Bhagavad Gita

Shrimad Bhagavad Gita: Chapter 9: Rāja Vidyā Yogam Verse 15

Bhagavad Gita - krishna

(Image Courtesy Mahanidhiswami)

The Sacrifice Of Knowledge Weakens Our Individuality While Strengthening Our Faith In Ishvara

ज्ञानयज्ञेन चाप्यन्ये यजन्तो मामुपासते |
एकत्वेन पृथक्त्वेन बहुधा विश्वतोमुखम् || 9.15||

jñāna-yajñena chāpyanye yajanto mām upāsate
ekatvena pṛithaktvena bahudhā viśhvato-mukham|| 9.15||

Shloka Translation
BG – Ch. 9- Ver. 15:

Others who are engaged in the yajña of cultivating knowledge worship Me in a variety of ways. Some perceive Me as an undifferentiated oneness that is not distinct from them, while others perceive Me as distinct from them. Others worship Me in all of My endless incarnations as a cosmic being.

Explanation

Sadhaks spiritual practitioners take many spiritual pathways in order to reach the Absolute Truth. Devotees were earlier described by Shree Krishna. They prostrate themselves with reverence at the Supreme Lord’s lotus feet, as if they were His eternal parts and servants. He then goes on to outline some of the different paths that sadhakas take.
Those who pursue the jñāna-yoga path feel themselves to be identical to God. Their ultimate goal is to realize the Supreme Entity as the undifferentiated Brahman, which is devoid of forms, characteristics, virtues, and pastimes but possesses the properties of eternality, knowledge, and happiness. Such jñāna-yogis according to Shree Krishna, adore Him in His formless, all-pervading aspect. In contrast, there are aṣhṭāṅga yogis and others who regard themselves as apart from God and relate to Him as such.

Others consider the manifest universe to be God. Because the world is a portion of God, it is not sinful to have a divine attitude toward it, but it is incomplete. Other parts of the Supreme Divine Entity, such as God’s undifferentiated all-pervading manifestation, the Supreme Soul sitting in everyone’s hearts, and God’s personal form, are unknown to such devotees.

Verse & what we can learn

Jnyaana yagya, or knowledge sacrifice, is a kind of worship that involves recalling and remembering Ishvara’s limitless essence throughout our lives. Unlike most kinds of worship, we can do it whenever and whenever we want. All we need to do now is learn to recognize Ishvara in all things.

Whatever tradition we follow, Shri Krishna encourages us to surrender knowledge on a regular basis in order to weaken our individuality while building our faith in Ishvara. Our preferences and dislikes begin to decrease as we perceive more Ishvara in everything and everyone. We also begin to recognize that all of our joys and tragedies are linked to our actions, and we begin to treat everything as a “Prasad,” or gift from Ishvara.

To acquire knowledge and to implement that knowledge in life one needs to be mentally and physically active and healthy and for that daily meditation is a great tool.

There are various types of meditation like Buddhist meditation, heartfulness meditation, mindfulness meditation, meditation for stress, and each meditation benefits are countless. There are also numerous meditation techniques for beginners which help in practicing daily meditation so go ahead and start your journey towards a peaceful and balanced life.

In the next verse Shri Krishna tells Arjuna How can all these divergent approaches worship the same God? He give us pointers on where and how to see Ishvara.

Let’s learn to live with “The Gita” via Meditation Affinity…

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *