Sanjaya said: To him who was thus overcome with pity, whose eyes were filled with tears and troubled, and who was despairing, Madhusudana (Krishna) spoke these words.
Commentary:
The scene is set for Krishna's teaching. Arjuna sits overwhelmed, his eyes filled with tears of confusion and compassion. Krishna, addressed as Madhusudana (slayer of the demon Madhu), prepares to deliver wisdom that will destroy Arjuna's inner demons of doubt.
Learning:
Help often comes when we've reached our lowest point. Arjuna's complete surrender of his ego and certainty created the space for Krishna's teaching. Sometimes we must fully acknowledge our confusion before wisdom can enter.
The Supreme Lord said: From where has this impurity come upon you at this critical hour? It is not befitting an honorable person; it does not lead to higher realms but to disgrace, O Arjuna.
Commentary:
Krishna's first words are stern. He calls Arjuna's confusion "kashmalas" (impurity/weakness) and challenges him directly. This is not befitting a noble warrior at a critical moment. Krishna uses tough love to shake Arjuna from his paralysis.
Learning:
Sometimes compassion requires directness, not comfort. Krishna didn't coddle Arjuna's weakness; he confronted it. True friends tell you what you need to hear, not what you want to hear, especially in critical moments.
Do not yield to unmanliness, O Partha. It does not befit you. Cast off this petty weakness of heart and arise, O scorcher of enemies.
Commentary:
Krishna uses strong language—"klaibyam" (unmanliness/impotence) and "kshudram" (petty/mean)—to describe Arjuna's state. He reminds Arjuna of his true nature as "Parantapa" (scorcher of enemies) and commands him to rise.
Learning:
Identity shapes action. Krishna reminds Arjuna who he truly is—a great warrior, not a confused weakling. When paralyzed by doubt, reconnect with your essential nature and capabilities. You are more than your current confusion.
Arjuna said: O Madhusudana, how can I fight with arrows against Bhishma and Drona in battle, who are worthy of my worship, O destroyer of enemies?
Commentary:
Arjuna presents his dilemma: How can he attack his grandfather Bhishma and teacher Drona, who deserve his reverence? This is not mere cowardice but a genuine ethical conflict between duty as a warrior and duty as a grandson and student.
Learning:
Real ethical dilemmas involve competing duties, not simply right versus wrong. Arjuna faced conflicting obligations—each valid on its own terms. Life's hardest decisions often involve choosing between competing goods, not obvious choices.
It would be better to live in this world by begging than to slay these noble teachers. If I kill them, all my enjoyments of wealth and pleasures will be stained with blood.
Commentary:
Arjuna argues that a life of poverty as a beggar would be preferable to wealth gained through the blood of his teachers. Any victory would be tainted, any pleasure hollow, knowing the cost at which it was obtained.
Learning:
The means matter as much as the ends. Arjuna understood that ill-gotten gains cannot bring true satisfaction. Wealth, success, or pleasure obtained through betraying one's principles will always be "stained with blood."
Verse 2.6
Sanskrit Transliteration:
na chaitadvidmaḥ kataranno garīyo yadvā jayema yadi vā no jayeyuḥ
yāneva hatvā na jijīviṣhāmas te 'vasthitāḥ pramukhe dhārtarāṣhṭrāḥ
Translation:
We do not know which is better—conquering them or being conquered by them. The sons of Dhritarashtra stand before us; after slaying them, we would not wish to live.
Commentary:
Arjuna admits he doesn't know which outcome is preferable. Even victory would feel like defeat. The enemies are not strangers but family; killing them would make life itself unbearable.
Learning:
Acknowledge when you genuinely don't know the answer. Arjuna's honesty about his confusion is the first step toward wisdom. Pretending certainty when confused only deepens the problem. Admitting "I don't know" opens the door to learning.
My nature is overcome by the weakness of pity. My mind is confused about my duty. I ask you: tell me decisively what is good for me. I am your disciple. Instruct me, who have surrendered to you.
Commentary:
This is the pivotal moment. Arjuna admits his confusion, acknowledges he cannot solve this alone, and formally surrenders to Krishna as his teacher. This surrender is the prerequisite for receiving higher knowledge.
Learning:
Surrender to a teacher is the beginning of true learning. Arjuna's declaration "I am your disciple" marks his readiness to receive wisdom. As long as ego insists "I know," learning remains blocked. Genuine humility opens the door.
Verse 2.8
Sanskrit Transliteration:
na hi prapaśhyāmi mamāpanudyād yach chhokam uchchhoṣhaṇamindriyāṇām
avāpya bhūmāvasapatnamṛiddhaṁ rājyaṁ surāṇāmapi chādhipatyam
Translation:
I do not see what would dispel this grief that dries up my senses, even if I were to obtain an unrivaled and prosperous kingdom on earth, or even sovereignty over the gods.
Commentary:
Arjuna confesses that no external achievement—not kingdoms, not even divine power—could relieve his inner anguish. This recognition that the problem is internal, not external, prepares him for spiritual teaching.
Learning:
External success cannot cure internal suffering. Arjuna realized that no amount of worldly achievement would address his inner turmoil. True peace must be found within; no external acquisition can substitute for inner resolution.
Verse 2.9
Sanskrit Transliteration:
sañjaya uvācha
evamuktvā hṛiṣhīkeśhaṁ guḍākeśhaḥ parantapaḥ
na yotsya iti govindam uktvā tūṣhṇīṁ babhūva ha
Translation:
Sanjaya said: Having spoken thus to Hrishikesha (Krishna), Gudakesha (Arjuna), the scorcher of enemies, said to Govinda, "I will not fight," and became silent.
