(Self-study is the first stage. It leads to the power of discrimination.
Without self study no progress is possible. Therefore Sri Krishna speaks
of it as an essential condition. He then goes on to the next stage of
preparation.)
"Subject to what I have said as to one's own duties (in Pancha Ratra and
other Vaishnava works; _Sridhara_) and knowing me to be the final
resort, you should dispassionately follow the Varna-Asrama and family
duties. (But how is dispassion possible?) With the mind purified by the
performance of duties, reflect on this that worldly men take up things,
thinking them to be real but the end shews that they are not so.
"Objects of desire are unreal, as their perception as separate entities
is caused by the senses and they are altogether sense-made. Even they
are as unreal as dreams and fancy, both caused by the mind."
(Actions are fourfold, (1) those that have the fulfilment of selfish
desires for their object or Kamya Karma, (2) those that are prohibited
by the Scriptures or Nishiddha Karma, (3) those that are required to be
daily performed or Nitya Karma, (4) those that are required to be
performed on certain occasions or Naimittika.
The first two are Pravritta or selfish Karma. The last two are Nivritta
or unselfish Karma. The Smritis say that those who want Moksha or
liberation must not perform Pravritta Karma. But they should perform
Nitya and Naimittika Karma, as their non-performance might give rise to
obstacles.) Perform Nivritta Karma and being devoted to Me, give up all
Pravritta Karma. But when you fully enter the path of wisdom, then you
need not care much even for Nivritta Karma. Constantly practise Yama.
Being fixed on Me, you may sometimes practise Niyama (Yama and Niyama
are detailed in the 19th chapter.)
"Devotedly follow one Guru, who knows Me and is full of Me, being calm
and quiet at heart.
"Be humble and unenvious, active, free from the sense of "Mineness",
strong in friendship (towards the Guru. _Sridhara_) not over-zealous,
eager to know the truths and free from malice. Do not indulge in idle
talk. Be indifferent to wife, son, house, land, relations, riches and
all other things, for Atma is the same every where and its working is
the same in all bodies.
"This Atma is neither the gross body nor the subtle body. It is the self
illumined seer. Fire that illuminates and burns is separate from the
fuel that is illuminated and burnt.
"The fuel has beginning and end. It is big and small. It is of various
kinds. The fire that pervades it is limited by the nature of the fuel.
So Atma which is separate from the body bears the attributes of the
body.
"The birth and re-birth of the Jiva have their origin in the gross and
the subtle body, which are the outcome of the Gunas, subordinated by
Isvara. The knowledge of Atma (as separate from the body) cuts off the
course of rebirths.
"Therefore by seeking after knowledge fully realise that Atma in self is
separate and is beyond the body. Then by degrees do away with a sense of
reality in respect of the gross and the subtle body.
"The preceptor is the lower piece of wood used for kindling the sacred
fire. The pupil is the upper piece of wood. The teachings form the
middle portion of the wood where the stroke is made. Vidya is the
pleasing fire that comes out. (The pupil by constant questioning should
extract the fire of wisdom from the Guru _i.e._ one should learn Atma
Vidya from his Guru.)
"The pure wisdom that is thus acquired from the Guru shakes off the Maya
that is begotten of the Gunas. It burns up the Gunas themselves, which
constitute this universe of re-incarnation and then it ceases of itself.
The fire consumes the fuel first and then it is extinguished of itself.
"Or if you think that the doers of actions, their pleasures and pains,
the enjoyers and sufferers (Jivatmas or Egos) are many and that the
place and time of enjoyment and suffering, and the scriptures relating
thereto and to the enjoyer or sufferer are all alike not constant."
(We have found in the former slokas that Atma is one and constant. It is
self manifest and it is conciousness itself. When we speak of Atma as
the Doer, the Enjoyer and so on these attributes really relate to the
body which forms the phenomenal basis of Atma. Every thing else besides
Atma is transitory and formed of Maya. It has been therefore said that
one should free himself from all attachments and should attain
liberation by the knowledge of Atma. This is the conclusion arrived at
by a reconciliation of all the Srutis. But there is another school, that
of Jaimini, which arrives at a different conclusion. To remove all
doubts whatsoever, the author refers to it for the sake of refutation.
