# 10: Bhagavad Gita Class by Swami Tadatmananda - Ch.2 Verses 15-17

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8P1vpxnCL4M

[00:03] [Music]
[00:06] [Applause]
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[00:14] [Applause]
[00:18] [Music]
[01:04] welcome back
[01:05] to our saturday morning bhagavad-gita
[01:08] class
[01:09] we'll continue today will begin as we do
[01:12] every class with some
[01:13] uh chanting recitation we'll start today
[01:16] with verse
[01:17] 11. uh repeat after me
[01:21] and be sure to glance at the meaning
[01:35] [Music]
[05:42] very good let us
[05:45] return before we uh begin today i want
[05:48] to
[05:49] make a comment about this verse 11. our
[05:52] prior class
[05:53] began with verse 11 which is also the
[05:56] very first
[05:57] verse of vedantic teachings from sri
[06:00] krishna
[06:01] and at the beginning of our next class i
[06:03] gave a very brief
[06:05] overview of that verse and it was really
[06:08] insufficient and not well advised i said
[06:11] that in this verse where shri krishna
[06:13] begins his spiritual teaching
[06:15] by telling arjuna you need not mourn i
[06:20] said the reason you need not mourn the
[06:22] reason arjuna need not
[06:24] mourn is that everyone on the
[06:27] battlefield is
[06:28] destined to die by because of their
[06:32] karmas
[06:33] shri krishna knows how their karmas will
[06:35] unfold and therefore they're all
[06:37] going to die according to their karma
[06:40] i gave that that very brief
[06:44] summary and that wasn't wasn't at all
[06:48] adequate it was a very like a nutshell
[06:53] summary but it wasn't enough because
[06:56] in the coming chapters of the
[06:58] bhagavad-gita
[07:00] sri krishna is going to give i think
[07:02] about half a dozen different reasons
[07:05] that
[07:05] arjuna should not mourn here's the first
[07:08] of many reasons
[07:10] arjuna should not mourn another reason
[07:12] he'll give
[07:13] in chapter 11 sri krishna is going to
[07:16] say that
[07:17] i am the master of the cosmos everything
[07:19] happens according to my will
[07:21] sri krishna is going to say in chapter
[07:23] 11 i've already killed them
[07:26] you're not going to kill them arjuna
[07:29] killed killed them
[07:33] sri krishna will say much later
[07:37] also shri krishna is going to tell
[07:40] arjuna
[07:40] in this chapter itself that it is
[07:44] arjuna's dharma his duty to fight
[07:48] it is a dharma yodha as we discussed
[07:50] extensively in chapter one
[07:53] and if arjuna fails to fight
[07:56] he'll actually commit a sin so he must
[07:59] fight to fulfill his dharma
[08:01] in this chapter in fact we've started
[08:03] this topic where
[08:04] shri krishna gives two more reasons that
[08:07] arjuna should not mourn one is
[08:09] the truth of each individual the true
[08:13] nature
[08:14] atma the inner true self is
[08:17] consciousness consciousness which is
[08:20] utterly
[08:22] unaffected by whatever happens to the
[08:25] body and mind
[08:26] so for that very lofty reason also
[08:29] there's no reason for arjuna to suffer
[08:32] and finally as we discussed briefly
[08:36] the sukshma sharira the subtle
[08:39] body of each of those warriors after
[08:41] their physical bodies fall on the
[08:44] battlefield
[08:44] their subtle bodies will travel on
[08:48] take another physical body be
[08:50] reincarnated and they will live again
[08:53] so all of these reasons will be given
[08:56] in the in the future chapters and all
[08:59] the teachings of sri krishna
[09:01] not just the one i made the mistake
[09:04] of trying to put everything into a
[09:06] nutshell and
[09:08] somebody very wisely said anything that
[09:11] you can say in a nutshell
[09:13] belongs there so there's a danger
[09:17] in summarizing like that at least being
[09:20] too brief
[09:20] okay enough said um where we left off
[09:25] by the way these are wonderful verses
[09:27] they're dealing with some of the very
[09:30] most important and fundamental teachings
[09:33] of advaita vedanta
[09:35] shri krishna gives those teachings in a
[09:37] very
[09:38] clear compelling way so these are
[09:41] excellent verses
[09:44] here matras i won't go through the verse
[09:48] again we saw it at the end of the prior
[09:50] class but sri krishna tells arjuna that
[09:54] you can endure whatever happens
[09:57] to your body and mind whatever happens
[10:00] on the battlefield you can deal with
[10:02] that you can endure it because
[10:04] none of it affects your true
[10:08] nature atma and we began this discussion
[10:12] in the past class
[10:13] we continue it today in a very important
[10:16] way
[10:17] we remember i gave that computer
[10:19] metaphor
[10:20] and let's just return to that very
[10:23] briefly
[10:24] like a computer has hardware and
[10:26] software your mind your intellect your
[10:27] have hardware your physical body you
[10:30] have
[10:34] senses everything that enlivens your
[10:36] body
[10:37] so you have hardware and software your
