The Bhagavad Gita by Eknath Easwaran

╭ chapter twelve
ishable being, that immortal Reality. Brahman, the nameless,
formless Godhead, could be known only in the superconscious
state.
The Gita moves away from such an approach to religion.
For as Krishna says, seeking an eternal, indefinable, hidden
Godhead is rather a tall order for the average (or even
above average) person. In fact, in this chapter it is said to be
beyond the reach of practically all “embodied beings” ( dehavat,
“those who have bodies”). This path of wisdom may be
just too “spiritual” for earth’s children, because those who
identify to a large degree with their physical nature find the
way of knowledge too steep a climb. We can turn to one of the
Western followers of this path to see why; this is Dionysius
the Areopagite, a Christian monk of the fifth century, sounding
remarkably like verses 3–4 of this very chapter:
Then, beyond all distinction between knower and known,
the aspirant becomes merged in the nameless, formless
Reality, wholly absorbed in That which is beyond all things
and in nothing else. . . . Having stilled his intellect and
mind, he is united by his highest faculty with That which is
beyond all knowing.
Fortunately there is the path of love; for when God is loved
in personal aspect, the way is vastly easier. According to the
Hindu scriptures, God can be loved as a merciful father, a
divine mother, a wise friend, a passionate beloved, or even as
a mischievous child.
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