Commentary:
Arjuna makes his declaration—"I will not fight"—and falls silent. This silence represents the complete exhaustion of his own reasoning. He has presented his case; now he waits. This receptive silence is essential for receiving teaching.
Learning:
After presenting your case, know when to be silent. Arjuna spoke his truth, then stopped. Wisdom often requires us to empty ourselves of our own arguments before we can receive new understanding. Create space through silence.
O Bharata (Dhritarashtra), to him who was grieving between the two armies, Hrishikesha (Krishna), as if smiling, spoke these words.
Commentary:
Krishna's response begins "as if smiling" (prahasanniva). This smile is not mockery but the gentle amusement of one who sees beyond the immediate crisis. Krishna knows the situation is less dire than Arjuna perceives.
Learning:
Perspective transforms problems. Krishna smiled because he saw the larger picture Arjuna couldn't see. What seems catastrophic from one viewpoint may appear entirely different from a higher perspective. Seek that broader view.
The Supreme Lord said: You grieve for those who should not be grieved for, yet you speak words of wisdom. The wise grieve neither for the living nor for the dead.
Commentary:
Krishna's teaching begins with a fundamental correction: Arjuna's grief, despite sounding wise, is misplaced. True wisdom (pandita) does not grieve for either the living or dead because it understands the eternal nature of the soul.
Learning:
Sounding wise and being wise are different. Arjuna spoke eloquently but from ignorance. Surface-level philosophical arguments can mask deeper misunderstanding. True wisdom is not about impressive words but about seeing reality clearly.
Verse 2.12
Sanskrit Transliteration:
na tvevāhaṁ jātu nāsaṁ na tvaṁ neme janādhipāḥ
na chaiva na bhaviṣhyāmaḥ sarve vayamataḥ param
Translation:
Never was there a time when I did not exist, nor you, nor all these kings; nor in the future shall any of us cease to be.
Commentary:
Krishna reveals the fundamental truth of the soul's eternality. The self has always existed and will always exist. Death is not the end of existence but a transition. This truth applies to Krishna, Arjuna, and all beings.
Learning:
You are eternal. Your essential nature transcends birth and death. Understanding this removes the fear that underlies so much human anxiety. The real "you" has never not existed and will never cease to exist.
Verse 2.13
Sanskrit Transliteration:
dehino 'smin yathā dehe kaumāraṁ yauvanaṁ jarā
tathā dehāntaraprāptir dhīras tatra na muhyati
Translation:
Just as the embodied soul continuously passes through childhood, youth, and old age in this body, so it passes into another body at death. The wise are not deluded by this.
Commentary:
Krishna uses a compelling analogy: Just as we don't grieve when a child becomes a youth, or a youth becomes elderly, we shouldn't grieve at death—it's simply another transition. The soul remains constant through all bodily changes.
Learning:
Change is not loss. We accept the constant transformation of our bodies throughout life without grief. Death is simply another transformation, not an ending. The wise understand that the essential self persists through all changes.
Verse 2.14
Sanskrit Transliteration:
mātrāsparśhās tu kaunteya śhītoṣhṇasukhaduḥkhadāḥ
āgamāpāyino 'nityās tāṁs titikṣhasva bhārata
Translation:
O son of Kunti, the contact of the senses with their objects gives rise to feelings of cold and heat, pleasure and pain. They are transient, arising and passing away. Endure them, O Bharata.
Commentary:
Sensory experiences—heat, cold, pleasure, pain—are temporary. They come and go like waves. Krishna advises "titiksha" (endurance/forbearance)—the capacity to remain steady through life's fluctuations without being overwhelmed.
Learning:
All experiences are temporary. Pleasure passes, so does pain. Knowing this, we can endure difficulty without despair and enjoy pleasure without clinging. Equanimity comes from understanding the transient nature of all experience.
Verse 2.15
Sanskrit Transliteration:
yaṁ hi na vyathayantyete puruṣhaṁ puruṣharṣhabha
samaduḥkhasukhaṁ dhīraṁ so 'mṛitatvāya kalpate
Translation:
O best among men, the person whom these do not disturb, who is the same in pleasure and pain, and who is wise—that person is fit for immortality.
Commentary:
The one who maintains equanimity through pleasure and pain becomes eligible for liberation (amritatva—immortality). This doesn't mean suppressing emotions but not being controlled by them. Such a person has mastered the fluctuations of experience.
Learning:
Equanimity is the path to freedom. Not being tossed about by life's ups and downs isn't coldness—it's mastery. The person who remains steady through both success and failure achieves something beyond ordinary human limitation.
The unreal has no existence; the real never ceases to be. The truth about both has been perceived by the seers of truth.
Commentary:
This verse distinguishes between sat (the real/permanent) and asat (the unreal/temporary). That which truly exists cannot cease; that which appears to exist but doesn't is never truly real. This is the foundation of spiritual discernment.
Learning:
Distinguish between the permanent and the temporary. Much of what we worry about is not ultimately real—it's temporary, changing, passing. Learn to identify what is truly permanent (your essential nature) versus what is merely passing phenomena.
Verse 2.17
Sanskrit Transliteration:
avināśhi tu tadviddhi yena sarvamidaṁ tatam
vināśhamavyayasyāsya na kaśhchitkartumarhati
Translation:
Know that to be indestructible by which all this is pervaded. No one can cause the destruction of the imperishable soul.
Commentary:
The soul (atman) pervades everything and cannot be destroyed by any means. It is avyaya (imperishable). No weapon, no fire, no force can destroy that which is the very essence of existence itself.
Learning:
Your essence is indestructible. No matter what happens to your body, circumstances, or life situation, your essential nature cannot be harmed. This knowledge provides unshakeable security that external circumstances can never threaten.
