Bg 18.40
na tad asti pṛthivyāṁ vā divi deveṣu vā punaḥ
sattvaṁ prakṛti-jair muktaṁ yad ebhiḥ syāt tribhir guṇaiḥ
Bg 18.41
brāhmaṇa-kṣatriya-viśāṁ śūdrāṇāṁ ca paran-tapa
karmāṇi pravibhaktāni svabhāva-prabhavair guṇaiḥ
Bg 18.42
śamo damas tapaḥ śaucaṁ kṣāntir ārjavam eva ca
jñānaṁ vijñānam āstikyaṁ brahma-karma svabhāva-jam
Translation
40. There is no being on earth, or again in heaven among the "DEVAS" (heavenly beings) , who is totally liberated from the three qualities, born of PRAKRITI (matter).
41. Of scholars (BRAHMANAS) , of leaders (KSHATRIYAS) and of traders (VAISHYAS) , as also of workers (SHUDRAS) , O Parantapa, the duties are distributed according to the qualities born of their own nature.
42. Serenity, self-restraint, austerity, purity, forgiveness and also uprightness, knowledge, realisation, belief-in-God --- are the duties of the BRAHMANAS, born of (their own) nature.
Commentary
With the above stanza 18.39, the exhaustive description of the three Gunas as impinging upon the personality of all living organisms, is concluded. On the whole, this section of the chapter has given us a psychological explanation for the variety of men that we meet with, in the world-of-plurality, not only in their personality-structures but also in their individual-behaviours. The three types of beings have been described exhaustively --- by an analysis of "knowledge," "action," "agent," "understanding" and "fortitude." This is only for our guidance so that we know where we stand in our own inner nature and outer manifestations.
If we detect, with the above-mentioned slide-rule of personality, that we belong to the Tamasic or the Rajasic types, we, as seekers of cultural expression and growth, are to take warning and strive to heave ourselves into the Sattwic state. Remember, and I repeat, REMEMBER, these classifications are given NOT TO CLASSIFY OTHERS but to provide us with a ready-reckoner to help us in our constant and daily self-analysis and self-discipline.
These three gunas have been described because there is no living organism in the world, "NO CREATURE EITHER ON EARTH OR AGAIN AMONG THE GODS IN HEAVEN," who is totally free from the influence of these three gunas; no living creature can act or work beyond the frontiers provided by these three gunas. Nature (Prakriti) itself is constituted of these gunas; the play of these three gunas is the very expression of Prakriti.
But at the same time, no two creatures react to the world outside in the same fashion, because the proportion in which these three gunas come to influence each one is different at different times. These three gunas put together are the manifestation of "Maya." Individuals differ from one another because of the different textures of the gunas that predominantly rule over them; it is this Maya that gives them their individuality. An individual cannot, at any time, exist without all these three gunas, whatever be their relative proportion.
No sample of "coffee" is possible without its three ingredients, the decoction, the milk, and the sugar; but at the same time, the proportion in which they are mixed together may be different from cup to cup according to the taste of the partaker. He who has transcended the three gunas comes to experience the very plurality in the world as the play of the One Infinite. So, let us introspect and evaluate ourselves every day, every minute. Let us avoid the lower gunas and steadily work ourselves up towards the achievement of the Sattwic state. Only after reaching the status of the good (Sattwic) can we be ushered into the State of Godhood --- Perfection Absolute.
With these three measuring rods --- the qualities (gunas) Krishna classifies the entire community of man under three distinct types. The criterion of this classification is the texture of man's inner equipments which he brings into play for his achievements in his fields of activity. Accordingly, the Hindu scriptures have brought the entire humanity under a four-fold classification. So, its applicability is not merely confined to India --- BUT IS UNIVERSAL.
Certain well-defined characteristics determine the types of these four classes of human beings; they are not always determined by heredity, or accident of birth. They are termed, in our society, as: the Brahmanas --- with a major portion of Sattwa, a little Rajas and with minimum Tamas; the Kshatriyas --- mostly Rajas with some Sattwa, and a dash of Tamas; the Vaishyas --- with more Rajas, less Sattwa and some Tamas; and the Shudras --- mostly Tamas, a little Rajas, with only a suspicion of Sattwa.
