“Arjuna said: You are the Supreme Brahman, the ultimate, the supreme abode and purifier, the Absolute Truth and the eternal divine person. You are the primal God, transcendental and original, and You are the unborn and all-pervading beauty. All the great sages such as Narada, Asita, Devala, and Vyasa proclaim this of You, and now You Yourself are declaring it to me.” (Bhagavad-gita, 10.12-13)

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अर्जुन उवाच
परं ब्रह्म परं धाम पवित्रं परमं भवान्
पुरुषं शाश्वतं दिव्यमादिदेवमजं विभुम्
आहुस्त्वामृषय: सर्वे देवर्षिर्नारदस्तथा
असितो देवलो व्यास: स्वयं चैव ब्रवीषि मे

arjuna uvāca
paraṁ brahma paraṁ dhāma
pavitraṁ paramaṁ bhavān
puruṣaṁ śāśvataṁ divyam
ādi-devam ajaṁ vibhum

āhus tvām ṛṣayaḥ sarve
devarṣir nāradas tathā
asito devalo vyāsaḥ
svayaṁ caiva bravīṣi me

1. Cybersecurity

“Listen, these ransomware incidents appear to be popping up left and right. We have to do something. You are saying that if we install your monitoring tools on all of our machines, we will be protected? Attackers will not be able to infiltrate? We will not have to embarrassingly admit to the world that we have been hacked? Okay, that is great news. Do you have any sort of supporting material? Testimonials from other customers. A rating from an agency. This is a great risk we are taking. What if your monitoring software is itself breached from within your organization? You would then have access to all of our sensitive data.”

2. Offsite data backup

“We are in the middle of overhauling our disaster recovery strategy. We are looking for trusted sites to offload our data onto. We like everything about your setup. It seems secure. Can you tell us a little more about the access policy? Particularly with respect to the facility. Who is allowed to enter? How do you keep track of who comes and who goes? How can we be sure that the power won’t go out? Do you have any supporting material that we can show our internal review team?”

3. Bodyguard

“How many pushups can you do? Can you outrun would-be attackers? What kind of physical shape are you in? Do you have any athletic accomplishments to your name? Can you show us how much weight you can lift over your head? We need to know these things in order to be confident of your ability to protect.”

4. Caregiver

“You seem great. We really like you. We want you to start right away, but since we don’t know you there are additional checks we would like to run. Do you have references that we can call? Perhaps other families that you have worked for can vouch for your standard of excellence.”

5. Insurance

“We are a multimillion dollar operation. The magic happens in this building. We cannot lose our stuff, if you know what I mean. We are looking for the best insurer. Obviously, we need someone who is financially stable. If the insurer goes bankrupt, then how are we even protected? Do you see what I mean? What is your credit rating? What are your annual revenues? How much do you keep in reserves? How can we be sure that if a disaster impacts the entire area, you will still be able to meet your obligations?”

…

सर्व-धर्मान् परित्यज्य
माम् एकं शरणं व्रज
अहं त्वां सर्व-पापेभ्यो
मोक्षयिष्यामि मा शुचः

sarva-dharmān parityajya
mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja
ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyo
mokṣayiṣyāmi mā śucaḥ

“Abandon all varieties of religion and just surrender unto Me. I shall deliver you from all sinful reaction. Do not fear.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 18.66)

It is the conclusion to their conversation. If everything said up to that point could be summed up in a couplet of Sanskrit poetry, it would be the promise from Krishna to Arjuna. Sure, the disciple should deliberate. They should take their time, to be free of doubts. If there are questions lingering, they should not hesitate to bring them forward. The authority figure in this case is not insisting on blind allegiance. There is not necessarily a threat of punishment, since the misery already began. From the time of birth, the individual in the conditioned state, jiva, struggles with duality.

इच्छाद्वेषसमुत्थेन द्वन्द्वमोहेन भारत
सर्वभूतानि संमोहं सर्गे यान्ति परन्तप

icchādveṣasamutthena dvandvamohena bhārata
sarvabhūtāni saṃmohaṃ sarge yānti parantapa

“O scion of Bharata [Arjuna], O conquerer of the foe, all living entities are born into delusion, overcome by the dualities of desire and hate.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 7.27)

One minute they are excited about starting a new job. No more dreaded meetings with the ill-tempered and hypocritical manager. No more being yanked around like hired domestic help. They will be respected at the new place. That is, of course, until they aren’t. Then they hate their job again. They want out. They want to go anywhere else, in fact.

I like this person. I don’t like that person. He is my friend. She is my enemy. I cannot wait for the heat of summer to dissipate. These soaring temperatures are too much to tolerate. When winter arrives, the summer feels like a distant memory. I would much rather walk around outside when there is no ice on the ground.

