BG5.17

The Lord tries many ways to attract us to Him. Among them is His enchanting beauty in Archavatara. The Hills of Sri Kattazhagar are most beautiful. This is also called Shenbaga Thoppu, Dharmadri or Varaha Kshetram. In the hills three streams are flowing amidst herbal plants. So, this is a good place for health. All these plants are growing by the grace of God. According to ayurveda, our body has swasam, pittham and kabham. When all these three are equal our health is normal. But if anyone is in excess, then we get disease and the herbal plants are useful to cure those diseases. By breathing the air here, by bathing in this Noopura ganga and by devotion to the Lord here, we get good health and mental peace. We were fortunate to get the gracing of the three Azhagars - Sri Koodal Azhagar, Sri Azhagar of Thirumaliruncholai and Sri Kattazhagar, like the three streams here. We will now see the 17th sloka. Here He sets up a stairway for Atman darshan:

tad-buddhayas tad-atmanas
tan-nisthas tat-parayanah
gacchanty apunar-avrttim
jnana-nirdhuta-kalmasah

"When one’s intelligence, mind, faith and refuge are all fixed in the Supreme, then one becomes fully cleansed of misgivings through complete knowledge and thus proceeds straight on the path of liberation."

Apunar avritti is atman sakshatkaram. Because it is not-to-be-reborn. Jnana = by this knowledge of atman, kalmasha = beginningless papa/punya which have got accumulated, nirdutha = get destroyed, and so he reaches a meritorious status and gets atman sakshatkaram. To reach this position, one has to take efforts and Sri Krishna tells the stairway. Tad buddhaya = concentrating his knowledge in atman sakshatkaram or resoluteness. This resolution or vow is necessary to start any work. So we have to collect lots of information about the work we want to take up. We also should know the disadvantages of those against the action we want to take up. Here we want to get atman sakshatkaram, and so we should know the greatness of atman and the inferiority about body. Just like physically challenged persons are resolved to achieve in life, we should have resoluteness in atman sakshatkaram. Tad atmana = concentrating on atman. Only a continuous thinking and pondering will overcome all obstacles. Tad nishta = by untiring efforts. For achieving anything we have to make sincere and ceaseless efforts. Once there was a guru and a disciple. One day the Guru asked him to fetch water for drinking and there was a bamboo basket only. Disciple tried to bring water in the basket, but before he could come near the guru all water got drained. He again went near the river and again tried, and all the water drained off. After a dozen efforts, the disciple got tired and told he was unsuccessful. But the guru, encouraged him saying that his efforts were never in vain and though he could not fetch water, the basket has become clean. So efforts will reward with results. Here also the efforts will slowly eradicate the huge papa we have accumulated over infinite births. Tad parayana = by having atman sakshatkaram as the goal and never for a moment changing or drifting away from that determination. So the steps are:

• Resolution
• mindful
• ceaseless efforts
• unwavering objective

Such a person when he does Karma yoga without aspiring for inferior rewards, will find his Gyana blossoming fully, with all his papa being destroyed, he will reach atman sakshatkaram which will enable him to have no more births, that is he will attain Moksham.