Mandukya Upanishad, Class 11

Waker I , dreamer I and sleeper I are all adulterated I.  We have to remove the impurities and arrive at the pure unadulterated I.  For removing the adulteration, we use this principle.  Everything has two type of nature:

  1. Incidental or temporary or subject to arrival and departure.
  2. Intrinsic is permanent and not subject to arrival and departure.

For example, heat is incidental to hot water but intrinsic to fire.  Similarly, the waker I, the sleeper I and the dreamer I are all adulterated I because they are a mixture of intrinsic and incidental nature.  When you remove the incidental nature, the you get the intrinsic nature which is thuriyum.

What is the intrinsic nature of waker, dreamer and sleeper is that nature that is not lost.  The intrinsic nature is that which is permanently flowing.  Consciousness is the essential nature which is in the waker (which is why the waker is conscious of the world), the dreamer has a conscious (that is why he is aware of the dream world) and the sleeper is also conscious (because he is able to say that he was sleeping).  Therefore, consciousness is inherent for the sleeper I, waker I and the dreamer I.  Therefore, consciousness is intrinsic nature for all three.

What is the incidental nature of the waker?  If anger is my intrinsic nature, then I will be angry all the time.  Similarly, if youth is my intrinsic nature, then I will be young all the time.  Actually, the very term wakerhood itself is incidental because we are not awake all the time. Wakerhood is incidental to my nature; similarly, the dreamer status is incidental; When the mind is extrovert, we get waker status.  When the mind is introvert, we get the dreamer status.  When the mind is neither introvert nor extrovert and is resolved and passive, we get sleeper status.  So, all three status are temporary depending on the condition of the mind.  When you are neither extrovert, not introvert nor passive, you are pure consciousness which is in and through all three.  This pure consciousness is realized by separating the temporary attributes of waker, dreamer and sleeper.  This is thuriyum.  Finding this thuriyum is an intellectual discrimination and not an experience.

Karika 10

Being free from all miseries, thuriya is considered to be the Lord, capable of freeing one from misery.  It is immutable, effulgent, all pervading, and the non dual truth of all being.

Thuriyum, the real I,  is a powerful master.  Because I the thuriyum am free from all the pains and sorrows of the waker, sleeper and dreamer.  Thuriuum is not affected by the pains (in the form of disease, anxiety etc.)  of the waker,or dream or sleeper.  The illuminatior of the object is not affected by or is free from the properties of illumined object.  For example, the light is not affected by the properties of things it illumines.  Similarly, the consciousness is not affected by the impurities of the body.  Therefore, I am ever the master.  Thiriyum does not deteriorate due to age etc.  It is the non-dual principle among all the divided objects of the world.  Everything becomes evident because of consciousness but the consciousness does not need to be evident because it is always self-evident similar to gold is self-evident in chain, ring etc.

Where is this consciousness located?  Consciousness is not just in the body, but it is everywhere.

Karika 11

Visva and Taijsa are both considered to be conditioned by cause and effect. But Praga is conditioned by cause alone. Both of them do not exist in Turiya. 

In the next four verses, Gowdapadha does a compare and contrast study of the four padhas.  Compare:  seeing the common features. Contrast:  The study of uncommon features.

Example of rope and snake.  Imagine there is a rop in a partially lit room.  Because of partial knowledge of rope, I commit and error and mistake and consider that to be snake.  This snake perception is an error and any error are possible only if there is ignorance.  Rope ignorance leads to error of snake.  Ignorance is the cause and error is the effect.  You can apply this example to all four padhas of humans.

In the seventh thuriya mantra, the Upaishads has clearly stated that my essential nature is thuriyum.  Thuriyum is all pervading; limitless I is my nature.  But unfortunately, I do not know this fact.  We all have the fundamental problem of self-ignorance – ignorant of the fact that I am limitless – similar to the rope ignorance.  In the rope ignorance, snake is the error.  In the case of self-ignorance, I mistake myself as the limited I.  The limited I is the error born out of ignorant of limitless I.

When I am the waker, viswa, I look upon myself as a limited I, which Gowdapadha says is an error.  In dream also when I use the word aham or I, I am limited by space and time.  Therefore the dreamer I, Taijasa,, limited I,  is also an error.  When I am in sleep, we do not experience limitation of time and space, but instead there is an ignorance of limitless I.  Thuiryum is free from limitation and ignorance.

