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How Should the Yogi Think of God? Part 2: The Way of Form

A Commentary on the Bhagavad Gita. Part 2 of How Should the Yogi Think of God? [read Part 1 here]

The way of Form (Saguna Brahman)

Krishna–worshipping with the way of formNow Krishna expounds the way of those who devote themselves to the attainment of Saguna Brahman.

“But those who, renouncing all actions in Me, and regarding Me as the Supreme, worship Me, meditating on Me with undistracted yoga, of those whose consciousness have entered into Me, I am soon the deliverer from the ocean of death and rebirth” (Bhagavad Gita 12:6, 7).

This, too, merits close scrutiny.

Renouncing all actions in Me.

There are a lot of shameless idlers wandering around India pretending to be monks and excusing their indolence and worthlessness as renunciation of action. But Krishna indicates that renunciation must only take place in the state of God-consciousness–that mere abstention from action to supposedly free or purify the mind is meaningless and worthless, a delusion based on ignorance and laziness.

It is utterly mistaken to think that withdrawal from action will free our minds to seek God. That is getting the order completely turned around. First we must establish ourselves in at least a working degree of spiritual awareness before we can think of stopping action.

Sri Ramakrishna said: “There is a kind of renunciation called ‘monkey renunciation.’ A man tormented by the troubles of the world goes to Benares wearing an ocher robe. No news of him for days. Then comes a letter, ‘You should not worry. I have got a job.’”

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How Should the Yogi Think of God: Nirguna or Saguna? Part 1

nirguna OMThrough the ages a philosophical tug-of-war has gone on between those who prefer to consider God as possessing limitless, divine qualities, and those who prefer to think of God as being unthinkable–as being utterly beyond anything that can be conceptualized or spoken.

These two aspects are called Saguna (with qualities) and Nirguna (without qualities). The yogi knows that both are true, but the philosophers insist on holding to one and rejecting the other, or declaring one to be higher or more accurate than the other. Consequently Vyasa has this twelfth chapter open with these words from Arjuna:

“The constantly steadfast devotees who worship You with devotion, and those who worship the eternal unmanifest: which of these has the better knowledge of yoga?” (Bhagavad Gita 12:1)

Arjuna addresses Krishna as the Saguna Brahman, since he is communicating with Arjuna as a conditioned being.

Krishna answers:

“Those who are eternally steadfast, who worship Me, fixing their minds on Me, endowed with supreme faith: I consider them to be the most devoted to Me” (Bhagavad Gita 12:2).

This is extremely clear, at least as far as the traits of those who have a better grasp of yoga is concerned. But why is their grasp better?

Because they are able to focus their intention on a concept of the Divine that is not only within the scope of their intellect, it is a concept that inspires their seeking, for it is based on love which, as Swami Sri Yukteswar points out in The Holy Science, is in its essential nature a magnetic force that unites the seeker with the object of the seeking. The path of devotion (bhakti) is as pragmatic as the path of knowledge (jnana).

The path of the formless

“But those who honor the imperishable the indefinable, the unmanifest, the all-pervading and unthinkable [inconceivable], the unchanging, the immovable, the eternal…” (Bhagavad Gita 12:3).

None of these qualities are within the range of our experience–no, not even from eternity. So how can we begin to conceive of them? For example, in the West it is thought that “eternal” means that which is without end, but in reality it means that which has neither beginning nor end–that which is absolutely outside the realm of time, space, or relativity. Can we think the unthinkable? Can we conceive the inconceivable? Of course not–its very nature makes it impossible for us. So how, then, can Nirguna Brahman be approached, much less known? Krishna tells us.

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Four Kinds of Men Who Seek God: Which Are You?

“Among benevolent men, four kinds worship Me: the distressed, those who desire wealth, those who desire knowledge, and the man of wisdom” (Bhagavad Gita 7:16).

4 types of men who seek GodNow a great deal of people think they are religious, but Krishna is presenting us with four broad categories of those who can be said to genuinely be seeking God. All others are only seeking their egos in some form and need not be seriously considered, such as those who are only cultivating the approval of others (or themselves) or who want to make a positive impression to cover their intentional negativity. We can look at each of the “real four” in turn.

1. The distressed

Artas means those who are intensely troubled–bereft, afflicted, distressed, or suffering. Wisely they seek for relief in God, rather than try to distract themselves or deny their problems. Nor do they fool themselves with the “answers” and “good things” of the deluded world.

2. Those who desire wealth

Artharthi are those who seek attainment and welfare. They do fool themselves with the “answers” and “good things” of the deluded world. 

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Are You on the Path to God

“In whatever way men approach Me, I reward them. Men everywhere follow My path” (Bhagavad 4:11).

Path to GodFor us raised in the “light that is darkness” of Western religion, every verse of the Gita is a revelation of stunning proportions. Certainly this is one of the most revelatory of them all–it opens vistas that free and expand the heart as we never dreamed possible. Let us look at them and rejoice in them. For the truth of the Gita is not a dose of medicine or a contract of obligation; it is the key that unlocks our shackles, the light that dispels darkness and reveals the wonders of The Way Things Are.

  • In whatever way men approach Me, I reward them.

Bhajami basically means “I reward,” but it can legitimately be translated “I share with” and “I love.” In other words, however we may approach God, He will respond and fulfill our spiritual needs, loving us as His own being. It is all a matter of the disposition of our inmost mind and heart. 

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