This four-fold classification is universal and for all times. Even today it holds good. In modern language, the four types of people may be called: (1) the creative thinkers; (2) the politicians; (3) the commercial employers; and (4) the labourers (the proletarians). We can easily recognise how each subsequent classification holds in awe and reverence the previous higher class --- the employees are afraid of the employer, the commercial men are suspicious of the politicians and the politicians tremble at the courageous, independent thinkers.
In the following stanzas, by the discussions contained in them, in the immediate context of the Krishna-Arjuna summit talks, the Lord is only trying to make Arjuna understand that his inner equipment is such that he can be classified only as a Kshatriya. Being a Kshatriya, his duty is to fight, championing the cause of the good, and thus establish righteousness. He cannot, with profit, retire to the jungle and meditate for self-unfoldment, since he will have to grow, first of all, into the status of the Sattwic personality (Brahmana) before he can successfully strive on the path of total retirement and a life of rewarding contemplation. Therefore, with the available texture of mind and intellect, the only spiritual Sadhana left for Arjuna is to act vigorously in the field of contention. Thereby he can exhaust his existing vasanas of Rajas and Tamas.
IN THE FOLLOWING VERSES THE DUTIES ORDAINED BY ONE'S NATURE, "SWABHAAVA," AND ONE'S STATION IN LIFE, "SWADHARMA," ARE LAID OUT WITH THE THOROUGHNESS OF A LAW BOOK:
After dealing with the various gunas in the preceding stanza, Krishna now applies them to the social fabric of humanity and thus intelligently classifies the entire mankind under four distinct heads: the Brahmanas, the Kshatriyas, the Vaishyas and the Shudras.
Different types of duties are assigned to each of these classes of individuals depending upon their nature (Swabhaava), which is ordered by the proportion of the gunas in the make-up of each type of inner equipment. The duties prescribed for a particular type depend upon the manifestation of the inner ruling gunas, as expressed in the individual's contact with the world and his activities in society. The good and bad are not diagnosed by merely examining the texture of the person's skin or the colour of his hair; an individual is judged only by his expressions in life and by the quality of his contacts with the world outside. These alone can reflect one's inner personality --- the quality and texture of the contents of one's mind-intellect.
After testing and determining the quality of the inner personality, the individuals in the community are classified, and different types of duties are prescribed for each. Naturally, the duties prescribed for a Brahmana are different from those expected of a Kshatriya; and the work of the Vaishya and the Shudra should necessarily be different from that of the Brahmana and the Kshatriya. The Shastra enjoins duties, by pursuing which the preponderant Tamas can be evolved into Rajas, which, in its turn, can grow to become Sattwa. And, even then, the seeker must wait for the sublimation of Sattwa, when alone the final experience of the Infinite is gained.
By observing a person one can conclude as to which class he belongs to --- whether to the Brahmana, the Kshatriya, the Vaishya or the Shudra. In this context, when we say a man is Sattwic, it only means that the Sattwic qualities are predominant in him; even in the most Sattwic of persons, at times, the Rajasic and the Tamasic qualities can and will show up; so too, even in the most Tamasic man, Sattwa and Rajas will necessarily show up sometimes. No one is exclusively of one guna alone.
Today, as they are now worked out in India, these four classifications have lost much of their meaning. They signify merely a hereditary birth-right in the society, a mere physical distinction that divides the society into castes and sub-castes. A true Brahmana is necessarily a highly cultured Sattwic man who can readily control his sense-organs, and with perfect mastery over his mind, can raise himself, through contemplation, to the highest peaks of meditation upon the Infinite. But today's Brahmana is one who is claiming his distinction by birth alone and alas! he gets no reverence, because he has not striven to deserve it.
