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Importance of withdrawn senses

After explaining the characteristic of a sthitaprajña, Lord Krsna reminds to be attentive in moksa pursue, because if being not careful, down fall will happen to us.


dhyāyato viṣayānpuṃsaḥ saṅgasteṣūpajāyate |

saṅgāt sañjāyate kāmaḥ kāmāt krodho'bhijāyate ||2.62||

In the person who dwells upon objects, an attachment is born with reference to them. From attachment is born desire and from desire, anger is born.


krodhāt bhavati sammohaḥ sammohāt smṛtivibhramaḥ |

smṛtibhraṃśād buddhināśo buddhināśāt praṇaśyati ||2.63||

From anger comes delusion and from delusion comes the loss of memory. Because of the loss of memory, the mind becomes incapacitated and when the mind is incapacitated, the person is destroyed.


We have learned from tattvabodha that the nature of senses is supposed to go out to gather information for the mind to process. If there is still trace of unfulfilment on the part of sādhaka - seeker who is still not fully abide in the wholeness of oneself, his/her mind will dwell upon on object or situation. When mind dwells too much on them, it starts to superimpose qualities in them, then attachment is born. From attachment, desire to obtain is born, and from desire, action is done for fulfilment of that desire. Then from action, emotional imbalance is born because result of action is uncertain in nature.


Further more from emotional imbalance in the form of anger, greed, etc, one's ability to discriminate is being robed (delusion). Because of delusion one couldn't remember the teaching of śāstra, then intellect which is peculiar to human being becomes disabled due to not using for its purpose. Therefore that person is said to be destroyed, losing the status of being qualified for moksa as the highest purpose of human life.

Therefore for a sādhaka, withdrawn of senses is a very important to observe. Because the nature of senses is outgoing, taking data to feed our mind, therefore it is very difficult to hold them back. Sometimes it will get worse when we try to tempt them. Therefore by shifting from the objects or activities which are not helpful for the spiritual purse, to those activities which help us to form a mind which conducive for contemplation, like prayer, chanting, study of scripture, etc. Slowly with satya-mithya-viveka (independent and dependent reality) discriminative knowledge, one doesn't give the reality to the sense objects, then senses will stay in oneself alone.


eṣā brāhmī sthitiḥ pārtha naināṃ prāpya vimuhyati |

sthitvāsyāmantakāle'pi brahmanirvāṇamṛcchati ||2.72||

Pārtha (Arjuna)! This is (what is meant by) one's being in Brahman. Having gained this, one is not deluded. Remaining therein, even at the end of one's life, one gains liberation.


How a jñānī being free while living - jivanmukti has been described, now in the last verse of second chapter Lord Krsna mentioned about the bonus point for a jñānī. After drop of the body, a jñānī will not get re-birth anymore. Because there is no individually for a jñānī, no separator between one and other being. Therefore the needs of having a different body-mind-sense-complex is not there anymore to keep up with this desire of being an individual. Hence for one who can see the oneness of jīva-jagad-Īśvara, there is no purpose for gaining an individual body anymore, therefore a jivanmukti liberates after drop of the body is called videhamukti.


Chapter three started with Arjuna's question.


arjuna uvāca |

jyāyasī cet karmaṇaste matā buddhirjanārdana |

tatkiṃ karmaṇi ghore māṃ niyojayasi keśava ||3.1||

Arjuna said,

Janārdana (Krsna)! if in your contention knowledge is better than action, why then do you impel me into this gruesome action, Keśava (Krsna)?


vyāmiśreṇeva vākyena buddhiṃ mohayasīva me |

tadekaṃ vada niścitya yena śreyo'hamāpnuyām ||3.2||

With words that are seemingly contradictory, you seem to confuse my mind. Deciding for good, which is better, tell me the one thing by which I shall gain liberation.


Up to second chapter, teaching of Bhagavān is done, but due to this question of Arjuna 3-1, Gītā is extended till 18 chapters.


"With words that are seemingly contradictory, you seem to confuse my mind". From Arjuna words, seems like he didn't get the fact that role of duty as preparatory means for self knowledge is unavoidable. In one hand Lord Krsna said that knowledge is the only means for moksa but why he still asks Arjuna to take up karma. It is natural as human being to have this confusion because we always want to avoid anything which is unpleasant. For this reason we try to give reasoning to support our view. And we also start to have selective listening even the teaching comes from a person who we surrender to. Because of the trust toward Lord Krsna, Arjuna didn't just accuse that the words of Krsna are contradictory. Therefore Arjuna used the word "seemingly", he is still gives a benefit of doubt to himself that he might misunderstand the teaching. This is correct attitude of a student. We might have doubt about the teaching, but we need to ask with modesty to resolve the doubt, rather than confronting the fault of the teacher.


It is a fact that in many places of our śastra have seemingly contradictory sentences. It is because the teaching is catered to different kinds of people with different qualifications. It is not correct if liberation is only catered for certain group of people. When ever free is my nature, therefore to claim what is supposed to be me is every being's right. But how far we have been bringing ourself away from our true nature, then that far of journey we require to be free.


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