Ever since I wrote my last article on Covid-19: A technical and spiritual analysis, the worldwide pandemic has progressed like rapid fire, infecting the world’s leading superpower, the United States and continuing to wreak havoc in terms of worldwide number of cases of infection which is soon going to cross the 1 Million mark as the death toll nears 50,000 – a real pandemonium. Current estimates are dire and predict that the virus will infect in the millions in the United States with a death toll potentially peaking at 100,000. However, these are only estimates and we can only hope that the international community, leading scientific organisations and world leaders step in to mitigate this situation. Even locally in Mauritius where I live, we are scrambling to contain the spread of the virus in an effort to ‘flatten the curve’ and preclude the epidemic from reaching a peak which would effectively overwhelm our health system. There is reason to believe that the Government is sufficiently prepared as even the private sector steps in to prepare for the worst.
The reason I am writing this follow-up article to my first one is owing to the popular demand that I elaborate further on the spiritual side of things, because right now, so many people are asking the inevitable one-word question: “Why?”. Many are having to face the stress of fear as they are confined to their homes in a prolonged lockdown period, or as they face the trials of having a loved one contract the disease and facing the probability of death. A spiritual perspective from India’s beloved spiritual treatise, the Bhagavad-Gita can offer inspiration, guidance and solace in these trying times.
Death and disease are inevitable
First of all, it is essential for us to realise that, in this world, death is inevitable. The Bhagavad-Gita enjoins that whoever is born is destined to die, and whoever dies is destined to be born again. Reincarnation, in fact, teaches us to see death for what it is: a change of body. We are but a spiritual soul or atma which pervades the body with consciousness and is the very foundation of our consciousness. In fact, so conscious is the soul that it causes the body to be conscious. The biological markers of consciousness in the human body is expressed in the elaborate nervous system we possess. Death is only when our bodily consciousness is interrupted; our original consciousness remains intact as we change bodies similar to a person changing his dress.
Not only death but disease also is inevitable. This material nature imposes four conditions on the living entity and this exists from the “highest planet down to the lowest planet” (Bg 8.16). These four conditions are: birth, death, old age and disease.
ā-brahma-bhuvanāl lokāḥ
punar āvartino ’rjuna
mām upetya tu kaunteya
punar janma na vidyate
Translation
From the highest planet in the material world down to the lowest, all are places of misery wherein repeated birth and death take place. But one who attains to My abode, O son of Kuntī, never takes birth again.
We are suffering invariably due to our past actions, which is a continuous chain of reactions we know by the name of karma. This wheel of karma is why we are still in samsara, the ocean of birth and death, and continues to act beyond this present incarnation. This wheel is a ceaseless one, because we are always performing deeds (good or bad) which have resultant reactions. The solution to this predicament is to stop the wheel of karma, not by ceasing action but by spiritualizing action. Action performed in the spirit of service to the Divine is devoid of reaction, and in fact enables us to progress spiritually because it is purifying. This kind of action yields an eternal benefit which transcends material nature and bestows spiritual happiness and liberation.
Yoga, a prescription for a paradigm shift
Few people know that this process of action performed in the spirit of service is the foundation of the much touted process of yoga. Yoga, in essence, means linking to God or the Supreme. The process of linking to the Supreme is instrumental in enabling us to develop the competence needed to perform action in a spirit of service and renunciation. Action performed in the spirit of service purifies our consciousness and results in the most positive effect in all facets of human endeavour. We then become dutiful, responsible, honest and act in the best interest of society. I think this can overhaul society with a strong collective sense of ethics – much needed in today’s times.
The means to develop this spirit of service is indeed yoga in its four primary forms: karma-yoga, jnana-yoga, dhyana-yoga and sankhya-yoga. All these forms of yoga can be combined with the ultimate form of yoga, bhakti-yoga, which teaches us how to worship God in order to develop this spirit of service. The philosophy of karma-yoga enjoins this very fact of performing action in a spirit of service. Practically, if we are not in a position of direct service, we can donate part of our earnings towards a philanthropic cause or to a place of worship which furthers the cause of the Supreme. It also behoves us to abandon any profession or work which causes violence to other living entities, violence to human beings or any action that results in harm to human society.
Jnana-yoga (pronounced gyana) is the yoga of the intellect (for the word gyana means knowledge). The intellectual class is considered the leading class of society, for its members cultivate and disseminate knowledge that dissipates the ignorance of society. Hence, their responsibility is a serious one. It is the duty of the intellectual class to, first of all, cultivate spiritual knowledge since the latter is the only form of knowledge that cuts the fetters of ignorance of our real nature as spirit souls. Knowledge of our nature as spiritual and eternal liberates us from all fear. Knowing that we are fundamentally beings of eternity, unlimited bliss and causeless knowledge liberates us from fear, enabling us to perform our duties equipoised – whether the times are favourable or not. It liberates us from the fear of death and gives us the necessary impetus to brave against the challenges of life in this material world. By extension, spiritual knowledge will also enable us to transform the nature of our experience of this world from material to spiritual. In other words, once we are sufficiently spiritually advanced, we cease to experience the world’s miseries and enter into a dimension of bliss, extinguishing unhappiness at its very root.
