The Song at the Head of the Battle

धृतराष्ट्र उवाच —
धर्मक्षेत्रे कुरुक्षेत्रे समवेता युयुत्सवः ।
मामकाः पाण्डवाश्चैव किमकुर्वत सञ्जय ॥ १ ॥

dhṛtarāṣṭra uvāca
dharmakṣetre kurukṣetre samavetā yuyutsavaḥ
māmakāḥ pāṇḍavāś caiva kim akurvata saṃjaya

Dhṛtarāṣṭra said: On the field of dharma, on the field of the Kurus, gathered and wanting to fight, what did my people and the sons of Pāṇḍu do, Sañjaya?

सञ्जय उवाच —
दृष्ट्वा तु पाण्डवानीकं व्यूढं दुर्योधनस्तदा ।
आचार्यमुपसङ्गम्य राजा वचनमब्रवीत् ॥ २ ॥
पश्यैतां पाण्डुपुत्राणामाचार्य महतीं चमूम् ।
व्यूढां द्रुपदपुत्रेण तव शिष्येण धीमता ॥ ३ ॥

saṃjaya uvāca
dṛṣṭvā tu pāṇḍavānīkaṃ vyūḍhaṃ duryodhanas tadā
ācāryam upasaṃgamya rājā vacanam abravīt
paśyaitāṃ pāṇḍuputrāṇām ācārya mahatīṃ camūm
vyūḍhāṃ drupadaputreṇa tava śiṣyeṇa dhīmatā

Sañjaya said: Seeing the army of the Pāṇḍavas drawn up, King Duryodhana went to his teacher and said: “Look, teacher, at this great army of the sons of Pāṇḍu, arrayed by Drupada’s son, your own clever student.”

अत्र शूरा महेष्वासा भीमार्जुनसमा युधि ।
युयुधानो विराटश्च द्रुपदश्च महारथः ॥ ४ ॥
धृष्टकेतुश्चेकितानः काशीराजश्च वीर्यवान् ।
पुरुजित्कुन्तिभोजश्च शैब्यश्च नरपुङ्गवः ॥ ५ ॥
युधामन्युश्च विक्रान्त उत्तमौजाश्च वीर्यवान् ।
सौभद्रो द्रौपदेयाश्च सर्व एव महारथाः ॥ ६ ॥

atra śūrā maheṣvāsā bhīmārjunasamā yudhi
yuyudhāno virāṭaś ca drupadaś ca mahārathaḥ
dhṛṣṭaketuś cekitānaḥ kāśirājaś ca vīryavān
purujit kuntibhojaś ca śaibyaś ca narapuṃgavaḥ
yudhāmanyuś ca vikrānta uttamaujāś ca vīryavān
saubhadro draupadeyāś ca sarva eva mahārathāḥ

“Here are heroes, great archers, equal to Bhīma and Arjuna in battle: Yuyudhāna, Virāṭa, the great chariot-warrior Drupada; Dhṛṣṭaketu, Cekitāna, the valiant king of Kāśi, Purujit, Kuntibhoja and Śaibya, a bull among men; bold Yudhāmanyu, valiant Uttamaujas, the son of Subhadrā and the sons of Draupadī, every one of them a great chariot-warrior.”

अस्माकं तु विशिष्टा ये तान्निबोध द्विजोत्तम ।
नायका मम सैन्यस्य संज्ञार्थं तान्ब्रवीमि ते ॥ ७ ॥
भवान्भीष्मश्च कर्णश्च कृपश्च समितिञ्जयः ।
अश्वत्थामा विकर्णश्च सौमदत्तिर्जयद्रथः ॥ ८ ॥
अन्ये च बहवः शूरा मदर्थे त्यक्तजीविताः ।
नानाशस्त्रप्रहरणाः सर्वे युद्धविशारदाः ॥ ९ ॥

asmākaṃ tu viśiṣṭā ye tān nibodha dvijottama
nāyakā mama sainyasya saṃjñārthaṃ tān bravīmi te
bhavān bhīṣmaś ca karṇaś ca kṛpaś ca samitiṃjayaḥ
aśvatthāmā vikarṇaś ca saumadattis tathaiva ca
anye ca bahavaḥ śūrā madarthe tyaktajīvitāḥ
nānāśastrapraharaṇāḥ sarve yuddhaviśāradāḥ

“And know, best of the twice-born, the leaders of our own army; I name them for you: yourself, Bhīṣma, Karṇa, and Kṛpa who wins in battle, Aśvatthāman, Vikarṇa and the son of Somadatta, and many other heroes ready to give their lives for my sake, armed with many weapons, all skilled in war.”

अपर्याप्तं तदस्माकं बलं भीष्माभिरक्षितम् ।
पर्याप्तं त्विदमेतेषां बलं भीमाभिरक्षितम् ॥ १० ॥

aparyāptaṃ tad asmākaṃ balaṃ bhīṣmābhirakṣitam
paryāptaṃ tv idam eteṣāṃ balaṃ bhīmābhirakṣitam

“Our strength, guarded by Bhīṣma, is aparyāpta; their strength, guarded by Bhīma, is paryāpta.”

अयनेषु च सर्वेषु यथाभागमवस्थिताः ।
भीष्ममेवाभिरक्षन्तु भवन्तः सर्व एव हि ॥ ११ ॥

ayaneṣu ca sarveṣu yathābhāgam avasthitāḥ
bhīṣmam evābhirakṣantu bhavantaḥ sarva eva hi

“So all of you, each in your place at every point of entry, protect Bhīṣma above all.”

तस्य सञ्जनयन्हर्षं कुरुवृद्धः पितामहः ।
सिंहनादं विनद्योच्चैः शङ्खं दध्मौ प्रतापवान् ॥ १२ ॥
ततः शङ्खाश्च भेर्यश्च पणवानकगोमुखाः ।
सहसैवाभ्यहन्यन्त स शब्दस्तुमुलोऽभवत् ॥ १३ ॥

tasya saṃjanayan harṣaṃ kuruvṛddhaḥ pitāmahaḥ
siṃhanādaṃ vinadyoccaiḥ śaṅkhaṃ dadhmau pratāpavān
tataḥ śaṅkhāś ca bheryaś ca paṇavānakagomukhāḥ
sahasaivābhyahanyanta sa śabdas tumulo 'bhavat

To cheer him, the grandsire of the Kurus, the mighty one, roared like a lion and blew his conch high and loud. Then conches and kettledrums, tabors, drums and horns all sounded at once, and the noise was tremendous.

ततः श्वेतैर्हयैर्युक्ते महति स्यन्दने स्थितौ ।
माधवः पाण्डवश्चैव दिव्यौ शङ्खौ प्रदध्मतुः ॥ १४ ॥
पाञ्चजन्यं हृषीकेशो देवदत्तं धनञ्जयः ।
पौण्ड्रं दध्मौ महाशङ्खं भीमकर्मा वृकोदरः ॥ १५ ॥

tataḥ śvetair hayair yukte mahati syandane sthitau
mādhavaḥ pāṇḍavaś caiva divyau śaṅkhau pradadhmatuḥ
pāñcajanyaṃ hṛṣīkeśo devadattaṃ dhanaṃjayaḥ
pauṇḍraṃ dadhmau mahāśaṅkhaṃ bhīmakarmā vṛkodaraḥ

Then, standing in a great chariot yoked to white horses, Mādhava and the son of Pāṇḍu blew their divine conches: Hṛṣīkeśa blew Pāñcajanya, Dhanañjaya blew Devadatta, and Vṛkodara of fearsome deeds blew the great conch Pauṇḍra.

अनन्तविजयं राजा कुन्तीपुत्रो युधिष्ठिरः ।
नकुलः सहदेवश्च सुघोषमणिपुष्पकौ ॥ १६ ॥
काश्यश्च परमेष्वासः शिखण्डी च महारथः ।
धृष्टद्युम्नो विराटश्च सात्यकिश्चापराजितः ॥ १७ ॥
द्रुपदो द्रौपदेयाश्च सर्वशः पृथिवीपते ।
सौभद्रश्च महाबाहुः शङ्खान्दध्मुः पृथक्पृथक् ॥ १८ ॥

anantavijayaṃ rājā kuntīputro yudhiṣṭhiraḥ
nakulaḥ sahadevaś ca sughoṣamaṇipuṣpakau
kāśyaś ca parameṣvāsaḥ śikhaṇḍī ca mahārathaḥ
dhṛṣṭadyumno virāṭaś ca sātyakiś cāparājitaḥ
drupado draupadeyāś ca sarvaśaḥ pṛthivīpate
saubhadraś ca mahābāhuḥ śaṅkhān dadhmuḥ pṛthak pṛthak

King Yudhiṣṭhira, son of Kuntī, blew Anantavijaya; Nakula and Sahadeva blew Sughoṣa and Maṇipuṣpaka. The king of Kāśi, supreme archer, Śikhaṇḍī the great chariot-warrior, Dhṛṣṭadyumna, Virāṭa and Sātyaki the unconquered, Drupada and the sons of Draupadī, and the strong-armed son of Subhadrā, O lord of the earth, each blew his own conch.

स घोषो धार्तराष्ट्राणां हृदयानि व्यदारयत् ।
नभश्च पृथिवीं चैव तुमुलो व्यनुनादयन् ॥ १९ ॥

sa ghoṣo dhārtarāṣṭrāṇāṃ hṛdayāni vyadārayat
nabhaś ca pṛthivīṃ caiva tumulo vyanunādayan

That sound tore the hearts of Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s sons, making sky and earth resound.

अथ व्यवस्थितान्दृष्ट्वा धार्तराष्ट्रान्कपिध्वजः ।
प्रवृत्ते शस्त्रसम्पाते धनुरुद्यम्य पाण्डवः ॥ २० ॥
हृषीकेशं तदा वाक्यमिदमाह महीपते ।
अर्जुन उवाच —
सेनयोरुभयोर्मध्ये रथं स्थापय मेऽच्युत ॥ २१ ॥
यावदेतान्निरीक्षेऽहं योद्धुकामानवस्थितान् ।
कैर्मया सह योद्धव्यमस्मिन्रणसमुद्यमे ॥ २२ ॥
योत्स्यमानानवेक्षेऽहं य एतेऽत्र समागताः ।
धार्तराष्ट्रस्य दुर्बुद्धेर्युद्धे प्रियचिकीर्षवः ॥ २३ ॥

atha vyavasthitān dṛṣṭvā dhārtarāṣṭrān kapidhvajaḥ
pravṛtte śastrasaṃpāte dhanur udyamya pāṇḍavaḥ
hṛṣīkeśaṃ tadā vākyam idam āha mahīpate
senayor ubhayor madhye rathaṃ sthāpaya me 'cyuta
yāvad etān nirīkṣe 'haṃ yoddhukāmān avasthitān
kair mayā saha yoddhavyam asmin raṇasamudyame
yotsyamānān avekṣe 'haṃ ya ete 'tra samāgatāḥ
dhārtarāṣṭrasya durbuddher yuddhe priyacikīrṣavaḥ

Then, seeing Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s sons drawn up, with weapons about to fly, the son of Pāṇḍu whose banner bore the monkey lifted his bow and said to Hṛṣīkeśa, O lord of the earth: “Acyuta, set my chariot between the two armies, so that I may see those who stand here wanting to fight, with whom I must contend in this undertaking of war. I want to look at those who have gathered here to fight, wanting to please the ill-minded son of Dhṛtarāṣṭra in battle.”

सञ्जय उवाच —
एवमुक्तो हृषीकेशो गुडाकेशेन भारत ।
सेनयोरुभयोर्मध्ये स्थापयित्वा रथोत्तमम् ॥ २४ ॥
भीष्मद्रोणप्रमुखतः सर्वेषां च महीक्षिताम् ।
उवाच पार्थ पश्यैतान्समवेतान्कुरूनिति ॥ २५ ॥

evam ukto hṛṣīkeśo guḍākeśena bhārata
senayor ubhayor madhye sthāpayitvā rathottamam
bhīṣmadroṇapramukhataḥ sarveṣāṃ ca mahīkṣitām
uvāca pārtha paśyaitān samavetān kurūn iti

Sañjaya said: So addressed by Guḍākeśa, O Bhārata, Hṛṣīkeśa set the finest of chariots between the two armies, in front of Bhīṣma and Droṇa and all the rulers of the earth, and said: “Pārtha, see these Kurus gathered here.”

तत्रापश्यत्स्थितान्पार्थः पितॄनथ पितामहान् ।
आचार्यान्मातुलान्भ्रातॄन्पुत्रान्पौत्रान्सखींस्तथा ॥ २६ ॥
श्वशुरान्सुहृदश्चैवसेनयोरुभयोरपि ।
तान्समीक्ष्य स कौन्तेयः सर्वान्बन्धूनवस्थितान् ॥ २७ ॥

tatrāpaśyat sthitān pārthaḥ pitṝn atha pitāmahān
ācāryān mātulān bhrātṝn putrān pautrān sakhīṃs tathā
śvaśurān suhṛdaś caiva senayor ubhayor api
tān samīkṣya sa kaunteyaḥ sarvān bandhūn avasthitān

There Pārtha saw, standing in both armies, fathers and grandfathers, teachers, uncles, brothers, sons, grandsons and friends, fathers-in-law and companions. Seeing all these kinsmen standing there, the son of Kuntī

कृपया परयाविष्टो विषीदन्निदमब्रवीत् ।
अर्जुन उवाच —
दृष्ट्वेमान्स्वजनान्कृष्ण युयुत्सून्समुपस्थितान् ॥ २८ ॥
सीदन्ति मम गात्राणि मुखं च परिशुष्यति ।
वेपथुश्च शरीरे मे रोमहर्षश्च जायते ॥ २९ ॥
गाण्डीवं स्रंसते हस्तात्त्वक्चैव परिदह्यते ।
न च शक्नोम्यवस्थातुं भ्रमतीव च मे मनः ॥ ३० ॥

kṛpayā parayāviṣṭo viṣīdann idam abravīt
dṛṣṭvemān svajanān kṛṣṇa yuyutsūn samavasthitān
sīdanti mama gātrāṇi mukhaṃ ca pariśuṣyati
vepathuś ca śarīre me romaharṣaś ca jāyate
gāṇḍīvaṃ sraṃsate hastāt tvak caiva paridahyate
na ca śaknomy avasthātuṃ bhramatīva ca me manaḥ

was filled with deep pity, and, despairing, said: “Kṛṣṇa, seeing my own people here, eager to fight, my limbs give way and my mouth is dry, my body trembles and my hair stands on end. Gāṇḍīva slips from my hand, my skin burns, I cannot stand, and my mind is spinning.

निमित्तानि च पश्यामि विपरीतानि केशव ।
न च श्रेयोऽनुपश्यामि हत्वा स्वजनमाहवे ॥ ३१ ॥
न काङ्क्षे विजयं कृष्ण न च राज्यं सुखानि च ।
किं नो राज्येन गोविन्द किं भोगैर्जीवितेन वा ॥ ३२ ॥
येषामर्थे काङ्क्षितं नो राज्यं भोगाः सुखानि च ।
त इमेऽवस्थिता युद्धे प्राणांस्त्यक्त्वा धनानि च ॥ ३३ ॥
आचार्याः पितरः पुत्रास्तथैव च पितामहाः ।
मातुलाः श्वशुराः पौत्राः स्यालाः सम्बन्धिनस्तथा ॥ ३४ ॥
एतान्न हन्तुमिच्छामि घ्नतोऽपि मधुसूदन ।
अपि त्रैलोक्यराज्यस्य हेतोः किं नु महीकृते ॥ ३५ ॥

nimittāni ca paśyāmi viparītāni keśava
na ca śreyo 'nupaśyāmi hatvā svajanam āhave
na kāṅkṣe vijayaṃ kṛṣṇa na ca rājyaṃ sukhāni ca
kiṃ no rājyena govinda kiṃ bhogair jīvitena vā
yeṣām arthe kāṅkṣitaṃ no rājyaṃ bhogāḥ sukhāni ca
ta ime 'vasthitā yuddhe prāṇāṃs tyaktvā dhanāni ca
ācāryāḥ pitaraḥ putrās tathaiva ca pitāmahāḥ
mātulāḥ śvaśurāḥ pautrāḥ syālāḥ saṃbandhinas tathā
etān na hantum icchāmi ghnato 'pi madhusūdana
api trailokyarājyasya hetoḥ kiṃ nu mahīkṛte

“And I see omens turned against us, Keśava, and I see no good in killing my own people in battle. I do not want victory, Kṛṣṇa, nor kingdom nor pleasures. What is a kingdom to us, Govinda, or enjoyment, or even life? Those for whose sake we wanted kingdom, enjoyment and pleasure stand here in battle, having given up life and wealth: teachers, fathers, sons and grandfathers, uncles, fathers-in-law, grandsons, brothers-in-law and other kin. I do not want to kill them, Madhusūdana, even if they kill me, not for the rule of the three worlds, let alone for the earth.

निहत्य धार्तराष्ट्रान्नः का प्रीतिः स्याज्जनार्दन ।
पापमेवाश्रयेदस्मान्हत्वैतानाततायिनः ॥ ३६ ॥
तस्मान्नार्हा वयं हन्तुं धार्तराष्ट्रान्सबान्धवान् ।
स्वजनं हि कथं हत्वा सुखिनः स्याम माधव ॥ ३७ ॥
यद्यप्येते न पश्यन्ति लोभोपहतचेतसः ।
कुलक्षयकृतं दोषं मित्रद्रोहे च पातकम् ॥ ३८ ॥
कथं न ज्ञेयमस्माभिः पापादस्मान्निवर्तितुम् ।
कुलक्षयकृतं दोषं प्रपश्यद्भिर्जनार्दन ॥ ३९ ॥

nihatya dhārtarāṣṭrān naḥ kā prītiḥ syāj janārdana
pāpam evāśrayed asmān hatvaitān ātatāyinaḥ
tasmān nārhā vayaṃ hantuṃ dhārtarāṣṭrān sabāndhavān
svajanaṃ hi kathaṃ hatvā sukhinaḥ syāma mādhava
yady apy ete na paśyanti lobhopahatacetasaḥ
kulakṣayakṛtaṃ doṣaṃ mitradrohe ca pātakam
kathaṃ na jñeyam asmābhiḥ pāpād asmān nivartitum
kulakṣayakṛtaṃ doṣaṃ prapaśyadbhir janārdana

“What joy could we have from killing Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s sons, Janārdana? Only wrong would cling to us for killing these aggressors. So we should not kill Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s sons, our own kin; how could we be happy, Mādhava, having killed our own people? Even if they, their minds struck down by greed, do not see the fault in destroying a family and the crime in betraying friends, why should we, who see clearly the fault in destroying a family, not know to turn away from this wrong, Janārdana?

कुलक्षये प्रणश्यन्ति कुलधर्माः सनातनाः ।
धर्मे नष्टे कुलं कृत्स्नमधर्मोऽभिभवत्युत ॥ ४० ॥
अधर्माभिभवात्कृष्ण प्रदुष्यन्ति कुलस्त्रियः ।
स्त्रीषु दुष्टासु वार्ष्णेय जायते वर्णसङ्करः ॥ ४१ ॥
सङ्करो नरकायैव कुलघ्नानां कुलस्य च ।
पतन्ति पितरो ह्येषां लुप्तपिण्डोदकक्रियाः ॥ ४२ ॥
दोषैरेतैः कुलघ्नानां वर्णसङ्करकारकैः ।
उत्साद्यन्ते जातिधर्माः कुलधर्माश्च शाश्वताः ॥ ४३ ॥
उत्सन्नकुलधर्माणां मनुष्याणां जनार्दन ।
नरके नियतं वासो भवतीत्यनुशुश्रुम ॥ ४४ ॥

kulakṣaye praṇaśyanti kuladharmāḥ sanātanāḥ
dharme naṣṭe kulaṃ kṛtsnam adharmo 'bhibhavaty uta
adharmābhibhavāt kṛṣṇa praduṣyanti kulastriyaḥ
strīṣu duṣṭāsu vārṣṇeya jāyate varṇasaṃkaraḥ
saṃkaro narakāyaiva kulaghnānāṃ kulasya ca
patanti pitaro hy eṣāṃ luptapiṇḍodakakriyāḥ
doṣair etaiḥ kulaghnānāṃ varṇasaṃkarakārakaiḥ
utsādyante jātidharmāḥ kuladharmāś ca śāśvatāḥ
utsannakuladharmāṇāṃ manuṣyāṇāṃ janārdana
narake niyataṃ vāso bhavatīty anuśuśruma

“When a family is destroyed, its ancient ways perish; when the ways are lost, lawlessness overwhelms the whole family. When lawlessness prevails, Kṛṣṇa, the women of the family are corrupted; and when the women are corrupted, Vārṣṇeya, the orders of society are mixed. That mixing brings the family and its destroyers to hell, and their ancestors fall, deprived of the offerings of rice and water. By these wrongs of the family-destroyers, which mix the orders, the lasting duties of birth and family are destroyed. For people whose family duties are destroyed, Janārdana, a dwelling in hell is certain; so we have heard.