[10:39] computer has hardware and software
[10:41] you also have hardware and software but
[10:44] most important if you remember the
[10:47] metaphor
[10:48] we said your hardware and software your
[10:50] computer would be useless
[10:53] without electricity in the same way
[10:57] this body and mind is invested
[11:02] with atma the true
[11:05] self that atma we're going to discuss in
[11:08] much more detail today
[11:10] but so far we've discussed and this is
[11:14] perhaps the most important aspect
[11:16] atma is not an abstract
[11:20] concept atma is your
[11:23] true nature let me say that again atma
[11:27] is not some idea or concept
[11:29] atma is you in a very essential way
[11:33] and in the most essential way you are a
[11:36] conscious being you are the conscious
[11:40] awareness
[11:41] you are the consciousness by which you
[11:43] are aware
[11:45] of whatever is happening right now by
[11:47] what's happening around you what's
[11:49] happening on the screen you're watching
[11:51] and what's happening in your own mind
[11:54] you
[11:54] are aware of all that because
[11:58] you are a conscious awareful being
[12:02] that consciousness is your essential
[12:04] nature
[12:06] in sanskrit we've used the words chit or
[12:09] chaitanya to refer to that consciousness
[12:12] it's your essential nature and
[12:15] that consciousness is utterly unaffected
[12:19] by what happens to your hardware and
[12:21] software
[12:22] for example in your computer does it
[12:24] does it make any difference to the
[12:26] to the electricity if it's an
[12:29] old computer or a new computer
[12:34] electricity
[12:35] what kind of program you're watching
[12:37] what kind of program you're running
[12:40] or if you're if some kids are using it
[12:42] for violent video games
[12:45] does it make any difference to
[12:46] electricity just like the electricity in
[12:49] your computer is
[12:50] utterly unaffected by the hardware and
[12:53] software in the same way
[12:55] your consciousness is utterly unaffected
[13:00] by whatever happens to your body and
[13:02] mind and we're going to see many
[13:04] wonderful teachings to make
[13:06] that point very very clear
[13:09] okay with that definition with that
[13:12] introduction excuse me we continue
[13:15] [Music]
[13:43] in the second line shri krishna
[13:46] addresses arjuna
[13:47] purusha rishabha rishabha is a
[13:51] bull purusa a bull
[13:54] among men mighty one so the mighty
[13:58] person arjun o
[14:00] arjuna
[14:06] [Music]
[14:08] which person which person
[14:12] who which person
[14:16] who na yatayanti
[14:21] ate these these
[14:24] what actually refers back to the prior
[14:27] verse
[14:28] where
[14:41] what kind of sense perception shita cold
[14:44] us naheed
[14:46] sukha pleasant experiences dukkha
[14:48] painful experiences
[14:50] all of these experiences
[14:54] all of these sense perceptions
[14:57] now he continues eighteen
[15:00] these these experiences of cold and heat
[15:04] of pleasure and pain
[15:06] uh na yata yanti
[15:09] [Music]
[15:10] tum
[15:12] they do not disturb him
[15:17] [Music]
[15:19] yum yum they do not disturb
[15:23] him him who by the way i say him because
[15:26] the pronouns are in a masculine gender
[15:29] but him or her is understood
[15:33] remember uh grammar even english grammar
[15:36] hindi grammar
[15:38] there's a tendency to default towards a
[15:40] masculine gender
[15:42] it's just a grammatical device so
[15:45] so these perceptions
[15:49] experiences of pleasure and pain cold
[15:51] and heat
[15:52] do not affect yam purusham
[15:55] that person what kind of person third
[15:59] line
[15:59] the person who is
[16:03] the person who remains sama the same
[16:07] utterly unchanged in the presence of
[16:10] dukkha pain and sukkah pleasure
[16:15] what kind of person is that dhiram
[16:19] and dhiram here means the wise person
[16:22] one who has understood these teachings
[16:25] one who has understood that
[16:27] just as electricity isn't affected by
[16:30] the computer
[16:31] or the program in the same way the dhira
[16:34] the wise person is one who has
[16:36] understood that consciousness
[16:40] again not an abstract idea the
[16:43] consciousness by which you
[16:45] know what's happening right now that
[16:49] is utterly unaffected
[16:52] by whatever happens to your hard work
[16:55] and whatever happens to your
[16:56] software that understanding makes you
[17:00] a diram a wise person
[17:05] that person that wise person
[17:11] literally it means that person is fit
[17:14] for
[17:14] immortality which is a little bit
[17:18] odd way of expressing the fact that that
[17:22] person
[17:22] is capable of becoming enlightened
[17:26] gaining moksha liberation another way of
[17:29] understanding it is
[17:30] that person recognizes
[17:34] one's own immortality
[17:37] so the body we know has a birth date and
[17:40] a death date
[17:41] what do they call that a date of
[17:43] expiration when you buy certain
[17:46] food items they have a they have a date
[17:49] on it
[17:49] used before such and such a date
[17:53] well your body has an expiration date as
[17:56] well
[17:57] consciousness has no expiration date
[18:00] consciousness wasn't born consciousness
[18:03] is not
[18:03] subject to death consciousness is
[18:06] immortal
[18:08] so um to become fit from
[18:11] immortality means to discover
[18:14] your own true nature which is
[18:18] indeed immortal
[18:21] continuing
[18:26] bhavo
[18:54] this is one of the very important uh
[18:57] philosophical verses in the
[18:59] bhagavad-gita there are
[19:01] many but this is one of the real
[19:03] significant ones
[19:04] in fact in the commentaries of sri
[19:06] shankara
[19:07] and the commentary of madhusudan as
[19:10] saraswati
[19:11] they both go on at length at length
[19:14] means not paragraphs but
[19:16] pages on this particular verse because
[19:19] it is so important also let me mention
[19:22] that
[19:23] if you have printed out for yourself
[19:25] these slides from
[19:27] our our website i've made some changes
[19:30] in the english translation please use
[19:34] this translation that you're seeing here
[19:36] the corrections are actually quite
[19:38] important
[19:40] so the the the first half it's
[19:44] it's so the words are so simple
[19:47] the meaning is so profound
[19:57] for that which is assat for that which
[20:00] is
[20:00] unreal na vidyate there is no
[20:04] bhava existence for that which is
[20:08] unreal there is no existence and
[20:12] sata in the second line and sata for
[20:15] that which is real
[20:16] notice first line is ah sata
[20:28] non-existence now this can
[20:31] can be a little intimidating it's a
[20:34] little philosophical
[20:35] but the key to understanding this is to
[20:39] understand the word real
[20:43] what is real and in
[20:46] vedanta we have a very specific
[20:49] definition
[20:50] and i'd like to share with you that
[20:52] definition the sanskrit
[20:54] definition because it's that important
[21:04] so the word real
[21:07] in english
[21:10] the word real in sanskrit we can use the
[21:13] word
[21:13] sat which is used in this verse we can
[21:16] also
[21:17] use the word satya
[21:22] in this context satya isn't talking
[21:24] about true
[21:25] speech we're using it in a sense of real
[21:29] so all three of these words mean the
[21:31] same thing
[21:32] real what is our definition of
[21:36] real the rishis gate the ancient sages
[21:39] gave us this
[21:40] brilliant and precise definition i'd
[21:43] like you to know it
[21:44] and it is
[21:59] means non-negatable
[22:03] i'll explain all this in a moment
[22:08] non-negatable trikala
[22:11] in the three periods of time
[22:16] what are those three periods of time you
[22:19] figured it out
[22:20] past present and future
[22:23] let me explain it a little bit more
[22:28] [Music]
[22:32] where am i there
[22:36] so not our definition vedanta's
[22:39] definition of
[22:40] real is that which is non-negatable in
[22:44] the three periods of time
[22:45] and to use more gentle language use
[22:49] more accessible language that which
[22:52] exists
[22:53] non-negatable which means that which
[22:55] continually exists
[22:57] in all the three periods of time past
[23:00] present
[23:00] and future but watch what that means if
[23:03] it
[23:03] exists in the past past
[23:06] means without beginning
[23:10] so therefore without beginning means
[23:13] unborn and uncreated
[23:17] so that which is real
[23:20] to begin with is uncreated
[23:24] and then it exists past present and
[23:27] future
[23:28] future means without end
[23:32] so it means it will never come to an end
[23:35] cease to exist unborn and uncreated
[23:39] on one side and on the other side
[23:42] never ending eternal
[23:46] and in the middle here's a little
[23:50] little philosophical point if something
[23:53] undergoes change
[23:56] it ceases to be what it was before
[23:59] um when a child becomes when a child
[24:03] becomes
[24:04] five years old the child
[24:07] ceases to become a four-year-old the
[24:10] four-year-old
[24:11] goes away so the five-year-old can exist
[24:15] the point i'm making is that any kind of
[24:18] change
[24:20] means a change of condition a change of
[24:22] state a change of age
[24:24] means there's the end of one condition
[24:26] and the beginning of the next
[24:28] that's bad that's that's something is
[24:31] being negated
[24:33] non-negatable then implies
[24:36] unchanging in the present
[24:39] so in the past no beginning no birth no
[24:43] origin in the present no
[24:46] change and in the future
[24:50] no end immortal
[24:54] eternal and we have to say
[24:58] timeless timeless means not involved
[25:02] in time in any way at all that's our
[25:04] definition
[25:05] of real and that is such a helpful
[25:09] definition
[25:10] now the
[25:17] let's see the verse first and then i'll
[25:19] show you the application
[25:22] so the verse says
[25:26] for that which is unreal what is unreal
[25:30] that which was born that which was
[25:33] created
[25:34] that which is subject to change that
[25:37] which will
[25:38] eventually cease to be this pot
[25:42] is a good example of that which is
[25:44] unreal
[25:46] it has a birth it has a it undergoes
[25:49] change it will eventually cease to be
[25:53] this physical body is another example
[25:57] of something that is unreal
[26:00] so asata for
[26:03] the unreal
[26:07] naviday there is no
[26:13] no existence no true
[26:17] existence no real
[26:20] existence and here
[26:24] let me finish the verse and then i'll
[26:26] then we'll work on this
[26:28] so let's just get the meaning of the
[26:29] verse first
[26:32] for that which is unreal like the pot
[26:35] like the body
[26:36] na vidyate there is no
[26:39] true eternal existence
[26:43] as you can understand and in the second
[26:46] line
[26:48] last word for that which is real
[26:52] now what is real as we said unborn
[26:54] uncreated
[26:56] unchanging eternal well
[26:59] what is real so far the only thing we've
[27:02] discussed
[27:03] that matches that definition of reality
[27:08] the only thing that meets that
[27:10] definition
[27:12] is your consciousness
[27:15] is unborn uncreated
[27:20] your consciousness is unborn uncreated
[27:20] you know that consciousness is
[27:22] consciousness is
[27:23] one aspect of atma the inner
[27:27] true self which we often very casually
[27:30] call the
[27:31] inner divinity to call that atma that
[27:35] true inner self to call it inner
[27:37] divinity
[27:38] divine means having the same nature as
[27:41] the deity as god
[27:43] having divine attributes divine
[27:46] attributes include
[27:47] unborn uncreated unchanging eternal
[27:50] etc and that refers to your
[27:54] own consciousness and this is to be
[27:56] understood
[27:58] so sata for that which is
[28:02] real for ishvara for god
[28:05] or sata for your own consciousness for
[28:09] atma for your inner true self
[28:12] navid there is no abhava
[28:17] lack of existence loss
[28:20] of existence and to paraphrase this
[28:24] for for that that which is
[28:27] first line that which is
[28:31] unreal can't
[28:35] pop into existence
[28:38] and second line that which is real
[28:42] can't lose its existence
[28:47] now it starts to make a little bit more
[28:48] sense i'll say that again
[28:50] that which is unreal can't pop into
[28:54] existence
[28:55] unreal would be you know and
[29:00] one of our favorite examples of
[29:03] unreal is our we call it our
[29:07] rope snake what do we mean by that
[29:10] many of you know the story well someone
[29:13] is walking down
[29:14] a very dark alley and sees what
[29:17] looks like a snake coiled up on the
[29:20] ground
[29:20] and only later discovers it's not a
[29:23] snake
[29:24] at all it's a rope but before they
[29:28] discover it's a rope
[29:29] they think it's a snake and that snake
[29:32] is very
[29:33] scary very threatening for a while
[29:36] now the point here is that snake is asa
[29:40] that that asat the snake is unreal
[29:44] that unreal snake isn't going to become
[29:47] real and bite you can that rope snake
[29:51] bite you no not at all in fact
[29:55] there's a general principle here and
[29:58] really
[29:59] this is the me the meaning of this verse
[30:03] it's it's not so clear just from from
[30:06] the words
[30:08] we make a distinction between
[30:11] these two levels of reality
[30:15] that which is absolutely real and that
[30:18] which is
[30:19] apparently real notice my use of the
[30:23] word
[30:23] apparent so that which is absolutely
[30:27] real
[30:27] said god is absolutely real
[30:32] brahman the absolute reality absolutely
[30:35] real
[30:36] consciousness the consciousness
[30:39] by which you know what's happening right
[30:41] now unborn
[30:43] uncreated unchanging eternal
[30:46] absolutely real then we distinguish that
[30:50] absolute reality from something having
[30:53] lesser reality we call it apparent
[30:57] reality this body is apparently real
[31:01] you can't say that about notice we're
[31:03] not saying that the body is
[31:05] absolutely unreal because
[31:08] the elephant i'm holding in my hand
[31:11] is absolutely unreal
[31:14] the body is not absolutely unreal
[31:18] this pot is not absolutely unreal
[31:21] so let us call the pot and the body
[31:25] apparently real of course apparently
[31:28] real still
[31:29] is still unreal but not absolutely
[31:32] unreal like this elephant the absolute
[31:36] has
[31:36] absolute unreality this
[31:39] body and pot are unreal to the extent
[31:43] that they're not real they have birth
[31:46] and death etc
[31:47] change so we're going to call them
[31:50] apparent realities
[31:52] the point is is that
[31:55] which is less real
[31:59] cannot affect that which is
[32:02] more real go back to our rope snake
[32:07] the snake is less real
[32:12] that snake cannot affect
[32:15] you cannot even affect your body
[32:19] your body is more real than a snake
[32:21] notice
[32:22] the rope kenneth can affect your body
