CHAPTER - VI ATMA SAMYAMA YOGA

YOGA OF SELF-CONTROL

Sree Bhagavan said:-He who performs his prescribed duties without concern for their fruits, is a Sannyasin as well as a Yogi. But the one who merely abandons the ritualistic sacred fire and remains idle without doing anything is neither a Yogi nor a Sannyasin.(VI-1)

Arjuna, you must understand that what is known as Sannyasa is nothing but Yoga because no one can become a Yogi without abandoning all worldly thoughts.(VI-2)

For those who are desirous of reaching the state of Yoga and strive for that, performance of action without concern for its fruit is said to be the means for it. But once he has reached the state of Yoga, he can quit actions and remain in a state of tranquillity.(VI-3)

When a man ceases to have any interest either in the enjoyment of sense objects or in actions prompted by desires, he having abandoned all worldly thoughts, is said to have attained the state of Yoga . (VI-4)

One should always keep oneself high and should not allow oneself to be degraded.One's own self is one's friend as well as foe. One's own self acts as one's friend when the higher self (intellect) has conquered the lower self (mind , body and senses). But if the lower self is not subdued by the higher self , that very self will act like a foe leading to his destruction.(VI-5,6)
That Yogi whose mind is constantly fixed on the Supreme Self will always remain calm and serene, unaffected by the pairs of opposite experiences like cold and heat, joy and grief and honour and dishonour. His mind, having been satiated by the knowledge and experience of the Supreme Self, remains unmoved under all circumstances with his senses perfectly under his control; he looks upon a piece of stone and a piece of gold with equal detachment.; and so he is said to be one who has attained the state of Yoga. In that supreme state of Yoga, he sees no difference between a friend, foe, a relative, a stranger, a middle man or some one who hates him. He considers a holy man and a sinner alike without any differentiation .(VI-7 to 9)

