the bhagavad gita: a thriller of spiritual truth
July 19, 2007
A thriller, because it must captivate any Baha’i reader with its astonishing parallels to the Hidden Words of Baha’u'llah and other spiritual Writings of the Faith. A thriller, because its seven hundred verses explain the relationship between God and the human soul like no other. A thriller, because it allows us to understand the spiritual Revelation of the Manifestation of Krishna beyond the cultural superficialities of modern Hinduism.
Although the date of Revelation is unknown (a majority of historians date it to approx. 300 BC) and it lost its exact wording throughout the centuries, it does contain the Word of God, if “only” in spiritual essence. Thus it provides the wonderful opportunity to validate the concept of Progressive Revelation from a perspective that is unknown to many Baha’is in the West. “Truth is one, the sages call it by different names” reads the Rig Veda; a verse that sounds like a preliminary version of the Kitab-i-Iqan to me.
Some fascinating relationships between verses of the Gita and the Baha’i Writings shall be shared here, however inadequate my knowledge of both Scriptures. We begin with the first six of the eighteen chapters of the Gita, which generally pre-elaborate on Baha’u'llah’s words: “Turn thy sight unto thyself, that thou mayest find Me standing within thee, mighty, powerful and self-subsisting.” These chapters discuss the relation of spiritual development, detachment and our actions. As a reference, I am using Swami Vireswarananda’s translation of the GIta, which, although it does not preserve the traditional rhyme scheme of the scripture, uses far more appropriate wording for the content.
As we delve into this topic of revelation, the first and single-most important statement of the Gita is the prophecy of the appearance of future Manifestations of God. Krishna says:
“Whenever, O descendant of Bharata, righteousness declines and unrighteousness prevails, I manifest Myself. For the protection of the righteous and the destruction of the wicked, and for the establishment of religion, I come into being from age to age.”
This verse conclusively states the time of the appearance of a Divine Author [Whenever righteousness declines and unrighteousness prevails], the purpose of the Manifestations of God [For the protection of the righteous and the destruction of the wicked and for the establishment of religion], and the prexistence of Progressive Revelation [I come into being from age to age.]
Not only must Hinduism be considered Divine Revelation equal in rank to Christianity, Buddhism, Islam, and the Baha’i Faith [etc.], but it must also be given credit as one of the first to describe the process of Progressive Revelation. It should under no circumstances be considered a mere cultural experience of the Indian Peninsula. The Gita proves Itself in prophesying Baha’u'llah and demonstrating its spiritual Truth, here on the matter of Revelation.
And we shall continue to explore the Gita’s demonstrations of spiritual Truth,…
I thank you for writing on the Gita and the Baha’i Faith. I think you are too generous, however, in citing the above verse from the Gita as evidence for “progressive” revelation in Hinduism. The Vaishnava Avatara schema does not hint at “carrying forward an ever-advancing civilization” by a series of Manifestations of God, as Baha’u'llah describes progressive revelation. Rather, what Krishna is describing above would most accurately be called “cyclical” or “repetitive” revelation, since there is no mention of new teachings being brought by each Avatara. Also, since the date of the Gita is a matter of debate, it is unclear whether it first describes cyclical revelation, or certain Buddhist texts (multiple Buddhas), or even Zoroastrian ones (multiple Zoroasters). In sum, it is still the Baha’i Writings which clearly introduce progressivity into the notion of repetitive revelation.
Also, I am unclear as to how this verse from the Gita proves Baha’u'llah. A close reading of the Gita does not indicate that Krishna mentioned anything specific about his future incarnation(s), only that this is what he did from age to age. And terms like “whenever righteousness declines…” can refer to almost any time in history, and are very subjective. If you think this year is the year of a decline in righteousness and hence expect Krishna to come now, it may turn out that a decade from now righteousness may have declined a lot more, and Krishna should more appropriately come then. Not knowing that, somebody claiming to be Krishna could come this year and you might accept him, not realizing that you should wait until things got really, really bad. So, if the above is a prophecy (as opposed to a mere statement on the nature of Krishna), it’s the vaguest of all prophecies.
Sincerely,
Vahid Fozdar