acknowledge the bonafides of the Puranas. But the interpretations of Sree Sankarachaya differs from the interpretations of the Vaisnava Acharyas like Sree Ramanujacharya, Madhyacharya etc. There are innumerable interpretations of the Bhagwat Geeta in the market, and it is certainly a puzzling business to select which of the various interpretations shall be accepted as bonafide and which of them shall be rejected as malafide.
Inorder to make a distinction between these two classes of bonafide and malafide interpretations we have to make an impartial study of the book and such unbiased study only will make us able to discern the bonafide from the malafide.
In this connection, we may first of all try to find out the origin of the Bhagwat Geeta. It is wrong to understand that The Bhagwat Geeta was first spoken in the battlefield of Kuruksetra as it is a part of the great history of India namely the Mahabharata. We can understand from the talks of Sree Krsna and Arjuna as it is stated in the Bhagwat Geeta, that long long before the battle of Kuruksetra this philosophy was once spoken by Sree Krsna to Bibaswata (the Sun), and from Biswata the knowledge was transferred to Manu and from Manu it was transferred to King Ikshaku. And in that way of desciplic succession the knowledge has come down to generations after generations but in course of time such desciplic succession broke and therefore Sree Krsna again repeated the same Yoga or transcendental knowledge to Arjuna. In the beginning of the 4th Chapter of Bhagwat Geeta, this fact is stated as follows:
(Devanāgarī)
Rishis and Kings or the Kings who were as good as the Rishis is the meaning of the word Rajrshya (Devanāgarī) and, as such, every one, either he was a householder or mendicant knew Bhagwat Geeta before the battle of Kuruksetra or before the period of Mahabharata which is calculated to be at least five thousand years before, and as such how it is hinted that the same knowledge was lost. That transcendental knowledge was lost because there must have been some malafide interpretations of the knowledge and such knowledge would do more harm than good to the people. It had to be repeated again by Sree Krisna before a bonafide King and for this Arjuna was selected at a critical moment because Sree Krishna acknowledged him to be not only a confidential friend but also a bonafide devotee at the same time. We have to mark the words specially "Bhaktosi etc.
(Devanāgarī)
Sree Krishna had many friends and relatives at that time who might have been great scholars also, but He selected Arjuna as the bonafide person to grasp the knowledge of Bhagwat Geeta because Arjuna was a great devotee of the Lord. It may be concluded therefore that the principle of Bhagwat Geeta can be understood only by personalities like Arjuna who was a completely surrendered soul to Sree Krishna and this knowledge (Yoga) can be explained only by personalities like Sree Krishna (i. e. His bonafide devotees) or for the matter of that by the Personality of Godhead only.
Under such circumstances, the bonafide interpretations can be given only by those who follow the footprints of Arjuna or in other words one who happen to come in the line of desciplic succession from Sree Arjuna as it was formerly delivered from Bibaswata to Manu & Iksvaku. That is the first condition of understanding Bhagwat Geeta. And violations of this condition means breaking of the link of desciplic succession and thereby lose the real purpose of the great philosophy. Beside Bhagwat Geeta is not a new thesis of speculative philosophy but it is as old as the Sun is. No body can say what is the age of the Sun neither can any body calculate the age of a Manu. According to authentic Sastras the age of a Manu is 72 x 4,200,000 years. It is also understood that at the present moment the Manu who has been referred to in the Bhagwat Geeta has been passing his age on the point of the 28th period, out of the above mentioned 72 periods of 4200000 years each and because Manu was told by Bibaswata it may be safely calculated that Bhagwat Geeta was spoken once before the battle of Kuruksetra at least 197600000 one hundred ninety-seven million sixty hundreds of thousand years before.
[Page two.]
A transcendental source of knowledge which was coming down in a chain of desciplic succession for millions of years before the battle of Kuruksetra must have been studied by various scholars of the period but still we don't find more than one edition or interpretation of the Bhagwat Geeta as represented to Sree Arjuna; but during the last two hundred years we have so many interpretations of Bhagwat Geeta by different speculators. This advancement of speculative activities by different mundaners without any reference to the chain of desciplic succession, are all malafide interpretations and spread of such malafide knowledge on the so called basis of the Great book of knowledge, will do more harm than good to the people.
