Gita Chapter 8 - Aksara Brahma Yoga

[Schandra]

Hari Om.

In shloka 14 Bhagwan Krishna emphasizes strongly that the seeker of the Truth needs to maintain the Divine Consciousness constantly and continuously, meaning, that praying or remembering Him only during certain moments of the day and leading life in a morally degenerate fashion for the rest of the time is not sufficient.He has already pointed out in the previous shlokas about the importance of the steadfastness of the mind on Him during meditation.This steadfastness He stresses, should be constant and not a part-time option. One who by constant practice is able to achieve this state will most certainly and easily reach Him.

Shloka 15: The thought of being in a constant state of Divine Consciousness can be an overwhelming task which requires constant practice and great struggles overcoming the sensory pleasures and distractions.It is quite natural for a person to question the benefit of reaching this state of Divine Consciousness which is true bliss if after reaching it , all that is left for him is to return to this painful ,ever changing place of sorrow that he struggled to hard to leave.Bhagwan preempts the question by explaining that since the state of Divine Consciousness is timeless and endless,there will be no return from that state(Moksha) back to the quagmire of misery( re-birth).

[Arvind]

Hari Om,

Thank you everyone for your reflections.

Now let us proceed to Sloka 16 from where the Lord starts explaining why all the worlds including that of Brahmaji are not permanent,

Word and Sloka Meaning: Arvind
Reflections : Everyone.

Pranams
Arvind

[nikhil1707]

Verse 14 and 15

The Striver who is not attracted in the prosperity and pleasures and totally absorbed in me and does not depend on anyone besides the lord is of undivided mind.
He has a firm belief he only think that he is a God and God is he.
When he is awake he thinks of God to the time to goes to sleep he thinks of Him.I am easily attainable to him who is absorbed in me.
For instance, a Brahamana by caste think that he is not Ksatriya or a Vaisya and he remain Brahmana. Similarly, a devotee has a firm belief that he is only Mine and only I am his.
He who maintains the affinity is called absorbed in Me and his mind, intellect, body, senses etc are not his.If he accepts body and mind etc as his own I cannot be easily attainable to him.


If a great soul, has vision of Lord or knows the reality about Him, or enters into Him, he is not subject to rebirth.
When man is reform he suffers lot of pain and when he grows up is he feels very sad as his desires are not satisfied.
When he fails in examination he feels dejected and thinks of suicide in youth he feels afflicted on not being married and once he is married he feels sad as not getting the correct spouse according to his wish.
In old age,beside suffering from disease he may bear insults, he develop cough and cannot sleep properly.At the time of the death he has to suffer lot of pain.
The great souls are not subjected to the rebirth as they have reached to the hugest perfection.Like a greedy man who thinks of money, a devotee thinks of God aspires more and more love and then he attains fathomless and limitless love, enhancing every moment.

[Arvind]

Sloka 16
आब्रह्मभुवनाल्लोकाः पुनरावर्तिनोऽर्जुन ।
मामुपेत्य तु कौन्तेय पुनर्जन्म न विद्यते ॥

Word to Word Meaning:
आब्रह्मभुवनाल्लोकाः = Worlds upto the world of Brahmaji
पुनरावर्तिनो = are subject to rebirth
आर्जुन = O Arjuna
मामुपेत्य = Having attained Me
तु = but
कौन्तेय = O Arjuna
पुनर्जन्म = rebirth
न विद्यते = is not

Sloka Meaning
Worlds upto the world of Brahmaji are subject to rebirth, O Arjuna, but he who reaches Me O Kaunteya, has no rebirth.

[sathiavathi]

HARI OM

Thoughts and concepts

12-For whom is the Lord easy to attain?

Ananyacetah satatam yo mam smarati nityasah
tasyaham sulabhah partha nityayuktasya yoginah.

I am easily attainable for that ever-steadfast yogi who constantly remembers me daily,not thinking of anything else, O Partha.
To the one who is ever-steadfast in the life divine and remembers the Lord,always and daily,with a single-pointed mind, to him the Lord is easily attainable.(8.14)

Selections for reflection-8
Prayer is no insecticide to be sprayed now and then;nor should the divine Alter be considered as a bathroom,where one enters dirty and walks out clean.(8.14)

Verse -14
Constant and uninterepted thought of God is an easy way to his realization.When the love intoxicated devotee who remembers the lord with exclusive devotion can no longer bear his seperation from him, the Lord too begins to feel his seperation from the devotee unbearable.

