Digitized by the Internet Arciiive in 2007 with funding from IVIicrosoft Corporation http://www.archive.org/details/bhagavadgitaorsaOOdavirich TRUBNER'S ORIENTAL SERIES. THE BHAGAYAD GITA; OR, THE SACRED LAY. A SANSKRIT PHILOSOPHICAL POEM. TRANSLATED, WITH NOTES, JOHN DA VIES, M.A. (Cantab.) MEMBER OF THE ROYAL ASIATIC SOCIETY, OF THE CAMBRIDGE PHILOLOGICAL SOCIETY, ETC., AND (SOMETIME) RECTOR OF WALSOKEN, NORFOLK. THIRD EDITION. Lo; KEGAN PAUL, TRENCH, TRUBNER, & CO. L^:^^ PATERNOSTER HOUSE, CHARING CROSS ROAD. 1893. 730 t>€dl R -SE n The rights of translation and of reproduction are reserved. CONTENTS. Introduction Translation : — READING I. THE DESPONDENCY OF AR JUNA , II. THE SANKHTA-YOGA (DOCTRINE) III. DEVOTION BY WORK . IV. THE DEVOTION OF KNOWLEDGE. V. DEVOTION BY RENOUNCING WORKS VL DEVOTION BY SELF-RESTRAINT . VII. DEVOTION THROUGH SPIRITUAL DISCERNMENT VIIT. DEVOTION TO THE SUPREME ETERNAL BRAHMA IX. DEVOTION THROUGH THE ROYAL KNOWLEDGE AND THE ROYAL MYSTERY X. DEVOTION BY THE DIVINE PERFECTIONS . XI. THE MANIFESTATION OF THE UNIVERSAL FORM XIL THE DEVOTION OF WORSHIP .... XIIL DEVOTION BY THE SEPARATION OF MATTER AND SPIRIT XIV. DEVOTION BY SEPARATION FROM THE THREE MODES XV. DEVOTION IN ATTAINING TO THE HIGHEST BEING . PAGB I 19 32 47 58 68 75 86 94 102 no 120 131 136 144 150 136154 i CONTENTS, BEADING PACK XVI. DEVOTION WITH REGARD TO THE SEPARATE STATE OF GODS AND ASURAS 155 XVII. DEVOTION BY THE THREEFOLD KINDS OF FAITH . l6l XVIII. DEVOTION IN DELIVERANCE AND RENUNCIATION . 1 68 APPENDIX. I. ON THE DATE AT WHICH THE BHAGAVAD GITA WAS PRO- BABLY WRITTEN, AND ON THE THEORY THAT IT WAS WRITTEN UNDER AN INFLUENCE DERIVED FROM A KNOWLEDGE OF CHRISTIAN DOCTRINES . . . l8l II. THE TRADITIONARY LINE OF DESCENT OF THE LUNAR DYNASTY 202 III. COLLATipX OF TWO MSS. WITH THE BONN EDITION OF THE BHAGAVAD GiTA, AND THE READINGS OF OTHER EDITIONS AND MSS. . . .... 204 INTRODUCTION. The Bliagavad Gita is a poem, written in the usual verse- form of the Hindu epic poems, and is an episode in the sixth book, or Bhishma Parvan, of the Mahabharata, an epic poem devoted mainly to the deeds of the rival princes, who, though descended from a common ancestor, Kuru, fought as Kauravas and Pandavas for the kingdom of which Hastinapura was the capital. The facts which pre- ceded the opening scene of the poem are briefly these : — Dhritarashtra and Pandu, the sons of Vvasa, were broucjht up, after the death of their father, by their uncle Bhishma, who carried on, in their minority, the government of Hastinapura. Dhritarashtra was the first-born, but being blind, he renounced the kingdom in favour of Pandu. The former married Gandhari, daughter of Subala, king of Gandhara, and had one hundred sons, of whom Dur- yodhana was the eldest. Pandu married Kunti, also called Pritha, the daughter of a Yadava prince, Siira, who gave her in charge to his childless cousin, Kuntibhoja. She bore three sons, Yudishthira, Bhima, and Arjuna; the eldest (Yudishthira), being born before Duryodliana, was installed by Dhritarashtra as Yuvaraja, or heir-apparent,^ 1 Other traditions represent that a tarashtra, and to Yudhishthira was compromise was subsequently made, given a territory of which Indra- by which the kingdom of Hastinil- prastha, on the river Yamuna, was pura was given to the sons of Dhri- the capital A 2 INTRODUCTION. and soon distinguished himself by his warlike exploits, in which his brothers assisted him. The renown which the Pandu princes acquired excited in Dhritarashtra and his son Duryodhana a jealous desire to supplant them. The latter formed a plan to destroy them by setting fire to their house, and to obtain the throne for himself. This plan failed, and then he plotted with a skilful dice-player, called Sakuni, to take advantage of Yudishthira's love of gambling, and by leading him to stake his kingdom, to win it from him. Dhritarashtra was induced to call an assembly (sabha) at Hastinapura, which the Pandavas were invited to attend. They came, and Duryodhana persuaded Yudishthira to play with Sakuni. He consented, and in the excitement of the game he staked successively his kingdom, his private possessions, and then his wife, Draupadl. He lost them all, and Draupadl was seized, and treated with great indignity as a slave. A compromise was, however, ma(^r Duryodhana was to have the kingdom for twelve years, and during this time the five Pandavas (including two sons, Nakula and Sahadeva, whose mother was Madri) were to live in exile. When the time of exile had expired, they determined to regain their kingdom by force; for Duryodhana, who is represented as being crafty and un- principled, refused to restore it. Each party made prepa- rations for the contest, and sought to gain allies among the neighbouring kings. A large army was collected by each, the army of Duryodhana being commanded by his great-uncle Bhishma, and that of the Pandavas by Bhima, the second son of Pandu and Kunti. The two armies met on_the sacred plain, the plain of the Kurus, and were drawn up in array against each other. ^ / ''^ INTRODUCTION. It is at this point that our poem begins. Arjuna occupies his war-chariot as one of the leaders of the Pandavan host, and Krishna, disguised in human form,_Js his siita, or charioteer. Then, looking upon the two hosts, in each of which he had many relatives, the fortitude of Arjuna gave way. He directed his charioteer to drive "between the two armies, that he might regard them more closely. Krishna obeyed the command, and Arjuna, overcome by pity and sorrow at the idea of killing his kinsmen, let fall his bow and arrow, and refused to fight_^. Here the first book closes, and Krishna, who makes himself known at length as the Supreme Spirit {Paramdt- man), meets the objections of Arjuna by unfolding a philosophical system, which is a skilful union of the systems of Kapila and Patanjali, with a large admixture of the prevailing Brahmanic doctrines, ^ts base is the theistic form of the Sankhya, as set forth by Patanjali, and this treats mainly of the One Supreme Being, eternal, infinite, the source and maintainer of all things, in whom all things are from time to time absorbed at the end of a Jcalpa, or period of creation ; and of man, compounded of soul and body, whose highest state is a profound abstraction from all external things and union by meditation (i/oga) with the Supreme. This is com- pleted for ever by nirvana, or absorption into the very nature of Brahma, as a drop of water is absorbed or lost in the sea. In the Bhagavad Gita the Supreme Being is represented under five different forms or manifestations of being: — (i.) As Adhydtman, or Supreme Si^irit: this spiritual essence is his proper nature (swahJidva). In his relation to gods and men he is (2.) the Supreme Deity (Adhidaiva), as being both their origin and their ruler. 4 INTRODUCTION. Of the existing kosmos, including men and mere forms of matter, he is (3.) the Indivisible (AJcsJiara), the living energy which animates all living things, in which form he is sometimes called Jlvctbhuta, the Principle of Life ; and (4.) the Divisible {Kshard), the limited and various forms or individualities of men and things. Lastly, as the object and cause of religion, he is called (5.) the Lord of Sacrifice {Adhiyajna), and in this respect he is incarnated as Krishna, since it is difficult for flesh-encumbered mortals to rise to the conception and worship of a purely spiritual being (viii. 3, 4). As the Supreme Deity, Adhidaiva, he is also called Purusha, which means both soul and a male being, for in this form he is the creator of gods and men. This is a wide departure from the system of Kapila, who limited his speculations to the visible world, and what might be inferred by human reason, or known by the facts of consciousness. Like Fichte, he held apparently that man can know nothing above himself by any mental effort of his own, and can therefore have no direct know- ledge of God. Sacrifice and religious worship found, therefore, no place in his system, or if it was accepted for some reason apart from his system, it was subordinate in itself and its results to philosophical knowledge. The author of the Gita takes a wholly different position on the question of a Supreme Being, and approaches more nearly the Vedantist system ; but yet he differs very widely from the commonly received doctrines and ritual, (^n his view the Supreme Being is One, without a rival, without such attributes as were assigned to the gods in the popular belief, and unstained by any of their passions or vices. Trom whatever source his ideas were derived, whether INTRODUCTION. 5 from some knowledge which came from a system lying wholly apart from the Hindu creed, or from tlie working of his own mind, he rose here to a height of conception far beyond the level of his age or his race. # The unity of the divine nature was not wholly unknown to the Hindu mind, but practically this idea was buried under a mass of ritual, whose offices were assigned to many gods, of vary- ing degrees of power and goodness. The One Supreme Spirit appears, indeed, incarnate as Krishna, and here our author's Brahmanic training appears ; but in his proper spiritual nature he is " the supreme Brahma, the supreme abode, the highest purification (the holiest of the holy, Telang), the Eternal Creative Power (Purusha), Divine, the Lord of Gods, Unborn, the mighty Lord (Vibhu)" (x. 12). He is the source of all things, whether spirit or matter, the efficient and material cause of the whole universe. Here our author comes very near the pure Pantheism of the common Hindi! creed. All souls are a part of Brahma's spiritual ' nature, individuated by their connection with bodily forms ; but yet, having issued from him, they re- turn, at least in their highest state, to him, to be absorbed in his infinite being. The existence and the immortality of the soul are asserted as truths which could be denied only by narrow-minded worldlings, in whom the pleasures of the senses had dulled every nobler faculty. The soul never began to be ; it can never die, nor can it ever grow old (ii. 12, 13). At the death of the body, which is only the soul's fleshly covering, it enters into a new body. Taking with it the subtle body {lingo), a surrounding frame composed of the subtler forms of matter, with this it enters another womb, where only the coarser animal frame is developed. This latter utterly perishes when the soul 6 INTRODUCTION. abandons it. The doctrine of metempsychosis, or trans- migration of souls, is therefore distinctly taught. It is a doctrine which, more than any other, has gained a general acceptance in Eastern countries : it belongs equally to the system of Kapila and the most advanced Vedantist school. The Supreme Being is also the source of all material existences (x. 2, xiv. 3). In his exposition of this doc- trine our author differs widely from the Sankhya system, and from the Mimansa or Yedantist view. Kapila taught that Prakriti (Nature) was the material source of all beings or corporeal forms; soul being entirely distinct and eternal both as to the future and the past. In the Vedantist school all bodily forms or material existences are mere illusion (mdijd) ; a temporary appearance, like an image of the moon in water, with which it has pleased the One Sole Being to veil for a time his purely spiritual nature. The watchword of this school is adwaita, or " non-dualism." Its creed is simplicity itself. In the Chhandogya Upanishad (iii. 14) it is thus exi:)ressed : " All the universe is Brahma ; from him it proceeds ; into him it is dissolved ; in him it breatlies." It is comprised in the simple formula, Ekam evddiuitnjam, " One thing (essence) only, without a second." There is therefore properly neither cause nor effect. All that exists, or that seems to exist, is only Brahma. The difficult, or rather the impossible, problem of the origin of matter and of existing forms is set aside by a mere negation of matter, the only existence being the One Eternal Spirit. Here is a doc- trine which lies in the absolutely opposite pole to that of many modem scientists, who can see in the varied forms of existence, and in the will, the intellect, and the affec- tions of men, only different phases of matter. The system INTRODUCTION. 7 of our author, however, did not accord with any of these. In his view, Prakriti, or material N'ature, was a part of the Supreme Being, in whom there was a duality in this respect, Prakriti being his lower nature. The term which Kapila applied to primeval matter, the v\r] of the Greeks — Avyalda, the Unmanifested or Undeveloped — is assigned to this element of the divine nature (ix. 4) ; hence all things are said to be from him (x. 8) ; all things are said to be in him, but he is not in them, i.e., as a spiritual being ; in that which gives him his peculiar name he is not in them. He is, however, in all as the Principle of Life (jlvabhuta), the living energy by which all beings are animated (vii. 5); the undivided spiritual force which corresponds to the ani- ma mundi of Western philosophers. Hence there are said to be two spiritual existences {'purusTia) in the world, the Divided, or the individual soul in each body, and the Undivided, the universal, vital principle referred to. " But," it is added, " there is another Spirit (purusha), the Highest, called the Supreme Soul " (paramdtman) ; and Krishna, speaking as of this Supreme Being, con- tinues : " Wherefore, since I surpass the Divided and am above the Undivided, I am called in the world and in the Vedasthe Highest Spirit" (jmrushoUama) (xv. 13, 17, 18). The Yedantist, who admits only one existence, affirms that the Jivabhiita, or Principle of Life, and the Paramatman, or Supreme Spirit, are absolutely one and the same; for the whole phenomenal world, and that which animates it, are only manifestations, and, with regard to phenomena, illusive manifestations, of the One Being. Tiie Yedantist doctrine of illusion (mdya), which denies all true reality to the phenomenal world, is of late introduction. The 8 INTRODUCTION. jlr word appears in the Gita, but not in the Yedantist sense. The outer world is an illusion, not because it has no real existence, but because it veils the Spiritual Being who pervades all things ; and men are thus deluded so far as to maintain that nothing exists except that which meets the senses. " I am not manifest to every one," Krishna says, "being enveloped by my mystic illusion. This deluded world does not recognise Me, the Unborn and Eternal" (vii. 25). This Supreme Spirit is, then, the source of all existences, whether spiritual or material ; they are portions of him- self, but they are separate existences for the present, being divided by the limits of corporeal existence. All souls are from him, and their highest happiness is to be reabsorbed into his essence. How, then, can this great blessing, this highest of all blessings, be obtained ? Here, in: answering this question, the method of our author is, in the main, that of Patanjali ; differing from Kapila, who taught that the soul gained an eternal deliverance from matter by gaining a knowledge of itself, in knowing both soul and matter ; and from the common Vedantist view, in giving an objective reality to material forms, and thus making the separation of the imprisoned soul more dis- tinctly expressed. The Yedantist, however, is compelled to speak of bodily forms as if they were realities. In the Atmabodha (Knowledge of the Soul), attributed to San- kara, the soul is spoken of as being enveloped in five investing sheaths, and as being divested of them "by force of meditation."^ Here the writer seems to be in- fluenced by the system of the Bhagavad Gita, and a commentary on the book is ascribed to him; but the ^ Indian Wisdom, p. 120. INTRODUCTION. g. common Hindu idea of gaining any blessing is by sacri- fice and ritual. Though Brahmans speak of deliverance (moJcsha), it is difficult to give a consistent meaning to the word, for the phenomenal world only exists in appear- ance, and every soul is even now absolutely one with, or part of, the One sole Existence. In the system of Patan- jali, the union of the soul with the Supreme is the result of long-continued pious meditation. An elaborate system of rules is provided, by which the passions may be sub- dued, the soul may be kept in a state of complete indif- ference with regard to external things, and fixed in medi- tation on the Supreme. A very exalted idea, but too high for human nature to carry out to perfection. Yet it was supposed that a state might be attained even here in which the soul would rise above the control or the limitations of the body, and become, in a certain sense, incorporeal (videha). Our author had evidently been trained in the school of Patanjali, or had studied his system with admiration. His own views of the nature and powers of the soul are very elevated, and are grandly expressed (c. ii.) The soul is immortal ; it is capable of rising to communion with God; its highest state is to enjoy that communion ; its proper destiny is to return to that eternal source from which it sprung and be lost in Him. The man who leaves even his wife and children and goes as a recluse (muni) to the recesses of a forest, that in silence and solitude he may meditate on the Supreme with unfailing devotion, has attained to the highest state of man. But it is evident that this over- strained ideality is not suited to the mass of mankind, and that it is incompatible with the duties that our several relationships bring upon us. It is an idea, an aspiration, lo INTRODUCTION. that has fascinated many noble minds, without the pale of the Christian Church as well as within it. But in India, as in Europe, the attempt to rise above our human nature / has resulted only in failure. The Yogin, or devotee, ) became a mere hypocrite or charlatan, leading an idle life, j and supporting himself by a useless show of religious \ austerities or by more immoral devices. This result seems to have been manifest in our author's time. The true system of yoga had been lost, and must be revived. But the disciple differed from his master in one im- portant point. He saw that the pure abstraction of a religious devotee was not possible for all men, and that it was opposed to the just claims of family and caste. He contended still that mental devotion (hvddhiyoga) was the best, but that devotion by work (Jmrmayoga) might also lead to the OTcat blessincr of nirvana. But all work must be done without " attachment " (the Sanskrit term sanga having the same double meaning as this word), that is, it must be done simply as duty, with- out any emotion, with indifference to all attendant cir- cumstances, and especially without any desire for reward {pTiala, fruit). To do even religious acts in the hope of fjaininfT heaven,^ even the heaven of Indra, bound the soul still to the prison of the body in successive births. Its highest destiny, absorption into the Supreme Being, might be gained, or at least promoted, by works, but the neces- sary condition of such works was their absolute freedom from all selfish hope of gain. If done in this spirit, then action was even laudable, especially such action as was ^ The ecclesiastic student will see Guyon, which taught that the incen- a parallel to this doctrine in the tive to a godly life should not be the teaching of the Quietist school, re- hope of heaven, but the pure love of presented by Molinos and Madame God. INTRODUCTION. il required by the particular caste to which a man might belong. It was the duty, therefore, of his hero, Arjuna, to fight, for he was of the Kshatriya or warrior caste, and this duty is enforced by much ingenious casuistry, by which renunciation (of works : sannydsa) is reconciled with devotion by work (karmayoga), which is done by renouncing all the " fruit " of works. This kind of renun- ciation is called tydga (forsaking). Works done in this spirit of absolute indifference to all external things might lead to the great blessing of nirvana; but if done from any desire of gain, they were imperfect, and could only lead to a temporary abode in one of the heavens of the gods, however good or useful they might be relatively. But though works are so far admitted into his system, the highest state below is that of perfect repose, with con- stancy in meditating on the Supreme ; and his highest type of man is the recluse (muni), taking up a solitary resting-place far from the haunts of men, renouncing all the blessings of this world, and even hope itself, holding the mind in check until thought ceases, and thus waiting in pious abstraction for the happy hour when he will be absorbed into the infinite Brahma. The material world was not, however, ignored by our author as an object of speculation. In treating of physics he adopts the system of Kapila, which has been generally adopted or acquiesced in by Hindii writers, though of different schools of thought in other respects. In the Sankhya system,^ Prakriti, or primordial matter, is assumed as the source of all material things : it is eternal, both as ^ For a fuller account of this sj's- khya Karika, in this series of Orien- tem I must refer n)y readers to a tal works, translation, with notes, of the San- 12 INTRODUCTION. to the past and the future ; uncreated, and having in itself a potentiality of issuing forth and forming all material existences. It is acted upon unconsciously by a desire or purpose to set soul free from all contact with matter, that the former may know no longer the pains of this mortal life, by regaiaing its primal state of unconscious repose. This primal matter has three constituent elements, called gunas or threads, which are (i.) Sattwa (goodness), which is of a fine and elastic nature ; (2.) Eajas (passion), the element of motion, active and restless, of w^iich things animate (except the gods) are chiefly formed ; and (3.) Tanias (dark- ness), the source of inanimate things and of stupidity and delusion. Nature, when undeveloped, is called AvyaJda (unmanifested), and Vyakta (manifested) when developed in the manifold forms of the existing world. The nature and excellence of these forms depend on the nature of the guna that prevails in it, and the manner in which eacli may be modified by the other. The first production of ISTature is (i.) Biiddhi (intellect), which is the first link in the chain of agencies by which the soul becomes cognisant of the external world; (2.) AhanJcdra (consciousness), the seat of our sense of being or self-consciousness. From Ahankdra (which corre- sponds to the "mind-stuff" of Professor Clifford) proceed (3.) the five subtle elements {tanmdtra) , which underlie (4.) the five gross elements (mahablmta). The former bear the technical names of sound, tangiblenegs, odour, vlsible- ness, and taste. The gross elements are ether {dkdsa), con- nected with the subtle element called sound ; air (vdyu), from the element tangibleness ; earth, from the element called smell; light or fire, from the element visibility, and water from that of taste. From Ahankdra proceed INTRODUCTION. 13- the five senses (indriya — both the faculty and the bodily organ), which are the senses of hearing, touching, smell- ing, seeing, and tasting ; and the five organs of action, the voice, the hands, the feet, and the organs of excretion and generation. A third internal faculty, called manas, is usually placed, in the order of enumeration, after the senses and the bodily organs, from its connection with them. It is the faculty by which the sensations are indi- vidually received and formed into concepts of a primary form : these are transmitted to consciousness (AhanJcdra), by which they come into a clear, conscious state, as into the light, and then they are borne to intellect (JBuddM), by which they are formed into complete conceptions, which the soul sees as in a mirror, and thus becomes cog- nisant of an external world. The manas, as the seat of sensibility, is supposed to be also the seat of our passions or emotions ; for the soul never acts : it is a pure light, existing in and for itself; it knows nothing of those desires that men have for earthly enjoyments, for these are as purely material as the objects of desire. These twenty- three products are the wiiole of the Vyakta, or matter in a manifest, developed form, and, with the opposite natures of Prahriti (primal matter) and Soul (Atman) form the twenty-live principles of the Sankhya system. The physical theory of Kapila had an extensive influence on Hindii modes of thought, being found in such different works as the Institutes of Manu, the Svetasvatara Upanishad, and the Puranas. Parts of it were incorporated into other systems, in which Prakriti (iSTature) occupies a subordinate position. In the Sankhya system the soul is invested with a linga u INTRODUCTION. or subtle body,^ formed of the three internal organs, Intel- lect (huddlii), Consciousness {ahan'kara), and the Manas or receptive faculty and seat of desires, with the five subtle elements. This is peculiar to each soul, and forms the distinct disposition (hliava), the separate nature of each individual. It accompanies the soul in its successive transmigrations to other bodies until a final separation from matter has been obtained ; (by knowledge, according to Kapila ; by pious meditation, according to Patanjali) ; and then the linga is absorbed for ever in the primal matter (FraJcriti) from which it sprung ; 2 the only source of existing things, according to the Sankhya school. Another part, and one that is obscure, in this system, is 1 Sometimes this subtle body is called the linga-sarira (linga-body), and at other times the linga and the linga-iarira are distinguished ; but this, I think, is a late refine- ment. In the Atma-bodha (soul- knowledge) - the soul is said to be invested in five cases or sheaths {hoia). The three interior cases which are (i.) Vijndna-maya (mere Intellection), (2,) Mano-maya (mere Manas), and (3.) Prdna-niaya (only breath or the vital airs), form the subtle body. ^ The linga is referred to in c. XV. 7, 8. That which the soul takes with it on leaving a gross body is this permanent subtle body ; not, as Mr. Thomson asserts, by the soul's con- necting the senses with itself, that it may know: the reference is not to the soul's knowledge of matter, but to its fix^M" or vehicle. This idea of a sub- tle body is not peculiar to Kapila. St. Paul speaks of a "spiritual body," and Sir H. Davy has a theory on this sub- ject not unlike that of the Sankhya school. "It does not appear im- probable to me that some of the more refined machinery of thought may adhere, even in another state, to the sentient principle ; for though the organs of gross sensation, the nerves and the brain, are destroyed by death, yet something of the more etherial nature, which I have sup- posed, may be less destructible. And, I sometimes imagine, that many of those powers, which have been called instinctive, belong to the more refined clothing of the spirit : conscience, indeed, seems to have some undefined source, and may bear relation to a former state of being" (Last Days of a Philo- sopher, p. 215). Here there is not only the assumption of a linga, but also a suggestion that it may be affected by the events of a former life, as Kapila taught. (See the translation of the Sankhya Karika in this series, p. 89.) INTRODUCTION. 15 the theory of vital airs, which are supposed to dwell in the body, and to perform important functions there. These are (i.) Prdna, ordinary breathing; (2.) Apdna, downward breath, acting on the lower parts of the body ; (3.) Samana, collective breath, forming the function of digestion and the transmission of food through the body ; (4.) Uddna^ ascending breath, the vital force which causes the flow of blood upwards to the head; and (5.) Vydna, separate breath, which is connected with the skin, and seems to denote a kind of nerve-force by which sensations are conveyed to the manas, or receptive and distinguishing faculty. These inventions are not more crude than that of the vital spirits, of which physicians and men of science used to speak, even in the last century. They denote that Kapila had a dim perception of the fact that there are vital forces at work in the human system more subtle than mere inanimate matter. But all bodies, and all their separate faculties or endow- ments, and the constituent elements or gunas of Nature {Prahriti), which now are variously distributed in existing things, shall finally cease to be in their separate or indi- vidual forms. The gross body, formed in the womb of the mother, perishes absolutely at the time of death, the particles being absorbed again in Nature {Prahriti). When the soul has gained complete deliverance from matter, then the subtle body or linga will be absorbed for ever in Prakriti. Finally, according to Kapila, all things will be absorbed into it. Only soul and unformed matter will exist. In the system of the Bhagavad Gita, all things will be absorbed into Prakriti at the end of a kal^pa, or period of creation, which is a day of Brahma, or 1000 mahayugas, each of which contains 4,320,000 days ; then the sum of i6 INTRODUCTION. all existences being absorbed in Prakriti, the latter, being an inferior part of Brahma, will be also absorbed in him. At the close of the same period of non-creation, a new- day will open, and there will be another emanation (sarga) of the material part of the Divine Being into the manifold forms of individual life. X The metre used for the most part in the Bhagavad Gita is the common heroic form, called ^loJca or Anushtuhh, consisting of two lines of sixteen syllables each, with a caesura at the end of the eighth foot. Its form is this — \j \j \^ \^ \^ \^ \.^ \^ \^ ^ each line being the same. In the more lyrical parts another form is used, called TrisMubh, containing eleven syllables in each half line or pada. A common variety is of the following form — a csesura being generally found at the fifth syllable (Williams' Gram. p. 350). In preparing this translation of the Bhagavad Gita, I have had before me the Greek translation of Galanos, and the Italian version of Stanislao Gatti, both supplied by Dr. Reinhold Rost, the learned librarian of the India Office. I have also consulted the French version of Burnouf, the Latin version of Lassen, and the English versions of Mr. Thomson 1 and K. T. Telang. The notes of Lassen have 1 Mr. Thomson's translation shows seem due to a careless revision of the that a large advance had been made work as it went through the press. in the knowledge of Sanskrit, in the I subjoin a few instances — interval between the publishing of " My actions do not follow me " Wilkins' translation in 1785, and (p. 31), for "My actions do not sz^ZZy his own, published in 1855. But it me" : na limpanti, lit. do not smear ; contains many errors, some of which " ne me souillent pas " (Burnouf). INTRODUCTION. 17 given valuable aid, and I am indebted to a paper on the Bhagavad Gita, read before the " Akademie der Wissen- scbaften" of Berlin in 1826, by W. von Humboldt, for a scholarly review of the doctrines contained in the poem. I have also consulted a MS. copy of the Commentary on the Bhagavad Gita, written by Sridhara, which is in my possession, and by the kindness of Dr. Eost another com- mentary, attributed to Sankara, but written by Sankara Ananda SaraswatI (quot. as Ananda), and called Tatparya Bodhinl. By the kindness of Dr. Eost, I have had from the India Office a MS. copy of the commentary of An- kara. This I have consulted also, and have referred to it. The former commentary was supposed for a time to be Sankara's, and extracts from it were assigned to him; but I hope that in every such case the error has been corrected. "No actions bind the man who trusts his actions to devotion" (p. 36), {yogasannyastakarmdnam . . . na Tcarmdni nibadhnanti). The^ ver- sion of Lassen is generally followed, and his translation of this passage is, "Qui in devotione opera sua depo- suit" meaning "laid aside:" lit. " works bind not him who has re- nounced works in or by devotion." "Celui qui par I'union divine s'est detacM des ceuvres " (Burnouf). "Acts shackle not him who by devotion has all acts renounced " (Telang). " That devotee . . . attains to dis- tinction in the Supreme Being" (j). 41) : sa yogi Brahmanirvdnam . . . adhigachchlutti. "Is devotus ad ex- tinctionem in numine . . . pervenit " (Lassen) : lit. it nirvana, loss of pe sonality by absorption into Brahma " Va s'^teindre en Dieu " (Bur nouf). In this sloka, the part " qui intus delectatur, intus recreatur ' (Lassen) is omitted. In p. 49 the sentence, " Therefore be thou a Yogin, Arjuna ! " is left out. "There is another eternal exist- ence . . . Avhich does perish when all things perish " (p. 60), for "does not perish " {na vinasyati). In p. 63 the nature of the Asuras is said to be "deluded :" it ought to be "deluding," prakritim mohinlm- sritds. In p. 67 we have, "Wor- ship me by obtaining this finite and wretched world " for " having come to {prdpya) this, &c., worship Me." HINDU PHILOSOPHY. THE BHA6AVAD GlTA, THE SACRED LAY. READING THE FIRST {a). Dhrttarashtka spoke.^ When my forces and the Panda vas met together' on the sacred plain,^ the Kurukshetra (plain of the Kurus), eager for the fight, what did they, San jay a? Sanjaya spoke. When the king, Durodhana, saw the army of the Pan- 1 The italic letters (a), (6), &c., refer to the Philological Notes at the end of each reading. 2 Dhritarashtra, the king of a large territory, of which the city Hastina-pura, the modern Delhi, was the capital. He is said to have had one hundred sons, of whom Duryodhana, the unscrupu- lous foe of the sons of Pandu, was the eldest. Being blind, he in- trusted the administration of his kingdom to Duryodhana. See In- troduction, p. I. 3 The sacred plain {Dharmah- shetra) was the flat country lying between the rivers Yamuna (Jum- na) and Sarasvati (Sursooty). In the Institutes of Manu (ii. 19) the territory, called Brahmarshi, is said to have included the Kurukshetra plain and the lands of the Matsyas, Panchalas, and the Surasenakas. It was called the Brahmarshi country because it was the land of the an- cient risMs, who were distinguished in former times as wise and holy men. This was the " Holy Land " of India, probably because the Ar- yan race had first permanently set- BHAGAVAD GIT A. [chap. I. davas drawn up (for battle), he drew near to Ids tutor,^ and spoke these words : — " See, Tutor ! this vast army of the sons of Pandu, set in array by thy wise pupil, the son of Drupada.^ Brave men are there, equal in battle to Bhima and Arjuna ; Yuyudhana,^ Virata,* and Drupada of the great car : ^ 5 Drishtaketu,^ Chekitana,^ and the brave king of tied there, after it had taken its southern course from the lands be- yond the Himalayan range. Here, too, the Brahmanic system seems to have been first developed. This view is supported by a passage in the Satapatha Brahmana (xiv. I, 2). " The gods Agni, Indra, Soma-, Vishnu, Makha, and all the gods, except the Aswins, were present at a sacrifice. Kuru-kshetra was the place of their divine worship. Hence, they say, Kuru-kshetra is the place, where the gods offer sacrifice " (Muir, Sans. Texts, ii. 400, and iv. 125). The SarasvatI, though an insigni- ficant stream, is accounted one of the sacred rivers of India. The plain of Kuru is named from Kuru, the heros eponymus of the tribe. In the Bhagavad Gita, the term Kurus is applied exclusively to the party which supported Dur- yodhana, though Kuru was the an- cestor of both the hostile parties. ^ The achar\'a, or instructor, of the king, was Drona, son of the rishi Bharadwaja. He was a Brah- man by birth, but having been in- structed in the art of war by Para- shurama (Rama of the axe, the sixth incarnation of Vishnu), he had been a tutor in military science to Duryodhana and other chiefs of the race. He was slain by Dhris- tadyumna, son of Drupada, in a fight described in the seventh book (Drona-parvan) of the Mahabha- rata. 2 The son of Drupada, who was king of the Panchalas, was Dhrish- tadyumna, his eldest son, mentioned above. ^ Yuyudhana was also called Satyaki, a patronymic from his father, Satyaka. He was of the Yadu tribe, whose territory lay to the west of the Jumna. ^ Virata was king of the Matsyas, whose country formed part of the sacred plain Dharmakshetra. See Note 3. ^ Drupada is called mahdrathas (borne on a great car), to denote his rank. The war- chariot was used only by the leaders of the host, each of whom was accompanied by his charioteer {suta). ^ Dhristaketu was king of the Chedi tribe, whose chief town was called S'ultimati, probably connected with suJctimat, a name given formerly to one of the seven mountain ranges of India. ^ Chekitana is only known as a chieftain in alliance with the Pan- davas. CHAP. I.] BHAGAVAD GIT A. 21 Ka^i ; ^ Purujit and Kuntiblioja,^ and Saivya, chief of men; 2 Yudhamanyu the bold, and the brave Uttamaujas ; * the son of Subadra,^ and the sons of Drupadl,^ all borne on great cars. But know, best of Brahmans ! who are the most distinguished among us, the leaders of my army ; these I name to thee that thou mayest know them : Thyself,^ and Bhlshma,^ and Karna,^ and Kripa,^^ vic- torious in battle; A^watthaman,^^ Vikarna,i2 ^^^ ^X^q Saumadatti,^^ ^ Kasi is the modern Benares, ^ Purujit and Kuntibhoja were brothers. The latter, having no children, adopted Kunti, called also Pritha, eldest daughter of Sura and Marisha. She became the wife of Pandu, and had three sons, Yudish- thira, Bhima, and Arjuna, who is often therefore called Kaunteya or Partha, that is, son of Kunti or Pritha, ^ Saivya was the king of the Shivis, the Sibse of the Greeks (Lassen). * Yudhamanyu and Uttamaujas are only known as chieftains in the Pandu host, ^ Saubhadra (a generic name) was the son of Arjuna and Subha- dra, the sister of Krishna, His proper name was Abhimanyu, ^ The sons of Drupadi or Krishna, a daughter of Drupada, were Prati- vindhya, Sutasoma, Srutakirti, Sata- nlka and Srutasena, Each of the five sons of Pandu was the father of one of them, ^ Duryodhana is here addressed as hhavdn^ equivalent to " my Lord." ^ Bhishma, the commander-in- chief of the army of Duryodhana, was a son of Santanu, a descendant of Kuru by the goddess Ganga. He was great-uncle to Duryodhana and the sons of Pandu, On the tenth day of the battle he was slain by Arjuna. ^ Karna was a leader in the army of the Kurus. He was said to be the son of Surya (the Sun) and Kunti, before the marriage of the latter with Pandu, He was king of the Anga country, situated in Bengal, and was slain in a subse- quent fight by Arjuna (Mahabh. viii. 4798). '** Kripa was a brother of Kripi, the wife of Drona, and king of the Panchalas. See Note 3. ^^ Aswatthaman was a son of Drona and Kripi, ^^ Vikarna was the third of the hundred sons of Dhritarashtra, and was one of the Kuru party, ^^ Saumadatti was a son of Soma- datta, king of the Bahikas, who occupied the country between the Sutlej and the Indus. 22 BHAGAVAD G'lTA. [chap. i. And many others, who give up their lives for my sake, armed with many kinds of weapons, and all well skilled in war. xo These forces of mine, which Bhishma commands, are not sufficient (c), but their forces, commanded by Bhima, suffice (for the contest). Therefore do ye, even all of you, in all the lines as placed in your divisions (d), give support to Bhish- ma." The aged Kuri; grandsire,^ the fiery-hearted, in order to cheer him, blew his trumpet (conch-shell), blaring out on high a lion's roar. Then suddenly the trumpets and the kettledrums, the cymbals, drums, and horns, were sounded : that sound was an uproar. Then standing in their great car, yoked to white horses, the slayer of Madhu ^ and the son of Pandu ^ blew their celestial trumpets. 1 5 Hriskikesa (e) blew the " Panchajanya," * Arjuna, the ^ Bhishma, who sought to revive Krishna, though a god, and, in the drooping courage of Duryod- fact, Vishnu himself, was in his hana. human nature the &uta or charioteer - Krishna was called Madhava, of Arjuna. because (according to Lassen) he * So called from being formed was a descendant of Madhu, one of from the bones of the giant Pan- the tribe of the Yadavas, in which, chajana. When Krishna was under in his human nature, Krishna was the tuition of Sandlpani, a son of born ; but more probably because the latter was drowned in the sea he slew a daitya (giant or demon) of Prabhasa, and was dragged to the named Madhu. bottom by this giant or demon. 3 The son of Pandu is Arjuna, Krishna dived into the sea, slew the the third of Pandu's five sons ; but giant, and restored the son to his to give a divine origin to the hero, father. Of the giant's bones he he was asserted to be the son of made a trumpet in the form of a Indra, as Bhima, his brother, was conch-shell. said to be the son of Vayu. CHAP. I.] BHAGAVAD GITA. 23 "God-bestowed;"^ the wolf-hearted, terrible in deeds,^ blew his great trumpet, " Paundra." ^ The king (raja) Yudishthira,^ son of KuntI, blew the "Eternal Victory;" Nakula and Sahadeva,^ the "Sweet in tone " and " Flowered with gems ; " And Kasya, chief of archers, and Sikhandin^ of the great car, Dhrishtadyumna and Virata and the uncon- quered Satyaki, Drupada and the sons of Drupadi, all together, king of earth! with the large-armed sons of Subhadra, blew severally their trumpets. That noise rent the hearts of the Dhartarashtrans, for the uproar made both earth and heaven resound. 20 Then he whose ensign is an ape,^ tlie son of Pandu, seeing the Dhartarashtrans now drawn up (for battle), and the flight of weapons begun, took up his bow. And said thus, king of earth! to Hrishlkesa^ 1 The trumpet of Arjuna is called twin sons of Madri, the second wife the " God-befetowed," because it was of Pandu, but fabled to be the sons the gift of his father, Indra. of the two Aswins, supposed to be 2 Bliivialcarma, a doer of dread- the gods who usher in the morning ful (bhima) deeds ; a play on his and evening twilight. name. " Wolfish - hearted," lit. ^ Sikhandin, from sikhanda, a " having the entrails of a wolf," circular arrangement of three or either on account of his voracity, five locks of hair on each side of which was said to be very great, or the head, sometimes adopted as a of his ferocious nature. mark by the Kshatriya or military ^ Paundra. Pundra means (l) a caste, country lying in Bengal and Bihar, 7 The Indian warriors formerly and (2) a sugar-bearing reed. Paun- bore their standards on their war- dra is connected probably with the chariots. Arjuna received this name, first meaning. Kapidhwaja (ape-bannered), because ^ Yudishthira was the eldest of he bore this sign, the three sons of KuntI. His father, 8 ^ name of Krishna. For an according to the legend, was Dhar- explanation of this term and of ma, the god of justice. Kesava, see Philological Notes. ^ Nakula and Sahadeva were the 24 BHAGAVAD GItA. [chap. i. (Krishna), " Draw up my car, Immortal ! (/) between the two armies. While I behold (^) these men drawn up and eager for battle, with whom I must contend in this strife of war. I would look earnestly Qi) on those who are assembled here, and are about to fight from a desire to do the plea- sure, by war, of the evil-minded son of Dhritarashtra." ^ Sanjaya s'pdke. Hrishike^a (Krishna) being thus addressed by Guda- kesa {%) (Arjuna), stopped that best of cars, son of Bharata ! between the two armies, 25 In the presence of Bhishma, Drona, and all the earth- rulers, and said, " See, son of Pritha ! these assembled Kurus." Then the son of Pritha saw there arrayed fathers and grandsires, tutors, maternal uncles, brothers, sons, grand- sons, and comrades, Fathers-in-law and friends too in both the hosts. Then when Kaunteya^ had looked upon all these kinsmen drawn up (for battle), being overcome by deepest pity, he spoke thus in sadness. Arjuna s'po'ke. Having seen, Krishna ! this kindred host drawn up and eager to fight, my limbs give way and my mouth is dried up. My body trembles, and my hair stands up on end. 1 Duryodhana, whose injustice to ^ A name of Arjuna, as a son of the sons of Pandu was the cause of Kunti. the war. CHAP. I.] BHAGAVAD GIT A. Gandiva^ falls from my hand, and my skin is burning. I am not able to stand upright and my mind is whirling round. 30 I see, too, unfavourable omens (/), Kesava ! nor do I foresee any good from slaying my kinsmen in the fight. I desire not victory, Krishna ! nor dominion, nor de- lights. Of what avail can dominion be to us, Govinda,^ or delights, or even life ? They for whose sake dominion, wealth, and pleasures are desired by us are here arrayed in battle, giving up their lives and wealth. Tutors, fathers, sons, and even grandsires, uncles, fathers- in-law, grandsons, brothers-in-law, and allies too ; These I do not wish to kill, slayer of Madhu ! though (otherwise) I should myself be slain, even for the sake of dominion over the three worlds ; ^ how much less for that of earth ? 35 If we slay these Dhartarashtrans, what joy can then be ours, Janardana Qi) ? Sin even will cleave to us if we slay these men, (though) felons (Q. It is not meet then for us to slay these Dhartarashtrans, our kinsmen ; for how can we prosper if we slay our kin, slayer of Madhu ? ^ The name of the bow which he had received from his father Indra. It was supposed to have miraculous powers. 2 A name of Krishna, who was said to have been brought up in the household of a cowherd, Nanda ; hence his name Govinda (cowherd or cow-owner). ^ The three worlds are heaven, earth, and hell. Sometimes they are explained as earth, the intermediate space, and heaven. According to mythological fable, the three king- doms had become the possession of a demon, Bali. Vishnu, desiring to repossess them, appeared before Bali in the form of a dwarf, and asked for as much land as he could step over in three steps. Bali granted the request with laughter, and Vishnu, rising continuously, stepped over the three worlds, but gave an abode in Patala or hell to Bali (Ramayana i. 32). Probably a tradition of a war of races and religions. OF THF UNIVERSITY 26 BHAGAVAD GIT A. [chap. I. Even if they whose minds are stricken by greed see no evil in the destruction of a tribe or in the oppression of friends, Should not we resolve to turn away from this sinful * deed, we who look on the destruction of a tribe as a sin, Janardana ? By the slaughter of a tribe the tribal rites, eternal (in obligation) are destroyed ; by the destruction of rites the tribe becomes impious ; 40 By the prevalence of impiety, Krishna ! the women of the tribe become corrupt, and when the women are corrupt, — . confusion of castes arises, Yarshneya ! ^ This confusion 2 brings the tribe-destroyers and the tribe down to hell, for their forefathers, deprived of liba- tions and pindas, fall (from heaven).^ 1 A name of Krishna, from Vrishni, one of his ancestors. ^ By the destruction of the males the rites ojE both tribe and family would cease, because women were not allowed to perform them ; and confusion of castes would arise, for the women would marry men of another caste. Such marriages were considered impure (Manu x. 1-40). Such marriages produced else- where a confusion of classes. Livy tells us that the Roman patri- cians, at the instance of Canuleius, complained of the intermarriages of the plebeian class with their own, affirming that " omnia divina huma- naque turbari, ut qui natus sit, ignoret, cujus sanguinis, quorum sacrorum sit " (iv. c. I and 2). 