‘“Seeing them, all the friends and relatives assembled there, the son of Kunti was overcome with great pity. 93 And in sadness, uttered the following words. ‘O Krishna! Having seen these relatives here, assembled with a desire to fight, my body is going numb and my mouth is going dry. My body is quivering and my body hair is standing up. My skin is burning and the Gandiva is slipping from my hands. O Keshava! I cannot stand and my mind is in a whirl. The omens that I see are ill ones. I don’t see any good that can come from killing one’s relatives in a war. O Krishna! I don’t want victory. Nor do I want the kingdom or happiness. O Govinda! What will we do with the kingdom or with pleasures or with life itself? Those for whose sake we want the kingdom and pleasures and happiness, they are gathered here in war, ready to give up their lives and their riches—preceptors, fathers, sons and grandfathers, maternal uncles, fathers-in-law, grandsons, brothers-in-law and other relatives. O Madhusudana! I don’t want to kill them, even if they kill me. Forget this earth, even for the kingdoms of the three worlds. O Janardana! What pleasure will we derive from killing the sons of Dhritarashtra? Although they are assassins, 94 sin alone will be our lot if we kill them. Therefore, we cannot kill the sons of Dhritarashtra, with their friends. O Madhava! How can we be happy after killing our relatives? Although their minds are befuddled with greed and they do not see the sin that comes from opposing friends or from destroying the family line. O Janardana! We can see the sin that comes from destroying the family line. Why should we not have the knowledge to refrain from committing this sin? When the lineage is destroyed, the traditional family dharma is also destroyed. When dharma is destroyed, evil overwhelms the entire lineage. O Krishna! When evil arises, the women of the family become corrupted. O descendant of the Vrishnis! When the women are corrupted, hybrid castes are born. 95 Hybrid castes ensure that the lineage, and those who destroyed the lineage, both go to hell. Because their ancestors fall 96 and are deprived of offerings of funereal cakes and drink. From those sins of those who destroy the lineage and from hybrid castes being generated, the ancient dharma of the castes and the dharma of the family are both destroyed. O Janardana! If the family dharma is destroyed, those men are doomed to spend an eternity in hell. So we have heard. Alas! Because of our greed for the kingdom and for happiness, we have got ready to kill our relatives. We are certain to commit a great sin. With me unarmed and unresisting, if the sons of Dhritarashtra, with weapons in their hands, kill me in battle, that will be better for me.’ Saying this, in that battlefield, Arjuna sat down in his chariot. He threw away his bow and arrows, his mind overwhelmed with grief.”’
Chapter 884(24)
‘Sanjaya said, “Seeing him 97 thus overcome with pity, 98 his eyes filled with tears and struck thus with grief, Madhusudana spoke the following words.
‘“The lord said, ‘O Arjuna! From where, when we have this emergency, has this kind of weakness overcome you? This does not lead to heaven or fame, and characterizes those who are not aryas. O Partha! Give up this weakness, this is not deserving of you. O one who scorches the foes! Give up this petty weakness of heart.’
‘“Arjuna said, ‘O Madhusudana! How will I use arrows to fight in this war against Bhishma and Drona? O slayer of enemies! They are deserving of worship. In this world, it is better to beg for alms than to kill one’s respected preceptors. If I kill my elders, the wealth and other objects of desire that I enjoy, will be drenched in their blood. I don’t know which is better for us, they defeat us or we defeat them. The sons of Dhritarashtra are in front of me. Those are the people we don’t want to kill in order to live. My normal nature has been overtaken by a sense of helplessness. 99 Confused about what is dharma, I am asking you. Tell me that which is decidedly best for me. I am your disciple. I have sought refuge in you. Instruct me. This grief is exploiting my senses and I don’t see what will remedy that, even if I win lordship over the gods, or this earth, without any enemies and prosperous.’”
‘Sanjaya said, “Having said this to Hrishikesha, Gudakesha, the scorcher of foes, told Govinda, ‘I will not fight,’ and fell silent. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! To the person who was immersed in grief between the two armies, as if with a smile, Hrishikesha spoke the following words.
