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.