Bhagavad Gita (One Act Play)
by Swami Sivananda
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Book Code: ES127
Paperback: 86 pages
ISBN: NA
Book Dimensions: 7.0 x 4.8 x 0.15 inches
Shipping Weight: 80 grams
Table of Contents
| 1. Gita-Stava | 6 |
| 2. Jaya Gita Ji | 7 |
| 3. Amritashtakam | 8 |
| 4. Sapta Sloki Gita | 10 |
| 5. Eka Sloki Gita | 13 |
| 6. Pratijna Gita | 14 |
| 7. Gita Dhyana | 18 |
| 8. Scene I–Arjuna Vishada Yoga | 25 |
| 9. Scene II–Karma Yoga | 31 |
| 10. Scene III–Bhakti Yoga | 39 |
| 11. Scene IV– Raja Yoga | 57 |
| 12. Scene V–Jnana Yoga | 71 |
SAPTA SLOKI GITA
Om ity-eka-aksharam brahma vyaaharan maam anusmaran;
Yah prayaati tyajan deham sa yaati paramaam gatim. Ch. VIII-13.
Uttering the one-syllabled OM–the Brahman–and remembering Me, he who departs, leaving the body, attains the Supreme Goal.
Sthaane hrisheekesa tava prakeertyaa
Jagat prahrishyaty anurajyate cha;
Rakshaamsi bheetaani diso dravanti
Sarve namasyanti cha siddha-sanghaah. Ch. XI-36.
It is meet, O Hrishikesha, that the world delights and rejoices in Thy praise; Rakshasas fly in fear to all quarters, and all the hosts of Siddhas bow to Thee.
Sarvatah paani-paadam tat sarvato ‘kshi-siro-mukham;
Sarvatah srutimal loke sarvam aavritya tishthati. Ch. XIII-13.
With hands and feet everywhere; with eyes, heads and mouths everywhere; with ears everywhere; He exists in the world, enveloping all.
Kavim puraanam anusaasitaaram
anor aneeyamsam anusmared yah;
Sarvasya dhaataaram achintya-roopam
Aaditya-varnam tamasah parastaat. Ch. VIII-9.
He who meditates on the Omniscient, the Ancient, the Ruler (of the whole world), minuter than an atom, the Supporter of all, of form inconceivable, effulgent like the Sun and beyond the darkness (of ignorance), (at the time of death) goes to the Supreme, Resplendent Purusha.
Oordhva-moolam adhah-saakham asvattham praahur avyayam;
Chandaamsi yasya parnaani yas tam veda sa veda-vit. Ch. XV-1.
They (the wise people) speak of the indestructible Asvattha having its root above and branches below, whose leaves are the metres or hymns; he who knows it, is a knower of the Vedas.
Sarvasya cha-aham hridi sannivishto
Mattah smritir jnaanam apohanam cha;
Vedais cha sarvair aham eva vedyo
Vedanta-krid veda-vid eva cha-aham. Ch. XV-15.
I am seated in the hearts of all; from Me are memory, knowledge, as well as their absence, born. I am verily that which has to be known by all the Vedas; I am indeed the author of Vedanta and the knower of the Vedas also am I.
Man-manaa bhava mad-bhakto mad-yaajee maam namaskuru;
Maam evaishyasi yuktvaivam aatmaanam mat-paraayanah. Ch. IX-34.
Fix thy mind on Me; be devoted to Me; sacrifice to Me; bow down to Me. Having thus united thy (whole self) to Me, taking me as the Supreme Goal, thou shalt surely come unto me.
EKA SLOKI GITA
Yatra yogesvarah krishno yatra paartho dhanur-dharah;
Tatra sreer vijayo bhootir dhruvaa neetir matir mama. Ch. XVIII-78.
Wherever is Krishna, the Lord of Yoga; wherever is Partha, the wielder of the bow; there are prosperity, victory, happiness and firm policy; such is my conviction.
PRATIJNA GITA
(The Song of Assurance)
Gita has a message for the solace, peace, freedom and perfection of all human beings. In this book alone, the Lord gives His definite word of assurance or promise and exhortation at every step to the aspirant. He says:–
Neha-abhikrama-naaso’sti pratyavaayo na vidyate;
Svalpam apy asya dharmasya traayate mahato bhayaat. Ch. II-40.
In this, there is no loss of effort, nor is there transgression. Even a little of this knowledge protects from great fear.
Paartha naiveha na-amutra vinasas tasya vidyate;
Nahi kalyaana-krit kaschid durgatim taata gacchati. Ch. VI-40.
O Son of Pritha! Neither in this world, nor in the next life is there destruction for him; none, verily, who does good, comes to grief.