One who desires to reach this state of a Yogi, should avoid all desires for worldly possessions, live in seclusion at a lonely place, and keeping his mind under control constantly meditate on the Supreme.For this purpose, he should choose a clean place and sit on a seat set up by spreading kusha grass,deer-skin and cloth one over the other, neither too high nor too low for comfortable sitting. He should occupy this seat and practise Yoga for attaining self-purification by concentrating his mind and controlling all the functions of his body, mind and the senses. The posture to be adopted for meditation should be steady and without any movement , keeping his trunk, head and neck straight, and fixing his gaze at tip of his nose without looking in any other direction.( VI-11 to13)
He should then sit in meditation, with his mind fixed on Me and totally absorbed in Me, observing strict celibacy and keeping his mind perfectly controlled, calm and fearless.That well- disciplined Yogi who has permanently united himself with Me attains everlasting peace and enters into My Supreme abode.(VI-14,15)
Arjuna!This Yoga is not reachable by one who eats too much or too little. Likewise, it is not for one who sleeps too much or too little.In order to attain this Yoga,which is the end of all sorrows, one has to exercise moderation and regularity in his food, engagements, activities, sleep and wakefulness.(VI-16,17)
When his well-disciplined mind, free from all worldly desires, remains constantly fixed solely in the Supreme Self, he is said to have established himself in Yoga. The disciplined mind of a Yogi fixed in the Supreme Self, is comparable to a flame that burns without flickering, when placed at a windless place .(VI-18,19)
When the mind of the Yogi, subdued by constant practice of Yoga withdraws from all its activities, he is able to see God within himself and at that stage he rejoices himself in God. Then he experiences the ultimate super- sensuous joy which is can be intuited only by a subtle and purified intellect. Established in this state he does not deviate from the Supreme Truth on any account.Having attained this state, he does not consider any other gain as greater than this and he will not be disturbed even by the greatest of sorrows.(VI-20 t0 23)
This state called of Yoga, makes one free from the contact of all sorrows.One should, therefore, resolutely practise this Yoga with an unwavering and energetic mind, discarding all desires arising out of worldly thoughts, and withdrawing the mind and senses from worldly objects on all sides. Thereafter, by gradual practice he should attain tranquillity and fix the mind on God through reason triggered by steadfastness, and should not think of anything else.Whenever the fidgety and wavering mind slips away, it should be drawn back from where it has strayed into and brought into the thoughts on God repeatedly. (VI-24to26)
By this practice, the Yogi's mind becomes perfectly serene, calm and free from the grip of Rajo Guna(Passion); and having identified himself with the faultless Brahman, he enjoys supreme happiness.The sinless Yogi, thus having united his Self with the Supreme Self, enjoys the eternal bliss associated with becoming one with Brahman.VI-27,28)
A Yogi who his absorbed in this Yoga, having imbibed the vision of equality in all beings, beholds the presence of Atman(universal supreme consciousness) in all beings and all beings as nothing but different manifestations of Atman.He who sees Me (the Supreme Self) in everything, and everything within me, will never miss Me and and I will never miss him too. (We never part with each other) A Yogi who is established in union with Me and worships Me in all beings(treats all beings with the same reverence as to Me) will always dwell in Me even if he is engaged in various activities.(No external activity can divert his mind from Me) Arjuna, he is the most eminent of all Yogis, who recognises the identity of Atman in all beings as his own and looks upon the joy or sorrow of all beings equally.(VI-29 to 32)
Arjuna who had been listening to the words of Lord Krishna attentively, felt a doubt whether it would be possible for him to control his unsteady and wavering mind and attain the state of Yoga. He,therefore, decided to admit this weakness to Sree Bhagavan and seek a remedy for that. Arjuna said:-
Oh! Krishna! Owing to the restless and unsteady nature of my mind, I do not see any possibility of attaining the state of Yoga and equanimity of mind that you have just now told me.The mind being very unsteady, turbulent,tenacious and powerful, it appears to me that controlling it is as difficult as controlling the wind.(VI-33,34)
As an ideal Guru, Sree Bhagavan not only agreed to what Arjuna had said but also suggested a suitable remedy for the problem. Sree Bhagavan said:-
Arjuna! There is no doubt about it; mind is quite unsteady and difficult to control. But it can be brought under control by constant practice together with an attitude of dispassion.Yoga is not attainable by any one whose mind is not under his control. However, it can be easily attained if you strive hard and bring your mind under control through regular practice.That is my opinion.(VI-35,36)
(At this stage, Arjuna raises a doubt as to what would happen if one who strives hard to attain Yoga could not accomplish the task during this life and asks Krishna for clarification. )
Arjuna said:- Oh! Krishna! What becomes of a soul that has been striving earnestly and faithfully to attain Yoga, but slips away from that path before his death and consequently does not reach the goal? My Lord! Does he not, having deviated from the path of God-realisation and having no other ground to stand upon, get lost like scattered clouds, without being able to enjoy either God-realisation or heavenly pleasures. Kindly enlighten me on this point. There is none other than Thou to clear this doubt of mine.(VI-37 to39)
In reply to Arjuna's query,
Sree Bhagavan said:-Oh! Partha!*There is no fall for him in this world or the other world. Because no one who strives for this glorious aim will ever meet with an evil end.A person who somehow gets distracted from the path of Yoga will reach the worlds of the men of meritorious deeds. After spending countless number of years there, they will take re-birth in the families of pious and affluent parents.(VI-40,41)
It is also possible(if he had reached a higher state of sadhana in the previous birth) that he may be reborn in the families of enlightened Yogis; but such re-birth is very rare in this world.If he gets such a re-birth, he will automatically regain the spiritual insight of his previous birth and strive harder and harder for attaining God-realisation.(VI-42,43)
On the other hand, the one who takes birth in rich and pious families, will be drawn towards God by the force of habit in his previous birth and pursue the path of Yoga without resorting to fruit-oriented actions as laid down in the Vedas.His earnest efforts in this path will bear fruit in this birth, and having been purged of all sins of the past many births, he will soon reach the Supreme state of God-realisation.(VI-44,45)
A Yogi(one who has attained the state of Yoga), is superior to one who is engaged in penances; he is superior to one who has earned superficial knowledge of the scriptures; he is also superior to one who performs fruit-oriented actions.Therefore, oh! Arjuna you should necessarily become a Yogi. Again, he who devoutly worships Me with utmost faith and his soul fully immersed in Me, is said to be the best among all Yogis.
Thus ends the sixth Chapter of Sreemad Bhagavad Gita entitled the Yoga of Self Control.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
*(Partha means Son of Pritha, Arjuna.Pritha is another name for Kunti, the mother of Pandavas)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

CHAPTER V - KARMA SANYASA YOGA

(YOGA OF RENUNCIATION OF ACTION.)
Arjuna said:-
Oh! Lord! At first, You spoke highly about renunciation of action ; now You are asking me to follow the Yoga of action.Kindly tell me definitely any one of these, which is more beneficial.(V-1)
Sree Bhagavan said:-

