Chapter 2 Verse 16

 

Verse 16

नासतो विद्यते भावो नाभावो विद्यते सत: |

उभयोरपि दृष्टोऽन्तस्त्वनयोस्तत्त्वदर्शिभि: || 16||

Transliteration

nAsato vidyate bhAvo nAbhAvo vidyate sataH.

ubhayorapi drishtontastvanayostattvadarshibhiH.. 16 ..

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Word by word meaning:

न – not; असतः – (of the) temporary; विद्यते – there is ; न – not; अभावः – absence; भावः – existence; विद्यते – there is; सतः – (of the) permanent; उभयोः – (of the)two; अपि – also; दृष्टः – observed; अन्तः – difference; तु – indeed; अनयोः – of these; तत्त्व – essence; दर्शिभिः – (by the) seers;

Meaning:

The temporary does not existence, the permanent has no non-existence ; The seers of the essence observed the difference between these two.

Significance:

This is one of the most important verse in Bhagavad Gita. The words ‘sat’ and ‘asat’ are decoded in Indian philosphies according to the path their principles. Here we decode the word ‘sat’- as eternal and ‘asat’ – as temporary. The soul is sat and the body is asat. The soul is imperishable, the body is perishable. The word ‘asat’ should not be confused with ‘mitya’, which means unreal. This is termed as the basic knowledge requirement to proceed into the enquiry of Brahman.

Chapter 2 Verse 15

 

Verse 15:

यं हि न व्यथयन्त्येते पुरुषं पुरुषर्षभ |
समदु:खसुखं धीरं सोऽमृतत्वाय कल्पते || 15||

Transliteration:

Yam hi na vyathayantyete puruShaM puruSharShabha.

samadhuHkhasukhaM dhIraM so.amrutatvAya kalpate..15..

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Word by word meaning:

यं – who; हि – indeed; न – do not; व्यथयन्ति – disturbed एते – (by) these; पुरुषं – person; पुरुषर्षभ -  best among men; सम- equal; दु:ख-सुखं – sorrow and happiness; धीरं – wise person; स: -  he; अमृतत्वाय -  (for)liberation; कल्पते – fit;

Meaning:

O Best among men, that wise person who is indeed not disturbed, who remains the same in happiness and sorrow, he is eligible for liberation.

Significance:

The word ‘Purusha’ is used here to address the inner self. That inner self, which even when is inside a body with sense organs, with those sense organs getting driven by sense objects, with the body experiencing pain / pleasure, remains equipoise in all situations. This state is not the liberated state, but this is the process to attain mukti. Those who are not overpowered by senses are eligible for travelling in the path to attain mukti. We must learn to tolerate the feelings risen by the contact of the sense organs with the objects and win over them by determination.

Chapter 2 Verse 14

 

Verse – 14

 

मात्रास्पर्शास्तु कौन्तेय शीतोष्णसुखदु: खदा: |

आगमापायिनोऽनित्यास्तांस्तितिक्षस्व भारत || 14||

 

Transliteration:

mAtrAsparshAstu kauteya shItoShNasukhaduHkhadAH .

AgamApAyino.anityAstAMstitikShasva bhArata..14

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Word – by word meaning:

मात्रास्पर्शा:- contact of the senses; स्तु – indeed; कौन्तेय – son of Kunti; शीतोष्ण – cold/heat; सुख-दु:खदा: - gives happiness or sadness; आगम – Agama; अपायिनः – go; अनित्या: - non-permanent; तांस्तितिक्षस्व – endure them; भारत – Descendant of Bharatha.

Meaning:

O Son of Kunti, the contact of senses with the objects gives us the feel of heat / cold, happiness/ sorrow. These are not permanent, they come and go, so endure them , O descendant of Bharatha !

Significance:

mAtrAsparsha – is the contact of the sense organs – eyes, ears, skin, nose, tongue, with their respective objects. When this contact occurs, we experience heat / cold / happiness / sorrow. Lord Krishna says this experience is not permanent, an object which gives pleasure to us in one situation can give us sorrow in another. The same object becomes the reason for happiness and sorrow for the same individual. For example: Taking bath in cold water in summer season gives us pleasure, while the same does not give pleasure in winter season. Thus, these experiences that we get by the contact of sense organs with objects are not permanent. Lord Krishna says that one should learn to tolerate these with discrimination, fortitude and patience and be neutral in all situations. These situations will soon pass by themselves as they are non-permanent. Being non disturbed by external things is the quality of a determined person.

Chapter 2 Verse 13

 Verse 13

 

देहिनोऽस्मिन्यथा देहे कौमारं यौवनं जरा |

तथा देहान्तरप्राप्तिर्धीरस्तत्र न मुह्यति || 13||

Transliteration

DehinosminyathA dehe kaumAraM yauvanaM jarA.

tathA dehAntaraprAptirdhIRastatra na muhyati..13..

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Word-by-word meaning:

देहिनः – one who dwells in the body; अस्मिन् – in this; यथा – as; देहे- in the body; कौमारं – childhood; यौवनं – youth; जरा – old-age; तथा- thus; देहान्तर – another body; प्राप्तिः – attainment; धीरः – the wise;तत्र​ -  there; न -  do not; मुह्यति- grieve;

Meaning:

Just as this body undergoes the stages of – Childhood, Youth and Old-age, so is this attainment of another body (by the soul). The wise people do not grieve over this.

