In the previous chapter 3 Lord Krihna revealed the secrets of the doctrine called the Knowledge of Brahma as expounded in the Upanishads.
Now begins Chapter 4. This time the beginning is made, not by a question asked by Arjun. It is Lord Krishna who takes over in continuation of what he had expounded so far.
Lord Krishna says,
"I first revealed this doctrine to Vivaswan of the dynasty of the Sun. Vivaswan proffered it to the forefather of humanity : Manu. Manu spoke of it to the forefather of the dynasty of Ishwaku. In this way a tradition came to be formed and many great sage-like kings came to know it. Then with the passage of time, this great philosophy of Yoga got almost extinct. It is the same age-old philosophy of Yoga that I gave you here. because you are devoted to me as a friend and a follower.
Arjun said,"My dear, you were born with me, whereas Vivaswan existed aeons ago. How can we say that it was you who revealed it back then to Vivaswan?"
Lord Krishna said, "Both you and I have been born several times and died in the past, Arjun. I have knowledge of all of them, but you have no memory of them. I am not governed by the limitations of births and deaths. I am neither born, nor do I die. My essence is not expended. I am whole. I am Spirit, unfragmented. I have knowledge of , and control over all living beings. I take on earthly life in accordance with the law of Nature because I am the embodiment of the law of Nature..
Whenever the law of Divine Nature is eclipsed ( when its light is dimmed), I incarnate to eradicate deviation from the order of Law. I am born in each aeon, each era of time and civilizations to protect the godly beings (the sages), and to destroy the evil-doers. I restore the foundations of Divine Law in every age. My birth and my Karma are divinely ordained. The one who understands the essence of this secret governing my life, he leaves this body with this knowledge in his heart. Thereafter he is not subject to birth in this earthly realm again. He comes to me and merges with me.
There have been many who thus became merged with me. They were free of the sway of destructive passions and anger. I was the only refuge for them There were many who were purified in the fire of austerity of knowledge. They attained to the essence of my being.
The spirit in which my followers worship me decides how I take them into me. The humanity follows my path instinctively. On this earth whatever you wish to achieve has to be pursued with a certain kind of effort. People have different kinds of aims in mind and with those desires they follow different kinds of deities. In this worldly life, that is the secret of achieving what you want. In this life you have to work to achieve your goal, and if you work in the right direction ( that is, keeping in your heart the deity which governs the realization of your particular goal) the success is achieved soon.
This world naturally falls into four categories by virtue of the capacities and the capabilities of individual beings. Since I, as the Supreme Deity, govern the three Gunas, that is the three natural propensities of humans as purity, quietude (Sattva), Dynamism,energy (Rajas), and ignorance, sloth (Tamas), you may say that I have created the four divisions of society, and also remember in your mind that I, the Indivisible, am not in any of them as their creator. These categories arise naturally because of the varied degrees of combinations of capacities and capabilities of individuals. As for me, I am not smeared by any karma, nor do I have a desire to work in order to achieve anything in particular. The one who has this insight into me, transcends the binding of karma. Many in the past have realized this, my essence, and they have lived their life in accordance with that knowledge.They were on the path of emancipation from the bondage of Karma. In the same way, I exhort you to perform your karma just as the forefathers have performed whatever karma had befallen them as their lot in life.
Now begins Chapter 4. This time the beginning is made, not by a question asked by Arjun. It is Lord Krishna who takes over in continuation of what he had expounded so far.
Lord Krishna says,
"I first revealed this doctrine to Vivaswan of the dynasty of the Sun. Vivaswan proffered it to the forefather of humanity : Manu. Manu spoke of it to the forefather of the dynasty of Ishwaku. In this way a tradition came to be formed and many great sage-like kings came to know it. Then with the passage of time, this great philosophy of Yoga got almost extinct. It is the same age-old philosophy of Yoga that I gave you here. because you are devoted to me as a friend and a follower.
Arjun said,"My dear, you were born with me, whereas Vivaswan existed aeons ago. How can we say that it was you who revealed it back then to Vivaswan?"
Lord Krishna said, "Both you and I have been born several times and died in the past, Arjun. I have knowledge of all of them, but you have no memory of them. I am not governed by the limitations of births and deaths. I am neither born, nor do I die. My essence is not expended. I am whole. I am Spirit, unfragmented. I have knowledge of , and control over all living beings. I take on earthly life in accordance with the law of Nature because I am the embodiment of the law of Nature..
Whenever the law of Divine Nature is eclipsed ( when its light is dimmed), I incarnate to eradicate deviation from the order of Law. I am born in each aeon, each era of time and civilizations to protect the godly beings (the sages), and to destroy the evil-doers. I restore the foundations of Divine Law in every age. My birth and my Karma are divinely ordained. The one who understands the essence of this secret governing my life, he leaves this body with this knowledge in his heart. Thereafter he is not subject to birth in this earthly realm again. He comes to me and merges with me.
There have been many who thus became merged with me. They were free of the sway of destructive passions and anger. I was the only refuge for them There were many who were purified in the fire of austerity of knowledge. They attained to the essence of my being.
The spirit in which my followers worship me decides how I take them into me. The humanity follows my path instinctively. On this earth whatever you wish to achieve has to be pursued with a certain kind of effort. People have different kinds of aims in mind and with those desires they follow different kinds of deities. In this worldly life, that is the secret of achieving what you want. In this life you have to work to achieve your goal, and if you work in the right direction ( that is, keeping in your heart the deity which governs the realization of your particular goal) the success is achieved soon.
This world naturally falls into four categories by virtue of the capacities and the capabilities of individual beings. Since I, as the Supreme Deity, govern the three Gunas, that is the three natural propensities of humans as purity, quietude (Sattva), Dynamism,energy (Rajas), and ignorance, sloth (Tamas), you may say that I have created the four divisions of society, and also remember in your mind that I, the Indivisible, am not in any of them as their creator. These categories arise naturally because of the varied degrees of combinations of capacities and capabilities of individuals. As for me, I am not smeared by any karma, nor do I have a desire to work in order to achieve anything in particular. The one who has this insight into me, transcends the binding of karma. Many in the past have realized this, my essence, and they have lived their life in accordance with that knowledge.They were on the path of emancipation from the bondage of Karma. In the same way, I exhort you to perform your karma just as the forefathers have performed whatever karma had befallen them as their lot in life.
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