BG4.36

Sri Krishna's birth, life and departure to Vaikuntam are all miracles. Alwars were deeply immersed in these miracles and these have been exposed in their poems. Today's [2nd November, 2007] lecture is from a place called Vimala kundam. This pond as the name suggests, is without blemish and will remove the blemish of those who bathe in this. Remembering, seeing and using the water of this pond will get us the sacred experience of Sri Krishna. This pond is in Kamya vanam. Sri Krishna used to bring the cattle here for drinking water and to teach young calves to drink water. An Acharya likewise teaches the disciple to get the brahmanubhavam or the experience with God. This experience needs a guide. Ordinary people like us have limited knowledge and we can not get directly this exposure and so we need a guru to guide us. Sri Krishna thus is an Acharya as He is guiding us. Drinking water may quench our thirst. Likewise, Sri Krishna exposure would reduce our miseries in this world. Sri Krishna used to bring the cattle for grazing and bathing them. This shows that Karma is important for everyone. The essence of this Chapter was brought out by Swami Alavandar in Gitarta sangraha and was mentioned in BG4.1. He told that the Chapter four brings out four concepts: Sri Krishna told the secret of His Avatar. Second was, how to look Gyana as Karma and vice versa. Thirdly, the various types of Karma yoga were elaborated. Finally, He tells that the Gyana portion of Karma yoga is superior to the Karma part. In the next sloka also He continues the fourth aspect but with slight difference. He has been telling Arjuna that the Gyana, which is the ultimate reach of all actions or karma, is to be pursued. That is the gyana that body and soul are different, body is destroyable while atman is everlasting, atman has some karma and for that one needs a body, prayer to God has to be for highest reward and not for cheap and inferior rewards and karma has to be done selflessly. How to get this Gyana? This will be done by Acharyas and we have to seek their guidance and serve them. This is in 34th sloka:

tad viddhi pranipatena
pariprasnena sevaya
upadeksyanti te jnanam
jnaninas tattva-darshinah

"Just try to learn the truth by approaching a spiritual master. Inquire from him submissively and render service unto him. The self-realized souls can impart knowledge unto you because they have seen the truth."

Tad = that Gyana, viddhi = learn, pranipatena = by falling at the feet, pariprasnena = by enquring and getting answers [question-reply method], sevaya = by serving, tattva = God or Sri Krishna, darshinah = true exposure or understanding, jnanina = intellectuals or Acharyas, te= to you, jnanam = knowledge of atman, upadeksyanti = will teach. First two lines of the sloka tell how a disciple should be and the latter two lines mention the behaviour of Guru. Falling at their feet and serving them, the far sighted Acharyas, happily would resolve all our queries and teach us to gain the knowledge about atman. So this sloka is mentioning the method to get that superior Gyana. Just as Sri Krishna taught the calves to drink in this pond, Acharyas will teach us to get this Gyana. Pranipatyena means we have to fall at the feet of an Acharya. Our feet or legs, hands and head should all be touching the ground and salute the Acharya. Our ego will get suppressed this way. We should fall with the feeling that this Acharya would resolve all our doubts and we have to learn great things from him. Pariprasnena means well asked questions to understand. Here certain formalities have to be observed. Firstly, we should not put our questions standing in front of the Guru. If we do this, there is a possibility that we may think we are equal to him. Asking from behind also is not correct, as the grace of the Acharya will not fall on us. So we have to be in his field of vision. We should also be near to the Guru. We have to put our queries to completely understand. If necessary we have to repeat our questions if, things are not understood in the first reply. But this has to be asked very diplomatically without irritating the Guru. Also we should not leave with the doubts still in our mind. All our doubts have to be got clarified. Even if the Acharya tells a thing we knew, we should learn it with same respect. One may wonder why Sri Krishna is recommending the learning from a third person, when He could as well teach one. Sri Krishna's intention is that great persons and Gyanis should describe about Sri Krishna.