मात्रा-स्पर्शास् तु कौन्तेय
शीतोष्ण-सुख-दुःख-दाः
आगमापायिनो ऽनित्यास्
तांस् तितिक्षस्व भारत

mātrā-sparśās tu kaunteya
śītoṣṇa-sukha-duḥkha-dāḥ
āgamāpāyino ‘nityās
tāṁs titikṣasva bhārata

“O son of Kunti, the nonpermanent appearance of happiness and distress, and their disappearance in due course, are like the appearance and disappearance of winter and summer seasons. They arise from sense perception, O scion of Bharata, and one must learn to tolerate them without being disturbed.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 2.14)

There is attraction and aversion, and there is also right and wrong. Is my conduct proper? Am I inviting negative consequences in the future? How do I square competing interests? Just what path will allow me to sleep at night, knowing that I am not intentionally harming others?

Shri Krishna advises in favor of relinquishing interest in these other systems of right and wrong. Give up other dharmas in favor of surrender to Krishna Himself. This total capitulation, which is a kind of liberating release, is known as sharanagati. It is approaching the shelter of the one who once literally lifted a mountain and held it above His head to give protection to innocent victims of the wrath of a powerful administrator temporarily drunk with power.

“My dear brothers, My dear father, My dear inhabitants of Vrindavana, you can now safely enter under the umbrella of Govardhana Hill, which I have just lifted. Do not be afraid of the hill and think that it will fall from My hand. You have been too much afflicted from the heavy rain and strong wind; therefore I have lifted this hill, which will protect you exactly like a huge umbrella.” (Lord Krishna, Krishna, The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Volume 1, Chapter 25)

As we see from our discussion above, there are some questions to answer. At least for the doubting soul, the one who worries that a single individual might not be up to the role of protector. Just why should Arjuna trust Krishna? Where are the credentials to back up the claim? How can Arjuna be sure that Krishna is indeed the highest authority figure, the original guru, and the source of the material and spiritual worlds?

अहं सर्वस्य प्रभवो
मत्तः सर्वं प्रवर्तते
इति मत्वा भजन्ते मां
बुधा भाव-समन्विताः

ahaṁ sarvasya prabhavo
mattaḥ sarvaṁ pravartate
iti matvā bhajante māṁ
budhā bhāva-samanvitāḥ

“I am the source of all spiritual and material worlds. Everything emanates from Me. The wise who know this perfectly engage in My devotional service and worship Me with all their hearts.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 10.8)

As the insurance company might highlight their stellar rating announced by an external auditor, so Arjuna already knows from trusted individuals that Krishna is the real deal. Respected figures like Devala, Asita, Vyasa, and Narada concur that Vāsudeva, which is another name for Krishna, is everything and more. The direct vision gives additional assurance. Krishna shows the virat-rupa to Arjuna. This is on request; Krishna does not constantly boast of His divine nature. He is fine with playing with His devotees in the mood of their choosing. He enjoys hearing the taunting words of mother Yashoda, for instance, after she rhetorically asks if He can move around after being tied to the mortar in Gokula.

यदि शक्नोषि गच्छ त्वम् अतिचञ्चलचेष्टित
इत्य् उक्त्वा च निजं कर्म सा चकार कुटुम्बिनी

yadi śaknoṣi gaccha tvam aticañcalaceṣṭita
ity uktvā ca nijaṃ karma sā cakāra kuṭumbinī

“’O naughty child, now try going from here, if you can.’ Having spoken thus, she returned to her household duties.” (Vishnu Purana, 5.6.15)

Arjuna trusted Krishna based on personal experience. He trusted Krishna based on hearing. The claim has been substantiated by countless individuals of the highest standard of behavior since that time. Someone like Shri Hanuman still worships. He chooses to remain in the material world, to rescue others, to show them the light, and to give shape to the subsequent life in liberation, which is blissful from start to finish.

प्रीति प्रतीति सुरीति स्ॐ राम राम जपु राम
तुलसी तेरो है भलेआ आदि मध्य परिनाम

prīti pratīti surīti soṃ rāma rāma japu rāma
tulasī tero hai bhaleā ādi madhya parināma

“Chanting Shri Rama’s holy name with love, faith and according to regulative principles will be beneficial for you from beginning to end, says Tulsi.” (Dohavali, 23)

In Closing:

Trusted from the start,
Even when courage to depart.

And helpless on chariot to stand,
Over weapons losing command.

Of Krishna as original guide aware,
Happened to be seated right there.

Authority from leaders previously set,
Even virat vision Arjuna to get.

Categories: the five

Tags: bhagavad-gita, dailyprompt, hare krishna, poem, poems, poetry