New Article Published: Chapter 1 of Ishvara Gita Translation

For a while, we talked about publishing an article series on the Ishvara Gita contained in the Kurma Purana (See previous posts: [1][2][3][4][5]). Today, we have published the first chapter. Subsequent chapters will follow.

As we stated in the earlier articles forming the intro to Ishvara Gita, this section is all about Jivatma Upasana. Vishnu haters have tried to take the Ishvara Gita to show Shiva’s supremacy, and hence their claims are also dismantled.

Prelude to Ishvara Gita - Part V: Jabala Upanishad

The final prelude is the Jabala Upanishad, which is another Upanishad that focuses mainly on Jivātma-Upāsaṇa. The purpose of these five preludes is to enable the readers to be acquainted with Jnāna-Yoga, which makes the understanding of the Ishvara Gita easier.

Prelude to Isvara Gita - Part IV: Kaivalya Upanishad

Having seen jnāna-yoga that is the means to meditate on the self, the meditation of the Atharvasiras in which the Pāśupata-Vrata is enjoined to attain dispassion for material objects and discrimination of the self from the body, and the instance of the practice of such upāsana in the kūrma purāṇa, let us look at a couple of Upanishads which focus solely on these topics.

One such Upanishad is the Kaivalya Upanishad. The term “Kaivalya” itself denotes aloofness from prakrti – it refers to the pure state of the liberated self that has no connection with karmas.

Prelude to Ishvara Gita - Part III: Kurma Purana Purva Bhaga - RISHI ŚVETĀŚVATARA and the PĀŚUPATA VRATA

So far, we have seen Jnāna Yoga, the means to attain the experience of the self as well as the Upasana of Rudra-Shariraka-Paramatma in the Atharvasiras that has the paśupata vrata as an accessory . There is an interesting section on the Upasana of Śvetāśvatara maharishi which is linked to the Atharvasiras and the Ishvara Gita, the latter being a pending publication for the blog. So, this section is described here.

Who was Śvetāśvatara maharishi? The identity can be ascertained from the name itself. According to Sri Mahacharya, it is “śvetena aśvena tarati iti śvetāśvatara” – One who has Hayagriva as his means. The name of this rishi itself indicates he was a hayagrīva-upāsaka. So, the vaishnavatva of this rishi is self-evident.

Prelude to the Ishvara Gita - Jnana Yoga

We will soon be publishing a translation of the Ishvara Gita from the Kurma Purana on this blog. As it is a complicated text, we thought it would be wise to release a series of smaller articles as preludes, to enable an understanding of the fundamentals that the work is based on. This is the first of the preludes. Here, we will explain what Jnana-Yoga is according to the Shastra, as it is relevant to the Ishvara Gita.