Arjuna! Renunciation of action through Yoga of knowledge and Yoga of action, both are equally effective paths for attaining liberation. But in comparison, Yoga of action is better than renunciation of action.One can be considered as a man of renunciation only when his mind is totally free from hatred and desires and is unaffected by the pairs of opposite experiences. He will then attain liberation from all bondage very easily .(V-2, 3)
Only the ignorant will say that Yoga of Knowledge and Yoga of Action are different; The wise and learned won't say so.If any one of these two is diligently followed, the result will be the same.In other words, that state of Supreme Bliss, which is reached by Yoga of Knowledge can be reached by Yoga of Action too. If one has realised that Yoga of Knowledge and Yoga of Action are one and the same; he alone has actually seen the Truth.(V-4, 5)
In fact renunciation of action without performing actions through Yoga is fraught with great hazards. But one who follows the Yoga of Action and performs all actions with his mind fixed on God, reaches the Supreme Brahman very quickly. A man, established in this Yoga and pure at heart, who has fully conquered his mind and senses and has also identified himself with the Self in all beings ; even if he performs all actions he is not tainted by them.(V-6, 7)
However, a Yogi who follows the path of Knowledge, having understood the reality of things, even when he is engaged in activities like seeing,hearing, touching, smelling,eating, walking, sleeping, breathing, speaking, excreting, grasping something, opening and closing his eyes, believes that he does nothing but only the senses are interacting with the objects. (V-8,9,)
He who performs all his actions as a dedication to God, after shaking off attachment and desire for their fruits, is not tainted by his actions, as the lotus leaf does not get wet by water in which it lives.(V-10)
The yogis who follow the path of action, perform all actions with their body, mind, intellect and senses without attachment,merely for the sake of self-purification. He who has surrendered the fruits of all his actions to God, enjoys ever-lasting peace; while he who has attachment towards the fruits of action, is bound by his actions.The Yogi who has controlled his mind and mentally renounced all actions, remains embodied in the mansion of nine gates, immersed in Bliss, without doing anything himself or causing to do anything. (V-11,12,13)
God does not prescribe doer-ship or doings for any man; nor does He dictate the contact between actions and their fruits .But everything takes place according to the inherent nature of the individual. Similarly, the omnipresent God does not partake of any body's sin or virtue. But the beings are often deluded because of their wisdom being en wrapped by ignorance.(V-14,15)
However, in the case of those whose ignorance has been destroyed by spiritual knowledge,that wisdom shines forth like sun and reveals the Supreme.(V-16)
Their mind and intellect become wholly merged in the Supreme Self; they remain constantly identified with it and finally become inseparably one with the Supreme Self.Having thus washed off all their delusions, they reach the state of Nirvana from where there is no return.(V-17)
These wise men look upon everyone with equanimity, whether it be a Brahmin endowed with learning and humility, a cow, an elephant, a dog or a chandala who eats the dog's flesh. (V-18)
Those whose mind is thus established in the unity of all beings, they conquer the whole world even in this life. Absolute Brahman is untouched by evil and is pervading equally in all beings. Therefore, these yogis remain established in Brahman.(V-19)
In that state, the enlightened soul, free from all doubts, having realised and constantly established in Brahman, is neither elated by the pleasant nor perturbed by the unpleasant.(V-20)
What internal joy is experienced by a yogi who is indifferent to external sense-objects, and has his mind fixed on the Supreme; that joy he can experience eternally, when he becomes identified with the Brahman through yoga.(V-21)
The pleasures derived from the contact of senses with sense-objects are verily sources of misery. They have a beginning and an end. The enlightened do not take delight in them.(V-22)
He alone is a yogi who can withstand the urges of lust and anger, in this very life before casting off the body; and he alone is a happy person. (V-23)
He who is happy is within himself; who rejoices in his own self; and who is illumined by the inner light of the Atman, such a Yogi who remains constantly identified with the Brahman becomes one with Brahman. Great seers whose sins have been destroyed and doubts dispelled; whose disciplined minds are fixed firmly in the Supreme and who are eager for the welfare of all beings; they attain oneness with Brahman(V-24,25)
Those wise men who have controlled their mind and freed themselves from lust and anger, having known the Atman in all its aspects, will be surrounded on all sides by bliss and eternal peace, in the state of Brahma Nirvana.(V-26)
That Yogi who has brought his senses, mind and intellect under control and is desirous of Moksha(liberation), keeps out all external objects of enjoyment out of his mind and senses, fixes his gaze between the two eye-brows and regualtes his outgoing and incoming beaths through the nostrils, he is always liberated.(V-27,28)
That Yogi who has known Me as the supreme Lord of all worlds and the enjoyer of all sacrifices and austerities, and the friend of all beings, he attains eternal peace.(V-29)
Thus ends the Fifth Chapter of Sreemad Bhagavad Gita entitled the Yoga of Renunciation of Action.