Blog | Arthur Kilmurray | Explorations in Yoga, the Re-Awakening of the Sacred Feminine, and the Emerging Planetary Consciousness

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Sthita Prajna (Stable Wisdom)

The real teachings of the Gita begin in Chapter 2, and the final 18 verses provide a succinct summary of the nature of awakened living. Arjuna asks Krishna about how a wise man lives, how he moves, talks, etc. Krishna, responds to the spirit of the question, that is, how does a man wise man, one who knows the ‘truth’ of himself, live in the world? How can anyone tell if he is wise or not? Krishna goes on to describe the nature of desire, the need for contemplation, the role the senses, the difference between ignorance and knowledge. It will take 16 more chapters to unfold this teaching completely, but this is a great way to start.

Chapter 2, verse 54

arjuna uvaaca:

sthitaprajnasya kaa bhaasaa samaadhisthasya keshava
sthitadhia kim prabhaaseta kimaasita vrajeta kim

Arjuna said: Oh Keshava (Krishna), what is the description of a person of firm wisdom, one who’s mind abides in the aatmaa, self? How does such a person, whose mind is not shaken by anything, speak, sit, walk?

Chapter 2, verse 55

srii bhagavaan uvaaca:

prajahaati yadaa kaamaan sarvaan paartha manogataan
atmanyevaatmanaa tushtah sthita prajna stadocyate

Sri Bhagavan said: when a person gives up all the desires as they appear in the mind, O Arjuna, happy in oneself, with oneself alone, that person is said to be one of stable wisdom.

Chapter 2, verse 56

duhkhesvanudvignamanahaah sukhesu vigatasprhah
vitaraagabhayakrodhah sthitadhirmunirucyate

The one who is not affected by adversities, who is without yearning for pleasures, who is free from longing, fear and anger, is said to be a wise person whose knowledge remains stable.

Chapter 2, verse 57

yah sarvatraanabhisnehastattatpraapya shubhaashubham
nabhinandhati na dvesti tasya prajnaa pratisthitaa

For one who is unattached in all situations, who neither rejoices on gaining the pleasant, nor hates the unpleasant, his knowledge is well established

Chapter 2, verse 58

yadaa samharate caayam kuurmo’ nganiiva sarvashah
indriyaanindriyaarthebhyastasya prajnaa pratisthitaa

And when, like the turtle that withdraws its limbs, this person is able to completely withdraw the sense organs from their objects, his knowledge is steady.

Chapter 2, verse 59

visayaa vinivartante niraahaarasya dehinah
rasavarjam raso’pyasyaparam drstvaa nivartate

For one who does not feed the senses, the senses come back to oneself, leaving the longing behind. Having seen Brahman (when the self is known), even the longing goes away.

Chapter 2, verse 60

yatato hyapi kaunteya purusasya vipascitah
indriyaani pramaathiini haranti prasabham manah

Because, the powerful senses of even the person who makes effort, who sees clearly, forcefully takes the mind away, Oh! Arjuna

Chapter 2, verse 61

taani sarvaani samyamya yukta aasitamatparah
vase hi yasyendriyaani tasya prajnaa pratisthitaa

May one who is endowed with discrimination, keeping all the sense organs in one’s own hands, sit in contemplation of Me. For the one who has all the sense organs under control, the knowledge is well-established.

Chapter 2, verse 62

dhyaayato visayaanpumsah sangasteuupajaayate
sangaatsanjaayate kaamah kaamaat krodho’bhijaayate

In the person who dwells upon objects, an attachment is born with reference to them. From attachment is born desire, and from desire anger is born

Chapter 2, verse 63

krodhaadbhavati sammohah sammohaat smrtivibhramah
smrtibhramsaad buddhinaaso buddhinaasaat pranasyati

From anger comes delusion and from delusion comes the loss of memory. Because of the loss of memory, the mind becomes incapacitated, and when the mind is incapacitated, the person is destroyed.

