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Arjuna said : 1.
O
Krishna, if wisdom is deemed by you superior to action, then why do you, O
Keshava, urge me to do this horrible deed? Then Arjuna said, I have carefully listened to whatever
you have said, O merciful Lord. From what you say it appears that both the
deed and the doer do not survive. If this is your definite view, O Infinite
Lord, then why are you insisting that I should fight? Don't you feel any
scruples in involving me in this heinous crime? Since you have negated action
in its entirety, then why are you forcing me to do this violent deed? O
Krishna, think over this, that after extolling freedom from action, you are
urging me to commit violence (1-5). 2.
With
perplexing words you are confusing, as it were, my understanding. Tell me
positively the one way by which I shall win the highest good. Lord, if you talk like this, what should ignorant men like
me do? I should say that reason has now reached its tether. If this is your
advice, how does it differ from a confused statement this is how you have
satisfied my craving for knowledge. If a physician, after prescribing a diet,
himself gives poison, how will the patient survive? Pray tell me that. As one
guides a blind man into a blind alley, or offers wine to a monkey, so your
good advice has completely bewildered me. As I lacked understanding and was
moreover confused, O Krishna, I sought your advice (6-10). But you surprise me with an advice, which is confusing. Is
this the way to behave with your disciple? I solely depend upon your
instruction. If you behave like this, I should say I am undone. By
instructing me like this, do you think that you have treated me well? What
hope is there for me to acquire knowledge now? My desire for knowledge has
gone; moreover, my mind which has been steady so far has now become
unsettled. O Lord, your conduct is beyond my comprehension. I do not know
whether you are trying to sound me or to befool me, or imparting to me an
esoteric doctrine (11-15). I have made an effort to comprehend it but have
not been able to realise its truth. Therefore, listen, O Lord, do not talk to
me in riddles, but explain to me your thoughts in plain language. O Krishna,
dull-witted that I am give me your advice in such a way that I too can
understand it (16-20). While it is necessary to prescribe a medicine to cure
a disease, it should be very tasty and sweet. So be kind enough to explain to me the philosophical truth,
which is meaningful and appropriate in a way, I can understand. After finding
a teacher like you, why should I feel shy of making a request? You are our
divine mother; so why should I hesitate to ask for a favour from you. If the
milk of the wish-yielding cow, becomes available by a stroke of luck, why
Should I remain in want? If the philosopher's stone comes to hand, what can
impede anyone's desire? He should merely make a wish for whatever he needs. O
Lord, if, after reaching the sea of nectar any one should still feel pangs of
thirst, why should he take all the trouble to get there? Therefore, O Lord,
after worshipping you in my previous births, I have had the good fortune to
meet you (21-25). Then why should I not beseech you for whatever I want, O Supreme
God? This is the most opportune time for me to get whatever I want. My merit
has triumphed over all my afflictions and borne fruit, and all my desires
have been fulfilled. For you, the abode of all auspicious qualities, O God of
Gods, have become favourably inclined to us. Even as no time is inappropriate
for an infant to suckle its mother, so, O merciful Lord, I am asking you this
question of my free will (26-30). Partha said, "Please tender me your
definite advice, which is easy to follow here and beneficial in the next
world." The blessed Lord said: 3.
In
this world I had declared before a two-fold dedication, O sinless one,
through the Yoga of knowledge for the Sankhyas and the Yoga of action for the
Yogis. Lord Krishna was surprised at this speech of Arjuna and
said: "O Arjuna, this is what is implied in my instruction. While
explaining to you buddhiyoga, I broached the Sankhya doctrine, which arose
out of it. But you did not grasp this point and so you have become confused.