‘“The lord said, ‘You speak as if you are wise, but you are grieving over those that one should not sorrow over. The wise don’t sorrow over those who are dead or those who are alive. It is not the case that I, or you, or these kings, did not exist before this. Nor is it the case that we won’t exist in the future, all of us will be there. The soul passes through childhood, youth and age in this body, and likewise, attains another body. The wise don’t get bewildered by this. O Kounteya! Because of contact between senses and objects, feelings of warmth and cold, pleasure and pain result. But these are temporary and are created and disappear. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! Therefore, tolerate these. O best among men! The wise person who is not affected by these and who looks upon happiness and unhappiness equally, attains the right to immortality. That which is untrue doesn’t have an existence. That which is true has no destruction. But those who know the truth realize the ends of both these. 100 But know that which pervades all of this is never destroyed. No one can destroy that which is without change. 101 It has been said that all these bodies inhabited by the soul are capable of destruction. But the soul is eternal, incapable of destruction and incapable of being established through proof. Therefore, O descendant of the Bharata lineage! Fight. He who knows this 102 as a slayer and he who thinks of this as something that is slain, both of them do not know. This is not a slayer, nor can it be slain. This is never born, nor does it ever die. This does not come into existence because it has been born. This has no birth, it is eternal and without destruction. It has no end. When the body is killed, this is not killed. 103 O Partha! He who knows this to be without destruction, eternal, without birth and incapable of change, how can that person cause anyone to be slain? Or how can he slay anyone? Like a person discards worn-out clothes and accepts others that are new, like that, the soul discards worn-out bodies and attains others that are new. Weapons cannot cut this. 104 Fire cannot burn this. Nor can water wet this. And the wind cannot dry this. This cannot be cut. This cannot be burnt. This cannot be wetted. And this cannot be dried. This is eternal and is everywhere. This is stable and does not move. This has no beginning. It has been said that this has no manifestation, that this cannot be thought of and that this has no transformation. 105 Therefore, knowing this to be like that, you should not grieve.
‘“‘O mighty-armed warrior! But if you think this to be subject to continual birth and continual death, even then, you should not grieve for this. Because death is inevitable for anyone who is born and birth is inevitable for anyone who is dead. Therefore, because this is inevitable, you should not grieve. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! Beings are not manifest in the beginning. They are manifest in the middle and are not manifest again after death. What is there to sorrow over? 106 Some people see this 107 as a wonder. Like that, some others speak of this as a wonder. And some others hear of this as a wonder. But having heard, they are unable to understand this. 108 O descendant of the Bharata lineage! In everyone’s body, the atman is indestructible. Therefore, you should not mourn about any being. 109
‘“‘Also considering your natural dharma, you should not waver. Because there is nothing better for a kshatriya than a war fought for the sake of dharma. O Partha! This war has arrived on its own, like an open door to heaven. Happy are the kshatriyas who obtain a war like this. But if you do not take part in this war in the cause of dharma, then you will forsake your natural dharma and fame, and sin will accrue to you. And all people will forever talk about your ill fame. For someone who is honoured, dishonour is worse than death. These great warriors will think that you have withdrawn from the war because of your fear. And those who have so far respected you will lighten their opinion of you. Your enemies will say many things that should not be said and will criticize your pr
owess. Is anything more painful than that? If you are slain, you will attain heaven. If you win, you will enjoy the earth. O Kounteya! Therefore, arise, deciding certainly to fight. Therefore, get ready to fight, looking upon happiness and unhappiness, gain and loss and victory and defeat equally. And sin will not touch you. O Partha! You have just been told the wisdom that comes from knowledge of the self. 110 Now listen to the knowledge about yoga. 111 When united with this knowledge, you will be able to discard the bonds of action. In this, 112 the possibility of effort coming to waste does not exist. Nor is there the chance of committing a sin. Even a little bit of this dharma protects from great fear. O descendant of the Kuru lineage! This certain knowledge is unwavering. 