We find also in the last chapter of the Bhagwat Geeta that the Personality of Godhead has persistently advised that the essence of Bhagwat Geeta must not be disclosed to a person at any time who has not undergone any disciplinary method of austerity and penances, who is not a devotee of Sree Krishna, who is unwilling to accept the teachings of Bhagwat Geeta and lastly one who actually envies Sree Krishna the Personality of Godhead. The sloka which instructs the above procedure runs as follows: (18/67)
(Devanāgarī)
So according to Bhagwat Geeta the following four classes of readers are incompetent to understand the principle of Bhagwat Geeta and therefore they are not able to make any bonafide interpretation whatsoever. They are
And these unlucky four classes of men are described in the Bhagwat Geeta as (a) Naradhamah (Devanāgarī) the lowest class of men (b) Mudha (Devanāgarī) non-intelligent men of society (c) Mayayapahrtajnana (Devanāgarī) persons who have sufficient mundane education but they are robbed of essential knowledge by the illusory Energy or Maya. (d) The Ashuras (Devanāgarī) who disbelieve in the very existence of Godhead. The Sloka which describes the above fact runs as follows:-(7/15)
(Devanāgarī)
These four malafide classes of men have done tremendous harm to the society by making malafide interpretations of the Bhagwat Geeta according to their limited sensual perceptions and the result is that the whole atmosphere has been surcharged with malafide poisons, which are eating the vital necessities of life. We can very well imagine how this process can do harm if we compare it partially with adalterated foodstuff or adalterated medicines. Foodstuff and medicines are concerned with the material body only but the knowledge which is administered in the Bhagwat Geeta is concerned with spirit soul. In the very beginning of Bhagwat Geeta the identity of the material body and the Spirit Soul has been elaborately explained and the specific instruction of Bhagwat Geeta has always been stressed for the benefit of the Spirit Soul. The subject matter of the material body and mind has not been neglected in Bhagwat Geeta but on the contrary it has been nicely coordinated with the necessities of the Spirit Soul; but more importance and attention has been drawn on the subject matter of the Spirit Soul. Therefore if we protest so much against spread of adAlterated foodstuff and medicines which are concerned with the temporary material body only, we have to protest more vigorously against the spread of adAlterated interpretations of Bhagwat Geeta because that concerns to the eternal vital power of the Spirit Soul.
(Devanāgarī)
For ordinary class of men the Bhagwat Geeta has enjoined "Sastrabidhi" (Devanāgarī) i.e. such men have been advised to follow the instructions as laid down into the authentic scriptures. Because the outlaws who are reluctant to follow the instructions of the scriptures cannot ever be successful in all their attempts and as such they cannot have any peace and prosperity or be elevated to the spiritual or transcendental plane. It is stated in the Bhagwat Geeta as follows:- (16/23)
(Devanāgarī)
Such ordinary men when they manufacture spiritual procedure of austerity or penances for any such pseudo-spiritualistic methods, they do so according to the mundane quality they might have acquired in the course of their mundane activities. The mundane qualities being divided into three categories, such pseudo-spiritualistic methods are also divided into three categories namely Swatic (mode of goodness) Rajasik (mode of passion) and Tamasik (mode of ignorance). This is described as follows in the Bhagwat Geeta namely, (17/1-10)
(Devanāgarī)
So these ordinary men who are influenced by the three modes of Nature, can work out a plan of their sensual pleasure but it is not possible for them to give an authentic interpretations of Bhagwat Geeta as it was spoken by the Personality of Godhead to Bibaswata or Arjuna. The whole thing is received in transcendental submissiveness by aural reception which is not accepted by the mundane wranglers deliberately refusing to approach the bonafide spiritual master who has got the keynote of Bhagwat Geeta. It is therefore stated in the Bhagwat Geeta that one who actually wants to have an access to the essence of Bhagwat Geeta must himself engage in the service of a bonafide spiritual master by full surrender. In that position only one can make bonafide enquiries regarding the Bhagwat Geeta and in that posture only the self realised spiritual masters impregnate the submissive desciple with the knowledge of Geeta because they have already seen the Truth of it.
