lost in the forest

Verse 2.52: When your intelligence has passed out of the dense forest of delusion, you shall become indifferent to all that has been heard and all that is to be heard.

I love the analogy that Krsna gives here of the intelligence passing through the dense forest of delusion. It's so vivid. One can clearly imagine a dark and thick forest which is overpacked with trees so tall that they block out the sun and make it difficult to find a way out.

We are like wayward travellers who have gotten lost in that forest. Due to habituation, we identify ourselves with the scenery and surroundings. Over time, we forget that the forest is not our true home and that in actuality we are travellers. We are travellers who are passing through this forest with the goal of getting back home to our loving family.

In the meantime, although we are attacked by all kinds of disturbances in the form of anger, greed, lust and envy etc., we are ignorant of a way out. In fact, our mind and false ego, who we look to as friends, often serve to only mislead us further. The false ego does so by deluding us to believe that our home is in the forest and the mind does so by only thinking of satisfying the senses.

It seems we are doomed....until, an expert guide who has received perfect knowledge as to how to navigate the treacherous paths, traps and darkness comes to help us. We now have the free will to choose that guidance or to continue spending our time chasing after the fleeting glimpses of happiness while simultaneously trying to avoid distress.

So what do you choose? Are you going to stay in the forest or are you ready to go home? If you're tired of living out of a suitcase, the Gita is lighting up the path.

the art of work

Verse 2.50: A man engaged in devotional service rids himself of both good and bad actions even in this life. Therefore strive for yoga, which is the art of all work.

Have you ever admired someone for their ability to draw beautifully? I remember the last time I encountered the work of someone who was really gifted and I said something along the lines of,"You're so talented. I could never do something like that." In response to my personal assessment, this well-wishing individual said, "Anyone can draw. You just need to keep drawing and working on it." This response has stayed with me since that time and I find it applicable to almost everything.

Here the same answer is being given with respect to practicing yoga. We are being informed that yoga is the art of all work (i.e. it's a skill that needs to be developed.)

So how does one begin the practice of yoga?

By sincerely seeking out a guide or teacher who themselves have mastered the art of working in devotion. By genuinely inquiring from such persons, we open ourselves to being recipients of practical instruction and care. Finding such persons can be difficult as there are specific qualifications the interested student should look for in order to ensure they are not being lead down the wrong path. Characteristics of such a bhakti master include being fixed in devotional service to the Supreme, practically living the teachings given in the bhakti texts, and being tolerant, merciful and friendly to all living beings.

Such a student is in the best of positions. Not only do they have someone who is real-life role model but also someone to turn to to clarify doubts and concerns. By observing how their beloved guide is always engaged in devotional service and how everything can be transformed from material to spiritual, this serves as the greatest impetus to strive for yoga.

acting without attachment to the result - a practical step by step guide.

Verse 2.48: Perform your duty equipoised, O Arjuna, abandoning all attachment to success or failure. Such equanimity is called yoga.

~This post is dedicated to my spiritual guide and all my bhakti mentors. Without your love, gentle chastisement, continuous encouragement and empowerment, I would be lost.~

Yesterday I went to my weekly yoga/pilates class. At the end of the class, during the relaxation period, the instructor asked everyone to focus on their breathing. She added, "If thoughts come to your mind, acknowledge them with compassion and let them go." I was left thinking, "What in the world does that mean? Acknowledge your thoughts with compassion." It sounds really beautiful, but how does one actually go about doing it?

In a similar vein, many persons today, equate yoga with feeling peaceful. My question to all of you today is, what does peace mean? That's the challenge with words. No one actually decodes the intangibles like peace, compassion, humility etc., as what is given in the dictionary. They are coloured by our experiences and perceptions. That's why spirituality, which promotes the development of so many of these intangible characteristics, can be confusing to many.

