Similarly, we shall find in the Bhagavad-gita, Tenth Chapter, that anyone who is engaged in that way is a liberated person. Bhagavad Gita on the Soul and Reincarnation It is very difficult to find a man who perfectly understands the position of the Supersoul, the atomic soul, their respective functions and relationships and all other major and minor details. Repeating these verses does not cause boredom but increases peace in the mind. He says, ‘O descendant of Bharata, this embodied Self’, etc. The easiest process for understanding the subject matter of self, however, is to accept the statements of the Bhagavad-gita spoken by the greatest authority, Lord Krishna, without being deviated by other theories. Shree Krishna draws Arjun’s attention to the fact that, since the body is constantly changing, in one lifetime itself, the soul passes through many bodies. BG 2.13: Therefore, the idea is that the Self is difficult to understand. He has not come into being, does not come into being, and will not come into being. Using the terms of Atma, Jivatma, and Paramatma, the Gita describes not only our individual souls, but the interaction of souls up to the highest level of Divinity. So how can it be reconciled that the something can be produced from nothing as those hypothesising that existence can manifest from the non-existent. That is because we are not the material body, but the spiritual soul seated within. Be fearless – Soul is neither born nor does it ever die: Be fearless my friend. Commentary by Sri Ramanuja of Sri Sampradaya: 2.29 Among innumerable beings, someone, who by great austerity has got rid of sins and has increased his merits, realises this self possessing the above mentioned nature, which is wonderful and distinct in kind from all things other than Itself. With immaculate logic, Shree Krishna establishes the principle of transmigration of the soul from lifetime to lifetime. Start your day with a nugget of timeless inspiring wisdom from the Holy Bhagavad Gita delivered straight to your email! As this is all in accordance with cosmic order there is certainly no reason to lament for this. Or, (the meaning is) he who sees the Self is like a wonder. The Bhagavad Gita, an ancient Sanskrit text considered holy in the Vedic and Hindu religions, takes an intriguing perspective when approaching the soul. This brief overview of the Bhagavad Gita, includes select shloka from each chapter frequently Back to Bhagavad Gita Quotes. In ancient classical Western religious and philosophic circles, famous thinkers such as Pythagoras, Plato, and Socrates accepted reincarnation to be true, and their views were also reflected in Orphism, Hermeticism, Neoplatonism, Manicheanism, and Gnosticism. The word va occurring twice is used in the sense of and as in and the immortal soul does not come into existence by birth. This is indicated by the word kascit meaning some. Illusioned by the material energy, people are so engrossed in subject matters for sense gratification that they have very little time to understand the question of self-understanding, even though it is a fact that without this self-understanding all activities result in ultimate defeat in the struggle for existence. The Lord explains the history of the Gita, His periodic descents to the material world, and the necessity of approaching a realized teacher. Reciting Shlokas of Bhagavad Gita awakens the soul to eternal knowledge. The spiritual knowledge of the soul, of God, and their relationship is both purifying and liberating. So men look at the soul proper as wonderful either by constitution or by description. Thus, someone hears of It. It is simply due to ignorance about the true nature of the eternal soul. Commentary by Sri Sridhara Swami of Rudra Sampradaya: Why then is it seen that even men possessing intelligence lament in this world? The immortal soul is already by nature itself eternal. To share feedback or volunteer for this project, write to : "d i v a k a r (at) jkyog (dot) in", © 2014, Bhagavad Gita - The Song of God, by Swami Mukundananda. Many schools of thought What is there to be amazed at for the Supreme Lord to say: It is amazing? Some people who are inclined to hear about the soul may be attending lectures, in good association, but sometimes, owing to ignorance, they are misguided by acceptance of the Supersoul and the atomic soul as one without distinction of magnitude. Moving to more recent centuries and civilizations, reincarnation has been affirmed by Rosicrucians, Spiritism, Theosophists, and New Age followers. Your email address will not be published. It contains knowledge of five basic truths: Krishna (God), the individual soul, the material world, action in this world, and time. But the fact remains that we do experience happiness and distress. In this verse, the word deha means “the body” and dehi means “possessor of the body,” or the soul. The word enam in this verse stands for the soul and as well, the body, the combination of both, the whole world. ascarya-vac cainam anyah srnoti I shall die out of man and shall become an angel!” [v10], Many of the early Christians believed in the concept of reincarnation. Similarly, at the time of death, it passes into another body. Translation of Bhagavad Gita 2.29. Verily what is amazing is the existence of the Supreme Lord Himself. The answer is: Although the individualized Self is the object of egoism, the absolute Self is not.] Therefore the spiritually intelligent see the eternal soul as a marvellous expansion of the Supreme Lord and upon realisation of this reality are amazed. And it is still more difficult to find a man who has actually derived full