Bhagavad Gita - Chapter 2 - Saankhya Yogah - Yoga Of Knowledge

 

 

CONTENTS

 

 

• PREAMBLE
• KRISHNA REBUKES ARJUNA
• ARJUNA'S DOUBTS ARE UNRESOLVED
• THE DISTINCTION BETWEEN THE SELF  AND THE BODY:
• WE SHOULD NOT GRIEVE FOR WHAT IS  IMPERISHABLE.
• IMMUTABLE CHARACTER OF THE SOUL
• WHAT GOOD COMES TO HIM WHO  ENDURES THESE DESIRABLE AND UNDESIRABLE SITUATIONS?
• HOW THE SOUL IS ETERNAL AND HOW  THE CONTACTS WITH SENSORY OBJECTS ARE TRANSITORY? THE DISTINCTION BETWEEN THE  REAL AND THE UNREAL. ADDITIONAL EXPLANATIONS.
• WHAT THEN IS THAT WHICH IS ALWAYS REAL ?
• WHAT IS THE UNREAL WHOSE NATURE  IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE?
• IT IS IGNORANCE TO THINK THAT THE  SOUL IS CAPABLE OF KILLING OR CAN BE KILLED.
• HOW IS THE SELF IMMUTABLE AND  IMMORTAL?
• WHY THE SOUL DOES NOT KILL  ANYBODY?
• ILLUSTRATION REGARDING INDESTRUCTIBILITY OF THE SOUL.
• IN THE NEXT TWO VERSES THE LORD SHOWS THAT IT IS IMPROPER TO GRIEVE FOR THE SOUL EVEN IF IT IS ASSUMED TO BE SUBJECT TO BIRTH AND DEATH.
• IT IS NOT PROPER TO GRIEVE FOR BEINGS WHICH ARE MERE COMBINATION OF CAUSE AND EFFECT.
• MARVELOUS NATURE OF THE SOUL
• KRISHNA CONCLUDES THE DISCUSSION ABOUT THE DISCRIMINATION BETWEEN THE SOUL AND THE BODY
• GRIEVING IS NOT PROPER TO ARJUNA EVEN ACCORDING TO HIS SENSE OF DUTY AS A KSHATRIYA
• THE INSIGHT OF YOGA
• THE SPECIAL MERIT OF KARMAYOGA
• KARMA YOGA LEADS TO THE HIGHEST GOOD
• NO WISDOM FOR THE WORLDLY MINDED
• PRACTICE OF VEDIC RITES DOES NOT LEAD TO LIBERATION
• RESULT OF PERFORMING ONE’S DUTY WITH EVENNESS OF MIND.
• HOW DOES ACTION LEAD TO LIBERATION?
• WHEN DOES ONE ATTAIN THE WISDOM THAT IS THE RESULT OF THE PURITY OF MIND INDUCED BY KARMAYOGA?
• WHEN DOES ONE ATTAIN THE TRUE YOGA OR KNOWLEDGE OF THE SUPREME TRUTH?
• CHARACTERISTICS OF A PERSON WHO HAS ATTAINED WISDOM THROUGH SAMADHI.
• DISTINCTION BETWEEN THE SENSE-CONTROL BY AN ORDINARY PERSON AND A REALIZED SOUL
• WHAT IS THE HARM IF ATTACHMENT DOES NOT DISAPPEAR?
• SENSE CONTROL IS A MEANS OF GOD-REALIZATION FOR A PERSON OF STABLE MIND
• THE VERY THOUGHT OF SENSE-OBJECTS CAUSES FUTURE MISFORTUNE
• HOW A PERSON OF STABLE MIND MOVES AMONG SENSE OBJECTS AND WHAT IS HIS REWARD?
• IF THE WORLD IS DARK TO A SEER, THEN HOW DOES HE LIVE IN THE WORLD?
• ULTIMATE STATE OF A PERSON OF STEADY WISDOM
• CONCEPTS & ISSUES
• LIVE AS THE GITA TEACHES YOU TO LIVE

 

 

Preamble

In  the 1st Chapter we have seen that Arjuna asked Krishna to place the  chariot in the midst of the two armies. Krishna having placed the chariot  between the two armies particularly in front of Bhishma and Drona, asked Arjuna  to behold the Kurus. Having seen the kinsmen, Arjuna was filled with compassion  and sadness and threw away his arms and sank into the seat of the chariot. His  personality was destroyed by his overwhelming emotions erupting at the sight of  his near and dear ones on the battlefront.

The 2nd Chapter begins with Sanjaya telling  Dhritarashtra about the dialogue between Krishna and Arjuna when the latter  continues to remain under the spell of melancholy and dejection. Arjuna, with a  false sense of renunciation, argues that he would rather live on alms than slay  the noble elders like Bhishma and Drona and that even an undisputed sovereignty  over all the worlds would not drive away his grief. Arguing thus, he expressed  his unwillingness to fight and became silent completely burnt out.

This is one of the longest Chapters in the Gita.

KRISHNA REBUKES ARJUNA

sanjaya  uvaacha
tam  tathaa kripayaavishtam ashrupoornaakulekshanam
visheedantam  idam vaakyam uvaacha madhusoodanah  // 2.1  //

Sanjaya  said
To  him who was thus overwhelmed with pity and sorrow and whose eyes were dimmed  with tears, Madhusudana (Krishna) spoke these words.

The  second chapter starts with a brief reference to the sad mental condition of  Arjuna. His pity was not compassion but a form of self-indulgence. It is the  shrinking of the nerves from an act which compels him to hurt his own people.  Arjuna recoils from this task in a mood of self-pity. His teacher, Sri Krishna,  therefore rebukes him especially because the fact that he had to fight against  his own people was known to him even before entering the battlefield.

sri  bhagavaan uvaacha
kutastwaa  kashmalam idam vishame samupasthitam
anaaryajushtam  aswargyam akeertikaram arjuna // 2.2 //

Sri  Bhagavan said
O  Arjuna, at this moment of crisis, wherefrom have you got this weakness, un-Aryan  like, disgraceful and which is not conducive to the attainment of heaven?

The  Lord is called Bhagavan because He possesses six ‘bhagas’ or divine  traits viz. wealth, virtue, glory, greatness, knowledge and dispassion.  Krishna, who was silent all along, started speaking.

During  His very first utterance in these verses the core of the message of Gita was  delivered with a tremendous force. Sri Krishna addresses him as Arjuna which  means pure in heart, implying that despite this quality he became faint-hearted  instead of showing valor and zeal. It is quite unbecoming of him. Krishna was  surprised about this change in Arjuna.

The  term `Arya' refers to a highly evolved and cultured man who scrupulously  adheres to Dharma.  Arjuna, in whom  manliness was in full all along, suddenly sunk into un-manliness at the moment  of a crisis.  The Lord rouses him from  this set-back.  Sri Krishna classified  Arjuna`s mind as confused. Consequently all the utterances of such confused  Arjuna would be meaningless and devoid of discrimination. Hence he is termed  un-Aryan.

Kirti  or fame attends on the one given to laudable life on earth.  But Arjuna's way was entirely to the  contrary. For him who was wavering in facing a decisive moment there would be  nothing but disgrace, neither this world nor the next for such confused and  dejected minds.

The  message of Krishna is that the goal of life or success cannot be attained by  the weak.  To be firm in body, mind and  character is born of strength.  This  world and the next are for the strong.  Strength  brings forth right conduct and straightforwardness leading to enjoyment of this  world and reaching Godhood.  All divine  traits have their source in strength.   Strength is life; weakness is death.

The  three words used by the Lord are ‘anaryajushtam’, ‘asvargyam’ and ‘akirtikaram’.  They mean respectively three types of persons. 1. Thoughtful whose aim is to  Bliss. 2. Virtuous whose aim is to achieve heaven by performing honest actions  and 3. Ordinary who want name and fame in this world. Arjuna is indicted that  he belongs to none of these because of his affliction.

klaibyam  maa sma gamah paartha naitattwayyupapadyate
kshudram  hridaya daurbalyam tyaktwottishtha parantapa   //2.3//

O  Partha (Son of Pritha, Kunti), yield not to unmanliness.  It does not befit you.  Cast off this petty faint-heartedness and  arise, O Paranthapa (scorcherer of foes - Arjuna).

 

The  man, who fails to face a critical situation, speaking and acting irrelevantly,  is denounced as unmanly.  But Arjuna was  not really made of that stuff.  He was a  vanquisher of his foes.  The Lord seems  to have deliberately used the strongest language to make him get out of his  stupor and to goad him to perform his primary duty to wage war for which he  came fully prepared.

The  use of the words ‘Partha’ and ‘Kaunteya’ with reference to Arjuna is with a  purpose. These words mean the son of Pritha, Kunti who is Krishna’s father’s  sister. Krishna thus attempts to show his nearness to him and thereby convey  something special to him for his welfare.

ARJUNA'S DOUBTS ARE UNRESOLVED

arjuna  uvaacha
katham  bheeshmamaham sankhye dronam cha madhusoodana
ishubhih  pratiyotsyaami poojaarhaav arisoodana //2.4 //

Arjuna  said
But  O Madhusudana, how can I strike Bhishma and Drona with arrows in this battle, for  they are worthy of worship, O Arisudana (Destroyer of enemies - Krishna)?

guroon  ahatwaa hi mahaanubhaavaan
shreyo  bhoktum bhaikshyam apeeha loke
hatwaarthakaamaamstu  guroon ihaiva
bhunjeeya  bhogaan rudhirapradigdhaan  // 2.5 //

It  is better to live in this world by begging than to slay these honored teachers.  By slaying them I would enjoy in this world  pleasures which are stained with blood.

na  chaitad vidmah kataran no gareeyo
yad  waa jayema yadi vaa no jayeyuh
yaan  eva hatwaa na jijeevishaamas
te'vasthitaah  pramukhe dhaartaraashtraah // 2.6 //

I  can hardly tell which will be better - to fight or not to fight,  that we should conquer them or they should  conquer us .The very sons of Dhritarashtra after slaying whom we do not even  wish to live stand facing us.

kaarpanya  dosho pahata swabhaavah
pricchaami  twaam dharma sammoodha chetaah
yacchreyah  syaan nischitam broohi tanme
shishyaste'ham  shaadhi maam twaam prapannam // 2.7 //

With  my nature stricken with weakness of sentimental pity and my mind bewildered  about my duty, I request you to tell me for certain what is good for me.  I am your disciple.  Please teach me.  I am seeking refuge in you

na  hi prapashyaami mamaapanudyaad
yacchokam  ucchoshanam indriyaanaam
avaapya  bhoomaav asapatnam riddham
raajyam  suraanaam api chaadhipatyam  // 2.8 //

For,  even after obtaining an undisputed sovereignty and an affluent kingdom on this  earth and lordship over the Gods, I do not see any means of driving away this  grief which is drying up my senses.

Arjuna  wondered as to how he was being asked to fight Bhishma and Drona, who were not  his enemies but respected elders and teachers worthy of worship.  When even using soft words against them was  considered sin, Arjuna was surprised about his being exhorted to wage war  against them with arrows.

Arjuna continued that it would be better for him to eat food by begging, which was most  unbecoming for a man of warrior class, than to slay his noble elders on the  Kaurava side. He felt that even if they were killed, his subsequent enjoyment  would be stained with their blood and therefore not worth anything and the life  in this world would be nothing but hell.

A question  arises, why is it that Bhishma and Drona, who are not his enemies, are on the  side of Duryodhana? They are there because as Arjuna says Bhishma and Drona are ‘arthakaman’, which means even though they never approved the criminal  ways of Duryodhana, they still sought, accepted and enjoyed the royal  hospitality of Duryodhana for so long that they now feel obligated to him so  much that they simply cannot abandon Duryodhana in his time of need. That is  how Bhishma and Drona are now caught on the side of Duryodhana. Arjuna feels  that it is their problem and he has nothing to do with it and so he sticks to  his point of view that they are worthy of his worship.

He had also  said that Duryodhana and his companions being goaded by greed were prepared to  wage war; but for himself if he wages war, he will enjoy only blood-stained  pleasure in the form of wealth and sensual enjoyment. Thus he perceives nothing  but evil in waging war.

When  an evil comes to us in the form of an evil, it is easier to do away with it,  than when it comes in the garb of something good. Ravana could not be  recognized by Sita because he disguised himself as a sage while Krishna killed  Kamsa and others recognizing them as evil forces. Similarly Arjuna perceives that  it is virtuous not to wage war and it is an evil to wage war. Hence Krishna had  to give an elaborate explanation to convince Arjuna about the real wisdom.

When  sentiment overtook and clouded his understanding Arjuna lost the faculty of judgment  and started doubting as to who whould conquer whom?

Realizing  his complete helplessness in knowing the nature of his duty and admitting his  incapacity to face the crisis and the challenges presented before him, he  surrendered himself to Sri Krishna. He confessed before The Lord that he was  his disciple and requested Him to tell him for certain what was good for him.
Arjuna  does not ask for a metaphysic as he is not a seeker of knowledge; as a man of  action he asks for the law of action, for his dharma, for what he has to do in  this difficulty. “Master, what would you have me to do?” that is his question.

