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Bhagavad Gita - May 02, 2008 Chapter 2, Verses: 56-59 Swami Yogatmananda Vedanta Society of Providence     Please click the 'Play' button to start. It may take a minute.   Launch in external player   To download the lecture, please right-click here and then click "Save Target As..."     II.56-58: That person is called a man of steady wisdom when his/her mind is unperturbed in sorrow, he/she is free from longing for delights, and has gone beyond attachment, fear and anger. The wisdom of that person remains established who has no attachment for anything anywhere, who neither welcomes nor rejects anything, whatever good or bad when he comes across it. And when this one fully withdraws the senses from the objects of the senses, as a tortoise wholly (withdraws) the limbs, then his/her wisdom remains established. II.59: The objects recede from the abstinent man, with the exception of the taste (for them). Even the taste of this person falls away after realizing the Absolute.   The above image is from Gita Darshan by courtesy of Sri Ramakrishna Math, Hyderabad.   To Order Audio/ Video CDs : bookstore@vedantaprov.org   List of Audio/ Video CDs, DVDs

Summary of this lecture: Sri Krishna tells three significant characteristics that one can see in a person established in wisdom. It will be very helpful, if we can feel the contrast in these respects, between such person and an ordinary person not established in wisdom: 1. Attachment goes away. 2. There's no anger. 3. No fear. After realizing the Highest, that person doesn't get overly elated or depressed, but is rather steadfast in wisdom. He knows the world is a passing show so he is detached and becomes emotionally strong. Unlike an ignorant person whose sense organs run outward to their objects nearby to grab them, for such a soul these organs go inside much like a tortoise withdrawing its limbs when it sees danger. One can see this in the life of Sri Ramakrishna. One may abstain from sense pleasures for various reasons like health etc, but the taste/relish for them still remains. Thus a torturous mental hankering for them continues. But after God realization, even the taste (& thus hankering too) disappears. Without any external control, that person is always in spontaneous control.