Verses 14.26–14.27🔗

Kṛṣṇa concludes the chapter by saying that the transcendental state beyond the three attributes of nature, guṇas, is Brahman, the ultimate Cosmic Consciousness, the ultimate space of Completion. He says you reach this through devotion. He says that He is that Brahman, the source of Eternal Bliss—brahmaṇo hi pratiṣṭhāham. brahmaṇo hi pratiṣṭhāham amṛtasyāvyayasya ca I śāśvatasya ca dharmasya sukhasyaikāntikasya ca II 14.27 Kṛṣṇa speaks as Parabrahma Kṛṣṇa, the supreme energy and not as Vāsudeva Kṛṣṇa, the individual. He is in the expanded consciousness of Brahman, and beyond the three guṇas. He is the Source of the guṇas. Your Level of Completion Decides What is the difference between Parabrahma Kṛṣṇa (Ultimate Consciousness) and Vāsudeva Kṛṣṇa?

In the case of an ordinary human being, even though he has the potential of Divinity, he has not realized it. That is the difference between you and an Enlightened Master, an Incarnation. Both of you are Divine to the same extent. Yet you are unaware of your Divinity, whereas the Enlightened Master, the Incarnation is fully aware of it. In the case of Śrī Kṛṣṇa, He is the Master, the Complete Incarnation. Why then the difference? The difference is not to do with Him. It is to do with us. Listen! In Vedic tradition, we narrate hundreds of Purāṇas, the recorded historical happenings, where Māhadeva Himself comes, where Kṛṣṇa appears to give victory and protection, to their devotees.

What is the gap between the life during Vedic times and now? Surely, our Masters are very logical, scientific people, never spreading superstition. But, in the modern days, all these things are thought to be superstitious. Why is it that all which happened at that time, is not happening now? Why is there so much gap? I tell you, the only gap, why it was happening then and why it is not happening now, the answer is— incompletions! When you complete, complete, and complete, then everything what you read in the Vedic tradition becomes reality. It can be reality. I tell you, completion is the bridge to reach the Vedic tradition, to reach extraordinary powers, to experience Divine expressions in your life.

Completion is life at every level. I can give you the whole list. The only difference between you and Śrīnivāsan Rāmānujan, the genius mathematician is the level of completion. The only difference between you and Ādī Śaṅkara is the level of completion. The only difference between Arjuna and Parabrahma Kṛṣṇa is the level of completion. I tell you, with completion you start living with God directly! The frequency of Parabrahma Kṛṣṇa is not visible to and approachable by mortals. That is why Arjuna had to be given the Divine vision to perceive Parabrahma rūpa or viśvarūpa. In order for humans to perceive Him and interact with Him, Parabrahma Kṛṣṇa must become Vāsudeva Kṛṣṇa.

To a certain extent He must subject Himself to the play of the guṇas. When an Enlightened being has merged with the Universal energy and incarnates in human form, that Incarnation must have some satva guṇa infused into Him in order to take human form. Within some Guṇatraya Vibhāga Yogaḥ FindYour Root PatternAnd Complete 1067 time, this satva guṇa also disappears, leaving the being beyond the three guṇas and once again in an Enlightened state. Each Enlightened Master, each Incarnation is unique in His expression of the experience as the Divine. Some express experiences and some don’t. Our scriptures say that if two enlightened masters say the same thing, one is a fake!

The experience is the same, yet the expression is different. Kṛṣṇa is different from Buddha and Śiva. Each has the same theme of compassion, yet the way the compassion is expressed is different. Buddha expressed it as contemplation and Kṛṣṇa in joyous loving completion. So we choose a Master based upon how we vibrate to His expression. If our path is devotion, we gravitate to Kṛṣṇa; He is lovable. If we are the meditative type, we go to Śiva, the Master who teaches in vibrating, alive silence. Surrender out of Completion is Real Surrender It does not matter who our Master is. What matters is our faith, trust and the attitude or space of surrender.

Our Master can be an unenlightened being. If we trust him, we can become enlightened, even though he may not be. What matters more is our attitude and feeling connection based on the level of our completion, our guṇa, and not the Master’s state. Even if we worship a stone and surrender to it from a complete inner space, cognizing it to be our ultimate savior, we will be liberated. It is true. Please listen. When you practice the right reason, right results come. When you practice even the same values with smaller reasons, only the small results come. More than what actions you do, what matters is the space from which the actions are done.

If you do not have the right context, even when you worship a deity or a God, it is useless. Listen, because even while you pray, if you strengthen the space that you are poor, you are weak, if that gets strengthened more and more, even your prayer will make you weak. Surrendering not even bothering to whom you are surrendering, as a quality of surrendering is Enlightenment. Understand, surrendering without even looking up to whom you are surrendering, like Lakṣman’s surrender out of his completion is real Surrender. In Rāmāyaṇa, the great Hindu epic history of Lord Śrī Rāma’s incarnation, Lakṣman is the younger brother of Lord Rāma, who devoted his whole life in selflessly serving the feet of Śrī Rama and Mātā Sītā.

When Sītā is kidnapped by Rāvaṇa, some of the vānaras (monkeys) gathered some jewels thrown by her and brought it to Rāma for identifying them. Lakṣman could only recognize the anklets of Sītā. Rāma asked, ‘why are you not able to recognize the jewelry?’ Lakṣman said, ‘No. I have never seen the Mother above the feet. I look at both of you only when I do nāmaskār (surrendering salutation), but I never looked directly or intensely.’ Lakṣman never even saw the upper jewelry of Mātā Sītā. Whatever we understand, we understand; but it is true. I tell you, Lakṣman does not even know whose feet he is falling at, he just sees the feet.

It means that you are very clear, you are not that big! It is the realization that you are not that big; that humbleness without the humility. Understand, humbleness as a fact not as a quality is the right context, the right space. Humbleness as a quality can bring ego, incompletion. ‘I am very humble, I am very humble’. No! Humbleness as an effect of the space of completion, this is the way—‘I am in humbleness without feeling humiliated.’ These are different qualities, guṇas. So, don’t even bother to whom you are surrendering. It is the joy of surrender, the celebration of surrender. I can surrender in front any stone, I have no problem at all.

Not just here, at any temple, anywhere, any deity, any stone. You can see very clearly, that is one job I do very sincerely. Because I have the space of surrender, I can surrender to Śiva, Guṇatraya Vibhāga Yogaḥ FindYour Root PatternAnd Complete 1069 I can surrender to Viṣṇu. I can surrender to my own Pādukas (sacred foot-sandal of master). In Vedic tradition, we can surrender to even a tree or a tulasi plant (holy basil plant). In Indian houses, even door-frames are worshipped, one lamp is worshipped. The faith and the surrender help us transcend the nature of all activities. We surrender the result of our actions to that Master, whomsoever He may be, whomsoever It may be.

We do everything meditating on that Master and surrender it all at His feet. That space of completion alone liberates us. This is what Kṛṣṇa means by devotion, bhakti-yogena sevate (14.26), which is unfailing in all circumstances. Nothing more is needed. Kṛṣṇa is not talking about the flute-playing, yellow-robed Kṛṣṇa. Anyone that we surrender to totally, is Kṛṣṇa and we then fall into Kṛṣṇa consciousness, the Consciousness of Completion. Let us pray to Parabrahma Kṛṣṇa, the Universal Consciousness, the Ultimate Energy, to give us all this understanding in our life, to make us experience the truth that He teaches and to establish us in Completion, make us radiate Eternal Bliss, Nityānanda.

Thus ends the fourteenth chapter named Guṇatraya Vibhāga Yogaḥ, The Yoga of Division of the three Guṇas,’ of the Bhagavad Gītā Upaniṣad, Brahmavidyā Yogaśāstra, the scripture of yoga dealing with the science of the Absolute in the form of Śrī Kṛṣṇārjuna saṃvād, dialogue between Śrī Kṛṣṇa and Arjuna. No Questions, Only Doubts When we question, we show our arrogance and violence. When we doubt, we reveal our authentic quest for the truth and readiness to receive the master. Arjuna, now beyond questions, allows krsna to give the experience of the Supreme Being, Purusottama. c h a p t e r Puruṣottama Yogaḥ ... . Only Kṛṣṇa speaks in chapter 15 of Bhagavad Gītā.

