Hari Om! Parents,
Below is the Summary of Chapter 9 – The Yoga of Royal Secret, that was discussed over the last few classes.
Secret: That which we do not know at this moment.
Royal Secret: The presence of the Lord within us is a secret to us, knowing which everything will be known. However even when realized, this sacred knowledge remains secret to the Mind, Intellect and Senses. It is beyond their grasp.
Lord Krishna says Arjuna is a qualified student for this knowledge because:
- He is not merely listening to find a mistake or a contradiction, he has faith (Shraddha)
- He doesn't raise trivial objections in the name of playing devil's advocate
- He is polite and straight forward. When in doubt he asks questions to get a better understanding
- He is patient with himself and eager to evolve. He wants to apply the knowledge, not just listening for academic value
Krishna lays out these qualifications of Arjuna for the benefit of all students. We will be successful if we develop these qualities, and apply them in any study we undertake.
In Chapter 8, Krishna mentions that worshipping the Lord in name and form will help us to attain purity of mind and take us to higher lokas or realms of experience. (We discussed the 14 lokas, Earthly realm, Heavenly realm and Brahma loka, impact on our papas and punyas in each realm/form and life span of Brahma.)
In Chapter 9, Krishna is focusing more on knowing the Lord within us. Krishna says this Royal Secret is easily known to the prepared mind, the mind that is NOT engaged in the pursuit of power, position, money, people and relationships. These are constantly changing and bringing us sorrow. But putting our faith in the Higher nature of the Lord which is the changeless substratum, will never fail us.
Below are selected features Krishna elaborates on to help us to perceive His Higher nature:
- I pervade this entire world in My unmanifest form (that which cannot be perceived by BMI)
- I am the cause of this Universe – the material, efficient and instrumental cause (All three)
Ex 1: Pot is the Effect, Causes are: Material (Clay), Efficient (Potter) and Instrumental (Potter's Wheel)
Ex 2: Spider Web is the Effect, Causes are Material (Silk from Spider), Efficient (Spider), Instrumental (Spider's claws). So spider is the material, efficient and instrumental cause for the web
- In Yagna, I am all the offerings, medicinal herbs and plants
Ex: Gold can say, "I am the chain, I am the ring, I am the bangle" since they are all made of Gold
- I am the Father, Mother, Omkar, Vedas, the Goal, Witness, Your friend, Abode of all and behind all the phenomenal happenings in the Universe
- The Lord is nothing but Total Love who answers our prayers (true story of Dr. Mark and the cancer patient's mother's prayer)
So if to know this Royal Secret is to know His higher nature, knowing which we can be liberated, what stops us from realizing God?
The following three qualities are present in everyone:
- Satviki (full of knowledge)
- Rakshasi (harming others words or physically - rajasik),
- Aasuri (over indulgence in sense pleasures, dull brain - tamsik)
Rakshasi and Asuri qualities delude: they successfully keep us away from God
Makes us: 1. Live in false hopes 2. Do Wasteful activity 3. Gather Useless knowledge 4. Have Wrong thinking
If we channel our mind to Karma Yoga and Bhakti, we will reduce the grip of Rakshasi and Aasuri tendencies and develop a more Satviki mindset that is conducive to getting closer to knowing God.
The Lord's assurance to his devotees: One who worships Me, I grant and protect all their needs
- We have role models in our Mahatmas (like Gurudev, Ramana Maharishi, Tulsidasji) who experienced the Lord and were always engrossed in His thoughts
- The wise – who worship with attitude of oneness with the Lord
- Others worship Him with form
- Some worship Him as entire creation
In explaining attitude to worship for spiritual growth (ananya, paryupasate, nitya abhiyuktanam explained below), Krishna again gives us the prescription for success in any endeavor we may undertake, spiritual or material:
- Consistency of thinking – completely channeling our thoughts to the project at hand
- Single-pointed focus on the tasks without losing sight of our purpose
- Maintaining Self-Control – Resist temptations enroute while marching towards the goal
An Episode with Narada: Demonstrates how the Lord protects the sincere from temptations
Maya causes delusion. Once Sage Narada the greatest devotee of the Lord himself got caught up in this maya. When he visits Bhuloka, and falls for the beauty of princess Damayanti. To win the swayamvara, Narada requests Lord Narayana to give him the face of Hari (another meaning monkey). Unbeknownst, Narada goes with this monkey face and is ridiculed. He gets upset with the Lord but later realizes his mistake and thanks the Lord for not putting him in samsara (sorrows inherent in the cycle of birth and death).
Remember: He promises to take care of our need not our greed.
How should I worship?
God is Infinite: compassionate, loving, forgiving and easily pleased with anything offered with love
- He accepts anything - leaf, flower, fruit, plain water
- Offer with love
- Offer all your efforts and successes Unto Him
- Examples narrated in class
- Story of Vidura when he hosted Lord Krishna
- Story of Sabari who feeds Rama and Lakshmana the berries she had bitten into
Lord's assurance is that the worst sinner can transform when he decides to do so
- The fire of deep regrets burns all the negativities
- Strength of right resolve soon initiates good thoughts and conduct
- There might be lots of pitfalls, but if we take one step, the Lord takes 10 steps towards us
- Example: Story of Ratnakara aka Valmiki
Class Discussion
We concluded Chapter 9 with a whole class devoted to the discussion of the different Spiritual Belief systems prevalent today - how they differ, and where Advaita stands. You can find the charts we used for the discussion here. Children contributed to the discussion very enthusiastically bringing in their understanding from peer conversations and experiences. The goal was to dig deeper into each system to understand them better, exploring the gaps in logic and reason. However, the point is not to judge, it is to seek.
In the next class, we will showcase through a video what a seeker looks like. Stay tuned!
Regards,
Aruna and Sirisha