Gowdapadha calls ignorance as agraharanam or non-comprehension or nonperception;

  1. Agrahanam or non-perception of a fact.  Rope ignorance is nothing but the non-perception of the fact that it is the rope.
  2. Ignorance is karanam and error is the kariyam.
  3. Ignorance he calls the seed and the error the tree or plant. beeja anguara.
  4. Ignorance he calls sleep or nithra and error he calls swapna or dream



Mandukya Upanishad, Class 10

In the seventh mantra the Upanishads is talking about thuriya pada, which is consciousness not associated with any other padhas and looked at its own stand point.  The first three padhas are divided into subject object duality.  But in thuriyam, it does not have pramadha premaya duality.  Thuriyum is neither pramdaha knower and premayam the knowable.

Thuriyum is neither a kower and a knowable object.  If Thuriyum is neither the subject nor the object, then what is it?  It is apremayam.  Not only it is can’t be grasped by the sense organs, it can’t be grasped by karmandhryam – hand etc.

The seventh mantra can be divided into three portions:

  1. Thuriyum is different from the three knowers obtained in waking, dream and sleep.
  2. Thuriyum is different from the three worlds obtained in the three stage.
  3. Thuriyum is in and through all the three padha.

Thuriyum is achindhyam, inconceivable, unimaginable, incomprehensible.  The witness of all the concepts can’t be conceived.

Thiryum is avyapadesyam, not describable; beyond verbal description.  however, Upanishads have been describing what can’t be described.  That is strengthened by the communications between guru and sishya.

Thuriyum is avyvahariyam, beyond all transactions; non-empirical; absolute.  Because all our transactions are either through gyanedhriyam in the form of perception, or through karmendrayam in the form of handling etc.  Thuriyum is beyond karmendreyam and gyanendrayam; thuriyum is beyond time and space because whatever falls within time and space, is available for transactions.

In the third part, the Upanishads positively defines thuriyum:  It is pure consciousness, which has to be traced through atma prathyayaha – through the experience in the form of I, which we experience all the time.  Thuriyum has to be traced through, atma pragyaha,  I cognition, which is one continuous principle.  There is one changeless I among all the experiences of life.  By studying that I we should understand thuriyum.

The continuous I experience indicates, that I am a conscious entity continuously present throughout my life.  Experiences of life like happiness, sad etc. are not continuous conditions.  Therefore, they can’t be my real nature.  The attributes like happy, sad, young, old etc.  are subject to arrival and departure and the only continuous entity is that I am a consciousness being.  I am something minus that something is thuriyum.  Drop the non-continuous attribute part and own up to the consciousness part.  When you drop attribute, you are neither a waker, nor a dreamer or a sleeper but chaithanyam.

Prabanjoba samam:  Prabanja means the three-universe obtained in the three pada; sthrula prabajna, sukshama prabanja and karana prabanja.  Thuriyum is free from these three prabanja.  Consciousness is ever without the universe; free from matter; never associated with the material world.  That means there is no universe at all.  This word is negating the first three padhas.  To understand this, you should remember two laws:

  1. Anything that is existent can’t be negated.  Whatever is sat can’t be negated.
  2. What is nonexistent need not be negated

Whatever is negated can’t be sat (existent) or asat (non-existent) category.  With this the vedas is negating the world.  Therefore, the Upanishads says that the world is different than sat and asat or mithya category.  What is different than existent and nonexistent:  That will come under the third category like our dream; dream does not come under existent or non-existent category, but it comes under seemingly existent category.  This unique categoy is called mithya.  According to vedas, this universe is unreal, seemingly existent but it is not.  Whatever is unreal or seemingly existent, can’t be counted even though we experience it.  The first three padhas are not real and therefore can’t be counted, thuriyum is the only padha countable, thuriyum is ekam – it is non dual, advaidam, principle. Consciousness alone exist, matter is unreal and therefore can’t be counted.

Advaidam is the next word occurring in this mantra.  The entire third chapter is attributed to this word – Advaidam.

If consciousness is only one, why do we call is thuriyum?  The Upanishads says that ignorant people wrongly think that consciousness is the fourth entity.  Thuriyum is undisturbed by the material world so it is shantham and ananda swaroopam; This thuriyum alone is the real atma.




2018 Guru Purnima Talk by Swamiji

Swamiji gave a special talk on the occasion of Guru Purnima on July 27, 2018.  The subject of the talk was A Gyani’s Relationship with God.  Please click on the link below to listen to the talk;

2018 Guru Purnima Talk




Sadhana Sadhushta Sambandhi

Scriptures (and Swamiji) frequently emphasize that to acquire vedic knowledge, one should have sadhana sadhusta sambandhi or improve up on four requirements.  I am writing this post for easier recollection.