Kshipram bhavati dharmaatmaa sasvacchaantim nigacchati;
Kaunteya pratijaaneehi na me bhaktah pranasyati. Ch. IX-31.
Soon he becomes righteous and attains to eternal peace, O Kaunteya; know thou for certain that My devotee is never destroyed.
Ananyaas chintayanto maam ye janaah paryupaasate;
Teshaam nitya-abhiyuktaanaam yoga-kshemam vahaamy aham. Ch. IX-22.
To those men who worship Me alone, thinking of no other, ever harmonious, I bring full security.
Api ched asi paapebhyah sarvebhyah paapa-krit-tamah;
Sarvam jnaana-plavenaiva vrijinam santarishyasi. Ch. IV-36.
Even if thou art the most sinful of all sinners, yet thou shalt verily cross over all sin by the raft of knowledge.
Man-manaa bhava mad-bhakto mad-yaajee maam namaskuru;
Maam evaishyasi satyam te pratijaane priy’osi me. Ch. XVIII-65.
Fix thy mind on Me, be devoted to Me, sacrifice to Me, bow down to Me, thou shalt come ever to Me, truly do I promise unto thee.
Teshaam aham samuddhartaa
mrityu-samsaara-saagaraat;
Bhavaami nachiraat paratha
mayyaavesita-chetasaam. Ch. XII-7.
For them, whose mind is set on Me, verily I become, ere long, the Saviour out of the ocean of the mortal Samsara.
Sarva-dharmaan parityajya maam ekam saranam vraja;
Aham tvaa sarva-paapebhyo mokshayishyaami maa suchah. Ch. XVIII-66.
Abandoning all duties, take refuge in Me alone; I will liberate thee from all sins; grieve not.
It is lamentable, indeed, that even after reading these assurances of Lord Krishna Himself, people do not take seriously to Yoga Sadhana.
May the blessings of Lord Krishna be upon you all!
GITA DHYANA
Om Paarthaaya pratibodhitaam bhagavataa naaraayanena swayam,
Vyaasena grathitaam puraanamuninaa madhyemahaabhaaratam;
Advaitaamritavarshineem bhagavateem ashtaadashaadhyaayineem
Amba twaam anusandadhaami bhagavadgeete bhavadweshineem.
Om, O Bhagavad Gita, with which Partha (Arjuna) was illumined by the Lord Narayana Himself and which was composed in the Mahabharata by the ancient Muni Vyasa — the Divine Mother, the destroyer of re-birth, the showerer of the nectar of Advaita and consisting of eighteen chapters–upon Thee, O Bhagavad Gita, O affectionate Mother, I meditate.
Namostu to vyaasa visaalabuddhe
phullaaravindaayatapatranetra,
Yena twayaa bhaaratatailapoornah
prajwaalito jnaanamayah pradeepah.
Salutations unto thee, O Vyasa of broad intellect and with eyes large like the petals of full-blown lotuses, by whom the lamp of knowledge, filled with the oil of the Mahabharata, has been lighted.
Prapannapaarijaataaya totravetraikapaanaye;
Jnaanamudraaya Krishnaaya geetaamritaduhe namah.
Salutations to Krishna, the Parijata or the Kalpataru, the bestower of all desires for those who take refuge in Him, the holder of the whip in one hand, the holder of Gyanamudra, the milker of the Gita Nectar.
Sarvopanishado gaavo dogdhaa gopaalanandanah;
Paartho vatsah sudheer bhoktaa dugdham geetaamritam mahat.
All the Upanishads are the cows; the Milker is the Delighter of Nanda; Partha (Arjuna) is the calf; men of purified intellect are the drinkers; the milk is the great nectar of the Gita.
Vasudevasutam devam kamsachaanooramardanam;
Devakeeparamaanandam Krishnam vande jagadgurum.
I salute Krishna, the Guru (Teacher) of the world, the God; the son of Vasudeva; the destroyer of Kamsa and Chanura; the supreme bliss of Devaki.
Bheeshmadronatataa jayadrathajalaa gaandhaaraneelotpalaa,
Salyagraahavatee kripena vahani karnena velaakulaa;
Aswatthaama-vikarna-ghora-makaraa duryodhanaavartinee,
Sotteernaa khalu paandavai rananadee kaivartakah kesavah.
With Kesava as the helmsman, verily was crossed by the Pandavas the battle-river, whose banks were Bhishma and Drona; whose water was Jayadratha; whose blue-lotus was the King of Gandhara; whose crocodile was Salya; whose current was Kripa; whose billows were Karna; whose terrible alligators were Aswatthama and Vikarna; whose whirlpool was Duryodhana.