The followers of Jaimini deem Jivatmas -- the doers and enjoyers in all
beings to be essentially separate and many. According to them, Atma is
known by the feeling of "I-ness." Now this feeling is different in
different bodies. "I am the doer" "I am the enjoyer" every one feels
this separately for himself. There is no one Parmatma, which is the
essence of all these Jivatmas and which is above all transformations.
Therefore freedom from attachments or dispassion is not possible. You
may think, that the enjoyments are transitory, and so also that the time
and place of enjoyment, the scriptures that enjoin them, and the
_enjoying_ Atma itself are not constant. Hence you may justify
dispassion. But all this is not a fact. This is the argument of the
followers of Jaimini. _Sridhara_.)
"And if you consider that all substances are constant by the eternal
flow of their existence and that consciousness grows and is separate
according to the difference in every particular form." (According to the
followers of Jaimini there is no break in the objects of enjoyment nor
are they formed of Maya. All substances perpetually exist by the
constancy of their flow. They say that there was no time, when the
Universe was not what it is. Therefore there is no maker of the
Universe, no Ishvara. And the Universe is not a delusion -- Maya. It is
what it appears to be. There is no one and constant consciousness of
which the essence is Atma. "This pot" "this cloth" -- Our consciousness
grows by the process of perceiving these differences. Therefore
consciousness is not constant and it has separate forms. The hidden
purport is this. Atma is not absolute consciousness itself, but it is
transformed into consciousness. But you can not say, because it is
subject to transformation, therefore it is transient. For it has been
said authoritatively that its transformation into consciousness does not
interfere with its eternity. Therefore for the purpose of liberation
(Mukti), Atma can not transform itself without the help of the senses
&c. And if Atma attains liberation, in the state of jada (or
unconsciousness) nothing is gained. Therefore the best path to follow is
that of Pravritti or Inclination and not that of Nivritti or
Disinclination. _Sridhara_. The above commentaries of Sridhara form one
of the best expositions of the philosophy of Jaimini. Only the last
passage requires a little elucidation. Atma in itself is not
consciousness. Its transformation into consciousness is its highest
evolution or Mukti. Now this transformation is caused by the perception
of objects, it is made complete by the perception of all objects and it
is made constant by a constant desire for all objects. This object, or
that object may vanish, this man or that woman may die, this flower or
that flower may perish, but there is no time when the objects as a class
do not exist, when there is no enjoyer, no object to be enjoyed. So
there is a constancy in the desires. Therefore one must form
attachments, have desires, that Atma be made fully conscious. But if
Atma be left to itself, it will remain Jada or unconscious. There is
nothing to be gained by this. Therefore one should persistently follow
the path of desires as laid down in the Karma Kanda of the Vedas,
analysed by Jaimini in his Purva Mimansa. One should not give up Vedic
Karma and selfish desires as he is taught to do in the Jnana Kanda of
the Vedas, the Upanishads, as analysed by Vyasa in his Uttara Mimansa,
and as expounded by Sri Krishna in the Bhagavat Gita. It must be
remembered that this philosophy of Karma, so effectually refuted by Sri
Krishna, was suited to the materialistic cycle of evolution, when Rajas
had to be sought rather than put down. The minerals and vegetables were
unconscious. The animals shewed a slight development in consciousness.
But the full development was in Man. And this was due to the pursuit of
the Path of Inclination or Pravritti Marga up to a late period in the
past history of the Universe. Notwithstanding the attacks of Sri
Krishna, the school of Jaimini had its followers till the time of Sri
Sankaracharya, when Mandana Misra the most learned Pandit of the time,
was its chief exponent. After his memorable defeat by Sri Sankaracharya
the Mimansakas fell into disrepute and Vedic Karma became a thing of the
past.)
"Granting all that, O dear Uddhava, all Atmas have constantly their
births and other states, by connection with the body and by reason of
the divisions of time." (_i.e._ though you may say that Atma itself is
transformed, still you can not deny that the transformations take place
by its connection with the body and that they are brought about by
time.)
"It follows then that the doer of actions, the enjoyer of joys and the
sufferer of sorrows is dependent on other things." (For Atma is
dependent upon the body and upon time for its highest transformation.
Sridhara says if Atma is the doer and enjoyer, why should it do wrong
acts and suffer sorrows if it were independent. Therefore Atma must be
dependent according to the Mimansakas). Now who in seeking his greatest
good would worship one that is dependent on others?
