gita-chapter-2-en

{ "title": "Chapter 2: Sānkhya Yog", "chapterIntro": "In this chapter, Arjun reiterates to Shree Krishna that he is unable to cope with his current situation, where he has to kill his elders and teachers. He refuses to take part in such a battle and requests Shree Krishna to be his spiritual teacher and guide him on the proper path of action. Then the Supreme Lord starts imparting divine knowledge to Arjun. He begins with the immortal-nature of the soul, which is eternal and imperishable. Death only destroys the physical body, but the soul continues its journey.  Just as a person discards his old clothes and adorns new ones, the soul keeps changing bodies from one lifetime to another.\nThe Lord then reminds Arjun that his social responsibility as a warrior is to fight for upholding righteousness. He explains that performing one’s social duty is a virtuous act that can take him to the celestial abodes, while dereliction only leads to infamy and humiliation.\nAt first, Shree Krishna tries to motivate Arjun at a mundane level. Then he moves deeper and starts explaining to Arjun the Science of Work. He asks Arjun to perform his deeds without any attachment to their fruits. This science of working without desire for rewards is called the yog of the intellect or buddhi-yog. He further advises that the intellect should be used to control the desire for rewards from work. By working with such intent, the bondage-creating karmas get transformed into bondage-breaking karmas and a state beyond sorrows can be attained.\nArjun is curious to know more about those who are situated in divine consciousness. Shree Krishna, therefore, describes how persons who have attained transcendence are free from attachment, fear, and anger. They are undisturbed and equipoised in every situation. With their senses subdued, they keep their minds always absorbed in God. He also explains the progression of afflictions of the mind—such as greed, anger, lust, etc. and advises how these can be overcome.", "verseList": [ { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.1", "verse": "1", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "सञ्जय उवाच |\nतं तथा कृपयाविष्टमश्रुपूर्णाकुलेक्षणम् |\nविषीदन्तमिदं वाक्यमुवाच मधुसूदन: || 1||", "text": "सञ्जय उवाच |\nतं तथा कृपयाविष्टमश्रुपूर्णाकुलेक्षणम् |\nविषीदन्तमिदं वाक्यमुवाच मधुसूदन: || 1||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_001.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "Sanjay said: Seeing Arjun overwhelmed with pity, his mind grief-stricken, and his eyes full of tears, Shree Krishna spoke the following words.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-01.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.1.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "To describe Arjun’s feelings, Sanjay uses the word kṛipayā, meaning pity or compassion.  This compassion is of two kinds.  One is the divine compassion that God and the saints feel toward the souls in the material realm, on seeing their suffering in separation to God.  The other is the material compassion that we feel upon seeing the bodily distress of others.  Material compassion is a noble sentiment that is not perfectly directed.  It is like being obsessed with the health of the car while the driver sitting within is famished for food.  Arjun is experiencing this second kind of sentiment.  He is overwhelmed with material pity toward his enemies gathered for battle.  The fact that Arjun is overcome by grief and despair shows that he is himself in dire need of compassion.  Therefore, the idea of his being merciful upon others is meaningless.\nIn this verse, Shree Krishna is addressed as “Madhusudan.”  He had slayed the demon Madhu, and hence gotten the name Madhusudan, or “slayer of the Madhu demon.”  Here, He is about to slay the demon of doubt that has arisen in Arjun’s mind and is preventing him from discharging his duty." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.2", "verse": "2", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "श्रीभगवानुवाच |\nकुतस्त्वा कश्मलमिदं विषमे समुपस्थितम् |\nअनार्यजुष्टमस्वर्ग्यमकीर्तिकरमर्जुन || 2||", "text": "श्रीभगवानुवाच |\nकुतस्त्वा कश्मलमिदं विषमे समुपस्थितम् |\nअनार्यजुष्टमस्वर्ग्यमकीर्तिकरमर्जुन || 2||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_002.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "The Supreme Lord said: My dear Arjun, how has this delusion overcome you in this hour of peril? It is not befitting an honorable person. It leads not to the higher abodes, but to disgrace.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-02.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.2.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "The word Ārya in our sacred books does not refer to any race or ethnic group.  The Manu Smṛiti defines an Aryan as a highly evolved and cultured person.  “Aryan” connotes goodness, like the term “perfect gentleman.”  The aim of the Vedic scriptures is to induce humans to become Aryans in all respects.  Shree Krishna finds Arjun’s present condition in conflict with that ideal, and so reprimands him by calling attention to his confusion in how to live up to this ideal state of being under the current circumstances.\nThe Bhagavad Gita, or “Song of God,” effectively begins from here because Shree Krishna, who was quiet until now, starts speaking in this verse.  The Supreme Lord first begins by inducing in Arjun a hunger for knowledge.  He does this by pointing out that his state of confusion is dishonorable and inappropriate for virtuous persons.  He then goes on to remind Arjun of the consequences of delusion, which are pain, infamy, failure in life, and degradation of the soul.\nRather than comforting him, Shree Krishna is making Arjun uncomfortable about his current state.  We all feel uncomfortable when we are confused because it is not the natural condition of the soul.  That feeling of discontentment, if properly channeled, can become a powerful impetus to search for true knowledge.  The suitable resolution of doubt helps a person acquire a deeper understanding than before.  Thus, God sometimes deliberately puts a person in turmoil, so that he or she may be forced to search for knowledge to remove the confusion.  And when the doubt is finally resolved, that person reaches a higher level of understanding." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.3", "verse": "3", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "क्लैब्यं मा स्म गम: पार्थ नैतत्त्वय्युपपद्यते |\nक्षुद्रं हृदयदौर्बल्यं त्यक्त्वोत्तिष्ठ परन्तप || 3||", "text": "क्लैब्यं मा स्म गम: पार्थ नैतत्त्वय्युपपद्यते |\nक्षुद्रं हृदयदौर्बल्यं त्यक्त्वोत्तिष्ठ परन्तप || 3||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_003.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "O Parth, it does not befit you to yield to this unmanliness. Give up such petty weakness of heart and arise, O vanquisher of enemies.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-03.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.3.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "Successfully treading the path of enlightenment requires high spirits and morale.  One needs to be optimistic, enthusiastic, and energetic to overcome the negativities of the material mind, such as sloth, the rut of habit, ignorance, and attachment.  Shree Krishna is a skillful teacher, and thus having reprimanded Arjun, He now enhances Arjun’s internal strength to tackle the situation by encouraging him.\nBy addressing Arjun as the son of Pritha (another name for Kunti), Shree Krishna invokes him to remember his mother Kunti.  She had worshipped Indra, the chief of the celestial gods, and with his blessings Arjun was born.  Hence, he was endowed with extraordinary might and valor, similar to that of Indra.  Shree Krishna is reminding him of this, encouraging him not to yield to this impotence, which does not befit his illustrious parentage.  Again, He addresses Arjun as Parantapa, or conqueror of enemies, indicating to him to vanquish the enemy that has arisen within him, namely, the desire for dereliction of his dutiful action as a Kshatriya, or warrior class prince.\nShree Krishna goes on to explain that the way he is feeling is neither moral duty nor true compassion; rather, it is lamentation and delusion.  It has its roots in weakness of mind.  If his behavior was truly based on wisdom and mercy, then he would experience neither confusion nor grief." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.4", "verse": "4", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "अर्जुन उवाच |\nकथं भीष्ममहं सङ्ख्ये द्रोणं च मधुसूदन |\nइषुभि: प्रतियोत्स्यामि पूजार्हावरिसूदन || 4||", "text": "अर्जुन उवाच |\nकथं भीष्ममहं सङ्ख्ये द्रोणं च मधुसूदन |\nइषुभि: प्रतियोत्स्यामि पूजार्हावरिसूदन || 4||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_004.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "Arjun said: O Madhusudan, how can I shoot arrows in battle on men like Bheeshma and Dronacharya, who are worthy of my worship, O destroyer of enemies?", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-04.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.4.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "In response to Shree Krishna’s call for action, Arjun presents his confusion.  He states that Bheeshma and Dronacharya are worthy of his respect and adoration.  Bheeshma was the embodiment of chastity, and remained a lifelong celibate to fulfill the vow he had made to his father.  Arjun’s military preceptor, Dronacharya, was a genius in the science of warfare, and it was from him that Arjun mastered the art of archery.  Kripacharya was another respectable person on the other side, whom Arjun had always held in veneration.  To treat these men of high merit as enemies now seemed abominable to the noble-minded Arjun.  If even arguing with these venerable elders was improper, then how could he ever think of attacking them with weapons?  His statement thus implies, “O Krishna, please do not doubt my courage.  I am prepared to fight.  But from the perspective of moral duty, my duty is to respect my teachers and to show compassion to the sons of Dhritarashtra.”" }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.5", "verse": "5", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "गुरूनहत्वा हि महानुभावान्\nश्रेयो भोक्तुं भैक्ष्यमपीह लोके |\nहत्वार्थकामांस्तु गुरूनिहैव\nभुञ्जीय भोगान् रुधिरप्रदिग्धान् || 5||", "text": "गुरूनहत्वा हि महानुभावान्\nश्रेयो भोक्तुं भैक्ष्यमपीह लोके |\nहत्वार्थकामांस्तु गुरूनिहैव\nभुञ्जीय भोगान् रुधिरप्रदिग्धान् || 5||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_005.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "It would be better to live in this world by begging, than to enjoy life by killing these noble elders, who are my teachers. If we kill them, the wealth and pleasures we enjoy will be tainted with blood.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-05.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.5.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "It could be argued that Arjun needed to fight and win the kingdom to maintain his livelihood. But, Arjun refutes that line of thought here. He says that he would prefer to live by begging than commit this heinous crime. He further believes that if he does indulge in this heinous act of fighting the war and kills his elders and relatives, his conscience will not allow him to enjoy any of the fruits of his action in this world, such as riches and power.\nShakespeare’s play Macbeth carries a telling example of a person not being able to enjoy even the natural state of sleep due to guilty conscience, let alone enjoy any wealth and power that comes along by immoral conduct. Macbeth was a nobleman of Scotland. Once while travelling, the king of Scotland came to rest the night at his house. Macbeth’s wife incited him to murder the king and usurp his throne. Macbeth got swayed by her advice and assassinated the king, and thereafter, he and Lady Macbeth were crowned as the king and queen of Scotland. However, for years after that, Macbeth would be found walking in his palace, fully awake at night. The author writes, “Macbeth hath killed sleep, and so Macbeth shall sleep no more.” The queen would be found repeatedly washing her hands, as if to remove imaginary blood stains. In this verse, Arjun commiserates that, if he did kill these noble elders, tainted with their blood, his conscience would not let him enjoy all the royal benefits of ruling the kingdom." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.6", "verse": "6", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "न चैतद्विद्म: कतरन्नो गरीयो\nयद्वा जयेम यदि वा नो जयेयु: |\nयानेव हत्वा न जिजीविषाम\nस्तेऽवस्थिता: प्रमुखे धार्तराष्ट्रा: || 6||", "text": "न चैतद्विद्म: कतरन्नो गरीयो\nयद्वा जयेम यदि वा नो जयेयु: |\nयानेव हत्वा न जिजीविषाम\nस्तेऽवस्थिता: प्रमुखे धार्तराष्ट्रा: || 6||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_006.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "We do not even know which result of this war is preferable for us—conquering them or being conquered by them. Even after killing them we will not desire to live. Yet they have taken the side of the sons of Dhritarasthra, and now stand before us on the battlefield.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-06.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.6.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "When evaluating the most suitable course of action, one considers various alternatives and their consequences. Arjun was debating whether it would be desirable to defeat the Kauravas or to be defeated by them. Both alternatives seemed like defeat, for if he did win the war by slaying the Kauravas, he would have no further desire to live.\nHowever, the fact was that Bheeshma, Dronacharya, Kripacharya, etc. had acted ignobly by taking the side of the unrighteous Kauravas. The word arthakām has been used for them, implying, “attached to wealth and position,” they had taken the side of the wicked Duryodhan. So, killing them in the war was a natural consequence. In fact, after the war, Bheeshma himself admitted that a teacher who acts ignobly is fit to be abandoned.\nHere, special mention needs to be made of Bheeshma. According to the Śhrīmad Bhāgavatam (verse 9.22.19), he was a great devotee of Shree Krishna. He was a master of his senses, and an icon of chivalry and generosity. He was a knower of the Absolute Truth, and had vowed to always speak the truth in his life. Even death could only come to him when he chose to accept it. For various reasons, he is enumerated amongst the twelve great personalities, or Mahājans, mentioned in the Bhāgavatam:\nswayambhūr nāradaḥ śhambhuḥ kumāraḥ kapilo manuḥprahlādo janako bhīṣhmo balir vaiyāsakir vayam (6.3.20) [v1]\n“These are the twelve great knowers of religious principles—the first-born Brahma, Sage Narad, Lord Shiv, the four Kumars, Bhagavan Kapil (son of Devahuti), Svayambhuva Manu, Prahlad Maharaj, Janak Maharaj, Grandfather Bheeshma, Bali Maharaj, Shukadev Muni, and Ved Vyas.”\nHence, Bheeshma was an enlightened soul, whose actions could never be against the principles of dharma. However, his profound character was beyond mundane reasoning. Even though he fought on the side of the Kauravas, he said to Yudhishthir (the eldest of the Pandava brothers) before the war, “I am obliged to combat on the side of unrighteousness, but I give you the boon that you will be victorious.” Bheeshma knew that the righteous Pandavas, who had the Supreme Lord Shree Krishna on their side, could never lose. By taking the side of adharma (unrighteousness), he showed that even the biggest forces on heaven and earth could not make unholiness win in this holy war. He thus offered the biggest sacrifice of laying down his life, to assist the divine pastimes of Lord Krishna.\nShree Krishna was well aware of Bheeshma’s deep devotion toward him, despite his fighting from the side of the Kauravas. That is why he upheld Bheeshma’s vow by breaking his own. Bheeshma resolved on a particular day during the war, that before sunset on the next day, he would either kill Arjun, the foremost Pandava warrior, or else to save him, Shree Krishna would have to break his own vow of not lifting weapons in the battle of Mahabharat. Poets describe the vow that Bheeshma made:\nāju jo harihiṅ na śhastra gahāūñ,tau lājahuñ gaṅgā jananī ko śhāntanu suta na kahāūñ(Saint Soordas) [v2]\n“If I do not make the Supreme Lord Shree Krishna lift weapons, then I will shame my mother Ganga, and I am not the son of King Shantanu.” Bheeshma fought so valiantly that Arjun’s chariot was shattered, and he was stranded on the ground. At that stage, Shree Krishna lifted the chariot wheel and came forward to prevent Bheeshma from killing Arjun. Bheeshma saw the Lord with the chariot wheel in his hand as a weapon, and broke into a big smile. He understood that Bhaktavatsala Bhagavān (God who gives pleasure to his devotees) had broken his own vow to honor the vow of his devotee.\nIn fact, Bheeshma’s devotion to Lord Krishna had a very rasik (full of sweetness) flavor to it. He used to meditate on Shree Krishna’s pastimes in Vrindavan. There, in the evening when the Lord would return to the village after grazing the cows in the forest, the dust raised from the hooves of the cows would deck his charming face, increasing its beauty and sweetness. During the battle of Mahabharat, the dust raised from the hooves of the horses too added to Shree Krishna’s beauty, and he loved having darśhan (divine vision) of his Lord there.\nIn the last stage of his life, as he lay for six months on the bed of arrows, he meditated on that very vision of God, offering the following prayer to Him:\nyudhi turaga-rajo-vidhūmra-viṣhvak-kacha-lulita-śhramavāry-alaṅkṛitāsyemama niśhita-śharair vibhidyamāna-tvachi vilasat-kavache ’stu kṛiṣhṇa ātmā(Bhāgavatam 1.9.34) [v3]\n“On the battlefield, Lord Krishna’s flowing hair was covered with white dust raised by the hooves of the horses, and his face was covered with sweat beads because of his physical effort in driving the chariot. These were like ornaments enhancing the beauty of my Lord; and the wounds dealt by my sharp arrows further intensified the decorations. Let my mind meditate unto that Shree Krishna.”\nLord Krishna reciprocated his loving devotion by himself coming to meet Bheeshma on his deathbed of arrows, and with the darśhan of God in front of him, Bheeshma, the great mahājan, left his body, of his own volition." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.7", "verse": "7", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "कार्पण्यदोषोपहतस्वभाव:\n पृच्छामि त्वां धर्मसम्मूढचेता: |\nयच्छ्रेय: स्यान्निश्चितं ब्रूहि तन्मे\nशिष्यस्तेऽहं शाधि मां त्वां प्रपन्नम् || 7||", "text": "कार्पण्यदोषोपहतस्वभाव:\n पृच्छामि त्वां धर्मसम्मूढचेता: |\nयच्छ्रेय: स्यान्निश्चितं ब्रूहि तन्मे\nशिष्यस्तेऽहं शाधि मां त्वां प्रपन्नम् || 7||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_007.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "I am confused about my duty, and am besieged with anxiety and faintheartedness. I am Your disciple, and am surrendered to You. Please instruct me for certain what is best for me.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-07.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.7.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "This is a great moment in the Bhagavad Gita, when for the first time Arjun, who is Shree Krishna’s friend and cousin, requests him to be his Guru. Arjun pleads to Shree Krishna that he has been overpowered by kārpaṇya doṣh, or the flaw of cowardice in behavior, and so he requests the Lord to become his Guru and instruct him about the path of auspiciousness.\nAll the Vedic scriptures declare in unison that it is through the medium of a Spiritual Master that we receive divine knowledge for our eternal welfare:\ntadvijñānārthaṁ sa gurumevābhigachchhet samitpāṇiḥ śhrotriyaṁ brahmaniṣhṭham (Muṇḍakopaniṣhad 1.2.12) [v4]\n“To know the Absolute Truth, approach a Guru who is both a knower of the scriptures and is practically situated on the platform of God-realization.”\ntasmād guruṁ prapadyeta jijñāsuḥ śhreya uttamamśhābde pare cha niṣhṇātaṁ brahmaṇy upaśhamāśhrayam(Bhāgavatam 11.3.21) [v5]\n“Seekers of the Truth should surrender themselves to a Spiritual Master who has understood the conclusion of the scriptures and taken complete shelter of God, leaving aside all material considerations.”\nThe Ramayan states:\nguru binu bhava nidhi tarai na koī, jauṅ biranchi sankara sama hoī. [v6]\n“Not even the most elevated of spiritual aspirants can cross over the material ocean without the grace of the Guru.” Shree Krishna states this himself in the Bhagavad Gita in verse 4.34: “Learn the truth by approaching a spiritual master. Inquire from him with reverence and render service unto him. Such an enlightened Saint can impart knowledge unto you because he has seen the truth.”\nTo demonstrate the need for accepting a Guru to gain knowledge, Shree Krishna himself took this step. In his youth, he went to the hermitage of Sandipani Muni to learn sixty-four sciences from him. His classmate, Sudama, remarked regarding this:\nyasya chchhando mayaṁ brahma deha āvapanaṁ vibhośhreyasāṁ tasya guruṣhu vāso ’tyanta viḍambanam(Bhāgavatam 10.80.45) [v7]\n“O Shree Krishna, the Vedas are like your body, manifested from the knowledge that you possess (hence, what requirement do you have for making a Guru). Yet, you too pretend you need to learn from a Guru; this is only your divine leela (pastime).” Shree Krishna is in fact the first Guru of the world, because he is the Guru of Brahma, the first-born in this material world. He performed this leela for our benefit, to teach by his example that we souls, who are under the influence of Maya, will need a Guru to dispel our ignorance. In this verse, Arjun takes the step of surrendering to Shree Krishna as his disciple, and requests his Guru to enlighten him regarding the proper course of action." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.8", "verse": "8", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "न हि प्रपश्यामि ममापनुद्याद्\nयच्छोकमुच्छोषणमिन्द्रियाणाम् |\nअवाप्य भूमावसपत्नमृद्धं\nराज्यं सुराणामपि चाधिपत्यम् || 8||", "text": "न हि प्रपश्यामि ममापनुद्याद्\nयच्छोकमुच्छोषणमिन्द्रियाणाम् |\nअवाप्य भूमावसपत्नमृद्धं\nराज्यं सुराणामपि चाधिपत्यम् || 8||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_008.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "I can find no means of driving away this anguish that is drying up my senses. Even if I win a prosperous and unrivalled kingdom on the earth, or gain sovereignty like the celestial gods, I will be unable to dispel this grief.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-08.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.8.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "When we are swamped in misery, the intellect keeps analyzing the cause of misery, and when it is able to think no further, then dejection sets in. Since Arjun’s problems are looming bigger than his feeble intellectual abilities, his material knowledge is insufficient in saving him from the ocean of grief that he finds himself in. Having accepted Shree Krishna as his Guru, Arjun now pours out his heart to him, to reveal his pitiable state.\nArjun’s situation is not unique. This is invariably the situation we sometimes find ourselves in as we go through the journey of life. We want happiness, but we experience misery; we desire knowledge, but are unable to lift the cloud of ignorance; we crave perfect love, but repeatedly meet with disappointment. Our college degrees, acquired knowledge, and mundane scholarships do not provide solutions to these perplexities of life. We need divine knowledge to solve the puzzle of life. That treasure chest of divine knowledge is opened when we find a true Guru, one who is situated in transcendence, provided we have the humility to learn from him. Such is the path Arjun has decided to take." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.9", "verse": "9", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "सञ्जय उवाच |\nएवमुक्त्वा हृषीकेशं गुडाकेश: परन्तप |\nन योत्स्य इति गोविन्दमुक्त्वा तूष्णीं बभूव ह || 9||", "text": "सञ्जय उवाच |\nएवमुक्त्वा हृषीकेशं गुडाकेश: परन्तप |\nन योत्स्य इति गोविन्दमुक्त्वा तूष्णीं बभूव ह || 9||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_009.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "Sanjay said: Having thus spoken, Gudakesh, that chastiser of enemies, addressed Hrishikesh: “Govind, I shall not fight,” and became silent.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-09.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.9.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "The sagacious Sanjay, in his narration to Dhritarasthra, uses very apt names for the personalities he refers to. Here, Arjun is called Guḍākeśh, or “conqueror of sleep.” The power of sleep is such that sooner or later, all living beings succumb to it. But with his determination, Arjun had disciplined himself in such a way that sleep would come to him only when he permitted it, and only for the amount of time he chose. By using the name Guḍākeśh for Arjun, Sanjay is subtly hinting to Dhritarasthra, “Just as this “hero amongst men” conquered sleep, so too will he conquer his despondency.”\nAnd the word he uses for Shree Krishna is Hṛiṣhīkeśh, or “master of the mind and senses.” The subtle hint here is that he who is the master of his senses will definitely ensure that the events are properly managed." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.10", "verse": "10", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "तमुवाच हृषीकेश: प्रहसन्निव भारत |\nसेनयोरुभयोर्मध्ये विषीदन्तमिदं वच: || 10||", "text": "तमुवाच हृषीकेश: प्रहसन्निव भारत |\nसेनयोरुभयोर्मध्ये विषीदन्तमिदं वच: || 10||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_010.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "O Dhritarashtra, thereafter, in the midst of both the armies, Shree Krishna smilingly spoke the following words to the grief-stricken Arjun.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-10.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.10.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "In sharp contrast to Arjun’s words of lamentation, Shree Krishna smiled, displaying that the situation was not making him despair; rather he was perfectly happy with it. Such is the equanimous attitude exhibited by someone with knowledge in all situations.\nWith our incomplete understanding, we find faults with the situations we are in—we complain and grumble about them, wish to run away from them, and hold them responsible for our misery. But the enlightened souls inform us that the world created by God is perfect in every way, and both good and bad situations come to us for a divine purpose. They are all arranged for our spiritual evolution, to push us upward in our journey toward perfection. Those who understand this secret are never disturbed in difficult circumstances, facing them with serenity and tranquility.\n“The snowflakes fall slowly to the ground, each flake in its proper place” is a famous Taoist expression. It beautifully expresses the inherent perfection in the design of the world and the macro events taking place in it, even though we are not able to perceive it from our material perspective.\nThe Chhāndogya Upaniṣhad explains why earthquakes, hurricanes, cyclones, floods, and typhoons are created in the world by God, as a part of the grand scheme of things. It states that God deliberately creates difficult situations to prevent people from slowing down in their journey of spiritual progress. When people become complacent, a natural calamity comes along, forcing the souls to strain their abilities to cope with it, which ensures their progress. However, it must be noted that the progress being talked about here is not the external increase of material luxuries, but the internal unfoldment of the glorious divinity of the soul over a continuum of lifetime." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.11", "verse": "11", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "श्रीभगवानुवाच |\nअशोच्यानन्वशोचस्त्वं प्रज्ञावादांश्च भाषसे |\nगतासूनगतासूंश्च नानुशोचन्ति पण्डिता: || 11||", "text": "श्रीभगवानुवाच |\nअशोच्यानन्वशोचस्त्वं प्रज्ञावादांश्च भाषसे |\nगतासूनगतासूंश्च नानुशोचन्ति पण्डिता: || 11||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_011.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "The Supreme Lord said: While you speak words of wisdom, you are mourning for that which is not worthy of grief. The wise lament neither for the living nor for the dead.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-11.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.11.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "Starting with this verse, Shree Krishna initiates his discourse with a dramatic opening statement. Arjun is lamenting, for what he feels are very valid reasons. But, rather than commiserating with him, Shree Krishna takes the wind out of his arguments. He says, “Arjun, though you may feel you are speaking words of wisdom, you are actually speaking and acting out of ignorance. No possible reason justifies lamentation. The Pundits—those who are wise—never lament, neither for the living nor for the dead. Hence the grief you visualize in killing your relatives is illusory, and it proves that you are not a Pundit.”\nOne does not need to go far into the Gita to find a wise person above lamentation, for Grandsire Bheeshma himself was the perfect example. He was a sage who had fathomed the mysteries of life and death, and risen above the dualities of circumstances. Serene in any eventuality, he had even consented to taking the side of the wicked, if it served the Lord. He thus demonstrated that those who are surrendered to God simply do their duty in all situations, without being affected by outcomes. Such persons never lament because they accept all circumstances as God’s grace." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.12", "verse": "12", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "न त्वेवाहं जातु नासं न त्वं नेमे जनाधिपाः |\nन चैव न भविष्याम: सर्वे वयमत: परम् || 12||", "text": "न त्वेवाहं जातु नासं न त्वं नेमे जनाधिपाः |\nन चैव न भविष्याम: सर्वे वयमत: परम् || 12||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_012.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "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.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-12.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.12.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "On the gate of the temple of Apollo at Delphi are inscribed the words, Gnothi Seuton, or “Know Thyself [v8].” Even Socrates, the wise old man of Athens, was fond of encouraging people to inquire into the nature of the self. A local legend goes like this. Once, Socrates was walking on the street, absorbed in deep philosophic contemplation, when he accidentally bumped into someone. That man blurted in annoyance, “Can’t you see where you walk? Who are you?” Socrates answered with amusement, “My dear fellow, I have been pondering over that question for the last forty years. If you ever come to know who I am, please let me know.”\nIn the Vedic tradition, whenever divine knowledge is imparted, it usually begins with knowledge of the self. Shree Krishna follows the same approach in the Bhagavad Gita, with a piece of information that would have swept Socrates off his feet. Shree Krishna begins by explaining that the entity that we call the “self” is really the soul, not the material body, and is eternal, just as God himself is eternal. The Śhwetāśhvatar Upaniṣhad states:\njñājñau dwāvajā vīśhanīśhāvajā hyekā bhoktṛi bhogyārtha yuktāanantaśhchātmā viśhwarūpo hyakartā trayaṁ yadā vindate brahmametat (1.9) [v9]\nThe above verse states that creation is a combination of three entities—God, soul, and Maya—and all the three entities are eternal. If we believe the soul is eternal, then it follows logically that there is life after death of the material body. Shree Krishna talks about this in the next verse." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.13", "verse": "13", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "देहिनोऽस्मिन्यथा देहे कौमारं यौवनं जरा |\nतथा देहान्तरप्राप्तिर्धीरस्तत्र न मुह्यति || 13||", "text": "देहिनोऽस्मिन्यथा देहे कौमारं यौवनं जरा |\nतथा देहान्तरप्राप्तिर्धीरस्तत्र न मुह्यति || 13||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_013.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "Just as the embodied soul continuously passes from childhood to youth to old age, similarly, at the time of death, the soul passes into another body. The wise are not deluded by this.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-13.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.13.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "With immaculate logic, Shree Krishna establishes the principle of transmigration of the soul from lifetime to lifetime. He explains that in one lifetime itself, we change bodies from childhood to youth to maturity and then to old age. In fact, modern science informs us that cells within the body undergo regeneration—old cells die away and new ones take their place. It is estimated that within seven years, practically all the cells of the body change. Further, the molecules within the cells change even more rapidly. With every breath we inhale, oxygen molecules are absorbed into our cells via the metabolic processes, and molecules that were heretofore locked within the cells are released as carbon dioxide. Scientists estimate that in one year’s time, about ninety-eight percent of our bodily molecules change. And yet, despite the continual change of the body, we perceive that we are the same person. That is because we are not the material body, but the spiritual soul seated within.\nIn this verse, the word deha means “the body” and dehi means “possessor of the body,” or the soul. Shree Krishna draws Arjun’s attention to the fact that, since the body is constantly changing, in one lifetime itself, the soul passes through many bodies. Similarly, at the time of death, it passes into another body. Actually, what we term as “death” in worldly parlance is merely the soul discarding its old dysfunctional body, and what we call “birth” is the soul taking on a new body elsewhere. This is the principle of reincarnation.\nMost Oriental philosophies accept this concept of reincarnation. It is an integral part of Hinduism, Jainism, and Sikhism. In Buddhism, the Buddha made references to his past lives repeatedly. Many people do not know the extent to which reincarnation was a part of the belief system of the Occidental philosophies as well. In ancient classical Western religious and philosophic circles, famous thinkers such as Pythagoras, Plato, and Socrates accepted reincarnation to be true, and their views were also reflected in Orphism, Hermeticism, Neoplatonism, Manichaenism, and Gnosticism. Within the mainstream Abrahamic faiths, mystics of the three major religions also supported reincarnation. Examples include Jews who studied the Kabbalah, the Christian Cathars, and Muslim Shia sects such as the Alawi Shias and the Druze. For example, amongst Occidental religions, Josephus, the great ancient Jewish historian, used language in his writings that seem to ascribe belief in some form of reincarnation among the Pharisees and Essenes of his day. Certainly the Jewish Kabbalah prescribes to the idea of reincarnation as gilgul neshamot, or the “rolling of the soul.” The great Sufi mystic, Maulana Jalaluddin Rumi declared:\nI died out of the stone and I became a plant;I died out of the plant and became an animal;I died out of the animal and became a man.Why then should I fear to die?When did I grow less by dying?I shall die out of man and shall become an angel!” [v10]\nMany of the early Christians believed in the concept of reincarnation. Christian history informs us that, in the 553 AD, the Council of Nicaea, a conclave, was held to discuss the principle of reincarnation, and it was thereafter declared a heresy, apparently to increase the authority of the Church over the lives of the people. Until then, it was commonly accepted. Jesus indirectly proclaimed this doctrine when he told his disciples that John the Baptist was Elijah the Prophet reincarnated (Matthew 11:13-14, Matthew 17:10-13). This is also mentioned in the Old Testament (Malachi 4:5). Origen, the most learned of the Christian Fathers, declared: “Every man receives a body for himself according to his deserts in former lives [v11].” Solomon’s Book of Wisdom says: “To be born in sound body with sound limbs is a reward of the virtues of the past lives.” (Wisdom of Solomon 8:19-20) [v12]\nBelief in reincarnation is also found in many tribal societies around the world, in places such as Siberia, West Africa, North America, and Australia. Moving to more recent centuries and civilizations, reincarnation has been affirmed by Rosicrucians, Spiritism, Theosophists, and New Age followers. Even more recently, it has even been studied in serious scientific circles at major universities, exemplified by the works of Dr. Ian Stevenson and Dr. Jim Tucker, both at the University of Virginia.\nWithout accepting the concept of rebirth, it is difficult to make sense out of the suffering, chaos, and incompleteness of the world, and hence, many famous western thinkers believed in this principle. Virgil and Ovid regarded this doctrine as self-evident. The German philosophers Goethe, Fichte, Schelling, and Lessing accepted it. Amongst the more recent philosophers, Hume, Spencer, and Max Mueller, all recognized it as an incontrovertible doctrine. Among Western poets, Browing, Rosetti, Tennyson, and Wordsworth, to mention just a few, all believed in it.\nShree Krishna has previously declared that the wise do not lament. But the fact remains that we do experience happiness and distress. What is the reason for it? He now explains this concept." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.14", "verse": "14", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "मात्रास्पर्शास्तु कौन्तेय शीतोष्णसुखदु:खदा: |\nआगमापायिनोऽनित्यास्तांस्तितिक्षस्व भारत || 14||", "text": "मात्रास्पर्शास्तु कौन्तेय शीतोष्णसुखदु:खदा: |\nआगमापायिनोऽनित्यास्तांस्तितिक्षस्व भारत || 14||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_014.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "O son of Kunti, the contact between the senses and the sense objects gives rise to fleeting perceptions of happiness and distress. These are non-permanent, and come and go like the winter and summer seasons. O descendent of Bharat, one must learn to tolerate them without being disturbed.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-14.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.14.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "The human body houses five senses—the senses of sight, smell, taste, touch, and hearing—and these, in contact with their objects of perception, give rise to sensations of happiness and distress. None of these sensations is permanent. They come and go like the changing seasons. Although cool water provides pleasure in the summer, the same water gives distress in the winter. Thus, both the perceptions of happiness and distress experienced through the senses are transitory. If we permit ourselves to be affected by them, we will sway like a pendulum from side to side. A person of discrimination should practice to tolerate both the feelings of happiness and distress without being disturbed by them.\nThe technique of Vipassanā, which is the primary technique of self-realization in Buddhism, is based on this principle of tolerance of sense perceptions. Its practice helps eliminate desire, which, as stated in the four noble truths (the truth of suffering, the truth of the origin of suffering, the truth of the cessation of suffering, and the truth of the path leading to the cessation), is the cause of all suffering. This is not surprising considering that Buddhist philosophy is a subset of the vast Vedic philosophy." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.15", "verse": "15", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "यं हि न व्यथयन्त्येते पुरुषं पुरुषर्षभ |\nसमदु:खसुखं धीरं सोऽमृतत्वाय कल्पते || 15||", "text": "यं हि न व्यथयन्त्येते पुरुषं पुरुषर्षभ |\nसमदु:खसुखं धीरं सोऽमृतत्वाय कल्पते || 15||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_015.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "O Arjun, noblest amongst men, that person who is not affected by happiness and distress, and remains steady in both, becomes eligible for liberation.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-15.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.15.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "In the previous verse, Shree Krishna explained that both the sensations of happiness and distress are fleeting. He now encourages Arjun to rise above these dualities through discrimination. In order to develop this discrimination, we first need to understand the answers to two important questions: 1) Why do we aspire for happiness? 2) Why doesn’t material happiness satisfy us?\nThe answer to the first question is very simple. God is an ocean of infinite bliss, and we souls are his tiny parts. This basically means that we are tiny fragments of an infinite ocean of bliss. Swami Vivekananda would address people by saying, “O ye children of immortal bliss.” Just as a child is drawn to his or her mother, each part is naturally drawn toward its whole. Similarly, being infinitesimal parts of the ocean of bliss, we souls too are drawn to this bliss. Hence, everything we do in the world is for the sake of happiness. We all may have different views regarding where happiness lies or what form it might take, but all living beings seek nothing apart from it. This answers the first question.\nNow, let’s understand the answer to the second question. The soul, being a tiny part of God, is divine in nature like God himself. Hence the happiness that the soul seeks is also divine. Such happiness must possess the following three characteristics:\nIt must be infinite in extent.\nIt must be permanent.\nIt must be ever-fresh.\nSuch is the happiness of God, which is described as sat-chit-ānand, or eternal-sentient-ocean of bliss. However, the happiness we experience from the contact of the senses with their objects is the reverse; it is temporary, finite, and insentient. Thus, the material happiness that we perceive through the body can never satisfy the divine soul.\nWith this discrimination, we must practice to tolerate the perception of material happiness. Similarly, we must tolerate the sensation of material distress. (This second aspect is discussed in detail in many future verses, such as 2.48, 5.20, etc.) Only then will we rise above these dualities and the material energy will no longer bind us." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.16", "verse": "16", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "नासतो विद्यते भावो नाभावो विद्यते सत: |\nउभयोरपि दृष्टोऽन्तस्त्वनयोस्तत्त्वदर्शिभि: || 16||", "text": "नासतो विद्यते भावो नाभावो विद्यते सत: |\nउभयोरपि दृष्टोऽन्तस्त्वनयोस्तत्त्वदर्शिभि: || 16||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_016.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "Of the transient there is no endurance, and of the eternal there is no cessation. This has verily been observed and concluded by the seers of the Truth, after studying the nature of both.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-16.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.16.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "According to the Śhwetāśhvatar Upaniṣhad, there are three entities in existence:\nbhoktā bhogyaṁ preritāraṁ cha matvā sarvaṁ proktaṁ trividhaṁ brahmametat (1.12) [v13]kṣharaṁ pradhānamamṛitākṣharaṁ haraḥ kṣharātmānāvīśhate deva ekaḥ (1.10) [v14]sanyuktametatkṣharamakṣharaṁ cha vyaktāvyaktaṁ bharate viśhvamīśhaḥ (1.8) [v15]\nAll these Ved mantras state that these three entities—God, the individual soul, and Maya—are all eternal.\n1. God is everlasting. Thus he is sat (eternally existing). Hence, a name for him in the Vedas is sat-chit-ānand (eternal-full of knowledge-ocean of bliss).