It has been a busy couple of weeks for me with work and traveling. It feels great to be back at this again!
This is the part 12 of Bhagavad Gita Weekly series. In the last part (11), we covered chapter 2, verses 27 to 30. You can read all the previous posts by clicking here and the very last one by clicking here.
In the last part, we stopped at verse 30 where Lord Krishna tells Arjuna that, “the eternal soul that dwells within every living entity is immortal; therefore, you should not mourn for anyone.”
Lord Krishna concludes his teaching on the eternal and indestructible nature of the soul with this verse. Through all these verses, Lord Krishna taught Arjuna and through him, all of us, the differences between the physical body and the soul. He described the eternal nature of our soul and the transient nature of the physical body beautifully. Lord Krishna tells Arjuna that the soul is unmodifiable and indestructible, even by the Gods, thus ensuring him that there is no reason for him to lament during this battle to restore Dharma.
Let us now continue from verse 31 of chapter 2.
Jump to the Commentary for Chapter 2, verses 31 to 38
Chapter 2, Verse 31
स्वधर्ममपि चावेक्ष्य न विकम्पितुमर्हसि।
धर्म्याद्धि युद्धाछ्रेयोऽन्यत्क्षत्रियस्य न विद्यते।।
sva-dharmam api cāvekṣya
na vikampitum arhasi
dharmyād dhi yuddhāc chreyo ’nyat
kṣatriyasya na vidyate
Considering your specific duty as a kshatriya, you should know that there is no better engagement for you than fighting on religious principles; and so there is no need for hesitation.
Chapter 2, Verse 32
यदृच्छया चोपपन्नं स्वर्गद्वारमपावृतम्।
सुखिनः क्षत्रियाः पार्थ लभन्ते युद्धमीदृशम्।।
yadṛcchayā copapannaṁ
svarga-dvāram apāvṛtam
sukhinaḥ kṣatriyāḥ pārtha
labhante yuddham īdṛ am
O Partha, happy are the kshatriyas to whom such fighting opportunities come unsought, opening for them the doors of the heavenly planets.
Chapter 2, Verse 33
अथ चैत्त्वमिमं धर्म्यं संग्रामं न करिष्यसि।
ततः स्वधर्मं कीर्तिं च हित्वा पापमवाप्स्यसि।।
atha cet tvam imaṁ dharmyaṁ
saṅgrāmaṁ na kariṣyasi
tataḥ sva-dharmaṁ kīrtiṁ ca
hitvā pāpam avāpsyasi
If, however, you do not perform your religious duty of fighting, then you will certainly incur sins for neglecting your duties and thus lose your
Chapter 2, Verse 34
अकीर्तिं चापि भूतानि कथयिष्यन्ति तेऽव्ययाम्।
संभावितस्य चाकीर्तिर्मरणादतिरिच्यते।।
akīrtiṁ cāpi bhūtāni
kathayiṣyanti te ’vyayām
sambhāvitasya cākīrtir
maraṇād atiricyate
People will always speak of your infamy, and for a respectable person, dishonor is worse than death.
Chapter 2, Verse 35
भयाद्रणादुपरतं मंस्यन्ते त्वां महारथाः।
येषां च त्वं बहुमतो भूत्वा यास्यसि लाघवम्।।
bhayād raṇād uparataṁ
maṁsyante tvāṁ mahā-rathāḥ
yeṣāṁ ca tvaṁ bahu-mato
bhūtvā yāsyasi lāghavam
The great generals who have highly esteemed your name and fame will think that you have left the battlefield only out of fear, and thus they will consider you insignificant.
Chapter 2, Verse 36
अवाच्यवादांश्च बहून् वदिष्यन्ति तवाहिताः।
निन्दन्तस्तव सामर्थ्यं ततो दुःखतरं नु किम्।।
avācya-vādāṁś ca bahūn
vadiṣyanti tavāhitāḥ
nindantas tava sāmarthyaṁ
tato duḥkha-taraṁ nu kim
Your enemies will describe you in many unkind words and scorn your ability. What could be more painful for you?
Chapter 2, Verse 37
हतो वा प्राप्स्यसि स्वर्गं जित्वा वा भोक्ष्यसे महीम्।
तस्मादुत्तिष्ठ कौन्तेय युद्धाय कृतनिश्चयः।।
hato vã prãpsyasi svargaṁ
jitvã vã bhokṣyase mahīm
tasmãd uttiṣṭha kaunteya
yuddhãya kṛta-niścayaḥ
O son of Kunti, either you will be killed on the battlefield and attain the heavenly planets, or you will conquer and enjoy the earthly kingdom. Therefore, get up with determination and fight.