अहो बत महत्पापं कर्तुं व्यवसिता वयम् ।
यद्राज्यसुखलोभेन हन्तुं स्वजनमुद्यताः ॥ ४५ ॥
यदि मामप्रतीकारमशस्त्रं शस्त्रपाणयः ।
धार्तराष्ट्रा रणे हन्युस्तन्मे क्षेमतरं भवेत् ॥ ४६ ॥

aho bata mahat pāpaṃ kartuṃ vyavasitā vayam
yad rājyasukhalobhena hantuṃ svajanam udyatāḥ
yadi mām apratīkāram aśastraṃ śastrapāṇayaḥ
dhārtarāṣṭrā raṇe hanyus tan me kṣemataraṃ bhavet

“Alas, we have resolved to do a great wrong, ready to kill our own people out of greed for the pleasures of a kingdom. If the sons of Dhṛtarāṣṭra, weapons in hand, were to kill me in battle, unresisting and unarmed, that would be better for me.”

सञ्जय उवाच —
एवमुक्त्वार्जुनः सं‍ख्ये रथोपस्थ उपाविशत् ।
विसृज्य सशरं चापं शोकसंविग्नमानसः ॥ ४७ ॥

evam uktvārjunaḥ saṃkhye rathopastha upāviśat
visṛjya saśaraṃ cāpaṃ śokasaṃvignamānasaḥ

Sañjaya said: Having spoken so on the field, Arjuna sank down on the seat of the chariot, letting fall his bow and arrows, his mind overwhelmed with sorrow.

सञ्जय उवाच —
तं तथा कृपयाविष्टमश्रुपूर्णाकुलेक्षणम् ।
विषीदन्तमिदं वाक्यमुवाच मधुसूदनः ॥ १ ॥

saṃjaya uvāca
taṃ tathā kṛpayāviṣṭam aśrupūrṇākulekṣaṇam
viṣīdantam idaṃ vākyam uvāca madhusūdanaḥ

Sañjaya said: To him, so filled with pity, his eyes troubled and full of tears, despairing, Madhusūdana spoke these words.

श्रीभगवानुवाच —
कुतस्त्वा कश्मलमिदं विषमे समुपस्थितम् ।
अनार्यजुष्टमस्वर्ग्यमकीर्तिकरमर्जुन ॥ २ ॥
क्लैब्यं मा स्म गमः पार्थ नैतत्त्वय्युपपद्यते ।
क्षुद्रं हृदयदौर्बल्यं त्यक्त्वोत्तिष्ठ परन्तप ॥ ३ ॥

śrībhagavān uvāca
kutas tvā kaśmalam idaṃ viṣame samupasthitam
anāryajuṣṭam asvargyam akīrtikaram arjuna
klaibyaṃ mā sma gamaḥ pārtha naitat tvayy upapadyate
kṣudraṃ hṛdayadaurbalyaṃ tyaktvottiṣṭha paraṃtapa

The Blessed One said: “Where has this faintness come upon you, Arjuna, in this hour of danger? It does not befit the noble; it does not lead to heaven; it brings disgrace. Do not fall into powerlessness, Pārtha; it does not suit you. Cast off this small weakness of heart and stand up, scorcher of foes.”

अर्जुन उवाच —
कथं भीष्ममहं सं‍ख्ये द्रोणं च मधुसूदन ।
इषुभिः प्रतियोत्स्यामि पूजार्हावरिसूदन ॥ ४ ॥
गुरूनहत्वा हि महानुभावान् श्रेयो भोक्तुं भैक्षमपीह लोके ।
हत्वार्थकामांस्तु गुरूनिहैव भुञ्जीय भोगान्रुधिरप्रदिग्धान् ॥ ५ ॥
न चैतद्विद्मः कतरन्नो गरीयो यद्वा जयेम यदि वा नो जयेयुः ।
यानेव हत्वा न जिजीविषामस्तेऽवस्थिताः प्रमुखे धार्तराष्ट्राः ॥ ६ ॥

arjuna uvāca
kathaṃ bhīṣmam ahaṃ saṃkhye droṇaṃ ca madhusūdana
iṣubhiḥ pratiyotsyāmi pūjārhāv arisūdana
gurūn ahatvā hi mahānubhāvāñ
śreyo bhoktuṃ bhaikṣam apīha loke
hatvārthakāmāṃs tu gurūn ihaiva
bhuñjīya bhogān rudhirapradigdhān
na caitad vidmaḥ kataran no garīyo
yad vā jayema yadi vā no jayeyuḥ
yān eva hatvā na jijīviṣāmas
te 'vasthitāḥ pramukhe dhārtarāṣṭrāḥ

Arjuna said: “How can I aim arrows in battle at Bhīṣma and Droṇa, Madhusūdana, who deserve my worship, slayer of enemies? Better to live on alms in this world than to kill these great-souled teachers. Having killed them, even if they are bent on gain, I would enjoy pleasures here smeared with blood. We do not even know which is better for us, that we should win or that they should. The sons of Dhṛtarāṣṭra stand before us, and if we killed them we would not want to live.”

कार्पण्यदोषोपहतस्वभावः पृच्छामि त्वां धर्मसंमूढचेताः ।
यच्छ्रेयः स्यान्निश्चितं ब्रूहि तन्मे शिष्यस्तेऽहं शाधि मां त्वां प्रपन्नम् ॥ ७ ॥

kārpaṇyadoṣopahatasvabhāvaḥ
pṛcchāmi tvāṃ dharmasaṃmūḍhacetāḥ
yac chreyaḥ syān niścitaṃ brūhi tan me
śiṣyas te 'haṃ śādhi māṃ tvāṃ prapannam

“My nature is struck by the fault of pity; my mind is confused about dharma. I ask you: tell me for certain what is better. I am your student. Teach me, I have come to you for refuge.”

न हि प्रपश्यामि ममापनुद्याद्यच्छोकमुच्छोषणमिन्द्रियाणाम् ।
अवाप्य भूमावसपत्नमृद्धं राज्यं सुराणामपि चाधिपत्यम् ॥ ८ ॥

na hi prapaśyāmi mamāpanudyād
yac chokam ucchoṣaṇam indriyāṇām
avāpya bhūmāv asapatnam ṛddhaṃ
rājyaṃ surāṇām api cādhipatyam

“I see nothing that would drive away this sorrow that dries up my senses, not even unrivalled rule on earth, rich and without an enemy, nor lordship over the gods.”

सञ्जय उवाच —
एवमुक्त्वा हृषीकेशं गुडाकेशः परन्तपः ।
न योत्स्य इति गोविन्दमुक्त्वा तूष्णीं बभूव ह ॥ ९ ॥

saṃjaya uvāca
evam uktvā hṛṣīkeśaṃ guḍākeśaḥ paraṃtapa
na yotsya iti govindam uktvā tūṣṇīṃ babhūva ha

Sañjaya said: Having spoken so to Hṛṣīkeśa, Guḍākeśa, scorcher of foes, said to Govinda, “I will not fight,” and fell silent.

तमुवाच हृषीकेशः प्रहसन्निव भारत ।
सेनयोरुभयोर्मध्ये विषीदन्तमिदं वचः ॥ १० ॥

tam uvāca hṛṣīkeśaḥ prahasann iva bhārata
senayor ubhayor madhye viṣīdantam idaṃ vacaḥ

To him, despairing between the two armies, Hṛṣīkeśa, as if smiling, O Bhārata, spoke these words.

श्रीभगवानुवाच —
अशोच्यानन्वशोचस्त्वं प्रज्ञावादांश्च भाषसे ।
गतासूनगतासूंश्च नानुशोचन्ति पण्डिताः ॥ ११ ॥

śrībhagavān uvāca
aśocyān anvaśocas tvaṃ prajñāvādāṃś ca bhāṣase
gatāsūn agatāsūṃś ca nānuśocanti paṇḍitāḥ

The Blessed One said: “You grieve for those who should not be grieved for, and yet you speak words of wisdom. The wise grieve neither for the dead nor for the living.

न त्वेवाहं जातु नासं न त्वं नेमे जनाधिपाः ।
न चैव न भविष्यामः सर्वे वयमतः परम् ॥ १२ ॥
देहिनोऽस्मिन्यथा देहे कौमारं यौवनं जरा ।
तथा देहान्तरप्राप्तिर्धीरस्तत्र न मुह्यति ॥ १३ ॥

na tv evāhaṃ jātu nāsaṃ na tvaṃ neme janādhipāḥ
na caiva na bhaviṣyāmaḥ sarve vayam ataḥ param
dehino 'smin yathā dehe kaumāraṃ yauvanaṃ jarā
tathā dehāntaraprāptir dhīras tatra na muhyati

“Never was there a time when I was not, nor you, nor these rulers of men; nor will any of us ever cease to be hereafter. As the embodied one passes in this body through childhood, youth and old age, so it passes to another body. The steady one is not bewildered by this.

मात्रास्पर्शास्तु कौन्तेय शीतोष्णसुखदुःखदाः ।
आगमापायिनोऽनित्यास्तांस्तितिक्षस्व भारत ॥ १४ ॥
यं हि न व्यथयन्त्येते पुरुषं पुरुषर्षभ ।
समदुःखसुखं धीरं सोऽमृतत्वाय कल्पते ॥ १५ ॥

mātrāsparśās tu kaunteya śītoṣṇasukhaduḥkhadāḥ
āgamāpāyino 'nityās tāṃs titikṣasva bhārata
yaṃ hi na vyathayanty ete puruṣaṃ puruṣarṣabha
samaduḥkhasukhaṃ dhīraṃ so 'mṛtatvāya kalpate

“The touches of the senses on their objects, son of Kuntī, give cold and heat, pleasure and pain. They come and they go; they do not last. Bear them, Bhārata. The one whom these do not shake, bull among men, who is the same in pain and pleasure, steady, is fit for what does not die.

नासतो विद्यते भावो नाभावो विद्यते सतः ।
उभयोरपि दृष्टोऽन्तस्त्वनयोस्तत्त्वदर्शिभिः ॥ १६ ॥
अविनाशि तु तद्विद्धि येन सर्वमिदं ततम् ।
विनाशमव्ययस्यास्य न कश्चित्कर्तुमर्हति ॥ १७ ॥
अन्तवन्त इमे देहा नित्यस्योक्ताः शरीरिणः ।
अनाशिनोऽप्रमेयस्य तस्माद्युध्यस्व भारत ॥ १८ ॥

nāsato vidyate bhāvo nābhāvo vidyate sataḥ
ubhayor api dṛṣṭo 'ntas tv anayos tattvadarśibhiḥ
avināśi tu tad viddhi yena sarvam idaṃ tatam
vināśam avyayasyāsya na kaś cit kartum arhati
antavanta ime dehā nityasyoktāḥ śarīriṇaḥ
anāśino 'prameyasya tasmād yudhyasva bhārata

“The unreal has no being; the real never ceases to be. Those who see the truth have seen the line between the two. Know that by which all this is pervaded to be indestructible; no one can destroy the imperishable. These bodies of the eternal embodied one, which cannot be destroyed or measured, are said to end. Therefore fight, Bhārata.

य एनं वेत्ति हन्तारं यश्चैनं मन्यते हतम् ।
उभौ तौ न विजानीतो नायं हन्ति न हन्यते ॥ १९ ॥
न जायते म्रियते वा कदाचिन्नायं भूत्वाभविता वा न भूयः ।
अजो नित्यः शाश्वतोऽयं पुराणो न हन्यते हन्यमाने शरीरे ॥ २० ॥
वेदाविनाशिनं नित्यं य एनमजमव्ययम् ।
कथं स पुरुषः पार्थ कं घातयति हन्ति कम् ॥ २१ ॥

ya enaṃ vetti hantāraṃ yaś cainaṃ manyate hatam
ubhau tau na vijānīto nāyaṃ hanti na hanyate
na jāyate mriyate vā kadā cin
nāyaṃ bhūtvā bhavitā vā na bhūyaḥ
ajo nityaḥ śāśvato 'yaṃ purāṇo
na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre
vedāvināśinaṃ nityaṃ ya enam ajam avyayam
kathaṃ sa puruṣaḥ pārtha kaṃ ghātayati hanti kam

“Whoever thinks this one a killer, and whoever thinks it killed, neither understands: it does not kill, and it is not killed. It is never born, and it never dies; it did not come to be and will not cease to be. Unborn, eternal, everlasting, ancient, it is not killed when the body is killed. The one who knows it to be indestructible, eternal, unborn and unchanging, how can that person kill anyone, Pārtha, or cause anyone to kill?

वासांसि जीर्णानि यथा विहाय नवानि गृह्णाति नरोऽपराणि ।
तथा शरीराणि विहाय जीर्णान्यन्यानि संयाति नवानि देही ॥ २२ ॥

vāsāṃsi jīrṇāni yathā vihāya
navāni gṛhṇāti naro 'parāṇi
tathā śarīrāṇi vihāya jīrṇāny
anyāni saṃyāti navāni dehī

“As a man casts off worn-out clothes and puts on others that are new, so the embodied one casts off worn-out bodies and enters others that are new.

नैनं छिन्दन्ति शस्त्राणि नैनं दहति पावकः ।
न चैनं क्लेदयन्त्यापो न शोषयति मारुतः ॥ २३ ॥
अच्छेद्योऽयमदाह्योऽयमक्लेद्योऽशोष्य एव च ।
नित्यः सर्वगतः स्थाणुरचलोऽयं सनातनः ॥ २४ ॥
अव्यक्तोऽयमचिन्त्योऽयमविकार्योऽयमुच्यते ।
तस्मादेवं विदित्वैनं नानुशोचितुमर्हसि ॥ २५ ॥

nainaṃ chindanti śastrāṇi nainaṃ dahati pāvakaḥ
na cainaṃ kledayanty āpo na śoṣayati mārutaḥ
acchedyo 'yam adāhyo 'yam akledyo 'śoṣya eva ca
nityaḥ sarvagataḥ sthāṇur acalo 'yaṃ sanātanaḥ
avyakto 'yam acintyo 'yam avikāryo 'yam ucyate
tasmād evaṃ viditvainaṃ nānuśocitum arhasi

“Weapons do not cut it, fire does not burn it, water does not wet it, wind does not dry it. It cannot be cut, burned, wetted or dried; it is eternal, everywhere, steady, unmoving, ever the same. It is called unmanifest, unthinkable, unchanging. Knowing it so, you should not grieve.

अथ चैनं नित्यजातं नित्यं वा मन्यसे मृतम् ।
तथापि त्वं महाबाहो नैवं शोचितुमर्हसि ॥ २६ ॥
जातस्य हि ध्रुवो मृत्युर्ध्रुवं जन्म मृतस्य च ।
तस्मादपरिहार्येऽर्थे न त्वं शोचितुमर्हसि ॥ २७ ॥
अव्यक्तादीनि भूतानि व्यक्तमध्यानि भारत ।
अव्यक्तनिधनान्येव तत्र का परिदेवना ॥ २८ ॥

atha cainaṃ nityajātaṃ nityaṃ vā manyase mṛtam
tathāpi tvaṃ mahābāho nainaṃ śocitum arhasi
jātasya hi dhruvo mṛtyur dhruvaṃ janma mṛtasya ca
tasmād aparihārye 'rthe na tvaṃ śocitum arhasi
avyaktādīni bhūtāni vyaktamadhyāni bhārata
avyaktanidhanāny eva tatra kā paridevanā

“And even if you think of it as always being born and always dying, even then, mighty-armed, you should not grieve for it. For death is certain for whatever is born, and birth for whatever has died; you should not grieve over what cannot be avoided. Beings are unmanifest in their beginning, manifest in their middle, Bhārata, and unmanifest again at their end. What is there to lament?

आश्चर्यवत्पश्यति कश्चिदेनमाश्चर्यवद्वदति तथैव चान्यः ।
आश्चर्यवच्चैनमन्यः शृणोति श्रुत्वाप्येनं वेद न चैव कश्चित् ॥ २९ ॥
देही नित्यमवध्योऽयं देहे सर्वस्य भारत ।
तस्मात्सर्वाणि भूतानि न त्वं शोचितुमर्हसि ॥ ३० ॥

āścaryavat paśyati kaś cid enam
āścaryavad vadati tathaiva cānyaḥ
āścaryavac cainam anyaḥ śṛṇoti
śrutvāpy enaṃ veda na caiva kaś cit
dehī nityam avadhyo 'yaṃ dehe sarvasya bhārata
tasmāt sarvāṇi bhūtāni na tvaṃ śocitum arhasi

“Someone sees it as a wonder, another speaks of it as a wonder, another hears of it as a wonder, and even having heard, no one knows it. The embodied one in everyone’s body is forever beyond killing, Bhārata. So you should not grieve for any being.

स्वधर्ममपि चावेक्ष्य न विकम्पितुमर्हसि ।
धर्म्याद्धि युद्धाच्छ्रेयोऽन्यत्क्षत्त्रियस्य न विद्यते ॥ ३१ ॥
यदृच्छया चोपपन्नं स्वर्गद्वारमपावृतम् ।
सुखिनः क्षत्रियाः पार्थ लभन्ते युद्धमीदृशम् ॥ ३२ ॥
अथ चेत्त्वमिमं धर्म्यं सङ्ग्रामं न करिष्यसि ।
ततः स्वधर्मं कीर्तिं च हित्वा पापमवाप्स्यसि ॥ ३३ ॥

svadharmam api cāvekṣya na vikampitum arhasi
dharmyād dhi yuddhāc chreyo 'nyat kṣatriyasya na vidyate
yadṛcchayā copapannaṃ svargadvāram apāvṛtam
sukhinaḥ kṣatriyāḥ pārtha labhante yuddham īdṛśam
atha cet tvam imaṃ dharmyaṃ saṃgrāmaṃ na kariṣyasi
tataḥ svadharmaṃ kīrtiṃ ca hitvā pāpam avāpsyasi

“Looking at your own dharma as well, you should not waver; for a warrior there is nothing better than a righteous battle. Happy are the warriors, Pārtha, who meet such a battle, come of itself like a gate to heaven standing open. But if you will not fight this righteous battle, then, abandoning your own dharma and your honour, you will incur wrong.

अकीर्तिं चापि भूतानि कथयिष्यन्ति तेऽव्ययाम् ।
सम्भावितस्य चाकीर्तिर्मरणादतिरिच्यते ॥ ३४ ॥
भयाद्रणादुपरतं मंस्यन्ते त्वां महारथाः ।
येषां च त्वं बहुमतो भूत्वा यास्यसि लाघवम् ॥ ३५ ॥
अवाच्यवादांश्च बहून्वदिष्यन्ति तवाहिताः ।
निन्दन्तस्तव सामर्थ्यं ततो दुःखतरं नु किम् ॥ ३६ ॥
हतो वा प्राप्स्यसि स्वर्गं जित्वा वा भोक्ष्यसे महीम् ।
तस्मादुत्तिष्ठ कौन्तेय युद्धाय कृतनिश्चयः ॥ ३७ ॥

akīrtiṃ cāpi bhūtāni kathayiṣyanti te 'vyayām
saṃbhāvitasya cākīrtir maraṇād atiricyate
bhayād raṇād uparataṃ maṃsyante tvāṃ mahārathāḥ
yeṣāṃ ca tvaṃ bahumato bhūtvā yāsyasi lāghavam
avācyavādāṃś ca bahūn vadiṣyanti tavāhitāḥ
nindantas tava sāmarthyaṃ tato duḥkhataraṃ nu kim
hato vā prāpsyasi svargaṃ jitvā vā bhokṣyase mahīm
tasmād uttiṣṭha kaunteya yuddhāya kṛtaniścayaḥ

“People will tell of your dishonour forever, and for one who has been honoured, dishonour is worse than death. The great chariot-warriors will think you left the battle out of fear, and you who were held high by them will become small. Your enemies will say many things that should not be said, mocking your strength. What could be more painful than that? Killed, you will reach heaven; victorious, you will enjoy the earth. So stand up, son of Kuntī, resolved to fight.