\n2. The soul is imperishable, and hence it is sat. However, the body will cease to exist one day, and hence it is asat (temporary). The soul is also sat-chit-ānand, but it is also aṇu (tiny). Hence the soul is aṇu sat, aṇu chit, and aṇu ānand.\n3. The entity Maya from which the world has been made is eternal, or sat. However, all material objects we see around us came into existence and will be destroyed with time. Thus, they can all be termed as asat, or temporary. So while the world itself is asat, it is only the entity Maya that is sat.\nWhen we say that the world is asat, this should not be confused with mithyā. Asat (temporary) does not mean mithyā (non-existent). Some philosophers claim that the world is mithyā, or “non-existent.” They assert that it is only the ignorance within us that is making us perceive the world, and once we are situated in brahma-jñāna (knowledge of the Supreme) the world will cease to exist. However, if this were true, then the world should no longer have remained for the God-realized Saints. Since they had destroyed their ignorance, the world should have stopped existing for them. Why then did these Saints write books even after attaining the state of God-realization? Where did the paper and pen come from? The fact that brahma-jñānīs use the objects of the world proves that the world exists even for them. Besides, even brahma-jñānīs need food to nourish their bodies. The Vedic scriptures state: paśhvādibhiśhchāviśheṣhat [v16] “Even God-realized Saints feels hungry, just as animals do, and need to eat food.” If the world does not exist for them, then how and why should they eat?\nFurther, the Taittirīya Upaniṣhad repeatedly informs us that God is all-pervading in the world:\nso ’kāmayata bahu syāṁ prajāyeyeti sa tapo ’tapyata sa tapastaptvā idaṁsarvamasṛijata yadidaṁ kiṁ cha tatsṛiṣhtvā tadevānuprāviṣhat tadanupraviśhya sachcha tyachchābhavat niruktaṁ chāniruktaṁ cha nilayanaṁ chānilaynaṁ cha vijñānaṁ chāvijñānaṁ cha satyaṁ chānṛitam cha satyamabhavat yadidaṁ kiṁ cha tatsatyamityāchakṣhate tadapyeṣha śhloko bhavati (2.6.4) [v17]\nThis Vedic mantra states that God not only created the world, but also permeates every atom of it. If God is truly all-pervading in this world, then how can the world have no existence? To say that the world is mithyā is to contradict the fact that God pervades the world. In this verse, Shree Krishna explains that the world does exist, but it is fleeting. Thus, he calls it as asat, or “temporary.” He does not call it mithyā, or “non-existent.”" }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.17", "verse": "17", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "अविनाशि तु तद्विद्धि येन सर्वमिदं ततम् |\nविनाशमव्ययस्यास्य न कश्चित्कर्तुमर्हति || 17||", "text": "अविनाशि तु तद्विद्धि येन सर्वमिदं ततम् |\nविनाशमव्ययस्यास्य न कश्चित्कर्तुमर्हति || 17||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_017.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "That which pervades the entire body, know it to be indestructible. No one can cause the destruction of the imperishable soul.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-17.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.17.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "Shree Krishna establishes the relationship between the body and the soul, by saying that the soul pervades the body. What does he mean by this? The soul is sentient, i.e. it possesses consciousness. The body is made from insentient matter, devoid of consciousness. However, the soul passes on the quality of consciousness to the body as well, by residing in it. Hence, the soul pervades the body by spreading its consciousness everywhere in it.\nSome raise a question here regarding the location of the soul. The Vedas state that the soul resides in the heart:\nhṛidi hyeṣha ātmā (Praśhnopaniṣhad 3.6) [v18]sa vā eṣha ātmā hṛidi (Chhāndogya Upaniṣhad 8.3.3) [v19]\nThe word hṛidi indicates that the soul is seated in the region of the heart. Yet, consciousness, which is the symptom of the soul, spreads throughout the body. How does this happen? Ved Vyas explains this concept as follows:\navirodhaśhchandanavat (Brahma Sūtra 2.3.23) [v20]\n“Just as applying sandalwood to your forehead cools the entire body, similarly, the soul, although residing locally in the heart, infuses its consciousness throughout the body.”\nAgain, someone may ask that if consciousness is a characteristic of the soul, then how does it spread into the body? This question has also been answered by Ved Vyas:\nvyaktireko gandhavat (Brahma Sūtra 2.3.26) [v21]\n“Fragrance is a quality of the flower. But the garden where the flower grows also becomes fragrant.” This means that the flower is able to pass on its fragrant quality to the garden. Likewise, the soul is sentient, and it also makes the dead matter of the body sentient, by pervading its consciousness in it." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.18", "verse": "18", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "अन्तवन्त इमे देहा नित्यस्योक्ता: शरीरिण: |\nअनाशिनोऽप्रमेयस्य तस्माद्युध्यस्व भारत || 18||", "text": "अन्तवन्त इमे देहा नित्यस्योक्ता: शरीरिण: |\nअनाशिनोऽप्रमेयस्य तस्माद्युध्यस्व भारत || 18||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_018.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "Only the material body is perishable; the embodied soul within is indestructible, immeasurable, and eternal. Therefore, fight, O descendent of Bharat.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-18.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.18.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "The gross body is factually made from mud. It is mud that gets converted to vegetables, fruits, grains, lentils, and grass. Cows graze the grass and produce milk. We humans consume these edibles, and they transform into our body. So it is not an exaggeration to say that the body is created from mud.\nAnd at the time of death, when the soul departs, the body can have one of the three ends: kṛimi, viḍ, or bhasma. Either it is burnt, in which case it is converted to ashes and becomes mud. Or it is buried, in which case insects eat it and transform it into mud. Else, it is thrown into the river, in which case the sea creatures make it their fodder and excrete it as waste, which ultimately merges with the mud of the seabed.\nIn this manner, mud undergoes an amazing cycle in the world. It gets transformed into edibles, bodies are made from these edibles, and the bodies return back into the mud of the earth. The Bible states: “For dust thou are, and unto dust thou shalt return.” (Genesis 3:19)[v22] This phrase refers to the material body. Shree Krishna tells Arjun, “Within that material body is an eternal imperishable entity, which is not made of mud. That is the divine soul, the real self.”" }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.19", "verse": "19", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "य एनं वेत्ति हन्तारं यश्चैनं मन्यते हतम् |\nउभौ तौ न विजानीतो नायं हन्ति न हन्यते || 19||", "text": "य एनं वेत्ति हन्तारं यश्चैनं मन्यते हतम् |\nउभौ तौ न विजानीतो नायं हन्ति न हन्यते || 19||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_019.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "Neither of them is in knowledge—the one who thinks the soul can slay and the one who thinks the soul can be slain. For truly, the soul neither kills nor can it be killed.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-19.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.19.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "The illusion of death is created because we identify ourselves with the body. The Ramayan explains this as follows:\njauṅ sapaneṅ sira kāṭai koī, binu jāgeṅ na dūri dukh hoī. [v23]\n“If we dream of our head getting cut, we will perceive its pain until we wake up.” The incident in the dream is an illusion, but the experience of the pain continues to torment until we wake up and dispel the illusion. Similarly, in the illusion that we are the body, we fear the experience of death. For the enlightened soul whose illusion has been dispelled, this fear of death vanishes.\nOne may ask that if nobody can kill anyone, then why is murder considered a punishable offense? The answer is that the body is the vehicle of the soul, and destroying any living being’s vehicle is violence, which is forbidden. The Vedas clearly instruct: mā hinsyāt sarvabhūtāni [v24] “Do not commit violence toward anyone.” In fact, the Vedas even consider killing of animals as a crime. However, there are occasions where the rules change and even violence becomes necessary. For example, in cases where a snake is approaching to bite, or if one is attacked with lethal weapons, or one’s life sustenance is being snatched away, then violence is permitted for self-protection. In the present situation, what is appropriate for Arjun, violence or non-violence, and why? Shree Krishna will explain this to him in great detail, as the dialogue of the Bhagavad Gita progresses. And in the course of the explanation, priceless divine knowledge will be revealed to shed light on the subject." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.20", "verse": "20", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "न जायते म्रियते वा कदाचि\nनायं भूत्वा भविता वा न भूय: |\nअजो नित्य: शाश्वतोऽयं पुराणो\nन हन्यते हन्यमाने शरीरे || 20||", "text": "न जायते म्रियते वा कदाचि\nनायं भूत्वा भविता वा न भूय: |\nअजो नित्य: शाश्वतोऽयं पुराणो\nन हन्यते हन्यमाने शरीरे || 20||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_020.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "The soul is neither born, nor does it ever die; nor having once existed, does it ever cease to be. The soul is without birth, eternal, immortal, and ageless. It is not destroyed when the body is destroyed.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-20.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.20.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "The eternal nature of the soul has been established in this verse, which is ever-existing and beyond birth and death. Consequently, it is devoid of the six types of transformations: asti, jāyate, vardhate, vipariṇamate, apakṣhīyate, and vinaśhyati “Existence in the womb, birth, growth, procreation, diminution, and death.” These are transformations of the body, not of the self. What we call as death is merely the destruction of the body, but the immortal self remains unaffected by all bodily changes. This concept has been repeatedly emphasized in the Vedas. The Kaṭhopaniṣhad contains a mantra almost identical to the above verse of the Bhagavad Gita:\nna jāyate mriyate vā vipaśhchin nāyaṁ kutaśhchin na babhūva kaśhchit\najo nityaḥ śhāśhvato ’yaṁ purāṇo na hanyate hanyamāne śharīre (1.2.18) [v25]\n“The soul is not born, nor does it die; it did not spring from something, and nothing sprang from it. It is unborn, eternal, immortal, and ageless. It is not destroyed when the body is destroyed.” The Bṛihadāraṇyaka Upaniṣhad states:\nsa vā eṣha mahān aja ātmājaro ’maro ’mṛito ’bhayaḥ (4.4.25) [v26]\n“The soul is glorious, unborn, deathless, free from old age, immortal, and fearless.”" }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.21", "verse": "21", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "वेदाविनाशिनं नित्यं य एनमजमव्ययम् |\nकथं स पुरुष: पार्थ कं घातयति हन्ति कम् || 21||", "text": "वेदाविनाशिनं नित्यं य एनमजमव्ययम् |\nकथं स पुरुष: पार्थ कं घातयति हन्ति कम् || 21||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_021.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "O Parth, how can one who knows the soul to be imperishable, eternal, unborn, and immutable kill anyone or cause anyone to kill?", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-21.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.21.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "A spiritually elevated soul quells the ego that makes us feel that we are the doers of our actions. In that state, one can see that the soul seated within actually does nothing. Such an elevated soul, though doing all kinds of actions, is never tainted by them. Shree Krishna is advising Arjun that he must elevate himself to that enlightened level, seeing himself as the non-doer, free from egotism, and perform his duty rather than shirk from it." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.22", "verse": "22", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "वासांसि जीर्णानि यथा विहाय\nनवानि गृह्णाति नरोऽपराणि |\nतथा शरीराणि विहाय जीर्णा\nन्यन्यानि संयाति नवानि देही || 22||", "text": "वासांसि जीर्णानि यथा विहाय\nनवानि गृह्णाति नरोऽपराणि |\nतथा शरीराणि विहाय जीर्णा\nन्यन्यानि संयाति नवानि देही || 22||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_022.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "As a person sheds worn-out garments and wears new ones, likewise, at the time of death, the soul casts off its worn-out body and enters a new one.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-22.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.22.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "Continuing to explain the nature of the soul, Shree Krishna reiterates the concept of rebirth, comparing it to an everyday activity. When garments become torn and useless, we discard them in favor of new ones, but in doing so we do not change ourselves. In the same manner, the soul remains unchanged, when it discards its worn-out body and takes birth in a new body elsewhere.\nThe Nyāya Darśhan gives the following argument to prove the existence of rebirth:\njātasya harṣhabhayaśhoka sampratipatteḥ (3.1.18) [v27]\nIt states that if you observe a little baby, you will find it sometimes becomes happy, sometimes sad, and sometimes fearful, without any apparent reason. According to the Nyāya Darśhan, the little baby is remembering its past life, and hence experiencing these emotions. However, as it grows up, the impressions of the present life are imprinted so strongly upon its mind, that they erase most past memories. Besides, the processes of death and birth are also so painful to the soul that they erase a substantial portion of the past life’s memories.\nThe Nyāya Darśhan gives another argument in support of rebirth: stanyābhilāṣhāt (3.1.21) [v28] It says that a newborn baby has no knowledge of language. How then can a mother teach her baby to suckle her breast when she inserts it in the baby’s mouth? However, the newborn child has drunk milk in infinite past lifetimes, even in animal forms, from the breasts, teats, and udders of innumerable mothers. Hence, when the mother puts her breast in the baby’s mouth, it automatically starts suckling based on past practice.\nWithout accepting the concept of rebirth, the disparity between human beings becomes inexplicable and irrational. For example, let us suppose one man is blind from birth. If that person asks why he was punished in this way, what logical answer can be given to him? If we say it was a result of his karmas, he may argue that the present life is the only life he has, and therefore, there are no past karmas at the time of birth that should afflict him. If we say it was the will of God, it would also seem implausible, since God is all-merciful and would not unnecessarily want anyone to be blind. The only logical explanation is that the person was born blind as a consequence of karmas from past lives. Thus, from common sense and on the authority of the scriptures we are obliged to believe in the concept of rebirth." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.23", "verse": "23", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "नैनं छिन्दन्ति शस्त्राणि नैनं दहति पावक: |\nन चैनं क्लेदयन्त्यापो न शोषयति मारुत: || 23||", "text": "नैनं छिन्दन्ति शस्त्राणि नैनं दहति पावक: |\nन चैनं क्लेदयन्त्यापो न शोषयति मारुत: || 23||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_023.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "Weapons cannot shred the soul, nor can fire burn it. Water cannot wet it, nor can the wind dry it.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-23.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.23.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "Consciousness, which is the symptom of the soul, can be perceived by material instruments, but the soul itself cannot be contacted by any material object. This is so only because the soul is divine, and hence beyond the interactions of material objects. Shree Krishna expresses this vividly by saying that wind cannot wither the soul, nor can water moisten it or fire burn it." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.24", "verse": "24", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "अच्छेद्योऽयमदाह्योऽयमक्लेद्योऽशोष्य एव च |\nनित्य: सर्वगत: स्थाणुरचलोऽयं सनातन: || 24||", "text": "अच्छेद्योऽयमदाह्योऽयमक्लेद्योऽशोष्य एव च |\nनित्य: सर्वगत: स्थाणुरचलोऽयं सनातन: || 24||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_024.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "The soul is unbreakable and incombustible; it can neither be dampened nor dried. It is everlasting, in all places, unalterable, immutable, and primordial.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-24.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.24.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "The point about immortality is again being driven home here. For the teacher to merely impart perfect knowledge is not enough; for that knowledge to be useful, it must sink deep into the heart of the student. Hence a skillful teacher often repeats a point previously made. In Sanskrit literature, this is called punarukti, or “repetition.” Shree Krishna has often used punarukti, as a tool in the Bhagavad Gita for stressing the important spiritual principles to ensure that they are grasped deeply by his student." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.25", "verse": "25", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "अव्यक्तोऽयमचिन्त्योऽयमविकार्योऽयमुच्यते |\nतस्मादेवं विदित्वैनं नानुशोचितुमर्हसि || 25||", "text": "अव्यक्तोऽयमचिन्त्योऽयमविकार्योऽयमुच्यते |\nतस्मादेवं विदित्वैनं नानुशोचितुमर्हसि || 25||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_025.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "The soul is spoken of as invisible, inconceivable, and unchangeable. Knowing this, you should not grieve for the body.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-25.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.25.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "Our eyes, made from material energy, can see only material objects. The soul, being divine and beyond the realm of material energy, is invisible to our eyes. Scientists have conducted experiments to perceive its presence. They put a dying person into a glass case and sealed the case, to see whether the departure of the soul would crack the glass. However, the soul left the body without the glass box getting cracked. Being subtle, the soul did not need physical space for its movement.\nBeing subtler than the material energy, the soul is also inconceivable to our intellect. The Kaṭhopaniṣhad says:\nindriyebhyaḥ parā hyarthā arthebhyaśhcha paraṁ manaḥmanasastu parā buddhirbhuddherātmā mahān paraḥ (1.3.10) [v29]\n“Beyond the senses are the objects of the senses; subtler than the objects of the senses is the mind. Beyond the mind is the intellect; and subtler than the intellect is the soul.” The material intellect can only comprehend material concepts, but can never reach the divine soul by the power of its contemplation. As a result, knowledge of the self requires external sources, which are the scriptures and the Guru." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.26", "verse": "26", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "अथ चैनं नित्यजातं नित्यं वा मन्यसे मृतम् |\nतथापि त्वं महाबाहो नैवं शोचितुमर्हसि || 26||", "text": "अथ चैनं नित्यजातं नित्यं वा मन्यसे मृतम् |\nतथापि त्वं महाबाहो नैवं शोचितुमर्हसि || 26||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_026.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "If, however, you think that the self is subject to constant birth and death, O mighty-armed Arjun, even then you should not grieve like this.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-26.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.26.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "Shree Krishna uses the word atha to indicate that Arjun may want to believe the other explanations that exist about the nature of the self. This verse needs to be understood in the context of the philosophical streams existing in India and their divergent understandings about the nature of self. Indian philosophy has historically comprised of twelve schools of thought. Six of these accept the authority of the Vedas, and hence they are called Āstik Darśhans. These are Mīmānsā, Vedānt, Nyāya, Vaiśheṣhik, Sānkhya, and Yog. Within each of these are more branches—for example, the Vedānt school of thought is further divided into six schools—Adavita vāda, Dwaita vāda, Viśhiṣhṭādvaita vāda, Viśhuddhadvaita vāda, Dwaitādvaita vāda, and Achintya-bhedābheda vāda. Each of these has further branches, for example, Advaita vāda is subdivided into Dṛiṣhṭi-sṛiṣhṭi vāda, Avachchheda vāda, Bimba-pratibimba vāda, Vivarta vāda, Ajāta vāda, etc. We will not go into the details of these schools here. Let it suffice for now to know that all these schools of thought accept the Vedas as the authority of reference. Accordingly, they all accept the eternal, unchangeable soul as the self.\nThe remaining six schools of Indian philosophy do not accept the authority of the Vedas. These are Chārvāk vāda, the four Buddhist schools (Yogāchār vāda, Mādhyamik vāda, Vaibhāśhik vāda, and Sautāntrik vāda), and Jainism. Each of these has its own explanation for the nature of the self. Chārvāka vāda states that the body itself comprises the self, and consciousness is merely a product of the conglomeration of its constituents. Jainism states that the soul is the same size as the body, and hence, it is subject to change from birth to birth. The Buddhist schools of thought do not accept the existence of a permanent soul, and instead maintain that there is a stream of renewed animation from lifetime to lifetime, which ensures continuity of the individual.