A practical training method, and not merely a text of revelation and worship – such is the true status of the ancient Sanskrit text Bhagavad Gita. It has been called the Bible of’ India, but corresponds rather to the Gospel of John; ‘The Kingdom of Heaven is within you’ or to the recently discovered Gospel of Thomas: ‘The Kingdom of God has come but you do not see it ”
The special contribution of the Gita is yoga, practical methods for expanding individual consciousness to realize the Kingdom as the supreme Self. This book presents the Gita yoga in the light of – explanations by Sankara, the great seventh-century Indian philosopher and yogi, and of the late Dr Hari Prasad Shastri, who taught in Britain from 1929. till his death in 1956. The present author’ s a pupil of Dr Shastri for eighteen years’
The Gita can be misread, as Sankara says. It is not a gradual ascent to the final devotion of the soul to a Lord high above. On the contrary, the first two teaching chapters hardly mention any such Lord: they teach the undivided supreme Self. This is a special method of teaching in the Gita, which the present author calls Teaching Down. It is explained here,’ with other examples front the Gita. The Gita is directed in the first instance at the vigorously active, with responsibilities in the world. The actual practices of yoga are given the light of the oral tradition handed on by Dr Shastri, for meeting the shock of the world energies in the form of illusions, fear, greed and ‘ anger. The whole basis of Gita yoga is confirmation through experiment not mere exhortation- “The doubts of the pupil Arjuna (usually glossed over) are fully examined, as is his false conviction of illumination. This highly significant book presents the Gita as a training manual for spiritual practice.
Synopsis
The Bhagavad Gita (‘Sung By The Lord’, about 500 BC) is a mystical section of the huge verse epic Mahabharata, and it is often called the Bible of India. Much of the religious instruction in the epic, like that of the still more ancient Vedas themselves, is concerned with how to worship and act so as to bring about rewards in the form of an ideal social order, individual prosperity, and a future in Heaven. The basis is devout action in faith. A few verses in the Gita refer to this ‘trading’ religion as it is called, and the whole Gita has been taken in this sense.
But India’s greatest philosopher-yogin, S’ankara, wrote a famous commentary on the Gita, in which he showed that its purpose is quite different. The declared central purpose of the Gita is quite different. It shows the way to realize freedom from limitations of individuality, to confront, and finally become, the Cosmic Spirit in its manifesting and then in its transcendent form. The basis is experiment.
For instance, action is minutely analysed as creating restriction and suffering; it is shown how passion and sense of personal struggle distort action and make it inefficient. It becomes badly directed and has to be forced, creating outer friction; then the inner fears and hopes create inner friction. These experiments can be done in small way, and if they confirm what has been said, it seems reasonable that the deeper meditation experiments can be confirmed also. In activity, there is a much higher state where there is no sense of a personal ‘I do’; cosmic energy expresses the cosmic purpose – the ultimate welfare of all beings.
Contents
Preface: Experimental Religion , PART I INTRODUCTORY , Bhagavad Gita , The Two Traditions , The Translation , The Setting , The Smile , Teaching Down , PART II YOGA-S OF THE GITA , Chapter II Supreme Self , III Yoga-s of the Self , Arjuna’s Disbelief , IV Action , V Knowledge , The Thinker, East and West , VI Meditation , VII The Lord , VIII Yoga-power , IX & X Glories , XI Face to Face , XII Devotion , XIII The Field , XIV The Guna-s , XV One and Many , XVI Passion-struggle , Faith , XVII Worship, Gift, Austerity , XVIII Conclusion , PART III , S’amkara on Gita Practice.
Reviews
The special merit of this book is that it points us firmly in the right direction. In our study of yoga we meet an almost infinite variety of doctrines, ideas and methods. The roads are many – how do we know when we are on the right path? The answer is clearly given in the ancient classics of India. As the Gita says, “When thy mind, which may be wavering in the contradictions of many scriptures, shall rest unshaken in divine contemplation then the goal of yoga is thine”.
The Yoga Journal
This book is an excellent guide accessible to all. While highlighting the heart of the Gita text, the author by means of contemporary examples and illustrations helps to bridge the gap with the modern audience allowing the timeless message and guidance to shine clearly through. The book is aimed very much as a prompt for personal practice and experimentation: in essence the aim of Gita itself. A challenging and inspiring book, one to read and re-read and to use.
Yoga and Health
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