“This is my new commentary on this Bhagavad Gita.” Swami Lakshmanjoo exclaims as he tells us what we should do when eating and while experiencing śabda (sound), sparśa (touch), rupa (form) . . . all of the sensual pleasures.
In sensual pleasures, what should you do?
DVD 6.2 (23:22)
Chapter 6, verse 18
युक्ताहारविहारस्य युक्तचेष्टस्य कर्मसु ।
युक्तस्वप्नावबोधस्य योगो भवति दुःखहा ॥१८॥
yuktāhāravihārasya yuktaceṣṭasya karmasu /
yuktasvapnāvabodhasya yogo bhavati duhkhahā //18//
Although this verse of the Bhagavad Gītā by Vyāsa is complete,186 but Abhinavagupta has not commentated upon it as I would commentate upon this śloka. I will tell you his commentary, his first commentary, [which he gave] in his first life.
Āhāra means āhriyamāṇeṣu viṣayeṣu [comm.], when you will go here and there–this is āhāra. Yuktāhāra does not [only] mean eating. Yuktāhāra means śabda (sound), sparśa (touch), rupa (form) . . . all of the sensual pleasures.
In sensual pleasures, what should you do?
Keep it on one side, vihāra. Vihāra means vihāraḥ upa-bhogāya pravṛttiḥ; vihāra means to enjoy sensual objects. This was Abhinavagupta’s first commentary.
Tasyāśca yuktatvaṁ. Yukta means, na ātyantā saktiḥ na ātyanta parivarjanam, you should not be a slave to those enjoyments. Neither should you become a slave nor should you renounce them. Renunciation is also not good and to be a slave to those enjoyments, that is also not good. That is yukta, yuktatva.
Evaṁ sarvatra, in this way you should commentate upon these ślokas of Vyāsa. This is Abhinavagupta’s first commentary.
But I don’t appreciate this kind of [explanation].
Yuktāhāra. Yuktāhāra means take food! Go on taking food, as much food as you can take, go on taking it but keep awareness in it. While taking food, offer it to your own God–that is yuktāhāra. Yuktāhāra means when you eat food, go on eating it with awareness, go on focusing on its taste. Which taste? The taste of whatever you eat . . . and there will be one-pointedness. Maintain one-pointedness while eating. Maintain one-pointedness–it is my commentary, my amendment–maintain one-pointedness in sleeping. You can sleep but maintain one-pointedness in sleeping, be aware while sleeping. If you sleep, be aware! Don’t be just like a sluggish bear sleeping. Put the trick of yoga into it.
This is my new commentary on this Bhagavad Gītā.
Yuktāhāra vihārasya yuktaceṣṭasya karmasu. When you have to do activities of the daily routine of your life, do all of the daily routine of life, but don’t lose your internal yoga. At the same time, you [should] go on practicing inside.
DENISE: You mean watching your breath.
SWAMIJI: Watching your breath and don’t be taken by these activities of life, the daily routine of life.
Yukta svapnā, and when you dream, go into dreams with awareness. When you dream, you will enter into samādhi at the time of dreaming state; you won’t go into the dreaming state. At that time, you will go into samādhi while dreaming.
Yukta svapna āvabodhasya, and when you are awake, be awake with yoga. Yogo bhavati duḥkha, then yoga is very easy; everywhere yoga is available to you. This is my commentary, new commentary. And this is Abhinavagupta’s new commentary. You should know that. So I had to [make an] amendment on this commentary.
yogo’sti naivātyaśato na caikāntamanaśnataḥ /
na cātisvapnaśīlasya nātijāgarato’rjuna //17// [repeated]
Yukta means yujaryoge. According to Pāṇini’s grammar, yukta means “with yoga”. Attach yoga to all of your activities of the daily routine of life and yoga will be very easily achieved. Yoga cannot be achieved [by remaining] in one corner. If you lock your door from the outside and sit, you will just be wasting your time inside. You will be . . . “idles workshop is demons . . .” what?
DENISE: Idle mind is the devil’s workshop?
JONATHAN: Devil’s playground. Idle workshop is the devil’s playground.
SWAMIJI: Yes.
Don’t do like that. Come out in the field and see yoga!
____________
186 “Then who is the real yogī then? Yuktāhāravihārasya, you should take food in less quantity. You should do your worldly activity, [but] very little activity. Don’t become victim of your business. Yuktaceṣṭasya karmasu, don’t think too much. Think very little. Not thinking at all, anything, that is not [advisable either]–yoga won’t take place. Think a little. Think of something, but not too much. Yuktasvapnāvabodhasya, and go to dreaming state also, but not always. Yogo bhavati duhkha, for that person, yoga becomes successful and very easy to be obtained. Those actions should be done in moderate way. Don’t see pictures day and night, always. See pictures after a fortnight. That is good, that will lead you to yoga. But [if you are] not seeing pictures at all, [then] those pictures will leak in your mind then, and you will be filled with pictures in your mind. So do something, but very little, in moderation. Don’t be too much attached to it [and] don’t be detached to it at the same time. Detachment [and] attachment should be done moderately, in a moderate way.” Ibid.
Source: Chapter 6, verse 18 of Bhagavad Gita, in the Light of Kashmir Shaivism,
revealed by Swami Lakshmanjoo
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