[32:25] you can trip
[32:26] over that rope the rope is as
[32:29] real as your physical body so that
[32:33] rope can affect your body you can trip
[32:35] over it
[32:36] but the snake is less
[32:39] real than your body so that
[32:42] snake in the dark alley cannot bite or
[32:46] affect
[32:46] your body at all another great example
[32:49] of this
[32:50] is in a dream if you dream
[32:53] that you're being chased by an elephant
[32:57] that dream elephant is less real
[33:01] than your physical body so that
[33:04] because the dream elephant is less
[33:07] real it can't hurt you it can't
[33:11] injure you do you see where this is
[33:14] where this is going
[33:17] we've said consciousness is absolutely
[33:21] real
[33:22] anything subject to change is less
[33:26] real the entire world
[33:30] is less real the entire world
[33:35] has apparent reality you see it you
[33:39] interact with it
[33:40] but the world was born modern science
[33:44] says some
[33:45] 13.7 billion years ago
[33:48] the world continues to undergo change
[33:51] this cycle of creation will eventually
[33:54] come to an end
[33:54] and be followed by another one the
[33:57] entire
[33:58] cosmos is has a birth
[34:02] in the middle is subject to change and
[34:04] in the end
[34:06] undergoes dissolution and
[34:09] therefore at the universe and everything
[34:13] in the universe is not absolutely real
[34:18] it's not as real
[34:21] as your consciousness and now here's the
[34:24] final conclusion
[34:26] just as the rope snake can't affect your
[34:29] body because it's
[34:31] less real just like the
[34:34] dream elephant can't affect your body
[34:36] because it's less real
[34:38] in the same way everything in this
[34:42] apparently real universe
[34:45] is less real than your consciousness
[34:50] therefore your consciousness cannot
[34:53] be injured damaged hurt
[34:57] affected in any way whatsoever by
[35:00] everything in the cosmos because it
[35:04] is less real and that is the message
[35:08] that's meant to be conveyed by the first
[35:10] part of this verse
[35:12] and that is that is
[35:17] for the for that which is unreal
[35:21] that which is apparently real
[35:24] like the entire universe
[35:28] there is no real existence no
[35:32] true exists no existence that can
[35:35] actually affect your consciousness
[35:38] on the other hand sata for that which is
[35:43] real that which is absolutely real not
[35:46] apparently real
[35:48] for that which is absolutely real for
[35:51] your own consciousness
[35:52] unborn uncreated unchanging immortal
[35:56] that which is divine in nature your
[35:59] inner self atma as a sata for that one
[36:04] na na vidyate there is no abhavaha
[36:07] there is no loss of existence
[36:10] it will never cease to exist
[36:17] oh i wanted to put this on the board
[36:18] also let me just go back to the board
[36:22] and add one thing
[36:27] you've all seen this very common
[36:30] expression
[36:35] atma is the words that we've always used
[36:39] sat
[36:40] chit ananda
[36:45] okay
[36:49] was that inner self true self
[36:52] inner divinity and notice the words
[36:56] used in vedanta first of all that
[36:59] true self again not a concept we're
[37:01] talking about you
[37:03] in an essential nature and as we've said
[37:06] several times today already
[37:08] conscious chit means consciousness
[37:11] consciousness is that consciousness by
[37:14] which you know what's happening right
[37:16] now
[37:17] but what kind of consciousness is it a
[37:20] consciousness that's subject to
[37:22] change is it a consciousness that can be
[37:25] affected by the world
[37:27] is it a consciousness that's subject to
[37:30] suffering
[37:32] that's what the word sut means it is to
[37:36] call this consciousness sut
[37:38] means first of all unborn uncreated
[37:42] and eternal so not not something
[37:44] transient
[37:45] but what i said in the middle unchanging
[37:50] in the middle means compared to past and
[37:53] future
[37:54] the present is in the middle so in the
[37:57] middle
[37:57] in the present sat means your
[38:01] consciousness is unchanging
[38:04] that which is unchanging
[38:07] can't be harmed by anything can't be
[38:11] threatened
[38:12] by anything okay we'll leave the word on
[38:16] undergo for another day
[38:18] that's not our subject right now
[38:27] okay let us finish this first
[38:39] a conclusion anta means end
[38:43] but here it means a conclusive
[38:46] knowledge and in the sense of
[38:50] conclusive knowledge
[38:54] when that conclusive knowledge
[38:58] knowledge about what first word ubhayoho
[39:02] about both of them about both of them
[39:07] um and in the second and the final line
[39:10] say that tu an ayoho
[39:14] breaking apart the words tan tu an ayoho
[39:18] either of them ubhayoho both of these
[39:23] either of them when when
[39:26] the when there is conclusive knowledge
[39:32] about both of these two
[39:35] what are the two one the first half we
[39:38] talked about
[39:39] that which is a that which