3 This refers to the neglect of the S'rdddha, a religious rite on behalf of a deceased father, grandfather, and great-grandfather, and some- times to ancestors in general, in which libations of water and pindas, or balls of rice-meal, &c., mixed with clarified butter, were offered to the manes of deceased ancestors, with many pious ceremonies. We are in- formed in tho Institutes of Manu (iii. 189) that the spirits of deceased ancestors are present at these rites, hovering round the offerers and the attendant Brahmans, and sitting by them when they are seated. The food offered is supposed to give a real nourishment to these manes, who are dismissed at the end of the rite with the following prayer : — " Fathers, to whom food belongs, guard our food and the other things offered by us, venerable and immortal as ye are and conversant with holy truths. Quaff the sweet essence (of the food) ; be cheerful and depart contented along the path wherein the gods travel " (Colebrooke, Asiat. CHAP. I.] BHAGAVAD GITA, 27 By these caste-confusing sins of the destroyers of a tribe the eternal rites of tribe and family {m) are lost. The dwelling of the men who destroy family rites, — Janardana ! is eternally in hell : thus we have heard from sacred books. Alas ! we have resolved to commit a great sin, who are striving to slay our kindred from the lust of dominion and pleasures. 45 It were better for me if the Dhartarashtrans, with arms - in hand, should slay me, unresisting and unarmed, in the fight. Sanjaya spoke. Having spoken thus in the (midst of the) fight, Arjuna sat down upon his car-bench, letting fall his bow and arrow, being overwhelmed in heart by grief. Soc. Res, vii. 269). This path is rites should be withheld ; but it is supposed to be the Via Lactea or believed that the}^ will fall, on this Milky Way. It is not explained by account, even to the lower regions. Hindu writers why deceased an- The heaven of the ancient fathers cestors should fall from the heaven {Pitris) was in the moon (Asiat. to which they have ascended if these Res. vii. 267). ^ Thus the sacred Bhagavad Gita, among the Upani- shads, in the science of Brahma, in the book of devotion, in the discourse of Krishna and Arjuna, Eeadingthe First, whose title is " The Despondexcy of Aejuna." ^ The title at the end of each I have subjoined. Sometimes a reading or chapter varies in different shorter form is used, but in all cases MSS. The usual form is that which it is a modern addition. 28 BHAGAVAD GlTA. [chap. i. PHILOLOGICAL NOTES. {a) Adhydya (reading) is used in books such as the Insti- tutes of Manu, &c., in which formal instruction is given, or in the Sacred Books. The minor divisions, says Lassen, of the epic poems are called sargas (emanations, creations). The latter term is not used, however, in the Mahabharata. (h) OM. This mystic monosyllable, formed by the union of the letters a, u, m, is supposed to represent the Hindu triad, Brahma, Vishnu, and S'iva; probably it represented in an earlier age the triad of Agni (fire), Yaruna (watery atmos- phere or investing sky), and Marut (wind). It is prefixed to works of a religious kind only ; and sometimes from a feeling of awe, such as that with which the Jews regarded the name Jehovah, it was not spoken, or only in a low tone. Sometimes it is omitted, as in the Paris codd. A. and D. and a MS. in my possession. The constant use of it is, however, enjoined. *' Let the Brahman always perform prariava (lit. praise, ij., pronounce the syllable OM) at the beginning and end (of a reading). If the OM be omitted at the beginning, (his learning) flows away ; if at the end, it is broken in pieces (Manu ii. 74). The poem is generally preceded in Hindu MSS. by a rather long introduction, formed partly of verses taken from the poem, and partly of a dhyana, or pious meditation. As it is not a part of the poem itself, it is here omitted. (c) Aparydptam^ " impar certamini " (Lasse^i) ; " not suffi- cient " (Thomson) ; " unhinreichend " (Lorinser) ; " innume- rable " (Burnouf and Telang). In the Peters. Diet, parydpta is translated by *' erfiillt," " hinreichend," " genugend." The literal translation is " inadequate," " unmeet ; " but the unfit- ness may be either in the want of preparation or of numbers. CHAP. I.] BHAGAVAD GITA. 29 Paryaptabhoga (Manu iii. 40), having ample enjoyments, is in favour of the meaning " insufficient in numbers ; " but S'lidhara and other commentators explain the word as *' vast," " unlimited." (d) Ayaneshu dm sarveshu yatlid hhdgam avasthitds. The translation in the Petersburg Diet, is " per tramites aciei cunctos secundum ordines collocati." (e) Hrisklkesa, a word variously explained. Hindu com- mentators derive it from hrishlka (a sense) and Isha (a lord), making Krishna, of whom it is an epithet, *' Lord of the senses," as identical with the supreme Brahma. But hrishiJca is a doubtful word, and the meaning assigned to the term is not especially applicable to Krishna or Brahma. More pro- bably from hrish, to become strong or stiff, and Jcesa, hair of the head (csesaries). (See Peters. Diet. s. v.) Krishna is represented as having strong curly hair, and we may compare this epithet with auricomus, applied to Apollo. (/) Achyuta. "0 Dive" (Lassen); "0 Immortal One" (Thomson) ; " nie Fehlender " (Lorinser). Telang translates it, " undegraded one," but this is, 1 think, incorrect. It is compounded of the neg. a and chyuta, p.p. of chyu, to fall, drop off, perish. It is found in the Eig-Yeda (i. 52. 2), where a mountain is said to be achyu!a, unshaken or unmoved by the torrents. Mr. Muir (Sans. Texts, iv. 168) quotes a passage in the Eamayana where it is applied to Madhustidana (Vishnu), and he translates it by "unfailing." In the Pali Dathavansa (i. 3), achchuta is applied to the state of nihhdna (nirvdna). The Peters. Diet, expresses the exact meaning in translating it by " feststehend," " unverganglich." (g) Nirlkshe, and (h) avehshe. The root iksh, when com- pounded with nis (nir), means to look at ; when comp. with «m, to regard, to consider, to look at earnestly or with ^olicitude. 30 BHAGAVAD GlTA. [chap. i. {%) Gudalceia^ a name of Arjuna. Derived by the Hindu grammarians from gudaka (sleep), and Isha (lord) ; but more probably, as by Lassen and in the Peters. Diet., from guda^ a round mass, a ball, and hesa, hair of the head : " cujus capilli globulorum instar intorti sunt " (Lassen). It is similar in meaning to Hrishikesa (1. 29). (j) NimiUani. Nimitta has the double meaning of " cause " and " sign " or " omen." It is not certain whether Arjuna is speaking of some omens then present before him, or of the causes of evil that seemed to lie in the condition of affairs. The Hindus were wont, as the Latins and other races, to divine by birds and other animals, or by natural appearances. "Vulgatam fuisse inter Indos auguriorum superstitionem e Kameide discimus (i. c. 74). Describitur congressus mirabilis Eama Jamadegneii cum Rama Dasarathida, quern prsenun- tiant Dasarathae volucres horrendce undique vocibus obstrepentes. Quo facto, Vasishthas, fatorum gnarus, declarat eminere jperi- culum horrendum, e divinarum volucrum ore emissum " (Lassen). See S'akuntala, p. 20, Prof. "Williams's ed. Kesava (having a large bush of hair), an epithet of Krishna. (k) Jandrdanaj a name of Krishna. Schlegel translates the epithet by " mortalium votis expetite ! " following the Hindu scholiasts. The Peters. Diet, more correctly by " die Menschen aufregend, bedrangend," from jana (a man) and ard (to vex, to wound). Schlegel would connect the two mean- ings by saying that perhaps we ought to understand the word as applied to Krishna, "ut sit, qui desiderio sui corda hominum vexat." The forced explanation of the scholiasts probably arose from a desire to soften down what seemed a hard expression. " Vexer of his foes " seems to be the correct interpretation. " Because he made the Dasyus tremble, he is Jandrdana" (Mahabh. v. 2565). (l) Atatdyinas, lit. bearing an outstretched bow, and hence CHAP. I.] BHAGAVAD GItA, 31 threatening the lives of men ; robbers, murderers. S'ridhara, a scholiast, says that the term included incendiaries, poisoners, assassins, thieves, robbers of land and of other people's wives, and that the Kurus had acted all these parts against the sons of Pandu. (m) Jdtidharma, Tculadharma; jdti = varna (caste), kula=s family or tribe, say the Hindu coramentator.5. ( 32 ) EEADraa THE SECOIN-D. Sanjaya spohe. To him, thus deeply affected by pity, with his troubled eyes filled with tears and desponding, the slayer of Madhu addressed these words : — " Whence, Arjuna ! has come to thee in a difficulty (a) this vile depression, unmeet for one of noble race, debar- ring from heaven ^ and causing disgrace ? "Yield not to unmanliness, son of Pritha ! it becomes thee not. Cast off this base faint-heartedness and arise, destroyer of foes ! " Arjuna spoke. slayer of Madhu ! how shall I assail with my arrows in the "battle Bhishma and Drona, who are worthy of honour, slayer of foes ? 2 For it were better to feed on the food even of beggary for life than to slay these much-honoured teachers (gurus); yea, if I were to slay these teachers, though greedy of wealth, I should eat of viands stained with blood. We know not which would be the better lot for us, that we should conquer them or they should conquer us. If we should slay these Dhartarashtrans, here drawn up in array before us, we should not wish to live. 1 Warriors dying bravely in battle 2 jjere the metre is changed to one were supposed to go to the heaven of called Trishtubh. (See Introd. p. Indra, as the Scandinavian heroes to 16.) the Valhalla of Odin (Vishnu P. L 6. 33). CHAP. II.] . BHAGAVAD GITA. 33 I, who am stricken in soul by pity and (the sense of) guilt (&), and confused in mind about duty, pray thee to tell me certainly what is the better (course). Declare this to me : I am thy disciple ; ^ teach me now prostrate before thee. For I see not what can avail to drive away this grief that dries up my senses, though I should attain on earth to a vast, unrivalled dominion, and even to the supreme rule of the gods {suras). Sanjaya spoke. Gudahe^a (Arjuna), having spoken thus to Hrishikesa (Krishna), destroyer of foes ! said to Govinda, " I will not fight," and became silent. 10 Then Hrishikesa, gently smiling, son of Bharata! addressed him, thus desponding, with these words, between the two armies. The Holy One spolce. Thou grievest for those who need no grief,^ but thou speakest words of wisdom. The wise grieve not for the dead or the living. ^ Arjuna was not, in a strict sense, be divided into three parts, each the disciple of Krishna, but he puts containing six chapters or readings, himself in the position of one, that The first treats mainly of the Yoga he might be guided in his present system ; the second, of the Supreme perplexed and troubled state. The Being ; the third, of the Sankhya honour claimed for the Guru, or system of philosophy. The author, spiritual guide, was excessive. In however, regards all these subjects the Bhagavata Purana he is put on a from his own standpoint as an in- level with Deity itself. dependent thinker, and his system 2 Here the poem begins as an is therefore eclectic, exposition of philosophy. It may 34 BHAGAVAD GITA. [chap. II. i; But I was never non-existent,''- nor thou, nor these rulers of men, nor shall any of us hereafter cease to he. As in this (present) hody, childhood, youth, and old age appertain to the embodied (soul), so also it obtains another body.2 The wise man is not troubled thereat. But the contacts (c) of matter,^ son of KuntI I causing cold and heat, pain and pleasure, come and go, being only temporary : these bear with firmness, son of Bharata ! Tor the man whom these things afflict not,* chief of men ! who is steadfast, the same in pain and pleasure, is formed for immortality (d). That which is unreal has no (proper) existence, and that which is real never ceases to be : ^ but the limit {e) of both is seen by those who know the truth. ^ The first doctrine of the poem is the immortality of the soul, which Kapila affirmed to be eternal, both e parte <fnte and e parte post. 2 The second doctrine is the transmigration of the soul to dif- ferent bodies. The body formed in the womb is absolutely dissolved into its primary elements after death ; but the linga, or " spiritual body," formed of the finer elements of matter, accompanies the soul in all its migrations, until the latter has attained to nirvana, or absorp- tion into the supreme Brahma. The linga is then dissolved into the primary material essence, called Pralcriti or Nature (Introduction, p. 12). The literal translation of these lines is : "As childhood, youth (or prime), and age in this (the present) body are (the accidents) of the embodied soul," &c. The sou has in reality no change, and there fore remains the same in the suc- cessive changes of the (gross) body, and in migrating to another body. 2 "Matter-contacts," the contacts of the soul with matter by means of the organs of sense. The Sanskrit mdtra (Lat. materia), from md, to measure, denotes the measurable or finite, in opposition to the infinite Brahma. * Here the result of the yoga, or devotional system of Patanjali, is expressed. The soul, being ab- sorbed in meditation on the Supr reme, becomes indifferent to all earthly things. ^ This accords in part with the systems of Kapila and Patanjali. According to the former, Pralcriti or primeval matter is eternal and indestructible. The various forms of matter have only a conditional, not an absolute or real, existence. In the Theistic form of his system, CHAP. II.] BHAGAVAD GITA. 35 Know also that He (That) which spread out^ this All can never perish. No one is able to cause the destruction of this Eternal.^ These (bodies) are called the mortal bodies(/) of tlie eternal, imperishable, infinite, embodied (soul) : wherefore figh tj^O son of Eharu tarj'"^ He who deems this to be a slayer, and he who thinks that it can be slain, are both undiscerning : it slays not, and it is not slain. 20 It is never born, and it never dies : it has never been brought into being, nor shall it ever be brought hereafter. Unborn, undying, eternal, primeval (^), this is not slain when the body is slain. ] How can that man, son of Pritha ! who know^s it to be indestructible, eternal, unborn, and undying, cause any one to be slain, and how can he slay ? As a man, having cast pff his old garments, takes others that are new, so the embodied (soul), having cast off the old bodies, enters into others that are new. matter is only an inferior part of the objectivity of matter, but it is the dual nature of the Godhead as nothing in comparison with the (see c. vii. 5). In the existent forms soul. Compare the language of of things it is only temporary, and Bossuet (Serm. sur la Mort) : " Tout will be absorbed again in the Divine etre qui se mesure n'est rien, par- nature from which it issued. In ceque ce qui se mesure a son terme, the popular Vedantist doctrine it et lorsqu'on est venu a ce terme un has no real existence. The Sup- dernier point detruit tout, comme reme Spirit includes in itself all si jamais il n'avait ete." being. There is no duality. Matter 1 Cf. Ps. civ. 2: ** Who stretch - is only the illusive form {mdyd) in est out the heavens like a curtain." which he has veiled his real nature - The Supreme Brahma. The for a time, but it will disappear at gods are not eternal. They issued last. It is only as the reflection of from Brahma. " The Supreme Lord the moon in water. Our author, of life caused to issue the creation however, does not expressly deny of gods " (Manu i. 22). SU V ^ ^. 36 BHAGAVAD GITA. [chap. 11. Weapons cleave it not, nor does the fire burn it ; the waters wet it not, nor do the winds dry it up. This is impenetrable, incombustible, incapable of being moistened or dried up : it is undying, all-pervading, con- stant, immovable, and eternal. 25 This is declared to be invisible, incomprehensible, im- mutable : wherefore knowing it to be such, thou oughtest )t to grieve for it. And if thou thinkest it to be ever born and ever dying v*-' (with the body), even then it is not meet for thee to grieve ^: for it, mighty-armed ! ^, Tor the death of what is born is certain, and certain s^ 3 (too) the birth of what has died ; therefore it is not meet for thee to mourn over that which none can prevent. In the primal state all things are unseen ; in the middle -y state they are seen, son of Bharata ! they become un- seen again in the state of death. What cause of grief is ^ there ih this ? One man looks on it (the soul) as a marvel; another speaks of it as a marvel, and another hears of it as a l; marvel, but there is not one w^io, by hearing of it, understands it. 30 This embodied (soul) in the body of every one, son of Bharata ! is ever indestructible, wherefore thou oughtest not to mourn for any living thing. Eegarding, too, thy proper duty, thou oughtest not to falter, for to a Kshatriya (warrior) nothing is better than a lawful fight. Happy are the Kshatriyas, son of Pritha ! who ob- tain such a fight as this, offered freely to them as an open door _to heaven . But if thou wilt not undertake this lawful fight, then, CHAP. II.] BHAGAVAD GITA. 37 by abandoning thy proper duty and tliy honour, thou wilt be gnilty of a crime. Then men will proclaim thy eternal disgrace, and to a w^ell-borii man Qi) disgrace is worse than death. 35 The car-borne men (the chiefs) will think that thou hast withdrawn from the battle through fear, and thou, who wast highly thought of by them, will be lightly esteemed. Thy enemies will utter many disgraceful w^ords (lit. that ought not to be said), deriding thy capacity (as a warrior) : what can be more grievous than this ? If slain, thou wilt attain to heaven, or thou wilt possess the earth if a conqueror : wherefore arise, son of KuntI ! resolved upon the fight. Accounting pain and pleasure, gain and loss, victory and defeat as equal, gird thyself for the battle : thus thou wilt not bring sin upon thee. This doctrine has been declared to thee according to ^ the Sankhya (system) ; hear now the Yoga (teaching). When thou, by means of this teaching, hast become devout {yuhta), thou wilt cast off the bonds of works.^ 1 This expression, " bonds of ac- of such gain or loss : the aim of the tion" (or "bonds of works "), often true Yogin is to rise above all such recurs in the poem, and must be vicissitudes and to gain by a mystic well understood in order to gain a union {yoga) with the supreme correct knowledge of the nature and Brahma in devout meditation a aims of this s^'stem of philosophy, final absorption [nirvana) into his Every action that is wrought for essence. The Yogin is then born some purpose connected with self, no more, and is for ever emancipated though it be the hope of gaining from any contact with matter, which heaven, is followed by the necessary is the source of all evil and of all result of a good or evil state in an- pain. Hence arises the opposition other body. This result is called in the spiritualist Yogin to all out- the bond of action, or that to which ward forms, even such as are ex- the work necessarily binds the doer, pressed or enjoined in the Vedas. All works are exposed to the danger He becomes superior to them all ia 33 BHAGAVAD GItA, [chap. ii. 40 In this (system) there is no waste of effort, in it no loss^ is found. Even a little of this pious exercise delivers from great fear. This doctrine (^), which is of a constant, nature, is one, son of Kuru ! but many-branched and endless are the doctrines of the inconstant. A flowery kind of language is spohen by the unwise, who delight in Yeda-words,^ son of Pritha! saying, " There is nothing but this ! " Whose souls are full of lust, who regard heaven as the highest good, offering birth as the fruit of works, and practising many varied rites for the attaining of plea- sures and power. The doctrine of these men who are devoted to pleasures find power, and whose minds are carried away by these (words), having effort as its essence, is not formed for meditation. 45 The Vedas have the three gunas ^ as their object. Be thou free from the three gunas, Arjuna ! be free from the his mature state ; they are then com- *^ An attack on the prevailing pletely useless to him, though they Vedantist ritual, which the Vedas may be of some use to those who underlay. This offered one of the are in a lower condition (vi. 3, 12 ; heavens of the gods as a reward ; ii. 46). Like the Quietists in the the reward of pure devotion (yoga) Church of Rome, he is above the is absorption into the supreme hope of reward, though it should be Brahma. that of the highest heaven. This 3 The three Modes, or Qualities, reward, too, would be only tempo- as they are usually called, are the rary, for all the seven heavens, and constituent elements of Prakriti or the gods who inhabit and rule over primal matter. From them all the them, will pass away at the end of labours, the pleasures and pains of a halpa, to be produced again when our present life are produced (see another kalpa begins (viii. 37). Introd. p. 12). The meaning of the 1 In worldly pursuits there may passage is, that Arjuna should be be failure in attempting to gain free from all the influences of matter, what we desire, and if gained it whether good or evil, for the best may be lost, but there is neither results that come from it are corn- failure nor loss in devotion. paratively evil. 'I CHAP. II.] BHAGAVAD GITA. 39 pairs of opposites/ ever fixed on truth, without anxious care (/) and self-possessed. As many as are the uses of a reservoir, whose waters flow in on every side, so many are there in all the Yedas for a discerning Brahman.^ Let the work itself be thy charge, but never the fruit (of works) ; let not the fruit of works be thy motive, yet be not inclined to inaction. Do thy works, steadfast in devotion, renouncing attach- ment (Z;), subduer of wealth ! be still the same in suc- cess and failure. Evenness of mind is called devotion {yoga). For work is far inferior to mental devotion, sub- duer of wealth ! Seek for refuge in the mind. Miserable are they whose motive is the fruit (of works). 50 He who has become mentally devout abandons both good and evil deeds : therefore apply thyself to devotion {yoga). Yoga is success in works (the work in which there is always success). For the wise, devout in mind, renouncing the fruit that is born of works, freed from the bondage of birth, go to the seat where disease ^ is not. When thy mind shall pass over the tangled path of ^ Lit. " not affected by pairs " would shock too much the feelings {dwandwds), i.e., by opposites, such of his fellow-Brahmans if the poet as pleasure and pain, health and were to deny that there was any use sickness, &c. Cf. Vishnu Purana in the Vedas and other sacred books, I, 6, 18 : " As sin increased, these but their use was far inferior to that creatures (mankind) were afflicted of yoga (mental devotion), with suffering arising out of the pairs ^ " The seat where there is no (of susceptibilities to pleasure and disease " is the Supreme BrahmJl. pain)." (S. T. i. 62.) The expression seems to indicate ^ A reservation, probably from that the Hindus were then com- the spirit of compromise which is paratively a feeble race, subject to evident throughout the poem. It many kinds of disease. 9 ^ 40 BHAGAVAD GIT A. [chap. II. delusion, thou wilt attain to a disdain of what has been revealed, or shall be revealed hereafter.^ When thy mind, distracted (aforetime) by sriiti (the Vedas), shall stand unshaken, in meditation fixed, thou wilt then attain to yoga. V Aejuna spoke. What is the mark (Q, Ke^ava! of one who is fixed in knowledge,^ and who is constant in meditation? How may he speak who is steadfast in thought, how may he rest or move ? / The Holy Oi>^e spohe. c^ When one casts off all desires whose seat is in the heart, son of Pritha ! content with himself in himself, he is said to be steadfast in knowledge. He whose heart is not distressed in adversity, in whom ^ A bold defiance of the estab- lished religion, i.e., the religion of the Vedas. S'ruti, lit. " hearing," is the name of all books given by divine revelation, and these are the mantras and the hrdhmanas (hymns and expositions) of the four Vedas. Smriti (recollection or memory) is the name given to those ancient writings from which duty, divine and social, might be learned. In the Institutes of Manu we are told that "sruti is the Veda, and smriti the book of duty or law [dharvia- sdstra) ; these in all cases are not to be qiiestioned, for from these duty has been made manifest " (ii. lo). It is stated, however, expressly, that they are not of equal authority, for it is added : "To those who are seeking a knowledge of duty, h-uti is the supreme authority" (ii. 13). S'ruti therefore answers to " revela- tion," and smriti to "tradition," in the language of Western nations. The Hindu commentators ignore this allu.'iion to sruti as " revela- tion," and interpret it in the primi- tive sense of " hearing," i.e., of means of obtaining the objects of the senses " (Sankara). Srldhara says, " Hearing what is not according to the Vedas." 2 By knowledge is meant spiri- tual knowledge, the knowledge of the supreme Brahma, and of union with him {yoga) by meditation. The word sthitaprajna means one who is both steadfast and wise in divine things. CHAP. II.] BHAGAVAD GIT A. 41 all joy in prosperity is lost, from whom passion, fear, and wrath have passed away, is called a muni ^ (recluse), fixed in meditation. He who is without affection on every side, who has neither delight nor aversion in good or evil fortune of any kind, of this man the knowledge is fixed. When one withdraws his senses from sense-objects, as a tortoise draws in its limbs in every part, the knowledge of this man is fixed. Sensuous objects withdraw from an abstinent man : ^ even savour withdraws when it beholds his complete abandonment of savour. ^ Yet the tumultuous senses of a wise man, even though he resists, son of Kunti ! bear away the heart by force. When he has subdued them all, he may rest in devo- tion, intent on Me, for the knowledge of him whose senses are under control is fixed. . When a man meditates on the objects of sense, then I ,attachment to them arises : desire springs from attach- jment ; from desire wrath (vehement emotion) proceeds. From wrath comes confusion ; from confusion, wan- derinsj of memorv ; ^ from this wanderincf comes destruc- tioii of the intellect, and by this destruction the man is Tost. jlf I3ut he who meets sense-objects w*ith senses free from ^ An anchoret devoted to the ^ The loss of memory implies for- practice of yoga (mystic devotion). getfulness of right and wrong ; from - From the habit of self-control, this comes folly or delusion, by even desire will cease at last ; figu- which the man acts with an evil ratively expressed by the retreat of waywardness, and incurs thereby a sensible object, as if practically it future punishment in Naraka (hell). was no longer present. ■I J 42 ■ BHA GA VAD GIT A. [chap. it. desire or aversion and is self-controlled, he, being well- ordered in soul, attains to peace.i 5q In (the possession of) peace, then freedom from all distress is produced in him ; for the mind of him whose thoughts are peaceful soon becomes steadfast. Neither intelligence nor right condition (m) belongs to the undevout man ; there is no tranquillity for him who is not well-conditioned (or well-ordered,) and how can there be happiness for him who is not tranquil ? Tor the heart of the man who obeys the roving senses carries away his knowledge as the wind (drives) ships at sea. Wherefore, mighty-armed ! the knowledge of the man whose senses are wholly withheld from the objects of sense is confirmed. That which is the night of all (other) beings is the time when the self-restrained man.^ is awake, and when other bo'ings are awake, that is the night of a discerning recluse {muni). 70 He attains to peace into whom all desires enter as rivers enter into the ocean, which is ever filled, and (yet) remains within its bounds; not the man who cherishes desires. ^Cf.Platointhe*'Ph8edo"(sec.75): follows reason as her guide, and is •' The soul of a real lover of wisdom employed in the contemplation of would not reason as they (mankind what is true and divine." in general) do ; would not think - The self-restrained, possessing that philosophy must set him free, spiritual knowledge, see clearly and that when he has done this, where worldly men are in darkness : he may again give himself over to worldly desires and interests are pleasures and pains, and thus undo foreign to him : they are covered what she has done, weaving her with the darkness of night to him, web to unravel it again, after the but to the worldly these are things fashion of Penelope. His soul at- that are seen as in the light of tains a calm repose from passion, day. CHAP. II.] BHAGAVAD GIT A. 43 The man who, having abandoned all desires, goes onward without attachments, free from selfishness and vanity, attains to peace. This is the Brahma state,^ son of Pritha ! he who has obtained it is troubled no more. He who retains it till the hour of death passes on to nirvana (absorption) in Brahma.2 ^ The state or condition of the knowledge of Brahma, according to Sridhara. Sankara's gloss is "dwell- ing in the form of Brahma," i.e., his being or nature. 2 Cf. the "Phffido" (sec. 68) : " If it (the soul) take its departure in a state of purity, not carrying with it any clinging impurities of the body ; impurities which during life it never willingly shared in, but always avoided ; gathering itself into itself, and making this separation from the body its aim and study, . . . well then, so prepared, the soul de- parts to that invisible region which is, of its own nature, the region of the Divine, the Immortal, and the Wise." Nirvana, lit. "blown out;" the complete absorption of the soul in the Supreme Spirit, of which it is a part, according to the Vedantist school. It is thus explained in the Brihadaranyaka (Sans. Lit., p. 24). '* It is with us, when we enter into the Divine Spirit, as if a lump of salt was thrown into the sea ; it becomes dissolved into the water (from which it was produced), and is not to be taken out again." Thus the Bhagavad Gita, Eeading the Second, whose title is " The Sankhya-Yoga (Doctrine)." > M- '^^ y-^ xT "^^ r 44 BHAGAVAD CITA. [chap. ii. PHILOLOGICAL NOTES. (a) Visliame. " In rerum discrimine " (Lassen) ; " in matters of difficulty " (Thomson) ; " dans la bataille " (Burnouf) ; " in this fearful place " (Telang). Fisharna, from vi, a prefix of negation, and sama, equal, means (i) inequality or unevenness of ground ; (2) difficulty, trouble. The locative case of the noun gives some support to Telang's version, but the reference is not to the place itself, but to the circumstances connected with it. We may translate the word, " in this difficult state of affairs" or "emergency." S'ridhara explains vlshame by sangrdme sankate (in the closed battle). {h) Kdrpanyadoshopahataswahhdvas. " Miseratione et formi- dine culpse fracta indole" (Lassen, followed by Thomson and others). Telang's version is, " My heart too, by the taint of helplessness tarnished," taking the compound a^ a tat-purusha form. I^ut upahata means " wounded " or " destroyed," not "tarnished," and Icdrpanya is poverty or misery. Helpless- ness implies no guilt (^dosha), but Arjuna's grief might be wrong, as he was of the warrior {Kshatriya) caste. On the other hand, nothing is said of the fear of wrong, but of wrong simply. The very nature (swabhdva) of Arjuna was wounded by pity for his relatives and the sin of this fratri- cidal war. (c) Mdtrdsparsas. " Elementorum contactus " (Lassen) ; " contacts of the senses " (Telang and the Hindu scholiasts). Mdtra (matter) is the object of the senses, not the senses themselves. (d) Kalpate, "doth merit (immortality)" (Telang). The word means "is fitted for." S'ridhara interprets it by yotjryo- hhavati (is fitted or suitable for). Lassen excellently, "ad immortalitatem conformatur." CHAP. II.] BHAGAVAD GITA. 45 {e) Antas, end, limit. Lassen translates it by " discrimen;" Thomson by *' true end ; " Burnouf by " en connaissent la limite." The authors of the Peters. Diet, refer to this pas- sage, and translate the word by "ende," "ausgang." Telang interprets the word as meaning "settled truth." Lassen's version gives an intelligible meaning, but it has not been shown that anta (end, limit) has the meaning of " difference." The meaning of the passage is that only the soul has a real existence, or at least that the forms and conditions of matter have only a conditional existence. The dividing line of the two is clearly seen by the wise. S'ridhara defines asat (unreal) as that which has not the nature of the soul and religious duty (dharma). In the philosophy of Kapila, sat means formal ex- istence, and asat the formless, unmanifested Prakriti (primal matter). (/) Lassen supposes that sanrinds is connected with a second dehds (bodies), and suggests that the latter word means "miasmata." He would translate the passage thus: "Mortalia hsec corpora nihil aliud sunt quam ^/ac^aara spiritus cum iilis conjuncti." A fanciful interpretation, which cannot be maintained. Possession is often indicated by the genitive case, without a verb or noun intervening (Williams' Grammar, sec. 816). Burnouf 's version is also untenable : " Ces corps qui procedent d'une ame," &c. The subject here is not the creation of the body, but its use by the soul as a dwelling-place. {g) Sdswato' yam purdno. Sdswata, eternal as to the future ; purdna, eternal as to the past. (h) Samhhdvitasya. " Pour un homme de sens " (Burnouf) ; but Lassen's version, " viri generosi," is, I think, better. The Hindu commentators explain the word as meaning "hon- oured ; " but samhlidva means birth, origin, and the appeal is to Arjuna's pride of birth. Gatti has " generoso." {i) Buddhi (intellect), but used here, it seems, as in dist. 39, for "doctrine." 46 ' BHAGAVAD GITA. [chap. ir. (j) YogahsJiema, primarily a law-term for an insurance or guarantee of property. The practice of insurance is of very ancient date, for in the laws of Manu we are told that a kinsr should levy taxes on traders only after a due consideration of the rates of purchase and sale . . . and " the charges of securing (insuring?) the goods carried" (vii. 127). A secondary mean- ing is care or anxiety. Qc) Sanga, attachment or desire. This is an important word in the Yoga system. It is formed from sanj, to hold or adhere to, and corresponds to the Fr. attachemeiit. It means any affection or desire by which the mind is bound to the object of desire, and is thus prevented from gaining that per- fect equanimity and absence of passion which it is the object of the Yoga discipline to form. Thomson translates the word by " covetousness," but this, in its restricted modern sense, is much too limited. Schlegel and Lassen have " ambitione seposit^ ; " but sanga is not ambition merely ; it is more than this; including it, but taking a wider range. Burnouf trans- lates it by desir, but this is too wide. It is not every kind of desire that is forbidden, for some kinds are unavoidable, and some are of an indifferent quality, but such desire as binds and entangles the soul by connecting it mediately with sCne form of matter, and producing an inward commotion or bias. (l) BMshd, a sign, means primarily speech or language. It is used to denote the distinguishing mark or sign of a person, for " his speech bewrayeth him." (m) Bhdvana. " Sui conscientia " (Lassen) ; " reflexion " (Thomson); "sammlung des Geist's" (Lorinser, who adds, " am meisten diirfte im Deutschen hier der Ausdruck ' Bei- sich sein ' entsprechen "). S'ridhara interprets it by dliydna, meditation. OT. sabdabhavana vidhiriti, the right condition of speech is due order (Madhus. in Pet. Diet.) ( 47 ) HEADING THE THIED. Arjuna spoke. If knowledge is deemed by thee to be better than action, O destroyer of foes I why dost thou engage me to this dreadful deed, Kesava ? Thou bewilderest my mind by these ambiguous words : tell me distinctly what is the one certain (course) by which I may attain to the better state. The Holy Oke spoke. There is in this world a twofold rule of life (a), as I said before/ sinless one ! — that of the Sankhyans,^ by devo- tion of knowledge, and that of the Yogins, by devotion of work. A man w^ho does not undertake works attains not to freedom ffeiHr^w^rk, nor does he obtain the perfect state by mere renouncement.^ 1 See c. ii. p. 37. spiritual Supreme Essence, at whose 2 The Sankhya school is that of command all existing things come Kapila ; the Yoga that of Patanjali. into being. Kapila taught that final In their physical theories they gene- emancipation from matter can only rally coincide, and in the questions be obtained by knowledge, meaning relating to the soul. They differed, by knowledge his own philosophy however, in two very important chiefly. Patanjali taught that it is points. Kapila did not recognise a gained chiefly by pious meditation, personal Supreme Deity, but only whereby the soul is joined in thought primordial matter, emanating into to the Great Supreme, and is finally distinct forms by a kind of blind absorbed in him. instinct. Patanjali exalted philo- ^ The nature of a true renuncia- sophy into religion by setting forth a tion is taught in c. v. The proper 48 BHAGAVAD GiTA. [chap. iii. 5 For no man ever continues to cease from action, even for a short time, since every one is compelled by the Modes {gunas) ^ of nature to act, even against his will. He who, restraining the organs of action,^ remains in- active, but yet remembers in his heart the objects of sense, he, confused in soul, is called a '•' false devotee." But he who, having subdued the senses by the heart (manas), Arjuna ! undertakes the devotion of w^ork by the organs of action, without attachment, is highly esteemed. Do thou every appointed w^ork, for action is better than inaction, and even the means of subsistence for the body cannot be gained by thee if inactive. "" This world is bound by the bonds of action,^ except in work done on account of sacrifice.'* Apply thyself to work for this purpose, son of KuntI ! but without attachment. 10 > When the Lord of all beings ^ (h) had created mankind Yoga system, in its highest form, ex- hearing, sight, smelling, taste, and eluded all voluntary work ; but the the action of the skin, enlightened mind of our author led ^ For the meaning of the term him to a modification of this extreme " bonds of action " see c. ii. p. 37. view. ^rldhara says that works ^ Sankara refers yajna, sacrifice, connected with caste must be done, to Vishnu, as the Ishwara or Lord. He also explains "freedom from Ananda has the same explanation, work" [naislilcaryam) by "spiritual and both refer to sruti, revelation, knowledge" {jndna), for in the i.e., the Yedas and other works of the Yoga system this was equivalent to same authority. the mind being fixed on Brahma in ^ The lord of all beings, the su- the exercise of devotion. Sankara preme Brahma, in his form of Brah- explains "the perfect state" as ma, ordained the sacrifice by fire. " divine knowledge." " He, the Supreme Kuler, created 1 Tor the nature of these con- the eternal sacrifice " (Manu, i. 22). stituents of Prakriti see Introd. p. 12. The gods were supposed to partake 2 The organs of action are five — ©f the sacrifices through Agni. the bands, the feet, the mouth, and " Nourished by sacrifices, the gods the organs of excretion and genera- nourish mankind by sending forth tion. The five senses are those of rain " (Vishnu Purana, i. 6). Of ,£ALiF^ ^^l CHAP. III.] BHAGAVAD GItA. of old, together with sacrifice, he said, " By this shall off- spring be obtained : be this your cow of plenty^ (c) for (the attainment of) your desires. E'ourish ye the gods by this, and let the gods also nourish you. Thus, nourishing each other, ye shall ob- tain the highest good ; For the gods, nourished by sacrifice, shall give to you the desired foods. He who eats the things which are given by them without offering to them (in return) is a thief. Good men, who eat the remains of sacrifices, are freed from all their sins, but the evil, who cook only for them- selves, eat sill. 2 All creatures live by food ; food is produced by rain ; rain is (caused) by sacrifice; sacrifice is wrought by action. -> 15 Know that action springs from Brahma;^ Brahma pro- ^ Kdmaduk, from hdma (love, de- sire) and duh (to milk), the sym- bolical cow of Indra, from which every desired good could be obtained. Probably at first a personification of the earth as the giver of food, &c. - Cf. Manu iii. 118: "He who eats what has been dressed for him- self only, eats nothing but sin ; a feast on that which remains after the oflfering is called the banquet of the good," 3 Brahma, as the Creator, is the author of action, and he issued from the Undivided, the Supreme Brahma or Brahman. Lassen translates the passage, "Numen e simplici et in- dividuo ortum," Mr. Thomson's version is, "The Supreme Spirit is co-existent with the Indivisible," and he adds in a note, " Three cate- gories of spirit are here marked out. The lowest is the soul of man, called I'shara, divisible ; the next is akshara, indivisible, explained by the word lutastha, pervading all things ; the third is the Supreme Being in his own individual personality." But Tcshara means the whole of finite created forms, the existing creatijn in its manifold parts (see c. viii. n. i). The creative principle, in itself undivided, came forth from Brahma, and is the material source of a ma- terial creation. " Being formed by that First Cause ('That which is,' Sir W. Jones), undiscernible, eter- nal, which is both existent (in mate- rial forms) and non-existent, that Male {Purusha) is celebrated in the world as Brahma." He is the Supreme in his creative energy, ex- isting in the varied forms of the world. Brahma dwelt in the egg in D 50 BHAGAVAD GITA. [chap. in. ceeds from the Indivisible One. Wherefore Brahma, the all-pervading, is ever present in sacrifice. He who causes not this appointed cycle to revolve here below, he, living in sin and gratifying the senses, lives in vain, O son of Pritha ! But the man who can be happy in himself, pleased ^ with himself, and contented with himself alone, for him nothinsj remains to be doue.^ For this man has no interest whatever in what is done or left undone here below, nor for him is there any occa- sion whatever of seeking for succour {d) from any living thing. Wherefore apply thyself to work that ought to be done, I but always without attachment (e), for the man who ' applies himself to work without attachment attains to the Supreme (/). ?o For Janaka^ and others have attained to perfection which the Supreme had placed him such a man is exalted above all for a (divine) year, and then dividing action and all duty. Lassen, more it, " he formed the heavens and the correctly, " Omni negotio vacat." earth" (Manu i. ii, 13). Sankara Literally it is, "Necessary work and other Hindu scholiasts explain (what is to be done) of this man Brahma to mean the Vedas, and exists not." Telang translates it, the Vedas are present, says Sankara, " Has naught to do." Cf. c. v. 24. because " the rites of sacrifice are Ananda says that he attains to this their main object." This is as un- state by his complete knowledge, satisfactory as other explanations of Sridhara, in commenting on the obscure passages by Hindu commen- next distich, says it is by his having tators. It is never thus used by surmounted all regard for self {ahan- the author of the Bhagavad Gita, hdra). who had not as much reverence for ^ Janaka, a king of Mithila or the Vedas as i^ankara and other Videha, was reckoned among the scholiasts. great Rishis on account of his piety ^ Mr. Thomson translates the and wisdom. He is often mentioned latter clause, "Has no selfish interest in the Mahabharata. It is there in action," asserting that he who stated that he was constantly en- "is all in all to himself performs gaged in thinking on matters con- actions as a duty." On the contrary, nected with a future life, and that ^ CHAP. III.] BHAGAVAD GiTA. 51 even by work. Thou oughtest to work, also, from regard to the masses of mankind {g). Whatever is done by one who is high in position, that other men do, whatever it may be. Whatever example he offers, the people follow it. jSTothinir whatever, son of Pritha! must needs be done by me in the three worlds, nor is anything to be attained that is unattained, yet I am occupied in work.^ For if I should not be ever at work, unwearied (and men follow my path, son of Pritha! from every part). These worlds would sink in ruin. If I should not work, I should be the author of confusion,^ and I should destroy this race of men. 25 As ignorant men do works with attachment, son of Bharata! so the wise man should work without attach- ment, desiring to promote the general good. he had a hundred religious teachers He is the undeveloped Prakriti (Sans. T. i. 429). His other name (primal matter), and the Eternal was Siradhwaja (he whose sign or Maker. Intellect {huddhi), mind banner is a plough), from which we (?«anas), and the Great One {mahat = may infer that he was famed for buddhi in the system of Kapila, here having introduced improvements in perhaps the soul), air, fire, water, sky, agriculture. earth, whatever fourfold being exists ^ Krishna, in his divine nature, is established (pratishthitam) in had no earthly object to gain. The Krishna " (Sans. T. iv. 209. I have work to which he alludes is not, as slightly altered the translation). Mr. Thomson supposes, the work of a The whole passage shows a reac- Kshatriya (the warrior caste), but his tion in the mind of our author against labour in maintaining and directing the excesses of the Yoga system, all things. Cf. the Mahabharata 2 Confusion of the castes, accord- (Sabha - parvan, 1390-95). "It is ing to the Hindu scholiasts, but pro- Krishna who is the origin and the de- bably more was implied than this, struction of the worlds : all this uni- though confusion of castes is, to a verse, movable and immovable, has Brahman, the direst of evils. Seft come into being through Krishna. Manu iii. 17, 18, 19. 52 BHAGAVAD GItA. [chap. III. Let him not cause distraction of mind in ignorant men who are attached to works : let the wise and devout man promote Qi) every kind of work, co-working therein. >( Works are done entirely by the modes of Nature {Pra- hriti)} He whose soul is bewildered by vanity (*) thinks, " I am the doer ; " But he who knows the truth of the separate parts of modes and works,^ mighty-armed! thinking thus, "Modes are occupied with (or in) modes," {j) is not bound. They who are confused by the modes of iSTature {Pra- hriti) are bound by the works of the modes. Let not him who knows the whole (truth) cause dull men, who know not the whole, to falter (in action). ) Eenouncing all works in Me,^ fixed in thought on the 1 The soul, which is the true self, never aots. Its proper state is one of absolute isolation and repose. All action is due to the modes of nature {Pral'riti). These, as they are variously compounded, produce actions which are relatively good or bad, but all action is inferior to re- pose. Man is represented as having a dual nature, consisting of the soul, which is passive, and its material envelopments, in which the modes are continually acting. The wise, knowing this, allow the action of the modes to go on, but are not con- cerned by it. The ignorant, who think that the soul acts, look for reward (as of heaven, for instance), not for absolute freedom from all contacts with matter in nirvana. " I have not the nature of the Modes ; works are not mine " (Sridhara, re- ferring to the soul as the real self). ^ The point in question here is not, as Lassen and Thomson have supposed, the difference between ac- tions and the modes, but the parts which they severally play, Vibhaga means part, share, allotment, and expresses here the assigned share or allotment of each in their separate but mutually dependent existence. All action is due to the modes, and the modes are affected in their subsequent distribution and arrange- ment by the actions of each suc- cessive life, and form a higher or lower condition. 