L for Leadership

The Bhagavad Gita is a treasure trove of knowledge - all that you need to be is an inquisitive student, because only when the student is ready, the master appears! Join me this month in the 'April A to Z challenge,' as I take you through selected verses of this monumental scripture, and try to decipher the amazing lessons it has in store for us.                  

Read K for Karm here.

Translation 

Krishna says that whatever a leader (sresta) does, the common men (jana) follow. The standards that he sets by his exemplary acts (pramanam) is followed (anuvartate) by everyone (loka).  

A leader worth emulating.

The onus or responsibility on someone who is in a leadership role is immense. Their behaviour, endorsements, and words carry great weight. People are influenced by them and will follow the leader. 

A story from the Ramayana - The exceptional leadership of Janaka Maharaj.

King Janaka was the ruler of Mithila. He is known not just as a ‘raja’ (king) but as a ‘rajarshi’ (a philosopher-king). He showed that it was possible to be surrounded by opulence and yet be completely detached from it. Through his own example he showed that it was not necessary to abandon worldly duties to be a seeker of truth.

A ruler guided by wisdom.

King Janaka was full of wisdom and as described in the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad, his court was always a place for philosophical discussions. Great sages like Yajnavalkya and even female sages like Gargi and Maitreyi were welcome in his court for discussions and debates. He believed that men and women were equally capable and wise. The kingdom and its people thrived in such an environment.

A king who followed his dharma.

Janaka’s actions were guided by righteous duty and sincerity. Seeing the king follow his dharma, the subjects lived a principled and rich life guided by moral responsibilities. He wasn’t attached to wealth and power and performed his duties selflessly. His subjects admired his fairness, and generosity and were propelled to be like him.

A balanced leader.

Rajarshi Janaka showed that it was possible to maintain the balance between being a ruler and being spiritual enlightened. This balance made his leadership both practical and inspiring.

Read M for Mind here.

 

 

K for Karm

The Bhagavad Gita is a treasure trove of knowledge - all that you need to be is an inquisitive student, because only when the student is ready, the master appears! Join me this month in the 'April A to Z challenge,' as I take you through selected verses of this monumental scripture, and try to decipher the amazing lessons it has in store for us.     

    

****************         

Read J for Judge Well here.

 

Translation

Karm here does not refer to results of our actions. Here it refers to work. The result of our actions is karma. 

Krishna says that work is of three types – karm (action), akarm (inaction) and vikarm (forbidden action). We must be aware of all three to understand what karma (result of our action) we will accumulate.

Karm is auspicious action, recommended by the scriptures. These actions purify our mind and senses. They bring good karma or results.

Vikarm, on the other hand, is inauspicious action prohibited by the scriptures. They are detrimental to our spiritual growth. They bring bad karma.

Akarm is the action performed for the pleasure of God, without any attachment to results. They have no karma attached and lead to liberation. Akarm or inaction should not be misunderstood as not performing any action. It simply means 'nishkama karm' - performing the action as expected, yet dedicating the fruits to Krishna – Sarvam Shri Krishnarpam Astu.

 

There is another very famous verse in the Gita –

Karmanye vadhikaraste Ma Phaleshu Kadachana,

Ma Karma phala hetur bhur ma Te Sangostv akarmani

Here too, it is specified that you have the right to action (Karmanya eva adhikarah te) but not to the fruits of actions (ma phaleshu kadachana)

When we give up the fruits of our action, Krishna blesses us with much more than we could ever have asked for.

 

The story of Samudra Manthan.

The demigods had been cursed by Durvasa Muni and as a result they kept losing to the Asuras, the demons. Guided by Lord Brahma, the demigods prayed to Maha Vishnu.

Lord Brahma said, ‘People perform actions expecting great results yet their hard work results in frustration. But the one who has dedicated all his actions to the Supreme, gets results that far exceeds his endeavours.’    

Churning the Ocean of Milk.

Maha Vishnu in his form as Ajita, the unconquerable, advised the demigods to make a peace proposal to the demons. They were to formulate a truce, and churn the Ocean of Milk together. Vasuki, the biggest serpent served as the rope, the Mandara mountain served as the churning rod. To keep the mountain from slipping, Vishnu himself took the form of a tortoise – the ‘Kurma avatara’ and held up the mountain.