benefit from knowledge of the soul, and who is able to describe the position of the soul in different aspects. Therefore wisdom about Him is very similar to perceiving Him. āścarya-vad vadati tathaiva cānyaḥ This original matter although extremely subtle and subatomic is revealed in the Vedic scriptures and is perceived by one whose consciousness has attained the realization of that state. The eternal nature of the soul has been established in this verse, which is ever-existing and beyond birth and death. But it also requires a great deal of penance and sacrifice, either in this life or in the previous ones, before one is able to accept Krishna as the Supreme Personality of Godhead. So when the correct understanding of birth and death is realized then what possibly is the necessity for lamentation as it is not befitting one who is situated in spiritual intelligence. [It may be argued that the Self is the object of egoism. The German philosophers Goethe, Fichte, Schelling, and Lessing accepted it. āścarya-vac cainam anyaḥ śṛṇoti Commentary by Sri A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada of Gaudiya Sampradaya: Since Gitopanishad is largely based on the principles of the Upanishads, it is not surprising to also find this passage in the Katha Upanishad (1.2.7): sravanayapi bahubhir yo na labhyah Even after listening, not even one understands This i.e., realises This. And someone else srnoti, hears of It as a wonder. Others still misguided by erroneous conceptions and overpowered by false doctrines fail to realise the eternal soul even after correctly hearing about it, indicating that even with the opportunity of learning about the eternal soul does not insure that one can understand it fully. Like when the eye sees the expansive sky as being the form of the sky or perceives the expanse of the ocean as being the form of the ocean. Bhagavad Gita 2.20. Some look on the soul as amazing, some describe him as amazing, and some hear of him as amazing, while others, even after hearing about him, cannot understand him at all. The soul is full of knowledge, or full always with consciousness. Therefore in the matter of the existence of living entities the unmanifest, imperceptibly subtle, transforms itself into the manifest by modification which is known as birth and after some time again transforms itself into the unmanifest which is known as death. Kascit, someone; pasyati, visualizes; enam, It, the Self; ascaryavat, as a wonder, as though It were a wonder — a wonder is something not seen before, something strange, something seen all on a sudden; what is comparable to that is ascarya-vat; ca, and; tatha, similarly; eva, indeed; kascit, someone; anyah, else; vadati, talks of It as a wonder. For the soul there is neither birth nor death at any time. One realising the eternal soul as all pervading and of super natural eternity, knowledge and bliss is bewildered and overcome by its incomprehensibility as in the case of something beyond ones capacity to conceive. Commentary by Sri Keshava Kashmiri of Kumara Sampradaya: Even when the soul has departed from the physical body and no longer connected as is inevitable at the time of death and the bodies of respected elders like Bhishma are no longer perceptible still what is the necessity for grief? Shree Krishna draws Arjun’s attention to the fact that, since the body is constantly changing, in one lifetime itself, the soul passes through many bodies. Therefore, consciousness is the symptom of the soul. Krishna can, however, be known as such by the causeless mercy of the pure devotee and by no other way. But, if this Self is, in this manner, changeless (or destructionless), why is This not observed just as such by all ? The biggest fear in our … Apr 26, 2019. I am the super soul seated in the hearts of all living entities. Right before his eyes the horse died and the soul came out. One realising the eternal soul by the understanding the truth found within the Vedic scriptures by the words of the spiritual master sees the eternal soul as amazing. The individual fragmental spirit soul is represented by Arjuna, and the Supreme Soul is the Personality of Godhead Sri Krsna. Commentary by Sri Madhvacharya of Brahma Sampradaya: The eternal soul being a infinitesimal portion of the Supreme Lord is never destroyed even during the repetitious connection and disconnection with the physical body. Such a one speaks of It to another. He is unborn, eternal, ever-existing … The best book that explains Gita with the meaning of each word of Sanskrit shloka in Hindi and translates the full shloka in Hindi and then explains the whole meaning of the shloka. Thus they are of the same nature although there is modification during the intermediate stage from birth to death as is established in the Vedanta Sutra, II:XV,XVI of Vedavyasa which states: because of the existence of the cause, the effect is perceived; the effect is non-different from the cause although being posterior because it is existent in the cause. Bhagavad-Gita: chapter 2, verse 10 Observing Arjuna overwhelmed with grief at not properly perceiving the actual distinction between the physical body and the soul and yet discoursing in the way that one with proper knowledge of the soul existing The essence of Bhagavad Gita Chapter 2, Verse 19-21 is that the omnipresent Supreme God lives with the soul just as smell is present somewhere in the air. He explains that in one lifetime itself, we change bodies from childhood to youth to maturity and then to old age. Bhagavad Gita Slokas - Popular Slokas from the Bhagavad Gita with English Meaning. 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