Post on ninth adhyaya-1.

           We saw in the post on eighth adhyaya that the Lord is slowly advising us to take the path of devotion. In the very first ovi of ninth adhyaya, Dnyaneshwar Mauli also gives assurance that if we pay total attention to his preaching, we will receive all the happiness in the world.. 

तरि अवधान एकवेळें दीजे । मग सर्व सुखासि पात्र होईजे । हें प्रतिज्ञोत्तर माझें । उघड ऐका ॥ १ ॥

       Dnyanadeva says to his listeners in this ovi----At least once please pay total attention to whatever I am saying. If you do that, you will become eligible to enjoy all the happiness in the world. This is my solemn affirmation and open promise to all of you. The next moment however, he seems to have realized that his statement could be taken by the listeners as exaggeration. So in the immediate next ovi he clarifies that this assurance should not be taken as his arrogance or boasting, but be treated as his humble request made out of fondness for all the listeners. 

    Then comes the first shloka of this adhyaya in which the Lord tells Arjuna--- I will now explain to you most secret Dnyana i.e. knowledge about Brahman along with Vidnyana i.e. worldly knowledge,  on realizing which; you will be liberated from all the worldly evils.  In the next shloka, two important expressions "Rajvidya and Rajguhya" have been used for this dnyana indicating that it is sovereign knowledge and profoundest mystery. 

          The most important shloka of this adhyaya from the view point of devotees is No. 22 as follows. 

    अनन्याश्चिन्तयन्तो मां ये जना: पर्युपासते । तेषां नित्याभियुक्तानां योगक्षेमं वहाम्यहम् ॥ २२ ॥

For the devotees, who worship me exclusively with unwavering mind and remain constantly indulged in yoga, I protect whatever they have and provide to them what they do not have. Thus I take care of their well being. ---- In the ovis 337 and 338 Shri Dnyanadeva’s commentary on this shloka is as under:

ऐसे अनन्यगतिकें चित्तें । चिंतितसांते मातें । जे उपासिती तयांतें । मीचि सेवीं ॥ ३३७ ॥

(Lord says) ----Those, who single mindedly think about me in this way, and exclusively worship me, I myself serve them.

ते एकवटूनि जिये क्षणीं । अनुसरले गा माझिये वाहणी । तेव्हांचि तयांची चिंतवणी । मजचि पडली ॥ ३३८ ॥

From the very moment they dedicated themselves unto me and started following my path with full faith, it became my responsibility to provide for all their needs and free them from all the worries. 

          This is the assurance given by Lord himself to his true devotees, who do not pay attention to any other thing, but devotion to the Lord (ananya). This ninth adhyaya is full of instructions about such devotion. At the same time the Lord cautions the arrogant devotees in following two ovis:

  

एथ जाणिव करी तोचि नेणे । आथिलेंपण मिरवी तेंचि उणें । आम्ही जाहलों ऐसें जो म्हणे । तो कांहींचि नव्हे ॥ ३६८ ॥

One who claims that he knows me well, be sure that he does not know me. One who boasts having attained self realization; is lacking the real knowledge and has not achieved anything. 

म्हणोनि थोरपण पऱ्हांचि सांडिजे । व्युत्पत्ति आघवी विसरिजे । जैं जगा धाकुटें होइजे । तैं जवळीक माझी ॥ ३७८ ॥

Therefore, one should throw away his status and ideas about self-greatness; forget all his learning and become humble and small before the world. Then alone he becomes eligible to get associated with me and come nearer to me. 

          Thus being conscious about self-limitations, a devotee has to approach the Lord with exclusive and single minded devotion. Only then, he can go nearer to the Lord. To such devotees, the Lord gives further advice as under:

तरि झडझडोनि वहिला निघ । इये भक्तीचिये वाटे लाग । जिया पावसी अव्यंग । निजधाम माझें ॥ ५१६ ॥

Lord says-----Immediately disassociate yourself from this mundane worldly life and take the road to devotional life by following which, you will reach my divine abode that is unmutilated and perfect in all respects.

           Having commented on all the shlokas of the adhyaya, Dnyaneshwar Mauli must have remembered his commencing ovi of the adhyaya. So, he linked it with concluding ovis as follows:

अहो अळुमाळु अवधान देयावें । येतुलेनि आनंदाचे राशीवरी बैसावें । बाप श्रवणेंद्रिया दैवें । घातली माळ ॥ ५३४ ॥

O listeners, please pay little bit of attention to my discourse and you will be seated on the heaps of joy as though your ears have worn a garland of fortune.