\nIt seems that at the time of Shree Krishna too, versions of the Buddhist philosophy of renewed animation and non-permanence of the soul existed. Hence he is explaining that even if Arjun subscribes to this philosophy of renewed animation of the self from life to life, there is still no reason to lament. Why should one not lament? This is now explained in the next verse." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.27", "verse": "27", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "जातस्य हि ध्रुवो मृत्युर्ध्रुवं जन्म मृतस्य च |\nतस्मादपरिहार्येऽर्थे न त्वं शोचितुमर्हसि || 27||", "text": "जातस्य हि ध्रुवो मृत्युर्ध्रुवं जन्म मृतस्य च |\nतस्मादपरिहार्येऽर्थे न त्वं शोचितुमर्हसि || 27||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_027.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "Death is certain for one who has been born, and rebirth is inevitable for one who has died. Therefore, you should not lament over the inevitable.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-27.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.27.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "In English language, there is a popular idiom, “as sure as death.” Benjamin Franklin said: “The only things certain in life are death and taxes.” The most certain thing in life is that we will meet with death one day. Psychologists categorize the fear of death as the biggest fear in life. In Patanjali’s Yog Darśhan too, abhiniveśh, or the instinctive urge to survive at all costs, is mentioned as a trait of the material intellect. But for one who has taken birth, death is inevitable. So when something is inevitable, why lament over it?\nThe Mahabharat relates an incident regarding this. During the period of their exile in the forest, one day while wandering the five Pandavas were thirsty and came across a well. Yudhishthir asked Bheem to go and fetch water for all of them. When Bheem reached the well, a yakṣha (semi-celestial being) began speaking from inside the well, “I will only let you take the water if you first answer my questions.” Bheem paid no heed and proceeded to draw water. The yakṣha pulled him in. After some time when Bheem did not return, a concerned Yudhishthir sent Arjun to see what was happening and fetch water. When Arjun reached the well, the yakṣha asked him too, “I have already seized your brother. Do not attempt to draw the water unless you can answer all my questions correctly.” Arjun also paid no heed, and the yakṣha pulled him into the well. The other brothers, Nakul and Sahadev, followed him, but met with the same fate. Finally, Yudhishthir himself came to the well. Once again, the yakṣha said, “Answer my questions if you want to drink water from the well, or I will pull you in, just as I have done to your four brothers.” Yudhisthir agreed to answer the questions. The yakṣha was actually the celestial God of death, Yamraj, in disguise. He asked sixty questions, each of which was answered perfectly by Yudhishthir. One of these questions was: kim āśhcharyaṁ? “What is the most surprising thing in this world?” Yudhisthir replied:\nahany ahani bhūtāni gachchhantīha yamālayamśheṣhāḥ sthiratvam ichchhanti kimāśhcharyamataḥ param (Mahabharat) [v30]\n“At every moment people are dying. Those who are alive are witnessing this phenomenon, and yet they do not think that one day they will also have to die. What can be more astonishing than this?” Shree Krishna explains in this verse that life is inescapably a dead end, and so a wise person does not lament over the inevitable." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.28", "verse": "28", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "अव्यक्तादीनि भूतानि व्यक्तमध्यानि भारत |\nअव्यक्तनिधनान्येव तत्र का परिदेवना || 28||", "text": "अव्यक्तादीनि भूतानि व्यक्तमध्यानि भारत |\nअव्यक्तनिधनान्येव तत्र का परिदेवना || 28||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_028.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "O scion of Bharat, all created beings are unmanifest before birth, manifest in life, and again unmanifest on death. So why grieve?", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-28.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.28.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "Shree Krishna dispelled the cause of lamentation in respect to the soul in verse 2.20, and in respect to the body in verse 2.27. Now he includes both in this verse. Sage Narad instructed Yudhishthir along similar lines, in Śhrīmad Bhāgavatam:\nyan manyase dhruvaṁ lokam adhruvaṁ vā na chobhayamsarvathā na hi śhochyās te snehād anyatra mohajāt (1.13.44) [v31]\n“Whether you consider the personality to be an eternal soul or to be a temporary body, or even if you accept it as an inconceivable mixture of soul and body, you should not lament in any way. The cause for lamentation is only attachment that arises out of illusion.”\nIn the material realm, each individual soul is bound by three bodies—gross body, subtle body, causal body.\nGross body: Consists of the five gross elements of nature—earth, water, fire, air, and space.\nSubtle body: Consists of eighteen elements—five life-airs, five working senses, five knowledge senses, mind, intellect, and ego.\nCausal body: Consists of the account of karmas from endless past lives, including the sanskārs (tendencies) carried forward from previous lives.\nAt the time of death, the soul discards its gross body, and departs with the subtle and causal bodies. God again gives the soul another gross body according to its subtle and causal bodies, and sends the soul into a suitable mother’s womb for the purpose. After the soul gives up one gross body, there is a transitional phase before it receives a new gross body. This could be a few seconds in duration or a few years long. So before birth, the soul existed with the unmanifest subtle and causal bodies. After death, it still exists in the unmanifest state. It only becomes manifest in the middle. So death is no reason for grief." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.29", "verse": "29", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "आश्चर्यवत्पश्यति कश्चिदेन\nमाश्चर्यवद्वदति तथैव चान्य: |\nआश्चर्यवच्चैनमन्य: शृ्णोति\nश्रुत्वाप्येनं वेद न चैव कश्चित् || 29||", "text": "आश्चर्यवत्पश्यति कश्चिदेन\nमाश्चर्यवद्वदति तथैव चान्य: |\nआश्चर्यवच्चैनमन्य: शृ्णोति\nश्रुत्वाप्येनं वेद न चैव कश्चित् || 29||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_029.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "Some see the soul as amazing, some describe it as amazing, and some hear of the soul as amazing, while others, even on hearing, cannot understand it at all.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-29.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.29.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "The whole world is amazing, from the tiniest atoms to the largest galaxies, for they are all wonderful creations of God. A little rose flower is also amazing, in its texture, smell, and beauty. The most amazing is the Supreme Lord himself. It is said that Anant Shesh, the divine ten thousand-headed serpent on whom Lord Vishnu resides, has been singing the glories of God since the beginning of creation, and has still not completed them.\nThe soul, being a fragmental part of God, is more amazing than the things of the world because it is transcendental to material existence. Just as God is divine, its fragment, the soul, is also divine. For this reason, mere intellectual prowess is not enough to comprehend the soul, since the existence and nature of the soul are difficult to grasp. The Kaṭhopaniṣhad states:\nśhravaṇāyāpi bahubhiryo na labhyaḥ śhṛiṇvanto ’pi bahavo yaṁ na vidyuḥāśhcharyo vaktā kuśhalo ’sya labdhā ’ścharyo jñātā kuśhalānuśhiṣhṭaḥ (1.2.7) [v32]\n“A teacher who is self-realized is very rare. The opportunity to hear instructions about the science of self-realization from such a teacher is even rarer. If, by great good fortune, such an opportunity presents itself, students who can comprehend this topic are the rarest.” Hence, an enlightened teacher is never discouraged when, despite sincere efforts, the majority of the people are either not interested in, or cannot understand the science of the soul." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.30", "verse": "30", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "देही नित्यमवध्योऽयं देहे सर्वस्य भारत |\nतस्मात्सर्वाणि भूतानि न त्वं शोचितुमर्हसि || 30||", "text": "देही नित्यमवध्योऽयं देहे सर्वस्य भारत |\nतस्मात्सर्वाणि भूतानि न त्वं शोचितुमर्हसि || 30||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_030.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "O Arjun, the soul that dwells within the body is immortal; therefore, you should not mourn for anyone.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-30.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.30.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "Often, in the course of his teachings, Shree Krishna explains a concept in a few verses, and then states a verse summarizing those teachings. This verse is a summary of the instructions on the immortality of the self, and its distinction from the body." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.31", "verse": "31", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "स्वधर्ममपि चावेक्ष्य न विकम्पितुमर्हसि |\nधर्म्याद्धि युद्धाच्छ्रेयोऽन्यत्क्षत्रियस्य न विद्यते || 31||", "text": "स्वधर्ममपि चावेक्ष्य न विकम्पितुमर्हसि |\nधर्म्याद्धि युद्धाच्छ्रेयोऽन्यत्क्षत्रियस्य न विद्यते || 31||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_031.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "Besides, considering your duty as a warrior, you should not waver. Indeed, for a warrior, there is no better engagement than fighting for upholding of righteousness.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-31.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.31.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "Swa-dharma is one’s duty as an individual, in accordance with the Vedas. There are two kinds of swa-dharmas, or prescribed duties for the individual—para dharma, or spiritual duties, and apara dharma, or material duties. Considering oneself to be the soul, the prescribed duty is to love and serve God with devotion. This is called para dharma. However, since a vast majority of humankind does not possess this spiritual perspective, the Vedas also prescribe duties for those who see themselves as the body. These duties are defined according to one’s āśhram (station in life), and varṇa (occupation). They are called apara dharma, or mundane duties. This distinction between spiritual duties and material duties needs to be kept in mind while understanding the Bhagavad Gita and the Vedic philosophy at large.\nBy occupation, Arjun was a warrior, and so his occupational duty as a warrior was to fight for the protection of righteousness. Shree Krishna is calling this swa-dharma, or prescribed duty at the bodily level." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.32", "verse": "32", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "यदृच्छया चोपपन्नं स्वर्गद्वारमपावृतम् |\nसुखिन: क्षत्रिया: पार्थ लभन्ते युद्धमीदृशम् || 32||", "text": "यदृच्छया चोपपन्नं स्वर्गद्वारमपावृतम् |\nसुखिन: क्षत्रिया: पार्थ लभन्ते युद्धमीदृशम् || 32||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_032.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "O Parth, happy are the warriors to whom such opportunities to defend righteousness come unsought, opening for them the stairway to the celestial abodes.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-32.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.32.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "The warrior class has always been necessary in the world for protecting society. The occupational duties of warriors demand that they be brave and even willing to lay down their lives, if required, for the protection of society. During Vedic times, while killing animals was forbidden for the rest of society, warriors were allowed to go into the forest and practice warfare by killing animals. Such chivalrous warriors were expected to welcome the opportunity to defend righteousness with open arms. The discharge of their duty would be rewarded as a virtuous act in this life and the next.\nThe proper discharge of one’s occupational duties is not a spiritual act in itself, and it does not result in God-realization. It is merely a virtuous deed with positive material rewards. Shree Krishna brings his instructions a step lower and says that even if Arjun is not interested in spiritual teachings, and wishes to remain at the bodily platform, then also his social duty as a warrior is to defend righteousness.\nAs we can see, the Bhagavad Gita is a call to action, not to inaction. When people are exposed to lectures on spirituality, they often question, “Are you asking me to give up my work?” However, verse after verse, Shree Krishna is giving Arjun the reverse instruction. While Arjun wishes to abandon his duty, Shree Krishna repeatedly coaxes him to discharge it. The change that Shree Krishna wishes to see in Arjun is an internal one, in his consciousness, and not an external renunciation of works. He now explains to Arjun the consequences of giving up his duty." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.33", "verse": "33", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "अथ चेतत्त्वमिमं धर्म्यं संग्रामं न करिष्यसि |\nतत: स्वधर्मं कीर्तिं च हित्वा पापमवाप्स्यसि || 33||", "text": "अथ चेतत्त्वमिमं धर्म्यं संग्रामं न करिष्यसि |\nतत: स्वधर्मं कीर्तिं च हित्वा पापमवाप्स्यसि || 33||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_033.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "If, however, you refuse to fight this righteous war, abandoning your social duty and reputation, you will certainly incur sin.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-33.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.33.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "If a warrior chooses to become non-violent on the battlefield, it will be dereliction of duty, and hence, classified as a sinful act. Hence, Shree Krishna states that if Arjun abandons his duty, considering it to be repugnant and troublesome, he will be committing a sin. The Parāśhar Smṛiti states:\nkṣhatriyoḥ hi prajā rakṣhañśhastrapāṇiḥ pradaṇḍavānnirjitya parasainyādi kṣhitiṁ dharmeṇa pālayet (1.61) [v33]\n“The occupational duty of a warrior is to protect the citizens of the country from oppression. This requires the application of violence in appropriate cases for the maintenance of law and order. He should thus defeat the soldiers of enemy kings, and help rule the country according to the principles of righteousness.”" }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.34", "verse": "34", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "अकीर्तिं चापि भूतानि कथयिष्यन्ति तेऽव्ययाम् |\nसम्भावितस्य चाकीर्ति र्मरणादतिरिच्यते || 34||", "text": "अकीर्तिं चापि भूतानि कथयिष्यन्ति तेऽव्ययाम् |\nसम्भावितस्य चाकीर्ति र्मरणादतिरिच्यते || 34||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_034.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "People will speak of you as a coward and a deserter. For a respectable person, infamy is worse than death.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-34.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.34.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "For respectable people, social prestige is very important. The particular guṇas (modes of nature) of warriors make respect and honor especially important for them. For them, dishonor is worse than death. Shree Krishna reminds Arjun of this, so that if he is not inspired by superior knowledge, he may at least be inspired by inferior knowledge.\nMany societies in the world observe the norm that a warrior who runs away from the battlefield out of cowardice is ostracized from society. That could be the extent of dishonor inflicted upon Arjun if he avoided his duty." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.35", "verse": "35", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "भयाद्रणादुपरतं मंस्यन्ते त्वां महारथा: |\nयेषां च त्वं बहुमतो भूत्वा यास्यसि लाघवम् || 35||", "text": "भयाद्रणादुपरतं मंस्यन्ते त्वां महारथा: |\nयेषां च त्वं बहुमतो भूत्वा यास्यसि लाघवम् || 35||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_035.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "The great generals who hold you in high esteem will think that you fled from the battlefield out of fear, and thus will lose their respect for you.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-35.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.35.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "Arjun was famous as a mighty warrior and a worthy opponent for even the most valiant of the Kauravas warriors, such as Bheeshma, Dronacharya, Karn, etc. He had attained fame by fighting many celestial gods. He had fought and overwhelmed even Lord Shiv, who had come in the disguise of a hunter. Pleased with his valor and skill, Lord Shiv had rewarded him with a celestial weapon, called Pāshupatāstra. His teacher at archery, Dronacharya, had also bestowed his blessings upon him in the form of a special weapon. Just before the start of the battle, if Arjun were to retire from the battlefield, these gallant warriors wouldn’t know that affection for his relatives had inspired him to flee. They would consider him a coward, and assume that he had abstained from the war in dread of their prowess." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.36", "verse": "36", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "अवाच्यवादांश्च बहून्वदिष्यन्ति तवाहिता: |\nनिन्दन्तस्तव सामर्थ्यं ततो दु:खतरं नु किम् || 36||", "text": "अवाच्यवादांश्च बहून्वदिष्यन्ति तवाहिता: |\nनिन्दन्तस्तव सामर्थ्यं ततो दु:खतरं नु किम् || 36||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_036.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "Your enemies will defame and humiliate you with unkind words, disparaging your might. Alas, what could be more painful than that?", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-36.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.36.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "If Arjun chose to flee from battle, not only would Arjun’s estimation wane in the assembly of mighty warriors, but he would also be disparaged. Shree Krishna uses the word nindataḥ which means “to vilify.” Avāchya vādān means the use of harsh words such as “Eunuch.” Arjun’s enemies, like Duryodhan, would say many unbecoming things about him, such as, “Look at that impotent Arjun fleeing from the battlefield like a dog with its tail between its legs.” Shree Krishna reminds Arjun that such derision would be very painful to him." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.37", "verse": "37", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "हतो वा प्राप्स्यसि स्वर्गं जित्वा वा भोक्ष्यसे महीम् |\nतस्मादुत्तिष्ठ कौन्तेय युद्धाय कृतनिश्चय: || 37||", "text": "हतो वा प्राप्स्यसि स्वर्गं जित्वा वा भोक्ष्यसे महीम् |\nतस्मादुत्तिष्ठ कौन्तेय युद्धाय कृतनिश्चय: || 37||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_037.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "If you fight, you will either be slain on the battlefield and go to the celestial abodes, or you will gain victory and enjoy the kingdom on earth. Therefore arise with determination, O son of Kunti, and be prepared to fight.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-37.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.37.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "Continuing from verse 2.31, Shree Krishna is still giving instructions at the level of occupational duties. He explains to Arjun about the two possibilities arising from the performance of his duty. If Arjun becomes victorious, a kingdom on Earth awaits him, and if he is forced to lay down his life in the discharge of his duty, he will go to the celestial abodes." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.38", "verse": "38", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "सुखदु:खे समे कृत्वा लाभालाभौ जयाजयौ |\nततो युद्धाय युज्यस्व नैवं पापमवाप्स्यसि || 38||", "text": "सुखदु:खे समे कृत्वा लाभालाभौ जयाजयौ |\nततो युद्धाय युज्यस्व नैवं पापमवाप्स्यसि || 38||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_038.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "Fight for the sake of duty, treating alike happiness and distress, loss and gain, victory and defeat. Fulfilling your responsibility in this way, you will never incur sin.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-38.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.38.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "Having motivated Arjun from the mundane level, Shree Krishna now moves deeper into the science of work. Arjun had expressed his fear that by killing his enemies he would incur sin. Shree Krishna addresses this apprehension. He advises Arjun to do his duty, without attachment to the fruits of his actions. Such an attitude to work will release him from any sinful reactions.\nWhen we work with selfish motives, we create karmas, which bring about their subsequent karmic reactions. The Māṭhar Śhruti states:\npuṇyena puṇya lokaṁ nayati pāpena pāpamubhābhyāmeva manuṣhyalokam [v34]\n“If you do good deeds, you will go to the celestial abodes; if you do bad deeds, you will go to the nether regions; if you do a mixture of both, you will come back to the planet Earth.” In either case, we get bound by the reactions of our karmas. Thus, mundane good deeds are also binding. They result in material rewards, which add to the stockpile of our karmas and thicken the illusion that there is happiness in the world.