Gyaneshwari -Sant Gyaneshwar
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Chapter-13
The field and the knower of the field
Fie upon the tawdry brilliance seen on the gilded hollow dome of a temple, what use can one make of painted fruits, which contain only cow-dung inside? So it is the case with pious works. A thing of bad quality cannot fetch a higher price. A pitcher filled with wine, cannot be made holy by dipping it in the water of the Ganga. So if the mind is pure, external purity follows automatically. Otherwise, how can you find pure knowledge and pure work together? For this reason, O Arjuna, he who has cleansed his exterior by pious works and removed the internal stains by knowledge, becomes purified in and out. Why say more? There remains only purity in him (471-475). Just as a light in a pane of glass is seen to move inside, so his pure thoughts become manifest in the activities of his sense organs. Even if he sees, hears or comes across matters which create doubts, or false notions or yield sprouts of inaction, it produces no effect upon him. Just as the colours of the clouds do not stain the sky, so even if his senses come into contact with their objects, his mind remains uncontaminated with any emotions. Even if he comes across a beautiful lady or a woman of the lower caste, he takes no notice of her and remains indifferent (476-480). When a young woman embraces her husband and son, she has no sexual feeling for the son. His heart is as pure as that and it fully appraises desire and doubt, good and bad actions. Just as a diamond does not get wet by water, or a pebble is not cooked in boiling water, so he does not become tainted by impure thoughts. O Arjuna, this is what is known as purity and wherever you see it in full, know that knowledge exists in him. |
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