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Perfect understanding/Krishna consciousness
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To: alt-hindu@uunet.uu.net
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Subject: Perfect understanding/Krishna consciousness
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From: lchiluku@ucsd.edu (R. & L. Chilukuri)
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Date: 5 Apr 1995 05:29:49 GMT
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From news@network.ucsd.edu Wed Apr 5 01: 19:15 1995
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Newsgroups: alt.hindu
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Organization: Univ of California at San Diego
Please note that the title has been intentionally selected to side-step
the
current discussions on "tat tvam asi".
The intention is to discuss the qualities of a man of perfect
understanding.
A few translations (not the original bhasyas) that were readily available
have been typed below. My own questions follow thereafter.
Bhagavad Gita: Chapter II, Shloka 54. (Transliteration from BG As It Is)
arjuna uvaca:
sthita prajnasya ka bhasa
samadhi-sthasya kesava
sthita-dhih kim prabhaseta
kim asita vrajeta kim.
Ramanujacharya:
Arjuna said:
What O Krsna (Kesava), is the language about him who is of steady
understanding and is established in control over his mind? What will he
of
steady understanding speak? How will he sit (i.e. meditate), and how will
he
move (and do things)?
Bhagavad Gita As It Is:
Arjuna said:
O Krsna, what are the symptoms of one whose conciousness is thus merged
in
transcendence? How doews he speak, and what is his language? How does he
sit, and how does he walk?
Gita Bhasya of Sankaracharya
Arjuna said:
How can a man of stable wisdom, anchored in concentration, be described,
O
Krishna? How does a man of steadfast wisdom speak? How does he sit? How
walk?
Swami Chinmayananda:
Arjuna said:
What, O Kesava, is the description of him who has steady Wisdom and who
is
merged in the Superconcious state? How does one of Steady Wisdom speak,
how
does he sit, how does he walk?
Observations and Questions:
1) Note that the shloka has three words originating from the root
stha.
Thus steady, firm, or established is emphasized. Perhaps
steadiness
in all aspects is a hallmark of such a being.
2) My first reaction to this shloka was -- "I dont really care how
such
a man sits, speaks or walks! He can be no different (physically)
from other human beings in this respect!" Ramanuja does try to
interpret "vrajeta" as "doing things" and "asita" as "meditate"
3) Note that words related to speech appear twice in this shloka
(bhasha and prabhashet). I really like Srila Prabhupada's
commentary
on how speech immediately reveals the quality of any man.
4) The true meaning of the word "pragnya" eludes me. What is the
etymology, are there any synonyms?
5) Are there any grammatical nuances that shed light on the phrases?
If there is sufficient interest, perhaps we can r\discuss the remaine\der
of
Chapter 2 in this manner.
Dhanyavad
Krish Chilukuri