Verse 2.18
Sanskrit Transliteration:
antavanta ime dehā nityasyoktāḥ śharīriṇaḥ
anāśhino 'prameyasya tasmādyudhyasva bhārata
Translation:
Only the bodies of the eternal, indestructible, and immeasurable soul are said to have an end. Therefore, fight, O Bharata.
Commentary:
Bodies are temporary; the soul within is eternal. Given this truth, Arjuna's grief over killing bodies is misplaced—he cannot actually kill the souls. Krishna concludes with the practical application: therefore, fight.
Learning:
Correct understanding leads to correct action. Once Arjuna understands that the soul cannot be killed, his paralysis becomes unnecessary. Right knowledge removes obstacles to right action. Philosophy is not just theory—it guides practical life.
Verse 2.19
Sanskrit Transliteration:
ya enaṁ vetti hantāraṁ yaśhchainaṁ manyate hatam
ubhau tau na vijānīto nāyaṁ hanti na hanyate
Translation:
He who thinks the soul kills, and he who thinks it is killed—both are ignorant. The soul neither kills nor is killed.
Commentary:
Both the notion of killing and being killed apply only to the body, not the soul. One who identifies the self with the body misunderstands fundamentally. The soul is beyond all action and reaction.
Learning:
Transcend the limited view of yourself as merely a body. When we identify with the eternal self rather than the temporary body, the fear of death and the guilt of causing death both dissolve. We are more than physical beings.
Verse 2.20
Sanskrit Transliteration:
na jāyate mriyate vā kadāchin nāyaṁ bhūtvā bhavitā vā na bhūyaḥ
ajo nityaḥ śhāśhvato 'yaṁ purāṇo na hanyate hanyamāne śharīre
Translation:
The soul is never born, nor does it ever die; nor having once existed, does it ever cease to be. The soul is unborn, eternal, everlasting, and primordial; it is not slain when the body is slain.
Commentary:
One of the Gita's most famous verses. The soul is aja (unborn), nitya (eternal), shashvata (everlasting), and purana (ancient/primordial). It exists beyond the cycle of birth and death that affects only the body.
Learning:
You were never born and will never die. Your essential self is beyond time itself. This isn't mere philosophy but a truth to be realized. Understanding this transforms your relationship with mortality and fear.
Verse 2.21
Sanskrit Transliteration:
vedāvināśhinaṁ nityaṁ ya enamajamavyayam
kathaṁ sa puruṣhaḥ pārtha kaṁ ghātayati hanti kam
Translation:
O Partha, how can a person who knows the soul to be indestructible, eternal, unborn, and immutable kill anyone or cause anyone to kill?
Commentary:
Krishna poses a rhetorical question: Given the soul's nature, what does killing even mean? The wise person, understanding the soul's immortality, knows that no real death occurs—only a change of forms.
Learning:
Knowledge transforms action. Once you truly understand the eternal nature of the self, the very concept of killing changes. Action performed with correct understanding is fundamentally different from action performed in ignorance.
Just as a person casts off worn-out garments and puts on new ones, so the embodied soul casts off worn-out bodies and enters into new ones.
Commentary:
This famous analogy compares death to changing clothes. We don't grieve when we discard old clothes; similarly, the soul's transition from one body to another is simply a change of garment, not a tragedy.
Learning:
Death is transformation, not ending. Just as changing clothes doesn't change who you are, changing bodies doesn't affect your essential self. This analogy makes the abstract concept of reincarnation accessible and removes death's sting.
Verse 2.23
Sanskrit Transliteration:
nainaṁ chhindanti śhastrāṇi nainaṁ dahati pāvakaḥ
na chainaṁ kledayantyāpo na śhoṣhayati mārutaḥ
Translation:
Weapons cannot cut the soul, fire cannot burn it, water cannot wet it, and wind cannot dry it.
Commentary:
The soul is beyond all physical forces. No element—earth (represented by weapons), fire, water, or air—can affect it. The soul exists on a plane that transcends material causation entirely.
Learning:
Your true self is beyond all harm. No physical force, no circumstance, no enemy can damage your essential nature. Understanding this provides absolute security—not the false security of protection, but the true security of invulnerability.
Verse 2.24
Sanskrit Transliteration:
achchhedyo 'yamadāhyo 'yamakledyo 'śhoṣhya eva cha
nityaḥ sarvagataḥ sthāṇur achalo 'yaṁ sanātanaḥ
Translation:
The soul is unbreakable and incombustible; it can neither be wetted nor dried. It is eternal, all-pervading, unchanging, immovable, and primordial.
Commentary:
Further attributes of the soul: it cannot be broken, burned, moistened, or dried. It is sarva-gata (omnipresent), sthanu (stable), achala (immovable), and sanatana (eternal). These qualities establish the soul's absolute transcendence.
Learning:
Stability exists within you. In a constantly changing world, your essential nature is unchanging. Amid all of life's turbulence, there is an immovable center within. Finding and resting in this center brings peace.
The soul is said to be unmanifest, inconceivable, and unchangeable. Therefore, knowing this, you should not grieve.
Commentary:
The soul is avyakta (unmanifest to the senses), achintya (beyond thought), and avikarya (unchangeable). Given these truths, grief is inappropriate. Krishna brings the philosophical teaching back to practical application: therefore, don't grieve.
Learning:
Let understanding end suffering. The point of philosophy is not intellectual exercise but liberation from unnecessary suffering. Once you truly understand the soul's nature, grief for "death" becomes impossible. Knowledge has practical power.
Even if you think the soul is perpetually born and perpetually dies, still, O mighty-armed one, you should not grieve.
