प्रकृतिं स्वामवष्टभ्य विसृजामि पुन: पुन: |
भूतग्राममिमं कृत्स्नमवशं प्रकृतेर्वशात् || 8||
prakṛitiṁ svām avaṣhṭabhya visṛijāmi punaḥ punaḥ
bhūta-grāmam imaṁ kṛitsnam avaśhaṁ prakṛiter vaśhāt
prakṛitim—the material energy; svām—my own; avaṣhṭabhya—presiding over; visṛijāmi—generate; punaḥ punaḥ—again and again; bhūta-grāmam—myriad forms; imam—these; kṛitsnam—all; avaśham—beyond their control; prakṛiteḥ—nature; vaśhāt—force
Translation:
Controlling My own Prakriti, I send forth, again and again, all this multitude of beings, helpless under the sway of māyā.
Commentary:
The difference between Jiva and Isvara is clearly brought forth here. The Jiva is helpless by the force of Nature. Isvara is the controller of Nature. The Jiva is bound by the actions which he does by the force of Nature. All beings come under the power of nature, except those who have gone beyond Nature and reached the ultimate Paramatma. The Jivanmuktas have gone beyond Maya. Nature has no power over them. All other beings come out and go back into Nature endlessly and suffer all the ills and troubles of life and death.
So, it is the duty of every man to purify his own nature which expresses itself in different sensual thoughts and acts by the force of the gunas – tamas and rajas. Slavery to the gunas continues till one transcends them and rises to the plane of pure sattva. As the Lord has declared already, those who take refuge in Him easily cross over Maya and reach Him.
As persons sitting on the wheel that rotates, rotate till the owner of the wheel stops it, so also, all men are bound to the wheel of life and death, till God stops the wheel for those who seek His grace.
—
The Master showered his grace on Girish Chandra Ghosh and even on many prostitutes. One day the ladies of Balaram Babu’s family were sitting before the Master in his room when a prostitute named Ramani passed along the road nearby. The Master called to her and asked, “Why don’t you come nowadays?” The ladies were scandalized to hear the Master talking with a prostitute.
Shortly afterwards the Master took them to visit the shrines. When they reached the Kali temple the Master said to the Divine Mother: “Mother, Thou indeed hast become the prostitute Ramani. Thou hast become both the prostitute and the chaste woman!” The ladies understood that they were wrong in despising Ramani, and that the Master spoke with her, knowing her to be the Mother Herself. They should not be so proud of their chastity, for it was all due to the Mother’s will.
— Sri Ramakrishna (Source: Ramakrishna as We Saw Him)
Question: To what are all beings bound?
Answer: To Nature – (and the works done by them by the force of Nature).
Question: What should the man do to regain his freedom?
Answer: He should be devoted to the Lord who takes him beyond Maya (beyond the senses and mind and Karma).
Bhagavad Gita: Chapter 9
(34 Verses)
