बहूनां जन्मनामन्ते ज्ञानवान्मां प्रपद्यते |
वासुदेव: सर्वमिति स महात्मा सुदुर्लभ: || 19||
bahūnāṁ janmanām ante jñānavān māṁ prapadyate
vāsudevaḥ sarvam iti sa mahātmā su-durlabhaḥ
bahūnām—many; janmanām—births; ante—after; jñāna-vān—one who is endowed with knowledge; mām—unto me; prapadyate—surrenders; vāsudevaḥ—Shree Krishna, the son of Vasudev; sarvam—all; iti—that; saḥ—that; mahā-ātmā—great soul; su-durlabhaḥ—very rare
Translation:
At the end of many births the man of wisdom seeks refuge in Me, realizing that Vāsudeva is all. Rare indeed is such a high-souled person.
Commentary:
From time immemorial, man has passed through innumerable births. From worms and germs, reptiles, birds, and beasts, the man, at last, attain the human birth. Several births pass away in a state of ignorance. And then, the desire to know the truth is born in the heart of man. Even then, several births pass away in the ups and downs of spiritual Sadhana. Ultimately man realises the truth, that everything is God. So long as there is the slightest trace of differentiation knowledge is imperfect. Perfection of jnana is the discovery that there is only One and that is God, and there is nothing but He in the whole universe. Sages of such realisation are indeed very rare.
But it would be foolish to be lazy and dull in spiritual sadhana, because realisation can come only after many births. On the other hand, knowing full well that he has passed through millions of births, man should strive for liberation even in this very birth. The test of knowledge is the recognition of God everywhere. So long as the objective world ‘drisya’ dominates the mind causing contradictory feelings of attraction and repulsion, there is no knowledge. The aspirant should intensify his sadhana till he comes to know without any doubt that what has been appearing as the objective world is nothing but the Lord Himself.
The verse does not mean that only after many births man realises God. It means that man acquires knowledge after many births and he then realises God. That auspicious moment when such realisation takes place is the end of all births. If one makes himself fit for realisation, knowledge may dawn on him this moment. There is no time-limit. Ripeness of mind is all that is needed.
The Lord confers the title ‘mahatma‘ on such realised souls.
Question: When does man attain moksha?
Answer: When he acquires jnana.
Question: When does he acquire jnana?
Answer: After many births.
Question: What is the realisation of a jnani?
Answer: That God is everything.
Question: Are such men common?
Answer: No. Very rare.
Question: What is the test of the jnani?
Answer: The realisation that everything is God.
Bhagavad Gita: Chapter 7 🔻 (30 Verses)