सुखदुःखे समे कृत्वा लाभालाभौ जयाजयौ ।
ततो युद्धाय युज्यस्व नैवं पापमवाप्स्यसि ॥ ३८ ॥

sukhaduḥkhe same kṛtvā lābhālābhau jayājayau
tato yuddhāya yujyasva naivaṃ pāpam avāpsyasi

“Making pleasure and pain alike, gain and loss, victory and defeat, then yoke yourself to the battle. So you will not incur wrong.

एषा तेऽभिहिता साङ्‍ख्ये बुद्धिर्योगे त्विमां शृणु ।
बुद्ध्या युक्तो यया पार्थ कर्मबन्धं प्रहास्यसि ॥ ३९ ॥
नेहाभिक्रमनाशोऽस्ति प्रत्यवायो न विद्यते ।
स्वल्पमप्यस्य धर्मस्य त्रायते महतो भयात् ॥ ४० ॥

eṣā te 'bhihitā sāṃkhye buddhir yoge tv imāṃ śṛṇu
buddhyā yukto yayā pārtha karmabandhaṃ prahāsyasi
nehābhikramanāśo 'sti pratyavāyo na vidyate
svalpam apy asya dharmasya trāyate mahato bhayāt

“This understanding has been told you in the way of Sāṅkhya; now hear it in the way of yoga, joined with which, Pārtha, you will cast off the bondage of action. Here no effort is lost, and there is no going backward; even a little of this way protects from great fear.

व्यवसायात्मिका बुद्धिरेकेह कुरुनन्दन ।
बहुशाखा ह्यनन्ताश्च बुद्धयोऽव्यवसायिनाम् ॥ ४१ ॥
यामिमां पुष्पितां वाचं प्रवदन्त्यविपश्चितः ।
वेदवादरताः पार्थ नान्यदस्तीति वादिनः ॥ ४२ ॥
कामात्मानः स्वर्गपरा जन्मकर्मफलप्रदाम् ।
क्रियाविशेषबहुलां भोगैश्वर्यगतिं प्रति ॥ ४३ ॥
भोगैश्वर्यप्रसक्तानां तयापहृतचेतसाम् ।
व्यवसायात्मिका बुद्धिः समाधौ न विधीयते ॥ ४४ ॥

vyavasāyātmikā buddhir ekeha kurunandana
bahuśākhā hy anantāś ca buddhayo 'vyavasāyinām
yām imāṃ puṣpitāṃ vācaṃ pravadanty avipaścitaḥ
vedavādaratāḥ pārtha nānyad astīti vādinaḥ
kāmātmānaḥ svargaparā janmakarmaphalapradām
kriyāviśeṣabahulāṃ bhogaiśvaryagatiṃ prati
bhogaiśvaryaprasaktānāṃ tayāpahṛtacetasām
vyavasāyātmikā buddhiḥ samādhau na vidhīyate

“Here the understanding that is resolved is one, joy of the Kurus; the understandings of the unresolved are many-branched and without end. The unwise speak flowery words, Pārtha, delighting in the letter of the Veda, saying there is nothing else; full of desire, intent on heaven, they offer birth as the fruit of action, rich in special rites aimed at pleasure and power. For those attached to pleasure and power, whose minds are carried off by such words, the resolved understanding is not established in stillness.

त्रैगुण्यविषया वेदा निस्त्रैगुण्यो भवार्जुन ।
निर्द्वन्द्वो नित्यसत्त्वस्थो निर्योगक्षेम आत्मवान् ॥ ४५ ॥
यावानर्थ उदपाने सर्वतःसम्प्लुतोदके ।
तावान् सर्वेषु वेदेषु ब्राह्मणस्य विजानतः ॥ ४६ ॥

traiguṇyaviṣayā vedā nistraiguṇyo bhavārjuna
nirdvaṃdvo nityasattvastho niryogakṣema ātmavān
yāvān artha udapāne sarvataḥ saṃplutodake
tāvān sarveṣu vedeṣu brāhmaṇasya vijānataḥ

“The Vedas deal with the three qualities; be free of the three qualities, Arjuna, free of the pairs of opposites, always steady in clarity, without concern for getting and keeping, possessed of the self. As much use as there is in a well when there is water flooding everywhere, so much is there in all the Vedas for a knower of Brahman.

कर्मण्येवाधिकारस्ते मा फलेषु कदाचन ।
मा कर्मफलहेतुर्भूर्मा ते सङ्गोऽस्त्वकर्मणि ॥ ४७ ॥

karmaṇy evādhikāras te mā phaleṣu kadā cana
mā karmaphalahetur bhūr mā te saṅgo 'stv akarmaṇi

“Your right is to the action alone, never to its fruits. Do not let the fruit of action be your motive, and do not let yourself cling to not acting.”

योगस्थः कुरु कर्माणि सङ्गं त्यक्त्वा धनञ्जय ।
सिद्ध्यसिद्ध्योः समो भूत्वा समत्वं योग उच्यते ॥ ४८ ॥
दूरेण ह्यवरं कर्म बुद्धियोगाद्धनञ्जय ।
बुद्धौ शरणमन्विच्छ कृपणाः फलहेतवः ॥ ४९ ॥
बुद्धियुक्तो जहातीह उभे सुकृतदुष्कृते ।
तस्माद्योगाय युज्यस्व योगः कर्मसु कौशलम् ॥ ५० ॥

yogasthaḥ kuru karmāṇi saṅgaṃ tyaktvā dhanaṃjaya
siddhyasiddhyoḥ samo bhūtvā samatvaṃ yoga ucyate
dūreṇa hy avaraṃ karma buddhiyogād dhanaṃjaya
buddhau śaraṇam anviccha kṛpaṇāḥ phalahetavaḥ
buddhiyukto jahātīha ubhe sukṛtaduṣkṛte
tasmād yogāya yujyasva yogaḥ karmasu kauśalam

“Steady in yoga, do your work, Dhanañjaya, having let go of clinging, even in success and failure. Evenness is called yoga. Mere action is far below the yoga of understanding, Dhanañjaya. Seek refuge in understanding. Pitiable are those whose motive is the fruit. One joined to understanding leaves behind both good deeds and bad here. So yoke yourself to yoga. Yoga is skill in action.

कर्मजं बुद्धियुक्ता हि फलं त्यक्त्वा मनीषिणः ।
जन्मबन्धविनिर्मुक्ताः पदं गच्छन्त्यनामयम् ॥ ५१ ॥
यदा ते मोहकलिलं बुद्धिर्व्यतितरिष्यति ।
तदा गन्तासि निर्वेदं श्रोतव्यस्य श्रुतस्य च ॥ ५२ ॥
श्रुतिविप्रतिपन्ना ते यदा स्थास्यति निश्चला ।
समाधावचला बुद्धिस्तदा योगमवाप्स्यसि ॥ ५३ ॥

karmajaṃ buddhiyuktā hi phalaṃ tyaktvā manīṣiṇaḥ
janmabandhavinirmuktāḥ padaṃ gacchanty anāmayam
yadā te mohakalilaṃ buddhir vyatitariṣyati
tadā gantāsi nirvedaṃ śrotavyasya śrutasya ca
śrutivipratipannā te yadā sthāsyati niścalā
samādhāv acalā buddhis tadā yogam avāpsyasi

“The wise, joined to understanding, let go of the fruit that comes of action, and freed from the bondage of birth, they go to the state beyond sorrow. When your understanding crosses beyond the thicket of delusion, you will grow indifferent to what you have heard and what you have yet to hear. When your understanding, now bewildered by what it has heard, stands unmoving and steady in stillness, then you will reach yoga.”

अर्जुन उवाच —
स्थितप्रज्ञस्य का भाषा समाधिस्थस्य केशव ।
स्थितधीः किं पृभाषेत किमासीत व्रजेत किम् ॥ ५४ ॥

arjuna uvāca
sthitaprajñasya kā bhāṣā samādhisthasya keśava
sthitadhīḥ kiṃ prabhāṣeta kim āsīta vrajeta kim

Arjuna said: “What is the mark of one whose wisdom is steady, who is established in stillness, Keśava? How does one of steady thought speak, how does he sit, how does he walk?”

श्रीभगवानुवाच —
प्रजहाति यदा कामान्सर्वान्पार्थ मनोगतान् ।
आत्मन्येवात्मना तुष्टः स्थितप्रज्ञस्तदोच्यते ॥ ५५ ॥
दुःखेष्वनुद्विग्नमनाः सुखेषु विगतस्पृहः ।
वीतरागभयक्रोधः स्थितधीर्मुनिरुच्यते ॥ ५६ ॥
यः सर्वत्रानभिस्नेहस्तत्तत्प्राप्य शुभाशुभम् ।
नाभिनन्दति न द्वेष्टि तस्य प्रज्ञा प्रतिष्ठिता ॥ ५७ ॥

śrībhagavān uvāca
prajahāti yadā kāmān sarvān pārtha manogatān
ātmany evātmanā tuṣṭaḥ sthitaprajñas tadocyate
duḥkheṣv anudvignamanāḥ sukheṣu vigataspṛhaḥ
vītarāgabhayakrodhaḥ sthitadhīr munir ucyate
yaḥ sarvatrānabhisnehas tat tat prāpya śubhāśubham
nābhinandati na dveṣṭi tasya prajñā pratiṣṭhitā

The Blessed One said: “When one gives up all the desires that enter the mind, Pārtha, content in the self by the self, then one is called steady in wisdom. One whose mind is not shaken in sorrow, who does not crave in pleasure, from whom passion, fear and anger have gone, is called a sage of steady thought. One who is without clinging anywhere, who, meeting good or ill, neither rejoices nor hates, has wisdom that stands firm.

यदा संहरते चायं कूर्मोऽङ्गानीव सर्वशः ।
इन्द्रियाणीन्द्रियार्थेभ्यस्तस्य प्रज्ञा प्रतिष्ठिता ॥ ५८ ॥

yadā saṃharate cāyaṃ kūrmo 'ṅgānīva sarvaśaḥ
indriyāṇīndriyārthebhyas tasya prajñā pratiṣṭhitā

“When, like a tortoise drawing in its limbs, one withdraws the senses completely from their objects, that one’s wisdom stands firm.

विषया विनिवर्तन्ते निराहारस्य देहिनः ।
रसवर्जं रसोऽप्यस्य परं दृष्ट्वा निवर्तते ॥ ५९ ॥
यततो ह्यपि कौन्तेय पुरुषस्य विपश्चितः ।
इन्द्रियाणि प्रमाथीनि हरन्ति प्रसभं मनः ॥ ६० ॥
तानि सर्वाणि संयम्य युक्त आसीत मत्परः ।
वशे हि यस्येन्द्रियाणि तस्य प्रज्ञा प्रतिष्ठिता ॥ ६१ ॥

viṣayā vinivartante nirāhārasya dehinaḥ
rasavarjaṃ raso 'py asya paraṃ dṛṣṭvā nivartate
yatato hy api kaunteya puruṣasya vipaścitaḥ
indriyāṇi pramāthīni haranti prasabhaṃ manaḥ
tāni sarvāṇi saṃyamya yukta āsīta matparaḥ
vaśe hi yasyendriyāṇi tasya prajñā pratiṣṭhitā

“Objects fall away from the embodied one who does not feed on them, but the taste remains; even the taste falls away when one has seen the highest. Even for the striving, discerning man, son of Kuntī, the turbulent senses carry off the mind by force. Holding them all in check, one should sit disciplined, intent on me. One whose senses are under control has wisdom that stands firm.

ध्यायतो विषयान्पुंसः सङ्गस्तेषूपजायते ।
सङ्गात्सञ्जायते कामः कामात्क्रोधोऽभिजायते ॥ ६२ ॥
क्रोधाद्भवति संमोहः संमोहात्स्मृतिविभ्रमः ।
स्मृतिभ्रंशाद्बुद्धिनाशो बुद्धिनाशात्प्रणश्यति ॥ ६३ ॥

dhyāyato viṣayān puṃsaḥ saṅgas teṣūpajāyate
saṅgāt saṃjāyate kāmaḥ kāmāt krodho 'bhijāyate
krodhād bhavati saṃmohaḥ saṃmohāt smṛtivibhramaḥ
smṛtibhraṃśād buddhināśo buddhināśāt praṇaśyati

“When a man dwells on the objects of the senses, attachment to them is born; from attachment, desire is born; from desire, anger; from anger comes delusion; from delusion, the wandering of memory; from the loss of memory, the ruin of understanding; and from the ruin of understanding, he is lost.

रागद्वेषवियुक्तैस्तु विषयानिन्द्रियैश्चरन् ।
आत्मवश्यैर्विधेयात्मा प्रसादमधिगच्छति ॥ ६४ ॥
प्रसादे सर्वदुःखानां हानिरस्योपजायते ।
प्रसन्नचेतसो ह्याशु बुद्धिः पर्यवतिष्ठते ॥ ६५ ॥

rāgadveṣaviyuktais tu viṣayān indriyaiś caran
ātmavaśyair vidheyātmā prasādam adhigacchati
prasāde sarvaduḥkhānāṃ hānir asyopajāyate
prasannacetaso hy āśu buddhiḥ paryavatiṣṭhate

“But one who moves among the objects of the senses with senses free of attraction and aversion, held by the self, the self disciplined, comes to clarity. In clarity, all sorrows come to an end; for the one whose mind is clear, understanding soon stands firm.

नास्ति बुद्धिरयुक्तस्य न चायुक्तस्य भावना ।
न चाभावयतः शान्तिरशान्तस्य कुतः सुखम् ॥ ६६ ॥
इन्द्रियाणां हि चरतां यन्मनोऽनुविधीयते ।
तदस्य हरति प्रज्ञां वायुर्नावमिवाम्भसि ॥ ६७ ॥
तस्माद्यस्य महाबाहो निगृहीतानि सर्वशः ।
इन्द्रियाणीन्द्रियार्थेभ्यस्तस्य प्रज्ञा प्रतिष्ठिता ॥ ६८ ॥

nāsti buddhir ayuktasya na cāyuktasya bhāvanā
na cābhāvayataḥ śāntir aśāntasya kutaḥ sukham
indriyāṇāṃ hi caratāṃ yan mano 'nuvidhīyate
tad asya harati prajñāṃ vāyur nāvam ivāmbhasi
tasmād yasya mahābāho nigṛhītāni sarvaśaḥ
indriyāṇīndriyārthebhyas tasya prajñā pratiṣṭhitā

“There is no understanding for the undisciplined, and no contemplation; for one without contemplation there is no peace, and for one without peace, where is happiness? When the mind follows the wandering senses, it carries off one’s wisdom, as the wind carries off a ship on the water. Therefore, mighty-armed, one whose senses are wholly held back from their objects has wisdom that stands firm.

या निशा सर्वभूतानां तस्यां जागर्ति संयमी ।
यस्यां जाग्रति भूतानि सा निशा पश्यतो मुनेः ॥ ६९ ॥

yā niśā sarvabhūtānāṃ tasyāṃ jāgarti saṃyamī
yasyāṃ jāgrati bhūtāni sā niśā paśyato muneḥ

“What is night for all beings, in that the self-restrained one is awake; where beings are awake, that is night for the sage who sees.

आपूर्यमाणमचलप्रतिष्ठं समुद्रमापः प्रविशन्ति यद्वत् ।
तद्वत्कामा यं प्रविशन्ति सर्वे स शान्तिमाप्नोति न कामकामी ॥ ७० ॥

āpūryamāṇam acalapratiṣṭhaṃ
samudram āpaḥ praviśanti yadvat
tadvat kāmā yaṃ praviśanti sarve
sa śāntim āpnoti na kāmakāmī

“As the waters enter the ocean, which is filled and yet stands unmoved, so the one whom all desires enter attains peace, and not the one who desires desires.

विहाय कामान्यः सर्वान्पुमांश्चरति निःस्पृहः ।
निर्ममो निरहङ्कारः स शान्तिमधिगच्छति ॥ ७१ ॥

vihāya kāmān yaḥ sarvān pumāṃś carati niḥspṛhaḥ
nirmamo nirahaṃkāraḥ sa śāntim adhigacchati

“The person who gives up all desires and moves without longing, without mine, without I, attains peace.

एषा ब्राह्मी स्थितिः पार्थ नैनां प्राप्य विमुह्यति ।
स्थित्वास्यामन्तकालेऽपि ब्रह्मनिर्वाणमृच्छति ॥ ७२ ॥

eṣā brāhmī sthitiḥ pārtha naināṃ prāpya vimuhyati
sthitvāsyām antakāle 'pi brahmanirvāṇam ṛcchati

“This is the state of Brahman, Pārtha. Reaching it, one is not bewildered. Standing in it even at the hour of death, one reaches the stillness of Brahman.”

अर्जुन उवाच —
ज्यायसी चेत्कर्मणस्ते मता बुद्धिर्जनार्दन ।
तत्किं कर्मणि घोरे मां नियोजयसि केशव ॥ १ ॥
व्यामिश्रेणेव वाक्येन बुद्धिं मोहयसीव मे ।
तदेकं वद निश्चित्य येन श्रेयोऽहमाप्नुयाम् ॥ २ ॥

arjuna uvāca
jyāyasī cet karmaṇas te matā buddhir janārdana
tat kiṃ karmaṇi ghore māṃ niyojayasi keśava
vyāmiśreṇaiva vākyena buddhiṃ mohayasīva me
tad ekaṃ vada niścitya yena śreyo 'ham āpnuyām

Arjuna said: “If you hold that understanding is higher than action, Janārdana, then why do you yoke me to this terrible work, Keśava? With words that seem mixed you confuse my understanding. Tell me the one thing, decided, by which I may reach the good.”

श्रीभगवानुवाच —
लोकेऽस्मिन्द्विविधा निष्ठा पुरा प्रोक्ता मयानघ ।
ज्ञानयोगेन साङ्‍ख्यानां कर्मयोगेन योगिनाम् ॥ ३ ॥
न कर्मणामनारम्भान्नैष्कर्म्यं पुरुषोऽश्नुते ।
न च संन्यसनादेव सिद्धिं समधिगच्छति ॥ ४ ॥
न हि कश्चित्क्षणमपि जातु तिष्ठत्यकर्मकृत् ।
कार्यते ह्यवशः कर्म सर्वः प्रकृतिजैर्गुणैः ॥ ५ ॥

śrībhagavān uvāca
loke 'smin dvividhā niṣṭhā purā proktā mayānagha
jñānayogena sāṃkhyānāṃ karmayogena yoginām
na karmaṇām anārambhān naiṣkarmyaṃ puruṣo 'śnute
na ca saṃnyasanād eva siddhiṃ samadhigacchati
na hi kaś cit kṣaṇam api jātu tiṣṭhaty akarmakṛt
kāryate hy avaśaḥ karma sarvaḥ prakṛtijair guṇaiḥ

The Blessed One said: “In this world, sinless one, I taught long ago a twofold ground: the way of knowledge for those who reason, the way of action for those who act. A person does not reach freedom from action by not beginning actions, nor reach fulfilment by renouncing alone. No one ever stays even for a moment without acting; everyone is made to act, helplessly, by the qualities born of nature.

कर्मेन्द्रियाणि संयम्य य आस्ते मनसा स्मरन् ।
इन्द्रियार्थान्विमूढात्मा मिथ्याचारः स उच्यते ॥ ६ ॥
यस्त्विन्द्रियाणि मनसा नियम्यारभतेऽर्जुन ।
कर्मेन्द्रियैः कर्मयोगमसक्तः स विशिष्यते ॥ ७ ॥
नियतं कुरु कर्म त्वं कर्म ज्यायो ह्यकर्मणः ।
शरीरयात्रापि च ते न प्रसिध्येदकर्मणः ॥ ८ ॥

karmendriyāṇi saṃyamya ya āste manasā smaran
indriyārthān vimūḍhātmā mithyācāraḥ sa ucyate
yas tv indriyāṇi manasā niyamyārabhate 'rjuna
karmendriyaiḥ karmayogam asaktaḥ sa viśiṣyate
niyataṃ kuru karma tvaṃ karma jyāyo hy akarmaṇaḥ
śarīrayātrāpi ca te na prasidhyed akarmaṇaḥ

“One who restrains the organs of action but sits remembering the objects of the senses in the mind is deluded, and is called false in conduct. But one who governs the senses with the mind and, without clinging, takes up the yoga of action with the organs of action, that one excels. Do the work that is yours; action is better than inaction. Without action even the journey of your body would not go forward.