Swamiji introduces the concept of sadhanasadhustasambandhi in TatvaBodha class and calls them as four “D’s”.  Swamiji elaborates this concept in other classes as well.  The four “D’s” are:

  1. Discrimination (Vivekaha)
  2. Dispassion (Vyragyam):  Free from ragha, krotha and bayam; one who enjoys calm mind.
  3. Desire (Mumukshutvam)
  4. Discipline:  Six fold self-discipline

The fourth requirement, Discipline, consists of six fold self-discipline:

  1. Samaha (Mastery over mind obtaining poise and tranquility)
  2. Dhamaha (Harmony and control over sensory organs – eyes, ears etc.)
  3. Uprahamaha (Spiritual living; Increase spiritual activities and reduce material activities)
  4. Thithiksha (Improve the threshold of endurance for pain)
  5. Shradha (Faith in scriptures and the guru teaching the scriptures)
  6. Samadhanam (focus on the goal)

Dr. Devarajalu Naidu has written an excellent post on the second requirement, Vyragyam at http://www.advaidam.com/2018/05/05/vyragyam-detachment/

 




Vedic Quote: Watch your thoughts…..

“Watch your thoughts, they become words;
watch your words, they become actions;
watch your actions, they become habits;
watch your habits, they become character;
watch your character, for it becomes your destiny.”

This is a quote one often sees in the class rooms and other public places and attributed to many scholars like Ralph Waldo Emerson, Lao Tzu, Frank Outlaw, Gautama Buddha, Bishop Beckwaith, Father of Margaret Thatcher and Mahatma Gandhi.  Sometimes it is attributed to anonymous.

This is also a quote often mentioned by Swami Paramarthananda in his Upanishads and Baghawat Geeta classes.  When I inquired, Swamiji indicated that the origin is from Taitreya Aranyaka of Krishna Yajur Veda.  Subsequently, I traced the origin of the quote to Taitreya Aranyaka, Chapter 1, Anuvaga 23, Verse 1.  Here is a part of the verse in Sanskrit:

तस्मात् यत् पुरुषः सनसाअभिगच्छति।

तत् वाचा वदति।

तत् कर्मणा करोति।

यत् मनसः रेतः प्रथमं आतीत्।

तद्  कामः अग्रे समवर्तताधि।

तत् एषाअभि अनूक्ता ।

Shri Jayanthilal Patel, who is my Sanskrit teacher, gave the literal meaning of the verse as:

तस्मात् यत् पुरुषः सनसाअभिगच्छति। वाचा वदति।

Because of that whatever one thinks by mind

तत् कर्मणा करोति।

that one does

यत् मनसः रेतः प्रथमं आतीत्।

What is first in the mind as seed

तद्  कामः अग्रे समवर्तताधि।

that later forms as desire

तत् एषाअभि अनूक्ता ।

That is what this proclaimed

The quote, as currently formulated and presented at the beginning of the post, has practical applications by asking to us watch our thoughts, words and action.  These three form our habit and character which ultimately determine out destiny.  But in Vedanta, it has deeper meaning:

  • Each of us control our destiny as we control our thoughts, words and action. We and we alone control our destiny.
  • Katha Upanishad states that, atma, our non-changing consciousness, witnesses every one of our thoughts. We generally lose sight of the consciousness and act on our thoughts.  This, in turn, impacts our destiny.
  • Katha Upanishad gives a wonderful example comparing a chariot to our life’s journey. In this example, control over thought patterns and mastery of sense organs are equated to pulling in the reins of the horses drawing the chariot.
  • Taitreya Upanishad states that consciousness (atma) is the witness of the arrival and departure of our thoughts, indicating we, our consciousness, control our thoughts.

We may never know who the author of the quote as currently formulated, but it’s wisdom is based on the Vedas, specifically Taitreya Aranyaka, Chapter 1, Anuvaga 23, Verse 1 of Krishna Yajur Veda.  Maybe that is why sometimes this quote is attributed to Buddha or anonymous.




Symbology of Nataraja

This is a power point presentation based on the book “Rambles in Vedanta” by Rajam Iyer, published in 1946.  In his book, Shri Rajam Iyer shows how Nataraja is represented by vedantic philosophy and indirectly, gives guidance on how saguna brahman is connected to nirguna brahman.  Download links are below the power point presentation.

