किं पुनर्ब्राह्मणा: पुण्या भक्ता राजर्षयस्तथा |
अनित्यमसुखं लोकमिमं प्राप्य भजस्व माम् || 33||
kiṁ punar brāhmaṇāḥ puṇyā bhaktā rājarṣhayas tathā
anityam asukhaṁ lokam imaṁ prāpya bhajasva mām
kim—what; punaḥ—then; brāhmaṇāḥ—sages; puṇyāḥ—meritorius; bhaktāḥ—devotees; rāja-ṛiṣhayaḥ—saintly kings; tathā—and; anityam—transient; asukham—joyless; lokam—world; imam—this; prāpya—having achieved; bhajasva—engage in devotion; mām—unto Me
Translation:
How much more, then, if they be holy brāhmins or royal seers devoted to God! Having come into this transitory, joyless world, worship Me.
Commentary:
If people of sinful birth, as well as women and sudras are competent to attain Brahmajnana, how much easier it should be for the holy Brahmins and royal saints? The attributes ‘punyah’ and ‘bhaktah’ are used to emphasise the need for the possession of these qualities which alone entitle a man to reach the highest state. Mere birth cannot take any man anywhere. It is not a passport to God-realisation. Purity and devotion are absolutely essential.
Rajarshayah: Self-control is the attribute of a saint (Rishi). Kings who attained self-mastery are Rajarshis. Entangled in the day-to-day complications of earthly rule, if the Kings could acquire purity and perfection, will it not be possible for humble house-holders who have lesser burdens and greater freedom to attain the supreme goal?
Anityam asukham lokam: This world or this birth or the body is impermanent and unhappy. Unless a man is blind or demented, he would naturally realise by observation and experience that the Lord’s description of the world is perfectly true. The impermanent nature of the world is an everyday fact, and all that is matter shall disintegrate sooner or later. The earthen pot shall go back to the earth. The bodies made up of the five elements shall go back to the elements. Nothing can stop it. What then? The wise man should hold on to the Lord. “Worship Me” is the Lord’s command. Since death is stalking the world the immediate need for the worship of the Lord is explained. Before the body falls, the Lord should be realised. This is the most urgent aim. All other things come and go according to one’s karma (Prarabdha). Worship of the Lord is the very essence of life.
The world is not only momentary but it is full of misery, devoid of happiness (asukham).
There is no real joy in little earthly things, Joy is only in the infinite Atma. Man discovers this truth after a long experience. The pain that poisons all earthly enjoyments is slowly and gradually understood by discrimination, observation, and experience. Then the man turns away from the world and takes refuge in the Lord,
‘Worship Me’ is the Lord’s command. The world is impermanent and painful. Worship of the Lord who is real and who is the very ocean of bliss is the only way to rise above the painful dream of the world. The unreal is rejected by taking refuge in the Real, and the unhappy should be given up by discovering that which is truly the embodiment of joy (i.e) the Lord. Therefore let no man be tempted by the superficial attractions of the shadowy world, but let him seek the source of all that is Truth, Beauty, and Peace (Satyam, Sivam, Sundaram).
Sri Ramakrishna Says —
“It is said that there are four classes of human beings: the bound, those aspiring after liberation, the liberated, and the ever-perfect.
“This world is like a fishing net. Men are the fish, and God, whose maya has created this world, is the fisherman. When the fish are entangled in the net, some of them try to tear through its meshes in order to get their liberation. They are like the men striving after liberation. But by no means all of them escape. Only a few jump out of the net with a loud splash, and then people say, ‘Ah! There goes a big one!’ In like manner, three or four men attain liberation. Again, some fish are so careful by nature that they are never caught in the net; some beings of the ever-perfect class, like Narada, are never entangled in the meshes of worldliness. Most of the fish are trapped; but they are not conscious of the net and of their imminent death. No sooner are they entangled than they run headlong, net and all, trying to hide themselves in the mud. They don’t make the least effort to get free. On the contrary, they go deeper and deeper into the mud. These fish are like the bound men. They are still inside the net, but they think they are quite safe there. A bound creature is immersed in worldliness, in ‘woman and gold’, having gone deep into the mire of degradation. But still he believes he is quite happy and secure. The liberated, and the seekers after liberation, look on the world as a deep well. They do not enjoy it. Therefore, after the attainment of Knowledge, the realisation of God, some give up their bodies. But such a thing is rare indeed.
“The bound creatures, entangled in worldliness, will not come to their senses at all. They suffer so much misery and agony, they face so many dangers, and yet they will not wake up.
“The camel loves to eat thorny bushes. The more it eats the thorns, the more the blood gushes from its mouth. Still it must eat thorny plants and will never give them up. The man of worldly nature suffers so much sorrow and affliction, but he forgets it all in a few days and begins his old life over again. Suppose a man has lost his wife or she has turned unfaithful. Lo! He marries again.
“Or take the instance of a mother: her son dies and she suffers bitter grief; but after a few days she forgets all about it. The mother, so overwhelmed with sorrow a few days before, now attends to her toilet and puts on her jewelry. A father becomes bankrupt through the marriage of his daughters, yet he goes on having children year after year. People are ruined by litigation, yet they go to court all the same. There are men who cannot feed the children they have, who cannot clothe them or provide decent shelter for them; yet they have more children every year.
“Again, the worldly man is like a snake trying to swallow a mole. The snake can neither swallow the mole nor give it up. The bound soul may have realised that there is no substance to the world — that the world is like a hog plum, only stone and skin — but still he cannot give it up and turn his mind to God.
“I once met a relative of Keshab Sen, fifty years old. He was playing cards. As if the time had not yet come for him to think of God!
“There is another characteristic of the bound soul. If you remove him from his worldly surroundings to a spiritual environment, he will pine away. The worm that grows in filth feels very happy there. It thrives in filth. It will die if you put it in a pot of rice.”
All remained silent.
Question: What qualities are needed for God-realisation?
Answer: Purity and devotion.
Question: What is the nature of the world?
Answer: It is unreal and unhappy.
Questions: What is the way to overcome samsara?
Answer: Devotion to the Lord.
Bhagavad Gita: Chapter 9 🔻 (34 Verses)