Arjuna does not utter a word. Arjuna’s inner space has been silenced. He is in the pure space of listening. As a result, his questions have disappeared. Arjuna, who is Puruṣa, is now established in Upaniṣad, mirroring the Superconscious Supreme Being or Self, Puruṣottama Bhagavān Śrī Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa expounds upon who He is and what He is. This chapter is traditionally titled Puruṣottama Yogaḥ, Yoga of the Supreme Being. Kṛṣṇa unveils the reasons why He is Puruṣottama, Supreme amongst beings and explains that what He has imparted to Arjuna is the most profound secret. Kṛṣṇa is convinced that Arjuna is ready to receive the Truth. Arjuna has settled into his Self.

His confusions have disappeared; questions have dissolved due to his cosmic experience in Viśvarūpa Darśan Yogaḥ—having the vision of Kṛṣṇa’s Cosmic form—and his direct spiritual experience. He has achieved the depth of knowledge and the complete cognition required to intranalyze and radiate whatever Kṛṣṇa has taught him so far. He has achieved the intensity of spiritual experience. He is a new being. He can no more be called Arjuna. He is expressing the power of living with enriching, overflowing with devotion onto Śrī Kṛṣṇa present in everything and everything present in Kṛṣṇa! With the revelation of Kṛṣṇa’s cosmic form, Arjuna has the awareness of his own part in the collective consciousness.

This experience of completion has put him in a devotional mood, which is now overflowing as enriching. This devotion is not merely towards Kṛṣṇa, but through Kṛṣṇa, to all of humanity. Only for enriching others, Arjuna speaks and listens on behalf of humanity and not for himself. No Questions, Only Doubts Puruṣottama Yogaḥ No Questions, Only Doubts 1073 From now on, everything that Arjuna does is enriching, enriching, enriching his own extension in others! He becomes the cause for creating the ultimate reality for humanity in the Cosmic play of the complete Incarnation, Pūrṇavātar Śrī Kṛṣṇa! Arjuna doesn’t have any more intellectual questions. He has reached a point where he is totally ready to receive and mirror Kṛṣṇa.

He has moved forward from a state of thoughtfulness, where he is confused, incomplete and full of questions, to a no-mind state of completion where questions disappear. Doubts Are Necessary Masters convey their experience. It is an energy transmission that occurs. To convey an experience in words denies the experience. Once verbalized, the experience loses meaning. Kṛṣṇa is different. He is engaged in a dialogue with Arjuna for the benefit of enriching the mankind to resolve those conflicts and doubts that arise in all humans. After seeing Kṛṣṇa’s cosmic form, Arjuna’s questions are about the nature of the divine Kṛṣṇa and how to approach Him. Kṛṣṇa now explains to him what He is and how to reach Him.

Doubt means a person is ready to receive the Master, ready to live the Master, ready to express and radiate the Master. Whatever word comes out of the Master completes the doubt. Doubt makes the Master express himself. Questions make the Master close himself. Man cannot handle too much truth. He can handle half-truths. Beyond that, truth starts transforming him. He feels that the ground he is standing on is slipping away. None of us wants to know the truth. If truth is given honestly, only a few will be willing to listen. People become frightened the moment honest truths are given. So, they question the truth. We feel that we cannot afford to be truthful in verbal language as well as body language.

The truth straightaway gives us Enlightenment. It transforms us. The moment someone authentically intranalyzes or catches a single dimension of truth, it does wonders. If we scan our whole day, we will find it is filled with lies and inauthenticities. Our smiles are false. When we smile, we don’t want the other person to know what is in our mind; so we don’t look into each other’s eyes. Why? We fear that the other person will read our mind and our inauthenticity will be exposed to them. However, nothing can be hidden in our eyes. Eyes are the doorway to the soul. Straightaway we see the being in another person’s eyes.

Truth Shines By Itself Truth endures logical questions and arguments. It withstands the test of logical analysis. If someone needs to verify whether something is pure gold, we must put it in acid to test it. An acid test is required to test the truth of gold. In the same manner, if we wish to know whether something is pure truth, we must put it to an acid test of logical analysis. Our inauthenticity will simply burn out. Our logic will simply fall and fail. If it is the ultimate Truth, if it is authentic, it must stand the test of logical analysis and prove itself. If the disciple is in the questioning mood, the Master must prove his words.