Arjuna  made it clear that in spite of the victory in the war which will in any case  bring him an affluent kingdom on this earth and lordship over the Gods, he could  not see any way to drive away his grief which was eating away his vitals.  He appealed to The Lord to show him a  definite way which would remove his grief and guide him in his Dharma.

sanjaya  uvaacha
evam  uktwaa hrishikesham gudakeshah parantapah
na  yotsya iti govindam uktwaa tooshneem babhoova ha // 2.9 //

Sanjaya  said
Having  thus spoken to Hrishikesa (Krishna), Arjuna the destroyer of foes (Parantapa),  said to Govinda (Krishna) I will not fight and became silent.

tam  uvaacha hrisheekeshah prahasanniva bhaarata
senayor  ubhayor madhye visheedantam idam vachah // 2.10 //

O  descendent of Bharata (Dhritarashtra), then Krishna, as if smiling, spoke these  words to him (Arjuna) thus depressed in the midst of the two armies.

Even  after taking refuge in The Lord and seeking His grace, the great warrior Arjuna  decidedly told Sri Bhagavan that he would not fight and became silent and  quiet. Becoming silent and quiet in the face of a crisis was an expression of  bewilderment and helplessness. We may notice that despite asking his teacher to  advise him, Arjuna already made up his mind not to fight without even waiting  for the advice sought. This indicates the confused state of his mind. In this  situation the teacher’s task becomes all the more difficult to convince the  student.

The  depiction of Arjuna as a person sorrowing in the midst of the two armies was in  contrast with his description as an enthusiastic warrior ready to fight when he  requested Krishna to place their chariot in between both the forces.

Sri  Krishna’s virtual smile indicates that He saw through Arjuna’s attempt at  rationalization of his wishful thinking. The attitude of the savior Lord who  knows all the sins and sorrows of the suffering humanity is one of the tender  pity and thoughtful understanding and not of reproach or censure.

THE DISTINCTION BETWEEN THE SELF AND THE BODY:
  WE SHOULD NOT GRIEVE FOR WHAT IS  IMPERISHABLE.

sri  bhagavaan uvaacha
    ashochyaan  anvashochastwam prajnaavaadaamshcha bhaashase
    gataasoon  agataasoomshcha naanushochanti panditaah   // 2.11 //

Sri  Bhagavan said
    You grieve for those  who are not to be grieved for; and yet you speak words of wisdom! The learned  do not grieve for the departed and those who have not departed.

 

There are four  propositions in this verse. 1.Arjuna is grieving 2. He is grieving for those  not to be grieved for. 3. He speaks the words of the wise though he is not so,  and 4. The wise do not grieve for the living or for the dead.

Let us have a closer  look at these statements.

1. The cause for Arjuna’s suffering and distress is because  when he looked at his relatives, friends and teachers lined up on the opposite  side, the feeling of ‘me’ and ‘mine’ became very strong in him, the central  point being the sense of ‘I.’ A man is  grieved when he categorizes some objects or persons as his own and some others  as not his own. This sense of mine and not-mine - attachment for things  considered as one’s own and indifference for things considered as not one’s own  - is called ego which is the source of all grief, worry, fear and confusion.  Rediscovering oneself to be really higher than one’s ego is the end of all  sorrows arising out of false identification or relationship.

So Krishna went to the bottom of this grief, sorrow,  misery and suffering and explained that a wise man does not have the sense of  ‘I’, ‘me’ and ‘mine’. Such a man is not bound by any tie or attachment of any  kind. 2. Here the phrase ‘those not to be grieved for’ refers  to Bhishma and Drona.Why they are not to be grieved for? It is because they are  beyond the sense of attachment and the feeling of “I’ ‘my’ and ‘mine’. That is  the reason why they are on the side of the Kaurava army despite the Pandavas  being equally dear to them. They are aware of the difference between the real  and the unreal, the soul and the body respectively. They are wise because they  have realized the eternal reality behind the phenomenal changes and therefore  do not grieve at the decay and death of the finite and the mortal in the form  of the physical bodies.

When we go to the sea shore we do not grieve over each  wave that rises and dissolves for we know that they are unreal and the real  thing is the water in the waves. Waves are like the physical bodies which  appear and disappear while the indweller of the body, the self or soul is like  the water. Those who have realized this eternal truth have no sorrow for the  change they perceive in the world of happenings.

Thus both real and unreal are not to be grieved at as the  real is imperishable and therefore should not be grieved for. The unreal is  bound to perish, as it is perishing at every moment, so it should not also be  grieved at. It follows that Arjuna’s grief over the bodies of his relatives  getting perished is misplaced and is the consequence of his ignorance, lack of  right knowledge, avidya although his words apparently look wise which in  fact they are not. Hence Krishna says that he is grieving for those who should  not be grieved for.

What Krishna means is “Arjuna, Look at those standing  before you not as human beings; look at them as the souls (atman) and  the soul is immortal; you cannot kill the soul if you have the real knowledge”.  The idea is, “You are sorrowing for those who are eternal in the real sense,  and therefore who are not to be grieved for. Hence you are a fool”.

 “The wise do not mourn for the dead or for the  living,” says Krishna to Arjuna. Why? Because there are no “living” or “dead”  in the sense that those with bodies are alive and those divested of a body are  dead. Nor is there such a duality called life and death. These are only the  illusions produced by the distorting veils of ignorance. “Lead me from death to  immortality” is not a petition to gain a state where we will nevermore  experience bodily death, but a plea to be led from the outward-turned  consciousness that produces death to the inward-turned consciousness that  produces life. It is spirit itself that is immortality–nothing else.

In  order to remedy this myopic view of Arjuna, Krishna administered the strongest  medicine of the Knowledge of the Self to him at the very first stroke from the  11th verse of this chapter which is considered as the key verse of the Gita. All  the subsequent teachings are an elaboration of the principle laid down in this  verse.

He  advised Arjuna to renounce his physical, emotional and intellectual estimate of  his grand-sire and teacher and to re-evaluate the situation from his spiritual  understanding whereby his problem at the battlefield would vanish.

na  twevaaham jaatu naasam na twam neme janaadhipaah
    na  chaiva na bhavishyaamah sarve vayam atah param // 2.12 //

 

It  is not that I did not exist before, nor you nor these kings.  Nor is it that we shall cease to exist in  future.

There  are two things in the world, the soul which is real and the body which is  unreal. Both of these are not to be grieved for because the soul never ceases  to be and the body is ever perishable. Thus Sri Krishna speaks here of the  immortality of the Self or the soul. The Self exists in the three periods of  time - past, present and future.

He  declares that the embodied soul in every one identifies itself with varied  forms temporarily to gain preordained experiences. Neither Krishna himself nor  Arjuna nor the other kings who have assembled in the battlefield are mere  accidental happenings nor shall they cease to exist in future. It is not that  they came from nowhere nor at their death they become nothing or  non-existent.  The soul remaining the  same, it gets apparently conditioned by different body equipments and comes to  live through its self-ordained environments.

All  the living creatures existed before their birth; they exist now and would exist  even after the disappearance of their present bodies. A man experiences his  existence before sleep, after sleep and during sleep.  While his existence is continuous, his body  is changing every moment and ultimately perishes one day.  Thus existence is beyond time while biological  body is bound by time and space. Waves arise, they play and die away. But the  ocean ever remains the same.

Prior  to the pot, in the pot and after the pot it was only the mud or clay which has  continuous existence. Just as the destruction of a pot does not lead to the  destruction of clay, so also destruction of the physical body does not lead to  destruction of the Soul. Therefore, Arjuna should not grieve for his relatives  out of fear of their destruction.

IMMUTABLE CHARACTER OF THE SOUL

 

 

dehino'smin  yathaa dehe kaumaaram yauvanam jaraa
    tathaa dehaantara praaptir  dheeras tatra na mhuhyati // 2.13 //


    Just  as in this body the embodied self passes into childhood, youth and old age, so  also does he pass into another body; calm man does not grieve at it.

Embodied  self means the soul assuming a physical body. Calm man means he who has Self-Knowledge  and does not grieve at it means that he does not grieve at death.

In  the progress of growth of the body, childhood dies when youth is born and youth  hood dies when the old age sets in.  Even  when childhood or youthhood no longer remains at the old age, man remembers his  early days fairly well. Thus `something' is common throughout the various  stages of growth which could remember the past experiences and none feels  unhappy about these changes.

For the SELF in this body, as is obtaining the change in the experiences of  childhood, youth and old age, so also is the change in the experiences on  obtaining another body. A wise person is not confused or overpowered by such  change in experiences.

Let us understand this statement properly. The Indweller - The self in  one's body is the same in one's childhood, youth and old age; similarly, on  obtaining another body, the Indweller in that new body also is the same self or atman.

Childhood, youth and old age are only with respect to one's physical body.  The SELF, without undergoing any change, remains the same in all the three  stages of bodily experiences. It is the same atman which is the  Indweller in any new body one may assume later, after the present body falls.  There can never be a time when atman is not there. Thus at all times, "I  am" does not change, but "what I am" may change. A wise person  is not confused or overpowered by such changes. If one thinks that "I" changes from "childhood I" to "youth I" to "old-age I" and to another "I" in another body, one must simply ask  oneself the question who is "That I" who recognizes all these changes  in "I"s. That "I" - That Recognizer I - That Seer I - "That Knower - I" is indeed atman, The SELF which  is Eternal - All-pervading, and  is never  subject to change.

The  Self does not die at the cessation of the childhood stage nor is it born again  at the commencement of the youth stage and so also with the next stage of the  old age. As the Self passes unchanged from one stage of the physical body into  another stage so it passes unchanged from one body into another. As one does  not grieve for the body when it passes through childhood, youth and old age,  similarly one should not worry or get himself deluded over when the soul passes  over to another body at physical death. Thus birth and death are spoken of with  regard to the physical body and not the soul.

At  the moment of death, there is no extinction of the individual. The embodied ego  of the dead body (the subtle and causal bodies) leaves its previous structure  and according to vasanas or mental impressions gained during its embodiment it  gets itself identified with another physical body where it can express itself  completely and seek its perfect fulfillment.

Now Arjuna may say: Well Krishna, all this talk about atman is interesting.  It is nice to know that all of us are in fact eternal, and atman is ananda  svarupa, Atma is All-Happiness. I have not experienced That Atma yet. Our  scriptures say so; you say so; I accept all that to be true. But that does not  help me much just now. The ups and downs of daily life do create pain and  sorrow. This is common experience. Whether it is justified or not, it is still  a fact that I am suffering from sorrow and distress at this time. Please tell me  how I must handle this situation. Anticipating such a request from Arjuna, Bhagavan  says:

maatraa  sparshaastu kaunteya sheetoshna sukha dukhadaah
    agamaapaayinonityaas  taamstitikshaswa bhaarata  //2.14 //

The  contacts of the senses with objects, O son of Kunti, which cause heat and cold,  pleasure and pain have a beginning and an end; they are impermanent ; endure  them bravely, O descendent of Bharata (Arjuna).

Objects  are perceived not by the sense organs viz. skin, ear, eye, nose and tongue but  through them.  The sense organs are the  channels through which the perceiving-ego gathers the knowledge of the objects  such as touch, sound, form, smell and taste. If this process of perceiver  contacting the objects through sense organs does not take place the objects as  such can not bring any response or reaction in any individual.

The  object remaining the same it can give different experiences to the same individual  at different times or at the same time to different individuals.  Cold is pleasant at one time and unpleasant  at another. Heat is pleasant in winter and not in summer. Food is welcome to a  hungry person but not to the one who just finished his lunch. So the sense  contacts that give rise to feelings of heat and cold, pleasure and pain,  favorable and unfavorable experiences come and go. They are therefore  impermanent in nature, giving pleasure at one moment and pain at another.  One should bear all the pairs of opposites  patiently and thus develop a balanced state of mind. Do not give yourself to  joy or grief on their account.

Joys  and sorrows are all responses of the mind to the conducive and non-conducive  world around us. They are but mental reactions - thoughts. Learn to be observer  of these emotions rather than get identified with them. Do not react but  reflect. Stand apart - be aloof in yourself - be just an uninterested witness  to the tumults of the mind. This attitude gives poise and balance.

The  pairs of opposites like heat and cold are impermanent as distinguished from the  Permanent Self, the Indweller. Actually there is no affinity between the Self  and the unreal pairs of opposites. But it assumed this affinity which can be  rooted out only when we cease to accept it. A woman bereaved of her husband say  fifty years ago, and if anyone called her as the wife of her husband Mr. so and  so she becomes alert and feels sad even today. It shows that the assumed  affinity has not yet broken off which means that though the objects are lost,  yet the assumed affinity persists which continues to cause anguish.   The more one is able to distance oneself with  this assumed affinity and identifies himself with the permanent Self, the less  one is affected by the agreeable and disagreeable conditions of life.

