Contemplations On The Ashtavakra Gita of Shri Ashtavakra

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Introduction

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Acknowledgement is offered to John Richards whose translation of the Ashtavakra Gita has inspired this work.

My Shri Gurudev, Muktananda Paramahamsa offered lessons from the wisdom utterances of Ashtavakra and told his story. Ashtavakra is considered to be one of the greatest Siddhas to have ever graced this planet.

Ashtavakra means deformed in eight places. The sage Aruni ran an ashram in which the Vedas were taught. Kahoḍa, Ashtavakra’s father, was one of his students, along with Aruni’s daughter Sujata. Aruni’s daughter married Kahoḍa. She got pregnant, and during her pregnancy, the unborn baby (Ashtavakra) heard the chanting of the Vedas and learned the correct recitation.

According to one version of the legends surrounding Ashtavakra, his father, Kahoda, was reciting the Vedas one day, but incorrectly. The fetus (Ashtavakra) spoke from the womb and told his father that he was not reciting the mantras correctly. Kahoda got angry and cursed him to be born with eight deformities, hence the name Ashtavakra.

King Janaka was a mogul king with a large army. One evening, Janaka had a vivid dream that frightened him. He dreamt that he was a beggar who has gone without food for 15 days. As this beggar, he finally found a shelter but it was closing for the day, just as he arrived. Standing at the gate of the shelter….

~ From the Introduction

Contemplation Excerpts

King Janaka Asks a Question of Ashtavakra: How is knowledge to be acquired? How is liberation to be attained? And how is dispassion to be reached? Tell me this, sir.

The following contemplations are based on Ashtavakra’s answer to these questions.

Contemplation 1

To attain liberation from the ignorance of worldliness, attachment to objects of sense must be destroyed. When this attachment is broken, the practice of tolerance, sincerity, compassion, contentment and truthfulness is an easy matter that brings the experience of Joy.

Contemplation 2

You are not the mind, the body or the senses. Neither are you any of the earthly elements. You are that Consciousness that is the eternal witness to these. Understanding this, become liberated from the bondage of worldliness.

Contemplation 3

If you become absorbed in that Consciousness, the inner Self, you will come to know that you are not just a person, and that you are not the body, the mind or the senses. Then you will be happy, peaceful and free from all bonds.

Contemplation 4

You do not belong to any nation, race or creed. Nor are you anything that the eye can see. You are the observer of all there is, the eternal witness to everything, the formless Absolute. So, be happy.

**There are 298 contemplations in this book.

Other books by Kedarji.