The Bhakta of the Gita-Swami Atmapranananda

Prelude

The Bhagavad Gita is the most popular scripture of the Hindus and by its non-sectarian approach, it has gained an esteemed place among the world-scriptures. The name literally means ‘Sung by the Lord’. It is an adjective in feminine gender since the word it qualifies is in feminine gender. The word it qualifies is ‘Upanishad’. It is an Upanishad sung by the Lord.

The word ‘Upanishad’ means the knowledge which, when approached by an eligible seeker and deliberated upon with steadiness and certainty, destroys ignorance. Books pertaining to this knowledge are also called Upanishads in a secondary sense.

According to Swami Vivekananda, the Bhagavad Gita is an interpretation of the Upanishads by the Lord Himself, who is the inspirer of the Upanishads. As such, it contains the essence of the Upanishadic teachings. But the special feature of the Gita is the emphasis it lays on the path of Bhakti or love of God and dedication of actions to Him as one of the means of realizing the Divine. Though these ideas are found in the Upanishads, they are there in a seed form. In the Gita, we find them having grown into a full tree, bearing fruits and providing shelter.

The Bhagavad Gita gives us a description of what Bhakti means. It is explained by describing the characteristics of a bhakta. Though these characteristics are natural to a bhakta, they serve as means for other aspirants to develop Bhakti. By consciously cultivating these, one develops love of God.

Freedom from Light Emotions

A bhakta of the Gita is free from many of the emotions and drives which affect mortals. These emotions affect our hearts and in turn make us dance to their tune. The Gita speaks of many of them, from which a true bhakta is free and which the aspirant should be careful about. These are: dvesha—hatred, harsha—exhilaration, amarsha—jealousy, bhaya—fear, udvega—anxiety, apeksha––expectations, vyatha––misery, vaira—enimity, and dvandvamoha—delusion arising out of dualities like pleasure and pain.

© "The Vedanta Kesari" (June, 2003) published by Sri Ramakrishna Math, Mylapore, Chennai 600 004. Website: sriramakrishnamath.org. Reprinted with permission.

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