Srimad Bhagavad-Gita : Chapter-18, Slokam -1.

 ================================================================

===============================================================

Tuesday, February 22, 2022. 19:00.

Chapter-18.( "Moksha-Sanyasa-Yogam" )

===============================================================

Slokam-1.

Arjuna uvacha,

"Sannyasasya  mahabaho  tattvam icchami veditum,

tyagasya   ca   hrsikesa  prthak   kesini sudana."

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Translation of Slokam :

 Arjuna said, 

"O Lord, I wish to understand the purpose of renunciation [tyaga] and of the renounced order of life [sannyasa]." 

Arjuna said : O mighty-armed Krishna, I wish to understand the nature of sanyās (renunciation of actions) and tyāg (renunciation of desire for the fruits of actions). O Hrishikesh, I also wish to know the distinction between the two, O Keshini Sudan.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Translation :

Arjunaḥ uvācha—Arjun said; 

sanyāsasya—of renunciation of actions; 

mahā-bāho—mighty-armed one; 

tattvam—the truth;

ichchhāmi—I wish; 

veditum—to understand; 

tyāgasya—of renunciation of desires for enjoying the fruits of actions; 

cha—and; 

hṛiṣhīkeśha—Krishna, the Lord of the senses; 

pṛithak—difference; 

keśhī-niṣhūdana—Krishna, the killer of the Keshi demon

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Arjuna uvacha  =  Arjuna said;

Mahabaho   hrshikesa  kesinishudana  =  O Lord!

sannyasasya  tyagasya   ca  =  about  sanyasa ( renunciation )  and  of  tyagasya  ( sacrifice / giving / renounce  everything  for  others);

tattvam   prthak  veditum  =  to  understand  and   differentiate    truth  and  meaning   of;

icchami  =  I wish. 

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Commentary :

Actually the Bhagavad-gita is finished in seventeen chapters. 

The Eighteenth Chapter is a supplementary summarization of the topics discussed before. 

In every chapter of Bhagavad-gita, Lord Krishna stresses that devotional service unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead is the ultimate goal of life. 

This same point is summarized in the Eighteenth Chapter as the most confidential path of knowledge. 

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In the first six chapters, stress was given to devotional service :-

"yoginam api sarvesam... "

"Of all yogis or transcendentalists, one who always thinks of Me within himself is best." 

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In the next six chapters, pure devotional service and its nature and activity were discussed. 

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In the third six chapters, knowledge, renunciation, the activities of material nature and transcendental nature, and devotional service were described. 

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was concluded that all acts should be performed in conjunction with the Supreme Lord, summarized by the words om tat sat, which indicate Vishnu, the Supreme Person. 

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In the third part of Bhagavad-gita, devotional service was established by the example of past Acharyas and the Brahma-sutra, the Vedanta-sutra, which cites that devotional service is the ultimate purpose of life and nothing else. 

Certain impersonalists consider themselves monopolizers of the knowledge of Vedanta-sutra, but actually the Vedanta-sutra is meant for understanding devotional service, for the Lord Himself is the composer of the Vedanta-sutra, and He is its knower. 

That is described in the Fifteenth Chapter. In every scripture, every Veda, devotional service is the objective. 

That is explained in Bhagavad-gita :-

As in the Second Chapter a synopsis of the whole subject matter was described, similarly, in the Eighteenth Chapter also the summary of all instruction is given. 

The purpose of life is indicated to be renunciation and attainment of the transcendental position above the three material modes of nature. 

Arjuna wants to clarify the two distinct subject matters of Bhagavad-gita, namely renunciation (tyaga) and the renounced order of life (sannyasa). 

Thus he is asking the meaning of these two words.

Two words used in this  slokam  to address the Supreme Lord-Hrshikesa and Kesinisudana-are significant. 

Hrshikesa is Krishna, the master of all senses, who can always help us attain mental serenity. 

Arjuna requests Him to summarize everything in such a way that he can remain equiposed. 

Yet he has some doubts, and doubts are always compared to demons.

 He therefore addresses Krishna as Kesinisudana. 

Kesi was a most formidable demon who was killed by the Lord; now Arjuna is expecting Krishna to kill the demon of doubt.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

SUM :

Arjuna addresses Shree Krishna as “Keshi-nisudan,” meaning “killer of the Keshi demon.” In his divine pastimes on the earth, Lord Krishna had killed a furious and violent demon called Keshi, who had taken the form of a mad horse and created havoc in the land of Braj. Doubt is also like an untamed horse that runs wild in the mind and destroys the garden of devotion.

 Arjun indicates, “Just as you slayed the Keshi demon, please slay the demon of doubt in my mind.” His question is penetrating and poignant. He wishes to know the nature of sanyās, which means “renunciation of actions.” He also wishes to know the nature of tyāg, which means “renunciation of desires for enjoying the fruits of actions.” 

Further, he uses the word pṛithak, meaning difference; he wishes to understand the distinction between the two terms. Arjun also refers to Shree Krishna as Hrishikesh, meaning “master of the senses.” Arjuna’s goal is to accomplish the greatest of conquests, which is to subdue the mind and the senses. It is this conquest that can bestow the state of perfect peace. And the Supreme Lord Shree Krishna, as the Master of the senses, himself embodies this state of perfection.

This topic had been explained in the previous chapters as well. Shree Krishna had talked about sanyās in slokas 5.13 and 9.28, and about tyāg in slokas 4.20 and 12.11, but he explains it here from another angle. The same truth permits itself to be presented from a variety of perspectives and each perspective provides its own unique appeal. 

For example, various sections of a garden leave differing impressions on the viewer’s mind, while the entire garden creates yet another impression. The Bhagavad Gita is very much like this. Each chapter is designated as a particular Yog, while the eighteenth chapter is considered the synopsis. 

In this chapter, Sri Krishna briefly summarizes the perennial principles and eternal truths that were presented in the previous seventeen chapters and establishes the collective conclusion of all of them. After discussing the topics of renunciation and detachment, he goes on to explain the natures of the three guṇas and how they affect people’s natural propensities for work. 

He reiterates that the mode of goodness is the only mode worthy of cultivation. He then concludes that bhakti, or exclusive loving devotion to the Supreme Lord is the paramount duty, and its attainment is the goal of human life.

To be continued.....

================================================================