“O best among the Bharatas [Arjuna], four kinds of pious men render devotional service unto Me – the distressed, the desirer of wealth, the inquisitive, and he who is searching for knowledge of the Absolute.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 7.16)

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चतुर्-विधा भजन्ते मां
जनाः सुकृतिनो ऽर्जुन
आर्तो जिज्ञासुर् अर्थार्थी
ज्ञानी च भरतर्षभ

catur-vidhā bhajante māṁ
janāḥ sukṛtino ‘rjuna
ārto jijñāsur arthārthī
jñānī ca bharatarṣabha

“I believe I am not the only person to have this reaction. When hearing someone insist that I follow their particular faith, that there is no other way, that unless I completely denounce every other tradition as demonic in nature, I am doomed forever. No second chances. This is it. I better follow or it is over for me.

“Of course, we must set aside the many individuals who never get the opportunity to make a choice. These same people pushing their religion on me insist that life begins at conception, that the person is alive within the womb. Okay, if we accept that truth, then it is also understood that many of those living beings never make it out of the womb. For one reason or another, the opportunity to live the typical experience is taken away; those future adults never get to submit to the threats of dogmatic insistence.

“What happens to such individuals? What about people living in the past, prior to the advent of that specific savior? Those people were doomed, I guess? Were they not citizens in the government of the universe that belongs to God? They were left stranded, then? They had no chance? They could only suffer?

“The reaction I mentioned before is disbelief. It is almost a chuckle at the obvious absurdity of the proposal. Not that I am against religion, but I am surely not going to be forced into it. I am not going to sit here and live in fear. That is ridiculous. The thing is, many people do give in. I will put them into the category of ‘weak’. They have some weakness, wherein they are compromised. The largest population is the addicts, especially if incarcerated. Addicted to drugs. To alcohol. To gambling. They lost everything. They stopped listening to friends and family.

“Those people then discovered the higher power. Everything turned around for them, as a result. They now have a ‘testimony’ to share with others. That is well and good, but what about the people who never hit rock bottom? What is the appeal for them? How can religion be of value to the strong? Do you see what I am saying? Many people are too intelligent to be duped by some fear campaign. They are smarter than that.”

Shri Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, describes that the people who approach Him can be grouped into four general categories. These categories apply to the initial approach. The one pertinent to this discussion is “the distressed.” They are in some kind of trouble. There is the classic scene of the soldier within a foxhole. They have no other hope. They must submit a plea to a higher power to save them. They must invest everything in hope, for lack of a better term, to be spared from the onslaught of military might targeted in their general vicinity.

The “distressed” can be someone addicted to drugs and alcohol. It can be someone fallen so low that they are facing a long sentence in prison. The “distressed” can also be someone who is afraid to carry out their work, especially if it involves shooting non-strangers. This was the backdrop of the Bhagavad-gita conversation. The bow-warrior named Arjuna was distressed because he could see into the future. He hesitated upon realizing that success in his day at work would mean killing many others. Arjuna would be a direct party to the violence.

At the same time, there are other categories. One of them is “the inquisitive”. Someone who is asking questions. They are curious about the ways of nature. For instance, how does a seed know what to do when planted in the ground? It otherwise shows no signs of intelligence. The same seed is specifically programmed, better than the computer chip, to follow through on an intended result, without deviation. In other words, we can count on the seed. We can assume with confidence that the seed of a cucumber will not suddenly produce a banana.

The inquisitive might wonder why people of a certain region formally pray to different gods. Not all of the objects of worship look the same. Why do these worshipers believe in multiple lives? Why are they not scared by the appeal of dogmatic insistence? Why do they find great joy in repeating sounds, such as a mantra?

The inquisitive person might also be strong. They might have everything going for them in life. They might otherwise be entirely happy. Still, they have some questions. They want to advance in their understanding. Real religion should be able to match such inquiry. There should be an honest answer to the questions. The inquiry should not be artificially suppressed.

Ask the questions. Sacrifice some time to hear the answers. Attempt to gain a clear understanding. Be patient in the manner of Arjuna hearing the wisdom from Krishna. There is no insistence, though there is a preponderance of evidence of the three varieties to support the decision in favor of worshiping the Supreme Lord as a way of life. Arjuna had direct evidence, in visuals of the future. He could infer the conclusion based on stacking the individual truths together. He also had the support of sound passed along by the highest authority.

मत्तः परतरं नान्यत्
किञ्चिद् अस्ति धनञ्जय
मयि सर्वम् इदं प्रोतं
सूत्रे मणि-गणा इव

mattaḥ parataraṁ nānyat
kiñcid asti dhanañjaya
mayi sarvam idaṁ protaṁ
sūtre maṇi-gaṇā iva

“O conquerer of wealth [Arjuna], there is no Truth superior to Me. Everything rests upon Me, as pearls are strung on a thread.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 7.7)

In Closing:

Three evidences in course,
With highest authority source.

And produced therefrom sound,
Inference from conclusions bound.

And the direct evidence seeing,
In vision of Supreme Being.

So whether poor or the strongest of all,
To understand self the action to call.

Categories: questions

Tags: dailyprompt, life, poem, poems, poetry, religion, wealth