Psychology of the Bhagavad Gita

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The majority of learned people in the world and India believe that

Freud was the one who had analyzed and divided the mind into four types -

consciousness, unconsciousness, subconsciousness and inner

consciousness. Indians also studied and taught Freud's basic discovery.

But before five thousand ago, Lord Krishna had narrated Bhagavad Gita

to Arjuna, which is present in its basic form even today. It is

relevant in today's modern world as well. It is important and

acceptable in today's context if we try to find out the secrets of this

Gita.Freud's

psychology says that desire, lust, attraction, only go away when these

negative feelings are fulfilled but when they are not fulfilled the

mind gets disappointed. A person feels tensed and suffers from complex,

which affects the whole personality of the person. It is necessary to

remove desire, lust and attraction for a healthy brain. The Gita's

psychology says that when they are fulfilled then they are not removed

but subside for sometime or become calm, they leave their impressions

and as a result they arise once again. The cycle rotates and does not

stop. The Gita says that desire and lusts do not die if they are

fulfilled. Indian thinkers also believe this.With this small

example, the learned readers can understand as to who's psychology is

more closer to the truth, practical and appropriate; Lord Krishna's or

Freud's philosophy. If Freud's psychology were true then today the

people leading materialistic life would not have suffered from tension,

depression, loneliness, disappointment and other mental diseases. But

the experience and figures show that the countries which have freedom

of enjoyment, suffer mental diseases most.The Gita's psychology

is not just philosophy. The Bhagavad Gita contains easy and practical

methods to control desires, lust and attraction, which are

psychological, appropriate and practical. The Gita's psychology says

that desires and lust are not destroyed when fulfilled. It says that as

the Sunrays outshine the light of an earthen lamp in the same way the

high thoughts defuse the lust, desires and attractions. Desires are

formed from selfish attraction.The deeper the selfishness,

deeper the attraction, deeper the desire and deeper its influence. That

value will keep on haunting our minds. The mind will be disturbed to

fulfill that desire, you will feel uncomfortable and lack of peace of

mind. The inner personality will be influenced with it. The Gita says

that in order to calm down this anxiety either the person has to lead a

selfless life free of aspirations, lust and attractions or lead a life

with some high aspiration. High aspiration is thinking of God or

selfless service of the society. Selfless service has no aspiration;

there is only peace of mind, a gift of life. You should work with this

gift of life but remember that nobody can do anything alone, we are

part of the society. Whatever wealth and money remains after social

service should be donated to the society. The Gita calls this as Yagya.

Whatever else we do other than Yagya leads to attachments. We should

sacrifice for our upcoming, but whatever remains should not be

considered to be belonging to us, it should be donated to the society.

This is known as 'Idam na mama'. Whatever was my share, I took it, now

the remaining does not belong to me, it belongs to the society. This is

called the unselfish action.In this way the person leads a lust

free, aspiration free and attraction free life. Such type of person is

away from all the negative things despite doing his duties. A person

commits sins when he is under the influence of lust, desire and

aspirations. A thief commits theft, a liar speaks lies. If a person

does not have aspirations, desires and lust then why will anybody

commit theft unnecessarily, why will anybody speak lies. The Gita

defines the mind and also suggests a path of welfare for the healthy

mind.Freud analyzed the mind and gained popularity in the whole

world but the analysis of the Bhagavad Gita is totally scientific,

thoughtful, acceptable and recognized in the whole world. This is

definite that desire, lust, aspirations, thirst destroys the person. It

has been told in the Gita that what are the factors for destruction and

after which stage the person rises above in life. From which stage he

cannot come back but ruins his life completely. The following two

shlokas narrate the destruction of mind:dhyayato visayan pumsahsangas tesupajayatesangat sanjayate kamahkamat krodho ’bhijayate"While

contemplating the objects of the senses, a person develops attachment

for them, and from such attachment lust develops, and from lust anger

arises."krodhad bhavati sammohahsammohat smriti-vibhramahsmriti-bhramsad buddhi-nasobuddhi-nasat pranasyati"From

