6. yam yam vac ' saran bhava
tyajaty ante kalevaram
tat-tam evai 'ti kaunteya
sadd tadbhnvabhr vita vitah
(6) Thinking of whatever state (of being) he at the end give, up his body, to that being does he attain, 0 Son of Kunti (Arjuna), being ever absorbed in the thought thereof
sada tad bhava bhavitah. ever absorbed in the thought thereof.
It is not the casual fancy of the last moment but the persistent endeavour of the whole life that determines the future. tadbadvabhavitah: literally, made to become (bhavita) in the condition (bhava) of that.
The soul goes to that on which its mind is set during the last moments What we think we become. Our past thoughts deter-mine our present birth and our present ones will determine the future,
7. tasmat sarvesu kalesu
mam anusmara yudhya
ca mayy arpitamanJbuddhir
In mam evai 'syasy asamsayah
(7) Therefore at all times remember Me and fight When thy mind and understanding are set on Me, to Me alone shalt thou come without doubt
sarvesu kalesu: at all times. Only then shall we be able to remember God in the critical last moments. Sridhara.
mam anusmara yudhya: remember Me and fight. It is not fight on the material plane that is intended here for it cannot be done at all times. It is the fight with the powers of darkness that we have to carry on perpetually.
We must engage in the work of the world retaining our consciousness of Eternity, the brooding presence of the Unchanging God. " Just as a dancing girl fixes her attention on the waterpot she bears on her head even when she is dancing to various tunes, so also a truly pious man does not give up (his attention) to the blissful feet of the Supreme Lord even when he attends to his many concerns.[1] "I All actions of our lives are to be surrendered to God who encloses, penetrates and gives meaning to our lives, The mere remembrance of God purifies all work. Cp. "I bow to the Infallible. By thinking of Him or calling on His name, every defect in austerities, sacrifice and ritual is removed. "[2]
8. abhyasayogayuktena
cetasd na 'nyagamina
paramam purusam a h
divyam yati partha 'nucintayan
(8) He who meditates on the Supreme Person with his thought attuned by constant practice and not wandering after anything else, he, O Partha (Arjuna), reaches the Person, Supreme and Divine.
It is not death-bed repentance that will save us but constant practice and unwavering dedication to the Supreme.
9. kavim ,puranam anugasitarana
anor aniyamsan anusmared yah
sarvasya dhataram acintyarupam
adityavarnarit tamasah parastat
(9.) He who meditates on the Seer, the ancient, the ruler, subtler than the subtle, the supporter of all, whose form is beyond conception, who is suncoloured beyond the darkness
See Svetdsvatara Up., III, 18.
kavi: seer. It is taken to mean omniscient.[3]
Here is a description not of the relationless, immutable Absolute but of 1 gvara, the Personal God, Seer, Creator and Ruler of the cosmos. He is the light opposed to darkness.[4]
10. prayanakale manasa 'Galena bhaktya
yukto yogabalena cat 'va bhruvor
madhye pranam avesya samyak
sa tam param purusam uuaiti divyam
(10) He who does so, at the time of his departure, with a steady mind, devotion and strength of yoga and setting well his life force in the centre of the eyebrows, he attains to this Supreme Divine Person.
Apparently this practice is possible only for those who choose the moment of death by the power of yoga [5]
