A letter to a daughter on her 10th birthday! Wisdom from Shrimad Bhagwad Gita.

 

Dearest Aamu

As I sit down to write this, I am besotted with so many lovely memories of the decade gone by…today as you get ready to celebrate your first double digit birthday, for me, the moment seems so surreal, it sets in a feeling of déjà vu!

Well…well…my eyes are slightly moist (yes, dads cry too…) but these are tears of joy…exactly today, and I remember so vividly…I am outside the operation theatre, the door opens and the doctor aunty steps outside carrying you …you look so confused, I guess the light and sound outside must have been bewildering, and then my first glimpse of you, oh, how I was scared of picking you up, you were so tiny, I thought I might drop you…!

From then till today, oh, what a roller coaster ride it has been…never realized how the days grew wings and flew by…from the wobbly bobbly baby in my arms…to the confident young girl you have grown into…ready to take on the world on your own terms (well, for Baba, you are still daddy’s little girl!)

This is now an annual ritual with me, and I cherish writing these letters to you, I know, your friends might wonder what sort of old school is this, but to me, these are best gifts I can give, and I am sure, you will realize them as well (as you read them and start to import their meaning.)

Today, I am going to discuss something very different, something I haven’t spoken about in my previous letters. What I share today is something that came into existence thousands of years ago…yet it remains eternally young!

Whenever the human mind has been clouded in gloom and despair, and the darkest part of the night seemed never ending, the teachings of this ancient text has brought a ray of hope…always filled our minds and hearts with warm sunshine!

Yes, you guessed it right, today, on your 10^th birthday, let me share with you few shlokas from the Shrimad Bhagavad Gita. I am sure, these teachings will always hold you in good stead. Whenever in life you are happy, or you are sad, you feel you have best of moments or you feel everything is going downhill, please turn to the eternal wisdom given to Arjuna by Bhagwan Shri Krishna himself, in the battle field of Kurukshetra, millennia ago!

 

Let us begin.

Action and Hard work (Chapter 2, verse 47)

कर्मण्येवाधिकारस्ते मा फलेषु कदाचन |
मा कर्मफलहेतुर्भूर्मा ते सङ्गोऽस्त्वकर्मणि || 47 ||

karmaṇy-evādhikāras te mā phaleṣhu kadāchana
mā karma-phala-hetur bhūr mā te saṅgo ’stvakarmaṇi

Today you are a student and tomorrow you will be in another sphere of your career, remember, your job always is to perform the task given to you well, do not unnecessarily worry about the result, that is outside your control. Do every task with a detached mind, which means, whatever you do, do it well and as an offering to the Lord and then sit back and relax.

If your action is well intentioned, you are have performed it to the best of your ability, the results will always be for the good of humanity.

 

Greed (Chapter 16, verse 21)

त्रिविधं नरकस्येदं द्वारं नाशनमात्मन: |
काम: क्रोधस्तथा लोभस्तस्मादेतत्त्रयं त्यजेत् || 21||

tri-vidhaṁ narakasyedaṁ dvāraṁ nāśhanam ātmanaḥ
kāmaḥ krodhas tathā lobhas tasmād etat trayaṁ tyajet

These are profound lines – 3 things are always to be avoided – lust, anger and greed. As a student, the grip of these 3 can be like vices and once possessed will surely lead one to downfall. Lust here means too much liking for a material object or an object which appeals to our senses. If we are enamored with something, it can be an object or even an idea, it will give rise to greed, which if unchecked, will result in anger.

Lot of times, for reasons beyond our control, we might not get whatever we desire, and this might result into anger. As a student, too much indulgence with smartphones, or television will surely affect your studies. Friendships which border on too much intimacy, can also fetter us.  Whenever you are in doubt, remember this verse.

 

Happiness and sorrow (Chapter 2, verse 14)

 मात्रास्पर्शास्तु कौन्तेय शीतोष्णसुखदु: खदा: |
आगमापायिनोऽनित्यास्तांस्तितिक्षस्व भारत || 14||

mātrā-sparśhās tu kaunteya śhītoṣhṇa-sukha-duḥkha-dāḥ
āgamāpāyino ’nityās tans-titikṣhasva bhārata

Happiness and sorrow, these two are always chasing us or maybe we chase them. As humans, we are obsessed with being happy, and as your jaunts to the library increases, you will be surprised at the number of self-help books dedicated to ‘being happy.’ And, therein lies the paradox…if we chase happiness, we do not get it…similarly, if we avoid sorrow, it will still pay us a visit.

Happiness and sorrow are temporary, our over dependence on our sense organs is the root cause. Nothing is permanent, if we go about our lives with a detached mind, not being over excited if we achieve something or feel morose if we do not, we will always remain balanced, calm and peaceful.

A very handy tip for a student, I am sure, you will agree.

 

Anger (Chapter 2, verse 63)

क्रोधाद्भवति सम्मोह: सम्मोहात्स्मृतिविभ्रम: |
स्मृतिभ्रंशाद् बुद्धिनाशो बुद्धिनाशात्प्रणश्यति || 63||

krodhād bhavati sammohaḥ sammohāt smṛiti-vibhramaḥ
smṛiti-bhranśhād buddhi-nāśho buddhi-nāśhāt praṇaśhyati

Remember we spoke about this in Chapter 16, verse 21 as well.

Let us discuss this a bit more, as this is something that is very difficult to control, and for students, it can jeopardize an entire career.

