When we think of the philosophical concept of nirvana which Prabhupada describes as “finishing material life” it’s not that hard to understand how it relates to the Bhagavad-Gita. But, when we think of Nirvana of the late 80s/ early 90s Seattle Grunge band variety it’s a bit harder to make that connection. Until now…
While I was perusing the internet, doing some research for creating my Graphic Design portfolio I came across the following quote attributed to Kurt Cobain (Nirvana front man who committed suicide in 1994):
“I’d rather be hated for who I am, than loved for who I am not.” ~ Kurt Cobain
Immediately I was reminded of BG. 3.35:
“It is far better to discharge one’s prescribed duties, even though they may be faultily, than another’s duties. Destruction in the course of performing one’s own duty is better than engaging in another’s duties, for to follow another’s path is dangerous.”
Not sure if Kurt ever read the Gita, but judging by the name of the band & some of the lyrics he wrote, it seems he had to have had some philosophical musings.
This reminded me of a little tidbit from Bhagavatam class the other day namely: all knowledge both material & spiritual is included in the Vedas. Often times if you look at famous inspirational quotes you can find nearly the exact same wisdom in sastra. It’s nice seeing the inner connectivity of it all and catching glimpses of how what is spoken by sadhus & scripture actually pans out in real life scenarios.
Anyways, just wanted to pass this on down the line for pondering. ‘Tis an important teaching to understand. “Gotta be true to myself”as Ziggy Marley has said. We may be able to fool others or even ourselves into thinking that we are something other than what we are but, eventually the veil will be lifted. Really if you think about it this is the essence of Krishna consciousness…understanding who we really are & acting accordingly.
Self-realization aka keepin’ it real.
