Gita Series – 89: Bhagavad Gita Chapter VII. Verses 27 – 30

“Arjuna! Through delusion in the form of pair of opposites, arising from desire and hatred, all creatures right from their births succumb to them. But those men of virtuous deeds, whose sins have come to an end are freed from deceptive pairs of opposites, worship Me with resolute determination. Those, who have surrendered unto Me, wanting to get liberated from old age and death, get to know the Brahman, the embodiment of all souls (adhyātma). Those who know Me even at the time of their death, as the One, encompassing all that is physical, astral and spiritual, continue to perceive Me.”

Delusion arises from opposites. We call someone as good and someone else as bad. Good and bad is a reference to qualities of concerned persons. When someone is good to us, we call him as good and when someone hurts us, we call him as bad. Good and bad are opposites. Sometimes, at the height of one’s ego, one begins to dislike a person just because he is not looking at him. The fact is that there is no difference in souls of all the beings, be it a man, an animal or a plant. If one tames his mind to look at all the beings as his own self, duality gets dissolved. Duality comes to the fore only if one begins to look at the gross forms, instead of the subtle forms of the beings. Hatred or otherwise arises only due to the gross forms. That is why, it is said that materialistic living causes desires and attachments. But, this does not mean that one should not lead a comfortable life. If comforts are earned out of one’s hard work, nothing prevents him to reap the benefits of hard work. What is required is not to get addicted to comfortable living. Addiction alone causes desires and attachments. Addiction is one of the reasons for inducing a person to indulge in evil actions. When one indulges in evil actions, his karmic account also swells proportionately. Such men succumb to these dyads and continue to entangle themselves in the pains of repeated births.

On the contrary, a wise man has trained his mind to look beyond shapes and forms. He knows that shapes and forms are only veils that cover the souls within. As there is no differentiation in souls, he is not deluded by opposites. For him nobody is good and nobody is bad. Everyone appears to him as the Lord. He truly realizes the principle of omnipresence of the Lord. The knowledge that he has gained over the years, or possibly over many births and the experience that he had acquired out of the knowledge gained, makes him to perform virtuous acts, all the time. One is instigated to indulge in evil acts only if he is totally embroiled in ignorance. While pursuing spiritual path, first step is to acquire knowledge and the next step is to undergo experience.

Those who have surrendered themselves to the Lord for the exclusive purpose of liberation, remain in His consciousness all the time. They do not think about anything else. They know the pains and miseries of old age and consequent death that happens at all transmigrations. Due to their persistent efforts, they have come to know that surrender to the Lord is the only solution to get freed from the pains of transmigrations. Now, they know that Lord is nothing but the sum total of all the beings, whether movable or immovable. That is why they do not look at the gross forms, but the Lord within. This does not mean that the Lord does not exist in gross forms. Being omnipresent, He exists everywhere. But He exists in the form of māyā in gross forms, concealing His real form within.

The wise men through their solid experience always stay united with the Lord. Even during the process of death, they continue to stay connected with the Lord. Krishna says that such men know Him in His real form. They are freed from the pains of transmigrations and merge with Him, thereby concluding their spiritual journey.

CHAPTER VII CONCLUDED

Further Readings:

Bhagavad Gita Chapter VIII. 1-2

Bhagavad Gita. Chapter VIII. 3 - 5

Bhagavad Gita. Chapter IX. 1 - 3