Commentary:
Krishna offers an alternative argument: Even if you don't accept the soul's eternality and believe it dies with the body, grief is still pointless. Birth and death would then be natural processes, not tragedies.
Learning:
Either way, grief is pointless. If the soul is eternal, death is an illusion—no grief needed. If the soul dies with the body, death is natural—no grief needed. From any philosophical standpoint, excessive grief lacks justification.
Verse 2.27
Sanskrit Transliteration:
jātasya hi dhruvo mṛityur dhruvaṁ janma mṛitasya cha
tasmādaparihārye 'rthe na tvaṁ śhochitumarhasi
Translation:
For one who is born, death is certain; and for one who dies, birth is certain. Therefore, you should not grieve over the inevitable.
Commentary:
Death is certain for the born; birth is certain after death. These are natural laws. Grieving over the inevitable is as senseless as grieving that night follows day. Accept natural law rather than fighting it.
Learning:
Accept the inevitable. Energy spent resisting what cannot be changed is wasted. Death is part of life's rhythm. Acceptance doesn't mean approval but recognition of reality. Peace comes from flowing with what cannot be altered.
Verse 2.28
Sanskrit Transliteration:
avyaktādīni bhūtāni vyaktamadhyāni bhārata
avyaktanidhanānyeva tatra kā paridevanā
Translation:
Beings are unmanifest before birth, manifest between birth and death, and unmanifest again after death. What cause is there for lamentation?
Commentary:
Before birth, we were unmanifest; after death, we return to the unmanifest. Only the middle state—life—is manifest. This is simply the pattern of existence. What is there to grieve about?
Learning:
Life is a brief manifestation within a larger existence. We emerged from mystery and return to mystery. This temporary visibility we call "life" is just one phase. Seen in this context, death loses its terror.
Verse 2.29
Sanskrit Transliteration:
āśhcharyavatpaśhyati kaśhchidenam āśhcharyavadvadati tathaiva chānyaḥ
āśhcharyavachchainamanyaḥ śhṛiṇoti śhrutvāpyenaṁ veda na chaiva kaśhchit
Translation:
Some look upon the soul as amazing, some describe it as amazing, some hear of it as amazing, while others, even after hearing about it, cannot understand it at all.
Commentary:
The soul is a marvel (ashcharya)—astonishing to behold, describe, or hear about. Yet despite this, many cannot grasp it even after extensive teaching. Understanding the soul requires more than intellectual capacity; it requires readiness.
Learning:
Some truths cannot be understood intellectually alone. The soul's nature is not just another piece of information but a mystery requiring direct insight. Hearing about it is not the same as knowing it. Understanding requires inner preparation.
O Bharata, the soul dwelling in the body of every being is eternal and indestructible. Therefore, you should not grieve for any living being.
Commentary:
Krishna concludes this section of teaching: The soul in every body is eternal and cannot be killed. This applies to all beings—enemies, friends, everyone. Therefore, grief is inappropriate in all cases.
Learning:
Universal truth applies universally. The soul's eternality isn't just your own but everyone's. Recognizing this changes how we view all beings—not as mortal bodies but as eternal souls temporarily embodied.
Verse 2.31
Sanskrit Transliteration:
svadharmamapi chāvekṣhya na vikampitumarhasi
dharmyāddhi yuddhāchchhreyo 'nyat kṣhatriyasya na vidyate
Translation:
Considering your own duty as well, you should not waver. For a warrior, there is nothing better than a righteous battle.
Commentary:
Krishna shifts from metaphysical to practical grounds. Beyond soul philosophy, there's the matter of svadharma (one's own duty). For a kshatriya (warrior), righteous battle is the highest calling. Arjuna must consider his social role.
Learning:
Know your duty and do it. Beyond abstract philosophy, we each have specific roles and responsibilities. Fulfilling your particular duty is essential. Universal truth doesn't negate individual responsibility—it clarifies it.
O Partha, happy are the warriors who are given such an opportunity for battle, unsought, opening the doors of heaven.
Commentary:
A righteous war that comes unsought is a rare opportunity for a warrior. The Kauravas forced this conflict; the Pandavas didn't seek it. Such a war opens heaven's doors—it is a gift, not a curse.
Learning:
Sometimes opportunities come disguised as obligations. What seems like a burden may be a doorway. Arjuna's "problem" was actually an opportunity for dharmic action and spiritual growth. Reframe challenges as opportunities.
Verse 2.33
Sanskrit Transliteration:
atha chettvamimaṁ dharmyaṁ saṅgrāmaṁ na kariṣhyasi
tataḥ svadharmaṁ kīrtiṁ cha hitvā pāpamavāpsyasi
Translation:
But if you do not fight this righteous battle, then, abandoning your duty and honor, you will incur sin.
Commentary:
Not acting is also a choice with consequences. If Arjuna refuses to fight, he abandons both his duty (dharma) and his honor (kirti). Inaction in the face of duty is itself sinful. There is no escape through avoidance.
Learning:
Inaction is also action. Choosing not to act is itself a choice with moral consequences. We cannot escape responsibility by refusing to choose. Sometimes not doing something is worse than doing it.
Verse 2.34
Sanskrit Transliteration:
akīrtiṁ chāpi bhūtāni kathayiṣhyanti te 'vyayām
sambhāvitasya chākīrtir maraṇādatirichyate
Translation:
People will speak of your everlasting infamy. For a respectable person, dishonor is worse than death.
Commentary:
If Arjuna flees, his disgrace will be eternal. People will speak of his cowardice for generations. For one who has earned honor, losing it is worse than death. Krishna appeals to Arjuna's sense of reputation.
