Srimad Bhagavad-Gita : Chapter-18, Slokam - 20.

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Saturday, June 11, 2022. 20:30. 

Chapter-18.  Moksha-sannyasa-yogam -20.

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Slokam :

Sarvabhuteshu yenaikam bhavamavyayamikshate |

avibhaktam vibhakteshu tajjnyanam viddhi satvikam || 20 ||

 

Tattvam :

By which one sees a single, imperishable, indivisible entity in all diverse beings, know that knowledge to be satvic.

Understand that knowledge to be in the mode of goodness by which a person sees one undivided imperishable reality within all diverse living beings.

 Translation :

sarvabhuteshu : in all beings

yena : by which

ekam : single

bhavam : entity

avyayam : imperishable

ikshate : one sees

avibhaktam : indivisible

vibhakteshu : diverse

tat : that

jnanam :knowledge

viddhi : know

satvikam : satvic

Commentary

 

Knowledge, the doer and action were introduced in the prior shloka. Shri Krishna now begins the analysis of knowledge. To recap, jnyaanam or knowledge here refers to the meaning given by an individual to information conveyed by the senses and the mind. The view of a large garden, for instance, could be interpreted differently by different people. A nature lover would rush towards it. A city dweller may think of it is a waste of living space. A real estate developer would imagine a resort being built on it, and all the consequent profits that follow from it.

 

Knowledge can be saattvic, raajasic or taamasic, since it is a product of Prakriti or nature. Sattvic knowledge is taken up here. The mind and the senses, by their very nature, report a diverse world. Shri Krishna says that the vision that can see unity within this diversity is called saattvic vision or knowledge. Few people have such a vision, since it is hard to fight against the normal tendency of the mind to chop up the world into fragments. Only someone with a saattvic vision like Mahatma Gandhi, for instance, could rally diverse and antagonistic states towards the idea of a united Indian nation.

 

Ultimately, a sattvic vision of seeing unity in diversity paves the way to understanding that the entire universe is pervaded by one single, imperishable, undivided entity. Initially, this entity is the eternal essence with attributes, the saguna brahman, also known as Ishvara. At the conclusion of the spiritual journey, the understanding evolves to recognize this entity as the nirguna brahman, the pure eternal essence, which is our own self. We can develop such a unified vision, this samyak darshana, through karma yoga. Instead of serving ourselves, we serve our family, then our community, our company, our state, our nation and eventually, Ishvara.

Creation gives the appearance of a panorama of diverse living beings and material entities. But the substratum behind this apparent diversity is the Supreme Lord. Those who possess this vision of knowledge see the unity that exists behind the variety of creation, just as an electrical engineer sees the same electricity flowing through different gadgets, and a goldsmith sees the same gold cast into different ornaments. 

The Śhrīmad Bhāgavatam states:

vadanti tat tattva-vidas tattvaṁ yaj jñānam advayam (1.2.11)[v15]

“Knowers of the truth have stated that there is only one entity in existence, without a second.” Chaitanya Mahaprabhu referred to God, in his form as Shree Krishna, as advaya jñāna tattva [v16] (one without a second, the only thing and everything that exists in creation), on the basis of the following four criteria:

1. Sajātīya bhed śhūnya. (He is one with all similar entities.) Shree Krishna is one with the various other forms of God, such as Ram, Shiv, Vishnu, etc. since these are different manifestations of the one God.

Shree Krishna is also one with the souls, who are his tiny fragmental parts. A fragment is one with its whole, just as flames are one with the fire of which they are tiny parts.

2. Vijātīya bhed śhūnya. (He is one with all dissimilar entities.) Dissimilar to God is Maya, which is insentient, while God is sentient. However, Maya is an energy of God, and energy is one with its energetic, just as the energies of fire—heat and light—are non-different from it.

3. Swagat bhed śhūnya. (The various parts of his body are non-different from him.) The amazing thing about God’s body is that all the parts perform the functions of all the other parts. The Brahma Samhitā states:

aṅgāni yasya sakalendriya-vṛitti-manti paśhyanti pānti kalayanti chiraṁ jaganti (5.32)[v17]

“With every limb of his body, God can see, hear, talk, smell, eat, and think.” Hence, all the limbs of God’s body are non-different from him.

4. Swayam siddha. (He needs the support of no other entity.) Maya and the soul are both dependent upon God for their existence. If he did not energize them, they would cease to exist. On the other hand, God is supremely independent and does not need the support of any other entity for his existence.

The Supreme Lord Shree Krishna satisfies all the four above points, and thus he is the advaya jñāna tattva, in other words, he is everything that exists in creation. With this understanding, when we see the entire creation in its unity with God, it is considered sāttvic knowledge. And love based upon such knowledge is not racial or national, rather it is universal.

To be continued ....

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