[lakssg]

Verse 16
In continuation to the previous verse where it is mentioned that reaching the lord one does not return to this miserable world Lord now clarifies that rebirth is there for everyone except for those rare ones.
Even to those who have attained higher lokas up to and including brahma loka through their meritorious deeds have to come back because these lokas are also conditioned by time- they perish after a certain period of time and are created again -all are ephemeral . Of course time period may vary for different lokas. When the loka itself perishes to come back again – what to talk about the beings of that world.

In contrast to these lokas . In this entire cosmos only one place - after reaching where we will not come back and where you are at peace - is abode of lord.-only dama which is above the limits of time - no more samsara for one who attains him. This is true also for one who reaches lord through kramamukthi

[sathiavathi]

HARI OM

VERSE-15

In this verse Lord declares that God-realized souls are never born again and are never disunited from God because they are possesssed of exclusive love for God,succeed in realizing him.He who is once able to realize God,who is endless ocean of all joys and the supreme support and asylum of all ,and who is also called supreme spirit,is never and under no circumstance dis united from God.That is why Lord says that after god realization one is no more subjected to rebirth.

Sins committed through attachment in the course of accumilation and enjoyment of objects which appear delightfull also leads to various forms of sufferings.

Thus rebirth is full of sorrow and sorrow alone from the time of entering the womb till death.

[sathiavathi]

HARI OM

VERSE-16

The heavenly region where brahma has his abode and which forms the uppermost limit of this material universe is known as the brahmaloka.The word loka covers all the divisions of the universe,the higher as well as the lower.Worlds which are by their very nature are liable to disappear with the dissolution of the universe and to appear again at the begining of every creation ,and the inhibitants of which are subject to rebirth.one who reaches the higher nature of god are not subjected to rebirth.

Liberation from samsara and attaining the God is only possible through bhakti or exclusive love devotion to him. Those whose goal is to enjoy the world which is free from decease,sorrow and old will reach that world;but they are subjected to take birth in a womb again for the attainment of the supreme LORD.Those whose goal is the attainment of supreme lord alone will reach him and they are not subjected to take birth again.

[Payyubg]

Verse :16

The inhabitants of all the material worlds including Brahma Loka - the abode of Brahma are subject to re- birth at the time of dissolution. Thus , however high the world might be it is still impermanent . Based on their karma phal that they accrue in these lokas ,they either advance to higher worlds or go back to lower worlds (with Brahmaloka being the highest loka that one can attain in the realm of the phenomenal universe). Nevertheless re-birth is definite.

Those who have Ananya Bhakti for the supreme reach Him directly.They are no longer subject to time and space once they are one with the supreme Lord . Once a person attains moksha it is irreversible and hence permanent . Those attaining krama mukthi attain moksha slowly ,but once it is reached ,there is no return.

[Arvind]

Sloka 16
आब्रह्मभुवनाल्लोकाः पुनरावर्तिनोऽर्जुन ।
मामुपेत्य तु कौन्तेय पुनर्जन्म न विद्यते ॥

The Lord after explaining various types of upasanas says that remembrance of Him always through all our duties is the best way to reach Him. Why one must do this remembrance of the Lord? In order to cultivate dispassion for the world, the Lord now explains from Sloka 16 onwards (till Sloka 19) that all the worlds are imperishable including that of the highest - Brahma ji. The purpose of these description is only to make the mind turn away from pre-occupations with the world and take to devotion of the Lord.

In this Sloka the Lord says that all worlds upto Brahma ji are subject to return. Generally in today's context we don't think in terms of next birth but only of attaining and settling permanently in this world. The Lord says even worlds attained after death through karma are impermanent, what to talk of things attained solely in this birth?

Why is there subject to rebirth, or what is the cause of this impermanence? Why is it a fallacy that whatever we can achieve through karma will be permanent? For karma is limited, and therefore the fruit of karma can also be only impermanent. Anything achieved , no matter how great , is achieved by means employed in time and space. Therefore the result attained - be it position, money, status or even future worlds after death will only be impermanent. Therefore what the Lord says is true even by our own logic and by little thinking, that all worlds attained are only impermanent , including that of Brahmaji.

