Bhagavad Gita Chapter 18

INTRODUCTION TO BHAGAVAD GĪTĀ: SONG OF GOD

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As with all scriptures, it is the knowledge and experience that is transmitted verbally as Śrī Kṛṣṇārjuna Saṃvād, an intimate dialogue between Master of the world, Jagadguru Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa and His dear devotee and disciple, Arjuna. It is called śruti in Saṃskṛt, meaning something that is heard.

Gītā, as Bhagavad Gītā is generally called, translates literally from Saṃskṛt as ‘Sacred Song of God’. Unlike the Vedas and Upaniṣads, which are stand alone expressions of Truth, the Gītā is written into the greatest Hindu epic, the Mahābhārat, called a purāṇa, an ancient historical happening. It is part of the recorded history of the greatest tradition, the paramount civilization in all its Divine grandeur and its human complexity, so to speak.

No other epic or part of an epic has the special status and space of the Gītā. No other book but the Gītā gives a scientific, systematic, applied science of living joyfully in completion, while empowering the human action-field with authenticity to evolve into a responsible Divine play-field.

INTRODUCTION TO BHAGAVAD GĪTĀ: SONG OF GOD

Called the royal supreme knowledge
and the royal secret of secrets—
rājavidyā rājaguhyaṃ (9.2), this one
sacred book conveys the essence of
knowledge contained in all written and
oral vedic truths to enrich the simplest
to complex humans at all planes. It
holds within itself the direct key to
every possible human enquiry, the
solution to every dilemma of emotions,
and the sublime righteous path and
goal of every quest of rising or falling
civilizations for every age, time or
geography. As a consequence of the
presence of the Gītā, the Mahābhārat
epic itself is considered a sacred Hindu
scripture.

INTRODUCTION TO BHAGAVAD GITA: SONG OF GOD

Gītā arose from the super consciousness of Śri Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme God, the complete Incarnation Purṇāvatār, and is therefore considered Gītāśastra—the essential scripture, knowing which, one is liberated from all incompletions, yaj jñātvā mokṣyase asubhāt (9.1) and Gītopaniṣad—the essence of all Upaniṣads, the purest and highest knowledge to be ever known and cognized because it gives the direct experience of the Self—pavitram idam uttamam pratyakṣāvagaṃ dharmyaṃ (9.2).

INTRODUCTION TO BHAGAVAD GITA: SONG OF GOD

Gītā is the ultimate practical teaching on the inner science of spirituality that expresses as outer victory and success in life now and after. It is not, as some scholars incorrectly claim, a promotion of violence. It is about the impermanence of the mind and body, and the need to go beyond the mind, ego and logic.

The answers of the Divine, Śrī Kṛṣṇa, transcend time and space. Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s message is everlasting and joyfully performed, and is as valid today as it was on that fateful battlefield over five thousand years ago. The science of Gītā is the eternal technique of living in completion; the song of Gītā is the eternal life-enriching nectar, having no expiry date, time or age!

WHAT HAPPENED DURING THE MAHABHARATA?

Mahābhārat, literally meaning the great Bhārata, is a grand narration about the nation and civilization, which is now known as India. It was then a nation ruled by king Bhārata and his descendants.

Look into your life! Your whole life is nothing but the Mahābhārat War. The Mahābharāt should be read again and again to understand the intricacies of life, the complications of life, and the ability to handle life. The true story of this perfectly recorded epic is about two warring clans, Kauravas and Pāṇḍavas, closely related to one another. Dhṛtarāṣṭra, the blind king of Hastināpur and father of the 100 Kaurava brothers was the brother of Pāṇḍu, whose children were the five Pāṇḍava princes. It is a tale of strife between cousins and ultimately between dhārmic and adhārmic, righteous and unrighteous civilizations.

WHAT HAPPENED

DURING THE

MAHABHARATA?

Since Dhṛtarāṣṭra was blind, Pāṇḍu
was made the king of Hastināpura.
Pāṇḍu was cursed by a sage that he
would die if he ever entered into a
physical relationship with his wives.