Mere  knowledge of agreeable and disagreeable senses is not bad. But attachment with  and aversion to them is a fault. Not to be affected by such an evil is  expressed by the term ‘endure them’. Moreover, body, the sense organs and their  actions have a beginning and an end. But the perceiver, the ‘I” never changes  and therefore we should remain unaffected by such transitory and fleeting  experiences which is called ‘endurance’.

WHAT GOOD COMES TO HIM WHO  ENDURES THESE DESIRABLE AND UNDESIRABLE SITUATIONS? 

yam  hi na vyathayantyete purusham purusharshabha
    samaduhkha  sukham dheeram so’mritatwaaya kalpate // 2.15 //

That  calm man who remains unchanged in pain and pleasure, whom these cannot disturb,  alone is able, O greatest amongst men, to attain immortality.

Titiksha  or the power of endurance of the pairs of opposites advocated here does not  mean a meek submission to sorrows in life (Stoic philosophy) but signifies the  equipoise of mind in both pleasure and pain entertained by a wise man based on  the knowledge of the Soul’s immortality.

Endurance,  coupled with the discrimination between the real and the unreal and detachment  from the worldly objects and pleasures, prepares the aspirant for right  knowledge, which alone leads to liberation.

Vedanta  defines endurance as the bearing of all afflictions without wishing to redress  them, while being free from all anxiety or regret on their account.

This  perfect sameness or equanimity amidst the ills of life means full and unbroken  consciousness of our oneness with the immortal Self. At that stage a person  becomes fit for attaining immortality or knowledge of Self - the ultimate goal  of life. Immortality means the  infinite experience of the Eternal and the Permanent.  Eternal life does not mean survival of death,  but it is the transcendence of life and death.

HOW THE SOUL IS ETERNAL AND HOW  THE CONTACTS WITH SENSORY OBJECTS ARE TRANSITORY? THE DISTINCTION BETWEEN THE  REAL AND THE UNREAL. ADDITIONAL EXPLANATIONS.

 

 

naasato  vidyate bhaavo naabhaavo vidyate satah
    ubhayorapi  drishto’ntastwanayos tattwadarshibhih  //  2.16 //

The  unreal has no existence. The Real never ceases to be (never ceases to exist).  Men possessed of the knowledge of the Truth fully know both these.

This  verse indicates that the mental tranquility can accrue only through right  interpretation of life.  Right  interpretation of life involves knowing what is Real and what is un-Real. The  distinction between these two is dealt with here.

The  Real is that which has no change and remains the same in all periods of time -  past, present and future. It always is. The unreal is that which does not  remain the same for two successive moments. Whatever did not exist in the past  or will not exist in the future cannot really exist in the present. That which  is not in the beginning and which will not be in the end, but which seemingly  exists in the present is called un-Real. Any object conditioned by the law pf  cause and effect is not absolutely real because every effect is a change  brought about by a cause and every cause is temporary.

The  life is finite. The body changes every moment, mind evolves and intellect grows  with the passage of time.  Each change in  the body for example from childhood to youth and from youth to old age results  in the constant death to its previous state. Body, mind and intellect  constitute the continuous succession of the changes and all of them cannot be  real. A thing which never remains the same for any given period is un-Real.  The whole of the phenomenal world must be  unreal because no one state in it endures even for a fraction of the time.

But  there must be some real entity behind these changes.  For the changes to take place there must be  some changeless substratum just as a river bed is necessary for the rivers to  flow.  In order to hold together  innumerable experiences at the levels of body, mind and intellect and to give  them a cohesive whole which is called life, a changeless substratum is required  for all.

That  something which remains unchanged all through the changes is The Real and it is  nothing other than the Self in all, the Pure Awareness, and Consciousness. What  is changing must be unreal and what is constant must be real. When the soul is  overpowered by ignorance, the un-Real which is the names and forms of the  phenomenal world, veils the unchanging reality - the Atman, Consciousness  -  which is for ever manifest and which  is not conditioned by causality. This Self is the unchanging Witness of the  changes in the relative world as in the case of the river bed and a flowing  river.

This  Awareness by which one becomes conscious of things in one's life - because of  which one is considered alive, but for which one will have no existence in the  given embodiment - That Spiritual Entity, Eternal, All Pervading, Unborn and  Undying, the One Changeless factor is the Infinite in him.  And this is the Atman, Consciousness which is  the Real.

Therefore  the men of knowledge and wisdom have known the implications of these - the Real  and the Un-Real, the Self and the Non-Self, which in combination is called the  world.

Embedding  this exposition into the practical world, we notice that Arjuna is grieved by  thinking that the warriors will die. So, the Lord explains that the real never  dies and the unreal never exists as it is continuously dying (changing).  Therefore it is not wise to grieve.

WHAT THEN IS THAT WHICH IS ALWAYS REAL ?

 

 

avinaashi tu tad viddhi yena  sarvam idam tatam
    vinaasham  avyayasyaasya na kaschit kartum arhati // 2.17 //

Know  `That' to be indestructible, by whom all this is pervaded.  None can cause the destruction of That, the  Imperishable.

‘That’  is Brahman or the unchangeable Consciousness. It is the self of all. It is The  Real that envelops everything that exists. It is the very substance of all the  world of perceptions, the world of names and forms, which we experience.  Brahman is the Witness and the innermost essence of the changeable world.

Different  mud pots have different names and shapes depending upon the things they contain  or the purposes for which they are made use of. Yet all of them are permeated  with the same stuff i.e. mud without which no pot can exist. All the pots come  from mud exist in mud and when they are destroyed all their forms and names  merge back in mud.  So the mud is The  Reality holding all pots together. 

So  too, the world of finite objects and changes is enveloped by The Real, the  Changeless Brahman.  Sri Krishna says  that there is no possibility of this Real ever getting destroyed at all. Destruction  of an object is caused by the loss of its parts as in the case of the body or  by the loss of something belonging to it. As Brahman is without parts and is  One without a second, there is no question of its destruction.

The  immutable Consciousness or Atman in the individual is the same as the all  pervading Consciousness or Brahman in the universe.

The  idea here is that while the soul is imperishable, the body is perishable and is  perishing every day. Nobody can check the process of such destruction. Whether  Arjuna wages the war or withdraws from it, the imperishable cannot be destroyed  and the perishable cannot be saved from destruction.

WHAT IS THE UNREAL WHOSE NATURE  IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE?

 

 

antavanta  ime dehaa nityasyoktaah shareerinah
    anaashino'prameyasya  tasmaad yudhyaswa bhaarata // 2.18 //

Only  the bodies, of which this eternal, imperishable, and incomprehensible Self is  the indweller, are said to have an end.  Therefore, O descendent of Bharata (Arjuna)  fight.

Arjuna's  grief which deters him from his duty is born of ignorance as to the true nature  of the soul.  Hence Sri Bhagavan's  persisted attempts to illumine him on the subject.

The  physical body may be injured or destroyed by illness or death. The Self is  subject to neither of these. The Self is said to be incomprehensible because it  is not comprehended by the senses, by the mind, or by any other instrument of  knowledge. The self is svatah-siddha, determined by Itself. Being the  knowing Consciousness, It cannot be known by any other instrument. Everything  is known by the Self just as no other light is required the see the light of  the Sun which is self-effulgent.

Here  the earlier advice about the Permanent and Non-Permanent is repeated with an  added call to Arjuna to fight.  Krishna  is not really commanding Arjuna to fight as it is commonly understood. Arjuna, following  his Dharma, had come to the battlefield to fight. He refused to fight on  account of his erroneous perception of the true nature of the soul and the  body. The efforts of the Lord are towards removing this unawareness and leave  him to do what he (Arjuna) considers to be right.

This  is really not a command to fight but a call to Arjuna and through him to all of  us to discard the defeatist mentality and face whole heartedly and sincerely  all the situations in every field of activity at any given moment of existence  in life.

 

 

 

 

 

IT IS IGNORANCE TO THINK THAT THE  SOUL IS CAPABLE OF KILLING OR CAN BE KILLED.

 

 

ya  enam vetti hantaaram yashchainam manyate hatam
    ubhau  tau na vijaaneeto naayam hanti na hanyate // 2.19 //

He  who looks on the Self to be the slayer and he who looks on the Self as the  slain - neither of them apprehends correctly. The Self neither slays nor is  slain.

 

The  Self is a non-doer and as it is immutable; it is neither the agent nor the  object of the act of slaying.  He who  thinks `I slay' or `I am slain' really does not comprehend the true nature of  the Self.  The Self is  indestructible.  It exists in all periods  of time - past, present and future.  It  is The Existence itself i.e.`Sat'.   The physical body undergoes inevitable changes every moment but the Self  is not affected in the least by such changes. When the body is destroyed, the  Self is not. Both of them who think that they have been slain when their bodies  have been slain and those who feel that they are the slayers of the bodies of  others do not know the real nature of the Self.

The  agent of slaying is the ego (aham) and the object of slaying is the body.  Therefore the Self which is different both from the ego and the body is neither  the slayer nor the slain. But by identifying with the body It assumes itself as  the doer of actions performed by the body. If the man does not identify himself  with the body he is not at all doer of any activity. One who holds the soul as  slain is also ignorant because the soul remains unaffected and unchanged. Only  that which is perishable and changeable can be slain. How could the imperishable and unchangeable be slain?

HOW IS THE SELF IMMUTABLE AND  IMMORTAL?

 

 

na  jaayate mriyate vaa kadaachin
    naayam  bhootwaa bhavitaa vaa na bhooyah
    ajo  nityah shaashwato'yam puraano
    na  hanyate hanyamaane shareere //2.20//

He  is never born nor does He ever die; after having been, He again does not cease  to be.  Unborn, eternal, changeless and  ancient. He is not killed when the body is killed.

This  verse describes the absence of the six kinds of modification inherent in every  living thing viz., birth, subsistence, growth, transformation, decay and death.  The Self is altogether changeless. These changes are the source of all sorrows  and miseries in every mortal's life.  All  these are denied to the Self to prove Its changelessness.  Birth and death are for the physical bodies  only and they cannot touch the immortal Self just as the waves are born and die  in the ocean but the ocean itself is not born with the waves nor does it die  when the waves disappear.

Arjuna  was grieved about the death of his kinsmen in the war. So the Lord explains  that the soul is not killed when the body is slain and hence he should not  grieve.

WHY THE SOUL DOES NOT KILL  ANYBODY?

 

 

vedaavinaashinam  nityam ya enam ajam avyayam
    katham  sa purushah paartha kam ghaatayati hanti kam   // 2.21 //

Whosoever  knows Him to be indestructible, eternal, unborn and immutable, how can that man  slay O Arjuna, or cause another to slay?

An  enlightened person who knows the changelessness and the indestructibility of  the Self cannot perform the function of slaying or cause another to slay. When  we know the Self to be invulnerable, how can anyone slay it?  The words ‘how can he slay' refer to Arjuna  and `cause another to slay’ refer to Krishna's own role.

Summarizing  what has been said so far Krishna emphasizes that those who know the nature of  the Self shall have no dejection or sorrow in the face of the realities of  life. Therefore, one while discharging duty should not grieve, while slaying  anyone or causing anyone to be slain, but should discharge one’s duty, in  accordance with the ordinance of scriptures.

ILLUSTRATION REGARDING INDESTRUCTIBILITY OF THE SOUL.

 

 

vaasaamsi  jeernaani yathaa vihaaya
    navaani  grihnaati naro'paraani
    tathaa  shareeraani vihaaya jeernaa
    nyanyaani  samyaati navaani dehee // 2.22 //


    Just  as a man casts off his worn-out clothes and puts on new ones, so also the  embodied Self casts off Its worn out bodies and enters that are new.

Here 'dehi' means the jiva - the individual person, who is made up of  the perceptible gross physical body, the imperceptible subtle and causal  bodies, together with the atman.
  The  verse says:  Just as an individual person  gives up worn out or old clothing and takes up new  ones, similarly, the same jiva, on giving up  the worn out or old gross physical body,  naturally takes up an appropriate new gross  physical body. By giving up the old clothes and putting on new ones, the person  does not change. Similarly, by giving up the old body and assuming a new one,  the atman in the jiva - the individual person - does not change.   The `worn out condition of the body' does not  refer to its biological condition but to the capacity of the body, mind and  intellect equipments to earn the required experiences from the available  environment for facilitating their evolutionary journey. This evolution and  change is for the physical bodies and not for the Self.

The  verse also tells something more about every individual person. By virtue of one's  own 'karma' the jiva already becomes ready to assume a new body, prior to  casting out the old worn-out body which has served its purpose.  In other words, the mental make-up of a person  does not die along with the death of the gross body. The mental make-up of the  person, along with its karma-born tendencies and dispositions is called the  subtle-body which is the core of every jiva and it survives the death of the  physical frame. In its next step of evolution, the jiva assumes a new physical  frame more suited to the fulfillment of its natural tendencies and  dispositions. In all these changes, the self or soul or the Atman remains  unchanged. In reality, the soul being immobile and non-active does not migrate  from one body to another; it is ever fixed and steady and does not undergo any  change whatsoever.

