Bhagavad Gita Course: Chapter 17

Class Notes |April 10, 2018

Notes by Deepika Allana, New Delhi, India

That which is right is mighty. Might is not right. Right is might.

Being dharmic and following our responsibilities is not complicated. The Gita in our course are excellent examples of simplicity in the form of bhakti and jnana. We have to learn to think like Bhagwan Krishna and write like Swami Tejomayananda

In Upanishads, there is a part that tells us to cut the knots in our hearts: Avidya. Kama. Karma.

• Avidya — forgetting that I am joyous
• Kama — desire all
• Karma — getting all desires and being stuck

In the Gita, our swabhava (our nature) naturally expresses as our faith. Faith expresses our action. Swabhava, Shraddha, Shrama (how we put in effort). If our nature is rough, our faith will be rough, and how we act will be rough.

REST OF CHAPTER 17: elaborates on yagna, tapa, dhana and what it looks like for one who is saatvic, rajasic, and tamasic. This is determined by our intention and our implementation (means).

Bhagwan naturally is encouraging us to evolve, so revolve around those who are evolved.

Establish yourself in saatva. Using what?

• Our equipment (yantra)
• Our techniques (tantra)
• Our purpose (mantra)

Establish yourself in saatva. How?

THROUGH YAGNA: All your actions are directed towards a life of service)

o Saatvic yagna — EQUIPMENT LEVEL: one is resourceful. Gather resources efficiently. Bring best materials together. If going to serve, have to be efficient. TANTRA LEVEL: one is disciplined. Follows the scriptures and those who are leaders. MANTRA LEVEL: One is selfless. Engaged in what they are doing, not for themselves, but for those around them. Trying to bring maximum happiness to maximum people

o Rajasic Yagna — Still resourceful and disciplined. But the mantra is not the same. Their mantra/purpose is selfish. Doing for me and mine.

o Tamasic yagna- resourceless, can’t bring things together. Resource poor. Undisciplined. Naturally selfish.

THROUGH TAPA: invest so you can serve more — we invest through Dhyan (sharing).

o Tapati is the verb (to burn). Pata is to fall. Tapati inhibits patati.

o When I am investing in my equipment/life, it inhibits me from becoming unhealthy and not making use of my opportunities.

o There is no greater return in life than tapa. Tapa is not external (not about stocks/land). It is about investing in oneself.

o How do we know we are engaged in tapa? To endure. If you are an enduring person, practicing tapa. To conserve energy. Be reliable (shraddha).

o To be simple- think simple, be simple, act simple.

o Concentrate- don’t be distracted by regrets of past, anxieties of future, and excitements of the present.

o Saatvic tapa — PHYSICAL LEVEL: serve those who are great. By doing this, we start to imitate what makes them great. VERBAL LEVEL: think and then talk. One pauses a lot. Not because they don’t know what to say, but want to figure out and understand the listener. MENTAL LEVEL: be calm and cheerful. Hardest one to be.

o How we actually are: PHYSICAL LEVEL: we strive for position. I want to be the best, instead of being my best. See what I own. VERBAL LEVEL: reactive talking. Thinking/pausing not happening. MENTAL LEVEL: to be irritable and irritating. If you are an irritable person, people are irritated around you.

o Taamasic tapa (lazy investing) — PHYSICAL LEVEL: engage in that which is harmful. Fasting is fine, but if fast to an extent where you can’t fulfil your responsibilities, that is taamasic fasting. VERBAL LEVEL: be irresponsible. MENTAL LEVEL: be fearful. One who is always afraid. They feel silence is awkward.

Chapter 17.11–17.14.

THROUGH DHANA

o Until this moment, our whole lives we have been gifted in so many ways, high speed internet, security, digestive system, grace of God.

o Dhana is being grateful for being gifted generously. Dhana is to reciprocate that by gifting generously. Being like a guru is what dhana is.

o One third of all your your net income, you should enjoy (vacations, buying clothes). 1/3 should be invested for more income (save and generate more wealth). 1/3 of your net income should be shared (gifted to continue shreya (dharma)- to support goodness).

o What is the utility in dhana? If we think about how we are earning, there are traces of papa. If you are a retailer, you have a business and take stuff from the business but don’t record that, or pay your employees in cash. Some adharma or demerit exists.

o Engaging in dhana — LIGHT LEVEL: first develop Aparigraha (noncollecting) — you don’t collect that which you don’t use. It leads to Agraha (to be independent). It leads to Amana (to not have ego) — letting of being possessive. Mana is “”I”” ness. Raga is “my””ness.

