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Transcribed by: Raji Nachiappan (Melbourne)

Question: How can a student practice bhakti?

Answer: It is fortunate that an opportunity to connect with Krishna comes in youth itself. Youth is a time when we have energy, intellectual sharpness and a lot of drive-in our lives. If at this time, we can get Krishna into our lives, then all our youthful energy, intelligence, and drive, they can all be constructively utilized.

One of the biggest temptations in youth is to postpone spiritual life for later. The idea of wanting to postpone spiritual life for later comes because we think that spiritual life only has other-worldly benefits. However, spiritual life also offers us these-worldly benefits. When we practice spiritual life seriously, it enables us to become more focused, calm, and self-controlled by which whatever we do, we will be able to do it better.

The vision of life that bhakti offers us is – What we are is God’s gift to us and what we become is our gift to God. Whatever talents, abilities, and resources we have are God’s gift to us and when we use them in a mood of service to develop those abilities and to become better, that is our gift to God.
The studies that we do as a student, we do not just do to get a degree or to get a job, but we do it as a service to Krishna. Earlier, we may have studied to get good marks, however, if we study well as a devotee and do well, then when our friends enquire about it, then we get an opportunity to tell them about the spiritual life. We should see our studies also as a means to serve to Krishna.

That way if we focus primarily on direct devotional activities as much as our studies allow, then we can move onwards to Lord Krishna even through our other activities, including our studies. If possible, finding other devotees in the same age group will enable like-minded associations,s and that way we can progress.

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Hindi translation:

प्रश्न: एक छात्र भक्ति का अभ्यास कैसे कर सकता है?

उत्तर – इसे सौभाग्य ही कहा जाएगा यदि किसी को श्रीकृष्ण से जुड़ने का अवसर युवावस्था में ही प्राप्त हो जाए। युवावस्था वह समय होता है जब हमारे भीतर ऊर्जा, बौद्धिक कुशाग्रता और कठोर परिश्रम करने की क्षमता भरपूर होती है। यदि इस समय हम कृष्णभक्ति को अपने जीवन में अपनाते हैं, तब हम अपनी युवा ऊर्जा, बुद्धि और परिश्रम करने की क्षमता, सभी का, रचनात्मक उपयोग कर सकते है।

वर्तमान समय में युवाओं में यह सोच बहुत गहरी बैठी हुई है कि “आध्यात्मिकता तो वृद्धावस्था के लिए होती है”। इस प्रकार का विचार उनमें इसलिए है क्योंकि वे सोचते हैं कि आध्यात्मिकता का लाभ मात्र परलोक में मिलता है। हालाँकि, आध्यात्मिकता का लाभ वर्तमान जीवन में भी, अर्थात् इस लोक में भी, प्राप्त किया जा सकता है। जब हम आध्यात्मिकता के अभ्यास को गम्भीरता से अपनाते हैं, तो यह अभ्यास हमें और अधिक एकाग्र, शान्त और आत्म-संयमित बनने में सहायता करता है। परिणामस्वरूप, हम जो भी कार्य करते हैं, उन्हें और भी अच्छे ढंग से कर पाते हैं।

आध्यात्मिकता अर्थात् भक्ति हमें जीवन जीने का सही दृष्टिकोण सिखाती है। हमारे गुण हमारे लिए भगवान का एक उपहार हैं। इन गुणों के कारण हम जो जीवन में सफलता प्राप्त करते हैं वह भगवान के लिए हमारा एक उपहार है। अर्थात्, हमारी प्रतिभा, योग्यता और संसाधन ये सब भगवान ने हमें उपहार स्वरूप दिए हैं। जब इन संसाधनों का उपयोग निष्काम सेवा की भावना से किया जाता है तो ये गुण और विकसित होते हैं, हम पहले से और अधिक श्रेष्ठ बनते हैं, और यही भगवान के लिए हमारा उपहार होता है।