But  just as when a pot is carried from one place to another, the space within the  pot also appears be carried, even so when the subtle body leaves a gross body  and enters another, it appears that the soul also has moved from one body to  another. Therefore, the acts of leaving one body and entering into another are  attributed to the soul in order to explain the phenomenon of death to the lay  people. The word ‘dehi’ is indicative of the soul identifying itself  with gross body it appears to be leaving and entering into another. In this  sense it is said that the soul leaves a worn-out body and enters into a new  one.

Now  a question arises why this cycle of birth and death has been going on from  times immemorial. While this question can be answered from the Jnana, Bhakti  and Karma points of view, the basic factor behind this never-ending cycle is  that God has granted the choice to the living beings to make proper use of  their lives and to rediscover ultimately their own transcendental nature.  Through innumerable births in the relative world they gain experience, through  experience knowledge and through knowledge attain freedom or liberation or moksha from this cycle.

nainam  chhindanti shastraani nainam dahati paavakah
    na chainam kledayantyaapo na shoshayati maarutah  // 2.23 // 

Weapons  cannot cut It, nor can fire burn It; water cannot wet It, nor can wind dry It.

Here  the unseen has been explained by means of the seen to indicate its nature. The  changeless Self is explained with the aid of ever changing world which is  familiar to Arjuna and others.  In the  world of change, objects meet their end by means of instruments of destruction  like weapons, fire, water and wind.

Arjuna’s  grief was based on the assumption that he would be killing the elders and other  realtives by striking them with lethal weapons. Hence in order to remove his  grief the Lord points out the immortality and formlessness of the soul by  pointing out the inability of all the four elements of earth, water, fire and  air to destroy it. The body is perishable and possessed of a form; the soul is  everlasting and formless. Therefore, the soul can never be destroyed by the  elements of earth in the form of weapons or by the elements of water, fire and  air and so it is sheer ignorance to lament for it.

acchedyo'yam  adaahyo'yam akledyo'shoshya eva cha
    nityah  sarvagatah sthaanur achalo'yam sanaatanah // 2.24 //

This  Self cannot be cut, burnt, wetted or dried up. It is eternal, all-pervading,  stable, ancient and immovable.

Continuing  the import of the previous verse, The Lord says that if a thing cannot be  annihilated by any means of destruction discovered by man such an object must  be everlasting.  Since the Self is  indestructible, It is necessarily everlasting. That which is everlasting or  eternal will pervade everywhere. All-pervading indicates that It has only itself  all around It and it is unconditioned by anything other than Itself.
That  which is eternal and all-pervading must be stable meaning no change can ever  happen to It.  That which is stable is  immovable.  Mobility or moving implies  the transfer of an object or person from one set of time and place to another  set of time and place where they were not there already.  Since Self is all-pervading there cannot be  any place or period of time where It was not there before.  As the Self is unconditioned by the concept  of time It is said to be ancient.

Sri  Bhagavan explains nature of immortal Self in a variety of ways giving several  illustrations in order that the underlying idea can be grasped by everybody.

avyakto'yam  achintyo'yam avikaaryo'yam uchyate
    tasmaad  evam viditwainam naanushochitum arhasi // 2.25 //

The  Self is unmanifest, unthinkable and unchangeable. Therefore, knowing it to be as  such, you should not grieve.

The  Self is not an object of perception.  It cannot  be perceived by any one of the senses. Therefore, it is unmanifest. The mind  can think only about an object perceived by the senses. As the Self cannot be  perceived by the senses, It is unthinkable and beyond comprehension.. As the  Self is infinite and without any form it cannot undergo any change.  Hence It is changeless or immutable.

Arjuna's  grief is misplaced as the Self cannot be hurt or slain. Forms may change;  things may come and go but that which remains behind them all is for ever. The  Lord, therefore, advises Arjuna not to grieve on that account and he should not  think that he is the slayer and that the others are slain by him.

IN THE NEXT TWO VERSES THE LORD SHOWS THAT IT IS IMPROPER TO GRIEVE FOR THE SOUL EVEN IF IT IS ASSUMED TO BE SUBJECT TO BIRTH AND DEATH.

atha  chainam nityajaatam nityam vaa manyase mritam
    tathaapi  twam mahaabaaho nainam shochitum arhasi // 2.26 //

But  even if you think of it as being perpetually born and perpetually dying, even  then, O Mighty Armed (Arjuna), you should not grieve.

Sri  Krishna, for the sake of argument, takes up the popular assumption here.  Granting that the Self is again and again  born whenever a body comes into being and again and again dies whenever the  body dies, even then one should not grieve, because birth is inevitable to that  which dies and death is inevitable to that which is born.  This is the inexorable law of the nature. As  such, the occasion that Arjuna faces is not the one for lament.

jaatasya  hi dhruvo mrityur dhruvam janma mritasya cha
    tasmaad  aparihaarye'rthe natwam shochitum arhasi // 2.27 //

Death  is sure to happen to that which is born. Birth is sure to happen to that which dies.  Birth and death are certainly  unavoidable.  Therefore you should not  grieve over an inevitable occurrence.

Here  Krishna continues to view the whole situation from the materialistic  angle.  Even from this stand point, if  life is a constant flow of appearances and disappearances one should not shed  tears over the unavoidable.

IT IS NOT PROPER TO GRIEVE FOR BEINGS WHICH ARE MERE COMBINATION OF CAUSE AND EFFECT.

avyaktaadeeni  bhootani vyaktamadhyaani bhaarata
    avyakta  nidhanaanyeva tatra kaa paridevanaa // 2.28 //

Beings  are unmanifest in their beginning, manifest in their middle state and unmanifest  again in their end O, Arjuna. What is there to grieve about?

The  world of beings which we see and experience i.e. the world which is manifest  follows the law of causation. Effects rise from the causes.  The effects are manifest i.e. visible while  the causes are unmanifest.  Projection  from the unmanifest to the manifest is called the creation of a thing.

The  manifest world of today was in a condition of unmanifest before its  creation.  Now temporarily it is manifest  or available for cognition. It shall fade away one day again into  unmanifest.  The present came from the  unknown and will return to the unknown. The physical body is a combination of  the five elements.  It is perceived by  the physical eye only after the five elements have entered into such combination.  After death the body disintegrates and the  five elements return to their source. The body cannot be perceived then.  Therefore the body can be perceived only in  the middle state.

Thus  before birth, beings had no connection with the bodies; after death too they  would maintain no connection with these gross bodies. During the intermediate  period alone viz. from birth to death, they are manifest and maintain  relationship with their bodies.

The  relationships such as son, wife, father, mother, brother, sister and teacher  etc., are formed through the body because of delusion and attachment. Such  relationships are only temporary as long as the bodies can perceive and are  mere correlations as causes and effects just as we perceive the dream world only  as long as the dream lasts and which was not existent before or after the  dream.

It  is just like a pot which was not there before it was made nor would it be there  when it is destroyed. The only constant factor was the mud out of which the pot  was made. The existence of the pot is visible only in the middle state and  hence its existence is illusory.  So also  there is no body in the beginning or in the end.  That which does not exist in the beginning or  in the end must be having no real existence in the middle state as well. It can  only be an illusory perception. He who thus understands the nature of the body  and all human relationships based upon it will not allow them to have any  influence upon his mind and therefore there is no point in lamenting over the  situation.

MARVELOUS NATURE OF THE SOUL

aashcharyavat  pashyati kashchid enam
    aashcharyavad  vadati tathaiva chaanyah
    aashcharyavacchainam  anyah shrinoti
    shrutwaapyenam  veda na chaiva kaschit // 2.29 //

Some  look on the Self as a wonder; some speak of It as a wonder; some hear of It as  a wonder; still others, though  hearing,  do not understand It at all.

The  Self is incomprehensible because it is not known by the ordinary means of  knowledge. Though the knowledge of the Self is freely accessible to all mankind,  it is attained only by a very few who are willing to pay the price in the form  of self-discipline, steadfastness and non-attachment. Though the truth is open  to all, many do not feel any urge to seek. Of those who have the urge, many  suffer from doubt and vacillation. Even if they do not have doubts, many are  scared away by difficulties. Only a few rare souls succeed in braving the  perils and reaching the goal.

Although  it is difficult to comprehend the idea of the Self, if one starts the practice  of listening (sravanam), continuous reflection (mananam) and long  contemplation (nidhidhyasan) it is possible to realize the Self in him.

KRISHNA CONCLUDES THE DISCUSSION ABOUT THE DISCRIMINATION BETWEEN THE SOUL AND THE BODY

dehee  nityam avadhyo'yam dehe sarvasya bhaarata
    tasmaat  sarvaani bhootani na twam shochitum arhasi // 2.30 //

This  Self, the indweller in the body of everyone, is always indestructible.  O, Arjuna, therefore you should not grieve  for any creature.

The  body of any creature may be destroyed but the Self dwelling within it cannot be  killed.  Therefore, grief on account of  death is improper, be it Bhishma or anyone else.

So  far Krishna argued establishing the eternal nature of the soul and finite  nature of the bodies. This verse concludes the idea opened in verse 11.

GRIEVING IS NOT PROPER TO ARJUNA EVEN ACCORDING TO HIS SENSE OF DUTY AS A KSHATRIYA

swadharmam  api chaavekshya na vikampitum arhasi
    dharmyaaddhi  yuddhaachhreyo'nyat kshatriyasya na vidyate // 2.31 //

    Further  having regard to your duty (your own Dharma) you should not waver, for there is  nothing higher for a Kshatriya than a righteous war.

Sri  Krishna, so far talked to Arjuna on the immortality of the Self and the  perishable nature of the body to justify why he should fight.  He now gives him worldly reasons for  fighting. He tells Arjuna that fighting is the natural duty of a Kshatriya or  the one born in the ruling class. His svadharma or law of action  requires him to engage in battle for upholding law, justice and righteousness.  To him nothing is more ennobling than a fair fight. Arjuna should therefore  wage the war and ought not to waver from his duty.

yadricchayaa  chopapannam swargadwaaram apaavritam
    sukhinah  kshatriyaah paartha labhante yuddham eedrisham   // 2.32 //

Happy  are the Kshatriyas who are called upon to fight in such a battle that comes of  itself unsought as an open door to heaven, O Arjuna.

Arjuna’s  opponents had precipitated the war by their own indiscretion and hence this war  has been called to come of itself unsought. A Kshatriya who gives up his life  in a righteous war is said to go to heaven.

atha  chettwam imam dharmyam samgraamam na karishyasi
    tatah  swadharmam keertim cha hitwaa paapam avaapsyasi // 2.33 //

But  if you will not fight in this lawful battle, then, having abandoned your own Dharma  and honor, you shall incur sin.

akeertim  chaapi bhootaani kathayishyanti te'vyayaam
    sambhaavitasya  chaakeertir maranaad atirichyate // 2.34 //

People  too will recount for ever your infamy; to a man who has been honored dishonor  is worse than death.

With  these stinging words Krishna seeks to stiffen Arjuna’s spirit.

bhayaad  ranaad uparatam mamsyante twaam mahaarathaah
    yesham  cha twam bahumato bhootwaa yaasyasi laaghavam // 2.35 //

The  great chariot-warriors (such as Bhishma, Drona, Kripa etc.) will think that you  have withdrawn from the battle through fear and you will be ridiculed by them  who held you in much esteem.

avaachyavaadaamshcha  bahoon vadishyanti tavaahitaah
    nindantastava  saamarthyam tato duhkhataram nu kim // 2.36 //

Your  enemies also, finding fault with your abilities, will speak many a word that  should not be uttered.  What could be  more painful than this?

hato  vaa praapsyasi swargam jitwaa vaa bhokshyase maheem
    tasmaad  uttishtha kaunteya yuddhaaya kritanishchayah // 2.37 //

If  you are killed in the battle, you will go to heaven; if you win, you will enjoy  the earth. Therefore arise, O Son of Kunti, resolved to fight.

The  idea is that whatever may be the outcome of the war, Arjuna will be the gainer.  Krishna implies that everyone should discharge his duty very sincerely and  enthusiastically, to the best of his power and ability, in whatever  circumstances, he is placed. Humanity demands it. 

sukhaduhkhe  same kritwaa laabhaalaabhau jayaajayau
    tato  yuddhaaya yujyaswa naivam paapamavaapsyasi // 2.38 //

Treating  alike pleasure and pain, gain and loss, victory and defeat, engage in battle  for the sake of the battle, thus you shall not incur sin.

Arjuna  was thinking that by killing his kinsmen he would incur sin. So Krishna  clarifies that it is the desire for and attachment to the result of an action  that create bondage; but when an action is performed without any such desire,  it leads to freedom of the soul. The injunction to fight is only incidental.