o Why do we share: to evolve

o Saatvic dhana — Giving PROMPTLY and RESPECTFULLY (you don’t feel superior to who you are giving to) and GRACIOUSLY (wholeheartedly)

o Rajasic dhana — NOT PROMPT (one has to be reminded) and EXPECTANTLY (once give something, you have the feeling of getting something in return) For example, you have an expectation to get puna out of it and win Bhagwan’s favour (buying God). CALCULATINGLY (when we give, not graciously but in a calculated way). For example, you may not give to support the e-Vichara when just asked but may give if given a reference point of how much makes sense (Ex. If you think each e-Vichara is worth $1, then give X). We are oriented in this calculating way. USELESSLY (giving winter clothes to those that live in hot areas).

Even if we engage in yagna, tapa and dhana, whatever we do, we will be imperfect regardless of how much we try. Second shloka 24 in Ch. 17. What are we supposed to do?

Since I am going to be imperfect, I should chant OM.

• Chant doesn’t just mean verbalize, I should remember OM — engaged in yagna- when remember OM (in the beginning when you commence).
• When you complete your yagna, dhana — those who are students of Brahma, we are students of infinity, independent joy.
• When? Always remembering so intention is right. Bhrahma, God- whatever lifts us up.

By remembering OM, what we do becomes perfect. If intention is perfect, implementation is perfect, your pala becomes perfect.

When engaged in saatvic yagna, saatvic tapa and saatvic dhana- they invoke peace and evoke prosperity.

If rajasic — they do not invoke peace, they only evoke prosperity.

If tamasic- they don’t invoke any peace or prosperity.

DISCUSSION TOPIC: What visions and practices are needed to be generous?

The opportunity to work and to earn (not just in a financial way), should be treated as one’s salary. The opportunity to go to school, learn Vedanta. The opportunity to give is what you get. The practice that is needed to be generous — to commit your generosity (however many hours donating, or amount of money). Commit in advance and work harder to realize that commitment.

QUESTION AND ANSWER:

Q: Is there a written form of today’s class that we can review?

A: Bhagwan is sharing all this in certain shlokas in Chapter 17. Swami Tejomayananda distilled it down and I distilled it down even more. Study Chapter 17. I may write about it in the e-Vichara

Q: Amrit John shared how she is able to keep up the pace of the long questionnaires. Wanted Vivekji to appreciate those people that have kept up with the questionnaires- which answers and provides the summary.

A: Gita teaches us the art of living — how to speak, how to donate, relationships with people. If we follow this, we will actually be able to do anything. None of us have too many responsibilities that cannot be fulfilled. If think of masters like Swami Tejomayananda, they are able to fulfill so much more responsibilities because they breathe the Gita, and we should try to also.

RAW FROM LAST WEEK: Only eat between 9am to 9pm.

The purpose of this RAW is to never underestimate how much our input will affect our output. Don’t undersestimate how our outer environment affects our inner environment. When you want to change a habit, you have to change your entire environment. Infants have so much will power to try to crawl, walk etc. — they have no reason to believe they can’t do it. As we get older, we lose that. If younger- drive your willpower. If older, make sure your environment is saatvic.

RAW FROM THIS WEEK:

Calculate how much money from your net income you have spent on your wants and how much on your needs.

More intense: Calculate how much of your net income has gone towards you for today, you for tomorrow and towards others.

Most intense. Calculate how much of you net income was spent taamasically, raajasly, saatvically.

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

Starting next week, we will study chapter 18 for 4 weeks (the summary of the Gita).

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Bhagavad Gita Course Class Notes | Date: Apr 10, 2018

Name/ Center/ Group: Shruthi Ponnala / CM Raleigh — Chapel Hill , USA

General Class Notes

• In Upanishads , it is stated that we should cut the three knots of our heart that make us stuck from getting evolved. Those knots are, Avidhya, Kamana, Karma. (Forgetting joyous nature , makes me desire and act towards it.) The same is explained in Bhagavad Gita in positive manner.
• Chapter 17, gives the framework of how we can evolve in a positive way. Our Swabhava , I.e, our nature, naturally expresses as Shradha or faith. Shradha or faith naturally expresses as shramaor act.
• Nature is rough — faith is rough — Act is rough
• Nature is pleasant — faith is pleasant — Act is pleasant.
• So if you want to evolve, you should always be surrounded by the persons who have already been evolved or saativik. You should establish oneself in sattva, revolve around sattva and try to evolve to sattva. What should be like saativik ? Yantra — our equipments, Tantra — our techniques,Mantra — Our Purpose. All these should be directed towards Yagna, ie life of service, tapa — ie, toinveset to serve more. And this is expressed as dana — by sharing.

