Chapter 5, Verse 29
bhoktāraṁ yajña tapasāṁ
sarva loka maheśvaram
suhṛdaṁ sarva-bhūtānāṁ
jñātvā māṁ śāntim-ṛcchati
Knowing Me as the enjoyer of all sacrifices and austerities, as the Supreme Lord of all the worlds, as the Friend of every being, one attains peace.
God is the Soul of all beings. Therefore, God Himself is present in the forms of the gods, the brahmins, the saints and the sages. The same God is present in the afflicted and the distressed. And it is He who receives the sacrifices, the service, and the worship of all.
Here the Lord refers to Himself as “the Friend of every being.” He is the ‘Dear One’ of the one who sees God within his own Self, the one who is conscious of the Divine presence everywhere, in everything that one does; who helps the afflicted, who does charity, who releases the suffering of others. He says, “Know that these ones are serving Me, the all-pervading.”
Jesus Christ identified Himself with the supreme reality of God and could say, “My Father and I are one”; “Whatever you do for the least of my brothers, you do it for Me.” The Truth, the eternal reality, the supreme reality which is in the form of Jesus, is also in all our brothers and sisters. It is in everyone. When serving and loving others, you are serving and loving the all-merciful and Supreme God. This is the highest form of worship and love. Through serving and loving, you will attain supreme peace; you won’t feel tiredness; you will cherish every moment of this Love in your heart, in whatever you do, wherever you are. The ones who do everything in an attitude of surrender, will be ever peaceful and will have more power to serve! They will have the greatest humility; true humility will manifest through them! They will be modest; they will have the highest form of modesty within them! And they will not feel any obligation to do anything. They’ll enjoy every moment serving as a privileged moment.
When one has this attitude of serving the Lord, one will have deep veneration for all. When Krishna says to Arjuna, “You are dear to Me, you are My friend”, He was referring to everybody as, “My dear one, My friend. You are a devotee and you are also My dear friend. I care for you”. In this caring, there was no selfish motive. Whereas for the eldest brother of the Kauravas, Duryodhana – his friendship was based only on his own personal gain. Here Krishna says, “Listen, a true friend will give even his life for the sake of a friend.” The Bible says that a true friend is one who can give up his life for a friend. That’s a true friend! This was why the Lord calls Arjuna His friend: “Oh my dear friend! I am here for you, for your salvation! I am giving you the Dhyaana Yoga, showing you how to concentrate, how to focus, how to do your Kriya. I can tell you every day, ‘Do your Kriya! Do your Kriya! Do your Kriya!’ But I can’t do it for you. You have to make the first effort, yourself. Arjuna, do your Kriya! Like that, you’ll perceive Me as the Lord within the core of your Self. You’ll see no difference between you and Me and you’ll attain supreme bliss. And once you attain this supreme bliss, nothing can touch you! Nothing of the outside reality can shake you.”
Here ends the fifth chapter of the Shreemad Bhagavad Gita, where the Lord has talked to Arjuna about sacrifice and surrender, about renouncing the outer world, but still doing one’s duty with an attitude of complete surrender to the Divine.
Bhagavad Gita
