BG: 7.19 After many births and deaths, he who is actually in knowledge surrenders unto Me, knowing Me to be the cause of all causes and all that is. Such a great soul is very rare. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- bahūnāḿ janmanām ante jñānavān māḿ prapadyate vāsudevaḥ sarvam iti sa mahātmā su-durlabhaḥ Translation of Bhagavad Gita 7.19 After many births and deaths, he who is actually in knowledge surrenders unto Me, knowing Me to be the cause of all causes and all that is. Such a great soul is very rare. Commentary by Sri A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada of Gaudiya Sampradaya: The living entity, while executing devotional service or transcendental rituals after many, many births, may actually become situated in transcendental pure knowledge that the Supreme Personality of Godhead is the ultimate goal of spiritual realization. In the beginning of spiritual realization, while one is trying to give up one’s attachment to materialism, there is some leaning towards impersonalism, but when one is further advanced he can understand that there are activities in the spiritual life and that these activities constitute devotional service. Realizing this, he becomes attached to the Supreme Personality of Godhead and surrenders to Him. At such a time one can understand that Lord Sri Krishna’s mercy is everything, that He is the cause of all causes and that this material manifestation is not independent from Him. He realizes the material world to be a perverted reflection of spiritual variegatedness and realizes that in everything there is a relationship with the Supreme Lord Krishna. Thus he thinks of everything in relation to Vasudeva, or Sri Krishna. Such a universal vision of Vasudeva precipitates one’s full surrender to the Supreme Lord Sri Krishna as the highest goal. Such surrendered great souls are very rare. This verse is very nicely explained in the Third Chapter (verses 14 and 15) of the Shvetasvatara Upanishad: sahasra-sirsa purushah sahasrakshah sahasra-pat sa bhumim vishvato vrtva- tyatisthad dasangulam purusha evedam sarvam yad bhutam yac ca bhavyam utamritatvasyesano yad annenatirohati In the Chandogya Upanishad (5.1.15) it is said, na vai vaco na caksumsi na srotrani na manamsity acakshate prana iti evacakshate prano hy evaitani sarvani bhavanti: “In the body of a living being neither the power to speak, nor the power to see, nor the power to hear, nor the power to think is the prime factor; it is life which is the center of all activities.” Similarly Lord Vasudeva, or the Personality of Godhead, Lord Sri Krishna, is the prime entity in everything. In this body there are powers of speaking, of seeing, of hearing, of mental activities, etc. But these are not important if not related to the Supreme Lord. And because Vasudeva is all-pervading and everything is Vasudeva, the devotee surrenders in full knowledge (cf. Bhagavad-gita 7.17 and 11.40). Commentary by Sri Vishvanatha Chakravarthi Thakur of Gaudiya Sampradaya: “You say that this jnani attains the supreme goal. Being a devotee with a tinge of jnana, he attains you. But after how long does a jnani become qualified as a devotee?” He who possesses knowledge, seeing Vasudeva everywhere, after many births surrenders to me. Such a saintly person attains me through chance association with devotees. That jnani who is a devotee has a very steady mind (mahatma), and is very rare. As I have said, manusyanam sahasresu, out of thousands, one person may know me in truth. What to speak of the rarity then, of the kevala or ekanta bhakta? Such a person is very, very rare. Commentary by Sri Ramanuja of Sri Sampradaya: 7.19 Further after passing through innumerable auspicious births, one gets the knowledge: ‘I find my sole joy as a Sesa of Vasudeva. I find my essence, existence and activities to be dependent on Him. He is superior over all others on account of His innumerable auspicious attributes.’ Consequent to this knowledge he resorts to Me, i.e., meditates on Me, realising, ‘Vasudeva alone is my highest end and also the means for attaining it, and whatever other desire remains in the mind, He alone is all that too for me’. Such a great-souled person, i.e., great-minded man is hard to find. It is very hard to find such persons in this world. This is the only meaning of the statement that ‘Vasudeva is all,’ because of the topic having been begun with the statements: ‘For I am very dear to the man of knowledge’ (7.17) and ‘For he, integrated, is devoted to Me alone as the highest end’ (7.18). It is so, also because that Jnanin whose traits are given here, possesses the same qualities as the man of knowledge described earlier. For, it has been said that the two Prakrtis, the animate and the inanimate, have their sole essence in being the Sesa (dependants) of the Supreme Person in the verses beginning with ‘Earth, water’ (7.4) and ending with, ‘Ego-sense, thus My Prakrti is divided eightfold. This is my lower (Prakrti). But know that which is other than this (lower nature) and forms the life-principle to be the higher Prakrti’ (7.4-5). Then take the beginning from ‘I am the origin and dissolution of the whole universe. There is nothing higher than Myself, O Arjuna’ (7.6-7), and ending with, ‘Know that all the states of Sattva, Rajas and Tamas are from Me alone. But I am not in them. They are in Me’ (7.12). It has been declared in these texts that the two Prakrtis, both in their states of cause and effect, depend upon Him for their essence, existence and activities and that the Supreme Person is superior to everything in all respects. Therefore the knower of this truth alone is here spoken of as a man of knowledge or as one knowing ‘All this is Vasudeva.’ [The purpose of this explanation is to eliminate any pure monistic slant to this passage.] Sri Krsna now explains the rarity of finding such a person of knowledge. (bhagavad-gita.us/bhagavad-gita-7-19/)
Posted on: Sun, 25 Jan 2015 02:14:49 +0000
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