October 23, 2010
October 22, 2010
October 21, 2010
History of Kur Lyngdoh Marshillong ( root Ancestress ( Iawbei Tynrai))
History of Ka Kur Lyngdoh Marshillong
I Story about root Ancestress ( Iawbei Tynrai) There was a girl name “Ka Wirwar”. This girl lived in Mawkynhu village. It was believed that this girl was an orphan, as her parents died of a disastrous plague (khlam bah). After the plague, Wirwar moved away from Mawkynhu to Khohlyngwiar village. She lived there for some years and shifted again to Pyndengjait village, a place in between Lawbah road and Balat road. This girl used in to sell bakery items during Pyndengjahthait market day. When Wirwar grew up, she married Buhjahwir, who was from Pamsanngut village. These two lived a peaceful, harmonious and happy life and got a child. This child was not known whether boy or girl, but it was believed tobe a girl. One day as Wirwar and Buhjahwir were working in the field, they heard the panic cry of the child, whom they have kept in a small hut (iing lyngkha) beside the field. Ka Wirwar ran to see what had happened to the child. Alas !she found out that the child was rolled (kyllain wiat-ly-wiat) by a very big snake. Both of them were panic and heartbroken. When they came to senses, they began to look at each other and said (tim) the following sentences… First : “After leaving me an orphan, without an uncle, without mother or relatives to teach and direct me…,may be their marriage, was an incest and was against the law; they agree that they will settle the matter in peace and will compensate it through incest sacrifices if the snake free the child now.” The snake did not free the child. Second: They again beseech that they have been left orphan without a leader to tell the legend, teacher, uncle, parents or relatives; may be our ancestors have a spirit (U Rynkew u Basa) in which they worship. If the snake frees, the child they promise that they will worship and kept their rituals. Still the snake did not free the child. Third: The third time they requested the snake saying “When we live as orphans (khunswet Khunlung) may be we do not know what to say to you who wrapt (khum) this child. May be you have a plan to bless our family and our clan as we have been left orphan, if it is so we will follow you if you free our child . Free the child then we will follow you where you want us to perform the priestly sacrifices. After saying this big snake freed the child. When the snake freed the child from its snares, the snake moved away towards the forest and Wirwar and Buhjahwir followed that snake. First the snake entered a forest in Twah Lyngwar, here they made sacrifices (la knia la khan) by throwing rice (dot khaw) but the snake stayed there only one night and began to move towards east west, towards the Symper side. It moved from that place upto Mawriat below Rangmaw. From there it turned towards Sakwang and reached upto Pynden-Tangei of Rilang river. Then it climbed towards Shngi-Mawlein and entered a cave in Wahkhra. When the snake stopped, they throw rice (dot khaw) and thought that the snake would reside there and so they would perform the priestly sacrifices but the snake did not stay. The snake stayed there only one night and move out. It is in Wahkhra that the rice bear (kyiad) which they have carried got over and so they kept the pot upside down on a pole and this place till now is known as WAHKHRA. From Wahkhra the snake moved again and entered a jungle known as “Law Lyngdoh Marshillong”. In this place there was a cave the snake entered in it and stayed there and never come out. From then on Wirwar and Buhjahwir performed the priestly sacrifices in the middle of the cave on a stone situated in the middle of the cave. Then they made the house of a priest (Lyngdoh) below the cave. They also lived beside the Rilang river which is not so far from the cave. All around their territory they fenced it and put a huge wall of mud (kharai) to prevent from their enemies. The house of the priest was built by members of the four clans in the month of April-May (ha u phra bnai). They made this house with feasting and dancing. The children of Wirwar multiplied and formed a village in Marshillong. It is from this time this clan is known as jait “Lyngdoh Marshillong” Link with Pdahsiej There is a legend received from “PDAHSIEJ” which indicates that this Ancestress, Wirwar (Iaw Wirwar) is from Pdahsiej village itself. Soon after the incident of the plague and the snake this Wirwar settled in Marshillong and so it become kur “Lyngdoh Marshillong” right from the time when the priest offered sacrifices in Law Lyngdoh Marshillong. Therefore there was a link with the Pdah siej clan. Now some Pdahsiej call themselves Nongsiej and so we do not have any lineage link with the Nonsiej except on the occasion of marriage. II Priestly Sacrifices (Jingknia Lyngdoh) Priestly Sacrifices take place once in a year. There was a sacrificial stone in the middle of the cave where the priest performed sacrifices. Before the sacrifices there is a meticulous preparation. They collect contributions (U syniang u bynhei) and collect money of Rs.2/- and one container (shitin) of rice from those who settle in the clan land (khyndew kur). When the preparation is completed, they find the cause (wat daw) with the help of a rooster as to whether the goddess of the clan ( Ka ‘lei longkur) is pleased and satisfied with the intention. Rarely do they found that the intention is not satisfied. When they were ready they prepared a Tyngshop (sort of sphere), where after the prayer and sacrifices they took few pieces of the softer part of the meat (dohjem) of the animal like liver, lungs, intestines and heart, then they packed it on leaves (la rew), then put it on tyngshop (sphere) and made it stand close to the huge stone (mawsiang) so that the snake would come and eat. The ‘Niangiong sada’ (fully black pig without any spot) is usually used for the sacrifices. The meat is cooked in the priest’s house in front of the cave. The priest’s house existed till 1965 but it was no longer taken care. After the prayers and sacrifices are completed there is a dance of the Lyngdoh Marshillong youth (shad kynthei shynrang). Mr. Bor Lyngdoh during the time of Mr. Kisonsing Syiem of the Maharam Kingdom, used to organize a joyful dance after this priestly Sacrifices. This Sacrifice is in Mawthungkhlieh village. The clan of Ka Sep holds the sacrifices and the clan of ka Noh used to make the arrangements for the sacrifices. Mr.Bor Lyngdoh registered the land of Rei Jakar also know as Rei Dahknia in the clan of ka Sep, it is meant for the maintenance of the priest, one who perform the sacrifices. 2. Yearly Sacrifices (Knia snem) This sacrifice was performed once a year usually in the month when they got the new grain (raishan thymmai). The yearly sacrifice of Lyngdoh Marshillong is a well know one, which is announce everywhere as Yearly sacrifices of the Maram. Before this sacrifices no one is allow to cut hay (pom skum), grass ( ot traw), japung, carry stone (rahmaw), blow horn, carry cat, pigs, dry fish from one side of the Rilang river to the other side. If they disobey and do those prohibited acts, they will die or there will be a very heavy rain, cyclone that will destroy all their crops. Those who go against the above prohibited actions will be punished because of one person all have to suffer. Once the yearly sacrifice is performed, they will announce in Markasa market, and all the towns and villages that trade and other activities is permitted to move from one side of the Rilang river to the other. When the ripened season arrives and the new grain is ready (raishan) to be sold in market (ka iew ka hat) they prepare rice beer ( iad hiar), buy fish (Ka khapiah, kha skei) caught from a tributary of Kynshi river. When everything is ready, they take a cock (iar ryngkuh) which is fully white and offer sacrifices in the middle of the cave. When the sacrifices is over the priest (Lyngdoh Nongknia) announce from the top of the rock which is beside the sacrificial stone, that it is permitted to travel, trade from one side of the Rilang river to the other. Once the sacrifice (ka knia ka khriam) is done they cook the meat into the priest house (Iing Lyngdoh) below the cave and cook it. Then they eat, drink and have merriment. 