3 "Give up all works by means of thought on the Suprerue Spirit" (Sridhara). The verb used by Srid- hara means to consign, intrust, de- liver ; but here, I think, to give up, "iibergeben," "iibertrageu" (Peters. Diet.) CHAP. III.] BHAGAVAD GITA. 53 Supreme Spirit (IS), free from hope and selfislmess, put away thy sorrow and fight ! The men who ever follow this my doctrine,^ full of faith and unreviling, are set free even by works : ^ But know that they who follow not my doctrine, reviling it, these, senseless and confused in every (kind of) know- ledge, are wholly lost. Even the wise man tends to that which is conformed to his own nature; all beings follow (their) nature; what then will opposition effect ? 4 Love and hatred are seated in the objects ^ of the senses. Let none come under the power of these two (affections), for they are his foes. j^ i Better is one's own duty,* though faulty (in the work) (I), than another's thou^rh well done. Better is death in one's U 1 Krishna calls the doctrine his, because he was considered to be the lord of devotion, and is sometimes so called (c. xviii.) Those who reviled the doctrine were the Vedantists, and especially the Saivyas, who iden- tified their own especial deity, Siva, with the Supreme God, Brahma. ^ This is not completely in ac- cordance with either the Sankhya or the Yoga system. The first ad- mitted only knowledge as the means of final emancipation ; the second, only mystic devotion. Our author admits the necessity, and even the advantage, of action, if done with- out "attachment." 2 Mr. Thomson's version is, "Love or hatred exists towards the objects of each sense." Lassen's is more correct: "Rebus sensui cuilibet sub- jectis propensio et aversatio neces- sario inhserent." So also Burnouf : •'II faut bien que les objets des sens fassent naitre le desir et I'aversion." The soul is passive. All emotion, of whatever kind, springs from the mode of Nature, called rajas (pas- sion ; sometimes translated " foul- ness," for the two ideas are closely connected in the Hindu mind), and must be subdued. Sankara says that Nature can only work by means of these affections, and if one with- stands their force, he is then at liberty to follow the Sastras (sacred books). This is in answer to the question, How can the Sastras be followed if Nature be so powerful ? (Telang). But the perfect Yogin, in the judgment of our author, was above all Sastras. * By duty (dharma) is here meant the fulfilling of the caste-obligations, as that of a Kshatriya to fight ; the influence of the writer's position as a Brahman modifying the pure Yoga sj'stem. 54 BHAGAVAD GITA. [chap. iir. own duty : another's duty is full of danger (lit. fraught with fear). V^ Aejuna sipdke. But by what is a man impelled, Varshneya ! when he commits sin even against his will, as if compelled by force ? V The Holy One s/jo/je. It is lust : it is wrath, born from the " passion "-mode : know that this, all- devouring, all-defiling, is here our foe. As a flame is covered by smoke and a mirror by rust ; as a foetus is enveloped by the womb, so the world is enveloped by this. Knowledge is enveloped by this, which is the eternal foe of the wise man ; which takes forms at will, son of KuntI ! and is an insatiable flame. 40 Its seat is declared to be in the senses, heart, and mind ; by these it bewilders the embodied (soul),^ casting a veil over knowledge. Wherefore restrain from the beginning the senses, O chief of Bharatas ! and then cast off this sinful thing that destroys both divine and human knowledge (m). Men say that the senses are great ; the heart {manas) is greater than the senses ; the mind (buddhi) is greater than the heart, but this is greater than the mind. Knowing, then, that this is greater than the mind, strengthen thyself by thyself, large-armed one \ and slay this foe, which takes forms at will and is hard to meet (n). 1 The manas may give distorted passion. Hence the soul, whicli is sensations, and may be excited by a spectator only, may be bewildered. Thus the Bhagavad Gita, Eeading the Third, whose title is "Devotion by Work." CHAP. III.] BHAGAVAD GITA. 55 PHILOLOGICAL NOTES. (a) Nishthd. Telang translates it by "path." S'ankara's gloss is " two kinds of fixed rule." Lassen's version is " vitse institutum." (6) Prajdpatij Lord of creatures, a title of Brahma as the creative power; comparatively of late introduction. It is found only once in the Kig-Veda, but often in later works. "This adorable and gracious God, Lord of all creatures, is known as Brahma, S'iva, Rudra, Varuna, Agni, Prajapati" (Mahabh. Anus. -parvan, 41 12). "Prajapati created living beings. From his upper vital airs he created the gods ; from his lower vital airs, mortal creatures. Afterwards he created death, the destroyer of creatures " (S'at. Brah. x. i ; Sans. T. iv- 55)- (c) Kdmaduh. Compounds of which the last member is the root of a verb have always an active force (Lassen). It means " that which causes (the object of) desire to issue." {d) Vyajmsraya, lit. the act of taking refuge. "Auxilii ullius expectatio " (Lassen) ; " object of use " (Thomson) ; " son. secours " (Burnouf). The meaning is, that he need not seek for refuge or help among any of mankind, because he is inde- pendent of all human aid. The Peters. Diet, renders it by " zuflucht," " zufluchtsstatte." (e) AsaJcta, "unattached," i.e.y free from the entanglements of sensuous things, and therefore unconcerned whatever may befall him, or in any course of action. (/) Param. "Summum bonum" (Lassen); "the highest region " (Thomson). It means absorption into the divine nature by nirvana. (g) Lokasangraha, from lolca, world, and sangraha (from grah, to hold), which here means assemblage. "Genus hu- 56 BHAGAVAD GITA, [chap. in. nianuin" (Lassen) ; "Tensemble des clioses humaines " (Bur- nouf) ; but the reference is more to men than to things. {]i) Joshayet, a causative form of jitsh, to receive or regard with favour. Lassen and Thomson translate the passage, "Tlie wise man should fulfil all actions;" but this does nob express the causative action implied in the verb. Burnouf, more correctly, renders it thus : " II leur fasse aimer leur travail." Telang has "Should set them to action." {i) Ahankara, self-consciousness, that which forms the ego; hence vanity or self-exaltation. (y) Giina, guneshu vartanta. This passage has been variously interpreted. " Qualitates in qualitatibus versantur " (Lassen); "les attributs (de I'ame) se rapportent aux attributs (de la nature" (Burnouf j. This is certainly incorrect. "He who knows the truth of the difference between the qualities and actions, believing that they revolve in the qualities " (Thom- son). Dr. Lorinser has accurately rendered it by "krafte in kratten wirken nur;" the krafte (gunds) being the modes or constituent elements of Prakriti (Nature). All action is con- fined within them. The soul stands apart, and is not affected by them. S'ridhara explains the word "modes" {gunds) by the senses and the outward objects to which they are related and with which they act. Both the senses and their objects are formed from the modes or constituent elements of Nature (Prakriti). S'ankara's gloss is, " The modes which have the nature of an organ deal with modes that have the nature of objects of sense." (Jc) Adydtman, the Supreme Soul, Brahma. Lassen's version is, " Cogitatione in intimam conscientiam conversa," but this seems to be an error. "Der hochste Geist" (Peters. Diet); "TAme Supreme" (Burnouf). {T) Viguna, lit. wanting in (good) qualities, weak and erring. "Etsi deficientibus viribus" (Lassen); "devoid of excellence " CHAP. III.] BHAGAVAD GITA. 57 (Thomson). S'ankara's gloss is that it is a work in which qualities are lost or absent {vigata). (m) Jnana, spiritual knowledge; vijndna, separate or worldly knowledge. "Spiritual knowledge" and "spiritual discernment " (Thomson). " Knowledge is that learned from books or teachers ; experience {vijndna) is that which is ac- quired by personal perception and so forth " (Telang). {n) Durdsadam, difficult of approach, and therefore difficult to aflfect or control. " Intractable " (Lassen and Thomson) ; "a I'abord difficile" (Burnouf ) ; "hard to tame" (Telang); *' dem schwer zu nahen, dem zu nahe zu kommen Gefahr bringt" (Peters. Diet.) ( 58 ) EEADING THE FOURTH. The Holy One spoke. This eternal (doctrine of) yoga I taught of old to Vi- vaswat;^ Yivaswat taught it to Manu; Manu told it to Ikshwaku. This, being handed down from one to another, the royal sages (Rajarshis) knew. This yoga (doctrine) was lost in this world by length of time, destroyer of foes ! This same ancient doctrine is now declared to thee by me, who have said, " Thou art my worshipper and friend," for it is a supreme mystery. -T Arjuna spoke. The birth of my Lord was later ; ^ the birth of Yivaswat 1 The author of the Bhagavad Gita, m order to give a divine sanc- tion to the Yoga system, ascribes it in the first place to Krishna, as a personification of Vishnu. He taught it to Vivaswat — that is, according to Madhusudana, "to Aditya (the Sun), who was the source of the whole Kshatriya race." Manu, the son of Vivaswat, is the last of the seven Manus of Hindu mythology which have already appeared. He presides over the present manwan- iara (age of a Manu = 4,320,000 years), and is presumed to be the author of the Institutes of Law which bears his name. Ikshwaku, his son, was the first king of the Solar dynasty, and one of the Rajar- shis, or royal saints. - Krishna, in his present incarnate form, was born after Vivaswat, but as a form of Vishnu he had had many previous incarnations or ava- tdras. They are generally reckoned as ten in number, but sometimes as twenty-two, and even as numberless, because all things spring from him. The first was in the form of a fish, which grew to a vast extent, by which he saved Manu, one of the progenitors of mankind, from an universal deluge, bidding him to build for himself and the seven Rishis an ark, which was fastened to the horn of the fish, and finally brought CHAP. IV.] BHAGAVAD GIT A. 59 was prior (to thine). How then may I understand this saying of thine, " I taught it in the beginning ? " The Holy One s'jgdke. Many have been in past time the births of me and of thee also/ Arjuna ! All these I know, but thou knowest them not, slayer of foes ! Though I am unborn, and my nature is eternal, and I am the Lord also of all creatures, yet taking control of my Nature-form {Prdkriti) (a), I am born by my illusive power (jndya).^ ■ Eor whenever piety decays, son of Bharata ! and impiety is in the ascendant, then I produce myself. Tor the protection of good men, for the destruction of evil-doers, for the re-establishment of piety, I am born from age to age.^ by it to a peak of Himavat (Sans. T. i. 183, 200). The last, in the person of Kalkin, has yet to be made. He will appear at the end of the present age {Kali-yuga) seated on a white horse, with a drawn sword blazing like a comet, to destroy the wicked and to form a righteous age. 1 By transmigration in the case of Arjuna. 2 By mystic power {mdyd, illu- sion). There is here a trace of the later Mimansa or Vedantist doc- trine. It is the mysterious power by which Brahma caused a seeming world to issue from himself. The world has no real existence, accord- ing to the Vedantists, for the onlj' real existence is the One Universal Soul. Kapila taught that the ex- ternal world was as real and as self- existent as soul, and Patanjali that the world of existing things (sat) is an emanation from Prakriti or pri- mal matter, which is an inferior part of the dual nature of the One Supreme Being. It is not certain, however, that the word is used here in its full Vedantist sense. In one of the Upanishads, the Svetasvatara (iv. 10^, Prakriti (Nature) is called vidyd, and the Great Lord, the illu- sionist ; but the explanation of Mad- hava is that illusion is a creative force in him, as heat is in fire (Miiller's Sans. Lit, p. 321). 3 The first four avatdras (incar- nations) are said to have been in the first yuga, or age of the world (Krita), the three following in the second (Treta), the eighth in the third (Dwapara), the ninth in the present (Kali) age. The tenth has yet to come. 6o BHAGAVAD GiTA. [chap. iv. He who truly knows my birth and this divine work of mine, comes nevermore to birth again when he quits the body : he comes to Me, Arjuna ! 10 Freed from passion, fear, and wrath, thinking on Me and finding refuge in Me, many, purified by the ascetic rite (h) of knowledge,^ enter into my being. As men devote themselves to Me, even so do I honour them. Men follow my path, son of Pritha ! from every side. They who desire success in works offer sacrifice here to the gods,2 for soon in this world of mortals success is gained by works. The four castes were created by me,^ according to the ap- portionment of qualities (or modes) and works. Know that I, the uncreatinfT and unchanorinf?, am the creator of them.* Works defile me not ; in me there is no desire for the fruit of works. He who comprehends me thus is not bound by works.^ ^ Knowledge is called tapas (re- Kshatriya, the Vaishya, and the ligious austerity) from its purifying Sudra to issue from his mouth, his influence. So in Manu (xii. loi) it arms, his thighs, and his feet." This is said that "knowledge of the Veda is, however, a late invention. The burns out the sin of the soul, born of castes were not definitely fixed in work, as fire burns even moist wood." the Vedic age, and the institution 2 This is an accommodation of the seems to have been developed gra- Yoga system to the popular faith dually. (See Prof. Roth on the Lit. and practice. The gods are recog- and Hist, of the Vedas.) nised, and offerings made to them * This apparent contradiction is may have some efficacy, but they usually explained by the dogma that cannot procure the final bliss of he who works without "attachment" nirvana. does not really work (cf. v. 20 infra). 2 The four castes are the Brahman, We may, however, interpret the pas- the Kshatriya, the Vaishya, and the sage thus : "As Vishnu (or Brahma) Sudra. Cf. the account given by I am the author of the castes, but not Manu i. 31: "That the human in my supreme form as Brahma." race might be multiplied, the Su- ^ His actions are not attended by preme caused the Brahman, the such results as the gaining of heaven CHAP. IV.] BHAGAVAD GItA. 6l 15 Knowing this, works were wrought by men of old, who sought for (final) deliverance.^ Wherefore do thou engage in w^ork as it was done aforetime by the men of old.2 Even the wise (c) are troubled if one should ask, "Wliat J is action and what is inaction ? " I will teach thee the kind of action by the knowledge of which thou w41t be free from evil. For action must be well understood, and forbidden action, and also inaction : tangled is the path of works.^ He who can see inaction in action, and also action in inaction, he among men is wise; he is devout, and has v^ fulfilled every work [d). He whose every effort is free from the impulse of desire, whose work has been burnt up by the fire of know- ledge,* is called by the wise a learned man {pandita). 20 Eenounciiig all attachment to the fruit of works, ever contented, self-reliant (e), this man, though engaged in work, yet works not at all. Void of hope, self-restrained in thought, and rejecting all surroundings, performing merely bodily work, he con- tracts no guilt. or birth in another body ; he is ab- Telang translates gati (way, path) sorbed into the divine nature. San- by " essence." The Hindu commen- kara says that for him there are no tators explain it as "truth" {tattwa), works requiring effort in another but it means rather the discussion of body. action, the laying down of its limits, ^ An absolute union with the than its essence, divine essence in nirvana. ■* Since action arises from the 2 Fight as thy forefathers, who modes of Nature, not from the soul, were of the Kshatri3^a (warrior) caste, it follows that the soul has no neces- 2 The question of works is difficult sary connection with it. Action is and obscure, like a path in a tangled due to the conditions of our physical forest. Ananda says that gahana state, as some of our Western scieu- (hard to penetrate) means " under- tlsts teach, stood or discerned with difficultv." 62 BHAGAVAD GITA. [chap. iv. Contented with whatever he may receive, unaffected by pairs of opposites (pleasure and pain, &c.), free from envy, the same in good and evil fortune, he, though he works, is not bound. The work of one in whom attachment is dead, who is freed (from things of sense) (/), whose mind is stayed on knowledge, wholly dissolves away, though he engage in sacrifice {(j). Brahma is the oblation ; Brahma is the sacrificial butter ;i -Brahma is in the fire; the burnt-offering is by Brahma. Into Brahma will he enter who meditates on Brahma in his work. 25 Some devotees attend sacrifices offered to the gods; others offer sacrifice by sacrificing only in the fire of Brahma -.^ Others sacrifice hearing and the other senses in the fire of self-restraint ; others sacrifice the objects of the senses, sound and the rest, in the fire of the senses. Others, too, sacrifice all the functions of the senses and of life in the mystic fire of self-restraint, kindled by knowledge. Others also, subdued in mind and bound by vows austere, offer the sacrifice of wealth or penance or de- ^ Eavis, clarified butter, which is oblations perforin not always exter- poured on the sacrificial fire ; also nally the great oblations, but sacri- other offerings cast into the fire, as fice continually in their sense- grain, &c. organs ; some constantly sacrifice 2 The fire is the flame of devotion, their breath in speech and their created by Brahma himself. Com- speech in breath, perceiving in their pare a similar statement in Manu : speech and breath an ever-accom- " Others continually perform sacri- plished sacrifice" (iv. 24, 23, 22). fice by knowledge only." Other Sankara says that the knowledge of forms of devotion noted in this pas- the Supreme Spirit is the austere sage are mentioned by him : "Some rite or penance {tapas) by which men who know the ordinances for these are purified. CHAP. IV.] BHAGAVAD GItA. 63 votion {yoga), or the sacrifice of silent reading and know- ledge.^ So also others sacrifice the inward breath in the out- ward, and the outward breath in the inward, obstructing the channels of inspiration and expiration, intent on the restraint of breath.^ 30 Others, who practise abstinence, sacrifice their life in life Qi). All these are skilled in sacrifice, and by sacrifice their sins are destroyed. They who feed on the ambrosial remains of sacrifices ^ go to the Eternal Brahma. This world is not for him who ofi'ers no sacrifice ; how then the other, best of Kurus ? Thus many kinds of sacrifice are offered in the presence of Brahma (^). Know that all these proceed from action : knowing this, thou wilt be free. The sacrifice of knowledge is better than the sacrifice of wealth,^ slayer of foes ! Every work, in its com- pleteness, is contained in knowledge. Learn this (knowledge) by doing reverence,^ by ques- tions, and "by service. The wise, who see the truth, will teach thee knowledge. 35 "When thou hast known it, thou wilt not come again to this trouble (of mind), son of Pandu ! for thou wilt see ^ The Hindu commentators show who is able continually feed on the their Vedantist bias by asserting residue of a sacrifice to the gods, that this means knowledge of the which is amrita " (immortal food). Sastras or sacred books generally "* Here the influence of the San- (Sankara), or of the Vedas (^rid- kyha system is evident. Cf. Plato hara). The knowledge of the Su- (Phaedo, sec. 71): " None can attain preme Brahma is, however, here to the rank of the gods but those meant. who pursue philosophy and depart ^ Restraint of breath (prdndyama) from the body pure ; none but the is breathing through one nostril only, lovers of true knowledge." by closing the other, 5 gy becoming the disciples and ^ Cf. Manu iii. 285 : " Let him ministers of religious teachers. ^/ 64 BHAGAVAD GIT A, [chap. iv. all things, without exception, in thyself and then in Me.i ^ Even if thou art the most sinful of all sinful men, thou / wilt pass over all transgression by the bark of knowledge.^ / As the kindled fire reduces all fuel to ashes, Arjuna! \ so the fire of knowledsje reduces all works to ashes. For no purifier is found on earth equal to knowledge. One who is perfect in devotion finds it in course of time in himself. This knowledge is obtained by the believer,^ who is devoted to it and has subdued the senses : when he has obtained it, he reaches without delay the supreme repose {nirvanob). The ignorant man and the unbeliever, and he whose soul is .full of doubt, are lost. He whose soul is full of doubt has neither this world, nor the next, nor (final) blessedness.* Works do not bind the man who is master of himself, who has abandoned work in devotion {yoga), and in whom doubt is destroyed by knowledge, subduer of wealth ! Wherefore slay this doubt, which is born of ignorance, and is seated in the heart, by the sword of knowledge ; give thyself to devotion, and arise, son of Bharata! 1 Because all things have ema- (faith) as a proof of Christian influ- nated from the One Supreme Being, ence. The argument is not without 2 He will gain remission of all force, but is not perfectly conclu- past sins : they will bring on him sive, for all religions require faith, no evil consequences, because sacred ^ Neither the blessing of a higher knowledge destroys sin. birth, or that of heaven, or of final ^ Dr. Lorinser refers to iraddhd nirvana. i Thus the Bhagavad Gita, Eeading the Fourth, whose title is "The Devotion of Knowledge." CHAP. IV.] BHAGAVAD GIT A. 65 PHILOLOGICAL KOTES. (a) Prahritif from pra (forth) and Tcri (to make), the pri- mordial matter out of which all things have sprung. {h) Taims, from tap (to burn), means (i) heat, (2) pain, and (3) religious austerity of any kind. It is not always penance, but is often undertaken for the purpose of obtaining great merit or supernatural power. The comp. jnana-tapas (knowledge -tapas) is sometimes explained by Hindu Yedantist scholiasts as a dwandwa com pound, meaning knowledge and austerity ; but in this case, as Lassen has shown, the word would have a dual ending. It is an ordinary or tat-purusha compound, answering to our English form sea-shore = shore of the sea. The attainment of knowledge is viewed by a Yogin as a religious act. (c) Kavayas, wise men j lit. poets ; a record of a time when all knowledge was commonly expressed in song. {d) Sa yuktas hritsndkarmalrit. *' Is devotus cunctis operi- bus peragendis aptus est " (Lassen) ; *' He is devout, and performs all his duty " (Thomson) ; " II est en 6tat d' union, quelqu'oeuvre qu'il fasse " (Burnouf). The idea appears to be, however, that he who can act without any mental dis- turbance, or who perceives that pious meditation (yoga) is the highest form of action, is a devotee who has completed his task ; his work is done, and he needs to act no more. Ananda seems to refer to the future state of the devotee. He becomes free from birth, occupation, or reward of works, and is (finally) set free (muJcta). (e) Nirdsrayas* self-reliant ; lit. not requiring, or not seek- ing, refuge or shelter. Such a worker is independent of others, but he is constrained by a kind of fatalism, arising E 66 BHAGAVAD GITA. [chap. iv. from the action of the modes. The soul, which is the real self, does not act. (/) MuTctasya, lit. of one who is free. Mr. Thomson would read yuTctasya (of one who is devout). But all the MSS. (in- cluding two in my possession) read muktasya. The argument that mukta means a man who has final deliverance only, is not sound. It is often used in the Nala and elsewhere with a lower meaning. Here it seems to be = nirdsrayas m v. 20, and to mean one who is free from the bondage of earthly desires or earthly conditions. Cf. muktalca, which, in the Peters. Diet., is translated " fiir sich bestehend," " selbstan- dig." S'ridhara's gloss is *' freed from passion (^dga) and the rest." {g) Yajndya dcharatas, lit. one who has gone to a sacrifice. " Who acts for the sake of sacrifice, i.e., instigated only by the spirit of devotion " (Thomson) ; " sacrificii gratis sese accin- gentis " (Lassen) ; " that sacrifice may be done " (S'ankara), i.e., not looking for reward after it. The sacrifice may be really offered, but being ofi'ered without "attachment," it may not prevent, it may even conduce to, nirvdna. It is no longer a work to which only heaven belongs as a reward. S'ridhara's gloss is that he goes to sacrifice for the knowledge of the Supreme Lord. Qi) Prdndn. In the plural the word means the five vital airs, and is = life. The devotee, by excessive abstinence, may ofi'er life itself as a sacrifice. Sdnkara, however, refers it to the restraint of breath. (^) Vitatd Brahmano muhhe. *' Propagata sunt e numinis ore" (Lassen); so also Burnouf : "Institu^s de la bouche de Brahma." Vitata means spread out, and is usually connected with the sacrificial offerings. Muhhe being in the locative case, cannot have the sense of *' out of," and commonly means " in the presence of;" lit. "in the face of." Mr. Thomson seems CHAP. IV.] BHAGAVAD GITA, 67 to have offered the true version, " Are performed in the pre- sence of the Supreme Spirit." The Hindu commentators, whom K. T. Telang follows, explain the passage as meaning that these sacrifices come from the Vedas, or are ordained by them. But this version is from a purely Vedantist view, and is not in accordance with the opinions of the author of the Bhagavad Gita, ( 68 ) EEADING THE FIFTH. Arjuna spoke. Thou praisest the renunciation of works, Krishna! and on the other hand devotion.^ Of these two which is the better one ? Tell me that certainly. The Holy Oxe spoke. Eenunciation (of works) and devotion by works both procure supreme blessedness (a) ; but of these devotion by works is more esteemed than renunciation. He must be regarded as a steadfast renouncer who neither hates nor desires; for he whom opposites^ affect not, large- armed one ! is freed from the bonds (of action) with ease. Young men speak of the Sankhya and Yoga (doctrines) as being diverse, but not the learned. He who devotes himself to one only obtains the fruit of both. That seat which the Sankhyans obtain is entered into by Yogins also.^ He who sees that the Sankhya and the Yoga are one sees indeed. 1 Having spoken of the nature ^ Such as pleasure and pain, heat and effects of spiritual knowledge, and cold, &c. the writer goes on to reconcile the ^ j^ jg assumed that the Sankhyans Sankhya and the Yoga systems, by may gain the seat here mentioned, explaining that the Yoga system, in i.e., the divine nature of Brahmii ; prescribing that all actions be done but Kapila did not teach this doc- without "attachment," enforces a trine. The soul, as he taught, when real renunciation, and is based on finally emancipated from matter, true knowledge. remains in a state of unconscious repose, but in its own individuality. CHAP, v.] BHAGAVAD GITA. 69 But renunciation (of works) is hard to gain, large- armed one! without devotion. The recluse {muni) who is fixed in devotion goes to Brahma without delay. He who is fixed in devotion, pure in soul, who is master of himself and subdues the senses, who identifies himself with everything that exists,^ is not defiled even though he work. " I do not work at all ;" thus the devotee who knows the truth may think,^ in seeing, hearing, touching, smell- ing, eating, walking, sleeping, and breathing ; In talking, in letting go, or holding, in opening or closing his eyes, affirming thus : " The senses are occupied with the objects of sense." 10 He who works, having given up attachment, fulfilling (all) works in Brahma, is not defiled by sin, like a lotus- leaf in water.^ By the body, by the heart (manas), by the mind Qmddhi), even by the senses (h) alone, Yogins, giving up attachment, do their work for the purifying of themselves. The devout man, when he has renounced the fruit of works, obtains eternal peace. The undevout, attached to the fruit (of works) by the impulse of desire, is bound. The embodied (soul), renouncing all works by the heart ^ Mr. Thomson explains this to the Buddhists call hilesanihbdnam, mean, " who considers all beings to or extinction of human passion, as be the same as himself, and feels distinct from hhandhanibbdnan'i, or towards them accordingly ; " but the extinction of being, but leading to perfect Yogin attains to an absolute it. (Childers, Pali Diet., s. v. nib- indifference to all persons and things bdnam.) (c. vi. 4). The meaning seems to be, 2 g^e c. iii. that such a person, even before ^ The lotus-leaf is said to be un- attaining to nirvana, loses all sense injured by a long immersion in of individuality, and is merged in water ; so he that acts without the universal life of the world, as an "attachment" is not soiled by acts emanation of Brahma. It is what of any kind. \ 76 BHAGA VAD GIT A. [chap. v. (manas) (c), and self-controlled, dwells at ease in the city of nine gates,^ neither working nor causing to work. The Lord of the world creates neither the faculty of working nor works, nor the connection of works and fruit, but the proper nature (d) of each (herein) is in action.^ 1 5 The Lord takes not upon himself (e) the sin, nor even the well-doing of any.^ Knowledge is veiled by ignorance, and hereby men are bewildered. But for those in whom this ignorance of the soul is destroyed by knowledge, the Supreme is revealed by knowledge, which is (resplendent) as a sun. Thinking on Him (lit. That), one in soul with Him, stayed on Him, intent on Him (as the final goal), they go to that from which there is no return,* their sins being taken away by knowledge. In a learned and modest Brahman, in a cow,^ in an elephant, even in a dog and a Swapaka,^ they who have knowledge see the same (thing). Even here below the world ^ is conquered by those who ^ This means the body, which has ^ The cow was^ and is still, vene- nine gates to the outer world — the rated by the Hindus. The dog is eyes, ears, nostrils, mouth, and the the lowest of animals in their es- organs of excretion and generation, teem. The soul does not act ; it sits, like ^ The Swapaka, the Cagot of India, an Eastern monarch, in isolated is the most degraded of all men. He grandeur. is condemned to the lowest offices, 2 Sankara connects this with Pra- such as carrying out dead unclaimed kriti (Nature), i.e., with material ele- bodies. He was formerly obliged ments only. to dwell outside the city gates, and 3 Brahma, like the human soul, could possess no other animals than dwells in an absolute isolation, which asses and dogs. (See Manu x. 5 1 ) the actions of men cannot affect. ^ Sarga, lit. emanation, is inter- ^ They do not return to the world preted by Sankara as janma (birth), in any state whatever, for they and by Sridhara as samara (the have gained eternal absorption into concourse of men, the world of man- Brahma, kind). CHAP, v.] BHAGAVAD GITA. 71 are ever equable in heart; for the sinless Brahma is r equable, therefore they abide in Brahma. 20 Let no man rejoice in attaining what is pleasant, nor grieve in attaining what is unpleasant, being fixed in mind, untroubled, knowing Brahma and abiding in Brahma. He whose soul is unattached to outward contacts (im- pressions from material things) finds happiness in him- self; his soul, joined by devotion (jjoga) to Brahma, enjoys eternal blessedness ; For the pleasures that are born of (these) contacts ^ are the wombs of pain : they begin and end, son of Kunti ! not in them the wise man delights. He who even here, ere he is freed from the body, can resist the impulse born of lust and wrath, he is devout {yulda) ; he is blessed. He who is happy in himself, pleased with himself, who finds also light in himself, this Yogin, one with Brahma, finds nirvana in Him. 2t The Eishis,^ whose sins are destroyed, whose doubts are removed, who are self-restrained and pleased with the well-being of all that live, obtain nirvana in Brahma. y^ They who are freed from lust and wrath, who are sub- dued in nature and in thought, and who know the soul, are near to nirvana in Brahma. When the muni has made external contacts (purely) external, and looks between his eyebrows; has made his inward and outward breath equal, directing it through the nostrils ; ^ The pleasures bom from the ^ Meaning here only "wise and contact of the soul with outward holy men." In the older Hindu things, mediately through the 6 udd/ti mythology its meaning is more (intellect) and the manas. limited. 72 BHAGAVAD GITA. [chap. v. Then with senses, heart, and mind subdued, intent on final deliverance, having put away desire, fear, and wrath, he is for ever free.^ He who knows Me as the enjoyer of sacrifice and austere rites,2 as the mighty lord of all the worlds ^ and the friend of every living thing, he attains to peace. ^ He is virtually one with the Supreme Brahma, and is for ever free from the evil influence of matter. In the Katha Upanishad there is an expression of the same idea. " When all the desires cease which were cherished in his heart, then the mortal becomes immortal ; even here he attains to Brahma." ^ This is not in accordance with the common Hindu idea of Brahma, either as the Supreme Spirit (Brah- mS,), or as the Creator (Brahma), for he is supposed to dwell in a state of absolute repose and isolation. (See dist. 15, supra.) He is rarely an object of worship in India. It is only as represented by Vishnu or Krishna that he can be pleased by sacrifice and austere practices. * These worlds are eight in number, rising from the worlds of giants and demons, Pisachas, Yakshas, and Rakshasas, to the Gandharva loTca (world of the heavenly musicians), the heaven of Indra, of the Moon, of the Pitris (first fathers of man- kind), up to that of Brahma, the highest. Thus the Bhagavad Gita, Eeading the Fifth, whose title is Devotion by Eenouncing Woeks." CHAP, v.] BHAGAVAD GITA. jz PHILOLOGICAL NOTES. (a) iV*.-sVg?/asa, *' final bliss." *'Id, quo melius quidquam excluditur : ea hominis conditio qua melior fingi nequit, i.e,, finis bonorum " (Lassen) ; " Kein besseres iiber sich habend," ''jemandes bestes, heil, erlosung" (Peters. Diet.) (h) Kei'alair indriyair a^i, " even by the mere senses." Schlegel translated the passage by ** cunctisque sensibus etiam," but Lassen altered the version to " mero sensuum ministerio etiam," which Mr. Thomson adopted. Kevala means (i) alone, not in company with others; (2) what is included in itself, abstract, absolute. Hence, kaivalya, the abstract state of a complete Yogin. Even devotees work by material faculties, for huddhi (intellect) and manas (the inner receptive faculty) are produced from Prakriti (primal matter), and these faculties were produced that the soul might know itself, as distinct from matter, which is the source of pain and impurity. Ananda says that the work referred to in this passage means a Yedic work done with self-restraint. S'ridhara, that the work done by the senses is that of hearing or reciting the praise of the Supreme. (c) Sarvaharmdni manasd sannyasya. " Cunctis operibus ex animo sepositis " (Lassen) ; ** Le mortel qui par la force de son esprit, pratique I'abnegation dans tous les actes" (Bur- nouf). The manas seems to represent here all the inward faculties, and the meaning will be, " He that has renounced all works by mental abstraction or devotion dwells at ease," &c. S'ankara explains the passage as meaning that this is done by the mind becoming separate (from worldly things). According to S'ridhara, this renunciation of work is by the manas being distinctively devout (vivehmjukta). 74 BHAGAVAD GITA. [chap. v. (d) Swahhdva, the union or assemblage of qualities which form the individuality of a person. This means the arrange- ment and proportion of the three Modes, or constituents of Prakriti (Nature) in each individual. According to these, a man works, but the soul, like the Supreme Brahma, takes, no account of the actions which result from them. Ananda glosses the word by praJcriti (Nature). (e) Adatte. "Accipit" (Lassen); *'se charge" (Burnouf); " nimmt auf sich " (Lorinser). The verb da with a, means to take to one's self, to appropriate : " nehmen, sich zueignen, an sich ziehen" (Peters. Diet.) The meaning is, that the Supreme Brahma takes not either good or evil deeds as his own. He has not produced them, and no part of their merit or demerit belongs to him. They are due solely to the material elements in each individual nature. S'ankara ex- plains the word by grihndti, from grah, to take, to take to one's self, to invest one's self with. ( 75 ) EEADING THE SIXTH. The Holy One spoke. He who does a work that ought to be done,^ without seeking the fruit of works, he is a renouncer, he is a devotee {yogin), not the man who uses not the (sacrificial) fire, nor he who does no (pious) work.^ Know, son of Pandu ! that what men call renuncia- tion, that is devotion {yoga)^ for he who renounces not all projects (a) (of action) is not a Yogin. Work is said to be the means for a recluse {muni) who desires to attain to yoga, but for him who has attained to it, repose is said to be the means.* For he who renounces all projects, and is not attached to the objects of the senses or to works, is called a perfect Yogin. I Each one ought to raise himself by himself (&), and not to debase himself, for he himself is the friend of himself,^ and also his foe. ^ Such duties as are enjoined by abstraction, leading to the mystical religion or caste. union with BrahmS. which is called 2 Lit. " not the man without fire yoga. and work," i.e., sacrificial fire and ^ For the full attainment of the work. Yogin' s aim — absorption into the ^ Here the union of the essential divine essence, principles of the Sankhya and Yoga ® This passage is obscure, for at- systems is again attempted. Both man has the double sense of "soul" lead to a renunciation of works, and "self." In the original there even works of devotion ; but Kapila is a play on this double sense. Mr. sought to obtain it by philosophical Thomson translates the last clause, knowledge and Patanjali by mental " But by the enmity of what is not s/ 76 BHAGAVAD GITA. [chap. vi. He is a friend to himself wlio by himself has conquered self, and self too may become as a foe by the hatred of that which is not self. The sovereign spirit of him who is self-conquered and placid is self-contained (c) in cold and heat, in pain and pleasure, and also in honour and dishonour. The Yogin whose soul is content with divine and human knowledge,^ who dwells on high(6Z), whose senses are subdued, and who accounts a clod, a stone, or gold alike, is called a perfect devotee {yulda).'^ He is esteemed (e) who is equal-minded to companions, friends, enemies, strangers, neutrals, to aliens ^ and kin- dred, yea, to good and to evil men. 10 Let the Yogin constantly practise devotion, fixed in a secluded spot, alone, having thought and self subdued, renouncing hope and all surroundings (/). Having placed himself in a permanent seat, in a cleanly spot, neither high nor low, and furnished with a cloth, a deerskin, and kusha grass : * spiritual {andtman) his self might from them by knowledge or by pious be an enemy, as it were, to his own meditation. The soul, thus debarred soul." The question is, whether we from its final blessedness, may take are to understand, that by the soul's up the position of an enemy to the repulsion to what is not soul it may whole self ; and thus, by losing its become an open foe, or that by the perfect repose, it may itself retard enmity of what is not soul it may the attainment of its full deliverance, be stirred up to enmity in return, When this has been attained, then and war may arise between them, the soul dwells in unconscious repose, Lassen's translation is : " Propter according to Kapila ; it is lost in the inimicitiam autem erga id quod non divine natiire, according to Patan jali. spiritale est, spiritus inimici more se ^ Jndna and vijndna. For an ex- gerere potest." I understand the planation of these terms see p. 57. passage to mean that the sensuous ^ Yukta, lit.* "joined," i.e., to the part of man's dual nature may be- Divine Being in pious meditation, come an enemy to the soul, by link- ^ Dweshya, hateful ; a term applied ing it still to bodily conditions ; its to foreigners, proper aim being to free the soul ^ Kusa, a kind of grass {poa cyno- CHAP. VI.] BHAGAVAD GITA. 77 There, having fixed his heart on the One, all the work- ings of the senses and of thought restrained, resting in his seat, let him practise devotion {yoga) for the purifying of the soul. Holding his body, head, and neck constantly unmoved, gazing steadfastly on the tip of his nose, and looking not around ; Tranquil in soul, exempt from fear, steadfast in the vow of a Brahmacharin,! restraining his heart, let him sit in devotion, thinking on Me, intent on Me. The Yogin, thus constantly devout in soul, with heart subdued, attains to peace, the supreme nirvana that is in Me. But devotion is not for him who eats too much, or for liini who fasts excessively; not for him who is disposed to sleep too much, or for him who is ever wakeful, Arjuna ! The devotion which destroys all trouble is for the man who is moderate in food and in recreation, who uses moderate effort in his actions, is moderate in sleep and in waking. When he fixes his well- controlled thoughts on himself alone, and is indifferent to every object of desire, then he is called "devoted" {jjulda). suvoides) often used in the religious l:usa grass and with the rays of the rites of the Hindus. It is sup- sun" (Rel. Cer. of the Hindus, posed to have a purifying influence. Colebrooke, Asiat. Res. v. 354, 361). Among the daily prayers of the In the Institutes of Manu (ii. 75), a Brahinans are these: "As a tired Brahman, before he reads a Veda, man leaves drops of sweat at the must sit on kusa grass and purify foot of a tree ; as he who bathes is both his hands by rubbing them cleansed from all foulness; as an with the " holy grass." oblation is sanctified by holy grass ; ^ A Brahmacharin is a young Hin- 80 may this water purify me from du under instruction, and bound by sin." " May the Lord of thought vows of chastity and obedience, purify me with an uncut blade of 78 BHAGAVAD GITA. [chap. vi. "As a lamp sheltered from the wind does not flicker," this is the wonted simile of the Yogin who is subdued in thought, and is engaged in the devotion of the soul. 20 When thought is wholly at rest, restrained by the prac- tice of devotion (^), and when, contemplating himself in himself, he is satisfied in himself ; When he knows the boundless joy which is beyond the senses, which (only) the mind apprehends, and fixed therein never wavers from the truth ; When, having obtained it, he thinks that no other acquisition is superior to this ; when abiding therein he is not moved even by a heavy affliction ; Let him know that this severance from all contact with trouble is called yoga. This yoga must be practised through the means of a determined repression of the mind Qi), Eenouncing absolutely all desires produced by projects (of ambition or gain), restraining the whole group of the senses in every part by the heart, 25 Step by step he may gain repose by. the mind being firmly restrained {%) \ having caused the heart to remain within itself, let him wholly cease to think. Whenever the wavering and unsteadfast heart wanders away, then so often let him subdue it and bring it back to the control of the soul ; Tor supreme happiness comes to the Yogin whose heart is at rest, in whom passion is tranquillised, who is one with Brahma,-^ and free from sin. The Yogin ever thus uniting his soul (to Brahma), who has ceased from sin, enjoys easily the boundless happiness of union (lit. contact) with Brahma. 1 The universal soul which pervades and comprehends all created things. CHAP. VI.] BHAGAVAD GITA, 79 He whose soul is united by devotion (to Brahma), seeing the same in all around, sees the soul in everything, and everything in the soul. 3(d He who sees Me^ everywhere and everything in Me, him I forsake not, and he forsakes not Me. The Yogin \vho worships Me as dwelling in every creature, being intent on oneness, dwells in Me, whatever may be his course of life.^ He who sees the same (essence) in everything, Arjuna ! whether it be pleasant or grievous, from the self-resem- blance (there),^ is deemed to be a most excellent Yogin. Aejuna spoke. I see not the firm continuance, slayer of Madhu! of this devotion which thou hast said to be through equa- nimity (y), because of the unsteadfastness (of the heart). For the heart (manas) is fickle, Krishna ! it is turbu- lent, strong, and obstinate. Its restraint seems to me as difficult as that of the wind. The Holy One spoke. 35 Doubtless, large-armed one! the heart is hard to restrain, and it is fickle; but it is restrained, son of KuntI ! by practice and by indifierence (to worldly gain).* ^ The One Supreme, BrahmS,, here equally emanations from the one represented by Krishna. source of life. "He who sees equally ^ Whether living a contemplative all beings in soul (or self) and soul or an active life, say some scholiasts, in all beings, he, the sacrificer of Raghavendra says, whether living self, goes to the Lord Ruler (Is- righteously or unrighteously, for wara) " (Manu xii. 91). knowledge, though connected with * Lit. " by the absence of passion " an impure life, leads to final eman- {vairdgyena). Lassen and Thomson cipation (Telang). translate it by "temperance," Telang 3 Who identifies ail things, of by "unconcern." whatever kind, with himself, as / 1^ 8o BHAGAVAD GiTA. [chap. vi. Devotion, as I judge, is hard to be obtained by the man who is not self-controlled, but he who is master of him- self may obtain it, if he strive thereat. Arjuna spohe. In what way does he go, Krishna! who is endowed' with faith but is not self-restrained, whose heart wavers in devotion, and who attains not to perfection therein ? Does he not perish like a riven cloud, repulsed from both/ being unsteadfast, and confused in the way of Brahma,^ mighty-armed ? It is meet for thee, Krishna ! to destroy completely this doubt of mine, for no destroyer of this doubt exists . ( except thyself. / "' The Holy One spoke. ] AQ He does not perish, son of Pritha ! in this world or in the next, for no one who acts uprightly, friend ! goes the evil way.^ He who wavered in devotion, after he has attained to the regions of the just* and has dwelt there for unnumbered years, is born again in a house of the good and great.