         ---- Our next posting will be on the tenth adhyaya describing many divine and glorious manifestations of the Lord. 

post on seventh adhyaya-1.

 

After rating a yogi to be superior to a tapaswi, or a dnyani or a karmi; Lord Krishna opined in the last shloka of the sixth adhyaya as under:  

    योगिनामपि सर्वेषां मद्गतेनान्तरात्मना ।

    श्रद्धावान् भजते यो मां स मे युक्ततमो मतः ॥ 6-47 ॥

 “Among all such yogis also, in my opinion he is the greatest, who is my devotee, who worships me with full faith and remains totally engrossed in union with me.”

Then, while starting  seventh adhyaya, the Lord continued the note on Bhakti as follows:

    मय्यासक्तमनाः पार्थ योगं युञ्जन् मदाश्रयः ।

    असंशयं समग्रं मां यथा ज्ञास्यसि तच्छृणु ॥१॥

Lord says: “O Partha, taking refuge in me, and being fully absorbed in my love and consciousness, you are practicing yoga. Hence I am now advising you, how you can know me in totality and without any doubts; please listen to it.”

And in second shloka the Lord advised Arjuna what dnyana is and what vidnyana is. Then in third shloka Lord tells that out of thousands of seekers practicing devotion and yoga, rarely someone attains this dnyana and realizes the Self through it.

 

मनुष्याणां सहस्त्रेषु कश्चिद्यतति सिद्धये । यततामपि सिद्धानां कश्चिन् मां 

वेत्ति तत्वतः ॥ ३ ॥

Moreover, out of so many such realized souls also, scarcely one may truly know my essence in principle.

            On these shlokas, Dnyaneshwar Mauli writes following ovis, which are self-explanatory.

तैसें आस्थेच्या महापुरीं । रिघताती कोटिवरी । परि प्राप्तीचां पैलतीरीं 

। विपाइला निगे ॥ १३ ॥

Mauli says-- crores of seekers leap into great flood of earnest desire to know the Brahman, but scarcely someone out of them reaches the other side shore of accomplishment.

म्हणऊनि सामान्य गा नोहे । हें सांगता वडिल गोठी गा आहे । 

परि तें बोलों येईल पाहें । आता प्रस्तुत ऐकें ।। १४ ॥

Therefore O dear, this accomplishment is not an ordinary matter. It is indeed a major and difficult subject to explain, but we will discuss it at a later stage. Now listen about the worldly knowledge that I was explaining to you. 

          

Then the Lord proceeds with describing his Maya i.e. prakriti or nature; how it brings into life all the individual souls and revolves them in the cycle of birth and death with binding effect caused due to its attributes namely satwa, raja and tama. The Lord uses a metaphor of river for this Maya and describes how difficult it is to reach the other side shore of accomplishment by transcending this river of Maya.

          In the course of this description Lord reveals following fact experienced by all the devotees in their efforts to win over Maya :

येथ एक नवलावो। जो जो कीजे तरणोपावो। तो तो अपावो। होय तें ऐक ॥ ८२ ॥

     Lord tells Arjuna --- There is a strange reality about this Maya. Whatever measures are taken to transcend her, they prove to be harmful for the aspirant. Then he tells about results of some of them. Later, suggesting solution for winning over the Maya, the Lord says:

            येथ एकचि लीला तरले । जे सर्वभावें मज भजले । तयां ऐलीच थडी

 सरलें । मायाजळ ॥ ९७ ॥

          Here only those persons can easily transcend, who worship me whole-heartedly and with full faith. For them, the illusive water of this river vanishes while on this side itself. (In other words, for them there remains no Maya river to cross over.) --- Very easy to read, but most difficult to practice! Bhagwad Gita itself tells us that it takes lives after lives to attain the status of such dnyani bhakta.

    बहूनां जन्मनामन्ते ज्ञानवान् मां प्रपद्यते ।

    वासुदेवः सर्वमिति स महात्मा सुदुर्लभः ॥ १९ ॥

After practicing and undergoing meditation in many births, a Dnyani devotee concludes that everything is Vasudeva i.e. Supreme God and then reaches me. However, such great soul is indeed very rare.

In the last shloka of seventh adhyaya, Lord talks about seven philosophical concepts understood and realized by a dnyani devotee namely “1) Brahma- 2) Karma 3) Adhyatma 4) Adhibhuta 5) Adhidaiva 6) Adhiyadnya and 7) remembrance of Lord at the time of death).  

         

          This talk ends seventh adhyaya. Arjuna asks the Lord to explain these expressions, which explanation appears in the commencing part of the eighth adhyaya. We will see the same in our next posting on this blog.

 

         

post on sixth adhyaya-2.

                           

                                                          

         

         

 In the first post on sixth adhyaya, we saw that an accomplished yogi has been praised by the Lord in ovi 482 saying that such yogi should be recognized as God of Gods, and that he is my life spirit, sole happiness and everything else for me. 

अगा योगी जो म्हणिजे । तो देवांचा देव जाणिजे । 

आणि सुखसर्वस्व माझें । चैतन्य तो ॥ ४८२ ॥

As per shloka 46 of this adhyaya, such yogi is rated by the Lord to be superior to a tapaswi (i.e. an aspirant practicing penance), or a dnyani i.e. dnyana yogi or a karmi i.e. karma yogi.

    तपस्विभ्योऽधिको योगी ज्ञानिभ्योऽपि मतोऽधिकः ।

    कर्मिभ्यश्चाधिको योगी तस्मात् योगी भवार्जुन ॥ ४६ ॥

          While the expressions dnyani and karmi in the shloka can be understood in the context of sankhya yoga and karma yoga explained in second and third adhyaya respectively, a question arises as to who is a tapaswi? Apparently, he can not be the aspirant practicing Kundalini yoga described in this adhyaya, because this shloka comes much after description of Kundalini yoga.

          This takes me back to the question posed in the post dated 17^th April 2012, as to which is the yoga professed by Lord Krishna in the fourth adhyaya? Bhagwad Geeta and for that purpose Dnyaneshwari also, do not contain direct answer to this issue. In this shloka, Lord directs Arjuna to become superior yogi than dnyana yogi or karma yogi or a penancing tapaswi. However, here again it is not clear, which is the yoga in the mind of Lord.

          In the days of Mahabharata, various methods of penance and austerities propounded by the Vedas would have been in vogue. In the post on second adhyaya, I had recorded a view that after churning all the Vedic literature and after examining different types of then prevalent yogas such as dnyana yoga, karma yoga, dhyana yoga and Bhakti yoga etc. Lord Krishna improvised them by adding to them the element of Buddhi i.e. intellect and named that improved version as Buddhi yoga. This was a special contribution and great innovation in the field of spirituality of his time by Lord Krishna. The source and importance of Buddhi yoga can be gauged from assertion of the Lord in tenth shloka of tenth adhyaya that I myself confer Buddhi yoga on the eligible devotees, by practicing which, they reach me ultimately.

  तेषां सततयुक्तानां भजतां प्रीतिपूर्वकम् ।

  ददामि बुद्धियोगं तं येन मामुपयान्ति ते ॥ १०॥

          Thus, the Buddhi yoga  awarded by  Lord himself to a devotee would certainly be superior to any other type of yoga being practiced by that devotee.  

          In many of the shlokas of other adhyayas, the Lord has again and again underlined importance of Buddhi yoga. I have a feeling that Buddhi (intellect) being ateendriya (beyond senses) and firmer in comparison with mind, the yoga i.e. union with Supreme Self to be achieved through it would be superior than the union to be achieved by practicing other yogas, whose achievements depend on the physical  or psychological levels.

          Subject to correction of my opinion and thoughts, may I request the readers to consider possibility of the Lord having advised Arjuna in this shloka for adoption of Buddhi yoga that the Lord himself would confer on him?  

          Any way, let us come out of this discussion on for some time and see a wonderful observation of Dnyanadeva in the following ovi describing the type of aspirants, who would take interest in practice of spiritual science promoted by Bhagwad Geeta and Dnyaneshwari:

 जिहीं आत्मबोधाचिया आवडी । केली स्वर्गसंसाराचि कुरोंडी । ते वांचुनी एथींची गोडी । नेणती आणिक ॥ २८ ॥

          This ovi implies that except those who have sacrificed their worldly and heavenly pleasures for enjoying the eternal bliss of Atman, no one else would indeed appreciate the flavour and importance of this subject.    

          I now propose to introduce commencing part of main subject of this adhyaya that is the Kundalini yoga.  Following ovis written by Mauli narrate the wish of Arjuna to become Brahman and the Lord’s response to it.

मग ऐका जें पांडवें। म्हणितले ब्रह्म म्यां होआवें। तें अशेषही देवें। अवधारिलें ॥ १४७ ॥

तेथ ऐसेंचि एक विचारिलें । जे या ब्रह्मत्वाचे डोहळे जाहले। परि उदरा वैराग्य आहे आलें। बुध्दीचिया ॥ १४८ ॥

म्हणे जें जें हा अधिष्ठील। तें आरंभींच यया फळेल । म्हणौनि सांगितला न वचेल । अभ्यासु वायां ॥ १५१ ॥

          Arjuna was most eligible aspirant for enjoying the eternal bliss of Atman, so when he expressed wish to unite with the Brahman, Lord Krishna heard it and thought that in the womb of Arjuna’s intellect, foetus in the form of dispassion has already grown. So, he would not take long to attain Brahman. The Lord was also sure that Arjuna will practice everything advised to him, gain its fruits and his exercise will not go waste. 