Paaraasarya vachah sarojamamalam geetaarthagandhotkatam,
Naanaakhyaanakakesaram harikathaa sambodhanaabodhitam;
Loke sajjanashatpadair aharahah pepeeyamaanam mudaa,
Bhooyaad bhaaratapankajam kalimala pradhwamsinah sreyase.
May this lotus of the Mahabharata born in the lake of the words of the son of Parasara (Vyasa), sweet with the fragrance of the meaning of Gita, with many stories as its stamens, fully opened by the discourses on Hari, the destroyer of the stains of Kali, and drunk joyously by the bees of good men in the world day by day, become the bestower of good to us.
Mookam karoti vaachaalam pangum langhayate girim;
Yatkripaa tamaham vande paramaanandamaadhavam.
I salute that Madhava, the Supreme Bliss, whose grace makes the dumb man eloquent and the cripple cross mountains.
Yam brahmaa varunendrarudramarutah stunwanti divyaih stavaih;
Vedaih saangapadakramopanishadair gaayanti yam saamagaah;
Dhyaanaavasthitatadgatena manasaa pasyanti yam yogino;
Yasyaantam na viduh suraasuraganaa devaaya tasmai namah.
Salutations to that God whom Brahma, Varuna, Indra, Rudra and the Maruts praise with divine hymns; whom the Sama-chanters sing by Vedas and their Angas, in the Pada and Krama methods; and by the Upanishads, whom the Yogis see with their minds absorbed in Him through mediation; and whose end the hosts of Devas and Asuras know not.
OM
Om Sat Guru Paramatmane Namah
Salutations to Sri Ganesh! Salutations to
Sri Saraswati! Salutations to Sri Krishna!
Salutations to Vyasa Bhagawan!
BHAGAVAD GITA
(ONE ACT PLAY)
SCENE I
ARJUNA VISHADA YOGA
(Enter: Dhritarashtra and Sanjaya)
Dhritarashtra: O Sanjaya! Tell me now, what happened between the Pandavas and the Kauravas on the field of Kurukshetra.
Sanjaya: Venerable sir, Duryodhana saw the army of the Pandavas. He is now talking to his teacher Drona. Drona, Bhishma, Karna and others are arrayed in a line. Yuyudhana, Bhima, Drupada and others are ready to fight. To encourage Duryodhana, Bhishma is blowing his conch. Sri Krishna and Arjuna and others also are sounding their respective divine conches. (Sound of conches) Arjuna is now addressing Sri Krishna:–
(Curtain falls. Enter Krishna and Arjuna)
(Chorus)
Krishna Krishna Namostute, Jaya, Vishnu Nama Namostute;
Kesavaya Namostute Jaya, Madhavaya Namostute.
Lokabandhu Namostute Jaya, Chakrapani Namostute;
Raja Raja Namostute Jaya, Deenapala Namostute.
Vasudeva Namostute Jaya, Varijaksha Namostute;
Venulola Namostute Jaya, Gopibala Namostute.
Vamanaya Namostute Jaya, Pootanari Namostute;
Sarvasakta Namostute Jaya, Saswataya Namostute.
Muktidaya Namostute Jaya, Sakti Pala Namostute;
Narasimha Namostute Jaya, Panduranga Namostute.
Arjuna: O Lord! I see my own kith and kin standing against me. I cannot fight now with my teachers and my relatives. My Gandiva (bow) slips from my hand. My body trembles. I do not want any kingdom. If I kill my own relatives, the family traditions will perish. Lawlessness and corruption of women will result. The sacred rites to the ancestors will be neglected. The slayer will have to go to hell. (Sits down dejected, eyes cast on the ground.)
Lord Krishna: O Arjuna! Why have you become cowardly and timid now at this critical juncture? Do not become effeminate. Stand up, Parantapa!
Arjuna:
Kaarpanya-doshopahata-svabhaauah
Pricchaami tvaam dharma-sammoodha-chetaah;
Yacchreyah syaan nischitam broohi tanme
Sishyas te’ham saadhi maam tvaam prapannam. Ch. II-7.
Krishnam Vande Jagad-Gurum,
Sri Krishnam Vande Jagad-Gurum.
My mind is confused as to duty. How can I attack Bhishma and Drona with arrows in battle? They are worthy of reverence. Rather than obtain kingdom by slaying them, I would be a beggar, living on alms. I will not fight. I ask thee. Tell me decisively, what is good for me. I am Thy disciple, suppliant to thee; teach me.
