The Bhagavadgita on Divine Qualities Needed to Reflect Brahman's Nature
Krishna Arjuna Samvadam - Image: Al
Summary: Commentary on Bhagavadgita Chapter 16, Verse 1 detailing divine attributes required for liberation. Explains fearlessness arising from exclusive devotion and detachment, sattva's role in self-transformation, importance of jnana yoga (Self-knowledge), charity (danam) as selfless giving, self-restraint (damah) for controlling senses, sacrifice (yajna) as duty and offering, self-study (svadhyaya) of scriptures, austerity (tapah) for purification, and simplicity (arjavam) from practicing five yamas. Emphasizes cultivating these qualities to mirror God.
Chapter 16 Sloka 1
śrībhagavān uvāca
abhayam sattvasamśuddhir jñānayogavyavasthitih
dānam damaś ca yajñaś ca svādhyāyas tapa ārjavam
Translation
sri-bhagavan uvaca = the supreme lord said; abhayam = fearlessness; sattva-samsuddhih = with predominance of sattva; jnana = knowledge; yoga = yoga; vyavasthitih = established in; danam = charity; damah = self-restraint; ca = and; yajnah = sacrifice; ca = and; svadhyayah = self-study of the scriptures; tapah = austerity; arjavam = simplicityy.
Meaning
" The Supreme Lord said, "Fearlessness, the predominance of sattva, well established in the yoga of knowledge, (engaged in) charity, self-restraint, self-study of the scriptures, austerity and simplicity.
Commentary
This and the following two verses describe the qualities of those who purified their minds and bodies on the path of yoga and are endowed with the knowledge of Brahman. If you want to find Brahman, you have to mirror his qualities, erasing the boundaries that limit you and prevent you from achieving oneness with him. You have to become godlike, an enlightened yogi, in whom divine qualities and the light of the Self shine. Brahman is absolute, pure consciousness, not a Being with a universal form. Although he is often equated with a Cosmic Being or Universal Being, such descriptions are symbolic to denote his all-pervasive universality and omniscience. He represents the Supreme Reality, the sum of all that there is here and hereafter, rather than any corporeal manifestation or incarnation. His appearances are temporary, while the absolute reality, his purest state, is permanent and indestructible. Since he is beyond the mind and intelligence, no one can truly grasp his essential nature or describe it. As the Upanishads affirm, he is what we know and do not know, is and is not, existence and nonexistence, everything and nothing, and fullness and emptiness.
However, you can discern him in the qualities and attributes that manifest in creation, reflecting his true glory and unmistakable presence. He already spoke about them in the tenth chapter. In the ninth chapter, he said that those with vain hopes and demonic nature would disregard him while great souls (mahatmas) who possessed his nature would constantly worship him and remain united with him forever. In this chapter, he distinguished between the divine and the demonic nature so that his devotees could discern and cultivate the qualities that reflect him and lead them towards their release from births and deaths. Since he is the source of all, demonic nature also manifests from him only. Both these manifest in creation in his perishable Self (Prakriti), although they may exist in Brahman’s unmanifested Nature (asambhuta) also as potencies.
The jivas who are subject to birth and death cannot escape from the duality of divine and demonic natures. They contain both potentials as part of their composite nature. If they want to progress spiritually, they have to suppress their lower nature, which is primarily demonic, and illuminate their higher nature, which is primarily divine, so they can reflect his qualities and attain him. This is the purpose of spiritual transformation and all the yogas. They have to cultivate sattva in which divine qualities shine brightly and demonic qualities arising from rajas and tamas become suppressed. Liberation is attainable for those in whom the Lord’s divine nature shines brightly, which is free from sin, imperfection, mortality, change, impermanence, ignorance, time, delusion, and desires. It is said that when your consciousness becomes as pure as the consciousness of the Self in you, you will reflect his divine nature and merge into him. Those who possess it excel in stability, sameness, calmness, exclusive devotion, and liberation.
Having understood the importance of cultivating the divine qualities, let us now turn our attention to the qualities mentioned here.
The first one is fearlessness. Fearfulness is a demonic quality, while fearlessness is divine. Fear is one of the most dominant emotions that afflict the mind. It arises due to desires, attachments, egoism, and delusion. It assails our minds when we are disconnected from God and feel lonely and helpless against the forces of Nature, fate, or those who wish to harm us. Lord’s exclusive devotees are fearless since they live with the conviction that he will protect them and take care of their wellbeing. Fear also goes away when they overcome desires and attachments and cultivate sameness towards all dualities, such as loss and gain, happiness and sorrow, or fame or ill-fame. Becoming equal to the dualities and circumstances, they embrace their lives and circumstances unconditionally without fear or envy.
The second quality is the predominance of sattva. Sattva is essential for self-transformation and purification and is also at the root of many divine qualities. It is also necessary to cultivate knowledge, discernment, and sameness and practice detachment, renunciation, and self-control. Hence, it is a very important requirement for overcoming ignorance and delusion, cultivating divine nature, and achieving liberation. When it is predominant, yogis experience peace and stability within themselves and stabilize their minds in exclusive devotion or uninterrupted contemplation. Sattva is the essence of many advanced yogis, divinities, and beings of higher worlds. However, it is still an impurity that disturbs the mind, inducing desires and attachments for pleasure and happiness or comforts and luxuries. Hence, eventually, on the path of liberation, one has to transcend it.