He must be prepared to go through the acid tests demanded by the questioning disciple. It is a big load. If the disciple is in doubt, the Master will open up with the truth. He will not cover the truth with words. He will not play with words. The naked truth will be told directly. Any truth can be served and explained to a mind with doubt. To a questioning mind, nothing can be explained. The disciple’s mood decides whether the Master’s words will be advice or a powerful transformation technique. If the disciple is completely feeling connected, the Master can enrich him. The Master need not even be enlightened.

A small story: A scholar lived on the banks of the sacred Yamuna river. DailyheofferedritualworshiptoKṛṣṇa.Amilkmaidbrought milk for the scholar on a regular basis. One day, she did not Puruṣottama Yogaḥ No Questions, Only Doubts 1075 come because it had rained heavily the previous night and the river had flooded. The following day when she arrived at the scholar’s home, he asked, ‘Why didn’t you bring my milk yesterday?’ She replied, ‘The river was flooded and I was unable to cross it.’ The scholar told her, ‘Many have crossed the saṁsāra sāgar (ocean of worldly life) by chanting Kṛṣṇa’s name. Yet you can’t cross a small river. Chant His name and cross!’

Like a typical scholar, he showed off his dry knowledge to impress the poor milkmaid while also scolding her for missing a day of service. The milkmaid received his words as absolute truth. From that day onwards, the milkmaid was on time. Sometime later, the river flooded again. The milkmaid shocked the scholar by arriving at the usual hour. He asked her, ‘How did you manage to cross the river?’ The milkmaid replied, ‘Due to your guidance, master. I chanted Kṛṣṇa’s name and walked upon the water as you told me.’ The scholar could not digest it. He demanded proof. The milkmaid agreed. They went down to the riverbank. The milkmaid chanted Kṛṣṇa’s name and walked upon the water.

She just floated and crossed the river. The scholar could not believe what was happening. He thought, ‘If an ignorant milkmaid can walk on water based on my teachings, why can’t I, a great scholar?’ He started chanting Kṛṣṇa’s name. But, as he approached the water, he lifted his waistcloth so as not to wet it. He stepped into the water and sank. He didn’t actually have any authentic belief in what he told the milkmaid. He just spoke those words to show off his knowledge. But his inner space felt the impossibility of crossing the water. And the milkmaid was so authentic, her space was filled with making the impossible, possible!

Listen, if the disciple is in a receptive mood of listening with integrity, even casual words of the Master can be techniques for his growth; it will enrich him. Even if the master is unenlightened or if the master has no belief or experience of his own words, the disciple’s authentic belief in the possibility surmounts any obstacle. Doubt and faith are two sides of the same coin. We cannot have faith without doubt. That is why, however much people wish to believe my words, they have doubts. I tell them it is okay to have doubts. They are going through a process, a cycle of faith and doubt. As doubt is cleared, a greater faith, the courage of authenticity develops.

Then, the next level of doubt occurs. A new layer of understanding is revealed. Ultimately, the disciple transcends doubt and faith. He reaches the truth. Until such time, it is normal to have recurring doubt and faith. Now, Arjuna has come to an understanding. Because of his firsthand spiritual experience, he has come to the level of doubt. No more questions. He does not ask what is beneficial for him. Those self-serving calculations have gone. No more questions like, kim tad brahma kim-adhyātmaṁ kim karma puruṣottama (8.1)—What is Brahman? Which is duty? etc. He was playing with words then. Now everything has disappeared. In the first chapter, Kṛṣṇa was totally silent.

Arjuna spoke at length. He quoted on dharma, righteousness and from ancient scriptures. In this chapter, Arjuna is completely silent. This is the problem faced by every Master descending on planet Earth. An innocent disciple is better than an ignorant disciple. Unlearn to Learn All Masters descending on planet Earth bring the same śāstra, the knowledge that is written down. But they also bring the life that is infused in this knowledge. No book can give the ultimate Truth. The problem is that some people take books and their intellect as the ultimate authority. Puruṣottama Yogaḥ No Questions, Only Doubts 1077 Instead of living the truth with integrity and authenticity, they take books as authority.

