Arjuna spoke:
37. Someone who has faith but does not strive, and whose mind frequently wanders away from yogic practice, will not achieve success in yoga. Ka, what path does he take?
38. Hasn’t he fallen away from both yoga and self-control, and doesn’t he perish like a cloud cut in two? Ka, he has no foundation, and on the path that leads to Brahman, he is utterly deluded.
39. Ka, please, you can cut through this doubt of mine completely. There is no one but you who can cut through this doubt!
The Blessed One spoke:
40. Arjuna, my friend, neither in this world nor in the next does that one perish, for anyone who has done some measure of good cannot possibly take the wrong path!
41. He goes to the worlds that he has made with his good actions, and he dwells in them for endless years. Then the man who has strayed away from yoga is reborn into a house of the pure and the blessed.
42. Or else he is born instead into a family of enlightened yogins, for such a birth is even harder to obtain in this world.
43. There he obtains the kind of understanding that he had gained from his previous body. And then, Arjuna, joy of the Kurus, he strives further toward perfection.
44. For he is carried along, beyond his own control, by the power of his previous practice. Anyone who merely desires to know yoga transcends Vedic recitations about Brahman.
45. When he strives with great effort, the yogin becomes purified of his faults, and over the course of many births he becomes perfected. Then finally he takes the highest path.
46. The yogin is considered superior to ascetics who practice austerity, superior to men of knowledge, and superior also to men of action. Therefore, Arjuna, become a yogin!
47. But among all yogins, the one who places his faith in me, who devotes5 himself to me, who has gone to me with his inmost self—I judge him to be the most disciplined of all!
SEVEN
The Blessed One spoke:
1. Focus your mind on me, Arjuna, rely on me, and commit yourself to yoga. Hear how you will come to know me, completely, without any doubt.
2. I will tell you what knowledge is, and what discrimination is. And once you have known these, there will be nothing more to know.
3. Among thousands of men only one may strive for success, and among those who strive thus and succeed, perhaps only one will truly know me.
4. My physical nature consists of eight parts: earth, water, fire, and air; and then space and mind, intelligence, and ego-sense.
5. But this is my lower nature. You should know that I have a higher nature as well, Arjuna. It is the life-force that sustains this world.
6. It is the womb of all beings. Consider this well, Arjuna. I am the origin of this entire world, and I am its dissolution as well.
7. There is nothing whatsoever beyond me, Arjuna! All this world is strung on me like rows of pearls on a string.
8. I am the taste, the essence, in the waters, Arjuna. I am the light in the sun and the moon. I am the sacred OM in all of the Vedas. I am the sound in space. I am the manhood in men.
9. I am the sweet scent of the earth as well, and I am the radiance in fire, the life in all beings, and I am the ascetic heat in holy men.
10. Know, Arjuna, that I am the eternal seed in all beings. I am the insight of the insightful. I am the brilliance of brilliant men.
11. I am also the strength of strong men, the strength that is free from desire and passion. And I am that desire in all beings, Arjuna, that does not resist duty!
12. There are states of clarity, states of passion, and states of inertia. Know that they come only from me. But I am not in them. They are in me!1
13. These states consist of the three conditions of nature. The entire world is deluded by them. The world does not recognize that I am beyond them, that I am eternal.
14. My veil of illusion, my māyā, is woven from these strands2 of nature. It is divine and difficult to grasp. But those who take refuge in me can pass through this veil of illusion.
15. Men who do not take refuge in me do great harm. They are deluded. They are the worst kind of men. The veil of illusion has robbed them of true knowledge, and they descend to demonic behavior.
16. Arjuna, there are four types of virtuous men who do take refuge in me. One comes to me when in distress. There is the seeker of wisdom as well. There is the one who prays to me for wealth and success. And there is the man of knowledge.
17. Among them, the always disciplined man of knowledge is distinguished by his devotion to me alone. I am especially dear to the man of knowledge, and he is dear to me.
18. All of these are noble men, but I think of the man of knowledge as my very self. For with his disciplined self, he resorts to me as the highest path.
19. At the end of many births, the man of knowledge prays to me, saying to himself, “Ka is all!” Such a great soul is hard to find.
20. All their many desires rob men of their knowledge, and as a result they pray to other gods. They commit themselves to this or that ritual restriction, but it is their own nature that restricts them.
21. I will give unshakable faith to any devotee who wishes to worship god in any form, as long as he worships with fervent faith.
22. When he has gained discipline, he seeks to propitiate his god by means of his faith. He thus obtains his desires from that god, but indeed it is I who have granted them.
23. But such men have little wisdom, and the fruit of their actions is small. Thus those who worship the gods go to the gods, whereas those who are devoted to me come to me.
24. Men who lack insight think that I, the unmanifest one, have become manifest in some particular form. They do not know that higher state of mine which is perfect and unchanging.
25. I am not revealed to everyone. I am veiled by the illusion, the māyā, of my yogic power. Deluded as it is, the world does not recognize that indeed I am unborn and unchanging.
26. I know the things of the past and I know the things of the present and, Arjuna, I also know the things of the future. But no one knows me!