Pain  and pleasure are the intellectual awareness of the unfavorable or favorable experiences.  Gain and loss are such awareness at the mental level.  Victory and defeat are the experiences felt  at bodily level or physical fields. Arjuna’s goal is not to think of victory  and defeat etc. but to discharge his duty by treating the agreeable and  disagreeable alike. By doing so he would not commit any sin. i.e. he would be  free from bondage.

THE INSIGHT OF YOGA

eshaa  te'bhihitaa saankhye buddhir yoge twimaam shrinu
    buddhyaa  yukto yayaa paartha karma bandham prahaasyasi // 2.39 //

What  has been declared to you so far is the wisdom of sankhya. Now listen to the  wisdom of yoga, armed with which, O son of Pritha, you will break through the  bonds of Karma.

Sri  Krishna taught knowledge or Jnana to Arjuna till now.  This is called Sankhya Yoga which is the path  of Vedantic philosophy by which the true nature of the Self and the methods of attaining  Self-Realisation can be comprehended through logic of reasoning.

From  this verse onwards the focus of the Gita in this chapter is to explain the  technique of Karma Yoga having known which one can break through the bonds of  Karma or vasanas.

Let  us see what these two yogas mean in the Bhagavad Gita and what is meant by the  bondage of karma. Yoga means the technique of attaining knowledge or wisdom.

Sankhya  or Jnana Yoga is the path of knowledge about the Absolute reality. It teaches  discrimination between the Real and unreal and urges the renunciation of the  unreal. The knowledge of Reality directly destroys ignorance, which is the  cause of birth and death in the relative world and of grief and delusion inevitably  associated with it.

Yoga  or Karmayoga is the path of action. The follower of this path engages in action  without any desire for or attachment to the result of such action. He regards  himself as an instrument of God. It is desire and attachment that create the  subtle impressions in the mind (vasanas) which are the seeds of future  action. Action performed without attachment or care for the result does not  create new karma, but leaves the will free to devote itself to the achievement  of Self-realization. This is the secret of Karma Yoga. What are the bonds of  karma? Merit and demerit, virtue and sin, pain and pleasure and other pairs of  opposites constitute the bondage of all actions performed with a motive.

Sankhyayoga  or the path of knowledge, which directly reveals the true nature of the self,  is meant for very rare seekers, endowed with keen intellect for discrimination  and undaunted will-power for renunciation. But the large majority does not  belong to this category. Hence they should first of all purify their minds,  through the discipline of karmayoga. They will then become fit to follow the  path of knowledge. The pure in heart attain Self-knowledge through the grace of  God.

Arjuna  can qualify for the highest knowledge only through performance of his duty.  Krishna all along adduced various arguments from the Upanishadic,  materialistic, mundane standpoints to persuade him to perform his duty. Now  Krishna describes karmayoga which is the special contribution of the Gita to  the philosophy of life, a user’s manual for every day living.

THE SPECIAL MERIT OF KARMAYOGA

 

nehaabhikramanaasho'sti  pratyavaayo na vidyate
    swalpamapyasya  dharmasya traayate mahato bhayaat // 2.40 //

In  this no effort is ever lost and no harm is ever done. Even very little of this  discipline (Dharma) saves a man from the Great Fear.

If  a religious ceremony is left incomplete it is a wasted attempt as the performer  will not derive any benefit like a house left unroofed. Again in the worship  for an object, any imperfection in the process produces positive harm or loss  instead of gain as in the case of sickness non-use of right medicines brings  about adverse results. But it is not so in the case of Karma Yoga where every  action and worship performed without desire brings about immediate purification  of heart and protects one from the cycle of birth and death which is termed  here as the great fear.

KARMA YOGA LEADS TO THE HIGHEST GOOD

vyavasaayaatmikaa  buddhir ekeha kurunandana
    bahushaakhaa  hyanantaashcha buddhayo'vyavasaayinaam // 2.41 //

O  Joy of the Kurus (Arjuna), in this blessed path, there is a concentrated one-pointed  determination.  Scattered and endless are  the thoughts of the irresolute or the undecided.

In  this Karma Yoga, even the highest achievement of Self-realization is possible  because the man works with single-pointed determination with concentrated mind.  Those who perform actions with endless desires for results get their inner  personality disintegrated and dissipated. With the scattered minds they are not  able to apply themselves to the tasks involved and therefore their attempts  invariably end in failure.

Karma  yoga is the path in which the seeker with concentrated resolution strives hard  to reach his goal while in the Karma Kanda, the seeker, to satisfy his unending  desires, performs various rituals as instructed in the Vedas meditating upon  the prescribed Devata. As this process is more desire prompted there is always  an inner agitation.

NO WISDOM FOR THE WORLDLY MINDED

 

yaam  imaam pushpitaam vaacham pravadantyavipashchitah
    vedavaadarataah  paartha naanyad asteeti vaadinah // 2.42 //

kaamaatmaanah  swargaparaa janmakarmaphalaprdaam
    kriyaavisheshabahulaam  bhogaishwaryagatim prati // 2.43 //

bhogaishwarya  prasaktaanaam tayaapahritachetasaam
    vyavasaayaatmika  buddhih samaadhau na vidheeyate // 2.44 //

Arjuna,  those who are obsessed by desires, who look upon heaven as the supreme goal and  argue that there is nothing beyond heaven and pleasures and who are devoted to  the letter of the Vedas are unwise. They make this type of flowery speeches  recommending many acts of various kinds, for the attainment of pleasure and  prosperity and with rebirth as their motive. Thos whose minds are carried away  by such flowery words (who are attracted by and attached to pleasures and  prosperity) are not well-established in the Self (in concentration).

Here  the reference is to the Karma Kanda or the ritualistic portion of the Vedas,  which lays down specific rules for specific actions for attaining specific  results. Those who give too much importance to this section of the Vedas are  called as unwise and lacking in discrimination.

These  people are highly enamored about such Vedic passages which prescribe ways for  attaining heavenly enjoyments.  They say  that there is nothing else than the sensual enjoyments and power here and  happiness in heaven hereafter which can be achieved by performing the rites of  the Karma Kanda of the Vedas. They regard such attainments as the ultimate  object of human existence. Hence ordinary individuals are attracted towards  their flattering talk. They ignore the philosophical section of the Vedas  dealing with the knowledge of the soul and which alone leads to liberation.

Life  in heaven is also transitory. After the fruits of one's good actions have been  exhausted, one has to return to this earth-plane and liberation can be attained  only through knowledge of the Self.

Although  it is stated here that the Karma Kanda of the Vedas cannot give us final  liberation and a declaration is made that such persons tossed by desires shall  never experience any tranquility in their inner lives, we have to keep in mind  that if these rituals when performed without desire for results purify the mind  which is also an initial step in the Jnana Yoga. The point to note is that the  results of the rites and sacrifices performed with desires are ephemeral for  they are limited by time, space and the law of causation.

PRACTICE OF VEDIC RITES DOES NOT LEAD TO LIBERATION

 

 

traigunyavishayaa  vedaa nistraigunyo bhavaarjuna
    nirdwandwo  nityasatwastho niryogakshema aatmavaan // 2.45 //

The  Vedas deal with three attributes (of nature); you be above these three  attributes, O Arjuna.  Free yourself from  the pairs of opposites and ever remain in the quality of sattwa (goodness),  freed from all thoughts of acquisition (of what you lack) and preservation (of  what you have) and be established in the Self.

After  advising Arjuna about the ineffectiveness of the blind obedience to the Karma  Kanda, Sri Krishna tells him to transcend himself from the triple Gunas. Guna  means attribute or quality.  Nature is  made of three Gunas viz., Sattwa - purity, light, harmony; Rajas - passion,  restlessness, motion; and Tamas - inertia, and darkness. These three Gunas  remain in all the living creatures in varying degrees.  The mind and intellect are constituted with  these qualities. Going above these temperaments means going beyond the mind and  intellect to re-discover one to be the Supreme Self. How such transportation  from imperfection to perfection can take place is explained here.

Pairs  of opposites like heat and cold, pleasure and pain, victory and defeat, honor  and dishonor, praise and censure etc. are the experiences of man in his  life.  To ever remain in the quality of  Sattwa means to keep oneself least agitated in one's perceptions of objects and  persons and in the assessment of their true nature.

Every  activity in this world is guided by two prime motives viz. acquisition for  purposes of possession and preservation of possessions acquired. These two  motives in all actions indicate our selfish desire to acquire and hoard.  Renouncing these two temperaments implies getting away from the source of restlessness  and sorrows in life.

Sri  Krishna advises Arjuna the practical method to be free from all the pairs of  opposites and from the thought of acquisition and preservation and ever  remaining in the quality of Sattwa by establishing himself in the Self by  remaining on guard and not yielding to the objects of the senses.  The sorrows of the pairs of the opposites,  the temptation to be impure and the desire for acquiring and preserving  all belong to the ego-centre arising out of  the Self identifying with not-Self i.e. body, mind and intellect.

To  keep ourselves detached from these ego-centric ideas through constant awareness  of our pure divine nature is the path shown by The Lord to establish oneself in  the Self when the individual ego finds itself free from all anxieties of the  world. Necessarily then one will be beyond the three Gunas free from the pairs  of opposites remaining always in the Sattwic quality. This attitude implies  that one should be balanced and not swayed by either extreme. Sattva enables an  aspiring soul to go beyond the Gunas and attain freedom.

Arjuna  is asked to follow these injunctions while engaged in the performance of his  duty.

 

 

 

 

 

RESULT OF PERFORMING ONE’S DUTY WITH EVENNESS OF MIND.

 

buddhiyukto  jahaateeha ubhe sukrita dushkrite
    tasmaad  yogaaya yujyaswa yogah karmasu kaushalam // 2.50 //

Endowed  with evenness of mind, one casts off in this very life both good and evil deeds.   Therefore, devote yourself to Yoga (of equanimity); skill in action lies  in the practice of this Yoga.

A  person, endowed with equanimity becomes free from virtue and vice. In such a  state while living in the world, he detaches himself from the trappings of the  world and remains untouched by virtue and sin. Virtue and vice accrue to a  person when he identifies himself with the body, the unreal. If he does not so  identify himself, virtue and vice have no effect on him.

Therefore,  Krishna says ‘devote yourself to the yoga of equanimity’ i.e. remain  continuously even-minded through realization of God. If a man performs his  duties, maintaining this evenness, then his mind rests on God all the while.  Work that otherwise enslaves, becomes a means to freedom when performed with  evenness of mind. Work becomes worship. Skill in action, therefore, lies in the  practice of this equanimity (of yoga) in success and failure. It should be  noted that here Krishna does not define Yoga as skill in action but explains  the importance of Yoga (equanimity) in action. Otherwise, the action of a thief  carried out skillfully also can come within the meaning of the Yoga which will  be obviously ridiculous.

HOW DOES ACTION LEAD TO LIBERATION?

karmajam  buddhiyuktaa hi phalam tyaktwaa maneeshinah
    janmabandha  vinirmuktaah padam gacchantyanaamayam // 2.51 //

The  wise, possessed of equanimity, having abandoned the fruits of their actions and  being freed from the fetters of birth, attain the state that is beyond all evil  (reaches the blissful supreme state).

Clinging  to the fruits of actions creates vasanas to exhaust which one has to get into  the cycle of births and deaths.  If  actions are performed as a dedication to the God in fulfillment of his purpose,  without desire for the fruits, one is released from the bonds of birth and  death and attains bliss. Birth and death is called bondage because it is the  result of action in a previous life.

The  wise i.e those who know the art of true living undertake all work with evenness  of mind (renouncement of ego) and abandoning the anxiety for the fruits of  their actions (renouncement of ego-motivated desires). Thereby, they have no  occasion to enter into the cycle of birth and death as there are no vasanas  left in them for fulfillment.

Such  an entity who is called a Karma Yogin will attain bliss i.e. the state which is  beyond all evils. As knowledge is superior to action, the implication is that  selfless actions purify the mind and prepare the individual for higher  meditations through which he ultimately discovers himself as the Self which  lies beyond all blemish. This is also called as Buddhi Yoga.

WHEN DOES ONE ATTAIN THE WISDOM THAT IS THE RESULT OF THE PURITY OF MIND INDUCED BY KARMAYOGA?

yadaa  te mohakalilam buddhir vyatitarishyati
    tadaa  gantaasi nirvedam shrotavyasya shrutasya cha // 2.52 //

When  your mind crosses beyond the mire of delusion, then you shall achieve  indifference regarding things already heard and things yet to be heard (about  enjoyments of this world or the next).

Delusion  is the non-discrimination between the Self and the non-Self or ego and it turns  the mind towards the sense objects. This is the state which favors egoism in  this body and attachment for the body, family, kinsmen and objects. When the  man gets entangled in this slough of delusion, he is perplexed and therefore  cannot think properly.