यज्ञार्थात्कर्मणोऽन्यत्र लोकोऽयं कर्मबन्धनः ।
तदर्थं कर्म कौन्तेय मुक्तसङ्गः समाचर ॥ ९ ॥

yajñārthāt karmaṇo 'nyatra loko 'yaṃ karmabandhanaḥ
tadarthaṃ karma kaunteya muktasaṅgaḥ samācara

“This world is bound by action, except action done as an offering. For that, son of Kuntī, free of clinging, do your work.

सहयज्ञाः प्रजाः सृष्ट्वा पुरोवाच प्रजापतिः ।
अनेन प्रसविष्यध्वमेष वोऽस्त्विष्टकामधुक् ॥ १० ॥
देवान्भावयतानेन ते देवा भावयन्तु वः ।
परस्परं भावयन्तः श्रेयः परमवाप्स्यथ ॥ ११ ॥
इष्टान्भोगान्हि वो देवा दास्यन्ते यज्ञभाविताः ।
तैर्दत्तानप्रदायैभ्यो यो भुङ्क्ते स्तेन एव सः ॥ १२ ॥
यज्ञशिष्टाशिनः सन्तो मुच्यन्ते सर्वकिल्बिषैः ।
भुञ्जते ते त्वघं पापा ये पचन्त्यात्मकारणात् ॥ १३ ॥

sahayajñāḥ prajāḥ sṛṣṭvā purovāca prajāpatiḥ
anena prasaviṣyadhvam eṣa vo 'stv iṣṭakāmadhuk
devān bhāvayatānena te devā bhāvayantu vaḥ
parasparaṃ bhāvayantaḥ śreyaḥ param avāpsyatha
iṣṭān bhogān hi vo devā dāsyante yajñabhāvitāḥ
tair dattān apradāyaibhyo yo bhuṅkte stena eva saḥ
yajñaśiṣṭāśinaḥ santo mucyante sarvakilbiṣaiḥ
bhuñjate te tv aghaṃ pāpā ye pacanty ātmakāraṇāt

“Long ago the lord of creatures, having made beings together with offering, said: ‘By this you will grow; let this be the cow that gives you what you wish. Nourish the gods with this, and let the gods nourish you; nourishing one another, you will reach the highest good. Nourished by offering, the gods will give you the enjoyments you desire. Whoever enjoys what they give without giving back to them is a thief.’ The good, who eat what remains of the offering, are freed from every fault; but the wrongdoers who cook only for themselves eat wrong.

अन्नाद्भवन्ति भूतानि पर्जन्यादन्नसम्भवः ।
यज्ञाद्भवति पर्जन्यो यज्ञः कर्मसमुद्भवः ॥ १४ ॥
कर्म ब्रह्मोद्भवं विद्धि ब्रह्माक्षरसमुद्भवम् ।
तस्मात्सर्वगतं ब्रह्म नित्यं यज्ञे प्रतिष्ठितम् ॥ १५ ॥
एवं प्रवर्तितं चक्रं नानुवर्तयतीह यः ।
अघायुरिन्द्रियारामो मोघं पार्थ स जीवति ॥ १६ ॥

annād bhavanti bhūtāni parjanyād annasaṃbhavaḥ
yajñād bhavati parjanyo yajñaḥ karmasamudbhavaḥ
karma brahmodbhavaṃ viddhi brahmākṣarasamudbhavam
tasmāt sarvagataṃ brahma nityaṃ yajñe pratiṣṭhitam
evaṃ pravartitaṃ cakraṃ nānuvartayatīha yaḥ
aghāyur indriyārāmo moghaṃ pārtha sa jīvati

“Beings come from food; food comes from rain; rain comes from offering; offering comes from action. Know that action comes from Brahman, and Brahman from the imperishable; so the all-pervading Brahman always rests in offering. Whoever does not keep turning the wheel set turning in this way, Pārtha, lives in vain, given to harm and delighting in the senses.

यस्त्वात्मरतिरेव स्यादात्मतृप्तश्च मानवः ।
आत्मन्येव च सन्तुष्टस्तस्य कार्यं न विद्यते ॥ १७ ॥
नैव तस्य कृतेनार्थो नाकृतेनेह कश्चन ।
न चास्य सर्वभूतेषु कश्चिदर्थव्यपाश्रयः ॥ १८ ॥
तस्मादसक्तः सततं कार्यं कर्म समाचर ।
असक्तो ह्याचरन्कर्म परमाप्नोति पूरुषः ॥ १९ ॥

yas tv ātmaratir eva syād ātmatṛptaś ca mānavaḥ
ātmany eva ca saṃtuṣṭas tasya kāryaṃ na vidyate
naiva tasya kṛtenārtho nākṛteneha kaś cana
na cāsya sarvabhūteṣu kaś cid arthavyapāśrayaḥ
tasmād asaktaḥ satataṃ kāryaṃ karma samācara
asakto hy ācaran karma param āpnoti pūruṣaḥ

“But for one who delights in the self, is satisfied in the self, and content in the self alone, there is nothing that must be done. That one has no purpose in what is done, nor in what is left undone here, and depends on no being for any aim. So, without clinging, always do the work that is to be done; by doing work without clinging, a person reaches the highest.

कर्मणैव हि संसिद्धिमास्थिता जनकादयः ।
लोकसङ्ग्रहमेवापि सम्पश्यन्कर्तुमर्हसि ॥ २० ॥
यद्यदाचरति श्रेष्ठस्तत्तदेवेतरो जनः ।
स यत्प्रमाणं कुरुते लोकस्तदनुवर्तते ॥ २१ ॥

karmaṇaiva hi saṃsiddhim āsthitā janakādayaḥ
lokasaṃgraham evāpi saṃpaśyan kartum arhasi
yad yad ācarati śreṣṭhas tat tad evetaro janaḥ
sa yat pramāṇaṃ kurute lokas tad anuvartate

“By action alone Janaka and others reached fulfilment. And looking to the holding-together of the world, you should act. Whatever the best person does, others do too; whatever standard that one sets, the world follows.

न मे पार्थास्ति कर्तव्यं त्रिषु लोकेषु किञ्चन ।
नानवाप्तमवाप्तव्यं वर्त एव च कर्मणि ॥ २२ ॥
यदि ह्यहं न वर्तेय जातु कर्मण्यतन्द्रितः ।
मम वर्त्मानुवर्तन्ते मनुष्याः पार्थ सर्वशः ॥ २३ ॥
उत्सीदेयुरिमे लोका न कुर्यां कर्म चेदहम् ।
सङ्करस्य च कर्ता स्यामुपहन्यामिमाः प्रजाः ॥ २४ ॥

na me pārthāsti kartavyaṃ triṣu lokeṣu kiṃ cana
nānavāptam avāptavyaṃ varta eva ca karmaṇi
yadi hy ahaṃ na varteyaṃ jātu karmaṇy atandritaḥ
mama vartmānuvartante manuṣyāḥ pārtha sarvaśaḥ
utsīdeyur ime lokā na kuryāṃ karma ced aham
saṃkarasya ca kartā syām upahanyām imāḥ prajāḥ

“For me, Pārtha, there is nothing to be done in the three worlds, nothing unattained that I need to attain; and yet I go on acting. For if I did not go on in action, untiring, people everywhere would follow my path, Pārtha. These worlds would fall into ruin if I did not act; I would be the maker of confusion and would destroy these beings.

सक्ताः कर्मण्यविद्वांसो यथा कुर्वन्ति भारत ।
कुर्याद्विद्वांस्तथासक्तश्चिकीर्षुर्लोकसङ्ग्रहम् ॥ २५ ॥
न बुद्धिभेदं जनयेदज्ञानां कर्मसङ्गिनाम् ।
जोषयेत्सर्वकर्माणि विद्वान्युक्तः समाचरन् ॥ २६ ॥

saktāḥ karmaṇy avidvāṃso yathā kurvanti bhārata
kuryād vidvāṃs tathāsaktaś cikīrṣur lokasaṃgraham
na buddhibhedaṃ janayed ajñānāṃ karmasaṅginām
joṣayet sarvakarmāṇi vidvān yuktaḥ samācaran

“As the unknowing act, clinging to their action, Bhārata, so should the knowing act, without clinging, wishing to hold the world together. The knowing should not split the understanding of the unknowing who cling to action. Acting in discipline, they should encourage them in all their work.

प्रकृतेः क्रियमाणानि गुणैः कर्माणि सर्वशः ।
अहङ्कारविमूढात्मा कर्ताहमिति मन्यते ॥ २७ ॥
तत्त्ववित्तु महाबाहो गुणकर्मविभागयोः ।
गुणा गुणेषु वर्तन्त इति मत्वा न सज्जते ॥ २८ ॥
प्रकृतेर्गुणसंमूढाः सज्जन्ते गुणकर्मसु ।
तानकृत्स्नविदो मन्दान्कृत्स्नविन्न विचालयेत् ॥ २९ ॥

prakṛteḥ kriyamāṇāni guṇaiḥ karmāṇi sarvaśaḥ
ahaṃkāravimūḍhātmā kartāham iti manyate
tattvavit tu mahābāho guṇakarmavibhāgayoḥ
guṇā guṇeṣu vartanta iti matvā na sajjate
prakṛter guṇasaṃmūḍhāḥ sajjante guṇakarmasu
tān akṛtsnavido mandān kṛtsnavin na vicālayet

“All actions are done by the qualities of nature. The one bewildered by the sense of I thinks, ‘I am the doer.’ But one who knows the truth of how qualities and actions are divided, mighty-armed, thinks, ‘qualities move among qualities,’ and does not cling. Those bewildered by the qualities of nature cling to the workings of the qualities; the one who knows the whole should not unsettle those slow ones who know only a part.

मयि सर्वाणि कर्माणि संन्यस्याध्यात्मचेतसा ।
निराशीर्निर्ममो भूत्वा युध्यस्व विगतज्वरः ॥ ३० ॥

mayi sarvāṇi karmāṇi saṃnyasyādhyātmacetasā
nirāśīr nirmamo bhūtvā yudhyasva vigatajvaraḥ

“Laying all actions on me, with your mind on the self within, free of hope and of mine, fight, your fever gone.

ये मे मतमिदं नित्यमनुतिष्ठन्ति मानवाः ।
श्रद्धावन्तोऽनसूयन्तो मुच्यन्ते तेऽपि कर्मभिः ॥ ३१ ॥
ये त्वेतदभ्यसूयन्तो नानुतिष्ठन्ति मे मतम् ।
सर्वज्ञानविमूढांस्तान्विद्धि नष्टानचेतसः ॥ ३२ ॥

ye me matam idaṃ nityam anutiṣṭhanti mānavāḥ
śraddhāvanto 'nasūyanto mucyante te 'pi karmabhiḥ
ye tv etad abhyasūyanto nānutiṣṭhanti me matam
sarvajñānavimūḍhāṃs tān viddhi naṣṭān acetasaḥ

“Those who always follow this teaching of mine, with faith and without finding fault, are freed even from their actions. But those who find fault with it and do not follow it, know them to be bewildered in all knowledge, lost and without understanding.

सदृशं चेष्टते स्वस्याः प्रकृतेर्ज्ञानवानपि ।
प्रकृतिं यान्ति भूतानि निग्रहः किं करिष्यति ॥ ३३ ॥
इन्द्रियस्येन्द्रियस्यार्थे रागद्वेषौ व्यवस्थितौ ।
तयोर्न वशमागच्छेत्तौ ह्यस्य परिपन्थिनौ ॥ ३४ ॥
श्रेयान्स्वधर्मो विगुणः परधर्मात्स्वनुष्ठितात् ।
स्वधर्मे निधनं श्रेयः परधर्मो भयावहः ॥ ३५ ॥

sadṛśaṃ ceṣṭate svasyāḥ prakṛter jñānavān api
prakṛtiṃ yānti bhūtāni nigrahaḥ kiṃ kariṣyati
indriyasyendriyasyārthe rāgadveṣau vyavasthitau
tayor na vaśam āgacchet tau hy asya paripanthinau
śreyān svadharmo viguṇaḥ paradharmāt svanuṣṭhitāt
svadharme nidhanaṃ śreyaḥ paradharmo bhayāvahaḥ

“Even a wise person acts according to their own nature. Beings follow their nature; what will suppression do? Attraction and aversion lie in wait in each sense for its object; do not come under their power, for they are the robbers on one’s road. Better one’s own dharma, even done imperfectly, than another’s dharma done well. Better to die in one’s own dharma; another’s dharma is full of fear.

अर्जुन उवाच —
अथ केन प्रयुक्तोऽयं पापं चरति पूरुषः ।
अनिच्छन्नपि वार्ष्णेय बलादिव नियोजितः ॥ ३६ ॥

arjuna uvāca
atha kena prayukto 'yaṃ pāpaṃ carati pūruṣaḥ
anicchann api vārṣṇeya balād iva niyojitaḥ

Arjuna said: “Then what drives a person to do wrong, Vārṣṇeya, even against his will, as if pushed by force?”

श्रीभगवानुवाच —
काम एष क्रोध एष रजोगुणसमुद्भवः ।
महाशनो महापाप्मा विद्ध्येनमिह वैरिणम् ॥ ३७ ॥
धूमेनाव्रियते वह्निर्यथादर्शो मलेन च ।
यथोल्बेनावृतो गर्भस्तथा तेनेदमावृतम् ॥ ३८ ॥
आवृतं ज्ञानमेतेन ज्ञानिनो नित्यवैरिणा ।
कामरूपेण कौन्तेय दुष्पूरेणानलेन च ॥ ३९ ॥

śrībhagavān uvāca
kāma eṣa krodha eṣa rajoguṇasamudbhavaḥ
mahāśano mahāpāpmā viddhy enam iha vairiṇam
dhūmenāvriyate vahnir yathādarśo malena ca
yatholbenāvṛto garbhas tathā tenedam āvṛtam
āvṛtaṃ jñānam etena jñānino nityavairiṇā
kāmarūpeṇa kaunteya duṣpūreṇānalena ca

The Blessed One said: “It is desire; it is anger, born of the quality of restless passion, all-devouring, greatly harmful. Know it as the enemy here. As fire is covered by smoke, a mirror by dust, and a child in the womb by its covering, so this is covered by that. Knowledge is covered by this constant enemy of the wise, son of Kuntī, in the form of desire, a fire that is never filled.

इन्द्रियाणि मनो बुद्धिरस्याधिष्ठानमुच्यते ।
एतैर्विमोहयत्येष ज्ञानमावृत्य देहिनम् ॥ ४० ॥
तस्मात्त्वमिन्द्रियाण्यादौ नियम्य भरतर्षभ ।
पाप्मानं प्रजहिह्येनं ज्ञानविज्ञाननाशनम् ॥ ४१ ॥
इन्द्रियाणि पराण्याहुरिन्द्रियेभ्यः परं मनः ।
मनसस्तु परा बुद्धिर्यो बुद्धेः परतस्तु सः ॥ ४२ ॥
एवं बुद्धेः परं बुद्ध्वा संस्तभ्यात्मानमात्मना ।
जहि शत्रुं महाबाहो कामरूपं दुरासदम् ॥ ४३ ॥

indriyāṇi mano buddhir asyādhiṣṭhānam ucyate
etair vimohayaty eṣa jñānam āvṛtya dehinam
tasmāt tvam indriyāṇy ādau niyamya bharatarṣabha
pāpmānaṃ prajahihy enaṃ jñānavijñānanāśanam
indriyāṇi parāṇy āhur indriyebhyaḥ paraṃ manaḥ
manasas tu parā buddhir yo buddheḥ paratas tu saḥ
evaṃ buddheḥ paraṃ buddhvā saṃstabhyātmānam ātmanā
jahi śatruṃ mahābāho kāmarūpaṃ durāsadam

“The senses, the mind and the understanding are said to be its seat; through them it bewilders the embodied one, covering knowledge. So first govern the senses, best of the Bhāratas, and strike down this wrong that destroys knowledge and discernment. The senses, they say, are high; higher than the senses is the mind; higher than the mind is the understanding; and higher than the understanding is he. So, knowing what is higher than the understanding, steadying the self by the self, strike down, mighty-armed, the enemy in the form of desire, so hard to reach.”

श्रीभगवानुवाच —
इमं विवस्वते योगं प्रोक्तवानहमव्ययम् ।
विवस्वान्मनवे प्राह मनुरिक्ष्वाकवेऽब्रवीत् ॥ १ ॥
एवं परम्पराप्राप्तमिमं राजर्षयो विदुः ।
स कालेनेह महता योगो नष्टः परन्तप ॥ २ ॥
स एवायं मया तेऽद्य योगः प्रोक्तः पुरातनः ।
भक्तोऽसि मे सखा चेति रहस्यं ह्येतदुत्तमम् ॥ ३ ॥

śrībhagavān uvāca
imaṃ vivasvate yogaṃ proktavān aham avyayam
vivasvān manave prāha manur ikṣvākave 'bravīt
evaṃ paraṃparāprāptam imaṃ rājarṣayo viduḥ
sa kāleneha mahatā yogo naṣṭaḥ paraṃtapa
sa evāyaṃ mayā te 'dya yogaḥ proktaḥ purātanaḥ
bhakto 'si me sakhā ceti rahasyaṃ hy etad uttamam

The Blessed One said: “I taught this imperishable yoga to Vivasvān, the sun; Vivasvān told it to Manu, and Manu spoke it to Ikṣvāku. Handed down in this way, the royal sages knew it; but over a long time, scorcher of foes, this yoga was lost here. This same ancient yoga I have told you today, because you are my devotee and my friend. It is the highest secret.”

अर्जुन उवाच —
अपरं भवतो जन्म परं जन्म विवस्वतः ।
कथमेतद्विजानीयां त्वमादौ प्रोक्तवानिति ॥ ४ ॥

arjuna uvāca
aparaṃ bhavato janma paraṃ janma vivasvataḥ
katham etad vijānīyāṃ tvam ādau proktavān iti

Arjuna said: “Your birth was later; Vivasvān’s birth was earlier. How am I to understand that you taught it in the beginning?”

श्रीभगवानुवाच —
बहूनि मे व्यतीतानि जन्मानि तव चार्जुन ।
तान्यहं वेद सर्वाणि न त्वं वेत्थ परन्तप ॥ ५ ॥
अजोऽपि सन्नव्ययात्मा
भूतानामीश्वरोऽपि सन् ।
प्रकृतिं स्वामधिष्ठाय
सम्भवाम्यात्ममायया ॥ ६ ॥

śrībhagavān uvāca
bahūni me vyatītāni janmāni tava cārjuna
tāny ahaṃ veda sarvāṇi na tvaṃ vettha paraṃtapa
ajo 'pi sann avyayātmā bhūtānām īśvaro 'pi san
prakṛtiṃ svām adhiṣṭhāya saṃbhavāmy ātmamāyayā

The Blessed One said: “Many births of mine have passed, and of yours, Arjuna. I know them all; you do not know them, scorcher of foes. Though I am unborn, and my self does not change, though I am the lord of beings, I govern my own nature and come into being by my own power.

यदा यदा हि धर्मस्य ग्लानिर्भवति भारत ।
अभ्युत्थानमधर्मस्य तदात्मानं सृजाम्यहम् ॥ ७ ॥
परित्राणाय साधूनां विनाशाय च दुष्कृताम् ।
धर्मसंस्थापनार्थाय सम्भवामि युगे युगे ॥ ८ ॥

yadā yadā hi dharmasya glānir bhavati bhārata
abhyutthānam adharmasya tadātmānaṃ sṛjāmy aham
paritrāṇāya sādhūnāṃ vināśāya ca duṣkṛtām
dharmasaṃsthāpanārthāya saṃbhavāmi yuge yuge

“Whenever dharma declines, Bhārata, and what is against dharma rises, then I send myself forth. To protect the good, to end the wrongdoers, and to set dharma firm again, I come into being age after age.

जन्म कर्म च मे दिव्यमेवं यो वेत्ति तत्त्वतः ।
त्यक्त्वा देहं पुनर्जन्म नैति मामेति सोऽर्जुन ॥ ९ ॥
वीतरागभयक्रोधा मन्मया मामुपाश्रिताः ।
बहवो ज्ञानतपसा पूता मद्भावमागताः ॥ १० ॥

janma karma ca me divyam evaṃ yo vetti tattvataḥ
tyaktvā dehaṃ punarjanma naiti mām eti so 'rjuna
vītarāgabhayakrodhā manmayā mām upāśritāḥ
bahavo jñānatapasā pūtā madbhāvam āgatāḥ

“One who truly knows my birth and work as divine, Arjuna, on leaving the body is not born again, but comes to me. Free of passion, fear and anger, absorbed in me, taking refuge in me, many, made pure by the fire of knowledge, have come to my being.