[39:42] is unreal and as a once again
[39:46] we're saying unreal doesn't mean
[39:48] absolutely unreal like this elephant
[39:51] unreal means apparently
[39:54] real that which comes and goes
[39:57] like the entire world that's one is
[40:01] assat and the other of course is sat
[40:04] that which is absolutely real so
[40:09] antaha the conclusive truth
[40:17] with regard to both
[40:21] the conclusive truth with regard to both
[40:21] of these
[40:22] individually ub both
[40:26] individually the conclusive truth about
[40:29] both of these is
[40:34] seen is understood
[40:37] ascertained by whom and last word
[40:44] by those who are those darshi means one
[40:47] who sees
[40:48] darshi behe plural by those who
[40:51] see by those who see what tatwa
[40:55] reality truth tatwa darshi behe by those
[40:59] who see the truth
[41:00] by those who recognize the truth
[41:04] the the anta the conclusive
[41:08] understanding of sat and assat
[41:12] is understood
[41:15] he also hints at the ancient rishis
[41:19] the rishis ancient rishis were called
[41:21] mantra
[41:23] those who literally saw the mantra so to
[41:27] use this word darshi
[41:29] tatwa darshi seems to hint at those
[41:32] ancient
[41:32] rishis who could see the truth who could
[41:36] discover
[41:37] what others could not discover
[41:40] okay again shankaracharya and madhu
[41:43] sudan as saraswati go on
[41:45] page after page after page lots of
[41:48] technical things
[41:49] but i think now especially early in our
[41:51] study of bhagavad-gita we're not going
[41:53] to get into
[41:55] too much of that depth and it's
[41:57] sometimes
[41:59] what do you the common expression you
[42:01] you can't see the
[42:03] the four you can't see the trees through
[42:06] the forest
[42:07] is it the other way around and you get
[42:09] so caught up in the details
[42:11] you lose the big picture we don't want
[42:14] to lose the big picture here
[42:16] so we will proceed
[42:30] [Music]
[42:59] you should understand that
[43:03] he would say you would say ye
[43:06] [Music]
[43:10] you should you should understand this
[43:14] understand what and understand atma the
[43:17] true self
[43:18] which is a vinashi
[43:22] not subject to vinasha not
[43:25] subject to destruction and it's that
[43:28] consciousness which is your true nature
[43:30] is avinashi not subject to destruction
[43:34] because as we saw in in the prior verse
[43:38] yeah it it is absolutely real
[43:42] and absolutely real as we saw in our
[43:45] definition is that which exists
[43:47] in the three periods of time uh
[43:50] past present and future therefore
[43:54] it is avinashi okay
[43:57] so arjuna understand
[44:00] that that which is avinashi too too
[44:04] in particular that which is
[44:07] indestructible
[44:09] and it is that by which look at the
[44:11] second line yena
[44:13] that by which sarva madam
[44:16] idam this sarvam all of this this entire
[44:20] universe
[44:21] is tatam pervaded
[44:26] the entire universe is pervaded by
[44:30] this consciousness now this launches us
[44:34] up
[44:34] into another important discussion i
[44:36] don't think we've had so far
[44:38] and that is the consciousness by which
[44:42] you know what's happening right now
[44:45] is not stuck inside your head
[44:48] it feels like that yes i know it feels
[44:50] like consciousness is stuck inside
[44:53] but there's nothing to keep it inside
[44:56] you can't
[44:57] you can't put consciousness into a
[45:00] container
[45:01] you can put water into a pot
[45:04] but you can't put consciousness
[45:07] into a pot because consciousness is not
[45:11] stuff consciousness is
[45:14] a reality the truth just
[45:17] just to get a better
[45:20] sense of this
[45:26] if i the usual way i teach this i guess
[45:29] it works
[45:31] if i ask you how tall is your
[45:35] consciousness
[45:37] how wide is your consciousness you get
[45:40] it immediately
[45:41] it doesn't have dimensions
[45:45] look at this that which doesn't have
[45:47] dimensions
[45:49] has no edge no boundary
[45:54] no limit that which has no limit
[45:58] is limitless
[46:01] infinite infinitely vast
[46:05] you know the comparison that's used
[46:07] frequently in vedanta
[46:09] is it's like space space
[46:12] itself is dimensionless
[46:15] objects have dimension space has no
[46:18] dimension
[46:19] has no edge has no boundary has no limit
[46:22] therefore
[46:23] space is all pervasive just as
[46:26] space is all pervasive so too
[46:30] your consciousness
[46:33] which means we've got a problem now
[46:36] if consciousness is all pervasive
[46:41] the consciousness by which you know
[46:44] what's happening now
[46:46] certainly pervades your body and mind
[46:49] wouldn't it also pervade my body and
[46:52] mind
[46:54] look where we're going with this
[46:56] discussion
[46:58] there is no your consciousness or
[47:01] my consciousness there is
[47:05] one all pervasive
[47:08] consciousness that all one all-pervasive
[47:12] consciousness
