Class Summary for May 7, 2024 - Chapter-3 Slokas 25 - 27

Summarized by Yamini:

  • Thoughts come from vasanas eg: experience of eating alphonso mangoes
  • Vasanas is where everything starts from.

Slokas 28-31

Vasans cause guanas and gunas cause senses which create attachments.

  • The knowledgeable shouldn't try to change the ignorant.
  • We can only help when they are ready to accept the change. 
  • We dissipate energy in 3 ways -

        We waste energy when we worry about the unknown - sadness about the past, anxiety                 about the present , fear of the future.

  • Instead of worrying about the unknown, focus the intellect on the ideal. Pick an ideal and focus on it which puts your energy to good use.
  • Surrender to the present and give whatever you are working on your best.
  • We should always be thankful for the tools that help us go through life

Story -  A beggar in Orissa begged and saved all his money and opened up a school in his native village. When you have a higher ideal you will not get entangled in the vasanas.


6 Cs to success

  • Core interest : Sticking to your Swadharma is the key. Our swadharma can change based on what we are working on.
  • Cooperation : You succeed and fail as a team. We should not focus on the weakness of others,  rather concentrate on their strengths
  • Commitment : Stay committed till the end. Whatever we pick it is important to not give up easily. 
  • Consistency : Consistently focus on goal. 
  • Competence: intelligence + Hard Work
  • Concentration : Keep your focus on the work you are doing and do not get distracted.

Just like a convex lens can turn the light that is not strong enough to a ray that can burn, be the lens by focusing on the task and becoming a strong force.

ideal is the recognition of higher, it is a combination of group ideals and daily individual goals.

If someone is doing kamya karma like pooja, there is no point in trying to tell them to do nishkama karma. They will learn about nishkama karma when they come to that realization. It is not a skill that can be taught. Just like there is no point in trying to teach a hungry person Bhagavad Geeta. What they need is food. 


Should Swadharma align with what you like to do?

What ever you decide to make your swadharma, you should do it wholeheartedly


Gurudev’s videos

How we waste our energy:


Past : We get disheartened by previous experiences.

Instead we have to use the past to learn and win. This is about wasting energy on the past.


Present : Even for those who do not remember the past and cannot imagine the future, excitement in the present can dissipate energy. Instead focus all energy into what we do in the present.

Whatever inspiration comes to you will become monotonous, if your energy is dissipated.


Future :There is no data about future, it is just your imagination

Life is a tragedy to those who feel too much.


We either dwell in the past and worry about the future , or forget the past mistakes and get too excited in the present or think too much about the future.


Masters come and go to give their opinion, but eternal truth remains the same, 

The old religions do not meet the demands of the modern world. It has to evolve.

Only sages and the learned can change religions to suit the changing world.

If it doesn't change, society will run away from religion and live independently.

Just like the wire that is used to protect a young tree cannot hold the tree as it grows. Just like how the tree will grow around the wire and absorbs the wire, if religion is too constricting, the society will grow around it and engulf it.

Religion should also grow along with the needs of the society . Such religion will live a long time.

Hinduism lasted because of its elasticity to grow with the society.

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