The inclination to pursue the knowledge of the Self (jñānayoga vyavasthita) is another important divine attribute to overcome delusion and ignorance and cultivate discernment and know oneself or establish the mind in the Lord with exclusive devotion. One does not have to be educated or intellectual to practice it or excel in it. It is easier for those whose minds are empty, who are free from the intellectual clutter and worldly knowledge, who have a natural distaste for worldly life, and who are naturally drawn to contemplation and devotion. By knowledge, we mean the knowledge of the Self or Brahman. Without it, one cannot stabilize the mind, overcome the delusion of the mind and body, or pursue liberation with conviction. It is also necessary to practice karma-sannyasa, buddhi, and atma-samyama yogas. Jnana yoga helps seekers cultivate sattva and suppress rajas, tamas, and the impurities they create. For those who excel in its practice, the restraint of the mind and senses becomes easier and more spontaneous. It also leads to exclusive devotion.
Charitable quality is divine. The Supreme Lord exemplifies it when he liberates his devotees or listens to their prayers for help. Purity, selflessness, forgiveness, and compassion are its associated qualities. Danam refers to the act of giving gifts freely and selflessly, without expectations. People may practice it to expiate for their sins, invoke the gods to fulfill their desires or engage in meritorious actions (punya karma). The Hindu lawbooks (Dharmashastras) state that the charity given to Brahmanas, seers, and renunciants is the most beneficial. However, the best charity is that which is given without desires and expectations as a service or sacrifice. Only the most pious and virtuous excel in its practice since they exemplify egolessness, freedom from desires, and exclusive devotion to the Supreme Lord. It is easier for those who overcome their desires and attachments and see God in all and pervading all. When you see that the same Lord in you as your Self is also present in everyone, in that state of oneness, you will feel love and empathy for all beings, especially those in distress, and generously help them. Hinduism identifies charity as one of the most important virtues and an essential practice of Dharma. Brahma recommended it for humans since selfishness is a common trait in them. The daily sacrifices (nitya karmas) are meant to promote selflessness, charity, and the welfare of the world through sharing and caring. Charity does not have to be of the material kind. The lawbooks identify the charity of spiritual knowledge as the best charity. Manu states that one should “perform works of charity with faith since offerings and charitable works made with faith and lawfully earned money bring endless rewards." He also states that one should always give to a worthy recipient according to one’s ability, even if it is little, without grudging, and with a cheerful heart.
Damah means self-restraint or especially controlling the mind and physical responses. People who have the predominance of sattva need to practice the restraint of their senses since they are pleasure-oriented. Those with the predominance of rajas should practice it to restrain their egoism, passions, and selfish desires. It is even more important for tamasic people since they tend to overreact in most situations and are subject to delusion and ignorance. The Brihadaranyaka Upanishad states that Lord Brahma taught the virtue of damah to the gods. The practice of damah is central to all forms of yoga, especially atma-samyama yoga, to achieve balance, peace, and stability. In Ashtanga yoga, it is essential to practice the eight limbs, especially the five restraints, withdrawal of the senses, and controlled meditation (samyama). Manu states that a student shall bring his organs under control before beginning his study. By that, he succeeds in reaching all his aims. When control is lost, wisdom slips away. He also suggests that self-control is more important than the knowledge of the Vedas for students, householders, women, ascetics, and renunciants.
Yajna, or sacrifice, is central to Hindu ritual and spiritual practices. It is also foundational to the essential practice of Dharma, which involves performing obligatory duties as stipulated by the Vedas and adhering to the code of conduct as approved by tradition and scriptures. Through sacrifices, a householder practices his Dharma and fulfills his obligations. The Vedas do not disapprove if they are performed to fulfill one’s desires, although ideally, they should be performed as an obligatory duty without desires and expectations. Symbolically, any action performed selflessly without desires and without desiring its fruit to serve God constitutes a sacrifice. According to Manu, the Vedas were created by God from fire, wind, and sun for the sake of sacrifices only. They proclaim that God's creation itself was an act of sacrifice. According to them, sacrifice is even superior to gods because it is through sacrifices the world is sustained, and through sacrifices, Dharma is upheld upon earth. The law books also state that sacrifices should not be performed for impure and unworthy people.
Svadhyaya means self-study. It is an important aspect of kriya yoga (YS 2.1) and one of the five niyamas listed by Patanjali in the Yogasutras (YS 2.32). Vyasa, one of the traditional commentators of the Yogasutras, defined svadhyaya as the study of scriptures and relentless practice of japa or chanting of Aum or specific mantras. The purpose of svadhyaya is to saturate the mind with the scriptural and spiritual knowledge concerning Brahman, the Self, and liberation so that one's awareness and understanding vastly improve and the practice of meditation and concentration becomes easier.
Tapah means austerity, which involves various practices such as the restraint of the mind and senses, celibacy, detachment, renunciation, yogic postures, breath control, contemplation, etc., for self-purification, transformation, and augmentation of physical and mental energies. It is a form of internal sacrifice to cleanse the mind and body, which is believed to generate internal body heat and transform sexual energy (retas) into spiritual energy (ojas), bodily vigor (tejas), and mental brilliance (medhas). Tapah was an earlier form of yoga, which renunciants, hermits, and ascetics used to practice in ancient times to achieve liberation or invoke gods and obtain boons from them. Manu states that austerity and sacred learning are the best means by which a Brahmana secures supreme bliss. By austerities, he destroys guilt; by sacred learning, he overcomes births and deaths. He also states that righteous conduct is the root of all austerity. He also lists obedience to teachers and parents, the study of the Vedas, contemplation upon the syllable Aum, breath control, silence, and truthfulness as the best austerities. By performing austerities, a sinner overcomes guilt and sinful karma.
Arjavam means honesty, simplicity, righteousness, open-mindedness, or straightforwardness. This quality is found predominantly in virtuous people who are pure in heart, with selfless thoughts and intentions, and always willing to help others or perform actions for a divine cause. It naturally manifests in those who perfect the practice of the five yamas: nonviolence, truthfulness, non-stealing, celibacy, and non-possession of material wealth.