114 - The Two Paths of Worship| Swami Tattwamayananda
Title: The Two Paths of Worship
12th chapter: verse 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11
1st verse: Arjuna asks: “Some people worship God with name and form – they chant and pray. Others worship the imperishable, the unmanifest. Which is better?”
Arjuna’s question comes from a conflict he is facing. From earlier chapters, Arjuna knew that there are two ways of looking upon God. (1) Saguna – God with names and forms, as the creator and protector, who listens to our prayers (2) Nirguna - God as the all-pervading divine spirit, transcending names and forms. Arjuna thought he could choose between God with form or God without form.
It is not a matter of our intellectual choice. It is a matter of our own spiritual evolution. One must be spiritually ready to pursue the path of Nirguna. A philosophical conviction about the higher reality does not equate to experience or one’s readiness to pursue the higher path. Philosophical conviction helps us guard against fanaticism.
Lord Krishna talks about the journey of all spiritual seekers in his answer in the next few verses.
In the 3rd and 4th verses he says: “Those higher spiritual seekers, who have their senses under control, who are even-minded, who are fully focused on the Atman as the divine spirit within them and as the all-pervading divine reality without names and forms – they can pursue the higher path.”
Before this, in the 2nd verse, he says that those who are not ready for this higher contemplation should slowly take the graded path. They should practice rituals and go to temples – when they do this with shraddha, their mind will be absorbed in God. Then gradually, they can reach the higher path.
A beginner’s mind may not cooperate when he starts spiritual practices. This is due to accumulated samskaras which make him act in a certain manner. He may want to read a spiritual book, but the mind presents stumbling blocks – it is accustomed to things that are not conducive to spiritual life. Such a mind should be given healthy food first and turned into a friend. When the mind and senses are perfectly under control, the higher path can be pursued.
We cannot wish away our mental karmic blocks. The first path is to sublimate our mind, emotions and thoughts to God. In the 8th through 11th verse, Lord Krishna provides a descending order of the journey of spiritual seekers. In the 8th verse, he explains the highest state where one is always focused on God. For those who cannot do this, in the 9th verse, he asks them to pursue spiritual practices such as Navadha Bhakti. For those who cannot do this, in the 10th verse, he asks them to do all work for God’s sake. For those who cannot even do this, in the 11th verse, he asks them to do their normal work and offer the fruits of their work to him.
How does one know that they are on the right track? When they do something wrong, their own mind will throw a red flag. When the mind develops a self-correcting mechanism, one should know that he is on the correct track.
In the 5th verse, Lord Krishna explains the challenges associated with directly pursuing the higher path. He says: “Those who identify themselves with the body-mind complex and the empirical phenomenon, for them the path of knowledge is extremely difficult, almost impossible. It leads to self-deception.”
Some people read advaitic books and start thinking they are Brahman. They think there is no need to practice self-control. This is self-deception. Advaita is not an intellectual concept – it is a matter of experience. One has to travel some distance from a concept to experience.
Advaita does not reject rituals and devotion, which is the beginning stage of one’s spiritual journey. Shankaracharya was the greatest teacher of Advaita. The same Shankaracharya wrote the most wonderful devotional poems in Sanskrit, praising God with form.
6th verse: “There are those who perform all their duties dedicated to Me, keeping Me in their mind, who offer the fruits of all their actions to Me – they do all their secular duties as a spiritual activity.”
Our journey starts with “Work and worship, evolves to “Work as worship” and culminates in “Everything is worship.” Then all secular activities are spiritualized.
12th chapter: verse 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11
1st verse: Arjuna asks: “Some people worship God with name and form – they chant and pray. Others worship the imperishable, the unmanifest. Which is better?”
Arjuna’s question comes from a conflict he is facing. From earlier chapters, Arjuna knew that there are two ways of looking upon God. (1) Saguna – God with names and forms, as the creator and protector, who listens to our prayers (2) Nirguna - God as the all-pervading divine spirit, transcending names and forms. Arjuna thought he could choose between God with form or God without form.
It is not a matter of our intellectual choice. It is a matter of our own spiritual evolution. One must be spiritually ready to pursue the path of Nirguna. A philosophical conviction about the higher reality does not equate to experience or one’s readiness to pursue the higher path. Philosophical conviction helps us guard against fanaticism.
Lord Krishna talks about the journey of all spiritual seekers in his answer in the next few verses.
In the 3rd and 4th verses he says: “Those higher spiritual seekers, who have their senses under control, who are even-minded, who are fully focused on the Atman as the divine spirit within them and as the all-pervading divine reality without names and forms – they can pursue the higher path.”
Before this, in the 2nd verse, he says that those who are not ready for this higher contemplation should slowly take the graded path. They should practice rituals and go to temples – when they do this with shraddha, their mind will be absorbed in God. Then gradually, they can reach the higher path.
A beginner’s mind may not cooperate when he starts spiritual practices. This is due to accumulated samskaras which make him act in a certain manner. He may want to read a spiritual book, but the mind presents stumbling blocks – it is accustomed to things that are not conducive to spiritual life. Such a mind should be given healthy food first and turned into a friend. When the mind and senses are perfectly under control, the higher path can be pursued.
We cannot wish away our mental karmic blocks. The first path is to sublimate our mind, emotions and thoughts to God. In the 8th through 11th verse, Lord Krishna provides a descending order of the journey of spiritual seekers. In the 8th verse, he explains the highest state where one is always focused on God. For those who cannot do this, in the 9th verse, he asks them to pursue spiritual practices such as Navadha Bhakti. For those who cannot do this, in the 10th verse, he asks them to do all work for God’s sake. For those who cannot even do this, in the 11th verse, he asks them to do their normal work and offer the fruits of their work to him.
How does one know that they are on the right track? When they do something wrong, their own mind will throw a red flag. When the mind develops a self-correcting mechanism, one should know that he is on the correct track.
In the 5th verse, Lord Krishna explains the challenges associated with directly pursuing the higher path. He says: “Those who identify themselves with the body-mind complex and the empirical phenomenon, for them the path of knowledge is extremely difficult, almost impossible. It leads to self-deception.”
Some people read advaitic books and start thinking they are Brahman. They think there is no need to practice self-control. This is self-deception. Advaita is not an intellectual concept – it is a matter of experience. One has to travel some distance from a concept to experience.
Advaita does not reject rituals and devotion, which is the beginning stage of one’s spiritual journey. Shankaracharya was the greatest teacher of Advaita. The same Shankaracharya wrote the most wonderful devotional poems in Sanskrit, praising God with form.
6th verse: “There are those who perform all their duties dedicated to Me, keeping Me in their mind, who offer the fruits of all their actions to Me – they do all their secular duties as a spiritual activity.”
Our journey starts with “Work and worship, evolves to “Work as worship” and culminates in “Everything is worship.” Then all secular activities are spiritualized.
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