"(Do not say that those who know Vedic karma thoroughly are always happy
and only those that do not know that are unhappy. For it is found that
-- _Sridhara_) even wise men sometimes have no happiness and the
ignorant have no misery. Therefore it is mere vanity (to speak about
Karma). Even if (the followers of the path of Pravritti) know how to
gain happiness and destroy misery, they certainly do not know the means
by which they can get over death. And when death is near at hand, what
objects of desire can give joy? What can please the victim that is
carried to the place of sacrifice? (This is so far as this life is
concerned. Then as to life after death). What you hear about Svarga
life, even that is as bad as the life we lead on this earth. For in
Svarga, there is jealousy, there is fault finding, there are
inequalities and consequent uneasiness, and there is a finality in the
enjoyments and the desires are full of obstacles, even as agriculture is
and so after all even Svarga is of no good. When the Vedic Karma is
properly performed without any obstacle whatsoever, hear how the
performer of Karma loses the place acquired by his Karma. He makes
offerings to Indra and other Devas by the performance of Yajna and he
goes after death to Svarga. There he enjoys heavenly objects like the
Devas, objects acquired by his own Karma. He moves in white chariots the
acquisitions of his own merits, among Deva girls and is adored; by the
Gandharvas. The chariot moves at his will. It is adorned by small bells.
He whiles away his time with the Deva girls in the gardens of Svarga and
he does not know his own fall. But he remains in Svarga only so long as
his merit is not exhausted. And when the merit is run out, down falls
the man by the force of time, even against his will. (The above is the
course after death of those who perform Kamya Karma, according to Vedic
rules. This is one way of following Pravritti Marga. There is another
way -- the following up of one's own inclinations, in disregard of the
Vedic rules. The next Sloka refers to the performers of prohibited
Karma). And if again a man indulges in the prohibited acts, through evil
company, if his senses are not controlled, and if in consequence, he is
passionate indiscriminate, greedy, excessively fond of women, and unkind
to other beings, if the man kills animals wantonly and worships Pretas
and Bhutas, he goes, driven by the law, to the Narakas and finds there
intense Tamas.
"Therefore karma (selfish actions) ends in unhappiness. By performing
karma with the body, men seek the body again. What happiness is there in
the possession of this transitory body? The Lokas and Lokapalas have to
fear me, they who live for one full day of Brahma. Even Brahma who lives
for 2 Parardhas has fear of me."
(Therefore Pravritti Marga leads to evil. It should be shunned and
Nivritti Marga should be adopted. This is the purport. _Sridhara_).
(Now Sri Krishna goes on to refute the first two assumptions (1) that
Atma is the doer and (2) that Atma is the enjoyer). The Gunas create
actions and the Gunas lead the Gunas. (The Gunas are Satva, Rajas and
Tamas. These primal attributes of Prakriti give rise to all her
manifestations. The Indriyas, the senses, and the mind are Satvic and
Rajasic transformations of the Ahankara manifestation of Prakriti. So
they are the Gunas first referred to. The senses and the mind create
actions. Our actions are all prompted by them and not by Atma. So Atma
is not the doer. It may be said however that the senses and the mind are
guided by Atma. But it is not so. The primal attributes (Gunas) lead the
senses and the mind (Gunas). If Satva prevails in a man his actions are
Satvic and so on. It is the nature of the Prakritic transformations of a
man that determines his actions. This is only an elaboration of
Sridhara's notes.)
The Jiva enjoys the fruits of Karma, being connected with the Gunas (The
enjoyment by Jiva is also due to its phenomenal basis. "Connected with
the Gunas" _i.e._ connected with the senses and other Prakritic
elements. Jivatma dwells in the body. When the house falls down, he
occupies another house. When the houses are merely halting stations in
his long journey, he does not care much for the house itself, he does
not identify himself with the house. So when Jivatma becomes indifferent
to the body, it is not affected by the changes of the body. When a house
burns, the dweller in the house feels pain. When the house is
comfortable, the dweller in the house feels pleasure. His connection
with the house is however temporary.)
As long as there is difference in the Gunas (i. e, Guna transformations,
Ahankara &c.), so long there is plurality in Atma. As long as there is
plurality so long is it dependent on others. (The difference in Jivatmas
or individuals, is not due to any difference in Atma, but to differences
in the Guna transformations which give rise to the body. Dependence is
also an accompaniment of those transformations),
So long as Jiva is dependent on others it has fear from Ishvara. Those
that worship the Guna transformations are given up to sorrow and they
become deluded.