The last three years have been quite rewarding for me in terms of getting to know better the faith I was born into. It has largely been a matter of serendipity and the time and guidance that some elders have very generously offered me in exploring the ancient tenets of this amorphous “way of life” called Hinduism. It means different things to different people but a very substantial portion of this faith is now associated with forms of worship and the idiosyncracies of the various Gods and Goddesses in the Hindu pantheon. And we have enough of them. Each with a colourful past and interesting events/character-attributes that mark them from the rest. Lord Shiva, rumour has it, is the one most easily appeased. Epithets such as “bhola”, it seems, are well-earned in his case. And one must admit he does have a formidable track-record when it comes to granting problematic boons, even to asuras. And then, we have a bevy of Gods and Goddesses who seem to have a special fondness for getting married…over and over again, year after year, every year. Such is their fondness for marital bliss that they deign us mortals good enough to sponsor their weddings. I remember my parents having performed one such kalyaanam a few years ago. I’m hoping, on Judgment Day, when their numbers are called, their small contribution to divine marital bliss will not be entirely forgotten.
Customs, forms of worship, superstitions continue to be shepherded into the tent of Hinduism to this day. Yet, perhaps, this was not how the bold Vedic rishis and the sages and mighty men and women who followed in their order had envisioned Sanatana Dharma to be. The myriad of rituals and customs that for many equates to the practice of Hinduism hides behind it the fount of spiritual realization that has been the singular contribution of Sanatana Dharma to humanity. The core of this contribution – the Prasthana Traya – the Upanishads, the Gita and the Brahma Sutras – form a body not just of knowledge, but of mystic spiritual experience where the focus is entirely on spiritualizing each human being through the realization of the Divine within each one of us. And within this tradition of mystic realization, the Gita stands out as a handbook that in its sheer vigour and clarity, attempts not just to spiritualize our lives but each act that we perform. Admittedly, this is an onerous task and letting the Gita take over our actions can be a lifelong exercise, but a very fulfilling one at that. As, Sri Aurobindo said, “All life is yoga” and as a student of the Gita (a very junior one), I believe the true tribute to the mighty philosophy of the Gita can only be paid by its practice in our everyday lives. It is, after all, a very vigorous, deep, practical and liberating philosophy – delivered by the purna avatar of Sri Krishna to a mighty warrior and friend, at a deeply distressing moment – the commencement of the most terrible activity engineered by humankind – full-scale war.
My introduction to the Gita came a little later in life than I would have wanted it to. But I believe The Mother sends the right things in our path at the right time, and so it is with the Gita. While I have been trying to learn the message of the Gita, thanks again to efforts of the elders in whose company I happen to be and the works of so many mystics that India has produced, I have often wondered why it seems a very large section of people who call themselves Hindus seem either to be detached or very peripherally involved with the Gita. This question became even more troubling as I heard of the aggressive conversions being undertaken by some Christian evangelicals in India. Apparently, these conversions to the Christian faith (or more pertinently, to the Church that the particular evangelical represents), particularly amongst those who lead an impoverished existence, are being done against a barter of basic goods of subsistence. If this is true, and I have personally witnessed such attempts at conversion, as have several people I know, then I think it behooves us to ponder a while as to what exactly is a poor person in need of the very basic necessities of life giving up in this conversion? If it is indeed Hinduism, then how exactly does the converted describe his/her erstwhile faith? I doubt if the ones converted by these means have ever said “I believe the Gita is wrong” or “I disown the Upanishads”. Their daily, gruelling struggle for survival or a better quality of life to their impoverished existence is such that the message of the Gita or the Upanishads does not even reach them throughout their liftimes. And it could not either. Exceptions like Sri Ramakrishna and Ramana Maharshi are just that – exceptional souls who could rise above the human body’s struggle to survive and reach pinnacles of spiritual experience that they have passed down to us. For the vast majority of us, however, an attempt at spiritualizing our lives in the light of the Gita can only be undertaken after the basic necessities of life are met. Material security can engender a state of mind that is at peace with itself while it pursues the higher calling of life. The intellectual Hindu who expresses righteous indignation at aggressive evangelical conversions would do well to keep this in mind.
Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs has served as a useful framework in understanding basic human motivations and the hierarchy through which these motivations or needs move. Briefly, Maslow stated that human needs progress in a hierarchy, from lower to higher as – biological and physical needs, safety needs, belonging and love needs, self-esteem needs and finally, self-actualization. This framework can provide a fairly simple insight in trying to understand both the relatively low penetration of the practice of the Gita and the Upanishads amongst Hindus and also the bartered conversion into evangelical Churches. Both the Gita and Upanishads attempt the ultimate transformation of a human being – from a mere existence to spiritualized being. Maslow’s self-actualization is their endeavour, nothing less. They are both intensely personal in their message and catholic in their approach. But for those of us for whom the Gita has had an impact, even a peripheral impact, it probably would be easy to recognize that for the vast majority of us, lower hierarchies need to be fulfilled first, particularly the lower three, before the lofty ideals of the Gita can be undertaken. And recognition of this fact can open up an opportunity for us Hindus to contribute, in whatever small way we can, to alleviate the impoverished and less fortunate to a level of security and existence where they can begin to ponder the deeper existential questions and use that as a prop to take up the understanding and practice of the Gita.
Why is this important? Individual transformation aside (and this would mean the transformation of both the benenficiary and the one who gives), this is important in a wider social context. The philosophy of the Gita, in true Upanishadic spirit, has at its core, a value that is a hallmark of a mature and deep thinking, a value that can only be derived from quiet, knowing strength – liberalism. There is no attempt in the Gita to frighten the sadhak into submission or a simplistic moral, religious or social code. Ancient Hindu philosophy had, in its remarkable prescience, recognized social law to be a temporal product of the times and so relegated them to the status only of a smrti, subservient to the eternal, timeless message of the shruti. The focus, therefore, of the Gita and the Upanishads is to elevate the consciousness of each individual to ultimately, through persistent sadhana, become one with the Divine, cosmic Consciousness. There is no attempt at converting to a faith or institution that claims a monopoly over Truth and derides followers of other faiths. Not for the Gita the “My God is better than your God” argument that, in the light of the true Vedic tradition of “Ekam Sat, viprah bahudha vadanti (Truth is one, wise men call it by different names)”, can be viewed as childishly amusing, at best.
So where does all this leave us Hindus with regard to what we can do to elevate the less fortunate so they can be physically, mentally and emotionally secure enough to take up the Gita? Well, the simplest, most direct and most effective contribution would be monetary contribution towards a cause. And there is no dearth of such causes. From the monstrosity of the caste system that has denied basic primary education to millions because of their birth and thus robbed them of a fulfilling life of achievements, to natural disasters that have wiped away for many even the most basic securities in life, to better facilities for healthcare, to orphans who are at the mercy of an unscrupulous society for their survival, to children who are born with disabilities and deformities, to men and women who, in their twilight years, have been abandoned by the very people they sacrificed so much for, to the plight of the widows in Brindavan. The opportunities at making a difference, in the true spirit of the Gita, are many. As Hindus, we spend quite a substantial amount each year in performing (or rather in getting someone else, usually a temple priest, to perform) various rituals. With due respect to the sentiments of the people involved in such rituals, in purely economic terms, they are almost always a consumption expenditure, whose impact, even on the ones performing or sponsoring the ritual, can fade away rather quickly. On the other hand, an investment at elevating the condition of another human being is a capital expenditure of the highest order. And for those of us earning in developed market currencies, the asymmetry in purchasing power with respect to India, has the potential to magnify the impact of such contributions. It has the potential to create a truly productive and evolved individual and, by extension, an evolved society.
And what does Sri Krishna have to say about worship?
Patram pushpam phalam toyam, yo me bhaktya prayacchti,
Tad aham bhaktyupahrtam, asnami prayatatmanah.
Whosoever offers to Me with devotion a leaf, a flower, a fruit, or water, that offering of love, of the pure heart, I accept.
“The colloquy at Kurukshetra will yet liberate humanity”, said Sri Aurobindo, who, while in prison, had used the Gita as a practical handbook of transformation. It would indeed be a homage to Sri Aurobindo’s and The Mother’s vision of transforming and spiritualizing humanity to an elevated state of consciousness, if each one of us can commit, dedicatedly, a small portion of our resources to making a difference to the material lives of the ones who are less fortunate than us, so they may later be inspired to take up the Gita and start living it. A greater offering of karma yoga to the feet of Sri Krishna can scarcely be found.
- Sumant Balakrishnan