Significance:

After proving the ‘Eternal’ nature of the Soul in the previous verse, Lord Krishna here says that the change of bodies will not affect the Soul in any way. The individual remains the same when he is in childhood, in youth and in old age – which are the different and unavoidable changes of our body. Same way the soul remains the same when it changes from one body to another. A person who is not enlightened with the knowledge of the nature of soul worries for birth and death. That is why the knowledge of the soul is said to be the foundation of Indian Philosophy. 

Chapter 2 Verse 12

 

Verse 12

 

न त्वेवाहं जातु नासं न त्वं नेमे जनाधिपा |

न चैव न भविष्याम: सर्वे वयमत: परम् || 12||

 

Transliteration

Na tvevAhaM jAtu nAsaM na tvaM neme janAdhipA.

Na caiva na bhaviSyAmaH sarve vayamataH param.. 12 ..

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Word by word meaning

न – not; तु एव अहं – only me; जातु – at anytime; नासं – not exist न – not; त्वं – you; नेमे – not these; जनाधिपा – kings; न – not; च एव – and only;न – not ; भविष्याम: - we will exist; सर्वे – all; वयम् - of us; अतः - from now; परम् – after;

Meaning:

There was no time when I did not exist, nor you, nor all these kings, nor in the future from now after this, we shall exist.

Significance:

We all know this – In physics we have that matter can never be created nor destroyed, this verse re-iterates this same law. The knowledge of the self is the first step for gaining the knowledge of the Supreme. Lord Krishna too begins His teaching by imparting the knowledge of the self to Arjuna. As Arjuna worries about the death of his kith and kin, Lord says the self is the amsha/a micro part of the Supreme. And the nature of Supreme is that it exists always and there is not a single moment where there is a non-existence of the Supreme. The existence of the Soul in all the three states – creation , existence and destruction is said in this verse.

Chapter 2 Verse 11

Verse 11

श्रीभगवानुवाच

अशोच्यानन्वशोचस्त्वं प्रज्ञावादांश्च भाषसे |

गतासूनगतासूंश्च नानुशोचन्ति पण्डिता: | | 11 | |

Transliteration

Shri BhagavAnuvAca

ashocyAnanvashocastvaM pragnyavAdAMshca bhAshase.

gatAsUnagatAsUMshca nAnusocanti paNDitAH ..

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Word by word meaning

असोच्यान् – not worthy of sorrow;अनु-अशोच: - grieving; त्वं – you; प्रज्ञा-वादां – who (is a person of) words of wisdom; च – and; भाषसे – speak; गतासून् – dead ; अगतासून् – living ; च – and; न – not; अनुशोचन्ति – worry; पण्डिता: - scholars;

Meaning

Arjuna, you seem to be a person who speak words of wisdom but, you worry for those which is not worthy of being worried,. The wise people do not grieve for who are dead or who are alive.

Significance

          Arjunas words have arised from his attachment towards his friends and relatives. Krishna says “ you are lamenting for what is not worthy of grieving” This is because , if Arjuna is lamenting for this body – which is perishable in nature, it is a foolish act, for it is subject to destruction. If Arjuna is lamenting for the soul – again it is a foolish act , for soul is eternal and non-perishable in nature. In both the cases the act of Arjuna is not justified.

           Here the word “wise” is used to address those people who know the nature of self. They are those people who have studied the sacred texts ,who have started living by them, who have put the spiritual upliftment ahead of their materialistic pleasures, who have started meditating upon the Supreme soul, who have understood that the Supreme soul is the ultimate reality. Those people will never lament in such situations for they know there is no birth or death for the soul, and therefore there is no cause for grief and also the body is subject to change , its birth and death are natural , and therefore one need not grieve for it also.

 

 

Chapter 2 Verse 10

 

Verse 10

तमुवाच हृषीकेश: प्रहसन्निव भारत |

सेनयोरुभयोर्मध्ये विषीदन्तमिदं वच: || 10||

Transliteration

tamuvAca hrushikesha prahasanniva bhArata.

Senayorubhayormadhye vishIdantamidaM vacaH..10..

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Word by word meaning

तम् – (to)him; उवाच – told; हृषीकेश: - hrishikesha; प्रहसन् – smile; इव​ – like; भारत – descendant of Bharatha; सेनयोः - उभयोः – of both the armies; मध्ये- in the middle; विषीदन्तम -grief-stricken; इदं – these; वच: - words;

Meaning

O Descendant of Bharatha, to him, who is grief stricken, who is in the middle of both the armies, Hrishikesha who is as though smiling uttered these words.

Significance

In the previous verse Arjuna says he surrenders himself to Lord Krishna and becomes silent. Now Krishna starts speaking with a smile. The word प्रहसन्निव is used here, which can also be used to denote a sarcastic smile. Krishna who sees Arjuna lamenting in an inappropriate place wanted to ensure if he is ready to listen to his words.