\nHowever, if we give up selfish motives, then our actions no longer create any karmic reactions. For example, murder is a sin, and the judicial law of every country of the world declares it to be a punishable offence. But if a policeman in the discharge of his duty kills the leader of a gang of bandits, he is not punished for it. If a soldier kills an enemy soldier in battle, he is not punished for it. In fact, he can even be awarded a medal for bravery. The reason for apparent lack of punishment is that these actions are not motivated by any ill-will or personal motive; they are performed as a matter of duty to the country. God’s law is quite similar. If one gives up all selfish motives and works merely for the sake of duty toward the Supreme, such work does not create any karmic reactions.\nSo Shree Krishna advises Arjun to become detached from outcomes and simply focus on doing his duty. When he fights with the attitude of equanimity, treating victory and defeat, pleasure and pain as the same, then despite killing his enemies, he will never incur sin. This subject is also repeated later in the Bhagavad Gita, in verse 5.10: “Just as a lotus leaf is untouched by water, those who dedicate all their actions to God, abandoning all attachment, remain untouched by sin.”\nHaving declared a profound conclusion about work without attachment, Shree Krishna now says that he will explain the science of work in detail, to reveal the logic behind what he has said." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.39", "verse": "39", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "एषा तेऽभिहिता साङ्ख्ये बुद्धिर्योगे त्विमां शृणु |\nबुद्ध्या युक्तो यया पार्थ कर्मबन्धं प्रहास्यसि || 39||", "text": "एषा तेऽभिहिता साङ्ख्ये बुद्धिर्योगे त्विमां शृणु |\nबुद्ध्या युक्तो यया पार्थ कर्मबन्धं प्रहास्यसि || 39||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_039.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "Hitherto, I have explained to you Sānkhya Yog, or analytic knowledge regarding the nature of the soul. Now listen, O Parth, as I reveal Buddhi Yog, or the Yog of Intellect. When you work with such understanding, you will be freed from the bondage of karma.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-39.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.39.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "The word Sānkhya comes from the roots Sāṅ, meaning “complete,” and khyā, meaning “to know.” So Sānkhya means the “complete analytical knowledge of something.” The Sankhya Darshan, which is one of the six philosophical treatises in Indian philosophy, makes an analytical enumeration of the entities in cosmos. It lists twenty-four entities: pañch-mahābhūta (earth, water, fire, air, and sky), pañch tanmātrā (the five abstract qualities of matter—taste, touch, smell, sound, and sight), pañch karmendriya (five working senses), pañch jñānendriya (five knowledge senses), mind, ahankār (the entity created by the evolution of mahān), mahān (the entity created by evolution of prakṛiti), prakṛiti (the primordial form of the material energy). Apart from these is puruṣh or the soul, which tries to enjoy prakṛiti, and gets bound in it.\nShree Krishna has just explained to Arjun another form of Sānkhya, which is the analytical knowledge of the immortal soul. He now says that he is going to reveal the science of working without desire for rewards. This requires detachment from the fruits of actions. Such detachment comes by practicing discrimination with the intellect. Hence, Shree Krishna has interestingly called it buddhi yog, or “Yog of the Intellect.” In subsequent verses (2.41 and 2.44), he goes on to explain how the intellect plays an important role in bringing the mind to a state of detachment." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.40", "verse": "40", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "नेहाभिक्रमनाशोऽस्ति प्रत्यवायो न विद्यते |\nस्वल्पमप्यस्य धर्मस्य त्रायते महतो भयात् || 40||", "text": "नेहाभिक्रमनाशोऽस्ति प्रत्यवायो न विद्यते |\nस्वल्पमप्यस्य धर्मस्य त्रायते महतो भयात् || 40||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_040.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "Working in this state of consciousness, there is no loss or adverse result, and even a little effort saves one from great danger.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-40.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.40.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "The great danger we face is that we may not get the human form in the next life, and instead go into the lower species of life, such as animals, birds, the nether regions, etc. We cannot be complacent that the human form will remain reserved for us, for the next birth will be determined by our karmas and level of consciousness in this life.\nThere are 8.4 million species of life in existence. The species below human beings—animals, birds, fishes, insects, birds, etc.—do not have an evolved intellect as we humans do. Yet, they also perform commonplace activities such as eating, sleeping, defending, and mating. Human beings have been endowed with the faculty of knowledge, for a higher purpose, so that they may utilize it to elevate themselves. If humans utilize their intellects merely for doing the animalistic activities of eating, sleeping, mating, and defending, in a deluxe way, it is a misuse of the human form. For example, if someone makes eating as the primary pleasure of life, then the body of a pig becomes more suitable for such a person, and thus, that individual receives a pig’s body in the next life. If someone makes sleeping the goal of life, then God deems that the body of a polar bear is more suitable for such activity and allots it in the succeeding life. So the great danger before us is that we may not get a human birth in the next life. The Vedas state:\niha chedavedīdatha satyamasti na chedihāvedīnmahatī vinaṣhṭhiḥ(Kenopaniṣhad 2.5) [v35]\n“O human being, the human birth is a rare opportunity. If you do not utilize it to achieve your goal, you will suffer great ruin.” Again, they state:\niha chedaśhakad boddhuṁ prākśharīrasya visrasaḥtataḥ sargeṣhu lokeṣhu śharīratvāya kalpate (Kaṭhopaniṣhad 2.3.4) [v36]\n“If you do not strive for God-realization in this life, you will continue to rotate in the 8.4 million species of life for many births.”\nHowever, once we commence on the journey of spiritual practice then even if we do not complete the path in this life, God sees that our intention to do so existed. Therefore, he grants us the human birth again, to enable us to continue from where we had left off. In this way, we avert the great danger.\nAlso, Shree Krishna says that no loss ever comes from endeavor made on this path. This is because whatever material assets we accumulate in the present life have to be left behind at the time of death. But if we make any spiritual advancement on the path of Yog, God preserves it, and gives us the fruits in the next life, enabling us to start off from where we had left. Thus, having informed Arjun about its benefits, Shree Krishna now begins instructing him about the science of working without attachment." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.41", "verse": "41", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "व्यवसायात्मिका बुद्धिरेकेह कुरुनन्दन |\nबहुशाखा ह्यनन्ताश्च बुद्धयोऽव्यवसायिनाम् || 41||", "text": "व्यवसायात्मिका बुद्धिरेकेह कुरुनन्दन |\nबहुशाखा ह्यनन्ताश्च बुद्धयोऽव्यवसायिनाम् || 41||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_041.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "O descendent of the Kurus, the intellect of those who are on this path is resolute, and their aim is one-pointed. But the intellect of those who are irresolute is many-branched.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-41.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.41.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "Attachment is a function of the mind. Its manifestation is that the mind repeatedly runs toward the object of its attachment, which could be persons, sensual objects, prestige, bodily comfort, situations, and so on. So if thoughts of some person or object repeatedly come to the mind, it is a possible indication of the mind being attached to it. However, if it is the mind that gets attached, then why is Shree Krishna bringing the intellect into the topic of attachment? Is there any role of the intellect in eliminating attachment?\nWithin our body is the subtle antaḥ karaṇ, which we also colloquially refer to as the heart. It consists of the mind, the intellect, and the ego. In this subtle machine, the intellect is superior to the mind. It makes decisions while the mind creates desires and gets attached to the object of affection as determined by the intellect. For instance, if the intellect decides that money is the source of happiness, the mind hankers for wealth. If the intellect decides that prestige is the most important thing in life, the mind craves for reputation and fame. In other words, the mind develops desires in accordance with the knowledge of the intellect.\nThroughout the day, we humans control our mind with the intellect. While sitting at home, we adopt informal postures in which the mind finds comfort. Yet, we adopt appropriate formal postures while sitting in the office. It is not that the mind enjoys the formality of the office—given its way, it would rather embrace the informality of home. However, the intellect decides that formal behavior is necessary in the office. So the intellect controls the mind, and people sit formally all day long, following the decorum of the workplace, against the nature of the mind. Similarly, the mind does not enjoy doing office work—if it had its way, it would rather sit at home and watch television. But the intellect rules that working in office is necessary to earn a living. Therefore, the intellect again reins in the natural tendency of the mind, and people work eight hours a day, or longer.\nThe above examples illustrate that as human beings our intellect possesses the ability to control the mind. Thus, we must cultivate the intellect with proper knowledge and use it to guide the mind in the proper direction. Buddhi yog is the art of detaching the mind from the fruits of actions, by developing a resolute decision of the intellect that all work is meant for the pleasure of God. Such a person of resolute intellect cultivates single-minded focus on the goal, and traverses the path like an arrow released from the bow. This resolve becomes so strong in higher stages of sādhanā that nothing can deter the sādhak from treading the path. He or she thinks, “Even if there are millions of obstacles on my path, even if the whole world condemns me, even if I have to lay down my life, I will still not give up my sādhanā.” But those whose intellect is many-branched find their mind running in various directions. They are unable to develop the focus of mind that is required to tread the path to God." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.42 – 2.43", "verse": "42-43", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "यामिमां पुष्पितां वाचं प्रवदन्त्यविपश्चित: |\nवेदवादरता: पार्थ नान्यदस्तीति वादिन: || 42||\nकामात्मान: स्वर्गपरा जन्मकर्मफलप्रदाम् |\nक्रियाविशेषबहुलां भोगैश्वर्यगतिं प्रति || 43||", "text": "यामिमां पुष्पितां वाचं प्रवदन्त्यविपश्चित: |\nवेदवादरता: पार्थ नान्यदस्तीति वादिन: || 42||\nकामात्मान: स्वर्गपरा जन्मकर्मफलप्रदाम् |\nक्रियाविशेषबहुलां भोगैश्वर्यगतिं प्रति || 43||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_042-043.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "Those with limited understanding, get attracted to the flowery words of the Vedas, which advocate ostentatious rituals for elevation to the celestial abodes, and presume no higher principle is described in them. They glorify only those portions of the Vedas that please their senses, and perform pompous ritualistic ceremonies for attaining high birth, opulence, sensual enjoyment, and elevation to the heavenly planets.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-42.mp3", "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-43.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.42.mp3", "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.43.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "The Vedas are divided into three sections. These are: Karm-kāṇḍ (ritualistic ceremonies), Jñāna-kāṇḍa (knowledge section), and Upāsanā-kāṇḍ (devotional section). The Karm-kāṇḍ section advocates the performance of ritualistic ceremonies for material rewards and promotion to the celestial abodes. Those who seek sensual pleasures glorify this section of the Vedas.\nThe celestial abodes contain a higher order of material luxuries, and offer greater facility for sensual enjoyment. But elevation to the heavenly abodes does not imply a concurrent spiritual elevation. These celestial planes are also within the material universe, and having gone there, when one’s account of good karmas gets depleted, one again returns to the planet Earth. People with limited understanding strive for the heavenly abodes, thinking that is the whole purpose of the Vedas. In this way, they continue transmigrating in the cycle of life-and-death, without endeavoring for God-realization. However, those with spiritual wisdom do not make even heaven their goal. The Muṇḍakopaniṣhad states:\navidyāyāmantare vartamānāḥ svayaṁdhīrāḥ paṇḍitaṁ manyamānāḥjaṅghanyamānāḥ pariyanti mūḍhā andhenaiva nīyamānā yathāndhāḥ (1.2.8) [v37]\n“Those, who practice the ostentatious rituals prescribed in the Vedas for enjoying the celestial pleasures of the higher abodes, think themselves to be scholars of the scriptures, but in reality they are foolish. They are like the blind leading the blind.”" }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.44", "verse": "44", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "भोगैश्वर्यप्रसक्तानां तयापहृतचेतसाम् |\nव्यवसायात्मिका बुद्धि: समाधौ न विधीयते || 44||", "text": "भोगैश्वर्यप्रसक्तानां तयापहृतचेतसाम् |\nव्यवसायात्मिका बुद्धि: समाधौ न विधीयते || 44||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_044.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "With their minds deeply attached to worldly pleasures and their intellects bewildered by such things, they are unable to possess the resolute determination for success on the path to God.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-44.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.44.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "People whose minds are attached to sensual enjoyment concern themselves with bhog (gratification), and aiśhwarya (luxury). They engage their intellects in enhancing their income and contemplating how to increase their material possessions and maximize their enjoyment. Bewildered in this manner, they are unable to develop the firm resolve required for traversing the path to God-realization." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.45", "verse": "45", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "त्रैगुण्यविषया वेदा निस्त्रैगुण्यो भवार्जुन |\nनिर्द्वन्द्वो नित्यसत्त्वस्थो निर्योगक्षेम आत्मवान् || 45||", "text": "त्रैगुण्यविषया वेदा निस्त्रैगुण्यो भवार्जुन |\nनिर्द्वन्द्वो नित्यसत्त्वस्थो निर्योगक्षेम आत्मवान् || 45||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_045.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "The Vedas deal with the three modes of material nature, O Arjun. Rise above the three modes to a state of pure spiritual consciousness. Freeing yourself from dualities, eternally fixed in Truth, and without concern for material gain and safety, be situated in the self.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-45.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.45.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "The material energy binds the divine soul to the bodily conception of life, by its three constituent modes. These modes of material nature are sattva (mode of goodness), rajas (mode of passion), and tamas (mode of ignorance). The relative proportion of the three modes varies for every individual, due their sanskārs (tendencies) from countless past lives, and accordingly, everyone has different inclinations and tendencies. The Vedic scriptures accept this disparity and give suitable instructions for all kinds of people. If the śhāstras did not contain instructions for worldly-minded people, they would have gone further astray. So, the Vedas offer them material rewards for the performance of rigorous rituals, helping them rise from the mode of ignorance to passion, and from passion to goodness.\nThus, the Vedas contain both kinds of knowledge—ritualistic ceremonies for the materially attached and divine knowledge for spiritual aspirants. When Shree Krishna tells Arjun to reject the Vedas, the statement needs to be understood in the context of the preceding and following verses. He is implying that Arjun should not be attracted by the section of the Vedas that propounds rules, regulations, and ceremonies for material rewards. Instead, he should use the divine section of the Vedic knowledge to elevate himself to the level of Absolute Truth." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.46", "verse": "46", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "यावानर्थ उदपाने सर्वत: सम्प्लुतोदके |\nतावान्सर्वेषु वेदेषु ब्राह्मणस्य विजानत: || 46||", "text": "यावानर्थ उदपाने सर्वत: सम्प्लुतोदके |\nतावान्सर्वेषु वेदेषु ब्राह्मणस्य विजानत: || 46||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_046.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "Whatever purpose is served by a small well of water is naturally served in all respects by a large lake. Similarly, one who realizes the Absolute Truth also fulfills the purpose of all the Vedas.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-46.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.46.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "The Vedas contain 100,000 mantras, describing varieties of rituals, practices, prayers, ceremonies, and gems of knowledge. All these are given with only one aim—to help unite the soul with God.\nvāsudeva-parā vedā vāsudeva-parā makhāḥvāsudeva-parā yogā vāsudeva-parāḥ kriyāḥvāsudeva-paraṁ jñānaṁ vāsudeva-paraṁ tapaḥvāsudeva-paro dharmo vāsudeva-parā gatiḥ\n(Bhāgavatam 1.2.28-29) [v38]\n“The goal of all the Vedic mantras, the ritualistic activities, spiritual practices, sacrifices, cultivation of knowledge, and performance of duties, is to help the soul reach the divine feet of God.”\nHowever, just as a medicine pill is often sugar-coated to make it more palatable, similarly to attract materially-minded people, the Vedas also give material allurements. The underlying motive is to help the soul gradually get detached from the world and attached to God. Thus, one who is attaching the mind to God is automatically fulfilling the purpose of all the Vedic mantras. Shree Krishna advises Uddhav:\nājñāyaivaṁ guṇān doṣhān mayādiṣhṭān api swakāndharmān santyajya yaḥ sarvān māṁ bhajeta sa sattamaḥ\n(Bhāgavatam 11.11.32)[v39]\n“The Vedas prescribe varieties of social and ritualistic duties for individuals. But those who grasp their underlying motive, and rejecting all intermediate instructions, wholeheartedly fulfill their duty toward me, I consider them to be the highest devotees.”" }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.47", "verse": "47", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "कर्मण्येवाधिकारस्ते मा फलेषु कदाचन |\nमा कर्मफलहेतुर्भूर्मा ते सङ्गोऽस्त्वकर्मणि || 47 ||", "text": "कर्मण्येवाधिकारस्ते मा फलेषु कदाचन |\nमा कर्मफलहेतुर्भूर्मा ते सङ्गोऽस्त्वकर्मणि || 47 ||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_047.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "You have a right to perform your prescribed duties, but you are not entitled to the fruits of your actions. Never consider yourself to be the cause of the results of your activities, nor be attached to inaction.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-47.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.47.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "This is an extremely popular verse of the Bhagavad Gita, so much so that even most school children in India are familiar with it. It offers deep insight into the proper spirit of work and is often quoted whenever the topic of karm yog is discussed. The verse gives four instructions regarding the science of work: 1) Do your duty, but do not concern yourself with the results. 2) The fruits of your actions are not for your enjoyment. 3) Even while working, give up the pride of doership. 4) Do not be attached to inaction.\nDo your duty, but do not concern yourself with the results. We have the right to do our duty, but the results are not dependent only upon our efforts. A number of factors come into play in determining the results—our efforts, destiny (our past karmas), the will of God, the efforts of others, the cumulative karmas of the people involved, the place and situation (a matter of luck), etc. Now if we become anxious for results, we will experience anxiety whenever they are not according to our expectations. So Shree Krishna advises Arjun to give up concern for the results and instead focus solely on doing a good job. The fact is that when we are unconcerned about the results, we are able to focus entirely on our efforts, and the result is even better than before.\nA humorous acronym for this is NATO or Not Attached to Outcome. Consider its application to a simple everyday activity such as playing golf. When people play golf, they are engrossed in the fruits—whether their score is under par, over par, etc. Now if they could merely focus on playing the shots to the best of their ability, they would find it the most enjoyable game of golf they have ever played. Additionally, with their complete focus on the shot being played, their game would be raised to a higher level.\nThe fruits of your actions are not for your enjoyment. To perform actions is an integral part of human nature. Having come into this world, we all have various duties determined by our family situation, social position, occupation, etc. While performing these actions, we must remember that we are not the enjoyers of the results—the results are meant for the pleasure of God. The individual soul is a tiny part of God (verse 15.7), and hence our inherent nature is to serve him through all our actions.