विवेचन सारांश

Arjuna surrenders to Śrī Krishna & seeks HIS advice

Sanjaya tells his king, Dhritarashtra, that seeing and listening to Arjuna’s state of mind and Arjuna’s emotional turmoil, Bhagavān Śrī Krishna tells Arjuna the following ( in the next shlokas).

Arjuna is deeply affected by the prospect of fighting against his own relatives, teachers, and friends. He is overwhelmed with compassion and sorrow, his eyes filled with tears. This sets the stage for Bhagavān Śrī Krishna’s teachings. 

Sanjaya uses the term “kṛipayāviṣṭam”, indicating that Arjuna is filled with pity or compassion. This compassion, however, is more about his attachment and emotional ties rather than a higher spiritual compassion.

“Aśhru-pūrṇa-ākulekṣhaṇam” describes Arjuna’s eyes brimming with tears, showing his inner conflict and distress.

Bhagavān Śrī Krishna, referred to as Madhusudana (slayer of the demon Madhu), is about to address Arjuna’s doubts and guide him towards his duty (dharma).

The theme of this chapter of Sāṃkhya Yoga is spiritual knowledge. Arjuna was deeply drowned in despondency due to the delusion and confusion that came to his mind as to what is his right duty based on Dharma. This is a matter of great surprise as such a confusion occurs to Arjuna, who is a brave hero and was impatient and very determined to fight and destroy his opponents, uptill that moment.

This indicates how uncertain and unpredictable a man's mind is. We cannot read our own mind correctly as it continues to think and can be changed due to the influence of feelings, emotions, etc. Hence one cannot predict exactly what can happen a few moments later or in the future, this is what exactly happened with Arjuna as well. As long as man has not disciplined his sense-based mind, victory in life will always elude him. Man cannot expect victory in any aspect of life unless he has disciplined his mind.

The spiritual knowledge of the Gītā commences from this chapter Sāṃkhya Yog, Yoga of spiritual knowledge. In simple words, the knowledge of seeing the same self in all leads to contact with God. Right from the beginning of the second chapter Bhagavān Śrī Krishna reveals himself as a perfect spiritual teacher, striking a strong node intended to shock Arjuna out of his despondency.  

Bhagavān Śrī Krishna was silent until now and opened the dialogue. HE did not use soft words, nor did HE give a very deep philosophy right in the beginning. HE is speaking a common man language with no honey phrases. He pours withering contempt upon Arjuna who was weeping and protesting that he cannot fight against his senses, wishes, and his passions.

No spiritual teacher fails to resort to this method of shocking and strengthening us with strong words when the occasion demands. For example, if we go crying to our Guru, he will also chide us. As children we used to cry to our grandparents complaining that others are causing pain and sorrow or trouble, they would prick the bubble with ease by pointing out that you are not suffering from sorrow but from self-pity. People wallowing in self pity are like the water buffalo, which enjoys rolling in the muddy water over and over again until it is completely covered with the mud. Bhagavān Śrī Krishna, who is a true friend of Arjuna tells Arjuna immediately to stop what he is going through and Arjuna to stop wallowing in self-pity.

Arjuna was a handsome and smart man with beautiful eyes but when he has been weeping like a little child shedding tears of self-pity, he could not see anything clearly due to  tears in his eyes. When our eyes are full of self-pity, we see even those who are dear to us as very cruel people, not because they are really cruel to us but because the tears of self-pity have clouded our vision. Hence self-pity is something terrible which one should get rid of as quickly as possible.

Some Guru used to say that hatred will never cease in the mind those who keep harboring the thoughts that being abused, defeated, robbed or who keep complaining about others. Gītā teaches that a person's master achievement in this life is the equanimity of mind which can be achieved both through Sāṃkhya yoga and Karma Yoga.

This is the opening speech of Bhagavān Śrī Krishna in Gītā. HE addresses Arjuna's despair and confusion on the battlefield, urging him to overcome his attachment and fulfill his duty as a warrior. HE questions Arjuna's uncharacteristic behavior, reminding him that such conduct is unbecoming of a warrior and will not lead to heaven or honor. HE emphasizes that Arjuna's attachment and ignorance have led to his distress, and escaping his duty will neither bring him happiness in this life nor a place in heaven. Gītā says a man who dodges his duty, forfeits the right not only to enter heaven but even to honor in this life. 

Most of us work for respect and progress in this life on the earth when we are alive, and for attainment of heaven when we die. Our ancestors have taught us two principles: 

• when living the goal should be to live as happily as possible
• when dying the goal should be to attain heaven after death.

anārya: opposite of the word arya, the ruling and fighting class in India. Fairness to all and fortitude in battle was their trait. Seeing timidity gripping Arjuna, Bhagvān Śrī Krishna tells Arjuna, that he is not arya (anarya). 

Aswargam: opposite of the word Swargam, heavens. Swargam refers to self-realization. Bhagavān Śrī Krishna tells Arjuna that he has locked the door of the kingdom of heaven, by refusing to eliminate ego and failing to turn his back on self-will.

Bhagavān Śrī Krishna used common man language to tell Arjuna to rethink his stance, highlighting that a person's true achievement lies in maintaining a balanced mind, and stressing that a man's enemy is delusion-based attachment and his master achievement is enlightenment-based equanimity of mind.  

