Commentary on the Bhagavadgita : 2 - Swami Krishnananda

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Thursday, November 11, 2021. 7:00.PM

Commentary on the Bhagavadgita

Discourse 40

The Thirteenth Chapter Concludes – Understanding Purusha and Prakriti

POST-2.

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The Slokam that follows is controversial. 

Ch-13, Slokam-19.

"iti kshetram tatha jnanam jneyam choktam samasatah

mad-bhakta etad vijnaya mad-bhavayopapadyate."

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Translation :

iti—thus; 

kṣhetram—the nature of the field; 

tathā—and; 

jñānam—the meaning of knowledge; 

jñeyam—the object of knowledge; 

cha—and; 

uktam—revealed; 

samāsataḥ—in summary; 

mat-bhaktaḥ—My devotee; 

etat—this; 

vijñāya—having understood; 

mat-bhāvāya—My divine nature; 

upapadyate—attain.

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Translation :

BG 13.19: "I have thus revealed to you the nature of the field, the meaning of knowledge, and the object of knowledge. Only My devotees can understand this in reality, and by doing so, they attain My divine "

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Commentary :

Shree Krishna now concludes His description of the field and the object of knowledge, by mentioning the fruit of knowing this topic.  However, once again, He deems it fit to bring in devotion, and says that only the bhaktas (devotees) can truly understand this knowledge.  Those who practice karm, jñāna, aṣhṭāṅg, etc. devoid of bhakti cannot truly understand the import of the Bhagavad Gita, even though they themselves may think that they do.  Bhakti is the essential ingredient in all paths leading to knowledge of God. 

Jagadguru Shree Kripaluji Maharaj puts this very nicely:

jo hari sevā hetu ho, soī karm bakhāna

jo hari bhagati baṛhāve, soī samujhiya jñāna   (Bhakti Śhatak 66) 

“That work which is done in devotion to God is the real karm; and that knowledge which increases love for God is real knowledge.” 

Devotion not only helps us to know God, it also makes the devotee godlike, and hence, Shree Krishna states that the devotees attain His nature.  This has been emphasized in the Vedic scriptures again and again.  The Vedas state:

bhaktirevainaṁ nayati bhaktirevainaṁ paśhyati bhaktirevainaṁ darśhayati bhakti vaśhaḥ puruṣho bhaktireva bhūyasī  (Māṭhar Śhruti)

“Bhakti alone can lead us to God.  Bhakti alone can make us see God.  Bhakti alone can bring us in the presence of God.  God is under the control of bhakti.  Hence, do bhakti exclusively.”  Again the Muṇḍakopaniṣhad states:

upāsate puruṣhaṁ ye hyakāmā-

ste śhukrametadativartanti dhīrāḥ   (3.2.1)

“Those who engage in bhakti toward the Supreme Divine Personality, giving up all material desires, escape the cycle of life and death.”  Yet again, the Śhwetāśhvatar Upaniṣhad states:

yasya deve parā bhaktiryathā deve tathā gurau

tasyaite kathitā hyarthā prakāśhante mahātmanaḥ   (6.23)

“Those who have unflinching bhakti toward God and identical bhakti toward the Guru, in the hearts of such saintly persons, by the grace of God the imports of the Vedic scriptures are automatically revealed.”  The other Vedic Scriptures also reiterate this emphatically:

na sādhayati māṁ yogo na sānkhyaṁ dharma uddhava

na svādhyāyas tapas tyāgo yathā bhaktir mamorjitā   (Bhagavatam 11.14.20)

Shree Krishna states: “Uddhav, I am not attained by aṣhṭāṅg-yog, by the study of sānkhya, cultivation of scriptural knowledge, austerities, nor by renunciation.  It is by bhakti alone that I am won over.”  In the Bhagavad Gita, Shree Krishna repeatedly states this, in verses 8.22, 11.54, etc.  In verse 18.55, He says:  “Only by loving devotion does one come to know who I am in truth.  Then, having come to know My personality through devotion, one enters My divine realm.”  The Ramayan also says:

rāmahi kevala premu piārā, jāni leu jo jānanihārā.

“The Supreme Lord Ram is only attained through love.  Let this truth be known by all who care to know.”  Actually, this principle is emphasized in the other religious traditions as well.  In the Jewish Torah it is written: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might (Deuteronomy 6.5).  Jesus of Nazareth repeats this commandment in the Christian New Testament as one of the first and foremost commandments to follow (Mark 12.30)  

 The Guru Granth Sahib states:

hari sama jaga mahañ vastu nahiṅ, prem panth soñ pantha

sadguru sama sajjan nahīñ, gītā sama nahiñ grantha

“There is no personality like God; there is no path equal to the path of devotion; there is no human equal to the Guru; and there is no scripture that can compare with the Gita.”

The literal translation of this verse is: Know that prakriti and purusha are beginningless, and their modifications and their qualities originate, manifest, from prakriti.

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The doctrine of the classical Sankhya says that prakriti and purusha are beginningless and infinite in their nature. They cannot merge into each other. The doctrine of the Bhagavadgita does not regard prakriti and purusha as totally independent contending parties; and that they are aspects of the Supreme Purusha, or Purushottama, will be told to us in the Fifteenth Chapter. While commenting on the meaning of this verse, Sankaracharya does not seem to be very eager to say anything specific to clear our doubts. He simply says that prakriti and purusha should be there always to limit the operation of God; otherwise, there will be an infinite operation of God. He does not feel that there is any meaning in an infinite operation because creation would be perpetually going on and never come to an end, inasmuch as God is infinite; therefore, there would be only creation for ever and ever. There would be no cessation for action proceeding from that which is there always. But creation is a limited manifestation. We cannot say that the world is infinite, or even that the universe is infinite. “The limitation required for the manifestation of a universe calls for the limiting principles of prakriti and purusha.” Saying this much, Sankaracharya keeps quiet.

Regarding this commentary, I feel that there is some difficulty in entirely accepting what Sankaracharya says, because it implies that God does not properly understand what creation is; therefore He requires a police guard to restrain Him so that He may not go on creating infinitely. That meaning does not seem to be applicable, and it is not satisfying. Others feel that the point made out here that prakriti and purusha are beginningless should be taken in the sense of the infinity of God's powers. In the West, there was a philosopher called Spinoza. Just as the transcending principle is referred to as Purushottama in the Fifteenth Chapter of the Gita, Spinoza uses the word ‘substance' to designate the Absolute Reality; and the qualities of this substance are like the two wings of a bird. Space and time, extension and duration, are regarded as the operative media of this Supreme Substance. If we are to take the verses that come in the Fifteenth Chapter literally, it is possible to consider purusha as akshara and prakriti as kshara, and Purushottama transcends both kshara and akshara. I am not going into that subject now. It comes in the Fifteenth Chapter.

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To be continued ......

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