3. How can we read the Bhagavad Gita from a tantric perspective and apply it’s teachings to our daily life and experience as women, spiritual seekers and householders?

After reading “Poised for Grace: Annotations on the Bhagavad Gita from a Tantric View,” by Douglas Brooks, I was not only very impressed but also extremely interested in this take on life and the Bhagavad Gita. The primary view that permeates his work is that everything in life that we experience, good or bad, is part of the path to waking up. I am familiar from my childhood of the Christian view that one must deny one’s desires and body in order to be spiritual, which is similar to Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras. In classical yoga and Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras the body must by denied in order to experience god.  However, Brooks reveals that everything that has happened in our lives up until this point has occurred for a reason and has brought us to this very place in time and space. How wonderful is that? Furthermore, every aspect of our lives and the core of every individual is inherently good and can be used to wake up. Imagine that.  He writes, “Tantrics are keen not to reject the material world but instead invite a more inclusive vision, namely, that everything we experience is part of an integrated whole and so necessarily spiritual” (51). This is good news. Perhaps now, instead of seeing a flat tire as mere annoyance, we can take the time to simply be present with what is and to look for the good in every situation. Always remember the phrase in “good” and “bad” situations that this too will pass. Life is constantly changing. Stop grasping at happiness and running from sadness. Just Be. Be Present Right Now. Remember to always find something to be thankful for each day. These simple practices support the individual to find their purpose, happiness and grace.

Many who interpret the Bhagavad Gita believe that human desire is a negative emotion and that its eradication is important and possible with yoga. However, the Tantric, “in contrast, sees Krishna urging us to learn the value of the infinite while in this world. With the infinite as our guide we cannot fail to understand our desires or the meaning of our actions in the world” (53). We can use our desire, if it is from the heart, to understand our dharma and the right action to take. Furthermore, “‘For one whose mind is at once serene, the decision-making awareness becomes steady’” (56). In order to build a solid foundation for our consciousness we must create a serene state of being within.

Brooks also illustrates and reveals not only that all beings are interconnected but that a single individual has the potential to change the world. This is becoming more and more evident as our world evolves into a cosmopolitan world where boundaries and identities are changing and dissolving. Brooks writes, “Krishna makes the case here that the way we participate in the world makes all the difference, both to ourselves personally and socially and to the very continuance of the world. Surely we are created by something far greater than ourselves, and yet we are anything but insignificant since how we are is enough to change the world for better or worse” (63). Thus, the actions of each and every individual around the world do matter and can create change for good or bad. Furthermore, this makes it all the more important to know and live ones dharma. Brooks says that to know ones dharma one must first know and understand themselves and how the world works. He writes, “The more deeply we know ourselves, the more fluently we will act for the sake of what is greater than merely ourselves” (64). So practice wholeheartedly and devotedly and you will find your true path, your dharma.

Ultimately, for the Tantric reading of the Bhagavad Gita, the path is about knowing self and world so that one may act with purpose, happiness and grace. Brooks writes, “We don’t control the world that is shaped by the forces of the gunas; we must rather learn to shape ourselves to move in alignment with these forces” (67). My favorite of the teachings is that everything we need to live a skillful life is within our very selves or as Brooks writes, “in the Tantric view, everything we need for our own contentment and ultimate fulfillment is inherently present in us” (68). I believe the Tantric view of the Bhagavad Gita has the power to transform our lives and the world.  We learn that embodied life is a pure gift that we can enjoy and be grateful for every day, no matter the circumstance. Life is good. 

2. What are the different types of yoga as explained by Krishna in the Bhagavad Gita? How can modern women use the teachings of yoga to live a life of purpose, happiness and grace?

Krishna teaches Arjuna about different types of yoga and explains that these practices will ultimately support one on the path to enlightenment. Ultimately, yoga is much more than the physical asana practice that many westerners know. According to Eknath Easwaran, “Yoga is evenness of mind: detachment from the dualities of pain and please, success and failure. Therefore yoga is skill in action.” Therefore, the practices of yoga support detachment from the mind, compulsive reaction, and conditioning, and instead allow action to stem from freedom. Easwaran writes that Krishna tells Arjuna:

         that if he can establish himself in yoga--in unshakable equanimity, profound peace of mind--he will be more       

                 effective in the realm of action. His judgment will be better and his vision clear if he is not emotionally     

                 entangled in the outcome of what he does. 

