The Philosophy of the Bhagavadgita - 4.8. Swami Krishnananda

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21/04/2020.
Chapter 4: The Struggle for the Infinite - 8.

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1.

#We cannot properly appreciate the connection that exists between God and the world, between God and ourselves and between one person and another person. And the whole of metaphysical philosophy is supposed to deal with these supreme principles—God, world and soul—an understanding of whose internal relationship is supposed to be philosophy proper, or ontology, as they call it these days. 

##But these principles elude our grasp because even in our endeavour to grasp the internal relationship among these ultimate principles we commit a basic mistake, an error which worms itself into the very situation of understanding. We remain as justifiable ego-centres, we remain ‘ourselves’, we remain just what we are today. 

###Even a whit of difference does not take place in us, though we are trying to lift ourselves into that status where we can comprehend the cosmic principles that we are discussing in this philosophy. We remain the same Mr. and Mrs., the same boy or girl, the same businessmen, industrialists, thinking of God, world and soul. 

####So our philosophy becomes a jungle of words, a forest of incoherent ideas, tiring and not satisfying, and we get fed up with all philosophy— because we have not been discussing philosophy really, we were justifying our own way or thinking in the name of philosophy and trying to bring down God Himself to this world of our personal egoistic relationships and compelling Him to answer to our needs that are psychological, empirical, relational, whatever they be.

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2.

#We are these Arjunas, and we cannot face this problem of the spirit finally. If we are cast into the fire ordeal of the requirements of true spiritual living, we would be utter failures and we would feel that none of us is fit for that life. 

##We are just go-lucky people with an inward complacence that we are leading a religious life. But religion does not become religion and the spiritual does not become spirituality unless our outlook in respect of the whole of life gets tuned up to the demands of the nature of God and the internal relationship that subsists among God, world and soul. 

###There should be a harmony between our way of thinking today and the essential nature of the internal relationship of God, world and soul, as it is essentially. Though it may not be an utter harmony that we achieve, there should be at least a tendency of our way of thinking towards that requirement of ultimate harmony. Even the first step taken in this direction is a step in the right direction, and is an admirable achievement indeed.

To be continued ....

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