Ignorant men without faith are easily mired in doubt; once he attains true wisdom, he soon attains perfect peace.
People who believe in religion of any sort could say that a man without knowledge of his religion will never be happy because he will never get as close to God as he desires. And of course, once he gains the knowledge he is lacking, he will reach his eternal desires and be at peace in his soul.
I like the lines “However men try to reach me, / I return their love with my love; / whatever path they may travel, / it leads to me in the end.” All men try to get to the place where they reach God. They reach for this certain place where they are one with God. They show there love towards Krishna and he in return gives the same love back. Krishna rewards them for there love toward him. There are different paths for everyone when trying to reach Krishna. Some roads my take longer than others but in the end they all lead to the same place. All the different path of travel end at Krishna, God. Reaching Krishna is the ultimate finish line in life.
“Wishing success in their actions, men sacrifice to the gods, for ritual can bring success quickly in the world of men”
I almost feel like these lines bring down people’s religion. It makes it sound like the gods think men only worship them to get what they want. This could be very true though because many people who are not very religious pray during times of great need when they are in serious trouble. On the other hand, it could be talking about people who worship consistently. If this is the case, then these lines would seem more courteous towards men.
Even if you were the most evil of evildoers, Arjuna, wisdom is the boat that would carry you across the sea of all sin
This reminds me of Christian point of view that whatever we do we will get to the heaven we just need to ask god for forgiveness. As same in Hinduism they just need to live more life before they get to Matsha “heaven”. Even though our religions are a lot of differences we can on the same time fiend a lot of similarities. I do not think that any human been can live without to do any mistakes. Therefore it needs to be someone who gives as forgiveness. For me it is God and for most of the Hindus again is one of there gods.
" The whole world becomes a slave to its own activity, Arjuna; if you want to be truly free, perform all actions as worship. "
This passage really jumped out at me. I believe that even though this was written an incredibly long time ago, it continues to resound and hold truth for us even in our modern era. The whole world is obsessed with activity. We especially see that here in the United States; we are obsessed with activities at school, with work, hobbies, sports, shopping, yet we become enslaved. We lose track of those things which are truly deserve our time and attention, and we go through our lives convinced that we must follow these strict schedules to have the most successful life. However, Krishna is reminding us of purpose and intent. He is showing us that our activities should serve as a form of worship. We should commit ourselves fully to them, and attempt to give our attention to activities that bring betterment to ourselves and the world around us.
“Thus many forms of worship may lead to freedom, Arjuna. All these are born of action.”
A major concept Krishna constantly reminds Arjuna through the Gita is the idea that whatever path a man “may travel, it leads to me in the end.” For me personally, this concept was what I thought I’d have the most trouble grasping when I first entered Mr. Gawrys’ Eastern Religions class. Raised and confirmed in the United Methodist Church, I’ve been subjected to many persons who think the only right way to God is through the Methodist’s teachings of Christ. This point-of-view never entirely satisfied my opinion of other religions, yet because it was always present, I figured some of it had to have gotten into my bloodstream. However, the notion that God can be reached in many ways has ended up being the easiest thing I’ve been able to fully comprehend so far in the class. All religions are based around a similar mold for the most part. All seem to have a version of the Golden Rule and all are devoted towards a being (or beings) higher than man. Yes, practices and rituals tend to be different, but the main thing is that all are acting for something they believe in, and this provides them comfort. So who are we as mere mortals to judge which path is the best?
"All these understand worship; by worship they are cleansed of sin."
Right before this quote, Krishna gives various examples of someone who has been cleansed of sin. I think this is a great way to view a religion. By simply worshiping something that you believe in, you are cleansed of sin. In understanding worship, a person has also found wisdom, and so it leads to a chain reaction. This is one thing that really interests me about Hinduism because there are so many different ways that one can reach the same goal in life. You get options and choices instead of being told what to worship in order to be cleansed of sin. Everyone works differently, so their religion should cater to their personal ways of belief.
“When a man has let go of attachments, when his mind is rooted in wisdom, everything he does is worship and his actions all melt away.” (76)
Even before delving into his explanation of the yoga of wisdom, Krishna tells Arjuna, “if you want to be truly free, perform all actions as worship.” This concept of freedom is a main objective that many Hindus strive for. When an individual discovers, absorbs, and understands the wisdom concealed within his or her soul, this individual’s Atman reaches perfection. Wisdom is thought to liberate the soul from fear and desire, among other obstacles. At this point, actions and possessions don’t matter anymore, the person is free of delusion, and he/she understands that maya (the illusion of human life) is merely a part of God’s lila, separate from reality.
