अवजानन्ति मां मूढा मानुषीं तनुमाश्रितम् |
परं भावमजानन्तो मम भूतमहेश्वरम् || 11||
avajānanti māṁ mūḍhā mānuṣhīṁ tanum āśhritam
paraṁ bhāvam ajānanto mama bhūta-maheśhvaram
avajānanti—disregard; mām—Me; mūḍhāḥ—dim-witted; mānuṣhīm—human; tanum—form; āśhritam—take on; param—divine; bhāvam—personality; ajānantaḥ—not knowing; mama—My; bhūta—all beings; mahā-īśhvaram—the Supreme Lord
Translation:
Fools disregard Me when I assume a human form; for they are unaware of My higher nature as the Supreme Lord of all beings.
Commentary:
Paramatma is the controller of all beings. He is the Lord, Isvara. He has already declared that, though he has no birth, he appears to be born in the world for the purpose of establishing Dharma and protecting the righteous. When he assumes the human form, the deluded disregard Him as no more than other mortals. There are some people proud of their position and wealth, ill-treating and abusing saints and sadhus. As the saints and sadhus are devoid of worldly goods like wealth and position, some people show no respect for them. The Bhakta and Bhagavan are one. The Lord is present in His devotees and they have to be honoured as such. Sisupala and Duryodhana never understood the Divine nature of Lord Krishna. It was only Bhishma and a few others who recognised the Divinity of Krishna.
Those who are engaged in spritual practice should be careful about the wrong view and opinions expressed by the common people. Honour and dishonour come to them, honour from the wise and dishonour from the unwise. In such situations, the seeker has to be firm and steady, and not yield to the common reactions of elation and anger. Let the seeker avoid the company of those who deny God, and abuse sages and saints. By his own elevated thoughts and actions, he should set an example of purity and godliness to others.
Swami Vivekananda Says —
God understands human failings and becomes man to do good to humanity: “Whenever virtue subsides and wickedness prevails, I manifest Myself. To establish virtue, to destroy evil, to save the good I come from yuga (age) to yuga.” “Fools deride Me who have assumed the human form, without knowing My real nature as the Lord of the universe.” Such is Shri Krishna’s declaration in the Gita on Incarnation. “When a huge tidal wave comes,” says Bhagavan Shri Ramakrishna, “all the little brooks and ditches become full to the brim without any effort or consciousness on their own part; so when an Incarnation comes, a tidal wave of spirituality breaks upon the world, and people feel spirituality almost full in the air.”[Source]
He also says, “Fools, not knowing that I, the Omnipotent and Omnipresent God of the universe, have taken this human form, deride Me and think that cannot be.” Their minds have been clouded with demoniacal ignorance, so they cannot see in Him the Lord of the universe. These great Incarnations of God are to be worshipped. Not only so, they alone can be worshipped; and on the days of their birth, and on the days when they went out of this world, we ought to pay more particular reverence to them. In worshipping Christ I would rather worship Him just as He desires; on the day of His birth I would rather worship him by fasting than by feasting — by praying. When these are thought of, these great ones, they manifest themselves in our souls, and they make us like unto them. Our whole nature changes, and we become like them.[Source]
Sri Ramakrishna Says —
“It is very difficult to understand that God can be a finite human being and at the same time the all-pervading Soul of the universe. The Absolute and the Relative are His two aspects. How can we say emphatically with our small intelligence that God cannot assume a human form? Can we ever understand all these ideas with our little intellect? Can a one-seer pot hold four seers of milk?
(Source: Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna)
—
“Ordinary people do not recognize the advent of an Incarnation of God. He comes in secret. Only a few of His intimate disciples can recognize Him. That Rama was both Brahman Absolute and a perfect Incarnation of God in human form was known only to twelve rishis. The other sages said to Him, ‘Rama, we know You only as Dasaratha’s son.’
“Can everyone comprehend Brahman, the Indivisible Existence-Knowledge-Bliss Absolute? He alone has attained perfect love of God who, having reached the Absolute, keeps himself in the realm of the Relative in order to enjoy the divine lila. A man can describe the ways and activities of the Queen (Queen Victoria.) if he has previously visited her in England. Only then will his description of the Queen be correct. Sages like Bharadvaja adored Rama and said: ‘O Rama, You are nothing but the Indivisible Satchidananda. You have appeared before us as a human being, but You look like a man because You have shrouded Yourself with Your own maya.’ These rishis were great devotees of Rama and had supreme love for God.”
