In this exposition Swami Nirvisheshananda Tirtha ji discusses and analyzes the subject of Varna division in the Hindu society. The Varna system has been widely misinterpreted and misunderstood, taking the form of the caste system.

As per the original and correct interpretation, mankind is divided into four Varnas – Brahmanas, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas, and Sudras.

Krishna, discussing this fourfold division in Bhagavad Gita (Chapter 18, verse 41), says:

ब्राह्मणक्षत्रियविशां शूद्राणां च परन्तप |
कर्माणि प्रविभक्तानि स्वभावप्रभवैर्गुणै: || 41||

brāhmaṇa-kṣhatriya-viśhāṁ śhūdrāṇāṁ cha parantapa
karmāṇi pravibhaktāni svabhāva-prabhavair guṇaiḥ

Activities of Brahmanas, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas, and Sudras are well divided on the basis of their qualities shaped by Nature’s gunas.

Work was divided among people in the society based on their Guna constitution. Each of these social groups took up activities according to their tendencies and skills, and contributed to the welfare of the society. Each of them by this exclusive dedication to his/her chosen field excelled in it.

Depending on his natural tendencies (Svabhava), the three Gunas (Sattva, Rajas, and Tamas) will function in a human being. These may be present in different permutations and combinations in a person. A Brahmana may have Sattva as a predominant Guna, followed by Rajas and Tamas. Rajas will be the dominant Guna in a Kshatriya followed by Sattva and Tamas in whichever order. In a Vaishya, the order may be Rajas, Tamas and Sattva, and in a Sudra, Tamas and Rajas followed by Sattva. 

“But this Guna constitution is not absolute,” says Swamji, “You may have been born with a certain Guna constitution but it can be changed by self-effort. If one wants to cultivate Sattva Guna, then he will have to imbibe more and more Saatvik inputs”.

This Varna classification had been defined in India, but such a broad categorization exists everywhere in the world. Everywhere there are certain kinds of people with a preference and an orientation for teaching, some who are given to administration, and yet others to manual labor, serving others, etc. 
Discussing Svabhava, Swamiji quotes Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 8, verse 3:

श्रीभगवानुवाच |
अक्षरं ब्रह्म परमं स्वभावोऽध्यात्ममुच्यते |
भूतभावोद्भवकरो विसर्ग: कर्मसञ्ज्ञित: || 3||

śhrī bhagavān uvācha
akṣharaṁ brahma paramaṁ svabhāvo ’dhyātmam uchyate
bhūta-bhāvodbhava-karo visargaḥ karma-sanjñitaḥ

The Svabhava is the spiritual essence in us. It is the same for everybody (whatever his Varna or Guna). 

But when this ‘Sva’ manifests through a personality, it will take up the qualities of the personality. Swamiji took the example of Ramakrishna Paramahamsa and Swami Vivekananda and said, “Although their personalities were poles apart, there was no difference in their realization”.

Each person will have some natural tendencies, qualities, or parameters. But because of desires, we do not follow our Svabhava. A person may be very good in music but he may take up a career in information technology because the profession may be more lucrative.

In ancient India, this Varna classification led to amazing excellence in various fields. This is apparent when consider the contributions of Indians in the fields of literature, poetry, medicine, astronomy, music, and much more. 

Swamiji emphatically says, “But that does not give anybody the right to look down upon anybody. India has suffered because people started looking down upon those belonging to other Varnas”.

Our scriptures repeatedly proclaim that the path of spirituality and goal of attaining perfection is open to everyone. It is not restricted to a certain class of people.

Swamiji states, “Whether you are studying Shastras, ruling the kingdom, doing business, or helping others, everything depends upon how and with what attitude you do the work.” 

Swamiji concluded with a defining statement that if everyone does all work fully knowing that it is all a play of the Gunas and work without any ego, attachment or expectation of happiness, it is possible to attain the heights of spiritual perfection.

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In this discourse Swami Bhoomananda Tirtha Ji helps us understand the true nature of spiritual excellence and how one can achieve it by enriching one’s mind and intelligence.

The pivotal message is that the mind is the core of one’s personality and it can be refined. It is the inner instrument that comprehends the external world as well as helps us look inward to realise our Self. It is capable of building the inner personality and giving the impetus for excellence.

Swamiji dwells on the many aspects of how the Self activates our inert and insentient body and makes it capable of sensing and comprehending things. The Self activates our mind and intelligence, which in turn activates our senses that lead to our actions.

When talking about experiencing life, Swamiji places major emphasis on our mind, which is quintessentially spiritual. He calls it the crux of human personality and existence, and goes on to say that, “Our mind is not a part of the physical body, it is associated with the body. The mind is not physical or material. Every experience belongs to the mind, and our life is experiential. Life is equally interactional; all interactions arise from and terminate in the mind.”

Our mind is the fulcrum of our life, all our experiences are in the mind. 

The essence of the first part of Swamiji’s discourse is: “Excellence comes from the right appreciation and analysis of our experiential and interactional life. We must want to be excellent in all that we think, speak, and act. Our thoughts, words, and actions emerge from within the mind. Excellence is a coordinate of our own personality, the mind and the intelligence. It does not belong to inanimate objects.” 

So for any kind of excellence, we need to refine our inner personality, enrich it, empower it, elevate it, strengthen it, and expand it. That is the only way.

In the second half of the discourse, Swamiji takes us back to the Kurukshetra War. Two armies have assembled in the battlefield and war cries have been raised by both. When it was almost time for the discharge of arrows by both the sides, Arjuna asks Krishna to steer the chariot to the forefront and station it there so that he could survey the enemy lines. Krishna drove the chariot and positioned it before Bhishma and Drona. Seeing his beloved grandfather and his venerable preceptor right in front, Arjuna crumbles. 

The invincible hero Arjuna is overcome by grief and distress at the prospect of having to kill Bhishma and Drona in the imminent war. A heartbroken Arjuna loses his composure and resolve. The powerful Gandiva slips off his hand. His skin burns; throat gets parched. He sits down deluded and devastated, almost giving up. After thirteen years of preparation for this war, he now finds the same war sinful. He tells Krishna that he wants to retreat. He contemplates leaving everything behind and becoming a monk, living off alms. During the course of the dialogue that ensues, Krishna advises (Bhagavad Gita 2.38): 

सुखदु:खे समे कृत्वा लाभालाभौ जयाजयौ |
ततो युद्धाय युज्यस्व नैवं पापमवाप्स्यसि || 38||

sukha-duḥkhe same kṛitvā lābhālābhau jayājayau |
tato yuddhāya yujyasva naivaṁ pāpam avāpsyasi || 38 ||

“Fight, but treating alike happiness and distress, loss and gain, victory and defeat. Fighting in this way, you will never incur sin.” 

Swamiji explains the entire scene with matchless power and reason, emphasizing how Krishna touched Arjuna’s inner resources, provided him with clarity, and resolved his torment and confusion.

He redeemed Arjuna from the constrictions and delusions of his mind to the level of reason and rationality, inspiring him to overcome his internal conflict and march forward with a purpose.  Krishna thus sets Arjuna on a path of performance and excellence.

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