Once the result of the karma perishes, we are back to square one. For karma is limited, the equipments with which we do karma is limited, and so is the result - all in the realm of duality of time and space.

The Lord however is beyond time and space. Hence he says by attaining Him, one is not subject to rebirth. This is the idea.

The Lord addresses the name of Arjuna twice in this Sloka. We generally call someone twice to seek attention. Similarly Vyasa has employed this technique here to say that the Lord wants Arjuna's attention fully, as something important he is going to say.

Now in Slokas 17,18 and 19 the Lord explains by logic why all the worlds inclusive of Brahma ji are impermanent. Again these the Lord is explaining only for us to understand the impermanence of the world so our minds cultivate dispassion for it and cultivate devotion for the Lord.

[Arvind]

Hari Om,

Thanks to everyone for your thoughts and reflections.

Now let us proceed to Sloka 17,18 and 19. In these Slokas the Lord gives the reason for the impermanence
of all the worlds upto Brahmaji (including Brahmaloka). The idea therefore, is to develop dispassion for them.

Now let us study Slokas 17-19 together.

Word and Sloka Meaning : Arvind

HGRR : Holy Gita Ready Reference
Terms and Defintions (5,6,7) = Sathyavathi ji
Thoughts and Concepts(13) = Arvind

Reflections on these Slokas = Everyone

Pranams
Arvind

[Arvind]

Sloka 17
सहस्रयुगपर्यन्तमहर्यद्ब्रह्मणो विदुः ।
रात्रिं युगसहस्रान्तां तेऽहोरात्रविदो जनाः ॥

Word to Word Meaning:
सहस्र = (in) a thousand
युग = Yugas
पर्यन्तम = ending
अहर्यद्ब्रह्मणो = is a day of Brahma
विदुः = one who knows (this)
रात्रिं = and (that) the night
युग = Yuga
सहस्रान्तां = ending in a thousand
तेऽहोरात्र = they, of day and night
विदो = (are) the knowers
जनाः = (these) people

Sloka Meaning:
Those people who know (the length of) the day-of Brahma which ends in a thousound Yugas (aeons), and the night which (also) ends in a thousand Yugas (aeons) , they know day-and-night.

Sloka 18
अव्यक्ताद्व्यक्तयः सर्वाः प्रभवन्त्यहरागमे ।
रात्र्यागमे प्रलीयन्ते तत्रैवाव्यक्तसंज्ञके ॥

Word to Word Meaning:
अव्यक्ता - From the un-manifested
द्व्यक्तयः = the manifested
सर्वाः = all
प्रभवन्त्य = proceed
हरागमे = at the coming of the day
रात्र्यागमे = (and) at the coming of the night
प्रलीयन्ते = dissolve
तत्रै = there
अवव्यक्त संज्ञके = in that which is called the un-manifested

Sloka Meaning:
From the un-manifested all the manifested proceed at the coming of the "day"; at the coming of the "night" they dissolve verily in that alone, which is called the un-manifest.

Sloka 19
भूतग्रामः स एवायं भूत्वा भूत्वा प्रलीयते ।
रात्र्यागमेऽवशः पार्थ प्रभवत्यहरागमे ॥

Word to Word Meaning:
भूतग्रामः = Multitude of beings
स एवायं = = that verily (the same set of beings)
भूत्वा भूत्वा = (being) born again and again
प्रलीयते = dissolves
रात्र्यागमे = at the coming of the night
अवशः = helplessly
पार्थ = O Arjuna
प्रभवत्यहरागमे = and come forth again at the coming of the day

Sloka Meaning:
This same multitude of beings are being born again and again, and are dissolved (into the un-manifest) helplessly, O Partha at the coming of the "night", and they come forth again at the coming of the "day".

[lakssg]

Verse 17,18,19- Through these verses the Lord reiterates the ephemerality of all worlds including Brahmaloka . They are destroyed and created again and again . The beings of these worlds helplessly go round and round in the wheel of samsara .It also indicates the futility of all efforts to attain any prosperity here or hereafter. Happiness is there only when one reaches the eternal- the Lord . For a sadhaka these words help in turning the mind inward and developing dispassion .

