Talks on the Gita -Vinoba 187

Chapter 15 THE INTEGRAL YOGA: SEEING THE LORD EVERYWHERE 87. The Essence Of All The Vedas Is In The Palm Of My Hands 21. This is the essence of all the Vedas. The Vedas are many; but Purushottamyoga is their short and sweet essence. Where are these Vedas? Their ways are strange indeed! The very first verse of this Chapter refers to the tree having the Vedas in its leaves—‘ज्याच्या पानांमधें वेद’. The Vedas—that is, the spiritual wisdom—are not, after all, hidden in a book; they are there in the whole universe for everybody to see. Shakespeare has spoken of ‘books in the running brooks, sermons in stones.’ The Veda is not made up of words, it is not in some book; it is in the creation around us. Devote yourself to service and it will be revealed to you. 22. ‘प्रभाते करदर्शनम्’—One should behold one’s palms in the morning. The Veda is there in those palms. They ask you to serve. See whether your hands have toiled yesterday, whether they are ready to toil today, whether your palms carry marks of labour. ‘प्रभाते करदर्शनम्’ implies that when your hands work tirelessly, that which has been ordained for you by Providence will become clear; you will know what you are destined to and are supposed to do. 23. What is the point in asking, “Where is the Veda?” The Veda is not somewhere else; all of us have received it when we are born. We are the living embodiment of the Veda. We are the consummation of a long tradition. We are the fruit of the tree that has sprouted from the Veda-seed. Within this fruit, there are seeds of innumerable Vedas. The Vedas have grown many times within us. 24. In short, the essence of the Veda is in our hands; it is for us to realise it. It means that life has to be built on the foundation of service, love and knowledge. We can interpret the Vedas in the way we like. The saints, who were embodiments of service, claim, ‘वेदाचा तो अर्थ आम्हासीन ठावा’ (‘We alone know the meaning of the Vedas’). The Lord is saying here, ‘The Vedas know Me only; I am the Purushottam, the essence of all the Vedas.’ Would it not be wonderful if we could assimilate this Purushottamyoga in our lives! The Gita is suggesting here that the Vedas express themselves in every action of the person who assimilates Purushottamyoga. This Chapter contains the essence of the Gita. The Gita’s teaching is fully revealed here. Everybody should strive to follow this ceaselessly. What else can one say?