Now please note that I have declared both these paths. Know, O Arjuna that
these two traditions have been revealed by me of yore (31-35). One of them
known as the path of knowledge is followed by the Sankhyas, who after
realising the Self, become one with him. The other is called the path of
action in which the seekers perform their duties skilfully and eventually
achieve emancipation. Although these two paths are different, they lead to
the same result, even as one derives the same satisfaction by eating food
cooked by himself or by another. Or as the rivers flowing east and west
follow different courses, but eventually join the sea to become one in the
end, so these two paths point and lead to the same truth. But the seeker has
to choose that path which suits his capacity (36-40). Look, a bird can fly
straight to the tree and seize the fruit all at once. Tell me, can a man do
it with the same speed? He will have to climb the tree slowly from one branch
to another and follow this method until he reaches the fruit in the end. So by
adopting the way of the birds, the Sankhyas pursue the way of knowledge and
soon attain final release. The yogis, on the other hand, follow the path of
action and, by performing the prescribed duties, achieve liberation in course
of time. 4.
Not
by refraining from action does a man win freedom from action, nor by (mere)
renunciation does he attain perfection. If a person gives up work like a perfected sage, he will
certainly not attain freedom from action (41-45). If a person says that by
renouncing his current duties he will achieve freedom from action, he Is.
only talking nonsense. If you have a strong desire to cross the river and
reach the other shore, how can you do so without a ferry? Or if you want the
satisfaction of eating, how can you get it without eating food cooked by
yourself or cooked by others? So long as you don't become desireless, you
cannot give up your legitimate work. Only when you achieve bliss, all
physical effort comes to an end. Therefore, listen, O Partha, whoever is
intent upon achieving freedom from action, should not avoid performing his
proper duties (46-50). Do you think that if you perform an action, it will be
done, or if you abandon it at will, it will remain undone? This is mere empty
talk. If you reflect over it carefully, you will realise that you cannot
renounce actions by merely refraining from them. 5.
Nor
even for a moment can anyone remain without doing work; for everyone is
driven helplessly to action by the qualities born of nature. So long as your body is the seat of prakriti, it is
no use saying that you will perform this action or abandon that action; if
you say so, it is due to ignorance. For the functions of the body naturally
depend upon the qualities. Tell me, if a person abandons all his prescribed
duties, will his sense organs cease to function? Will his ears stop hearing
or his eyes lose their sight or will his nostrils become blocked and cease to
smell (51-55)? Will his breathing come to a stop or will his mind be free
from doubt? Will he cease to be affected by hunger and thirst? Will he give
up waking or sleep and will his legs forget to walk? Even if all this comes
to pass, can he avoid birth and death? If all this does not cease, what is it
that he has given up? Hence a person who is subject to his nature cannot give
up actions. Action is dependent upon something else (prakriti) and
arises from its qualities; and so it is futile to think that you will
undertake or abandon action at all. Mind you, even if a person sits without
movement in a carriage, he must move with it, being dependent upon it
(56-60). Just as a dry leaf, when caught in the wind, remains whirling in the
sky, even if it has no motion of its own, so an inactive person continues to
remain active under the influence of nature and the modifications of his
senses. Therefore, so long as he is attached to his nature, he cannot give up
actions. If anyone says that he will give them up, it is merely due to his'
wilfulness. 6.
Whoever
restrains his organs of action and sits brooding over the sense-objects is
said to be a self-deluded hypocrite. Some, in order to become free from action, abandon their
prescribed duties and try to arrest the tendencies of their organs of action.
They will not be able to relinquish action, as they will start brooding over
it. They are wretches as they affect the airs (of a monk) (61-65). You should
learn to recognise, O Partha, such persons who are really attached to
sense-objects and should not entertain wrong notions about them. Now listen,
I shall tell you, as the occasion requires, the characteristics of a person
who 1s free from desire. 7.
But
he, who, controlling his senses by the mind, performs, O Arjuna, the yoga of
action with the organs of action, excels. A desireless person remains steady in the contemplation of
the Supreme Self, but behaves outwardly according to the local customs. He
does not command the senses or fear sensuous enjoyment, nor does he avoid
legitimate work, which falls to his lot. He does not restrain the tendencies
of the organs of action but at the same time he is not overcome by their
impulses (66-70). Even as a lotus petal does not get wet in water, he is
neither affected by passion nor tainted by delusion. Since he remains in the
world, he looks like anybody else. Just as the sun appears as a reflection in
contact with water, he looks outwardly like an ordinary person and no one can
gauge his true nature. If you see a person with these characteristics, know
him to be liberated. You recognise him by his freedom from the bonds of
desire. O Arjuna, such a person becomes distinguished as a yogi in this
world. Therefore, I say unto you that you should become a yogi
(71-75). Practice self-control and be steady in your mind; then let the
organs of action go about their way merrily. 8.