एक छात्र के रूप में हमें अध्ययन केवल डिग्री या नौकरी पाने के लिए नहीं करना चाहिए, बल्कि श्रीकृष्ण की सेवा के लिए करना चाहिए। भक्ति अपनाने से पूर्व, हम अच्छे अंक प्राप्त करने के लिए अध्ययन करते थे, किन्तु एक भक्ति अपनाने के बाद यदि हम अच्छी तरह से अपना अध्ययन करते हैं और अच्छा परिणाम प्राप्त करते हैं, तो जब हमारे मित्रगण हमारी सफलता के बारे में जानने की उत्सुकता दिखाऐं तब हमारे पास अवसर होगा कि हम उन्हें बताऐं कि कैसे आध्यात्मिकता अपनाने के बाद हमारे अध्ययन की गुणवत्ता में सुधार हुआ। इस प्रकार हमारे मित्रगण भी आध्यात्मिकता को अपनाने के लिए प्रेरित होंगे। अतः, हमें अपने अध्ययन को भी श्रीकृष्ण की सेवा के अवसर के रूप में देखना चाहिए।

यदि सम्भव हो तो अपने ही आयु वर्ग के ऐसे छात्रों को खोजें जो समान रुचि वाले हों ताकि एक संग बन जाए जिससे भक्ति करने में सुविधा भी हो और प्रगति भी।

इस प्रकार अध्ययन के साथ-साथ भी प्रत्यक्ष भक्ति करके हम श्रीकृष्ण के निकट पहुँच सकते हैं।

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Transcription by: Sriman (Dr) Suresh Gupta Prabhu (Muzaffarnagar)

Question: How is mantra meditation different from other forms of meditation?

Answer: Firstly, any form of meditation is beneficial in terms of deepening our thinking, understanding and appreciation of the nature of things. The word “meditation” is typically used in two different ways – (i) general (ii) technical. In a general sense, often meditation refers to any form of deep thinking, e.g. a person may read a book and may get lost in it. Later he would refer to his experience as, “I was meditating on the book”. However, if we consider spirituality, then meditation does not have a general sense but a technical sense. Just like the word “energy” can have a general sense and a technical sense, e.g. a scientist performs an experiment in the laboratory which requires thermal or chemical energy. If the energy source gets exhausted, the scientist may say, “Oh, I have run out of energy”. Later, after a long day’s work, when the scientist comes back home tired, he may exclaim, “Oh, I have run out of energy”. Here, the same word “energy” is used but in two different senses. In the lab, the scientist uses word “energy” in a technical sense whereas at home it is referred in a general sense.

Similarly, meditation in general sense can refer to any form of deep thinking but in a spiritual context, meditation has a technical meaning which refers to the process by which we shift our consciousness from the changing material to the unchanging spiritual. We draw our mind away from material things and focus on spiritual things. For starting this journey, many different objects may be used. Some people may start meditating on the candle or some natural scenery, some source of light or a spot on the wall. In such forms of meditation, one’s capacity to concentrate depends primarily on one’s own will power. Since the mind is extremely restless, such meditation often becomes a demanding task especially if it needs to be sustained for long period of time.

Meditation is a process which take our consciousness from material to spiritual reality where it elevates our consciousness upwards. The various forms of meditation (other than mantra meditation) are like climbing the stairs to go up in a multi-storey building. The stairs take us up, but it requires effort. On the other hand, mantra meditation is like entering an elevator. When we chant mantras, specifically the mantras that invoke the supreme consciousness, for example, the Hare Krishna mahamantra, this connects us with the Absolute Truth. When we prayerfully, reverentially, attentively utter the sound vibration of holy names then the infinite power of the infinite consciousness is invoked and that power aids us in raising our consciousness upwards. Just as in an elevator there is a power (the electric power) other than ours which raises us up, easily and swiftly, similarly, when we practice mantra meditation then the omnipotence of infinite consciousness raises our consciousness upwards easily and rapidly. That is why, mantra meditation is considered to be the most joyful and efficacious form of meditation among all because it gives us a tool, i.e. spiritual sound, which acts like an elevator enabling the ascent of consciousness. Hence, by chanting mantras we connect with the Absolute Truth, experience joy along with elevation of consciousness and experience it all very quickly and effectively.

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Transcription by: Sriman (Dr) Suresh Gupta Prabhu (Muzaffarnagar)

Question: When we are in anxiety searching for a new job, how can we maintain our spiritual practices like attending satsang programs, reading books etc.? Is it OK to just reduce my spiritual activities to only chanting the holy names?

