[Part 1]
2. With One Stop Over:
The Unfailing Universal Rule:
Krishna reveals the universal rule, that governs with no exception, the next birth of a creature. The rule is:
यं यं वापि स्मरन्भावं त्यजत्यन्ते कलेबरम् ।
तं तमेवैति कौन्तेय सदा तद्भावभावितः ॥ — 8.6, BG.
Meaning: Of whatever Being thinking at the end a man leaves the body, Him alone, O son of Kunti, reaches he by whom the thought of that Being has been constantly dwelt upon.
Therefore, his promise is: “Whoso, at the time of death, thinking of Me (Vishnu, the Supreme Lord) alone, leaves the body and goes forth, he reaches My being (My real being as Vishnu); there is no doubt in this as to whether he reaches or not (8.5, BG; 7.30, BG.).”
Essential Requirement:
At all times one should meditate ( in accordance with the Teaching (shAstra) on “Me” (Vasudeva) and “fight” (perform one’s functions in the society like fighting is for a warrior). With the mind and reason fixed on Vasudeva, one attains Vasudeva only (8.7, BG).
Shankara adds at 8.8, BG:
“Practice (of Meditation) consists in the repetition of one and the same idea, uninterrupted by any other thought, with reference to Me, the sole object of your thought. Such a practice is itself said to be Yoga. With the mind thus solely engaged in Yoga, not passing over to any other object, the Yogin who meditates according to the teaching of the scripture and of the teacher — of the shAstra and AcArya — reaches the Purusha, the Transcendental Being in the Solar Orb.
Further, Krishna tells us:
अनन्यचेताः सततं यो मां स्मरति नित्यशः ।
तस्याहं सुलभः पार्थ नित्ययुक्तस्य योगिनः ॥ — 8.14, BG.
Whoso constantly thinks of me and long, to him I am easily accessible, O son of Pritha, to the ever-devout Yogin.
Shankara explains at the above verse what does “long” imply: “Long does not mean six months or a year, but uninterruptedly all through life.” To such a Yogin who is ever steadfast in thought, the Lord is easily accessible. Therefore, without thinking of another, one should ever dwell steadfast in Krishna.
Other Pre-requisites:
The seeker should perform pure deeds only, his/her demerits should have come to an end and s/he must be free fom the delusions of pairs (7.28, BG); should be steadfast in mind (र्युक्तचेतसः – 7.30, BG).
Guarantee: The Lord assures:
मामुपेत्य पुनर्जन्म दुःखालयमशाश्वतम् ।
नाप्नुवन्ति महात्मानः संसिद्धिं परमां गताः ॥ — 8.15, BG.
Meaning: Having attained to Me, they do not again attain birth, which is the seat of pain and is not eternal, they having reached the highest perfection.
Having attained to Me, Ishvara, ‘having reached My being, they are not again subject to birth. Birth here is the seat of all pain arising from the body, etc., and is of an ever changing nature. Having reached the highest stage called moksha, they do not attain birth again. Those, on the other hand, who do not attain to Me, return (to the earth).
Only Krishna can give such a guarantee and none else because, the Lord says:
(All) worlds including the world of Brahma are subject to returning again; but, on reaching Him, there is no rebirth (8.16, BG).
Shankara clarifies that all the worlds including the world of Brahma are subject to returning because “they are limited by time.”
Background and Rationale:
Lord Krishna’s teaching in the Bhagavad-Gita opens with the questions posed by Arjuna. The tone and tenor of the Questions sound as though they are coming from a mature and ripened seeker who is totally detached from everything and is a complete renunciate on the Knowledge path inquring after formless and featureless brahman. In spite of the fact that Krishna knew the level of understanding of Arjuna, he sailed along and answered him expounding the philosophy of nirguNabrahman until about the middle of the 7th Chapter.
Explaining that Arjuna was not yet qualified enough to pursue attributeless brahman and that he has to still adopt the path of performing desireless karma, Krishna began to address him about the karmic path. Krishna also urged him that, while he functioned in the society taking actions as per his obligatory responsibilities, he should also study and grasp the “essence of the doctrine of the Ultimate Truth.”
Corresponding to this structure of philosophical exposition, Krishna spoke referring to himself as though he was the attributeless brahman speaking till about the middle of the 7th Chapter. From then on, he spoke as though he was saguNabrahman with a form (Ishwara / Vasudeva / Hiranyagarbha / Vishnu &c. &c.). This factor makes us appreciate the difference between the Part-1 and Part-2 of this essay, even though both talk about the “thoughts” of the seeker at the time of his/her death. (Detailed explanation available in the 2000-page, 3-Vol commentary on Gita (Telugu) – see figure).
One Stop Over:
As saguNabrahman, Krishna is available with a form for upAsana krama, be a guide, savior, philosopher and friend to Arjuna. However, this comes with a price. A follower of saguNabrahma will not be able to obtain sadyomukti (liberation here itself). S/he has to travel to the world of his/her favorite deity and attain liberation along with that deity. This is called ‘kramamukti’ – 5.12, BG.
“On the final dissolution of the world of the conditioned brahman, they attain, along with the lord of the world, what is higher than this conditioned brahman, as is known on the strength of the Upanishadic declaration” – 4.3.10, BS.
Shankara adds here: “The idea conveyed is that when the time for the final dissolution of the world of the inferior brahman is imminent, the aspirants who have acquired full realization there itself attain thereafter, along with Hiranyagarbha, the ruler of that world, the supreme state of Vishnu which is absolutely pure. This kind of liberation by stages has to be admitted on the strength of the Upanishadic texts speaking of non-return etc.” – 4.3.10, BSB.
[Note: Translations adopted from Alladi Mahadeva Sastry for the BG; from Swami Gambhirananda for brahmasUtra-s.]