"God is the offering, God is the offered, poured out by God; God is attained by all those who see God in every action."
What this means to me is that people who see God in their all their actions have gained understanding. They have lost their selfish and earthly motives and have gained a greater understanding of their purpose. Not only does it give someone a greater understanding, they began to appreciate all objects for what they are because they have some spark of divinity within them. It also leads to a greater respect for those around others in the world. With the elimination of selfishness from our everyday lives, we can liberate ourselves from the burdens of earthly emotions such as anger, grief, and fear, and learn to appreciate all objects and people around us because they were made by the same creator, and share the same divinity we have in our souls.
“ Better than any ritual Is the worship achieved through wisdom; Wisdom is the final goal Of every action, Arjuna.”
Here, Krishna defines action and everything it is for—wisdom. Knowledge is wisdom, which is ultimate good, where as ignorance destroys. Krishna is trying to instill the idea in Arjuna that you have to fulfill your duties, and you have to act; however, you can’t hold expectations or fear of the result, because good or bad, you learn and when we learn, we gain wisdom. Krishna is saying that there is nothing more righteous than being wise, and firm in your wisdom. Detaching your self from fear and pain and expecting nothing will always have a positive result; good or bad, the knowledge is still obtained and the wisdom is achieved.
others, intent on control of their vital forces, offer their in-breath to their out-breath or their out-breath to their in-breath.
This stanza perfectly describes, in my mind, the devotion of a purely controlled person to his duty to God. He devotes every action, down to the very breath he takes, to God. He in turn is not driven by desires and lives in simplicity, at peace with himself and the world. This peace with the Self is one way to attain peace with God and become reunited in heaven with God.
"To deliver the pious and to annihilate the miscreants, as well as to reestablish the principles of religion, I Myself appear, millennium after millennium."
The particular phrase, "I Myself appear, millennium after millennium"; because doing so isn't a one time deal, yet continuous. He has to keep reestabilishing the principles of religion. The reality behind this is that as people change the rules that apply to those people must also change, yet this is usually not the case in religion. For example, though shall not kill; this commandment(rule) will always apply, no matter the person.
Actions can not defile me, since I am indifferent to results; all those who understand this will not be bound by their actions.
I guess the message here is that since gods represent everything, good and evil, what people who practice Hinduism must avoid is ignorance and inaction. Because in the absence of action, mankind would fall into ruin, and without humans, the gods would go without the levels of worship that they require, as explained near the end of Chapter 3.
"When you realize it, you will never fall back into delusion; knowing it, you see all beings in yourself, and yourself in me." page 78 After Krishna tells Arjuna that wisdom is the ultimate goal, he says these lines. Krishna is referring to the belief that brahma resides in each of us and the ultimate quest in the span of our lives is to recognize said brahma and carry out the darhma that God has set for us. When we realize that a piece of God is in every thing on earth we have ultimately achieved enlightenment, meaning that we are able to fully understand and comprehend God. When we reach that point, it is impossible to return to a state of ignorance and possessing this knowledge makes you incapable of sin and therefore you have in turn completed your journey back to God.
You must realize what action is, what wrong action and inaction are as well. The true nature of action is profound, and difficult to fathom.(4.17) This line entices me because I could not find any lines that exactly tells what is right and wrong in the Hinduism. The line just says that we must realize what action it is, but it does not state what kinds of actions are right or wrong. I heard that in Hinduism everything comes from the god. Therefore, any actions are derived from the god even if the action was not a good one. This line not only confuses me but also fascinates me about Hinduism.
"Whenever righteousness falters and chaos threatens to prevail, I take on a human body and manifest myself on earth." This line describes the avatars. The line explains that when the world is being corrupted and people are suffering, the blessed lord takes the form of a human body. In doing so, the blessed lord comes down to earth and cleanses the earth from evil. Although this line describes the avatars taking human form, the avatars also take other forms such as animals. All the avatars described in Hinduism generally have some heroic supernatural story that goes with each individual avatar. In addition to having past avatars, some Hindu believe that there is still an avatar to come. Some examples of avatars are Buddha, Jesus, and Muhammad.
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Ignorant men without faith
are easily mired in doubt;
once he attains true wisdom,
he soon attains perfect peace.