Answer: In our material existence, there are going to be phases of high and low and we have to be flexible. We should not consider it to be our spiritual deficiency if we are not able to attend satsang programs on a regular basis. It is more of a practical necessity.

Just like, if we are going on the road and the road is crowded then naturally, we will go slowly and when the road becomes clear, we will move faster. Important is we should be moving in the right direction so that we get to the destination in due course. Similarly, sometimes in the journey of our life, many material things come up and the road becomes crowded because of which our spiritual activities may be reduced. That is fine in principle, as there will be phases like that.
If students have exams, they cannot be expected to come for the satsang programs. Job interviews in one sense are bigger than exams, so naturally there will be bigger anxiety. Having said that, it is also important to note that if we do not hear any Krishna-katha at all, but only do chanting, then our chanting will eventually become mechanical. Sometimes while hearing or reading scriptures something may calm our mind and may give us some strength and solace by which we will be able to prepare for exam or do our job search with more intelligence and better strategy.

We need to deal with emergencies in our life with our best efforts but at the same time we should not always equate maximum time with best efforts. Sometimes we get too much into the passion of doing something and may commit mistakes in haste. Hence, rather than seeing reading scriptures or attending satsang as an interruption while dealing with our material issues, we could see them more as a break which may reorient us. One may not necessarily spend a lot of time but still one can find ten-fifteen minutes to read something from the scriptures specially those sections which deals with the mind or problems created by the mind.
Memorising or reciting verses, singing some Vaishnava songs can also be very helpful. Singing Vaishnava songs can especially be very powerful if we can connect with them. Scriptures are largely intellectual, but Vaishnava songs bring both aspects together, intellectual and musical. Songs are relatively easy to absorb as it gives a very nice connection with Krishna.

It may happen that some days coming for the satsang may not give us as much strength as just taking darshan and praying to the Deities. There is no need to restrict our spiritual life only to chanting, simply because we need to focus on our job search. We can have something going on which gives us strength and which helps us deal with the situation better.

In general, there is no need to feel guilty about decreasing our spiritual activities while dealing with pressures of life. Krishna is always an understanding God. Often when challenges come in life, our mind often eternalises the present. The mind thinks that this problem will go on forever. We are very uncomfortable while travelling in a crowded train, but if we know that in ten minutes our destination will arrive, then we can bear the hardship. However, if we are told that we have to live in the train our entire life, then even half an hour will be intolerable. This is because the mind starts to build up things.

Similarly, we may think, if I do not find a job, I will be jobless my entire life. However, that is very unlikely because surely something will work out. If we look back in the past, the problems that had once caused us a lot of pain, are no longer there now. Similarly, this problem will also disappear. This sort of distancing ourselves from our situation and not letting the mind eternalise the present is what will help us going.

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Transcription :

Transcriber: Suresh Gupta

Question: How can we serve cooperatively with devotees without aggravating mutual conflicts?

Answer: Basically, if we remind ourselves the purpose for which we are practicing bhakti and help each other remember the same then whatever conflicts happen, we can see them in perspective. Conflicts can have various results; it can cause some people to leave bhakti or it can aggravate the internal tensions so much that we do not feel inspired to share bhakti with others at all. Or because of it, people serving together may try to undermine each other’s efforts and pull each other down. All this can happen because we are all sadhakas and human beings with conditionings. That is why, we should periodically remind ourselves about our purpose and ask ourselves, why have I come here?

In my understanding, the Krishna consciousness movement is also like Krishna, in the sense, it is like kalpataru (desire fulfilling tree) which means whatever we want from it, we will get it. If we come here for power, we will get power; if we want prestige, we can get a lot of prestige; if we want conflict, we can get more conflict then we can in material world and if we want controversies, we can get that as well but most importantly, if we want Krishna, then we can get Krishna also.

