Query: Bhagvad Gita and God... I don't work because of the way economy is right now in U.S. I am close to god....but I don't know anything about details in the Great Bhagvad Gita and I don't think I will ever understand the power it holds. However, I have a closeness to God in my own way. I have my parents God has blessed me with.

Everyone needs money to live in this materialistic world. I need money to pay debts, bills, maintenance, rent and all. Presently my parents help me. So how can one not worry about income if they have bills to pay? It is human nature to worry about finances. Everyone wants to provide so much for their family that they don't have to be in a situation where they have to either beg or borrow...and sometimes steal. So how would that work out?. Doesn't god want us to work hard and earn for ourselves to sustain life he has given us?

Kaivalya Jnani:
Do not keep yourself in the dark... unless you burn your karma in its entirety... there is no meaning considering self as very attached to God. Such words carry no meaning in the spiritual system. Yes... you follow the religious path... the path of rituals! The path of religion does not carry one towards God... it remains limited to worshiping and praying to God!

If we desire anything out of life... if we truly desire going after God Almighty... we need to learn the intricacies... the underlying Wisdom contained in the 700 shlokas (verses) of the Sacred Bhagavad Gita. You do not desire following the path of Bhagavad Gita... yet, you want to remain immersed in thoughts of God Almighty... this would carry you nowhere!

Saint Tukaram... Saint Jnaneshwar... Saint Chaitanya Mahaprabhu... all initially started on the religious path... the path of Bhakti! Finally they switched over to the path of jnana Yoga... that takes one directly to God Almighty. Through the path of rituals alone... through the path of Bhakti yoga, God Almighty can never be reached!

Even Sri Ramakrishna Paramhansa and Maharishi Ramana initially started on the path of Bhakti... but later on both switched over to the path of jnana Yoga. Swami Vivekananda... the famous disciple of Sri Ramakrishna Paramhansa never wanted to travel the path of jnana Yoga... he was purely after the welfare of the community... he never realized God in his lifetime.

Chanting hymns in praise of God is a prevalent practice in India. Those who follow the path of Bhakti yoga immerse themselves in chanting hymns and worshiping God in myriads of ways. Singing in praise of God and immersing in the thoughts of his holiness is exemplary... still, to reach God one needs switching to the path of Jnana Yoga.

Your not working is not a meritorious deed... one simply cannot absolve self from the path of karma. We have to burn the karma in its entirety... come whatever may! God Almighty has ordained a journey of 1.1 million manifestations... an earthly domain of 12.4 million earthly years to reach the stage of enlightenment (kaivalya jnana) and finally salvation (moksha).

The journey is long... the path unknown... yet every human being has to travel the spiritual path... willingly or unwillingly! The moment one reaches the 8.4 millionth manifestation... all is over for the soul atman within! Having completed its cosmic sojourn... the liberated soul atman having gained Mukti (liberation) forever... gains entry into the kingdom of God (aka Vaikunth in Hinduism). The path of karma is totally unavoidable... be one a commoner or a King!

Do not travel the path taken by Gautama Buddha. Just by touching the feet of wife and son... one does not absolve self of karma. This mistake proved very costly for Gautama Buddha. Almost for 50 years Gautama Buddha wandered world over for gaining enlightenment. He went to jungles... deep dense forests... but returned a failure. He lived within the community... but gained nothing!

The moment he gained enlightenment at 81 years of age... he was so frail bodily... he took moksha salvation immediately. Finally the enlightenment one... Gautama Buddha preached and advocated taking middle path... neither the deep dense jungles nor living within the community... one gained enlightenment! Gautama Buddha realized the truth of life only in the end hours of his life... not before!

On the contrary Mahavira... the 24th Tirthankara (preceptor) of Jainism gained enlightenment at the age of 42. He never wanted to leave his mortal frame unless he imparted to the world community the wisdom gained on the spiritual path. Mahavira preached for 30 years and left his mortal frame at 72 years of age. This is the path I have chosen.