ANSWERING THE FOUR TYPES OF NATURE, AS DETERMINED BY THEIR PSYCHOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS, THERE ARE FOUR KINDS OF SOCIAL LIVING, EACH HAVING A DEFINITE FUNCTION IN SOCIETY: THEY ARE DESCRIBED BELOW:
Herein we have a detailed enumeration of the duties of a Brahmana born out of his own predominantly Sattwic nature. Serenity (Shama), is one of his duties. Shama is controlling the mind from running into the world-of-objects seeking sense-enjoyments. Even if we shut off the world-of-objects by carrying ourselves away from the tumults and temptations of life into a quiet, lonely place, even there our minds will stride forth into the sense-fields through the memories of our past indulgences. To control consciously this instinctive flow of the mind towards the sense-objects is called Shama.
SELF-CONTROL (Dama) --- Controlling the sense-organs, which are the gateways through which the external world of stimuli infiltrates into our mental domain and mars our peace, is called Dama. A man practising Dama, even if he be in the midst of sensuous objects, is not disturbed by them. A true Brahmana is one who practises constantly both Shama and Dama, serenity and self-control.
AUSTERITY (Tapas) --- Conscious physical self-denial in order to economise the expenditure of human energy so lavishly spent in the wrong channels of sense-indulgence, and conserving it for reaching the higher unfoldment within is called Tapas. By the practice of Shama and Dama, the Brahmana will be steadily controlling both the mad rush of his senses and his mind-wandering. This helps him to conserve his inner vitality which would have been otherwise spent in hunting after sense-joys. This conserved energy is utilised for higher flights in meditation. This subjective process of economising, conserving, and redirecting one's energies within is called Tapas. It is a Brahmana's duty to live in Tapas.
PURITY (Shaucham) --- The Sanskrit term used here includes external cleanliness and internal purity. Habits of cleanliness in one's personal life and surroundings are the governing conditions in the life of one who is practising both Shama and Dama. The practice of Tapas makes him such a disciplined person that he cannot stand any disorderly confusion or state of neglect around and about him. A person living in the midst of things thrown about in a disorderly manner is certainly a man of slothful nature and slovenly habits. It is the duty of the Brahmana to keep himself ever clean and pure.
FORBEARANCE (Kshaanti) --- To be patient and forgiving and thus to live without struggling even against wrongs done against one, is "forbearance" --- the duty of a Brahmana. Such an individual will never harbour any hatred for anyone; he lives equanimously amidst both the good and the bad.
UPRIGHTNESS (Aarjavam) --- This is a quality which makes an individual straightforward in all his dealings, and his uprightness makes him fearless in life. He is afraid of none, and he makes no compromise of the higher calls with the lower murmurings.
Cultivating the above six qualities --- serenity (Shama), self-control (Dama), austerity (Tapas), purity (Shaucham), forbearance (Kshaanti), and straightforwardness (Aarjavam) --- and expressing them in all his relationships with the world outside is the life-long duty of a Brahmana. The above-mentioned six artistic strokes complete the picture of a Brahmana on the stage of the world when he deals with things and beings in the various situations in life. The Lord enumerates, in the stanza, three more duties of a Brahmana which are the rules of conduct controlling his spiritual life.
KNOWLEDGE (Jnaanam) --- The theoretical knowledge of the world, of the structure of the equipments-of-experience and their behaviour while coming in contact with the outer world, of the highest goal of life, of the nature of the spirit --- in short, knowledge of all that the Upanishads deal with --- is included in the term Jnaanam.
WISDOM (Vijnaanam) --- If 'theoretical knowledge' is Jnaanam then 'personal experience' is Vijnaanam. Knowledge digested and assimilated brings home to man an inward experience, and thereafter, he comes to live his life guided by this deep inner experience called "wisdom." Knowledge can be imparted, but "wisdom" is to be found by the individual in himself. When a student discovers in himself the enthusiasm to live the knowledge gained through his studies, then from the field of his lived experience arises "wisdom" --- Vijnaanam.
FAITH (Aastikyam) --- Unless one has a deep faith in what one has studied and lived, the living itself will not be enthusiastic and full. This ardency of conviction which is the motive-force behind one who lives what he has understood, is the secret sustaining power that steadily converts KNOWLEDGE into "wisdom." This inner order, this intellectual honesty, this subtle unflagging enthusiasm, is called "FAITH."
To grow and steadily cultivate knowledge, wisdom and faith are the sacred duties of a Brahmana in his spiritual life.
