GITA 7.5

GITA 7.5

Sri Saranayaki Thaya

The Lord tries so many methods to guide us in the right path. As Swami Bhattar says, whenever a good person is found Sri Saranayaki approves the creation of the Lord. The Lord also creates to please Her. If Her merciful and divine eyes do not see this world, it will be reduced to a desert. But with Her glance on us, the world is as fresh as a flower. Today's [ 13th March 2008] lecture is from the sannidhi of Sri Saranayaki Thayar. Entire auspiciousness of the Universe and the Motherly affection are aplenty, as we worship Her. It is our great fortune to visit and worship Thayar here. The Lord is waiting for Her approval to bless anyone. An Unique feature of this Kshetram is that the Lord appears with Five Consorts. Sri Krishna, in the last sloka, mentioned that it is rarest among rares to find a true Bhaktha of Him. Out of millions of people, only very few understand what Vedas, Puranas, Ithihasa and Shastras say and try to follow. In such a category of persons only one in a thousand, try to reach till the end. One in thousand among them truly understand Sri Krishna. Normally people go to temple for some gratification. While it might be justified once in a way, we can not pray only for such material benefits. It is, therefore, very rare to see a person praying only for the pleasure of being with the Lord. The Lord can grant anything in bountiful, and so people mostly come to Him for material requirements. Some come for atman sakshatkaram or Kaivalyam. But it is very rare for persons to seek Him alone. We should aspire for Him and that also through prayer to Him. He alone can grant Him and we also should not seek some others to get Him. We should practiceBhakti by praying Him to grant Him. He is the upayam or means and He is the destination. There are atheists and agnostics. Believers in God is the second stage. Believing that God can grant anything is the third stage. Trusting He can grant Himself is the next stage. Finally, firmly believing that He alone has to be approached to grant Himself, is the last stage and therefore, the Lord says it is rare to see such persons. Now we have to see the 4th sloka. THIS REQUIRES RAPT ATTENTION AS THE LORD IS GOING TO TELL VERY IMPORTANT CONCEPTS. From the 4th sloka to 12th sloka, Sri Krishna is going to tell all His greatness. Considering His greatness we, even Brahma, are like pebbles before Himalayas; like a pond before an Ocean. To understand this difference the Lord says Chit and Achit are His properties. In the sloka 4, He says all Achit entities are His. By 5th sloka, He claims that all Chit are His. Entire Universe is His property. In the beginning itself it was told that there are three tatvas. Tatva means entity or the real matter. They areBhokta, Bhogyam and Preritha according to Upanishads. Whatever we see or feel are all Achit, having no knowledge. They could be flower, earth or body. We, that is our atman in a body, experience all Achits. Compared to Achit, Chit is superior as Chit has gyana or knowledge. Atman by smelling with the nose of the body it is residing, enjoys the flower. By eating with the mouth of the resident body, atman enjoys a dish. Chit only experiences the happiness or sorrow, cold or heat.Iswara or God is the third tatvam, and possesses both Chit and Achit. For God both Chit and Achit are properties and soIswara is the Proprietor. Chit and Achit are ruled and Iswara is the Ruler. He is the Master and Chit and Achit are slaves. Keeping this in mind we will see sloka 4:

bhumir apo ’nalo vayuh
kham mano buddhir eva ca
ahankara itiyam me
bhinna prakritir astadha

Earth, water, fire, air, ether, mind, intelligence and false ego-altogether these eight comprise My separated material energies.

"Earth, water, fire, air, ether, mind, intelligence and false ego—all together these eight constitute My separated material energies."

Bhinna prakriti astadha = prakruti is expanded in eight ways. God creates, with the divine approval of Sri Thayar. It is like the peacock dancing with the feathers fully spread at the sight of the pea-hen. The Lord is the Peacock and Sri Thayar is Pea-hen and spreading feathers is the Creation. Like a seed sown germinating and sprouting up, which becomes a small plant with leaves and later grows into a tree with branches, leaves and fruits. This seed for creation is called Moolaprakruti. It is a body of Sriman Narayana. He transforms this Moolaprakruti into various aspects and later after Maha pralayam, all are taken back into His body. First Prakruti transforms into Mahaan. It is something like the germination seen on a seed. Mahaan nourishes our gyana. Mahaan expands into Ahankaram, which is our ego, pride and give the feeling of 'I-am-Atman'. Ahankaram branches into three - Saatvika ahankaram, Raajasa ahankaram and Tamasa ahankaram. What these three are, will make us to understand the sloka. We will see it next day.

