Today Swami Kaivalyananda resumed Gita classes at the ashram, after a two-week break (Swami had to travel to Varanasi). Today we concluded the ninth chapter, with the verse,

‘manmana bhava madbhakto, madyaji mam namaskuru,
mam evaishyasi yuktvaivam, atmanam matparaynah.’

Here, this is an important verse about bhakti. Some comment this as the five limbs (angas) of bhakti, because there are five things said.
One it says, ‘manmana,’ to have constant remembrance of God, or a mind full of thoughts of God.’
Two is ‘madbhakto’ – to express devotion, or bhakti, to the Lord.
Then ‘madyaji,’ to perform one’s worship to God.
Fourth is ‘mam namaskuru,’ to bow to the Lord.
Five is ‘mat parayanah,’ surrender to God. With these five, the Lord says, ‘mam eshyasi’ – you will surely reach Me.

One interesting thing Swami pointed out is that Sri Krishna doesn’t say to Arjuna, ‘you will reach God.’ Instead, He says, ‘you will reach Me.’ This word ‘Me’ is also in each of the five limbs, ‘bow to Me,’ etc. So, an ordinary person cannot say like this. Only an Avatar, God incarnated in human form, can say this.

Some people say that Advaita refutes this, because of the Upanishad statement, ‘aham brahmasmi.’ This means, ‘I am Brahman.’ So, they say that Advaita doesn’t accept an Incarnation of God, because all are God alone. Swami says that it shows here that that isn’t true. Actually, no where in Advaita does it say that the individual soul, or jiva, is God, or isvara. That is only said in light of the supreme truth, that the same pure consciousness is the substratum of both.

Here, Krishna is able to use the word ‘I’ because He has intentionally accepted a human body, but Arjuna can not say that, because he had no choice in that matter. Arjuna represents the jiva, in the state of ignorance, and so there is a definite difference between the two. Either way, the Lord tells Arjuna, be devoted to Me, and you will surely attain Me.’ The next chapter is about the vibhutis, or divine glories of the Lord.

Piyush
June 21, 2007