Learning:
Reputation matters, but not as much as integrity. While Krishna uses honor as motivation here, the deeper point is that abandoning duty has lasting consequences beyond the immediate moment. Our choices define us permanently.
The great warriors will think that you fled from battle out of fear. Those who held you in high esteem will think less of you.
Commentary:
The great warriors will attribute Arjuna's retreat to fear, not philosophy. Those who respected him will lose that respect. His sophisticated arguments will be interpreted as mere cowardice.
Learning:
Your reasoning may not be how others interpret your actions. Arjuna's nuanced moral struggle would appear to others as simple fear. Be aware that actions speak louder than internal justifications, and others judge by appearances.
Verse 2.36
Sanskrit Transliteration:
avāchyavādāṁśhcha bahūn vadiṣhyanti tavāhitāḥ
nindantastava sāmarthyaṁ tato duḥkhataraṁ nu kim
Translation:
Your enemies will speak many unspeakable words about you, slandering your abilities. What could be more painful than that?
Commentary:
Enemies will mock and slander him. They will question his abilities and courage. For a warrior of Arjuna's stature, enduring such insults would be unbearable suffering—worse than the battle itself.
Learning:
Sometimes facing difficulty is less painful than avoiding it. The suffering of avoidance—shame, mockery, self-doubt—can exceed the suffering of engagement. Running from problems often creates greater problems.
If you are killed, you will attain heaven; if you are victorious, you will enjoy the earth. Therefore, arise, O son of Kunti, resolved to fight.
Commentary:
Krishna presents a win-win: Die in battle and gain heaven; win and rule the earth. Either outcome is positive. There is no losing scenario. With this understanding, Arjuna should rise with firm resolve.
Learning:
Reframe situations to see opportunity in all outcomes. When you can genuinely see that all possible results have value, fear dissolves. The key is shifting perspective to recognize benefit in every scenario.
Verse 2.38
Sanskrit Transliteration:
sukhaduḥkhe same kṛitvā lābhālābhau jayājayau
tato yuddhāya yujyasva naivaṁ pāpamavāpsyasi
Translation:
Treating alike pleasure and pain, gain and loss, victory and defeat, engage in battle. Thus you will incur no sin.
Commentary:
The key teaching emerges: equanimity. When pleasure and pain, gain and loss, victory and defeat are treated equally, action becomes pure. This equanimity (samatva) is the secret to action without karmic bondage.
Learning:
Equanimity is the key to action without burden. When you act without being attached to specific outcomes, action becomes free from anxiety and karma. This doesn't mean not caring but not being controlled by preferences.
This understanding has been explained to you from the perspective of knowledge. Now hear it from the perspective of yoga, endowed with which you shall cast off the bonds of karma.
Commentary:
Krishna transitions from Sankhya (analytical knowledge) to Yoga (practical application). Knowledge alone isn't enough; it must be applied. The yoga of action will free Arjuna from karmic bondage while still performing duty.
Learning:
Knowledge must become practice. Understanding philosophically is just the beginning. The real transformation comes through applying wisdom in action. Theory without practice remains sterile; practice embodies and realizes truth.
Verse 2.40
Sanskrit Transliteration:
nehābhikramanāśho 'sti pratyavāyo na vidyate
svalpamapyasya dharmasya trāyate mahato bhayāt
Translation:
In this path, no effort is ever lost and there is no adverse result. Even a little practice of this dharma protects one from great fear.
Commentary:
On the path of karma yoga, no effort is wasted. Unlike material pursuits where incomplete work yields nothing, spiritual progress is never lost. Even a small step provides protection from the great fear of cyclic existence.
Learning:
Spiritual progress is never lost. Every step on the path counts and accumulates. Unlike worldly achievements that can be lost, spiritual development persists across lifetimes. This encourages steady effort without fear of loss.
Verse 2.41
Sanskrit Transliteration:
vyavasāyātmikā buddhir ekeha kurunandana
bahushākhā hyanantāśh cha buddhayo 'vyavasāyinām
Translation:
O son of the Kurus, on this path the resolute intellect is single-pointed. The intellects of the irresolute are many-branched and endless.
Commentary:
The determined seeker has focused intelligence; the wavering mind runs in countless directions. Success requires one-pointed resolve (vyavasaya). Scattered attention leads nowhere despite much effort.
Learning:
Focus is essential for achievement. A scattered mind accomplishes little despite constant activity. Single-pointed determination toward a clear goal yields results. Decide what matters and direct all energy there.
The unwise speak flowery words, delighting in the letter of the Vedas, O Partha, saying there is nothing else. Their nature is desire, their goal is heaven, and they speak of elaborate rituals for the attainment of pleasure and power.
Commentary:
Krishna critiques those who misuse scripture for material ends. They quote flowery Vedic verses but miss the deeper meaning, using religion to pursue desires. Their goal is heaven (temporary pleasure), not liberation (permanent freedom).
Learning:
Don't mistake religious activity for spiritual growth. Elaborate rituals performed for worldly gains miss the point. The purpose of spiritual practice is liberation from desire, not fulfillment of desire through religious means.
Verse 2.44
Sanskrit Transliteration:
bhogaiśhvaryaprasaktānāṁ tayāpahṛitachetasām
vyavasāyātmikā buddhiḥ samādhau na vidhīyate
Translation:
Those whose minds are carried away by such teachings and who are deeply attached to pleasure and power cannot have the resolute determination for meditation on God.
Commentary:
Those obsessed with pleasure and power cannot develop the focused mind needed for samadhi (meditative absorption). Worldly attachment scatters attention. Only those free from such attachment can achieve the required concentration.