People who believe in religion of any sort could say that a man without knowledge of his religion will never be happy because he will never get as close to God as he desires.
And of course, once he gains the knowledge he is lacking, he will reach his eternal desires and be at peace in his soul.
I like the lines “However men try to reach me, / I return their love with my love; / whatever path they may travel, / it leads to me in the end.” All men try to get to the place where they reach God. They reach for this certain place where they are one with God. They show there love towards Krishna and he in return gives the same love back. Krishna rewards them for there love toward him. There are different paths for everyone when trying to reach Krishna. Some roads my take longer than others but in the end they all lead to the same place. All the different path of travel end at Krishna, God. Reaching Krishna is the ultimate finish line in life.
“Wishing success in their actions, men sacrifice to the gods, for ritual can bring success quickly in the world of men”
I almost feel like these lines bring down people’s religion. It makes it sound like the gods think men only worship them to get what they want. This could be very true though because many people who are not very religious pray during times of great need when they are in serious trouble. On the other hand, it could be talking about people who worship consistently. If this is the case, then these lines would seem more courteous towards men.
Even if you were the most evil
of evildoers, Arjuna,
wisdom is the boat that would carry you
across the sea of all sin
This reminds me of Christian point of view that whatever we do we will get to the heaven we just need to ask god for forgiveness. As same in Hinduism they just need to live more life before they get to Matsha “heaven”. Even though our religions are a lot of differences we can on the same time fiend a lot of similarities. I do not think that any human been can live without to do any mistakes. Therefore it needs to be someone who gives as forgiveness. For me it is God and for most of the Hindus again is one of there gods.
" The whole world becomes a slave to its own activity, Arjuna; if you want to be truly free, perform all actions as worship. "
This passage really jumped out at me. I believe that even though this was written an incredibly long time ago, it continues to resound and hold truth for us even in our modern era. The whole world is obsessed with activity. We especially see that here in the United States; we are obsessed with activities at school, with work, hobbies, sports, shopping, yet we become enslaved. We lose track of those things which are truly deserve our time and attention, and we go through our lives convinced that we must follow these strict schedules to have the most successful life. However, Krishna is reminding us of purpose and intent. He is showing us that our activities should serve as a form of worship. We should commit ourselves fully to them, and attempt to give our attention to activities that bring betterment to ourselves and the world around us.
“Thus many forms of worship
may lead to freedom, Arjuna.
All these are born of action.”
A major concept Krishna constantly reminds Arjuna through the Gita is the idea that whatever path a man “may travel, it leads to me in the end.” For me personally, this concept was what I thought I’d have the most trouble grasping when I first entered Mr. Gawrys’ Eastern Religions class. Raised and confirmed in the United Methodist Church, I’ve been subjected to many persons who think the only right way to God is through the Methodist’s teachings of Christ. This point-of-view never entirely satisfied my opinion of other religions, yet because it was always present, I figured some of it had to have gotten into my bloodstream. However, the notion that God can be reached in many ways has ended up being the easiest thing I’ve been able to fully comprehend so far in the class. All religions are based around a similar mold for the most part. All seem to have a version of the Golden Rule and all are devoted towards a being (or beings) higher than man. Yes, practices and rituals tend to be different, but the main thing is that all are acting for something they believe in, and this provides them comfort. So who are we as mere mortals to judge which path is the best?
"All these understand worship; by worship they are cleansed of sin."
Right before this quote, Krishna gives various examples of someone who has been cleansed of sin. I think this is a great way to view a religion. By simply worshiping something that you believe in, you are cleansed of sin. In understanding worship, a person has also found wisdom, and so it leads to a chain reaction. This is one thing that really interests me about Hinduism because there are so many different ways that one can reach the same goal in life. You get options and choices instead of being told what to worship in order to be cleansed of sin. Everyone works differently, so their religion should cater to their personal ways of belief.
“When a man has let go of attachments,
when his mind is rooted in wisdom,
everything he does is worship
and his actions all melt away.” (76)
Even before delving into his explanation of the yoga of wisdom, Krishna tells Arjuna, “if you want to be truly free, perform all actions as worship.” This concept of freedom is a main objective that many Hindus strive for. When an individual discovers, absorbs, and understands the wisdom concealed within his or her soul, this individual’s Atman reaches perfection. Wisdom is thought to liberate the soul from fear and desire, among other obstacles. At this point, actions and possessions don’t matter anymore, the person is free of delusion, and he/she understands that maya (the illusion of human life) is merely a part of God’s lila, separate from reality.