Srila Prabhupada often said, “ISKCON is my body” but Prabhupada also taught us that we are not our body. It means that there is an institution and there is also the purpose of the institution. Just as soul is different from the body, similarly along with the institution, there is also the essence of the institution, which is the spiritual purposefulness of the devotees. Conflicts maybe unavoidable but that is just because we all are different human beings due to which differences may pop up, but if we keep reminding ourselves of our purpose then before the conflicts become too much, we will look for course correction. This can be done in various ways. Broadly, when we face with problems, we can do three things:
(i) change the situation or try to solve the problem by changing the consensus which can also involve getting people to change.
(ii) change ourselves
(iii) walk away from there. Walking away is not necessarily running away.
The above three options may not be necessarily right or wrong but once we come to the ground level and recognise what our options are in dealing with people who may exasperate us or irritates us, then we may try to change them or change ourselves. Trying to change a person is not something where we should be investing our energy since people can be rigid and are ultimately what they are. Although bhakti process can cause people to change but sometimes, some changes manifest quickly, and some changes take a lot of time.

Broadly speaking, in an institution, we will have relationship with different people who will be at different levels of proximity. As human nature goes, some people will get along and some will not. If some people are important in a project but it is difficult to get along with them then it is best to have clearly defined boundaries. There is a saying, “good fences make good neighbours”. Similarly, if we have well defined boundaries, then the responsibilities can be executed much more smoothly. When people feel that their area of influence is being encroached, then they become hypersensitive especially if there is a situation where no clear senior authority is present, and individuals are more or less at same levels. At that time, having well defined policies is important. Policies are not substitute for human relationships, but policies can minimise the friction which are there in human relationships.

When the five Pandavas got married to Draupadi, Narada Muni came and instructed them on how they should be associating with her. Narada Muni is a sannyasi but he plans for Pandavas who are grihasthas that when one brother is associating with Draupadi, no one else should come in at that time. We may say, why is Narada Muni doing all this, but he tells the story of how there were two undefeatable demons – Sunda and Upasunda and they were both attracted to the same woman Tilottama. Before meeting her, they were undefeatable, but after they met her, they both became attracted to her and fought with each other. The Pandavas were exalted devotees and they were dharmic souls yet Narada Muni gives them this warning and creates the system for them.

Similarly, if we are working with people together on a project then many things have to be shared and it is vital that we have some system by which different people have different responsibilities which have been clearly defined. That way, even if we notice something wrong in someone else’s area of responsibility, we don’t have to necessarily go and correct that. If we have a good rapport and if the problem is big, we can go and give some feedback, but basically, we stay off each other’s turf. That way everybody gets room to grow and people actually feel satisfied. We might say it is the ego that is satisfied, but ultimately, we cannot wish away our ego right now. When people are satisfied then actually relationships can work out much better.

In summary, there are three things. First, everybody should remind themselves repeatedly about their purpose in practising bhakti and even if some complication comes up, then course correction will help us come back on track. Second, ISKCON is like a kalpataru, and it will give us what we are looking for. Hence, even in situations which are filled with conflicts, if we are looking for Krishna in that situation and the other person may be seeing conflict then keeping ourselves purposefully fixed in Krishna, will help us grow in that situation. Third, for dealing with specific issues of conflict basically there are three ways – changing the situation, changing ourselves, walking out of the situation. The way we adopt will differ according to the situation. If there are number of equals working together then we remember that “good fences make good neighbours”. We need to have well defined areas of jurisdictions as per the policies and that can give everyone space for making their contributions which will ultimately help the project to move on.

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Transcription :

Transcriber: Suresh Gupta

Question: How can we decide the upper limit of tolerance?

Answer: The level of tolerance can not be determined during our own phase of intolerance because when we are angry, even a small misbehaviour seems intolerant and when we are in a good mood, even a big problem seems manageable. That is why, even if somebody is angry unreasonably, we should not act impulsively. The best option is to “press the pause button”.
Basically, in any situation that we are in, there are three options –
(i) change the situation or the person,
(ii) change ourselves or
(iii) just walk away from the situation.
Walking away is not running away, it is a mature thoughtful choice.

If somebody is working in a job and he finds the job very difficult, it maybe because the boss is very demanding, or colleagues are very troublesome. So, one can try to communicate better with them and understand their concerns or one can try to go to a different team. The reason could also be due to lack of skills which we can try to learn and develop. Therefore, ideally, there are three options and at different times different options can be chosen.

