III: 2

[Krishna Jaya]

Chapter 3, Verse 2

 

“Your statements seem

To contradict each other.

They confuse my mind.

Therefore tell me plainly

By what path

May I attain

The Supreme?”

 

Sri Aurobindo: 

 

“In Chapter Two, Krishna emphasizes in no uncertain terms the importance of the withdrawal of the will from the ordinary motive of human activity (desire), from our normal temperament of sense-gratification with its passions and ignorance, and from its customary habit of troubled many-branching thoughts and wishes to the desireless calm unity and serenity of poise in the Self.  So much Arjuna has understood.  He is not unfamiliar with this teaching.  And yet, Krishna insists upon works as part of the Yoga, so there seems to be in the teaching a radical inconsistency.”

 

Sri Krishna Prem:

 

“Arjuna, in demanding a clear-cut intellectual presentation which shall be decisive and final, is looking for something which cannot be given.  Krishna’s method is not to overwhelm the mind by demanding assent to an intellectual scheme clearly formulated once and for all.  Such an assent would not lift the student above the level of the thinking mind.  Rather, Krishna aims, by setting forth apparently conflicting but actually complementary aspects of truth, to force the student to transcend ordinary levels of thinking in favor of the higher intuitive knowledge of the pure Buddhi, the clear seeing of the discerning faculty not influenced by likes and dislikes, thus bringing to birth in the soul a new and synthetic wisdom which shall be built into one’s very being.  The Gita aims at setting forth the Yoga as a coherent whole, but in so doing, it is inevitable that the mind, which loves to pursue one train of thought to its logical conclusion regardless of others, should be brought up sharply from time to time and made to grasp the other sides as well.” 

 

[Intellectual formulations of truth are helpful only if their limitations are recognized.  These formulations are fraught with paradox due to the nature of language and discursive thought which divide and separate into component parts.  It is when the mind becomes silent that spontaneous, intuitive promptings find their way to the surface of consciousness, embracing the components in a seamless oneness.]

 

Daniel Clark:

 

“The artful use of paradox to stymie the logical mind, a stun-gun that knocks us off our feet, opens the dualistic doors of heaven to reveal the single infinite smiling face; but it also gives us access to a power that can be horrifying in its consequences.  This is one aspect of ‘the razor's edge.’  The Gita is a prelude to a carnage of insane proportions. It will never end. Evil is installed here forever. The battle of Good vs. Evil will go on forever. A double paradox: the paradoxical vision of the One generates both the most depraved dark-side of the Duality and the
liberated fulfillment of the soul's devotional desire.  This message is not meant for the kiddies.”

Another friend:

 

How to distinguish selfless work from overwork? Seems to be a common behavioral samskara in American culture.

 

[We overwork when we forget that our body/mind complex is a temple of God.  This forgetting is caused by ego investment in results.  When we become instruments of the higher power, we will get enough rest and consequently function optimally.]