When  the intellect crosses over this delusion and attains purity of mind one  develops disgust and indifference regarding things heard (enjoyed) and those  yet to be heard (to be enjoyed in future). The things known and yet to be known  being finite in nature are considered futile. The means to achieve this goal  are by discrimination between the real and the unreal and selfless service.

The  words `things heard and yet to be heard' mean all the sense-organs oriented  experiences already undergone and those that are yet to be experienced.  Logically when the intellect becomes purer, it loses all its infatuation, fascination  and attraction for the sense experiences that it had before and that may arise in  future.

A  question may arise how long this process of attaining freedom will take? The  answer is that it is not a question of time. Freedom refers to the experience  which can be attained at any moment, the only condition being the  desirelessness of the aspirant or absence of attachment to objects attained or  attainable.

WHEN DOES ONE ATTAIN THE TRUE YOGA OR KNOWLEDGE OF THE SUPREME TRUTH?

shrutivipratipannaa  te yadaa sthaasyati nishchalaa
    samaadhaavachalaa  buddhistadaa yogam avaapsyasi // 2.53 //

When  your mind, now perplexed by what you have heard, stands firm and steady in the  Self, then you will have attained Yoga or Self-Realization.

The  mind gets agitated due to the continuous stimuli it receives from the external  world through the sense organs. When an individual in spite of such  disturbances and agitations of the mind does not lose his cool, inner serenity  and equipoise, and remains concentrated in the knowledge of the Self, he is considered  as having attained Yoga or Samadhi or Self Realization (God-Consciousness).

Samadhi  is not the loss of consciousness but the highest kind of consciousness wherein  the object with which the mind is in communion is the Divine Self which is the  result of the discrimination between the Self and the Non-Self, the Real and  the Unreal.

We  must act with equanimity which is more important than the action itself. The  question is not what shall we do but how shall we do and with what spirit shall  we do? While Karma implies action, Buddhi implies how to act. Buddhiyoga is the  method by which we go beyond Vedic Ritualsim and do our duty without any  attachment for the results of our actions.

Sri  Krishna's advice made so far reduces the dejection in Arjuna and induces him to  seek clarifications from Him as to what are the characteristics of the man who  has attained wisdom through Samadhi. This is dealt with in next chapter.

CHARACTERISTICS OF A PERSON WHO HAS ATTAINED WISDOM THROUGH SAMADHI.

 

 

arjuna  uvaacha
    sthitaprajnasya  kaa bhaashaa samaadhisthasya keshava
    sthitadheeh  kim prabhaasheta kimaaseeta vrajeta kim // 2.54 //

Arjuna  said
    O  Keshava, what is the description of him who has steady wisdom and is merged in  the super conscious state (Samadhi)? How does one of steady wisdom speak?   How does he sit? How does he walk?

With  the advice thus far given, Arjuna seems to have got a better understanding and  a doubt appears to have crept in his mind as to whether a person after gaining  the goal of life through Buddhi Yoga may yet have a vigorous life at all in the  outside world.  This doubt is because of  the common notion that a perfected individual is ill-suited to lead a normal  day-to-day life.

‘The  man of steady wisdom” means the one who, through direct realization, has the  settled knowledge of his identification with Brahman, the Self. He is the one  who realizes that he is Brahman.

The  two questions asked by Arjuna are:

  1.  How is a man of steady wisdom described by others? 
  2.  How does the influence of wisdom manifest itself in his actions in the outer  world when he comes out of Samadhi?

The  answers to these questions occupy the rest of this Chapter. They comprise of  the characteristic attributes of a man of steady wisdom and also the means of  attaining such wisdom. These attributes apply equally to Jnana Yogis and Karma  Yogis.

Arjuna’s  questions simply mean:

  - How does a  wise person respond to the daily situations in life?
  - What are the distinguishing marks or characteristics of  a wise person?

The  characteristics of a wise person are also the characteristics of one who wants  to be wise. In the case of a wise person, such characteristics are natural to  that person; but, in the case of one who is not yet wise – but wants to become one  – such characteristics need to be cultivated by proper attitude, discipline and  practice.

In the next  18 verses, Sri Krishna responds to the question of Arjuna. Sri Krishna does not  say how a wise person talks, sits or walks. Appreciating the spirit of Arjuna’s  question, Sri Krishna tells Arjuna – and indeed all humanity, the  characteristics of a wise person, and also, what makes a person wise.

These verses  are of extraordinary significance for two reasons - they tell precisely what wisdom  means in practical every day life - with that knowledge, one can help oneself,  to uplift oneself spiritually by understanding and appreciating these verses and  by meditation and contemplation on the content of these verses. For these  reasons these 18 verses are the best known and the most often recited verses in  the entire Bhagavad Gita. Therefore, let us now try to understand these verses  as well as we can.

sri  bhagavaan uvaacha
    prajahaati  yadaa kaamaan sarvaan paartha manogataan
    atmanyevaatmanaa  tushtah sthitaprajnastadochyate // 2.55 //

Sri  Bhagavan said
    O  Partha, when a man completely casts off all the desires of the mind, his Self finding  satisfaction in itself alone, then he is called a man of steady wisdom.

An  exhaustive exposition of the inner and outer life of the `man of steady wisdom'  or the `man of Self-realization' follows now. This section of the Gita  enumerates the guidelines one should follow as to what types of values and  mental attitudes he should develop during his spiritual practice in order that  he may come to realize the Divinity in himself.

The  man of steady wisdom does not long for external possessions for he enjoys the  Supreme Bliss of Self-Knowledge. Such a man of wisdom has renounced all  cravings like progeny, wealth and attainment of heaven etc. and enjoys the  bliss of communion with the Self. This is what is meant by the self finding  satisfaction in itself alone.

Man  is a bundle of desires. They may be strong or weak and have an origin and a seat  in his mind for whatever cause it may be.   Therefore when the mind along with the intellect rests stable in God,  all the desires will vanish. After the cessation of all the desires, when a  seeker perceives the Supreme Self and rests in the perpetual calm, he is known  as ‘satisfied in the self through the self’.

A  spiritually ignorant or immature person hangs on to desires, because that person  depends on the fulfillment of such desires for his happiness. When a person grows  into maturity, and naturally and completely casts off one's dependence on the fulfillment  of one's desires for one's happiness, one then becomes a wise person.

Now, when  does that happen? Bhagavan says that in the second line - When one discovers happiness in oneself by oneself - then one is called - a wise person.

When one recognizes  that one's very nature is “ananda”- one’s very nature is happiness, then there is no need for  one to depend on the external objects for fulfillment of one's happiness. When  one recognizes that one's very nature is sat-chit-ananda-svarupa-atma - one discovers that one has nothing to gain from outside  to be happy - and  also, one realizes  that one has already gained everlasting happiness in the form of Vision of oneself  everywhere and in everything including oneself.

The  happiness arising from such vision is called “one  discovering Happiness in oneself, by one self in the wake of self knowledge”.  When that knowledge takes place, there is no craving for any object or  experience external to ones own self, to be happy. At that time all desires  have no hold on oneself and they naturally fall from one's mind and buddhi, which is same as telling that one naturally and  completely grows out of one's dependence on the fulfillment of one's desires  for one's happiness. Discovering happiness as one's own very self, one has no  need to go after something else to be happy. Such discovery is indeed the mark  of a wise person.

Negatively,  this state is one of freedom from selfish desires and positively, it is one of  concentration on the supreme. This verse answers the first part of Arjuna's  question.

duhkheshwanudwignamanaah  sukheshu vigatasprihah
    veetaraagabhayakrodhah  sthitadheer munir uchyate // 2.56 //

He  whose mind is not shaken by adversity, who does not hanker after pleasures and  who is free from attachment, fear and anger, is called a sage of steady wisdom.

Verses  56 - 58 answer the second part of Arjuna's question as to the conduct of the  man of steady wisdom.

Times of  pain and sorrow hit everybody and a wise man is no exception; but his mind does  not get bogged down by them. His pain is localized, and it stops there.  Similarly, in times of pleasure, the one who  has no craving has no thirst for more of that pleasure. Thus the one who does  not feel depressed in times of pain and sorrow, and who in times of pleasure  has no craving for more of that pleasure is a wise man.

The one  whose mind and intellect  are totally free from  intense longing or passion for anything  outside of oneself, free from fear of any kind and devoid of anger or temporary  madness about anything is called one whose is steady and well rooted in self knowledge. Such a person is also called one who is capable of reflection,  analysis and proper judgment at all times being always immersed in God  Consciousness. He is called the wise person.

In  this world there is no end to sorrow and unfavorable situations. Here a man of  steady wisdom is described as the one who maintains equanimity in pleasure and  pain.  An individual who remains  undisturbed in sorrow or in joy, unattached, fearless and without anger is described  here as a muni - a sage, a man of steady wisdom.

It  may be noted of all the emotions that must be absent in the perfected  individual only three have been emphasized here viz., attachment -Raga, fear  -Bhaya and anger -Krodha because attachment to things is the root cause for the  fear of non-winning the desired object. If it is won then the fear of losing it  and therefore anxiety to keep it safe and secure is equally strong. Attachment  and fear lead to anger against those who create obstacles between the person  infatuated with the object and the desired object. It is self-mastery, conquest  of desire and passion that is insisted upon.

yah  sarvatraanabhisnehas tattat praapya shubhaashubham
    naabhinandati  na dweshti tasya prajnaa pratishthitaa // 2.57 //

He  who is not attached to anything, who neither rejoices nor is, vexed when he  obtains good or evil - his wisdom is firmly fixed.

The  ideas expressed in the previous verses are repeated:

 
• The enlightened  sage or the Perfected one has evenness of mind.
 
• He does not  rejoice in pleasure nor is he averse to any pain.
 
• He has no  attachment to any worldly object.
 
• He does not get  disturbed when praised or censured.
 
• He is always identified  with the Self.

A  mere detachment from life and retiring to the jungles is not implied here.  Such aimless detachment cannot lead a man to  any higher level of existence and it is merely an escapist view of life. The detachment  from the outside world should be coupled with capacity to face all challenges  in life - auspicious and inauspicious - with a balanced mind in both. Life by  its very nature is a mixture of good and bad. The perfected one experiences  both of them with equal detachment because he is ever established in the Self.

Since  the perfect man of wisdom has neither aversion for the sorrows nor attraction  for the pleasures of life he neither compliments nor condemns anything in the  world.  For him everything is fine.  He looks at the world through the plain glass  and not through colored glasses. Flowers bloom and they also whither away.  There is no need to praise the former and  condemn the latter. We must accept whatever comes without excitement, pain or  revolt.

This  verse is in reply to Arjuna’s query about the speech of a perfect master. His  speech has for its background the mental state as described above.

yadaa  samharate chaayam koormo'ngaaneeva sarvashah
    indriyaaneendriyaarthebhyas  tasya prajnaa pratishthitaa // 2.58 //

When  like the tortoise which withdraws its limbs on all sides, he withdraws his  senses from the sense objects, then his wisdom becomes steady.

So  far a man of steady wisdom has been described as the one who (a) is ever  satisfied in the Self (b) lives in perfect equanimity in pleasure and pain and  (c) in whom there is complete lack of attachment for feelings of joy or aversion.  Now it is mentioned in this verse that a man of steady wisdom has the capacity  to withdraw his sense organs from the field of their objects just like a  tortoise can draw back its limbs from all sides within its shell when  apprehending danger.

The  sense organs receive the stimuli from the objects of the external world which  are passed on to the mind. The mind has got a natural tendency to run after  such worldly objects. The yogi withdraws the mind again and again from the  objects of the senses and fixes it on the Self and makes himself free from the  disturbances of life.

DISTINCTION BETWEEN THE SENSE-CONTROL BY AN ORDINARY PERSON AND A REALIZED SOUL

 

 

vishayaa  vinivartante niraahaarasya dehinah
    rasavarjam  raso'pyasya param drishtwaa nivartate // 2.59 //

The  objects of the senses fall away from the abstinent man but not the taste for  them. But even the taste falls away when the Supreme is seen.

The  sense objects reach out to only those who is badly in need of them and not to  those who do not want them. Even then, the sense objects are capable of leaving  their taste behind even in an abstinent seeker who may find it difficult to  erase them completely from his mind. Sri Krishna says here that all such  longings created even at the mental level because of ego will be made  ineffective when the seeker transcends ego and comes to experience the Self -  attains wisdom. But the reverse i.e. with the disappearance of the taste a  striver attains steadfast wisdom is not true.

Sri  Krishna is explaining the difference between outer abstention and inner  renunciation. We may reject the object but the desire for it may remain. Even  the desire is lost when the Supreme is seen. The control should be both at the  body and mental levels. Liberation from the tyranny of the body is not enough;  we must be liberated from the tyranny of desires also which presupposes  realization of the Supreme.

Thus  in the restraint of the senses evinced by a man of realization, not only the  sense objects turn away from him  but  also attachment itself with its roots vanish.