Learning:
Attachment to results destroys focus. When the mind constantly calculates gains and pleasures, it cannot settle into deeper states. Letting go of outcome attachment is prerequisite for higher achievement—paradoxically, non-attachment enables greater accomplishment.
The Vedas deal with the three gunas. Be free from the three gunas, O Arjuna. Be free from duality, ever established in purity, without concern for acquisition or preservation, and self-controlled.
Commentary:
Most Vedic teaching concerns the three gunas (qualities of nature). Krishna advises transcending even this. Rise above duality (dvandva), remain in purity (sattva), release anxiety about getting or keeping things, and know the self.
Learning:
Transcend even religious convention. True spirituality goes beyond prescribed formulas to direct realization. Release the constant worry about gaining what you want and keeping what you have. This freedom is the path to self-knowledge.
As much use as there is for a small well when there is a flood everywhere, so much use are all the Vedas for an enlightened Brahmin.
Commentary:
When a flood provides water everywhere, a well becomes unnecessary. Similarly, one who has attained direct knowledge of Brahman has transcended the need for scriptural study. The scriptures point to truth; realizing truth, one goes beyond the pointer.
Learning:
Scriptures are means, not ends. Sacred texts guide us toward truth, but once truth is realized, they've served their purpose. Don't mistake the map for the territory. The goal is direct experience, not accumulation of teachings.
You have a right to action alone, never to its fruits. Do not be motivated by the fruits of action, nor should you be attached to inaction.
Commentary:
This is perhaps the Gita's most famous verse. We control our actions but not results. Acting for results creates bondage; acting without attachment to results brings freedom. Yet this doesn't justify inaction—we must act, just without attachment.
Learning:
Act without attachment to results. Do your best, then release the outcome. This isn't indifference but maturity. You can care about quality without being enslaved to specific results. This brings both effectiveness and peace.
Verse 2.48
Sanskrit Transliteration:
yogasthaḥ kuru karmāṇi saṅgaṁ tyaktvā dhanañjaya
siddhyasiddhyoḥ samo bhūtvā samatvaṁ yoga uchyate
Translation:
Perform actions, O Dhananjaya, being established in yoga, abandoning attachment, and remaining the same in success and failure. This evenness of mind is called yoga.
Commentary:
Krishna defines yoga: equanimity (samatva). Perform action from a state of yoga—evenness—unattached to results, unmoved by success or failure. This mental stability amid action is the essence of yoga.
Learning:
Yoga is equanimity. Beyond postures and techniques, yoga fundamentally means evenness of mind. When success and failure no longer shake you, you've achieved yoga. This stability enables clear, effective action.
Action motivated by desire is far inferior to action performed with wisdom, O Dhananjaya. Seek refuge in wisdom. Miserable are those driven by desire for results.
Commentary:
Action done with wisdom-yoga far exceeds action done for results. Take shelter in discriminative wisdom. Those who act only for fruits are "kripana" (miserable/miserly)—they sell their freedom for petty gains.
Learning:
Don't sell your peace for results. Those who act only for gain are spiritually impoverished. They sacrifice inner freedom for outer achievement. Acting with wisdom means valuing the quality of action itself, not just outcomes.
One united with wisdom casts off both good and bad deeds in this very life. Therefore, strive for yoga. Yoga is skill in action.
Commentary:
The wise one transcends even the duality of good and bad karma. United with wisdom, all karmic bonds are severed in this lifetime. Hence, practice yoga. Krishna's famous definition: yoga is skill (kaushala) in action.
Learning:
Yoga is skill in action. Not withdrawal from action but mastery of action—this is yoga. Skill means appropriate, effective, non-binding action. The yogi acts with precision, appropriateness, and freedom, without creating new karmic bonds.
Verse 2.51
Sanskrit Transliteration:
karmjaṁ buddhiyuktā hi phalaṁ tyaktvā manīṣhiṇaḥ
janmabandhavinirmuktāḥ padaṁ gachchhantyanāmayam
Translation:
The wise, united with wisdom, renouncing the fruits born of action, freed from the bondage of birth, go to the state beyond sorrow.
Commentary:
The wise who act with wisdom and renounce fruits become free from the cycle of birth and death. They attain a state beyond all suffering (anamaya pada). Detached action leads to ultimate liberation.
Learning:
Detached action leads to freedom from suffering. By releasing attachment to results while still acting effectively, we break the cycle that keeps us bound to suffering. Action itself doesn't bind; attachment to results does.
Verse 2.52
Sanskrit Transliteration:
yadā te mohakalilaṁ buddhirvyatitariṣhyati
tadā gantāsi nirvedaṁ śhrotavyasya śhrutasya cha
Translation:
When your intellect crosses beyond the mire of delusion, you will become indifferent to what has been heard and what is yet to be heard.
Commentary:
When wisdom pierces delusion, you'll transcend scripture itself. You'll become "nirveda"—beyond the need for verbal teaching. Direct knowledge supersedes secondhand knowledge, however sacred its source.
Learning:
Direct experience transcends learning. There comes a point when study gives way to realization. You've heard enough; now embody it. The goal of learning is to graduate from learning into being.
Verse 2.53
Sanskrit Transliteration:
śhrutivipratipannā te yadā sthāsyati niśhchalā
samādhāvachalā buddhistadā yogamavāpsyasi
Translation:
When your intellect, bewildered by conflicting scriptural teachings, becomes steady and firmly established in the self, then you will attain yoga.
Commentary:
The mind confused by various doctrines becomes steady in samadhi—focused, immovable, established in the self. This is the attainment of yoga: not just understanding but stable establishment in truth.
Learning:
Beyond confusion lies clarity. The bewilderment of conflicting teachings resolves into stable wisdom. This requires moving from intellectual study to meditative absorption. True understanding brings unshakeable steadiness.
