Bhagavagd Gita - Session 36- Track 3602

That is the state of Bhakti to which you rise and that is explained in these 6 chapters. It is not sufficient to realise that even though the first 12 chapters explain the synthesis of Knowledge, Devotion and Action, (Karma, Jnana, and Bhakti), all the three are reconciled, a large synthesis of the three, it is not sufficient to realise that the pivot of these three is knowledge. This supreme realisation of which Sri Krishna speaks of at the end of the 12th chapter, the basic foundation is knowledge.

This is very important because many people believe, you go on doing work for the Divine everything will be all right: knowledge whatever is needed it will come to you any time; worship the Divine everything will be all right. And these are not false statements, they are all correct, but they are incomplete: that is not the way in which the Bhagavad Gita would like to speak about these things. Sri Krishna says very clearly: ‘you do work for the Divine, but attain to the state of knowledge’. He does not say ‘now knowledge and all that is not important’. And with regard to knowledge He says: ‘the highest Bhakta is a Jnani’; ‘the dearest Bhakta is the one who is Jnani, one who is full of Knowledge’.

Therefore the pivotal point of this synthesis is knowledge. Just as the concept of the Divine is that of Sachchidananda, (Sat, Chit, and Ananda), in which the pivotal point is Sat: Chit and Ananda are only dependent upon the Sat, and Sat is a being to be known. The knowledge of that ‘Sat’ is the foundation: if that is not grasped, nothing is grasped. Chit and Force: Chit is conscious Force. Conscious Force is related to the process of Karma. Just as Sat relates to the process of Knowledge, Chit relates to the concept of Karmayoga. And Ananda corresponds to the concept of Bhakti.

So, if you really want to have the full Divine, Sachchidananda, in its fullness, then there has to be a synthesis of knowledge, action and devotion. So, Sachchidananda on one side as the object to be realised fully and the synthesis of knowledge, action and devotion, these two correspond to each other and fulfil each other. Therefore, this knowledge of which Sri Krishna speaks still needs to be elucidated further.

We have seen from chapter n°7 to chapter n°12, in each chapter we have some new aspect of the Divine revealed. In the 7th chapter we have been told a very surprising thing that Divine has two natures: the lower nature and the higher nature.

In the 8th chapter we have the concept of Brahma, Adhyatma, Adidaiva, Adhibhuta, Karma, these difficult concepts are given and about each one of them we are told how it is related to the Supreme.

In the 9th chapter, we get the highest possible definition of the Divine where He is supra-cosmic and cosmic and individual, at once, and their interrelationship; how supra-cosmic is related to the cosmic, and the cosmic to the individual; how the Supreme is originator of all; how the Supreme inhabits all; how the Supreme through His energy is all; how even all do not exhaust Him; how He is present in all and yet He is above all so that it can be said that they are all in Him, but He is not in them.

In the 10th chapter, we have the manifestation of the Divine in an evolutionary form, and special manifestation of the Divine, the special mention of Vibhutis of various kinds.

In the 11th we have the direct śatśatkara of the Divine to see by divine sight the Divine in its fullness; so in every chapter, we have one aspect of the Divine, as it were, revealed one by one, and the comprehensive description of the Divine that we get from the chapter n°7 to 12 gives you the perfect presentation of the supreme Divine which is the object of knowledge.

“Knowledge” is nothing but the knowledge of the Divine, all other knowledge is information. It is when we can grow into the Divine, become the Divine, brahmabhūta, that is the concept of the Bhagavad Gita, brahmabhūta, you yourself become the Divine. It is the process of being, not only of knowing, but the process of being and the real knowing is being; so long as you simply ‘know’ and not ‘become’, it is simply a superficial information, at the most an intellectual articulation, but not possession of the Divine, not growth into the Divine, not become of the Divine.

Now, all this is explained, but what is the process of knowledge itself? That requires to be further elucidated and these 6 chapters take us into the depths of what we may call ‘psychology of knowledge’ and ‘epistemology of knowledge’. Psychology is the process of knowing. Epistemology is the fundamental principles of knowledge which make knowledge ‘knowledge’. How do we know that ‘this’ is knowledge and ‘this’ is not knowledge? That is the science of epistemology. It is that which described in these 6 chapters.