ये यथा मां प्रपद्यन्ते तांस्तथैव भजाम्यहम् ।
मम वर्त्मानुवर्तन्ते मनुष्याः पार्थ सर्वशः ॥ ११ ॥

ye yathā māṃ prapadyante tāṃs tathaiva bhajāmy aham
mama vartmānuvartante manuṣyāḥ pārtha sarvaśaḥ

“As people come to me, so I receive them. People everywhere follow my path, Pārtha.

काङ्क्षन्तः कर्मणां सिद्धिं यजन्त इह देवताः ।
क्षिप्रं हि मानुषे लोके सिद्धिर्भवति कर्मजा ॥ १२ ॥

kāṅkṣantaḥ karmaṇāṃ siddhiṃ yajanta iha devatāḥ
kṣipraṃ hi mānuṣe loke siddhir bhavati karmajā

“Wanting success in their work, people here worship the gods; for in the world of men, success born of action comes quickly.

चातुर्वर्ण्यं मया सृष्टं गुणकर्मविभागशः ।
तस्य कर्तारमपि मां विद्ध्यकर्तारमव्ययम् ॥ १३ ॥
न मां कर्माणि लिम्पन्ति न मे कर्मफले स्पृहा ।
इति मां योऽभिजानाति कर्मभिर्न स बध्यते ॥ १४ ॥
एवं ज्ञात्वा कृतं कर्म पूर्वैरपि मुमुक्षुभिः ।
कुरु कर्मैव तस्मात्त्वं पूर्वैः पूर्वतरं कृतम् ॥ १५ ॥

cāturvarṇyaṃ mayā sṛṣṭaṃ guṇakarmavibhāgaśaḥ
tasya kartāram api māṃ viddhy akartāram avyayam
na māṃ karmāṇi limpanti na me karmaphale spṛhā
iti māṃ yo 'bhijānāti karmabhir na sa badhyate
evaṃ jñātvā kṛtaṃ karma pūrvair api mumukṣubhiḥ
kuru karmaiva tasmāt tvaṃ pūrvaiḥ pūrvataraṃ kṛtam

“The four orders were made by me according to the division of qualities and work. Though I am their maker, know me as the one who does not act and does not change. Actions do not stain me, and I have no longing for the fruit of action. Whoever knows me in this way is not bound by actions. Knowing this, the seekers of freedom of old also acted. So you too should act, as the ancients acted long before.

किं कर्म किमकर्मेति
कवयोऽप्यत्र मोहिताः ।
तत्ते कर्म प्रवक्ष्यामि
यज्ज्ञात्वा मोक्ष्यसेऽशुभात् ॥ १६ ॥
कर्मणो ह्यपि बोद्धव्यं बोद्धव्यं च विकर्मणः ।
अकर्मणश्च बोद्धव्यं गहना कर्मणो गतिः ॥ १७ ॥
कर्मण्यकर्म यः पश्येदकर्मणि च कर्म यः ।
स बुद्धिमान्मनुष्येषु स युक्तः कृत्स्नकर्मकृत् ॥ १८ ॥

kiṃ karma kim akarmeti kavayo 'py atra mohitāḥ
tat te karma pravakṣyāmi yaj jñātvā mokṣyase 'śubhāt
karmaṇo hy api boddhavyaṃ boddhavyaṃ ca vikarmaṇaḥ
akarmaṇaś ca boddhavyaṃ gahanā karmaṇo gatiḥ
karmaṇy akarma yaḥ paśyed akarmaṇi ca karma yaḥ
sa buddhimān manuṣyeṣu sa yuktaḥ kṛtsnakarmakṛt

“What is action? What is inaction? Even the wise are bewildered here. I will tell you what action is; knowing it, you will be freed from harm. One must understand action, understand wrong action, and understand inaction; deep is the way of action. Whoever sees inaction in action, and action in inaction, is wise among people, disciplined, the doer of all action.

यस्य सर्वे समारम्भाः कामसङ्कल्पवर्जिताः ।
ज्ञानाग्निदग्धकर्माणं तमाहुः पण्डितं बुधाः ॥ १९ ॥
त्यक्त्वा कर्मफलासङ्गं नित्यतृप्तो निराश्रयः ।
कर्मण्यभिप्रवृत्तोऽपि नैव किञ्चित्करोति सः ॥ २० ॥
निराशीर्यतचित्तात्मा त्यक्तसर्वपरिग्रहः ।
शारीरं केवलं कर्म कुर्वन्नाप्नोति किल्बिषम् ॥ २१ ॥
यदृच्छालाभसन्तुष्टो द्वन्द्वातीतो विमत्सरः ।
समः सिद्धावसिद्धौ च कृत्वापि न निबध्यते ॥ २२ ॥
गतसङ्गस्य मुक्तस्य ज्ञानावस्थितचेतसः ।
यज्ञायाचरतः कर्म समग्रं प्रविलीयते ॥ २३ ॥

yasya sarve samārambhāḥ kāmasaṃkalpavarjitāḥ
jñānāgnidagdhakarmāṇaṃ tam āhuḥ paṇḍitaṃ budhāḥ
tyaktvā karmaphalāsaṅgaṃ nityatṛpto nirāśrayaḥ
karmaṇy abhipravṛtto 'pi naiva kiṃ cit karoti saḥ
nirāśīr yatacittātmā tyaktasarvaparigrahaḥ
śārīraṃ kevalaṃ karma kurvan nāpnoti kilbiṣam
yadṛcchālābhasaṃtuṣṭo dvaṃdvātīto vimatsaraḥ
samaḥ siddhāv asiddhau ca kṛtvāpi na nibadhyate
gatasaṅgasya muktasya jñānāvasthitacetasaḥ
yajñāyācarataḥ karma samagraṃ pravilīyate

“One whose every undertaking is free of desire and of scheming, whose actions are burned in the fire of knowledge, the wise call learned. Letting go of clinging to the fruits of action, always content, depending on nothing, such a one, though fully engaged in action, does nothing at all. Without expectation, mind and self held, giving up all grasping, doing only what the body does, one incurs no fault. Content with what comes of itself, beyond the pairs of opposites, without envy, the same in success and failure, even acting, one is not bound. For one free of clinging, freed, with mind set in knowledge, acting as an offering, all action melts away.

ब्रह्मार्पणं ब्रह्म हविर्ब्रह्माग्नौ ब्रह्मणा हुतम् ।
ब्रह्मैव तेन गन्तव्यं ब्रह्मकर्मसमाधिना ॥ २४ ॥

brahmārpaṇaṃ brahmahavir brahmāgnau brahmaṇā hutam
brahmaiva tena gantavyaṃ brahmakarmasamādhinā

“The offering is Brahman, the oblation is Brahman, poured by Brahman into the fire that is Brahman. Brahman is reached by the one who sees Brahman in all action.

दैवमेवापरे यज्ञं योगिनः पर्युपासते ।
ब्रह्माग्नावपरे यज्ञं यज्ञेनैवोपजुह्वति ॥ २५ ॥
श्रोत्रादीनीन्द्रियाण्यन्ये संयमाग्निषु जुह्वति ।
शब्दादीन्विषयानन्य इन्द्रियाग्निषु जुह्वति ॥ २६ ॥
सर्वाणीन्द्रियकर्माणि प्राणकर्माणि चापरे ।
आत्मसंयमयोगाग्नौ जुह्वति ज्ञानदीपिते ॥ २७ ॥
द्रव्ययज्ञास्तपोयज्ञा योगयज्ञास्तथापरे ।
स्वाध्यायज्ञानयज्ञाश्च यतयः संशितव्रताः ॥ २८ ॥
अपाने जुह्वति प्राणं प्राणेऽपानं तथापरे ।
प्राणापानगती रुद्ध्वा प्राणायामपरायणाः ॥ २९ ॥
अपरे नियताहाराः प्राणान्प्राणेषु जुह्वति ।
सर्वेऽप्येते यज्ञविदो यज्ञक्षपितकल्मषाः ॥ ३० ॥
यज्ञशिष्टामृतभुजो यान्ति ब्रह्म सनातनम् ।
नायं लोकोऽस्त्ययज्ञस्य कुतोऽन्यः कुरुसत्तम ॥ ३१ ॥
एवं बहुविधा यज्ञा वितता ब्रह्मणो मुखे ।
कर्मजान्विद्धि तान्सर्वानेवं ज्ञात्वा विमोक्ष्यसे ॥ ३२ ॥

daivam evāpare yajñaṃ yoginaḥ paryupāsate
brahmāgnāv apare yajñaṃ yajñenaivopajuhvati
śrotrādīnīndriyāṇy anye saṃyamāgniṣu juhvati
śabdādīn viṣayān anya indriyāgniṣu juhvati
sarvāṇīndriyakarmāṇi prāṇakarmāṇi cāpare
ātmasaṃyamayogāgnau juhvati jñānadīpite
dravyayajñās tapoyajñā yogayajñās tathāpare
svādhyāyajñānayajñāś ca yatayaḥ saṃśitavratāḥ
apāne juhvati prāṇaṃ prāṇe 'pānaṃ tathāpare
prāṇāpānagatī ruddhvā prāṇāyāmaparāyaṇāḥ
apare niyatāhārāḥ prāṇān prāṇeṣu juhvati
sarve 'py ete yajñavido yajñakṣapitakalmaṣāḥ
yajñaśiṣṭāmṛtabhujo yānti brahma sanātanam
nāyaṃ loko 'sty ayajñasya kuto 'nyaḥ kurusattama
evaṃ bahuvidhā yajñā vitatā brahmaṇo mukhe
karmajān viddhi tān sarvān evaṃ jñātvā vimokṣyase

“Some yogīs offer worship to the gods; others offer the offering itself into the fire of Brahman. Some offer hearing and the other senses into the fires of restraint; others offer sound and the other objects into the fires of the senses. Others offer all the work of the senses and of the breath into the fire of self-restraint, kindled by knowledge. Some offer wealth, some austerity, some yoga, and others, strivers of sharp vows, offer study and knowledge. Others offer the in-breath into the out-breath and the out-breath into the in-breath, holding the flow of both, given to the control of breath. Others, restraining their food, offer breaths into breaths. All of these know what offering is, and by offering their faults are worn away. Eating the nectar that remains from the offering, they go to the eternal Brahman. This world is not for one who makes no offering, best of the Kurus; how then any other? So many kinds of offering are spread out before Brahman. Know them all as born of action; knowing this, you will be free.

श्रेयान्द्रव्यमयाद्यज्ञाज्ज्ञानयज्ञः परन्तप ।
सर्वं कर्माखिलं पार्थ ज्ञाने परिसमाप्यते ॥ ३३ ॥

śreyān dravyamayād yajñāj jñānayajñaḥ paraṃtapa
sarvaṃ karmākhilaṃ pārtha jñāne parisamāpyate

“Better than the offering of things is the offering of knowledge, scorcher of foes. All action, Pārtha, without remainder, comes to completion in knowledge.

तद्विद्धि प्रणिपातेन परिप्रश्नेन सेवया ।
उपदेक्ष्यन्ति ते ज्ञानं ज्ञानिनस्तत्त्वदर्शिनः ॥ ३४ ॥

tad viddhi praṇipātena paripraśnena sevayā
upadekṣyanti te jñānaṃ jñāninas tattvadarśinaḥ

“Learn it by bowing down, by asking, and by serving. Those who know and see the truth will teach you knowledge.

यज्ज्ञात्वा न पुनर्मोहमेवं यास्यसि पाण्डव ।
येन भूतान्यशेषेण द्रक्ष्यस्यात्मन्यथो मयि ॥ ३५ ॥
अपि चेदसि पापेभ्यः सर्वेभ्यः पापकृत्तमः ।
सर्वं ज्ञानप्लवेनैव वृजिनं सन्तरिष्यसि ॥ ३६ ॥
यथैधांसि समिद्धोऽग्निर्भस्मसात्कुरुतेऽर्जुन ।
ज्ञानाग्निः सर्वकर्माणि भस्मसात्कुरुते तथा ॥ ३७ ॥

yaj jñātvā na punar moham evaṃ yāsyasi pāṇḍava
yena bhūtāny aśeṣeṇa drakṣyasy ātmany atho mayi
api ced asi pāpebhyaḥ sarvebhyaḥ pāpakṛttamaḥ
sarvaṃ jñānaplavenaiva vṛjinaṃ saṃtariṣyasi
yathaidhāṃsi samiddho 'gnir bhasmasāt kurute 'rjuna
jñānāgniḥ sarvakarmāṇi bhasmasāt kurute tathā

“Knowing it, you will not fall again into such bewilderment, Pāṇḍava; by it you will see all beings in yourself, and then in me. Even if you were the worst wrongdoer of all, you would cross over all wrong by the raft of knowledge alone. As a kindled fire turns wood to ash, Arjuna, so the fire of knowledge turns all actions to ash.

न हि ज्ञानेन सदृशं पवित्रमिह विद्यते ।
तत्स्वयं योगसंसिद्धः कालेनात्मनि विन्दति ॥ ३८ ॥
श्रद्धावांल्लभते ज्ञानं तत्परः संयतेन्द्रियः ।
ज्ञानं लब्ध्वा परां शान्तिमचिरेणाधिगच्छति ॥ ३९ ॥
अज्ञश्चाश्रद्दधानश्च संशयात्मा विनश्यति ।
नायं लोकोऽस्ति न परो न सुखं संशयात्मनः ॥ ४० ॥

na hi jñānena sadṛśaṃ pavitram iha vidyate
tat svayaṃ yogasaṃsiddhaḥ kālenātmani vindati
śraddhāvāṃl labhate jñānaṃ tatparaḥ saṃyatendriyaḥ
jñānaṃ labdhvā parāṃ śāntim acireṇādhigacchati
ajñaś cāśraddadhānaś ca saṃśayātmā vinaśyati
nāyaṃ loko 'sti na paro na sukhaṃ saṃśayātmanaḥ

“Nothing here purifies like knowledge. The one made perfect in yoga finds it in himself, in time. One with faith, given to it, senses held, gains knowledge; and having gained knowledge, soon reaches the highest peace. The ignorant, without faith, the doubting self, is lost; for the doubter there is neither this world nor the next, nor happiness.

योगसंन्यस्तकर्माणं ज्ञानसञ्छिन्नसंशयम् ।
आत्मवन्तं न कर्माणि निबध्नन्ति धनञ्जय ॥ ४१ ॥
तस्मादज्ञानसम्भूतं हृत्स्थं ज्ञानासिनात्मनः ।
छित्त्वैनं संशयं योगमातिष्ठोत्तिष्ठ भारत ॥ ४२ ॥

yogasaṃnyastakarmāṇaṃ jñānasaṃchinnasaṃśayam
ātmavantaṃ na karmāṇi nibadhnanti dhanaṃjaya
tasmād ajñānasaṃbhūtaṃ hṛtsthaṃ jñānāsinātmanaḥ
chittvainaṃ saṃśayaṃ yogam ātiṣṭhottiṣṭha bhārata

“Actions do not bind one who has given up action through yoga, whose doubt is cut by knowledge, who is possessed of the self, Dhanañjaya. So cut this doubt in your heart, born of not knowing, with the sword of knowledge. Take to yoga. Stand up, Bhārata.”

अर्जुन उवाच —
संन्यासं कर्मणां कृष्ण पुनर्योगं च शंससि ।
यच्छ्रेय एतयोरेकं तन्मे ब्रूहि सुनिश्चितम् ॥ १ ॥

arjuna uvāca
saṃnyāsaṃ karmaṇāṃ kṛṣṇa punar yogaṃ ca śaṃsasi
yac chreya etayor ekaṃ tan me brūhi suniścitam

Arjuna said: “You praise the giving up of actions, Kṛṣṇa, and then again yoga. Tell me for certain which one of these two is better.”

श्रीभगवानुवाच —
संन्यासः कर्मयोगश्च निःश्रेयसकरावुभौ ।
तयोस्तु कर्मसंन्यासात्कर्मयोगो विशिष्यते ॥ २ ॥
ज्ञेयः स नित्यसंन्यासी यो न द्वेष्टि न काङ्क्षति ।
निर्द्वन्द्वो हि महाबाहो सुखं बन्धात्प्रमुच्यते ॥ ३ ॥
साङ्‍ख्ययोगौ पृथग्बालाः प्रवदन्ति न पण्डिताः ।
एकमप्यास्थितः सम्यगुभयोर्विन्दते फलम् ॥ ४ ॥
यत्साङ्‍ख्यैः प्राप्यते स्थानं तद्योगैरपि गम्यते ।
एकं साङ्‍ख्यं च योगं च यः पश्यति स पश्यति ॥ ५ ॥
संन्यासस्तु महाबाहो दुःखमाप्तुमयोगतः ।
योगयुक्तो मुनिर्ब्रह्म नचिरेणाधिगच्छति ॥ ६ ॥

śrībhagavān uvāca
saṃnyāsaḥ karmayogaś ca niḥśreyasakarāv ubhau
tayos tu karmasaṃnyāsāt karmayogo viśiṣyate
jñeyaḥ sa nityasaṃnyāsī yo na dveṣṭi na kāṅkṣati
nirdvaṃdvo hi mahābāho sukhaṃ bandhāt pramucyate
sāṃkhyayogau pṛthag bālāḥ pravadanti na paṇḍitāḥ
ekam apy āsthitaḥ samyag ubhayor vindate phalam
yat sāṃkhyaiḥ prāpyate sthānaṃ tad yogair api gamyate
ekaṃ sāṃkhyaṃ ca yogaṃ ca yaḥ paśyati sa paśyati
saṃnyāsas tu mahābāho duḥkham āptum ayogataḥ
yogayukto munir brahma nacireṇādhigacchati

The Blessed One said: “Giving up action and the yoga of action both lead to the highest good, but of the two, the yoga of action is better than the giving up of action. Know as always given up the one who neither hates nor desires; free of the pairs, mighty-armed, one is easily freed from bondage. Children, not the learned, speak of knowledge and yoga as different; one truly set in either gains the fruit of both. The place reached by those of knowledge is reached by those of yoga too; whoever sees knowledge and yoga as one, sees. But giving up is hard to reach without yoga, mighty-armed; the sage joined in yoga soon reaches Brahman.

योगयुक्तो विशुद्धात्मा
विजितात्मा जितेन्द्रियः ।
सर्वभूतात्मभूतात्मा
कुर्वन्नपि न लिप्यते ॥ ७ ॥

yogayukto viśuddhātmā vijitātmā jitendriyaḥ
sarvabhūtātmabhūtātmā kurvann api na lipyate

“Joined in yoga, pure in self, master of self, senses conquered, whose self has become the self of all beings, though acting, one is not stained.

नैव किञ्चित्करोमीति युक्तो मन्येत तत्त्ववित् ।
पश्यञ्शृण्वन्स्पृशञ्जिघ्रन्नश्नन्गच्छन्स्वपञ्श्वसन् ॥ ८ ॥
प्रलपन् विसृजन्गृह्णन्नुन्मिषन्निमिषन्नपि ।
इन्द्रियाणीन्द्रियार्थेषु वर्तन्त इति धारयन् ॥ ९ ॥

naiva kiṃ cit karomīti yukto manyeta tattvavit
paśyañ śṛṇvan spṛśañ jighrann aśnan gacchan svapañ śvasan
pralapan visṛjan gṛhṇann unmiṣan nimiṣann api
indriyāṇīndriyārtheṣu vartanta iti dhārayan

“’I do nothing at all,’ the one who is joined and knows the truth should think, while seeing, hearing, touching, smelling, eating, walking, sleeping, breathing, speaking, letting go, holding, opening and closing the eyes, holding that the senses are moving among their objects.

ब्रह्मण्याधाय कर्माणि सङ्गं त्यक्त्वा करोति यः ।
लिप्यते न स पापेन पद्मपत्रमिवाम्भसा ॥ १० ॥
कायेन मनसा बुद्ध्या केवलैरिन्द्रियैरपि ।
योगिनः कर्म कुर्वन्ति सङ्गं त्यक्त्वात्मशुद्धये ॥ ११ ॥
युक्तः कर्मफलं त्यक्त्वा
शान्तिमाप्नोति नैष्ठिकीम् ।
अयुक्तः कामकारेण
फले सक्तो निबध्यते ॥ १२ ॥

brahmaṇy ādhāya karmāṇi saṅgaṃ tyaktvā karoti yaḥ
lipyate na sa pāpena padmapatram ivāmbhasā
kāyena manasā buddhyā kevalair indriyair api
yoginaḥ karma kurvanti saṅgaṃ tyaktvātmaśuddhaye
yuktaḥ karmaphalaṃ tyaktvā śāntim āpnoti naiṣṭhikīm
ayuktaḥ kāmakāreṇa phale sakto nibadhyate

“One who acts, laying the actions on Brahman, letting go of clinging, is not stained by wrong, as a lotus leaf is not wet by water. With body, mind, understanding, even with the senses alone, yogīs act, letting go of clinging, to purify the self. The one who is joined, letting go of the fruit of action, reaches lasting peace; the one not joined, clinging to the fruit through desire, is bound.