113 But for those who cannot focus, their wisdom is many-branched and like the infinite. O Partha! Those who are ignorant say these flowery words, praising the Vedas 114 and claiming there is nothing else. They are addicted to desire, think of heaven as the supreme objective and are enamoured of the fruits of birth and action. 115 They praise many rites and rituals that lead to pleasure and wealth. They are addicted to pleasure and wealth and because of those words, their minds are deluded. They cannot focus on one object—the intellect that allows one to discriminate. The Vedas deal with the three gunas. 116 O Arjuna! Rise above the three gunas. Without doubt, 117 always resort to sattva. Do not be bothered about that which is yet to be attained or preserving what has already been attained. 118 Realize the atman. Whatever purpose is achieved by many small bodies of water is also achieved by one large body of water. Like that, whatever all the Vedas achieve is achieved by a person who knows the brahman. You have the right to action alone. You never have the right to the fruit. Do not be motivated to act because of the fruit. But don’t be motivated to not acting either. O Dhananjaya! Perform action by resorting to yoga. 119 Give up attachment. Look upon success and failure equally. This equal attitude is known as yoga. O Dhananjaya! Action is far inferior to the yoga of wisdom. 120 Seek refuge in this wisdom. Pitiable are those who crave after the fruit. He who has this wisdom, discards good action and evil action in this life itself. Therefore, use yoga in what you do. Yoga is the skill of action. The learned who have this wisdom abandon the fruit of action and are freed from the fetters of birth. They certainly attain that place which is bereft of all blemishes. When your intellect transcends this maze of delusion, then you will attain indifference between that which has already been heard and that which is yet to be heard. 121 Your mind is distracted at what you have heard. But when your intellect is unwavering and focused on samadhi, then you will attain yoga.’ 122
‘“Arjuna asked, ‘O Keshava! What are the signs of a person who has attained samadhi and whose intellect doesn’t waver? How does he speak, how does he sit and how does he walk?’
‘“The lord said, ‘O Partha! A person is said to be unwavering in intellect when he banishes all desires from his mind. He is content within his own atman. He is not disturbed by unhappiness and he is beyond desiring happiness. He has overcome attachment, fear and anger and he is known as a sage who is unwavering in his intellect. In everything, he has no emotion, regardless of whether something pleasant or something unpleasant has been attained. He is not pleased, nor is he dissatisfied and in him, wisdom is established. Like a tortoise withdraws its limbs, such a person withdraws his senses, in every way, from sensual objects. In him is wisdom established. Sensual objects are withdrawn from the body of a person who is starving himself; 123 but not desire. In him, 124 who has seen the paramatman, even desire is restrained. O Kounteya! Even if a learned man takes care, the turbulent senses violently steal his mind. He who is devoted to me, controls all those 125 and focuses his mind on me. If a person can so control his senses, in him is wisdom established. If a man thinks about sensual objects, this gives birth to attachment about those. 126 From attachment is created desire and desire gives birth to anger. Anger gives birth to delusion and delusion leads to confusion of memory. 127 From confusion of memory comes loss of intellect and loss of intellect results in destruction. But he who has controlled his mind is freed from attachment and hatred. 128 Having used himself to control his senses, he uses these to enjoy objects and satisfy himself. When there is such serenity, in him is eliminated all unhappiness. Because in the mind of someone at peace, wisdom is quickly established. He who has no control, has no intellect. He who has no control, has no thought. 129 Without thought, there is no peace. How can there be happiness for someone who has no peace? The wind rocks a boat on the water. Like that, the mind follows a sense 130 devoted to objects and even a single sense robs him of wisdom. O, mighty-armed one! Therefore, he whose senses have been withdrawn from objects in every way, in him has wisdom been steadily established. When it is night to ordinary beings, the controlled person is awake then. When ordinary beings are awake, the sage perceives that as night. Just as the waters enter an ocean and leave the full ocean undisturbed, like that, all sensual objects enter that person, but leave him at peace, unlike those attached to desire. A man who gives up all desire and exists without longing, without ego and without a sense of ownership, he attains peace. O Partha! This is the state of being established in the brahman. If one attains this, one is not deluded. Even at the end, 131 established in this state, one attains union with the brahman.’”’