Verse 2.54
Sanskrit Transliteration:
arjuna uvācha
sthitaprajñasya kā bhāṣhā samādhisthasya keśhava
sthitadhīḥ kiṁ prabhāṣheta kimāsīta vrajeta kim
Translation:
Arjuna said: O Keshava, what are the characteristics of one whose wisdom is steady, who is established in samadhi? How does the steady-minded person speak, sit, and walk?
Commentary:
Arjuna asks a practical question: How do we recognize a "sthitaprajna"—one of steady wisdom? How do they speak, behave, move? He wants practical markers, not just theory.
Learning:
Seek practical signs of wisdom. Abstract philosophy must manifest in concrete behavior. Arjuna wisely asks: How does realization look in daily life? Wisdom not expressed in living is merely intellectual.
The Supreme Lord said: O Partha, when one completely casts off all desires arising in the mind and is satisfied in the self by the self alone, then one is said to be of steady wisdom.
Commentary:
Krishna describes the sthitaprajna: one who has abandoned all mental desires and finds complete satisfaction in the self alone, needing nothing external for fulfillment. This is not suppression but genuine freedom.
Learning:
True contentment is self-sourced. When satisfaction depends on nothing external—no achievement, no possession, no approval—you've found steady wisdom. This isn't resignation but fulfillment. The self, known fully, is enough.
One whose mind is undisturbed by sorrow, who has no craving for pleasure, who is free from attachment, fear, and anger—such a sage is said to be of steady wisdom.
Commentary:
The steady sage is unmoved by sorrow, doesn't crave pleasure, and is free from the trio of attachment, fear, and anger. These three—raga, bhaya, krodha—cover most human reactivity. Freedom from them defines the sage.
Learning:
Freedom from reactivity is wisdom. When sorrow doesn't shake you, pleasure doesn't lure you, and attachment, fear, and anger don't control you, wisdom is established. This isn't numbness but mastery over automatic reactions.
Verse 2.57
Sanskrit Transliteration:
yaḥ sarvatrānabhisnehas tattatprāpya śhubhāśhubham
nābhinandati na dveṣhṭi tasya prajñā pratiṣhṭhitā
Translation:
One who is without attachment everywhere, who neither rejoices nor hates on encountering good or evil—that person's wisdom is firmly established.
Commentary:
The sage with established wisdom is unattached everywhere. Meeting good fortune, they don't rejoice excessively; meeting misfortune, they don't hate. This perfect equanimity indicates wisdom that is firmly rooted.
Learning:
Equanimity in all circumstances indicates established wisdom. When neither success nor failure changes your inner state significantly, wisdom has stabilized. This doesn't mean lacking preferences but not being controlled by them.
When one can withdraw the senses from sense objects, as a tortoise withdraws its limbs into its shell, then wisdom is firmly established.
Commentary:
The tortoise analogy: Just as a tortoise withdraws limbs into its shell, the sage can withdraw senses from objects at will. This isn't permanent withdrawal but the ability to control engagement—mastery, not suppression.
Learning:
Sense mastery is the ability to engage or withdraw at will. This isn't about denying the senses but controlling them. When you can direct attention voluntarily rather than being pulled by every stimulus, wisdom is established.
Sense objects turn away from one who abstains from feeding them, though the taste for them remains. But even this taste ceases upon seeing the Supreme.
Commentary:
Forced abstinence removes objects but not the craving (rasa) for them. Only upon realizing the Supreme does even the craving disappear. Mere discipline cannot eliminate desire; only higher experience can.
Learning:
Suppression isn't freedom. You can avoid sense objects, but craving remains until something higher replaces it. True freedom from desire comes not through denial but through discovery of something greater that naturally supersedes lesser pleasures.
The senses are so turbulent, O son of Kunti, that they can forcibly carry away the mind even of a wise person who is striving for control.
Commentary:
Even those actively striving for mastery can have their minds forcibly seized by the powerful senses. The senses are "pramathini"—capable of violent disruption. This warns against complacency; vigilance is always needed.
Learning:
Never underestimate the power of the senses. Even the wise can be overwhelmed if careless. Sense mastery requires constant vigilance, not just initial effort. Don't assume you're beyond temptation; remain humbly alert.
Having restrained all the senses, one should sit in meditation, focused on Me. One whose senses are under control—their wisdom is firmly established.
Commentary:
The remedy: Restrain the senses and focus the mind on the Supreme (mat-para). When senses are truly under control, wisdom stabilizes. Devotion to the Divine provides the positive focus that makes restraint effective.
Learning:
Restraint works best with positive focus. Mere suppression is difficult; focusing on something higher makes it natural. Direct the mind toward the Divine, and sense restraint follows. Replace, don't just remove.
Contemplating sense objects, one develops attachment. From attachment arises desire. From desire arises anger.
Commentary:
Krishna maps the downward spiral: Dwelling on objects creates attachment; attachment becomes desire; unfulfilled desire becomes anger. The cascade begins with thought—where the mind dwells determines the direction of life.
Learning:
Mind your thoughts—they determine your trajectory. The sequence from thought to attachment to desire to anger shows how mental habits create emotional states. Control the first step (contemplation) to prevent the later steps.
From anger arises delusion. From delusion, loss of memory. From loss of memory, destruction of intelligence. From destruction of intelligence, one is ruined.
Commentary:
The cascade continues: Anger clouds judgment (delusion); delusion destroys memory (forgetting who you are and what matters); without memory, intelligence fails; without intelligence, one perishes. The downward spiral is complete.