Chapter 2, verse 64

raagadvesaviyuktaistu visayaanindriyaiscaran
aatmavasyairvidheyaatmaa prasaadamadhigacchati

Whereas, one whose mind is controlled, moving in the world of objects with the sense organs under his or her control, free from likes and dislikes, attains tranquillity

Chapter 2, verse 65

prasaade sarvaduhkhaanaam haanirasyopajaayate
prasannacetaso hyaasu buddhih paryavatisthate

When the mind is tranquil, destruction of all pain and sorrow happens because the knowledge of one who is tranquil-minded soon becomes well established.

Chapter 2, verse 66

naasti buddhirayuktasya na caayuktasya bhaavanaa

na caabhaavayataha santirasaantasya kutah sukham

For the one who is not tranquil, there is no knowledge. For the one who is not tranquil, there is no contemplation, and for the one who is not contemplative, there is no peace. For the one who has no peace, how can there be happiness?

Chapter 2, verse 67

indriyaanaam hi carataam yanmano’nuvidhiyate
tadasya harati prajñaam vaayurnaavamivaambhasi

The mind that follows the moving senses indeed robs the person of his knowledge, just as the wind carries away a small boat on the waters.

Chapter 2, verse 68

tasmaadyasya mahaabaaho nigrhiitaani sarvasah
indriyaaniindriyaarthebhyastasya prajñaa pratisthitaa

Therefore, oh mighty armed Arjuna, the knowledge of one whose senses are completely withdrawn (mastered) from their respective sense objects is steady.

Chapter 2, verse 69

yaa nisaa sarvabhuutaanaam tasyaam jaagarti samyami
yasyaam jaagrati bhuutaani saa nisaa pasyato muneh

In that which is night for all beings, the one who is wise, who has mastery over oneself, is awake. That, in which beings are awake, is night for the wise one who sees.

Chapter 2, verse 70

aapuuryamaanamacalapratistham
samudramaapah pravisanti yadvat
tadvatkaamaa yam pravissanti sarve
sa saantimaapnoti na kaamakaamii

Just as water flows into the ocean that is brimful and still, so too, the wise person into whom all objects enter, gains peace (remains unchanged); whereas the desirer of objects does not gain peace.

Chapter 2, verse 71

vihaaya kaamaan yah sarvaan pumaamscarati nihsprhah
nirmamo nirahankaarah sa saantimadhigacchati

Having given up all binding desires, the person who moves around, devoid of longing, without the sense of limited ‘I’, gains peace.

Chapter 2, verse 72

esaa braahmii sthitih paartha nainaam praapya vimuhyati
sthitvaasyaaamantakaale’pi brahmanirvaanamrcchati

This is what is meant by being steady in Brahman, oh Partha. Having gained this, one is not deluded. Remaining therein, even at the end of one’s life, one gains liberation

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Posted on December 23, 2022 by admin

The Ten Oxherding Pictures

A Holiday Gift from the Buddhist World to all of us.

The ten Oxherding Pictures from Zen Buddhism represent the stages and path to awakening, integration and enlightenment, with the Ox representing our True Nature and the Oxherder each of us, the embodied being. It is important to note that the stages are not linear but spiralic and multi-dimensional, as we usually can get glimpses of more advanced levels before we have truly completed and integrated the any or all of the previous ones.

Also, we may often be working with several stages at the same time. More subtle awakenings in one level may trigger unconscious and unresolved traumas stored in the earlier levels that then need to be revisited, transformed and integrated. Then, the energy held in trauma is resolved and free to use for deeper growth.

There are many variations on the ten pictures representing the stages, and these are usually accompanied by poetic verses and/or commentary describing the journey. The paintings seen below are traditionally attributed to 天章周文 Tenshō Shūbun (1414-1463), of the Muromachi period in the late fifteenth century and are found at the Shōkokuji temple in Kyoto, Japan.