3. Ka Jingknia Buhphan Ka Jingknia Buhphan is different from other sacrifices (Knia Lyngdoh or Knia Snem). It is perform as a thanksgiving sacrifices to please God, so that the family and clan may be good and be blessed by the gods. This Jingknia Buhphan is performed not only by the Lyngdoh clan but by other clan also, after their spirits (ki blei) in their sacred grove, are no longer able to free them from all encumbrances in life. It is considered that the spirit of the Lyngdoh Marshillong sacred grove is more powerful spirit than any other spirits. After any sacrifices usually they keep the vessel used for cooking in the Lyngdoh Marshillong sacred grove only. So during the Buhphan sacrifices they use this same vessel for cooking. A plain black pig without any spot is used for the sacrifices. They prepare a sphere type (Tyngshop) in which some soft part of the meat like liver, intestines, lungs etc. Is cooked and then after wrapping it on leaves (la rew) they will fix it on the sphere, keep it standing near the huge stone in front of the cave so as to give food and drink to the Lyngdoh Spirit. The Lyngdoh Marshillong from Nongsangriang village also comes to the same place to offer sacrifices to the Lyngdoh Spirit (lei basa Lyngdoh). In Buhphan sacrifices like any other sacrifices, it is the priest who performs the sacrifices for the clan or other clan (soh kur). Sacrifices are performed in the sacrificial stone (mawknia) in the middle of the cave and then cook the meat in the Lyngdoh's house. III Ka Khana Pateng (Legend) The legend tells that Maharam Kingdom ( Hima Maharam) was not known so much in Meghalaya because the number of people were very less. The most leading clans in the Maharam Kingdom were ki Lyngdoh Marshillong, Lyngdoh Umiong, Lyngdoh Nongsynrih, Lyngdoh Sakwang, and Lyngdoh Nonglang. The members from these five Lyngdoh lineage were the ones who elect the king to take care of them. As time pass by, the number of people increases, more villages and towns appears and so in each village or town, there is a village headman (sordar) and minister (myntri). The village headman and ministers become members in the appointment of the king (Syiem). Eventually the king of the Maharam kingdom is appointed by the Lyngdoh, Basan (elders), Sordar and the Myntri. IV War against the people who live in the east of Shangei hill The legend of the Lyngdoh Marshillong tells that there was a war against the people who lived in the east of Shangei hill, who came from Nongdom Pariong. As per the archeological survey and the piling of stones that is seen, there was a sign that this happened in olden days. The stones that piled up (lumthup), were used during a war to protect from the enemies who come and attack. There was a war between the Lyngdoh Marshillong and the people settled in these areas because of the land boundary, towards the west of Ryngeikseh, that illegally claims by those people who live in Shangei. The Lyngdoh Marshillong won the war and after chopping off the enemies head and hang them on a hill as a sign of glory, on Domthungkhlieh hill (present cemetery of the Catholic church Marshillong). They then wash their sword, spheres and other equipments. After everything is done they eat, drink and make merriment. There was another legend saying that the Lyngdoh Marshillong, participated in the famous Nongshangei war of those areas. In this war Lyngdoh Nonglynkien, were the leaders of the Lyngdoh groups. Lyngdoh Nonglait, Lyngdoh Nongsynrih and Lyngdoh Marshillong helped the Lyngdoh Nonglynkien to fight against the five villages. The reason for this war was because the Myriaw from Nongbah area who arrived toward Myriaw near the Lyngdoh area wanted to join the Myriaw of the east and of the Myriaw from Nongbah area. It was due to this reason that there was a war between the five villages of Myriaw people and the Lyngdoh Nonglynkien, Lyngdoh Nonglait, Lyngdoh Nongsynrih and Lyngdoh Marshillong. This war lasted for a very long time. The enemies from the five villages proceeded right up to Nonlynkien village. However due to the good luck of the Lyngdoh Nonglynkien, the five villages lose the war. The Lyngdoh Nonglynkien trapped their enemies by digging a huge pit (pukri), built a bridge with woods and bamboos that were half cut from underneath. The gods was in favour of the Lyngdoh Nonglynkien and as it was luck of victory, the people from the five villages walked on that bridge and all were trapped on that pit. The Lyngdoh Nonglynkien, Lyngdoh Nonglait, Lyngdoh Nongsynrih and Lyngdoh Marshillong won the war and chop off their enemies head. This place is known as Pukhri till now. This Pukhri is towards the east of Shyllong Market, which is later shifted to Mawkyrwat town. The five villages were not known clearly because they do not exist anymore as they migrated from those places during the war. War of Lyngdoh Marshillong with Nonglait ( Ka Thma U Lyngdoh Marshillong bad ki Nonglait) it is the largest clan from all the other Lyngdoh clans who have the privilege to elect the king of Maharam Kingdom. The legend tells us that there was a war between Lyngdoh Marshillong with Nonglait and it was known as war between Mawiang and Maram. The war was due to illegal acquisition of land in between Ryngeikseh and Sohma, which was in Mawkynrew area. The war could not be solved with dialogue alone so it led to a bloody war. In the fight the Lyngdoh Marshillong got a tough entry (tur tyngeh) and reached above Langlong, which is below Lawbyrtun. The Lyngdoh Marshillong after chasing the Nonglait away they built their tent in a place which is now known as Pynden Maram. The Nonglait escape to the Mawhiang hill, a hill that is towards the east from Nonglait village. The hill was filled with huge rocks that were very steep. The Maram too did not follow them up to the Mawhiang hill. The Nonglait had brave leaders like Mahshynnrang, Mahsngi and others that were very brave but they could do nothing. There was an old lady, ‘Moitbah’, whom the Nonglait told her to shout from the Mawhiang hill to say, “go back home to your own Kingdom and we will have a dialogue with peace and harmony”. The Maram took her words with respect as words of elders (ktien tymmen, ‘tien san) and so they obeyed her and left the place. The land boundary was then later settled. There was a division of boundary from Weilyngkut, Umrilang, Mawkynrew border of Sohma up to Mawthong area. During the kingship of Mr. Atiar of the Mawiang Kingdom and Mr. Bamon of the Maram, there was a renewal of the property boundary of both the clans. However they could not do much because King Atiar with his minister Mr. Sorkha and King Bamon with his minister Mr. Nihon does not know the boundary properly. But it was Kur (clan) Lyngdoh Marshillong and kur Nonglait who knew and kept the boundary as per the right received from their ancestors. V Distribution of Land (Ka Jingbate Khyndew) When there was no more war within and from outside forces the clan felt the need to distribute the land of the clan. So they organized an event to distribute the land of the clan. The lineage of Ka KHAIN, and ka KHIEJ got the Wahkhra and Laitkynja. The lineage of Ka SEP and ka NOH got the Mawthungkhlieh and Mawkawan. The Rei Jakar land was kept aside for the priest (lyngdoh). In the beginning the clan land was so huge but later due to misappropriation and by giving away to the male members (jingai bam syntiew) the land was split and other clan also lives in the land of the Lyngdoh Marshillong. Relationship of Kur Lyngdoh Marshillong with the Wanniang The Lyngdoh and the Wanniang are maternal relatives (kmie kha, kmie khun). Once there was a fight between the Lyngdoh and the Mawlein people due to a very silly reason. One day when there was a clan sacrifices there was one man who unbutton his shirt to get fresh air and at the same time mucous (eitmut) came out from his nose. At that moment all the people present there burst to laughter, including the elders. The man belonging to the Mawlein clan felt so bad that he lodge a complaint that they dishonour him. There was a very hot argument that the man was about to win. When the Lyngdoh Marhsillong found it hard to win the argument, they invited the Wanniang to help them. They promise to share their common land if the Lyngdoh win the argument. So from then onwards the land of Kur Lyngdoh is no longer of the Lyngdoh alone but was belonging to the two clans, i.e., the Lyngdoh and the Wanniang. VI Ki Lyndoh Nongphur Nongsiang (Caretaker priests) Since the time of Mr. Sngap Sing and before him there was no information about these priests (Lyndoh). Mr. Sngap Sing became king during the British invasion and the fall of Maharam Kingdom, that is around the year 1815-1825. The Lyndoh exist before and during this time but we do not know who the priests were. The priests (lyndoh) at those times were of two types, the sacrificial priest (Lyndoh Knia) and Lyngdoh Elector. At present we do not have Lyndoh Knia but the present Lyndoh Elector is Mr. Rowel Lyndoh, MLA, Mawkyrwat constituency, Meghalaya state. Mr. Riang Lyngdoh was the priest during the kingship of Mr. Sib and Mr. Ramsai. Mr. Bor Lyngdoh was the priest during the Kingship of Mr. Kison Sing syiem. After the death of Mr. Bor Lyngdoh there was a contest to become Lyndoh between Mr. Shon Lyngdoh and Mr. Kyrhun Lyngdoh. The contest lasted for a long time till the kingship of Syiem Bamon. In the charge sheet (mokotduma), the then Governor gave the judgment that