                                                                                                     (continued) 

GITA 7.4

GITA 7.4

In his Peria thirumozhi, Thirumangai Alwar has dedicated ten pasurams entirely for Thirucherai [7.4]. It has an interesting background. Alwar was in nearby Thirynaraiyur [Nachiarkovil], where the Lord asked the Alwar to come to Thirucherai and there He would be available for divine vision. Alwar came to Thirucherai. The Lord welcomed Alwar. At the feet of the Lord, devotees offer flowers, which are soft, and they smear sandal paste and it is cool to the feet. The Lord had similar feelings when Alwar's head touched His feet. So, He desired to keep a foot on Alwar's head and grace him. He selected a place, which was a short distance away, for this rare incident. That place is known as Mudikondan. First the Lord thought of placing His right foot on Alwar's head, but Alwar rejected that as once it was on the hood of serpent Kalinga and could have stains of poison! The Lord then tried to place His left foot, but this also was rejected by Alwar, as it was used to measure the entire Universe in Sri Trivikrama Avatar! The Lord was wonder struck, as normally all devotees vie with each other to have His foot on their heads, but this Alwar is rejecting. The Lord graced with ths Saligrama form and the Alwar knelt down to bend to worship and in the same bent fashion, he came on his kneels to Thirucherai from Mudikondan. He then sang the ten pasurams on the Lord here.

 Alwar says in the pasuram 7.4.1,

kaNchOra veNGgurudhi vanNdhizhiya* venNdhazhalpOl koonNdhalaaLai*

maNchEra mulaiyuNda maamadhalaay!* vaaNnavar_tham kOvE! eNnRu*

viNchErum iLanNthiNGgaL agadurinchu* maNimaada malgu* chelvath-

thaNchERai emberumaaNn thaaLthozhuvaar*KaaNmiNn eNnthalai mElaarE*

 that the Lord as an Infant drank the milk and the life of Poothana. Swami Koorathalwar says in his Athimanushastavam, that just as fireflies flock at a lamp and die, all the demons deputed by Kamsa, came to Sri Krishna, the Child of Gokulam, and lost their lives [Ayarkulathu anivilakku - Andal]. Alwar says that just as He destroyed Poothana, He should destroy his ego and pride. He calls Him 'ma madalai ' [great Infant] and 'vanavar ko' [ Lord of Nityasuris or Sri Vaikuntapathi]. Further Alwar says that he wanted the feet of the devotees of the Lord on his head. So, the Alwar did not want the Feet of the Lord on his head, but the feet of His devotees. This shows the distinction of devotees of the Lord. An interesting episode is narrated here. Two persons were going near this temple and one said that they would go in and worship Sri Saranatha Perumal. The other replied he would not come as that would disrespect Thirumangai Alwar. First person was perplexed as how worshiping the Lord here would disrespect the Alwar. For that the second person quoted the pasuram of Alwar and said that whoever worshiped this Lord here, the Alwar would place their feet on his head, and so he did not want his feet on Alwar's head! That would disrespect the Alwar!! To come out of this embarrassing situation, we should prostrate to Alwar and ensure Alwar's feet are on our heads and then worship the Lord also.

 So the devotees or Bhaktas are great and this is also the theme of Chapter 7. The sloka 3, describes how rare among rares, to get Bhakti:

manushyanam sahasresu
kascid yatati siddhaye
yatatam api siddhanam
kascin mam vetti tattvatah

Out of many thousands among men, one may endeavor for perfection, and of those who have achieved perfection, hardly one knows Me in truth.

"Out of many thousands among men, one may endeavor for perfection, and of those who have achieved perfection, hardly one knows Me in truth."