\ndāsa bhūtamidaṁ tasya jagatsthāvara jangamamśhrīmannārāyaṇa swāmī jagatāṁprabhurīśhwaraḥ (Padma Puran)[v40]\n“God is the Master of the entire creation; all moving and non-moving beings are his servants.” Material consciousness is characterized by the following manner of thoughts, “I am the proprietor of all that I possess. It is all meant for my enjoyment. I have the right to enhance my possessions and maximize my enjoyment.” The reverse of this is Spiritual consciousness, which is characterized by thoughts such as, “God is the owner and enjoyer of this entire world. I am merely his selfless servant. I must use all that I have in the service of God.” Accordingly, Shree Krishna instructs Arjun not to think of himself as the enjoyer of the fruits of his actions.\nEven while working, give up the pride of doership. Shree Krishna wants Arjun to give up kartritwābhimān, or the ego of being the doer. He instructs Arjun never to chase after preconceived motives attached to his actions nor consider himself as the cause of the results of his actions. However, when we perform actions, then why should we not consider ourselves as the doers of those actions? The reason is that our senses, mind, and intellect are inert; God energizes them with his power and puts them at our disposal. As a result, only with the help of the power we receive from him, are we able to work. For example, the tongs in the kitchen are inactive by themselves, but they get energized by someone’s hand, and then they perform even difficult tasks, such as lifting burning coal, etc. Now if we say that the tongs are the doers of actions, it will be inaccurate. If the hand did not energize them, what would they be able to do? They would merely lie inert on the table. Similarly, if God did not supply our body-mind-soul mechanism with the power to perform actions, we could have done nothing. Thus, we must give up the ego of doing, remembering that God is the only source of the power by which we perform all our actions.\nAll the above thoughts are very nicely summarized in the following popular Sanskrit verse:\nyatkṛitaṁ yatkariṣhyāmi tatsarvaṁ na mayā kṛitamtvayā kṛitaṁ tu phalabhuk tvameva madhusūdana [v41]\n“Whatever I have achieved and whatever I wish to achieve, I am not the doer of these. O Madhusudan, you are the real doer, and you alone are the enjoyer of their results.”\nDo not be attached to inaction. Although the nature of the living being is to work, often situations arise where work seems burdensome and confusing. In such cases, instead of running away from it, we must understand and implement the proper science of work, as explained by Shree Krishna to Arjun. However, it is highly inappropriate if we consider work as laborious and burdensome, and resort to inaction. Becoming attached to inaction is never the solution and is clearly condemned by Shree Krishna." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.48", "verse": "48", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "योगस्थ: कुरु कर्माणि सङ्गं त्यक्त्वा धनञ्जय |\nसिद्ध्यसिद्ध्यो: समो भूत्वा समत्वं योग उच्यते || 48||", "text": "योगस्थ: कुरु कर्माणि सङ्गं त्यक्त्वा धनञ्जय |\nसिद्ध्यसिद्ध्यो: समो भूत्वा समत्वं योग उच्यते || 48||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_048.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "Be steadfast in the performance of your duty, O Arjun, abandoning attachment to success and failure. Such equanimity is called Yog.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-48.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.48.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "The equanimity that enables us to accept all circumstances with serenity is so praiseworthy that Shree Krishna calls it Yog, or union with the Supreme. This equipoise comes from implementing the knowledge of the previous verse. When we understand that the effort is in our hands, not the results, we then concern ourselves only with doing our duty. The results are for the pleasure of God, and so we dedicate them to him. Now, if the results are not to our expectations, we calmly accept them as the will of God. In this way, we are able to accept fame and infamy, success and failure, pleasure and pain, as God’s will, and when we learn to embrace both equally, we develop the equanimity that Shree Krishna talks about.\nThe verse is a very practical solution to the vicissitudes of life. If we are sailing in the ocean in a boat, it is natural to expect the waves of the ocean to shake the boat. If we get disturbed each time a wave rocks the boat, our miseries would be endless. And if we do not expect the waves to arise, we would be expecting the ocean to become something other than its natural self. Waves are an inseparable phenomenon of the ocean. Similarly, as we wade through the ocean of life, it throws up all kinds of waves that are beyond our control. If we keep struggling to eliminate negative situations, we will be unable to avoid unhappiness. But if we can learn to accept everything that comes our way, without sacrificing our best efforts, we will have surrendered to the will of God, and that will be true Yog." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.49", "verse": "49", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "दूरेण ह्यवरं कर्म बुद्धियोगाद्धनञ्जय |\nबुद्धौ शरणमन्विच्छ कृपणा: फलहेतव: || 49||", "text": "दूरेण ह्यवरं कर्म बुद्धियोगाद्धनञ्जय |\nबुद्धौ शरणमन्विच्छ कृपणा: फलहेतव: || 49||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_049.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "Seek refuge in divine knowledge and insight, O Arjun, and discard reward-seeking actions that are certainly inferior to works performed with the intellect established in divine knowledge. Miserly are those who seek to enjoy the fruits of their works.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-49.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.49.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "There are two aspects to work: 1) The external activity we do, 2) Our internal attitude toward it. For example, let us say that a temple is being built in the holy land of Vrindavan. The workers are engaged in a sacred activity, but their attitude is mundane. They are concerned with the salary they receive. If another contractor offers higher wages, they will not mind switching their job. There is also an ascetic living in Vrindavan, who, seeing the glorious temple being built, engages in kār sevā (voluntary work) as a service to God. The external work performed by the sadhu and the workers are the same, but the internal attitudes are poles apart.\nHere Shree Krishna advises Arjun to move higher in his internal motivation toward work. He declares that those who work with the motivation of self-enjoyment are miserly. Those who are detached from the fruits and dedicate their work to a higher cause are superior. And those who offer the fruits to God are truly in knowledge.\nThe word kṛipaṇa (miserly) has been used here. The Śhrīmad Bhāgavatam describes a kṛipaṇa:\nna veda kṛipaṇaḥ śhreya ātmano guṇa-vastu-dṛiktasya tān ichchhato yachchhed yadi so ’pi tathā-vidhaḥ (6.9.49)[v42]\n“Kṛipaṇa are those who think that the ultimate reality consists only of sense objects produced from the material energy.” Again, the Śhrīmad Bhāgavatam, states: kṛipaṇo yo ’jitendriyaḥ (11.19.44)[v43] “A kṛipaṇa is one who has no control over the senses.”\nAs an individual evolves to higher levels of consciousness, one naturally sheds the desire for enjoying the fruits of work, and moves in the direction of service. Bill Gates, having renounced his position in Microsoft Corporation, now dedicates his energy in the service of society. Similarly, after having had his fill of power and position as the President of USA, Bill Clinton now preaches the glories of service to humankind, and has even written a book on the topic, “Giving—How Each Of Us Can Change The World.” Their engagement in service is praiseworthy, but it is still imperfectly oriented. That service attitude becomes perfect when we learn to do our works for the pleasure of God, dedicating all the fruits to him." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.50", "verse": "50", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "बुद्धियुक्तो जहातीह उभे सुकृतदुष्कृते |\nतस्माद्योगाय युज्यस्व योग: कर्मसु कौशलम् || 50||", "text": "बुद्धियुक्तो जहातीह उभे सुकृतदुष्कृते |\nतस्माद्योगाय युज्यस्व योग: कर्मसु कौशलम् || 50||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_050.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "One who prudently practices the science of work without attachment can get rid of both good and bad reactions in this life itself. Therefore, strive for Yog, which is the art of working skillfully (in proper consciousness).", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-50.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.50.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "Upon hearing the science of karm-yog, people often wonder that if they give up attachment to results, will their performance go down? Shree Krishna explains that working without personal motivation does not reduce the quality of our work; instead we become even more skillful than before. Consider the example of a sincere surgeon who cuts people with his knife while operating upon them. He performs his duty with equanimity, and is undisturbed irrespective of whether the patient survives or dies. This is because he is merely doing his duty unselfishly, to the best of his ability, and is not attached to the results. Hence, even if the patient dies while being operated upon, the surgeon does not feel guilty of murder. However, if the same surgeon’s only child needs to be operated, he does not have the courage to do so. Because of attachment to the results, he fears he will not be able to perform the operation skillfully, and so he seeks the help of another surgeon. This shows that attachment to results does not make us more skillful; rather, the attachment affects our performance adversely. Instead, if we work without attachment, we can do so at our maximum skill level, without feeling nervous, jittery, scared, tense, or excited.\nLikewise, Arjun’s personal example also illustrates the point that giving up attachment to the fruits does not adversely affect performance. Before hearing the Bhagavad Gita, he intended to engage in war with the desire of winning a kingdom. After hearing the Bhagavad Gita from Shree Krishna, he was fighting because it was his duty to God, and Shree Krishna would be pleased by it. He was still a warrior; however, his internal motivation had changed. The fact that he did his duty without attachment did not make him any less competent than before. In fact, he fought with greater inspiration because his work was directly in service of God." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.51", "verse": "51", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "कर्मजं बुद्धियुक्ता हि फलं त्यक्त्वा मनीषिण: |\nजन्मबन्धविनिर्मुक्ता: पदं गच्छन्त्यनामयम् || 51||", "text": "कर्मजं बुद्धियुक्ता हि फलं त्यक्त्वा मनीषिण: |\nजन्मबन्धविनिर्मुक्ता: पदं गच्छन्त्यनामयम् || 51||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_051.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "The wise endowed with equanimity of intellect, abandon attachment to the fruits of actions, which bind one to the cycle of life and death. By working in such consciousness, they attain the state beyond all suffering.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-51.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.51.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "Shree Krishna continues to expound on the topic of working without attachment to the fruits of actions, and states that it leads one to the state beyond suffering. The paradox of life is that we strive for happiness, but reap misery; we crave love, but we meet with disappointment; we covet life, but know we are moving toward death at every moment. The Bhāgavatam states:\nsukhāya karmāṇi karoti loko na taiḥ sukhaṁ vānyad-upāramaṁ vāvindeta bhūyas tata eva duḥkhaṁ yad atra yuktaṁ bhagavān vaden naḥ (3.5.2)[v44]\n“Every human being engages in fruitive works to get happiness, but finds no satisfaction. Instead, these activities only aggravate the misery.” As a result, practically everyone in this world is unhappy. Some suffer from the miseries of their own body and mind; others are tormented by their family members and relatives; some suffer from scarcity of wealth and the paucity of the necessities of life. Materially minded people know they are unhappy, but they think that others ahead of them must be happy, and so they continue running in the direction of material growth. This blind pursuit has been going on for many lifetimes and yet there is no sight of happiness. Now, if people could realize that nobody has ever achieved happiness by engaging in fruitive works, they would then understand that the direction in which they are running is futile, and they would think of doing a U-turn toward spiritual life.\nThose whose intellects have become steadfast with spiritual knowledge understand that God is the Supreme Enjoyer of everything. Consequently, they renounce attachment to the fruits of their actions, offer everything to him, and serenely accept everything that comes as his prasād (mercy). In doing so, their actions become free from karmic reactions that bind one to the cycle of life and death." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.52", "verse": "52", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "यदा ते मोहकलिलं बुद्धिर्व्यतितरिष्यति |\nतदा गन्तासि निर्वेदं श्रोतव्यस्य श्रुतस्य च || 52||", "text": "यदा ते मोहकलिलं बुद्धिर्व्यतितरिष्यति |\nतदा गन्तासि निर्वेदं श्रोतव्यस्य श्रुतस्य च || 52||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_052.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "When your intellect crosses the quagmire of delusion, you will then acquire indifference to what has been heard and what is yet to be heard (about enjoyments in this world and the next).", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-52.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.52.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "Shree Krishna had previously said that people who are attached to worldly enjoyment get attracted to the flowery words of the Vedas, which propagate ostentatious rituals for gaining worldly opulences and attaining the celestial abodes (verses 2.42–2.43). However, one whose intellect is illumined with spiritual knowledge no longer seeks material sense pleasures, knowing them to be harbingers of misery. Such a person then loses interest in Vedic rituals. The Muṇḍakopaniṣhad states:\nparīkṣhya lokānkarmachitānbrāhmaṇo nirvedamāyānnāstyakṛitaḥ kṛitena (1.2.12)[v45]\n“Realized sages go beyond Vedic rituals, after understanding that the pleasures one attains from fruitive karmas, in this life and in the celestial abodes, are temporary and mixed with misery.”" }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.53", "verse": "53", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "श्रुतिविप्रतिपन्ना ते यदा स्थास्यति निश्चला |\nसमाधावचला बुद्धिस्तदा योगमवाप्स्यसि || 53||", "text": "श्रुतिविप्रतिपन्ना ते यदा स्थास्यति निश्चला |\nसमाधावचला बुद्धिस्तदा योगमवाप्स्यसि || 53||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_053.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "When your intellect ceases to be allured by the fruitive sections of the Vedas and remains steadfast in divine consciousness, you will then attain the state of perfect Yog.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-53.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.53.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "As sādhaks advance on the spiritual path, within their minds their relationship with God becomes stronger. At that time, they find the Vedic rituals they were previously performing to be cumbersome and time consuming. They then wonder whether they are obliged to keep performing the rituals, along with their devotion, and if they reject the ritual and dedicate themselves fully to their sādhanā, will they be committing an offense? Such people will find the answer to their doubt in this verse. Shree Krishna says that to be fixed in sādhanā without being allured to the fruitive sections of the Vedas is not an offence; rather, it is a higher spiritual state.\nMadhavendra Puri, the famous 14th century sage, states this sentiment very emphatically. He was a Vedic Brahmin and used to engage in extensive ritualistic practices, but then took to sanyās (the renounced order), and engaged wholeheartedly in devotion to Shree Krishna. In his later life, he wrote:\nsandhyā vandana bhadramastu bhavate bhoḥ snāna tubhyaṁ namaḥbho devāḥ pitaraśhchatarapaṇa vidhau nahaṁ kṣhamaḥ kṣhamyatāmyatra kvāpi niṣhadya yādava kulottaasya kansadviṣhaḥsmāraṁ smāramaghaṁ harāmi tadalaṁ manye kimanyena me [v46]\n“I wish to apologize to all kinds of rituals as I have no time to respect them. So dear Sandhyā Vandan (a set of rituals performed thrice daily by those who have received the sacred thread), holy baths, sacrifices to the celestial gods, offerings to the ancestors, etc. please excuse me. Now, wherever I sit, I remember the Supreme Lord Shree Krishna, the enemy of Kansa, and that is sufficient to release me from material bondage.”\nShree Krishna uses the word samādhāv-achalā in this verse, to refer to the state of steadfastness in divine consciousness. The word Samādhi has been formed from the roots sam (equilibrium) and dhi (intellect), meaning, “a state of total equilibrium of the intellect.” One who is steadfast in the higher consciousness, unmoved by material allurements attains that state of Samādhi, or perfect Yog." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.54", "verse": "54", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "अर्जुन उवाच |\nस्थितप्रज्ञस्य का भाषा समाधिस्थस्य केशव |\nस्थितधी: किं प्रभाषेत किमासीत व्रजेत किम् || 54||", "text": "अर्जुन उवाच |\nस्थितप्रज्ञस्य का भाषा समाधिस्थस्य केशव |\nस्थितधी: किं प्रभाषेत किमासीत व्रजेत किम् || 54||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_054.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "Arjun said : O Keshav, what is the disposition of one who is situated in divine consciousness? How does an enlightened person talk? How does he sit? How does he walk?", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-54.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.54.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "The designations sthita prajña (one with steady intellect) and samādhi-stha (situated in trance) apply to enlightened persons. Having heard from Shree Krishna about the state of perfect yog, or Samādhi, Arjun asks a natural question. He wishes to know the nature of the mind of a person who is in this state. Additionally he wishes to know how this divine state of mind manifests in a person’s behavior.\nBeginning with this verse, Arjun asks Shree Krishna sixteen sets of questions. In response, Shree Krishna reveals the deepest secrets of karm yog, jñāna yog, bhakti yog, austerity, meditation, etc. The sixteen sets of questions asked by Arjun are:\n1. “What is the disposition of one who is situated in divine consciousness? (verse 2.54)\n2. “If you consider knowledge superior to fruitive works, then why do you ask me to wage this terrible war?” (verse 3.1)\n3. “Why is a person impelled to commit sinful acts, even unwillingly, as if by force?” (verse 3.36)\n4. “You were born much after Vivasvan. How am I to understand that in the beginning you instructed this science to him?” (verse 4.4)\n5. “You praised the path of renunciation of actions, and again you praised work with devotion. Please tell me decisively which of the two is more beneficial?” (verse 5.1)\n6. “O Krishna, the mind is very restless, turbulent, strong and obstinate. It appears to me that it is more difficult to control than the wind.” (verse 6.34)\n7. “What is the fate of the unsuccessful yogi who begins the path with faith, but whose mind deviates from God due to untamed passions, and is unable to reach the highest perfection in this life?” (verse 6.37)\n8. “What is Brahman and what is karma? What is Adhibhūta, and who are the Ādhidaiva? Who is Ādhiyajña and how does he dwell in this body? O slayer of the Madhu demon, how can those of steadfast mind be united with you at the time of death?” (verse 8.1-2)\n9. “Please describe to me your divine opulences, by which you pervade all the worlds.” (verse 10.16)\n10. “I long to see your cosmic form, O Supreme divine Personality.” (verse 11.3)\n11. “You, who existed before all creation, I wish to know who you are, for your nature and workings mystify me.” (verse 11.31)\n12. “Between those who are steadfastly devoted to your personal form and those who worship the formless Brahman, whom do you consider to be more perfect in Yog?” (verse 12.1)\n13. “I wish to know about Prakṛiti (Nature) and Puruśh (the enjoyer). What is the field of activities, and who is the knower of the field? What is the nature of knowledge, and the object of knowledge?” (verse 13.1)\n14. “What are the characteristics of those who have gone beyond the three guṇas, O Lord? How do they act? How have they passed beyond the bondage of the guṇas?” (verse 14.21)\n15. “Where do they stand who disregard the injunctions of the scriptures, but still worship with faith?” (verse 17.1)\n16. “I wish to understand the nature of sanyās (renunciation), and how it is distinct from tyāg, or renouncing the fruits of actions.” (verse 18.1)" }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.55", "verse": "55", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "श्रीभगवानुवाच |\nप्रजहाति यदा कामान्सर्वान्पार्थ मनोगतान् |\nआत्मन्येवात्मना तुष्ट: स्थितप्रज्ञस्तदोच्यते || 55||", "text": "श्रीभगवानुवाच |\nप्रजहाति यदा कामान्सर्वान्पार्थ मनोगतान् |\nआत्मन्येवात्मना तुष्ट: स्थितप्रज्ञस्तदोच्यते || 55||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_055.