both of them have the right to the post but they have to be selected by the members of the Kur. When the Kur election was held Mr. Shon Lyngdoh won. He died after becoming a Christian. During the Lyngdohship of Mr.Bor Lyngdoh there was a demand by the kur Wanniang to Syiem Kison Sing to register, in the Dorkhast dated 21.1.1921,t hem as seven lineage and to register the Lyngdoh Marshillong as four lineage. This Dorkhast was kept aside (pyndem) after the Lyndoh (priest) complaint and intervene about it. The Agreement dated 6.7.1922, gave a judgment that Lyngdoh and Wanniang are to get equal share as per the agreement after the fight with the Mawlein. There was an equal share distribution of land between the Lyngdoh and the Wanniang, except for the land that was already distributed to the four lineages they remain the same. The clans, Lyngdoh and wanniang bore all the expenses for clan meeting or any other clan expenses equally. After this event the Kur Lyngdoh had a clan meeting (ia lum kur) to discuss all the expenses incurred in the event. They come to a conclusion that the total expense amounted to Rs.400/- (sawspah tyngka). The lineage (kpoh) of ka Noh remain small (sah kynthei khynnah), except from the family of mother Wan Lyngdoh of Shngimawlein, some families in Kmawan, Mawkynroh, and Sohphoh who do not know anything about this event, for most of these villages migrated to Nongsangriang, Nongstoin were exempted from this expenses when they distributed the share of the expenses at Rs. 100 per lineage (kpoh ka Khain, Shiej, Noh and Sep). However when they had meeting they decided that the lineage of Ka Noh as it is small in number and have migrated everywhere need not bear the expenses and also will lose all the income from the land that the three lineage get. When they got the land from PWD in the year 1956 the Lyngdoh and the Wanniang distributed the land equally. However when the Lyngdoh distributed among themselves they did not give to the lineage of Ka Noh. They wanted to merge these four clans into one as in the olden days. Ka JingSaphriang (Migration) The Kur Lyngdoh grew up in number (nangroi parum pareh) and due to some reason like marriage, poverty, lack of cultivation, the Lyngdoh clan members began to migrate everywhere, to the east, west, Bhoi, Jaintia and War area. From the four lineages, the lineage of ka Khain had more members and so the villages around Marshillong village like Mawlangwir, Mawlein, Mawthawiang, Wahsiej, Mawthawpdah and some other are occupy mostly by the members from their members. Kpoh ka Shiej was in Mawthawiang, Jakhong and a few villages here and there. Kpoh ka Noh most of them migrated to Nongsangriang, Nongstoin, except the family of Meiwan Lyngdoh who settled in Shngimawlein, in Kmawan, Mawkyroh,Sohphoh and few here and there. The brother of Meiwan became the Nongphur Nongsiang (priest) of the Lyngdoh clan and so most of Nongphur nongsiang were from this lineage. Kpoh ka Sep settled in Marshillong and some few here and there. Kpoh ka Sep is diminishing in number drastically. There was a legend that Ka Noh was chase away to the Khar Sapnar in the Nongsangriang village. However there was a man, Mr. Reijlang, who protected them and so they were safe. There were some who migrated to Mairang and they were known as Lyngdoh Maram. However their original lineage is most lightly from kpoh ka Khain because they migrated to Mairang from Mawlangwir. There were Some Lyngdoh Marshillong who migrated toward Nongspung and now they offer the priestly sacrifices or/and other sacrifices (jingknia) in Mawdikhap. The circumstances made some members of Lyngdoh Marshillong to make their sacred grove (Law Lyngdoh) in some other places like the Lyngdoh Lyngkhoi Thangmyrsiang who offer the Knia Lyngdoh in the Law Lyngdoh Wahsiej, whose original root were Lyngdoh Nonglait.
 Since the time that Lyngdoh and Wanning share the property, the administration is done by the two clans together. Any work to be discussed is done in a meeting of the two clans. They have their own chairman and secretary to write any agreement made during the meeting. In recent past, Mr. Nihon Lyngdoh was the Secretary of the meeting (Dorbar) and use to keep all the record. In the year 1956 there was an appointment of secretary of the two clans to write the story of Clan Administration. The elders (rangbah) of both the clans were responsible for this work. The most prominent elders were Mr.Shon Lyngdoh and Mr. Bidon Lyngdoh from the Lyngdoh Marshillong clan and Mr. Mahari Myntri and Mr. Lin Myntri of the Wanniang clan. In the year 1956 the clan got a Grant Land Compensation for the government L.M Road. The money was equally shared among the two clans after their mutual agreement. In the year 1963-64, they sold some of the land near Jashiar market in order to have the Jashair Market place. In the year 1966-67, after the land which was beside the sacred grove, and the priest house were sold, some of the places of the sacred grove were converted into paddy field and the huge wall of stone, that was built to protect from enemies, were destroyed. Now there is no more sacrificial priest or caretaker of the Sacred grove of the Lyngdoh. The Sacrificial priest (Nongknia) quit the job after they become Christian. Mr. Rowel Lyngdoh is appointed as the present Lyndoh Elector of the Lyngdoh clan he was also approved by the Khasi Hills Autonomous District Council. Jashair Market and Lyngdoh Wanniang M.E School. In the year 1965 the Lyngdoh Wanning M.E School Jashair was started. In the same year the Jashair market was started under the care of the two clans, Lyngdoh and Wanniang. In the year 1975 the school was shifted to Marshillong village. For the administration of the clan property, Jashair market and other works the Dorbar Arkur (meeting of the two clans) is called from time to time as per the need. The Kur Lyngdoh also have special Dorbar Kur to look after the work within the clan. As per the Survey (Sorjamin) of the two clans, dated 15.3.1988, the Mawbri (property indicator) property of the clan was altogether 64 stones. Lyngdoh Marshillong and Lyngdoh Sangriang The Lyngdoh Sangriang was part of the Lyngdoh Marshillong who have descended from the lineage of ka Noh and migrated later to Nongsangriang village near Nongstoin. There are two reasons why are they called Lyngdoh Sangriang. The first one is that there was a legend that there was a Lyngdoh Marshillong women who had two children, a boy (around eight years old) and a girl (whom she was still breast feed). One day the mother went for washing clothes at around 12.00 noon, she took the boy with her. When all the clothes were washed, gave bath to the boy, she began to take bath and at that moment there was a sudden force in the river and one of her shirts was carried away. When she tried to catch, the shirt moves a little farther and when she moves ahead suddenly she disappeared. It was told that she was consumed (nguid) by the river god (Sangriang). When the mother disappeared the boy shouted and called her but there was no response. He wept bitterly, took the clothes and went home. Now the boy was responsible to look after his sister. The whole night the girl was crying for milk because she was hungry and the boy too could not eat nor sleep. Early in the morning the boy went to the river and cried again he said, “Mummy please comes back my sister hungry and crying for milk”. After crying for sometime suddenly in horror the boy saw the hand of his mother near a huge stone beside the river and he heard her saying, “My son I cannot come out of this river because the Sangriang has consumed me. However do not be afraid, go home take a knife (wait bnoh) go and cut a bamboo (‘tang siej) and bring it to me. I will give you milk so that you can feed your sister and so that both of you can live”. The boy obeyed his mother. He took a knife from the house and cut the bamboo. In the first bamboo that he cut there was a scorpion, so the boy threw it away. In the second bamboo there was a snake, the boy cried and was frightened for such a bad luck; however he did not give up. He cut the third bamboo (ktang siej) and he found that it was clean and do not leak. He took the bamboo and gives it to his mother. His mother fills the bamboo with milk and sends the boy away. This went on for a long time till the girl was grown up and the mother told the boy not to come again because she cannot appear any longer because the Sangriang has completely consuming her. In spite of all the difficulties that they face the boy took care of his sister so well. She was so pretty that all the boys of the neighboring villages were after her. One day when the boy was at home, a snake came to the house. The boy was wondering as to what cause (wat daw aiu) the snake came. The boy killed the snake and threw it a little far away from the house. However one day when his sister went to