In the Mahabharata, initially when the Pandavas came, at that time, the Kauravas did many terrible things to them. There was an incident where the Kauravas tried to poison Bhima but fortunately he was protected. When Yudhishthira came to know about this, he decided not to tell anyone in order to avoid a family feud. Eventually, the Pandavas were sent to Varnavrat and an attempt was made to burn them alive. However, the attempt was foiled and the Pandavas were saved and after returning back to the kingdom, they again did not accuse the Kauravas for trying to burn them alive. Later, Dhritarashtra gave Pandavas a part of the kingdom to settle the feud between the brothers but again it was an unfair settlement since the Pandavas were given a Khandava (a barren land). Still, the Pandavas accepted it and kept tolerating. But eventually, when the Kauravas dishonoured Draupadi, at that time, a particular line was crossed which led to the possibility of a war. Even then, Krishna went as shantidoota (peace messenger) and tried to settle the feud peacefully so as to avoid the war, but Duryodhana was completely adamant. The Pandavas understood that this was not a time for tolerance but a time for active and assertive action. However, this was not based on impulse. Before the war took place, every possible action to avoid the war was taken.

We have to understand that tolerance does not mean that we let others trample us. Tolerance simply means that we don’t let small things come in the way of big things. Our practice of Krishna bhakti is most important to us but while practicing it, if some small things go wrong, and we get too overwhelmed by it, then we cannot practice Krishna bhakti very nicely. For example, if we are going to our office for an important meeting where we have to give a nice presentation and while going along, somebody cuts us across the road then this can make us feel irritated. If we are not aware and do not take control of our emotions, we may get into a bad mood and might not be able to give a good presentation when we reach office. Instead we could have chosen the option to tolerate it. Therefore, tolerance does not mean passive acceptance of anything or everything. Tolerance simply means that we do not let small things come in the way of big things. However, if something critical or urgent comes up in the way of big things then it is no longer a small thing. It then requires appropriate response.

In summary, no matter if somebody’s behaviour is intolerable, we should not react impulsively but should press the pause button instead and we should evaluate our responses rationally. We can try to persuade the person, change ourselves or just walk away from the situation. Also, tolerance is not a virtue in isolation, it is a virtue that is in service to devotion. Tolerance means that I tolerate smaller things so that they don’t come in the way of big things but if something big and important or a critical thing is already coming in the way of our Krishna bhakti then we may have to take necessary steps to deal with it. Therefore, based on understanding of the bigger purpose of our life, we can decide whether we need to change or tolerate, or just get out of the situation.

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Transcription :

Transcription: Suresh Gupta

Question: How do we reconcile Bhagavatam cosmology with scientific cosmology? For example, Bhagavatam cosmology talks about fourteen planetary systems whereas we have nine or ten planets, so how do we reconcile this?

Answer: We have a very simplistic notion of the cosmology that is given and explained in the Srimad Bhagavatam. Usually we say, heaven is up but if the earth is round and America and India are more or less on opposite sides of the earth then the question would arise – is the heaven above America or is it above India? There are two upper opposites. When the scriptures talk about heaven being up, that is not a simplistic geographical “up”. The Bhagavatam is talking about different levels of the cosmos. There are different levels of reality in the universe and we live at a particular level of reality. Within the Indian knowledge of cosmology, there are two broad systems of cosmological knowledge – one is called as Puranic cosmology and the other is called as Jyotisha cosmology. Jyotisha is also called as Siddhantic cosmology and Surya Siddhanta is one famous book from that set of books. Both these give very different vision of the cosmos and if we go to the Jyotisha cosmology, it gives many figures which are very similar to the figures that are in modern cosmology. For example – the distance between the earth and the moon and the earth and the sun as described in Jyotisha cosmology is found to be remarkably similar to what science has found in modern cosmology.

