Chapter Three of Bhagavad Gita and Purusha Sukta - Essay Example

Purusha Sukta The chapter “The Way of Action” of Graham M. Schweig’s “Bhagavad Gita: The Beloved Lord's Secret LoveSong” establishes the eternal duties of the human beings. In this section, the Lord Krishna categorically and comprehensively discusses to Arjuna “how it is the duty of each and every member of society to carry out their functions and responsibilities in their respective stage of life according to the rules and regulations of the society in which one lives.” (Bhagavad-Gita Trust). The sociological significance of “Bhagavad Gita” can be understood through the historical dynamics of the social structure as observed in the later Vedic society. As such, the said book encompasses the tradition of the Purusha Sukta by borrowing the principles from the teachings of the Upanishads particularly the “mystical metaphysics of the omnipresent, omnipotent, and omniscient Bhrama, the doctrine of karma and the transmigration of the soul in the Upanishads (Bandyopadhyaya 91). “The Way of Action” shows the state of mind of Arjuna in dealing with the dilemma of choosing between accomplishing his duties as a warrior to fight his own people and his love for his relatives. He seeks the answer to his problems with Lord Krishna, questioning Him why one should engage himself in an action which will cause so much chaos to human lives. In the end, Lord Krishna let Arjuna understand about the duties of each individual to his own self, to his family and to the society (Schweig 57-58). An individual cannot achieve freedom from action without entering upon action. He cannot reach perfection as well by just renouncing a certain action. Everyone is driven to action instinctively and so he must perform his duties for action is better to inaction. These various levels of duties of man comprise the essence of Karma Yoga. Karma, or action, aims that a person should “attain a stage where any action is not bound by desire for results” (Varma). With this, one must not control the indrivas by will; instead remain unattached to the results in order to perform selfless action. By doing work without attachment, a man attains supreme bliss. For example, the Karma followed by the head of the household in different levels of society is that he is a husband to his wife, a father to his children, and also a boss to many employees working with him, all at the same time (Varma). Yagya or sacrifice is another theme of the third chapter of “Bhagavad Gita”. Lord Krishna teachers Arjuna that mankind will prosper only when he learns how to give. Man is bound by the actions that he performs unless he does them as a sacrifice (Schweig 59-60). For instance, Lord Krishna by virtue of his holiness has no duty to perform but he chooses to work so that man can achieve a level of spirituality by following his examples. In one of the verses, Arjuna asks Lord Krishna how man commits sin, to which Lord Krishna answers that it is because of desire, for desire lives in the senses, mind and intellect. For a man to attain knowledge, he must control his senses with his mind through his intellect so that desire can be overcome and therefore attain knowledge. Thus, a worldly-minded man is self-centered while a man enlightened with Karma Yogi has overcome self-centeredness and strives to work for the benefit of all (Varma). The essence of the teachings of Lord Krishna and his universal form as exemplified in “Bhagavad Gita” closely resembles to that of the Purusha Sukta. Like Bhrama in the Upanishads, Lord Krishna was identified in Gita with eternity so that his intransience can be attributed in his divine role as the regulator of human society. According to Bandyopadhyaya (91), “the ideological objective was the same as that of the Purusha Sukta and Advaita philosophy, namely to rationalize, legitimize and sanctify the prevailing class-caste in the face of the developing contradictions within that structure.” Lansdowne (15) defines Purusha Sukta as “an ancient Hindu hymn that celebrates the sacrifice of the God-like entity called “Purusha” and it is still regularly chanted during Hindu worship”. The earliest version of the Purusha Sukta is found in the Rig Veda, the oldest text in Hinduism containing numerous Sanskrit hymns. Considered as a small him, it is consisted of only sixteen verses with words offering multiple meanings and language that is ritualistic and archaic. Swami Krishnanda, the General Secretary of the Divine Life Society, was quoted by Lansdowne (15) in 2009 in his description of the Purusha Sukta with its mythical origin, The Seer (Rishi) of the Sukta is Narayana, the greatest of sages ever known, who is rightly proclaimed in the Bhagavata