The Yoga of the Supreme Divine Personality

The Blessed Lord said: They (the wise) speak of the indestructible peepul tree, with its roots above and branches below, whose leaves are the meters or hymns; he who knows it is a knower of the Vedas.

The description of the universe as a peepul tree is only metaphorical. This peepul is said to be eternal because it cannot be cut except by the axe of knowledge.All persons depend upon the Lord for the fruits of their…

Its branches spread below and above, nourished by the Gunas; its buds are sense-objects, and its roots stretch forth below in the world of men, originating action.

The countless objects, large and small, which life needs are all products of the five elements through the activity of the alities. This tree of Samsara is nourished by the three alities of Nature. The senseobjects are…

Its form is not perceived here as such, nor its end, origin, foundation, or resting place; having cut asunder this firmly rooted peepul tree with the strong axe of non-attachment.

The idea is continued in the next verse.So long as one is under the sway of ignorance, he cannot understand the form of this tree, its end, origin and foundation (middle). O Arjuna Thou mayest perhaps consider that such…

Then, that goal should be sought for, to which, having gone, none returns again. I seek refuge in that Primeval Purusha, from whence streamed forth the ancient activity or energy.

That which fills the whole world with the form of ExistenceKnowledgeBliss is Purusha. Or, that which sleeps in this Puri (city) of the body is the Purusha.Singleminded devotion which consists of ceaselessly thinking of…

Free from pride and delusion, victorious over the evil of attachment, dwelling constantly in the Self, their desires having completely turned away, freed from the pairs of opposites known as pleasure and pain, they, the undeluded, reach the eternal goal.

Wherever there is pride there is stiff egoism. Absence of discrimination between the Real and the unreal is Moha. Perversion is Moha. Infatuation is Moha. Those who are free from likes and dislikes even when they attain…

Neither does the sun illuminate there, nor the moon, nor the fire; having gone there, they do not return; that is My supreme abode.

That supreme abode is selfillumined for Brahman is selfluminous. It existed before the sun, the moon and the fire came into existence during creation. It remains even after they dissolve into the Unmanifested during the…

An eternal portion of Myself having become a living soul in the world of life, draws to itself the five senses, with the mind as the sixth, abiding in Nature.

Now the Lord explains how the individual soul comes into being. The individual soul is a ray of the Lord. A ray of the Supreme Being enters Nature, draws to itself the five senses and the mind and becomes an embodied…

When the Lord, as the individual soul, obtains a body and when He leaves it, He takes these with Him, just as the wind takes the scents from their seats (flowers, etc.).

Here is a description of how the subtle body leaves the gross body.When the Jiva, the Lord of the aggregate of the body and the rest takes up this body he brings in with him the mind and the senses when he leavs the body…

Presiding over the ears, eyes, touch, taste, smell, and mind, it enjoys the objects of the senses.

Here is a description of how the subtle body remaining in the gross body enjoys the objects of the senses.The individual soul uses the mind along with each sense separately and enjoys or experiences the objects of the…

The deluded do not see Him who departs, stays, and enjoys; but those who possess the eye of knowledge behold Him.

Though the Self is nearest and comes most easily within their field of vision or consciousness, the ignorant and the deluded are not able to behold Him, because they are swayed by the alities of Nature their minds…

The yogis striving for perfection behold Him dwelling in the Self; but, the unrefined and unintelligent, even though striving, do not see Him.

The description of the evolution of the individual soul is now complete.The Yogins who strive with an iron determination, fiery resolve, faith, earnestness and wellbalanced mind, see Him established in their hearts. They…

That light which resides in the sun, illuminating the whole world; that which is in the moon and in the fire—know that light to be Mine.

The immanence of the Lord as the allilluminating light of consciousness is described in this verse.I am the cause and the source of the light by which the sun illumines the world, as also the reflected light of the sun…

Permeating the earth, I support all beings with My energy; and having become the watery moon, I nourish all herbs.

The immanence of the Lord as the allsustaining life is described in this verse.Ojas The energy of the Lord (Isvara). The vast heaven and earth are firmly held by this energy. It permeates the earth to support the world.…

Having become the fire Vaisvanara, I abide in the bodies of living beings and, associated with the Prana and the Apana, digest the fourfold food.

The immanence of the Lord as the gastric fire in all living beings is described in this verse.Vaisvanara The fire that abides in the stomach. This fire is fanned by the bellows of the incoming and the outgoing breaths…

And I am seated in the hearts of all; from Me come memory and knowledge, as well as their absence. I am verily That which has to be known by all the Vedas; I am indeed the author of the Vedanta and the knower of the Vedas.

I am seated in the hearts of all sentient beings as their innermost Self. Therefore from Me, the Self of all beings, are memory, knowledge and their loss. Righteous persons have knowledge and memory as a result of…

Two Purushas there are in this world: the perishable and the imperishable. All beings are perishable, and the Kutastha—the unchanging—is called the imperishable.

Now the Lord describes the three aspects of the divine existence. One is the individual soul called the perishable, the second is the imperishable or the Maya Sakti of the Lord and the third is the Purushottama or the…

But distinct is the Supreme Purusha, called the highest Self, indestructible and Lord, who pervades the three worlds and sustains them.

Purushottama is beyond the universe though He pervades the three worlds. Therefore He is called the Supreme Being by the Vedas and men of this world. He pervades the three worlds and upholds them yet, He is not tainted…

As I transcend the perishable and am even higher than the imperishable, I am declared to be the highest Purusha in the world and in the Vedas.

Purushottama is a wellknown name of the Lord. The name is ite appropriate as He is the supreme Purusha.Kshara The perishable -- the tree of Samsara.Akshara The imperishable -- the seed of the tree of Samsara.Because I…

He who, undeluded, knows Me as the highest Purusha, he, knowing all, worships Me with his whole being (heart), O Arjuna.

The glory of the knowledge of the Self is described in this verse.Asammudhah Undeluded, free from delusion. The undeluded does not identify himself with the physical body. He never looks upon the physical body, the…

Thus, I have imparted to you this most secret science, O sinless one; by knowing this, one becomes wise, and all their duties are accomplished, O Arjuna.

Guhyatamam Most profound secret.Buddhiman means here a knower of the Self or Atmart.The knowledge of the Self which gives emancipation from the round of birth and death, and freedom from the bonds of Karma is eulogised…