In the Sacred Bhagavad Gita... when King Arjuna refused to fight his brethren in the field of Kurushetra... Lord Krishna not only admonished him but advised him to follow the path of Nishakama karma... performing ones duties with a detached attitude! Only after lot of convincing and explanations... the gist of Bhagavad Gita... the teachings of Lord Krishna became clear to King Arjuna. Thereafter... it was no looking back!

Now King Arjuna was not fighting his relatives... but a King was fighting to save his countrymen from the rigors of war... from the prevailing adharma (lawlessness)! Lord Krishna advised it is the duty of every King to protect his countrymen... one can never shy away from our duties... we are morally bound by the same! The resulting bloodshed does not mean we are the cause of it!

The gist of Bhagavad Gita... the doctrine of Bhagavad Gita makes it absolutely clear... Karma has to be performed under all costs. Feeling closeness to God all the time truly means nothing. You may not want to indulge in the Wisdom contained in the Sacred Bhagavad Gita... yet, you cannot do without it! The Sacred Bhagavad Gita is the only document existing on Mother Earth that paves way for reaching God Almighty at the earliest.

If we truly understand God... even our parents lose their meaning. For a Jnana Yogi... becoming detached with everything materialistic becomes a foremost necessity. The entirety of the mortal world becomes an illusion... the world of Maya as explained by Adi Shankaracharya. If you read my article on Maya (veil of illusion)... all becomes clear by itself.

The true seeker of God Almighty... the traveler of the spiritual path has to understand... it is not the human form that carries importance... it is the soul atman within that is the master and governor of the body. It is our soul atman that has manifested the human form to work out its karma... remove the dross impurities within... never otherwise! It is not within the competence of the human form to manifest a soul atman!

As long as one remains immersed in Bhakti path of yoga... all problems faced by one continue to exist forever. There is nothing God Almighty can do in the matter. The path of spirituality is traveled by the human being alone... God Almighty always acting as a guide... the omnipotent, omnipresent and omniscient friend of mankind ever since life exists on mother earth.

The sooner you awake yourself from the delusion (illusion)... the better! Unless you indulge yourself in the Wisdom contained in the Sacred Bhagavad Gita... you shall not achieve anything much on the spiritual path. The path of religion... the path of rituals... the path of Bhakti yoga was meant for yester years... the period of Vedas!

In present times... when the wisdom of Bhagavad Gita is freely available (the original gist of Bhagavad Gita is available for US $.50 in most railway stations across India)... traveling the spiritual path... the path advocated by Lord Krishna is not very difficult.

Yet... dominated by a bloated ego... the wanton desires and greed for materialistic riches... most human beings in life pursue the path of religion... the rituals! Taking a dip in the sacred Ganges River... one does not absolve self of the impurities contained within. We can never wash away our sins by such deeds.

The choice is purely yours... pursue the path of religion... the rituals... the path of Bhakti yoga or follow the path of jnana yoga! Always remember... we have one life to live! We do not know what we shall be in the next manifestation... why not travel the spiritual path now!

More Bhagvad Gita and God related links...

Creator of God - Names of God

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Essay by: Kaivalya Jnani... One who realized self in his life time!

Kaivalya Jnani... In permanent communion with God Almighty explains more on Bhagvad Gita and God. For more details on find inner self innerself visit - bhagvad gita and god. Send your query - click here Ref.

Full text of query: I don't work because of the way economy is right now in U.S. I am close to god....but I don't know anything about details in the Great Bhagvad Gita and I don't think I will ever understand the power it holds. However, I have a closeness to God in my own way. I have my parents God has blessed me with.

Everyone needs money to live in this materialistic world. I need money to pay debts, bills, maintenance, rent and all. Presently my parents help me. So how can one not worry about income if they have bills to pay? It is human nature to worry about finances. Everyone wants to provide so much for their family that they don't have to be in a situation where they have to either beg or borrow...and sometimes steal. So how would that work out?. Doesn't god want us to work hard and earn for ourselves to sustain life he has given us?

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