collect firewood from the jungle she saw a beautiful flower blooming, she didn’t know that it was a place where the snake was thrown, she pluck the flower and brought home for decoration. As soon as she plucks the flower she felt as if thorns were pricking her and she saw wounds began to appear on her hands. After one day her whole body was covered with sores. The boy desperately ran from one village to the other to find medicine but he found none. The girl was about to die and in that sorrowful moment the boy went again to different places to search medicine and he announced that if anyone could cure her he would give her in marriage to that person. It was their luck (ki dang don ka daw), because suddenly came a young man towards evening with his herbal medicine. He applied on the girl’s body and she got well. The man married the girl and from that girl the generation continued. So those generation that come out of the lineage of that girl call themselves Lyngdoh Sangriang. The second reason as to why the Lyngdoh Sangriang got their title was that people migrated from Lyngdoh Marshillong villages, due to various reasons, to Nongsangriang village near Nongstoin. So they latter called themselves as Lyngdoh Sangriang by adding the name of their village. The Change The General Meeting of the Clan Kur Lyngdoh Marshilong (Meeting Kur Marshilong) which was held at Mawkyrwat have unanimously decided to correct the second part of the title from 'MARSHILLONG' to 'MARSHILONG' and have advised that clan members should write their full n title in their documents like "Lyngdoh Marshilong' or at least write 'L. Marshilong' and should not only write Lyngdoh as this will create confusion with other Lyngdoh from different clans. Note:
Translated, further researched and modified by Shaining Lyngdoh Marshillong |
Meditation on The Bhagavad Gita
Meditation on The Bhagavad Gita
“I am the goal, the upholder, the Lord, the witness, the abode, the refuge and the friend, (I am) the origin and the dissolution, the ground, the resting place and the imperishable seed”.
Bhagavad Gita 19:18
Meditation sets foundation to know deeper about self and the Self. When I meditated over the passage from Bhagavad Gita there is an immense change in my being as a whole. I enjoyed the different emotions and at times ideas that take control of me as I meditated. It makes me feel that how God loves me and continue to care for me throughout my journey on this heart. The search for happiness is basic to human life. Meditation or religious activities helps us to have an experience of transcendental joy through union with Ultimate Reality or the realization of one's true mind. Meditation helps us to experience the bliss which is the final goal of the spiritual life. The passage from Bhagavad Gita (10:20), “I am the Self established in the heart of all contingent beings: I am the beginning, the middle, and the end of all contingent beings too”, was the dominant mood as I contemplate over the passages of the Gita.
Bhagavad Gita 18:66; For one still in the body it is not possible to surrender up all works without exception; rather it is he who surrenders up the fruits of the works who deserves the name, ‘A self- surrendered’.
God has his own ways to liberate his creation. I feel that change in us occur when we cooperate with God. The phrase from Bible, John 8:36 which says, ‘If the son makes you free, you will be free indeed’, is a consoling phrase for me because by surrendering my life to God through service to people God will reward me in the next life. Priesthood, Religious life, Sanyasi, or dedicating our lives for God through our service to humanity is meaningful only because someday we believe that God will reward us and we will live with him in his abode. Therefore, when I do any work or services I should not look as how much I have done and what reward I will receive but I should evaluate as to how much more others can get benefit form my work and services. What I do do not depends only on my skills but it depends on God who is the giver of my skills and talents. If the birds of the air and the lilies do not worry, why should I be worried? I am special because God has created me in his own image and likeness. What I have are God’s blessings to me, therefore I feel that I ought to surrender all to God.
Bhagavad Gita 10:20; I am the Self established in the heart of all contingent beings: I am the beginning, the middle, and the end of all contingent beings too.
God is the heart, Soul, Origin and Midst of every being. Thales, a philosopher, said that creation begins from water. However I am fully against this because I felt that creation begins from God and will return to God. Nothing exists without the knowledge of God and nothing moves without the immovable mover (God). The saying from the Bible, ‘I am the Alpha, and the Omega’ (Rev 1:8) flashed in my mind as I ponder over this passage. God is the beginning and the end. He is the Creator, Caretaker and the Protector. He is the being in me. I exist because He lives in me and I live in Him. He is everlasting.
Bhagavad Gita 19: 31; All who come to me for refuge including those whose birth is low, artisans and women, even Serfs, be assured that you will perish not.
In God whether white or black, rich or poor, high or low castes or from any background, it does not matter. He sees not divides no one. We appear in god’s eyes as His beautiful creation. We are equal in the eyes of God. Therefore by believing in this loving, caring and benevolence God I am sure that I will not perish. I will be raise by God and live with Him in the heavenly abode. The Bible passage (John 3:16b) ‘Everyone who believes in him may not perish but have eternal life’ strikes me. My faith in God is strengthened and I feel that I am close to God because the God I believe in is the God who care and a god who keep me close with Him always.
Bhagavad Gita 5:18; The wise ones see the self same thing in a Brahmin wise and courteous as in a cow or an elephant, nay, as in a dog or outcast.
When I recited this Gita verse the exercise, ‘Contemplation to Attain Love’, from the ‘Spiritual of St. Ignatius of Loyola’, takes control of me. I ask God the grace of love that I may love Him in all the things that He has created. God has created beautiful things that he has created. God has created beautiful things on this earth so that I may enjoy life. God dwells in creatures; in the elements-giving them existence, in the plants-giving them life, in the animals-giving them sensation and in human beings-giving them intelligence. All things that God created have their own purpose on this earth
I felt human beings are special beings created by God. However at times we destroy the harmony that God created. Human beings are the ones who created a gap between humans. The gap of castes, tribes, richness, poor, white, black and so on.
Bhagavad Gita 2:47; (But) work alone is your proper business never the fruits (it may produce, Let not your motive be the fruit of works nor your attachments to (mere) worklessness.
To live we need to work. Work requires dedication, hard work and faithfulness. Mother Theresa said that success does not matter but faithfulness. Work is worship. St. Ignatius of Loyola through the concept of ‘Contemplation in Action’ very much emphasis that work itself is a prayer. So work should be done faithfully and responsibly. Our task is therefore to work hard and not to depend on the fruit of our action because it is not in our control. The fruit of our labor depends on our labor and on the blessings of God. It is not fully in our hand. Therefore we should keep working without expecting the fruit. The reward will be given to us when it is time. My concern for other should be with action. My concern should not be the fruit or the result, it should not be with an ulterior motives and my concern should not have any attachments to inactions.
Bhagavad Gita 5:28; with senses, mind and soul restrained, the silent sage, on deliverance intent who has forever banished fear, anger and desire is truly liberated.
Emotions can be constructive as well as destructive force for human beings to be liberated. When I am scared, and angry I am not my true self. I live only in one side of my being and the whole does not control me. When I am free from such emotions like anger, fear and others, I am truly liberated; to be perfectly liberated is not possible in this life. In this life we can be free and liberated only up to certain extent that also when we are able to control our emotions. Senses, mind and soul are the important aspects of and existing human being, without them no one can exist. They are also pivotal aspects of our relationship with the self, with others and with the Ultimate One and that is God. When I try to take control of my senses and my mind I will slowly enter into that heavenly freedom of peace and tranquility.
Bhagavad Gita 18:66; Give up all things of law, turn to me, your only refuge,( for) I will deliver you from all evils; have no care.
God is my refuge and strength. St. Paul once said that If God is with us, who can be against us. God will deliver me from all evils. I need not worry or afraid of anything because as the psalmist says, ‘The Lord is my Shepherd’, he will guide me to green pastures, take care of me, protect me from evil and he will never let me hungry. My disposition and my readiness to cooperate with God will make me happy in life and I will not be led astray by the things that divide me from God. I need to give everything to Him, trust Him and according to His will everything will follow. The song ‘Seek ye first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness and all this things shall be added unto you…’ makes me feel that yes God is the source of life and He is the only refuge and strength so why should I worry, I need to only trust in Him. He knows what to give for his loving children.
Bhagavad Gita 11:55; Do works for me make me your highest goal, be loyal-in-love to me, cut off all (other) attachments, have no hatred for any being at all; for all who do thus shall come to me.
The works that I am asked to do are the service to people and my availability to spread the message of God. Knowing and encountering God is the highest goal. I need to detach myself from all earthly things that give joy for a while but will perish. The possessive attitude of ‘I’ should be avoided to identify myself with God. I need to love fellow being as I love God and also love all the creation that god has created. When I walk God’s path I will be with Him and I will walk in His path. In fact by doing so I become part of the identity, I become the identity and thus I am liberated. Our duty should be done not only because of our like and dislike but to praise God our maker.
Bhagavad Gita 9:29: In all contingent beings the same am I; none do I hate and none do I fondly love; but those who commune with me in love’s devotion (abide) in Me, and I in them.
God doesn’t go by like and dislike. All beings are pervaded by God and we dwell In His unmanifest form like the mighty wind. When we constantly think and love god alone, without any desires of self, god gives full security and love God alone, without any desires of self, God gives full security and will take care of us. When we fix our mind on Him, devoted to Him, make sacrifices to him, bow down to Him, in order to be united with Him, We will become his dwell place. God does not hate anyone, does not distinguish people by race, color or tribes, He blesses everyone. When we realize the love of god and make our hearts his dwelling place, God will direct us to a right direction. St. Paul said that we are the temple of the Holy Spirit. God resides in us and thus we unite in God.
Bhagavad Gita 15:15 And I am in the heart of all. With me come memory and wisdom, and without me they depart. I am the knower and the knowledge of the Vedas, and the creator of their end, the Vedanta.
'And I am in the heart of all'. The Lord is seated in my heart. Heart is the center for life to exist. I felt that God is the key that open and closes every movement in my heart. He controls me so that I may exist. If He is absence from my heart, there will not be any heartbeats and I would die. As I meditated over this passage the Christian doctrine of the Sacred Heart of Jesus take hold of my mind. The heart is the centre of my personality, the place of the indwelling presence of God. When I am in Christ, the heart of Christ that this indwelling presence of God is most clearly manifested. Through love I have to discover this Christ dwelling in my heart and my dwelling in the heart of Christ. I live in Christ and Christ lives in me. As St. Paul would say that no one can separate us from the love of God. I cannot be separated from God because He is my very being, my heart, and my everything
Bhagavad Gita 18: 58: Fixing thy thought on Me, thou shalt, by My grace, cross over all difficulties; but if, from self-conceit, thou wilt not listen (to Me), thou shalt perish.
Man is free to choose salvation of perdition, heaven or hell. I am given a free will to do this or that. As a follower of Jesus I felt that I should do the right thing and apologies my mistake and reconcile so that I will be in the path of God. Nothing is impossible when I fix my eyes on God. When one door is close He opens another for me so that overcome all the difficulties. The moment I am proud, I say that I don’t need God and I acclaimed that I can do everything that will be the beginning of my destructive destiny. I felt that by going against God’s will I am going to perish because God is the Alpha and the Omega of my life.
Meditation on the Bhagavad Gita helps me to think broadly and experience the richness of the Gita. It makes me feel that we live on this earth temporarily and this earth is not our final goal. Our final goal is to be in united with the Divine. Meditation on the Gita is has also help me to realize the self within me at least a little better. For example, many at times I do the work just for the sake of doing but now I realize that work is worship. It is a prayer, a meditation that could help to experience the blissfulness within me. I realize that by meditating on the Gita will help a person to know self better, to love the neighbors better, to do the responsibility better and to be united with God better.
Holy Bible. The New Revised Standard Version, Catholic Edition, Published by Catholic Bible Press, Thomas Nelson, Inc., Nashville, Tennessee.
Zaehner R.C. The Bhagavad-Gita.Oxford. Clarendon Press, 1969.
Parrinder Geoffrey. Bhagavad Gita a verse translation. London; Sheldon Press, 1974.
Note: The above are my personal reflections....
BHAGAVAD GITA AND THE GOSPEL OF JESUS
Do you want to have solution to every problem? Do you want to discover self and be united with the Self? If so read, meditate and pray with the help of Gita and Bible. Gita and Bible are sacred scriptures of Hinduism and Christianity respectively. Both these sacred masterpieces convey a message which is timeless and universal and transcends all religion. These books are not ordinary writings but have profound meaning that is to be expounded and experience by each reader. When the words of the Gita and Bible enter in our blood we will experience the holy magic in the core of our being. Gita and Bible are love story books. Love is the central and running theme in both these books.
The Ultimate goal of every human being is to be united with the Being, God or Brahman, and to live peacefully and blissfully in the heavenly kingdom. The comparative study of the Gita and the Gospel of Jesus enable a person to know the self deeply and by knowing self, to be united with the Self. Here text from the Gita and Bible are being quoted so that we will truly understand ourselves and love God more dearly with the help of the text.
The Beginning
Creation is like a sort of yoga through which God manifests himself. God is in the heart of all beings. Behind the changing world there is an unchanging reality and that is God or Brahman. Everything comes forth from Brahman or God our Father, our Creator and Lord. We begin from God and we end in union with God. Gita (9:7-9), said that everything comes forth from nature. The reason why nature comes forth again and again is because of karma. There is a force in nature which causes all beings to come into existence. In Christian context we are all created in the image and likeness of God. Christian and Hindus believe that in the beginning there is the force which enables all creation on this universe, God. Below are some of the parallel passages about the creation from the Gita and the Bible.
Bhagavad Gita 4:6; My self is changeless and unborn and I am Lord of every being but using Nature, which is mine, by my own Power I come to being.
Bhagavad Gita 7:25; To all men I am not revealed by creative Power concealed, the deluded world perceives me not, the Unborn and one that Changes Not
Bhagavad Gita 8:16-17; The world as far as Brahmas’ realm dissolved and then return around but everyone who comes to me has no more transmigration found. All manifested things spring out at Day from the unmanifest and then dissolved again at Night in that same one Unmanifest.
Bhagavad Gita 9:7-9; Back to my material Nature all kinds of beings flow, form when a period ends and when a person begins I send them forth against. I dispatch by my own Nature, angina and every issuing in the power of mu Nature all this helpless host of being. And yet I am not bound at all in any manner by these words, but sit as one indifferent and stay detached along theses works.
Bhagavad Gita 10:20; I am the Self established in the heart of all contingent beings: I am the beginning, the middle, and the end of all contingent beings too.
John 1:1, 3; In the beginning was the word and the word was with god, and the Word was God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing comes into being.
Rev I: 8; I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.
Wisdom of Solomon 7:25; For she is a breath of the power of God, and a pure emanation of the glory of the Almighty: therefore, nothing defiled gains entrance into her.
Human Being
God created human being male and female alike. In Gita (9:32) we find that one should be first obtain birth as a man. But in Christian context God created human being in his own image and likeness. All people whether low castes, high caste, rich or poor are also devotees and saints or children of God and does not have any difference in the sight of God. The relation between Brahman and the personal God may be illustrated by the ideal of unity within the Trinity. The Father is in the Son, and the Son is in the Father, they are distinct yet they are one. When we free ourselves from the forces of the world we discover our identity that is, being one with God. Our only true self is our Self in God. Below are some of the parallel passages about Human Being from the Gita and the Bible
Bhagavad Gita 5:13; In mind renouncing every work, not working nor yet causing work, in the Nine- gate city embodied soul sits happily, in full control.