"God is the offering, God is the offered, poured out by God; God is attained by all those who see God in every action."
What this means to me is that people who see God in their all their actions have gained understanding. They have lost their selfish and earthly motives and have gained a greater understanding of their purpose. Not only does it give someone a greater understanding, they began to appreciate all objects for what they are because they have some spark of divinity within them. It also leads to a greater respect for those around others in the world. With the elimination of selfishness from our everyday lives, we can liberate ourselves from the burdens of earthly emotions such as anger, grief, and fear, and learn to appreciate all objects and people around us because they were made by the same creator, and share the same divinity we have in our souls.
[4.32-36]
“ Better than any ritual
Is the worship achieved through wisdom;
Wisdom is the final goal
Of every action, Arjuna.”
Here, Krishna defines action and everything it is for—wisdom. Knowledge is wisdom, which is ultimate good, where as ignorance destroys. Krishna is trying to instill the idea in Arjuna that you have to fulfill your duties, and you have to act; however, you can’t hold expectations or fear of the result, because good or bad, you learn and when we learn, we gain wisdom. Krishna is saying that there is nothing more righteous than being wise, and firm in your wisdom. Detaching your self from fear and pain and expecting nothing will always have a positive result; good or bad, the knowledge is still obtained and the wisdom is achieved.
others, intent on control
of their vital forces, offer
their in-breath to their out-breath
or their out-breath to their in-breath.
This stanza perfectly describes, in my mind, the devotion of a purely controlled person to his duty to God. He devotes every action, down to the very breath he takes, to God. He in turn is not driven by desires and lives in simplicity, at peace with himself and the world. This peace with the Self is one way to attain peace with God and become reunited in heaven with God.
"To deliver the pious and to annihilate the miscreants, as well as to reestablish the principles of religion, I Myself appear, millennium after millennium."
The particular phrase, "I Myself appear, millennium after millennium"; because doing so isn't a one time deal, yet continuous. He has to keep reestabilishing the principles of religion. The reality behind this is that as people change the rules that apply to those people must also change, yet this is usually not the case in religion. For example, though shall not kill; this commandment(rule) will always apply, no matter the person.
Actions can not defile me,
since I am indifferent to results;
all those who understand this
will not be bound by their actions.
I guess the message here is that since gods represent everything, good and evil, what people who practice Hinduism must avoid is ignorance and inaction. Because in the absence of action, mankind would fall into ruin, and without humans, the gods would go without the levels of worship that they require, as explained near the end of Chapter 3.
I don't know who TED is, but I love his/her comment. I like many of these, actually. HIlli's also stands out.
"When you realize it, you will never fall back into delusion; knowing it, you see all beings in yourself, and yourself in me." page 78
After Krishna tells Arjuna that wisdom is the ultimate goal, he says these lines. Krishna is referring to the belief that brahma resides in each of us and the ultimate quest in the span of our lives is to recognize said brahma and carry out the darhma that God has set for us. When we realize that a piece of God is in every thing on earth we have ultimately achieved enlightenment, meaning that we are able to fully understand and comprehend God. When we reach that point, it is impossible to return to a state of ignorance and possessing this knowledge makes you incapable of sin and therefore you have in turn completed your journey back to God.
You must realize what action is,
what wrong action and inaction are
as well. The true nature of action
is profound, and difficult to fathom.(4.17)
This line entices me because I could not find any lines that exactly tells what is right and wrong in the Hinduism. The line just says that we must realize what action it is, but it does not state what kinds of actions are right or wrong. I heard that in Hinduism everything comes from the god. Therefore, any actions are derived from the god even if the action was not a good one. This line not only confuses me but also fascinates me about Hinduism.
"Whenever righteousness falters and chaos threatens to prevail, I take on a human body and manifest myself on earth." This line describes the avatars. The line explains that when the world is being corrupted and people are suffering, the blessed lord takes the form of a human body. In doing so, the blessed lord comes down to earth and cleanses the earth from evil. Although this line describes the avatars taking human form, the avatars also take other forms such as animals. All the avatars described in Hinduism generally have some heroic supernatural story that goes with each individual avatar. In addition to having past avatars, some Hindu believe that there is still an avatar to come. Some examples of avatars are Buddha, Jesus, and Muhammad.
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