Chapter 7 Text 1

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Chapter 7Text 1

• Importance of hearing about Krsna.

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Text 1

• çré-bhagavän uväca
• mayy äsakta-manäù pärtha
• yogaà yuïjan mad-äçrayaù
• asaàçayaà samagraà mäà
• yathä jïäsyasi tac chåëu
• The Supreme Personality of Godhead said Now
  hear, O son of Påthä, how by practicing yoga in
  full consciousness of Me, with mind attached to
  Me, you can know Me in full, free from doubt.

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Purpose of Yoga and topmost Yoga

• In Bhagavad-gétä, the living entity has been
  described as nonmaterial spirit soul capable of
  elevating himself to self-realization by
  different types of yogas.
• It has been clearly stated in the last verse of
  6th chapter, that the steady concen-tration of
  the mind upon Kåñëa, or in other words Kåñëa
  consciousness, is the highest form of all yogas.

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Krsna Consciousness complete understanding.

• Impersonal brahmajyoti or localized Paramätmä
  realization is not perfect knowledge of the
  Absolute Truth, because it is partial.
• Full and scientific knowledge is Kåñëa, and
  everything is revealed to the person in Kåñëa
  consciousness.

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Complete knowledge by practice of Krishna
Consciousness.

• Different types of yoga are only steppingstones
  on the path of Kåñëa consciousness.
• One who takes directly to Kåñëa consciousness
  automatically knows about brahmajyoti and
  Paramätmä in full.
• By practice of Kåñëa consciousness yoga, one can
  know everything in fullnamely the Absolute
  Truth, the living entities, the material nature,
  and their manifestations with paraphernalia.

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Yoga by hearing.

• One should therefore begin yoga practice as
  directed in the last verse of the Sixth Chapter.
• Concentration of the mind upon Kåñëa the Supreme
  is made possible by prescribed devotional service
  in nine different forms, of which çravaëam is the
  first and most important.

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Importance of hearing

• Importance of word tac chåëu, or "Hear from Me."
• No one can be a greater authority than Kåñëa, and
  therefore by hearing from Him one receives the
  greatest opportunity to become a perfectly Kåñëa
  conscious person.
• One has therefore to learn from Kåñëa directly or
  from a pure devotee of Kåñëa and not from a non
  devotee upstart, puffed up with academic
  education.

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Srimad-Bhagavatam on hearing.

• çåëvatäà sva-kathäù kåñëaù
• puëya-çravaëa-kértanaù
• hådy antaù-stho hy abhadräëi
• vidhunoti suhåt satäm
• "To hear about Kåñëa from Vedic literatures, or
  to hear from Him directly through the
  Bhagavad-gétä, is itself righteous activity. And
  for one who hears about Kåñëa, Lord Kåñëa, who is
  dwelling in everyone's heart, acts as a
  best-wishing friend and purifies the devotee who
  constantly engages in hearing of Him.

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Result of hearing

• nañöa-präyeñv abhadreñu nityaà bhägavata-sevayä
• bhagavaty uttama-çloke bhaktir bhavati naiñöhiké
• tadä rajas-tamo-bhäväù käma-lobhädayaç ca ye
• ceta etair anäviddhaà sthitaà sattve prasédati
• evaà prasanna-manaso bhagavad-bhakti-yogataù
• bhagavat-tattva-vijïänaà mukta-saìgasya jäyate
• bhidyate hådaya-granthiç chidyante sarva-saàçayäù
• kñéyante cäsya karmäëi dåñöa evätmanéçvare

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Translation

• In this way, a devotee naturally develops his
  dormant transcendental knowledge. As he hears
  more about Kåñëa from the Bhägavatam and from the
  devotees, he becomes fixed in the devotional
  service of the Lord. By development of devotional
  service one becomes freed from the modes of
  passion and ignorance, and thus material lusts
  and avarice are diminished. When these impurities
  are wiped away, the candidate remains steady in
  his position of pure goodness, becomes enlivened
  by devotional service and understands the science
  of God perfectly. Thus bhakti-yoga severs the
  hard knot of material affection and enables one
  to come at once to the stage of
  asaàçayaà-samagram, understanding of the Supreme
  Absolute Truth Personality of Godhead."

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Therefore only by hearing from Kåñëa or from His
devotee in Kåñëa consciousness can one understand
the science of Kåñëa.