ऐसें विवरोनियां श्रीहरी । म्हणितलें तिये अवसरीं । अर्जुना हा अवधारीं। पंथराजु ॥ १५२ ॥

        

          Thinking in this manner, the Lord said, “O Arjuna, pay attention to and go ahead with yogic practice on this Royal path (Pantharaj) that I am showing to you". 

          

          Here, Lord Krishna bestowed subtle experience on Arjuna 

of transcending the Prana energy along with Kundalini Shakti and Ahankara 

through Sushumna, from Muladhar Chakra at the bottom of spinal column

 to Sahsrar Chakra, supposed to be seat of Buddhi in the crown. 

The yogis experience and believe that Sushumna existing in spinal 

column is a channel or passage of Prana energy. 

They call it Pantharaj in yogic parlance, meaning that it is a 

royal road to Self-realization. It is not possible to physically locate 

this Sushumna in the body because it is also an ateendriya 

channel to carry ateendriya forces. An individual seeker 

(sadhaka) does, however experience and realize its existence 

without any doubt.  When the energies of Prana, Kundalini and 

Ahankara travel through Sushumna up to Buddhi and unite with 

Buddhi; this congregation goes beyond and merges into Atman, 

which is proclaimed by the Vedas and Upanishads to be beyond 

Buddhi.“यो बुद्धेः परतस्तु सः”। Here the process of Self-realization i.e. 

आत्म-साक्षात्कार gets completed.  

          All this may sound to be technical, but it is part of actual individual experiences that a seeker undergoes while proceeding with the practice of Kundalini yoga under guidance of his Guru as  described in this adhyaya.

          Before we close today’s post, we should see in nutshell following ovis in the adhyaya that enumerate importance of Pantharaj in the advanced practice of Kundalini yoga.    

तेथ प्रवृत्तितरुच्या बुडीं । दिसती निवृत्तिफळाचिया कोडी । जिये मार्गीचा कापडी । महेशु आझुनि ॥ १५३ ॥

पैं योगवृंदे वहिलीं । आडवीं आकाशीं निघालीं । कीं तेथ अनुभवाच्या पाउलीं । धोरणु पडिला ॥ १५४ ॥

तिहीं आत्मबोधाचेनि उजुकारें । धांव घेतली एकसरें । कीं येर सकळ मार्ग निदसुरे । सांडुनियां ॥ १५५ ॥

पाठीं महर्षी येणें आले । साधकांचे सिध्द जाहाले । आत्मविद थोरावले । येणेंचि पंथें ॥ १५६ ॥

ऐसें आपुले पायवरी । चालिजे आपुले पाठीवरी । हें पार्था नागवे तरी । आन ऐकें ॥ ३९०॥         

While advising greatness of this royal path, the Lord told certain facts to Arjuna. --- Lord Shankara (mythologically believed to be initiator of this yoga), still continues to travel by the same path in his practice of yoga. --- Some initial groups of yoga seekers, who while trying different yogic ways to reach the Brahman, found this ultimate royal path and adopted it for attaining self-realization. --- Subsequently, quite a few sages became accomplished Siddhas from the stage of learning sadhakas by adopting and practicing yoga through this Pantharaj. ---- Experience of practicing this yoga through Pantharaj is something like walking on our own back with our own feet O Partha.

           I believe this much introduction of Kundalini yoga is enough for the present. The true technical part of Kundalini yoga can be studied by us in the next round of sixth adhyaya. 

          In our next post we will discuss some serious aspects of dnyana (knowledge) and playful character of Maya (illusion) as described by Dnyaneshwar Mauli in the seventh adhyaya.

post on sixth adhyaya.-1.