PDF Document: Symbology of Nataraja

 




Saddharshanam, Class 12

As far as dehathma bava (experience of limitation caused by physical body) is concerned it is same for gyani and agyani.  This experience of limitation is common on jagrada avastas and swapna avasta.  But in sushukthi avasta, there is absence of experience.  There is no third experience in sushukthi as the expreince of limitlessness does not exist.  The very word experience presupposes thrupidi (experience, the experiencing instrument and the experienced object).  The moment thripudi comes, there is limitation.  Experience of limitlessness is a contridction. In sushukthi what we have is not experience of limitation (because the experiencer himself is not there) but the absence of experience of limitation.

You cannot make a difference between gyani and agyani based on their experiences.  Difference between gyani and agyani is not in experience but in gyanam or knowledge that I am the consciousness that pervade the body and universe and as a result, I am poornatvam.  Gyani also experiences but he attributes to the body and not to I the subject.  This is a conclusion and not an experience.  Knowledge need not change the experience.  For example, the experience of sun going around the earth continues even after we gain the knowledge it is actually the earth that goes around the sun.  Knowledge can falsify the experience, even after that the experience can continue.  I am a limited body is a fact for agyani and it is a fiction for gyani.  Therefore, don’t expect experiential difference after the study of vedanta.

Verse 20

The world exists for the ignorance and the Wise Man.  To the former the seen world alone is real.  To the other, the one that has become substratum of the seen, the full, formless Truth shines.

As long as there is duality, there will be limitation.  As long as there is limitation, there will be mortality.  As long as there is mortality, there will be insecurity.  As long as there is insecurity, there will be samsara.

If samsara must be negated, insecurity must go away.

If insecurity must be negated, limitation must go away.

If limitation must be negated, duality must go away.

If duality must be negated, object must go away.

The objective world must be negated for the negation of samsara.  The I the subject alone will be there.

Negation of the world is not the negation of the experience of the world.  It is only the negation of the reality that we have attributed to the world.  Vedanta only changes my perceptive of the world.  That perspective is that the world enjoys a reality which is lesser than my reality.  The world includes the external objects, our own body, our own mind.   Objects plus body plus mind has lower order of reality. Pradhibathika Sathyam and vyavaharika Sathyam are many, but paramarthika Sathyam is one.   Pradhibathika sathyam and vyavahariha sathyam will continue but I, the paramarthika sathyam will not be affected.  World will be experienced by both gyani and agyani.

Perceived world is common to both gyani and agyani and experientially there is no difference, but the gyani knows that the perceived world is mithya and the agyani thinks it is real.

Verse 21

It is possible to talk of fate and self-effort for them who know not the source of the two.  To them who know well the source of fate and effort, there is neither fate nor effort.

Experiential change is not required for liberation.  Cognitive change is enough.  Experiential change can’t give liberation because they are temporary.  If liberation is based on knowledge. it will be permanent because knowledge is permanent.

I create my own fate with my own free will and efforts; free will alone control my destiny.  The counter argument is free will controls your future, but current free will by your past free will.  A debate between fate and effort will be inconclusive and therefore we should never enter into this debate.  Both fate and effort are mithya for a gyani.




Saddarshanam, Class 11

I, the atma becomes ahangara because of ignorance.  I become temporarily localized I, known as ahangara and this is the first product of ignorance.  This is the foundation for space, time and plurality and this is alone is the cause of samsara.

Space is the first tyranny.  Because of space alone I feel localized and distanced and struggle to reach people and places.  In sleep, there is no space or distance and there is not necessary for travel.

Second tyranny is time.  I want to complete my duties before die. Worry of old age, decease and ultimate death is all because of time.

Division is the third tyranny.  Division causes raga, dwesha and asuya.  Asuya is pain caused by comparison.  Comparison caused by duality or plurality.

Samsara is caused by space, time and division.  These three are possible because of ahangara foundation and ahangara is caused by ignorance and ignorance is resting on atma.  Ahangara itself is caused by identifying I with the body.

There are two types of I:

  1. The original I, the consciousness, this is atma.
  2. Second I is the limited by body or anatma.  Bagawan also falls into body but we call it avatara meaning it is a deliberate ahangara role Bagawan chooses to play.  Avataras are vyvaharika lela which is mithya.  If you start identifying with ahangara, the kala leela starts.  This is the beginning of samsara and fighting against old age, death, decay etc. Solution is to tackle the foundation, which is ahangara.  In Jagra and swapna vastha, there is time, space and duality tyranny.  In deep sleep the ahangara is temporarily suspended and there is not time space duality.