These stages can be seen as three sets of three transformations, with the final stage standing alone. The first three are the beginners journey, the second three those of the intermediate student, and the final three the most subtle and refined. The tenth transcends all and resolves as the awakened Buddha in the world helping others. Looking more deeply and ironically, we find that ultimately it is the Ox who is training and leading the Oxherder

1: Seeking the Ox
We know something is missing in our lives, but don’t know what it might be, or where to look. Our souls ache, our spirit feels fragile. The spiritual journey begins, but our minds are full of confusion and delusion. Our search is random and we cannot find the Ox anywhere. This is Dante at the beginning of The Divine Comedy.

2: Seeing Tracks of the Ox
Through study and guidance we begin to get glimpses. Maybe we discover yoga or meditation, or find spiritual teachers or writings that inspire us. But although we see the tracks, the Ox is still unseen, unknown. The tracks give us some confidence and we continue seeking, driven by the awakening cosmic impulse to discover/uncover the fullness and truth of our Being. The Ox is calling us.

3: First Glimpsing the Ox
There is the Ox. Wow! So magnificent! How did we ever not see! But the Ox remains elusive, disappearing into the forest. How could that be? Our minds are still confused, our seeking still undisciplined. The Ox teases us. She is everywhere and then nowhere to be found. Our mental habits and beliefs still dominate in spite of the revelation and we struggle to find ground. We are still beginners on the journey.

4: Catching the Ox
We finally catch the ox and grasp the rope to hold her, but she is wild and free, used to cavorting in the fields. We must hold the rope firmly and steadily. The rope of course is our evolving meditation practice and this is where it gets more serious. We are no longer beginners. We are in the realm of un-abiding awakening and must be ‘all in’ with our practice to stabilize the ground. Habits and conditioning have many tentacles extending into the unconscious, so our discipline must become stronger. The Ox keeps us on our toes.

5: Taming the Ox
As our practice becomes stronger, we can hold the rope more loosely as the Ox is relaxing somewhat. It is actually the mind that is relaxing as we begin to realize that the Ox is always steady and it is our minds that are wild and untamed. By relaxing our efforts, our practices can now include resting in the infinite and we become more comfortable in stillness and mystery. Habits still arise as the unconscious has many layers and levels of confusion and trauma, but we recognize the reality that our thoughts arise and fall from the depths of silence and that our delusion is self created.

6: Riding the Ox Back Home
The seeking and struggle come to an end and we can let go of the rope as Ox and herder are one, moving effortlessly together though the world. Buddha Nature is awake and free and we feel spontaneous joy and happiness. The Oxherder plays his flute for the birds and children of the village. This joy and delight can be a surprise as the practice has seemed quite serious at times. Unseen unconscious traumas may still exist so vigilance is still required.

7: Ox Forgotten, Self Alone
The Ox is now gone and the Oxherder sits at home alone. This is ‘Self as ‘I am’ without the need to ‘be something. This is Kaivalya of the Yoga Sutras, Purusha distinct from Prakriti. Up until now, there has remained a subtle sense of duality, of practice and life, of spiritual and not spiritual. This now dissolves. There is no longer ‘something to do’. Everything is meditation and nothing is special. Things are ‘just as they are’.

8: Ox and Self Both Forgotten
Total Emptiness. No concepts, ideas or beliefs, no sense of separateness. Even the “I am” is gone. All gone. Not even the scent of ‘holiness’ or special-ness remains. Gate, Gate, Paragate, Parasamgate.

9: Return to the Source
From the realization of Emptiness emerges the realization that the amazing flow of life always continues on in its own perfection. Seasons come and go. Cherry trees bloom in the spring. Birds sing and the rivers flow. Stars are born and others explode into cosmic dust. Emptiness is Fullness, Fullness is Emptiness. Bodhi svaha!

10: Returning to the Marketplace with Helping Hands
The enlightened being joyfully joins the world to aid all beings on their journey. Freedom, wisdom and compassion are the roots of action. Enlightenment is not passive but celebratory and engaged.

Here are some other perspectives:
From Tricycle Magazine
https://terebess.hu/english/Kuoan1.html
https://terebess.hu/english/oxherd0.html

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