सर्वकर्माणि मनसा संन्यस्यास्ते सुखं वशी ।
नवद्वारे पुरे देही नैव कुर्वन्न कारयन् ॥ १३ ॥
न कर्तृत्वं न कर्माणि लोकस्य सृजति प्रभुः ।
न कर्मफलसंयोगं स्वभावस्तु प्रवर्तते ॥ १४ ॥
नादत्ते कस्यचित्पापं न चैव सुकृतं विभुः ।
अज्ञानेनावृतं ज्ञानं तेन मुह्यन्ति जन्तवः ॥ १५ ॥

sarvakarmāṇi manasā saṃnyasyāste sukhaṃ vaśī
navadvāre pure dehī naiva kurvan na kārayan
na kartṛtvaṃ na karmāṇi lokasya sṛjati prabhuḥ
na karmaphalasaṃyogaṃ svabhāvas tu pravartate
nādatte kasya cit pāpaṃ na caiva sukṛtaṃ vibhuḥ
ajñānenāvṛtaṃ jñānaṃ tena muhyanti jantavaḥ

“Letting go of all actions in the mind, the master of self sits at ease in the city of nine gates, neither acting nor causing action. The Lord does not create the sense of doing, nor actions, for the world, nor the joining of action to its fruit; it is nature that moves. The all-pervading one does not take on anyone’s wrong, or anyone’s good. Knowledge is covered by not-knowing; by that, beings are bewildered.

ज्ञानेन तु तदज्ञानं येषां नाशितमात्मनः ।
तेषामादित्यवज्ज्ञानं प्रकाशयति तत्परम् ॥ १६ ॥
तद्बुद्धयस्तदात्मानस्तन्निष्ठास्तत्परायणाः ।
गच्छन्त्यपुनरावृत्तिं ज्ञाननिर्धूतकल्मषाः ॥ १७ ॥

jñānena tu tad ajñānaṃ yeṣāṃ nāśitam ātmanaḥ
teṣām ādityavaj jñānaṃ prakāśayati tatparam
tadbuddhayas tadātmānas tanniṣṭhās tatparāyaṇāḥ
gacchanty apunarāvṛttiṃ jñānanirdhūtakalmaṣāḥ

“But for those whose not-knowing is destroyed by knowledge of the self, that knowledge, like the sun, lights up the highest. With understanding in That, self in That, grounded in That, given to That, their faults shaken off by knowledge, they go where there is no returning.

विद्याविनयसम्पन्ने ब्राह्मणे गवि हस्तिनि ।
शुनि चैव श्वपाके च पण्डिताः समदर्शिनः ॥ १८ ॥

vidyāvinayasaṃpanne brāhmaṇe gavi hastini
śuni caiva śvapāke ca paṇḍitāḥ samadarśinaḥ

“The wise see the same in a learned and gentle brahmin, in a cow, an elephant, a dog, and one who cooks dogs.

इहैव तैर्जितः सर्गो येषां साम्ये स्थितं मनः ।
निर्दोषं हि समं ब्रह्म तस्माद्ब्रह्मणि ते स्थिताः ॥ १९ ॥
न प्रहृष्येत्प्रियं प्राप्य नोद्विजेत्प्राप्य चाप्रियम् ।
स्थिरबुद्धिरसंमूढो ब्रह्मविद्ब्रह्मणि स्थितः ॥ २० ॥
बाह्यस्पर्शेष्वसक्तात्मा
विन्दत्यात्मनि यत्सुखम् ।
स ब्रह्मयोगयुक्तात्मा
सुखमक्षयमश्नुते ॥ २१ ॥

ihaiva tair jitaḥ sargo yeṣāṃ sāmye sthitaṃ manaḥ
nirdoṣaṃ hi samaṃ brahma tasmād brahmaṇi te sthitāḥ
na prahṛṣyet priyaṃ prāpya nodvijet prāpya cāpriyam
sthirabuddhir asaṃmūḍho brahmavid brahmaṇi sthitaḥ
bāhyasparśeṣv asaktātmā vindaty ātmani yat sukham
sa brahmayogayuktātmā sukham akṣayam aśnute

“Even here, the world is won by those whose mind rests in sameness; Brahman is without fault and the same, so they rest in Brahman. One should not rejoice on getting what is dear, nor be shaken on getting what is not; steady in understanding, unbewildered, the knower of Brahman rests in Brahman. One whose self does not cling to outer touches finds the happiness that is in the self; joined to Brahman in yoga, that one enjoys a happiness that does not wear out.

ये हि संस्पर्शजा भोगा दुःखयोनय एव ते ।
आद्यन्तवन्तः कौन्तेय न तेषु रमते बुधः ॥ २२ ॥
शक्नोतीहैव यः सोढुं प्राक्छरीरविमोक्षणात् ।
कामक्रोधोद्भवं वेगं स युक्तः स सुखी नरः ॥ २३ ॥

ye hi saṃsparśajā bhogā duḥkhayonaya eva te
ādyantavantaḥ kaunteya na teṣu ramate budhaḥ
śaknotīhaiva yaḥ soḍhuṃ prāk śarīravimokṣaṇāt
kāmakrodhodbhavaṃ vegaṃ sa yuktaḥ sa sukhī naraḥ

“The pleasures born of contact are wombs of sorrow; they have a beginning and an end, son of Kuntī. The wise do not delight in them. One who, here, before leaving the body, can bear the surge that rises from desire and anger, is joined; that one is happy.

योऽन्तःसुखोऽन्तरारामस्तथान्तर्ज्योतिरेव यः ।
स योगी ब्रह्मनिर्वाणं ब्रह्मभूतोऽधिगच्छति ॥ २४ ॥
लभन्ते ब्रह्मनिर्वाणमृषयः क्षीणकल्मषाः ।
छिन्नद्वैधा यतात्मानः सर्वभूतहिते रताः ॥ २५ ॥
कामक्रोधवियुक्तानां यतीनां यतचेतसाम् ।
अभितो ब्रह्मनिर्वाणं वर्तते विदितात्मनाम् ॥ २६ ॥

yo 'ntaḥsukho 'ntarārāmas tathāntarjyotir eva yaḥ
sa yogī brahmanirvāṇaṃ brahmabhūto 'dhigacchati
labhante brahmanirvāṇam ṛṣayaḥ kṣīṇakalmaṣāḥ
chinnadvaidhā yatātmānaḥ sarvabhūtahite ratāḥ
kāmakrodhaviyuktānāṃ yatīnāṃ yatacetasām
abhito brahmanirvāṇaṃ vartate viditātmanām

“One whose happiness is within, whose delight is within, whose light is within, that yogī, become Brahman, reaches the stillness of Brahman. The seers whose faults are worn away, whose doubts are cut, who are masters of themselves, and who delight in the good of all beings, reach the stillness of Brahman. For those who strive, free of desire and anger, minds held, knowing the self, the stillness of Brahman is close on every side.

स्पर्शान्कृत्वा बहिर्बाह्यांश्चक्षुश्चैवान्तरे भ्रुवोः ।
प्राणापानौ समौ कृत्वा नासाभ्यन्तरचारिणौ ॥ २७ ॥
यतेन्द्रियमनोबुद्धिर्मुनिर्मोक्षपरायणः ।
विगतेच्छाभयक्रोधो यः सदा मुक्त एव सः ॥ २८ ॥
भोक्तारं यज्ञतपसां सर्वलोकमहेश्वरम् ।
सुहृदं सर्वभूतानां ज्ञात्वा मां शान्तिमृच्छति ॥ २९ ॥

sparśān kṛtvā bahir bāhyāṃś cakṣuś caivāntare bhruvoḥ
prāṇāpānau samau kṛtvā nāsābhyantaracāriṇau
yatendriyamanobuddhir munir mokṣaparāyaṇaḥ
vigatecchābhayakrodho yaḥ sadā mukta eva saḥ
bhoktāraṃ yajñatapasāṃ sarvalokamaheśvaram
suhṛdaṃ sarvabhūtānāṃ jñātvā māṃ śāntim ṛcchati

“Shutting out the outer touches, the gaze between the brows, the in-breath and out-breath made even within the nostrils, senses, mind and understanding held, the sage given to freedom, from whom wish, fear and anger have gone, is free forever. Knowing me as the enjoyer of offerings and austerities, the great lord of all the worlds, the friend of all beings, one reaches peace.”

श्रीभगवानुवाच —
अनाश्रितः कर्मफलं कार्यं कर्म करोति यः ।
स संन्यासी च योगी च न निरग्निर्न चाक्रियः ॥ १ ॥
यं संन्यासमिति प्राहुर्योगं तं विद्धि पाण्डव ।
न ह्यसंन्यस्तसङ्कल्पो योगी भवति कश्चन ॥ २ ॥

śrībhagavān uvāca
anāśritaḥ karmaphalaṃ kāryaṃ karma karoti yaḥ
sa saṃnyāsī ca yogī ca na niragnir na cākriyaḥ
yaṃ saṃnyāsam iti prāhur yogaṃ taṃ viddhi pāṇḍava
na hy asaṃnyastasaṃkalpo yogī bhavati kaś cana

The Blessed One said: “Whoever does the work that is to be done, not depending on its fruit, is one who has given up and is a yogī, not one who has merely stopped tending the fire or stopped acting. Know that what they call giving up is yoga, Pāṇḍava; no one becomes a yogī without giving up scheming.

आरुरुक्षोर्मुनेर्योगं कर्म कारणमुच्यते ।
योगारूढस्य तस्यैव शमः कारणमुच्यते ॥ ३ ॥
यदा हि नेन्द्रियार्थेषु न कर्मस्वनुषज्जते ।
सर्वसङ्कल्पसंन्यासी योगारूढस्तदोच्यते ॥ ४ ॥

ārurukṣor muner yogaṃ karma kāraṇam ucyate
yogārūḍhasya tasyaiva śamaḥ kāraṇam ucyate
yadā hi nendriyārtheṣu na karmasv anuṣajjate
sarvasaṃkalpasaṃnyāsī yogārūḍhas tadocyate

“For the sage who wants to climb into yoga, action is the means; for the same one, once arrived, stillness is the means. When one clings neither to the objects of the senses nor to actions, having given up all scheming, one is said to have arrived in yoga.

उद्धरेदात्मनात्मानं नात्मानमवसादयेत् ।
आत्मैव ह्यात्मनो बन्धुरात्मैव रिपुरात्मनः ॥ ५ ॥
बन्धुरात्मात्मनस्तस्य येनात्मैवात्मना जितः ।
अनात्मनस्तु शत्रुत्वे वर्तेतात्मैव शत्रुवत् ॥ ६ ॥

uddhared ātmanātmānaṃ nātmānam avasādayet
ātmaiva hy ātmano bandhur ātmaiva ripur ātmanaḥ
bandhur ātmātmanas tasya yenātmaivātmanā jitaḥ
anātmanas tu śatrutve vartetātmaiva śatruvat

“Lift yourself by yourself; do not let yourself sink. The self alone is the friend of the self, and the self alone is the enemy of the self. The self is a friend to one who has mastered the self by the self; but for one who has not, the very self acts with hostility like an enemy.

जितात्मनः प्रशान्तस्य परमात्मा समाहितः ।
शीतोष्णसुखदुःखेषु तथा मानापमानयोः ॥ ७ ॥
ज्ञानविज्ञानतृप्तात्मा कूटस्थो विजितेन्द्रियः ।
युक्त इत्युच्यते योगी समलोष्टाश्मकाञ्चनः ॥ ८ ॥
सुहृन्मित्रार्युदासीनमध्यस्थद्वेष्यबन्धुषु ।
साधुष्वपि च पापेषु समबुद्धिर्विशिष्यते ॥ ९ ॥

jitātmanaḥ praśāntasya paramātmā samāhitaḥ
śītoṣṇasukhaduḥkheṣu tathā mānāvamānayoḥ
jñānavijñānatṛptātmā kūṭastho vijitendriyaḥ
yukta ity ucyate yogī samaloṣṭāśmakāñcanaḥ
suhṛnmitrāryudāsīnamadhyasthadveṣyabandhuṣu
sādhuṣv api ca pāpeṣu samabuddhir viśiṣyate

“For one who has mastered the self and is at peace, the highest self is collected, in cold and heat, pleasure and pain, honour and dishonour. The yogī satisfied with knowledge and its living understanding, unshaken, senses mastered, to whom a clod, a stone and gold are the same, is called joined. One who is even-minded among well-wishers, friends and enemies, the indifferent and the neutral, the hateful and kin, the good and the wrongdoers too, excels.

योगी युञ्जीत सततमात्मानं रहसि स्थितः ।
एकाकी यतचित्तात्मा निराशीरपरिग्रहः ॥ १० ॥
शुचौ देशे प्रतिष्ठाप्य स्थिरमासनमात्मनः ।
नात्युच्छ्रितं नातिनीचं चैलाजिनकुशोत्तरम् ॥ ११ ॥
तत्रैकाग्रं मनः कृत्वा यतचित्तेन्द्रियक्रियः ।
उपविश्यासने युञ्ज्याद्योगमात्मविशुद्धये ॥ १२ ॥
समं कायशिरोग्रीवं धारयन्नचलं स्थिरः ।
सम्प्रेक्ष्य नासिकाग्रं स्वं दिशश्चानवलोकयन् ॥ १३ ॥
प्रशान्तात्मा विगतभीर्ब्रह्मचारिव्रते स्थितः ।
मनः संयम्य मच्चित्तो युक्त आसीत मत्परः ॥ १४ ॥
युञ्जन्नेवं सदात्मानं योगी नियतमानसः ।
शान्तिं निर्वाणपरमां मत्संस्थामधिगच्छति ॥ १५ ॥

yogī yuñjīta satatam ātmānaṃ rahasi sthitaḥ
ekākī yatacittātmā nirāśīr aparigrahaḥ
śucau deśe pratiṣṭhāpya sthiram āsanam ātmanaḥ
nātyucchritaṃ nātinīcaṃ cailājinakuśottaram
tatraikāgraṃ manaḥ kṛtvā yatacittendriyakriyaḥ
upaviśyāsane yuñjyād yogam ātmaviśuddhaye
samaṃ kāyaśirogrīvaṃ dhārayann acalaṃ sthiraḥ
saṃprekṣya nāsikāgraṃ svaṃ diśaś cānavalokayan
praśāntātmā vigatabhīr brahmacārivrate sthitaḥ
manaḥ saṃyamya maccitto yukta āsīta matparaḥ
yuñjann evaṃ sadātmānaṃ yogī niyatamānasaḥ
śāntiṃ nirvāṇaparamāṃ matsaṃsthām adhigacchati

“The yogī should always join himself, staying alone in a quiet place, mind and self held, without expectation, without grasping. In a clean place, setting up a firm seat for himself, not too high, not too low, covered with cloth, deerskin and kuśa grass, sitting there, making the mind one-pointed, holding the work of mind and senses, he should join himself in yoga to purify the self. Holding body, head and neck straight and still, steady, looking at the tip of his own nose and not looking around, the self at peace, fearless, firm in the vow of the seeker of Brahman, holding the mind, thinking of me, he should sit joined, given to me. Always joining himself in this way, the yogī of held mind reaches the peace that rests in me, whose height is stillness.

नात्यश्नतस्तु योगोऽस्ति न चैकान्तमनश्नतः ।
न चातिस्वप्नशीलस्य जाग्रतो नैव चार्जुन ॥ १६ ॥
युक्ताहारविहारस्य युक्तचेष्टस्य कर्मसु ।
युक्तस्वप्नावबोधस्य योगो भवति दुःखहा ॥ १७ ॥

nātyaśnatas tu yogo 'sti na caikāntam anaśnataḥ
na cātisvapnaśīlasya jāgrato naiva cārjuna
yuktāhāravihārasya yuktaceṣṭasya karmasu
yuktasvapnāvabodhasya yogo bhavati duḥkhahā

“Yoga is not for one who eats too much, nor for one who does not eat at all, nor for one who sleeps too much, nor for one who keeps awake too long, Arjuna. For one measured in food and in rest, measured in effort at work, measured in sleep and waking, yoga destroys sorrow.

यदा विनियतं चित्तमात्मन्येवावतिष्ठते ।
निःस्पृहः सर्वकामेभ्यो युक्त इत्युच्यते तदा ॥ १८ ॥
यदा दीपो निवातस्थो नेङ्गते सोपमा स्मृता ।
योगिनो यतचित्तस्य युञ्जतो योगमात्मनः ॥ १९ ॥

yadā viniyataṃ cittam ātmany evāvatiṣṭhate
niḥspṛhaḥ sarvakāmebhyo yukta ity ucyate tadā
yathā dīpo nivātastho neṅgate sopamā smṛtā
yogino yatacittasya yuñjato yogam ātmanaḥ

“When the mind, held, rests in the self alone, free of longing for all desires, then one is called joined. As a lamp in a windless place does not flicker: that is the likeness remembered for the yogī of held mind, joining himself in yoga.

यत्रोपरमते चित्तं निरुद्धं योगसेवया ।
यत्र चैवात्मनात्मानं पश्यन्नात्मनि तुष्यति ॥ २० ॥
सुखमात्यन्तिकं यत्तद्बुद्धिग्राह्यमतीन्द्रियम् ।
वेत्ति यत्र न चैवायं स्थितश्चलति तत्त्वतः ॥ २१ ॥
यं लब्ध्वा चापरं लाभं मन्यते नाधिकं ततः ।
यस्मिन्स्थितो न दुःखेन गुरुणापि विचाल्यते ॥ २२ ॥
तं विद्याद्दुःखसंयोगवियोगं योगसंज्ञितम् ।
स निश्चयेन योक्तव्यो योगोऽनिर्विण्णचेतसा ॥ २३ ॥

yatroparamate cittaṃ niruddhaṃ yogasevayā
yatra caivātmanātmānaṃ paśyann ātmani tuṣyati
sukham ātyantikaṃ yat tad buddhigrāhyam atīndriyam
vetti yatra na caivāyaṃ sthitaś calati tattvataḥ
yaṃ labdhvā cāparaṃ lābhaṃ manyate nādhikaṃ tataḥ
yasmin sthito na duḥkhena guruṇāpi vicālyate
taṃ vidyād duḥkhasaṃyogaviyogaṃ yogasaṃjñitam
sa niścayena yoktavyo yogo 'nirviṇṇacetasā

“Where thought, held by the practice of yoga, comes to rest; where, seeing the self by the self, one is content in the self; where one knows that boundless happiness which the understanding can grasp and the senses cannot; where, standing, one does not move from the truth; having gained which, one thinks no other gain greater; standing in which, one is not shaken even by heavy sorrow: let that be known as yoga, the unjoining from the joining with sorrow. That yoga should be practised with resolve, and with a mind that does not lose heart.

सङ्कल्पप्रभवान्कामांस्त्यक्त्वा सर्वानशेषतः ।
मनसैवेन्द्रियग्रामं विनियम्य समन्ततः ॥ २४ ॥
शनैः शनैरुपरमेद्बुद्ध्या धृतिगृहीतया ।
आत्मसंस्थं मनः कृत्वा न किञ्चिदपि चिन्तयेत् ॥ २५ ॥
यतो यतो निश्चरति मनश्चञ्चलमस्थिरम् ।
ततस्ततो नियम्यैतदात्मन्येव वशं नयेत् ॥ २६ ॥
प्रशान्तमनसं ह्येनं योगिनं सुखमुत्तमम् ।
उपैति शान्तरजसं ब्रह्मभूतमकल्मषम् ॥ २७ ॥
युञ्जन्नेवं सदात्मानं योगी विगतकल्मषः ।
सुखेन ब्रह्मसंस्पर्शमत्यन्तं सुखमश्नुते ॥ २८ ॥

saṃkalpaprabhavān kāmāṃs tyaktvā sarvān aśeṣataḥ
manasaivendriyagrāmaṃ viniyamya samantataḥ
śanaiḥ śanair uparamed buddhyā dhṛtigṛhītayā
ātmasaṃsthaṃ manaḥ kṛtvā na kiṃ cid api cintayet
yato yato niścarati manaś cañcalam asthiram
tatas tato niyamyaitad ātmany eva vaśaṃ nayet
praśāntamanasaṃ hy enaṃ yoginaṃ sukham uttamam
upaiti śāntarajasaṃ brahmabhūtam akalmaṣam
yuñjann evaṃ sadātmānaṃ yogī vigatakalmaṣaḥ
sukhena brahmasaṃsparśam atyantaṃ sukham aśnute

“Letting go of all desires born of scheming, without remainder, and holding the whole crowd of the senses on every side with the mind alone, little by little one should come to rest, by understanding held firm; making the mind rest in the self, one should not think of anything at all. Wherever the restless, unsteady mind wanders, from there one should hold it back and bring it under the self alone. To this yogī whose mind is at peace, whose passion is stilled, become Brahman, without stain, the highest happiness comes. Always joining himself in this way, the yogī, his stain gone, easily touches Brahman, and that touch is boundless happiness.