Doesn’t that sound great? To be able to act and live from a place of “unshakable equanimity, [and] profound peace of mind?” According to Statistic Brain, there are 15 million people who practice yoga in America and 72.2% are women. Historically, in ancient India, yoga was solely for men and consisted of mostly meditation techniques. In sharp contrast, in America, yoga is primarily practiced by women and consists mostly of physical asana practice. Certainly it is important to take care of our bodies on the physical level but spiritual and mental health are just as important. Therefore we can learn from the Bhagavad Gita, an ancient Indian holy text, how to live a life full of purpose, happiness and grace. Asana practice can help settle the “monkey” mind for meditation and deeper practices.    

Jnaana yoga is the yoga of knowledge: “The wise are not sorry for either the living or the dead . . . The wise man whom they do not trouble, for whom happiness and unhappiness are the same, is fit for immortality” (Buitenen, 75). Krishna teaches us that it is the wise who find contentment in literally all things, so that we can be peaceful and at ease within our ocean of emotion that ebbs and flows. Krishna’s teaching reminds me of the mountain meditation that I learned from Pema Chodron (an American Buddhist teacher). The visualization is one of a mighty mountain that stands strong through every season: through chillingly cold snow storms, heavy pounding sleet, the blazingly hot sun, the mountain remains, strong and steady. This is what the yoga of knowledge allows the practitioner to accomplish: peace and contentment through every weather of emotion. Furthermore, upon gaining wisdom the individual attains insight: “Not distressed in adversities, without craving for pleasures, innocent of passion, fear and anger, he is called a sage whose insight is firm. Firm stands the insight of him who has no preference for anything, whether he meets good or evil, and neither welcomes nor hates either one” (Buitenen, 75). Therefore, it is from knowledge that wisdom and insight are revealed. Ultimately it is the quest for reality that leads one to the path of knowledge. As Klostermaier confirms, “The quest for Reality finally leads to the discovery that Reality cannot be found outside but only inside. Thus the . . . path of knowledge, does not constitute a system of objective conceptual statements but a way towards self-discovery” (161). Therefore, devote yourself steadfast to a daily practice of yoga and meditation and you will experience your true Self. The Self in Hindu is known as atman or soul. As you begin or continue the journey of self-discovery you will find you have more peace and more love within--and all pervading throughout the universe--than you ever could imagine. From this place of peace you will intuitively know how to act skillfully with Grace.

Bhakti is another form of yoga that Krishna reveals to Arjuna. Bhakti is loving devotion and is popular among the untouchables (lowest class in India) and women because it does not require sacred text or ritual sacrifice but merely a state of the heart. An example of a bhakti practitioner is one: “who thinks of me continuously without ever straying in thought to another, that ever yoked yogin finds me easy to reach . . .” (Buitenen, 103). I find it extremely interesting that the practice of bhakti is also very popular in the western world. The practice of bhakti allows the individual to devote self, thought and action to something greater (Krishna, god/God, Love, Peace, etc.). Specifically, the chanting of sanskrit connects the individual to their heart in a very deep and profound way that is unexplainable and powerful. 

1. What is the Bhagavad Gita and what are the major themes within the text? How can these themes guide women living in the 21st century to live a life of purpose, happiness and grace?

Arjuna and Krishna

The Bhagavad Gita (“Song of the Lord”) is a story in the great Mahabharata epic. It is considered a Holy text for Hindus much like the Bible is for Christians. The tale recounts the story of Sri Krishna (incarnation of Lord Vishnu) and Prince Arjuna (warrior) and the conflict between the Kauravas and Pandavas in ancient India. The conflict is over the kingdom and the throne. Arjuna is the leader of the Pandavas who the kingdom rightfully belongs to. Krishna is friend to both Arjuna and the Kauravas: he lends Arjuna his wisdom as his personal charioteer and to the Kauravas, an army. Krishna tells Arjuna that he has to fight the Kauravas even though he is related to the Pandavas. But Arjuna is filled with grief at the idea of killing his own family and he refuses to do so. In “The Bhagavadgita in the Mahabharata,” translated and edited by J.A.B van Buitenen, Arjuna says, “I see no good to come from killing my family in battle . . . with the destructions of family the eternal family Laws are destroyed. When Law is destroyed, lawlessness besets the entire family” (70-73). The Bhagavad Gita has tapped into the debate about war and violence. On the one hand the story can be interpreted in support of just war and violence. Wendy Doniger, a well known religious scholar at the University of Chicago would agree with the claim that the Bhagavad Gita supports just war and violence. Krishna teaches Arjuna that because he was born into the warrior caste, there is no greater honor and duty than war: “Abandon lawlessness, greed, and delusion, be enterprising, and then fight without thought of self. Where Law goes goes victory” (Buitenen, 65). Therefore, because one follows their dharma, they are within the law, even if it seems as if they are not, that is, killing one’s own family. Furthermore, in “A Survey of Hinduism,” Klaus K. Klostermaier writes, “a violation of this duty would be sinful and would bring shame, because it would make people think Arjuna is a coward--the worst that could happen to a professional warrior!” (79). This duty is known as dharma. According to the Bhagavad Gita, it is by performing ones dharma and righting oneself of karma that the individual has hope of ending the cycle of samsara and attaining brahman. However, there is another popular and common interpretation of the Bhagavad Gita and the battle. 