Dhyana-yoga or the yoga of concentration gives rise to the process of meditation on the Supreme. Meditation takes on various forms, the most prominent being mantra meditation. Mantra meditation (which involves repetition of mantra such as the Hare Krishna Mahamantra) operates on the sonic level and achieves its effect through sound resonance on our subtle body whose very nature is etheric. Ether is said to vehicle sound and hence, by changing the nature of our self’s etheric body, we change the nature of our consciousness. In these challenging times, meditating can have salutary side effects, most notably stress reduction. The various forms of meditation hone the mind’s flickering nature and establishes discipline amidst the usual disturbance in our thoughts which provokes anxiety. Techniques such as mindfulness, transcendental meditation and congregational chanting have gained widespread acceptance globally as forms of meditation that can awaken our inner spiritual nature.
Of special importance during these times is sankhya-yoga. Sankhya-yoga is the analytical study of material nature in its denominated 24 constituents leading to discovery of the spiritual particle or atma, and, thereafter, the Supersoul or paramatma. Modern science is indeed the analytical study of the material nature and has its roots into the teachings of Kapila Muni, an incarnation of Lord Vishnu. The problem with modern science is that it is misdirected, and often ill-motivated. Much of modern scientific research is privately funded, and hence isn’t necessarily geared uniquely to society’s benefit. Scientific research geared solely and inordinately towards corporate profit exploits people and nature, and is hence deleterious. Moreover, many scientists keep researching the fundamental particles of nature: quarks, positrons, neutrinos and so forth but they miss the actual point. These are all the manifestations of the spiritual particle. If they changed their methods of inquiry from a strictly materialistic method to a more creative and spiritual method, they would be able to uncover all essential truths – for the spiritual domain is fundamental to the material domain and indeed activates its very functioning. In these times of urgency, sankhya-yoga calls for a paradigm shift in science – a paradigm shift towards wisdom based on the revelations of the Vedas. I have expounded on the extraordinary scientific wisdom of the Vedic Rishis in my latest book, The Spiritual Science of the Vedas, and I indeed prove how the Vedic literatures are indeed a mine of scientific knowledge and wisdom. Material nature remains always mysterious to modern science because it is devoid of spiritual light - the solution to all problems.
Defying God’s order
I have a feeling that this is but one of the challenges we are going to face as a civilization. The climate emergency is yet another global challenge that we are underestimating. Such challenges can lead to a total breakdown of civilization as we know it, with dire consequences for the whole human society. However, should we really feel bad about the breakdown of such a civilization? Maybe its breakdown will lead to a new, radically better one in which we live more in harmony with God and Nature. Inherent in the Vedic philosophy is the concept of Purusha (God the Father-Controller) and Prakriti (Nature the Mother-Nurturer). Man invites such global reversals of fortune upon himself when he loses his inherent connection with both Purusha and Prakriti. It then leads to what we today see as a rigged economy with business based on deceit, environmental degradation and over-exploitation of resources (both terrestrial and marine), various forms of debauchery and sense gratification, animal slaughter on a global scale and corrupt leaders constantly warmongering. God’s original order, when creation was set in place, was that we live in harmony with Nature, which would supply us with all necessities. In turn, it was our duty to revive our dormant divine consciousness in order to facilitate, at the end of our lives, our return to the Original Kingdom. This is verily the cycle of life. However, by defying God’s order and living in blatant contradiction to it, all we are doing is inviting more and more of Nature’s wrath. For truly, when a child disregards a well-wishing father’s guidance, the mother will naturally be angry.
Bhakti-yoga as the panacea
I may go on talking about the philosophical science and people may even listen. But they will soon forget, for philosophy is largely insufficient in bringing the required change of heart, the change in consciousness necessary for us to reform and start acting in our real interest. This is where bhakti-yoga steps in. Bhakti-yoga is the real medicine, for it goes at the very root of our consciousness and uproots the weeds of all our negative qualities such as lust, anger, greed, envy, madness and illusion. These insidious qualities negatively influence our consciousness invariably if the latter is not sufficiently anchored in its divine nature. The effect of these negative qualities is what manifests as our abuse of nature. Bhakti-yoga, a process of directly linking up with the Supreme in loving devotion, reforms, spiritualizes and revitalizes our consciousness, thereby reviving our original spiritual identity. The nine processes of devotional service are described by the pure devotee, Sri Prahlada in the 7th Canto of the Srimad Bhagavatam. These are sravanam (hearing about transcendental knowledge), kirtanam (chanting about God’s glories), smaranam (remembering Vishnu), pada sevanam (serving the Lord’s lotus feet), arcanam (Deity worship), vandanam (offering prayers), dasyam (loving service), sakhyam (establishing friendship) and atma nivedanam (completely surrendering). These nine processes are not difficult to execute and can be integrated in our daily routines to the best of our ability. The process of reform of consciousness can, in this fallen age, be especially speeded up by taking up the chanting of God’s Holy Names: Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare. The divine tradition of chanting Sri Krishna’s Holy Names is an authorized spiritual process in itself and most potent in reviving our dormant Krishna Consciousness or Divine Consciousness. Then we will cease to act in defiance to both the Supreme Lord and Mother Nature.