They demand proof for the masters’ words based on books and scriptures they have read. The main problem is the meaning of words. For example, if a Master utters the word ‘Ātman,’ he says it from the Saṃskṛit dictionary. But we look for ‘ātman’ in our own Oxford dictionary! Naturally the problem starts. When we are in the presence of a living Master, we can immediately seek clarification and can complete with doubts. A Master knows by seeing our faces and our inner space that we are unable to cognize. Never giving-up on us, he explains further till things fit together and we experience completion. If our search is real, if it is an urge, we will be seeking a living Master.

On the other hand, if our search is an entertainment, just passing time, we feel comfortable with books and old masters’ photographs. If our search is intense, we feel deeply connected with a living Master. Facts and truth do not always go together. Facts are one-dimensional, relating only to time, whereas the truth is space and time; it is multidimensional. Here Arjuna has come to a level of maturity that is no longer satisfied with factual information. His quest is for truth. He has no more questions. Only doubts. Doubts are great. They are clear green signals that the disciple is ready to receive and live the Master. A small story: A young man approached an elderly person sitting under a tree near his village and told him that he was in search of a Guru.

The old man replied that he knew of a Guru. He described him in detail, how he looked, where to locate him and so forth. The young man thanked him and moved on. For thirty years, he searched. Unable to find the Guru, he gave up and headed back to his hometown. Before reaching home, he saw an old man who exactly matched the description of the Guru. Approaching closer, the young man realized that he was none other than the old man with whom he started his search. The young man asked, ‘Why did you allow me to waste thirty years looking for you?’ The old man replied, ‘Those years were not wasted.

They molded you. When you came to me thirty years ago, I described myself, including the tree under which I sat. You were unable to recognize me. You were in a hurry to travel, wander and satisfy your ego. Your searching was necessary in order to dissolve questions that arose from your ego. Now you are ripe and ready to receive me.’ If the disciple is not in a receptive state, he is even unable to recognize his Guru. Questions arise from ego. Doubts arise from consciousness. Arjuna did everything. In the second chapter, when Kṛṣṇa spoke about ātma, saying: nainaṁ chindanti śastrāṇi nainaṁ dahati pāvakaḥ (2.23)—The soul cannot be touched by any weapon or be burned by fire—Arjuna immediately asks: How will an enlightened man speak?

Why? Why did he ask that question? It was out of pure ego, to judge Kṛṣṇa, to see whether Kṛṣṇa was enlightened. Arjuna was checking the authority of the Master. It started with violence, with questions. Gradually,bychapter9,whenKṛṣṇarevealed RājavidyāRājaGuhyaṁ Yogaḥ, royal knowledge and royal secret, that Existence is intelligence, that the cosmic energy is intelligence, Arjuna’s questions very slowly settle down, and intelligence happened. In chapter 10, with Vibhūti Yogaḥ, yoga of Divine manifestation, devotion started flowering. When he heard the glory of Kṛṣṇa, love started flowering in him. In Chapter 11, with Viśvarūpa Darśan Yogaḥ, Arjuna had the experience. Now all questions are over. Arjuna experienced the Ultimate Consciousness. Rāmakṛṣṇa Paramahamsa says beautifully, ‘In a party, until the food is served, conversations and noise happen.

Once the food is served, only the noise of serving and Puruṣottama Yogaḥ No Questions, Only Doubts 1079 eating will be heard! Till the ultimate experience, questions will be there. After that, the expression of that experience alone will be there. All other noise will disappear.’ Here, Arjuna has finished everything. His calculations are over. He has come down to the level of doubts. With questions, the tone is different. Questions demand proof from the Master. Doubts are not like that. They are just asking for some tips, tips for enriching your own self in others. Arjuna has come to the level of complete acceptance of the Master. That is why, throughout this chapter, Arjuna is silent. He is ready to mirror the Master. He is now soaked in devotion, ready to powerfully live and blissfully radiate everything transmitted to him. Journey Into The Causal Body