27. Arjuna, all beings at birth enter into this grand delusion, because they are deluded3 by the dualism that arises from loathing and desire.
28. But those who have put an end to their sins, these men who perform acts of merit, they free themselves from the delusions of duality, and they worship me, firm in their vows.
29. Those who restrain themselves, resorting to me for liberation from old age and death, know Brahman completely, and its relation to the self, and the entire world of action.
30. Those who have disciplined their thoughts will know me in all of my aspects—as I relate to creatures, to the gods, and to sacrifice—even at the moment of death!
EIGHT
Arjuna spoke:
1. What is this Brahman? What does it have to do with the self? What has it to do with action, Ka? What does it have to do with beings in general? And what does it have to do with the gods?1
2. What exactly is it, and how does it relate to sacrifice,2 Ka, here in this body? And how exactly are men of self-restraint to know you at the moment of death?
The Blessed One spoke:
3. The supreme Brahman is imperishable. It is said to relate to the self as its inherent nature. It is the creative impulse that causes the origin of all beings. As such, it is also known as action.
4. Brahman relates to beings in general insofar as they come into being and perish by means of it. The individual spirit3 is that in us which has to do with the gods. And with regard to sacrifice, Arjuna, I am that form of Brahman that dwells in the body.
5. When at the moment of death one abandons the body, holding in mind me alone, one passes on and enters into my state of being. About this there is no doubt.
6. Whatever state of being one holds in mind, when at the moment of death one leaves the body, that is the state that one returns to. Arjuna, that is the state where one has always dwelled.
7. Therefore, at all times y
ou should hold me in memory, and fight! Fix your mind and your attention on me. Without doubt you will come to me.
8. When one meditates with one’s mind disciplined by the practice of yoga, pursuing nothing else, then, Arjuna, one comes to that highest divine spirit within us all.
9. One should hold in memory that ancient poet, the lord who is finer indeed than an atom, he who ordains all things, incomprehensible of form, with the radiance of the sun that is beyond this darkness.
10. At the moment of death, one should be disciplined with an unwavering mind, by means of devotion and the power of yoga. One should direct one’s breath completely onto the middle point between the brows. By doing so, one attains to this supreme divine spirit.
11. What students of the Vedas call the imperishable, what ascetics who have renounced passion enter into, what those who live the celibate life seek—briefly will I tell you about that place.
12. One should close down all of the doors of the body and keep one’s mind within one’s heart. One should establish one’s breath within the head, and remain fixed in yogic concentration.
13. OM. One should utter the one imperishable syllable that is Brahman. One should hold me firm in memory. When he abandons his body and departs from this life, such a man takes the highest path.4
14. For a man who always remembers me, who keeps his thoughts only on me and on nothing else—for an ever-disciplined yogin like this, I am easy to find.
15. Those great souls who have attained the highest perfection come to me, Arjuna. They do not experience that impermanent home of sorrow which is rebirth.
16. From out of the realm of Brahman all these worlds unfold over and over again. But, Arjuna, whoever comes to me instead will never experience rebirth.
17. When people come to know that a day of Brahman revolves through a thousand ages, and that a night of Brahman lasts a thousand ages also—then they will know truly about days and nights.
18. At the dawn of a day of Brahman all manifest things arise from what is known as the unmanifest, and at the fall of its night they dissolve back into that same unmanifest again.
19. This same vast host of beings arises again and again, and then unwillingly it dissolves at nightfall, and then it all arises again, Arjuna, at the next dawn of day.
20. Beyond all that, there is another state, an eternal unmanifest state that is beyond that unmanifest world. Whereas all beings perish, this one5 does not die.
21. It is said that this unmanifest being is imperishable, and men say that he is the supreme path. Once they have reached him, they do not return. This is my highest dwelling.
22. But, Arjuna, this highest person can be reached only through devotion to him alone. In him all beings rest and by him all this world is woven.
23. Yogins at the time of death sometimes return to the world, but at other times they do not return. Arjuna, I will tell you about such times.
24. People who know Brahman reach Brahman when they die at the following times: when there is fire, or light, or daytime, or the moonlit fortnight, or the six months of the sun’s northern course.
25. But a yogin reaches the light of the moon and returns here when he dies at these times: when there is smoke, or nighttime, or the dark moonless fortnight, or the six months of the sun’s southern course.
26. Indeed, these two courses—the light one and the dark—are thought to be permanent in this world. By means of the one, one does not return to this world. By means of the other, one returns again.
27. By knowing these two paths, Arjuna, a yogin will never become deluded. Therefore, Arjuna, become disciplined at all times in yoga!
28. Whatever reward for merit has been taught in the past regarding the Vedas, sacrifices, austerities, as well as the giving of gifts—the yogin transcends all of this. Having gained this knowledge, the yogin reaches that realm that is both first and last.
NINE
The Blessed One spoke:
1. Now I will teach the greatest of secrets to you, since you do not dispute what I have said so far. When you have understood the wisdom that comes with knowledge, you will be released from misfortune.