Sources: vedabase.com; The Holy Geeta
na tad asti pṛthivyāṁ vā divi deveṣu vā punaḥ
sattvaṁ prakṛti-jair muktaṁ yad ebhiḥ syāt tribhir guṇaiḥ
Bg 18.41
brāhmaṇa-kṣatriya-viśāṁ śūdrāṇāṁ ca paran-tapa
karmāṇi pravibhaktāni svabhāva-prabhavair guṇaiḥ
Bg 18.42
śamo damas tapaḥ śaucaṁ kṣāntir ārjavam eva ca
jñānaṁ vijñānam āstikyaṁ brahma-karma svabhāva-jam
Translation
40. There is no being on earth, or again in heaven among the "DEVAS" (heavenly beings) , who is totally liberated from the three qualities, born of PRAKRITI (matter).
41. Of scholars (BRAHMANAS) , of leaders (KSHATRIYAS) and of traders (VAISHYAS) , as also of workers (SHUDRAS) , O Parantapa, the duties are distributed according to the qualities born of their own nature.
42. Serenity, self-restraint, austerity, purity, forgiveness and also uprightness, knowledge, realisation, belief-in-God --- are the duties of the BRAHMANAS, born of (their own) nature.
Commentary
With the above stanza 18.39, the exhaustive description of the three Gunas as impinging upon the personality of all living organisms, is concluded. On the whole, this section of the chapter has given us a psychological explanation for the variety of men that we meet with, in the world-of-plurality, not only in their personality-structures but also in their individual-behaviours. The three types of beings have been described exhaustively --- by an analysis of "knowledge," "action," "agent," "understanding" and "fortitude." This is only for our guidance so that we know where we stand in our own inner nature and outer manifestations.
If we detect, with the above-mentioned slide-rule of personality, that we belong to the Tamasic or the Rajasic types, we, as seekers of cultural expression and growth, are to take warning and strive to heave ourselves into the Sattwic state. Remember, and I repeat, REMEMBER, these classifications are given NOT TO CLASSIFY OTHERS but to provide us with a ready-reckoner to help us in our constant and daily self-analysis and self-discipline.
These three gunas have been described because there is no living organism in the world, "NO CREATURE EITHER ON EARTH OR AGAIN AMONG THE GODS IN HEAVEN," who is totally free from the influence of these three gunas; no living creature can act or work beyond the frontiers provided by these three gunas. Nature (Prakriti) itself is constituted of these gunas; the play of these three gunas is the very expression of Prakriti.
But at the same time, no two creatures react to the world outside in the same fashion, because the proportion in which these three gunas come to influence each one is different at different times. These three gunas put together are the manifestation of "Maya." Individuals differ from one another because of the different textures of the gunas that predominantly rule over them; it is this Maya that gives them their individuality. An individual cannot, at any time, exist without all these three gunas, whatever be their relative proportion.
No sample of "coffee" is possible without its three ingredients, the decoction, the milk, and the sugar; but at the same time, the proportion in which they are mixed together may be different from cup to cup according to the taste of the partaker. He who has transcended the three gunas comes to experience the very plurality in the world as the play of the One Infinite. So, let us introspect and evaluate ourselves every day, every minute. Let us avoid the lower gunas and steadily work ourselves up towards the achievement of the Sattwic state. Only after reaching the status of the good (Sattwic) can we be ushered into the State of Godhood --- Perfection Absolute.
With these three measuring rods --- the qualities (gunas) Krishna classifies the entire community of man under three distinct types. The criterion of this classification is the texture of man's inner equipments which he brings into play for his achievements in his fields of activity. Accordingly, the Hindu scriptures have brought the entire humanity under a four-fold classification. So, its applicability is not merely confined to India --- BUT IS UNIVERSAL.
Certain well-defined characteristics determine the types of these four classes of human beings; they are not always determined by heredity, or accident of birth. They are termed, in our society, as: the Brahmanas --- with a major portion of Sattwa, a little Rajas and with minimum Tamas; the Kshatriyas --- mostly Rajas with some Sattwa, and a dash of Tamas; the Vaishyas --- with more Rajas, less Sattwa and some Tamas; and the Shudras --- mostly Tamas, a little Rajas, with only a suspicion of Sattwa.
