Contents
Srimad Bhagavad Gita -Ramanujacharya
Chapter-1 : Arjuna Vishad Yoga
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The nature and qualities of Śrīman Nārāyaṇa transcend all thought and words. He dwells in the divine and imperishable supreme Realm which abounds in manifold, wondrous and countless objects, means and places of enjoyment. It is an abode in consonance with His being and is infinite in its wondrous glory and magnitude. The projection, maintenance and dissolution of the entire cosmos filled with multifarious, variegated and innumerable objects is His transcendental pastime. The Supreme Being, Śrīman Nārāyaṇa, projected the entire universe, beginning with Brahma (the creator) down to plants and minerals. Being inaccessible in His transcendental form for meditation and worship by sentient beings including Brahma, gods, humans etc., and being an ocean of compassion and loving condescension, maternal affection [1] and generosity — He took forms in the likeness of various kinds of beings. In this act of self-embodiment His own transcendental nature was not in any way compromised. Thus the Supreme Lord took birth in the world in order to receive the worship of devotees and in order to grant them their desired goals comprising of Dharma (righteousness, duty), Artha (material prosperity), Kama (Sense gratification) and Moksha (Liberation), each in accordance with his/her individual desires. Under the pretext of relieving the earth of its burdens, but really in order to make Himself available for us (frail humans) to take refuge in Him, the Lord incarnated on the earth as Sri Krishna. He thus manifested Himself to all beings. He engaged in divine pastimes which captivated the minds and hearts of all, high and low. He vanquished demoniac beings such as Pūtana, Śakaṭa, the two Arjuna trees, Ariṣṭa, Prālambha, Dhenuka, Kaliya, Keśin, Kuvalaya-pīḍa, Cānura, Muṣṭika, Tośala and Kaṁsa. He spread joy and beatitude over the entire world with the nectar of His glances and speech, demonstrating His boundless compassion, friendliness and love for all. He made Akrūra, Mālākāra and others the most ardent of devotees by the manifestation of His unsurpassed qualities of beauty and loving compassion. With the ostensible intention of encouraging the sons of Pāṇḍu in their duty of engaging in war, He revealed the teaching of Bhakti (devotion) directed at Himself. This Yoga of Devotion was promulgated together with the subsidiary disciplines of jñāna (Meditation) and Karma (Selfless works). The Yoga of Devotion has been taught as the path to the ultimate goal of Liberation. |
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References and Context
- ↑ The term used is vāsalya which means the love of a cow for its calf. The image invoked is that of a cow spontaneously shedding milk on hearing the mooing of its calf.