WHAT IS THE HARM IF ATTACHMENT DOES NOT DISAPPEAR?

yatato  hyapi kaunteya purushasya vipashchitah
    indriyaani  pramaatheeni haranti prasabham manah // 2.60 //

The  turbulent senses, O son of Kunti, do violently carry away the mind even of a  wise man though he may be striving to control them.

Sri  Krishna has so far emphasized that a perfect master is the one who has a complete  control over his sense-cravings. Sense cravings are like turbulent horses. If  these horses are kept under control destination can be reached with safety;  otherwise the rider gets thrown out.

Even  a man of discrimination falls prey to the temptations of the world. Therefore,  the aspirant must not relax his effort for self-control. He should bring all  the senses under his control; otherwise his mind will be dragged into the field  of sense objects leading to a sorrowful experience. This is more likely to happen  even to a highly evolved seeker whereby he will not be able to reach his  spiritual destination of final liberation.   This is an advice of caution to the seeker.

 

 

SENSE CONTROL IS A MEANS OF GOD-REALIZATION FOR A PERSON OF STABLE MIND

taani  sarvaani samyamya yukta aaseeta matparah
    vashe  hi yasyendriyaani tasya prajnaa pratishthitaa // 2.61 //

Having  restrained all the senses he should sit steadfast, intent on Me; his wisdom is  steady whose senses are under control.

Sri  Krishna warns Arjuna here that as a seeker of Self-perfection he should control  his mind by withdrawing all his sense organs from their wanderings and should  concentrate his entire attention on `me' i.e. The Lord, The Supreme. The idea  is that the mind should be made completely calm to meditate on Him, the Supreme  Lord.

Such  a Yogi, having brought under control all his senses, is called a person of  steady wisdom and established in the Self. Self-discipline is not a matter of  intelligence. It is a matter of will of the mind and vision of the Highest. This  is a technique of Self-Development.

 

THE VERY THOUGHT OF SENSE-OBJECTS CAUSES FUTURE MISFORTUNE

dhyaayato  vishayaan pumsah sangas teshoopajaayate
    sangaat  sanjaayate kaamah kaamaat krodho'bhijaayate// 2.62 //

When  a man thinks of objects, attachment for them arises; from attachment desire is born;  from desire arises anger.

krodhaad  bhavati sammohah sammohaat smriti vibhramah
    smritibhramshaad  buddhinaasho buddhinaashaat pranashyati // 2.63 //

From  anger comes delusion, from delusion the loss of memory, from the loss of memory  the destruction of intelligence; from the destruction of intelligence he  perishes.

From  here onwards Sri Krishna explains the theory of fall of man from God-hood to  sense-entanglements. The source of all evils is wrong thinking and false perceptions.  When a man constantly thinks upon the alluring features of the sense objects  the consistency of such thought creates an attachment in him for the objects of  his thought. When similar thoughts come to play on his mind continuously they  become strong desire for possessing and enjoying the objects of attachment.

He tries  his level best to obtain them. When this motive energy encounters with forces  creating obstacles in the way of fulfillment of his desires it is called anger.  He starts hating the people who come in the way of satisfying his wants, fights  with them and develops hostility towards them. When a person is afflicted with  anger, his mind gets confused casting a shadow on the lessons of wisdom learnt  by him through past experience.  Thus  deprived of the moral strength, he loses his power of discrimination between  right and wrong which is called destruction of intelligence.

Failing  in discrimination, he acts irrationally on the impulse of passions and emotions  and thereby he is unable to attain the spiritual goal paving the way for self-destruction.  Here Krishna traces moral degradation to those first breaths of thought that  come softly and almost unconsciously to the mind.

Desires  may prove to be as rebellious and challenging as the most powerful external forces.  They may lift us into glory or hurl us into disgrace.  Kalidasa in Kumarasambhavam  says that they are really brave whose minds are not disturbed when the sources  of disturbance are face to face with them

What  is called for is not a forced isolation from the world or destruction of sense  life but an inward withdrawal. To hate the senses is as wrong as to love them.  The horses of the senses are not to be unyoked from the chariot but controlled  by the reins of the mind.
  The  movement from desire to destruction can be illustrated as under:
  Brooding  on the objects of senses ►attachment ►desire ►anger ►delusion ►loss of memory ►loss  of reason ►utter ruin.

HOW A PERSON OF STABLE MIND MOVES AMONG SENSE OBJECTS AND WHAT IS HIS REWARD?

 

 

raagadwesha  viyuktaistu vishayaanindriyaishcharan
    aatmavashyair  vidheyaatmaa prasaadamadhigacchati // 2.64 //

But   the self-controlled man, moving among objects with  his senses   under  restraint  and free  from  both   attraction   and repulsion, attains peace.

The  mind and the senses are endowed with the two natural currents of attraction and  repulsion - liking some objects and disliking certain others. But a man with  mental discipline approaches these sense objects with a mind free from  attraction or repulsion thereby attaining the peace of the Eternal. The senses  and the mind are his servants but not the masters; he is the Master of wisdom.  Running away from the sense objects cannot ensure mental tranquility because  mind’s agitations for getting the desired objects or to get rid of the  undesired ones will continue.

When  the  mind is trained in these two aspects  viz., (a) to  live in  self-control  and (b) to move among the   sense  objects  with neither attachment nor hatred towards  them, its agitations caused by  the  charm of such objects are  brought  under  control.  This condition of the mind, which has  the least sense disturbances because of the ineffectiveness of the sense  objects upon it, is called tranquility or peace or `Prasada'.

This  verse answers Arjuna's question as to how does the man of steady wisdom move about?

 

IF THE WORLD IS DARK TO A SEER, THEN HOW DOES HE LIVE IN THE WORLD?

aapooryamaanam  achalapratishtham
    samudram  aapah pravishanti yadwat
    tadwat  kaamaa yam pravishanti sarve
    sa  shaantim aapnoti na kaamakaami // 2.70 //

He  attains peace into whom all desires enter as the waters enter the ocean, which  is full to the brim and grounded in stillness, but not the man who is the  desirer of desires.

Just   as the ocean is not at all affected by the  waters  flowing  into  it from all sides an enlightened person , who rests in  his  essential nature or Self is not in the least disturbed by desires produced   by  the objects of enjoyment which he happens  to  come  across during  his  sojourn on earth. Such an individual who maintains  true peace in spite of being a target for the stimuli conveyed through his  sense organs by innumerable sense objects is called a man of perfection, a true  saint. A man attains such a state through constant awareness of the  unchangeable Reality that constitutes his innermost Self. He who looks outside  for enjoyments never attains peace. The principle behind this phenomenon is  that the insentient cannot satisfy the sentient; the sentient can be satisfied  by the sentient alone.

vihaaya  kaamaan yah sarvaan pumaamshcharati nihsprihah
    nirmamo  nirahankaarah sa shaantim adhigacchati // 2.71 //

That man  attains peace who, abandoning all desires, moves about without longing, devoid  of the sense of `I'-ness and `my'-ness.

This  verse explains the mental condition of such a one who finds peace in himself. Such  a sage renounces all desires and is without any longings or attachments. Affinity  for the world exists only because of desires. If desires are given up, no  affinity for the world remains. Such a person’s intellect is without any sense of  `I'-ness or `my'-ness i.e. without any ego which is the cause for the sense of  attachment.

All  the sufferings in the world are caused by our egocentric misconception and consequent  eruption of endless wants.   He is a  genuine Sanyasin who leads a life of constant inspiration gained through  an intelligent renunciation of his egocentric misconceptions.

The  well-known Upanishadic saying is “The human mind is of two kinds, pure and  impure. That which is intent on securing the desires is impure; that which is  free from attachment to desires is pure”.

This  verse answers Arjuna’s question ‘how a man of steadfast mind walks or what is  his mode of conduct?

ULTIMATE STATE OF A PERSON OF STEADY WISDOM

eshaa  braahmee sthitih paartha nainaam praapya vimuhyati
    sthitwaasyaamantakaale'pi  brahmanirvaanamricchati // 2.72 //

This  is the Brahmi-state, O Son of Pritha. Attaining this, none is deluded.  Being established therein, even at the hour of  death, one attains final liberation in Brahman.

Where  ego ends and the individuality is completely wiped out, a state of Selfhood, the  state of Brahman - Existence, Knowledge, Bliss Absolute - Sat Chit Ananda - dawns.  Renouncing every thing and living in the Self is the Brahmi state or the state  of God-realized soul. If the aspirant attains this state he never falls into delusion  again; never again deluded by the world.  It is the highest state of  happiness. This experience needs to take place at an early age. But if it is  attained even at the time of death he attains liberation. Hence what doubt can  there be about liberation of a man who practices the discipline of renunciation  from an early age and dwells on Brahman throughout life?

“Wisdom  is the supreme means of liberation, but this wisdom is not exclusive of  devotion to God and desireless work. Even while alive, the sage rests in Brahman  and is released from the unrest of the world. The sage of steady wisdom lives a  life of disinterested service. The descriptions of the ideal man, the jnani, the sthitaprajna, the yogarudha, the gunatita or the bhakta agree in all essentials. (Ref. 6.4-32; 10.9-10; 12.13-20; 13.7-11; 14.21-35;  16.1-3; 18.50-60)”. - Dr. S.Radhakrishnan.

Working  without attachment and desires, egoism and vanity, always equanimous with pairs  of opposites is to control the ego and experience the Self. This technique of Karma  Yoga is not different from the technique of meditation or knowledge or devotion.  Such a sage of steady wisdom lives a life of disinterested action. But Arjuna remains  confused and so The Lord explains Karma Yoga further in the next chapter.

om  tat sat
    iti  srimad bhagavadgeetaasu upanishatsu brahma vidyaayaam yogashaastre
    sri  krishnaarjuna samvaade saankhya yogo naama dvitiyo'dhyaayah

Thus  in the Upanishads of the glorious Bhagavad Gita, the science of  the  Eternal, the scripture of Yoga, the dialogue between  Sri Krishna and  Arjuna ends the second discourse entitled The Yoga of Knowledge.

Concepts and Issues

 

 

Krishna  started the sermon of the Gita by stating that

1. The Self within is eternal, indestructible.
2. The bodies enveloping the Self are ephemeral and have a  beginning and an end.
3. Death is certain for the born and birth for the dead.
4. Beings pass through this cycle of birth and death  repeatedly but the indwelling Self remains eternally the same.

The  one who understands these concepts is said to possess true knowledge which  postulates that the soul or self or the atman alone is real and all things  other than that are unreal.

The  entire existence with respect to an individual is divided into two categories:  1. ‘I’ or aham and 2. ‘This’ or idam. Atman is ‘I’ and the rest  is ‘This’ idam.  But due to the  ignorance of my real nature, I am always identified with my body, mind and  intellect and thus developed a false notion about myself. This false notion is  ego.

If  I can differentiate what is different from me, I can apprehend my own nature. Thus  the enquiry is to know first what is not I and then to assert what is I. In  other words it is about knowing what is not I (the body, mind and intellect)  and knowing my real nature i.e. Atman (I). This is the study of the nature of  the atman and the body which is called Sarira Traya Prakriya.

The  personality of an individual is considered to consist of three bodies or ‘sarira’ viz. gross body (sthula sarira), subtle body (sukshma sarira) and  causal body (karana sarira).,

  Gross  body (Sthula Sarira): It is that which is composed of the five great  elements viz. space, air, fire, water and earth. The volume of the body  occupies ‘space’, the breathing and respiratory system is due to ‘air’, the  warmth in the body is due to ‘fire’ and the body is made up of ‘water’ and the  ‘minerals’(earth). This physical body is considered to have been acquired as a  result of past good deeds. This body is the locus or the hutment or the counter  for experiencing pain and pleasure and such other pairs of opposites. It is  subject to six modifications (shad vikaras) viz. existence, birth,  growth, change, decay and death.

Subtle  body (Sukshma Sarira or Linga Sarira): It is the counterpart of the  gross body that keeps the latter alive, performs all the physiological  functions and operates the organs of action and perception. The physical body  dies when the subtle body departs. The subtle body consists of seventeen components.They are the five organs of  perception, the five organs of action, the five vital airs (Pancha Pranas),  the mind and the intellect.
  The  five organs of perception are 1. Ear (sense of hearing), 2. Skin (sense of  touch), 3. Eyes (sense of vision), 4. Tongue (sense of taste) and 5. Nose  (sense of smell). The five organs of action are 6. Mouth, 7. Hands, 8. Legs, 9.  Anus and 10. Genitals. The five vital  airs are: 11. Prana - its function being respiration - located in Nose 12.  Apana - Evacation or Excretion - Anus & Genitals 13. Vyana - Circulation - Entire Body 14. Udana - Reaction or Throwing out upwards - Throat 15. Samana-Assimilation  or Digestion - Central Region of the Body. 16. The Mind - Receives Stimuli  through organs of perception from external sources and 17. The Intellect -  Analyses situations or stimuli received and determines - Cognition faculty.

According  to some the mind and intellect only are treated as the causal body and the  other fifteen components mentioned above form part of the gross body. The  subtle body is the instrument of experience while the gross body is the hutment  or the place of the experience.

