Answer TWO of the
following:
Q1: In Chapter 13, Krishna is explaining the ‘freedoms’
needed to break away from ignorance, among which is, “Freedom from the chains
of attachments, even from a selfish attachment to one’s children, wife, or home;
an ever-present evenness of mind in pleasant or unpleasant events” (63). Does
this mean that human relationships are ‘evil,’ in that they create delusion and
lead men and women away from the light of truth? Is human love wrong or
deluded? How did you read this passage/chapter in light of the rest of the
book?
Q2: Throughout the
book, and especially in these chapters, Krishna warns of the danger of following
thoughts of “I” or “mine.” What is wrong with a sense of self? Is it possible
to be without such a sense? Why might the individual consciousness be the root
of all delusion, according to Krishna ? What might this mean to a culture (Western/American)
that believes individuality and personality is the most important thing you
own?
Q3: Elsewhere in
Chapter 13, Krishna says that “when a man sees that the God in himself is the
same God in all that is, he hurts not himself by hurting others; then he goes
indeed to the highest Path” (64). Isn’t this a contradiction? If Arjuna kills
warriors on the other side—warriors that are also him—isn’t he hurting
himself by hurting others? Is there another way to read this?
Q4: According to
Chapter 14, what is the significance of the “three constituents of nature,”
Sattva, Rajas, and Tamas? How do we know if our work falls under their shadow,
and how can we escape it?
Q1- I think that what Krishna is trying to say is that these relationships are not everlasting. They are tied to this life that you are currently in, but in the grand scheme of things they mean nothing. It isn't so much that they are evil but more along the lines of them being pointless and distracting from your true purpose of finding enlightenment. I think this kind of goes along with what is stated elsewhere in the book. There is this idea that you must be kind and care for others but really it is all about what is going on inside you and your singular purpose.
ReplyDeleteQ3-I thought this statement was confusing but maybe that is just because of my western way of thinking. I think that because of the Bible I sit here and read this as we should not hate or do wrong to others because the same God who made me is the one who also made my enemies. It is taught that we are to love everyone. Maybe Krishna is saying here though that the God that has put Arjuna on this path has also put those against him on their paths so it is meant that they meet in such a way and that what is meant to be done is done with "God's" will in mind. So you know you are on the right path even if it feels morally wrong because this was all the workings of God and not of you or your enemies. You aren't hurting them, you are helping them fulfill their destinies.
Anna Turlington
1. I don't think that Krishna is against family connection - just the selfishness of many of our emotional connections. My children feel like my little satellites. Little Mes wandering around in the universe. So when they do embarrassing things, it's hard for me to not feel that their behavior reflects on me. This is clearly a selfish connection from which Krishna would tell me to untangle myself. Zoom back, and when you observe the complaints of each generation about the generations that came before and the generations that come after, you see the same complaints being repeated over and over again. Perhaps THIS is the kind of connection (or cycle) from which we should free ourselves.
ReplyDelete4. I love this one. In weeks of reading about MAYBEs, the certainty offered by these three states, or connections to the physical world was nice. Sattva binds us with happiness; Rajas binds us with passion; and Tamas binds us with delusion. This goes back to the connection to pleasure and pain being something that binds us to this physical life and keeps us from the divine. It's interesting that there are there - so many religions have some connection to threes - and that they have perfect symmetry - one is pure good(Sattva), one is pure bad(Tamas), and one is balanced between the two(Rajas). We can escape Tamas by committing ourselves to work - finding the divine in the tasks with which we fill our time. We can escape Rajas by letting go of our attachment to reaping the rewards for our hard work and focus on selfless acts.
Shaynee
ReplyDeleteQ1: I personally think that Krishna's trying to say that as life goes on that this life on Earth isn't forever but that your life is eternal as in life being a Christian you are saved and when judgment day comes you will be lifted up from your recent and old life and body now into a new one.
So as to relationships I think he is kind of relating to how no matter what you have in this life that all the earthly possessions will eventually not matter along with relationships.
Q2: with the thoughts as to "I" or "mine" I think when someone is to be too focused on their self that they will get too big headed or cocky about their self so I personally don't think that's good. But also in another sense of this it could be something good like for example myself I am very self conscious about myself and lately I've been focusing on myself and getting in shape and staying active and diving deeper into the Bible than I usually do and I feel so much better about my self since.
Q1: I don't think it means human love is wrong necessarily, but rather distracting. Love can get in the way of what one is otherwise called to do. Like if a college student is in love, that love can often distract from the schoolwork putting the student in a sticky situation if not dealt with correctly.
ReplyDeleteQ2. The only thing wrong with a sense of self is that it takes away from the feeling of compassion towards others. If someone is only thinking about "me, me, me" what are they really doing to help others?
Q1. I believe that he isn’t necessarily saying relationships are evil, but he is trying to say that those relationships just distract you from the bigger picture, which is finding true enlightenment. Krishna isn’t saying that its wrong or deluded he is just saying that it tempts you from the path of enlightenment. This chapter really resonates with me by telling me that maybe the relationships we hold so dear hold us back the most.
ReplyDeleteQ4. Sattva, Rajas, and Tamas are each different aspects of nature, life and even death. Sattva is the pure, the “light”, while Rajas is nature, from what I am assuming, neutral, and Tamas is the darkness, and when caught in his shadow he is reborn to try and reach Sattva, which when you die you reach the eternal afterlife.
Tanner Lyon
Q1: In this I do not think that Krishna is saying relationships are bad but merly a distraction. It is something that seems so important to a person when actually there is a lot more than love, yes it can make you happy and feel good but it distracts you from yourself and your personal goals. A person will starting focusing more on what is best for them as a couple then what best for them as a person.
ReplyDeleteQ2: In this I see it kind of see it as using I and mine people can get to carried away thinking about themselves and not really helping out others as they would like to better themselves which to me doesn't go with what they feel on love saying it is a distraction we should be focusing on ourselves and I and mine. But I also see taking the time to actually focus on yourself a good thing as some people can get very low in life and unhappy and depending their happiness on other people and what can you do when that not there? so taking to time to do things for yourself is good as long as you don't become to big head in a way.
Chloe Wigington