This is a sloka of saram. Saram means essence, which we obtain by filtering out unwanted things. Here the Lord is going to filter out from people to get the saram of people. Manushyanam sahasresu = thousands of people are there. Here by mentioning manushya or mankind, He considers those as human beings, who accept Vedas and understand that the Lord is the basic concept of Vedas. Such qualified persons alone are considered. So only one in thousand would be accepting to live as prescribed by shastras. Kascid = only a few or only one, siddhaye = aspire to attain siddhi, yatati = tries. In millions of humans, only some thousands are living according to shastras. Only one or very few, will try to reach the end of that pursuit. Finally, one in millions attain the end result. Yatatam api siddhanam = among such persons who try to reach the end result, mam = I [Sri Krishna] am, tatvata = truly, vetti = understood, kascin = only one or so. Among millions only a thousand want to follow as shastras ordain. Among such a thousand, only very few try to pursue to reach the end result. Among such thousands of seekers, only one or two, succeed in understanding Sri Krishna truly. Thus there is a thorough filtering and the essence of human beings is found. In this Kshetram, the Lord [Utsavar] is standing with His right fore arm holding a lotus flower and that is unique. By having darshan of the Lord here, we become one among the rarest .

                                                                                          (continued)

GITA 7.3

GITA 7.3

Thirucherai is an important Divya Desam of the 40 Kshetrams of Chola region. From Kumbakonam on route to Thiruvarur, this place is at the 14th KM. It is praised as the Panchasara Kshetram. Sara Pushkarini gives importance to this place.

Sara Pushkarini

 Mother Kaveri meditated on the Lord, on the banks of this pond only. There are Nine theertham or sacred ponds in this place and Sarapushkarini is the most important of them. There is a sannidhi for Kaveri Thayar at the Pushkarini. 

Mother Kaveri Sannidhi

Kaveri Thayar

She is also in the garba gruha, worshiping the Lord. Why this place is called Sara Kshetram and Thirucherai? When the great deluge -pralayam - happened, Four faced Brahma wanted to save the Vedas, Puranas, etc., in a mud pot and preserve them. When the mud of all other places were not suitable for making the pot, mud from this place alone was found suitable and the pot was made. All the Vedas, Puranas, seeds, etc., were gathered and stored in the pot. Tamil word for gathering is serthal and so this place was called Thirucherai. Since the essence - saram - of all Vedass and others were stored here, it became Sara Kshetram. When the pot was made, this place became the belly of the pot and Kudavasal [colloquially called kodavasal] became the mouth and the bottom of the kumba - pot, became Kumbakonam. 

We will now see the 2nd sloka of Chapter 7. Earlier, He told Arjuna that He would teach that knowledge, by knowing which Arjuna would understand Bhakti yoga fully and without any doubt. He continues further:

jnanam te ’ham sa-vijnanam
idam vaksyamy asesatah
yaj jnatva neha bhuyo ’nyaj
jnatavyam avasisyate
I shall now declare unto you in full this knowledge both phenomenal and noumenal, by knowing which there shall remain nothing further to be known.

"I shall now declare unto you in full this knowledge, both basic and extraordinary. This being known, nothing further shall remain for you to know."