          

                        

Sixth adhyaya shows to a seeker of salvation, the way to  realize Brahman i.e. Supreme Self by practicing yogic instructions elaborated in it. This exercise and  union with Brahman achieved by the seeker by practicing the same, is something beyond  understanding and perceptual capacity  of human senses. It is also beyond expression or explanation in words. As a solution for this, Dnyaneshwar Mauli says in the   introductory part of this adhyaya that "the secret and subtle doctrines of yoga contained in the dialogue of Lord Krishna and Arjuna are difficult to be grasped by human intellect and more so, to capture them in words. Yet, he affirms that in the light of grace of my Guru Shri Nivruttinatha, I will perceive the same clearly. He further says, something that is not visible to eyes can be perceived without eyes only if the viewer gets subtle extra-sensory power (ateendriya dnyana bala). He gives an example that  even with the help of alchemy; iron cannot be converted into pure gold. However, if one is lucky to get Paris i.e. imaginary touch stone, which converts iron into gold, such conversion is easily achieved. Mauli continues -- likewise, when a seeker is bestowed with blessings of Sadguru i.e. preceptor, will there be anything that he cannot do? He says, I am fortunate to have received abundant grace of my sadguru. On the strength of it, I will speak and make visible through my words, the form of that formless Brahman. I will also empower senses of the listeners to enjoy those experiences, which are otherwise beyond their power to perceive.  A sincere reader of Dnyaneshwari would vouch for the truth in this confident assertion of Mauli that is contained in following ovis. 

      " ते बुध्दीही आकळितां सांकडें । म्हणऊनि बोलीं विपायें सांपडे |        परि निवृत्तिकृपादीपउजियेडें । देखेन मी ॥ ३२ ॥जें दिठीही न पविजे । तें दिठीविण देखिजे । जरी अतींद्रिय लाहिजे । ज्ञानबळ ॥ ३३ ॥ना तरी जें धातुवादाही न जोडे। तें लोहींचि पंधरें सापडे। जरी दैवयोगें चढे। परिसु हातां ॥ ३४ ॥तैसी सद्गुरुकृपा होये। तरी करितां काय आपु नोहे। म्हणौनि तें अपार मातें आहे।    ज्ञानदेवो म्हणे ॥ ३५ ॥तेणें कारणें मी बोलेन। बोली अरुपाचे रुप दावीन। अतींद्रिय परि भोगवीन। इंद्रियांकरवीं" ॥ ३६ ॥

         
          What confidence! It must have arisen after achieving the status of a yogi described in following penultimate shloka of this adhyaya.

    तपस्विभ्योऽधिको योगी ज्ञानिभ्योऽपि मतोऽधिकः ।

    कर्मिभ्यश्चाधिको योगी तस्मात् योगी भवार्जुन ॥ 6-46 ॥

A yogi is superior to an aspirant practicing penance and austerities. He is deemed to be superior to those possessing verbal or theoretical knowledge about yoga and spiritualism. He is certainly greater than the seekers indulged in material and ritual actions for appeasing various Gods. Therefore, O Arjuna be a yogi.


          Mauli reiterates this wish of the Lord in the ovi as under: 

म्हणोनि याकारणें । तूंतें मी सदा म्हणें । योगी होई अंतःकरणें । 

पंडुकुमरा ॥ ४८१ ॥

          For these reasons (described in the  shloka), O son of Pandu, I always tell  you to become such yogi from the core of your heart.


          How great is such yogi is described by Dnyanadeva in the following ovi through Lord's mouth. 

अगा योगी जो म्हणिजे । तो देवांचा देव जाणिजे । 

आणि सुखसर्वस्व माझें । चैतन्य तो ॥ ४८२ ॥

O Arjuna, that person who is real yogi, should be recognized as God of the Gods. He is like my life spirit, my sole happiness and everything else for me. 

जया भजता भजन भजावें । हे भक्तिसाधन जें आघवें ।

 ते मीचि जाहलों अनुभवें । अखंडीत ॥ ४८३ ॥

 Such yogi experiences that  I constantly  become trio for 

him in the form of devotee, devotion and object of devotion 

as all the aspects of Bhakti yoga i.e. yoga by path of devotion.

मग तया आम्हां प्रीतीचें । स्वरुप बोली निर्वचे । ऐसें नव्हे गा तो साचें । सुभद्रापती ॥ ४८४ ॥

O husband of Subhadra (Arjuna), it is truly not possible to express in words the nature of love and affection between that yogi and myself. 

तया एकवटलिया प्रेमा । जरी पाडें पाहिजे उपमा । तरी मी देह तो आत्मा । हेचि होय ॥ ४८५ 

For comparing such love of our unity, if any simile is required O Arjuna, it will be that I am the body in which that yogi is the soul. 


         

In these two ovis, the Lord shows how an accomplished yogi practicing Kundalini yoga as described in sixth adhyaya can be equated with an advanced devotee practicing Bhakti yoga. This comparison reminds me that I have not yet discussed anything about the most important part of this adhyaya namely practice of Kundalini yoga and various achievements of the yogi practicing it. I would like to do the same in my next post on this blog. I am sure, the readers will bear with me till then. Thanks.