Causal  body (Karana Sarira): It is inexplicable, beginingless and in the form  of ignorance of the Reality and the cause for the other two bodies, ignorant of  one’s own real nature, free from duality or division. According to some our  inborn tendencies or vasanas are treated as causal body.

Atman  (Self, Soul): It is not any of the three bodies mentioned above. It is the  “awareness” or “consciousness” by which we are aware of the three bodies. It is  called ‘chit’.  The Atman does not  undergo any change during the three states of consciousness viz. waking, dream  and deep sleep (avastha traya) or during the passage of time because it  is beyond time. It is therefore called Sat or ever-existent. The atman  is also beyond the limitations of body, mind and intellect. It is also beyond  space and time because space and time also are creations of the mind.

It  is in a constant state of bliss or ananda. Atman is therefore sat-chit-ananda or Existence-Knowledge-Bliss. It is the principle that is self-effulgent, that  pervades everything including space and which is complete (Purna). The Sat-Chit-Ananda  Svaurpa is the natural state of every living being but it is not  experienced because we are struggling in a wrong direction and squandering our  energies on inconsequential matters.

Thus  the purport of Krishna’s advice to Arjuna is that the latter should change the  direction of his mindset from the unreal to the real.

It  would be observed from the above dialogue that Arjuna was extremely grieved,  his eyes were filled with tears and his heart was overcome with sorrow, thinking  of those on the battlefield and surveying both armies while the weapons were  beginning to be discharged.

Krishna  rebuked Arjuna, the great warrior and told him to shake of all weakness.  Arjuna, being of the warrior class, was  obliged to fight for a righteous cause and for justice. He did not think of his  kinsmen or relatives before coming to the battlefield. He was very enthusiastic  and did everything to organize. He was commanding a large army. But after  seeing his relatives and friends and thinking of the result of the battle, he  hesitated and thought what good would come out of such a fight.. His heart  filled with pity and sorrow. He became nervous and lost his head and so he  wanted to retire from the battlefield at that crucial moment.

Krishna  said “No, that is not manliness”. Krishna found that the cause of his grief and  sorrow was lack of right knowledge; it was attachment and ignorance and he  tried to remove the cause of his sorrow and grief in the light of  self-knowledge.

 In these verses Sri Krishna comes down from  the peaks of vedantic ideologies to the material philosophy and the average  person's wisdom to drive home his teachings with a view to convince Aruba that  the war must be fought.

The  thrust of the arguments is that the sin that is committed by not killing the  one who deserves to be killed is as great as the sin of killing the one who  does not deserve to be killed. When the struggle between right and wrong is on,  he who abstains from it out of false sentimentality, weakness or cowardice  would be committing sin.

The  Lord reminds Arjuna about his name and fame he had already earned which he  would now lose if he refuses to fight and thereby has touched the latter's  sensitive point of self-respect. He tells that the world will always recall the  infamy of Arjuna and it will last for a long time.  Death is really preferable to disgrace to the  one who has been honored as a great hero with noble qualities.
Sri  Bhagavan continues that the great warriors and the battalion commanders in the  enemy camp will laugh and ridicule Arjuna for his running away from the war as  an act of sheer cowardice. He points out that the enemy line will not believe  that Arjuna ran away because of his compassion and reverence for elders and  teachers and that they will look down upon him with contempt.  There is really no pain that is unbearable as  that of the slanderous comments emanating from the side of the enemy.

Finally,  Arjuna, is told by The Lord that he will stand to gain either he wins or loses  in the battle - in case he loses his life, he attains veera swarga and  in case he succeeds, he will rule over the kingdom and enjoy in this world.

Therefore,  Sri Krishna exhorts Arjuna with these words: ‘Arise, resolve to fight’. This is  the divine call to all of us to throw away dejections at the life's challenges  and to go forward to play ‘the game of life’ with a firm determination to win  keeping in mind fairness to all. This verse brings out the true universality of  the Gita and its practical applicability in our daily lives.

In  these verses Krishna clarified several doubts that arose in the mind of Arjuna in the 1st Chapter. Some of them are illustrated below:

Arjuna’s  doubt: I don’t foresee any good ensuing from the slaughter of my kinsmen -1.31.
  Krishna’s  clarification: There is nothing more welcome to a man of the warrior class than  a righteous war - 2.31

A  - How can we, by killing our kinsmen be happy? 1.37
  K  - Happy are the Kshatrias who get the opportunity of waging such an unsolicited  war 2.32.

A  - The consequences of war will lead to hell - 1.44
  K  - The war is an open way to heaven 2.32, 37.

A  - Sin alone will accrue to us by waging the war and by slaying them 1.36, 39,  45.
  K  - If you do not wage such a righteous war with an equanimous mind and abandon  your duty, you will incur sin 2.33, 38.

A  - The result of the war will be that impiety will take hold of the entire  family 1.40.
  K  - If you do not wage the war you will be abandoning righteousness 2.33.

A  - It is better to live on alms than to wage war 2.5.
  K  - Arjuna is ordered to wage war 2.38.

 

Live as the Gita Teaches You to Live

Like  Arjuna the aspirant must realize his weakness and ignorance and yet be anxious  to do God’s will and discover what it is.

So  the description of the battle in the Bhagavad Gita can be applied to any one  living in the world in any country at any time. We therefore study the Gita not  because it was given by Sri Krishna but because it is helpful in our everyday  life. In the path of everyday life, if we follow and take advice of the buddhi or intelligence and its right direction, then we can ultimately reach the goal  of all religions.

Sri Krishna starts by saying "O! Arjuna, you are worried  unnecessarily", and ends by saying "Don't worry; I will take care of  you". In between these words, there is an entire teaching on the nature of  Existence - the Nature of jeeva, jagat and ishwra and the most practical philosophy for right  conduct in everyday life, leading to Absolute Happiness and Total Fulfillment  in life, which is indeed the teaching of all our scriptures - the Vedas and the  Upanishads.

From here on, we are not particularly concerned with the Mahabharata War as  an episode in human history, except in terms of context. On the other hand, we  are concerned with the incessant war going on within every one of us, between  the forces of good and bad, in our every day life. This war is of every human  being, who is mature enough to realize that Joy of Life lies only in  Enlightenment of the Best and the Highest in one's own self; and that is -  Self-Knowledge - God Realization.

Striving towards such Enlightenment - such Self-Knowledge - such God-Realization  is our heritage; is our philosophy; is our culture; is our religion. In order to gain such Enlightenment, one has to overcome so  many obstacles within oneself - that is the Great War one has to fight every  day of one's life. In this war itself, there is no violence. There are no bows  and arrows, bombs or shells. There is no bloodshed. There is no death. There is  only a continuous process of self-endeavor, to uplift oneself, which itself is  a process of continuous joy.

The destructive weapons of ordinary war are completely useless in this  process of self endeavor. The weapons needed to succeed in this war are  constructive ones, and they are:  - humility, modesty, non-violence,  etc., about which the Gita tells us in Chapter 13.

Simply because the teachings of the Bhagavad Gita occurred in the context of the Mahabharata war, they do not constitute an incitement to  violence of any kind, anywhere, at any time, under any circumstance. On the  contrary, these teachings unfold the power of the all-inclusive war to dispel  Self-ignorance and gain Extraordinary Enlightenment, Fulfillment and Joy of  Life for every human being.

The  advice that Sri Bhagavan gives here is that one must learn to keep oneself in  equilibrium in all the different situations of life at the different levels of  one's existence. To expect life to be without the pairs of opposites such as  favorable and unfavorable, gain or loss etc. is to anticipate the  impossible.  Therefore if one has come to  live in this world one has to learn the art of living unaffected by the  vicissitudes of life. To identify oneself with the life situations - favorable  or unfavorable - is to drift along with the waves and not to stand on the shore  as a spectator enjoying the sight of the same waves.

Sri  Krishna advises Arjuna, while encouraging him to fight, that he should enter  the war keeping himself unaffected by the debilitating mental tendencies like  pleasure and pain, gain and loss, conquest and defeat etc.  This is the Yoga of equanimity of the mind or  the doctrine of poise in action.

Equanimity  in all challenging situations ensures success in life and enables the purging of  ego-sense and egocentric desires. This removal is blocked when the individual  starts getting disturbed by all sorts of pairs of opposites when the ego sense  overtakes him. To be equanimous is to act detached from ego. This kind of right  living results in mental purification or vasana elimination or correction of  mental tendencies.

If  a person performs an action with the above mental attitude or with a balanced  state of mind he will not reap the fruits of such an action.  Such an action will lead to the purification  of his heart and liberation.

It  is always the desire for one of the pairs of opposites that binds. When an act  is done without attachment either for itself or for its fruits then Karma can  be worked out i.e. vasanas can be exhausted without adding any new ones leading  to freedom.

The  idea is that whatever may be the outcome of the war, Arjuna will be the gainer.  Krishna implies that everyone should discharge his duty very sincerely and  enthusiastically, to the best of his power and ability, in whatever  circumstances, he is placed. Humanity demands it.

Control  of the senses and the mind is prescribed as a stepping stone to spiritual  progress as these faculties have a natural propensity to engage with objects.  This underscores the fact that the spiritual quest involves directing the mind  within by withdrawing it from objects. When the mind engages in the world it is  constantly subjected to attachment, likes and dislikes, and anger because the  external factors are not under one’s control. To realize one’s true nature as  the Self (Atman) within it is necessary to exercise control over the mind by  restraining its tendency to do what it likes.

If the mind is given the freedom to do what it  wants only constant restlessness would result as a result of desires that arise  one after another. This prods the individual to action to fulfill his desires  giving rise to frustration and anger when they are not fulfilled. Even when he  is able to realize his desires the joy that he enjoys is fleeting and thus the  quest for worldly joy only subjects the person to further bondage by his  actions. To become free from this quagmire, which traps man, is the objective  of spiritual quest. The basic requirement then is disentanglement from the  world slowly by restraining the mind.

As long as an individual is subject to  bondage—due to ignorance of his true spiritual nature—his identification will  be with his body and his actions will be to preserve and pamper it, while a man  of wisdom (Jnani) will identify with the Self and thus be free from attachment  to his body.

The equanimity  of mind that a Jnani has is a consequence of his constant abiding in the Self,  which is tranquil and blissful. The afflictions of his body will not disturb  his mind as he is aware of their transience. The relationship between the body  and the mind is an illusion created due to superimposition (Adhyasa), which is  primordial. Just as the Moon shines because of the Sun’s light, so also does  the mind acquire the properties of the objects it engages with. When the mind  attains union with the Self it reflects its serenity and bliss.

Krishna’s  advice to Arjuna is to have equanimity of mind to achieve the ultimate  objective. He says, “One who has control over the mind is tranquil in heat and  cold, in pleasure and pain, in honor and dishonor and is ever steadfast with the  Supreme Self”. This is in accordance with the saying in the Rig Veda “The mind  is fickle like a fast galloping horse and the only way to control it is by  involving it in good actions beneficial for the welfare of all”.

If  a man can control his mind he can find the way to enlightenment and all wisdom and  virtue will naturally come to him. The mind is like a white cloth. Dip it in  red dye, it turns red, dip it in green, it turns green. Put it out in the sun  for long, it loses its color. The mind is truly the Self itself with no color.

What  we think determines what happens to us. So if we want to change our lives we  need to stretch our minds. The world is as the mind  perceives it. The world is as the mind thinks of it. (“mano matramjagat, mano kalpitam jagat”).

If  the Bhagavad Gita is viewed as a spiritual metaphor the persons portrayed are ingenious  depictions symbolizing the various stages in the transformation of spirit into  matter. The battle proper represents the real struggle that ensues within a person  who realizes that all along it was the mind and its deep-rooted tendencies that  were playing a devious game of deception with him, leading to false perceptions  of truth and happiness and so, under proper guidance, sets out to rectify all  this. 

Kurukshetra,  the battlefield refers to our own bodily domain, where the action must take  place. Pandu was the rightful monarch of Bharata, the bodily kingdom. Pand in  Sanskrit means white or pure, referring to the faculty of discriminating  between right and wrong, which humans inherently possess. If man lives as per  this discriminating power he will live life in such a way that slowly but  surely, the soul's body-consciousness ascends to spirit-consciousness and thus  one attains independence from false providers of happiness, namely, the five  senses. 

As  the story goes, Pandu has five sons representing the power of dispassion and  the power of persisting therein. The bodily kingdom comes to be ruled by the  blind king Dhritarashtra who represents our own infatuated sense and hence  "blind" mind.  The blind king's  eldest son Duryodhana represents vain, material desire, most difficult to fight  off. His ninety nine other sons represent other sense-entrenched tendencies of  the mind.

The victory of Pandavas represents  self-purification. Similarly, in day-to-day working life too, if one starts  taking right action, his efforts will eventually lead to total realization of  the Self, the ultimate goal of life.

    Harih Om