Gita Rahasya -Tilak
|
CHAPTER II
THE DESIRE TO KNOW THE RIGHT ACTION
(KARMA-JIJNASA) Manu in addition says about speaking the truth that :- vacyartha niyatah sarve vanmula vagvinihsrtah I tain tu yah stenayed vacam sa sarvasteya-krnnarah II [1]. i. e. " all the activities of mankind are carried on by speech; there is no other means like speech for the communication of thoughts ; then, that man who sullies this fountain-head of speech, which is the basic foundation of all these activities, that is to say, the man who is false to his own speech must be said to be despoiling everything at one stroke". Therefore, says Manu: " satyaputam vaded vecam " [2] that is, "Speak only that which has been purified by Truth. " In the Upanisads also, the law of Truth has been given a higher place than all other laws, in the following words: "satyam, vada | dharmam, cara I" [3] that is : "Speak the truth, do what is right " ; and Bhisma, who was lying on the bed of arrows, after having in the Santiparva and the Anusasanaparva taught to Yudhisthira all the various laws, has before yielding up his breath preached to every one the law of Truth as being the sum and substance of all laws, in the following words : "satyesu yatitavyam vah satyam, hi paramam balam" i.e. "You should strive for Truth, in as much as Truth is the highest power." [4] "We find that the very same laws have been adopted into the Buddhistic and Christian religions. Can any one dream that there can be exceptions to this eternally-lasting law of Truth, which is thus established on all hands? But life in this world, which is full of villains, is difficult. Suppose, you have seen some persons escaping from the hands of marauders and hiding in a thick forest; and the marauders, who follow them with naked swords in their hands, stand before you and ask you, where those people are ! What answer will you give ? Will you, speak the truth or will you save the lives of unoffending and innocent people ? I ask this "question because, preventing the murder of innocent people is -according to the Sutras a religion, as highly important as 'Truth itself. Manu says:—"naprsth(ah kasyacid bruyan na canyayena prcchatah" [5] — that is, "Do not speak to anyone unless he questions you, and if some one asks you a question unjustly, then, do not give a reply, even if you are questioned"; and, "junann api hi medhavi jadaval loka acaret ' ' — i.e. "even if you know the answer simply say : 'hm ! hm !' like an ignorant person", and save the situation. Very well ; but, is not saying merely : 'Hm ! hm !' in effect speaking the untruth ? It is stated in many places in the Bharata itself that : na vyajena cared dharmam", i.e. "do not somehow satisfy yourselves by being false to morality; morality is not deceived, it is you who are deceived" [6]. But if you cannot save the situation even by saying : ' Hm ! hm ! ', what is to be done ? What will you do if a thief is sitting on your chest with a dagger in his hand and asking you where the money is, and you are sure to lose your life if you do not give a proper reply ? Tho Blessed Lord Sri Krsna who understood the inner meaning of all laws says to Arjuna in the Karnaparva [7], after giving him the illustration of highway robbers mentioned above, and later on in the Satyanrtadhyaya, of the Santiparva, Bhisma also says to Yudhisthira : — " akujenena cen mokso nuvakujet kathamcana I avasyam kujitavye va sankeran vapy akujanat I sreyas tatranrtam vaktum satyad iti vicaritam II [8]
|
|