Title: The Nature of the Empirical World

15th Chapter: Verses 1, 2

In previous chapters of Gita, various methods of spiritual practices are discussed, such as the path of bhakti, the path of karma yoga, the path of dhyana yoga, the path of jnanam, and the path of transcending the three gunas. One essential characteristic in all these paths is that the seeker should develop detachment towards worldly enjoyments. For that, it is important to understand what constitutes the world.

Matter, energy, mind and time constitute the empirical world. This empirical world is explained by imagery in the 1st verse.

In the first verse, the whole world is compared to the Ashvattha tree – the tree of life. Its roots are above and the branches are below. Roots represent the origin or the source which is the Atman. From this Atman, the empirical world, which is represented by the branches and leaves, evolves and moves downward. Only the Atman is eternal – the empirical world is non-eternal.

The verse says that the leaves are the ritualistic portion of the vedas, where one performs rituals with the purpose of some empirical gain. Leaves represent the continuous flow of samsara (empirical world) through human desires, actions and results.

Vedanta defines something as real if (1) it remains without change in the past, present and future (2) It is beyond time, space and causation and (3) it remains without change in waking, dream and deep sleep states.

According to the commentary on the 3rd verse, this world is non-eternal – it is something that you see now, and which is gone the next moment (drashta-nashta). What we see in a dream seems real in the dream – we realize it is not real when we come out of the dream. Similarly, worldly enjoyments seem real at the empirical plane, but are unreal from the view of absolute reality in Vedanta.

Various examples are cited in Vedanta to illustrate the mithya nature of this world. In a desert, from a distance, we see a pool of water. We realize later, that in reality, it is a continuous expansion of sand. The water was only an imagination. Small children may imagine a city in the celestial regions or a flower garden in the sky. Their father tells them that it is not real. Similarly, from the absolute point of view, this world is not real.

Maya really does not exist. The wrong notion, that Maya exists, disappears when we realize that Atman is the absolute reality. In the rope snake analogy, the snake exists only as an idea, and it goes away when light is brought to the room.

If we keep in mind that everything that we seek in this world, including human relations, are not eternal – it gives us transcendental wisdom and level headedness.

The whole Gita is about how to live in this world without being worldly minded. Gita starts with Arjuna’s predicament towards a duty that he is expected to do, but that is unpleasant to him. The same Arjuna says in the 73rd verse of the 18th chapter: “By your grace, all my doubts are gone. I shall act according to your instructions.”

2nd verse: “The branches, leaves and fruits are below the root in this imagery of the tree. They are nurtured by the three gunas – sattva guna, rajo guna and tamo guna – which constitute our worldly life. They drive human emotional drives and activities.”

The Atman, as the source, is the root. Without it, the tree collapses. So, in the midst of our daily activities, we should remember the Atman, the source of everything. This can be done with spiritual practices such as yamas and niyamas. When we undertake these practices, we can detach from our desires and remember the root (Atman).

Every action which is done other than as yajna binds us to this world. The practical message of Gita is about doing our duty as swadharma, as yajna. Then our actions do not bind us, they liberate us.

When we carry a heavy weight on our head, we feel it. However, if a one-millimeter gap is created between the head and the weight, we do not feel it at all. When we perform actions as yajna, it is like creating the one-millimeter gap, where we are detached from the results of the actions. We do the actions with a sense of sanctity and sacredness and for the good of others. Mahatma Gandhi led a life of action, but he was not attached to results.