from the preface

two things stood out from this morning's reading of the preface in the gita translation that i am reading:

-it is evident that a form of reading called lectio divina was essential to any deliberate spiritual life. This kind of reading is quite different from that of scanning a text for useful facts and bits of information, or advancing along an exciting plot line to a climax in the action. It is, rather, a meditative approach, by which the reader seeks to taste and savor the beauty and truth of every phrase and passage. This process of contemplative reading has the effect of enkindling in the reader compunction for past behavior that has been less than beautiful and true. At the same time, it increases the desire to seek a realm where all that is lovely and unspoiled is to be found. There are four steps in lectio divina: first, to read, next, to meditate, then to rest in the sense of God's nearness, and, ultimately, to resolve to govern one's actions in the light of new understanding. This kind of reading is itself an act of prayer. And, indeed, it is in prayer that God manifests His Presence to us.

the joy this passage brought me was due to the realization of existence of such a phenomenon, for it beautifully articulates my own aspirations from reading (however little, or not, they may be achieved). but it also helped me realize one reason why we are so fond of giving everything a name... for it is through this name that we communicate with those around us, that we begin to describe the thoughts and feelings we go through in our lives. and in this communication, we bring ourselves closer to each other. it isn't in the name that there is a problem, then, it is in the intent of the naming that we should be careful - for just as we may better connect, so may we better segregate.

The battlefield is a perfect backdrop, but the Gita's subject is the war within, the struggle for self-mastery that every human being must wage if he or she is to emerge from life victorious.

the reason these innocuous and oft-repeated words struck a chord was because they re-exercised the reflection on the choice we have as human beings. a while ago, i had written a post with the line "happiness. is. a. choice.", but truly - so is peace, so is love, so is goodwill, and generosity. naught within us is a function of the external, unless we allow it to be so. this struggle for self-mastery allows us, over time, to exercise this choice at will.