Learning:
Anger triggers a cascade of destruction. Once anger takes hold, clarity, memory, and wisdom progressively collapse. Understanding this chain helps interrupt it. Catch the process early—at the thought stage—before momentum builds.
But one who moves among sense objects with senses free from attraction and aversion, under control of the self—such a disciplined person attains serenity.
Commentary:
The alternative path: Engage with the world through disciplined senses, free from compulsive attraction and aversion. This isn't withdrawal but engagement with mastery. Such a person attains prasada—serene grace.
Learning:
Engage the world with inner freedom. You don't have to avoid the world to be free in it. Move through life with senses that are disciplined, not driven by compulsive attraction and aversion. This brings deep peace.
In that serenity, all sorrows are destroyed. The wisdom of one with a serene mind soon becomes firmly established.
Commentary:
From serenity (prasada), all suffering dissolves. With a peaceful mind, wisdom rapidly stabilizes. Peace isn't just pleasant; it's functionally essential—without it, wisdom cannot take root.
Learning:
Peace is prerequisite to wisdom. Without mental serenity, wisdom cannot stabilize. All the understanding in the world won't stick if the mind is turbulent. Cultivate peace first; wisdom follows naturally.
Verse 2.66
Sanskrit Transliteration:
nāsti buddhirayuktasya na chāyuktasya bhāvanā
na chābhāvayataḥ śhāntir aśhāntasya kutaḥ sukham
Translation:
For one who is not united (with the self), there is no wisdom, no meditation. For one who does not meditate, there is no peace. For one without peace, how can there be happiness?
Commentary:
Without yoga (union), no wisdom arises. Without wisdom, no true meditation is possible. Without meditation, no peace. Without peace, no happiness. Each depends on the previous, forming an essential chain.
Learning:
The chain of spiritual development cannot skip links. Union leads to wisdom, wisdom enables meditation, meditation brings peace, peace allows happiness. You can't jump straight to happiness; the foundation must be built.
Verse 2.67
Sanskrit Transliteration:
indriyāṇāṁ hi charatāṁ yanmano 'nuvidhīyate
tadasya harati prajñāṁ vāyurnāvamivāmbhasi
Translation:
For the mind that follows the wandering senses, wisdom is carried away as wind carries away a boat on water.
Commentary:
A mind that chases after the senses is like a boat tossed by wind on water—at the mercy of forces, going nowhere intentionally. Without sense control, wisdom cannot remain steady.
Learning:
An undisciplined mind is at the mercy of circumstances. Like a rudderless boat, it goes wherever the winds push it. Mastery of senses gives direction; without it, you're blown about by every impulse.
Therefore, O mighty-armed one, whose senses are completely restrained from sense objects—their wisdom is firmly established.
Commentary:
Krishna reiterates: Complete sense restraint establishes wisdom firmly. The word "nigrihitani" (restrained/controlled) doesn't mean destroyed but disciplined—brought under voluntary control.
Learning:
Sense mastery is non-negotiable for wisdom. This isn't optional or advanced practice but foundational requirement. Until you have voluntary control over your senses, wisdom cannot stabilize.
What is night for all beings is the time of awakening for the self-controlled; and the time of awakening for all beings is night for the introspective sage.
Commentary:
The sage and ordinary person live in inverted realities. What keeps most people awake (sensory pursuits), the sage sleeps through. What most people sleep through (spiritual reality), the sage is awake to. Different planes of consciousness.
Learning:
The wise person lives in a different reality than the crowd. What captivates most people holds no interest for the sage; what the sage sees, most people miss entirely. This isn't arrogance but different orientation.
Verse 2.70
Sanskrit Transliteration:
āpūryamāṇamachalapratiṣhṭhaṁ samudramāpaḥ praviśhanti yadvat
tadvatkāmā yaṁ praviśhanti sarve sa śhāntimāpnoti na kāmakāmī
Translation:
As the ocean remains undisturbed by the constant flow of waters from rivers merging into it, so the sage who is unmoved despite the flow of desires attains peace, not one who strives to satisfy desires.
Commentary:
The ocean analogy: Rivers constantly pour in, yet the ocean's level remains constant. Similarly, desires may arise in the sage's mind, but they don't disturb the equilibrium. Peace comes from non-reaction, not from satisfying every desire.
Learning:
Let desires pass through without reacting. Like the ocean absorbing rivers without rising, let desires arise and pass without acting on them compulsively. Peace comes from this non-reactive awareness, not from fulfilling every want.
Verse 2.71
Sanskrit Transliteration:
vihāya kāmānyaḥ sarvān pumāṁśhcharati niḥspṛihaḥ
nirmamo nirahṅkāraḥ sa śhāntimadhigachchhati
Translation:
One who gives up all desires, acts without craving, without sense of "mine" and without ego—that person attains peace.
Commentary:
Complete renunciation of desire, possessiveness ("mine"), and ego ("I")—this is the formula for peace. Not physical renunciation but psychological release from the grip of desire and self-centeredness.
Learning:
True renunciation is internal. It's not about what you own but about releasing the claims of "mine" and "I." When desire, possessiveness, and ego dissolve, peace naturally arises.
O Partha, this is the state of Brahman. Having attained this, one is never deluded. Being established in this state even at the hour of death, one attains liberation in Brahman.
Commentary:
Krishna concludes: This is "Brahmi sthiti"—the state of established in Brahman. Once attained, delusion is impossible. Even at death, one established in this state attains "brahma-nirvana"—liberation into the Absolute.
Learning:
This state, once attained, is permanent and culminates in liberation. The goal of all this teaching is not just intellectual understanding but permanent establishment in truth. This state, maintained even at death, ensures final liberation.
Translation and commentary sourced from public domain texts.
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