(Devanāgarī)
Mental speculationists can manufacture wonderful interpretations of Bhagwat Geeta by an intellectual activity but such interpretation cannot be accepted as bonafide because that is not transcendental to the mundane senses neither to the material mind in subtle state. As it is stated in the Bhagwat Geeta such interpretations depending on the mind and senses are sure to be doomed like a boat on the troubled sea. It is said there (2/67-72)
(Devanāgarī)
By these presents it is not however meant that we shall have to accept some body who is a professional spiritual master or a social spiritual master. The transcendentalist is one who has known Sree Krishna as He is. Sree Krishna is never the person Who can be conceived by mental or physical adjustment. He can only be known by those who have full surrender unto Him. He cannot be understood by sense perception because He is behind a curtain spread by Joga Maya. Unless that curtain is removed by the process of transcendental loving co-operation with Him one cannot know Sree Krishna as He is.
(Devanāgarī)
Sree Vyasadeva experienced Sree Bhagavan in the following way (Sanskrit quote).
(Page four.)
This parambhabam or transcendental nature of Sree Krishna the Absolute Personality of Godhead, is unknowable to the unlucky four classes of men as afore said. Some of them who are influenced by asurabhava or demoniac nature specially consider that Sree Krishna is no better than an ordinary man and the extraordinary qualities that He possessed can be acquired by any ordinary man or in other words any one and every one can become a Sree Krishna or more than Him. But the Mahatmas who are graced by Sree Krishna know Him otherwise. Such Mahatmas know Sree Krishna as the Supreme Personality Bhutamaheswaram while the Asuras or Rakshasa like Ravana Hiranyakasipu who defy Sree Krishna as the Supreme Being above everything and thereby are baffled in their speculative work, frustrated in their hopes, befooled in their search of knowledge thus remain entrapped by the illusory laws of material nature which they are unable to conquer by any amount of speculative method. [margin note: Nobody is equal or above Him (Devanāgarī)] These Asuras and Mahatmas are definitely distinguished in the Bhagwat Geeta in so many words namely. 9/12-14.
(Devanāgarī)
The whole purpose of Bhagwat Geeta is to reveal Sree Krishna the Personality of Godhead as He is. The whole theme of Bhagwat Geeta is to preach the surrendering process of all living beings unto the Lotus feet of Sree Krishna, because all living beings are His parts and parcels and without this surrendering process nobody can conquer the indefiable laws of Nature. Material existence of all living being, means a perpetual struggle for existence and a continued fight with Prakriti without any success. [margin note: as done by induction] Advancement of material science has undoubtedly discovered many weapons by the Asuras to fight with the laws of Nature but without full surrender unto the Lord Krishna no body can get relief from such perpetual struggle for existence. The fittest person who shall survive this struggle is one who has completely surrendered unto the Will of Sree Krishna the Personality of Godhead. This fact is stated in the Bhagwat Geeta in the following words namely.- 7/14, 18/65-66 10/8-11.
(Devanāgarī)
There are certain extraordinarily learned prospective Mohatmas Who try to understand Sree Krishna by the ascending process of acquiring knowledge, but such process is not only defective but also troublesome. Such learned scholars attain the Lotus feet of Sree Krishna after many many births and deaths. Such would-be-Mahatmas are stated in the Bhagwat Geeta as follows:- (7/19, 24, 8/21, 22, 9/15, 12/5-7)
(Devanāgarī)
Handwritten:
Preaching of Bhagwat Geeta is not therefore a proposition of mental speculation and putting in different malafide interpretations of speculative empiric philosphers. It is one without a second concrete fact for the amelioration of the sufferings of humanity specially and animality generally. It must be presented in the bonafide method of spreading the knowledge strictly in the line of transcendental chain of disciplic succession.
(Devanāgarī)