 

First stage is knowing the cause of samsara which is ahangara.

Second stage is to find the cause of ahangara.  Cause of ahangara is the notion that I am the body.  Remove the false notion by right knowledge.  I am not the mind or body or sense organs.  This knowledge is the only solution.

We don’t exist in any particular time and space; We, the original atma, exist everywhere; in fact, space itself exist in me. Never trace outward.

Verse 19

In the state of oneself being the body, the Wise Man and ignorant man are the same.  For one, in the heart, in the body, the Self is lit up, full, encompassing the body and the world.  For the other the Self is measurable only as the body.

Experience of the body requires a medium, e.g., sense organs.  But sense organs can only sense some of the experiences.  I can feel the experiences of my body but I can’t feel another body’s pain.

Intimate experience of a particular body is (devatma baga) common to gyani and agyani.  The confusion we may have for example, whether gyani will feel hungry and whether gyani will feel the huger of everyone else.  Ramana Maharishi says gyani will continue to have biological experiences.  With regard to biological experiences, gyanam will not make any experience.  A gyani has to go through prarabtha karma; he may avoid further agami karma or future rebirth’s sanjitha karma.

One may hear that gyani does not have devatma baga and may conclude that gyani will not have biological experience.  This is a misconception.  Vedanta is not solution for biological pains, but is a solution for psychological pain, which is caused by samsara.  Sorrow, the emotional pain, which is response to biological pain, is not experienced to have the emotional pain.  Gyani is similar in that respect and does not have emotional pain as a response to biological pain.

Based on the sunrise, biological experience, we may conclude that the earth is in the middle and the sun is traveling around earth.  Based on science, we know now that the sun is not moving around the earth, but the sun rise and sun set is caused by the earth spinning.  After this intellectual knowledge, the experience of sunrise and sunset does not change, but the conclusion is changed.  In the same way, the biological experiences will continue, but the wrong conclusion that I am the body will change for a gyani.  Vedanta is not meant to give you an experience change but a cognitive change or knowledge based change.

Gyani says I am not the body, but I am the consciousness in the body, consciousness in the mind and the consciousness in the sense organs.  I am not only the consciousness, I remain pervading my own body and the whole universe.  But biologically I experience only this localized body.  This statement can take place only in a body.  All pervasiveness can never be experienced, but can only be understood. You can never experience limitlessness as it is contradictory term because when you become an experiencer, you are localized and limited.




Saddarshanam, Class 10

When I say the I is the cause of all problem, that I represents the ahangara.  “I am the cause of all problem” or “the I is the cause of all problem” are different.  The HE and The You are dependent on The I.  Second and third person are dependent on first person, that is the finite ahangara I.  As long as I exist as ahangara, I am susceptible to the second and third person.  The Aham in Aham Brahma Asmi, is not first person, not second person and not third person, but it is the person or purushaha.  Ahangara is needed to teach Brahma Gyanam  Gyani contiues to have ahangara, but it is seen as mithya or vyavahariha sathyam.

How do you falsify ahangara or rope snake?  For rope snake the adhishtanam is rope similarly for ahangara adhishtanam is sathyam.  Ahangara is vyavarika sathyam and not paramarthika sathyam.  The false notion that there is a third person, the false notion that there is a first person and the false notion that there is a second person is the notion of division.  This notion of division goes away for a gyani but the experience of the notion will continue.  Experience of stationary earth does not displace the knowledge that the earth keeps moving.  Similarly the gyani goes through many experiences but does not let that displace his brahma gyanam.

Verse 17

The past and the future are, in their own time, the present.  Giving up the truth of that present, will not discussion on the past and the future be laughable, like counting without the number one in the world?

So far Ramana Maharishi has been discussing spacial division.  In this version, he is discussing time division.

Spacial division is horizontal division; time division is vertical division.

Kala division or time division is also mithya and is caused by Ahangara.  The very idea of three division of time is myth.  There is no thing called past existing outside.  Yesterday is the past which does not exist today, but it did exist yesterday.  When yesterday existed outside yesterday, it was not called yesterday.  You only experience as a series of today.  What is outside is today and today only.  Similarly when you experience tomorrow, it is experienced only as today.  So tomorrow does not exist outside.  Yesterday is only a name for your memory and tomorrow is only a name for your projection.  When you say past is hurting, it is not that past that is hurting, it is the memory that is hurting you.  Memory exists in the past or present?  Memory regarding the past exist in the present.  What hurts is not future but the thought of the future that hurts you.  The future thought exist in the present.  So you only have memories and projections and not past and future.