This is why bhakti yoga is not only practical but complete, as it not only gives one the process but explains what the outcome is. Here, a very beautiful and practical definition of yoga is given - "Practice your duty in an equipoised frame of mind, abandoning all attachment to success or failure." Let's stop and really understand what the word equipoised means as, for most of us, this is not a common word we use in our vernacular. Simply put it means balanced or equilibrium.

In the context of yoga, equipoised means to do things for the sake of doing it and giving up the attitude and motivation of "I'm doing this because somehow it will benefit me."

The thing is, we all need some motivating force to drive us to accomplish something. If we don't have one, we won't do anything! Wouldn't you agree? So that begs the question, "If I'm not doing this for me, then what should motivate me?" One could respond and say, "Well, the motivation why I do certain things is certainly not centered on me. I'm motivated because I'm doing it for my friends, family, my country or even for the world." To this, the Gita replies, "Wonderful! That is huge step up from always focusing on ourselves!"

However, like any well-wishing coach or guide who wants to help us attain the best goal possible, Krsna gives us something even higher to strive for. That's right, we can actually operate on even higher motivating principle.

So what is that principle? Prabhupada, our wonderful bhakti guide and teacher, explains in the purport, "Yoga means to concentrate the mind upon the Supreme by controlling the ever-disturbing senses." See the step-wise progression? Let's break it down.

In order to perform one's duties in an equipoised frame of mind (i.e. in yoga):

1. One needs to control the ever-disturbing senses. The senses are like tentacles that are always trying to grab some object so that they can derive some pleasure from it. So how do we control the senses? By purifying them. More on that to come later!

2. One concentrates the mind upon the Supreme. This can be a hard one for many people. The simplest way, however, is to engage in mantra meditation. Simply by repeating transcendental sound vibration, it immediately calms the mind and focuses it. If you've never tried it, just try repeating the simple mantra "Govinda".

3. When one concentrates the mind upon the Supreme, one of the effects we experience is that of gratitude. How's that? Mantra meditation naturally results in the transfer of one's attention from oneself to a higher consciousness. When we tap into that higher consciousness, the worries and anxieties that normally swirl through our mind are exposed for what they really are - temporary and insignificant. That's not to imply that we don't need to take care of them. It means we take care of them with the proper perspective, and thereby don't experience the anxiety factor.

4. This leads one to feeling grateful. Grateful to the Supreme who is always taking care of us and is looking to help us. When we really feel grateful, we want to find a way to demonstrate it to the object of our gratitude, don't we? This is the motivation that drives us - we offer everything we do in appreciation of our gratitude to the Supreme.

In this way, we can be equipoised and naturally give up our obsession with success or failure. We become inspired to do our very best since it's an expression of our gratitude for all that we have been given, but notice how the attachment has changed! It's very subtle. We become attached to offering our best and become unattached to the conception of successful and failure. As they say, "It's the thought that counts." We don't realize it, but it's actually true!

And the best part of it all? The Gita states that the Supreme doesn't measure success or failure the way we do. It's the motivation that matters, and if we become attached to offering our best in a spirit of gratitude, there is nothing greater than that.

necessity of guidance...

Verse 2.19: Neither he who thinks the living entity the slayer nor he who thinks it slain is in knowledge, for the self slays not nor is slain.

An interesting paradigm is set forth here which one can easily be confused by. It almost appears that Krsna is saying that nobody can actually kill or harm anybody (please note- this also pertains to animals!!!) since the soul cannot be slain. This could be easily taken out of context so let's clear that up that possible confusion right here, right now.

Srila Prabhupada, one of the foremost bhakti yogis of our time, paints a beautiful analogy to help us understand this concept. If a man is living in an apartment and you somehow drive him away from that apartment illegally, what will happen? The man will have to go out and seek some other shelter. The fact remains, however, that you driving him away illegally from his rightful place of shelter. This is a criminal act punishable by law. One cannot try to justify that by saying, "Although I have driven him away, he'll find some other place." That maybe true, but since it was his legal position to live in that apartment and since you forcibly drove him away you will be tried as a criminal and punished.