Verse -17
One may think life of Brahma is so long and if one reach Brahmaloka he will attain permanent happiness. How long is Brahmaji's life compared to human life?
Brahma's life is one hundred Brahma years,
One day and one night of Brahmaji consists of 1000 mahayugas each-
1 Maha Yuga= ( kali +dwapara+ threta +satya) yugas
1day +1night is 8 million 64000years
At the end of Brahmaji's life time which is 100 Brahma years Brahmaloka along with Brahmaji perishes to be created again.

The entire universe goes into cosmic unmanifest which corresponds to the end of Brahmaji's life span - called Prakritha pralaya . Next creation will be done by a new Brahmaji.
Highest embodiment and the highest loka is perishable. So what about the lower worlds ?
A yogi is one who knows the concept of time , there by creation ,sustenance and dissolution.

Verse-18
What happens in the day and night of Brahmaji? In the beginning of day-called as aharagam- all objects and beings are manifested from their unmanifest state.
During night of Brahma all of them get dissolved – become unmanifest. Dissolution of manifest back to unmanifest is called Pralaya .This type of pralaya where bhu, bhuva, svaha are destroyed and maha,jan, tapa,satya loke remains is called naimithika pralaya. This is equal to the night time of Brahmaji. Next morning these unmanifest become manifest-creation by Brahmaji starts.

Verse 19
Here the Lord points out that same multitude of beings only are borne again and again, means nothing new is created. The significance of this verse is –it shows how helplessly all beings of the world caught up in samsara are wheeled in this cycles of births and deaths - Repetition of different types of actions and results thereof. Even though tired of these actions ignorant person does not know the way out and he desperately lives amidst the changes.
Similar versre in kathopanishad (1.1.6)
"anupaśya yathā pῡrve pratipaśya tathāpare,
sasyam iva martyaḥ pacyate sasyam ivajāyate punaḥ. "
one should opt for noble values in life because this world is anithya and beings come and go (die and again take birth like plants)

These inspiring verses motivates a sadak to develop vairagya and to strive in the path whereby he can reach the Lord – only abode from where there is no return journey .

[Arvind]

Sloka 17

Arjuna's last question was about death, and how to remember the Lord at the time of death.

In response to that the Lord explained many things right from Sloka 5.

Now in these Slokas we are seeing now, The Lord explains the ephemeral nature of the worlds. And while doing so he actually is explaining the impermanance of 'Life'.  Even the longest of lives, as that of Brahmaji is only relative. As Gurudev puts it, life is nothing but a 'shuttle between the un-manifested and the manifested'.

Brahmaji is the Creator, from whom all beings have evolved. Even Brahmaji's duration is not permanent says the Lord, what to talks about jivas?
 
Brahmaji is said to live for 100 years. There are 4 Yugas - Satya, Treta, Dwapar, Kali. One Maha Yuga is a thousound cycles of these 4 Yugas . So when one Maha Yuga (comprising of the 1000 cycles of these  4 Yugas) has passed in "earth time", then one day of Brahma is gone. Similar is his night. In this way he lives for 100 years. Now we can caluclate in "earth time" , what is the  life span of Brahma jii !!!

This long life span of Brahmaji is also not permanent says The Lord. Man always tries to cling to life, prolong it, but Brahma ji himself cannot stay forever. We may from the standpoint of our equipment feel Brahma ji lives long. But if one asks Brahma ji he will say it is too short. An ant feels we live very long, but if the "ant" asks us we will not agree.

This is because the concept of Time is relative, which is also the theory of Einstein. Time appears long or short as per the equipment with which we percieve change. It is common experience even within a human perception, that time goes fast when we are happy and goes slow when our mind is in sorrow. Therefore we use terms like "time flies". So the fact that the concept of Time is relative is our own experience also. Therefore, Brahma ji being higher levels of Consciousness and more happy beings, time for them runs fast, and therefore does not appear so long as it may appear to us from the earthly plane. Bhagavan Sri Krishna is only explaining to us, an idea of Brahma ji's life span from our earthly realm standpoint. Was he to explain this Sloka to members of Satya loka, the time scales in comparison to Brahmaji's day and night would have been different! For as we already said Time is relative, it depends on the equipment with which we perceive change.