In the same system of knowledge, these two systems of cosmology were very closely connected. Astronomy is the study of planetary distances and astrology is study of their effects on people. For any astrological calculation, even the Vaishnava acharyas or devotee scholars have never used the Bhagavatam cosmology. They all use Jyotisha cosmology which shows that they knew that these two branches of astronomy existed. They themselves had their primary life dedicated to teaching the Bhagavatam, living the teachings of Bhagavatam, explaining the Bhagavatam, but when it came to astrology, they did not use the Bhagavatam cosmology, they used Jyotisha cosmology. What this means is that they too recognised that the Bhagavatam cosmology is not for functional purposes in this world, it is more for a vision of theistic universe (when I say vision, it does not mean that this is just a conception). It is a way of looking at the world which shows how God, devotion, dharma – are all pervading the universe. As far as operating in this universe is concerned, they used Jyotisha cosmology and they never put the two in conflict. Bhagavatam itself describes two important things in Canto 5. First is, studying this will enhance our devotion and second, ultimately because this cosmos manifests the glories of the Lord and since the Lord is infinite and cannot be completely understood, similarly the cosmos cannot be fully understood. Therefore, the Bhagavatam itself is telling that if we do not understand its vision of the cosmos, we do not need to agonise over it too much because the purpose is to enhance our devotion. For functioning in this world, we do use the modern cosmology and there is nothing wrong in that.

We need not position scripture as a competitor of science. Scriptures are primarily about spiritual knowledge, to learn how to evaluate our consciousness. When we position scripture as the competitor of science, we devalue scripture. Scripture has given us spiritual knowledge to elevate our consciousness and Science can give us some material knowledge about how to function in this world. There may be some areas of overlap or some contradictions and how to resolve all of them is for specialist to discuss. I have seminars on this where I have told how good scholars are already working on this but as far as we are concerned, we don’t have to unnecessarily highlight or aggravate this conflict because within the tradition itself there are the example of two different vision of the cosmos and both being used – the Bhagavatam cosmology for increasing ones focus on the Lord and the Jyotisha cosmology being used for doing practical functioning in the world.

Similarly, we can have for modern cosmology and Bhagavatam cosmology.

The Srimad Bhagavatam talking about fourteen planetary systems is talking about cosmos, seen from a different scale of perception, it is not a human centred scale of perception. If whatever Sukadeva Goswami was describing in the Bhagavatam was readily visible to the eyes, then Parikshit Maharaj could have simply looked at the sky and saw it. Sukadeva Goswami is describing it because that is not visible through the naked eyes. It is a different vision of universe, seen from a different scale of observation and the scale of observation can significantly change the object of observation. For example, if we have a chalk and charcoal and we mix them together, we will see grey powder but if we see the same thing under microscope, we would not see grey powder but instead would see black particles and white particles. So, the question arises, what is it really? Is it white particle or black particle or is it grey powder? Well, what it is, depends from where we perceive it.

Therefore, we see the universe a particular way through science which is from our level of perception. The Srimad Bhagavatam gives us another level of perception of the universe and we need not necessarily see them as contradictory because there is a different level and different kind of perception for different purposes.

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Transcription :

Transcriber: Suresh Gupta

Edited by: Keshavgopal Das

Question: How can we overcome envy?

Answer: Usually envy is towards those who we think are equal to us. We do not feel envious towards the President of America or Prime Minister of India because they are completely out of our scheme. Usually we are envious towards those whom we think we should be superior to them but they are superior to me.

We feel envious because we think that our happiness depends on externals. If I get more than others then I will become happy. At the philosophical level we need to recognise that material things are not the sources of happiness. There may be some titillation or pleasure in getting those, but it is very superficial. When relatives tickle a small child, he may laugh but that laughter is not happiness. If tickling made us happy, we all can have our own perpetual tickling machines!

Besides philosophical understanding, at the practical level, we need to avoid unnecessarily focusing on what others have. Duryodhana, he had no business staying on in Indraprastha after every had left. Exposing ourselves to the things which can lead to envy within us is also not proper. We should take precautions if we cannot bear other’s opulence and do not unnecessarily expose ourselves. However, most importantly if we recognise that actually whatever whoever has that is a gift given by God.

Krishna can give wealth, fame, position and other endless blessings but such material things cannot give lasting happiness. When Krishna manifest in our heart and our heart becomes enriched with devotion for him that is when we get everlasting happiness. When we see that the blessing is given by Krishna, then our focus shifts from them to Krishna.

Our connection with Krishna is not based on what he has given us, but on what we are giving him. If somebody has a lot of wealth, that does not necessarily mean that the person is very dear to Krishna. Opulence of wealth in person’s life may be because of his past karma. Somebody may have a lot, and they may offer very little and may not get the happiness. We may have less but if we use it properly in a mood of service to Krishna, even that less can give us greater things.