[47:13] is manifest in you that same
[47:17] one all pervasive consciousness is
[47:19] manifest in me
[47:21] like in last week's class we said many
[47:24] computers plugged into the same
[47:26] electricity
[47:28] the same electrons are coursing through
[47:31] all
[47:31] 10 computers in the same way the same
[47:35] one consciousness gives
[47:39] sentiency to every living being
[47:43] that same one consciousness being
[47:46] boundaryless limitless
[47:47] being all pervasive so the consciousness
[47:51] by which
[47:52] you know what's happening right now
[47:55] is the same consciousness by which i
[47:58] know what's happening right now
[48:00] leading to the question everyone has
[48:02] that's a good question it's a valid
[48:04] question the question is
[48:05] swamiji if it's the same consciousness
[48:08] by
[48:09] in your mind and the same consciousness
[48:11] in my mind then
[48:12] why don't i know your thoughts that's a
[48:15] good question
[48:16] and and it's not too hard to answer
[48:20] the question belongs to consciousness
[48:24] or your mind
[48:28] the tricky question we have to
[48:29] differentiate now
[48:32] who asks that question
[48:35] does your consciousness ask your
[48:37] question or does that question arise in
[48:39] your mind
[48:40] consciousness doesn't ask questions in
[48:42] fact it's because of consciousness that
[48:45] you're aware of the question
[48:47] the question is belongs to your mind
[48:50] and that question is revealed known to
[48:54] you because of consciousness
[48:56] the question doesn't belong to
[48:57] consciousness the question
[48:59] belongs to your mind and now you can
[49:02] answer the question
[49:03] why don't you know my thoughts that
[49:06] question belongs to your mind
[49:09] and your mind is associated with your
[49:11] body
[49:13] my mind is associated with my body
[49:16] our minds are definitely different
[49:19] therefore
[49:19] we can understand there can be one
[49:21] consciousness
[49:22] illumining your mind and my mind at the
[49:26] same time
[49:27] our minds and thoughts are very very
[49:30] separate which by the way is a really
[49:33] good thing
[49:34] i remember puja swami dain on the
[49:36] commenting about
[49:37] how awkward it would be
[49:41] if you knew everyone's thoughts
[49:44] if you knew what everyone was thinking
[49:47] that would be first
[49:49] awkward and secondly really complicated
[49:53] think of how complicated it is to deal
[49:56] with your own thoughts
[49:58] suppose you had to deal with the
[49:59] thoughts of your spouse children parents
[50:02] co-workers boss everyone everyone you
[50:05] met
[50:05] you're just overcome by all their
[50:07] thoughts it would be
[50:09] it would be terrible okay
[50:12] so arjuna tudvidhi
[50:16] understand that atma that true self
[50:20] which is
[50:21] avinashi indestructible yenna
[50:24] madame by which
[50:27] this entire universe is pervaded by that
[50:31] consciousness
[50:32] the entire universe is pervaded and then
[50:35] in the final line
[50:37] nakasid kartum
[50:43] no one can do no one can bring about
[50:47] and in the third line no one can bring
[50:49] about the
[50:50] vinasham the destruction
[50:54] no one can bring about the destruction
[50:56] means no one can destroy
[50:58] no one can destroy what of yayas
[51:02] no one can bring about the destruction
[51:04] asya of this
[51:06] of this which is of yayasya
[51:09] of that which is indestructible
[51:13] no one can destroy the indestructible
[51:17] of yaya that unchanging
[51:21] that which is unchanging can't be
[51:24] destroyed that which is
[51:25] absolutely real can't be destroyed
[51:29] by anyone under any situation
[51:33] and that leads to a very nice
[51:34] opportunity to discuss the fact
[51:37] that your consciousness is not destroyed
[51:41] doesn't go away
[51:43] during dreamless sleep
[51:46] as i said all the important topics of
[51:49] vedanta come
[51:50] quickly in these opening verses
[51:53] your conscious consciousness is that
[51:56] which allows you to be aware
[51:57] of whatever is happening right now while
[51:59] you're awake
[52:01] tonight when you're dreaming
[52:03] consciousness will reveal whatever is
[52:05] happening while you're dreaming
[52:08] and then in dreamless sleep many people
[52:11] make the wrong assumption
[52:14] that consciousness goes away in deep
[52:17] sleep in fact in the medical people we
[52:21] use the word
[52:22] unconscious the patient is unconscious
[52:26] the patient is either deep sleep or in a
[52:28] coma
[52:30] unconscious we've said consciousness is
[52:35] eternal unchanging so unchanging means
[52:39] consciousness can't flip
[52:41] on and off like a light bulb
[52:44] that's the metaphor people have in their
[52:47] minds
[52:48] just like your your refrigerator when
[52:51] you open the refrigerator door the light
[52:53] bulb turns on
[52:55] when you close the refrigerator door the
[52:58] light bulb turns off
[53:01] and people assume that consciousness is
[53:04] like that