^ Or he is born in a family of wise devotees (yogins) ; but a birth like this is hard to be obtained in this world. ^ That is, Does not the man who . ^ Failing in his attempts to fix forsakes ceremonial observances for his thought on Brahma, the higher service of mental devo- ^ The descending path leads to tion, and fails in the latter, lose births in an inferior condition, or both heaven, the reward of the first, even to Naraka (hell), and absorption into the divine nature, * One of the five heavens of the the consequence of the latter ? Dr. higher kind, chiefly that of India Lorinser thinks that failure in this (c. ix. 21). world and the next is meant and ^ S'rimat (prosperous, happy), here refers to v. 40 infra. glossed by Sankara as vibhutlmat (eminent, powerful). CHAP. VI.] BHAGAVAD GITA. 8i There he receives the entire mental form (Jc) which he had in a former body,^ and thus he strives again for perfection, son of Kuru ! For by that former habit he is led on, even without his will. He who only desires to know yoga goes beyond the Brahman doctrine (/) (lit. word) ; 45 But the Yogin who strives with energy, who is purified from sin, and perfected by many births, goes at length on the highest way. The Yogin is superior to the ascetics ; he is deemed to be superior even to the men of knowledge ;2 he is also superior to the doers of works. Be thou then a Yogin, Arjuna! But of all Yogins even, he who worships Me^ with faith, his inmost soul being stayed in Me, him I judge to be the most devout. ^ Compare the language of Plato the highest place to the man wJio in the " Phsedo : " "And thus they had a knowledge of philosophy. So, [the souls of bad men] wander, until in part, Plato taught : *' None can by the longing which they feel for the attain to the rank of gods but those corporeal element which thus cleaves who pursue philosophy and depart to tliem, they are again enclosed in from the body pure ; none but lovers a body. And they are enclosed in of true knowledge " (Phaedo, sec. 71). a body, as may be supposed, corre- ^ There is here probably an em- sponding in its habits with the phasis on the pronoun, as referring habits which they had in their to Vishnu or Krishna, assumed to be former lives " (sec. 70). the true representative of Brahmft, 2 This is in accordance with the in opposition to the sect which made school of Patanjali. Kapila gave Siva his highest representative. Thus the Bha^avad Gita, Eeadinj:^ the Sixth, whose title is "Devotion by Self-Eestkaint." 82 BHAGAVAD GlTA. [chap. vi. PHILOLOGICAL NOTES. (a) Asannyastasanhalpa. Lassen's version is, "Abdicate sui studio;" Burnoufs, "Lerenoncementdesoi-meme." Thomson gives, "And has not renounced all (earthly) plans of interest." "Unless he renounces all fancies" (Telang). S'ankara explains the word sanhalpa as meaning "objects of sense causing desire ; " S'ridhara as denoting all " projects of gain (or re- ward)." We may interpret the passage thus : " One who has not renounced all worldly schemes." The word is compounded of sam, denoting union or completeness, and kalpa, form. It means both plan and resolve. " The determination of the will which gives to the thoughts for the present a determinate aim" (Peters. Diet.); also as "verlangen," "vorsatz." (6) Uddhared dtmandtmdnam. "Extricet semet sui ipsius ope " (Lassen) ; " Let him raise his soul by his own means " (Thomson). Burnouf has merely ''qu'il se leve," but this leaves out the word on which the emphasis lies. I would translate the passage, '-'Let a man raise his soul (above sen- suous things) by the soul itself." Compare Byron's similar expression, "And strengthen man by his own mind." Dr. Lorinser's translation, " Er ziehe sich selbst aus sich heraus " is certainly wrong. (c) Paramdtmd samdhitah. Lassen's translation is, "S^Diritus summum locum obtinens in se recolligitur ; " Burnoufs, "L'Ame Supreme demeure recueillde;" Thomson's, "is intent on the Supreme Being." S'ridhara interprets samdhitah by dtmanishta (fixed in itself), and this appears to be the meaning of the word in this passage. Gatti's Italian translation has caught, I think, the true meaning : — •* L'anima, poi die il primo posto ha preso, in s5 tutta e raccolta." CHAP. VI.] BHAGAVAD GiTA. 83 (c?) Kutasthay a compound of kuta, an apex, a summit, and sthdj to stand. Lassen translates the word literally, "In fastigio stans;" Thomson's version is, "Who stands above all." S'ridhara explains the word by nirvlkdra, one who changes not. The epithet seems to denote one who stands apart from men and human interests in a lofty isolation through yoga. S'ankara's gloss is, " He is free from agitation." (e) Visishyate, " is distinguished." Mr. Thomson mentions another reading, vimuchyate^ "is delivered (from matter)." Lassen says that Madhusudana mentions the latter reading, but he adds, " prsestat vulgata." Three MSS. in my possession have vUishyate. (/) Parigrahay a man's surroundings, such as family, retinue, possessions. "Sine comitatu" (Lassen); "without possessions" (Thomson); Telang, "without belongings.'' S'ridhara's gloss is sunya^ "void," "desert." (g) Yogasevayd. "Devotionis cultu" (Lassen); "by worship in devotion" (Thomson); Telang, more correctly, "by the practice of devotion." {h) Nirvinnachetasd. One of the MSS. in my possession has the reading nirvinTmcJietasah, and if this be the correct reading, the translation of the passage will be, " This devotion must be practised with the constancy of a mind in which thought has ceased." The common reading is, however, the instrumental case of the noun. Lassen's translation is, " Quo mens (rerum inde alienarum) immemor fiat," and that of Thomson, who generally follows Lassen, "By which thought becomes indifferent to every worldly object." Burnouf has, " Au point que la pensee s'abime." S'ridhara's interpretation is that " being free from self-disparagement or despondency " is meant, and Telang follows it by translating the compound by " undespairing heart." The authors of the Peters. Diet, explain nirvinna by iiberdrussig. It means, primarily, being 84 BHAGAVAD GITA. [chap. vr. weary of a subject, not wishing to know more of it. The meaning seems to be that devotion {yoga) must be practised by a constancy that subdues thought, or by which the practice of thought is worn out. {%) Buddhyd dhritigrihitayd. *'Mente perseverantiam am- plexa" (Lassen) ; "by his mind's acquiring firmness" (Thom- son). Telang, as usual, translates huddhi (intellect) by "resolve;" "with a firm resolve coupled with courage." Dhriti seems here to be used adverbially, and I would trans- late the passage thus: "Step by step repose may be gained by the intellect being firmly held (in quietude)." S'ridhara interprets the passage as meaning that the mind must be made subject by being held wiih firmness or constancy. S'ankara says, " by being constantly united to Brahma." {j) Sdmyena. "Par I'identit^" (Burnouf), i.e., by identity with Bl"ahma in meditation ; Lassen, more correctly, has " equabilitate." S'ankara glosses the word by samatwa, equality (of soul). (k) Buddhisamyogam. "Mental application" (Thomson and Lassen) ; " le pieux exercice " (Burnouf). Telang inter- prets it as "contact with that knowledge" (of Brahma) which he had in a former life. Gatti's translation is, " The same disposition of mind," and this is, I think, a correct version. He regains his former mental state, with opportunities of rising to complete devotion. S'ridhara refers the words to the man's former nature (bhdva). (I) SaMahrahma ativartate. " He only surmounts the verbal deity" (Thomson), explaining this to mean that he only acquires a mental knowledge of Brahma by teachers or philo- sophy, but does not approach him spiritually. This is sub- stantially the same as Lassen's "theologiam meris verbis circumscriptam prsevertit." Burnouf explains sahddbrahma as "la doctrine Brahmanique." S'ankara and S'ridhara would CHAP. VI.] BHAGAVAD GlTA. 85 limit the acquirement to rising above the desire of the fruit of actions prescribed by the Vedas. Telang translates sabda- hrahma by "the word divine." There is no doubt that here the Vedas are meant. The Yogin by devotion rises above all the Vedic rites and doctrines. The same expression (sahdahrahman) occurs in the Bhaga- vata Purana (iv. 29), where the reference is certainly to the Vedas: — "Wandering in the vast field of the Brahmanic word {sahdahrahmani), which it is difiicult to traverse, men do not recognise the Supreme, worshipping him as he is separately divided by the attributes {linga, mark or sign) in the hymns. When the Divine Being regards any man with favour, he, having become spiritualised (a^?7ia6/iaW^a), abandons all thought which is set on the world and on the Veda." This may, liowever, be contrasted with the opposite opinion of Manu : — " The priest who may retain in his memory the whole of the Eig-Veda would incur no guilt if he should slay the three worlds and take food from any quarter whatever. By repeat- ing thrice the mantras (hymns) and brdkmanas (commentaries) of the Rig-, Sama-, and Yajur-Veda, with the Upanishads (pious treatises), he is freed from all sin" (xi. 262, 263). ( 86 ) EEADIISTG THE SEYENTH.i The Holy One spoke. Hear now, sou of Pritha ! how, if thy heart be fixed in Me, if thou continuest in devotion and findest refuge in Me, thou shalt, without doubt, know Me fully. I will declare to thee completely the knowledge, divine and human, which, when thou hast known, nothingp else here remains to be known. Among the thousands of mankind, only one perchance / strives -for perfection, and even of those who strive for and obtain it, only some one knows Me in truth. Earth,^ water, fire, air, ether, the heart (manas), and also the mind (buddhi), and egoism {ahanhdrd), these (form) the eightfold division of my material nature (FraJcriti). 5 This is the lower (nature), but know now my other higher nature,^ the living principle, large- armed one ! by which the universe is sustained. Understand that these* are the womb of all existing ^ Here a separate division of the In the system of Patanjali this is Bhagavad Gita begins. The first regarded as only an inferior part of six chapters are devoted mainly to Brahma ; there is a higher spiritual the Yoga system of Patanjali. The essence, which is the animating prin- gix following treat of the Supreme ciple of all things. Sankara says that BrahmH, who is the source both of its designation is Ishetrajna, matter- gods and men, the only self-existent knowing, and that it maintains life, and eternal being. ■* I think the Hindu commen- 2 See Hindu Philosophy, San- tators are right in referring etad khya Karika, p, 20. (this) to the composite nature of the ^ In the Sankhya system, Prakriti Supreme, and not, as Mr. Thomson, (primal matter) is alone recognised, to the " latter nature." CHAP. VII.] BHAGAVAD GITA. 87 tilings. I am the source of all the universe and its dis- solution also. There is nothing whatever that is superior to Me, subduer of wealth ! this All is strung together in Me, as a row of pearls upon a string.^ I am savour ^ in the waters, son of Kunti ! I am the light in the moon and the sun ; the word of praise (OM) (a.) in all the Vedas; sound ^ in ether and virile force in men : I am the pure odour in the earth and the briglitness in the fire ; the vital principle in all beings and the austerity {tapas) of ascetics. 10 Know, son of Pritha! that I am the eternal seed of / all thincjs that exist. I am the intellect of the intelli<]rent and the splendour (b) of the splendid. I am also the strength of the strong, free from desire and passion* (emotion). I am desire in living things, not forbidden by holy laws, prince of Bharatas ! Know also that the natures formed by (the mode called) " goodness," and those also which are " passion-born " and " dark " are from Me ; but they are in Me, not I in them. Bewildered by these natures formed by the three modes^ ^ Cf. Mahabh. (Santi - parvan, tain what has been gained ; passion, 1609). "In whom (Krishna), the (roy'as) the wish to obtain something Lord of beings, all beings formed of not yet possessed. But this is the modes (of Nature) are seated doubtful. Kama means desire, love, and dwell, as rows of pearls are and also the object of desire ; rajas (strung) upon a thread" (Sans. T. is passion merely. "Not forbidden iv. 265). by holy law," i.e., by the holy books ^ This is supposed to be the dis- (sastras), as Sankara interprets the tinguishing property of water. word dharma. ^ Sound is the peculiar property ^ These are the modes or con- of the ether. stituent parts of Prakriti (Nature), ^ Desire {hdma) is said by Hindu which by their different combina- scholiasts to mean the wish to re- tions form the distinctive naturea 88 BHAGAVAD GiTA. [chap. vii. (gunas) (c), the whole world knows not Me, who am above these (modes) and eternal ; For this divine illusion of mine formed by the modes is hard to surmount: they pass over this illusion who "^ worship Me alone. 15 The evil-doers and the foolish do not worship Me, nor the base, whose knowledge is taken away by illusion, who have entered into (d) (partake of) the nature of Asuras.^ Tour classes of righteous men worship Me, Arjuna ! the distressed, he who desires knowledge, he who seeks for gain, and the wise man, chief of Bharatas ! Of these, the wise man,^ ever devout, who worships the One, is the most excellent ; for I am dear above all things (e) to the wise man, and he is dear to Me. AIL these are good, but the wise man I deem to be even myself (f) ; for he, devout in soul, is stayed on Me, the supreme way (or goal). At the end of many births the wise man comes (g) to Me. The high-souled man, who says, "Vasudeva is the All," 3 is hard to find. of individuals. The Supreme Spirit they were the gods of the aborigines, animates all the material world and the wars related in the Matsya (Nature) : it is therefore in Nature, Purana, in which sometimes the but Nature is not in it. Men gene- Asuraswere victorious but were even- rally see only the lower part of the tually conquered, express a legendary Divine dual nature, which veils the tradition of a war of races and reli- higher spiritual part. The material gions. world is called mdyd (illusion), not ^ That is, who knows Brahma perhaps in the Vedantist sense, as and the soul. It is spiritual wisdom mere illusion, but because it de- that is here assumed, as in Pro v. ludes men into supposing that there ix. lo : " The fear of the Lord is is nothing else. the beginning of wisdom." 1 Asuras, the name of a class of ^ Vasudeva, a name of Krishna, demons, inferior, and sometimes It is often found in the Mahabharata. hostile, to the Aryan gods. (See "Ke.sava (Krishna) is immeasur- Sans. T. iv. 151, 154.) Probably able. He is to be known as Vasu- CHAP. VII.] BHAGAVAD GiTA. 89 2^ They whose knowledge has been carried away by. lusts of any kind go to other gods, using divers rites, constrained by their own nature. Whosoever desires to worship any one form (h) (of these) in faith, it is I who impart the steadfast faith of this man {%), ^ He, being devoted (^uhtd), seeks by that faith the favour of the god (/), and thus obtains the blessings which he covets', yet these are apportioned by Me alone. But the gain of these men of narrow minds comes to an end.^ They who sacrifice to gods go to the gods ; they who worship Me come to Me. The foolish think that I, the Unmanifested, am endowed with a manifest form ,2 not knowing my higher nature, which is imperishable and supreme. 25 Veiled by my mystic illusion (Jc), I am not manifest to all. This deluded world knows not Me, the Unborn and Eternal. ^ I know all beings, past and present, Arjuna! and deva from his dwelling (vasandt) in over which they preside, will be all beings" (Udyoga-parvan, v. 2561; destroyed at the end of a kalpa. Sans. T. iv. 218). In the Vishnu 2 -^j, Thomson explains this to Purana he is identified with the mean that they " believe some one Supreme Brahma. "Worshipping of the gods, as Brahma, Vishnu, or thee, the Supreme Brahma, men de- Siva, to be the Supreme Spirit ; " and sirous of final liberation have at- adds, " Our philosopher would seem tained their object. Who shall to be cutting his own throat on this obtain liberation without worship- ground." This seems to be a mis- ping Vasudeva ? " (Sans. T. iv. 38). take. Brahma had many represen- The Bhaktas (men who practise tatives, and these are sometimes hhahti, faith with adoration), a said to be one with him, and to have branch of the Vaishnavas, worship been incarnated in divers forms ; Vishnu as Vasudeva and wear no but they were, as incarnations, a marks. lower form of Brahma. In his 1 Because the gods are only created proper nature, swarupa, as Sankaia beings, and they, with the worlds describes it, he is spirit only. 90 BHAGAVAD GITA. [chap. vii. that shall be hereafter, but not one ^ of them knows Me. All beings, son of Bharata ! are bewildered in this world through the delusion of the pairs of opposites ^ that arise from love and hatred, destroyer of foes ! \ But the men w^ho are pure in their deeds, in whom sin is dead, these, freed from the delusion of opposites and steadfast in their vows, w^orship Me. They who find refuge in Me and strive for deliverance from old age (Q and death know the whole Brahma, the Supreme Spirit and the complete Work. 30 The men, devout in mind, who know Me as Adhibhiita (Lord of beings), as Adhidaiva (Lord of gods), and as Adhiyajna (Lord of sacrifice), know Me indeed in the time of their decease. 1 The pairs of opposites in this They are deceived. These things present life, such as joy, pain, gain, ought to be regarded with indififer- and loss, make men unduly sensible ence. The soul is not of them, and of material things, and hence they must find its propei: condition by suppose that such things ought to attaining to a complete absorption be objects of liking or disliking, into the Supreme Brahma. Thus the Bhagavad Gita, Eeading the Seventh, whose title is " Devotion through Spiritual DiscerisTment." CHAP. VII.] BHACAVAD CItA, 91 PHILOLOGICAL NOTES. (a) Pranava, lit. praise, a common expression for the mystic syllable OM. (6) Tejas. " Fortitudo " (Lassen) ; '" strength " (Thomson) ; " the glory (of the glorious) " (Telang). It has the various meanings of sharpness, light, splendour, and vigour. S'ankara glosses, it by prdgalhhya, rank, dignity. (c) GuTiamayair hhdvair. " By dispositions composed of the three qualities" (Thomson). Lassen translates bhdva by *' affectus ; " Burnouf, by " propri^t^." Bhdva means exist- ence, manner of being, and the phrase denotes the separate natures of individuals formed by the various combinations of the modes of Frdkriti (Nature). S'ankara's interpretation is, *' By objects formed by modifications of the modes." {d) Asritds, lit. having gone to or entered. "Sectantes" (Lassen). The gloss of S'lidliara is, " Having obtained the very nature of Asuras." The word often means "having recourse to," "taking refuge with." (e) Atyartham^ supremely. "Above possessions" is the translation of Mr. Thomson, who supports his version by referring to the objects (arthds) which men seek to gain by offering sacrifice to gods. To the spiritually wise, the Supreme Brahma is the only object of desire. Atyartham is, however, used in the sense of extremely, without reference to posses- sions. In the Nalopakhyanam (Story of Nala xi. 20), it is said that a serpent seized Nala as she was wandering in a forest lamenting excessively (Jcrandamdndm atyartham) for the loss of her husband. A hunter, who had heard her loud wailing, came near and slew the serpent. (/) Atmd + eva, "verily myself." Mr. Thomson would prefer an unsupported reading, atma + iva^ as or like myself. 92 BHAGAVAD GItA. [chap. vit. Lassen's rendering is, " Mei ipsius instar ; " Burnouf s, more correctly, is, " Le sage, c'est moi-meme." The scholiast Mad- husudana explains the passage na matto bhinnak, is not sepa- rated from me. (g) Prapadyate, falls down before, turns toward or ap- proaches. S'ridhara glosses it by bhajati, worships ; S'ankara by pratipadyatCy returns. The latter seems the better inter- pretation. (A) Tanu, body, and also skin, from tan, to spread out. Lassen translates it by " effigies ; " Thomson by *' personage.'* The word is used slightingly to denote that the gods are only material beings. {i) Achaldm sraddhdm tdm eva vidadhdmi. " Unicuique horum secundum fidem istam constantem ego (sortem suam) dispertio" (Lassen). Mr. Thomson calls this an *' arbitrary and incomprehensible " translation. It is certainly arbitrary, because there is nothing answerable to secundum in the original, but it is not incomprehensible. Dr. Lorinser assumes that the verb, vidadhdmi, is equivalent to "ich vergelte," and his translation (I recompense the m^an who is always steadfast in this faith) nearly coincides with Lassen's. But this meaning does not belong to the verb. Mr. Thom- son's version is, "I make that faith of his constant." The literal rendering is, " I impart even this unwavering faith." (j) I'asydrddhanam, for tasydh, &c., referring to tanu, a feminine noun (Lassen). "This one" is a contemptuous reference to the gods of the Hindii Pantheon. The more common arrangement is tasya drddhana, the favour of this one ; but S'ridhara has tasydh, of this (form). Examples of such a compound are rare, but Lassen has given one from the Tiamayana (i. 45, 9). {k) YogamdydsamdvritaJi. " Surrounded by my magic illu- sion" (Lassen and Thomson) ; *' Enveloppe que je suis dans la CHAP. VII.] BHAGAVAD GIJA. 93 magie que runion spirituelle {yoga) dissipe" (Burnouf). The latter version is quite untenable. Yoga means here the supernatural power which a perfect Yogin was supposed to obtain. The creative power of the gods was connected with yoga as meditation. *' Then Vishnu, sprung from Brahma, removed from the sphere of sense, absorbed in meditation (Yogatnia), became the Prajapati Daksha, and formed numerous creatures" (Mahab. Harivansa, Sans. T. i. 152). In the same book Vishnu is called the great Yogin (or Medi- tator). S'ankara, however, connects yoga (union) with the modes or constituent elements of Nature. (l) Jard^ old age. ]\Ir. Thomson proposes to read janma, birth, but all the MSS., including three in my possession, read jara. Janma would not be contrary to the metre, as K. T. Telang states, for the second syllable may be either long or short. ( 94 ) EEADING THE EIGHTH. Arjuna spoke. What is that Brahma? what Adhyatman ? what is Karma (Work), best of beings ? What is that thou callest Adhibhiita ? and that called Adhidaiva ? How is Adhiyajna here in this body, slayer of Madhu? and how do self- restrained men know thee at the time of their decease ? The Holy One spoTce. Brahma is the Indestructible and Supreme One ; ^ his proper nature {a) is called Adhyatman. The emanation that causes the birth of all living things is called Karma (Work). ^ The Supreme Indestructible One is Brahma. He is called Adhyatman (Supreme Spirit) because he is, in his purely spiritual form, the highest being. When he becomes the source of life, he is then considered as having another form, and has a new designation, Brahma. The creation [visarga, sending forth) of all sepa- rate life is called emphatically Work. Ananda, however, glosses the word visarga by " offerings such as are di- rected by iruti (revelation) and smriti (tradition), for they are the causes of life ; " but the work here referred to is the especial work of Brahma. Sankara also gives the sense of "offering" to visarga, a meaning which it sometimes bears, or rather gift, donation in general ; but I can- not think that it expresses the meaning of our author. He is Lord of beings, Adhibhuta, because he is their cause, both the efficient and the material cause. In the system of Patanjali, the Nature-form (Pra- kriti) of the Supreme is that from which all beings have sprung. This is termed by some Hindu writers as his sakti or energy, represented as being of a feminine kind. So also as creative force he is Adhidaiva, Lord of gods, and hence he is named Purusha (lit, Male), since " he is the cause of all life " (Sankara). The gods are only created beings. Cf. CHAP. viii.J BHAGAVAD GItA. 95 Adhibhuta is (my) divisible nature (6), and Adhidaiva is the masculine (creative) principle {purusha). I myself, here present in the body, am Adhiyajna^ (c), best of j^ men! 5 And he who departs, thinking on Me alone, enters, after quitting the body, into my being : of this there is no doubt. Or if he, at the end (of life), quits the body while V thinking on any other (god), he goes to that, whatever it may be, son of Kunti ! being ever conformed to it in nature.2 Wherefore think on Me at all times and fight. When thou art fixed in heart and mind on Me, thou wilt with- out doubt come to Me. He who meditates, with a mind engaged constantly in devotion, which never worships another god, on the Supreme Divine Being, goes to Him, son of Pritha ! He who muses on the ancient Sage,^ the Euler(<^), subtler than an atom, the All-sustainer, incomprehensible in form, shining like the sun above the darkness, 10 And in the hour of death is engaged in devotion with an unwavering heart, and also by the force of devotion Rig- Veda x. 90 : " Purusha has a and as being an object of worship thousand heads, a thousand eyes, suited to the limited capacities of . . . All earthly things are a quarter men by becoming incarnate, of him, and three-fourths of him are ^ jf j^g desires heaven only, not that which is immortal in the sky." nirvana, he will think, for instance, Compare also Manu i. I : " Pro- on Indra in his dying moments, and duced from the cause which is im- will therefore rise to the heaven of perceptible, eternal, existent and Indra. non-existent, that Male (Purusha) is ^ Brahma is the "ancient (purana) celebrated in the world as Brahma." Sage " because he is without begin- 1 Adhiyajna, Lord of sacrifice, a ning ; purana being used here, as name which Krishna gives to him- elsewhere, for " eternal as to the self as the representative of Brahma, past." 96 BHAGAVAD GiTA. [chap. viir. draws his breath together between his eyebrows,^ that man goes to this Supreme Divine Being. That way I will briefly describe to thee which they who know the Vedas call the Imperishable,^ upon which enter the self- restrained and passion-free, which they who desire adopt a Brahmacharin's life. He who has closed all the gates ^ (of the senses), con- fined his heart (manas) inwardly (e), placed the vital breath in the head,* constant in devotion ; Who continues to utter OM,^ (the sign of) the One Imperishable Brahma, thinking upon Me; he who thus departs goes, when he quits the body, to the highest way.^ If one thinks ever on Me, never directing his thoughts to another (god), I am easily obtained by this constantly devout Yosfin. 15 Having attained to Me, these great-souled men come not to life again, which is the seat of pain and is not eternal ; they attain to the supreme blessedness. The worlds, even to that of Brahma, return (/) again,'' 1 Cf. c. V. 27. the Divine Brahma, the Supreme *^ The Supreme Being, called be- Spirit." low (v. 21) "the highest way or ^ Or "highest place," i.e., Brahma, seat." ^ All the eight worlds will be 3 The organs of sense. So Srid- absorbed in Brahma at the end hara and other commentators explain of a kalpa or periodic time, and the word. then come forth again, at his direc- ^ Holding the breath as much as tion, when another kalpa begins, possible inwardly. The day of Brahma is explained in ^ Cf . the Bhagavata Purana xii. the Vishnu Parana (i. 3, vi. i , with 6 : " From this sound {sphota, repre- Prof. Wilson's note). One year of sented as coming from Brahma's mortals is = one day of the gods, heart) sprang the syllable OM, com- There are four yugas or ages, which posed of three elements (A. U. M.j, are thus determined: — (i.) The self - resplendent, of unmanifested Krita Yuga = 4800 divine years ; origin, that which is the emblem of (2.) The Treta Yuga := 3600 divine CHAP. VIII.] BHAGAVAD GiTA. 97 Arjana ! but he who attains to Me knows birth no more, son of Kunti ! The men who know the day of Brahma, which passes away after a thousand ages, and the night which ends in a thousand ages, know both day and night. At the approach of day all the visible (manifested) universe issues from the Unmanifested ; ^ it dissolves in Him :who is called the Unmanifested at the approach of night. All this mass of beings produced again and again dis- solves at the approach of night, son of Pfitha ! and comes forth, not by its own power (^), at the approach of day. 20 But above this visible nature there exists another, un- seen and eternal, which, when all created things perish, does not perish. This is called the Unmanifested, the Imperishable; this men speak of as the highest way: they who attain it never return. This is my supreme abode. This Supreme Being, in whom all things dwell, and by whom all this (universe) has been spread out, may be attained to, son of Pritha ! by an exclusive devotion. [I will declare to thee, chief of Bharatas ! the time in years ; (3.) The Dwapara Yuga — denotes Prakriti, or primordial mat- 2400 divine years ; (4. ) The Kali ter in its primal, undeveloped, or Yuga = 1 2CO divine years ; making unmanifested state. Avyakta jneawfi in all 12,000 divine years, and these "not manifest." Lassen translates are = 4,320,000 common years. One it by " Invisible," Telang by " the thousand of these periods form a day Unperceived." Sankara says the of Brahma. This day of Brahma is Avyakta is the state of sleep of called a hoLpa ; 360 kalpas form his Prajapati, i.e., Brahma as the lord year, and a hundred such years form of beings. Sridhara explains it as his lifetime, called Para. the unseen form which is the cause ^ The "Non-developed," as Mr, of what is made. (See Sankhya Thomson translates the word. It Karika, pp. 35-45.) G 98 BHAGAVAD GITA. [chap, viii, which devotees, when they die, go forth either not to return or to return (to life). Fire, light, the daytime, the time of the waxing moon, the six months of the northern solstice, they who die in these, knowing Brahma, go to Brahma. 2C Smoke, the night, the time of the waning moon, the six months of the southern solstice, in these the devotee attains (only) to the lunar light and then returns.^ \, For these two ways of light and darkness Qi) are deemed to be the eternal ways of the world : by the one, men go on the way in which there is no return ; by the other, they return again (to life). The devotee (Yogin), knowing these two ways, son of Pritiia ! is in no wise troubled thereat. Therefore be engaged at all times in devotion, Arjima !] The devotee who has this knowledge overpasses all the sacred fruit (reward) offered by Yedas, by sacrifices, by ^ These strange conditions, if the it may reach the highest heaven, parts enclosed are genuine, seem due that of Brahma ; but if otherwise, it to a Vedantist training of our author, may wander in the darkness, and Kapila had taught — and this part cannot rise beyond the heaven of of his system seems to have been the Moon. The Hindu commen- very generally received — that the tators attempt to make this doctrine soul is accompanied, in all its migra- a little more reasonable by assuming tions, until finally emancipated from that the light does not represent a all contact with matter, by a body material element, but Agni, the god formed of the most subtle elements of fire. The passage is a curious of matter, called lingo. The soul, instance of the grotesque folly which with the linga, passes through the so frequently attends Hindu specu- great coronal artery to the crown of lations, even of the highest kind, the head at the time of death ; and It is so much opposed, however, to then, as Hindu theologians teach, the spirit which pervades the Bha- since the Linga requires a light to gavad Gita, that I cannot but judge guide it, if a ray of light rests on it to be a late addition by some Ve- the crown of the head at that time, dantist writer. CHAP, viii] BHAGAVAD GITA. 99 austerities also and almsgiving, and he attains to the supreme primeval seat. Thus the Bhagavad Gita, Reading the Eighth, whose title is "Devotion to the Supreme Eternal Brahma." PHILOLOGICAL NOTES. (a) Swahhava, translated by Telang as ''change;" by Thom- son, "his own nature;" "la substance intime" (Burnouf). Ananda interprets it by swarupa (my proper form) and swayam (myself), and with this interpretation S'ridhara agrees. (b) Kshara, explained by S'ridhara and S'ankara as " perish- able." Lassen has "dividua;" Burnouf, "divisible;" Thom- son, " indivisible " by mistake. (c) AdhiT/ajna, lord of oflferings or worship. " Auctor reli- gionum " (Lassen). Dr. Lorinser questions this translation on the ground that Krishna could not be so called, but that he might be in some manner the highest offering in his human form. The authors of the Peters. Diet, also translate the word by '* das hochste Opfer," and Burnouf by " le premier sacrifice." It does not appear, however, that Krishna was regarded as a sacrifice of any kind, and adhi, as a prefix, often denotes a presiding or directing person. Adhikarmahrit means one who presides over workmen. Adhiyajna means, I think, one who presides over sacrifices. (d) Anusdsitdram. " Moderatorem" (Lassen) ; "regulator" (Thomson). The root is ias, to order, to govern. This is the nearest approach to a Divine Providence that Hindu theology has ever made. It is not quite in accordance with loo BHAGAVAD GItA. [chap, viir. the teaching of chap. v. 15, or with the common Hindu idea of Brahma. (e) Mano hridi nirudhya. Manas is the sentient faculty, Jirid is the bodily organ ; or, as Mr. Thomson expresses it, *^ Manas is the heart that desires and hrid that which heats." The meaning is, Keep the affections in their own seat, i.e., the breast. (/) Avartino. "Remeabiles" (Lassen). Avai'ta means a winding round; dvartin, winding round or revolving. The meaning is not that they may return, or, as Mr. Thomson renders it, " subject to return," but that they revolve from being to not-being, ie.j from visible being to absorption into Brahma, and vice versa, at stated periods. The reference is not to the soul, "which is liable to return, after a certain sojourn, from any of the eight worlds," as Mr. Thomson assertSj'^but to these worlds themselves, which come and go in a certain revolving order. S'ankara says, from their being defined by time. See chap. ix. 7. (g) Avasah, not by will of their own, t>., at the command of Brahma. Mr. Thomson translates it by " spontaneously," adding in a note, " Avdsa cannot have its more usual signifi- cation of ' against their will,' since matter, being irrational, could have no will of its own, but rather 'without any will of their own,' i.e., in agreement with the laws of necessity." But if so, it cannot emanate spontaneously. The constraining power is not a law of necessity, but a command from Brahma. Lassen has " ultro," probably by mistake ; Telang, " devoid of power." Ananda explains the word by asivatantra, not inde- pendently, by their own act. Tantra means a thread, the art of weaving, and hence formation, cause. S'ridhara's gloss is paratantra, dependent on another. (/i) SuMakrishne gati, " these two ways of black and white." /S^<Ha means also the increasing half of the moon's course, and CHAP. VIII.] BHAGAVAD GiTA. loi Icrishtia the waning half. Light and darkness are common symbols of happiness and the reverse. The grotesque imagi- nation of the Hindu has made the symbol to be a controlling cause; but it is strange that the soul, which is immaterial, and is often described or symbolised as "pure light," should depend on a material element for its guidance. S'ridhara says that the devotee is not bewildered, because he does not desire heaven and the rest as a means of happiness, but has his abode in the Supreme Lord. But this does not explain how, if he dies when the moon is waning, he must return to earth again. I cannot believe that the enlightened author of the Bhagavad Gita wrote these verses. ( 102 ) EEADING THE NINTH. The Holy One spohe. Now will I declare to thee, who dost not cavil, that most mysterious knowledge, divine and human, which when thou knowest, thou wilt be free from evil. Eoyal knowledge ! ^ royal mystery ! the supreme purifi- cation this, comprehensible at sight, holy,^ easy to practise, and eternal. The men who receive not by faith this holy doctrine attain not to Me, destroyer of foes ! but return to the ways of this world of death. All this universe has been spread out by Me, by my unmanifested material nature {Prahriti)} All things dwell in Me ; I do not dwell in them ; And yet these things dwell not in Me.* See my royal mystery ! (a). My spirit, which is the source of all, sup- ports all things but dwells not in them. As the mighty wind moves everywhere, but is ever contained within the ether,^ know that thus all beings are contained in Me. ^ Rdjavidyd. Raja, prince or king, or active energy of Brahma, and is here means chief, supreme. sometimes represented as his wife. ^ Dharmyam, according to law or * Referring to the twofold nature right. Dharma often expresses a of Brahma, They do not dwell in religious duty, but has here its most his higher spiritual nature, ancient meaning. ^ Akdsd, the ether, sometimes ^ Prahriti, or primordial matter, is rendered " space." It is the subtle here affirmed to be a part of Brahma, fluid which pervades all space. In the Puranas, Prakriti is the 4aktl, Sometimes it seems to denote the CHAP. IX.] BHAGAVAD GItA. 103 At the end of a kalpa} all things, son of Kunti ! go into my material nature ; at the beginning of a kalpa, I send them forth again. Eesting on my material nature (6) (Prakriti), I send forth again and again all this mass of beings, without their ^ will, by the power of Prakriti. And these works, destroyer of foes ! bind not Me,^ who sit apart as a stranger and in these works am unattached. 10 isTature {Prakriti), under my surveillance, gives birth to everything, moving or fixed (animate or inanimate), and by this means, son of KuntI ! the world revolves. Fools disregard Me when invested with a human body, not knowing my higher nature, the Supreme Lord of all. ^ Vain in hope, vain in action, vain in knowledge, and devoid of sense, these partake of the deluding (c) nature of Eakshasas and Asuras.^ But the great-souled men, son of Pritha ! who partake absolute idea of space, but not in the Institutes of Manu (iii. 25) they the Bhagavad Gita. are connected with Pisachas, a low 1 Cf. chap. viii. p. 97. order of demons. In the oldest parts ^ All works, except works of de- of the Rig-Veda, however, Asura is votion, bind the doer, i.e., they con- the name of the Supreme Spirit, the nect him with bodily conditions, as Ahura of the system of Zoroaster. In their result, in a future life. The the Puranas, the Asuras are repre- works of Brahma are not followed sented as warring against the goda by any consequences, because they and sometimes overcoming them, are done without "attachment." So The name was probably given to a perfect Yogin may act, and then the gods of the aboriginal tribes attain to nin-dna (cf. chap. iii. 19). (see Sans. T. iv. 154, 155). The ^ Asuras, giants or demons, ene- Rakshasas are fierce demons, who mies of the gods ; their residence is giaard the treasures of Kuvera, in Patala, below the earth. The the god of wealth. Their name is dark mode or constituent of Pra- derived from ra^sA, to guard. There kriti {tamo-guna) prevails in them, is a dreadful account of one in the In the third book of the Mahabharata Ramayana (iii. 2, 4), who was "like they are placed between gods and a mountain-peak, a man-eater, loud- men : " From Manu all creation, voiced, hollow-eyed, huge, horrible, gods, Asuras, men, must be pro- . . . bearing three lions, four tigers, duced" (Ind. Wisd., p. 395). In two wolves, ten deer, and the head I04 BHAGAVAD GIT A, [chap. IX. of the divine nature,^ worship Me with hearts resting on no other (God), knowing Me as the eternal source of all things. Evermore glorifying Me, earnestly striving (after Me),^ steadfast in vows and doing Me reverence, they worship ]\Ie with a constant devotion {d). I ^ Others also, sacrificing with the sacrifice of knowledge,^ worship Me, everywhere present in many forms by my oneness and my divisible nature. I am the offering ; I am the sacrifice ; * I am the offer- ing to forefathers ; ^ I am the sacred herb ; ^ I am the holy hymn ^ and the sacrificial butter ; ^ I am the fire ; I am the burnt-offerins:.^ of an elephant on the point of an iron pike." The Yakshas were de- mons of «, similar kind, but placed by Manu (xii. 47) above the E.ak- shasas. He calls them " the servants and companions of Kuvera." ^ In the gods the element [gufia) of Nature, called "goodness," pre- vails. Sankara connects it with calm- ness, restraint, compassion, and faith. 2 Striving to gain a true know- ledge of Brahma (Madhasudana), For restraint (of the senses), for calmness, self-control, &c. (Sankara). ' Mr, Thomson explains the sacri- fice of knowledge to mean the recog- nising of Brahma in every act of worship, but the true Yogin rose above all pious acts except that of devout meditation. Sridhara says that by the knowledge which they gain of Vasudeva being the All they offer an acceptable sacrifice. San- kara says it is by those, " who know that I am the Lord (/swai'a)." * Kratu and Yajna. Sankara and other Hinda scholiasts say that hratu is a sacrifice enjoined by the Vedas {sruti), and yajna one re- quired by tradition (smriti). But this distinction is not supported by the common use of the words. Kratu seems to denote sacrifice strictly ; yajna, worship in general, of which sacrifice was a chief part. In the Sakuntala, Indra is called S'ata- h'atu, he of the hundred sacrifices (p. 268, Williams's ed.) ^ Swadhd, the offering of food to the manes of deceased ancestors. * Aushadka, vegetable food or medicine (Sridliara) ; food produced by herbs (Sankara^ ; a medicinal herb, in the Hitopadesa and in Nala. ^ Mantra, a religious song. The mantras are the hymns of the Vedas and the commentaries are Brah- * Ajyam, the purified butter used in sacrifice. ' Huta, that which is offered, the victim. Lassen and Thomson trans- late it by "incense." There is no authority, I believe, for this transla- CHAP. IX.] BHAGAVAD GIT A, lo: I am the father, mother/ sustainer, and grandsire ^ of this universe. I am the object of knowledge, the lustra- tion, the syllable OM ; ^ I am, too, the Rig-, Sama-, and the Yajur-Yeda.* I am the way,^ the sustainer, the Lord, the witness,^ the dwelling, refuge, and friend, the source and the destroyer (of life), the place, the depository,^ and the eternal seed. I cause heat ; I withhold and I send forth the rain ; I am also immortality and death, Arjuna ! I am sat (formal existence) and asat (abstract, undeveloped being).* 20 They who follow the three Vedas, who drink the soma- tion. The Peters. Diet, translates it by "das Geopferte." Cf. Manu (iii. 74) : '^Ahuta is japa (a low ut terance of sacred words) ; huta is oblation by fire (homa) ; prahuta is food offered to demons {Bhutas).^^ ^ Cf . Plato in the " Timaeus " (s. 24^ : " For the present then we must con- ceive three kinds of things : that which is made, that in which it is made, and that after the likeness of which it is made ; and of these we may liken the recipient (the matter) to the Mother : that after which it is made to the Father ; and that pro- duced between the two to the off- spring." (Cf. also B. G., 0. xiv. 3.) ^ Thegrandsire asthe source of Pra- Jcriti, from whom all things emanate. 3 For the mystic syllable OM, Bee i. I. * The names of the three older Vedas, the Atharva-Veda being of later origin. The Saman is some- times put first, probably because it is a ritual of religious rites or offices, much used by the Brahma-is. ^ The way to final deliverance from matter in nirvana. ^ As the observer of all things. ^ The depository or treasure- house, for all things are contained in him. ^ Mr. Thomson explains these words as spirit and matter. They mean the world of visible things {sat), and the invisible, undeveloped Prakriii {asat). See Sankhya Karika, p. 27. Cf. Rig- Veda, x. 72, 2 : " Devanam purvye yuge asatah sada- jayata " — in the first age of the gods the Manifested {sat) was born from the Unmanifested (asrt^)." In the same Veda (i. 96, 7), Agni is called satas gopa, the guardian of the exis- tent world. The phraseology is much like Hegel's: (i) Das Abso- lute is das Seyn ; (2) das Absolute ist das Nichts . . . Das reine Seyn ist nun die reine Abstraction, damit das absolut-negative, welches gleich- falls unmittelbar genommen, das Nichts ist " (Die Lehre v. Seyn, s. 99). The explanations of the Hindu commentators are here, as so often elsewhere, unsatisfactory. One sup- poses that sat means gross matter, and asat the subtler form from whicli it was developed ; another explains them as " effects " and " causes." lo5 BHAGAVAD GItA. [chap. ix. juice 1 and are purified from sin, who offer sacrifices, ask of me a passage to heaven. These attain to the holy world of Indra and eat in heaven the divine food of the gods. These men, when they have enjoyed this vast heavenly world and their merit is exhausted, return to this world of death. Following the three holy books (the Vedas) and desiring the objects of the senses, they obtain that which comes and goes. A full assurance (e) (of blessedness) I bring to those who worship Me and never seek refuge in another (god), who are ever united (to Me) in devotion. Even those who worship other gods and are endowed with faith sacrifice to Me, son of KuntI ! when they sacrifice, but not according to ancient rule ; ^ For I am the enjoyer and the Lord also of all sacrifices, but these men know Me not in truth, and therefore they falL3 5 They who are devoted by vows to gods, go to gods;* they who devote themselves to Pitris (ancestral manes), go to Pitris ; they who sacrifice to Bhiitas (malignant goblins), go to Bhiitas ; ^ they who worship Me alone, come to Me. When any one offers to me in devotion a leaf, a flower, fruit, or water, I accept this pious offering of one who is devout in mind. 1 The juice of the Asclepiaa acida, ancestors, to whom a high place is much used in Hindu rites. given in Hindu rites. Cf. Manu '■^ Sankara says that the sacrifice (iii. 203) : "An oblation offered by is one of ignorance, not according to Brahmans to ancestors surpasses the ancient knowledge. oblation of the gods." ^ They fall from heaven and are ^ The Bhutas are a foul kind of born again on earth. demons, supposed to dwell in grave* * To Indra and other gods. The yards. Pitris are the manes of deceased l^ CHAP. IX.] BHAGAVAD GITA. 107 Whatever thou doest, whatever thou eatest, whatever thou ofiferest in sacrifice or givest (to others), whatever austerity thou practisest, do it as an offering to Me. Thus shalt thou be free from the bonds of works pro- ducing good or evil fortune ; united to Me in soul by devo- tion and renunciation (of worldly good), thou, when freed (from the body), shalt come to Me. I am the same to all beings ; to Me none is hateful and y^ none is dear ; but they who worship Me devoutly are in Mq and I also am in them.^ 30 Even if one of evil life worships Me with exclusive worship, he must be accounted as a good man, for he has judged rightly. Soon he becomes a pious man and attains to eternal peace. Be well assured, son of Kunti! that he who worships Me does not perish. Tor they who find refuge in Me, son of Pritha ! though they have been conceived in sin,^ women too, Vaisyas, and even Sudras, these go to the highest way. Howmuch more, then, holy Brahmans and pious Eajarshis?