Since no response came from Arjuna, Bhagvān Śrī Krishna uses a very strong word almost like an abuse in the following verses.

Bhagavān Śrī Krishna chides Arjuna, not to succumb to impotence, as it is not befitting of a Kṣatriya. HE asked Arjuna to cast away the petty weakness of theheart and stand up to fight. 

Arjuna‘s mind was still caught in the conflict of adharma (fighting and killing his own people) versus dharma (not waging such a war). Bhagavān Śrī Kishna points out that such a feeling was born of the feebleness of mind caused by delusion and ignorance. It is for this reason that the scriptures and vedas indicate that the man's greatest enemy is his own mind as mind and senses are always exposed to delusion and illusion. No man can become master unless he masters his own mind.

Bhagavān Śrī Krishna is telling Arjuna to be a witness of mind, and fight with detachment to answer the call of duty. Escaping or running away from a problem is an easy option, but as long as the mind is not trained, no matter where one escapes to, lack of wisdom will ensure the creation of new problems. Hence it is not a situation that brings grief but rather it is the lack of appropriate training of the mind which gives the pain. It is not a situation but the mindset that needs to be changed. People run away from home due to differences in opinion with family members. One should remember that if one finds it difficult to get along with one's own family members, how can that person get along with other strangers. Hence instead of running away from family, one should bring in some wisdom and change the attitude.

A short story about Sant Tukaram:

Sant Tukaram was a very devoted bhakt, much to the annoyance of his wife, Jijai. She was an ill-tempered woman whose every sentence began with a verbal abuse. Once while tending to his sugarcane field, Sant Tukaram's mind got absorbed on his beloved God Govinda, and was engrossed in singing Govinda and chanting HIS name. The crops were ravaged by the cattle, and by the time his mind returned to the field, only one sugar cane was left. He returned home with the single sugar cane, and received the choicest of abuses from his wife who was seething in anger. He calmly responded that the single sugar cane was Bhagavān's way of reminding him that there is only one supreme Divinity, and nothing else mattered. Angered by his words, his wife broke the sugar cane into two. He again calmly thanked her for helping divide the Bhagavān's  prasad between them. 

It was a difficult distressing situation for Tukaram indeed, but he chose not to fight and acted in an appropriate manner. Similarly, Bhagvān Śrī Krishna is telling Arjuna to act appropriately.

Arjuna expresses his deep moral dilemma to Bhagavān Śrī Krishna. He is troubled by the thought of fighting against his revered grandfather Bhīṣma Pitāmaha and revered teacher Dronacharya, whom he holds in high esteem. Arjuna’s respect for them makes it difficult for him to see them as enemies, even in the context of war.

Arjuna asks Bhagavān, what super action is he going to perform by slaying his own teachers. Killing one's Guru is the biggest sin ever. How can any disciple think of killing his master, furthermore who knows that even after killing the revered elders Bhīṣma pitāmaha and Dronacharya, Duryodhana may still escape death.

In this context, Arjuna's point of view is activated by sentiment, attachment, and his deep respect for Bhīṣma Pitāmaha and Dronacharya; but Bhagavān Śrī Krishna is talking in a much greater context of Duty and Dharma advising him to fight and protect the sanctity of duty and Dharma. Arjuna's mind is like that of a common man who has not yet understood Gītā. He will become a master (Sthitaprajna) after he learnt Gītā.

The basic difference between a man and the master is that the man lives on a mental level where he's exposed to the alternates of courage, fear, knowledge, ignorance, pain, pleasure, honor, and shame whereas the master lives in the spirit, where the pair of opposites do not affect him at all.

The three-fold function of Prakṛti are creation, preservation, and destruction, in which neither the soul nor the Bhagvān interferes. The man has to rise above body and mind and reach the spirit level of super consciousness. This is what Bhagavān Śrī Krishna has started doing now with Arjuna as HE wants Arjuna to get elevated from body, mind senses, and intellect to the spirit level of super consciousness.

In the process we are also getting benefited as we are also learning the Gītā that was taught to Arjuna by Bhagavān Krishna.

Arjuna is having a doubt about which is better - vanquishing them or being vanquished by them. He is of the opinion that if the Pāṇḍavas kill the sons of Dhritarashtra, they should not care to live. Besides, he is not sure if they will win or lose the war. If they win, they will have killed their own teachers and near ones to be victorious.

Victory or defeat in the war is of no consequence at all for Arjuna, as he thinks that in both the ways he's going to land in hell. Some moments before he was impatient to fight and kill kauravas. He is totally a changed man now that the very idea of killing Kauravas has suddenly become very abhorable and terrible. This is the universal scale of Maya. No mind can escape its inexorable power. Only knowledge of Atmajnana and Brahmajnana is the remedy to pierce through that Maya.  Learning Gītā and living by its teachings will help to pierce that Maya and not get attracted to these emotions.

Arjuna has accepted that something is wrong with him. He confides to Bhagavān, that he is confused as to what is his duty and what is not. He does not know what to do but is certain that Bhagavān Śrī Krishna knows what is best for him. Hence, he surrenders to HIM wholeheartedly and becomes his disciple.

Now that he has taken refuge as a disciple, it becomes Bhagavān Śrī Krishna's moral duty to help his sincere disciple in his dire moment of crisis. Thus unfolds the never-before heart great knowledge of Sāṃkhya yoga from Bhagavān HIMSELF.