Bhagavad Gita 9:32; But those who dwell in godlike nature and know me are men of Mighty Soul, they love me with unswerving thoughts as Source of Beings, Unchangeable.
Bhagavad Gita 14:26; One who transcends these Qualities intent on me and never swerves, is fitted for becoming Brahman if in discipline of love he serves.
John 1:1, 3f; In the beginning was the word and the word was with god, and the Word was God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing comes into being.
Psalm 8: 5-6; Yet you have made a little lower than God, and crowned them with glory and honour. You have given them dominion over the works of your hands; you have put all things under their feet.
Society and religion
Friendliness and compassion are the two important virtues in Hinduism, Buddhism, and Christianity. Friendliness and compassion are to have no thought of ‘I’ and ‘mine’. The ultimate fulfillment is not to lose one’s true self but to discover one’s true self living in harmony with all others. It is a striking evidence of the similarity of all oral teaching that this might well be a list of Christian virtues. Non-violence, Truth, and freedom from anger are part of renunciation. Peace is a great virtue reflected in the Beatitude, ‘blessed are the peace-makers’. Gentleness, modesty, steadfastness are the fruit of the Holy Spirit. Religion should be a source that helps us to respect each other and not creating enmity. Below are some of the parallel passages about society and religion from the Gita and the Bible
Bhagavad Gita 1:28; Quickly become compassionate and in despondency he spoke: O Krishna, those who want this war I recognize as my own folk.
Bhagavad Gita 12:13; Be compassionate and friendly released from ego selfishness, patient, not hating any being, the same in pain and happiness.
Bhagavad Gita 14:23; He sits as one indifferent whom the Qulaities have not perturbed, he thinks ‘the qualities are at work’, remaining firm and undistributed.
Bhagavad Gita 16:2; A fearless man and pure in heart with disciplined wisdom and steadfastness, generous restraint and sacrifice, study an ascetic uprightness.
Bhagavad Gita 17:14; This is Austerity of Body in pureness, homage, uprightness, to teachers, priests and gods and sages.
Mt 5:39, 42; But I say to you, do not resist an evil doer. But if anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other also. Gove to everyone who begs from you, and do not refuse anyone who wants to borrow from you.
Mt 9:13; Go and learn what this means, “I desire mercy, not sacrifice”. For I have come to call not the righteous but the sinners.
Lk 6:27; But I say to you that listen, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.
Lk 6:31; Do to others as you would have them do to you.
Lk 23: 34; Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.
Duty
According to Hindu believe duty is dharma, and the Hindu society was formed on the basis of dharma. There are four ends of life in Hindu tradition, kama, artha, dharma, and moksha. Kama is pleasure, artha is wealth, Dharma means a man's own duty and moksha, which is final liberation. This is achieved when one is set free from all sorts of attachments. In Christian context work is worship. God continue to work because He loves us therefore we too should work ceaselessly. Duty demands commitment. Here below are some parallel passages about duty and work from the Gita and Bible.
Bhagavad Gita 2:31; Look then to your proper Duty and you will have no cause for fright, soldiers have nothing better here than Duty that demands a fight.
Bhagavad Gita 3:5, 24; Nobody for the shortest time remains without doing anything, but each is made to act perforce by the Qualities that from Nature spring. And if I performed no action the worlds would come to end in void, I’d be an agent of confusion if all these creatures I destroyed.
John 5:17; Jesus answered them, “my Father is still working, and I also I am working”.
Lk 6:31; Do to others as you would have them do to you.
Suffering
Suffering is part and parcel of life. No one can live life happily without any suffering. Suffering is cause by the evil. Both the Bhagavad-Gita and the Bible deal with Suffering. Suffering helps people to face the reality. The Bhagavad-Gita and the Bible allows us to understand suffering in a positive way. Sin in the Gita is evil but it is the nature of ignorance or the seeking of truth. But the Gita does not stop there it goes beyond sin. Sin is really the beginning. The ego is the root of the mind, and therefore the root of human nature is to seek the light beyond and that is God. To go beyond sin is to go beyond Karma. Suffering is a way to glory.
Bhagavad Gita 3:5; And if I were to refrain from action, the human race would be ruined; I should lead the world to chaos and destruction would follow.
Lk 24:26; Was is not necessary that the Messiah should suffer these things and then enter into glory.
Mysticism
The idea that nature is all-powerful is an illusion, because behind the whole course of nature is this eternal Being who is sustaining everything, and who pervades everything, and who is guiding everything to its destiny. It is ignoring which makes people think that they are simply subject to mechanical laws. There is a scene in the Gospel when Jesus goes to Nazareth, his home town, and the people say, is not this the carpenters’ son? Do we not know his brothers and sisters? They were unable to see behind that semblance of his human form to the real being, the Lord within. When the material universe is transfigured, when it ceases to be subject to the present laws of matter, space and time, and is realized in God, it is the plentitude of reality. According to Christian we are person within the person of Christ. In the mystical body of Christ, each person is al cell. In the Christian doctrine of the Trinity, the ultimate Godhead is beyond words and thought, beyond all conception, there is communion; an intercommunion in knowledge and love. In the Godhead itself, there is love. The Holy Spirit is immanent in matter from the beginning of the creation. The Holy Spirit brings forth life from the earth. Below are some of the parallel passages about mysticism from the Gita and the Bible
Bhagavad Gita 11:44; And to my prostrate body bending low, O Lord adorable, thy grace bestow, as father bears with son, as friend with friend, as lover with beloved, God’s mercy show!.
Bhagavad Gita 9:11, 15; Some foolish people may despise my taking of a human guise, ignoring that my higher state is Lord of Beings, that most great. With wisdom as a sacrifice others to me such worship pay in my unique and may forms, as various, facing every way.
Bhagavad Gita 17:3; Surely the faith of every man with his won nature must agree, since man is her composed of faith and as his faith is so is he.
Bhagavad Gita 12:7; And if their thoughts are faced on me immediately I am found their Savior from the mortal sea that forms this transmigrating round.
Bhagavad Gita 18: 55, 67; By love he comes to recognize my greatness, who I really am and enters into me at once by knowing me as I really am. But you must never speak of this to whosoever lives without austerity or envies me, is disobedient or undevout.
Bhagavad Gita 9:28; Thus released from bonds of action good or bad fruits, in discipline by practice and renunciation your soul is free and me you win.
Bhagavad Gita 10:10; To those men always discipline who evermore show love to me I give that integrated mind by means of which they come to me.
Bhagavad Gita 13:18; So the Field and also knowledge and the object of knowledge I declare, my devotee who comprehends in my own mode of being will share,
Bhagavad Gita 14:19; When the observing should perceives no agent but the Qualities he finds my modes of being and knows One higher than the Qualities.
John 17: 22-23; The glory that you have given me I have given to them, so that they may be one, I in them and you in me, that they may become completely in, so that the world may know that you have sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.
John 17:10, 18; He was in the world and the world come into being through him; yet the world did not know him. Those who believe in him are not condemned; but those who do not believe are condemned already, because, they have not believed in the name of the only son of God.
Lk 17: 20b-21; The kingdom of god is not coming with things that can be observed; nor will they day, ‘Look, here it is I” or “There it is! For, in fact, the kingdom of God is among you.”
Mt 11: 28; come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give your rest.
Mt 18:20; For where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them.
Mt 28: 20b; I am with you always, to the end of the age.
Hypocrisy
We may control outwardly our activities but if we do not restrain the desires which impel them, we have failed to grasp the true meaning of restraint. Hypocrisy is an attitude of pleasing others and seeking attention. This attitude is condemned by Jesus. Both Gita and Bible points out that hypocrisy will not help a person to come closer to God. Below are some of the parallel passages about the Hypocrisy from the Gita and the Bible.
