Bhagavad Gita Course: Chapter 11

Class Notes | January 30, 2018

Notes by Madhu Soni

Our shastras (scriptures) are filled with personalities who never gave up on the Truth, and they were eventually blessed with the Truth.

In Mahabaratha, we have dear Prince Arjuna. He never gives up and wants to learn more. We will find out in this chapter what Prince Arjuna receives for not giving up.

Our Shrimad BGC is designed to encourage us to not give up; to understand and appreciate what commitment means and work hard to make the teachings a practical part of life.

In Chapter 10 and throughout our scriptures, we come to understand and appreciate that the Creator reveals Himself/Herself to Creation.

Why would the Creator not reveal Himself/Herself to us?

To have this faith requires extreme patience.

Bhagwan says in Chapter 10, “I am time, the time that changes and never changes.” We have to be patient to get to that time that never changes, to timelessness.

If creation is so beautiful and so powerful, imagine the Creator of that creation.

Bhagwan says in Chapter 10, “Through one part of me, I support this multiverse.”

If you can connect to that one part of infinity, that is all of infinity. Infinity has no parts. One part is all parts.

Chapter 11

Sanatana Dharma, Advaita Vedanta, Bhagavad Gita, and Chinmaya Mission all have a singular purpose: Moksha.

The purpose is to evolve from being dependently joyous to independently joyous.

If you make this purpose any less, then it will be practiced less. If you keep this purpose high and hold onto it, you will practice more and it will become your life. This journey requires extreme patience and has to be practiced at all times, as it is the lifetime journey of the soul.

We are habituated for worldly gains. We put in some, and we get some over a short time span. Thoughtful, courageous personalities will let go of worldly things and not be satisfied by dependent joy. Their life is only for Moksha.

Summary of what has been studied:

BG Chapters 2–6, bring to our attention knowledge. The first problem in feeling Divinity is ignorance. In regards to knowledge of the Self, to go from being ignorant to knowing one is ignorant is an evolution. These chapters help to address ignorance.

BG Chapters 7–9, bring us in mananam to clear out our doubts. Now that one is not ignorant or knows that one is not ignorant, doubts may arise about being Infinite or independently joyous. Here is where Bhagwan focuses on that doubt. To purge it, He brings in words that are deeper and personal. These chapters help to address doubts.

BG Chapters 10–11, when ignorance and doubts are addressed, finally there is identification. Parama vacha, to take us to the highest. These chapters help to address identification.

In Chapter 2–10, Prince Arjuna has appreciated what Bhagwan has offered so far. He tells Bhagwan, “It is only through your Kripa, only through your Grace, that I am changing my identificaton.” Without this Grace, it would not be possible. Arjuna is changing his identification. He thought he was doing, but now he is realizing that Bhagwan is doing.

This is shared in the first sloka of Chapter 11: Arjuna says, “From you, your Grace, you have shared the highest and deepest knowledge about who I am.” “This is all through your words, my moha, (confusion) is gone.”

Arjuna now understands and appreciates what creation is, what the Creator is, and what Consciousness is. In this first Sloka, we see a totally new Prince Arjuna.

If his confusion is gone, that means his fear is gone, and in turn, his sadness is gone. What a lovely appreciation for what Bhagwan has offered to him through Chapters 2–10. This is because Prince Arjuna was and will be committed.

Can we say that our moha is obliterated?

Prince Arjuna’s knowledge has caused the evolution of his experience. Without knowledge of who he is and who Bhagwan is, he could never feel that his confusion is gone.

Unless teachers provide the knowledge and the reasoning, that confusion is never gone.

In this evolution of Prince Arjuna’s experience, he wants more, he wants to go deeper. This is expressed in another powerful Sloka of Chapter 11, Sloka 8, in which

Arjuna is grateful and wants to go to the end.

When Arjuna wants more, Bhagwan says, “You are not able to go deeper to see or cannot know with the evolution you’re at, with the eyes you have so I give you these Divine eyes and with them, see, behold who I am.”

Prince Arjuna is not looking with sight anymore, but with insight. Bhagwan gives him jnana, insight. It is the knowledge that moves Prince Arjuna. With his eyes, he is always seeing Bhagwan Krishna; now with this knowledge, he is coming to realize Bhagwan Krishna. Bhagwan Krishna imparts this knowledge to Arjuna and his confusion resolves.