Perform
your duty; for action is better than inaction. Even the maintenance of your
body will not be possible without working. Hence one cannot achieve freedom from action by renouncing
action. Then why should you think of undertaking prohibited actions? You
should, therefore, perform, without self-interest, the appropriate duties,
which have fallen to your lot. O Partha, you do not seem to know this wonder
of wonders that disinterested work by itself frees one from action. See; if
one performs one's duty without self-interest according to his capacity, by
that very action he is sure to attain liberation (76-80). 9.
Save
for work done for a sacrifice, this world is in bondage to work. For that
reason, O Arjuna, perform action without attachment. My boy, know that one's duty itself is an obligatory
sacrifice. If one performs his duty, sin does not affect him. When a person
abandons his duty and takes delight in prohibited deeds, he becomes entangled
in worldly bondage. Therefore, know that the discharge of one's duty is a continuous
sacrificial session. Whoever performs his duty as a sacrifice does not suffer
bondage. A person becomes bound by his actions in this world, if he comes
under the spell of Maya and strays from his path of duty. In this connection,
O Partha, I shall tell you a story. When Lord Brahma created the world
(81-85), 10.
After
creating beings along with sacrifice, the Creator said of gore, by this shall
ye multiply; let this be to you the wish-yielding cow. He created human beings together with the obligatory sacrifices.
But they did not understand the sacrifices, as they were subtle. The people
entreated the Creator, "O God, what refuge have we here?" Then Lord
Brahma, born from the lotus, gave this reply: I have already ordained the
duties according to your class. Perform these duties and your desires will be
fulfilled. You need not observe vows or self-restraint or torment your body
or go on a long pilgrimage. You need not perform yogic practices or resort to
charms or magic or undertake ritual worship with a selfish motive (86-90). Do
not worship other gods and instead do your duty as a sacrifice restfully.
Perform your duty without a selfish motive, even as a chaste wife serves her
husband faithfully. This sacrifice in the form of duty is at to be performed
by you." so said Brahma, the lord of Satyaloka, the heaven of truth. He
added: Folks, if you follow your duty, it will fulfil your desires like the
wish-yielding cow and never let you down. 11.
with
this (sacrifice) serve ye the gods and let the gods serve you; thus
nourishing each other you shall reap the highest good. If you do this, you will propitiate all the gods: and they
in their turn will grant you all the desired objects (91-95). If you worship
the gods by performing your duties, they will undoubtedly look after your
welfare. If you pray to the gods, they will become pleased with you. When you
become united with this mutual bond of love, you will be able to accomplish
whatever you wish to do, and all the desires that you entertain will be
fulfilled. Whatever you say will come true, you will command obedience, and
the great miraculous powers will wait upon you and carry out your orders.
Just as the forest laiden with fruits welcomes the spring with its gorgeous
beauty (96-100); 12.