Bhagavad Gita 3:6; He who restrains his organs of action but continues in his mind t be brood over the objects of sense, whose nature in his mind to brood over the objects of sense, whose nature is deluded is said to be a hypocrite ( a man of false conduct).
Matthew 10:26; So have no fear of them; for nothing is covered up that will not be uncovered, and nothing secret that will not become known.
Lk 12:1-2; Beware of the yeast of the Pharisees, that is, their hypocrisy. Nothing that is covered, will not be uncovered, and nothing secret that will not become known.
The conflict between good and evil has existed long ago and will continue to exist. It is a general understanding, that to fight in a just war is a way to heaven. It is a very strong sense in Muslim tradition where it is called a jihad, anybody who dies in the jihad goes straight to heaven. The Christian too have similar tradition called as crusades in olden days. The war is the battle of life and the conflict is with the powers of evil. This has to be undertaken with peace, ‘in pleasure or pain, in gain or loss, in victory or defeat’. This is the ‘indifference which St. Ignatius of Loyola promoted. It means complete equilibrium in the face of all the opposites, the good and the evil, the pleasures and pain we should keep on striving till we reach the goal. Both Gita and Bible affirm that Death is a sting of sin but this is not the end it is also the attainment of heaven. Below are some of the parallel passages about war and evil from the Gita and the Bible
Bhagavad Gita 2:31-38; For a warrior, nothing is higher than a war against evil. The warrior confronted with such a war should be pleased, Arjuna, for it comes as an open gate to heaven. But if you do not participate in this battle against evil, you will incur sin, violating your dharma and your honor....
Death means the attainment of heaven; victory means the enjoyment of the earth.
Therefore rise up, Arjuna, resolved to fight! Having made yourself alike in pain and pleasure, profit and loss, victory and defeat, engage in this great battle and you will be freed from sin.
1 Cor 15:57; The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law, but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Mt 10:34; Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth; I have not come to bring peace, but a sword.
Forgiveness
To err is human but to forgive is divine. Forgiveness is a virtue that human being need to cultivate in order to come closer to God and to his fellow human beings. Forgiveness leads us to freedom. God is a forgiving Father therefore we too should forgive others unconditionally. A person who forgives is pure at heart and live an ascetic uprightness. Both the Gita and Bible tells us that we should not be perturbed when we sinned, instead we should turn back to God, turn away from evils and God will forgive us. Below are some of the parallel passages about the Forgiveness from the Gita and the Bible.
Bhagavad Gita 12:13; Be compassionate and friendly released from ego selfishness, patient, not hating any being, the same in pain and happiness.
Bhagavad Gita 14:23; He sits as one indifferent whom the Qulaities have not perturbed, he thinks ‘the qualities are at work’, remaining firm and undistributed.
Bhagavad Gita 16:2; A fearless man and pure in heart with disciplined wisdom and steadfastness, generous restraint and sacrifice, study an ascetic uprightness.
Bhagavad Gita 18: 66; Give up all things of law, turn to me, your only refuge, I will deliver you from all evils, have no care.
Mt 9:2; Take heart, son; your sins are forgiven.
Mt 6:14; For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.
Mt 18:21-22; Peter came and said to him, ‘Lord, if another member of the church sins against me how often should I forgive? As many as seven times? Jesus said to him, “Not seven times, but I tell you, seventy- seven times.
Mk 2:5; When Jesus saw their faith; he said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven”.
John 8:36; If the son makes you free, you will be free indeed.
Peace
Peace is what the world long for. In Gita (2: 64, 66) we see that there are stages of perfection. There is no wisdom for a man who is not integrated. To one who is not integrated there is no contemplation. Without contemplation there is no peace, and without peace there is no joy. In Christian context Peace is a gift from Jesus. We should all strive for peace because God will bless us. For St. Paul the fruits of the spirit are these: love, joy, peace. Below are some of the parallel passages about peace from the Gita and the Bible
Bhagavad Gita 2: 64,66; But he who roves among the objects of sense, his senses subdued to self and disjoined from passion and hate, and who is self-possessed, draws nigh to calm serenity. The man who is not integrated has no soul, in Him there is no development: for the man who does not develop there is no peace.
Mt 5:9; Blessed are the peace makers for they will be called children of God
John 14:27; Peace, I leave with you; my peace I give to you
John 16:33; I have said this to you, so that in me you may have peace.
Reward
According to Gita, the people who seeks wisdom, or the man who strives for gain each in their different way want something from God. The afflicted man wants relief, the man seeking wisdom wants wisdom and who is integrated is seeking God in himself. This is the difference: first of all we seek god for something we can get from him; only later do we discover that God himself is what we want. In Christian context we should ‘seek ye first the kingdom of God’ and then everything else will follow. When we love our brothers and sisters, we love God and God will bless us. Therefore we need to love God so that we will be loved by God. Below are some of the parallel passages about reward from the Gita and the Bible
Bhagavad Gita 7:17; Of these the man of wisdom, ever integrated, who loves and worships One alone excels: for to the man of wisdom I am exceeding dear and he dear to me.
John 6:56; those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me and I in them.
John 14: 21b; those who love me will be loved by my Father, and I will love them and reveal myself to them.
Mt 10:40-42; “Whoever welcomes you welcomes me,… whoever welcomes a righteous person in the name of a righteous person will receive the reward of the righteous and whoever gives even a cup of cold water… none of these will lose their reward.
The Gita and the Bible speak about the Trust in God. The Gita (6:30) tells us that the three concepts of God, Brahman, Atman and Purusa, are all ultimately identical. They are the one reality realizes in different ways. For the Christian, Christ is the personal aspect of God, the person in whom the universe finds its ultimate meaning who reveals himself as life, love and truth. God is the everywhere, he abides in us, and He is the way, and our refuge and strength. Therefore when we trust God we will not be lost because He will live in us and we will be in Him. Below are some of the parallel passages about trust from the Gita and the Bible.
Bhagavad Gita 6:30; Who sees Me everywhere, who sees the All in Me, for him I am not lost, nor is he lost to Me.
Bhagavad Gita 9:18; (I am) the way, sustainer, Lord, and witness, home and refuge, friend,-origin and seed that passes not away.
John 14:6; Jesus said, “I am the way and the truth and the life”.
Rev 1:17; I am the first and the last.
John 6:56; Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me and I in them.
John 3:16b; Everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.
Loyalty
To be loyal to God or Brahman is an important aspect of every human being. The Gita tells us that, ‘He who sees me everywhere and all in me, I am not lost to him nor is he lost to me’. The man who is fully integrated and made one, becomes aware of something that is other than himself, in the one case, this touch of contact with Brahman. Detaching oneself from outside contacts has been replaced by contact with the omnipresent Brahman and through Brahman with all things but in a new dimension, a new light. In Christian context we live in God and God lives in us. By loyal or faithful to God we will not lose anything instead we will not be lost in the sight of God; we will become completely one with Jesus or Brahman. Below are some of the parallel passages about Loyalty from the Gita and the Bible.
Bhagavad Gita 9:31; Right soon will his self be justified and win eternal rest. Arjuna, be sure of this: none who worships Me with loyalty and love is lost to Me.
Bhagavad Gita 6:29-30; With self integrated by spiritual exercise he sees the self in all beings standing, all beings in the self: the same in everything he sees. Who sees Me everywhere, who sees the All in Me, for him I am not lost, nor is he lost to Me.
Matthew 10:28; Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.
John 17:23; I in them and you in me, that they may become completely one, so that the world may know that you have sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.