The Lord cautioned the demigods to work hard to churn the ocean but not be captivated by the bountiful things that would emerge from it.

What emerged from the churning?

The first to emerge was the halahala or kālakūṭa poison. This was followed by a wish yielding cow (Surabhi), a celestial horse (Uccaihsrava), a celestial elephant (Airavata), Kaustubha gem, Lakshmi, the goddess of fortune, and finally Dhanvantari (a manifestation of Lord Vishnu himself). Dhavantari carried a pot of nectar, but the demons snatched it immediately and ran away with it.

Mohini tricks the demons.

 Vishnu took the avatara as Mohini – the most beautiful woman in the universe – and offered to distribute the nectar to the demons herself. The demons were so captivated by her beauty that they could not refuse and handed over the pot of nectar to her. However, she tricked the demons and distributed the nectar to the demigods making them immortal. This way, they would never lose against the demons again.

Shri Krishna arpanam – all fruits surrendered to him.

Both, the demons and demigods had work hard to achieve the same result. But the demons performed the actions for their personal gratification while the demigods performed the same action for the Lord’s satisfaction. The Lord not only protected them from all difficulties (the poison – halahala), but also bestowed them with results they could never expect (the nectar).

 

Read L for Leadership here.

J for Judge well (discernment)

The Bhagavad Gita is a treasure trove of knowledge - all that you need to be is an inquisitive student, because only when the student is ready, the master appears! Join me this month in the 'April A to Z challenge,' as I take you through selected verses of this monumental scripture, and try to decipher the amazing lessons it has in store for us.      

Read I for Ignorance here.

*****************

            

Translation.

This is one of my favourite verses. After presenting the entire Bhagavad Gita to Arjuna, Krishna tells him, 'Deliberate (vimrsya) on what I have spoken thus far, and then do what ‘you’ wish to do (yathecchasi tatha kuru), be a judge of your own decisions.'

Do as you deem fit!

We often give suggestions or advice to someone and expect them follow our decision. Conversely, we also tend to follow someone without using our own judgement. 

But here is Krishna, doing the opposite. The situation is urgent – there’s a war about to begin. Arjuna has been reluctant to fight – an entire Gita has been advised to him to make him see things clearly. Yet far from asking him to buckle up and get going, Krishna gives him the freedom to deliberate on what he had advised and make a choice based on his wisdom and understanding – ‘yethecchasi thatha kuru’ – do as you deem fit! How freeing that must have been - no pressure to listen to Krishna, and the choice to reflect and make your own judgement! 

 

    

The story of Nachiketa from the Kathopanishad.

Long ago, a sage named Vajashrava performed a grand sacrifice. As part of the ritual, he was supposed to donate cows. But when his son Nachiketa saw him donating old, weak, and useless ones, he questioned his father about his intentions and asked him whom he would donate his son to? When his father angrily replied that he would donate him to Yama, the god of death, Nachiketa took it seriously and went to Yama.

Waiting at Yama’s door.

Nachiketa was granted three boons by Yama. For his third boon, Nachiketa wanted to know what happened to a person after his death. Yama did not want to answer it and instead of answering, asked him choose between the ultimate truth (preya) and material pleasures – wealth, long life, power, pleasures, and heavenly enjoyments (shreya).  

Yama left the choice to Nachiketa.

Nachiketa reflected carefully and realised that ‘preya’ was temporary and will eventually fade away. With clarity and firmness, Nachiketa chooses ‘shreya’ – knowledge of the ultimate truth.

Be your own judge.

There’s a certain responsibility on us when we are told to be our own judge. In today's world of social media, where people blindly copy each other, or follow the latest trend, being your own judge really matters. Thinking for oneself and choosing what best fits us, is more likely to bring success rather than blindly following someone. 

Can we stop for a moment, deliberate and think before we act, rather than being blindly influenced by other voices?

 

 

I for Ignorance

The Bhagavad Gita is a treasure trove of knowledge - all that you need to be is an inquisitive student, because only when the student is ready, the master appears! Join me this month in the 'April A to Z challenge,' as I take you through selected verses of this monumental scripture, and try to decipher the amazing lessons it has in store for us.        

Read H for Health here.          

