Gita Chapter 8

 

 

Gita Chapter 8

 

Now Krishna is giving some methodologies and techniques.  Although he gave meditation technique in Chapter 6 but he is now giving another simpler technique that can be practiced anywhere and all the time.  Even while we are doing our day to day duties.  The Dhyana technique in Chapter 6 requires one to sit down in a place and follow a certain technique.  The technique given in this chapter does not require sitting at any one place. In this technique we can have Him constantly in our thought and keep doing what we are doing.  Anu-smaran, Anu- chintayan etc. 

 

Lord said to Arjuna that our thought determines our state of being at any given moment and in the moment immeditely following that moment.  What we are thinking is what determines what is going to happen to us next.  This is all the more important at the time of death.  The thought we have at the time of death is going to determine our future birth.  So He tells Arjuna to have his mind and intellect constantly engaged in Lord while he is fighting so that even if he doed foghting,  he will reach the Lord.  Because we often do not have any control on what we are thinking especially when we are busy and fighting as was the case with Arjuna, one needs ot train the mind in such a way that at all the time the mind and intellect is engrossed in His thoughts.  This would need to be done consciously initially and later on it wil become a habit and normal state of mind.  An example from real life was that of Mahatma Gandhi.  When he was  shot he uttered words " Hey Ram Hey Ram"  This could not have happened unless tose words were all teh time present in his mind no matter what he was doing outwardly. 

 

Giving another technique Lord says:   Control your senses, control your mind and establish your attention between the eyebrows and recite "AUM" constantly and at the same time   contemplate the formless Lord.    While engaged like this if he leaves his body, he realizes the most exalted state of being, that is reunites with the Brahman.  That individual is freed from the cycle of birth and death becasue now  he has come to my   Abode.  All the abodes up until Mine , are transient.  You can reach any high level abode but they are all temporary.  But once you have reached Mine  than, that will put an end to the wandering around for the soul.  Lord gives the example of Lord Brahma ( the creator of universe)  Even though he lives for millions of years even he will   die one day.  So no matter how long the life of a devta, it is going to come to an end one day.  Also Lord gives the example of  limitations of space.  No matter how large something appears to be it has an outer limit.  But beyond this limited ( even though huge ) expanse of space and physical creation and beyond this seemingly millions of years of existense of Brahma( which to humans may appear to be  a long time) it also comes to an end.   The one who understands this concept of time adn space, are truly wise.  But that which is beyond this apparent physical reality of time and space, is what never ends and is never destroyed.  And that is the true Abode of Lord.  Swarga loka and many other lokas  all one day come to an end.   But His abode is forever.

 

There are many rituals and observances descibed in scriptures.  Some are better than the others.  Many have lot of spiritual benefits.   A true Yogi or a wise man realises that even though good deeds are good and they give lot of good fruits, but the fact is that all those fruits of good deeds will come to an end one day.  Therefore a truely wise yogi goes beyond all these good deeds  also.  Everyone knows not to do bad deeds.  But good deeds can be binding also and the one who goes beyond those also is the one who reaches the abode of the Lord.