Life after death or Immortality
The divine life has drawn us into itself. If we fix our mind on God, we are drawn into the divine life. The great illusion under which we live is to think that when somebody dies the person, rather than the body is dead. It is illusion which comes over us and makes us see the eternal reality which is present in that situation. When a person dies we should rejoice and say he is born, he has come to life. He has passed on beyond this maya, this appearance of life, to eternal life, to the world of the Spirit. For Christian it is only the body that dies because it goes but to the mud. The soul will go back to God and on the last day the person will rise again. Below are some of the parallel passages about Life after death or Immortality from the Gita and the Bible
Bhagavad Gita 2:19; Both he who thinks that this can kill and he who thinks that this is killed, have neither truly understood, this does not kill, is never killed.
Bhagavad Gita 8:6; Whatever state he bears in mind at death and leaves his frame aside to that very state he will arrive and ever after they abide.
Bhagavad Gita
Ch 3: 42; The sense, they say, are high; Higher than the senses is the thought-organ; But higher than the thought organ is the consciousness; While higher than the consciousness is He (the soul).
Ch 4:6; Unborn am I, changeless is my Self, of all contingent beings I am the Lord! Yet by my creative energy I consort with nature- which is mine- and come to be in time.
Ch 9: 7; All contingent being pour into material Nature which is another (aeon) starts, I emanate them forth.
Ch 11:4; If, Lord, You think that I can see You thus, then show me, Lord of creative power, this Self of yours which does not pass away.
Mk 12: 27; He is god not of the dead, but of the living.
1Cor 15:42, 44; So it is with the resurrection of the death what is sown is perishable, what is raised is imperishable, It is sown as a physical body, it is raised a spiritual body.
1 Cor 15: 54-57; when this perishable body puts on imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality, then the saying that is written will be fulfilled:
“Death has been swalled up in victory:’
Where, O death is your victory?’
Where, O death is your sting?’”
The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law, but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Heaven and Bliss
Heaven or the blissful stage is the aim of every human being. There are different ways in which people believe that they will be able to achieve this goal. Both in Gita and Bible the same thought is expressed. It is the state of being fixed in the Brahman or God. When one has freed oneself from desires and no longer has a thought of the 'I' or 'mine' then one awakes to reality, to truth, to real being. We should be free we from attachments for it is the root of all evils. Clinging to senses, clinging to our feelings, clinging to our thoughts, and clinging to ego is evil. Nirvana is experienced when one is totally freed from the ego and from the appearances of things, and when one has realised reality or truth. By meditation the meditator and the meditated object will become one and then one will enjoy the supreme bliss. In Christian context heaven is a place where all will be one. It is a place of perfection where no evil exist. Below are some of the parallel passages about heaven and bliss from the Gita and the Bible.
Bhagavad Gita 6:15; With integration of himself the disciplined with governed mind the peace that culminates in Calm and rest in me, will surely find.
Bhagavad Gita 2:72; This is the still state of Brahman, with this be no more stupefied, one goes to the Calm of Brahman if here on dying he abide.
Bhagavad Gita 10:3; He who knows me, Great Lord of Worlds, the Unborn and the Beginningless, he of undiluted mortals from every evil finds release.
Bhagavad Gita 5:24; The disciplined has joy within and happiness and light within, therefore on becoming Brahman he will the Calm of Brahman win.
Bhagavad Gita 14:27; I am the Ground of Brahman still immortal and unchangeable, of everlasting righteousness and of invariable bliss.
Mt 8:11-12; I tell you, many will come from east and west and will eat with Abraham, Issac and Jacob in the Kingdom of heaven, while the heirs of the kingdom will be thrown into outer darkness where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Mk 9:47b; It is better for you to enter the kingdom of god with one eye than to have both eyes and to be thrown in hell.
Lk 16: 22; The poor man died and was carried away by the angels to be with Abraham.
John 3:16; for God so loved the world that he gives his only son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.
John 3:36; whoever believes in the son has eternal life whoever disobeys the sons will not see life, but must endure God’s wrath.
John 5:24; Very truly, I tell you, anyone who hears my worked and believes him who sent me has eternal life, and does not come under judgment, but has passed from death to life.
John 11:25; Jesus said, “I am the resurrection and the life, those who believe in me even though they die, will live.
Bhagavad Gita and Gospel of Jesus (Bible) in some other Areas of life:
The Bhagavad Gita and the Gospel of Jesus helps in overcoming sorrow and becoming a detached person. There is numerous lives situation in which a person can get consolations from these two sacred scriptures. Every meditator or reader who meditates and pray by using these sacred texts will never go unhappy. Some of the comparative passages for some areas of life are:
In the Hour of life Crises: Bhagavad Gita 1:28-30, 2:2-7; Bible Mt 26:36-44 Ps 6
Perfection: Bhagavad Gita 2:54-59; Bible 1Thes 4:1-8, Mt 7:24f.
How to overcome Passion: Bhagavad Gita 2:60; Bible Gal 5:13-36.
Peace of Soul: Bhagavad Gita 2:64-71; Bible Jn.14:27, Mt 6:25-34.
Presence of God: Bhagavad Gita 7:7-11; Bible Is 44:6-8, Acts 17:23-28, Col 1:15-20.
Deities: Bhagavad Gita 7:20-23; Bible Wisdom 11:21-12:2, Joshua 5:1-11 Mt 6:24-33.
God the source of everything: Bhagavad Gita 9:13-19; Bible Ps 148, Jhn 6:35, Jhn 10:14-15.
Speak to me: Bhagavad Gita 10: 12-18; Bible Ps 138, 142, 144, Jn 6:68-69.
Human Being longing to see God: Bhagavad Gita 11:1-4; Bible Ps 42, 63, Jhn 9.
Lord in Majesty Bhagavad Gita 11:9-14, 15:24 Bible Mt 17:1-8, Ezekiel 1:4-28, Rev 4.
Adoration: Bhagavad Gita 11:32-46; Bible Ps 6 Lk 10:21-24 Is 6:1-5.
Dearness to God: Bhagavad Gita 12:13-46; Bible Ps 18:1-30 Mt 5:1-9.
Omnipresent of God: Bhagavad Gita 13:12-17; Bible Ps 139, Jer 26:23-24, Sirak 43:27-33.
God within us: Bhagavad Gita 13:12-17; Bible Jhn 15:5-22.
Two classes: Bhagavad Gita 16:24; Bible Gal 5:16-26.
Consecrating our life to God Bhagavad Gita 18:4-6, 45-47,56-57, Bible Mt 6:1-18.
God’s Personal love for us: Bhagavad Gita 18:61-66; Bible Jhn 15:9-15.
There is a saying which goes, ‘If God can move you from January to December, He’ll move you from Shame to Fame, Insult to Result, Sorry to Glory, Disgrace to His grace and Labour to Favor’. This phrase could be one of the core teachings of Gita and Bible. God is the immovable mover who moves all things in this universe. We need to love ourselves, love our neighbors and love God, and then we will truly experience the fullness of life. When we read the Gita and Bible we get inspirational support in the struggles of live, consolation in times of grief and we are taken to the culmination of oneness with God or Brahman.
‘Whosoever offers to Me with devotion a leaf, a flower, a fruit, or water, that offering of love, of the pure heart, I accept. (Bhagavad Gita 9:26).
‘Do to others as you would have them do to you’. (Luke 6:31).
Parrinder Geoffrey. Bhagavad Gita a verse translation. London; Sheldon Press, 1974.
Radhakrishnan. The Bhagavadgita. London; George Allen & Unwin Ltd. 1970.
Bhagavad Gita. Translated by Purohit Swami, annotations by Kendra Crossen Burroughs. Mumbai; Jaico Publishing House.
Holy Bible. The New Revised Standard Version, Catholic Edition, Published by Catholic Bible Press, Thomas Nelson, Inc., Nashville, Tennessee.
Zaehner R.C. The Bhagavad-Gita.Oxford. Clarendon Press, 1969.
Griffiths Bede. River of Compassion, Christian commentary on Bhagavad Gita. New York. The Continuum Publishing Company.
By Shaining
Jakhong, Mairang, Meghalaya