Sloka 18 
During the coming of Brahma ji's day all beings come out. Brahma ji is the Creator or the Total Mind . Therefore at the start of  the day Of Brahma ji , Creation happens. Then at the end of a Maha Yuga, Pralaya happens, and all the manifested beings and objects go back to their source , the Creator - this happens in his "night". They then stay there in dormant unmanifested condition, till Brahma ji wakes up, and in the coming of the next day of Brahmaji creation again happens. Creation therefore is only cyclic .

Sloka 19
Here in this Sloka the Lord says that the jivas, because of their own impressions and karma phala are helplessly born at the coming of the day of Brahma ji (meaning they become one in the created). And again at the end of the MahaYuga they go back to seed form in the night of Brahmaji, just waiting for the nexy day of Brahmaji to come out again, helplessly.
The Lord uses the word 'avasaha' , helplessly. Again and again we have been born and have died, yet we cling to the impermanent. Therfore he uses this word to show that though we do not want this cycle of birth and death, yet because of ignorance and attachment we continue to do so.

Therefore, now in the next Sloka (Sloka 20), the Lord talks about the substratum of even Brahma ji, that plane of Consciousness which does not take part in this continous cyclic process of manifestation and unmanifestation. That is called as Bhagavan or Isvara, and becoming one with Him one does not take part in this endless painful drama of manifestation (birth) and un-manifestation (death). 
That Isvara or the highest plane of Consciousness , the Lord will say is only attained by unswerving devotion. This attainment of the highest plane of Consciousness is liberation.

[nikhil1707]

Sloka 16

O Arjuna, all the lokah, worlds; abrahmabhuvanat,together with the world of Brahmabhuvana is that (place) in which creatures are born,
and brahma-bhuvana means the world of Brahma;punah avartinah, are subject to return, are by nature liable to come again; Tu, but; kaunteya, O son of Kunti, na vidyate, there is no; punarjanma,rebirth; upetya, after reaching; mam, Me alone.Why are all the worlds together with the realm of Brahma subject to return? Becuase they are limited by time.

[sathiavathi]

HARI OM

Explain the concept of 'krama-mukti'.
The theory of gradual liberation (krama-mukti)says that ritualism (karma)accompanied by contemplation (upasana),takes the ego to the realm of Creator
(Brahmaloka),where at the end of the kalpa (the circle of creation and dissolution ),it merges with the supreme.Even in brahmaloka it is necessary that the
ego must,through self effort,live strictly by all the spiritual directions of the creator, and through constant contemnplation upon the self (atma-vicara)
come to deserve total liberation ending all its connections with ignorance.(8.16)

6-Define the term 'Mahayuga'.
The four yugas viz. satya yuga(1,728,000years),Treta (1,296,000 years),dwapara(864,000years)and Kali(432,000years)total to 4,320,000years. This is called Mahayuga.(8.17)

7-How many Mahayugas constitute one day of Brahma?
A thousand Mahayugas constitute the day time of Brahma,the creator.Another 1000 mahayugas constitute his night time.Thus 2,000Mahayugas constitute a single day of the creator Brahma.(8.17)

[Payyubg]

Verse 17:
This sloka explains brahma's day and night. Explains brahmas time relative to the time frame that we are familiar with.
His 1 day + 1 night =2x1000 mahayugas.( 1 maha yuga = satya+treta+ dwapara+Kali)

This equals 1 kalpa.( 8 billion 640 million years as we know it)
Brahmas 1 year= 360 Kalpas
Brahma lives for 100 such years.
This 100 years of brahmaji is like one day for the supreme being, and like wise his night .

Verse 18:
At the beginning of this day all manifested objects come into existence from the unmanifested. At the end of the day or at night all the manifested objects become unmanifested or dissolve into the infinite.

Verse19:
Brahmaji 's 100 years is an enormous number no doubt, but it is still a finite number. It can still be quantified in understandable terms. At the end of this Brahmajis 100 years all known worlds with materials objects, planets including brahmajis planet and himself ,solar systems, galaxies, and all the universes get dissolved into the infinite.
Only the supreme being remains uncontrolled by time and remains unaffected , unchanged and eternal.

