The Tradition of Jnana Yoga
sribhagavan uvaca
1. imam vivasvate yogam
proktavan aham avyayam vivasvan manave Praha manur ikvãkave 'bravit
The Blessed Lord said:
(1.) I proclaimed this imperishable yoga to Vivasva.n ; Vivasvan told it to Man and Man spoke it to iksvaku.[1]
2. evam paralhparaprafitam
imam rajarsayo viduh
sa kalene 'ha mahata
yogo nastah pararhtapa
(2) Thus handed down from one to another the royal sages knew it till that yoga was lost to the world through long lapse of time, 0 Oppressor of the foe (Arjuna)
rayarsayah. royal sages. Rama, Krsna and Buddha were all princes who taught the highest wisdom.
kalena mahata: by the great efflux of time. This teaching has become obscured by the lapse of ages. To renovate the faith for the welfare of humanity, great teachers arise. Krsna now gives it to his pupil to reawaken faith in him and illumine his ignorance.
A tradition is authentic when it evokes an adequate response to the reality represented by it. It is valid, when our minds thrill and vibrate to it. When it fails to achieve this end, new teachers arise to rekindle it.