Chapter 885(25) 132
‘“Arjuna said, ‘O Janardana! If in your opinion knowledge is superior to action, then why are you engaging me in this terrible action? These mixed words seem to be confounding my intellect. Tell me definitely that one thing that is best for me.’
‘“The lord said, ‘O pure of heart! I have said it before that in this world, there are two paths. There is jnana yoga for those who follow sankhya and there is karma yoga for yogis. 133 Without performing action, man is not freed from the bondage of action. And resorting to sannyasa 134 does not result in liberation. No one can ever exist, even for a short while, without performing action. Because the qualities of nature 135 force everyone to perform action. The ignorant person who exists by controlling his organs of action, 136 while his mind remembers the senses, is said to be deluded and is a hypocrite. 137
O Arjuna! But he who restrains the senses through his mind and starts the yoga of action with the organs of action, while remaining unattached, he is superior. Therefore, do the prescribed action. 138 Because action is superior to not performing action. And without action, even survival of the body is not possible. O Kounteya! All action other than that for sacrifices shackles people to the bondage of action. 139 Therefore, do action for that purpose, without attachment. Earlier, 140 Prajapati 141 created beings, accompanied by a sacrifice 142 and said—with this, 143 may you increase, and may this grant you all objects you desire. Through this, 144 cherish the gods and those gods will cherish you. By cherishing each other, you will obtain that which is most desired. Because, cherished by the sacrifice, the gods will give you all desired objects. He who enjoys these without giving them 145 their share, is certainly a thief. Righteous people who enjoy the leftovers 146 of sacrifices are freed from all sins. But those sinners who cook only for themselves live on sin. Beings are created from food and food is created from rain clouds. Rain clouds are created from sacrifices and sacrifices are created from action. Know that action is created from the Vedas and the Vedas are created from the brahman. Therefore, the omnipresent brahman is always present in sacrifices. 147 In this way, the cycle goes on and he who does not follow this, is addicted to his senses and lives a sinner’s life. O Partha! He lives in vain. But the man who takes pleasure in the atman, is content with the atman and is satiated with the atman, has no duties. In this world, he has no need for action, nor anything to lose from inaction. He doesn’t need the refuge of any being for anything. Therefore, be unattached and always perform prescribed action. Because a man who performs action when unattached attains the highest liberation.
‘“‘Janaka 148 and others attained liberation through action. One should perform action with an eye to preserving the worlds. Whatever
a great man does, ordinary people also do that. Whatever he accepts as duty, others also follow that. O Partha! In the three worlds, I have no duties. There is nothing I haven’t attained, there is nothing yet to be attained. Yet, I am engaged in action. O Partha! If I ever relax and stop performing action, then men will follow my path in every way. If I don’t perform action, then all these worlds will be destroyed. I will be the lord of hybrids 149 and responsible for the destruction of these beings. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! Ignorant people perform action by being attached to that action. But the wise perform similar action unattached, for the welfare and preservation of the worlds. The wise will not befuddle the minds of the ignorant who are attached to action. Being knowledgeable, they will themselves perform all action and keep them 150 engaged. All action is completed, in every way, through the qualities of nature. 151 He who is deluded by the ego, thinks that he is the doer. O mighty-armed one! But he who truly knows the division of the qualities 152 and different types of action 153 knows that qualities manifest themselves in senses and does not get attached. 154 Those who are deluded by nature’s qualities are attached to action by senses and organs. The omniscient should not disturb 155 those ignorant and misguided people. Focusing your mind on the supreme being, vest all action in me. Be without desire, without ownership and without fever 156 and fight. People who, faithfully and without finding fault, always follow this view of mine, they too are freed from the bondage of action. 157 But know that those who in an attempt to find fault don’t follow this view of mine, they have no sense and all their knowledge will be deluded and destroyed. Even a wise person acts according to his own nature. Nature drives all beings. Why should one use restraint? 158 For each sense, in its respective area, attachment and aversion are certain. 159 But don’t be overcome by those. They are obstacles. One’s own dharma, 160 even if followed imperfectly, is superior to someone else’s dharma, even if followed perfectly. It is better to be slain while following one’s own dharma. Someone else’s dharma is tinged with fear.’
Mahabharata: Vol. 5 Page 15