In this excerpt from the 13th Chapter of the Bhagavad Gita, in the Light of Kashmir Shaivism Swami Lakshmanjoo explains what is puruṣa and what is prakṛti and what are these guṇas by which we are played by. (In Kashmir Shaivism prakṛti and puruṣa are very different from their meaning in Vedanta.)
Swamiji says, “Anyone who fortunately understands what is puruṣa and what is prakṛti and what are these guṇas by which I was kicked by, played by prakṛti, sarvathā, if he knows, if he comes to this understanding, then he remains away, he remains aloof from prakṛti. He does not allow prakṛti to touch him!” ~Swami Lakshmanjoo
पुरुषः प्रकृतिस्थो हि भुङ्क्ते प्रकृतिजान्गुणान् ।
कारणं गुणसङ्गोऽस्य सदसद्योनिजन्मसु ॥२२॥
puruṣaḥ prakṛtistho hi bhuṅkte prakṛtijānguṇān /
kāraṇaṁ guṇasaṅgo’sya sadasadyonijanmasu // 22//
Puruṣa, actually puruṣa is dependent on prakṛti, and bhuṅkte prakṛti jānguṇān, he enjoys the three guṇas (three guṇas means just that worldly creation*) and he just goes on enjoying the worldly creation. Sometimes with sattva guṇa, sometimes with raja guṇa, and sometimes [with tama guṇa], and he is sometimes happy, sometimes painful, sometimes . . .
DENISE: Unconscious.
SWAMIJI: . . . unconscious. Sukha, duḥkha, and moha, these are the three guṇas: sukha is from sāttvic, duḥkha is from rajas, moha is from tamas.
Moha means, “zzzzzz [snoring].” This is moha.
Duḥkha is activity, e.g., going to the cinema, going to play ball, baseball, whatever ball he plays, that is rajas.
And sukha is sāttvic, e.g., when he is seated and prays to God, at that time it is sāttvic.
And as long as puruṣa is attached to the guṇas, the three guṇas, it conducts for him sadasad yoni janmasu, aneke (aneke means numberless births and deaths), numberless births and deaths are produced for him because he deserves that. And he never gets away from this, this grabbing [i.e., attachment by which] he is caught.408
Upadraṣṭānumantāca, and in the long run, there is another being, that is Parabhairava . . .
उपद्रष्टानुमन्ता च भर्ता भोक्ता महेश्वरः ।
परमात्मेति चाप्युक्तो देहेऽस्मिन्पुरुषः परः ॥२३॥
upadraṣṭānumantā ca bhartā bhoktā maheśvaraḥ /
paramātmeti cāpyukto dehe’sminpuruṣaḥ paraḥ // 23//
Upadraṣṭā, [the one] who is witnessing, what is going on, what is this damn thing going on, [i.e. happening] to puruṣa, and he is tossed [around] with prakṛti, upadraṣṭā, He sees, He observes, He witnesses, anumantā ca, and He thinks how far he [puruṣa] is entangled by prakṛti, and He is Himself Maheśvara, Parabhairava, paramātma. Paramātma means supreme being. Deha asmin puruṣaḥ, and He is also existing in deha (body) and observing what is happening to that [puruṣa]. Both are [there]; one is above that and one is entangled in prakṛti.
Now, there are some, a few, who are, who have been graced by the śaktipāta of Parabhairava.
य एवं वेत्ति पुरुषं प्रकृतिं च गुणैः सह ।
सर्वथा वर्तमानोऽपि न स भूयोऽभिजायते ॥१४॥
ya evaṁ vetti puruṣaṁ prakṛtiṁ ca guṇaiḥ saha /
sarvathā vartamāno’pi na sa bhūyo’bhijāyate // 24//
Anyone who fortunately understands what is puruṣa and what is prakṛti and what are these guṇas by which I was kicked by, played by prakṛti, sarvathā, if he knows, if he comes to this understanding, then he remains away, he remains aloof from prakṛti. He does not allow prakṛti to touch him!
Sarvathā vartamāno’pi na sa bhūyo’bhijāyate, he is established in the state of Parabhairava and he is mukta.
JONATHAN: So he can only become aware of that in samādhi though?
SWAMIJI: Yes.
So there are such people . . . it is not meant that only by/in samādhi they will understand Him.
_________________________
*”The guṇas are the agitated formation of prakṛti.” Swami Lakshmanjoo, Tantrāloka 9:230, USF archive.
408. “Kāraṇaṁ guṇa saṇgo’sya, the cause of enjoyment, enjoying the three dishes [i.e., three guṇas], is only the attachment for those enjoyments. This attachment for enjoyments becomes the cause of his enjoying these dishes, sat asat yoni janmasu, by which he goes either to hell or to heaven, or to liberation, or to higher worlds.” Swami Lakshmanjoo, Bhagavad Gītā audio, USF archive.
Source: Bhagavad Gita, in the Light of Kashmir Shaivism by Swami Lakshmanjoo
All Content is subject to Copyright © John Hughes.
Write a comment: