dancing upon stars...

It is imperative to inundate oneself with the worldview of the culture and time you are studying. It is an acceptable challenge to do so. From a Western perspective, the caste system may seem unfair or discriminating. Much about Hindu culture may seem confusing or unethical. However, it is also necessary to realize that we may also be seen the same from the other side. With all of this in mind, I began my reading of the Bhagavad Gita.

            I was interested in the emotions of Mahatma Gandhi regarding this sacred text as he is one of my heroes. He considered the Bhagavad Gita the “Mother to whom the children (humanity) turned to when in distress” (forward).

            If Gita is to be considered the science of the soul, then the Bhagavad Gita is considered a sacred writing regarding this subject. The story begins with the dejection of Arjuna. He explodes in passionate rampage regarding the current state of society, concepts he is perplexed about and his duty as a warrior.

            Lord Krishna rebukes him for his helpless despair but in turn takes pity upon him. He decides to show him secret and sacred things. So the meat of the most borrowed book in the great Library of London begins.

            The Hindu culture is based on many sacred concepts but overall it is understood that one must strive for balance, harmony, the completion of your Samsara, and the eventual return to the state of Brahman.

            Arjuna is eager to understand the state of a man with a stable mind such as these teachings would encourage. “One should be able to withdraw the senses from objects, like the tortoise withdraws all its limbs within” (p. 17).

            One could argue that the caste system is segregation and that it does not allow equal opportunity. However, from the perspective of a Hindu, one begins at the lowest level of the system, and by performing his Dharma perfectly he may rise in the next lifetime to the next rung of the caste ladder. In a way, I could see this bringing peace because it is accepted you are to begin here, and you will complete this cycle with perfect dharma allowing you the chance to live in the next caste level next time around. You cannot look at the “superstars” of your culture and wish to be them. You have only the option of being the best you possible.

            Within the same concept there is a greater force at work: “the eternal Brahmic state frees one from delusion forever” (p. 17).

            Arjuna is torn, “my heart is overpowered by the taint of pity my mind is confused as to duty. I ask Thee tell me decisively what is good for me…” (p. 18). Perhaps, it is due to his humility that Lord Krishna decides to instruct this soul.

            From a Western perspective, on may assume that a Dalit (lowest caste of untouchable) may feel worthless or hopeless or as though he does not belong. To me, it is amazing that if a Dalit performs his Dharma (duty) perfectly, he moves to the next level of the caste. The eventual goal of course is to move all the way through and be released from the Samsara (cycle of rebirth) to experience the liberation of Moksha.

            “Just as man casts off worn-out clothes and puts on new ones, so also the embodied Self casts off worn-out bodies and enters others that are new” (p. 21). “This, the Indweller in the body of everyone is always indestructible…therefore, thou shouldst not grieve for any creature” (p. 22).

            The practice of Yoga is a very large part of Hindu culture. The Bhagavad Gita highlights it encouraging that even a small amount of this knowledge will allow for focus, clarity and single-mindedness. “Yoga is skill in action” (p. 26).

            “He whose mind is not shaken by adversity, who does not hanker after pleasures, and who is free from attachment, fear and anger is called a sage of steady wisdom” (p. 27). The grand concept is to release oneself from Moha (attachment).

            Another Western misconception might be the idea that people within these segregated castes are not equal. To a sage, all beings are equivalent. “Sages look with an equal eye on a Brahmin endowed with learning and humility, on a cow, on an elephant, and even on a dog and an outcast” (p. 49). Lord Krishna is to be seen as “the friend of all beings…” (p. 51).

            An important quality of perfect dharma would be to recognize that the duty is performed for the sake of the duty alone. One would not be granted completion of his dharma were one to be found completing his duty based on the fruit of the action. One must only complete dharma for the sake of doing one’s duty.

            I am intrigued by the idea that one must be loyal to Self, rely on one Self to evolve and perform dharma, to pay mind to one’s karma and to break free from Moha. It is not a religion based on reliance upon an abstract Divine being but on one Self. It may take many births and many deaths to cycle through toward Moksha.

            Through the conversation Arjuna has with Lord Krishna, he is enlightened by many conceptual truths. In the end, he has gained much understanding. However, the duality of our Divine and Human natures is represented in his statement toward the end of the Bhagavad Gita, “I am delighted having seen what has never been seen before; and yet my mind is distressed with fear…” (p. 93). To me, this represents the necessity of the cycles of Samsara because what the mind may understand the Spirit may have need to be quiet from.

            Arjuna is advocated by Lord Krishna to “speak of the indestructible … tree, having its root above and branches below…” (p. 111). Divine beings housed within these fleshy bodies we are, and dancing upon the stars we are made of in our search for knowledge, we cycle through our lives, seeking peace.