This four-fold classification is universal and for all times. Even today it holds good. In modern language, the four types of people may be called: (1) the creative thinkers; (2) the politicians; (3) the commercial employers; and (4) the labourers (the proletarians). We can easily recognise how each subsequent classification holds in awe and reverence the previous higher class --- the employees are afraid of the employer, the commercial men are suspicious of the politicians and the politicians tremble at the courageous, independent thinkers.
In the following stanzas, by the discussions contained in them, in the immediate context of the Krishna-Arjuna summit talks, the Lord is only trying to make Arjuna understand that his inner equipment is such that he can be classified only as a Kshatriya. Being a Kshatriya, his duty is to fight, championing the cause of the good, and thus establish righteousness. He cannot, with profit, retire to the jungle and meditate for self-unfoldment, since he will have to grow, first of all, into the status of the Sattwic personality (Brahmana) before he can successfully strive on the path of total retirement and a life of rewarding contemplation. Therefore, with the available texture of mind and intellect, the only spiritual Sadhana left for Arjuna is to act vigorously in the field of contention. Thereby he can exhaust his existing vasanas of Rajas and Tamas.
IN THE FOLLOWING VERSES THE DUTIES ORDAINED BY ONE'S NATURE, "SWABHAAVA," AND ONE'S STATION IN LIFE, "SWADHARMA," ARE LAID OUT WITH THE THOROUGHNESS OF A LAW BOOK:
After dealing with the various gunas in the preceding stanza, Krishna now applies them to the social fabric of humanity and thus intelligently classifies the entire mankind under four distinct heads: the Brahmanas, the Kshatriyas, the Vaishyas and the Shudras.
Different types of duties are assigned to each of these classes of individuals depending upon their nature (Swabhaava), which is ordered by the proportion of the gunas in the make-up of each type of inner equipment. The duties prescribed for a particular type depend upon the manifestation of the inner ruling gunas, as expressed in the individual's contact with the world and his activities in society. The good and bad are not diagnosed by merely examining the texture of the person's skin or the colour of his hair; an individual is judged only by his expressions in life and by the quality of his contacts with the world outside. These alone can reflect one's inner personality --- the quality and texture of the contents of one's mind-intellect.
After testing and determining the quality of the inner personality, the individuals in the community are classified, and different types of duties are prescribed for each. Naturally, the duties prescribed for a Brahmana are different from those expected of a Kshatriya; and the work of the Vaishya and the Shudra should necessarily be different from that of the Brahmana and the Kshatriya. The Shastra enjoins duties, by pursuing which the preponderant Tamas can be evolved into Rajas, which, in its turn, can grow to become Sattwa. And, even then, the seeker must wait for the sublimation of Sattwa, when alone the final experience of the Infinite is gained.
By observing a person one can conclude as to which class he belongs to --- whether to the Brahmana, the Kshatriya, the Vaishya or the Shudra. In this context, when we say a man is Sattwic, it only means that the Sattwic qualities are predominant in him; even in the most Sattwic of persons, at times, the Rajasic and the Tamasic qualities can and will show up; so too, even in the most Tamasic man, Sattwa and Rajas will necessarily show up sometimes. No one is exclusively of one guna alone.
Today, as they are now worked out in India, these four classifications have lost much of their meaning. They signify merely a hereditary birth-right in the society, a mere physical distinction that divides the society into castes and sub-castes. A true Brahmana is necessarily a highly cultured Sattwic man who can readily control his sense-organs, and with perfect mastery over his mind, can raise himself, through contemplation, to the highest peaks of meditation upon the Infinite. But today's Brahmana is one who is claiming his distinction by birth alone and alas! he gets no reverence, because he has not striven to deserve it.