^ ^ Sankara says the union is by Hindu doctrine. Women alone possessing his nature {swabhdva). cannot perform any religious rite Sridhara, less correctly : "They are (Manu v. 155), nor may they repeat in Me by devotion {hhaktyd), and I the mantras (hymns) of the Vedas in them by giving them blessing or (ix. 18). They may, however, rise salvation." to heaven. I have not noticed in ^ Those who are born of unlawful any other passage that they might connections. The Vaisyas are the attain to nirvana. It is singular, mercantile and agricultural caste, as Mr. Thomson has pointed out. The Sudras are the lowest caste, that the Vaisyas should rank so placed by Manu (xii. 43) in the same low, and this must be regarded as rank with lions, tigers, and boars, a sign of the comparatively late date Even these, and women also, might of the poem. attain to the state of Brahma, i.€., * The Rajarshis (royal Rishis) might be absorbed into his being, united the characters of king and This goes beyond the prevalent saint. 1 08 BHA GA VA D GIT A. [c hap. ix. Since thou hast come into this fleeting and unhappy world, worship Me. Fix thy heart {manas) on Me ; worship Me ; offer to Me sacrifice ; bow down before Me ; united thus in soul (to Me), making Me the supreme object, thou shalt come to Me. Thus the Bhagavad Gita, Eeading the Ninth, whose title is " Devotion through the Eoyal Knowledge and the KoYAL Mystery." -: PHILOLOGICAL NOTES. (a) Yogam aiswaram, " Mysterium meum augustum " (Lassen) ; " Tel est le mystere de la supreme union " (Bur- nouf). Dr. Lorinser's version is, "Heine Herrschvertiefung schau," and explains it to mean that Krishna here speaks of his union with existences, which befits him as their Lord i^swara). Yoga seems here to mean the mysterious power which a perfect Yogin might exercise, and hence all power beyond ordinary human skill. K. T. Telang translates the passage by " See my power divine." Ananda explains yoga by " His proper form ; a joyous and twofold nature." S'an- kara interprets yoga by yuktiy conjunction (a sovereign union of soul with matter ?), showing the sovereign majesty of the Lord. (6) Prahriiim swdjnavastabhya. " Naturae meae innixus *' (Lassen) ; " Supported by my material essence " (Thomson) ; " Immuable dans ma puissance creatice " (Burnouf) ; " I plant myself on my own nature " (Wilkins). (Cf. c. xvi. 9. Utdm CHAP. IX.] BHAGAVAD GirA. 109 drishtimavastahhya. "In hacopinionedefixi," Lassen.) Telang translates it, " By means of the power of Nature, taking its control myself." The meaning will be more correctly ex- pressed by rendering the passage, "Supported by," or "en- abled by means of " my material nature. This is the inferior part of Brahma's dual nature. The verb is found in the Hari- vansa (8515). Dandamavastahhya, leaning upon or supported by a staff. S'ridhara explains the word by "commanding," " directing." (c) Mohinirrij deluding, not deluded, as Mr. Thomson trans- lates the word. " Naturam fraudulentam sectantes" (Lassen). (d) Bhdkti, adoration, is interpreted by the Hindu scholiasts, according to K. T. Telang, as "supreme love." S'ridhara says they adore by praise and other means. {e) Togakshema. See dnte^ ii. 45. ( no ) EEADINa THE TENTH. The Holy One spohe. Hear further still, large-armed one ! my all-important works which I will speak to thee, who hast a delight therein (a), from a desire for thy good. The hosts of Suras ^ know not any origin of Me, nor the great Eishis ; ^ for I am the primal source of all the gods and the great Eishis. He who knows Me, as unborn and without beginning, the mighty Lord of the world, he of mortals is nndeluded, he is freed from all sin. Mind, knowledge, absence of illusion, patience, truth, self-restraint, tranquillity, pleasure, pain, birth, death, fear, and courage also; 5 Innocence, evenness of mind, contentment, religious austerity, beneficence, glory and shame, these are the qualities of beings severally appointed by Me. The seven great Eishis, the four ancient (Fathers),^ and ^ Suras, a class of inferior gods, tya, Pulaha, and Kratu " (Sans. T. connected, it seems, with the sun i, 122). In another book they are (Surya). In the Mahabharata they raised to seven by the addition of war against the Asuras, the gods of Vasishtha (Santi p. 7570). The an aboriginal non -Aryan race. Vaya Purana makes the list eight 2 The Rishis were ancient sages, in number by adding Brighu ; the According to the Mahabharata, i. Vishnu Purana adds a ninth, Daksha. 2518, "Six great Rishis are known ^ The four mind-bom sons of as the mind-bom sons of Brahma, Brahma — SanatkuUiira, Sanaka, Sa- viz., Marichi, Atri, Angiras, Pulas- natana, and Sanandana or Sananda. CHAP. X.] BHA GA VA D GIT A. in the Manus,^ partaking of my nature, were born from my mind : from them the races of mankind have sprung. He who knows in truth that pre-eminence (&) and mystic power of mine is united (to Me) by unfailing devotion : of that there is no doubt. I am the source of all things ; the whole (universe) pro- ceeds from Me: thinking thus, the wise who share my nature (c) worship Me. Thinking on Me, having their life absorbed in Me (cQ, instructing each other and ever glorifying Me, they are contented and happy. 10 To these, constantly devout, who worship with the service of love, I give that mental devotion by which they come to Me. In them I destroy from compassion, dwelling in their souls (e), the darkness which is born of ignorance, by the ^ bright lamp of knowledge. Aejuna s'polze. Thou art the Supreme Brahma, the supreme abode,^ the best purification, the Eternal Creator, Divine, First of Gods, Unborn, the Lord ! Thus all the Eishis proclaim thee, and also the divine Eishi, Narada;^ thus too Asita, Devala, and Vyasa:* thus thou declarest thyself to me. ^ The Manus are fourteen in the ten progenitors of mankind who number, each presiding during a came forth from Brahma, period, called Manwantara {manu- ^ Asita is mentioned in the Lalita antara), over the world. Each Vistara (a legendary life of Buddha) period contains 4,320,000 years. as a Eishi who dwelt near the Hima- ^ Because all things dwell in him. layan range, and was informed super- ^ Narada is a mythical person naturally of the birth of Buddha, mentioned in Manu i. 35, as one of In the Vishnu Purana, Devala is 1 1 2 BHA GA VAD GIT A. [chap. x. I believe that all wliicli thou say est is true, Ke^ava ! for neither gods nor Danavas ^ understand thy manifesta- tion (/) (in bodily form), Holy One ! 15 Thou alone knovvest thyself by thyself, best of beings ! Creator of all things. Lord of all, the God of gods, Kuler of the Universe ! It is meet for thee to declare fully thy divine perfec- tions, by which these worlds are constantly pervaded by thee {g). How shall I, by ever meditating, know thee, Mystic One ? In what forms of being mayst thou, mighty Lord ! be comprehended by me ? Declare to me again and fully thy mystic nature and thy perfections (vibhuti), conqueror of men ! for I am never sated in hearing thy immortal (ambrosial) words. The Holy One spoke. Well ! I will declare to thee my divine perfections by means of the chief of them (only), best of Kurus ! for there is no end of my greatness. 20 I am the soul, Gudake^u! seated in the heart of said to have been one of the sons of in his illustrations of the Nirukta, Viswamitra, who by his austerities p. 150: "Seven is an indefinite and knowledge became one of the number, applied to the demons of seven Rishis. the air and clouds, who appear under Vyasa is a representative person, the manifold names of Namuchi, to whom is ascribed the composition Kuyava . . . the Danus or Danavas, or compilation of many works, in- to whom a mother called Danu is eluding the Mahabharata. assigned." Danu was said to be the ^ The descendants of Danu, fabled mother of Vritra (lit. cloud), and to be demons of the air, who made both were slain by Indra (R. V. i. war upon the gods. In the Rig- Veda 32, 9). In the Ramayana (i. 14, 14) they are said to be seven in number, they are placed between gods and * He cleaves by his force the seven Yakshas, a class of malicious demons Danus" (x. 120, 6). Roth remarks (S. T. iv. 166). CHAP. X.] BHAGAVAD GITA. 113 every creature.^ I am the beginning and the middle and the end of all things. Among the Adityas^ I am Vishnu; among luminous things the resplendent Sun. I am Marlchis among the Maruts and the Moon among the constellations.* I am the Sama ^ (Yeda) of the Vedas, I am Vasava ^ of the gods. Of the senses I am the manas ; ^ I am the in- tellect in living beings. Of the Eudras I am Sankara,^ and Vitte^a^ of the Yakshas and Eakshasas. Of the Yasus^^ I am Pavaka (fire) ; of the mountain-peaks I am Meru.^^ ^ The heart, or the region of the chest, is supposed by the Hindus to be the seat of the soul. There is here an approach to the Vedantist doctrine that each soul is a part of the Universal Spirit. It is a sepa- rate individuality in both the San- kyha and the Yoga systems. 2 The Adityas were at first six in number, and Varuna was their chief ; but afterwards they were twelve, corresponding to the months of the year. They became personifications of the Sun in his various positions, and Vishnu is here declared to be the chief. ■^ Marichi, the chief of the Maruts or storm -gods. In Manu (i. 35) he is one of the ten progenitors of gods and men whom Viraj created through Manu. ^ Nakshatras, the twenty-seven asterisms or lunar mansions tra- versed by the Moon. 5 The Rig- Veda is the oldest of the Vedas. The Sama-Veda was especially honoured by some of the Brahmans because its hymns were arranged for chanting in religious rites. 6 Vasava is a name of Indra. "^ Tor an explanation of manas and luddhi, see p. 13. ^ Sankara is a name of 6iva, called at an early period Rudra, who was the father of eleven Rudras, who represented probably violent destructive storms. ^ Vittesa, a name of Kuvera, the Hindu god of wealth, dwelling in the regions of darkness, correspond- ing to the Pluto of Western mytho- logy. He is chief of the demons called Yakshas and Rakshasas, who guard his treasures. ^" The Vasus, eight in number, were a class of inferior gods, the attendants of Indra in the older mythology. Trom their names, A'pa (water), Anila (wind). Soma (moon), Anala (fire), &c., they are evidently nature-gods, personifications of na- tural objects. ^^ Meru, the fabulous mountain in the centre of the Jambu-dwipa, the central continent of the seven which form the world. "In the centre of all these continents is Jambu-dwipa. ... In the centre of Jambu-dwipa is the golden moun- 11 114 BHAGAVAD GITA. [chap. X. Know, son of Pritha! that I am Yrihaspati,^ the chief of household priests; of the chiefs in war I am Skanda,2 and of waters I am the Ocean. 25 Of the great Eishis I am Bhrigu,^ and of words the syllable (OM). Of offerings I am the /a^^a- offering,* of mountains the Himalaya (range). Of all trees I am the sacred fig-tree (aSwattha ^), and of divine Eishis Narada.^ Of the Gandharvas^ I am Chitra- ratha ; of the perfect ones the recluse (muni) Kapila.^ Know that I am of horses Uchchaih^ravas,^ born of the amrita (water of immortality) ; of elephants, Airavata,^^ and among men I am the king. Of weapons of war I am the thunderbolt, and of cows the Kamaduk.^^ I am the progenitor Kandarpa,^^ ^mj Qf serpeifts I am Vasuki.^^ tain Meru, 84,ocx) yojanas high, and crowned by the great city of Brahma" (Vish. P., Wilson, ii. 1 10, 1 18). The yojana varied from four to eight krosas, the krosa being about two geographical miles. 1 The priest of the family of gods, and hence the prototype of the priestly order. The planet .Jupiter is so called, and he is the lord or regent of it. , 2 The Hindu god of war, and alfeo the planet Mars. 3 Mentioned by Manu (i. 35) as one of the great Rishis {maharshis), who were the progenitors of man- kind. * Repeating or muttering prayers and sacred hymns to one's self. • ° The Ficus religiosa, or sacred fig- tree of India. ^ The devarshis (divine Rishis) were a class of Rishis who became demigods. ^ The musicians of the gods, dwelling in Indra's heaven. Chitra- ratha is their chief. 8 Kapila, the author of the San- kyha system of philosophy. ^ The name of the horse which was created when the gods churned the ocean to procure the amrita, the water of immortality. He became the horse of Indra. ^° The elephant on which Indra rides. ^^ The cow, produced at the churn- ing of the ocean, which grants all desires. Probably an ancient type of the earth. ^^ A name of Kama, the Hinda. Cupid, lord of the Apsarasas or heavenly nymphs ; represented as a beautiful youth bearing a bow, and armed with five arrows which strike the five senses. ^^ Vasuki, the king of the nagas or serpents in Patala (Hell). He was CHAP. X.] BHAGAVAD GlTA. 115 Of the snakes I am Ananta/ and among beings of the "Waters, Yaruna.^ Of the Pitris (ancestral manes) I am Aryama,^ and of judges I am Yama> O Of the Daityas^ I am Prahlada, and of things that measure (h) I am Time. Of wild beasts I am the Tiger,^ and Vainateya ^ of birds. Of purifiers I am the wind, and of those who bear weapons Eama,^ Of fishes I am the Makara,^ and of rivers I am the Ganges. Of emanations (creations) (^) I am the beginning and the end, and I am also the middle, Arjuna! Of the kinds of knowledge I am the knowledge of the Supreme Spirit (Adhyatman) ; of those who speak I am the Speech. I am the letter A among letters, the dwandwa'^^ in coiled round the mountain Mandara by the gods and Asuras at the churning of the ocean. ^ Ananta, the thousand - headed snake on which Vishnu rests. He is mentioned in the Vishnu Purana as the king of the mythological snakes who have the face of a man. 2 Varuna was at an early period one of the chief gods of the Hindu Pantheon ; a personification of the sky as all-embracing, the maker of heaven and earth. At a later period he ranked only as chief of the Adit- yas, and now is considered as lord of the waters. His sign is a fish. 2 The chief of the ancient fathers (pitris), whose heaven is next below Brahma's. * Yama, the judge of the dead, the Hindu Minos. ^ The Daityas are represented as a demoniac and impious race, pro- bably the aborigines of Northern India, opposed to the Aryans and their gods. Prahlada was a king among them, and from his pious austerities he attained to much ve- pute. He is said to have become a worshipper of Vishnu. ^ The Indra (king) of the beasts of chase ; referred to both the lion and the tiger. ^ Vainateya is the sacred bird on which Vishnu rides. In the Rama- yana he is called a god. "The snake- devouring god, the strong Vainateya, he will deliver you from the dreadful bonds of the serpents " (Sans. T. iv. 453). ^ Rama, the hero of the epic poem the Ramayana, supposed to be the seventh avatdra (incarnation) of Vishnu. * A marine monster on which Varuna rides. At present the Hindu name for the shark. ^^ The aggregative form of San- ii6 BHAGAVAD GITA. [chap. x. compound words (/) ; I am also Eternal Time ; I am the Sustainer whose presence is on every side. I am Death that seizes all, and the Source of all that are to come. Of feminine words I am Fame, Fortune, and Speech, Memory, Intelligence, Constancy, and Patience. 35 Among the songs of the Sama-Veda I am the Vrihat- saman,! and the Gayatrl^ among metrical forms. Of months I am the Marga^irsha,^ and of seasons the flowery Spring. 1 am the Dice-play of the fraudulent and the Splendour of the splendid. I am Victory, I am Enterprise (^), I am the Goodness of the good. Of the sons of Vrishni I am Vasudeva,* of the Pandavas the Subduer of wealth (Arjuna). Of the munis I am Vyasa',^ and of sages U^ana ^ the wise. Of things that subdue I am the Eod, and the Polity of those who seek to conquer. Of secret things I am Silence,^ and the Knowledge of those who know. skrit compounds. Such a compound from that of his father, Vasudeva, as sea-shore is — shore of the sea ; as one of the sons of Sura, a chief of a dwandwa compound = the sea and an Aryan tribe called Yadhavas, the shore. The dwandwa is selected, and father to Krishna in his human says Sridhara, because all the parts form, are co-ordinate with each other. ^ See supra, L 26. ^ A part of the Sama-Veda sup- ^ TJsana is described as a teacher posed to have a peculiar sanctity. of the Asuras or demons, who were 2 Gayatri, a kind of metre, con- the aboriginal races of India. In sisting .of three divisions of eight the Bhag. Purana he is called " chief syllables each. It has the place of of the wise," and is said to be the honour because the holiest of all the tutor of Bali, a king of the Asuras verses of the Vedas (R. V. iii. 62, 10), (Muir iv. 143). daily repeated by the Brahmans, is ^ Meaning either that silence is written in this metre. one of the most mysterious things, * Part of November and Decem- or (as seems preferable) that it de- lier ; called also Agrahdyana (summit notes what cannot be expressed in of the year). words, but must be meditated on in * Vasudeva, a name of Krishna, silence, as the Supreme Brahma. CHAP. X.] BHA GA VAD GIT A. 1 1 7 And whatever is of living things the seed, I am That, Arjuna! There is nothing, whether moving or fixed, that can exist without Me. 40 There is no end of my divine perfections, slayer of foes 1 but this recital of my glory has been uttered by Me by way of instances thereof. Whatever thing is pre-eminent, glorious, or strong, know that all is the issue of a part of my power. But what hast thou to do with this vast extent of knowledge, Arjuna? I have established in continuance all this universe by one part of myself.^ ^' This is the conclusion of the Rajendra-lala, " the absorption of whole matter. The Supreme is not the Infinite in the Finite, of God in these things, but he is the animating Nature, but of the Finite in the In- Soul which gives to each its power finite, of Nature in God " (Introd. or excellence. " It is not," says Chhand. Upanishad). Thus the Bhagavad Gita, Eeading the Tenth, whose title is "Devotion by the Divine Perfections." PHILOLOGICAL NOTES. {a) Triyamdndya. "Tibi amanti" (Lassen); "whom I love" (Thomson). The word is translated *'freundlich" in the Peters. Diet. Of. vdclid priyamdiiayd, by a friendly dis- course (Ramayana iii. 20, 2). Ananda glosses the word by jyrltikurvat, causing joy or affection. (6) Vibhtiti, excellence, pre-eminence ; here used for the manifestation of the divine nature in some form of power or grandeur. S'ridhara's gloss is aiswaryalahhanam^ sign of sovereignty. Telang has "emanations," but incorrectly. ii8 BHAGAVAD GITA. [chap. x. (c) Bhdvasamanwitds. " Contemplandi facultate prsediti'* (Lassen); "Participants de I'essence supreme" (Burnouf). Dr. Lorinser, following the Peters. Diet., translates it by "Die mir Liebe weihen," and this rendering Telang adopts. In the absence of any conclusive example of such an usage, I prefer BurnouPs version. S'l idhara's explanation is prltiyukiali, joined or devoted by love. Ananda says, "They whose nature is wholly Brahma." S'ankara has, "United together {samyuhtd) by inclination to the truth that relates to the Supreme." (d) Madgataprdnd. " Me quasi spirantes " (Lassen) ; "Dead in me" (Thomson); "Offering their lives to me" (Telang). Gata, with a noun, often expresses the absence or destruction of what is denoted by the noun, but sometimes it is used in the sense of "devoted to," as in the episode of Nala, Tfidm gatasankalpd, " with resolves or purposes fixed on me." S'ankara says, "Whose acts or whose life is absorbed in me," i.e., by yoga. (e) Atmabhdvastho. " Sans sortir de mon unit^ " (Burnouf). Lassen's version is similar : " In mea ipsius conditione per- manens," which Thomson, as usual, follows. The passage is translated by Galanos, " Being seated in their hearts," with which Telang agrees. S'ridhara's gloss is, "Being placed in the office or function (vriui) of the intellect." S'ankara says, " Resting in the inner sense (antahkaraTm) of the being of the souL" (/) Vyaktinij manifestation, act of becoming visible ; here, as Telang translates it, "incarnation." (g) Vydpya iishthasi. " Permeans consistis " (Lassen). The verb sthd (to stand), when joined to an indefinite participle, has generally, as Mr. Thomson has stated, the meaning of persistency or continuance. Cf. yd sthitd vydpya vikoam^ that which perpetually pervades all space (ether) (Sakuntala, L 2). CHAP. X.] BHAGAVAD GITA. 119 (A) Kalayatdm. "Of those things that make account or reckoning " (S'ankara). The verb means to number, count, regard, measure. Lassen's version is, "numeros modulan- tium." {i) Sargdndm, of emanations. "Naturarum" (Lassen) *'Dans les choses cr^ees" (Burnouf). Every creation is an emanation in Hindu systems of cosmogony. S'ankara says that the term hhutanam (v. 20) applies only to animate beings, but sargdndm to everything. (J) Dwandwah sdmdsikasyaf the dwandwa form of com pound words. "Copulatio inter verba composita" (Lassen), as if it implied only the union of words ; but no doubt the Hindu scholiasts are right in regarding it as the particular kind of composite words called dwandwa. (k) Vyavasdya. "Perseverantia" (Lassen) ; " conseil " (Bur- nouf); "industry" (Telang). It means efifort and plan or design; hence we may translate it, "Action directed by thought or purpose." S'ridhara explains it as the action of those who toil or make effort. ( I20 ) BEADING THE ELEVENTH. Aejuna spoke. This discourse of the supreme mystery, called Adhyat- man, which thou hast uttered for my welfare, has taken away my delusion. For I have heard from thee at large of the birth and death of beings, lotus-eyed ! ^ and of thy eternal great- ness (a). / Even so as thou hast declared thyself to be, supreme I Lord! I desire to see thy sovereign form, greatest of \ beings!^. \ If thou judgest that I am able to behold it, Euler I / show to me thy eternal self, Lord of devotion ! The Holy One spoke. 5 See then, O son of Pritha ! my forms, by hundreds and by thousands, various, celestial, diverse in colour and shape. See the Adityas,^ Vasus, Eudras, the two A^wins,^ and the Maruts * also. See, son of Bharata ! many marvels never seen before. See here the whole universe, whether animate or inani- ^ Long and oval eyes are consid- ^ The twin Abwins (Aswinau) are ered to be an element of beauty. Yu- the sons of the Sky or Sun ; pro- dishthira, the Hindu ideal of manly bably at first personifications of the beauty, is called the "lotus-eyed." morning and evening twilight. 2 The Adityas are twelve Solar * The Maruts are the "storm deities, or personifications of the Sun gods," the brothers of Indra ; some- for the twelve months of the year, times said to be created by him. For Vasus and Rudras, see p. 113. CHAP. XI.] BHAGAVAD GITA. 121 mate, fixed in One in my person (body), Gudakesa! and whatever else thou desirest to see. But thou, art not able to look on Me with this eye of thine. I give thee an eye divine. See my sovereign mystic nature ! Sanjaya sjpdke. Then having spoken thus, King ! Hari,^ the mighty Lord of devotion {yoga), revealed to the son of Pritha his supreme and royal form. 10 Having many mouths and eyes, presenting many won- drous aspects, decked with many celestial ornaments, and bearing many celestial weapons : Wearing celestial garlands and vestments, anointed with celestial perfumes; that all- wonderful (form), resplendent, boundless, whose face is turned on every side. If the light of a thousand suns were to burst forth at once in the sky, that would be like the splendour of that mighty One. There the son of Pandu beheld the whole universe seated in One, and divided into many parts in the body of the God of gods. Then the conqueror of wealth, filled with amazement, with his hair standing on end, bowing down his head with uplifted hands thus addressed the god. Aejuna sjpohe, I God ! in thy body I see all the gods. And all the varied hosts of living things, ^ A name of Vishnu. "Becom- four faces, effected the creation" ing next pervaded with the quality (Vish. Pur. i. 4). He had been pre- of passion, that divine being, Hari, viously addressed as Vishnu (Sans, assuming the form of Brahma, with T. i. 51). 122 BHAGAVAD GITA. [chap. xr. And sovereign Brahma on his lotus-throne,^ And all the Kishis and the snakes ^ divine. I see thee with unnumbered arms and breasts And eyes and faces, infinite in form. I see not either source or mean or end Of thee, the universal Form and Lord, Bearing thy diadem,^ thy club and disc. I see thee glowing as a mass of light In every region, hard to look upon, Bright as the blaze of burning fire and sun. On every side, and vast beyond all bound. The Undivided thou, the highest point Of human thought, and seat (J) supreme of all.* Eternal law's undying Guardian thou ; The everlasting Cause (c) thou seem'st to me. I see not thy beginning, mean, or end ; Thy strength, thy arms are infinite alike. And unto thee the sun and moon are eyes. I see thy face that glows as sacred fire. And with its radiance heats the universe ; For all the heavenly regions and the space 'Twixt earth and heaven are filled by Thee alone/ When thy mysterious awful form is seen. The triple worlds ^ then tremble. Soul supreme ! These hosts of Suras ^ come to thee, God ! * Brahma is said to have sprung na. The discus is a weapon like a from a lotus which expanded from quoit, formerly used in war. Vishnu the navel of Iswara (the supreme' bears a club, a discus, a conch-shell, Lord), i.e., of Vishnu, according to and a lotus, the Vaishnavas. Hence he is called * See p. 105. Kanja-ja (lotus-bom). See Moor's ^ Heaven, earth, and hell. Hindu Pantheon, p. 7. ^ Gods of an inferior class. In the ^ Seep. 115. later mythology, Indra was their ^ These are the insignia of Krish- chief. " He and the other Suras CHAP. XI.] BHAGAV4D Gil A. 12' Some mutter in their fear and lift their hands. Great Eishis, Siddhas/ all cry " Hail to thee !" And thee they celebrate with songs sublime (d). Adityas, Eudras, Yasus, Sadhyas ^ too, The Viswas, Aswins, Maruts, Ushmapas,^ Gandharvas, Yakshas, Siddhas, Asuras, In crowds behold thee, and are all amazed. Thy mighty form, with many mouths and eyes, Arms, thighs, and feet, and loins, and fearful tusks, The worlds behold with fear, and I with them. were for ever engaged in hostilities with their half-brothers, the demons called Asuras or Daityas, the giants or Titans of Hindu mythology, who were the children of Kasyapa by Diti, as the Suras were by Aditi " (Sakuntala, Mon. Williams, n., p. 86). Sridhara says they enter the Supreme as a refuge ; but this is not indicated by the text, for they adore as other deities. ^ Deified mortals learned in the Vedas, said to be 88,ocx) in number and to OQCupy that part of the hea- vens which lies between Nagavithi (Aries and Taurus)' and Saptarshi (Ursa Major). They are mentioned in the Ramayana (i. 14). "The gods, with the Gandharvas, Siddhas, and Munis, had previously come thither to receive their portions (of the sacrifice). Brahma, lord of the deities, Sthanu (Mahadeva), the lord Narayana (Vishnu), and the divine Indra in visible presence, surrounded by the host of Maruts" (Sans. T. iv. 16). ^ The Sadhyas were an order of inferior gods mentioned in the Rig- Veda, X. 90, 16 : "They (the gods) come with great pomp to the sky. where are the ancient Sadhyas, gods." Sayana calls them karma- devds, work-gods, and " performers of sacrifices," &c., explained by Prof. Wilson to mean divinities presiding over or giving effect to religious acts. Mahidhara on Vaj. S. (31, 17) gives a different explanation. He says that there are two kinds of gods : karma-devds, who have attained to this state by their works, and djdna- devds, gods by birth, who were created by Brahma. See Mr. Muir, On the Interp. of the Veda, R,.A.S., 1866, p. 394. In the Institutes of Manu (iii. 195^ they are said to be the descendants of the Somasads, who sprang from Viraj. They are classed between the Viswadevas and the Rishis (xi. 29). In the Hari- van^a they are spoken of as wor- shippers of the gods. " For the completion of sacrifice, he (Brahma) formed the Rich, Yajush, and Saman verses ; with these the Sadhyas wor- shipped the gods, as we have heard." In the Puranas they are the sons of Dharma and Sadhya, daughter of Daksha. , * A class of Manes, or the spirits of ancient fathers {Pitris). 124 BIIAGAVAD GITA, [chap. xi. I see thee touch the skies, and brightly shine With varied hues. I see thy open mouth, Thy vast and glittering eyes ; and now my soul, My inmost soul is troubled, and I lose My courage, Vishnu ! and my peace of mind. When I behold thy teeth outspread, and mouths Eesembling (in their flames) Time's final fire,^ I know not aught around and have no joy. Have mercy. Lord of gods ! the world's great Seat ! The sons of Dricarashtra and the host Of earth's great rulers, Bhishma, Drona too, And Karna,2 with the flower of all our host, Enter in haste thy fearful large-toothed mouths, And some are seen to rest, with heads all crushed, Within the gaps that lie between thy teeth.^ As many streams in rapid torrents flow Direct to ocean, so these chiefs of men Enter in haste within thy flaming mouths. As moths towards a lighted taper rush. With still-increasing speed, to perish there, So come these multitudes within thy mouths, With still-increasing speed, to perish there. Devouring all mankind from every side, Thou lappest them with thy flame-bearing lips. Thou fillest all the universe with light. And fiercely, Vishnu ! burn thy fiery rays. ^ The world, at the end of a Iccdpa, Surya, the Sun, before her marriage is destroyed by fire which the ser- with Pandu. His foster-father was pent Ananta casts from his mouth. Nandana, the Suta of Dhritarashtra ; 2 Lit. the son of a Suta (chario- hence he was assumed to be the son teer). Kama is meant, a king of of a Sida. the Anga country (Bengal), He ^ This is spoken in anticipation was fabled, to be a son of Pritha by of their approaching death in battle. CHAP. XI.] BHAGAVAD CITA. 125 Then tell me who thou art, with form so dire. To thee I bow. Be gracious, God supreme ! I ask to know thy primal life, for this. Thy form evolved (e), I cannot understand. The Holy One spoke. Lo ! I am old and world-destroying Time (/), Here manifest to slay the race of m'en. Of all these warriors, formed in hostile ranks, Except thyself, there shall not one survive. Wherefore, arise ! gain glory for thyself. Subdue thy foes and gain an ample sway ! My arm already hath destroyed them all. Be but my instrument, left-handed one ! Strike thou at Bhishma, Drona, Karna too, At Jayadratha,^ and the warriors all, For they are slain by Me. Be not dismayed, right ! thou shalt conquer in the field thy foes. Saxjaya spoke. 3 5 Having heard these words of Ke^ava,^ he who bears a tiara,^ lifting up his hands, making salutations and trem- bling, again spoke thus to Krishna, bowing down and stammering, overwhelmed with fear. Aejuna spoke. The world, Krishna ! justly hath delight In thy great glory and obeys thy law. ^ King of the Sindhavas, who a desperate conflict, after the fall of dwelt in the country of the Indus. Bhishma. He was finally killed by Arjuna in ^ The hairy one, i.e., Krishna. * Arjuna. 126 BHAGAVAD GITA. [chap. xi. The Eakshas flee on every side through fear. And troops of Siddhas all bow down to thee. Why should they not adore thee, Soul supreme ? More reverend e'en than Brahma,^ primal Cause, infinite Lord of Gods ! the world's abode,^ Thou undivided art, and life in forms And formless life thou art {g), o'er all supreme. Thou art the First of gods, the ancient Sire, The treasure-house supreme of all the worlds. The Knowing and the Known, the highest seat. From thee the All has sprung, boundless Form ! Varuna, Vayu, Agin, Yama thou,^ The Moon ; the Sire (A), and Grandsire too of men. All hail to thee, a thousand times all hail ! Again and yet again, all hail to thee ! AH hail to thee before, all hail behind ; All hail on every side, mighty All ! The Infinite in power, of boundless force. The All thou dost embrace ; then thou art AU. If thinking thee my friend, I cried aloud, Yadava ! ^ Krishna ! or Friend ! Not knowing this thy wondrous majesty, From carelessness, or even in my love ; • If I dishonoured thee at times in mirth, When sporting, lying, sitting, or at meals, Alone, Holy One I or with an host, 1 pray thee pardon it. Eternal Lord ! Father of all this fixed and moving world, ^ Brahma proceeded from the and the judge of the lower regions Supreme Bramhti, whom Krishna respectively, represents. ^ So called because in his human 2 Because all things dwell in him. nature he belonged to the tribe of ^ The gods of ocean, air, and fire, Yadu. CHAP. XL] BHAGAVAD GITA. 127 Of weightier honour than the Guru {%) bears,^ None is thine equal. Who in all the worlds Surpasses thee, thou of boundless power ? Wherefore, saluting thee and bending low, I ask thy grace, Lord, whose praise is meet. Be gracious then, God ! as sire to son. As friend to friend, as lover to the loved. This marvel having seen, ne'er seen before. My heart rejoiees, yet is moved by fear. Show me that other form alone, God ! Be gracious. Lord of gods ! the world's great seat ! I would behold thee, as of old, arrayed With diadem and club, and disk in hand. Take to thyself again thy four-armed form, Thou of the thousand arms and endless forms ! The Holy One s-polze. By favour, through my mystic form divine (/), Arjuna ! thou my form supreme hast seen, Eesplendent, universal, infinite. Primeval, seen before by none but thee. Yet not by Vedas, nor by sacrifice, By study,2 alms, good works, or rites austere, Can this my form be seen by mortal man, Prince of Kurus ! but by thee alone. ^ A spiritual teacher, extrava- ^ gankara and Sridhara connect gantly honoured. " By reverencing adhyayana (reading or study) with his mother, one gains this world ; by the words "Veda and sacrifice, ex- reverencing his father, the interme- plaining the passage as if the study diate world; and by constant atten- of these things was here meant, and tion to his guru, the world of also not a right study of them, [My Brahma " (Manu ii. 233). The copy of Sridhara's Commentary has world of Brahma is the highest atirekena; Telang has vyatirekenal heaven. 128 BHAGAVAD GItA. [chap. xi. Be not afraid or in thy mind distressed From having seen this awful form of mine, But, freed from fear and with a joyful heart, See now that other form of mine again. Sanjaya sipoke. 50 Yasudeva, having thus addressed Arjuna, caused his proper form to appear again, and the great Spirit, becom- ing once more of a gentle form, consoled him that had been affrighted. Arjuna s:p6ke. Having seen this thy gentle human form, destroyer of foes ! I have now become composed in mind and have returned to (my proper) nature. The Holy One sjgdke. This form of me that thou hast seen is one hard to see. Even the gods constantly desire to see this form. Not by Vedas, nor by austerities, nor by gifts, nor by sacrifice, can I be seen as thou hast seen me now. But by exclusive worship may I thus be known and seen in truth and be obtained (entered), slayer of foes ! 55 He who does everything for Me, whose supreme object I am, who worships Me, being free from attachment and without hatred to any creature, this man, Arjuna ! comes to Me. Thus the Bhagavad Gita, Reading the Eleventh, whose title is " The IMaxifestation of the Univeesal Foem." CHAP. XL] BHAGAVAD GItA. 129 PHILOLOGICAL NOTES. (a) Mdhdtmyam. " Magnanimitas " (Lassen and Burnouf); *' greatness " (Thomson) ; "majestat" (Lorinser). The refe- rence is certainly to the instances of greatness or excellence in the preceding chapter. (6) Nidhana, treasure or treasury. S'ankara explains it by paramdsraya^ chief asylum or receptacle. (c) Purusha, literally the Male, as the divine generator of all. {<!) Pushkaldhhlh, *'Hymnis perpulcris" (Lassen). S'ankara explains the word as meaning complete, full (sampurna). The word means complete, but also great, excellent, distinguished. Burnouf has " dans de sublimes cantiques." (e) Pravrittim, lit. going forth, either in action or being. Lassen's translation is *' Hand presagio equidem quidnam pares." Telang's, " Thy deeds I understand not." S'ridhara and S'ankara interpret it by ceshta, movement, action. I think it means here the developed being by which the god was made manifest. (/) Kdla, time, and sometimes death. Lassen and Burnouf accept the former, and Thomson the latter meaning. In the Atharva-Veda, Kdla is accounted a god, and hymns are addressed to it. In the Vishnu Purana (v. 6), Time is a por- tion of Hari (Vishnu). " Afterwards that which is described as the part of Hari, which has the nature of Time, infused into those beings direful sin " (Sans. T. i. 62). Ananda seems to accept the meaning, " death," for he says that the meaning is, '' I am Kdla^ because I destroy the lives of all." S'ridhara has a similar explanation. {g) Sadasat tat param yat. "Enti et non-enti quod subest" I30 BHAGAVAD GIT A, [chap. xi. (Lassen) ; " The existing and non-existing, that which is supreme " (Thomson). Telang has " That which is, That which is not, and that which lies beyond.** By mi rs meant formal existence ; by asat, unformed primal existence. See Sankhya Karika, p. 135. S'ridhara says that sat is the Manifested (Developed) life ; asat^ the Unmanifested {Tralcriti). {h) Prajd;pati. "Animantium sator" (Lassen). The word is often used to denote Brahma as Creator. " This universe was formerly water. On it Prajapati, becoming wind, moved. . . . He created gods, Vasus, Eudras, and Adityas" (Taitt. Sanh. vii. i, 5; Sans. T. i. 52). Cf, Gen. i. 2. Ananda explains it by *' the great father of all the world." {i) Gurorgurlydn. The Calcutta ed., the text of Madhu- sudana, and (I may add) three MSS. in my possession, read gurur. The translation will then be, " Thou art the vene- rable and very weighty Guru (religious teacher) of this (world)." Mr. Thomson would connect asya with guros, and translate, *' than that Guru himself," meaning Brahma ; but the comp. form requires an ablative after it ; asmdt, not asya. In my copy of S'ridhara's Commentary the reading i^.guro?^ but in the text gurnr. The explanation is gurutaraj^THOXQ venerable. He adds, *' Thus there is no other in the three worlds who is equal to thee in greatness." In th^ Bhagavata ^ Puraim, the guru is said to be the same as deity. (See Eel. JSectsdf the Hindus, p. 63.) « ^ {j) Atmayogdt, by my mystic virtue. See c. vii. 25, supra. Dr. Lorinser would retain the meaning "union," referring to Krishna's union with men by his incarnation. ( 131 ) READING THE TWELFTH. Arjuna s;pohe. Of those who, ever devoutly worshipping, do thee service,^ and those who serve the Imperishable and the Umanifested, which of these (classes) is best acquainted with Yoga ? The Holy One spoke. They who have stayed their hearts on Me, and do Me service with a constant devotion, being endowed with perfect faith, these I deem to be the most devout {yukta- tamds). But they who serve the Imperishable, Unseen, Un- manifested One, All-pervading and Incomprehensible, who dwelleth on high (a), the Immutable and Eternal ; Who, subduing all the senses, are equal-minded to all around and rejoice in the good of all, these attain to Me. 5 The trouble of those whose minds are fixed on the Un- manifested is the greater, because the unseen path^ is hard to be gained by those who are embodied (h) ; ^ Those who worship Brahma, glosses the word " Imperishable " manifested in some material form, by Brahma. as Krishna, or those who worship ^ T^e way to the Invisible or him in his higher spiritual nature. Unmanifested Brahma. Telang In the first form he is vyakta, mani- translates gati (way) by " goal." 1 1 fested ; in the other, avyakta, un- sometimes means place or seat, manifested. The spiritual worship Sridhara's gloss is nishtha, place or is the higher, but it is too diflScult condition, for the mass of mankind. Sridhara 132 BHAGAVAD GITA. [chap. xir. But they who renounce all works in Me, whose chief object I am, who, meditating on Me, serve with an ex- clusive devotion ; These I raise from the ocean of this mortal world without delay, son of Pritha ! their minds being stayed on Me. Fix thy heart (manas) on Me alone; let thy mind (huddhi) be stayed on Me ; then hereafter thou shalt dwell in Me on high : of that there is no doubt. But if thou art not able to fix thy thoughts constantly on Me, then by frequent ^devotion seek to gain Me, subduer of wealth ! lo If thou art not equal to frequency (of devotion), be thou intent on doing works for Me (c) ; if thou doest works for / Me alone, thou shalt attain the perfect state. If this also thou art not able to do, then, having found refuge with Me in devotion, renounce thus the fruit of \ works with soul subdued ; \ For knowledge is better than diligence, meditation is / better than knowledge, and renouncing of the fruit of works ' than meditation; to renunciation peace is very nigh(c?). He who hates no single being, is friendly and com- passionate, free from self-regard and vanity, the same in good and evil, patient ; Contented, ever devout, subdued in soul, firm in pur- pose, fixed on Me in heart and mind, and who worships Me, is dear to Me. 5 He whom the world troubles not, and who troubles not the world, who is free from the emotions of joy, wrath, and fear, is dear to Me. The man who has no selfish bias (e), is pure, upright, unconcerned, free from distress of mind, who renounces every enterprise (/) and worships Me, is dear to Me. CHAP. XII.] BHAGAVAD GITA. 133 He who has neither delight nor aversion, who neither mourns nor desires, who renounces good and evil fortune, and worships Me, is dear to Me. He who is the same to friend and foe, and also in honour and dishonour, who is the same in cold and heat, pleasure and pain, who is wholly free from attachment ; To whom praise and blame are equal, who is silent, content with every fortune, home-renouncing,^ steadfast in mind, and worships Me, that man is dear to Me. 20 But they who sit at (the banquet of) that sacred nec- tar (^), which has been described before, endowed with faith, making Me their highest aim and worshipping (Me), these are the most dear to Me.^ ^ Abandoning home to devote - The amrita or nectar of the gods himself to the life of a recluse. Tliis is mentioned by Arjuna (c. x. iS), is enjoined in Manu, especially in Mr. Thomson thinks there is a re- old age. " Departing from his house ference to a knowledge of Brahma . . . keeping silence, not regarding in his various manifestations. The the objects of desire that are brought reference seems to be rather to those into contact with him, let the muni more spiritual worshippers who were live as an ascetic" (vi. 41). Minute intent, by meditation, upon the Su- directions are given for his future preme as a pure spirit. See dist. conduct (43-82). 2-5 in this chapter. Thus the Bhagavad Gita, Beading the Twelfth, whose title is " The Devotion of Worship." 134 BHAGAVAD GItA. [chap, xii- PHILOLOGICAL NOTES. {a) Kutastham, raised on high, sublime ; see p. 83 supra. S'ridhara says that by kuta is meant his development in the illusive material worid {mdyd). (h) Deliavadhhis, by those who possess bodies. The body, in Hindu opinion, is never a help to the soul, except as a means of deliverance from matter. (c) Matkarmaparamo bhava. *' Mihi gratis operibus intentus esto " (Lassen) ; " Be intent on the performance of actions for me " (Thomson). The reference is not to the kind of work, but the purpose or intention with which it is done. S'ridhara's gloss is, ''Works done from love to Me.". S'ankara says, "For my sake." {d) Tj/dgdch chhdntir anantaram. "A renuntiatione tran- quillitas proxime distat" (Lassen). Sdnti seems to mean liere, as Mr. Thomson suggests, final repose in nirvana. Biirnouf translates it by "beatitude." S'ridhara's gloss is, " By my favour there is immediately a rest from, or cessation of, worldly or earthly existence" {sansdrdsdiiti), implying a cessation of birth by nirvdna. (e) Anapekska, lit. "he who looks not about." "Nulla ex- pectatione suspensus" (Lassen); "He who has no worldly expectations " (Thomson) ; " L'homme sans arrifere pens^e " (Burnouf). It is the man who has no other than a true, direct purpose. "Unworldly" seems the nearest English equivalent. Ananda says it means " free from all desire," and S'ridhara has the same explanation. Telang translates it " unconcerned." The corresponding Pali word, anapekJd, has this meaning. S'ankara says " one who has no regard for objects of sense." (f) Sarvardmhhaparityagi. "Omnibus inceptis qui renun- tiavit " (Lassen). This is hardly definite enough. Arambha CHAP. XII.] BHAGAVAD GITA. 135 means effort, enterprise ; and the character here denoted is the man who rejects all enterprise, because it is opposed to that absolute repose which is the Hindu ideal of excellence. Mr. Thomson has mistaken the meaning of the passage. He translates the word by " free from any interest in his under- takincs." It is the undertakin^-s themselves that he renounces. S'ridhara's gloss is "to renounce active labour" {udyama), Telang's translation is *' who doth renounce all acts for fruit ; " but there is no limit in the text. {g) Dharmydmritam. Ainrita, the immortal, corresponds to the ambrosia of the Greeks. In the later Hindu mythology it denoted chiefly the water of immortality which the gods gained by the churning of the ocean; but it was used to express things offered in sacrifice, chiefly the soma. Here it is used to denote the blessedness of a mental union with Brahma, by which at length nirvana is gained. ( 136 ) EEADING THE THIETEENTH.i The Holy One spoke. These (a) bodies, son of KuntI ! are called hshetra (matter) (&). That which knows it is called by the wise kshetrajna (matter-knowing = Soul). Know that I am the soul (kshetrajna) in all forms of /inatter, son of Bharata ! This knowledge of soul and \ matter I deem to be knowledge (indeed). "What this matter is, what its qualities, what are its changes and whence it comes, and what that is (soul) and what its greatness (c), hear now briefly from Me. All this has been sung separately,^ in many ways by Eishis, in various songs (d), and in well-thought-out verses of Brahma-sutras (e), that treat of the causes (of things). 5 The gross elements, egoism, intellect, and also the un- manifested (Prakriti or Nature), the ten senses, the one (organ, the maiias), and the five objects (or domains) of sense; Desire, hatred, pleasure, pain, collective form (organised body), thought, resolve,^ these are briefly described as matter in its modified forms. ^ Here the third part of the poem ^ The Hindu commentators ex- begins, treating, in part, of the phy- plain this word {pritak) as " vari- sical theory of the Sankhya system, onsly," referring it to Brahma in his This part of Kapila's teaching has various forms as Vishnu, &c. largely affected the whole course of ^ Because they belong to the Hindu thought or speculation on huddhi and manas of man's com- physical matters, even in schools pound nature, and these are only widely differing from his on other subtle forms of matter, subjects. CHAP. XIII.] BHAGA VAD GITA. 137 Modesty, sincerity, innocence, patience, uprightness, service done to a preceptor, purity, constancy, self-control; Absence of desire for things of sense and of vanity, per- ception of the evil of birth, death, old age, sickness, and pain ; Freedom from attachment, absence of affection for son, wife, home, and the rest, and constant equanimity in desired and undesired events ; 10 With constant worship of Me in exclusive devotion, frequenting of lonely places and distaste for the society of men ; Perseverance in (seeking to gain) the knowledge of the Supreme Spirit (Adhyatman),^ and perception of the gain that comes from knowledge of the truth : this is called knowledge : all that is contrary to this is ignorance. 