शमो दमस्तप: शौचं क्षान्तिरार्जवमेव च |
ज्ञानं विज्ञानमास्तिक्यं ब्रह्मकर्म स्वभावजम् || 42||
śhamo damas tapaḥ śhauchaṁ kṣhāntir ārjavam eva cha
jñānaṁ vijñānam āstikyaṁ brahma-karma svabhāva-jam
śhamaḥ—tranquility; damaḥ—restraint; tapaḥ—austerity; śhaucham—purity; kṣhāntiḥ—patience; ārjavam—integrity; eva—certainly; cha—and; jñānam—knowledge; vijñānam—wisdom; āstikyam—belief in a hereafter; brahma—of the priestly class; karma—work; svabhāva-jam—born of one’s intrinsic qualities
Translation:
Control of the internal and external organs, austerity, purity, forgiveness, integrity, knowledge of the Sastras, direct experience of the truth, faith in God, Guru and the Scriptures are the duties of the Brahmins born of their own nature.
Commentary:
Anyone who is able to conform to the above nine prescribed duties is a Brahmana. The austerity (tapah) mentioned here refers to the three types of penance mentioned in the 17th Discourse. (14th, 15th and 16th verses).
Apart from knowledge of the Sastras, direct experience of Truth is emphasised by the Lord on several occasions. Mere knowledge of the Sastras is not enough. Realisation is absolutely necessary.
AN UNFORGETTABLE TRAIN-TRAVEL EXPERIENCE
This incident took place when I (Sri Ramanacharanatirtha Nochur Venkataraman) was travelling by train to Kolkata for a talk. When I boarded the train at Chennai, I found my reserved seat occupied by a Mullah (a Muslim teacher) and the students of his madrasā. I felt slightly disturbed as I thought they might create problems regarding the seat. I politely informed the Mullah that he was sitting in my seat. Pointing to another seat, the Mullah replied, “Why don’t you sit there for now? We have to travel together, and we will see when it is time to sleep.” I simply sat there as I did not want an argument. After a while, when it was evening, I took out my pañchapātra and started doing sandhyā-vandana. The Mullah observed me all the while, and after my evening meditation, he asked me a startling question in Hindi—“āp brāhmaṇ devatā hain? (Are you a brāhmaṇ divine being?)” I was taken aback to hear these words. This was the kind of language used in North India by those who respected brahmins. I said, “Yes”. He continued, “We have seen brahmins in our village in Bengal. We are all poor people, and there is a brahmin doctor who gives us free treatment and medicine. I have seen him worshipping God as you did just now.” He was deeply respectful towards me for the rest of the journey.
Noticing that they had not eaten anything nor had any food with them, I enquired whether they were fasting. The Mullah replied that they did not have money for food. I bought some food and offered it to them. Though they were hesitant at first, they accepted it later. They became very affectionate towards me, and it turned out to be a memorable journey. That day I learnt that if we are truly spiritual and stick to our traditions, we will be respected even by those of other religions. (Source: Srimad Bhagavad Gita – Elixir of Eternal Wisdom | Vol 3)
Question: What are the duties of the Brahmanas born of their nature? (Or what are the qualities which determine the nature of Brahmanas ?)
Answer: 1. Serenity; 2. control of the external and internal organs; 3. austerity; 4. purity; 5. forgiveness; 6. uprightness; 7. knowledge; 8. realisation; 9. faith in God, Guru, and Scriptures. These nine qualities are natural to the Brahmanas, or those who possess these qualities are Brahmanas.