Aham =I [Sri Krishna], te = to you [Arjuna], vaksyami = will tell, asesata = without any remainder [completely], jnanam = knowldge, sa vijnanam = in addition to special knowledge, idam = now. Yaj jnatva = by knowing which, na iha bhuya = no more learning,  jnatavyam avasisyate = any other knowledge. He says that in Bhakti yoga, He would teach knowledge and special knowledge, completely, so that no other learning of any other knowledge would be necessary. Gyanam is the basic knowledge about God or Paramatma, Vigyanam means the extraordinary knowledge about His special qualities. Let us see what is the basic knowledge about the Lord. In the history of this place, it was told that Kaveri meditated and the Lord appeared as an infant, then in Viswaroopam and then as Sri Vaikuntapathi. Kaveri could not understand the Lord as the Supreme God when she saw the infant and only somewhat in the Viswaroopam. Only when He appeared as Sri Vaikuntapathi, she could understand His greatness and supremacy. So our knowledge also on a subject grows and matures. This gyana matures into Bhakti. So basic knowledge is needed for Bhakti. Basic knowledge about God is sathyam, gyanam, anantham and Brahmam. Sathyam means He is always there. He is not bound by time or place or matter. He is embodiment of knowledge and bliss and He is endless. Normally, we respect another only if that person is greater in some respects. That is why in the beginning of Bhakti yoga, Sri Krishna tells about His greatness first, so that Arjuna - and also we- will respect Him and learn the Bhakti yoga. We were asked to attend lectures on Him or visit temples, in our young days, as we should first know the greatness of the Lord. They are not mere stories, but instances to kindle our interest and increase our urge to know more about Him. We are bound by time and we exist for a definite period only. But the Lord is there forever. Sri Vishnu sahasranamam says Bhootha Bhavya Bhavat Prabhu - Leader in the past, present and future. We remain in one space only, while He surrounds everything and every where. He pervades everything without exception. He surrounds the Universe; at the same time He is within Atman also. We have a definite form at a given time. But the Lord assumes all and every form. We can never say this alone is His image or form. He appeared as an Infant , in a Gigantic Viswaroopam and as Sri Vaiuntapathi. How all these qualities are basic, we may wonder. Bur Swami Ramanuja and Swami Vedantha Desika have determined thus only. He then mentions vigyana or special knowledge about the Lord. This special knowledge is that we should understand He is entirely different from us. We should know that we are commanded by Him; we are dependents on Him; He is the Proprietor and we are His property. We are born and die; our knowledge expands and shrinks; we have hunger, old age and diseases; we are governed by karma; we possess unfulfilled desires; we are His creations; we are ruled and He is the ruler. Thus there is total difference between Him and us. This is Vigyanam. It is deeper than mere gyanam. Why should He tell about Himself? True, His devotees could tell great things about Him. But we should understand He is not telling these for publicity or diverting our minds. He does not need anything from us. He wants everyone to be His Bhakta and peace should prevail. In Sahasranamam He is called Suhrud, meaning He desires the welfare of all. By knowing this gyanam and vigyanam, we do not need to know anything else.

                                                                                                    (continued)

GTIA 7.2

GTIA 7.2

Tirucherai Kshetram

Map showing some of the Chola region Divya Desams

Bhagavad Gita is the saram (essence) of Mahabharatha. We are going to study the sweet portion of Gita in Chapter 7. Bhakti is the sweetest of all yogas. From this Chapter Sri Krishna is going to tell about Bhakti yoga. Such an essence naturally has to be started from a saram [essence] of Kshetrams. Theefore, we are at Thirucherai Kshetram. It is called Panchasara (Five essense) Kshetram. In the 40 Chola region Divya Desams, temple of Sri Saranatha Perumal has a unique place. Thirumangai Alwar has praised this Kshetram in ten pasurams [Periya Tirumozhi, 7.4]. It is called Panchsara kshetram because it has Five saram - Sara vimanam, Sara pushkarini, Sara kshetram, Saranayaki Thayar and Saranatha Perumal. Today's [10th March 2008] lecture is from the Sara vimanam.

Sara Vimanam

By viewing the Vimanam our blemish in the mind and the sins sticking to our Atman will surely be removed. Below the Vimanm, Sri Saranatha Perumal is gracing the devotees. This Kshetram got its fame because of river Kaveri. Once in the valley of Vindya mountains, the Seven rivers were strolling as girls. At that time a gandharva [heavenly male] Viswavasu came and folded his hands in respect to them. This triggered an argument among all the girls, as whom the gandharva respected and folded his hands. While Yamuna, Sarasvati, Narmada moved away without much argument, Ganaga and Kaveri were engaged in fierce argument. Both of them went to Brahma to mediate and judge. Since Brahma knew the greatness of Ganga, as it originated from the feet of the Lord when He took the Gigantic Sri Trivikrama form in His Sri Vamana Avatar. So he decided that Ganga was superior and so gandarva had respected Ganga. Angered by this judgement, Kaveri requested Brahma to suggest a way so that Kaveri should be as famous as, if not greater than, Ganga. Brahma advised Kaveri to go to this Kshertram and meditate on the Lord, Who will help Kaveri to get her desire fulfilled. Accordingly, Kaveri meditated here for a long time. The Lord in the guise of an infant appeared. Thirumangai Alwar in one of his pasurams says Mamadhalai [ma =great, madhalai = infant]. Kaveri could not identify the Lord. Then the Lord appeared in Viswaroopam, gigantic form. Kaveri was not able to identify that also. Then the Lord appeared as the Lord of Vaikunta and Kaveri identified and worshiped. The Lord appeared with Sri Sridevi, Sri Bhoodevi, Sri Neeladevi, Sri MahaLakshmi and Sri Saranayaki Thayar. Her pride gone, Kaveri instead of request for a boon to be equal to Ganga, she prayed that the Lord should permanently be in this Kshetram in this form and grace the devotees. The Lord not only granted her request but made Kaveri equal to Ganga in sacredness. He said she would touch the feet of the Lord, when He was to take abode in Srirangam as Sri Ranganatha. From that time she as mother Kaveri is in this Kshetram worshiping the Lord with His Consorts.
 Can we locate a more appropriate Kshetram for starting Chapter 7? It is a pleasure to worship the Lord here. Everyone should make it a point to visit this Kshetram. We will now see sloka 1 of Chapter 7. We saw some steps involved in Bhakti.

• We get knowledge about God. This is gyana.
• This drives us to think and ponder. This is chintan.
• Chintan is prolonged. This is Dhyanam.
• Dhyanam, when continues uninterrupted, becomes Smrithi.
• Love and affection mingled in Smrithi, becomes Bhakti.

When Bhakti matures we get direct vision of God or we get sakshatkaram. Alwars are driven by this ecstasy and it is evident in their pasurams. With that Bhakti, the hearts of devotees melt away, say Alwars. Dry gyana will never fetch Moksham. Bhakti will reach one, Moksham, is what Sri Krishna is going to tell. Now sloka 1:

sri-bhagavan uvaca
mayy asakta-manah partha
yogam yunjan mad-asrayah
asamsayam samagram mam
yatha jnasyasi tac chrnu
Now hear, O son of Pṛthā [Arjuna], how by practicing yoga in full consciousness of Me, with mind attached to Me, you can know Me in full, free from doubt.

"The Supreme Personality of Godhead said: Now hear, O son of Pritha, how by practicing yoga in full consciousness of Me, with mind attached to Me, you can know Me in full, free from doubt."

Sri Krishna calls Arjuna to listen to the knowledge of Bhakti. Mayyi = only in Me [Sri Krishna], asakta mana = mind directed, madasraya = considering Me [Sri Krishna] as the only support, yogam yunjan = beginning yoga. With mind directed towards Sri Krishna and considering Him as the only support, start Bhakti yoga. Samagram = completely, asamsayam = with no doubts whatsoever, Mam = Me [Sri Krishna], yatah jnasyasi = by that [knowledge ] understand, chrnu = listen to. Sri Krishna is going to teach Arjuna that knowledge by which one could understand the Lord without any doubt. Sri Krishna tells Arjuna to listen carefully without mind getting distracted anywhere else. This shows the importance of the lecture He is to make henceforth. Last Six Chapters were all about Atman and from now on, He is going to tell about Himself -Paramatma. Therefore, not only Arjuna, but everyone studying Gita should attentively and with enthusiasm listen, now on. We are going to enjoy the elixir of Bhakti. We will get happiness and peace of mind. With mind devoted in Him and with belief that He is the support, Bhakti yoga is to be started. Bhakti is identified by tears rolling from the eyes, voice quivering, goosebumps felt and body trembling, as the thought of God comes to mind. Bhaktas may appear as insane, but their knowledge about God is clear and in fact it is others who are mad after worldly matters. Nammalwar says that just the thought of His birth and the way He was brought up, simply melt his heart. Whatever the Lord does drives the Alwar to ecstasy. Bhaktas believe His simplicity and His greatness without any doubt.
                                                                                                    (continued)

GITA 7.1

GITA 7.1

River Kaveri at Kapisthalam

Kaveri river, considered more sacred than Ganges, flows near Kapisthalam Kshetram. On the banks of Kaveri, the Lord is reclining, says Thirumazhisai Alwar. The place is surrounded by greenery. There is also a small sannidhi of Sri Navaneedha Krishna, dancing on the hood of serpent Kalinga and holding butter in one palm, on the shore of the river.