1 will declare that which must be known, by the know- ledge of which immortality is gained; the Supreme Brahma, without beginning, who is called neither sat nor asat ; ^ Whose hands and feet are everywhere, everywhere his eyes and heads and faces ; hearing everywhere, he dwells in the world encompassing all things. Eesplendent in the faculties of all the senses, yet devoid ^ See c. viii. i, supra. that which is not perceived by the 2 Neither sat, thing, reality, but senses. The earlier philosophic here formal being, in opposition to meanings of sat and asat were lost asat, unformed, primal matter. San- in course of time, but the true sense kara, quoted by Telang, gives another was manifest to some who were com- explanation. He says that these paratively modern commentators, words indicate a class, a quality, an Raghavendra says that sat means action, or a relation, but as none the Vyakta (Manifested) produced of these is possible in the case of as an effect, and asat is the Avyakta Brahma, neither word can be applied (Unmanifested), which is the cause to him. Srldhara explains sat by of it, i.e., Prakriti (Telang). lishaya, object of sense, asat being 138 BHAGAVAD GITA. [chap. xiir. of all the senses ; ^ unattached (/) and yet sustaining all things; without the modes (of Nature) (^), yet the pos- sessor (enjoyer) of the modes.^ r 5 He is without and within all beings ; motionless and yet moving; not discerned because of his subtlety; near and yet remote ; Not distributed in beings, yet constantly distributed in them ; he is to be known as the sustainer of all ; he de- vours ^ and he creates. The light of all things luminous, he is declared to be above (all) darkness. He is knowledge, its object, and its end Qi), seated in the hearts of all. Thus matter, knowledge, and that which must be known, have been briefly set forth. He who worships ]\Ie and discerns this (Supreme Spirit) is fitted to become one with Me (i). Know that Nature and Spirit are both without begin- ning. Know, too, that variations (of material forms) and the modes (y) spring from Nature. 20 In the activity of the organs of action {h) Nature * is called the cause: in the sensation of pleasure and pain spirit is called the cause. Por spirit seated in Nature possesses (makes use of) the modes that spring from Nature and the connection of this with modes is the cause of birth in good or evil wombs.^ 1 Possessing all that the senses ' At the end of a Tcail'pa or day of can give, as seeing, &c., but without Brahma (see c. viii. i6), all existent any bodily conditions. things are absorbed in Prakriti, and - From the dual nature of Brahma, are sent forth again into actual for- who, as involving Prakriti in his mal life at the beginning of another lower nature, possesses the modes kalpa, by the command of BrahmJl. or constituent elements of the latter, * Prakriti or primordial matter, but in his higher spiritual nature, ^ The action of the modes causes which is truly himself, he has no a new birth and is never absolutely connection with any form of matter, good. The sumrtium bonum or ab- CHAP. XIII.] BHAGAVAD CIjA. 159 Surveyor, director, supporter, possessor (/), the mighty Lord, thus is the Supreme Spirit called; the supreme 1 jpicrusJia (male creative power) in this body.^ I \ He who knows this creative power {purusJia) and f ) Nature with its modes, in whatever state he may be, is '' / never born again. Some by meditation perceive the soul in themselves by themselves, others by devotion (yoga) in the Sankhya^ (system), and others by devotion in works ; 25 But others, who know it not, hear of it from others and worship, and these, too, devoted to the sacred doctrine, pass over death. •/ When any existence whatever, animate or inanimate, is Woduced, know, son of Bharata ! that it exists by this Ainion of matter and spirit. He who sees the Supreme Lord dwelling alike in all beings, the Imperishable in things that perish, sees indeed; V For seeing the Lord as the same, everywhere present, he destroys not himself by himself, and thus he goes to the supreme seat. ' But he who sees that works are wrought in every case by Nature {Prahriti), and that therefore the soul is not an agent, sees indeed. 30 When he sees that the separate natures of things are seated in One and issue from it alone, then he attains to Brahma. sorption into Brahma can only be ship, cannot properly be applied to gained by an absolute freedom from the system of Kapila, for by it know- the influence of the modes by the ledge, i.e., the knowledge of philo- practice of devout meditation. sophy, was set far above the ritual 1 In the person of Krishna, who of the Vedas, and above all religious is identified with Brahma. .practices. - The term yoga, devotion or wor- I40 BHAGAVAD GITA. [chap. xiil. This eternal Supreme Spirit, without heginning, devoid of modes, works not and is not stained, son of Kunti ! even when it is embodied. As the ether that pervades all things is not stained through its subtlety, so the soul everywhere seated in bodies (w) is not stained. As one sun alone illumines all this world, so the soul illumines the whole of matter, son of Bharata ! They who see, by the eye of knowledge, this difference between matter (kshetra) and spirit (kshetrajna, matter- knowing), and the deliverance of beings from Nature^ {PraJcriti), these go to the Supreme. ^ By the soul becoming free from all contact with matter in niridna. Thus the Bhagavad Gita, Reading the Thirteenth, whose title is " Devotion by the Separation of Matter and Spirit." CHAP. XIII.] BHAGAVAD CItA. %/^i PHILOLOaiCAL NOTES. (a) In MS. (D) in the Eoyal Library at Paris, in two MSS. of London, in the Calcutta ed. of the Mahabharata, and in three MSS. in my possession, the following distich is found at the beginning of the chapter. It is probably of late intro- duction : — " Arjuna spoke. I desire to learn Nature and spirit-life (piirusha), matter and the matter-knowing (soul), science and its objects, O Kesava ! " (b) Kshetra, prim, a plain, a field; and hence matter, as that which is objective to the soul. {c) Frabhdva. " Its incomprehensible sovereignty " (S'rid- hara). " Qualium capax " (Lassen and others). Primarily *' birth," its secondary meanings are good family, high rank, power, authority. {d) Ghhandohhis. Chhandas is either metre or a chanted hymn. " Haud dubie," says Lassen, *' indicatur pars qusedam Vedorum." S'lidhara says, " By Vasishtha (a Vedic poet) and the rest." '' By the Rig-Veda and the other Yedas " (Ananda). So say the Hindu scholiasts. This is possible, for our author does not discard the Vedas, though their ritual he held to be inferior in effect to pious meditation {yoga). {e) Brahmasutrapadais. Pada (foot) is here = metre or verse. The sutras (threads) are the poetical distichs in which many of the Hindu philosophic works are composed. There is a work by Badarayana called " Brahma-sutras," but the refer- ence is probably to any hymns in honour of Brahma. S'an- kara says they were siitras for the making known of Brahma* (/) Asahtam, " unattached ; " see p. 55. " Afi'ectu immune " (Lassen). {g) Gunahhohtri. " Qualitatibus fruens" (Lassen); "II perfoit tons les modes" (Burnouf). The root hhuj^ to eat, 142 • BHAGAVAD GiTA. [chap. xiii. means also to possess, to enjoy. The meaning is that Brahma can use the modes of Prakriti, though they are not in him. (A) Jhdiiam, jfieyam^ jTidnagamyam. Burnouf has, I think, correctly translated these words : " Science, objet de la science, but de la science." Mr. Thomson's translation is : "It is spiritual knowledge itself, the object of that knowledge to be obtained by spiritual knowledge," and, thinking the first part expresses a very forced idea, would read jndnaj- neyam. But all the MSS. read jndnam. The aim of all true knowledge is absorption into the Divine nature, according to Patanjali. (^) Upapadyate. " Is conformed to my nature " (Thomson). Lassen and Burnouf, more correctly, ** Comes to my nature," i.e., is absorbed in it. S'ridhara's explanation is, " He is fit for union with Brahma." {J) Vilcdrdns cha gundns cha. " Passions and the (three) qualities" (Thomson); but all passion is from the qualities or modes. The meaning is that all the varieties of existent things and the modes, too, from which they spring, are from Prakriti (Nature). S'ridhara's gloss is : " Changes or modifi- cations (parindma) of the modes, pleasure, pain, &c., which spring from Prakriti." Telang translates vikara by " emana- tion ; " but this is not the meaning of the word. {k) Kdryahdraiiahartritwe. Burnouf has kdya (body), but all the MSS., I believe, have hdrya (effect, or thing to be done). The Hindu scholiasts and Lassen refer, however, the word to the body : " In actione ministerii corporalis." The meaning seems to be : " In the activity or actual working of means and end (cause and effect), Nature is called the cause ; " both means and end being material. (See Lassen's note, p. 232.) {I) Bhoktd. "Perceptor" (Lassen) ; "enjoyer" (Thomson). Brahma is a usufruct of material things by offerings, &c. S'ridhara explains the word by pdlaka (guardian). CHAP. XIII.] BHAGAVAD GITA. 143 {m) Sarvatrdvasthito dehe. " Ubicunque cum corpore con- gressus (spiritus) " (Lassen) ; " Present in every (kind of) body " (Thomson). Dr. Lorinser thinks the meaning is that the soul is in every part of the body, but the reference is to soul in the abstract, as everywhere enclosed in bodies. S'rid- hara says that the soul everywhere placed is not soiled ; it is not connected with the bodily faults of the modes (guna). The soul then has no guilt or pollution of sin upon it. ( 144 ) BEADIXa THE FOURTEENTH. The Holy One spoke. Now I will further declare that sublime science, the chief of the sciences, by which all the munis have passed from this world to the highest perfection {nirvana). Having devoted themselves to this science, and having entered into my nature, they are not born again even in a new creation, and in the dissolution (of the world) they are not disturbed ^ (a). The mighty Brahma is my womb ; therein I place the living germ,2 and from this comes the birth of all things that exist, son of Bharata ! 1 When a Jcalpa begins and ends ; see c. viii. They are born no more tinder any circumstances, 2 There is a diflSculty here. Brah- mS,, the One Universal Spirit, is said to be the fertilising womb in which all things are formed. Mr. Thom- son's explanation is that " as Brah- ma [Brahmii as Creator] is the mytho- logical personification of a Vedic or semi-mythological Supreme Being, so is BrahmS, here the philosophical type of the creative principle of the philosophical Supreme Being." But the only philosophy we have to con- sider here is the Hindu philosophy, and Brahma is not, in any Hindu sj'stem, the direct source of material forms. The true explanation seems to be that Krishna, as the repre- sentative of Vishnu or Brahma, is the material source of created things, as containing Prakriti or Nature, of which they are the development, and Brahma is the animating, vivi- fying power. Krishna then may be considered as the material, and Brah- mS, the efi&cient, cause of creation. Humboldt offers nearly the same explanation : " Krishna is the same as Brahma, is the highest Brahmi himself. But we must not reverse the proposition, and herein lies the difference. Brahma is the divine original power (w^ra/i), but reposing in his eternity ; as God, here Krishna, the divine personality {personlich- l-eit), comes forth" (Essay on the B. G,, p. 2i). As Brahma, Krishna gives the material germ {garbka) CHAP. XIV.] BHAGAVAD GItA. 145 In whatever wombs mortals are born, son of KuntI ! Brahma is their mighty womb, and I the seed-giving Sire. 5 " Goodness," " Passion," and " Darkness ; " thus are named the modes ^ {gitnas) which spring from ISTature (Prakriti), and bind down the eternal, embodied (soul) in the body,2 large-armed one ! Of these, '' goodness," being lustrous and pure from its unsullied nature, binds (the soul), sinless one ! by the attachment (bond) of happiness and of knowledge. Know that " passion," having the nature of desire, and '^ being the source of attachment and craving, binds the embodied (soul), son of Kunti ! by the attachment of work. But know that " darkness," born of ignorance, whicli bewilders all embodied (souls), binds them, son of Bharata ! by stupidity, idleness, and sleep. which is vitalised by the spiritual BrahmS, the animating principle jlvdtman). (Cf. c. xv. 12-17.) In the Vishnu Purana the Brahma is spoken of as the material cause of all things, and is addressed by the goddess Earth as Vishnu [i.e., Krish- na]. In the Institutes of Manu it is stated that the Supreme Omni- present Intelligence is the sovereign Lord of all the gods ; that some ad- mire him as transcendently present in elementary fire, others as the most High Eternal Spirit. It is he who, pervading all things, . , . causes them, by the gradations of birth, growth, and dissolution, to revolve in this world like the wheels of a car" (xii. 122-124). Sridhara says that Brahma is Prakriti (Na- ture), "the womb of Me, the supreme Lord ; " but this, I think, is a mis- take. The following quotations are against this explanation : — " Before the mundane egg existed the holy Brahma, Hiranyagarbha, the bodily form [murttirupa) of Brahmii, who is the seat of the holy Vishnu " (Vishnu Purana, iv. i, 4). *'This knowledge of soul . . . was declared by Brahma, Hiranyagarbha, or by the Supreme Lord {'paramem-ara) through his agency" (Sankara's Com- mentary on the Chhand. Up. viii. 15, I ; Sans. T. iii. 285). 1 See Introd., p. 10, and Sankhya Karika, p. 36. ^ They bind it io bodily conditions in a new birth, preventing it from attaining nirvdiut. They do not " influence " the soul, as Mr. Thom- son translates the word. They bind or imprison it in a bodily form. 146 BHAGAVAD GITA. [chap. xiv. " Goodness " binds (the soul to matter) by pleasure ; " passion," son of Bharata ! by works ; but " darkness," having veiled knowledge, binds by stupid folly. 10 When one has subdued " passion " and " darkness," then "goodness" (alone) exists, son of Bharata! When " passion " and " goodness," then " darkness " exists ; and "passion" when "darkness" and "goodness" (are subdued). When in this body, at all its gates, the bright light of knowledge is produced, then one may know that " good- ness" is there matured. Avarice, activity, the undertaking of works, unrest, and desire, — these are produced, chief of Bharatas ! when " passion " is matured. Darkness, inertness, and also stupidity and bewilder- ment, — these are produced, son of Kuru ! when " dark- ness " is matured. If, moreover, a mortal goes to dissolution, when " good- ness" is matured (in him), then he goes to the spotless regiofis ^ of those who are supremely wise ih). 15 If he go to dissolution when " passion " prevails, he is born among those who are attached to works ; if he depart when " darkness " prevails, he is born in the wombs of the stupid.2 The fruit of a good action is said (to have the property of) "goodness," and to be unsullied; but the fruit of "pas- sion " is pain, and the fruit of " darkness " is ignorance. Knowledge is produced from " goodness," avarice from " passion ; " stupidity, delusion, and ignorance also, from " darkness." 1 The heaven of Indra or Brah- ^ ^g g, beast, a reptile, or even as ma, not to the Supreme Brahmd,. inorganic matter. CHAP. XIV.] BHAGA VAD GITA. 147 They who are established in " goodness " go on high ; they whose nature is of "passion" dwell in the middle place ; but the " dark," who abide in a state of vile quali- ties, go below. When the observer recognises no other agent than the modes (of Nature)/ and knows That which is above the modes, he comes to my being. 20 When the embodied (soul) has passed beyond the three modes,2 from which all bodies (c) have sprung, then, freed from birth, death, old age, and pain, it eats immortal food {amrita). Akjuna spolce. What marks are those, Lord! of the man who has passed beyond the three modes ? What is his manner of life, and how does he pass beyond these three modes ? The Holy One spohe. He who has no aversion, son of Pandu ! for bright- ness, activity, and even delusion,^ when they are present, nor desires them when they are absent ; Who, seated as a stranger,* is not moved by the modes, who stands apart and wavers not, saying, " The modes are now in action ; " To whom pleasure and pain are the same, who is self- possessed ; to whom a clod, a stone, and gold are the same ; who holds as equal things loved and unloved; who is steadfast ; to whom praise and blame are equal ; 1 See c. iii. 28. modes, which are described by their 2 Becoming separated, when the effects, soul attains to knowledge, from all * That is, the soul, which is not the modes or elemental forms of formed from the modes of Nature, Nature (Prakriti). and is superior to them, is a stranger ^ These are the names of the three in the world of action. 148 BHAGAVAD GITA. [chap. xiv. 2pr And equal, too, honour and dishonour; who regards friend and foe alike ; who renounces all enterprise, — he is called a "surmounter of the modes." And he who worships Me by an exclusive devotion in yoga, he having passed beyond the modes, is conformed to the nature of Brahma. For I am the seat {d) of Brahma, of the imperishable ambrosia, of eternal law, and of happiness complete. Thus the Bhagavad Gita, Beading the Fourteenth, whose title is, " Devotion by Separation from the Three Modes." PHILOLOGICAL NOTES. {a) Na vyathanti. "Non percelluntur " (Lassen); "La dissolution des choses ne les atteint pas " (Burnouf). Telang's version is, " They do not suffer pain," i.e., the pain of a repeti- tion of births. Vyath means to stagger, to reel, to be moved or disturbed. The doctrine of our author is, that they remain unchanged when the world is dissolved, being absorbed in Brahma. (6) Uitamaviddm. " Qui summum norunt " (Lassen) ; " who obtain the highest place " (Thomson) ; " les clairvoyants " (Burnouf). S'ankara explains the word as denoting those who have a knowledge of the subtler forms of matter, as huddhi (intellect). I have translated the word by " supremely wise," because the wise, if under the influence of the mode (element of Nature) called " goodness," may attain to a high heavenly seat ; but they who know Brahma as devotees receive nirvana, or absorption in him. S'ridhara says they go to the CHAP. XIV.] BHAGAVAD GITA. 149 worlds of Hiranyagarbha (Brahma the Creator), and other gods. (c) Dehasamudhhavdn. " E corpore genitis" (Lassen). Thom- son, more correctly, I think, translates it by " who co-originate with the body," or rather "with body;" both bodily forms and the modes or elements of Nature being from Prakriti (Nature or primal matter). S'ridhara's gloss is "producing bodies which are modifications of them." (d) Pratishthd. "Instar numinis" (Lassen); "representa- tive " (Thomson). I prefer Biirnouf s version, " La demeure de Dieu." Brahma dwelt in Krishna, was incarnated in him. In the Petersburg Dictionary it is interpreted as " standort,' "grund," " ort des Anhalts." Ananda's gloss is, " The highest in the outer form which adjoins his proper spiritual form." ( 150 ) EEADING THE FIFTEENTH. The Holy One sjpoke. Men say that the sacred fig-tree (aswattha), that has its roots above and its branches downward, is eternal: its leaves are metrical hymns : he who knows it knows the Vedas.^ Down and on liigh its branches are extended, enlarged by the modes (of Nature) : its buddings (a) are the objects of the senses; and downward its roots are drawn — the bonds of action ^ in the world of men. Here below its form cannot be known, nor its end, nor its beginning, nor its whole nature or constitution (6). When one has cut down this large-rooted Aswattha by the solid weapon of indifference, Then that seat may be sought for,^ from which they who have reached it never return : to that primeval Sire I refer, from whom the ancient emanation (c) (of the uni- verse) flowed. 5 The men who are free from pride and delusion, in whom the evil of attachment is conquered, who are devoted to the Supreme Spirit, who have abandoned desire, — these, ^ In this obscure episode there is is the Ficus religiosa, here used as a certainly an attack on the authority type of the Vedic system. of the Vedas. A passive state of ^ Binding men to subsequent indifference to all worldly interests births, as roots bind a ti-ee to the is superior to the observance of the soil. Vedic rites. The fig-tree [Aswattha) ^ The Supreme Brahma. CHAP. XV.] BHAGAVAD GITA, 151 freed from tlie pairs of opposites known as pleasure and pain, go, undeluded, to the eternal seat. That (seat) no sun enlightens, nor moon, nor fire ; they who reach it return no more : that is my supreme abode. An eternal portion of Me having become a separate existence id), (an individual soul) in the world of life draws to itself the five senses and the manas} which are seated in Nature {Prahriti). When the sovereign (spirit) obtains a body, and when he quits it, these he seizes and accompanies, as the wind (takes) odours (of flowers) from their bed. Presiding over the ear, the eye, over touch, taste, and smelling, and also over the manas, he connects himself with the objects of sense. 10 They whose minds are confused see him not when he departs or when he abides, nor when, connected with the modes, he enjoys : but they see who have the eyes of knowledge. Devout men {yogins) who are intent (thereon) see this (spirit) seated in themselves; but the senseless, whose minds are unformed, see it not, even though intent (on seeing it). Know that the splendour which is seated in the sun and illumines the whole universe, that which is in the moon and in fire, is from Me.^ Entering into the earth, I sustain all things by my vital force, and becoming a savoury juice,^ I nourish all herbs. ^ The soul which is bound to mat- 2 jTroin Prakriti, the Nature form ter in the linya (subtle body), and of Brahma, here represented by mediately to the gross body. The Krishna. See c. ix. 7, 8. linga goes with the soul in its migra- ^ goma, translated by Telang, who tions. (Sank. Kar. p. 76.) follows the Hindu commentators, 152 BHAGAVAD GITA. [chap. xv. I become fire (heat), an-d enter into the bodies of all that breathe, and (then) being united with the inward and outward breath, I digest (cook) the four kinds of food.i 1 5 [And I am seated in the hearts of all : from Me come memory, knowledge, and the power of reason. I am also » that which is to be known in all the Yedas. I form the Yedanta,^ and I am one who knows the Vedas.] In this world there are two existences, the Perishable and the Imperishable:^ the Perishable consists of all living things, the Imperishable is called " The Lord on high "(e). But there is another, the highest existence, called the Supreme Spirit, who, as the eternal Lord {Iswara), per- vades the three worlds and sustains them. Wherefore, since I surpass the Perishable, and am higher than even the Imperishable, I am celebrated among men (in the world) and in the Vedas as the Supreme Existence {Purushottama). He \^ho is not deluded and knows me as this Supreme " the watery moon ; " but this gives Uttara Mimansa, is of later date an unintelligible application to the than the Bhagavad Gita. passage. It is not the moon which '^ The first is Nature in her mani- is here referred to, but the sap which fold forms, the second is the vivify- is the life of all plants. Soma is the ing Brahma, the third is the Supreme sacred juice of the Asdepias acida. Spirit, the one Eternal God. (Of. 1 The four kinds are said by Hindu Manu i. 6-9,) "Then the self- commentators to be :( i ) what is bro- existing Power, himself unmani- ken by the teeth ; (2) what is drunk ; fested, . . . willed to produce various (3) what is licked by the tongue; beings from his own divine sub- and (4) what is sucked by the lips, stance, first with a thought created or eaten without being chewed. the waters, and placed in them a - The passage enclosed in brackets productive seed, which became an is certainly an interpolation. The e^g bright as gold, and in that egg Vedanta, or system of Vedic inter- he was born as Brahma." pretation, commonly limited to the CHAP. XV.] BHAGAVAD CItA. 153 Existence, he, knowing all, son of Bharata! worships Me with his whole nature.^ 20 Thus this most mysterious doctrine has been declared by me, sinless one ! By knowing this a man may become wise, and one, son of Bharata ! who has com- pleted every work (/). ^ Sridhara's gloss is, " in every way or mode " {pralcdra). Ananda's is, " by putting forth the whole soul." Thus the Bhagavad Gita, Eeading the Fifteenth, whose title is " Devotion m Attaining to the Highest Being." PHILOLOGICAL NOTES. {a) Prdbdlds. " Tendrils " (Thomson) ; " bourgeons " (Bur- nouf), more correctly. {h) Sampratishthd. " Constitutio " (Lassen). S'ridhara ex- plains it by sthiti^ place, or order. The reference seems to be to the complex ritual of the Vedic worship, which few, if any, knew completely. {c) Pravritti piudni, " Vortex ille antiquus " (Lassen) ; " from whom the eternal stream of life emanates" (Thomson). Pravritti is the Hindu scholastic term for the flowinsr forth of all existent things at the command of Brahma, as nivritti is for the return or absorption of all things in him. But it is not an eternal stream. This idea is not in accordance with any Hindu theory of creation. It is the ancient emanation, referring to a definite past time. {(I) Jivahhuta, '• Vitalis " (Lassen) ; " having assumed life " (Thomson). The soul, however, never assumes life : it always 154 BHACAVAD CirA. [chap. xv. existed in Brahma. It becomes a separate existence, an indi- vidualised soul, when invt sted with bodily forms, and thus made a part of the existent world. (e) Kutastlio. See p. ^i^^- In the Petersburg Dictionary this word is explained by "an der Spitze stehend," "die hochste Stelle einnehmend," and also by " ewig," " unverand- derlich." S'ridhara interprets it as " standing unchangeable or immovable like a mountain." (/) Kritakrityas. Mr. Thomson translates this compound by " he will do his duty," and K. T. Telang by " to his duty true." Lassen is nearer the real meaning : " omni negotio defunctus." The meaning is, that the devotee, having obtained fully spiritual knowledge, has risen beyond the need or the practice of any religious duty. Cf. Mahabharata (Vana-par- van, 12,485): kritakritydh punar varna yadi vrittam na vid- yate ; " The castes would then have completed their work, if no function or definite office exists." The commentator says that in this event all the three upper castes would become as S'tidras, who cannot take part in any rites of purification ; or, in other words, their proper work or function would cease (Sans/T. i. 138). ( 155 ) EEADING THE SIXTEENTH. The Holy One spoke. Fearlessness, purity of heart, continuance in the devo- tion of knowledge, almsgiving, self-restraint and sacrifice, solitary reading {a), penance, uprightness ; Innocence, truth, freedom from anger, renunciation, tranquillity, goodwill,^ compassion for all, absence of desire or emotion,2 gentleness, modesty, gravity ; Vigour, patience, firmness, chastity, absence of vindic- tiveness and of vanity, — these are the conditions, son of Bharata ! of a man who is born for a divine (h) lot.^ Deceit, pride, and self-conceit, wrath, rudeness, and ignorance, are the conditions of him, son of Pritha! who is born for the lot of the Asuras. The divine lot is deemed to be for deliverance (from matter *), that of the Asuras for bondage. Grieve not, son of Bharata ! thou wast born for a divine lot. ^ Apaisunam, not playing the spy, sometimes praise {lob, preis, Peters, from pisuna, a spy ; not prying into Diet.) the faults of others. It may be ^ This refers to the doctrine of translated " kindliness." metempsychosis, or the migration of ' Alolatwam, absence of desire, the soul to other bodies, so often according to Srldhara^ as of praise (?) alluded to in the Bhagavad Gita. (varna) or children. Sankara says The good go after death to one of that it means an unaffected state of the heavens of the gods, the bad to the senses when brought into con- the abode of Asuras (demons) or to tact with the objects of sense. Lola vile forms of life, means tremulous, emotional, desi- ■* Freedom from all connection rous, and alolatwam denotes a pas- with matter or material forms in sive, unruffled state of mind. Varna nirvana. An Asura lot is the re- generally means colour or caste, but verse. 156 BHAGAVAD GlTA. [chap. xvi. There are two kinds of creatures in this world — one / divine, the other that of the Asuras. The divine has been ^ described at large ; hear now from Me, son of Pritha ! the Asura kind. The men who are like Asuras know neither creation (c) {pravritti) nor its end (by return to Brahma) : no purity or good conduct or truth is found in them. " The universe," say they, " has in it neither truth, nor order, nor a ruler (d)} is not produced by a succession (of causes) {e), and is only designed for lusts." Fixed in this view, these ruined souls, small in intellect and cruel in deeds, prevail as foes for the ruin of the world. 10 Giving themselves up to insatiable lusts, full of deceit, vanity, and folly, they hold false notions through delu- sion, and in their lives are devoted to impurity. They cherish immoderate thoughts, ending in death (/), accounting the enjoyment of their lusts the chief (good), persuaded that " that is all." Bound by a hundred bands of hope, devoted to lust and wratlf, they strive to gain hoards of wealth by unjust means for the enjoyment of their liists. " This," say they, " I have gained to-day : that desire of my heart I shall obtain. This possession is now mine, and that also shall be mine hereafter. ^ Men who are atheists, or at least one source of knowledge, our sense- practically deny a divine origin or perceptions, and therefore refused to superintendence of the world, admit the truth or reality of any Atheists of a coarse, sensuous type person or thing that is not cognisable seem to be chiefly assailed ; for by the senses, are here denounced. Kapila certainly did not admit a The author of the Bhagavad Gita personal deity into his system, and strenuously maintains the existence yet he is spoken of in the Bhagavad of an Eternal Supreme Spirit, whom Gita with respect. Materialists like the senses cannot discern, the Charvakas, who admitted only CHAP. XVI.] BHAGAVAD GiTA. 157 " This foe lias been slain by me, and I shall slay the others also. I am a lord : I enjoy delights : I am success- ful,^ powerful, happy. 15 "I am rich, I am of noble birth: what other man is like to me? I will sacrifice and give largesse. I Avill be merry." Thus (they speak), deluded by ignor- ance. Tossed to and fro by many thoughts, enveloped in the meshes of delusion, devoted to the enjoyment of their lust, they fall down to the foul Naraka (hell). Self-conceited, stubborn, filled with the pride and the intoxication of wealth, they offer with hypocrisy {g) vain sacrifices (lit. name-sacrifices), which are not according to ancient rule. Devoted to egotism, violence, pride, lust, and wrath, these revilers are adverse to me in their own bodies and in (those of) others ; These men, haters (of Me), cruel, the vilest of mankind, these unholy men I cast down perpetually into the wombs of Asuras. 20 Having reached an Asura-womb, befooled from birth to birth, they never attain to Me, son of KuntI ! and thus they go down the lowest way. This threefold gate of hell — lust, wrath, and avarice — is the ruin of the soul ; wherefore let every man re- nounce these three. A man who has become free from these three gates of darkness (A), son of KuntI ! works out the salvation of his soul, and thus he goes to the highest way. [He who has abandoned the ordinances of sacred ^ By the possession of children, The word {siddha) means here, I cattle, &c., according to Ananda. think, "perfectly successful." \ 158 BHAGAVAD GITA. [chap. xvi. "books,^ and acts only as he lusts, attains not to perfection, happiness, or the highest way.^ Wherefore let the^ sacred books be thy rule in deter- mining what is to be done or left undone. When thou hast learned what is the work enjoined by the rules of holy books, so oughtest thou to act.] ^ Books of devotion or religious divine nature through constant me- teaching, of whatever kind. ditation. Blessedness is the heaven 2 By perfection is meant the of one of the gods, as Indra. The highest earthly state, which Kapila highest way or goal is nirvana. asserted to be a state of perfect Sridhara glosses them as " the know- knowledge, i.e., of the true nature ledge of truth, repose, and (final) of soul and matter ; and Patau jali, deliverance." These two distichs the founder of the Yoga system, to are, I think, doubtful, be a state of mystic union with the Thus the Bhagavad Gita, Eeading the Sixteenth, whose title is, "Devotion (Meditation) with Eegaed to the Separate State of Gods and Asueas." CHAP. XVI.] BHAGAVAD GITA. 159 PHILOLOGICAL NOTES. (a) Swadhyaya. "Pia meditatio" (Lassen); "study" (Thomson). It means reading to ones' self in a low tone the sacred books, especially the Vedas. (6) Sampadam daivim. " Qui divina sorte nascitur " (Las- sen) ; " N^ dans une condition divine" (Burnouf) ; "Born to heavenly endowments" (Telang). Sampad means state or condition, whether good or bad. A divine lot, according to Ananda, is " a fearless, true, and pure state." (c) Pravrlttim cha nivrittim. These words are often em- ployed to denote the development of created things and their ceasing to be on returning to Brahma at the end of a kalpa. Cf. c. xviii. 46, yatah pravrittw hhuldndm, "From whom is the creation (flowing forth) of things." Burnouf s translation is, " L'emanation et le retour." But S'ankara, S'ridhara, and all the translators except Burnouf, interpret the words as mean- ing "action" and "inaction." (tZ) Asatyam apradshtham, anUwaram. The Hindu scholiasts expla n the first term (untrue, unreal) to mean that there is nothing to be accepted as true, such as Vedas, Puranas, &c. " They deny the truth of the creation and preservation of the world as taught by the Vedas or the schools of philosophy" (Thomson). Perhaps we may rather say that they do not believe that the world is a real creation, but only a fortuitous concourse of atoms. Apratishtham. They deny that it is "really constituted" (Thomson). The Hindu scholiasts explain the word to mean that they affirm the non-existence of any fixed principle, based on virtue or vice, according to which the world is governed. This seems to be the true meaning. They deny that there is any moral government of the world, and there- fore that it has a Supreme Lord. i6o BHAGAVAD GITA. [chap. xvi. (e) Aparasparasmnhliutam. " Non ex certa causarum suc- cessione" (Lassen). Burnouf translates it, rather widely, "Que le monde est compose de ph^nomenes se poussant Tun I'autre." Lassen has shown that afparaspara means "Not proceeding from one to another by way of succession." They deny such a succession in the order of development or creation as the Sankhya or Yoga system tauglit. Ananda and S'rid- hara say that they assign the creation of the world to an union of male and female, meaning probably that the world was supposed to be formed purely from natural causes. (y) Chintdm pralaydntdm. Lassen translates the passage, "Leto omnia finire," and with him Burnouf and Thomson agree. Lorinser and Telang interpret it as meaning that their thoughts end with death. The words do not seem to express any speculative opinion of such persons on the exist- ence or non-existence of a future life, but that they think only of the present. They ignore everything beyond death, caring only for the enjoyments of the present world. S'rid- hara says, "that of which death is the end or limit." {g) Dambhena. Bamhlia means deceit, hypocrisy, and also pride* presumption. Telang's translation is "merely for show ; " " Ad simulationem sanctitatis " (Lassen). S'ridhara says, " without faith." (/t) Darkness is a name for Naraka or Patala, the infernal C i6i ) EEADING THE SEYENTEENTH.i Abjuna spohe. What is the state, Krishna ! of those who offer sacri- fice and are endowed with faith, but yet forsake the ordinances of sacred books? Is it one of "goodness," " passion," or " darkness " (the modes or elements of Nature) ? The Holy One spoke. The faith of embodied (natures) is of three kinds, and arises from the individual nature of each.^ It is " good," " passionate," or " dark " in kind. Hear now these (kinds). The faith of every one, son of Bharata ! is conformed to his real nature. That which is the (object of) faith for the man who believes, even such is he. "Good" men worship the Devas; men of "passion," the Yakshas and Eakshasas ; ^ others, men of " darkness," the hosts of Pretas and Bhtitas.* ^ In chap. xiv. the nature and action preceding life. Sankara's gloss, in of the three modes, which are the the next distich, is " endowed with constituent elements of Nature {Pra- a distinguishing formation or faculty kriti), have been described. Here {sanskdra). their action is shown upon the faith ^ j^^^j, ^n explanation of these of mankind and their religious and words — Yakshas and Rakshasas — other works. see p. 103. 2 It is according to the swahhdva, ^ Pretas and Bhutas are a foul or individual nature of the man, de- kind of demons, who haunt grave- termined, as the Hindu commenta- yards. Their worship is a low, de- tors assert, by the actions of the grading kind of fetichism. L i62 BHAQAVAD GITA. [chap. xvii. 5 The men who practise austerities of a severe kind not ordained by sacred books/ being wholly given up to dis- simulation and self-conceit ; full of lust, passion, and violence ; Torturing — the fools ! — the mass of elements seated in the body, and Me also who dwell within it ; ^ know that these have the resolves of Asuras. But the food which is pleasant to each (kind) is also threefold : so also are sacrifice, penance, and almsgiving. Hear now the distinctions of these. The foods which give an increase to life, substance, strength, health, well-being, and joy (a); which are savoury, fat, substantial, and cordial, are the foods which are pleasant to the " good." Foods that are strong in savour, sour, salted, overhot, pungent, harsh, and inflaming, which produce pain, grief, and disease, are the foods desired by men endowed with " passion." lo And that which is stale (h), which has lost savour, is stinking and corrupt, which is even refuse and filthy, is the food dear to men of " darkness." A sacrifice which is offered without desire for gain and ^ Mr. Thomson thinks the Vedas austerities practised by the lower are not alluded to here in the word class of devotees. klstras but only the Yoga-sutras, 2 cf. chap. xvi. 18. The individual attributed to Patanjali. The Vedas soul, proceeding from the Supreme were, however, not formally rejected Brahma, is spoken of as being that by the author of the Bhagavad Gita, Spirit himself, and here the poem though practically ignored by the has a Vedantist tinge. Both Kapila perfect devotee. We may assume that and Patanjali taught that each soul a wider range is given to the word is a separate entity, and perhaps our than Mr. Thomson suggests. ' It is author meant only to assert that interesting to observe that our author each soul is an emanation from could protest against the foolish Brahma. CHAP. XVII.] BHAGAVAD GirA. 163 according to rule, in saying, " Sacrifice must be done," with a resolved miud, is " good." But the sacrifice which is offered for the obtaining of reward and for ostentation, know, best of Bharatas ! that this is of the nature of " passion." The sacrifice which is offered against the rules,^ without giving of food, without holy hymns- and Brahman-fees,^ and devoid of faith, is declared to be " dark." Eeverence given to gods, Brahmans, spiritual guides, and the wise, with purity, uprightness, a Brahmacharin's vow,* and innocence, are called the penance of the body. Speech that causes no agitation,^ is truthful, pleasant, and good, with diligence in solitary readings, these are called the penance of speech. Serenity of heart, equanimity, silence, self-control, and purity of nature, these are called the penance of the heart {liifianai). This threefold penance, practised in perfect faith by devout men, who seek no gain therein, is declared to be "good." ^ Without the prescribed ceremo- some degree, dependent on these nial. (See Asiat. Res, vol. v. p. 345.) gifts and proportioned to them. It Here the same spirit of compromise is is said in Manu xi. 40 : " The organs manifest that we find in other parts of sense and action, reputation, a of the poem. The perfect Yogin is celestial abode, life, renown (after indeed above all outward acts of de- death), children, and cattle, are all votion (seep. 137) ; but such acts are destroyed by a sacrifice offered with allowable as a means of gaining the trifling gifts : let no man therefore higher state of the true devotee, or sacrifice without liberal donations." for those who cannot rise to a state ^ A young Brahman under tuition, of pure mental devotion {yoga). who has taken a vow of chastity. 2 The mantras are the Vedic ° Neither irritating nor indecent ; hymns. not causing any excitement of anger ^ The daksMnd, or fee given to the or lust. K. T. Telang translates officiating Brahmau. The efficacy udvega by " sorrow," but this mean- of the rite was supposed to be, in ing is too limited. [64 BHAGAVAD GIT A. [chap. XVII. The penance that is done in order to gain a good reception, honour, and reverence (c), and is done also in hypocrisy, is called " passion-born ; " it is unstable and transient. The penance that is done from a foolish purpose {d), for the torture of one's self or to cause the ruin of another,^ that is called " dark." 10 The gift of alms ^yhich is made in saying, " This must be given," to one who cannot return it, in a proper place and time and to a worthy object (e), is called " good." ^ But that which is given for the sake of return or on account of gain hereafter,^ or is given reluctantly, that is regarded as " passion-born." The gift which is given ungraciously or with disdain, at an improper place and time or to unworthy objects, is called " dark." \0M, Tat, Sat,^ thus has been handed down the three- ^ Severe austerities were supposed to give supernatural power, which a Yogin will use, or affect to use, against any who may offend him, Cf. Manu xi. 239 : " Whatever is hard to be surmounted or obtained, or reached or effected, is all to be accomplished through religious aus- terities {tapas), of which the power can hardly be surpassed." 2 The Hindu commentators ex- plain this passage in accordance witii their own religious tendencies. A proper place is a holy place such as Benares : a proper time is during an eclipse, or at the full moon, the eleventh day of the moon, or the morning (Lorinser). ^ That is, in the hope of heaven and the rest (Sridhara). He also explains pariMishtam (reluctantly), by " with trouble of mind." 4 0M. See chap. i. I. Tat {Tha.t) is used in the common religious phrase. Tat ticam asi, Thou art that, i.e., the whole universe, as it is usually ex- plained ; but more strictly it denotes the absolute existence of all things in him. Sridhara says it means Brahma and the other gods of reve- lation {h-uti). Sankara says that these words have been handed down in the Vedantas. Sjt is used by Manu to denote the Supreme Being. " He who is sat (' that which is,' Sir W. Jones), Cause, Unmani- fested, . . . produced the creative Power (Purusha = male), celebrated in the world as Brahma" (i. 2)._ This is the Vedantist use of the CHAP. XVII.] BHAGAVAD CITA. 165 fold designation of Bralima. By liiin Brahmans, the Vedas, and sacrifices were ordained of old. Wherefore OM is always uttered by those who know Brahma, when the acts of sacrifice, alms, and penance begin that are ordained by rule. 25 Tat is said when the various kinds of sacrifice, penance, and alms are done, without regard to gain, by those who desire (final) deliverance. &at is the word employed to denote truth and goodness. The word is also used, son of I^ritha ! in (the doing of) ia laudable act.^ Continuance (/) in sacrifice, penance, and alms is also called sat^ and an act, too, done in behalf of these things is called sat. Whatever sacrifice, penance, or alms is performed, and whatever act is done, without faith, that is called asat^ son of Pritha ! and is of no account in this life or after death.] ^ word, iinpl3'ing that he is the only ^ That is, " marriage {vivaha) and Being ; " that which is," to the ex- such like," say the Hindu commen- clusion of any other Being. The tators. philosophic meaning of sat is, the ^ ^^at, meaning here (i) unreal sum of existent things, represented and (2) bad. as effects, (See Sankhya Karika, ^ The distichs from distich 23 to p. 135.) the end seem to be doubtful. Thus the Bhag^avad Gita, Eeadinjz the Seventeentl whose title is " Devotion by the Threefold Kinds of Faith." i66 BHAGAVAD GiTA. [chap. xvii. PHILOLOGICAL NOTES. {a) Arogya-suhha-prili. " Sanitatem, voluptatem, hilarita- tem augentes" (Lassen); *'la sant^, le bien-etre et la joie" (Burnouf ) ; *' health, happiness, and relish " (Telang). S'rld- hara interprets suTcha as meaning peace of mind, and prlti as joy. A-rogya means freedom from disease ; sukha is well represented by the French hien-etre ; prlti (love, joy) denotes the pleasant sensations of a body well nourished and in per- fect health. (h) Ydtaydman, that has remained over the watches of a night. The night is divided into three watches of four hours each. In India, food so kept is often unwholesome. (c) Satkdramdnapujdrtham. " Honorem, dignitatem et re- verentiam sibi comparandi gratia" (Lassen). Satkdra means a gracious and hospitable reception. It is used in the Nala to denote hospitality. Mdnas implies respect or esteem, and 2mja outward deference or homage. Burnouf translates by "I'honneur, le respect et les hommages;" but the first word is not represented with sufficient accuracy. {d) ' Mudhagrdhena. " Ex inepto commento " (Lassen) ; " from an erroneous view (of the nature of mortification) " (Thomson); "nee d'une imagination egarde" (Burnouf). S'ridhara's explanation is " done without discrimination." Grdha is interpreted in the Petersburg Dictionary by unter- nehmen with reference to this passage. (e) Pdtre. Pdtra means a vessel or receptacle; here a proper receptacle or receiver. S'lldhara says that the locative case is here put for the dative, but unnecessarily, for a gift is placed in the hands of a recipient. He says also that a good gift is one given to a Brahman well practised in austerities and in the sacred books. Lassen has a different version : " Equidem dixerim, pdtre h.l. non de persona esse intelligen- CHAP. XVII.] BHAGAVAD GITA. 167 dum, sed interpretandum esse, data justa occasione ;" but this seems to be included in the former part of the passage, and 'putra (the Gr. 