Past and future exist as present in their own time.  Present alone exist.  If you want to analyze time, you have to analyze past, present and future.  Since there is no past and future, you have to analyze only present.  Every present has its own time line.  For example, for a day, 24 hours are not present.  Only one of those hour can be present.  Others are past or future.  Similarly the hour itself is made up of past, present and future.  Only one minute is present.  Not the entire minute is present, only part of it is present.  What is a point is a mystery in mathematics and similarly what is present is a mystery in vedanta; it is apparent notion caused by ahangara.  The timeless  consciousness is localized as finite present because of the ahangara, which is caused by deha abimana.  The truth of kala thrayam is ahangara and the truth of hanagara is atma.  Atma appears as desa thrayam and atma appears as kala thrayam.

Trying to understand time without understanding atma is like trying to understand the number without knowing the number one.




Bagawat Geeta, Class 54

In the first chapter of Geeta, Vyasa chariyar revealed the human problem of samsara in the form of raga (emotional depedents of external factors), sogaha (grief or sorrow) and moga (delusion or conflict or indiscriminate).  When Arjuna had this problem in the battlefield, he tried to solve this problem himself and was not successful and took the action of surrendering to the Lord.  Lord Krishna accepted the role of Guru

In the second chapter, Krishna took the approach that the self-knowledge is the only solution.  No other solution can solve the problem.  And therefore, Krishna tried to give the self-knowledge to Arjuna.  Geeta talks about many topics but Gaeta’s primary teaching is atma vidhya.  In this chapter, Krishna gives the entire range of sadhanas for this knowledge.  In this chapter, Krishna taught the two sadhanas:  Karma yoga and gyana yoga. Karma yoga is prescribed as a means of mental purity.  Krishna makes it clear that karma yoga can only give preparatory knowledge.  Gyana yoga involves self-inquiry through the scriptures under the guidance of a competent guru.  The second chapter is the summary of Geeta.

The third chapter is elaboration of karma yoga.  The fourth and fifth chapters are expansion of gyana yoga.

Krishna takes a small diversion initially to discuss two topics of chapter 4.  The two topics are and glorification of Geeta and avatara ragasyam. Krishna wants to emphasize that the teachings of Geeta are vedic teachings and are beginning-less.

Verse 1

The Lord said I imparted this eternal yaga to Lord Sun.  Lord Sun taught the same to Manu.  Manu taught it to Iksvaku.

I have given the same teaching in the form of Veda.  Krishna says Geeta is the new name for Veda.  I revealed this wisdom to Surya Bagawan.  This teaching can never go out of date.  It is relevant even now in the 20th century.

Surya Bagawan taught this teaching to Manu.  Manu taught this to the King Ikshvaku.

Verse 2

Oh Arjuna!  The royal sages knew this which was thus traditionally handed down.  Due to long passage of time that yaga is lost in this world.

All the raja rishis (kings) knew this teaching.  Gradually people started losing interest in this teaching.  Therefore, Krishna is revising this teaching in the form of Geeta.

Verse 3

That very same ancient yoga in this which has been taught by Me to you now, because you are My friend and devotee.  This indeed is the highest secret.

Veda Purva teaches karma yoga and called karma kandam.  Veda Anta teahes gyana yoga and is called gyana kandam.   This is the oldest teachings.  Krishna chose Arjuna for this teaching, because Arjuna asked for it and because Arjuna is the friend of Krishna.

Self-knowledge is the greatest secret, because what we are searching for is within ourselves.  Therefore this wisdom is called uthama ragasiyam.

Verse 4

Arjuna asked:  Your birth is later.  The birth of Lord Sun is much earlier.  How am I to understand this statement of Yours that You have taught Lord Sun in the beginning of the creation?

Vedas are called sruthi because the Rishis heard internally; all other scriptures are called smirhti.

Arjuna says that I can understand that you are teaching me Geeta, but I can’t understand how you can also teaching Surya Bagawan at the time of creation, when we both are of the same age.  What is the secret of your contrary statement?  If you have taught Surya Bagawan, you can’t teach me  If you are teaching me, you can’t teach Surya Bagawan.  As an answer to this question, Krishna will discuss Avataras.