(Source: Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna)
—–
“God, incarnating Himself as man, behaves exactly like a man. That is why it is difficult to recognize an Incarnation. When God becomes man, He is exactly like man. He has the same hunger, thirst, disease, grief, and sometimes even fear. Rama was stricken with grief for Sita. Krishna carried on His head the shoes and wooden stool of His father Nanda.
“In the theatre, when an actor comes on the stage in the role of a holy man, he behaves like one, and not like the actor who is taking the part of the king. He plays his own role.
“Once an impersonator dressed himself as a world-renouncing monk. Pleased with the correctness of his disguise, some rich people offered him a rupee. He did not accept the money but went away shaking his head. Afterwards he removed his disguise and appeared in his usual dress. Then he said to the rich people, ‘Please give me the rupee.’ They replied: ‘Why, you went away refusing our present. Why do you ask for it now?’ The man said: ‘But then I was in the role of a holy man. I could not accept money.’ Likewise, when God becomes man He behaves exactly like a man. (Source: Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna)
—–
MASTER: “Nothing is impossible for God. Nobody can describe His nature in words. Everything is possible for Him. There lived at a certain place two yogis who were practising spiritual discipline. The sage Narada was passing that way one day. Realizing who he was, one of the yogis said: ‘You have just come from God Himself. What is He doing now?’ Narada replied, ‘Why, I saw Him making camels and elephants pass and repass through the eye of a needle.’ At this the yogi said: ‘Is that anything to wonder at? Everything is possible for God.’ But the other yogi said: ‘What? Making elephants pass through the eye of a needle — is that ever possible? You have never been to the Lord’s dwelling-place.'” (Source: Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna)
—–
Latu was extremely fortunate that he got the opportunity to live with Ramakrishna and serve him for over six years. Sri Ramakrishna taught Latu various spiritual disciplines. One day while Latu was massaging Ramakrishna’s feet, the Master asked, “Do you know what your Lord Rama is doing now?” Latu was dumbfounded and kept quiet. The Master said, “Your Lord Rama is now passing an elephant through the eye of a needle.” Latu understood that Ramakrishna, out of compassion, was pouring spirituality into him. Later, Latu reminisced: “Did you know that the Master snatched me from the snares of the world? I was an orphan. He flooded me with love and affection. If he had not accepted me, I would have been like an animal, spending all my days working like a slave. My life would have been worth nothing. I am an unlettered man. He used to tell me: ‘Always keep your mind spotless. Don’t allow impure thoughts to enter it. If you find such desires tormenting you, pray to God and chant His name. He will protect you. If the mind still will not remain calm, then go to the temple of the Mother and sit before Her. Or else come here [pointing to himself].’” (Source: God Lived with Them)
—–
The conversation again turned to Divine Incarnation.
NARENDRA: “It is enough to have faith in God. I don’t care about what He is doing or what He hangs from. Infinite is the universe; infinite are the Incarnations.” (Svatasvatara Upanishad 6.23)
As Sri Ramakrishna heard the words, “Infinite is the universe; infinite are the Incarnations”, he said with folded hands, “Ah!”
M. whispered something to Bhavanath.
BHAVANATH: “M. says: ‘As long as I have not seen the elephant, how can I know whether it can pass through the eye of a needle? I do not know God; how can I understand through reason whether or not He can incarnate Himself as man?”
MASTER: “Everything is possible for God. It is He who casts the spell. The magician swallows the knife and takes it out again; he swallows stones and bricks.” (Source: Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna)
Question: What is the state of Paramatma?
Answer: He is the (1) controller of all human beings and (2) assumes human form for establishing Dharma.
Question: What is the nature of the ignorant?
Answer: They disregard the Lord, thinking Him to be only a common mortal.
Question: From this, what is it that we understand?
Answer: One should try to understand the true state of God and avoid abuse of saints, Bhaktas, and other Godly men.
Bhagavad Gita: Chapter 9 🔻 (34 Verses)