[53:05] when you're awake or dreaming
[53:07] consciousness is
[53:08] on like the light bulb and in deep sleep
[53:11] consciousness is off like an
[53:14] extinguished light bulb
[53:16] how ridiculous to compare consciousness
[53:19] inner divinity to compare to a light
[53:22] bulb what kind of comparison
[53:26] is that here's the
[53:29] the correct way to understand the
[53:31] experience of deep sleep
[53:33] and i've used this this example many
[53:36] times because it's very
[53:37] helpful imagine standing in a
[53:40] perfectly dark room maybe like a closet
[53:44] in your in your house if you go inside
[53:47] that dark closet and close the door
[53:49] and you wave your hand in front of your
[53:52] face
[53:52] you can't even see your hand now my
[53:55] question
[53:56] is this in that dark closet
[54:00] do you have the power of sight
[54:03] or have you gone blind
[54:07] you wouldn't say you've gone blind you'd
[54:10] say i still have the power of sight
[54:12] then i said why can't you you see the
[54:15] hand well you can't see it's too dark to
[54:17] see
[54:19] in that closet you see
[54:24] but there is nothing to be seen
[54:28] i'll say that again in the dark closet
[54:30] you're not blind
[54:32] you have the power of sight
[54:35] but there's nothing to be seen in the
[54:37] dark closet because of the
[54:40] darkness just as in the dark closet
[54:43] you're not
[54:43] blind you can see in the same way
[54:48] in deep sleep you are
[54:52] conscious but there's nothing to be
[54:56] conscious
[54:56] of it's like your mind is full of
[55:00] darkness
[55:01] the closet is full of darkness nothing
[55:03] can be seen
[55:04] in deep sleep dreamless sleep your mind
[55:07] is full of darkness
[55:08] there's nothing to be observed but you
[55:12] are as conscious and deep sleep
[55:16] as you are conscious right now
[55:19] think about that you're fully conscious
[55:22] now
[55:23] even in a dream you're fully conscious
[55:27] and you are equally conscious
[55:30] in deep sleep
[55:33] we said before that which is real is
[55:36] that which
[55:37] existed in the future that which exists
[55:41] in the past
[55:42] the looking at that three times and
[55:45] in the present is unchanging
[55:50] your consciousness is unchanging
[55:54] in a in the waking state your
[55:56] consciousness
[55:57] reveals what's happening in your mind in
[56:00] a dream
[56:01] state your consciousness hasn't changed
[56:04] your mind has changed from waking state
[56:06] to dream state
[56:07] consciousness hasn't changed your
[56:09] consciousness continues
[56:11] to illumine or reveal whatever is
[56:14] happening in your mind
[56:15] in the dream state and in deep sleep
[56:18] state it's not that consciousness has
[56:20] these three states we talk about
[56:22] waking dream and sleep as three states
[56:26] but there are three states of your mind
[56:28] they're not
[56:29] three states of consciousness
[56:31] consciousness is unchanging
[56:34] when you fall into deep dreamless sleep
[56:37] consciousness doesn't change it
[56:39] continues to shine
[56:41] it continues to illumine whatever is
[56:43] happening in your mind
[56:45] only there's nothing happening your mind
[56:48] has become
[56:49] totally inactive totally
[56:52] silent so your consciousness
[56:56] reveals the absence
[56:59] of activities in your mind while you're
[57:02] awake
[57:03] consciousness reveals the activities of
[57:06] your mind
[57:07] while you're dreaming consciousness
[57:09] reveals the
[57:11] the dream activities of your mind and in
[57:14] deep sleep
[57:15] your consciousness reveals the
[57:18] inactivity
[57:19] of your mind the silence of your mind
[57:23] okay we'll conclude here one brief
[57:26] announcement
[57:27] we're celebrating maha shivaratri this
[57:30] coming week an
[57:31] important celebration in pre-pandemic
[57:35] days when we had live
[57:37] classes at our ashram we would always
[57:40] pause our saturday classes
[57:42] and have a special celebration of
[57:44] mahasavaratri some other
[57:46] celebrations as well so
[57:49] falling following that tradition
[57:52] next week instead
[57:55] of this bhagavad-gita class next week
[57:58] we'll have our
[58:00] kind of a virtual celebration of
[58:02] shivaratri
[58:03] what that celebration is is this i've
[58:06] worked very hard to prepare
[58:08] a special video uh which is like
[58:11] a meditation on shiva
[58:15] in a very special way i i think it's
[58:17] something you'll enjoy
[58:18] anyway i worked hard and prepared the
[58:20] video and what i'll do
[58:22] next saturday i'll upload the video
[58:26] so next saturday instead of watching
[58:28] this vid uh
[58:29] this uh bhagavad-gita class next
[58:33] saturday you can watch this ma
[58:35] this video i produced this meditation on
[58:38] shiva
[58:39] in in honor of maha shivaratri then the
[58:42] following
[58:42] following week of course we'll continue
[58:44] our bhagavad-gita classes
[58:51] [Music]
[59:30] foreign
[59:36] [Music]
[59:52] you