as the only person whose mind cannot be disturbed by desire and, as the Mahabharata says, whose power not even all the gods can ever imagine. Such is the Rishi to whom the Sukta was revealed and who gave expression to it as the hymn on the Supreme Purusha. Being one of the few hymns in the Rig Veda that remains existent in contemporary Hinduism, the Purusha Sukta is still being used today in the worship of the deity, at home or in the temple, in the daily chanting or parayana, in various rituals, and even in the cremation of the dead. In addition, the Purusha Sukta is regarded as a quick way given to the seeker of Reality for entering into the state of Superconsciousness. Krishnananda maintains that the Sukta encompasses a potent fivefold force that can assign a God-experience to the seeker. Firstly, Narayana is the “only person whose mind cannot be disturbed by desire… and whose power not even all the gods can ever imagine” (Krishnananda). Secondly, the mantras of the Sukta are made up of particular metre or chandras that generates a special spiritual force during the recitation if the hymn. Thirdly, the intonation or svara from which the mantras are recited conveys an additional meaning, and so any error in intonation may alter its total effect. Fourthly, the deity of devata addressed in the hymn “is not any externalized or projected form as a content in space and time, but is the Universal Being which transcends space and time and is the indivisible supra-essential essence of experience” (Krishnananda). Lastly, the Sukta distinguishes the inwardness of the experience coming from the hymn with the perception of any object. Moreover, the hymns of the Purusha Sukta teaches man …to behold creation not as a conglomeration of discrete persons and things with which we have to develop a different attitude or conduct, but as a single Universal Person who gloriously shines before us and gazes at us through all the eyes, nods before us through all the heads, smiles through all the lips and speaks through all the tongues (Krishnananda). The characteristics of the Purusha as an omnipresent, omnipresent and omniscient entity distinguishes him from other many gods, just like the description of the Lord Krishna in “Bhagavad Gita”. The Purusha Sukta also implies that no desire is possible when all creation is but one Purusha. The human mind can easily dispel desires if only man can realize that desires are nothing but an illusion and ignorance of the mind through gaining of knowledge with the help of the ancient hymns and rituals. When one opens his mind and behold the One Being before them, then a variety of physical objects, mental conditions or social situations can be avoided (Krishnananda). However, one must understand that the Purusha Sukta’s perception in thinking is something more to the seeker than the one being seen. Some followers of the traditional hymn erroneously conclude that God can be seen with their own eyes since all things are considered as the Purusha himself. They do not appreciate that only the seer can see himself without being seen, for this knowledge must not be taken in the sense of a perception in space and time. The seer sees himself through his Consciousness through “the absorption of all objectification in a Universal Being-ness. In this meditation on the Purusha, which is the most normal thing can ever be conceived, man realizes God in the twinkling of a second.” (Krishnananda). Hence, “The Way of Action” from the doctrine of Gita lays down the similarities of the teachings of the Purusha Sukta from the ancient Rig Veda in the description of the characteristics of the Lord Krishna and the Purusha. The significance of karma and sacrifice of man for the betterment of the rest of society is also explained through the verses of Gita and through the hymns of the Sukta, revealing the ways that man can attain freedom from action and eternal life. Action should be carried out as a form of worship of the Lord, offering an attitude of dedication, service, detachment and pure surrender, and in return, the Lord Krishna will receive these actions with devotion. Works Cited Bandyopadhyaya, Jayantanuja. Class and Religion in Ancient India. Anthem Press. Print. Bhagavad-Gita Trust. The Eternal Duties of the Human Being: Gita Chapter 3 Commentary. n.d. Web. 23 Nov. 2012. Krishnananda, Swami. Daily Invocations: The Significance of the Purusha Sukta. n.d. Web. 23 Nov. 2012. Landsowne, Zachary, F. “The Pursuha Sukta – Part 1”. The Esoteric Quarterly. 2009: 15-25. n.d. Web. 22 Nov. 2012. Schweig, Graham M. Bhagavad Gita: The Beloved Lord's Secret Love Song. HarperOne. 2010. Print. Varma, Lakshmi. Chapter 3: Communion through Action. n.d. Web 21 Nov. 2012. Read More