Contents
Gita Madhurya -Swami Ramsukhdas
Chapter III
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Arjuna said—When one's own duty is preferable, why does a man commit a sin unwillingly? The Blessed Lord said—It is desire begotten by the Rajoguna (mode of passion), anger ensues from it. It is insatiable and grossly wicked: know this to be the enemy which forces one to commit a sin.(36-37) What is the effect of this sinful desire? As fire is enveloped by smoke, mirror by dirt and embryo by amnion, so knowledge is enveloped by desire and thus a man commits a sin. This desire, like fire, is insatiable and is an eternal enemy of the wise strivers. It envelops knowledge.(38-39) Where in does desire abide? It abides in the senses, the mind and the intellect and deludes the embodied soul by veiling his wisdom through his senses etc.(40) How to subjugate desire? O noble Arjuna, first controlling the senses, kill this wicked desire, by which Jnana (knowledge) and Vijnãna (Realization) are veiled.(41) How to translate this method into practice, O Lord? The senses are said to be superior to the body, the mind is superior to the senses; the intellect is superior to the mind and what is greater than intellect is desire.[1]Knowing this desire as greater than intellect, restraining the self by the self, slay this enemy in the form of desire which is hard to overcome. (42-43) |
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References and Context
- ↑ Desire resides in the self (agent). So agent is attracted towards objects etc. The self has two fragments—one is sentient belonging to God and the other is inert belonging to Matter. The fragment of matter is attracted towards matter while the fragment of God is attracted towards God, being of the same class. Therefore desire resides in the inert fragment of the self while in the sentient fragment there resides thirst for divine love or eagerness to know the real etc.