सर्वभूतस्थमात्मानं सर्वभूतानि चात्मनि ।
ईक्षते योगयुक्तात्मा सर्वत्र समदर्शनः ॥ २९ ॥
यो मां पश्यति सर्वत्र सर्वं च मयि पश्यति ।
तस्याहं न प्रणश्यामि स च मे न प्रणश्यति ॥ ३० ॥
सर्वभूतस्थितं यो मां भजत्येकत्वमास्थितः ।
सर्वथा वर्तमानोऽपि स योगी मयि वर्तते ॥ ३१ ॥
आत्मौपम्येन सर्वत्र समं पश्यति योऽर्जुन ।
सुखं वा यदि वा दुःखं स योगी परमो मतः ॥ ३२ ॥

sarvabhūtastham ātmānaṃ sarvabhūtāni cātmani
īkṣate yogayuktātmā sarvatra samadarśanaḥ
yo māṃ paśyati sarvatra sarvaṃ ca mayi paśyati
tasyāhaṃ na praṇaśyāmi sa ca me na praṇaśyati
sarvabhūtasthitaṃ yo māṃ bhajaty ekatvam āsthitaḥ
sarvathā vartamāno 'pi sa yogī mayi vartate
ātmaupamyena sarvatra samaṃ paśyati yo 'rjuna
sukhaṃ vā yadi vā duḥkhaṃ sa yogī paramo mataḥ

“The one whose self is joined in yoga sees the self in all beings and all beings in the self, seeing the same everywhere. Whoever sees me everywhere and sees all in me, I am not lost to him, and he is not lost to me. Whoever, standing in oneness, honours me as dwelling in all beings, that yogī lives in me, however he lives. Whoever sees the same everywhere by comparison with himself, Arjuna, in pleasure or in pain, that yogī is thought highest.

अर्जुन उवाच —
योऽयं योगस्त्वया प्रोक्तः
साम्येन मधुसूदन ।
एतस्याहं न पश्यामि
चञ्चलत्वात्स्थितिं स्थिराम् ॥ ३३ ॥
चञ्चलं हि मनः कृष्ण प्रमाथि बलवद्दृढम् ।
तस्याहं निग्रहं मन्ये वायोरिव सुदुष्करम् ॥ ३४ ॥

arjuna uvāca
yo 'yaṃ yogas tvayā proktaḥ sāmyena madhusūdana
etasyāhaṃ na paśyāmi cañcalatvāt sthitiṃ sthirām
cañcalaṃ hi manaḥ kṛṣṇa pramāthi balavad dṛḍham
tasyāhaṃ nigrahaṃ manye vāyor iva suduṣkaram

Arjuna said: “This yoga of sameness you have told me, Madhusūdana, I do not see how it can stand steady, because the mind is restless. The mind is restless, Kṛṣṇa, churning, strong and stubborn. I think holding it is as hard as holding the wind.”

श्रीभगवानुवाच —
असंशयं महाबाहो मनो दुर्निग्रहं चलम् ।
अभ्यासेन तु कौन्तेय वैराग्येण च गृह्यते ॥ ३५ ॥
असंयतात्मना योगो दुष्प्राप इति मे मतिः ।
वश्यात्मना तु यतता शक्योऽवाप्तुमुपायतः ॥ ३६ ॥

śrībhagavān uvāca
asaṃśayaṃ mahābāho mano durnigrahaṃ calam
abhyāsena tu kaunteya vairāgyeṇa ca gṛhyate
asaṃyatātmanā yogo duṣprāpa iti me matiḥ
vaśyātmanā tu yatatā śakyo 'vāptum upāyataḥ

The Blessed One said: “Without doubt, mighty-armed, the mind is hard to hold and restless. But by practice, son of Kuntī, and by letting go, it is held. Yoga is hard to reach for one whose self is unheld, I think; but by one whose self is held and who strives, it can be reached by the right means.”

अर्जुन उवाच —
अयतिः श्रद्धयोपेतो योगाच्चलितमानसः ।
अप्राप्य योगसंसिद्धिं कां गतिं कृष्ण गच्छति ॥ ३७ ॥
कच्चिन्नोभयविभ्रष्टश्छिन्नाभ्रमिव नश्यति ।
अप्रतिष्ठो महाबाहो विमूढो ब्रह्मणः पथि ॥ ३८ ॥
एतन्मे संशयं कृष्ण च्छेत्तुमर्हस्यशेषतः ।
त्वदन्यः संशयस्यास्य च्छेत्ता न ह्युपपद्यते ॥ ३९ ॥

arjuna uvāca
ayatiḥ śraddhayopeto yogāc calitamānasaḥ
aprāpya yogasaṃsiddhiṃ kāṃ gatiṃ kṛṣṇa gacchati
kaccin nobhayavibhraṣṭaś chinnābhram iva naśyati
apratiṣṭho mahābāho vimūḍho brahmaṇaḥ pathi
etan me saṃśayaṃ kṛṣṇa chettum arhasy aśeṣataḥ
tvad anyaḥ saṃśayasyāsya chettā na hy upapadyate

Arjuna said: “One who has faith but does not strive enough, whose mind falls away from yoga, who does not reach its fulfilment: what way does he go, Kṛṣṇa? Fallen from both, does he not perish like a torn cloud, without support, mighty-armed, bewildered on the path of Brahman? Cut this doubt of mine completely, Kṛṣṇa. No one but you can cut it.”

श्रीभगवानुवाच —
पार्थ नैवेह नामुत्र विनाशस्तस्य विद्यते ।
न हि कल्याणकृत्कश्चिद्दुर्गतिं तात गच्छति ॥ ४० ॥

śrībhagavān uvāca
pārtha naiveha nāmutra vināśas tasya vidyate
na hi kalyāṇakṛt kaś cid durgatiṃ tāta gacchati

The Blessed One said: “Pārtha, neither here nor after is there destruction for him. No one who does good, my dear, comes to a bad end.

प्राप्य पुण्यकृतां लोकानुषित्वा शाश्वतीः समाः ।
शुचीनां श्रीमतां गेहे योगभ्रष्टोऽभिजायते ॥ ४१ ॥
अथवा योगिनामेव कुले भवति धीमताम् ।
एतद्धि दुर्लभतरं लोके जन्म यदीदृशम् ॥ ४२ ॥
तत्र तं बुद्धिसंयोगं लभते पौर्वदेहिकम् ।
यतते च ततो भूयः संसिद्धौ कुरुनन्दन ॥ ४३ ॥
पूर्वाभ्यासेन तेनैव ह्रियते ह्यवशोऽपि सः ।
जिज्ञासुरपि योगस्य शब्दब्रह्मातिवर्तते ॥ ४४ ॥

prāpya puṇyakṛtāṃl lokān uṣitvā śāśvatīḥ samāḥ
śucīnāṃ śrīmatāṃ gehe yogabhraṣṭo 'bhijāyate
atha vā yoginām eva kule bhavati dhīmatām
etad dhi durlabhataraṃ loke janma yad īdṛśam
tatra taṃ buddhisaṃyogaṃ labhate paurvadehikam
yatate ca tato bhūyaḥ saṃsiddhau kurunandana
pūrvābhyāsena tenaiva hriyate hy avaśo 'pi saḥ
jijñāsur api yogasya śabdabrahmātivartate

“Reaching the worlds of those who have done good, and living there for countless years, the one who fell from yoga is born in the house of the pure and fortunate. Or he is born in a family of wise yogīs; such a birth is harder to find in the world. There he takes up again the understanding of his former body, and from there he strives again for fulfilment, joy of the Kurus. By that same former practice he is carried on, even without willing it. Even one who only wishes to know yoga goes beyond the word of the Veda.

प्रयत्नाद्यतमानस्तु योगी संशुद्धकिल्बिषः ।
अनेकजन्मसंसिद्धस्ततो याति परां गतिम् ॥ ४५ ॥
तपस्विभ्योऽधिको योगी
ज्ञानिभ्योऽपि मतोऽधिकः ।
कर्मिभ्यश्चाधिको योगी
तस्माद्योगी भवार्जुन ॥ ४६ ॥
योगिनामपि सर्वेषां मद्गतेनान्तरात्मना ।
श्रद्धावान्भजते यो मां स मे युक्ततमो मतः ॥ ४७ ॥

prayatnād yatamānas tu yogī saṃśuddhakilbiṣaḥ
anekajanmasaṃsiddhas tato yāti parāṃ gatim
tapasvibhyo 'dhiko yogī jñānibhyo 'pi mato 'dhikaḥ
karmibhyaś cādhiko yogī tasmād yogī bhavārjuna
yoginām api sarveṣāṃ madgatenāntarātmanā
śraddhāvān bhajate yo māṃ sa me yuktatamo mataḥ

“But the yogī who strives with effort, cleansed of fault, perfected over many births, then goes to the highest way. The yogī is higher than the ascetics, thought higher even than those of knowledge, and higher than those of ritual work. So be a yogī, Arjuna. And of all yogīs, the one who, full of faith, honours me with the inner self gone into me, that one I hold to be the most joined.”

श्रीभगवानुवाच —
मय्यासक्तमनाः पार्थ योगं युञ्जन्मदाश्रयः ।
असंशयं समग्रं मां यथा ज्ञास्यसि तच्छृणु ॥ १ ॥
ज्ञानं तेऽहं सविज्ञानमिदं वक्ष्याम्यशेषतः ।
यज्ज्ञात्वा नेह भूयोऽन्यज्ज्ञातव्यमवशिष्यते ॥ २ ॥
मनुष्याणां सहस्रेषु कश्चिद्यतति सिद्धये ।
यततामपि सिद्धानां कश्चिन्मां वेत्ति तत्त्वतः ॥ ३ ॥

śrībhagavān uvāca
mayy āsaktamanāḥ pārtha yogaṃ yuñjan madāśrayaḥ
asaṃśayaṃ samagraṃ māṃ yathā jñāsyasi tac chṛṇu
jñānaṃ te 'haṃ savijñānam idaṃ vakṣyāmy aśeṣataḥ
yaj jñātvā neha bhūyo 'nyaj jñātavyam avaśiṣyate
manuṣyāṇāṃ sahasreṣu kaś cid yatati siddhaye
yatatām api siddhānāṃ kaś cin māṃ vetti tattvataḥ

The Blessed One said: “Hear, Pārtha, how, with your mind clinging to me, practising yoga, taking refuge in me, you will know me fully and without doubt. I will tell you this knowledge in full, together with its living understanding; knowing it, nothing more remains here to be known. Among thousands of people, hardly one strives for fulfilment; and of those who strive and are fulfilled, hardly one knows me as I am.

भूमिरापोऽनलो वायुः खं मनो बुद्धिरेव च ।
अहङ्कार इतीयं मे भिन्ना प्रकृतिरष्टधा ॥ ४ ॥
अपरेयमितस्त्वन्यां प्रकृतिं विद्धि मे पराम् ।
जीवभूतां महाबाहो ययेदं धार्यते जगत् ॥ ५ ॥
एतद्योनीनि भूतानि सर्वाणीत्युपधारय ।
अहं कृत्स्नस्य जगतः प्रभवः प्रलयस्तथा ॥ ६ ॥
मत्तः परतरं नान्यत्किञ्चिदस्ति धनञ्जय ।
मयि सर्वमिदं प्रोतं सूत्रे मणिगणा इव ॥ ७ ॥

bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ khaṃ mano buddhir eva ca
ahaṃkāra itīyaṃ me bhinnā prakṛtir aṣṭadhā
apareyam itas tv anyāṃ prakṛtiṃ viddhi me parām
jīvabhūtāṃ mahābāho yayedaṃ dhāryate jagat
etadyonīni bhūtāni sarvāṇīty upadhāraya
ahaṃ kṛtsnasya jagataḥ prabhavaḥ pralayas tathā
mattaḥ parataraṃ nānyat kiṃ cid asti dhanaṃjaya
mayi sarvam idaṃ protaṃ sūtre maṇigaṇā iva

“Earth, water, fire, wind, space, mind, understanding and the sense of I: this is my nature, divided eightfold. That is the lower. Know my other nature, the higher, mighty-armed, which has become life itself, by which this world is held. Know that all beings have these two as their womb. I am the origin of the whole world, and its dissolving. There is nothing higher than me, Dhanañjaya. All this is strung on me like pearls on a thread.

रसोऽहमप्सु कौन्तेय प्रभास्मि शशिसूर्ययोः ।
प्रणवः सर्ववेदेषु शब्दः खे पौरुषं नृषु ॥ ८ ॥
पुण्यो गन्धः पृथिव्यां च
तेजश्चास्मि विभावसौ ।
जीवनं सर्वभूतेषु
तपश्चास्मि तपस्विषु ॥ ९ ॥
बीजं मां सर्वभूतानां विद्धि पार्थ सनातनम् ।
बुद्धिर्बुद्धिमतामस्मि तेजस्तेजस्विनामहम् ॥ १० ॥
बलं बलवतां चाहं कामरागविवर्जितम् ।
धर्माविरुद्धो भूतेषु कामोऽस्मि भरतर्षभ ॥ ११ ॥

raso 'ham apsu kaunteya prabhāsmi śaśisūryayoḥ
praṇavaḥ sarvavedeṣu śabdaḥ khe pauruṣaṃ nṛṣu
puṇyo gandhaḥ pṛthivyāṃ ca tejaś cāsmi vibhāvasau
jīvanaṃ sarvabhūteṣu tapaś cāsmi tapasviṣu
bījaṃ māṃ sarvabhūtānāṃ viddhi pārtha sanātanam
buddhir buddhimatām asmi tejas tejasvinām aham
balaṃ balavatāṃ cāhaṃ kāmarāgavivarjitam
dharmāviruddho bhūteṣu kāmo 'smi bharatarṣabha

“I am the taste in water, son of Kuntī, the light in moon and sun, the sacred syllable in all the Vedas, the sound in space, the strength in men. I am the pure fragrance in the earth and the brightness in fire; I am the life in all beings and the austerity in those who strive. Know me, Pārtha, as the eternal seed of all beings. I am the understanding of those who understand, the radiance of the radiant. I am the strength of the strong, free of desire and passion; and in beings I am desire that is not against dharma, bull of the Bhāratas.

ये चैव सात्त्विका भावा राजसास्तमसाश्च ये ।
मत्त एवेति तान्विद्धि न त्वहं तेषु ते मयि ॥ १२ ॥
त्रिभिर्गुणमयैर्भावैरेभिः सर्वमिदं जगत् ।
मोहितं नाभिजानाति मामेभ्यः परमव्ययम् ॥ १३ ॥
दैवी ह्येषा गुणमयी मम माया दुरत्यया ।
मामेव ये प्रपद्यन्ते मायामेतां तरन्ति ते ॥ १४ ॥

ye caiva sāttvikā bhāvā rājasās tāmasāś ca ye
matta eveti tān viddhi na tv ahaṃ teṣu te mayi
tribhir guṇamayair bhāvair ebhiḥ sarvam idaṃ jagat
mohitaṃ nābhijānāti mām ebhyaḥ param avyayam
daivī hy eṣā guṇamayī mama māyā duratyayā
mām eva ye prapadyante māyām etāṃ taranti te

“Whatever states there are, of clarity, of passion or of darkness, know them as from me alone; but I am not in them; they are in me. Bewildered by these three states made of the qualities, this whole world does not know me, who am beyond them and do not change. This divine illusion of mine, made of the qualities, is hard to cross. Those who take refuge in me alone cross over it.

न मां दुष्कृतिनो मूढाः प्रपद्यन्ते नराधमाः ।
माययापहृतज्ञाना आसुरं भावमाश्रिताः ॥ १५ ॥

na māṃ duṣkṛtino mūḍhāḥ prapadyante narādhamāḥ
māyayāpahṛtajñānā āsuraṃ bhāvam āśritāḥ

“Wrongdoers, the bewildered, the lowest of people, whose knowledge is stolen by illusion and who take on an asura nature, do not take refuge in me.

चतुर्विधा भजन्ते मां जनाः सुकृतिनोऽर्जुन ।
आर्तो जिज्ञासुरर्थार्थी ज्ञानी च भरतर्षभ ॥ १६ ॥
तेषां ज्ञानी नित्ययुक्त एकभक्तिर्विशिष्यते ।
प्रियो हि ज्ञानिनोऽत्यर्थमहं स च मम प्रियः ॥ १७ ॥
उदाराः सर्व एवैते
ज्ञानी त्वात्मैव मे मतम् ।
आस्थितः स हि युक्तात्मा
मामेवानुत्तमां गतिम् ॥ १८ ॥

caturvidhā bhajante māṃ janāḥ sukṛtino 'rjuna
ārto jijñāsur arthārthī jñānī ca bharatarṣabha
teṣāṃ jñānī nityayukta ekabhaktir viśiṣyate
priyo hi jñānino 'tyartham ahaṃ sa ca mama priyaḥ
udārāḥ sarva evaite jñānī tv ātmaiva me matam
āsthitaḥ sa hi yuktātmā mām evānuttamāṃ gatim

“Four kinds of good people turn to me, Arjuna: the one in distress, the one who wants to know, the one who wants something, and the one who knows, bull of the Bhāratas. Of these, the one who knows, always joined, given to the one alone, is the best; for I am very dear to the one who knows, and that one is dear to me. All of these are noble; but the one who knows I hold to be my very self, for that one, joined in self, rests in me alone, the highest way.

बहूनां जन्मनामन्ते ज्ञानवान्मां प्रपद्यते ।
वासुदेवः सर्वमिति स महात्मा सुदुर्लभः ॥ १९ ॥

bahūnāṃ janmanām ante jñānavān māṃ prapadyate
vāsudevaḥ sarvam iti sa mahātmā sudurlabhaḥ

“At the end of many births the one who knows comes to me, saying, ‘Vāsudeva is all.’ Such a great soul is very rare.

कामैस्तैस्तैर्हृतज्ञानाः प्रपद्यन्तेऽन्यदेवताः ।
तं तं नियममास्थाय प्रकृत्या नियताः स्वया ॥ २० ॥
यो यो यां यां तनुं भक्तः श्रद्धयार्चितुमिच्छति ।
तस्य तस्याचलां श्रद्धां तामेव विदधाम्यहम् ॥ २१ ॥
स तया श्रद्धया युक्तस्तस्या राधनमीहते ।
लभते च ततः कामान्मयैव विहितान्हि तान् ॥ २२ ॥
अन्तवत्तु फलं तेषां
तद्भवत्यल्पमेधसाम् ।
देवान्देवयजो यान्ति
मद्भक्ता यान्ति मामपि ॥ २३ ॥

kāmais tais tair hṛtajñānāḥ prapadyante 'nyadevatāḥ
taṃ taṃ niyamam āsthāya prakṛtyā niyatāḥ svayā
yo yo yāṃ yāṃ tanuṃ bhaktaḥ śraddhayārcitum icchati
tasya tasyācalāṃ śraddhāṃ tām eva vidadhāmy aham
sa tayā śraddhayā yuktas tasyā rādhanam īhate
labhate ca tataḥ kāmān mayaiva vihitān hi tān
antavat tu phalaṃ teṣāṃ tad bhavaty alpamedhasām
devān devayajo yānti madbhaktā yānti mām api

“Those whose knowledge has been carried off by this desire or that turn to other gods, following this rule or that, held by their own nature. Whatever form a devotee wishes to worship with faith, I make that very faith of his steady. Joined by that faith, he seeks to please that form, and from it he gains his desires, though in truth it is I who give them. But the fruit for those of small understanding has an end. Those who worship the gods go to the gods; my devotees come to me.

