Dr Simon Reads...

  Chapter Fourteen: Yog Through Understanding The Three Modes of Material Nature (Guṇa Traya Vibhāg Yog) Plato, Aristotle, and Mindfulness.   Welcome to the next instalment of An Atheist Explores Sacred Texts (Bhagavad Gita). In this series I work my way chapter-by-chapter through the Bhagavad Gita, commenting on it from the point of view of the text as literature and mythology.   For more detail, see the introductory post https://bit.ly/2XAch2A For the online Bhagavad Gita that I use, see here https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/   And now:   Guṇa Traya Vibhāg Yog “O mighty-armed Arjun, the material energy consists of three  guṇas  (modes)— sattva  (goodness),  rajas  (passion), and  tamas  (ignorance). These modes bind the eternal soul to the perishable body.”   Remember the gunas from before? These are the three “ modes ” through which “ material energy ” is expressed. The term prakriti is used here, which as you will recall from last chapter is an individual expr

  Chapter Thirteen: Yog Through Distinguishing The Field And The Knower Of The Field (Kṣhetra Kṣhetrajña Vibhāg Yog) Not Your Standard Dualism.   Welcome to the next instalment of An Atheist Explores Sacred Texts (Bhagavad Gita). In this series I work my way chapter-by-chapter through the Bhagavad Gita, commenting on it from the point of view of the text as literature and mythology.   For more detail, see the introductory post https://bit.ly/2XAch2A For the online Bhagavad Gita that I use, see here https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/   And now:   Kṣhetra Kṣhetrajña Vibhāg Yog “Arjun said, “O Keshav, I wish to understand what are  prakṛiti  and  puruṣh , and what are  kṣhetra  and  kṣhetrajña ? I also wish to know what is true knowledge, and what is the goal of this knowledge?”   The commentary points out that the Bhagavad Gita is divided into three sections of six chapters, that roughly correspond to the three different paths; chapters one through six deal with the pa

  Chapter Twelve: The Yog of Devotion (Bhakti Yog) Ride The Rapids With Krishna   Welcome to the next instalment of An Atheist Explores Sacred Texts (Bhagavad Gita). In this series I work my way chapter-by-chapter through the Bhagavad Gita, commenting on it from the point of view of the text as literature and mythology.   For more detail, see the introductory post https://bit.ly/2XAch2A For the online Bhagavad Gita that I use, see here https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/   And now:   Bhakti Yog “Arjun inquired: Between those who are steadfastly devoted to Your personal form and those who worship the formless  Brahman , who do You consider to be more perfect in Yog?”   Arjun asks Krishna who is better – those that worship Krishna directly or those that revere Brahman, the unmanifest aspect of godhood. Perhaps not surprisingly, Krishna thinks that “ Those who fix their minds on Me and always engage in My devotion with steadfast faith, I consider them to be the best yogi

  Chapter Eleven:  Yog Through Beholding The Cosmic Form of God (Viśhwarūp Darśhan Yog) God has thousands of arms, but no internet security.   Welcome to the next instalment of An Atheist Explores Sacred Texts (Bhagavad Gita). In this series I work my way chapter-by-chapter through the Bhagavad Gita, commenting on it from the point of view of the text as literature and mythology.   For more detail, see the introductory post https://bit.ly/2XAch2A For the online Bhagavad Gita that I use, see here https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/   And now:   Viśhwarūp Darśhan Yog “Behold now, Arjun, the entire universe, with everything moving and non-moving, assembled together in my universal form. Whatever else you wish to see, observe it all within this universal form.”   Arjun asks Krishna to show him His true form, his viśhwarūp , and so Krishna grants Arjun a glimpse of the infinite form of God. Which, oddly, still comprises body parts – “I see your infinite form in every direc