Let me give a simple example. Suppose after this program there is a feast where everybody is going to have their own plate with their own delicacies. Now I have a feast in my plate with all delicious things, but rather than looking at my plate I am looking at everybody else’s plate thinking that they have better delicacies. What we need for our happiness, Krishna has already provided us, but we hanker for more. Rather than craving for delicacies in others plate, we focus on the relishing on what is in our plate.

Happiness does not come by focussing on what we have, rather from what we do with what we have. We accept the gifts that we have, develop those gifts and try to use them properly. By doing so, we will be happy.

In the Ramayana, there is a story of how Lord Ram was building the bridge. Hanuman was carrying the giant boulders and there was a squirrel which was taking some sand particles. Sri Ram said I am equally happy with both of you. You both are doing according to your capacity. Similarly, it is not that greater material prosperity means that someone necessarily has a greater blessings of Krishna That’s also a blessing, but greater blessing of Krishna is giving the greater intelligence to use what we have in Krishna’s service.

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Transcription :

Transcriber: Sharan Shetty

Edited by: Keshavgopal Das

Question: Can buddhi-yoga refer to all three yogas – karma, jnana and bhakti?

Answer: The word buddhi yoga does not refer to any specific process. There is no particular system of sadhana called as buddhi yoga. It is a compound word used by Lord Krishna in the Gita. Technically speaking, the two words that form the compound word buddhi yoga mean intelligence used for the purpose of yoga or yoga performed with intelligence with the purpose of pursuing higher spiritual connection. Hence, this can be done in all the three processes – karma, jnana and bhakti.

In karma yoga, if one meditates that he is not the body and therefore should not be attached to the fruits of work and bodily gratification and then performs action, then one is using his intelligence to connect with the Supreme Truth. Such use of intelligence can also be called as buddhi yoga.

In jnana yoga, when one uses one’s intelligence to connect with the ultimate spiritual reality without necessarily knowing what that spiritual reality is (either personal or impersonal) or ones connection with the spiritual reality is more intellectualised than personalised (i.e. more abstract in terms of attraction to the greatness of the Absolute Truth rather than the personality or sweetness of the Absolute Truth) then such use of intelligence can also be called as buddhi yoga.

In bhakti yoga, buddhi yoga will be intelligence used to serve Krishna in a way that is most pleasing to him.

Thus, the word buddhi yoga can mean all the three things.

In the Gita, jnana yoga is not discussed much because the Gita was spoken on a battlefield. The context involves that Arjuna needs to perform his duty of fighting. Therefore, jnana yoga, which centres on renunciation of the world, is not compatible with the context of the Gita. That is why, the Gita does not talk about jnana yoga much. Therefore, wherever the word buddhi yoga is used in the Gita, it is either meant for karma yoga or bhakti yoga.

In BG 02.39, Krishna uses the word buddhi yoga to explain that now I have spoken to you the difference between body and soul so that when you act in such knowledge you can free yourself from the bondage of work. This is buddhi yoga referring to karma yoga.

In BG 10.10, Krishna uses the word buddhi yoga to refer to the intelligence by which one will come to him. This is buddhi yoga referring to bhakti yoga.
In BG 18.57, Krishna uses the word buddhi yoga in reference to take shelter of devotional activities (buddhi-yogam upasritya) and renouncing all work to him, making him the goal, always being conscious of him. Here as well, buddhi yoga refers to bhakti yoga.

In the Gita, Lord Krishna uses the word buddhi yoga to refer to karma yoga in BG 2.39 and then bhakti yoga in BG 10.10 and BG 18.57. But in terms of the words that form the word buddhi yoga, any yoga which involves using the intelligence for the pursuit of transcendence can be called as buddhi yoga.
Basically, we can consider the word – buddhi yoga, as an extendable term whose scope of meaning can expand from karma yoga till bhakti yoga . Therefore, in the yoga ladder, the word buddhi yoga can refer to karma yoga and bhakti yoga and anything in between if it involves the use of intelligence for the pursuit of transcendence.

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