Chapter 2, Verse 38
सुखदुःखे समे कृत्वा लाभालाभौ जयाजयौ।
ततो युद्धाय युज्यस्व नैवं पापमवाप्स्यसि।।
sukha-duḥkhe same kṛtvã
lãbhãlãbhau jayãjayau
tato yuddhãya yujyasva
naivaṁ pãpam avãpsyasi
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.
Commentary for Chapter 2, verses 31 to 38
As we saw in the beginning of this part, we stopped at verse 30 of chapter 2 in the last part where Lord Krishna was telling Arjuna why there is no reason for him to worry about having to fight his grandfather and gurus who have sided with Duryodhana, the epitome of Adharma.
Through last many verses, Lord Krishna established the absolute truth that the soul is unchangeable, indestructible even by the Gods, unaffected and ever eternal, minuscule part of Brahman itself. With verse 30, Lord Krishna concludes his teaching on the eternal nature of the soul by saying, “…the eternal soul that dwells within every living entity is immortal; therefore, you should not mourn for anyone…”
Let us now look at from verse 31 onwards in this part.
Lord Krishna says in verse 31st, “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.”
Having established from the standpoint of absolute truth about life that we are not the body but the soul which is imperishable and infinite, and thus there is no reason for Arjuna to grieve about fighting Bhishma, Dronacharya and kinsmen, Lord Krishna now starts to explain it from the standpoint of one’s Swa-dharma (swadharma) – one’s own dharma, duty and responsibilities as individuals.
According to Vedas, there are two kinds of swa-dharmas or prescribed individual duties – para dharma (spiritual duties) and apara dharma (material duties). Para dharma is for those who recognise that they’re not their body but the soul which is part and parcel of the Para Brahman and devote their time and energy in Bhakthi – loving and serving the God with devotion. They are the enlightened Masters. Where as, Apara dharma is for those who see themselves as their body. For such people – as a matter of fact, the majority of us – their duties are defined according to their Varna ashrama which is dictated by their own Guna (quality and nature of a person) as well as their Karma. Varna does not depend on one’s birth, meaning, simply by being born to a Brahmin, one does not become a Brahmin unless his Gunas are of a Brahmin (a learned person).
Duties performed according to one’s Varna takes you closer to Para dharma and eventual liberation – the realisation that you are not your body but atma and recognising the truth that, “aham Brahmasmi”, that “I am Brahman.”
According to Vedas, all of us are required to follow our Swa-dharma. Gita says that, it is better to perform one’s own duty diligently even if it may have no merits than to perform someone else’s duty perfectly well.
Arjuna’s duty as a Kshatriya was to defend dharma and to fight for righteousness and to protect his people. Lord Krishna even tells Arjuna that, he should not only fight this battle but also be grateful to have gotten this golden opportunity to fight in this absolutely lawful Kurukshetra war to protect Dharma.
Lord Krishna continues with more reasons as to why he should be fighting this war in the next verse (32), “O Partha, happy are those warriors to whom such opportunities to defend righteousness come unsought, opening for them the stairway to the heavens.”
The Kurukshetra war would not have happened if Duryodhana and the rest of the Kauravas did not indulge in heinous crimes such as disrobing of Draupadi in front of the entire court and humiliating her. Kauravas tried all kinds of adharmic ways to eliminate the Pandavas, which has now led to this war meant to re-establish Dharma unavoidable.
Thus, Lord Krishna tells Arjuna that, this is a golden opportunity which has come to him unsought.
In fact, protecting Dharma is the highest duty of a Kshatriya and this war is all about the fight between Dharma and Adharma.
Even if Arjuna were to be killed in this battle, what awaits him is heaven and liberation. Lord Krishna has already pointed out in earlier verses why Arjuna should not worry about having to kill Bhishma and Dronacharya for they have lived a life full of righteousness all their life and will be liberated and attain Swargaloka right after their death at the battlefield.
Lord Krishna has also elaborated on the nature of the soul that, the soul can never be destroyed even by the Gods, thus telling Arjuna that, he will not be able to destroy their souls, but only their physical body in this form.
Given all of that, Lord Krishna is urging Arjuna to not give up fighting this battle. Lord Krishna goes on to tell him in the next verse (33); “if, however, you refuse to fight this righteous war, abandoning your social duty and reputation, you will certainly incur sin.”
Let’s now recall what Arjuna told Lord Krishna earlier in chapter 1, verse 36 and 37 that, “Sin will overcome us if we slay such aggressors. Therefore it is not proper for us to kill the sons of Dhritarashtra and our friends. What should we gain, O Krishna, husband of the goddess of fortune, and how could we be happy by killing our own kinsmen?”
This is outright being refuted by Lord Krishna in verse 33 by telling Arjuna that he will incur sins if he choose not to fight this battle, for his social duty as a Kshatriya is to defend Dharma and his people.
Unlike what Arjuna thought earlier that he would incur sin by fighting this war, Lord Krishna now clearly tells him that, it is not by fighting this war that he will incur his sin, but not fighting it.
Most of us often have a wrong idea about spirituality that we should leave everything, giving up our work, our duties in the society, etc. and go to some mountains to advance spiritually. However, throughout Bhagavad Gita, Lord Krishna calls for action and not inaction. In each verse, Lord Krishna is instructing Arjuna to perform his duties and not give up on his duties.
Through this beautiful teaching of the Gita, Lord Krishna is telling us to perform our duties, whatever that be, with devotion, without worrying about the fruits of our actions, but performing it as an offering to the divine.
Here in the Gita, Lord Krishna is transforming Arjuna internally, his consciousness so that he has the right mindset when he finally fights this battle of Kurukshetra.
Arjuna was a great warrior who was respected in all the worlds for his skills in warfare. He had even fought with Lord Shiva, and was gifted the Pasupata Astra, the most powerful weapon that was capable of destroying even all creations. In Mahabharata, only Arjuna possessed this mighty weapon!
Sage Parashara explains in the Parashara Smriti about the duties of a Kshatriya;
kṣatriyo hi prajā rakṣan
śastra-pāṇiḥ pradaṇḍayan
nirjitya para-sainyādi
kṣitiṁ dharmeṇa pālayet
“The duty of a Kshatriya warrior is to protect the citizens of the country from all kinds of 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.”
Our scriptures have clearly stated the duties of each Varnas. Arjuna is a Kshatriya and this battle is not any other battle, but a battle to restore Dharma. Lord Krishna himself is present at this battle as the charioteer of Arjuna, thus he has no choice, but to fight. There is nothing higher than a righteous war a Kshatriya can ever ask for.
Lord Krishna continues in the next verse (34) by explaining other than incurring sin, ,what else would happen if he chooses not to fight, “people will always speak of your infamy, and for a respectable person, dishonor is worse than death.”
Kauravas committed all kinds of crimes such as arson, poisoning, usurping other’s land, assaulting with weapons, etc. While Vedic scriptures strictly disapprove any kinds of violence against not just humans, but any living beings, slaying the criminals who commit such crimes incur no sins on the slayer in order to establish law and order in a society and uphold dharma.
All those people who has treated Arjuna as a hero all these time would stop respecting him, saying, Arjuna chose not to fight because of his fear of death! No one is going to say that it was out of compassion that a warrior would stop fighting right in the battlefield, for a warrior’s duty is to fight and eliminate the enemies and restore law and order and righteousness even at the cost of his own life!
Lord Krishna tells Arjuna that, such infamy and dishonour is worse than death!
In addition to committing sin and dishonor if Arjuna withdraws from this battle, Lord Krishna continues in the next verse (35), “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.”
For a highly respected and famous warrior like Arjuna, withdrawing from the battle of Kurukshetra would only make others believe that, he chose not to fight out of fear, causing all of them to lose their respect for this great warrior.
Everyone knew the reasons that led to Kurukshetra war. They knew all the atrocities committed by the Kauravas which were unpardonable, including disrobing of Draupadi, cheating game of dice and eventually forcing the Pandavas out in exile and even breaking the promise that, upon their return from exile, Pandavas could get back their kingdom which rightfully belonged to them.
Kauravas committed all kinds of crimes such as arson, poisoning, usurping other’s land, assaulting with weapons, etc. While Vedic scriptures strictly disapprove any kinds of violence against not just humans, but any living beings, slaying the criminals who commit such crimes incur no sins on the slayer in order to establish law and order in a society and uphold dharma.
Lord Krishna, through the application of Sama Dama Danda Bheda – the age old four means available to solve any problems, tried every possible ways to avoid this war, including to agree to settle the issues by giving the Pandavas just a single house, even though the kingdom rightfully belonged to the Pandavas. However, Duryodhana would not let go of his ego and greed for power, which eventually led to this war which then became unavoidable in order to establish dharma.
After going through all those humiliation by the Kauravas, if Arjuna decides to withdraw from the war, no one is going to think that it was out of compassion for his kinsmen that Arjuna decides not to fight, but out of cowardice, an extremely shameful and dishonoring trait for any Kshatriya, let alone someone of the stature of Arjuna! So, Arjuna, as a Kshatriya, is duty bound to fight and protect his kingdom and his people.
