| Discourses On Gita By Acharya Vinoba Bhave |
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| Discourses On Gita |
| THE GUNAS - BUILDING UP AND BREAKING DOWN |
| Analysis of nature 1. Brothers, this Fourteenth Chapter is one sense completes the Thirteenth. As a matter of fact, the Self has no need to do anything. It is complete in itself. The natural movement of one's soul is upwards. But just as any object is dragged down when a heavy weight is tied to it, the burden of the body drags down the soul. We saw in the last Chapter that, if by some means we could separate body and soul, we shall progress. This may be very difficult, but the results too are great. If we could only snap the fetters of the body that bind the feet of the soul, we shall experience a great joy. Then we shall not be miserable because of the body's sufferings. We shall become free. If a man achieves victory over this body, who in the world can exercise power over him? He who rules himself rules over the whole world. Therefore, remove the domination of the body over the soul. The pleasures and pains of the body are all alien and do not belong to us. Between them and the Self there is not the slightest connection. 2. To what extent we should keep all these pains and pleasures separate from ourselves, I illustrated form the story of Jesus. He has shown us that, even when the body is breaking, the mind can be kept in peace and joy. But this separation of the body from the Self is the result not only of discrimination, but of self-control. Tukaram speaks of the strength of vairagya (non-attachment) in association with viveka (discrimination). |
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