Veda Vyasa also gives this knowledge, or insight, to Sanjaya. Jaya means to be one who conquers. Sanjaya, is one who conquers well. Specifically, one who is balanced and above likes and dislikes.

When Prince Arjuna has this insight, he comes to feel all of Chapter 10, without space and time. Being without space and time is indicative about being without dwaita, duality.

With knowledge, one goes from separation to oneness, from dvaita to advaita.

Prince Arjuna is able to internalize this more. Bhagwan Krishna takes away space and time, and Prince Arjuna is able to see that he’s part of Bhagwan. (11.1–11.5)

11.6–11.11

What did Prince Arjuna feel when he saw all of Chapter 10 without space and time? He saw all of this and felt all of this in a uniform experience, the Truth. The Truth is agochara. Gochara means sense faculty. Agochara is that which is beyond the senses or the body. Arjuna comes to experience the Truth as anadhi (without beginning, or end).

Do you know anything or experienced that which has no beginning? And if it has no beginning, it has no end.

Every one of our experiences has an end? Shri Ramana says, “Those people who engage in pranayama, they go into relaxation, and when they come out, they go back to how they were before. “

But with the knowledge imparted by Lord Krishna, this absorption (samadhi) leads to a transformed person. There is no end. If you come back as the same person, you have not gone deep enough to understand.

Prince Arjuna knows the Truth as amaya, having no boundary, no separation. For example, when we’re dreaming, there is Oneness.

To know the Truth Prince Arjuna is experiencing and to get to this Advaita, Oneness, practice that you are a part and God is the whole. Anything and everyone are parts of the same whole. Practice that the part and the whole are the same, Advaita, to get to the Truth.

One’s true nature can be known in a moment of high tension. Prince Arjuna experiencing the Truth, knowing the Truth is so unique, that he is scared. He doesn’t know and is not familiar with this feeling or knowledge. He is in this experience but he is so strong physically and mentally that he continues with vichara.

He wants to know how to immerse himself in what he is being shown. What is my role in what You’re showing me? He doesn’t close his eyes or run away.

Many of us are afraid of committing to a sadhana, not strong enough to engage in vichara.

As Prince Arjuna is looking and experiencing this Oneness, he sees Acharya Bhisma and Acharya Drona. These are the two people Bhagwan Krishna brought in front of Prince Arjuna in Chapter 1 and 2. Arjuna sees them dying in Bhagwan Krishna. His confusion, fear or sadness is that he is going to be responsible for killing the people he loves. Bhagwan Krishna is visually showing Prince Arjuna that he is not the doer.

A mentally blind person doesn’t understand that it is all God, it is all Divinity.

With doership, there is confusion, fear or sorrow; there is something to gain, so something to lose. Prince Arjuna learns that there is nothing to gain, so there is nothing to lose. His understanding and clarity leads him to live by the motto, “Always do your best.”

Knowing that this is Bhagwan’s Leela, I am not confused, I am clear. In God’s manifestation, do your best. Care for each person, be interested in each experience because this is all God.

In this one chapter, we understand the vision of sanathana dharma. Dharma is to be responsible. Sanathana is in all space, all time, all matter, do God’s work. Bhagwan is my Boss.

Bhagwan Krishna imparts to Prince Arjuna to have the vision. We should live our lives as instruments in Bhagwan’s orchestra, parts in Bhagwan’s body.

Prince Arjuna tells Bhagwan Krishna, “ I now feel sthane.” “All is as all is.” That can not be known through sight, but insight, through vision as being.

The word sthane aligns perfectly with the vision of Ramayana. The purpose of Ramayana is mangal, or egolessness. Only when we are egoless, do we come to accept all is as all is, we come to love our selves and all.

If you know all is as all is, never take any experience personally; that experience is a gift from God. If we can achieve that, we can stop remembering the weaknesses of people. When we remember weaknesses, it is because we take things/experiences personally and by doing so, we remove God from the circumstance and remove Divinity at play.

