Krishn Discourses Arjun - Anugeetaa-1

Janamejaya asked - "When Arjun and Krishn retired to assembly room, what conversation took place between them?" Vaishampaayan Jee said - "They enjoyed some time without doing anything. But one day they came around a place in the palace. Enjoying its beauty, Arjun said to Krishn - "I came to know about your greatness when the war started. What you said to me at that time, I have forgotten because of the weakness of my mind. I have been repeatedly pondering over those truths. And now you will go to Dwaarakaa."

Krishn embraced him and said - "I told you those truths which are mysteries and eternal. It is very bad that you didn't listen to it attentively. Now I cannot recollect all of them fully. Really you are without faith, you have no understanding. It is just impossible for me to repeat all that what I said on that occasion. What I said to you at that time was more than sufficient to understand Brahm. I cannot tell you all that in detail. I told you about Supreme Brahm having concentrated on me in Yog, but I tell you another incident of history similar to that. Listen to it now attentively so that you can reach your highest goal. At one time a Braahman of irresistible energy came to us from Heaven. We welcomed him and honored him. Now you listen attentively to what he said in answers of our questions.

He said - "O Krishn, Whatever you have asked me related to the regions of Moksh for the good of the people, you know it already, still I tell it to you duly, listen to it attentively. A Braahman named Kashyap who had possessed penance and was well conversant with duties came to another Braahman who knew all mysteries of religion. This another Braahman had mastered all the knowledge about birth and death of beings, pleasure and pain, distinction between merit and demerit and had the knowledge through Yog. He had all his Indriyaan under his control. Kashyap had heard about him so he wanted to see him. So he went to him and fell on his feet. He started waiting upon him as a disciple waits upon his preceptor.

One day, satisfied with his services that Braahman spoke to Kashyap thus - "By diverse acts, and by merit, mortal creatures attain diverse ends here and in Heaven. Nowhere is the highest happiness, no residence is eternal. There are repeated falls from the highest regions. As a result of my indulgence in sins I have been born and died several times. I have taken many kinds of food, seen many kinds of mothers, all different from one another. I have suffered from all kinds of opposites. One day overwhelmed with sorrows and despair I took refuge in Formless. In gave up the world of all joys and sorrows. I understood this path, through tranquility of the soul I attained this success which you are seeing now. After I have gone from here, I will not come here again. Till this world finally dissolute, (Mahaa Pralaya, not Khand Pralaya or Avaantar Pralaya) I shall look on those happy ends that will be mine. I shall attain that aspect of Brahm which is Formless after getting to Satya Lok. I am very pleased with you, tell me what can I do for you? I know what for you have come here. I shall soon depart from this world. Question me anything, I will reply. You look intelligent that is why you could recognize me."

Krishn continued - "Then Kashyap asked some very difficult questions from him. He asked - "How does the body dissolve away; and then how is another one acquired? How one attains Moksh after several rounds of painful rebirths? How does Jeev cast off the particular body given by Prakriti? How does Jeev attain, free from the body, Him (Brahm)? How does a human being enjoy the fruits of his bad and good Karm? Where do the acts exist of a person that is devoid of the body?" (see Notes 1 here)

The Braahman said - "How the body dissolves away? - Upon the exhaustion of those acts, which prolong the life, done in a particular body that Jeev assumes, the embodied Jeev with the span of life shortened begins to do acts hostile to life and health. As the death approaches nearer his understanding turns away from the proper course. He begins to eat at irregular intervals and the kind of food which is hostile to him. From these harmful practices he gets sick soon. Sometime he engages himself in unnatural practices (like hanging himself); and thus the living body of the creature dissolves away. How? Understand it as I say it - urged by the Wind which becomes violent; the heat in the body is excited, reaches every part of the body one after the other and restrains vital breaths. Thus heat becomes very strong and pierces every part of the body where life may be said to reside. As a result Jeev feels great pain and quickly takes leave from this body. Thus while the body feels so much pain, Jeev slips away from the body overwhelmed with great pain. All living creatures are repeatedly afflicted with death and rebirth. It is said that the pain a person feels is like that when he enters the womb or comes out of it - his joints are almost dislocated and he feels much distress from the water.

Urged by another wind, the wind inside the body is excited through cold and dissolves the body  into its respective five elements. The wind which resides in the vital breaths (Praan and Apaan) rushes upwards from this situation of distress, leaving the body. That is how wind leaves the body. The man then becomes destitute of heat, breath, beauty and consciousness. Deserted by Brahm (Jeev is Brahm) the person is said to be dead. His all Indriyaan stop working, he can no longer perceive anything from them. It is that eternal Jeev who creates in the body the life-breaths generated by food.

The five elements gather together at certain places in the body and are firmly united - these parts are called vital parts. When these vital parts are pierced, Jeev rises up to the heat of the creature and stops the movements of the creature immediately. The creature, though still conscious, fails to know anything. The vital parts are already overwhelmed, the knowledge also is overwhelmed by darkness. Jeev is deprived of everything on which to stay, is agitated by wind. He then deeply and painfully breathing goes away quickly causing the still body trembled.

Disassociated from the body, however Jeev is surrounded by his acts - whether sins or Punya (meritorious acts). Braahman through their knowledge, know that whether that Jeev is possessed with merits or sins. As people see fire from their eyes, in the same way the knowledgeable Braahman with the eye of their knowledge (Tap and spiritual vision) can see  when Jeev left the body, when it entered the womb, when it is reborn.

Where the Jeev goes? - It is seen that Jeev is assigned three regions eternally - this world which is called "Field of Action" where it does all kinds of Karm and enjoys their fruits. Depending on their Karm they can attain higher or lower type of enjoyments - evil doers get to Hell from where recovery is difficult. Now I will tell you where do they go from here. You should listen to it attentively so that you can clearly know of good and bad acts. Those regions (that shine away in the firmament) are for all creatures of righteous deeds. As their Punya are over, they fall from them. In Heaven itself there are superior, inferior and middle type of felicity. After this I tell you, how Jeev lives in womb. Listen to it.

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