Thus, Lord Krishna reminds Arjuna of the eminent dishonor he would bring up on himself if he were to withdraw from the battlefield after seeing the opponents.
Not only that, Lord Krishna continues to tell Arjuna in the next verse (36), “your enemies will describe you in many unkind words and scorn your ability. What could be more painful for you?”
Knowing how wicked Duryodhana and the rest of the Kauravas are, they would use the most uncouth words to describe Arjuna if he were to withdraw from the battle, such as: look at the impotent Arjuna fleeing the battlefield like a dog with its tail between its legs…
Karna who is an equally mighty warrior as Arjuna would make fun of him while acknowledging that, even though Arjuna was valiant in the past, now fearing the outcome, he has decided to run away with his life from the battlefield.
Lord Krishna asks, “is there anything more painful and humiliating than that, Arjuna?” Even death is better than this for anyone, let alone for a Kshatriya warrior.
Lord Krishna continues in the next verse (37), “O son of Kunti, either you will be killed in the battlefield and attain the heavenly planets, or you will conquer and enjoy the earthly kingdom. Therefore, get up with determination and fight.”
Arjuna had said in chapter 2, verse 6 that, “we do not know what is better for us, whether we conquer them or they conquer us; those sons of Dhritarashtra, whom by slaying we would not desire to live are gathered before us.”
In verse 37, chapter 2, Lord Krishna clears Arjuna’s doubt by telling him that, even if he were to be killed in the battlefield, he would still attain heavenly planets. Or, he could be victorious and enjoy the earthly kingdom. Even though there is no certainty that Arjuna would be victorious, he still has to fight.
In the next verse (38), Lord Krishna again instructs Arjuna to, “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.”
Lord Krishna now directly asks Arjuna to fight for the sake of fighting, without worrying about happiness or distress, profit or loss, victory or defeat, but to perform his duty for the sake of doing it, completely detaching himself from the fruits of his action. Krishna says, “Arjuna, if you do that, you will not incur any sin.”
After motivating Arjuna through the mundane in the last few verses, Lord Krishna now moves on to deeper level of consciousness and will be explaining the science of action and duty.
Lord Krishna did not want Arjuna to fight this battle with anger and hatred at any point, but with the right mindset that he was fighting this battle to protect Dharma.
If Lord Krishna just wanted Arjuna to fight out of his anger and hatred, he would not have brought Arjuna right in front of where Bhishma and Dronacharya were standing in the battlefield, rather, he would have brought him directly to where Duryodhana was standing. If that had happened, war would have broken out then and there!
Arjuna’s compassion was not towards Duryodhana, but towards his grandfather and gurus that led to his bewilderment.
As we know, all of us are affected by Karma – the cause and effect. For every action, we accumulate karma, whether it is bad karma or good karma. However, as long as we perform our duties without any selfish motives, we will not be bound by any Karmic reactions.
For example, in any society, killing anyone is an extremely punishable offense. However, if a soldier kills a terrorist, he is not punished, rather, rewarded, appreciated and celebrated. Since that soldier was merely executing his duty as a soldier in order to bring peace and stability in the society, he does not incur any sin.
Similarly, we are required to perform our duties without selfish motives, but as an offering to the God, without worrying about the fruits of our action, or being attached to its results. Thus Lord Krishna asks Arjuna, “fight for the sake of fighting…” and forget about everything.
Lord Krishna is teaching Arjuna to be detached from the outcome of his actions and to simply perform his societal duty as a Kshatriya warrior. Lord Krishna wants Arjuna to fight this war with a sense of equanimity that, neither victory nor defeat, nor pain nor pleasure are any different from each other, then Arjuna would not incur any sin.
Having explained all these, Lord Krishna is bringing Arjuna’s consciousness to a higher level where he would be able to discharge his duties with absolute detachment to its outcome, but as an ultimate offering to the God!
Lord Krishna reveals the logic behind working without any attachment to its result from the next verse onwards which we will see in the next part.
Let’s conclude here for now.
ॐ पूर्णमदः पूर्णमिदं पूर्णात्पुर्णमुदच्यते
पूर्णस्य पूर्णमादाय पूर्णमेवावशिष्यते ॥
ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः ॥
Om Puurnnam-Adah Puurnnam-Idam Puurnnaat-Purnnam-Udacyate
Puurnnasya Puurnnam-Aadaaya Puurnnam-Eva-Avashissyate ||
Om Shaantih Shaantih Shaantih ||
My Pranams to you!