Chapter 7 — Know the Divine

Chapter 8 — Remember the Divine

Chapter 9 — Feel the Divine

Chapter 10 — See the Divine

Chapter 11 — Envision the Divine (Go past the eyes to the vision of the Divine.)

Chapter 12 — Love the Divine, Bhagti Yoga

Discussion: Share connections you’ve made from Chapters 1–11.

Vivekji: The more you can have insight into the flow and try to think in the thought flow of Bhagwan, the closer we are to Bhagwan.

Q&A:

Q: Is there an element of doership in doing your best?

A: When you truly do your best, you’re invoking virtues. You are more patient. The more you do your best, the more humble you become, not arrogant; and you realize that this is through Bhagwan. Doing our best aligns us more with Bhagwan as the Doer. If you’re acquiring vices, then you are not doing your best.

RAW from last week: Try to explore 20 slokas, the Creator in creation.

This journey is exponential not linear. Keep exploring.

RAW: For the next 167 hours, you are not allowed to use any pens.

Chapter 12 will be covered over the next 2 weeks.

Hari Om!

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Commit and Transform- Chapter 11

Madhav Khurana

Abstract: Arjuna’s commitment/surrender to the Lord has granted him an inner transformation, and now he is ready to witness the Lord’s true form.

Never Give up

Cool Runnings (Movie)

• Question: “Does the word give up mean anything to you?”

• Response: “Not at all”

Shastras are filled with personalities/exemplars who didn’t give up in the face immense obstacles and social pressures:

• Nachiketa
• Prahladha
• Dhruva
• Shabri
• Narada Muni
• Arjuna- Though he waivered and bent, he did not break

Goal: Follow the examples of the above heroes. Be committed. Be patient. Never give up.

Ask Myself:

• Have I given up on any facet of this course?
• Have I given up on bringing these teachings in my life?
• Have I given up Satsang?
• Have I given up on completing the questionnaires?

Purpose of Chapter 11: Moksha (Independent Joy)

• Keep this as my singular purpose, and practice will follow naturally
• High purpose = High practice, Low purpose = Low practice
• Be the most patient in this journey
• Only the truly courageous will let go of worldliness in favor of the Creator of the world.

Focus of Previous Chapters:

Chapters 2–6 — Ignorance

Chapters 7–9 — Uncertainty/Doubt

Chapters 10–11 — Identification

Chapter 11, Shloka 1 | Arjuna ‘It is only through your grace that I am changing my Identification’

• Arjuna has undergone a complete transformation
• Knowledge has removed his confusion

Sh. 2–4 | Arjuna request the Lord to show His true form

• Arjuna now wants to go deeper
• Even in the midst of high tension, on the battlefield, Arjuna wants to know more.

Sh. 8 | Lord: ‘You are not able to go deeper with the eyes you have. I give these divine eyes so you may behold who I am’

• Prince Arjuna is given the eyes of insight.

• The Lord’s true form is beyond the senses (Agochara). He is beyond space/time.

• Insight/In-vision is necessary to see His true form

Sh. 11… | Lord shows his Cosmic form to the Arjuna

• Arjuna feels/sees all without the limits of space/time.
• He feels oneness with all

Reflection: All are parts of the same whole

• Come to realize that all parts are the whole.
• There are no parts
• You are the entire ocean in a drop

Lord Krishna shows the dying forms of Dronacharya and Bismacharya

• Shows Arjuna that he is not the doer
• Arjuna learns to always do his best because the results are in His hands.

Dritarashtra was not ready to transform

• Knowing that Dronacharya and Bishmacharya will die on the battle field he knows the war will be lost by the Kauravas
• Yet he does not halt the war
• Reflection: A student must be ready to transform — committed to transformation.

Always be an instrument of the Lord

• How we should go about our lives.

‘Sthane’

• All is as all is

• This can only be seen through insight, not sight.

• Through this we will come to love all

Practice: Never take any experience personally.

• Take all experiences as a gift, good or bad.
• This will lead us to stop remembering the weaknesses of people.

Sequence of Messages from previous chapters:

7- Know

8- Remember

9- Feel

10- See

11- Envision (In-vision) the Divine

12- Bhakti (more on this next week)

Vichara: If creation is so beautiful imagine the creator

RAW: Pencil Challenge- For the next week, use only pencils when writing.

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