Translation

Here, Krishna says, just as smoke (dhuma) covers the fire (vahni), dust (mal) covers a mirror (darsa) and the womb (ulbena) covers the foetus (garbha), similarly, ignorance covers  knowledge. This is such a beautiful thought. It says that knowledge is not absent, it is always there. It is covered or hidden under ignorance.

The Gita treats ignorance not simply as lack of knowledge, but as a veil that hides reality and leads to confusion, doubt, and suffering. Knowledge, on the other hand, brings about transformation.

The story of Varaha

The Srimad Bhagavatam narrates the story of Varaha, the boar incarnation of Shri Maha Vishnu.

The demon Hiranyaksha had hidden the Earth (Bhudevi) in the depths of the cosmic ocean. The world plunged into darkness and chaos. Brahma’s son, Swayambhuva Manu complained that there was no place for him to live and start his family. No one knew where to find Earth. That is when the gods invoked Shri Vishnu. Vishnu took avatar as Varaha and fought against the demon. Earth finally came back into light, when the demon was killed.

What it means symbolically…

Interpreted symbolically, when our consciousness (Earth) is plunged into confusion (cosmic ocean) due to ignorance (Hiranyaksha), only the divine (Varaha) can restore our awareness and take us from ignorance to knowledge.

Hiranyaksha embodies ego and arrogance, that covers our consciousness and keeps us trapped. Once the veil is removed, knowledge dawns.

Knowledge is merely hidden under the cover of ignorance.

The Gita calls for lifting the cover of ignorance to reveal knowledge which is already there. And the one who can rescue our consciousness from this ignorance is Krishna alone.

 Read J for Judge well here.

 

H for Health

The Bhagavad Gita is a treasure trove of knowledge - all that you need to be is an inquisitive student, because only when the student is ready, the master appears! Join me this month in the 'April A to Z challenge,' as I take you through selected verses of this monumental scripture, and try to decipher the amazing lessons it has in store for us.         

Read G for Gratitude here.         

********************

Translation

Sattvic foods increase the duration of life (ayuh), purify one’s existence (sattva) and give strength (bala), health (arogya), happiness (sukha) and satisfaction (priti vardhana). Foods which are juicy (rasya), made from healthy fats (snigdha), nourishing (sthira), and pleasing to the heart (hrdya) are healthy foods.

Why sattvic food?

Food is not merely something to fill our stomachs with. Krishna says that sattvic food has the power to not only nourish us but also purify our mind and body. Sattvic food shapes the way we think, speak, and act. It keeps us healthy, mentally and physically. If we remember that food has to be offered to Krishna before we eat, we will also be conscious of what we eat and how well we prepare it.

A story from the Mahabharata.

Bhishma pitamaha lay on the bed of arrows, watching the rest of the war unfold before his eyes. By the time the war came to an end, most of the blood had flowed out of his frail body. Yet, he looked on, waiting to be assured that his precious Hastinapur would be in safe hands. Having the boon of ‘ichha mrutyu’, he could choose the time of his death and so he had not yet given up his mortal body, waiting to see the Pandavas emerge victorious.

After the war, the Pandavas, stood around him, devastated by the sight of their great-grandfather lying in that state. Even as they shed tears, Bhishma was instructed by Krishna to impart wisdom on dharma to Yudhishthira and his brothers.

As Bhishma spoke with clarity about righteousness, duty, kingship, and ethics, a question arose, often attributed to Yudhishthira or to other members present at the scene –

‘You possess such deep understanding of dharma, but why did you remain silent when you saw injustice happening? Why did you not stop the humiliation of Draupadi in the court? Why did you not oppose the wrongful acts of Duryodhana?’

Bhishma smiled sadly.

‘During my years in Hastinapur, I lived under the protection and patronage of the Kauravas. I ate their food, was sustained by their wealth, and bound by loyalty to the throne of Hastinapura. Over time, this dependence clouded my judgment.’

Bhishma says that the food he consumed, earned through Duryodhana’s unjust rule, affected his clarity of mind. It dulled his ability to act decisively for dharma. Only now, after his body had been pierced and that ‘tainted blood’ had flowed out, did he regain full clarity and detachment to speak purely of righteousness.

Is it only about food?

This explanation is not merely about the food we eat. Whatever one accepts, materially or morally, shapes one’s thinking. To stay healthy mentally and physically, we must be careful not only about the food we put into our mouths but also the thoughts we feed into our minds, and the dependency we allow into our lives.