The
gods nourished by sacrifice will give you desired enjoyments. He is verily a
thief who enjoys their gifts without giving anything in return. So good fortune will come looking for you with all
pleasures. My children, if you will perform your duties with dedication, you
will gain all enjoyments and become happy. But he, who amassing wealth,
follows the whims of his senses, and coveting sensuous enjoyments, will not
use the God-given riches as a reward of his sacrifice in the worship of gods
by performing his duties, ' who will not offer oblations into the Are and
worship to the gods, or feed the Brahmins on proper occasions (101-105), who
is remiss in his devotion to his teacher and hospitality to the guests, and
will not give satisfaction to his communality, in short, if he, infatuated
with his wealth, neglects his duty, and remains wholly absorbed in sensuous
enjoyments, he will have to suffer the plight of losing whatever he has and
will be unable to enjoy pleasures which come his way. Just as the Self does
not dwell in the body when one's span of life is over, or the goddess of
wealth does not stay in the house of an unlucky person, so the neglect of
duty destroys the very foundation of happiness. in the same way as the light
is extinguished when the lamp stops burning (106-110). Thus he who ignores
his call of duty loses his freedom. Bear this in mind, O folks, so said Lord
Brahma. He added: Death will punish him who forsakes his duty, and treating
him as a thief, will take away all his possessions. Just as ghosts gather in
the cemetery with night-fall, all faults around him will come searching for
him. Then all sorrows in the three worlds, sins of various kinds and penury
of every sort without exception will befall him. My children, that arrogant
person will be reduced to such a, state that he cannot escape it even at the
time of dissolution of the world (111-115). Therefore, you should not abandon
your duty and give the senses free reign. This is the instruction which Lord
Brahma gave to the people. If the aquatic creatures got out of water they
would die instantaneously, so a person should not cease to do his duty even
for a moment. Lord Brahma reaffirmed, "You should be devoted to the
performance of your duty all the time." 13.
The
virtuous who eat the remains of sacrifice are freed from all sins. But the
wicked who cook for their own sake verily eat sin. He added: Folks, you should spend your riches in
performing your prescribed duties without a selfish motive. You should
worship the sacred Are, your teacher and elders and serve the Brahmins and
perform the shraddha rites betimes (116-120). After performing the prescribed
sacrifices and offering oblations into the Are, you should enjoy at home
whatever remains thereafter with your family. This act of enjoyment itself
will destroy all your sins, even as a person taking a sip of nectar is cured
of serious maladies, so whoever eats the remains of sacrifice becomes free
from sins. Just as one devoted to truth is not affected by the slightest
delusion, so whoever eats the leavings of sacrifice is not affected by
blemishes. Therefore, a person should earn riches lawfully, utilise them in
performing his duty and then enjoy in contentment whatever is left (121-125),
O Partha he should not act otherwise. Lord Krishna told this ancient tale to Arjuna and said:
those who identify the Self with the body and regard the sense-objects as the
objects of enjoyment, do not know that there is something beyond it. They do
not know that their riches are the means of sacrifice and use it for their
comfort out of egoism and delusion. They get savory dishes prepared according
to their tastes, and when they eat them, these sinners eat sin only. They
should regard all their wealth as the means of sacrifice and offer it to the
primal Lord by way of sacrifice in the form of duty (126-130). Instead of
doing this, the ignorant people get cooked a variety of dishes for their own
enjoyment. That food which should be utilised for sacrifice in order to
propitiate the gods is not an ordinary thing. You should not regard it as
ordinary food, but of the very nature of Brahman, because that food sustains
the life of all creatures. 14.
Creatures live by food, food is produced by rain; rain is caused by
sacrifice, and sacrifice arises from action. 15.
Know that the ritual has its origin in the Veda, and the Veda
originates from the Imperishable. The all-pervading Veda is, therefore, ever
established in sacrifice. All creatures grow on food, and food is produced by
rain. Rain arises from sacrifice, sacrifice from action and action from the
Vedas (131-135). The Vedas spring from the imperishable Brahman, and
therefore this moving and stationery world is based on Brahman. The
foundation of sacrifice based on action is thus the eternal Veda. Bear this
in mind, O Arjuna. 16.
Whoever on earth does not keep turning the wheel thus set in motion
leads a sinful life, gratifying his senses and lives in vain, O Partha. O Partha, I told you briefly the origin and
tradition of sacrifice. Therefore, whoever being infatuated with his wealth,
does not perform in this world his duty as sacrifice is a great sinner. Know
him to be a burden on this earth because he has pampered his senses by
committing wicked deeds (136-140). His birth and actions. O Arjuna, are
barren and unproductive, even like untimely clouds which do not produce rain.
