PHRASES IN THE GITA - 137

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PHRASES IN THE GITA - 137

त्वं वेदितव्यम् ... (अध्याय ११ - श्लोक १८)

த்வம் வேதிதவ்யம் ... (அத்யாயம் 11 - ஶ்லோகம் 18)

Tvam Veditavyam  .. (Chapter 11 - Shlokam 18)

MEANING :  You are the one to be Known ...

Avyam in Samskrutam is a suffix , attached to a verb ..  It means .. "has to be" or "deserves to be" ..  Kartavya is .. 'has to be done' ..  Daatavya is 'deserves to be given' ..  Gantavya is 'has to be attained' ..  Veditavyam is , "that which has to known" ..  "that which deserves to be known" ..

Immoblile lives like the trees know ..  These know how to extract essence from the soil , how to convert this essence to flowers and fruits ...  But , trees are incapable of realizing that 'something is worth being known' .  Obviously , these can not strive to know what is desirable ..  The trees have limited or fixed and embedded knowledge ...

Other forms of life learn a few new tricks ..  in the changed living conditions ..  A crow used to build its nest using twigs of trees ..  Now a days , in cities a crow uses iron wires , plastic material and jute and cocoa ropes ..  The sheep used to move around on four legs and graze on green pastures ..  Now a days in cities , it stands on hind legs with its fore legs on the wall , tears down and chews a poster .  A monkey in tourist spots has learnt the art of opening the zip of the bag on a bike and take out the eatables kept inside ..  Yes .. These animals have learnt new tricks .  but definitely not after concluding that this is to be learnt ..  These tricks have been learnt in their struggle for survival through instincts ..

Human is the only life that can consciously realize that , "this deserves to be known" ..  Similarly , human is the only life which can pursue efforts to know that which has to be known ..

What is to be known ?  What is that which deserves to be known ?  If you ask this question to a youth , he would most probably say , "Computers" ..  "Englsh , that too in Amerikan Accent" may be a probable reply ..  If you seek the reason for his answer , he will say , "that will give me a job" ..  "Why did you not choose literature for study ?"  Instant will be his reply , "Will it fill my belly ?"  (This is the very unfortunate scenario in most universities ,.  Classrooms of languages are empty .)  Such a student is no better than the crow , goat or monkey mentioned before ..  Learn anything for basic survival ...  Only that which helps in his physical existance is "knowledge to be attained" ..

OK Sir , You learn anything to earn ..  But , Is it sufficient ?  Will it fulfill all your aspirations ?  If a stage comes wherein you do not have to worry about filling up the tummy ?  Won't you need some other knowledge ?  Earning is not all in life ..  Won't you need to know something else to feel fuller in life ?

Here Arjuna says , "The Paramaatman is Veditavyam" ..  Knowing that Parama Tattva , The Ultimate reaches you to a stage wherein you will not need to know anything else ..  Yes !!  He is the Veditavyam ..  He deserves to be known ..  He has to be known ..  He or That which is behind all our efforts , which is the cause of all the actions in Creation ..  That which empowers us with various capabilities and skills ..  that which is also the cause of our dissolution or destruction ..  That is to be known ..  That is Veditavyam ..