Adjusting The Instrument – In Gita Verse 13.23 Yet in this body there is another, a transcendental enjoyer, who is the Lord, the supreme proprietor, who exists as the overseer and permitter, and who is known as the Supersoul.
In this verse of the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna imparts serene wisdom through the concept of the Supersoul, or Paramatma – the ultimate witness. This transcendental observer watches over the intricate interplay of life, where nature and spirit, matter and consciousness, harmoniously entwine in a grand cosmic ballet.
Krishna’s wisdom illuminates an endless expanse of divine grandeur, a grandeur so vast that our attempts to describe it are inevitably dwarfed. In our everyday lives, this understanding calls us to:
Adjust the Instrument: Regularly tune ourselves – our body, mind, and soul – through practices like meditation and self-reflection, ensuring that we can better resonate with the music of the divine.
Rabindranath Tagore’s poignant realisation on his deathbed serves as a profound metaphor for this continuous tuning process. Despite his monumental achievements and his creative genius, Tagore felt the songs of ultimate glory for the divine remained unsung – his life a mere preparation of the instrument for a symphony beyond articulation. He reminds us that even as we strive to achieve and create, we are, in essence, still preparing ourselves for a deeper communion with the infinite.
Witness Consciousness: Cultivate an observer within, who watches life unfold with equanimity. This witness remains unaffected by the dramas of the mind and the temptations of the senses, ever serene and detached.
In Tagore’s habitual communion with God through his songs, and perhaps even more in his silence, there is a hint of the ‘Sakshi Bhav’, the state of being the witness. It is the silent presence that watches, without attachment, our own play of life – allowing us to participate fully yet remain unencumbered by the outcome.
Detached Involvement: Engage fully with life, yet stay unattached to the fruits of your actions. Participate with passion in the world, yet keep aloof from the entanglements of ego.
Tagore’s reflection invites us to engage fully in the act of creation – represented by his thousands of songs – yet to remain acutely aware of the ultimate futility of believing that our endeavours can encapsulate the totality of the divine. He participated with intense devotion, yet his final statement is one of detachment, symbolising that our deepest involvements ought not to bind us, but rather free us into the recognition of our finite nature vis-à-vis the infinite.
Treading Krishna’s enlightened path, we recognise that every step and realisation are but milestones on a path stretching endlessly before us – a path drawing us into a voyage of perpetual discovery. Amidst this journey, it becomes clear that each of us embodies a fragment of the vast cosmos, a drop in the ocean, intimately known yet forever mysterious.
As we navigate this intricate dance with the divine, our souls resonate with God in moments of pure clarity and profound affection. Yet the totality of His essence remains just beyond our temporal reach, a sacred paradox that does not lead to despair but rather invigorates our divine connection, compelling us toward greater surrender to the enigma.
Thus, Krishna’s message transforms into an active, breathing mantra for life: Continually refine the instrument of our being, maintain inner tranquillity as the drama of existence unfolds, and engage with the world from a place of affectionate detachment. In this way, we echo the ancient sages, embodying the spiritual paradox of knowing yet not knowing – for we are inextricably woven into the divine tapestry, indivisible and vast.
It is here, at the intersection of knowing and not knowing, that the essence of divinity blossoms within our consciousness. It steers us through life’s rhythms, ever-reminding us that the profoundest knowledge of God is unearthed in yielding to the depths of His indescribable mystery.
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