If a person does not perform his duty, know that his life is worthless like
the teat hang1ng from the throat of a goat. Therefore no one- should abandon
his duty; on the contrary one should resort to it with his heart and soul.
Look, when one acquires a body (according to his past actions) work follows
as a matter of course; then why 'should one avoid one's legitimate work? O
Arjuna, he who loathes work even after acquiring a body is boorish (141-145).
17.
But the man who delights in the Self, is satisfied with the Self and
is contented in the self has no duty to perform. Look! even if a person is endowed with a physical
body, so long as he takes delight in the Self, he is not tainted by action.
If he becomes satisfied with the knowledge of the Self, his work is done;
and, therefore, he easily becomes free from attachment to work. 18.
For then he does not concern himself with action or inaction on this
earth; nor does he have any purpose of his own dependent on anybody. Just as when one becomes satisfied, the means of
satisfaction become redundant, so when a person who is immersed in blissful
Self, he has no further use for work. Arjuna', a person has to perform
sadhana, only until he attains the knowledge of the Self. 19.
Therefore, always perform, without attachment, action that needs to be
done. Verily working without attachment, one obtains the highest good. Therefore, you should perform your legitimate duty
without desire (146-150). O Partha, all those who performed their duties
without self-interest have truly attained the state of liberation. 20.
Janaka and others indeed attained emancipation through action only.
You should also work keeping in view the guidance of the world. See, even without giving up action, Janaka and
others attained the bliss of salvation. Therefore, O Arjuna, have faith in
action; it also helps in another way. If you perform work, others will
receive guidance from it and will avoid pain in the long run. Even those who
have become desireless and attained fulfilment, also have a duty to perform
for the people (151-55). Just as a man having sight guides the blind by
walking in front of them, so a wise person should display to the ignorant his
duty by his own conduct. If he does not do so, how will an ignorant person
come to know his duty and how will he understand the right path? 21.
Whatever a great man does, others also do the same; whatever standard
he sets for himself the people follow that. Whatever the elders do, the others call it right
conduct. All ordinary people follow their lead. Since this is a natural
thing. no one should renounce action. Especially sages should continue to
perform action. 22.
I have no task to perform, O Partha, whatsoever in the three worlds;
nor have I anything to gain which I do not have. Still I continue to work. But, O Partha, why talk about others? Look to me. I
too remain in the path of action (156-160). If you think that I perform my
duty to avoid some calamity, or because I have to satisfy some desire of
mine, you know that there is none else who is as perfect as myself, and that
I have all the necessary means at my beck and call. I restored the dead son
of my Guru Sandipani; and you were a witness to my prowess. Though I have no
desire of my own, I remain active. 23.
If I did not continue unflaggingly in work at all, men all around, O
Partha, will follow my path. As for myself, I do my duty as a person having
desire does; but this I do only with one specific aim in view. It is this
that all beings who depend upon me do not go astray (161-165). 24.
These worlds will be ruined if I did not perform action, I should be
the agent of mixture of castes and destroy these creatures. If I remain desireless and absorbed in myself, how
will the people go about their business? If the people were to follow the
path of wisdom and act accordingly, the affairs of the world will come to a
stop. Hence even he who is capable and all-wise should not abandon action at
any cost. 25.
As the ignorant attached to action work, O Bharata, so the wise should
work without attachment, desiring the welfare of the world. Just as a person with desire performs action
keeping in view its fruit, the desireless person should also devote himself
to work in the same way. So Arjuna, I have been telling you repeatedly that
the society has to be protected by all means (166-170). The wise man should
follow the path of action and carry the people with him and should not let
others think him different from them. 26.
Let him not unsettle the minds of the ignorant that cling to action.
Rather the enlightened man should by working in the spirit of yoga, encourage
devotion to the works. Arjuna, how can the child
which suckles its mother with difficulty eat sweetmeats? So one should not
give them to him. One should not disclose even in fun freedom from action to
one who is not even fit for action. The inactive person should lead him to
the path of action by praising it and setting his own example before him.