'zottis) cannot well be translated by " occasio." (/) Sthiti. "Certa consuetudo" (Lassen); " la perseverance" (Burnouf ). Mr. Thomson translates the word by " a quies- cent state of sacrifice," &c., and explains the passage as mean- ing the doing of such acts in the mind alone, offering up sacrifice mentally performed. This would be in accordance with our author's views ; but the word denotes " continu- ance," " constancy." S'ridhara's interpretation is " abiding (therein) by means of application or devotedness." S'ankara refers the word mt to things done on behalf of the Iswara or Lord (Brahma). ( i68 J EEADING THE EIGHTEENTH.^ Aejuna spoJce. I desire to know, large-armed one ! the true nature of abstention (sannydsa), Hrishlke^a! and of renuncia- tion (tydga), slayer of Ke^in ! The Holy One s2)oJce. The wise understand by "Abstention" the abandon- ment of all works connected with desire,^ and the discern- ing call the forsaking of the fruit of works " Eenunciation." Some wise men affirm that (all) work should be aban- doned as an evil,^ others that works of sacrifice, alms- giving, and penance are not to be given up. Hear now my decree about renunciation, best of Bharatas ! for it is set forth as of three kinds, valiant one! 5 Works of sacrifice, alms, and penance must not be given I In this chapter the author as- that a state of complete isolation of serts again some of the leading doc- the soul from matter is its perfect trines of the Yoga school. state. Sridhara decides that work ■^ See chap, iv, 19, 20. binds the soul (to matter) by inju- ^ The first opinion is referred by riousness, violence, and evil con- Mr. Thomson to Kapila and his dis- nected with it. The Mimansa school ciples, and the second to the followers made no such limitations to work as of the Mimansa (Vedantist) school ; the second doctrine teaches. The but Kapila has not left any record of dispute probably lay between differ- Buch an opinion : he only maintains ent sections of the Yoga school. CHAP. XVIII.] BHAGAVAD GITA. 169 up ; these must indeed be done. Sacrifice, alms, and pen- ance are the purifications of the wise. But even these works must be done in renouncinc' attachment and the fruit (of works) : this, son of Pritha ! is my supreme and fixed decree. Abstention from a work of obligation is not fitting ; the abandonment of this (kind of work) is from delusion, and is declared to be " dark." ^ He who abandons a work {a) through fear of bodily distress, saying, " It is painful," practises a renunciation that has the nature of " passion," and will receive no gain thereby. The renunciation of him who does a work of obligation, saying, " This must be done," Arjuna ! renouncing attach- ment and fruit, is deemed to be " good." 10 He who has no aversion for an unprosperous work (5) and for a prosperous work has no attachment,^ who is thought- ful and whose doubts are destroyed, is a "renouncer" endowed with " goodness." For it is not possible for an embodied person to abstain from work absolutely, but he who abandons the fruit of work is regarded as a *' renouncer." The fruit of work after death for those who do not renounce is of a threefold kind — desired, undesired, and mixed ; but there is none whatever for those who abandon it (the fruit of work). Learn from me, large-armed one ! these five condi- ^ Referring to the three modes "fruit" or reward, for this cannot {rjunas), which form all material procure nirvana, but only one of the things, including the heart (manas) heavens of the gods. Those who and the intellect {huddhi). seek no reward in action desire to '^ If free from attachment to the be absorbed for ever in Brahma, objects of sense and the desire of i I70 BHAGAVAD GIlA. [chap, xviii. tions, declared in the Sankhya^ (system) as necessary for the completion of every act. Seat (of action) the agent, the instrument in each sepa- rate kind; the various efforts in their several kinds, and also, as fifth, the divine part.^ I ^ The work which a man undertakes by his body, speech, and mind, whether just or the contrary, is caused by these five (conditions). This being so, he who regards himself as being solely the agent,3 through an unformed intellect, he, being dull in mind, sees not at all. The man whose nature is free from egotism, and whose intellect is not sullied (obscured), slays not and is not bound,* though he should slay (all) these peoples. Knowledge, that which is to be known, and the know- ing (soul) from the threefold impulse of action. The instrument, the act, the doer, these are the threefold com- plements of work. Knowledge, work, and agent are said to be of three kinds, distinguished by their different qualities ; hear now what they are according to the qualities.^ 1 Sankara strangely refers this tarydmin). He interprets adhish- word to the Vedanta-sastra, written thdna (place, domain) as the subject many centuries after the time of body or matter of an action — that Kapila. which can be acted upon. My copy - The fifth condition would be has adhinamsai-iram; read adhlnani- admitted only by the theistic branch sariram. of the Sankhya school. Kapila's ^ Because there are other condi- system does not recognise any divine tions of action beside himself. See interposition. The soul gains its c. iii. 27. final deliverance by its own powers. ■* His acts do not bind him to a Sankara refers this part to the favour future birth. He has risen beyond of the Adityas and the rest. Srid- the power of actions thus to bind hara refers the last cause to the him. assistance or favour {anugraha) of ^ The qualities or constituent ele- the gods, and to the action of the ments of Nature (Prakriti) in the internal controller or conscience {an- system of Kapila (Introd., p. 10). CHAP. XVIII.] BHAGAVAD GItA. 171 20 Know that the knowledge by which One Eternal Es- sence is seen in all creatures, undivided in the divided, is " good." Know that the knowledge is of "passion" which sees in all things, by reason of their separateness, (only) many existences severally divided. But that which attaches itself to each single object as if it were the whole, being without reason (c), devoid of truth and mean, that is called " dark." An action which is necessary, free from attachment, which is done without desire or aversion, and by one who desires no gain therein, is called " good." ^ But the action which is done by one who seeks to gain his desires, or from self-conceit, or is attended with great effort, is declared to be of " passion." 25 If one undertakes a work from delusion, without re- garding consequences, or loss or injury (to others), and also one's own power, that is called " dark." The agent who is free from attachment and egotism, who is endowed with constancy and energy, and is un- moved by good and evil fortune, is called " good." The agent who is impassioned, who seeks the fruit of works, who is greedy, injurious, and impure, who feels joy or sorrow, is said to be of "passion." The agent who is inattentive, vulgar {d), obstinate, deceitful, negligent, slothful, desponding, and dilatory, is called '•' dark." Hear now the threefold division of intellect (hiiddJii) and of constancy, conqueror of wealth ! declared fully and in their separate divisions, according to their qualities. 30 The intellect which knows action and inaction, what ^ See chap. iv. 20-22. 172 BHAGAVAD GITA, [char xviii. ought to be done and what ought not to be done, fear and fearlessness,^ and which knows deliverance and bondage, that, son of Pritha ! is " good." The intellect by which one understands right and wrong, what ought to be done and what ought not to be done but imperfectly (e), that, son of Pritha ! is of " passion." That which regards right as wrong, being enveloped in darkness, and sees all things in an inverted form, that intellect, son of Pritha I is " dark." The constancy by which one controls the actions of the heart, the breath, and the senses,^ with an unswerving devotion,^ that, son of Pritha I is " good." But the constancy by which one holds to duty,* desires, and wealth, through attachment, desiring fruit, that is of " passion," son of Pritha ! 3^ The stupid constancy by which one abandons not som- nolence, fear, sorrow, despondency, and folly, that, son of Pritha ! is " dark." Hear now from me, chief of Bharatas ! the threefold kinds 'of pleasure. That which causes gladness by usage and brings an end to pain ; Which is as poison in the beginning, but is like nectar in the end ; that is declared to be " good " pleasure, born from the serenity of one's own mind. That which is like nectar in the beojinninof from the 1 What ought to cause fear or not practice of pious meditation ; " Srid- to cause it. Bondage is being con- hara says by "an inner withholding fined in some form of matter, and from the objects of sense." deliverance is absorption into Brah- ■* Even religious acts [dharma], ma {nirvana). Sankara explains if done with any feeling of desire, pravritti (action) of objects that are do not lead to nirvana : they are attained by sacred books [sdstras). " bad," as leading to new material 2 See chap. iv. 29. conditions. See chap, xi v. 15. ^ Sankara says by " the constant CHAP. XVIII.] BHAGAVAD GITA. 173 connection of sense-objects with the senses, but is as poison in the end, is held to be of " passion." That pleasure which in the beginning and in the results is the bewilderment of the soul and springs from sleep, idleness, and stupidity, is called " dark." 40 There is nothing here in earth, nor yet among the gods in heaven, which is free from the three modes which are born of Nature {Prahriti)} The offices (works) of Brahmans, Kshatriyas, Vai^yas, and of Siidras, have been apportioned, slayer of foes ! from the modes that prevail in their separate natures. The office (work) of a Brahman, arising from his proper nature, is sedateness, self-restraint, religious austerities (tapas), purity, patience, rectitude, spiritual knowledge, learning, and (the rites of) faith (religion) (/). The office of a Kshatriya, born of his proper nature, is heroism, energy, firmness, skill, resolution in battle, liberality, and a ruler's bearing. The office of a Vai^ya, born of his proper nature, is agriculture, tending of cattle, and commerce. The essential office of a Siidra, born of his proper nature, is servitude. 45 The man who is content with his own work, whatever it may be, attains to perfection. Learn now how the man attains perfection who is cuntent with his own work. 2 In giving honour, by his proper work, to Him who is the source of all things that exist and by whom this whole (universe) was spread out, a man obtains perfection. Better is one's own work, though faulty, than another's 1 See Introduction, p. 10. ledge, i.e., spiritual knowledge, the 2 >S'a??sJc/d7i?',perfection,is explained knowledge of Brahma. See distich by Sankara and Sridhara as imply- 50 infra. ing aptitude for the state of know- 174 BHAGAVAD GITA. [chap, xviii. work well done. He who does the work imposed upoa him by his own nature incurs no sin. No one may abandon his natural work, even though evilji son of KuntI ! for every enterprise is surrounded by evil, as fire by smoke. He whose mind is unattached, self-subdued in every part, in whom desire is dead, attains to the supreme per- fection of freedom from all work by renunciation.^ 50 Learn from me in brief, O son of KuntI ! how one who has obtained perfection attains to Brahma, the supreme seat of knowledge. He who is devoted (Tjukta) by means of a purified mind, who has subdued himself by resolution, has renounced sound and other objects of sense, and has cast out desire and hatred ; ^ Who dwells in a lonely spot, eats but little, restrains ,' speech, body, and heart (manas), is constantly intent on ^ devotion by meditation, and has attained to freedom from passion ; Wht> is freed from self-conceit, violence, pride, lust, wrath, and all surroundings (g) ; who is without selfish- ness and is tranquil in mind, — he is formed to be one with Brahma. Being one with Brahma,* calm in spirit, he neither mourns nor desires ; being the same to all things, he attains to supreme devotion to Me. ^ In the conflict of duties, our pro- ^ See chap. iv. 26. per work, i.e., the work assigned to •* To be one with Brahma means us by caste, must be held as supreme, here to be united with him by a 2 By rest from work may be meant fixed concentration of the soul in work done without attachment, for devotion (see chap. vii. 29). It is such actions are not properly our to be *' entirely fixed in Brahma " own; they are wrought by the modes (Sridhara) ; "who has attained to of Nature {Prakriti). See chap. iv. 19. Brahma " (Sankara). r CHAP. XVIII.] BHAGAVAD GITA. 175 55 By (this) worsliip he knows Me truly ; what I am and liow great (I am) ; then, having known Me truly, he enters into Me immediately. Though he may do all works constantly, yet having found refuge in Me, he obtains, by my grace, the eternal, imperishable seat.^ Eenouncing all works in Me by meditation, devoted to Me, given up to the devotion of the mind (A), fix thy thoughts constantly on Me. Thinking on Me, thou wilt surmount, by my grace, every difficulty; but if, from self-conceit, thou wilt not listen, thou wilt utterly perish. If, taking refuge in self-conceit, thou shalt think, " I will not fight," thy resolution is vain ; nature will com- pel thee. 60 Bound by thine office,^ which springs from thy own nature, son of Kunti ! that which thou dost not wish to do through delusion, thou wilt do even against thy will. The Lord, who dwells in the hearts of all,^ Arjuna ! ever makes all things, as if mounted on a machine, re- volve by his illusive power. Seek refuge in him with all thy soul (i), son of Bharata ! (then) shalt thou obtain, by his grace, supreme repose, the eternal seat. Thus a doctrine, more mysterious than any (other) mystery, has been declared to thee by Me j having medi- tated thereon fully, do as thou wilt. ^ i.e., the Supreme Brahma. centre of all vital activity. In the ^ By his duty as a Kshatriya opinion of the Hindus it is especially (warrior), for which his nature had the habitation of the soul, and there- been formed. fore of Brahma, from whom it haa 3 The heart is supposed to be the emanated. 176 BHAGAVAD GITA. [chap, xviii. Hear now again my supreme words, most mysterious of all : Thou art greatly beloved by Me, therefore I will de- clare what is for thy good. 65 Devote thy heart to Me, worship Me, sacrifice to Me, bow down before Me ; so shalt thou come to Me. I pro- mise thee truly (for) thou art dear to Me. Forsaking all religious duties {j) {dharma), come to Me as the only refuge. I will release thee from all thy sins ; 1 grieve not. This (doctrine) is not to be declared to him who prac- tises not austere rites, or who never worships, or who wishes not to hear, nor to one who reviles Me.^ He who shall teach this supreme mystery to those who worship Me, he, offering to Me this highest (act of) wor- ship, shall doubtless come to Me. Nor is there any one among mankind who can do Me better service than he, nor shall any other on earth be more dear to Me than he. yo And by him who shall read this holy converse held by us I may be sought through this sacrifice of knowledge. This is my decree. ^ In the Sankhya system, as a strong rivalry has always existed, taught by Kapila, the deliverance of But they are not the only persons the soul can only be obtained by who would revile this doctrine, knowledge. In the system of Patau- There were many who cared little jali, the soul, by pious meditation, for either Vishnu or Siva, for they emancipates itself. This divine desired only such physical enjoy- agency in the deliverance of the ments as this world offers. See soul is a doctrine peculiar to the chap. xvi. 8. This (doctrine) de- Bhagavad Gita. notes the whole of the system un- - There is here probably a refer- folded in the Gita. ence, as Mr. Thomscm suggests, to By not practising austere rites is, the Saivyas, who worship Siva as according to Sridhara, to be " with- the Supreme Being ; for between out the practice of religious duties " them and the Vaishnavas, or wor- [dlmrma). shippers of Vishnu, as the Supreme, CHAP. XVIII.] BHAGAVAD GItA. 177 And the man who may hear it in faith, without reviling, shall attain, when freed (from the body), to the happy regions of the just. Has this been heard, son of Pritha 1 with thy mind fixed on one (object) ? Has thy trouble of mind, born of ignorance, been destroyed, subduer of wealth ? Aejuna s^olze. My trouble is destroyed. By thy favour, sinless one ! the holy doctrine has been received by me (Q. I am now firm (in resolve) ; my doubt has gone, and I will act according to thy word. Sanjaya s'po'ke. Thus I heard this wonderful converse of Yasudeva and- the high-minded son of Pritha, and my hair stood up on end. 75 By the favour of Yyasa I heard this supreme mystery, (this doctrine of) yoga, tgiught by Krishna himself, the Lord of yoga, in person. Eemembering, king ! again and again this wonderful holy converse of Ke^ava (Krishna) and Arjuna, I rejoice without ceasing. And remembering again and again that most wonderful form of Hari, my astonishment is great and I rejoice ever- more. Wherever are Krishna, the Lord of yoga, and the archer son of Pritha, there prosperity, victory, and greatness ^ are certain. Thus I judge. ^ The first is interpreted by Srid- sion {ahhivriddhi) or greatness. San- hara as a royal prosperity, and the kara's gloss agrees with this, last {bhuti) as an increasing expan- Thus the Bhagavad GiLa, Eeading the Eighteenth, whose title is " Devotion ix Deliverance and Kenunciation." M 178 BHAGAVAD GITA. [chap, xviii. PHILOLOGICAL NOTES. (a) Yat harma . . . tyajet. The construction is somewhat difficult, but not, as Mr. Thomson calls it, " ungrammatical." Lassen says, ''Lenior foret orationis structura si scriptum esset, ya karma, sed habet lectio recepta quo se tueatur. Verbo in modo potestativo posito subintelligitur turn conjunc- tio conditionalis, tum pronomen indefinitum ; si quis omittat opus quidpiam . . . is," &c. There seems to be only an in- definite pronoun to be supplied, and we may translate the passage, " Whatever work (one) may renounce." (5) Akusalam karma. Lassen translates the words by " minus prosperum opus." S'ridhara explains Tcusala to mean pleasant or causing pleasure, as a bath at mid-day in summer, and such-like things. Telang follows this explanation. In the Peters. Diet, the word is translated by " Sich in gutem Gustande, in der gehorigen ordnung befindend." Lassen's translation seems to be the true one. (c) Ahaitiikam. ''Does not recognise the true cause (of existence), i.e., final emancipation from matter" (Thomson); " qui principiis caret" (Lassen). S'ridhara's comment is "not acknowledging creation, not devoted to truth, and not resting in the Supreme." Hetu means cause, and also reason, judg- ment. The meaning seems to be, as Lassen interprets the passage, that their knowledge or science is not based on reason, or any sound principle of judgment. " Science sans principes " (Burnouf). {<£) Frakrita. " Vilis " (Lassen) ; " without discrimination, Le., adopting a common mode of action, not varying with the nature of the thing to be done" (Thomson); "who has no application" (Telang). The word means common, in the sense of vulgar, and thus Prakrit is the name of a dialectic or vulvar form of Sanskrit. (e) Ayathdvat. Lassen interprets the word by " incongrue ;" Brunouf by " confusement ; " Thomson, "by which one takes CHAP. XVIII.] BHAGAVAD GITA. 179 a wrong view." Dr. Lorinser translates it by "nicht wie's geziemend ist," and this, I think, is the true meaning. Yathdvat corresponds to the French "comme il faiit." (/) Atwahuddhiprasddajam. " E mentis ipsius serenitate nata" (Lassen, whom Thomson follows); "It flows from knowledge of the soul free from obscurity " (Telang), and this is the interpretation commonly given by Hindu commentators. {g) Astikyam. "Fides in rebus divinis " (Lassen) ; " belief in another world" (Thomson) ; "la connaissance des choses divines " (Burnouf). The word asti - Gr. ian, and the deri- vative implies that something essentially or eternally exists, referring, according to Hindu commentators, to Brahma and a future world. The negative nastika is found in Manu (ii. 11), where it is said that if one shall despise revelation (sruti) and tradition (smriti), he must be cast out by the virtuous as a sceptic {iiastika). Sir W. Jones translates the word " atheist." Lassen's version seems to be most correct, but S'ridhara confines the expression to belief in another world. The belief, how- ever, in another world would imply also other beliefs. (A) Parigraha. Lassen translates this word by "fastus," Thomson by "avarice," Burnouf by "cortege." Telang has *'all belongings." The word means whatever a man may gather round him, as attendants or possessions. The recluse must put away what is external to himself, that his soul may be devoted exclusively to pious meditation. {%) Buddhiyogam upasritya. "Mentis devotione fretus" (Lassen) ; "Practise devotion with the faculty of fixed resolu- tion" (Telang) j here, as elsewhere, translating huddhi by "resolve." This, I think, is a mistake, huddhi means intellect, intelligence, and also purpose, intention (absicht, vorsatz, Peters. Diet.), but not resolve in the sense of resoluteness. Moreover, the compound form will hardly bear this inter- pretation. The Hindu commentators, however, support it. S'ridhara speaks of the application of the intellect, but 1 8o BHA GA VA D GIT A. [chap, xvi i i. he adds, " In the practice of work there must be an offering to Brahma." (j) Sarvdbhdvena. The Hindu commentators explain this word to mean with all thy soul or self {atman having both meanings). Madhusudhana says, with the same impression, "by heart and voice and deed." Lassen's version is *' omni reverentia;" Thomson's, " in every state of life," which is inad- missible. Burnouf has, I think correctly, *' de toute ton ame." (k) Sarvadharman parityajya. " Cunctis religionibus dimissis" (Lassen). Telang has "forsaking all thy duties," i.e.^ religious duties or offices chiefly. Here our author is in direct opposition to the Vedantist system. The perfect Yogin abandons all external or bodily acts of worship for a pure worship of devout meditation. Burnouf and Lorinser add '* other "to "duties," as if the injunction was for a Vishnu cult alone; but there is no good ground for this addition. S'ridhara says, " All these duties will be done in the worship {hhakti) of Me." (J) Smritir lahdha. There is a wide difference in the trans- lation of these words. The Hindu commentators explain them as meaning that he had regained his proper form, or, as we say, he had recovered himself. Telang translates them by " I recollect myself." Smriti means (i) memory, and (2) the system of doctrines received by tradition, as that which was handed down by memory from pious sages, in contrast with that which had been heard from the gods {sruti, revelation). Lassen's version is *'recordatio est accepta a me." But I question whether smriti ever means self-possession, and Arjuna had not recovered his memory^ for he had forgotten nothing. The meaning seems to be that he had received the holy doctrine which is expounded in the preceding chapters, and, accepting it, he was ready to do as Krishna desired, i.e., to fight. Burnouf's version is " J'ai re9u la sainte tradition, and this interpretation Lorinser and Galanos accept. APPENDIX. I. On the Date at which the Bhagavad Gita was probably Written, and on the Theory that it was Written UNDER AN Influence derived from a Knowledge of Christian Doctrines. In a German translation of the poem by Dr. Lorinser, pub- lished at Breslau in 1869, it is maintained that the author of the Bhagavad Gita must have been acquainted with the doc- trines of the Christian faith, and that an influence was super- imposed on his Brahmanic training from this source. The evidence brought forward in support of this theory is chiefly an assumed or real resemblance of some passages in the poem to corresponding passages in the Christian sacred books. On the other hand, K. T. Telang, a Hindu advocate of Bombay, has prefixed a long dissertation on this subject to an English translation of the work, in which he controverts Dr. Lorinser's theory, and claims an antiquity for the Bhagavad Gita ex- tending so far back as the fourth century B.C., or even to an earlier date. If this could be proved, then Dr. Lorinser's theory is at once destroyed. Each of these writers has ap- proached the subject under the influence of an evident bias, and each is disposed to attach more weight to his arguments or illustrations than they are able to bear. It must be admitted, I think, that Dr. Lorinser finds re- 'i82 APPENDIX. semblances in passages that have little in common, or may be explained as representing thoughts or expressions that may be found in any cultured race; but K. T. Telang gains nothing in support of his theory by assuming that the Bhagnri Tika, alluded to in Patanjali's Mahabhashya, was very probably a commentary on a work of Brihaspati, who is assumed to be the founder of the Lokayatika sect, probably referred to in chap, xvi., and that Patanjali's date may be taken to be prior to the beginning of the first century B.C. He admits that the argument is based, " in very great measure, not on ascertained facts, but on mere presumptions." From the absence of historical data in Hindu literature generally, we cannot determine with certainty when Brihaspati or Patanjali lived. Of the age of the former we have, I believe, no certain knowledge ; for the latter, we can determine the limits, with liigh probability, within which his date may be fixed. Ram Krishna Bhandarkar says that " he probably wrote the third chapter of his Bhashya (Commentary on Panini's Grammar) between 144 and 142 B.C." Professor Weber, however, assigns 25 A.C. as his probable date. It may be assumed, then, fliat he flourished some time between these dates; and when it is considered that the Yoga system attributed to him had been existent long enough to fall into a corrupt state on the part of some of its disciples,^ and to become the basis of the new eclectic system maintained in the Bhagavad Git a, it is evident that the latter work must have been composed at a much later time, probably some centuries later, than the date of Patanjali. We may compare this modification of the Yosra doctrines with the Neo-Platonism of the Alexandrian school, which arose fully four centuries after the great master 1 It is even said in the Bhagavad length of time." It was probably Gita (iv. 2) that the Yoga system revived in its proper form by the (tlie meditative devotional system of author of this book, Patanjali) had been "lost through APPENDIX, 183 had charmed the Athenians by bis eloquent discourse. It wouhi not be safe to assume that the course of thought was more rapid among .the Hindus fifteen . hu-ndred years ago than among the more lively and enterprising Greeks. This adaptation of the Yoga doctrines into a new system is a valid argument in favour of the opinion of Professors Weber and Lassen, that the Bhagavad Gita was not written before the third century A.C. K. T. Telang is not more successful in arguing that' it was written before the time of Buddha because no mention is made in it of Buddha or his doctrines. Its purpose is to establish a school of philosophic religion, and for this end it modifies the teaching of the Sankyha and Yoga systems, forming, with an infusion of a Yedantist element, a new system, in which Buddhism could find no place. Nor was it necessarily so opposed to the doctrines of Buddha that an attack on the latter would seem unavoidable. It does, how- ever, attack and denounce a certain class of men who reviled every form of religion — the Pyrrhonists of India, who denied the existence of any certain truth, and devoted themselves exclusively to the enjoyments of the present life. These men may not then have formed a distinct school, with teachers and an organisation such as we find at a later period, bearing the name of Lokayatikas^ or Worldlings, but they were numerous enough to attract attention and rebuke. It is certain that there was some free-thinking in India about the Vedas at an early period ; but a school of free-thinkers, openly avowing such atheistic and materialist doctrines as those of Brihaspati and the denounced class in the Bhagavad Ghlta, does not appear until a comparatively late date. This class is described in the Yishnu Purana, but this work is cer- tainly later than the sixth century A.C. : — "In a very short ^ From Sans, lolca, the present world, because they denied or ignored any other. 1 84 APPENDIX, time these Asuras (demoniac men, as in the Bhagavad Glta), deluded by the deceiver, abandoned the entire system founded on the ordinances of the triple Veda. Some reviled the Vedas, others the gods, others the ceremonial of sacrifice, and others the Brahmans. This (they said) is a doctrine that will not bear discussion. (To say that) oblations of butter con- sumed in the fire produce any future reward is the assertion of a child" (iii. i8). It will seem strange to an impartial reader of the Bhagavad Glta that K. T. Telang can say " that the way in which the Vedas are spoken of in more than one passage of the Glta shows that the composition of the work must be referred to a time when no attack had as yet been made on their autho- rity " (p. vi.), or that it is " the work of one who was himself thoroughly orthodox" {id.) The Vedas are not absolutely rejected by the author of the Gita. They may have many uses for a prudent Brahman (chap. ii. 46), but the perfect Yogin or devotee rises above all ritual worship by the prac- tice of constant meditation (iv. 37). Works, i.e.^ religious acts, may have some use as a means to attain to yoga, but when at4;ained, the soul needs only repose (c. vi. 3). The Vedas are even sneered at as *' flowery speech," which the ignorant, who are charmed by them, were wont to repeat, thinking in their ignorance that there is nothing but this (ii. 42). They are compared to the sacred fig-tree, " whose leaves are sacred (Vedic) hymns : he who knows it knows the Veda." This fig-tree must be cut down by the strong axe of indifference, i.e., by the soul becoming indifferent to all outward things by inward devotion (xv. i, 3). Devotion {yoga) is the true lustral water : he who is perfect in devotion finds spiritual knowledge in himself, and having obtained it, he enters into supreme repose (in nirvana) without delay. The Yogin (devotee) o'erpasses the holy reward promised in the Vedas in sacrifices, in austerities, and in almsgiving, and attains the APPENDIX. 185 highest primeval seat (Brahma) (c. viii. 28). If this is the language of one who is thoroughly orthodox, then Western scholars must give up the ideas they have formerly held about Hindu orthodoxy. It seems that a man may be a true Yedan- tist though he mocks the Yedas and would set them aside, or at least make them inferior to his own system in the obtaining of final deliverance. It might be said with equal truth that a man was an orthodox Christian who admitted that the Bible contained some good moral precepts, but who sneered at it as a whole, and wished it to be set aside for a system of pure thought, such as that of Mons. Comte or Herbert Spencer. S'ankara, who is held to be a high authority on Hindu ortho- doxy, differs in opinion from K. T. Telang. In his commen- tary on the Brahma-sutras (ii. i. i), he speaks of the systems of Kapila and others. He lays down as a certain principle that the authority of the Yedas is supreme, and that therefore *'it forms no objection to a doctrine that it sets aside a Smriti (a traditional doctrine) on a point which is contrary to the Yeda " (Muir, S. T. iii. 185-190). The author of the Bhagavad Gita and S'ankara are here opposed to each other, for the former did not admit such an authority as vested in the Yedas, and he set his own system far above the Yedic ritual in gain- ing for its devotee the final blessing of nirvana. If this writer has failed — and I think he has failed entirely — in his attempt to establish so early a date as the fourth cen- tury B.C. for the Bhagavad Gita, he has been more successful in meeting the argument which Dr. Lorinser has advanced in support of liis theory. The theory may be true, but the evidence which has been brought forward in its support is not sufficient. His argument is, that an examination of parallel passages in the Bhagavad Gita and the New Testa- ment shows that the former was written by one who had a knowledge ofChristian doctrines, and must have been written therefore some considerable time after the bea;innin;:: of the iS6 APPENDIX. Christian era. Dr. Lorinser has arranged the passages whicli he quotes in three divisions : (i) Those which vary in expres- sion but agree in meaning; (2) Those in which a characteristic expression of the New Testament is found but with a different sense; (3) Those in which expression and meaning agree. It must be admitted that the passages compared in parts (i) and (2) do not establish Dr. Lorinser's proposition. There is no necessary, or even probable, borrowing from St. Paul's words, *'The fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is ; ... if any man's be burned, he shall suffer loss " (i Cor. iii. 13, 15), in the words of Krishna, "As a fire, when kindled, burns fuel into ashes, so the fire of knowledge burns work into ashes." The expressions are such as would naturally arise from the conditions of thought and purpose in the several writers without any contact of one with the other. In the third class there are some passages which seem to favour Dr. Lorinser's theory, but the similarity is not such as to compel an absolute assent to the inference of a Christian origin for the Hindu ideas. They are mainly these : — . Bhagavad Gltd. New Testament. I am exceedingly dear to the He that loveth me shall be loved wise man ; lie also is dear to me of my Father, and I will love him (vii. 17). (John xiv. 21). I am the way, supporter, lord, I am the way, the truth, and the witness, abode, refuge, friend (ix. life (John xiv. 6). I am the first 18). and the last (Rev. i. 17). I never depart from him (the He dwelleth in me and I in him true Yogin), he never departs (John vi. 57). from me (vi. 30), They who worship me with true I in them and thou in me, that devotion {hhaktyd) are in me and they may be made perfect ill one I in them (vi. 29). (John xvii. 23). Be assured that he who wor- He that beheveth in me shall ships me perishes not (ix. 31). never perish, but shall have eter- nal life (John iii. 5). I am the beginning and the I am Alpha and Omega, the middle and the end of existent beginning and the ending (Rev. tilings (x. 20). i. 8). APPENDIX. iSy Jjha:/avad Gltd. New Testament. I Avill deliver thee from all sin : Son, be of good cheer ; thy sins do not grieve (xviii. 66). be forgiven thee (Matt. ix. 2). He who knows me as unborn This is the life eternal, that and without beginning, the mighty they might know thee, the only Lord of the world, he among mor- true God, and Jesus Christ, whom tals is undelnded, he is delivered thou hast sent (John xvii. 3). from all sins (x, 3). What sacrifice, almsgiving, or Whatsoever is not of faith is ansterity is done without faith is sin (Rom. xiv. 23). evil {asat) (xvii. 28). That man obtains the perfect Whatsoever therefore ye eat or state who honours by his proper drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all work him from whom all things to the glory of God (i Cor. x. 31). liave issued, and by whom this All was spread out (xviii. 46). These coincidences of thought and expression, though not decisive of the question, naturally draw attention to the sub- ject. They will be estimated differently by different minds, according to their knowledge of Hindu literature and the modes of thought and expression used by other writers on religious subjects, whether within or without the Christian pale. The author was a Brahman, and he retained a degree of respect, or rather of toleration, for the Yedic doctrines and ritual, but he subordinates them entirely to the duty and happiness of pious meditation. They were of no efficacy to the perfect Yogin. In man's highest state, even in this world, they are left behind as inferior things. It is not necessary to discuss the question whether there was a translation of the New Testament into the native lancjuaire or lansruacres of India before the third century A.C. Assuming, for the present, that the Christian doctrine was preached there and Christian com- munities formed before that time, some knowledge of both would spread among, at least, the cultured classes, and insen- sibly mould the existing form of Hindii thought. This has been the result in our own time. Many Hindiis, especially of the educated class, have heard of the Christian faith; and 188 APPENDIX, though some have never read the New Testament or any- Christian book, yet the knowledge of Christianity which has been obtained from other sources has permeated the whole of this class, and has affected the whole atmosphere of Hindu thought on religious subjects. It may be certainly affirmed that if any one, after reading the Puranas or other popular religious books of the Hindus, should then turn for the first time to the study of the Bhagavad Gita, he must be conscious of having come to a new country where nearly everything is changed. The thoughts, the sentiments, and the methods of expression have another stamp. He feels that he has come to a higher region, where the air is much more pure and invi- gorating, and where the prospect has a wider range. He has come from a system which gives honour to gods who are stained by cruelty and lust to a spiritual system which recog- nises only one God, who, if not set forth in such terms as a Christian would utter, is yet a spiritual being, the source and maintainer of all life, and is to be worshipped with a purely spiritual worship. How did he rise to this higher state? Certainly not by the common Hindu teaching or practice, nor yet from the Yoga-sutras, for in the forms of thought or expression in which he seems to come near to the Christian system he has not drawn from this source. Dr. Muir, who is opposed to Dr. Lorinser's theory, remarks that we meet in the Rig- Veda with " a variety of expressions in which the worshipper's trust in, and regard for, the god Indra are indi- cated : his friendship and guidance are said to be sweet: he is spoken of as a father and the most fatherly of fathers, and as being both a father and a mother : he is the helper of the poor, and has a love for mortals." But Indra is not repre- sented as the only God or as a spiritual Essence. Earthly blessings, such as abundant harvests, children, or victory over foes, are sought for b}^ prayer and sacrifice ; but Indra him- self is not sought for as the chief good, nor do his worshippers APPENDIX, 189 approach him in a spiritual communion or fellowship. ^The natural course of all systems of idolatry has been to a lower state. In India the popular worship has descended even to the foul worship of Kali, the wife of the god S'iva, who is represented as *' having a black skin, a hideous countenance dripping with blood, encircled with snakes, hung round with skulls and human heads, and in all respects resembling a fury rather than a goddess." Thuggism or organised murder was the natural result of such a form of religion. But the author of the Bhagavad Gita rose above any form of the Hindu mythology of which we have any knowledge, and if this higher state was not due to some contact with a more spiritual system of belief, he must be regarded as on-e of those who by virtue of a higher nature have risen far above their contem- poraries in the conception of spiritual truths. We cannot at present attain to absolute certainty on this subject, but the weight of probability lies, I think, on the supposition that he was affected, though imperfectly and obscurely, by the influ- ence of a purer system than that which then prevailed in his native country. As this~ evidence is not decisive, we may turn again to the work itself to see if it contains other indications of the time when it was written. There are some indications of this kind, and these are : (i) The Krishna cult; (2) The similarity of its mythological forms with those of the Puranas ; and (3) The style or language of the poem. The evidence in favour of the late date of the Krishna cult, in its full development, has been accepted by all European scholars as decisive, though Mr. Thomson affirmed too much in saying that " Krishna cannot be said to belong to the Epic age, but almost exclusively to the Puranic." K. T. Telang very justly objects to the question being decided by mere authority, though it may be as high as that of Professors Weber or Las- sen. The opinions of Hindu scholars in questions of their own 190 APPENDIX. literature are worthy of a careful atteution, but they too need to be reminded that the question is one of fact. When we are told by K. T. Telang, as a proof of the early date of the Krishna cult, that Kalidasa speaks of '' Vishnu in the form of a cowherd" (i.e., Krishna), he is attempting to prove igno- turn jyer ignotius. We do not know at what time Kalidasa lived. He was one of the "nine gems" of the court of King Vikramaditya at UjjayinT. The late Professor Wilson sup- posed that this was the king of that name whose era begins in the year 57 B.C., but Dr. Bhau DajT has attempted to prove that the king referred to was Harsha Vikramaditya, who lived in the middle of the sixth century A.C. This, I think, is the more probable opinion, but it has not been fully proved. K. T. Telang would assign his period to "two or three centuries before the sixth century A.C." Even if this earlier date could be proved, the rejection of such a date for the Gita as the fourth century B.C. would follow at once; for it may be affirmed, from the mythological forms and the language of Kalidasa's finest work, the Sakuntala, that the time between this work and the Glia cannot have been great. It has been urged in favour of the early development of the Krishna worship that he appears as a god in other parts of the Mahabharata; but certainly not as the Supreme Being, for he offers worship to Mahadeva (S'iva) as the Supreme God. In the book called "Drona-parvan," Krishna and Arjuna recite a hymn in honour of Mahadeva as "the soul of all things, the creator of all, and the pervader of all." It is also said in the same book that " the righteous Vasudeva (Krishna), together with the son of Pritha (Arjuna), bowed his head to the ground, beholding him, the source of the worlds, . . . the Supreme Brahma." It is added that " Krishna reverenced him (Brahma) with voice, heart (manas), mind (buddhi), and action." ^ But 1 Muir iv. 185. The word is in worship, and (2) to praise, to cele- vaiande irom vand, {1) to how down brate. In another book of the APPENDIX. 191 his rank as a deity of any degree was not accepted by all. In the Sahha-parvan, S'isupala denies his right to such a claim, charging him as a transgressor of the sacred law {smriti), say- ing that he was inferior, for this and other reasons, to other chiefs present, and that he was not even a king, his father, Vasudeva, being still alive. ^ Blilshma then defends the claim of Krishna to this honour, but S'isupala evidently represents the judgment of some contemporaneous class on the subject. The Vaishnavas promoted his claim, but it was affirmed by many that he was only a man; for in the Bhishma-parvan it is said, *' Whoever says that he (Krishna) was a mere man is of dull intellect {manda-dldJi).'^ ^ If in some few passages he is represented as being the origin of all things, these are so contrary to the general tone of the poem on this subject, that, with Dr. Muir, we are compelled to assume that they are late interpolations.^ It is not until we come to the Puranas that he appears as the Supreme Deity beyond all doubt or cavil, and the earliest of these books, the Vayu Puiana, has, by general consent, no higher antiquity than the sixth century A.C. In the Bhagavata Purana, which is devoted to the honour of Bhagavat (Krishna), it is said : " When a man hears this (work), devotion to Krishna the Supreme Purusha (Spirit) is l^roduced, destroying grief, delusion, and fear." In the Bha- gavad Gita he is called the Supreme Brahma (param BraJima), and the Eishis name him Eternal Spirit {jourusham sdswatam) (x. 12). The devotion offered to Krishna is also denoted by the same word, hhaJcti, in both. This word is also found in Mahabharata (the Santi-parvan) the a late interpolation. In this great worship of Mahadeva is explained epic Krishna appears mainly as a as being offered only as an example deified hero. to others, and that really it was 1 Muir 206. offered to himself, Mahadeva being ^ ibid. 236. one of his manifestations (Muir iv. ^ Jbjd, 20S n. 185 n.) J but this must have been 192 APPENDIX. the Nalopakhyauam, or story of Nala, but the Krishna divi- sion of the Vaishnavas gave to it a deeper meaning. With them it denoted an implicit faith, with incessant devotion and love. The Chaitanyas, Avho -worship Krishna as the Paramat- man (Supreme Spirit),^ assign to it five degrees: {i) Santa, repose or quietism; (2) Ddsya, service; (3) Sdkya, personal regard or friendship ; (4) Batsalya, tender affection, as of a parent for children ; and (5) Madhurya, passionate attachment. In the Brahma Parana, also, Krishna is declared to be the Supreme Spirit {paramdtman), and to be the source of all things, as in the Gita. He gave origin to a female form, his sakti or energy, endowed with the three gunas (the elements of Prakriti or Nature), w^hich form the whole material crea- tion. In the Gita, Prakriti is the lower nature of the Supreme Being (Krishna), and this he sends forth in the creation of gods and men. Hence he is called both the father and mother of the world (ix. 17), and the origin of all things (xiv. 3).2 The same subject is discussed in the Patala section of the Padma Purana and the sixth part of the Vishnu Purana. In fact, it- is impossible to read the Bhagavad Gita and the Puranas without feeling that we are treading upon the same ground. The Krishna cult was probably developed in its highest form before the earliest of the Puranas was written, but it would be unreasonable to suppose that it had existed as a popular worship more than two or three centuries before it entered into the literature of the countr3\ We are also brought near to the Puranic age as the date of the Bhagavad Gita by the fact that all the mythological signs and attendants of the gods are found in it. They are referred to only as instances of the glory of the one Supreme Being, but they existed at the time as parts of the fully de- 1 Prof. Wilson's Rel. Sects of theHindus, p. 100. 2 Ibid. p. 76. APPENDIX. 