श्री गुरुभ्यो नमः हर ः ॐ śrī gurubhyo namaḥ hariḥ om
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Sri Krishna explains His Nature further:
अव्यक्तोऽक्ष इत्युक्तस्तमाहः प माां गरिम्।
यां प्राप्य न रनवितन्ते िद्धाम प मां मम॥
avyakto'kṣara ityuktastamāhuḥ paramāṁ gatim |
yaṁ prāpya na nivartante taddhāma paramaṁ mama ||
(SrīmadbhagavadGītā, Ch 8, verse 21)
The state that is called the Unmanifest (avyakta) and the Imperishable (akṣara) is the ultimate goal of all. That is my supreme abode (dhāma). One who attains that will not return (to this world of birth and death).
'avyakta' is the explicitly unrevealed Universal Consciouness that shrouds the beings (jīva-s) through Its māyā. It is beyond space and time and is immanent in and energizes all beings. Only through complete surrender to It (tat) that the jīva, who is engrossed in daily grind of worldly attachments and actions and is caught in the birth and death cycle can get redemption and liberation as stated in v.22. 'akṣara' is unchanging and non-decaying and thus has neither the beginning nor the middle, nor the end (ādimadhyāntarahita) in Its existence. Sri Krishna says that these two characterize His Supreme abode (dhāma) or His Nature, which state (tam) should be the ultimate goal (gati) for all seekers. He also assures that those who attain Him will not return to the cycle of birth and death, i.e. will attain liberation (mokṣa or sāyujyaṁ). Thus, as mentioned in the beginning of the chapter, vijñāna involves the realization of that Supreme entity which is non-decaying and eternal and is explicitly unnmanifest but is the implicit cause of all the creation through a cosmic play (līlā) through māyā. Sri Krishna then returns to the topic of meditation on omkāra at the time of death that he introduced in v.13 and states the importance of time of death in v.23-27. He distinguishes these times as uttarāyaṇam (6 months of northern course of the sun, note that uttara also means uplifting) and dakṣiṇāyaṇam (6 months of southern course) and calls them as two paths, bright and dark (śuklakṛṣna) and how by dying in the bright path one attains liberation (mokṣa). At the end of the chapter, he summarises how a steadfast yogi attains the Supreme Being by surrendering to Him, in v.28 below:
वेदेषु यज्ञेषु िपःसु चैव दानेषु यत्पुण्यफलां प्ररदष्टम्।
अत्येरि ित्सवतरमदां रवरदत्वा योगी प ां स्थानमुपैरि चाद्यम्॥
vedeṣu yajñeṣu tapaḥsu caiva dāneṣu yatpuṇyaphalaṁ pradiṣṭam |
atyeti tatsarvamidaṁ viditvā yogī paraṁ sthānamupaiti cādyam ||
(SrīmadbhagavadGītā, Ch 8, verse 28)
Transcending all the meritorious rewards that can be obtained through activities such as studies of the Vedas, performance of austerities, giving to charities, etc., a yogi (by Self-Realization) attains that Origin (ādyam), which is the Supreme Being.
In his commentary on this verse (bhāṣya), Sankara observes that Sri Krishna gave the teaching in this chapter as, "इदां रवरदत्वा सप्तप्रश्नरनर्तयद्वा ेर्, idaṁ viditvā saptapraśnanirṇayadvāreṇa, what has been stated here is in the course of answering the 7 questions" (by Arjuna, in the beginning of the chapter, v.1-2). Sri Krishna again makes it explicit in this verse that anything else that seeker does other than complete surrender to him such as Vedic studies, spiritual rites,
charities, will only give him temporary benefits. Thus, He stresses how paramount is the vijñāna that he taught in this chapter, which is understanding and realizing through practice not only on the existence of the Unmanifest Universal Self (Brahman), but also Its manifestations in space and time through māyā but without being affected by them. The preferred path for most ordinary people is to acquire such vijñāna, as He mentioned earlier in previous chapters, through detached and self-less action together with deep meditation. One reason for this is what he states in ch.3, v.5, न रह करिि् क्ष्णमरप जािु रिष्ठत्यकमतकृि्, na hi kaścit kṣṇamapi jātu tiṣṭhatyakarmakṛt, no one can ever remain even for a moment without performing any action (in thought, word, or deed). Since we are bound by Nature to perform some type of action at all times, why not channel those actions to seek Self-Realization? Even though it is the Nature that is making us do what we do, deluded by ego, one thinks that "I am the doer' (kartāhamiti manyate, ch. 3, v.27). By consecrating such actions to Brahma (brahmārpaṇaṁ brahma haviḥ, ch.4, v.24) and performing selflessly without any attachment to the results (nirāśī nirmamo bhūtvā, ch.3, v.30) to the results and through constant meditation (jñānī nityayukta, ch 7, v.17) and steadfast devotion with the consciouness that 'He is all this' (vāsudevaḥ sarvamiti, ch.7, v.19), one can attain that state of vijñāna and liberation.
Nārāyaṇa Sūktam has many relevant mantra-s to this verse. For example, रवश्वां ना ायर्ां देवां अक्ष ां प मां पदम्, viśvaṁ nārāyaṇaṁ devaṁ akṣaraṁ paramaṁ padam, the essence of this universe is Nārāyaṇa, the Eternal Being, the Imperishable, the Supreme, that is the ultimate goal for all; ना ायर्ां महाज्ञेयां रवश्वात्मानां प ायर्म्, nārāyaṇaṁ mahājñeyaṁ viśvātmānaṁ parāyaṇam, Nārāyaṇa is the One that needs to be known, the Soul of all beings and the Supreme that pervades and sustains everything; ॐ ना ायर्ाय रवद्महे वासुदेवाय धीमरह, िन्नो रवष्ुः प्रचोदयाि्, om nārāyaṇāya vidmahe vāsudevāya dhīmahi, tanno viṣṇuḥ pracodayāt, may we invoke and commune ourselves with Nārāyaṇa and meditate on vāsudeva and may that Vishnu inspire our thoughts.
ॐ नमो भगविे वासुदेवाय, om namo bhagavate vāsudevāya,
ॐ िि् सि् OM tat sat