Thus if one performs work in this spirit for the guidance of the world, it
does not lead to bondage (171-175). This is just like the actors in the role
of king and ' queen, who do not think themselves to be male and female, but
make others think them to be so. 27. All
actions are wrought by the qualities of nature in all cases. One whose mind
is deluded by egoism thinks, "I am the doer." Arjuna, if we take
another's burden on our head, shall we not bend down under that burden?
Likewise, even though good and bad actions are produced by the qualities of
nature, an ignorant person thinks himself to be the agent through delusion.
One should not disclose this secret truth to a conceited person of narrow
outlook. Arjuna. this is enough for the present. I shall now tell you what is
beneficial to you. Listen attentively (176-180). 28. But one
mho knows truly the division and functions of qualities does not get attache4
thinking that the qualities (senses) act on qualities (objects) The modifications of
prakriti from which actions spring do not affect the wise men at all. After
relinquishing attachment they have gone beyond the qualities and actions and
abide in their bodies as the witnesses of their actions. Although they remain
in their bodies, they are not affected by the actions. as the sun, who gives
light to the creatures, is not tainted by their actions. 29. Those
deluded by the qualities of nature become attached to their functions. Let
not the person mho knows all unsettle the minds of those mho know little. He who comes under the
spell of prakriti and. becomes deluded by Its qualities becomes tainted by
the actions. When senses remain active under the pull of the qualities, he
perforce thinks himself to be responsible for his actions (181-185). 30. Surrendering
all actions to me with your thought on the Self and giving up desire and
possessions fight free from mental fever. Therefore, perform your
legitimate duties and dedicate them to me, all the time keeping your mind
fixed on me. And you should - not entertain the false pride that you are the
agent of an action and will achieve a definite purpose. Give up attachment to
the body, abandon all desires and then enjoy all sensuous pleasures as they
come. Now take up the bow in hand, mount the chariot and resort to the heroic
spirit with a calm mind. Establish your reputation, enhance the dignity of
the warrior's duty and relieve this world from its oppressive burden
(186-190). Now, O Partha. discard all doubt, pay attention to the war, and
talk about nothing else. 31. Men who
follow this teaching of mine with faith and without cavilling are also
released from actions. Those who accept with
reverence this definite teaching of mine and practice it with faith, O
Arjuna, know that they are actionless even while performing actions. It is,
therefore, proper for you to perform the prescribed tasks. 32. But as
for those who cavil at this advice and fail to act upon it, know them to be
deluded in all knowledge, witless and lost. 33. Even the
man of knowledge acts according to his nature. (All) beings follow their nature;
what can restraint achieve? Those who being subject
to prakriti indulge the senses cavil at my teaching and ignore it. They think
it commonplace and disregarding it, call it simply a rhetorical eulogy
(arthavada) loquaciously (191-195). Know this without doubt that they are
intoxicated with delusion, filled with the poison of sense-objects and sunk
in the bog of ignorance. Just as a corpse has no use for a gem placed in its
hand, or a blind person does not know for certain when it dawns, or as the crow
derives no benefit from the rise of the moon, so the ignorant person does not
like discriminating knowledge. Moreover O Arjuna, you should not converse
with such persons who are not well-disposed to spiritual truth. They not only
do not accept my teaching but also denounce it. Tell me, can the moth bear
sun-light (196-200)? When the moth hugs the flame, it meets with sure death.
In the same way self-indulgence leads to self-destruction. So a wise man
should not pamper his senses even out of curiosity. Tell me, can one safely
play with a serpent or keep company with a tiger? Can one possibly digest a
dose of virulent poison? If Are breaks out while playing with it, it soon
flares up beyond control. So if a person indulges his senses, he does not
fare well. Truly speaking, O Arjuna, why should we toil to acquire the means
of sensuous enjoyment for this body which is dependent on qualities
(201-205)? Why should we pile up provisions with great effort and maintain
this body from birth to death? Why should we exhaust ourselves to amass
wealth and then nurture this body in utter neglect of our duty? And when this
body which is the aggregate of Ave elements returns to them, where do we seek
the reward of our exertion? Therefore, know that the maintenance of the body
is open plunder; and so we should not pay much attention to it. 34. Attachment
and aversion are settled in every sense for its object. Let no one fall into
their power; for they are one's enemies. It is true that when the
senses are fed with their favourite objects, the mind finds true
satisfaction. (206-210). But this is like the company of a gentle-looking
thug, until they leave the border of the town. When a person beguiled by the
sweet taste of poison develops a fondness for it, it proves fatal in the end.