So what is emphasized here is not to waste time searching for pleasure and fulfillment through material objects as they are not everlasting. To try and seek the supreme is the best time spent because that leads you to total liberation which gives real eternal happiness and bliss.

[nikhil1707]

Sloka 17,18,19

Those poeple who are knowers of what day and night are, know the day of Brahma which endsin a thousand yugas [The four yugas (in the human-worlds), namely- Satya, Treta, Dwapara, and Kali are made up of 4,320,000 years. This period multiplied by a thousand constitutes one day of Brahma. His night also extends over an equal period and His night which ends in a thousand yugas.

With the coming of day all manifested things emerge from the Unmanifest and when night comes they merge in that itself which is called the Un-manifested.
O son of Prtha, bhutva, after being born again and again at the approach of day; sah eva, that very-not any other; bhutagramah, multitude of beings, consisting of the moving and the non moving objects that existed in the earlier cycle of creation; praliyate, disappears repeatedly; avasah, in spite of itself, [For they are impelled by their own defects] without any independence whatever; ratri-agame, at the approach of night, at the close of the day. Prabhavati, it comes to life, verily inspite of itself; ahar-agame, at the approach of day.

The means for the attainment of that Immutable which was introduced has been pointed out in, 'He who departs by leaving the body while uttering the single syllable, viz Om, which is Brahman, ' etc .Now, with a view to indicate the real nature of that very Immutable, this is being said-that It is to be reached through this path of Yoga

[Arvind]

Hari Om to All,
Thank you everyone for your reflections on Slokas 17,18 and 19. Now before we go to the next Sloka, let us try to reflect/ answer these questions. These questions for reflection are based on Slokas 17-19.

(1) What is Creation according to Vedanta?
(2) If the duration of Brahmaji who creates is also not permanent then who is Isvara?
What is his relation with the Created?
(3) It is said in Sloka 19 - अवशः , helplessly they are born. Why is it so? How is this an answer/correlated to what the Lord has already said in Slokas 5 & 6 of this Chapter?
(4) How can we explain or understand these Slokas related to Brahma ji's creation subjectively (taking the deep sleep state).

Please reflect and put your thoughts to whatever questions you can.

Pranams
Arvind

[sathiavathi]

HARI OM

VERSE-17
Having come to know the duration of Brahmas's day and night ,man becomes aware of the transitory charactor of the Brahmaloka as well as of all the worlds enclosed with in its circle.He then comes to realize that the worlds themselves are transitory , the enjoyments obtained there in should be much more fleeting and perishable.And that which is perishable could not bring lasting happiness.Therefore it is folly to get attached to the enjoyments of this world and to fritter away the human existence by indulging in frivolities. The span of human life is very short.
Therefore,wisdom lies in devoting oneself to the rememberance of God with a heart full of love,and realizing him at the earliest movement , where in lies the fruition of human existence . And he alone who realizes this knows the truth about time in the form of day and night , and makes best use of valuable time.

Verse-18
In this verse Lord tells us of the repeated appearance of all embodied beings at the coming of each such day and of their dissolution at each such nightfall,there by revealing their transitory character. At the commencement of Brahma's day , that is , when Brahma emerges from the state of deep sleep and enters waking life , there appears a change in the subtle state of Prakriti ,which assumes a gross form , and all embodied beings become connected in different ways with the gross form of prakriti according to their respective karma.This is meaned by the term emanation of all embodied beings from the unmanifest.At the end of the day when brahma passes from the awakened state to a state of deep sleep , that marks the commencement of the cosmic night.At that time Prakriti gives up it's gross form and reverts to it's subtle state and this is meaned by unmanifested state.

Verse-19
In this verse Lord tells that at the commencement of Brahma's night all beings get dissolved in to the unmanifest , they do not obtain immunity from birth till they succeed in realizing God, and continue to revolve in the whirlgig of birth and deaths.Lord says the multitude of beings both sentient and insentient, which thus repeatedly merges in to the unmanifest and then emanates from it again and again,and which is directly visible to us is ever the same ; and it has not newly appeared.So long as an embodied being does not realize God , he will continue to emanate from Prakriti and merge in to her again and again.