Krishna: Arjuna, you are foolishly grieving for things none should sorrow for. The soul is unborn, deathless, and eternal. No one can slay this immortal soul. Just as a man, casting off worn-out clothes, puts on new ones, so also the dweller in the body abandons worn-out bodies and enters into new ones. Learn to discriminate, Arjuna. The unreal has no being; the real never ceases to be. Weapons cannot pierce the soul. Fire cannot burn it. Water cannot wet it. Wind cannot dry it. O Arjuna, do your duty. Fight, thou art a Kshatriya. Do not bring disgrace on yourself. Slain, you will obtain the hero’s heaven; victor, you will enjoy dominion.
Yoga-sthah kuru karmaani sangam tyaktvaa dhananjaya;
Siddhy-asiddhyoh samo bhootvaa samatvam yoga uchyate. Ch. II-48.
Be balanced in success and failure, in gain and loss, in pleasure and pain. Sin will not touch you. Work; but never desire for the fruits thereof.
Arjuna: O Govinda, kindly describe more fully the state of such a harmonised Sthita Prajna.
Krishna: A Sthitha-Prajna is free from desires, I-ness and mine-ness. He rests satisfied in his own Inner Self. He is free from attachment, fear and anger. He is balanced in pleasure and pain. He has neither likes nor dislikes. His understanding is well-poised. He has perfect control over his mind and the senses. He ever rests in his own Self or Atma.
Arjuna: May I know the signs of a Gunatita who has gone beyond the play of the qualities?
Krishna: He is not moved by the Gunas. He neither dislikes them when present, nor longs for them when absent. He knows that the Gunas as sense organs move amidst the qualities as sense objects. He is ever self-centred and unmoved.
Tattva-vit to mahaa-baaho guna-karma-vibhaagayoh;
Gunaa guneshu vartante iti matvaa na sajjate. Ch. III-28
For him, pain and pleasure are alike. For him, a lump of earth, stone and gold are alike.
Sama-duhkha-sukhah sva-sthah sama-loshta-asma-kaanchanah;
Tulya-priya-apriyo dheeras tulya-nindaatma-samstutih. Ch. XIV-24.
For him, the dear and ‘un-dear’, censure and praise, honour and dishonour, friends and foes, are all alike.
Arjuna: O Kesava, tell me the nature of a realised Bhakta.
Krishna: A Bhakta, O Arjuna, does not hate any creature. He is friendly and compassionate to all. He is free from mine-ness and I-ness. He is poised in pleasure and pain and forbearing. He is content, ever self-subdued, harmonious and poised. He is a Yogi of firm conviction. He has dedicated his mind and intellect to Me. He is free from joy, envy, fear and worry. He is not afraid of the world. The world also is not afraid of him. He is independent, pure and expert. He is unconcerned and indifferent. He is motiveless in commencing actions. He neither rejoices nor grieves; neither desires nor dislikes. He is full of devotion to me. He is above good and evil. He is alike to friend and foe, honour and dishonour, cold and heat, pleasure and pain, censure and praise. He is harmless, silent, content with anything, firm in mind. Such a devotee is very dear to me.
Arjuna: It seems to me, Krishna, that a Sthita Prajna, Gunatita and a perfect devotee are one and the same. They all have the same characteristics.
Krishna: Yes, my child, you are quite right.
(Curtain falls.)
(Chorus)
Sri Krishna Govinda Hare Murare,
Hey Natha Narayana Vasudeva.
SCENE II
KARMA YOGA
Scene: Battlefield
(Sri Krishna and Arjuna are in Arjuna’s chariot).
Jis hal mein, jis desh mein, jis vesh mein raho;
Radha Raman, Radha Raman, Radha Raman kaho.
Jis kam mein, jis dham mein, jis gaon me raho;
Radha Raman, Radha Raman, Radha Raman kaho.
Jis rog mein, jis bhog mein, jis yog mein raho;
Radha Raman, Radha Raman, Radha Raman kaho.
Arjuna: O Lord, from what You have just now said, it appears that knowledge is superior to action. Then why do You force me to fight? You are really confusing me. Please tell me with certainty the one way to attain Bliss.
Krishna: Arjuna, work is necessary for the maintenance of the body. No one can remain really action-less even for a moment. Everyone is driven to action by the qualities born of nature. If the mind of a man wanders in sensual objects when he sits seemingly action-less, he is surely a hypocrite, Mithyachari. He, who does actions without attachment, is really a man of action. He who rejoices in the senses, but does not please the Devas, who are really responsible for his pleasure, by doing sacrifice, lives in vain. Therefore, perform action which is duty without attachment. Man certainly reaches the Supreme by performing action, without attachment. Janaka and other attained perfection through action.