Chapter 17.8 to 17.10

• Describes how Yagna, Tapa, Dana looks for Saativik, Rajasik and Tamasik. We can determine this (Saativik, Rajasik and Tamasik) by our intention (ends) and implementation (means). We should try to identify and evolve ourselves.
• Yagna -
• Satvik Yagna
• Yantra — equipment level — Resourceful (Gather resources efficiently, bring best materials together)
• Tantra — techniques — Disciplined (Follows scriptures, leaders)
• Mantra — Purpose — Selfless(engaged for not themselves but for people around them)
• Rajasik Yagna
• Yantra — equipment level — Resourceful (Gather resources efficiently)
• Tantra — techniques — Disciplined (Follows scriptures, leaders)
• Mantra — Purpose — Selfish (Why are they doing, what they are doing — themselves — Me and Mine)
• Tamasik Person
• Yantra — equipment level — Resource less (offer that is poor, nachiketha’s father )
• Tantra — techniques — indiscipline (Agoris)
• Mantra — Purpose — Selfish
• Tapa — Comes from the word tapati — to burn. pata means to fall. Tapati inhibits patati. When we invest our self in our equipment, then it inhibits from that which is unhealthy. Best investment in life is in tapa. Tapa is to endure, to conserve (only when we conserve we can direct), to be reliable, to be simple, to concentrate (no regrets of the past, anxiety of future)
• Sativik Tapa
• Physical — Serve (Serve those who are great — allows us to imitate)
• Verbal — Think and then talk (Pauses a lot, what to say in better way, to understand the listener)
• Mental — To be Calm and Cheerful.
• Rajasik Tapa
• Physical — Strive for position (I want to be the best instead of be my best, want to see what I possess)
• Verbal — Reactive talking (What is deleted — pause and think)
• Mental — To be Irritable and irritating.
• Tamasik Tapa
• Physical — Engage that which is harmful.(fasting is fine but if you fast where you cant fulfill your responsibilities then it is tamasik)
• Verbal — Irresponsible.
• Mental — Fearful (One who is always afraid, they feel silence is awkward, wants to see phone etc )

Chapter 17.8 to 17.10

• Dhana- Being grateful for the gifted generously and become the same. If guru is teaching the shishya then shishya should be like Guru and NOT becoming the guru. Vivek JI explains Dhana in tactile way as
• 1/3 of net income should be enjoyed for you life
• 1/3 of net income should be invested for more income
• 1.3 of net income should be shared — gifted to continue shreya.
• What is the utility in Dana? If we think how we are earning , then there are elements of some form of papa — adharma manifest (Ex wrk — giving amount in cash etc). By engaging in dhana, one would develop following virtues (light to heavy)
• Aparigraph (Don’t collect what you don’t use / hoard) ->Araaga (be independent / My ness) → Amana(be egoless/ I ness)
• Let go of collecting → Let go of being dependent → Let go of being possessive (Ex Vamana Bhagvan and Raja Bali, everything that Raja Bali gave Bhagvan was Bhagvans’ and finally he realized that what is not bhagvans’ is my ego;Every day pooja — aatma nivedhana — ego — ahankara )
• Sativik Dana — Promptly — Respectfully (no feeling of superiority) — Graciously (wholeheartedly)
• Rajasik Dana — Reminded — Expectantly (giving with feeling of return) — Calculatingly
• Tamasik Dana — Not Promptly — Not even in reminded way and Ignobly (give in worst way and worst causes also) — uselessly (give winter clothes to kids who are in hot area)

Bhagavn Krishna says that as we engage in Dana, Tapa and Yagna, what ever we do, we will be imperfect regardless of how much we try.

Shlok 24

• Since I will be imperfect, I should chant ‘OM’ not only when I am engaged in Yagna, Tapa and Dana, but also during commencement . This is also mentioned in Vedas and as students of Veda / Brahman, we need to remember ‘OM’ always . By doing this what we do becomes perfect.
• Saativik Yagna, Tapa and Dana — Invokes Peace and Evokes Prosperity
• Rajasik Yagna, Tapa and Dana — Tunes into Peace and Evokes Prosperity (peace is missing)
• Tamasik Yagna, Tapa and Dana — Dont Invoke Peace and Dont Evoke Prosperity

Question — What vision and practices are needed to be generous.

Vivek Ji’s Answer

• Vision — Opportunity to work and earn — should be treated as salary — Opportunity to give is what I get.
• Practice — Commit to your generosity and work towards it not vice versa. Ex — Commit volunteer hours and work towards it.