Desire, which is inherent in the senses, gives rise to a false hope of
pleasure, even as the bait attached to the angle deceives the Ash. The fish
does not know that the angle which is concealed will take away its life;
likewise if you entertain this desire and hope for sensuous enjoyment, you
will land yourself in the Are of wrath (211-215). As the huntsman surrounds
the deer through his trackers and drives it to a place where it can be
killed, the senses act in the same way. So you should not get attached to
them. O Partha, know that both desire and anger are ruinous to man. Do not,
therefore, yield to them or evens remember them. But do not let the happiness
of your natural state get stifled. 35. Better is
one's duty, though destitute of merit, than another's duty well-performed.
Better is death in the discharge of one's duty; another's duty is fraught
with danger. Even if one's duty is
difficult to perform, one's good lies in performing it. Even if another's
duty seems better, one should discharge one's duty only (216-220). Tell me,
should a Brahmin, even though poor, partake of sweet dishes which are
prepared in the house of a Shudra? Why should a person do such an improper
thing? Why should he long for unwarrantable things and wish to acquire them? Think
over it. After seeing the attractive white houses of others, should a person
pull down his thatched cottage? Leaving this aside, even if one's wife is
ugly, it is better to enjoy married life with her. So even if one's duty is
difficult to perform, that alone conduces to happiness in the other world
(221-225). Milk mixed with sugar is well-known for its sweetness; but how can
a person suffering from worms take it? Even if one takes it, it will be due
to his obstinacy; because it is not wholesome food for his condition.
Therefore, a person should carefully think what is good for him, and not
practise what is wrong for him, even though right for others. Even if he has
to lose his life in performing his duty, it is the best course for him in
both the worlds, so said Lord Krishna, God of all gods. Thereupon, Arjuna
said, "Lord I have a request to make (226-230). I have listened with
attention to all that you have said; but I have to ask you something which is
bothering me." Arjuna said: 36. Then
driven by what, O Krishna, does a person commit sin, even against his will,
as though constrained by force? O Lord, how is it that
even the wise fall from their state and take to the wrong path? How is it
that those who know everything including the means of release go astray and
take up another's duty? A blind person cannot distinguish between grain and
husk; but why should a clear-sighted person be so deceived 'P Those who
renounce worldly ties form others and do not attain satiety; and even those
who have retired to the forest return to the country (231-235). When they try
to hide and escape from sin, they are forcibly drawn into the commission of
sin. That which strikes us as disgusting overtakes us and dwells in us; and
even when we try to escape from it, it pursues us relentlessly. There is a
power, which compels us to commit a wrong thing. Tell me what is this
inflexible power, so Partha said to Krishna. The blessed Lord said: 37. It is
desire it is anger, born of rajas quality all-consuming, most evil; know this
to be the foe on earth. Listen now to what that
Supreme Person who gives delight to the hearts of men and who is the object
of desire of desireless yogis said. They are, he said. desire and anger,
which lack even a trace of compassion; they are regarded as the equal of the
god of death (236-240). They are like serpents who guard the treasure of
knowledge, like tigers in the valley of sense-objects or cut- throats in the
path of duty. They are like boulders in the fortress of the body, like
enclosures in the parish of the senses, and they cause commotion through
delusion etc. These passions possess the qualities of rajas, the root cause
of demonical endowments, and are nurtured by ignorance. Though really born of
rajas they are the favourites of tamas, which has gifted them their very
essence, namely negligence and delusion. They receive great honour in the
city of the god of death, as they are the sworn enemies of life (241-245).