I have a special thought for the distressed and bereaved in these times of trial. Hence, I will leave the reader with a series of verses from the Bhagavad-Gita as much-needed solace. These are mostly sourced from Chapter 2 of the Bhagavad-Gita (click on the following link for more https://vedabase.io/en/library/bg/): -
The eternal nature of the soul
TEXT 12: Never was there a time when I did not exist, nor you, nor all these kings; nor in the future shall any of us cease to be.
TEXT 13: As the embodied soul continuously passes, in this body, from boyhood to youth to old age, the soul similarly passes into another body at death. A sober person is not bewildered by such a change.
TEXT 14: O son of Kuntī, the nonpermanent appearance of happiness and distress, and their disappearance in due course, are like the appearance and disappearance of winter and summer seasons. They arise from sense perception, O scion of Bharata, and one must learn to tolerate them without being disturbed.
TEXT 15: O best among men [Arjuna], the person who is not disturbed by happiness and distress and is steady in both is certainly eligible for liberation.
The imperishable nature of the soul
TEXT 18: The material body of the indestructible, immeasurable and eternal living entity is sure to come to an end; therefore, fight, O descendant of Bharata.
TEXT 19: Neither he who thinks the living entity the slayer nor he who thinks it slain is in knowledge, for the self neither slays not nor is slain.
TEXT 20: For the soul there is neither birth nor death at any time. He has not come into being, does not come into being, and will not come into being. He is unborn, eternal, ever-existing and primeval. He is not slain when the body is slain.
TEXT 21: O Pārtha, how can a person who knows that the soul is indestructible, eternal, unborn and immutable kill anyone or cause anyone to kill?
TEXT 22: As a person puts on new garments, giving up old ones, the soul similarly accepts new material bodies, giving up the old and useless ones.
TEXT 23: The soul can never be cut to pieces by any weapon, nor burned by fire, nor moistened by water, nor withered by the wind.
TEXT 24: This individual soul is unbreakable and insoluble, and can be neither burned nor dried. He is everlasting, present everywhere, unchangeable, immovable and eternally the same.
TEXT 25: It is said that the soul is invisible, inconceivable and immutable. Knowing this, you should not grieve for the body.
The need for steadiness of mind for resoluteness of purpose
TEXT 56: One who is not disturbed in mind even amidst the threefold miseries or elated when there is happiness, and who is free from attachment, fear and anger, is called a sage of steady mind.
When the miseries of material life have no effect
TEXT 65: For one thus satisfied [in Kṛṣṇa consciousness], the threefold miseries of material existence exist no longer; in such satisfied consciousness, one’s intelligence is soon well established.
TEXT 66: One who is not connected with the Supreme [in Kṛṣṇa consciousness] can have neither transcendental intelligence nor a steady mind, without which there is no possibility of peace. And how can there be any happiness without peace?
So how to calm the mind: control of the senses
TEXT 67: As a strong wind sweeps away a boat on the water, even one of the roaming senses on which the mind focuses can carry away a man’s intelligence.
TEXT 68: Therefore, O mighty-armed, one whose senses are restrained from their objects is certainly of steady intelligence.
The incessant flow of desires: the cause of our misery
TEXT 70: A person who is not disturbed by the incessant flow of desires – that enter like rivers into the ocean, which is ever being filled but is always still – can alone achieve peace, and not the man who strives to satisfy such desires.
Entering the Kingdom of God: where all misery ends
TEXT 72: That is the way of the spiritual and godly life, after attaining which a man is not bewildered. If one is thus situated even at the hour of death, one can enter into the Kingdom of God.
Thus, even for the dying, there is hope, hope for an eternal afterlife. It suffices to remember Lord Sri Krishna at the time of death. One will immediately be carried to the spiritual abode simply by remembering Him only at the time of death. For, liberation can be granted only by Lord Krishna [Vishnu], and to be able to remember Him at the time of death requires that we lead a life of sacrifice, truth and devotion, enabled by the science of yoga.
Credits: Bhagavad-Gita As It Is by His Divine Grace A.C Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
© Copyright to article: Nithin Prakash Gukhool
Commentaires