Similarly the same truth applies here. This is the greatness of realized and pure bhakti yogi practitioners. They can make seemingly confusing and intricate concepts so easy to understand.

The law, in this case, is a universal one propounded by numerous traditions, philosophies and religions: Thou shalt not kill. So, if one tries to drive another living entity out of his/her dwelling (i.e. their material body), what will happen? That soul be subject to another birth in another body according to their past karma. Though that soul will find another body to inhabit, it still holds true that you drove that soul of it's body illegally (i.e. the law states that thou shalt not kill). That means that you will be subjected to the laws of karma and will be held accountable and be punished for this crime.

This simple verse illustrates the complexities and nuances of bhakti. It is so easy to take things out of context if one does not have a proper guide to teach them. Still not convinced? Let's try to put this in a way that's extremely relatable. If you are really close to somebody and they say something, isn't it only natural that you will understand the subtexts that may underline their tone, choice of words and mood? That you will be able to glean what they really mean although others may not get it? Similarly, only those who are close to Krsna and who truly understand him, like Srila Prabhupada, can truly explain to us what Krsna is saying.

Remember, the Gita is a conversation so we can't just think to come into a conversation between two extremely close friends and hope to understand it on our own. We need a guide who is also dear to Krsna to explain it to us. Bhakti is all about personalism, so it's important to understand how to practically apply that even in the study of such great bhakti texts, like the Gita.

A practical guide to responding to challenging situations

Verse 1.21-22: Arjuna said: O infallible one, please draw my chariot between the two armies so that I may see those present here, who desire to fight, and with whom I must contend in this great trial of arms.

As I've mentioned before, I love philosophy and logic but above all what I cherish the most is practical application. Here we see Arjuna facing a challenging and adrenaline inducing situation in the midst of a large crowd. We've all been there before. Think back to when you last felt this way. Perhaps it was was when you were speaking in front of a large audience or perhaps you were running for the bus and tripped and fell in front a group of people (been there, done that).

In those situations, it's very easy for our minds to "freak out" and for us to react without thinking. We forget cool logic and taking those deep long breaths and instead get caught up in the excitement, anxiety, embarrassment or whatever else of the moment. This verse is a goldmine of information to teach us how we can handle such circumstances with grace.

Just see how Arjuna is so methodical. He not only wants to gauge the situation but wants to break it down so he can assess the important variables.

Firstly he asks Krsna to move him to the best vantage point, in this case between the two armies. Similarly, we too in any situation should try to move into the appropriate perspective whether it be mentally, emotionally, intellectually or physically. For example, when in a heated argument with someone, sometimes the best thing to do is politely excuse oneself. Cool off a bit and then come back once you've had a chance to look objectively at the situation. Or the situation maybe such that we need to "walk a mile" in the other person's shoes so that we can better understand where they are coming from.

Secondly Arjuna wants to understand the mentality of those present before him. As the saying goes, "The face is the index of the mind." The soul is sensitive by nature. We've all had those moments where we can feel that someone is being sincere and when they just want something from us. If we look for it, it's there. Paying attention and watching a persons's reactions when we interact with them will help us to determine whether we're getting through to them or if we need to find another way.

Finally, Arjuna then wants to figure out who the major players are. Who are the persons that he needs to watch out for. Brilliant! Arjuna is so intelligent. By identifying those persons, whether they be friends, allies or those who may challenge us, it can help calm our fears. How? Because we're not facing the unknown anymore. Instead, by recognizing their mentality and having a better idea of what they stand for, we will be able to better anticipate what they may bring to the table.

Amazing isn't it? I never realized that this formula for responding to challenging situations was here until reading the Gita today. Just goes to show that bhakti is practical and useful in everyday life. That's why bhakti isn't just a spiritual path, it's a way of life.