Have you ever seen a thin covering of mist (in the area where we live, it is smog) hogging the sunlight? Poor visibility is an invitation to accidents. Anger is like this, it clouds our judgement, which results in spoiling our memory, which in turn destroys our intellect. What else is left after that, our downward journey has started, isn't it?

Anger is like credit card, use now, pay later! Act now, repent later!

When anger grips you, you commit mistakes which you repent at leisure. Now, you might question, then do we not get angry when we see unfair things happening around us? Yes, my dear you must, but this anger needs to be channelized well, else merely getting angry, is all sound and fury signifying nothing. It can even harm you in the long run.

Mediate more, sit down and observe your breath, count up to 2o, drink a glass of cold water – these are few tips that you can use when anger starts raise its ugly hood.

 

Responsibility (Chapter 2, verse 38)

सुखदु:खे समे कृत्वा लाभालाभौ जयाजयौ |
ततो युद्धाय युज्यस्व नैवं पापमवाप्स्यसि || 38||

sukha-duḥkhe same kṛitvā lābhālābhau jayājayau
tato yuddhāya yujyasva naivaṁ pāpam avāpsyasi

Do not forget, the Shrimad Bhagwad Gita is wisdom imparted to Arjuna by Bhagwan Shri Krishna in the battle field, when Arjuna is utterly confused about killing his enemies, who are in fact, his kith and kin.

In this verse, Shri Krishna says, all work should be done with a sense of duty and responsibility, and not because it brings us happiness or gain.

A soldier on duty at the borders, his job is to defend is motherland, if there is an enemy attack, he needs to kill them to protect his motherland. He should not worry too much being right or wrong here. That will not help.

As a student, your primary aim is to study and learn new things, study for the sake of studying and not because you have to score marks or pass an examination.

The knowledge you gain should be able to make you a better person, it should uplift others as well.

 

Fearlessness (Chapter 2, verse 20)

न जायते म्रियते वा कदाचि
नायं भूत्वा भविता वा न भूय: |
अजो नित्य: शाश्वतोऽयं पुराणो
न हन्यते हन्यमाने शरीरे || 20||

na jāyate mriyate vā kadāchin
nāyaṁ bhūtvā bhavitā vā na bhūyaḥ
ajo nityaḥ śhāśhvato ’yaṁ purāṇo
na hanyate hanyamāne śharīre

This shloka is my favorite and discusses the eternal nature of our soul. Most of us identify ourselves with the body, and the entire life, we fuss about it. The body is perishable, it grows old and starts to wither and finally crumbles, and that is a cause of pain for us.

The moment you switch on the TV or flip through a magazine, you see thousands of voices screaming at you or hundreds of faces ogling at you – they are all trying to sell you hacks and remedies of keeping this body young and beautiful. How naïve!

The soul has always existed, it is neither born nor does it die. The moment you have this epiphany, you are liberated from all your fears. This realization is so unique – just close your eyes for a minute and bring your attention to your soul or the Self within – is it not amazing, you have in you something that has seen the creation from the very beginning and will be there till the very end, well, I contradict myself, for the soul there is no beginning or no end! 

Profound and life altering! Wake up, my child, and roar like a lioness, there is nothing stopping you, be fearless!

 

Mind – the all powerful (Chapter 6, verse 5)

उद्धरेदात्मनात्मानं नात्मानमवसादयेत् |
आत्मैव ह्यात्मनो बन्धुरात्मैव रिपुरात्मन: || 5||

uddhared ātmanātmānaṁ nātmānam avasādayet
ātmaiva hyātmano bandhur ātmaiva ripur ātmanaḥ

Do you know that we actually live in our minds? It is our best friend and also our worst enemy. Confused, well, let me explain. The mind is a wonderful instrument at our disposal. If we can befriend it, it can elevate our life, and you will be able to accomplish many feats (even things which seem impossible.)

Remember, the world’s greatest inventions, were, in fact, a mere thought in someone’s mind to begin with. Similarly, the world’s greatest disasters (like the bombing of Japan during WWII) were again a diabolical thought in someone’s mind.

So, train your mind well, read good books, sit with wise people, listen to uplifting music, spend your time in nature and most importantly meditate. Meditation (a topic I will pick up in my future letters) is slowing down and focusing your attention on your breathing, the slower your breath is, the more controlled your mind is. It also helps you connect with your soul – your true self.

A controlled mind will help you focus better, you will have more clarity of thought, and this will make you a well-rounded individual.

The Shrimad Bhagwad Gita is not only our holy book, it is a timeless masterpiece, a classic self help guide, a best friend, guide and mentor one can ever have.

Let me make bold by saying that there is no need to read any other book on how to live life…Shrimad Bhagwad Gita is the culmination of the human mind’s eternal quest to know the true nature of our own selves.

The dawn has just broken, and as the rays of the rising sun dispels the night’s darkness, I pray this to Shri Krishan for you, my child, on your 10^th birthday  

ॐ असतो मा सद्गमय ।
तमसो मा ज्योतिर्गमय ।
मृत्योर्मा अमृतं गमय ।
ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः ॥

Om Asato Maa Sad-Gamaya |
Tamaso Maa Jyotir-Gamaya |
Mrtyor-Maa Amrtam Gamaya |
Om Shaantih Shaantih Shaantih ||

Lead us from the unreal to the real
Lead us from darkness to light
Lead us from death to immortality
Aum peace, peace, peace!

May the light of the Shrimad Bhagwad Gita illumine your path today and fore ever! May you continue to shine and as you shine, let others shine as well!

Love

Baba

30^th April 2023

Gurgaon, 06:42AM