193 veloped mythological system. The horse Uchchaih-sravas, the white horse of Indra, produced at the churning of the ocean, when gods and Daityas whirled the serpent Vasuki round the mountain Mandara in the sea of milk, and the amrita (the nectar of immortality) was won ; the Makara, the monster fish on which Varuna rides upon the ocean, and which Kama, the Hindu Cupid, bears on his banner ; Airavata, the elephant on which Indra rides, and which guards the eastern quarter of the sky ; Vainateya, the bird which carries the god Vishnu, formerly called Garuda, but named, accord- ing to the Puranas, from his mother, Yinata, a daughter of Daksha, — all are recorded and must have been well known among all classes. Varuna, who in the story of Nala is the god of the sea, is only the chief of aquatic animals in the Gita (X. 2^y The worship of Bhutas, too, was then common. These are malignant spirits which haunt churchyards and eat human flesh. They are described in the Vishnu Purana, and are said to have been created when Brahma was angry. In the Vayu Purana it is said that their mother was Krodha (Anger). The preference is given to the Sama-Veda over the others, not because it is the most important, but from its use by the priests in chanting at the sacrificial rites (x. 22). The pre- ference given to the Sama-Veda is not an absolute indication of time, but it shows that the chanting of hymns on the occa- sion of a sacrifice by Brahmans was fully established when the Gita was written. In Manu the Sama-Veda is said to have the pitris (ancestral manes) for its object, and therefore *' its sound is impure ; " but the commentator, Kulluka, states that the Sama-Veda was not really impure ; it only seems to be S0.2 The time when Kulluka lived is not known, but it 1 In the Atharva-Veda Varuna the forgiveness of sins is prayed for. is addressed as " Lord of all, both of (Muller's Sanskrit Lit., pp. 534, 541.) heaven and earth," and from him ^ Muir, S. T., iii. 26. N 194. APPENDIX. may be assumed to be some centuries after the beginning of the Christian era. The argument may be extended to the words used in the Gita. Kalpa, in the sense of a definite number of ages, is a Puranic word. It is not found in any of the Brahmanas. Manwantara, as Manu-period; Dwandwa, as a pair of oppo- sites ; Bhdshd, as a mark or sign (used in this sense in the Bhag. Parana) ; Yoga and Vihhuti, as denoting supernatural power ; and Maya, in the sense of an illusive external world, all belong to a late period. The question of date cannot be settled with absolute cer- tainty, but all the evidence we have points to a time not earlier than the third century A.C. If we may assume this as the proximate date of the Bha- gavad Gita, the question arises whether we have evidence of the Christian faith having been preached in India before that time. In answer to this question we may note : (i.) That the intercourse between India and the principal cities of Africa and Europe, even before the beginning of the Christian era, was very great; and (2.) That we have direct evidence of the pfeaching of the Christian faith there before the third century A.C. (i.) From the time of Alexander's conquest of the North of India there was a constant intercourse between Greeks and Hindus. Even in the time of Chandragupta gold coins were struck, according to Mr. Prinsep, which were undoubtedly in weight and design of Grecian origin. ^ At a later period, coins of Hindu kings have been found with Greek inscriptions on one side and Sanskrit on the other. It was quite possible, therefore, for Panini, who mentions the Yavananl (lipi) (the Greek writing), to be familiar at least with the Greek alphabet. 2 Such was the fame of Augustus, and so well known was * Max Miiller's Sanskrit Lit., p. 245 n. - Ibid. p. 520. APPENDIX, 195 tlie route to Europe, that he received at Samos an embassy from India, to which Horace seems to refer ^ with national pride. Florus states that the ambassadors brought as presents elephants, pearls, and precious stones. There was a second embassy from India sent to the Emperor Claudius, of which Pliny gives an account. He received from the ambassadors, who were four in number, the information about Ceylon which he has embodied in his *' Natural History." 2 Two other embassies from Hindu princes to Eome were sent before the third century A.C. — one to Trajan (107 A.C.) and another to Antoninus Pius. They continued as late as the time of Justinian (530 A.c.) But apart from this' occasional intercourse, a constant trade was carried on between Alexandria and Western India.^ There was also an overland trade through Palmyra. Ptolemy (138 A.C.) met some Hindus at Alexandria, and received in- formation of a large inland sea, which he calls Hippados, probably, as Wilford suggests, the Sans, ahdhi^ a general term for the sea.* This commerce seems to have been at its height in the reign of Commodus, for a vessel was found in the last century among the ruins of a Hindu temple near Vellore, containing gold denarii of the Emperors Trajan and Hadrian. Some had been perforated and worn as ornaments, according to the custom of Hindu women, but others had apparently been used in the ordinary course of commerce.^ ^ Bk. iv. 14; bk, i. 12. Kome itself were supplied with the " Nat. Hist., vi. 24. products of India." — "Life in Wes- 3 " We are assured on undisputed tern India" (Guthrie), from Tod's authority that the Romans remitted "Western India," p. 221. annually to India a sum equivalent ^ Asiat. Researches, iii. 53. tO;{^400,ooo to pay for their invest- ^ Asiat. Researches, ii. 332. In ments, and that in the i-eign of the 1S42 an earthen pot containing 522 Ptolemies 125 sail of Indian shipping Roman denarii was dug up at Vella- were at one time lying in the ports lar, near Koimbatur. They were of Mysus, Hormus, and Berenice, chiefly coins of Augustus and Tibe- the ports whence Egypt, Syria, and rius, with some of Caligula and 196 APPENDIX. There was ample knowledge at this time, probably through the channels of trade, of the religious systems of India. Clemens Alexandrinns (192-217 A.C.) mentions Brahmans and Buddhists. He describes the monastic life of the latter, and mentions some doctrines and usages of the former. ^ He obtained his information from some Hindus who resided in Alexandria, and Dion Cassius states that Hindus were often found there. At that time Philostratus and ^lian wrote about India, and Bardasanes, as we learn from the extracts preserved by Porphyry, published his "Indica," for which he obtained materials from one Dandaas or Sandamines, whom he met at Babylon in the reign of Elogabalus. He gives a full account of Brahmanic customs, and speaks of ascetics who forsook their wives and children to devote themselves to the study of divine things. ^ AYe have evidence of the fact that the traders to India brought back a knowledge of its religious systems in the history of Scythianus. He was a cotemporary of the Apostles, and was engaged as a merchant in the Indian trade. In the course of his traffic he often visited India, and made himself acquainted with Hindu philosophy. Having amassed a con- siderable fortune, he settled at length in Alexandria, and here, according to Epiphanius and Cyril, he wrote a book in four parts, which they affirm to be the source from which the Manichaean doctrines were derived. Whether this be true or not, it is evident that Hindu ideas were brought to Europe by some who traded with India. This name is sometimes Claudius, In 1856 sixty -three gold (probably about the end of the third coins of the early Roman emperors century A.C.) the river Ganges was were found near the boundary of the well known, and was frequented by Madura and Koimbatur districts. Western traders. He had not reached (Indian Antiquary, August 1876.) it himself, but many others had done ^ Strom I. XV. iil 7. Joum. As. so, Soc. xix. 277, oi)5' eTTt Vay^riv - Joum. Asiat. Soc. xix. 280. In ^pxcfiai, ola re iroWol. — 709 v. the time of Dionysius Periegetes APPENDIX. 197 given to Southern Arabia, but the Hindu philosophy could have been brought only from India proper.^ If a knowledge of Hindu systems was brought to Europe by traders, we might reasonably infer that Christian traders carried the doctrines of their faith to India. But we have positive evidence that a knowledge of Christianity existed there before the third century A.c, whether by tliis channel or other- wise. Syrian merchants laid the foundation from which the set- tlements of the St. Thome Christians arose, and it was probably from them that a request was made, as St. Jerome asserts,^ to Demetrius, Bishop of Alexandria, that he would send out a Christian teacher to India. He sent Pantaenus, who went forth, according to the same authority, to instruct the Brah- mans. It has been assumed that the St. Thom^ Christians were Nestorians who fled from Syria when this sect was per- secuted by Tlieodosius IT. ; but Nestorius was condemned by the Council of Epbesus (a.C. 431), and we learn from St. Jerome (born 340 A.c.) that St. Thomas, the apostle of India, was famous in his time.^ Maffei and Orosius state that when Don Alfonso Souza was the Viceroy of John III., King of Portugal, the St. Thome Christians brought before him some ancient brass tablets, containing a record of a grant of land made to their founder by the king who reigned there at that time, and an inscription preserved in St. Thomas's Church at Malipur which recorded the fact that he came to India during the reign of King Sagamo.* In a list of kings inserted in the "Journal of the London Asiatic Society," a king named Sangha appears, who reigned from 150 to 168 A.C.^ This 1 Jr. Asiat. Soc. xx. 269. Though ^ Epis. ad Marcellum. apparently of Scythian descent, he ^ Cave's Lives of the Apostles, p. was born in Palestine. He is said 187. He refers to Maff., Hist. In- to have been well acquainted with dica, lib. 2, p. 85, and to Osorius, De the Greek language and literature. Kebus Emman., lib. 3, p. 1 20. 2 De Scrip. Illust. c. 36, and ^ y^i^ jy p J22, New Series, Epis. 83. 198 APPENDTa. name seems to be a variation of Sagliana, which in the Pali, or common speech, would be pronounced Saghano. No other name appears in the list approaching this form. Unfortu- nately the fierce Portuguese bigot, Archbishop De Menezes, destroyed all the records of these Churches, and we must rely on the reports of Maffei and Orosius concerning these documents. In the third and fourth centuries A.c. the Christian com- munities in India were numerous. Mr. Priaulx observes that " of Eastern travellers in the fourth or fifth centuries many were priests, as we may surmise from the number of Christian Churches in India." ^ In the sixth century Cosmas Indi- copheustes wrote of India, and from him we learn that there was a Christian church even in Ceylon : there was a bishop's see at Calliena, and probably many others. He was accom- panied on one occasion by Thomas of Edessa, afterwards Metropolitan of Persia, and Patricius, a monk, whose journeys were on behalf of the Christian population. The cause of Christianity declined in India after the sixth century ; but in the third and fourth centuries the Christians in India seem to have"borne as large a proportion to the whole of the Hindu population as in the present century. We may reasonably assume that the New Testament was translated into their vernacular tongue, though probably not in any authorised version, and that therefore St. Chrysostom was justified in saying that " the Syrians, and the Egyptians, and the Indians, and the Persians, and the Ethiopians, and countless other nations, having the doctrines promulgated by him (St. John) translated into their own languages, have learned, though barbarians, to philosophise." ^ Professor Weber maintains that in another part of the Mahabharata (xii. 12, 776 ff.) there is a reference to Christian ^ Journ. Asiat. Soc. xx. 297. ^ Horn, on St. John's Gospel, i. c. i. APPENDIX. 199 doctrines and usages. The passage referred to is certainly coloured by the glow of an Oriental imagination, but it seems to have a groundwork of fact. It relates the voyage of three pilgrims, Ekata, Dvita, and Trita, to the Svetadwipa (White Country). Its inhabitants are said to be worshippers of the Divine Unity : " Go there, Munis ; there my true nature is revealed ; " and the narrative proceeds : " At the end of the time we beheld glistering men, white, appearing like the moon, adorned with all auspicious marks, with their palms ever joined in supplication, praying to the Supreme Being with their faces turned to the east : the prayer which is offered by these great-hearted men is called the mental prayer." They heard a loud sound of those " who were offer- ing an oblation to the god," but they did not see him. " We only heard a loud cry uttered, ' Thou art victorious, O lotus- eyed one. Hail to thee, Creator of the universe ! Hail to thee, the eldest son of the Supreme Soul ! ' Such was the sound heard by us, accompanied by teaching. In the mean- while a pure wind, laden with all perfumes, brouglit heavenly flowers and healino: druojs." The reference to the Son of God and the act of worshipping towards the east are significant. The writer of an article in the " Calcutta Review" (January 1876) says: " It is scarcely too daring a conjecture to suppose that the passage contains a description of the effect produced upon some Indian pilgrims by witnessing a Christian service. The burning of incense and the celebration of the Eucharist are sufficiently clearly indicated." Professor Weber also maintains that the Krishna legend, in its latest development, was affected by the knowledge of the facts recorded in the Gospels. He refers to the statements of the Vishnu Purana, that *' Nanda, the foster-father of Krishna, went with his pregnant wife, Yashoda, to Mathura to pay taxes at the time when Krishna was born \ " that he is represented as lying in the cow-stall, which corresponds to 200 APPENDIX, the manger, and that shepherds and shepherdesses stood around him. A fiery meteor also appeared at his birth,^ and Kansa, the king of the country, was informed by the prophet Narada that this child would kill him and overthrow his king- dom, and in consequence he ordered all the male children of the country to be put to death. Prof. Weber refers also to the wonderful deeds of the child, the healing virtue of the water in which he was washed, to the account given in the Jaimini Bharata of his raising to life the dead son of Duhsala, of the cure of Kubja and of her pouring a vessel of ointment over him, of the power of his look to take away sin, and other statements of the same kind as being of Christian origin. He also maintains that " the later exclusively monotheistic direc- tion of the Indian sects, who honour a personal god, pray for his grace, and believe in him, has been influenced by the acquaint- ance which the Indians had with the corresponding doctrines of Christianity." 2 The assumption that in all these respects the Christian writers borrowed from the Krishna legend and Hindu religious works does not need a reply. There is no ground whatever for such an assertion or supposition. The writers pf the Christian Gospels certainly knew nothing of Hindu myths or the Krishna legend. AVe cannot attain to perfect certainty on the questions which have been here discussed, but all the evidence we have is in favour of the following propositions : (i) That some Hindu writings were affected, after the second or third cen- tury A.C., by the Christian faith and ritual; (2) that the doc- trines of the Christian faith had been preached and Christian communities formed in India during those centuries; and (3) that the Bhagavad Gita cannot probably be referred to an earlier period than the third century A.C. From a long study of the work, I infer that its author lived at or near the time of Kalidasa, who is supposed by Professor Lassen to have ^ Asiat. Res. v. 276. ^ Calcutta Review, January 1876. APPENDIX. "^^ST^ - 20I lived about the middle of the third century after Christ. For- merly he was assigned to the first half of the century before Christ, but this opinion is not now generally maintained. We require more evidence on the subject than we have at present before the question can be finally answered. We must say with Professor Weber on this subject, as well as on our author's acquaintance with Christian doctrines, " the question is still suhjudice." 202 APPENDIX. II. The Traditionary Line of Descent of the Lunar Dynasty. Atri, one of the fishis (ancient sages).^ Soma (or Chandra), the Moon. I Budha + Ha or Ida, d. of Ikshvvaku.^ Pururavas (or Aila) + the nymph Urvasi.^ Ayus. Devajanl + Yayati + Sarmishtha. I Yadu (the eldest son).'* Vrishni. I Devarata. Puru, king of Pratishthana (the 1 youngest son). Dushyanta + Sakuntala.^ Bharata.^ Andaka. Hastin (built Hastinapura). , I I Sura. Kuru. Vasudeva, b. of KuntI (Pritha). Santanu + Satyavatl. \ I Balarama, Krishna, (contemporaries with the sons of Pandu). Chitrangada. Vichitra-virya, died s.p. Vyasa,^ Kripa, married the two an adopted son. widows of Vichitra. Ambika + Vyasa + Ambalika. I l_ I I Dhritarashtra + Gandhari. KuntI + Pandu + ■ _1 I I I I Madri. Duryodhana, Kama.^ Yudisthira. Arjuna.^ Bhima. Nakula. Sahadeva. and ninety-nine | other sons. Abhimanyu. Parikshit. Janamejaya. APPENDIX. 203 The line down to Saiitanu has many omissions. The full line is given in Professor Dowson's " Classical Dictionary of Hindu Mythology," s.v. Chandra-vansa. Bhishma was a son of Santanu by a former wife, the goddess Ganga, whence he is sometimes called Gangeya. Another name, Sdfanava, is from his father, S'antanu. ^ They are usually numbered as seven, and are represented by the seven stars of the Great Bear (Ursa Major). The hymns of the Vedas were revealed to them. - Sonof theManu Vaivasvat, who was the son of Vivaswat, the Sun. rounder of the Solar dynasty. "* A celestial nymph mentioned in the Rig- Veda. The loves of Pura- ravas and Urvasi are the subject of the Vikramorvasi, a drama by Kali- dasa. •* From Yadu, Krishna is called Yadava, as being a descendant. ^ The heroine of Kalidasa's drama of that name. ^ From him India is sometimes called Bharata-varsha, the kingdom of Bharata. ^ Vyasa was the son of SatyavatI, but not of Santanu. His father was the sage Parasara : he was therefore the half-brother of Vichitravirya. ^ Kama was the son of KuntI, also called Pritha, by Surya, the Sun, before her marriage with Pandu. ^ Arjuna visited Krishna at Dwa- raka, and there he married Subhadra, the sister of Kfishna. Abhimanyii was her son from this marriage. He was killed in the great contest of the rival princes, but the kingdom of Hastinapura descended to his son Parikshit. The city of Hastinapura was about fifty-seven miles N.E. of Delhi, on the banks of an old bed of the Ganges. It is now in ruins. 204 APPENDIX, III. Collation of Two MSS. in my Possession with the Bonn Edition of the Bhagavad Gita, and the Readings of OTHER Editions and MSS. The MS. marked a is a well- written copy, with gold borders on each page, and seventeen miniature paintings illustrating the work. It is dated Samvat, 1869 (a.d. 1812). The other MS., marked 6, is a small copy, 5 in. by 3, evidently intended for popular use. It is dated Samvat, 181 1 (A.D. 1754). Calc. B.G., Calcutta ed. of Bhagavad Gita; Calc. M., Calcutta ed. of Mahabharata ; P.C., Paris Codex; L.C., London do. Bonn Edition. c. i. d. 8. saumadattista- thaiva c. i. d. 37. sabandhavan c. iii. d, 12. apradaya c. iii. d. 23. varteya c. iii. d. 28. vartanta c. iii. d. 39. dushpurena c. iv. d. 23. muktasya c. V. d. 26. yatlnam c. V. d. 21. yaC sukham c. vi. d. 39. etam me c. vii. d. 23. chetasam c. vii d. 29. jaramarana c. viii. d. 8. chetasananya- glmina. P. Codd. (Las- sen) c. viii. d. 10 c. ix. d. 7. mamakim c. ix. d. 10. mayadhyak- shena c. ix. d. 21. evam trayid- harmam c. ix. d. 33. bhakta (P. Codd. B.C. 5 L. Codd.) MSS. a and h. saumadattastathaiva, a saumadattistathaiva, h swabandhavan, a and h a and h, id. varteyam, a and 6 a and J, id. dushpurena, a du(h)purena, 6 a and 6, id. a and h, id. a and h, id. etanme, a and 6 medhasain, a and 6 a and h, id. chetasananyagamina, a chetasananyagamina, h a and h have the same syllable in excess that is found in other MSS. mamikam, a and b a and 6, id. a and h, id. a and &, id. Other Readings. saumadattirjayadrathah, Calc. M. swabandhavan, Calc. B.G. and 5 L. codices na pradaya, Calc. B.G. varteyam, Ca!j. B.G., Calc. M., L. MSS. vartante, Codd. (Lassen) du(h)purena, Calc. B.G. yuktasya (Thomson, as an emendation), yatinam, Calc. B.G. ya(h)sukham (Thomson) etanme, Calc. B.G., Calc. M. medhasam, Calc. M. and scholiasts, janmamarana (Thomson) chetasananyagamina, Calc. M., 4 L. Codd. mamikam, P. Codd. B.D., 5 L. Codd., Calc. M. mayadhyakshyena, Calc. BG. evam hi traidharmyam, Madhusudana bhaktya, Calc. B.G., P. Codd. D., Berlin MS. APPENDIX, 205 Boftm, Edition. c. X. d. 41. urjitam ex. d. 42. jnanena c. xi. d. 2. bhavavyayan c. xi. d. 7. ihaikastham jagat c. xi. d. 8. sakshyase c. xi. d. II. diptam c. xi. d. 12. bhah c. xi. d. 16. viswanipa c. xi. d. 28. abhivijvalanti c. xi. d. 41. tavemain c. xi. d. 43. guror c. xii. d. 20. dharmyamri- tam c. xiii. ... c. xiii. d. I. kshetrajnamiti c. xiii. d. 17. dhishtitam c. xiv. d. 23. nengate c. XV. d. 3. tathopalabhy- ate c. XV. d. 7. manahshash- thani c. xvi. d. 2. alolatwam c. xvi. d. 3. natimanita c. xvi. d. 4. abhimanascha c. xvi. d. II. upasritah c. xvi. d. 13. labdhamimam c. xvii. d. 2. tam c. xvii. d. 6. karsayantali c. xvii. d. II. yashtavyam c. xvii. d. 13. asrishtannam c. xvii. d. 15. abhyasanam c. xvii. d. 17. tat c. xviii. d. 12. tyaginam c. xviii. d. 13. panchemani c. xviii. i. 15. nyayyam j MSS. a and b. urjitam, a urjjitam, b a and b, id. bhavapyayan, a and b a and b, id. sakyase, a and b devam, a and b bhah, a and b viswarupam, a and 6 a and b, id. tavedam, a and b gnrur, a and 6 dharmyamritam, a dharmmamritam, b a and b have the distich mentioned by Lassen kshetrajnamiti, a kshetrajna iti, b a and b, id. a and b, id. a and b, id. a and b, id. manahshashtani, a and b chaushadih, a and b alolutwam, a and 6 a and b, id. a and b, id. a and b, id. labdhamidam, a labdhamimam, b a and b, id. karshayantah, a and b a and b, id. a and b, id. abhyasanam, a and b a and b, id. a and b, id. panchaitani, a and b nyayam, a and 6 Other Headings. varjitam, Calc. B.G. jnatena, Calc. B.G. bhavapyayan, Calc. M., and both scholiasts, ihaikam yajjagat, Calc. B.G. sakyase (libri omnes L. ) devam (omnes Codd.) bha (Lassen, ist ed.) viswarupam, Calc. M., Calc. B.G. abhitoh valanti (Sridhara) tavedam, Calc. M., 3 L. Codd. gurur, Calc. B.G. and M. dharmamritam (Madhu- sudana) kshetrajna iti, P. Codd. C. and D. nishtitam (ist ed. L.) anutishtati (Madhusuda- na) nengati (Sridhara) upalabhyam (ist ed. Las.) manahshashtan i, alii Codd, (Lassen) chaushadih, Calc. M. and Madhusudana alolutwam, Calc. B.G. and scholiasts nabhimanita, Cod. Got- ting. (Lassen) atimanascha (Madhusu- dana) apasritah (Madhusudana) labdhamidam, P. Cod. C. labdhvam, Calc. B.G. tah, Cod. Gotting. (Las- sen) karshayantah, Calc. B. G. and M. yashtavya, Cod. Gotting. amrishtannam, Cod. Got- ting. abhyasanam, Calc. B.G. and M. tu. Cod. Gotting. tyaginam, Calc. B.G. panchaitani, Calc. B.G. uyayam, P. Codd. B.C.D. 2o6 APPENDIX, Bonn Edition. c. xviii. d. 22. ahaitiikam c. xviii. d. 28. naishkriti- kah c. xviii. d. 35. vimunchati c. xviii. d. 43. kshatram karma c. xviii. d. 44. gorakshya c. xviii. d. 64. dridhamatis- tato c. xviii. d. 66. mochayish- yami c. xviii. d. 67. natapaskaya c. xviii. d. 71. muktah su- bhallokan c. xviii. d. 75. etadguhya- maham param c. xviii. d. 78. bhutirdru- vaniti matir MSS. a and b. a and b, id. naikritikah, a and b a and b, id. a and 6, id. a and b, id. dridhamitistato, a. dridhamatitato, 6 mokshayishyami, a and 6 a and b, id. a and 6, id. a and h, id. bhutirdruvanitirmatir, a bhutirdruvanitimatir, b ^ Other Readings. ahetukam(Madhusudana) naikritikah, Calc. M. and scholiasts vimunchanti, Calc. B.G. kshatrakarma, P. Cod. D. kshatrakarma, P. Cod. B. gaurakshya (Madhusu- dana) dridhamatitato, P. Cod. B.D. dridhastamitito, Calc. B.G. mokshayishyami, Calc. B.G. and M. atapasyaya (ist ed. Las- sen) mukto'subhallokan (Thomson, as an emen- dation). etad guhvatamam param, Calc. M. bhutirdruvanitirmatir, Calc B. G. and all the P. Codices. 1 This is undoubtedly the true read- ing, but the other is found in all MSS. , I think, except the one marked b. If nitir were the true reading, then we must divide the sentence into dhruvd nitih j matir mama, and translate nUi as " good conduct ; " but iti certainly be- longs to matir. Lassen says he would not accept any other arrangement if 600 MSS. were against it. APPENDIX. 207 NOTE. "While tliis work was going through the press, the translation of the Bhagavad Gita which K. T. Telang has prepared for Max Miiller's "Sacred Books of the East" came into my hands. It is much superior, I think, to the translation which he published in Bombay (1875), but it is based on a principle which will not be accepted by European scholars. "My aim has been," he writes, "to make the translation as close and literal a rendering as possible of the Gita, as interpreted by the commentators Sankaracharya, Sridharasvamin, and Madhustidana SarasvatT. ... In some places these commentators differ among themselves, and then I have made my own choice " (Introd., p. 35). I, too, have consulted Hindu commentators largely, but have found them deficient in critical insight, and more intent on finding or forming Vedantist doctrines in every part than in giving the true sense of the author. I have examined their explanations with the freedom of inquiry that is common to Western habits of thought, and thus, while I have sometimes followed their guidance, I have been often obliged to reject their comments as misrepresenting the doctrines of the author. I append some instances of this kind, that my readers may be able to form their own judgment. (i.) "When your mind, confounded by what you liam heard, will Btand firm and steady in contemplation" (ii. 53). Here the refer- ence is to iruti^ which means (i) hearing, (2) revelation, the sacred books. Hindi! commentators say that the meaning is, what you have heard about the means of obtaining desirable things ; assuming as a certain proposition that the Vedas could not be attacked. The doctrine of the Bhagavad Gita is, however, that the devotee (yogin), when fixed in meditation, lays aside the Vedas and Vedic ritual. Lassen's version is, "Sententiis theologicis antea distracta quando mens," &c. (2.) "Others perform the sacrifice ... of Vedic study ^^ (iv. 28). The word is swddhydyaj reading to one's self. There is no mention of the Vedas, and the author of the Bhagavad Gita would probably have preferred the Yoga-siitra of Patanjali. 2o8 APPENDIX. (3.) " Although he only wishes to learn devotion, he rises above the (fruits of action laid down in the) divine word " (vi. 44). This is the interpretation of Hindi! commentators, but the words included between brackets are not in the text. This has only, "He rises above (or passes beyond) the Brahma-word," which here means the Vedas. " li transgresse la doctrine brahmaiiique " (Burnouf). (4.) " The offering (of an oblation to any divinity) which is the cause of the production and development of all things is named action" (viii. 3). The word translated "offering," and explained as the offering of an oblation to a god, is visarga, which means the divine emanation into the varied forms of life, i.e., the creation of the world, according to Hindu ideas. There is no reference to a gift, whether to gods or men. The interpretation given to the word in the Peters, Diet, is this : " Neben sarga (der primitiven Schop- fung durch Brahman) so v. a. secundare Schopfung, die Schopfung im einselnen durch Purusha," and reference is made to the Bhaga- vata Purapa, ii. 10, i, 3. (5.) " Entering the earth, I by my power support all things, and becoming the juici/ moon^ I nourish all herbs" (xv. 13). The words translated "juicy moon" are in the original so7na (bhutwa) rasdt- onakanij (having become) savoury juice. " Con versus in succum, qui saporem lis impertit" (Lassen). There is no reason for supposing that the author of the Bhagavad Gita believed the moon to be juicy, or that it liad anything to do with the vegetation of plants. Brahma is said to nourish them by entering in the form of the sap, which is their life. Soma very seldom denotes the moon ; it is generally (i) sap, (2) the sacred juice of the Asclejnas acida. INDEX. A. Achdrya, tutor, 20 n. Achyuta, epithet of Krishna, 29. Action^ what, 61. Adhibhuta, title of Brahma, 94 n. Adhidaiva, title of Brahma, 3, 94 n. Adhiyajna, title of Brahma, 4, 94 n., 99. Adhydtman, the Supreme Spirit, 3, 56,94, 115, 137. Aditya, name of the sun, 58, 112, 120. Adyayana, meaning of, 127 n. Adwaita, non-dualism, 6. Agni, god of fire, 126. Ahankara, self - consciousness, 12, 13. 14, 56. Ahura, Zend form of Asura, 103 n. Airavata, the elephant of Indra, 114, 193- Ajyam, what, 104 n. Akdda, the ether, 12, 102. Akshara, the Indivisible, 4. Alexandria, a city where Hindus were met, 195. AU-sustainer, title of Brahma, 95. Alms, when good or bad, 164. Ambrosial, remains of sacrifices, 63. Amrita, nectar of the gods, 133 n., 135, 147. Anala, one of the Vasus, II3 n. Ananda, referred to, 50 n., 61 n., 94 n., 100, 108, 149, 153, 157. Ananta, the serpent on which Vishnu rests, 115, 124. AniLa, one of the Vasus, I13 n. Anupeksha, meaning of, 134. Apa, one of the Vasus, 113 n. Apdna, downward breath, 15. Arjuna, son of Indra, the third Pandu prince, i, 2, 20. Arh, the ship in which Manu was saved during the deluge, 58 n. Aryama,, chief of the Pitris (fathers), "5. Asakta, meaning of, 55. Asannyasta-sankalpa, meaning of, 82. Asat, what, 137 n., 165. Asita, a rishi, iii. Asuras, referred to, 17 n., 88, 103 n., 155, 162. Aswathdman, one of the Pandu chiefs, 21. Aiwattha, the sacred fig-tree, 114, 150. Aswins, the twin, what, 120 n. Atatdyinas, what, 30. Atharva- Veda, quoted, 193 n. AtmMbodhay quoted, 8, 14 n. Atman, the soul, 13. Atynrtham, meaning of, 91. Auskadha, meaning of, 104 n. Avarta, Avartin, meaning of, 100. Avasa, meaning of, i(X). Avyakta, the Unmanifested, 7, 12, 89, 97 n., 131 n. B. Bali, the dwarf, 25 n. Bardasanes, referred to, 196. Bdtsalya, meaning of, 192. Bhdgavata Purdnd, quoted, ^^^ 96 n., 116 n., 191. Bhaktas, who they are, 89 n. Bhakti, meaning of, 109. Bhdshd, meaning of, 46, 194. Bhdva, explanation of, 14. Bhavdn, explanation of, 21 n. Bklma, second son of Pandu, as- signed to the god Vayu, i, 20. BhUhma, uncle of Pandu, 2, 21, 124. O 2IO INDEX. Bhislima Parvan, sixth book of the Mahabharata, i. BhoJctd, meaning of, 142. Bhutas, demons, 106, 161. Bonds of action, what, 37 n., 48. Bossuet, quoted, 35 n. Brahma, the Supreme Spirit, 5, II, 94, 110, III ; may be known, 71; may be seen everywhere, 79 ; has no manifest form, 89. Brahma, the Supreme Spirit, as Creator, 95 n., 103 n., iii, 126 ; world of, 127 n. Brahmacarin, religious student, 77 n., 96, 163. Brahman, one of the first caste, 60 n. Brahma- Purdna, quoted, 192. Brahma Sutras, referred to, 141. Brigu, chief of the rishis, 114. Brihadardnyaka, quoted, 43 n. Buddha, referred to, ill. Buddhi, explanation of, 12, 13, 14 ; threefold division of, 171. Buddhi- samyoga, meaning of, 84. Buddhi-yoga, mental devotion, 10. Burnouf, Prof., referred to, 16, 53 n., 66, S3, 84, 118. C. Calcutta Review, quoted, 199. Castes, four, 60. Chandragupta, referred to, 194. Chdrvdhas, a very low class, mate- rialists, 156 ; fall down to Naraka, 157. CheTcitana, one of the Pandu chiefs, 20. Chhandas, meaning of, 141. Chhdndogna Upanishad, quoted, 6. Childers' Pali Dictionary, referred to, 69 n. Chitraratha, chief of the Gan- dharvas, 114. Christianity, introduced early into India, 194, 197. C'lrysostom, St., quoted, 198. City of nine gates, what, 70. Claudius, embassy from India in time of, 195. Clemens Alexandrinus, referred to, 196. Clifford, Prof., referred to, 12. Colebrooke, quoted, 26 n., 77 n. Commodus, commerce with India in time of, 195. Conditions of one born to a divine lot, 155. Constancy, threefold division of, 172. Cosmos Indicopleustes, referred to, 198. _ Cow, object of veneration, 70. Cowherd, Krishna brought up as, 25 n. Custom, makes unpleasant things pleasant, 172. D. Daityas, an impious race, 115. Dakshind, meaning of, 163 n. Damhha, meaning of, 160. Ddnavas, demons of the air, 112. Ddsya, meaning of, 192. Ddthavania, reference to, 29. Davy, Sir H., quoted, 14 n. Day of Brahma, 97 n. Daytime, dying in, efifect of, 98. Denarii, found near Vellore, 195. Desire, in living things, from Brah- ma, 87. Devala, a rishi, iii. Devas, the gods, 161. Dharma, meaning of, 53 n., 176. Difference of matter and spirit, 140. Dion Cassius, reference to, 196, Dog, object of contempt, 70. Draupadl, wife of Yudishthira, 2. Draupadi, daughter of Drupada, 2. Dristaketu, one of the Pandu chiefs, 20. DritardsJitra, son of Vyasa, i. Drona, one of the Kuru chiefs, 32, 124. Drupada, one of the Pandu chiefs, 20. Durasadam, meaning of, 57. INDEX. 2i: Duryodhana, son of Gandharl, i, 19. Duty, one's own, better than any other's, 53. Dwandway meaning of, 39 n., 90 n., 115. 194- Dwdpara-ijoga, third age of the world, 59 n. E. Fating much, not the sign of a Yogin, 77. £gg, the abode of Brahma, 49 n. Emanation, the Hindu term for crea- tion, 150. Internal seed, a title of Brahma, 87. ^YAer (Alcasa), pervades all things, 140. LvU, every enterprise surrounded by, 174. Faith in Brahma necessary, 133 ; is according to our nature, 161 ; is threefold, 16 1. Fasting excessively, not the sign of a Yogin, 77. Fichte, reference to, 4. Fig-tree, sacred, 150. See Aswattha. Floras, reference to, 195. Food, four kinds of, 152. Freedom, what it is, 72. Frequency of devotion, commended, 132. Frequenting lonely places, 137. Friend, each one of himself, 75. Fruit of work in after life, threefold, 169. G. Gandhari, daughter of Subala, i. Gandharva-loha, what, 72 n. Gandiva, name of Arjuna's bow, 25. Garuda, the bird of Vishnu, 193. God, not responsible for works, 70 ; revealed by knowledge, 70 ; the mighty Lord, 72 ; friend of all, 72. Gods, nourished by sacrifice, 49 ; created beings, 89 n. ; they who go to, go to them, 89. Govinda, name of Krishna, 33. Gudalcaia, name of Arjuna, 24, 30. Guna, meaning of, 12, 15, 145. Guru, spiritual guide, 33 n., 127. Guyon, Madame, reference to, 10 n. H. Ilari, name of Vishnu, 121, 177. Harivansa, quoted, 123 n. Bastindpura, capital of the Kuru region, i. Havis, meaning of, 62 n. Heart of man, wavering and un- steady, 78, 79. Hegel, quoted, 105 n. Himalaya, range of mountains, 114. Himuvat, name of mountain, 59 u. Hindu commentators, referred to, 98 n., 105 n., 136 n., 165 n. Hrid, meaning of, 100 ; supposed to be the seat of the soul, 1 75 n. Hrishlkesa^ name of Krishna, 22, 29. Humboldt, Prof. Von, referred to, 17, 144. Huta, meaning of, 104 n. I. IkshwaTcu, son of Manu, 58 n. Inaction, what, 61. Indica of Bardasanes, reference to, 196. Indifference to all things, mark of a Yogin, 76, 77 ; restrains the heart ; surmounts the Modes {gunas), 145 n. Indra, heaven of, 10, 106 ; father of Arjuna, 23 n. Indraprastha, name of a city, I n. Indriya, explanation of, 13. Jswara, the Supreme Spirit (Brah- ma), 79 n. J. Janibu-dw'jya, what, 113 n. Janaka, an ancient rishi, 50 n. 212 INDEX, Jandrdana, name of Krishna, 25, 30. Japa-offering, what, 1 14 n. Jati-dharma, meaning of, 31. Jayadratha, king of the Sindhavas, 125. Jivabhuta, meaning of, 4, 7> 153' Jndna, meaning of, 57, 65, 76. Jones, Sir William, quoted, 164 n. Joy, boundless, known to the true Yogin, 78. Justinian, embassy from India in time of, 195. Kald, meaning of, 129. Kali, wife of Siva, 1 89. Kdliddsa, referred to, 190, 200. Kali-yuga, the present age, 59 n. Kalhin, name of the next avatdra of Vishnu, 59 n. Kalpa, explanation of, 3, 15, 38 n., 96 n., 103, 138, 194. Kdma, the Hindu Cupid, 193. Kdmaduk, meaning of, 49 n., 55, 114. Kandarpa, name of Kama, 1 14. Kanja-ja, name of Vishnu, 122. Kapi-dwaja, epithet of Arjuna, 230- Kapila, referred to, 3, 6, il, 1 14, 162 n. Kai'ma, what, 94. Karma-yoga, meaning of, lo. Karna, one of the Kuru chiefs, 21, 124. Ka^i, name of Benares, 21. Katha-Upanishad, quoted, 72 n. Kavayas, meaning of, 65. Kesava, name of Krishna, 30, 112, 125, 177. Kinds of creatures, two, 1 56. Knowledge, an ascetic rite, 60 ; ex- cellence of, 63, 64 ; threefold division of, 171. Kosa, explanation of, 14. Kratu, meaning of, 104 n. Kripa, one of the Kuru chiefs, 21. Krishna, 3, 7, loi, 177 ; legend of, 199. Kritakritya, meaning of, 154. Krita-yuga, first age of the world, 59". Kshara, the Divisible, 4, 99. Kshatriya, name of the warrior- caste, 60 n. ; work of, 173. Kshetra, meaning of, 141. Kshetra-jna, a term for the soul, 136. Kula-dharma, meaning of, 31. Kullaha, reference to, 193. Kunti, mother of Yudishthira, 23. Kuntibhoja, one of the Pandu chiefs, Kuru, the ancestor of the contend- ing parties, i. KuruJcshetra, the Kuru region, 19 n. Kuia grass, 76. KUtastha, meaning of, %T), 134, 154. Kuvera, the Hindu god of wealth, 103 n. L. Lalita Vastara, reference to, ill. Lamp, sheltered, Yogin compared to, 78. Lassen, Prof., referred to, 16, 49 n., 53 n., 66, 92, 100, 104 n., 108, 134. Law, eternal, seat of, 148. Linga, explanation of, 5, 13. Linga-sarira, what, 14 n. Livy, quoted, 26 n. LoTcayatihas, doctrines of, 183. Lola, meaning of, 155 n. Lorinser, Dr., referred to, 64 n., 80 n., 92, 142, 181. Lotus-leaf, comparison of, 69. M. Mddhava, name of Krishna, 22 n. Madhusudana, quoted, 58 n. Mddkurya, meaning of, 192. Mddrl, second wife of Pandu, 2. Maffei, reference to, 197. MaJidbhdrata, quoted, I, 30, 50 n., INDEX. 213 $7 n., 88 n., 93, 103 n., no n., 154, 190, 198, 199. Mahabhdshya of Patanjali, reference to, 182. Mahabhuta, gross element, 12. Mahdyvga, what, 15. MaTcara, a fabulous sea-monster, iiS»i93- Manas, explanation of, 13, 100. Mandara, a fabulous mountain, 115. Manomaya, what, 14 n. Mantra, meaning of, 124. Mana, Institutes of, quoted, 13, 193 n., 26 n., 35 n., 49 n., 50 n., 51 n., 60 n., 62 n., 63 n., 77 n., 79 n., 85, 95 n., 103 n., 105 n., 106 n., 107 n., Ill n., 113 n., 127 n., 145, 152 n., 163 n., 193. Manu, progenitor of mankind, 58 n. Manwantara, what, in n. Margasirsha, one of the months of the year, 116. Marici, chief of the Maruts, 113. Maruts, the storm-gods, 120. Mdtra, meaning of 34 n. Maya, illusion, 7, 35 n., ^^, 89. Meditation on Brahma, effect of, 97. Meru, a fabulous mountain, 113. Metempsychosis, what, 6, 34, 88, 155 n. Mlmdnsd, the Vedantist doctrines, 6, 168. Modes, action of, 138 ; threefold nature, 12, 145. Modified forms of matter, 136. Mohin, meaning of, 109. Mokska, deliverance, 9. Molinos, reference to, 10 n. Moon, heaven of the, 72 n. Moor^s Hindu Pantheon, reference to, 122. Muir's Sanskrit Texts, referred to, 29 n., 51 n., 59 n., 88 n., 123 n., 188. Mukta, meaning of, 66. Miiller's Sanskrit Literature, re- ferred to, 59 n. Muni, a recluse, 9, li. Mystery, supreme, what, 176. N. NaTcshatras, the twenty-seven lunar mansions, 113. Nahila, son of Madri, 2, 23. NaZa, references to, 91, 192. Ndrada, a rishi, in. NaraTca, the Hindu hell, 80 n. Nature {Prakriti), without begin- ning, 138. Nectar, banquet of, 133. Nidhdna, meaning of, 129, Nimittani, explanation of, 30. Nirasrayas, meaning of, 65. Nirukta, reference to the, 112 n. Nirvana, explanation of, 17 n., 71, 43 n-. 60 n. Northern solstice, dying in, 98. O. Odour, in earth, is a part of Brahma, 114. One with Brahma is the Yogin, 78. Om, meaning and use of, 28, 96. Organs of action, what, 48. Orosius, reference to, 196. Oval eyes, beautiful, 120. Padma Purdna, reference to, 192. Pairs of opposites, what, 62. Panchajanya^ name of trumpet, 22. Pdndavas, followers of Panda, 2. Pantcenus, sent by Demetrius, Bishop of Alexandria, to instruct the Brahmans, 97. Para, meaning of, 97 n. Param, meaning of, 55. Paramdtman, the Supreme Spirit, 7, 82. Parigraha, meaning of, 83, 179. Pdtdla, section of Padma Purana, 192. Patanjali, referred to, 3, 8, 47 n., 81 n., 86 n., 94 n., 162 n., 1 76 n., 182. Pdtra, meaning of, 166. 214 INDEX. PdvaJca, one of the Vasus, 113. Petersburgh Dictionary, quoted, 30, 66, 74, 2>Z, 105 n., 149. Phala, meaning of, 10. Pisdckas, demons, 72 n. Pitris, heaven of, 27 n., 72 n., 106, no. Plato, quoted, 42 n., 43 n., 6^ n., 81 n., 105 n. Pleasure, threefold division of, 172. Pleasures born of worldly contacts, what, 71. Pliny, referred to, 195. Prahdla, meaning of, 153. PraWidva, meaning of, 141. PraJdada, chief of the Daityas, 115- Prajdpati, title of Brahma, 55, 130. Prakrita, meaning of, 178. Prakriti, explanation of, 6, II, 13, 15» 34 n., 52, 65, 102, 103, 138, 144. Prdna, breathing, 15, 66. Pranava, expression for OM, 91. Prdndyana, meaning of, 63 n. Pravritti, meaning of, 129, 153, 156. Pretas, a foul kind of demons, 161. Priaulx, Mr., quoted, 198. Prithd, wife of Pandu, I. /*m'anas, referred to, 13, 188. Purujit, one of the Pandu chiefs, 21. Purusha, explanation of, 4, 7, 95 n., 129. Pyrrhonists of India, who, 183. R Pdghavendra, quoted, 79 n., 137 n. Rajas, the second guna or mode, 12. Rajarslds, royal rishis, 107 n. Rajendra-lala, quoted, 117. Jtakshasas, demons, 72 n., 103 n., 161. Jldmdyana, references to, 25 n., 103 n., 112 n., 115. Ram Krishna Bandarker, reference to, 182. Rtnunciation of works, 63. Repose, perfect, gained by Yogin, 78. Reven-ence to gods and Brahmans en- joined, 163. Rig-Veda, quoted, 29, 95 n., 103 n., 105 n., 112 n., 116 n., 123 n. Rishis referred to, 71, no. Roth, Prof., reference to, 60 n. Row of pearls, a metaphor of Brahma, 87. Rudras, storm-gods, 120. S'aivya, one of the Pandu chiefs, 21. S'akuni, skilful dice-player, 2. S'akuntald, reference to, 30. S'ankara, commentary of, quoted, 17, 50 n., 53 n., 55, 63 n., 66, 80 n. , 94 n. , 97 n. , 104 n. , 106 n., 107 n., 108, 127 n., 134, 14S, 155 n., 160, 164, 167, 170 n., 173 n., 174 n., 177, 185. S'iva, the god, 53 n., 81 n. S'loka, explanation of, 16. S'rdddha, meaning of, 26 n., 64 n. S'rldhara, commentary of, quoted, 17, 48 n., 52 n., 63 n., 66, 83, 84, 91, 92, 97 n., 100, loi, 104 n., 107 n., 119, 127 n., 134, 142, 149, 153, 155 n., 160, 164, 167, 170, 173, 174 n., 177, 178. S'rimat, meaning of, 80 n. S'ruti, meaning of, 40 n., 94 n. Sudra, name of the lowest caste, 60 n., 107 n. S'ukla, meaning of, 100. S'wapdka, a degraded class, 70. S'wetdswatara Upanishad, quoted, 59 n. S. Sacrifice, by various means, 62 ; of knowledge, 104 j what kind is vain, 157, 162. Sddhyas, an order of inferior gods, 123. Sagamo, a Hindu king, 197. Sage, ancient, epithet of Brahma, 95. INDEX. 215 Sahadcra, son of the second wife of Pandu, 2, 23. Sdkya, meaning of, 192. Samdna, collective breath, 15. Sama Veda, references to, 113, 193. SanaJca, one of the mind-born sons of Brahma, no n. Sananda, do, Sanatana, do. Sanatkumara, do. Sanga, meaning of, 10, 46. Sannydsa, true, what is, 11, 168. Sansiddhi, meaning of, 173 n. Santa, meaning of, 192. Saptarshi, the constellation Ursa Major, 123. Sarasvati, name of a river, 19. Sat, meaning of, 105, 137 n. ; when used, 165. Satasgopa, epithet of Agni, 105 n. Sattwa, one of the gunas or modes, 12. Saumadatti, one of the Kuru chiefs, 21. ScTdegel, quoted, 30. Scythianus, history of, 196. Siddhas, deified mortals, 123. Skanda, god of war, 114. Smriti, meaning of, 40 n., 94 n., 180. Soma, the moon, 113 n. Soul, immortality of, 5, 34 ; never acts, 52 ; each a part of Brahma^ 151- Southern solstice, time of, bad time to die in, 98. Speech, threefold division of, 163. Stithi, meaning of, 167. Suhala, king of Gandhara, i. Supreme Being, one, 4 ; not wor- shipped, 72 n. ; represented by Vishnu or Krishna, 72 n. ; soul may be one with, 71. Sura, father of Pritha, I. Suras, a class of inferior gods, no, 122 n. Surya, the sun, 140 n. Swabhdva, explanation of, 3, 99. Swadhd, meaning of, 104 n. Swddhydya, meaning of, 159. T. Tamas, one of the gunas or modes, 12. Tanmdtra, subtle element, 12. Tanu, use of the word, 92. Tapas, meaning of, 60 n., 65, 91, 162. Tat, when used, 165. Tatparya Bodhinl, referred to, 17. Telang, references to, 50 n., 57, 61 n., 6"], 79 n,, 91, 100, 142, 181. Thomson, Mr., references to, 14 n., 16 n., 49 n., 50 n., 69 n., 75 n., S3, 92, 97 n-. 100, 104 n., 108, 119, 142. Thought to be restrained, 78. Threefold gate of hell, 157. Traders bring information from India, 196. Trajan, embassy from India in time of, 195- Treta-yuga, second age of the world, 59 n. Tyaga, meaning of, ii, 168. U. U6chihsravas, the horse of Indra, 114, 193. Uddna, meaning of, 15. Union of matter and spirit, 139. Unmanifested, The, 131 n. Unseen path, hard to gain, 131. Usana, teacher of the Asuras, 116. Ushmapas, a class oi pitris, 123. Uttamnnjas, one of the Pandu chiefs, 21. Uttamavid, meaning of, 148. V. Vainateya, the bird of Vishnu, 115. Vaisya, name of the third caste, 60 n., 107 n. ; work of, 173. Valhalla, reference to, 32 n. Varshneya, name of Krishna, 26. Vai-una, as god of waters, 115, 126, 193- 2l6 INDEX. Vdsava, a name of Indra, 113. Vdsudeva, a name of Krishna, 88 n. Vdsuki, king of serpents in PdtaZa, 114. Vasus, a class of inferior gods, 113, 120. Vaya Purdna, reference to, in n. Vdyu (air), one of the gross elements, 12. Vedanta, referred to, 152. Vedas, referred to, 96 ; holy books, 106 ; ordained by Brahma, 165. Via Lactea, path of departed spirits, 27 n. Vibhaga, meaning of, 52 n. ViJbhu, the mighty Lord, 5. Vibhuti, meaning of, 117, 194. Videha (incorporeal), a state of ab- straction, 9. Viguna, meaning of, 56. Vijndna, meaning of, 57, 76. Vijndna-Maya, what, 14. Vikdra, meaning of, 142. Vikama, one of the Kuru chiefs, 21. Virdta, one of the Pandu chiefs, 20. Visarga, meaning of, 94 n. Vishama, explanation of, 44. Vishnu, the god next to Brahma in the Hinda triad, 25 n. Vishnu Purdna, references to, 32 n., 89 n., 96 n.. Ill n., Ii4n., 115 n., 145 n., 183. Vittesa, a name of Kuvera, the god of wealth, 113. Vivdha (marriage) laudable, 165 n. Vivaswat, a name of the sun, 58. Vrihaspati, chief of household priests, 114. Vrihatsdman, a hymn of the Sama Veda, 116. Vritra, son of Danu, 112 n. Vyalta, the Manifested, 12, 131 n. Vyakti, meaning of, Ii8. Vydsa, a representative person, to whom is ascribed the composition or compilation of many books, including the Mahabharata, i. W. Waning moon, dying in time of, 98. Wavering, fate of the, 80. Waxing moon, dying in time of, 98. Ways, two, of light and darkness, 98. Weber, Prof., referred to, 182, 198, 199 ; compares the Krishna legend with life of Christ, 199, 200. Wise man is part of Brahma, 88. Women cannot perform any religious rite, 107 n. WorJc, when a right means, 75 ; not to be given up wholly, 169 ; divine part of, 170. Works, fruit of, not to be sought, 39, 132 ; done for Brahma lead to nirvdna, 132 ; not wrought by Brahma, 70. World conquered, by whom, 70. Worlds, the three, 25 ; eight upper worlds, 72 ; all return again to Brahma at the end of a kalpa, 96. Yddava, name of Krishna, 126. Yakshas, demons, 72 n., 161. Yajna, meaning of, 48 n., 104 n. Yama, judge of the dead, 115, 126. Yamund, former name of the river Jumna, in., 19 n. Yavandnl, meaning of, 194 n. Yoga, explanation of, 3, 34 n., 78, 139 n., 177, 194. Yogakshema, meaning of, 46. Yogin, devotee, 10, 75, 76, 78 ; position of, 77 ; rises above Vedic rites, 85, 187. Yudhdmanyu, one of the Pandu chiefs, 21. Yudishthira, eldest of the sons of KuntI, I, 23. Yuga, meaning of, 96 n. Yukta-, meaning of, 77. Yuvardja, what, I. Yuyudhdna, one of the Pandu chiefs, 20. BALLANTVNK PRESS: EDINB. THIS BOOK IS DUB ON THE LAST DATE STAMPED BEIiOW AN INITIAL FINE OF 25 CENTS WILL BE ASSESSED FOR FAILURE TO RETURN THIS BOOK ON THE DATE DUE. THE PENALTY WILL INCREASE TO SO CENTS ON THE FOURTH DAY AND TO $1.00 ON THE SEVENTH DAY OVERDUE. '■tr' ■% 1i)^k« J0ct'5BHJ| ^■"■^■''i S? 1944 RgC'tv >- ^ AUG- ie i 944 DEC ^6 1958 250ct'60MIV? ■tA ni — lii) lity-'H- ?»m w'^, i<- — x^^ J/i?:.'! ^ APR 82 1989 eaitay'STlS F<. JL'.'J 1 3 1939 LD 21-100m-7,'40 (6936s) YC. 54564- "C. BERKELEY LIBRARIES fM 1 54 THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA UBRARY