He therefore had no children.
Vyāsa says that all the five Pāṇḍava
children were born to their mothers
Kuntī and Mādrī through the
blessing of divine beings. Pāṇḍu
handed over the kingdom and his
children to his blind brother.

WHAT HAPPENED DURING THE MAHABHARATA?

Kuntī, who is the embodiment of tapas,
spiritual penance, had received a boon
when she was still a young unmarried
adolescent, that she could summon any
divine power at will to father a child.
Before she married, she tested her boon.
The Sun god, Sūrya appeared before her.

Karṇa was born to her as a result. In fear of social reprisals, she cast the newborn away in a river. Yudhiṣṭra, Bhīma and Arjuna were born to Kuntī after her marriage by invocation of her powers, and the twins Nakula and Sahadeva were born to Mādri, the second wife of Pāṇḍu.

Illustration of the battlefield of Kurukshetra

WHAT HAPPENED DURING THE MAHABHARATA?

Yudhiṣṭra was born to Kuntī as a result of her being blessed by Yama, the god of death, dharma and justice, Bhīma by Vāyu, the god of wind, and Arjuna by Indra, god of all the divine beings. Nakula and Sahadeva, the youngest Pāṇḍava twins, were born to Mādri, through the Divine Aśvini twins.

Dhṛtarāṣṭra had a hundred sons through his wife Gāndhārī. The eldest of these Kaurava princes was Duryodhana. Duryodhana felt no love for his five Pāṇḍava cousins. He made many unsuccessful attempts, along with his brother Duśśāsana, to kill the Pāṇḍava brothers. Kuntī's eldest son Karṇa, whom she had cast away at birth, was found and brought up by a chariot driver in the palace, and by a strange twist of fate, joined hands with Duryodhana.

WHAT HAPPENED

DURING THE MAHABHARATA?

Dhṛtarāṣṭra gave Yudhiṣṭra one
half of the Kuru kingdom on his
coming of age, since the Pāṇḍava
prince was the rightful heir to the
throne that his father Pāṇḍu had
vacated.

Yudhiṣṭra ruled from his new
capital Indraprastha, along with
his brothers Bhīma, Arjuna,
Nakula and Sahadeva.

Arjuna won the hand of princess
Draupadī, daughter of the king of
Pāñcāla, in a svayaṃvara, a marital
contest in which princes fought
for the hand of a fair damsel.

WHAT HAPPENED DURING THE MAHABHARATA?

In fulfillment of their mother Kuntī's desire that the brothers share everything equally, Draupadī became the wife of all five Pāṇḍava brothers. Duryodhana persuaded Yudhiṣṭra to join a gambling session, where his cunning uncle Śakunī defeated the Pāṇḍava king.

Yudhiṣṭra lost all that he owned—his
kingdom, his brothers, his wife and
himself, to Duryodhana. Duśśāsana
shamed Draupadī in public by trying to
disrobe her. The Pāṇḍava brothers and
Draupadī were forced to go into exile
for fourteen years, with the condition
that in the last year they should live
incognito or ajyāta vāsa.

A painting of a young man with religious markings and jewelry, accompanied by two dice

WHAT HAPPENED DURING THE MAHABHARATA?

At the end of the fourteen
years, the Pāṇḍava
brothers tried to reclaim
their kingdom. In this
effort they were helped by
Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the king of the
Yādava clan, who is the
eighth divine incarnation
of Bhagavān Viṣṇu.

However, Duryodhana
refused to yield even a
needlepoint of land, and
as a result, the Great War,
the War of Mahābhārat
ensued. In this war,
various rulers of the entire
nation that is modern
India aligned with one or
the other of these two
clans, the Kauravas or the
Pāṇḍavas.

Kṛṣṇa offered to join with either of
the two clans. He says, ‘One of you
may have Me unarmed. I will not
take any part in the battle. The
other may have my entire Yādava
army.’