2. This is the knowledge of kings, the secret of kings. It is the highest means of purification. It is readily accessible. It conforms to dharma. It is easy to accomplish, and it is everlasting!
3. Arjuna, men who do not place their faith in this dharma do not return to me. Instead they turn back upon the endless cycle of death and rebirth.
4. I am woven into all this world, yet my form remains unmanifest. All beings find their support in me, whereas I do not depend on them at all.
5. And yet beings also do not find their support in me! Behold the regal force of my yoga! My self brings all beings to life, and supports all beings, but it does not dwell in them.
6. Just as the great wind that goes everywhere dwells eternally in the ether, so all beings dwell in me. Ponder this, Arjuna!
7. At the end of every aeon, all these beings return again to the nature1 that belongs to me, Arjuna. And at the beginning of the next aeon I send them forth again.
8. Relying on my own nature alone, I send forth again and again this vast host of beings, not by the force of their will but by the force of nature.
9. But these actions do not bind me down. I am seated here, Arjuna, but actually I am like one who sits apart, detached from all of these actions.
10. Nature gives birth to what moves and what does not move—while I oversee it all! Arjuna, the world turns and turns in this way—while this2 is the cause!
11. Deluded men disregard me when I take on a human body. They do not recognize my higher state, as the great lord of all beings.
12. Their hopes are sheer folly. Their actions are sheer folly. Their wisdom too is sheer folly. They have no insight whatsoever. They surrender themselves to a deluded nature that is full of demons and devils.
13. But great souls surrender instead to a divine nature, Arjuna. They surrender to me! They worship me, thinking of nothing else. Thus they know the eternal source of all beings!
14. Ever singing my praises, ever striving toward me firm in their vows, ever paying homage to me with devotion, ever disciplined—thus do they worship me!
15. And still others make offerings to me with offerings of knowledge. Thus they worship me—I who face in all directions—as having one form, having several, having many forms!
16. I am this ritual. I am this sacrifice. I am the libation for the dead and the healing herb as well. I am this mantra and I am this ghee. I am this ritual fire and its oblation too.
17. I am the father of this world and its mother. I am its guardian and its grandfather. I am all that is to be known. I am the purifier and the sacred syllable OM. I am the Rigveda and the Sāmaveda and the Yajurveda.
18. I am the way and the support, the lord and the witness. I am your dwelling, your refuge, and your heart’s friend. I am the world’s origin and its dissolution, its stability, its treasure, its imperishable seed.
19. I myself radiate this heat. I withhold the rain, and then I release it. I am immortality and mortality both. Arjuna, I am being and nonbeing both!
20. Those who study the three Vedas, those who drink the Soma,3 those who purify themselves of sin—seeking a path to heaven, they all direct their sacrifices to me! They reach the blessed world of Indra, lord of the gods, and in that heaven they partake of the heavenly pleasures of the gods.
21. And having thus enjoyed this heavenly world at length, having exhausted their merit, they return to the world of mortals. In this way those who observe their duties to the three Vedas, those whose desire is desire itself, win only what comes and goes!
22. But those people who devote themselves to me, thinking of nothing else whatsoever, once they have become constant in their discipline—I bring them success and peace.4
23. And even the devotees of other gods, who worship in good faith—Arjuna, even if they do not observe the traditional rites, in the end, with thei
r sacrifices, they worship me.
24. For indeed I am the recipient and the lord of all sacrificial offerings, but those who sacrifice to others do not recognize me in my essence, and so they fall from their heavens.
25. Men who offer their vows to the gods go to the gods. Those who offer their vows to the fathers go to the fathers. Those who sacrifice to ghosts go to the ghosts. In the same way, those who worship me come to me.
26. A leaf, or a flower, a fruit, or water, whatever one offers to me with devotion—I accept it, because it is a gift of devotion, because it is offered from the self.
27. Whatever you do—whatever you eat, whatever offering you make, whatever you give, whatever austerity you perform—Arjuna, do it all as an offering to me!
28. In this way you will be freed both from the bonds and also from the fruits of your actions, whether good or bad. Train yourself in the yoga of renunciation. Freed thereby, you will come to me.
29. Among all beings I am always the same. No one is hateful to me. No one is especially dear. But if they worship me with utter devotion, they will be in me, and I will be in them.
30. No matter how badly a man has lived his life, if he worships me and worships nothing else, let him be considered upright and wise, for he has come to recognize what is right.
31. He quickly commits himself to duty and righteousness, and he enters into eternal peace. Arjuna, understand this well: no one who is devoted to me is ever lost to me.
32. For, Arjuna, no matter how low their birth may be—whether they are women, or villagers, or low-caste slaves—those who rely on me all attain to the final goal.
33. How much more is this true, then, for virtuous Brahmins, or devout royal sages! Arjuna, having entered into this fleeting, joyless world, devote yourself to me!
34. To me should your mind be directed, to me your devotion aimed, to me should you make your sacrifices! Pay your homage to me! Disciplining yourself in this way, you will come to me. I will be your final refuge!
The Bhagavad Gita Page 7