According to Mahatma Gandhi, the Bhagavad Gita does not condone violence. Instead, the battle symbolizes the war within. Sri Krishna is not only Arjuna’s charioteer but he is his spiritual teacher. Metaphorically, Arjuna’s struggle to live his dharma wholeheartedly speaks to modern women who also struggle to know and live their dharma. The lesson we learn: it is more important to live one’s own dharma imperfectly than another’s dharma perfectly. What is stopping you from living a life full of purpose, happiness, and grace? Often the answer is simply ourselves. We may be stuck in a habitual way of thought or action that does not serve the bigger picture. This is where the practice of yoga and meditation can be supportive and even transformational. Yoga and meditation have the potential to quiet the body and mind so we can hear the still quiet voice of inner guidance. Instead of living in a place of not knowing and/or not feeling connected, we become infused with the universal pulse of Grace. Some people call Grace God/Goddess/etc. This experience of and connection with Grace ultimately allows the individual to live a life that intuitively flows with beauty and divine Grace.

Karma keeps human beings within the cycle of samsara and rebirth. To rid oneself of karma, according to the Bhagavad Gita, the individual must have no attachment to the outcome or fruit of one’s actions. Is that even possible? For example, Krishna said, “Actions do not stick to me, for I have no yearning for fruits of my actions: he who understands me in this way is himself no longer bound by his own actions” (Buitenen, 87). But how does the individual actually achieve a state where they are no longer bound by the outcome of their actions? Wouldn’t this be nice if we could act out of love instead of expectation? According to the Bhagavad Gita, to be “devoid of the intention to achieve an object of desire,” the individual must acquire “insight” (Buitenen, 87).  We also learn that Arjuna is severely confused by what his personal dharma is, as many people are. Because Arjuna was born into the warrior caste it is his duty and dharma to fight--even if that means killing his own family. The caste system in India is strong and unfortunately we have a similar albeit milder system of our own in the States. Therefore, how can we find and live our dharma without being constricted by society and our biology? Throughout time and space--until recently--women’s biology was their destiny. For example, because women are born with a vagina opposed to a penis, their biology creates certain expectations and restrictions upon them. How can we break free of labels and constructions of identity that society has violently thrust upon us? Krishna says that it is better to do one’s own dharma imperfectly than another person’s dharma perfectly. Krishna said to Arjuna, “Look to your Law and do not waver, for there is nothing more salutary for a baron than a war that is lawful” (77). Thus, Arjuna begins to accept that his dharma as a warrior is to fight. What is your dharma? What is the world demanding of you in this moment, in this coming month and year? Can you find purpose and joy in each day and each moment?

Samsara, the cycle of rebirth, is the nature of life. Reincarnation, rebirth, and death are an integral part of life within the world view of Hinduism. According to the Bhagavad Gita, “The enlightened who are armed with this singleness of purpose rid themselves of the fruits that follow upon acts; and, set free from the bondage or rebirth, go on to a state of bliss” (Buitenen, 79). What is the singleness of purpose and the state of bliss? How does the individual achieve these? The Bhagavad Gita explains: “When he experiences the objects with senses that neither love nor hate and are under his control, and thus has himself under control, he attains serenity. In a state of serenity all his sufferings cease, for in one whose mind is serene, singleness of purpose is soon fixed” (81). How do individuals live an engaged life while also being unattached from the senses? If the individual has her senses under control the individual is filled with peace and tranquility. Furthermore, the singleness of purpose is attainment of brahman. What is brahman? Krishna says, “There have been many who, rid of passions, fears, and angers, and made pure by the austerities of insight, have immersed themselves in me, resorted to me, and become of one being with me” (Buitenen, 87). Conclusively, once the individual has achieved brahman, they have ended the cycle of rebirth and as I understand it from reading the Bhagavad Gita, their soul (atman) is absorbed within the all pervasive energy of brahman and they cease to be reborn. Ultimately, in this life time the goal is to live a good life full of purpose, happiness and grace. The next post will talk more specifically about yoga and meditation from the perspective of the Bhagavad Gita and how these practices can greatly benefit the individual.