IV: 36

[Krishna Jaya]

Chapter 4, Verse 36

“Even if you were

The foulest of sinners,

The boat of wisdom

Would carry you

Like a raft,

Over all your sin.”

Sri Eknath Easwaran:

“The compassionate Buddha was fond of representing himself as a boatman offering to take us to the other shore that is Nirvana.  Krishna, too, sometimes speaks of himself as the boatman (Kaivartakah Keshavah) who will ferry us across the river of life to the other shore.  We, however, prefer this shore.  We are hesitant about making the journey towards that other shore, with its promises of peace and security.  The mind keeps us on this shore visiting different ports hither and yon.  In almost every port we have a love: food, mind-altering substances, clothes, money, power, fame, and all kinds of exotica to add to our collection.  In moving away from this coast towards that other one, we need to throw these attachments overboard.  The grace of the Lord is like a wind that is blowing all the time, but it is our responsibility to get rid of our excess baggage and set the sail correctly.”

Questioner:  “If you were asked to explain the individuation process to a Zurich street-sweeper, during the time it takes to wait for the tram, what would you tell this person?”

June Singer, Jungian psychologist:  “It is as though you were sitting in a little sailing boat in the middle of a big lake and had no idea how to manage a sailboat.  If the wind was right, you might get to where you are going sooner or later.  Or, you might bob around indefinitely and get nowhere.  Or a storm could come up and you could be overturned and the whole project could end in disaster.  But begin the process, guided by another who has been through it himself and coped with the difficulties and found ways to solve them, and it is all different.  You learn to take into account the structure of the boat itself, how it is made and how it responds to the water and the wind.  The boat is comparable to your own personality.  You learn about the prevailing winds; those correspond to the realities of life in which you are situated and which are somewhat predictable.  You learn about other winds, which are less predictable, and these correspond to those spiritual forces which don’t show themselves.  In learning to sail you do not have any effect on the wind, but you learn to hoist your sail and turn it this way and that to utilize the greater forces which surround you.  By understanding them you become one with them, and in doing so are able to find your own direction so long as it is in harmony with, and does not try to oppose, the greater forces of being.  You may still have to face dangers.  There may be wild winds at times, but somehow you do not feel helpless any longer.  In time, you may be able to leave your guide and sail alone, and one day you may even become a guide for others.”