anger, complete delusion arises, and from delusion bewilderment of

memory. When memory is bewildered, intelligence is lost, and when

intelligence is lost one falls down again into the material pool."Lord

Shri Krishna must have been a great psychologist, who told the mankind

that there are eight stages of destruction of man, which begin from

subjects and end with destruction. These stages are concentration,

company, sex, anger, relations, deviation of the mind, destruction of

intelligence and complete destruction. We can come out of this process

of destruction whenever we want to. Or we can walk on the path of

destruction and ruin our life completely. Here we should think about

the psychological analysis.Thought of the subject:The

Gita's psychology says that the world consists of subjects, so it is

natural for the person to concentrate towards these subjects. The word

dhyayata has been used in the Gita but not dhyanat. Dhyayata means

engrossment, dedication, full involvement of oneself in subjects and

dhyanat means concentrating on the subjects. Attention of the mind

towards subjects does not harm much because this is natural. It is

according to the nature, but the person keeps the first step on the

path of destruction when he is dedicated, involved, engrossed and

immersed in subjects. When the subjects come into the mind they can

also go out and can stop if the person concentrates on them. If the

person looses his concentration then he will go towards destruction. If

anybody sees the subjects, does not walk along with it, then he is able

to be stable and does not deviate from path.Sangah: Sangah

means company which means attraction, liking, desire, love, lust,

aspiration, want and company of subjects. Do not go along with it on

seeing the subjects. If you loose concentration then you will step on

the second stage of destruction. The company increases with

concentration. The man was free till he was concentrated. He was free

till he had company, and wil be free if he leaves from the company. He

should not allow the third stage. But being free from this third stage

does not happen. Destruction after company and stage of desire

definitely arise.Sex does not mean sexual act it means desires,

wants, lust, aspirations or engrossing in thoughts. When we do not move

from company, then it becomes desire. The person engrosses himself and

is fully involved and wants only that.The desires are never

fulfilled. The person who is able to fulfill the desire has less

problem, but the majority of the people are unable to fulfill the

desires. When the desires are not fulfilled then it leads to anger. As

the river is blocked with a big rock on the way and rises up similarly

when the desires are obstructed with anything anger rises up. When the

person gets angry he has two options - either to express anger or

control it. If he expresses anger then he steps on the next stage of

destruction, which is known as attachment.When the person gets

angry he does not leave his desires, he further gets attached to them.

He walks towards attraction, he becomes more determined to fulfill his

desires. He is adamant to fulfill the desires at any cost. He has the

attachment to fulfill the desires, or the want towards that particular

thing. Attachment means deep attachment towards that object. Whoever

looses his efforts, they do not remain distracted and become so

attached that they are ready to ruin their efforts for the sake of

attachments.The person deviates from his memory due to deep

attachment. In this stage the person falls prey to two things. He first

looses his natural freedom. He could come out of anger but instead he

gets into the trap due to attachments. He does not remain free, his

actions take him towards bonds and relationships. He looses his memory.

Memory means the pure and correct impression of the thing which is

imprinted in the mind. During attachment the pure form of the thing

does not remain in the mind. The hatred and jealousy present inside the

person are expressed as the external subjects. The person full of

attachment sees the external things just like the internal hatred and

jealousy. The real stage i.e., external thing is not seen in the real

form. Till now the person had the choice to select any one from the two

options but when the mind is deviated, he looses his freedom and he

steps on the next stage of destruction.Attachment destroys

memory. Due to this, the person does not find the form as it is, which

is the function of memory, if memory does not work the intelligence

does not work because the whole basis of intelligence is memory. A

simple example can clarify this doubt. The child is made to learn

tables, this is the function of memory. On the basis of these tables he

is made to solve mathematical problems. If the child does not remember

tables then it is the problem of memory, he cannot solve the problems,

in other worlds whatever is attained, it becomes the basis for the

intelligence to work. Just like the building is made up of bricks,

lime, sand etc, memory is like these things. If the person does not

have intelligence he will destroy his life. If the wisdom is lost the

person falls down from his path. The path of this destruction moves at

great speed. The person could come out of anger due to his natural

nature of freedom. The source of coming out is disinterest, lack of

willingness. Attraction comes after anger, willingness comes

because at the stage of attachment the position of the thing changes.

The external thing does not remain in the knowledge. Jealousy and

hatred, which are internal things, become our companion and are

infectious. They arise when the person reaches the stage of attachment,

and thus he falls into this traps. Just like the insect, which falls

into the trap of the spider's net. Hatred and jealousy are our nets. It

is difficult to come out of this situation. This is the stage of

destruction.Thus the Bhagavad Gita contains the psychological

analysis of desire. None of the books of the world contain such an

analysis. The Indian psychologists should draw the attraction of the

world towards this analysis.

Thanks & Regards,Sudhir SrinivasanB.Arch, Dip.ID, Dip.CAD, Dip.PM, AIIA, IIID, ARIAI| Architect | M: +353-87-285 9086 |