When the offer was first made to
Duryodhana, he predictably chose
the large and well-armed Yādava
army, Nārāyaṇī Senā, in preference
to the unarmed Kṛṣṇa.

Arjuna joyfully and gratefully chose
his dearest friend, his life mentor
and his Guru, Kṛṣṇa, Nārāyaṇa, to
be his unarmed charioteer!

THE SIGNIFICANCE

OF MAHABHARAT

This whole history is such a beautiful
happening. Mahābhārat is actually your
life! Every character in the Mahābhārat
teaches so much! We don't need to go
anywhere for our life success or
fulfillment or for anything else that we
may desire. We don't need to study any
other book to learn the human
psychology or the science of living and
leaving. Whether we seek righteous
living—dharma; or we want to learn
business or administration, economy or
abundance—artha; or we want to create
the best rich lifestyle—kāma; or we
want to be a leader and want the
enriching life of being enlightened—
mokṣa, for all these purposes,
we don't need anything other than the
Mahābhārat!

Study each character. We will not find any more characters in our life than the characters described in the Mahābhārāt!

Any character we see in our life is mapped to Mahābhārāt’s one character. They are either half or full representation of some character.

To know how to handle them and even handle yourself, just see how Śrī Kṛṣṇa handles them and handle them the same way. The Mahābhārāt war is a representation of life as it was lived in that age.

Vyāsa, its author is an unbiased historian who recorded the whole history as it happened without trying to apply any makeup. People ask whether the Mahābhārāt war happened at all!

Illustration of mountains rising from an open book

THE SIGNIFICANCE OF MAHABHARAT

If the Mahābhārāt was a story and not history, Vyāsa should receive multiple Pulitzer prizes for his highly creative work! The Mahābhārāt is the longest literary work in the whole world with hundred thousand Saṃskṛit verses—the longest poem ever written with such delicate harmony of unmatched poetic perfection. It is larger than the Greek epics. Vyāsa had no computer, no tape recorder with speech-to-text capabilities. He dictated and Bhagavān Ganeṣa wrote it down!

CHARACTER SKETCH

❖ Yudhiṣṭra is embodiment of Integrity— the power of words, vāk śakti.

❖ Bhīma is embodiment of Authenticity— the power of thoughts, mano śakti.

❖ Arjuna is embodiment of
Responsibility—the power of feeling,
prema śakti.

❖ Sahadeva is embodiment of Enriching— the power of living, ātma śakti.

❖ Nakula is embodiment of causing reality for others.

CHARACTER SKETCH

❖ Śakuni, the maternal uncle of
Duryodhana embodies the pattern
of self-hatred, which is cunningness
personified.

❖ Droṇa represents all the best knowledge one imbibes and the teachers one encounters, who guide us but are unable to take us through to the ultimate flowering of enlightenment. It is difficult to give them up since one feels grateful to them. This is where the Enlightened Master, the incarnation steps in and guides us.

❖ Duryodhana, represents one’s ego or
root-pattern, the most difficult to
conquer as it leads one to self-
destruction. One needs the full help
of the Master here. It is subtle work
and even the Master’s help may not be
obvious, since at this point, sometimes
the ego makes us deny and disconnect
from the Master as well.

CHARACTER SKETCH

❖ Karṇa is the repository of all good deeds and it is his good deeds that stand in the way of his own Enlightenment. Śrī Kṛṣṇa has to take the load of Karṇa’s punya, his meritorious deeds, before he could be liberated. The Enlightened Master guides one to drop one’s attachment to good deeds arising out of what are perceived to be charitable and compassionate intentions. He also shows us that the quest for and the experience of enlightenment is the ultimate act of compassion that one can offer to the world.

❖ Bhagavan Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the 8th most powerful purnāvatar of Mahā Viśnu, is the embodiment of pure celebration, boundless love, compassion, and completion. Bhagavan Śrī Kṛṣṇa is the only incarnation demonstrating and expressing Śarva Mangalatva all the auspicious qualities and all dimensions of an avatar during His physical happening. The līla Bhagavan Śrī Kṛṣna is one of sheer innocence and simplicity, in a peace-loving, diplomatic, conflict-free way.

Till now everyone blames Bhagavan Sri Krishna for this Kurukshetra war but that’s the greatest sacrifice Bhagavan Sri Krishna did to save the planet Earth. If Kurukshetra was not conducted at that time under the controlled conditions and direct supervision of Bhagavan Sri Krishna, planet Earth would not have survived more than three years.

The wide spread availability of the Astra shastras without Shastra, without the knowledge and vision, was posing a huge threat to the whole of humanity and planet Earth, and for life itself. The greatest achievement of Bhagavan Sri Krishna is destroying all the weapons in one controlled condition and saving planet earth, eliminating the nuclear weapons and the knowledge of these nuclear weapons to save humanity from total annihilation.

A stylized illustration of an open book on a wooden book stand with sparkles emanating from it

Bhagavad Gītā appears in the heart of Mahābhārat in Bhīṣma Parva, the sixth chapter of its eighteen chapters. Veda Vyāsa, the narrator, in glorifying the Gītā sings, ‘the one who drinks the water of Ganges (the sacred river for Hindus) attains liberation, what to speak of the one who drinks the nectar of Gītā?

Gītā is the essential nectar of the Mahābhārat, bhāratamṛta sarvasvam as it is directly spoken by Nārāyaṇa, Bhagavān kṛṣṇa Himself.’

A warrior on a horse holding a spear against a glowing background

The armies assembled in the vast field of Kurukṣetra, now in the state of Haryana in modern day India. All the kings and princes were related to one another, and were often on opposite sides. Facing the Kaurava army and his friends, relatives and teachers, Arjuna was overcome by remorse and guilt, and wanted to walk away from the battle out of total powerlessness unbecoming an invincible warrior among warriors.

Śrī Kṛṣṇa's dialogue with Arjuna on the battlefield of Kurukṣetra out of His utmost concern and love for him and humanity is the content of Bhagavad Gītā. Of its seven hundred and forty-five (745) verses, Bhagavān Śrī Kṛṣṇa sings the Gītā in six hundred and twenty (620) verses responding to Arjuna's fifty-seven (57) enquiries.

Śrī Kṛṣṇa persuades Arjuna to give-up his powerlessness unfitting an Ārya—the spiritually evolved one who understands human life and urges him to raise himself again as Parantapa—the conqueror of enemy, and take up arms and vanquish his enemies. They are already dead,' says Śrī Kṛṣṇa, 'All those who are facing you have been already killed by Me. Go ahead and do what you have to do. That is your responsibility. Do not worry about the outcome. Leave that to Me.'

Illustration of young Krishna with peacock feathers

18.63

इति ते ज्ञानमाख्यातं गुह्याद्गुह्यतरं मया ।

विमृश्यैतदशेषेण यथेच्छसि तथा कुरु
॥ १८=६३ ॥

iti te jñānamākhyātaṁ guhyād
guhyataraṁ mayā vimṛśyai tadaśeṣeṇa
yathecchasi tathā kuru

I have explained the knowledge that is
the secret of secrets. After fully
reflecting on this, do as you wish.

POWERFUL COGNITION

Spirituality is the creation of enlightened Masters who live in the energy of the Divine with total completion.

18.64

सर्वगुह्यतमं भूयः शृणु मे परमं वचः ।
इष्टोऽसि मे दृढमिति ततो वक्ष्यामि ते हितम्
॥१८-६४॥

sarva-guhyatamaṁ bhūyaḥ śṛṇu me
paramaṁ vacaḥ iṣṭo ‘si me dṛḍhamiti
tato vakṣyāmi te hitam

Because you are My dear friend, I
express this truth to you. This is the
most confidential of all knowledge.
Hear this from Me. It is for your
benefit.

POWERFUL COGNITION

I shall be your savior, says Kṛṣṇa.