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "The Supreme Lord said: O Parth, when one discards all selfish desires and cravings of the senses that torment the mind, and becomes satisfied in the realization of the self, such a person is said to be transcendentally situated.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-55.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.55.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "Shree Krishna begins answering Arjun’s questions here, and continues till the end of the chapter. Each fragment is naturally drawn towards its whole; just as a piece of stone is drawn by the force of gravitation towards the earth. The individual soul is a fragment of God, who is infinite bliss. Hence, the soul is a fragment of the ocean of infinite bliss, and it experiences the natural urge for bliss. When it strives to relish the bliss of the soul from God, it is called “Divine Love.” But when, in ignorance of its spiritual nature, it thinks of itself as the body, and seeks to relish the bliss of the body from the world, it is called “lust.”\nThis world has been called mṛiga tṛiṣhṇā in the scriptures, meaning “like the mirage seen by the deer.” The sun rays reflecting on the hot desert sand create an illusion of water for the deer. It thinks there is water ahead of it and runs to quench its thirst. But the more it runs toward the water, the more the mirage fades away. Its dull intellect cannot recognize that it is running after an illusion. The unfortunate deer keeps chasing the illusory water and dies of exhaustion on the desert sand. Similarly, the material energy Maya too creates an illusion of happiness, and we run after that illusory happiness in the hope of quenching the thirst of our senses. But no matter how much we try, happiness keeps fading further away from us. The Garuḍ Purāṇ states:\nchakradharo ’pi suratvaṁ suratvalābhe sakalasurapatitvambhavtirum surapatirūrdhvagatitvaṁ tathāpi nanivartate tṛiṣhṇā (2.12.14) [v47]\n“A king wishes to be the emperor of the whole world; the emperor aspires to be a celestial god; a celestial god seeks to be Indra, the king of heaven; and Indra desires to be Brahma, the secondary creator. Yet the thirst for material enjoyment does not get satiated.”\nBut when one learns to turn the mind away from material allurements and renounces the desires of the senses, such a person comes in touch with the inner bliss of the soul and becomes transcendentally situated. The Kaṭhopaniṣhad goes to the extent of saying that one who has renounced desires becomes like God:\nyadā sarve pramuchyante kāmā ye ’sya hṛidi śhritaḥatha martyo ’mṛito bhavatyatra brahma samaśhnute (2.3.14)[v48]\n“When one eliminates all selfish desires from the heart, then the materially fettered jīvātmā (soul) attains freedom from birth and death, and becomes Godlike in virtue.” Shree Krishna states in the above verse that a transcendentally situated person is one who has given up selfish desires and cravings of the senses, and is satisfied in the self." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.56", "verse": "56", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "दु:खेष्वनुद्विग्नमना: सुखेषु विगतस्पृह: |\nवीतरागभयक्रोध: स्थितधीर्मुनिरुच्यते || 56||", "text": "दु:खेष्वनुद्विग्नमना: सुखेषु विगतस्पृह: |\nवीतरागभयक्रोध: स्थितधीर्मुनिरुच्यते || 56||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_056.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "One whose mind remains undisturbed amidst misery, who does not crave for pleasure, and who is free from attachment, fear, and anger, is called a sage of steady wisdom.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-56.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.56.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "In this verse, Shree Krishna describes sages of steady wisdom as: 1) Vīta rāga—they give up craving for pleasure, 2) Vīta bhaya—they remain free from fear, 3) Vīta krodha—they are devoid of anger.\nAn enlightened person does not allow the mind to harbor the material frailties of lust, anger, greed, envy, etc. Only then can the mind steadily contemplate on transcendence and be fixed in the divine. If one permits the mind to brood over miseries, then the contemplation on the divine ceases and the mind is dragged down from the transcendental level. The process of torture works in the same manner. More than the present pain itself, it is the memories of past pain and apprehensions of future pain that torment the mind. But when the mind drops these two and has to simply grope with the present sensation, the pain surprisingly shrinks to a manageable (within the limits of tolerance) size. It is well known that historically Buddhist monks adopted a similar technique for tolerating torture from invading conquerors.\nSimilarly, if the mind craves external pleasures, it runs to the objects of enjoyment, and is again diverted from divine contemplation. So a sage of steady wisdom is one who does not allow the mind to hanker for pleasure or lament for miseries. Further, such a sage does not permit the mind to succumb to the urges of fear and anger. In this way, the mind becomes situated on the transcendental level." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.57", "verse": "57", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "य: सर्वत्रानभिस्नेहस्तत्तत्प्राप्य शुभाशुभम् |\nनाभिनन्दति न द्वेष्टि तस्य प्रज्ञा प्रतिष्ठिता || 57||", "text": "य: सर्वत्रानभिस्नेहस्तत्तत्प्राप्य शुभाशुभम् |\nनाभिनन्दति न द्वेष्टि तस्य प्रज्ञा प्रतिष्ठिता || 57||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_057.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "One who remains unattached under all conditions, and is neither delighted by good fortune nor dejected by tribulation, he is a sage with perfect knowledge.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-57.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.57.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "Rudyard Kipling, a famous British poet, has encapsulated the essence of this verse on Sthita prajña (Sage of steady intelligence) in his famous poem “If.” Here are a few lines from the poem:\nIf you can dream—and not make dreams your master;If you can think—and not make thoughts your aim,If you can meet with Triumph and DisasterAnd treat those two impostors just the same…If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you,If all men count with you, but none too much:If you can fill the unforgiving minuteWith sixty seconds’ worth of distance run,Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it,And—which is more—you’ll be a Man, my son!\nThe popularity of this poem shows the natural urge in people to reach the state of enlightenment, which Shree Krishna describes to Arjun. One may wonder how an English poet expressed the same state of enlightenment that is described by the Supreme Lord. The fact is that the urge for enlightenment is the intrinsic nature of the soul. Hence, knowingly or unknowingly, everyone craves for it, in all cultures around the world. Shree Krishna is describing it here, in response to Arjun’s question." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.58", "verse": "58", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "यदा संहरते चायं कूर्मोऽङ्गानीव सर्वश: |\nइन्द्रियाणीन्द्रियार्थेभ्यस्तस्य प्रज्ञा प्रतिष्ठिता || 58||", "text": "यदा संहरते चायं कूर्मोऽङ्गानीव सर्वश: |\nइन्द्रियाणीन्द्रियार्थेभ्यस्तस्य प्रज्ञा प्रतिष्ठिता || 58||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_058.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "One who is able to withdraw the senses from their objects, just as a tortoise withdraws its limbs into its shell, is established in divine wisdom.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-58.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.58.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "Attempting to quench the cravings of the senses by supplying them with their desired objects is like trying to dowse a fire by pouring clarified butter on it. The fire may be smothered for a moment, but then it flares up with redoubled intensity. Hence, the Śhrīmad Bhāgavatam states that desires never go away when they are fulfilled; they only come back more strongly:\nna jātu kāmaḥ kāmānām upabhogena śhāmyatihaviṣhā kṛiṣhṇa-vartmeva bhūya evābhivardhate (9.19.14) [v49]\n“Fulfilling the desires of the senses does not extinguish them, just as offering oblations of butter in the fire does not extinguish it; instead, it makes the fire blaze even stronger.”\nThese desires can be compared to an itch in the body. The itch is troublesome and creates an irresistible urge to scratch. But scratching does not solve the problem. For a few moments, there is relief, and then the itch returns with greater force. Instead, if someone can tolerate the itch for some time, it begins losing its sting, and dies down slowly. That is the secret for getting peace from the itch. The same logic applies to desires as well. The mind and senses throw up myriad desires for happiness, but as long as we are in the game of fulfilling them, happiness remains illusory, like the mirage. But when we learn to discard all these desires, to find happiness in God, the mind and senses make peace with us.\nSo an enlightened sage intelligently masters the senses and the mind. The illustration used in this verse is that of the turtle. Whenever it encounters danger, the turtle protects itself by drawing its limbs and head inside its shell. After the danger passes, the turtle again extracts its limbs and head and continues on its way. The enlightened soul possesses similar control over the mind and senses and can retract and extract them according to the needs of the situation." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.59", "verse": "59", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "विषया विनिवर्तन्ते निराहारस्य देहिन: |\nरसवर्जं रसोऽप्यस्य परं दृष्ट्वा निवर्तते || 59||", "text": "विषया विनिवर्तन्ते निराहारस्य देहिन: |\nरसवर्जं रसोऽप्यस्य परं दृष्ट्वा निवर्तते || 59||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_059.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "Aspirants may restrain the senses from their objects of enjoyment, but the taste for the sense objects remains. However, even this taste ceases for those who realize the Supreme.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-59.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.59.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "When one gives up eating, as in a fast, the desires of the senses become feeble. Similarly, in sickness one loses interest toward the objects of enjoyment. These states of dispassion are temporary, for the seed of desire remains within the mind. Again when the fast is terminated or the sickness goes away, the desires return.\nWhat is this seed of desire? It is the intrinsic nature of the soul for the divine bliss of God, of whom it is a tiny fragment. Until it gets that divine bliss, the soul can never be contented, and the search for happiness will continue. Sādhaks (spiritual aspirants) may forcibly restrain their senses with their will power, but such restrain is temporary because it does not extinguish the internal flame of desire. However, when the soul engages in devotion toward God, and gets divine bliss, it experiences the higher taste for which it had been craving since infinite lifetimes. The Taittirīya Upaniṣhad states:\nraso vai saḥ rasaṁ hyevāyaṁ labdhvā ’nandī bhavati (2.7.2)[v50]\n“God is all-bliss. When the soul attains God, it becomes satiated in bliss.” Then, one naturally develops dispassion toward the lower sensual pleasures. This detachment that comes through devotion is firm and unshakeable.\nThus, the Bhagavad Gita does not teach a dry suppression of desires, instead it teaches the beautiful path of sublimation of desires by directing them toward God. The Saint Ramakrishna Paramahamsa expressed this principle very eloquently, when he said: “Devotion is love for the highest; and the lowest shall fall away by itself.”" }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.60", "verse": "60", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "यततो ह्यपि कौन्तेय पुरुषस्य विपश्चित: |\nइन्द्रियाणि प्रमाथीनि हरन्ति प्रसभं मन: || 60||", "text": "यततो ह्यपि कौन्तेय पुरुषस्य विपश्चित: |\nइन्द्रियाणि प्रमाथीनि हरन्ति प्रसभं मन: || 60||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_060.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "The senses are so strong and turbulent, O son of Kunti, that they can forcibly carry away the mind even of a person endowed with discrimination who practices self-control.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-60.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.60.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "The senses are like wild horses that have been newly harnessed. They are impetuous and reckless, and hence, disciplining them is an important battle that sādhaks have to fight within themselves. Therefore, those desirous of spiritual growth should carefully strive to tame the indulgent senses, which are colored with lust and greed, or else they have the power to sabotage and derail the spiritual process of even the most well-intentioned yogis.\nThe Śhrīmad Bhāgavatam relates a story that perfectly illustrates this statement (canto 9, chapter 6). There was a great sage in ancient times, known as Saubhari. He is mentioned in the Rig Veda, where there is a mantra called Saubhari Sutra. There is also a scripture called the Saubhari Samhita. So he was not just an ordinary sage. Saubhari had attained such control over his body that he used to submerge himself in the river Yamuna and meditate under water. One day, he saw two fish mating. This sight carried away his mind and senses, and the desire for sexual association arose in him. He abandoned his spiritual practice and came out of the water, wondering how to fulfill his desire.\nAt that time, the king of Ayodhya was Mandhata, who was a very illustrious and noble ruler. He had fifty daughters, each more beautiful than the other. Saubhari approached the king and asked for the hand of one of the fifty princesses.\nKing Mandhata wondered about the sanity of the sage and thought to himself, “An old man wanting to get married!” The king knew Saubhari to be a powerful sage, and feared that if he refused, the sage might curse him. But if he consented, the life of one of his daughters would be ruined. He was in a dilemma. So he said, “O holy one! I have no objection to your request. Please take a seat. I shall bring my fifty daughters before you, and whosoever chooses you will become yours in marriage.” The king was confident that none of his daughters would choose the old ascetic, and in this way, he would be saved from the sage’s curse.\nSaubhari was all too aware of the king’s intention. He told the king that he would return the following day. That evening, he used his yogic powers to turn himself into a handsome young man. Consequently, when he presented himself at the palace the next day, all the fifty princesses chose him as their husband. The king was bound by the word he had given and was compelled to marry all his daughters to the sage.\nNow the king was concerned about the fights that would take place amongst the fifty sisters, since they would have to share a husband. However, Saubhari again used his yogic powers. Putting the king’s apprehension to rest, he assumed fifty forms and created fifty palaces for his wives, and lived separately with each one of them. In this manner, thousands of years passed by. The Puranas state that Saubhari had many children from each of them, and those children had further children, until a tiny city had been created. One day, Saubhari came to his senses, and exclaimed, aho imaṁ paśhyata me vināśhaṁ (Bhāgavatam 9.6.50) [v51] “O humans! Those of you, who make plans to attain happiness through material acquisitions, be careful. Look at my degradation—where I was and where am I now. I created fifty bodies by my yogic powers, and lived with fifty women for thousands of years. And yet, the senses did not experience fulfillment; they only kept hankering for more. Learn from my downfall and be warned not to venture in this direction.”" }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.61", "verse": "61", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "तानि सर्वाणि संयम्य युक्त आसीत मत्पर: |\nवशे हि यस्येन्द्रियाणि तस्य प्रज्ञा प्रतिष्ठिता || 61||", "text": "तानि सर्वाणि संयम्य युक्त आसीत मत्पर: |\nवशे हि यस्येन्द्रियाणि तस्य प्रज्ञा प्रतिष्ठिता || 61||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_061.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "They are established in perfect knowledge, who subdue their senses and keep their minds ever absorbed in Me.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-61.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.61.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "In this verse, the word yuktaḥ (united) indicates “absorption in devotion,” and mat paraḥ means “toward Lord Krishna.” The word āsīta (seated) may be understood figuratively here to mean “situated or established.” Having said that the impetuous mind and senses need to be tamed, Shree Krishna now reveals the proper engagement for them, which is absorption in devotion to God. The example of King Ambarish in Śhrīmad Bhāgavatam illustrates this process this very beautifully:\nsa vai manaḥ kṛiṣhṇa-padāravindayor vacāhṁsi vaikuṇṭha-guṇānuvarṇanekarau harer mandira-mārjanādiṣhu śhrutiṁ chakārāchyuta-sat-kathodaye\nmukunda-liṅgālaya-darśhane dṛiśhau tad-bhṛitya-gātra-sparśhe ’ṅga-saṅgamamghrāṇaṁ cha tat-pāda-saroja-saurabhe śhrīmat-tulasyā rasanāṁ tad-arpite\npādau hareḥ kṣhetra-padānusarpaṇe śhiro hṛiṣhīkeśha-padābhivandanekāmaṁ cha dāsye na tu kāma-kāmyayā yathottamaśhloka-janāśhrayā ratiḥ(9.4.18-20) [v52]\n“Ambarish engaged his mind in remembering the lotus feet of Shree Krishna. He engaged his tongue in chanting the wonderful names, forms, virtues, and pastimes of God. He used his ears in hearing narrations about the Lord, his eyes in seeing the beautiful deity of God in the temple, his sense of touch in massaging the feet of devotees of the Lord, his nostrils in smelling the aroma from fragrant objects that had been offered to the Lord in worship, his feet in circumambulating the temple, and his head in paying obeisance to God and His devotees. In this way, he subdued all his senses by engaging them in the service of the Supreme Lord.”" }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.62", "verse": "62", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "ध्यायतो विषयान्पुंस: सङ्गस्तेषूपजायते |\nसङ्गात्सञ्जायते काम: कामात्क्रोधोऽभिजायते || 62||", "text": "ध्यायतो विषयान्पुंस: सङ्गस्तेषूपजायते |\nसङ्गात्सञ्जायते काम: कामात्क्रोधोऽभिजायते || 62||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_062.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "While contemplating on the objects of the senses, one develops attachment to them. Attachment leads to desire, and from desire arises anger.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-62.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.62.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "Anger, greed, lust, etc. are considered in the Vedic scriptures as mānas rog, or diseases of the mind. The Ramayan states: mānas roga kachhuka maiṅ gāe hahiṅ saba keṅ lakhi biralenha pāe [v53] We are all aware of the diseases of the body—even a single bodily ailment has the power to make one’s whole day miserable—but we do not realize that we are being continuously tormented by multiple mental ailments. And since we do not recognize lust, anger, greed, etc. as mental diseases, we do not try to cure them. Psychology is a branch of human knowledge that attempts to analyze these ailments and propose solutions to them. However, both the analysis and the solution presented by western psychology leave much to be desired, and appear to be gross approximations of the reality of the mind.\nIn this and the subsequent verse, Shree Krishna has given perfect and penetrating insight into functioning of the mind. He explains that when we repeatedly contemplate that there is happiness in some object, the mind becomes attached to it. For example, in a class there are a number of boys and girls, and they interact innocuously with each other. One day one boy notices something about one girl and starts thinking, “I would be very happy if she were mine.” As he continuously repeats this thought in his mind, his mind becomes attached to her. He tells his friends that he is madly in love with her, and he is unable to study because his mind repeatedly goes to her. His friends ridicule him that they all interact with her in class, but none of them is crazy about her. Why is he losing his sleep and ruining his studies because of her? The fact is that he repeatedly thought that there was happiness in the girl, and so his mind became attached to her.\nNow attachment seems quite innocuous by itself. But the problem is that from attachment comes desire. If one is attached to drinks, the desire for drinks comes repeatedly to the mind. If one is attached to cigarettes, then thoughts of the pleasure of smoking cigarettes repeatedly flow in the mind, creating a craving for them. In this way, attachment leads to desire.\nOnce desire develops, it gives birth to two more problems—greed and anger. Greed comes from the fulfillment of desire. Jimi pratilābha lobha adhikāī (Ramayan) [v54] “If you satisfy desire, it leads to greed.” Thus desire is never eliminated by satiating it:\nyat pṛithivyāṁ vrīhi-yavaṁ hiraṇyaṁ paśhavaḥ striyaḥna duhyanti manaḥ-prītiṁ puṁsaḥ kāma-hatasya te (Bhāgavatam 9.19.13) [v55]\n“If one person were to get all the wealth, luxuries, and sensual objects in the world, that person’s desire would still not be satiated. Hence, knowing it to be the cause of misery, an intelligent person should renounce desire.”\nOn the flip side what happens if the fulfillment of desire is obstructed? It gives rise to anger. Bear in mind that anger does not arise by itself. It is created from the obstruction of desire; and desire arises from attachment, while attachment comes from contemplation of the sense objects. In this manner, we see how the simple act of contemplating the pleasures of sense objects leads downward to the twin diseases of greed and anger. In the next verse Shree Krishna continues the chain further down, and explains the consequences of anger." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.63", "verse": "63", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "क्रोधाद्भवति सम्मोह: सम्मोहात्स्मृतिविभ्रम: |\nस्मृतिभ्रंशाद् बुद्धिनाशो बुद्धिनाशात्प्रणश्यति || 63||", "text": "क्रोधाद्भवति सम्मोह: सम्मोहात्स्मृतिविभ्रम: |\nस्मृतिभ्रंशाद् बुद्धिनाशो बुद्धिनाशात्प्रणश्यति || 63||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_063.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "Anger leads to clouding of judgment, which results in bewilderment of memory. When memory is bewildered, the intellect gets destroyed; and when the intellect is destroyed, one is ruined.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-63.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.63.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "Anger impairs judgment, just as the morning mist creates a hazy covering on the sunlight. In anger, people commit mistakes that they later regret, because the intellect gets clouded by the haze of emotions. People say, “He is twenty years elder to me. Why did I speak in this manner to him? What happened to me?” What happened was that the faculty of judgment was affected by anger, and hence the mistake of scolding an elder was made.\nWhen the intellect is clouded, it leads to bewilderment of memory. The person then forgets what is right and what is wrong, and flows along with the surge of emotions. The downward descent continues from there, and bewilderment of memory results in destruction of the intellect. And since the intellect is the internal guide, when it gets destroyed, one is ruined. In this manner, the path of descent from divinity to impiety has been described beginning with contemplation on the sense objects to the destruction of the intellect." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.64", "verse": "64", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "रागद्वेषवियुक्तैस्तु विषयानिन्द्रियैश्चरन् |\nआत्मवश्यैर्विधेयात्मा प्रसादमधिगच्छति || 64||", "text": "रागद्वेषवियुक्तैस्तु विषयानिन्द्रियैश्चरन् |\nआत्मवश्यैर्विधेयात्मा प्रसादमधिगच्छति || 64||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_064.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "But one who controls the mind, and is free from attachment and aversion, even while using the objects of the senses, attains the Grace of God.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-64.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.64.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "The entire downward spiral leading to ruin begins with contemplating happiness in sense objects. Now, the urge for happiness is as natural to the soul as thirst is to the physical body. It is impossible to think “I will not contemplate happiness anywhere,” because it is unnatural for the soul. The simple solution then is to envision happiness in the proper direction, i.e. in God. If we can repeatedly revise the thought that happiness is in God, we will develop attachment toward him. This divine attachment will not degrade the mind like material attachment; rather, it will purify it. God is all-pure, and when we attach our mind to him, the mind will also become pure.\nThus, whenever Shree Krishna asks us to give up attachment and desire, he is referring only to material attachment and desire. Spiritual attachment and desire are not to be given up; in fact, they are most praiseworthy. They are to be cultivated and increased for purification of the mind. The greater the burning desire we develop for God, the purer our mind will become. The jñānīs who propound the worship of the undifferentiated attributeless Brahman do not understand this point when they recommend giving up all attachments. However, Shree Krishna states: “Those who attach their minds to me with unadulterated devotion rise above the three modes of material nature and attain the level of the supreme Brahman.” (Bhagavad Gita 14.26) He repeatedly urges Arjun to attach his mind to God in many verses ahead, such as 8.7, 8.14, 9.22, 9.34, 10.10, 12.8, 11.54, 18.55, 18.58, 18.65, etc.\nAttachment and aversion are two sides of the same coin. Aversion is nothing but negative attachment. Just as, in attachment, the object of attachment repeatedly comes to one’s mind; similarly, in aversion, the object of hatred keeps popping into the mind. So attachment and aversion to material objects both have the same effect on the mind—they dirty it and pull it into the three modes of material nature. When the mind is free from both attachment and aversion, and is absorbed in devotion to God, one receives the grace of God and experiences his unlimited divine bliss. On experiencing that higher taste, the mind no longer feels attracted to the sense objects, even while using them. Thus, even while tasting, touching, smelling, hearing, and seeing, like all of us, the sthita prajña is free from both attachment and aversion." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.65", "verse": "65", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "प्रसादे सर्वदु:खानां हानिरस्योपजायते |\nप्रसन्नचेतसो ह्याशु बुद्धि: पर्यवतिष्ठते || 65||", "text": "प्रसादे सर्वदु:खानां हानिरस्योपजायते |\nप्रसन्नचेतसो ह्याशु बुद्धि: पर्यवतिष्ठते || 65||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_065.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "By divine grace comes the peace in which all sorrows end, and the intellect of such a person of tranquil mind soon becomes firmly established in God.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-65.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.65.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "Grace is like a divine energy that floods into a person’s personality. By grace, God who is sat-chit-ānand bestows his divine knowledge, divine love, and divine bliss. This entrenches the intellect, like the North Star, in the love, bliss, and knowledge of God. By God’s grace, when we experience the higher taste of divine bliss, the agitation for sensual happiness is extinguished. Once that hankering for material objects ceases, one goes beyond all suffering and the mind becomes tranquil. In that state of internal fulfillment, the intellect becomes firm in its decision that God alone is the source of happiness and is the final goal of the soul. Previously, the intellect was accepting this only on the basis of knowledge as stated in the scriptures, but now it gets the experience of perfect peace and divine bliss. This convinces the intellect beyond any shadow of doubt, and it becomes steadily situated in God." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.66", "verse": "66", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "नास्ति बुद्धिरयुक्तस्य न चायुक्तस्य भावना |\nन चाभावयत: शान्तिरशान्तस्य कुत: सुखम् || 66||", "text": "नास्ति बुद्धिरयुक्तस्य न चायुक्तस्य भावना |\nन चाभावयत: शान्तिरशान्तस्य कुत: सुखम् || 66||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_066.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "But an undisciplined person, who has not controlled the mind and senses, can neither have a resolute intellect nor steady contemplation on God. For one who never unites the mind with God there is no peace; and how can one who lacks peace be happy?", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-66.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.66.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "This verse strengthens the conclusion of the previous verse by stating the reverse and negating it. Previously, Shree Krishna said “Know God; know peace.” In this verse, he says “No God; no peace.” A person who has not learnt to discipline the mind and senses can neither meditate upon God nor experience his divine bliss. Without the higher taste, it becomes impossible to renounce the lower taste, and such a person keeps hankering for material happiness, like the bee finds it impossible to renounce the nectar of the flower:\nrātrirgamiṣhyati bhaviṣhyati suprabhātaṁbhāsvānudveṣhyati hasiṣhyati paṅkajaśhrīḥevaṁ vichintayati koṣha gate dvirephehā hanta hanta nalinīṁ gaja ujjahāra (Sukti Sudhakar) ][v56]\nThis popular verse in Sanskrit literature relates a bee’s story. The bee was sitting on a lotus flower, drinking its nectar. As the sun began setting, the petals of the flower began shutting. But the bee was so attached to enjoying the object of its senses that it refused to fly off. It thought, “There is still time for the flower to close. Let me suck some more nectar while I can.” In the same way, we can see old age coming as a sure sign of death, but like the bee, we remain engrossed in enjoying worldly pleasures.\nIn the meantime, it became dark and the lotus flower closed, trapping the bee. It thought, “Never mind! Let me remain inside my beloved flower for tonight. Tomorrow morning, when its petals open again, I will fly away.” Kāṣhṭha bhedo nipuṇopi sangṛihī kuṇṭhito bhavati padma vibhede [v57] “A bee has the power to cut through wood. But look at the attachment to the sense objects that the bee which can cut through wood is stuck inside the soft petals of the lotus.” In the meantime, an elephant came, broke the lotus from the stem, and swallowed it. The bee along with the lotus went into the stomach of the elephant. The bee was thinking, “My beloved lotus is going somewhere, and I am happily going along with it.” It died shortly thereafter.\nSimilarly, we humans too remain engrossed in the gratification of the senses, and do not heed to the message of the Saints to engage in devotion to God. Finally, time overtakes us in the form of death. Here, Shree Krishna says that those who refuse to discipline the senses and engage in devotion continue to be rocked by the three-fold miseries of Maya. Material desires are like an itching eczema, and the more we indulge in them, the worse they become. How can we be truly happy in this state of material indulgence?" }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.67", "verse": "67", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "इन्द्रियाणां हि चरतां यन्मनोऽनुविधीयते |\nतदस्य हरति प्रज्ञां वायुर्नावमिवाम्भसि || 67||", "text": "इन्द्रियाणां हि चरतां यन्मनोऽनुविधीयते |\nतदस्य हरति प्रज्ञां वायुर्नावमिवाम्भसि || 67||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_067.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "Just as a strong wind sweeps a boat off its chartered course on the water, even one of the senses on which the mind focuses can lead the intellect astray.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-67.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.67.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "The Kaṭhopaniṣhad states that God has made our five senses outward facing. parāñchi khāni vyatṛiṇatsvayambhūḥ (2.1.1)[v58] Hence, they are automatically drawn towards their objects in the external world, and even one of the senses on which the mind focuses has the power to lead it astray.\nkuraṅga mātaṅga pataṅga bṛiṅga mīnāhatāḥ pañchabhireva pañchaekaḥ pramādī sa kathaṁ na hanyate yaḥ sevate pañchabhireva pañcha(Sukti Sudhakar) [v59]\n“Deer are attached to sweet sounds. The hunter attracts them by starting melodious music and then kills them. Bees are attached to fragrance. While they suck its nectar, the flower closes at night, and they get trapped within it. Fish are trapped by the desire for eating, and they swallow the bait of the fishermen. Insects are drawn to light. They come too close to the fire and get burnt. The weakness of elephants is the sense of touch. The hunter uses this to trap the male elephant by using the female elephant as bait to draw it into the pit. On entering the pit to touch the female, the male elephant is unable to get out, and is killed by the hunter. All these creatures get drawn toward their death by one of their senses. What then will be the fate of a human being who enjoys the objects of all the five senses?” In this verse, Shree Krishna warns Arjun of the power of these senses in leading the mind astray." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.68", "verse": "68", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "तस्माद्यस्य महाबाहो निगृहीतानि सर्वश: |\nइन्द्रियाणीन्द्रियार्थेभ्यस्तस्य प्रज्ञा प्रतिष्ठिता || 68||", "text": "तस्माद्यस्य महाबाहो निगृहीतानि सर्वश: |\nइन्द्रियाणीन्द्रियार्थेभ्यस्तस्य प्रज्ञा प्रतिष्ठिता || 68||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_068.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "Therefore, one who has restrained the senses from their objects, O mighty armed Arjun, is firmly established in transcendental knowledge.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-68.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.68.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "Enlightened souls control the intellect through transcendental knowledge. Then, with the purified intellect, they control the mind, and the mind is used to bridle the senses. However, in the materially conditioned state, the reverse takes place. The senses pull the mind in their direction; the mind overpowers the intellect; and the intellect gets derailed from the direction of true welfare. Thus, Shree Krishna says that if the intellect is purified by spiritual knowledge, then the senses will be restrained; and when senses are held in check, the intellect will not be swayed from the path of divine wisdom." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.69", "verse": "69", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "या निशा सर्वभूतानां तस्यां जागर्ति संयमी |\nयस्यां जाग्रति भूतानि सा निशा पश्यतो मुने: || 69||", "text": "या निशा सर्वभूतानां तस्यां जागर्ति संयमी |\nयस्यां जाग्रति भूतानि सा निशा पश्यतो मुने: || 69||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_069.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "What all beings consider as day is the night of ignorance for the wise, and what all creatures see as night is the day for the introspective sage.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-69.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.69.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "Shree Krishna has used day and night figuratively here. People often confuse the meaning of this verse by taking the words literally. There was once a Khade Shree Baba (the standing ascetic), whose disciples claimed he was a very big sage. He had not slept in thirty-five years. He would stand in his room, resting on a hanging rope under his armpits. He used the rope to help him remain in the standing position. On being asked what his motivation was for this destructive kind of austerity, he would quote this verse of the Bhagavad Gita: “What all beings see as night, the enlightened sage sees as day.” So to practice it, he had given up sleeping at night. What a misunderstanding of the verse! From all that standing, his feet and lower legs were swollen, and so he could practically do nothing except stand.\nLet us try and understand the true meaning of Shree Krishna’s words. Those who are in mundane consciousness look to material enjoyment as the real purpose of life. They consider the opportunity for worldly pleasures as the success of life, or “day,” and deprivation from sense pleasures as darkness, or “night.” On the other hand, those who have become wise with divine knowledge, see sense enjoyment as harmful for the soul, and hence view it as “night.” They consider refraining from the objects of the senses as elevating to the soul, and hence look on it as “day.” Using those connotations of the words, Shree Krishna states that what is night for the sage is day for the worldly-minded people, and vice versa." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.70", "verse": "70", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "आपूर्यमाणमचलप्रतिष्ठं\nसमुद्रमाप: प्रविशन्ति यद्वत् |\nतद्वत्कामा यं प्रविशन्ति सर्वे\nस शान्तिमाप्नोति न कामकामी || 70||", "text": "आपूर्यमाणमचलप्रतिष्ठं\nसमुद्रमाप: प्रविशन्ति यद्वत् |\nतद्वत्कामा यं प्रविशन्ति सर्वे\nस शान्तिमाप्नोति न कामकामी || 70||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_070.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "Just as the ocean remains undisturbed by the incessant flow of waters from rivers merging into it, likewise the sage who is unmoved despite the flow of desirable objects all around him attains peace, and not the person who strives to satisfy desires.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-70.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.70.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "The ocean is unique in its ability to maintain its undisturbed state, despite being inundated by the incessant flow of rivers into it. All the rivers of the world constantly empty themselves into the oceans, which neither overflow nor get depleted. Shree Krishna uses the word āpūryamāṇaṁ (filled from all sides) to describe that even the rivers pouring all their water during the rainy season into the ocean cannot make it flow over. Similarly, the realized sage remains quiescent and unmoved in both conditions—while utilizing sense objects for bodily necessities, or being bereft of them. Only such a sage can attain śhānti, or true peace." }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.71", "verse": "71", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "विहाय कामान्य: सर्वान्पुमांश्चरति नि:स्पृह: |\nनिर्ममो निरहङ्कार: स शान्तिमधिगच्छति || 71||", "text": "विहाय कामान्य: सर्वान्पुमांश्चरति नि:स्पृह: |\nनिर्ममो निरहङ्कार: स शान्तिमधिगच्छति || 71||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_071.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "That person, who gives up all material desires and lives free from a sense of greed, proprietorship, and egoism, attains perfect peace.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-71.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.71.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "In this verse, Shree Krishna lists the things that disturb one’s peace, and then asks Arjun to give them up.\nMaterial desires. The moment we harbor a desire, we walk into the trap of greed and anger. Either way, we get trapped. So the path to inner peace does not lie in fulfilling desires, but instead in eliminating them.\nGreed. Firstly, greed for material advancement is a great waste of time. Secondly, it is an endless chase. In developed countries, very few people are deprived of enough to eat and wear, and yet they remain disturbed; this is because their hankering is still unsatisfied. Thus, those who possess the wealth of contentment possess one of the biggest treasures of life.\nEgo. Most of the quarrels that erupt between people stem from the ego. Mark H McCormack, author of What They Don’t Teach You At Harvard Business School writes: “Most corporate executives are one giant ego, with a couple of arms and legs sticking out.” Statistics reveal that a majority of executives, who lose their jobs in the senior management level, do so not because of professional incompetence, but because of interpersonal issues. The way to peace is not to nurture and increase pride, but to get rid of it.\nProprietorship. The feeling of proprietorship is based upon ignorance because the whole world belongs to God. We came empty-handed in the world, and we will go back empty-handed. How then can we think of worldly things as ours?" }, { "verseTitle": "Bhagavad Gita 2.72", "verse": "72", "chapter": 2, "lang": "en", "shloka": { "speaker": "", "sanskrit": "एषा ब्राह्मी स्थिति: पार्थ नैनां प्राप्य विमुह्यति |\nस्थित्वास्यामन्तकालेऽपि ब्रह्मनिर्वाणमृच्छति || 72||", "text": "एषा ब्राह्मी स्थिति: पार्थ नैनां प्राप्य विमुह्यति |\nस्थित्वास्यामन्तकालेऽपि ब्रह्मनिर्वाणमृच्छति || 72||", "audioLink": "https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/public/audio/002_072.mp3" }, "wordMeanings": "", "translation": { "text": "O Parth, such is the state of an enlightened soul that having attained it, one is never again deluded. Being established in this consciousness even at the hour of death, one is liberated from the cycle of life and death and reaches the Supreme Abode of God.", "hindiAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Tejomayananda/chapter/C2-H-72.mp3" ], "englishAudioLinks": [ "https://www.gitasupersite.iitk.ac.in/sites/default/files/audio/Purohit/2.72.mp3" ] }, "commentary": "Brahman means God, and Brāhmī sthiti means the state of God-realization. When the soul purifies the heart (the mind and intellect are sometimes jointly referred to as the heart), God bestows his divine grace, as mentioned in verse 2.64. By his grace, he grants divine knowledge, divine bliss, and divine love to the soul. All these are divine energies that are given by God to the soul at the time of God-realization.\nAt the same time, he liberates the soul from the bondage of Maya. The sañchit karmas (account of karmas of endless lifetimes) are destroyed. The avidyā, ignorance within, from endless lifetimes in the material world, is dispelled. The influence of tri-guṇas, three modes of material nature, ceases. The tri-doṣhas, three defects of the materially conditioned state come to an end. The pañch-kleśhas, five defects of the material intellect, are destroyed. The pañch-kośhas, five sheaths of the material energy, are burnt. And from that point onward, the soul becomes free from the bondage of Maya for the rest of eternity.\nWhen this state of God-realization is achieved, the soul is said to be jīvan mukt, or liberated even while residing in the body. Then, at the time of death, the liberated soul finally discards the corporeal body, and it reaches the Supreme Abode of God. The Rig Veda states:\ntadviṣhṇoḥ paramaṁ padaṁ sadā paśhyanti sūrayaḥ (1.22.20) [v60]\n“Once the soul attains God, it always remains in union with him. After that, the ignorance of Maya can never overpower it again.” That state of eternal liberation from Maya is also called nirvāṇ, mokṣha, etc. As a result, liberation is a natural consequence of God-realization." } ] }