Sri Navaneetha Krishnan

 We will now start the Chapter 7 study. Bhakti yoga is to be explained henceforth. Knowledge about a matter is called Gyana. We study it deeply and this becomes the initial step. This Gyana makes us to think and ponder over. This is called Dhyanam or Upasana. This is second step. When continuously this thought is there, it is called smrithi. This is third step. When this thought process is mingled with love, it becomes Bhakti. Sneha poorva anudhyanam is Bhakti. When this Bhakti matures, Darsana samana sakshatkaram, or the feeling of direct vision, is experienced. We develop Bhakti on persons whom we consider, are superior to us. We feel we are servant to the person on whom we have Bhakti. All our actions, words and thoughts will be centered around that person only. Sri Krishna is going to tell about His greatness in Chapter 7. By knowing that, we will know how inferior all other things are. We will then develop Bhakti. Swami Alavandar has summarized the Chapter 7 in a sloka in his Gitartha Sangraham:

svay¯ath¯atmyam.prakr. ty¯asya tirodhi´s´saran.¯agatih.

bhaktabhedah.prabuddhasya ´srais.t.hyam.saptama ucyate 11

Saptama ucyate = these are told in the Seventh Chapter. Five concepts are mentioned. Svayathatmyam = He [Sri Krishna] explains His true Self. Arjuna gets a doubt as to why none are able to understand the Supremacy of the Lord, when His greatness is so clear? He is Paramatma, Parabrahmam. He only could grant Moksham. He is the Consort of Sri MahaLakshmi. All are His property and everyone is His servant. Then why others do not worship and surrender to Him? Something is obstructing us from understanding Him clearly. Something is hiding His greatness from us. In reply Sri Krishna tells praktya asya tirodhi = prakruti or samsaram or the mixture of chit and achit spread all over the Universe. We can say suppose we want to go to temple for worship. At that time suddenly if we develop pain in the legs, we cancel our trip. This is an example of prakruti. We go to a religious discourse and there we get sleep, we miss to listen to His greatness. So this world, our surroundings, our birth and the infinite karma act as screen and prevent us from understanding His majesty. Arjuna wonders why the Lord is gleefully telling that His fame is not understood by all. As a third point Sri Krishna tells how this screen of samsaram could be overcome. Saranagathi = surrender. To understand Him and to develop Bhakti, saranagathi is the only way. Clinging to His divine feet and praying to rescue from this prakruti is the method to understand His greatness. He only can help us to know about Him. Unlike meditating on other matters, thinking on the sweet image of the Lord, also will be sweet. It is very difficult to concentrate our mind on empty space. But to think of the beautiful form of the Lord, is easy and pleasant. With the feather of pea-cock on the head, dark curly flocks of hair, charming face, large beautiful lotus like eyes, large ear rings, coral red lips smiling, well developed shoulders, broad chest with Srivtasam, well formed thighs and lotus feet - all these are easy to conceive and meditate. The experience also will be delightful. Bhakti practicing is therefore, easy and enjoyable. Fourth concept is the categories of Bhaktas or devotees. Bhakta bheda = different Bhaktas (Devotees):

• Those who want to regain lost wealth.
• Those who want to acquire new wealth.
• Those who want to have atmanubhavam.
• Those who want Him [Sri Krishna].

Prahlada says what all a bhakta to do: shravanam, keertanam, smaranam, padasevanam, archanam, vandanam, sakyam and atmanivedanam. This last type of Bhakta, does not expect anything other than Bhakti. Arjuna asks whether all these four types of Bhaktas are equal and Sri Krishna replies that the last type of Bhakta who demands only the Lord, is the best. Prabhusraisthyam = demanding Him alone.
The five concepts of Chapter 7 are:

1. Sri Krishna's greatness.
2. Obstacle of prakruti.
3. Saranagathi to clear the obstacle.
4. Types of Bhaktas
5. Best among Bhaktas.

Invoking HIs blessings to get the temple renovated early, we will move on to next Kshetram.