ANSWERING THE FOUR TYPES OF NATURE, AS DETERMINED BY THEIR PSYCHOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS, THERE ARE FOUR KINDS OF SOCIAL LIVING, EACH HAVING A DEFINITE FUNCTION IN SOCIETY: THEY ARE DESCRIBED BELOW:
Herein we have a detailed enumeration of the duties of a Brahmana born out of his own predominantly Sattwic nature. Serenity (Shama), is one of his duties. Shama is controlling the mind from running into the world-of-objects seeking sense-enjoyments. Even if we shut off the world-of-objects by carrying ourselves away from the tumults and temptations of life into a quiet, lonely place, even there our minds will stride forth into the sense-fields through the memories of our past indulgences. To control consciously this instinctive flow of the mind towards the sense-objects is called Shama.
SELF-CONTROL (Dama) --- Controlling the sense-organs, which are the gateways through which the external world of stimuli infiltrates into our mental domain and mars our peace, is called Dama. A man practising Dama, even if he be in the midst of sensuous objects, is not disturbed by them. A true Brahmana is one who practises constantly both Shama and Dama, serenity and self-control.
AUSTERITY (Tapas) --- Conscious physical self-denial in order to economise the expenditure of human energy so lavishly spent in the wrong channels of sense-indulgence, and conserving it for reaching the higher unfoldment within is called Tapas. By the practice of Shama and Dama, the Brahmana will be steadily controlling both the mad rush of his senses and his mind-wandering. This helps him to conserve his inner vitality which would have been otherwise spent in hunting after sense-joys. This conserved energy is utilised for higher flights in meditation. This subjective process of economising, conserving, and redirecting one's energies within is called Tapas. It is a Brahmana's duty to live in Tapas.
PURITY (Shaucham) --- The Sanskrit term used here includes external cleanliness and internal purity. Habits of cleanliness in one's personal life and surroundings are the governing conditions in the life of one who is practising both Shama and Dama. The practice of Tapas makes him such a disciplined person that he cannot stand any disorderly confusion or state of neglect around and about him. A person living in the midst of things thrown about in a disorderly manner is certainly a man of slothful nature and slovenly habits. It is the duty of the Brahmana to keep himself ever clean and pure.
FORBEARANCE (Kshaanti) --- To be patient and forgiving and thus to live without struggling even against wrongs done against one, is "forbearance" --- the duty of a Brahmana. Such an individual will never harbour any hatred for anyone; he lives equanimously amidst both the good and the bad.
UPRIGHTNESS (Aarjavam) --- This is a quality which makes an individual straightforward in all his dealings, and his uprightness makes him fearless in life. He is afraid of none, and he makes no compromise of the higher calls with the lower murmurings.
Cultivating the above six qualities --- serenity (Shama), self-control (Dama), austerity (Tapas), purity (Shaucham), forbearance (Kshaanti), and straightforwardness (Aarjavam) --- and expressing them in all his relationships with the world outside is the life-long duty of a Brahmana. The above-mentioned six artistic strokes complete the picture of a Brahmana on the stage of the world when he deals with things and beings in the various situations in life. The Lord enumerates, in the stanza, three more duties of a Brahmana which are the rules of conduct controlling his spiritual life.
KNOWLEDGE (Jnaanam) --- The theoretical knowledge of the world, of the structure of the equipments-of-experience and their behaviour while coming in contact with the outer world, of the highest goal of life, of the nature of the spirit --- in short, knowledge of all that the Upanishads deal with --- is included in the term Jnaanam.
WISDOM (Vijnaanam) --- If 'theoretical knowledge' is Jnaanam then 'personal experience' is Vijnaanam. Knowledge digested and assimilated brings home to man an inward experience, and thereafter, he comes to live his life guided by this deep inner experience called "wisdom." Knowledge can be imparted, but "wisdom" is to be found by the individual in himself. When a student discovers in himself the enthusiasm to live the knowledge gained through his studies, then from the field of his lived experience arises "wisdom" --- Vijnaanam.
FAITH (Aastikyam) --- Unless one has a deep faith in what one has studied and lived, the living itself will not be enthusiastic and full. This ardency of conviction which is the motive-force behind one who lives what he has understood, is the secret sustaining power that steadily converts KNOWLEDGE into "wisdom." This inner order, this intellectual honesty, this subtle unflagging enthusiasm, is called "FAITH."
To grow and steadily cultivate knowledge, wisdom and faith are the sacred duties of a Brahmana in his spiritual life.
Sources: vedabase.com; The Holy Geeta
