2. Concept of Ṣaṭka in the Gītārthasaṅgraha

Some say that the Gītā is a bhakti śāstra, some opine that it is a jñāna-śastra and according to some, its greatness is for its being a karmayoga-śāstra. Overall, the Gītā is a unique coordinating śāstra. It is in one of the foremost among the spiritual śāstras. The entire life is a sacrifice, yajña. The Brāhmaṇā texts also say that yajña is the highest work. Yajña is the work of offering to the god. The meaning of it is experience through sacrifice. The aim of the life should be performance of work absorbed in yoga and devoid of greed. At the beginning of the Kurukṣetra war, Lord Kṛṣṇa has removed the infatuated condition of Arjuna by the instructive speech of the Gītā. Everything in this earth is being performed by that Supreme self, and not by me. So I should not be attached to it. Arousing of such a non-performer state of mind is the significance of the advice. Such a realisation purifies the mind of a man. After this action there comes knowledge. Knowledge broadness the mind, citta. Knowing the self as only instrumental, one can know the existence of god is the prime thing or supreme. All these are possible only when the sādhaka, devotee endeavours to attain the supreme self through devotion. He is favoured by His grace. There is the sublimity of devotion. The chapterisation as though, confirms this view.

If we minutely observe the Gītā, we will find that there is a gradual transcendence. In the Viṣāda-yoga man is the enquirer. The highest problem of life is death. Here is the initiation of how the death can be overcome. In the second chapter Kṛṣṇa’s answer is from the point of self-realisation. Here both the Brahma-nirvāṇa and Brahma-sthiti have been mentioned. In the third chapter the mystery of the Gītā is hidden, and this mystery has been gradually extended. In the third chapter performance of deeds, Karma sādhanā as the ending part of the second chapter, has been mentioned. Combining the karman and jñāna is suggested in the fourth chapter. Here avatāra tattva has been gradually described and it has been elaborately discussed in the ninth chapter. The fifth chapter has given the hint that Karma-yoga and Jñāna-yoga terminate to the perception of god. The sixth chapter gives the advice of yoga performance. Here end the first hexade, ṣaṭaka. The main thing to be presented here is the knowledge of self. In this hexade Brahman has been referred to the least. Here the main subject is sāṃkhya-yoga and jñāna-yoga attached to action.

The Lord, out of compassion and without Arjuna’s seeking for, prepared himself to pertain him the entire knowledge. It is the duty of the devotee to know himself first before knowing Him. As a result the deep sādhanā grew deeper. The introduction of the seventh chapter got wider by the discussion of the jñāna to know the self and vijñāna to know the Supreme soul. To know that highest truth, it is necessary to know the mystery of this universe. Seven great mysteries are existent there. The eight chapter gives its explanation. Among these the mystery of death is worthy to be known. That the doctrine of extinction, laya is hidden there, has been informed. The ninth chapter gives an unfailing picture of strife.Here the myseriesof the world, of the life and death, have been focused. It has been clarified here as to who He, the embodiment of the real truth is. To know Him perfectly is vijñāna. Next, the Gītā describes the speech of embodied god. This concept has been clarified in the Vibhiti-yoga of the Tenth chapter where the god is manifested everywhere in embodied form. In the eleventh chapter, containing the universal to the universe. Arjuna found, how the world of life is entering into the hole of death one by one. Gradually the natures of death become clearer to him. After seeing the universal form of the world, Arjuna offered himself to know the Lord in his human form. In the twelfth chapter, named Bhakti-yoga, Arjuna came to learn that god himself rescues his devotee from the ocean of death. In the fulfilment of the knowledge of self there took birth the thought of devotion. The second hexade, ṣaṭaka has been ended in the twelfth chapter where the knowledge self and also of god has been completed.

Now in the last six chapters, i.e. in the third hexade Śri Kṛṣṇa explained the knowledge of the earth without any query from Arjuna. The sādhaka become conscious in universal consciousness. Gradually there appeared the description of Prakṛti-Puruṣa, three guṇas, daivāsura-saṃpada and multiplicity of the world. Theroot of all things is that Supreme being. The Supreme tattva was presented in the Puruṣottama-yoga of the fifteenth chapter. In the eighteenth chapter, the Lord described all the tattvas belonging to Sattva, Rajas and Tamas. At last the Lord has advised to perform duties by offering everything to the god.