Sri Guru Gita – 28 July 2014 – Episode 218

Jaya Guru Datta Pujya Appaji_/\_!!
Happy Somavara prostrations at the Lotus feet of Our Shivaswaroopa Sadgurudeva on successful completion of 128th Vijaya Dharma Yatra_/\_!!

Jaya Guru Datta. Episode summary:

When Arjuna stood in the battlefield and saw in front of him his relatives, fathers, grandfathers and Gurus, he was overcome with sorrow and dropped his bow (Arjuna’s bow is called Gandeeva), refusing to fight the battle. Everyone that has read the Bhagavad Gita knows this. Saying, “There are so many relatives, I cannot do this. I cannot fight them”, he threw away his weapons. He sacrificed them. Recognizing his own weakness, he sought refuge in Lord Krishna praying to him to teach him his duty. If Arjuna had not done this, we perhaps would not have had the expansive Bhagavad Gita and this great teaching today. Arjuna was wondering why this was happening to him. The one who pleaded with Krishna saying, “I want to fight, I want to fight, I need to earn my kingdom back, I need to punish the wicked, please help me”, who even left for the battlefield and got ready to fight, is now unwilling to fight when the battle is about to start. What has come over Arjuna now?

He threw away all his weapons, saying he did not want any weapons, that he could not fight the battle. He sought refuge in Lord Krishna and prayed to him to teach him his duty and said, “What are my weaknesses and faults? Why I am wavering? Please help me recognize my faults and teach me my duty”. What did Arjuna say? He said, “I am your disciple. Do not think of me as your relative now. Even though I am your relative, I am your disciple. Because, I am wallowing in ignorance, please grant me knowledge. I am running around in darkness, please shed some light. I am your disciple, O Lord, O Guru, O Sadguru. You are the Guru to all the worlds. You are the Jagadguru (Guru to the universe). I am immersed in sorrow and attachments. Please help me walk the right path. I am filled with sorrow because I have to kill so many people. I am filled with attachment. These are my relatives, my uncles, grandfathers. How can I kill them? He is my older brother, how can I kill him? He is my little brother. How can I kill him? I cannot do this. I cannot kill them. I am immersed in attachment. I am drowned in sorrow. Please help me walk the good path. Please teach me my duty”. Today the Bhagavad Gita is such an ideal for us. It is a wonderful scripture. It is a great teaching. Everybody born as a human being, every single person, in all countries across the world, should read the Bhagavad Gita, should study the Bhagavad Gita and should follow the Bhagavad Gita. This is a must. Unless this happens, our country will not prosper. When one does not follow the Bhagavad Gita, there will be no peace. People should follow Bhagavad Gita to the extent possible. The Lord taught it in a way that’s appropriate for every body, in every stage of life.

That is why Bhagavad Gita is a very sacred scripture for us. When Arjuna surrendered himself completely, Sri Krishna accepted the position of Guru and taught him. Until now, he acted only as a relative. Of course, all acts are carried out by the Lord himself. The one who acted as a relative, the one who acted as friend, the one who promised to support him in earning his kingdom back and doing him good is now the Sadguru who accepted the position of Guru to teach him his duty. Using Arjuna as the proxy, he taught this world the Gita.

To summarize various philosophies describing the Guru, it says,
“Anapekshah Suchih Dakshah Karunamrita Sagaram”

One who is proficient in the Vedas and all scriptures, one who is firmly established in the knowledge, one who views everyone as equal, one who has the ability to teach the disciple in a way that he understands, one who is compassionate towards the disciple and wants to uplift him, such a person is Guru.

Jaya Guru Datta.