18.65

मन्मना भव मद्भक्तो मद्याजी मां नमस्कुरु ।
मामेवैष्यसि सत्यं ते प्रतिजाने प्रियोऽसि मे
॥ १८=६५॥

manmanā bhava madbhakto madyājī
māṁ namaskuru māmevaiṣyasi satyaṁ te
pratijāne priyo ‘si me

Always think of Me and become My
devotee. Worship Me and offer your
homage unto Me. Thus you will
certainly attain to Me. This I promise
you because you are My very dear
friend.

POWERFUL COGNITION

He is available to us all the time, whenever we call Him.

18.66

सर्वधर्मान्परित्यज्य मामेकं शरणं व्रज ।
अहं त्वा सर्वपापेभ्यो मोक्षयिष्यामि मा शुचः
॥ १८-६६ ॥

sarvadharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ
śaraṇaṁ vraja ahaṁ tvāṁ sarvapāpebhyo
mokṣayiṣyāmi mā śucaḥ

Abandon all principles and concepts of
right conduct and simply surrender unto
Me. I shall deliver you from all sinful
reaction. Have no worry.

POWERFUL COGNITION

He is always available to everybody on planet Earth.

Kṛṣṇa SHOWERS
HIMSELF ON ARJUNA,
WAKING HIM UP TO
THE EXPERIENCE OF
THE WHOLE.

What powerful words! Only the
Divine can speak these words of
absolute authority. Now He comes
to the ultimate teaching. This is
the essence of all His teachings,
the quintessence of Bhagavad
Gītā. He wakes up Arjuna with
this verse and puts him into Kṛṣṇa
consciousness, the Eternal
consciousness or Enlightenment.
Kṛṣṇa showers Himself on Arjuna,
waking him up to the experience
of the Whole.

He says, ‘Give up everything,
whatever you know as dharma, the
rules and regulations of the outer
life and of the inner life. Drop
everything that you know and
surrender unto Me. I shall liberate
you from everything. Do not fear.’
Kṛṣṇa gives him abhaya, complete
protection.

He liberates Arjuna with these
words. He gives the ultimate
experience to Arjuna. With this
verse, Kṛṣṇa makes Arjuna drop
everything and liberates him.

He gives him a conscious experience of the ocean. He asks Arjuna to drop his ideas about being a separate bubble, relax and realize the truth. Even the idea of the ocean or of God are simply our ideas. Kṛṣṇa makes Arjuna drop those ideas and makes him explode into Kṛṣṇa consciousness, the eternal consciousness. Now Kṛṣṇa enters into the actual experience.

Kṛṣṇa liberates Arjuna and gives him the ultimate experience permanently. We cannot call him Arjuna any longer because he has become Kṛṣṇa. He has achieved Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Now only Kṛṣṇa exists. As long as Kṛṣṇa and Arjuna existed, there were two entities. But now that they have become one, neither exists. There is no name for it. It is only energy.

Forget about dharma, the codes of conduct laid down by religions, and turn to Me. I shall be your savior, says Kṛṣṇa.

Misquote and misuse these words. You will do yourself the greatest disservice. The Divine does not care whether you are good or evil. The Divine does not care whether you are a saint or sinner. A saint and a sinner, a celibate monk and a prostitute have equal chances of reaching the Divine. This is the truth.

When you come close to the Divine, the energy transforms you. Negativities will be dissolved. Root patterns will be completed. They will be burnt and you will be pure as you were at birth.

Illustration of Lord Krishna playing the flute

Religion is the creation of men. Spirituality is the creation of enlightened Masters who live in the energy of the Divine with total completion. Kṛṣṇa, Śiva, Buddha, Mahāvira and Jesus are Enlightened Masters. They related to no religion. The followers who interpreted them to the best or worst of their understanding created religions. The followers established dharma, the codes of righteous conduct. No God or Master is interested in coming down to tell you how you should behave. They tell you to be in the space of completion and that will put you on the right path to live advaita, the space of non-duality.

Thus, Kṛṣṇa says with absolute conviction and authority: Forget all codes of conduct, give up all religions and come to Me with completion. This is your enlightenment.

Śrī Kṛṣṇa is triguṇa rahita: beyond the attributes of nature and kārmic influence. Merging with Him, surrendering to Him takes you beyond all kārmic bondages. If you understand this verse and act accordingly, you will be liberated. That is Kṛṣṇa’s promise.

GOALS:

Helping students
experience intense prayer.
Helping students merge
with Śrī Kṛṣṇa.

Portrait of a smiling young man with traditional markings on his forehead

ASSESSMENTS

What is Kṛṣṇa telling Arjuna here?

What is Kṛṣṇa giving Arjuna when He says, ‘Give up everything, whatever you know as dharma, the rules and regulations of the outer life and of the inner life. Drop everything that you know and surrender unto Me. I shall liberate you from everything. Do not fear.’?

.What happens when you come close to the Divine?

What does “Śrī Kṛṣṇa is triguṇa rahita” mean?

To whom is Śrī Kṛṣṇa available?

ART OF THE DAY

ART OF THE DAY:

PRANA PRATISHTHA

MATERIALS NEEDED:

Clay Bowl of water

Paper to wipe your hands

Small plate each for the finished clay

Video of Swamiji making Ganesha: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VuZeWckRFZk

PROCEDURE

❖ Ensure children are using the clay on a surface that can easily be cleaned. Tell the children they will be giving life to deities, starting with Ganesha (Swamiji told to always start with Ganesha).

ART OF THE DAY:

PRANA PRATISHTHA

PROCEDURE

❖ Tell children to connect to their Ananda Ganda and to consciously visualize Ganesha. Then tell them to give life form to Ganesha through the clay.

❖ Then tell the students to go through the same conscious process but this time, to give life to Kṛṣṇa through the clay. Play Swamiji’s video of Swamiji making Ganesha while the children are giving life to deities.

INFERENCE

ACTIVITY OF THE DAY

ACTIVITY OF THE DAY: INTENSE PRAYER

MATERIALS NEEDED ❖ No material needed.

PROCEDURE: Give the following instructions to the students (taken from the chapter): Take a few moments now to pray to Parabrahma Kṛṣṇa, the universal Kṛṣṇa, who showered enlightenment on Arjuna and gave him the ultimate experience. Pray that He may shower the same experience on us or give us a glimpse of the ultimate Truth. Take a few moments to pray.

Please close your eyes and pray intensely to Him.

ACTIVITY OF THE DAY: INTENSE PRAYER

PROCEDURE: The deities in the temples are called arcāvatār. That means ‘incarnation of the Divine’. He is available to us all the time, whenever we call Him. Close your eyes and pray intensely to Him to shower us with the same experience He showered on Arjuna.

ACTIVITY OF THE DAY: INTENSE PRAYER

INFERENCE Do not think that He is unavailable now. He is always available to everybody on planet Earth. He may not have the body, but He is available in the form of energy.

Portrait of Nithyananda Paramashivam surrounded by feathers

WORKSHOP OF THE DAY

WORKSHOP OF THE DAY:

VAAKYARTHA SADHAS

THE LIFE OF ENLIGHTENED MASTERS

Start a discussion about: Who are

enlightened Masters, how do they

live, how can surrendering to Śrī

Kṛṣṇa take you beyond all kārmic

bondages?

WORKSHOP OF THE DAY:

VAAKYARTHA SADHAS THE LIFE OF ENLIGHTENED MASTERS

Then ask the student to write a
short essay about a dimension of
Kṛṣṇa’s life that they strongly
connect to and what it has taught
them. Once they are done writing,
ask them to present in front of
others.

WORKSHOP OF THE DAY:
VAAKYARTHA SADHAS
THE LIFE OF ENLIGHTENED MASTERS

CONCLUSION
Śrī Kṛṣṇa is triguṇa rahita: beyond the
attributes of nature and kārmic
influence. Merging with Him,
surrendering to Him takes you beyond
all kārmic bondages.