When their hunger becomes acute, the whole world is not sufficient to make a
mouthful. They carry on their activities with the aid given by hope. When
this hope closes her fist in sport, all the fourteen worlds are too small to
All it. Delusion is her favourite younger sister. When this delusion plays
the children's game of cooking etc, she swallows all the three worlds, and
passion prospers in her service. Delusion pays respect to them and they have
dealings with egoism, which makes the whole world dance round its Angers.
They have scooped out the inside of truth and filled it with falsehood and
they have given currency to hypocrisy in the world (246-250). They have
stripped chaste peace, adorned the whore Maya and have ruined bands of good
men through her. They have destroyed the might of discriminating knowledge,
peeled the hide of dispassion and twisted the neck of tranquillity. They have
cut down the forest of contentment, pulled down the fortress of fortitude and
uprooted and thrown away the saplings of joy. They have plucked out the
shoots of knowledge, erased the alphabet of happiness, and kindled the three
kinds of miseries in the heart of man. They have come into being with the
body and are bound to the body and so they cannot be found even by god Brahma
(251-255). They reside close to the intellect and live in the company of knowledge;
and so they spread like an uncontrollable epidemic. They drown a person
without water, burn him without Are, and devour him without even saying a
word. They strike a person without a weapon, tie him up without a rope and
laying a wager ruin the wise. They sink a person without mire, bind him
without fetters, and as they dwell within, they are not like anything that we
know. 38. As fire
is enveloped by smoke, as mirror is covered with dust, as the embryo is
encased in the womb, so is (knowledge) obscured by it. Even as a serpent seeks
the root of a sandal tree and encircles it, or the womb encloses the foetus
(256-260), or as the sun becomes obscure without his light, or as there is no
fire without smoke or a mirror without dirt, so we have not seen knowledge
singly without this desire. Just as the seed is born covered with husk, 39. Wisdom is
smothered, O Arjuna, by this constant enemy of the wise in the form of
desire, which is insatiable like fire. Wisdom is enveloped by
desire and wrath, and so it has become difficult to fathom. It is only by
conquering desire that one can attain wisdom; but it is not possible to
subdue passion and hatred. Whatever strength one acquires to destroy them,
goes to their aid, even as fuel boosts fire (261-265). 40. The
senses, the mind and the intellect are said to be its seat; clouding the
wisdom by these means, it deludes the embodied Self. So whatever means are
employed to overcome them seem to help them. Even the Hathayogis are overcome
by them. There is, however, only one way of escape from this trouble. I shall
explain it to you, if you feel like pursuing it. 41. Therefore,
O best of Bharatas, restraining these senses at first, cast off this evil
desire, destructive of wisdom and knowledge. 42. The
senses are superior, but higher than the senses is the mind. Higher than the
mind is the intellect, but higher than the intellect is he (i.e. the Self). 43. Thus
knowing him to be higher than the intellect and controlling yourself by the
Self, crush this desire, your unassailable foe. Their first habitation is in the
senses from which all activity proceeds. You should, therefore, bring your
senses under control. Then your mind will cease to wander, and your intellect
will escape from their clutches, and these evil ones will lose their support.
Since the mirage cannot exist without the sun's rays so if they are banished
from the heart, they will certainly cease (266-270). When desire and wrath
are both extinguished you will attain the kingdom of God and enjoy supreme
bliss. This union between the Self and God is the secret between teacher and
disciple. When one remains steady in this state, one will never stray from
it. Sanjaya said, "O King, listen. So said the prince of the perfect
ones, the Lord of the goddess of wealth, the God of gods". Now the Lord will relate an ancient tale,
after hearing, which Arjuna will ask a question. The worth and poetical
flavour of that tale will delight the hearers (271-275). Jnanadeva, the
disciple of Nivritti, says, "Elders, sharpen your wits and then enjoy
this conversation between Lord Krishna and Arjuna (276). |