अव्यक्तं व्यक्तिमापन्नं मन्यन्ते मामबुद्धयः ।
परं भावमजानन्तो ममाव्ययमनुत्तमम् ॥ २४ ॥
नाहं प्रकाशः सर्वस्य योगमायासमावृतः ।
मूढोऽयं नाभिजानाति लोको मामजमव्ययम् ॥ २५ ॥
वेदाहं समतीतानि वर्तमानानि चार्जुन ।
भविष्याणि च भूतानि मां तु वेद न कश्चन ॥ २६ ॥

avyaktaṃ vyaktim āpannaṃ manyante mām abuddhayaḥ
paraṃ bhāvam ajānanto mamāvyayam anuttamam
nāhaṃ prakāśaḥ sarvasya yogamāyāsamāvṛtaḥ
mūḍho 'yaṃ nābhijānāti loko mām ajam avyayam
vedāhaṃ samatītāni vartamānāni cārjuna
bhaviṣyāṇi ca bhūtāni māṃ tu veda na kaś cana

“The unknowing think that I, the unmanifest, have come into form, not knowing my higher being, which does not change and has nothing above it. I am not seen by all, veiled by my own power. This bewildered world does not know me, unborn and unchanging. I know the beings that have gone, Arjuna, and those that are, and those yet to be; but no one knows me.

इच्छाद्वेषसमुत्थेन द्वन्द्वमोहेन भारत ।
सर्वभूतानि संमोहं सर्गे यान्ति परन्तप ॥ २७ ॥
येषां त्वन्तगतं पापं
जनानां पुण्यकर्मणाम् ।
ते द्वन्द्वमोहनिर्मुक्ता
भजन्ते मां दृढव्रताः ॥ २८ ॥
जरामरणमोक्षाय मामाश्रित्य यतन्ति ये ।
ते ब्रह्म तद्विदुः कृत्स्नमध्यात्मं कर्म चाखिलम् ॥ २९ ॥
साधिभूताधिदैवं मां साधियज्ञं च ये विदुः ।
प्रयाणकालेऽपि च मां ते विदुर्युक्तचेतसः ॥ ३० ॥

icchādveṣasamutthena dvaṃdvamohena bhārata
sarvabhūtāni saṃmohaṃ sarge yānti paraṃtapa
yeṣāṃ tv antagataṃ pāpaṃ janānāṃ puṇyakarmaṇām
te dvaṃdvamohanirmuktā bhajante māṃ dṛḍhavratāḥ
jarāmaraṇamokṣāya mām āśritya yatanti ye
te brahma tad viduḥ kṛtsnam adhyātmaṃ karma cākhilam
sādhibhūtādhidaivaṃ māṃ sādhiyajñaṃ ca ye viduḥ
prayāṇakāle 'pi ca māṃ te vidur yuktacetasaḥ

“Through the bewilderment of the pairs, born of desire and aversion, all beings fall into confusion at their birth, scorcher of foes. But those of good deeds whose wrong has come to an end, freed from the bewilderment of the pairs, worship me, firm in their vows. Those who strive for freedom from old age and death, taking refuge in me, know that Brahman entire, and the self within, and all action. Those who know me together with what concerns beings, what concerns the gods, and what concerns offering, with minds joined, know me even at the hour of going.”

अर्जुन उवाच —
किं तद्ब्रह्म किमध्यात्मं किं कर्म पुरुषोत्तम ।
अधिभूतं च किं प्रोक्तमधिदैवं किमुच्यते ॥ १ ॥
अधियज्ञः कथं कोऽत्र देहेऽस्मिन्मधुसूदन ।
प्रयाणकाले च कथं ज्ञेयोऽसि नियतात्मभिः ॥ २ ॥

arjuna uvāca
kiṃ tad brahma kim adhyātmaṃ kiṃ karma puruṣottama
adhibhūtaṃ ca kiṃ proktam adhidaivaṃ kim ucyate
adhiyajñaḥ kathaṃ ko 'tra dehe 'smin madhusūdana
prayāṇakāle ca kathaṃ jñeyo 'si niyatātmabhiḥ

Arjuna said: “What is that Brahman? What is the self within? What is action, highest Person? What is said to concern beings, and what to concern the gods? Who is the lord of offering here in this body, and how, Madhusūdana? And how are you to be known at the hour of going by those who are held?”

श्रीभगवानुवाच —
अक्षरं ब्रह्म परमं स्वभावोऽध्यात्ममुच्यते ।
भूतभावोद्भवकरो विसर्गः कर्मसंज्ञितः ॥ ३ ॥
अधिभूतं क्षरो भावः पुरुषश्चाधिदैवतम् ।
अधियज्ञोऽहमेवात्र देहे देहभृतां वर ॥ ४ ॥

śrībhagavān uvāca
akṣaraṃ brahma paramaṃ svabhāvo 'dhyātmam ucyate
bhūtabhāvodbhavakaro visargaḥ karmasaṃjñitaḥ
adhibhūtaṃ kṣaro bhāvaḥ puruṣaś cādhidaivatam
adhiyajño 'ham evātra dehe dehabhṛtāṃ vara

The Blessed One said: “Brahman is the highest imperishable. Its own being is called the self within. The outpouring that brings beings into existence is called action. What concerns beings is the perishable; what concerns the gods is the Person; and I myself am the lord of offering here in the body, best of the embodied.

अन्तकाले च मामेव स्मरन्मुक्त्वा कलेबरम् ।
यः प्रयाति स मद्भावं याति नास्त्यत्र संशयः ॥ ५ ॥
यं यं वापि स्मरन्भावं त्यजत्यन्ते कलेबरम् ।
तं तमेवैति कौन्तेय सदा तद्भावभावितः ॥ ६ ॥

antakāle ca mām eva smaran muktvā kalevaram
yaḥ prayāti sa madbhāvaṃ yāti nāsty atra saṃśayaḥ
yaṃ yaṃ vāpi smaran bhāvaṃ tyajaty ante kalevaram
taṃ tam evaiti kaunteya sadā tadbhāvabhāvitaḥ

“Whoever, at the end, remembering me alone, goes out leaving the body, comes to my being. Of this there is no doubt. Whatever being one remembers at the end, when leaving the body, to that one goes, son of Kuntī, always shaped by it.

तस्मात्सर्वेषु कालेषु मामनुस्मर युध्य च ।
मय्यर्पितमनोबुद्धिर्मामेवैष्यस्यसंशयः ॥ ७ ॥

tasmāt sarveṣu kāleṣu mām anusmara yudhya ca
mayy arpitamanobuddhir mām evaiṣyasy asaṃśayaḥ

“So at all times remember me, and fight. With mind and understanding given to me, you will come to me; there is no doubt.

अभ्यासयोगयुक्तेन चेतसा नान्यगामिना ।
परमं पुरुषं दिव्यं याति पार्थानुचिन्तयन् ॥ ८ ॥
कविं पुराणमनुशासितारमणोरणीयांसमनुस्मरेद्यः ।
सर्वस्य धातारमचिन्त्यरूपमादित्यवर्णं तमसः परस्तात् ॥ ९ ॥
प्रयाणकाले मनसाचलेन
भक्त्या युक्तो योगबलेन चैव ।
भ्रुवोर्मध्ये प्राणमावेश्य सम्य
क्स तं परं पुरुषमुपैति दिव्यम् ॥ १० ॥

abhyāsayogayuktena cetasā nānyagāminā
paramaṃ puruṣaṃ divyaṃ yāti pārthānucintayan
kaviṃ purāṇam anuśāsitāram
aṇor aṇīyāṃsam anusmared yaḥ
sarvasya dhātāram acintyarūpam
ādityavarṇaṃ tamasaḥ parastāt
prayāṇakāle manasācalena
bhaktyā yukto yogabalena caiva
bhruvor madhye prāṇam āveśya samyak
sa taṃ paraṃ puruṣam upaiti divyam

“With a mind joined by the yoga of practice, not straying elsewhere, always meditating, Pārtha, one goes to the highest divine Person. Whoever remembers the seer, the ancient one, the ruler, subtler than the subtle, the holder of all, whose form cannot be thought, bright as the sun, beyond darkness, at the hour of going, with a mind that does not move, joined in love and in the strength of yoga, setting the breath between the brows, reaches that highest divine Person.

यदक्षरं वेदविदो वदन्ति
विशन्ति यद्यतयो वीतरागाः ।
यदिच्छन्तो ब्रह्मचर्यं चरन्ति
तत्ते पदं सङ्ग्रहेण प्रवक्ष्ये ॥ ११ ॥
सर्वद्वाराणि संयम्य मनो हृदि निरुध्य च ।
मूर्ध्न्याधायात्मनः प्राणमास्थितो योगधारणाम् ॥ १२ ॥
ओमित्येकाक्षरं ब्रह्म
व्याहरन्मामनुस्मरन् ।
यः प्रयाति त्यजन्देहं
स याति परमां गतिम् ॥ १३ ॥

yad akṣaraṃ vedavido vadanti
viśanti yad yatayo vītarāgāḥ
yad icchanto brahmacaryaṃ caranti
tat te padaṃ saṃgraheṇa pravakṣye
sarvadvārāṇi saṃyamya mano hṛdi nirudhya ca
mūrdhny ādhāyātmanaḥ prāṇam āsthito yogadhāraṇām
om ity ekākṣaraṃ brahma vyāharan mām anusmaran
yaḥ prayāti tyajan dehaṃ sa yāti paramāṃ gatim

“What the knowers of the Veda call the imperishable, which strivers free of passion enter, wishing for which they live in discipline: that place I will tell you briefly. Closing all the gates of the body, holding the mind in the heart, placing the breath in the head, set in the steadiness of yoga, saying Om, the one-syllabled Brahman, remembering me, whoever goes out leaving the body goes the highest way.

अनन्यचेताः सततं यो मां स्मरति नित्यशः ।
तस्याहं सुलभः पार्थ नित्ययुक्तस्य योगिनः ॥ १४ ॥

ananyacetāḥ satataṃ yo māṃ smarati nityaśaḥ
tasyāhaṃ sulabhaḥ pārtha nityayuktasya yoginaḥ

“For the one whose mind is never elsewhere, who remembers me always, at every moment, for that always-joined yogī I am easily reached, Pārtha.

मामुपेत्य पुनर्जन्म दुःखालयमशाश्वतम् ।
नाप्नुवन्ति महात्मानः संसिद्धिं परमां गताः ॥ १५ ॥
आ ब्रह्मभुवनाल्लोकाः पुनरावर्तिनोऽर्जुन ।
मामुपेत्य तु कौन्तेय पुनर्जन्म न विद्यते ॥ १६ ॥

mām upetya punarjanma duḥkhālayam aśāśvatam
nāpnuvanti mahātmānaḥ saṃsiddhiṃ paramāṃ gatāḥ
ā brahmabhuvanāl lokāḥ punarāvartino 'rjuna
mām upetya tu kaunteya punarjanma na vidyate

“Having come to me, the great souls who have reached the highest fulfilment do not return to birth, that passing home of sorrow. The worlds up to the realm of Brahmā return again, Arjuna; but having come to me, son of Kuntī, there is no birth again.

सहस्रयुगपर्यन्तमहर्यद्ब्रह्मणो विदुः ।
रात्रिं युगसहस्रान्तां तेऽहोरात्रविदो जनाः ॥ १७ ॥
अव्यक्ताद्व्यक्तयः सर्वाः प्रभवन्त्यहरागमे ।
रात्र्यागमे प्रलीयन्ते तत्रैवाव्यक्तसंज्ञके ॥ १८ ॥
भूतग्रामः स एवायं भूत्वा भूत्वा प्रलीयते ।
रात्र्यागमेऽवशः पार्थ प्रभवत्यहरागमे ॥ १९ ॥

sahasrayugaparyantam ahar yad brahmaṇo viduḥ
rātriṃ yugasahasrāntāṃ te 'horātravido janāḥ
avyaktād vyaktayaḥ sarvāḥ prabhavanty aharāgame
rātryāgame pralīyante tatraivāvyaktasaṃjñake
bhūtagrāmaḥ sa evāyaṃ bhūtvā bhūtvā pralīyate
rātryāgame 'vaśaḥ pārtha prabhavaty aharāgame

“Those who know that a day of Brahmā lasts a thousand ages, and that his night ends after a thousand ages, know day and night. At the coming of day, all that is manifest arises from the unmanifest; at the coming of night it dissolves into that same unmanifest. This same host of beings, coming to be again and again, dissolves at nightfall, helpless, Pārtha, and comes forth at daybreak.

परस्तस्मात्तु भावोऽन्योऽव्यक्तोऽव्यक्तात्सनातनः ।
यः स सर्वेषु भूतेषु नश्यत्सु न विनश्यति ॥ २० ॥
अव्यक्तोऽक्षर इत्युक्तस्तमाहुः परमां गतिम् ।
यं प्राप्य न निवर्तन्ते तद्धाम परमं मम ॥ २१ ॥
पुरुषः स परः पार्थ भक्त्या लभ्यस्त्वनन्यया ।
यस्यान्तःस्थानि भूतानि येन सर्वमिदं ततम् ॥ २२ ॥

paras tasmāt tu bhāvo 'nyo 'vyakto 'vyaktāt sanātanaḥ
yaḥ sa sarveṣu bhūteṣu naśyatsu na vinaśyati
avyakto 'kṣara ity uktas tam āhuḥ paramāṃ gatim
yaṃ prāpya na nivartante tad dhāma paramaṃ mama
puruṣaḥ sa paraḥ pārtha bhaktyā labhyas tv ananyayā
yasyāntaḥsthāni bhūtāni yena sarvam idaṃ tatam

“But beyond that unmanifest is another, eternal unmanifest being, which does not perish when all beings perish. It is called the imperishable; they call it the highest way. Having reached it, they do not return. That is my highest home. That highest Person, Pārtha, is reached by love that turns nowhere else. In him all beings rest; by him all this is pervaded.

यत्र काले त्वनावृत्तिमावृत्तिं चैव योगिनः ।
प्रयाता यान्ति तं कालं वक्ष्यामि भरतर्षभ ॥ २३ ॥
अग्निर्ज्योतिरहः शुक्लः षण्मासा उत्तरायणम् ।
तत्र प्रयाता गच्छन्ति ब्रह्म ब्रह्मविदो जनाः ॥ २४ ॥
धूमो रात्रिस्तथा कृष्णः षण्मासा दक्षिणायनम् ।
तत्र चान्द्रमसं ज्योतिर्योगी प्राप्य निवर्तते ॥ २५ ॥
शुक्लकृष्णे गती ह्येते जगतः शाश्वते मते ।
एकया यात्यनावृत्तिमन्ययावर्तते पुनः ॥ २६ ॥

yatra kāle tv anāvṛttim āvṛttiṃ caiva yoginaḥ
prayātā yānti taṃ kālaṃ vakṣyāmi bharatarṣabha
agnir jyotir ahaḥ śuklaḥ ṣaṇmāsā uttarāyaṇam
tatra prayātā gacchanti brahma brahmavido janāḥ
dhūmo rātris tathā kṛṣṇaḥ ṣaṇmāsā dakṣiṇāyanam
tatra cāndramasaṃ jyotir yogī prāpya nivartate
śuklakṛṣṇe gatī hy ete jagataḥ śāśvate mate
ekayā yāty anāvṛttim anyayāvartate punaḥ

“Now I will tell you the times at which yogīs, going out, go to no return, and to return, bull of the Bhāratas. Fire, light, day, the bright half of the month, the six months of the sun’s northern course: going out then, the knowers of Brahman go to Brahman. Smoke, night, the dark half of the month, the six months of the southern course: going then, the yogī reaches the light of the moon and returns. These two ways of the world, the bright and the dark, are thought eternal; by one a person goes to no return, by the other returns again.

नैते सृती पार्थ जानन्योगी मुह्यति कश्चन ।
तस्मात्सर्वेषु कालेषु योगयुक्तो भवार्जुन ॥ २७ ॥
वेदेषु यज्ञेषु तपःसु चैव
दानेषु यत्पुण्यफलं प्रदिष्टम् ।
अत्येति तत्सर्वमिदं विदित्वा
योगी परं स्थानमुपैति चाद्यम् ॥ २८ ॥

naite sṛtī pārtha jānan yogī muhyati kaś cana
tasmāt sarveṣu kāleṣu yogayukto bhavārjuna
vedeṣu yajñeṣu tapaḥsu caiva
dāneṣu yat puṇyaphalaṃ pradiṣṭam
atyeti tat sarvam idaṃ viditvā
yogī paraṃ sthānam upaiti cādyam

“Knowing these two ways, Pārtha, no yogī is confused. So at all times be joined in yoga, Arjuna. Knowing this, the yogī goes beyond whatever good fruit is promised for the Vedas, for offerings, austerities and gifts, and reaches the highest, first place.”

श्रीभगवानुवाच —
इदं तु ते गुह्यतमं
प्रवक्ष्याम्यनसूयवे ।
ज्ञानं विज्ञानसहितं
यज्ज्ञात्वा मोक्ष्यसेऽशुभात् ॥ १ ॥
राजविद्या राजगुह्यं पवित्रमिदमुत्तमम् ।
प्रत्यक्षावगमं धर्म्यं सुसुखं कर्तुमव्ययम् ॥ २ ॥
अश्रद्दधानाः पुरुषा धर्मस्यास्य परन्तप ।
अप्राप्य मां निवर्तन्ते मृत्युसंसारवर्त्मनि ॥ ३ ॥

śrībhagavān uvāca
idaṃ tu te guhyatamaṃ pravakṣyāmy anasūyave
jñānaṃ vijñānasahitaṃ yaj jñātvā mokṣyase 'śubhāt
rājavidyā rājaguhyaṃ pavitram idam uttamam
pratyakṣāvagamaṃ dharmyaṃ susukhaṃ kartum avyayam
aśraddadhānāḥ puruṣā dharmasyāsya paraṃtapa
aprāpya māṃ nivartante mṛtyusaṃsāravartmani

The Blessed One said: “To you, who do not find fault, I will tell this most secret knowledge with its living understanding; knowing it, you will be freed from harm. It is the king of knowledge, the king of secrets, the highest purifier, seen directly, in keeping with dharma, joyful to practise, and it does not pass. People who have no faith in this dharma, scorcher of foes, do not reach me, and return to the road of death and birth.

मया ततमिदं सर्वं जगतदव्यक्तमूर्तिना ।
मत्स्थानि सर्वभूतानि न चाहं तेष्ववस्थितः ॥ ४ ॥
न च मत्स्थानि भूतानि पश्य मे योगमैश्वरम् ।
भूतभृन्न च भूतस्थो ममात्मा भूतभावनः ॥ ५ ॥
यथाकाशस्थितो नित्यं वायुः सर्वत्रगो महान् ।
तथा सर्वाणि भूतानि मत्स्थानीत्युपधारय ॥ ६ ॥

mayā tatam idaṃ sarvaṃ jagad avyaktamūrtinā
matsthāni sarvabhūtāni na cāhaṃ teṣv avasthitaḥ
na ca matsthāni bhūtāni paśya me yogam aiśvaram
bhūtabhṛn na ca bhūtastho mamātmā bhūtabhāvanaḥ
yathākāśasthito nityaṃ vāyuḥ sarvatrago mahān
tathā sarvāṇi bhūtāni matsthānīty upadhāraya

“All this world is pervaded by me in my unmanifest form. All beings rest in me, but I do not rest in them. And yet beings do not rest in me: see my sovereign yoga. My self holds beings and brings them forth, and does not dwell in them. As the great wind, moving everywhere, always rests in space, so know that all beings rest in me.

सर्वभूतानि कौन्तेय प्रकृतिं यान्ति मामिकाम् ।
कल्पक्षये पुनस्तानि कल्पादौ विसृजाम्यहम् ॥ ७ ॥
प्रकृतिं स्वामवष्टभ्य विसृजामि पुनः पुनः ।
भूतग्राममिमं कृत्स्नमवशं प्रकृतेर्वशात् ॥ ८ ॥
न च मां तानि कर्माणि निबध्नन्ति धनञ्जय ।
उदासीनवदासीनमसक्तं तेषु कर्मसु ॥ ९ ॥
मयाध्यक्षेण प्रकृतिः सूयते सचराचरम् ।
हेतुनानेन कौन्तेय जगद्विपरिवर्तते ॥ १० ॥

sarvabhūtāni kaunteya prakṛtiṃ yānti māmikām
kalpakṣaye punas tāni kalpādau visṛjāmy aham
prakṛtiṃ svām avaṣṭabhya visṛjāmi punaḥ punaḥ
bhūtagrāmam imaṃ kṛtsnam avaśaṃ prakṛter vaśāt
na ca māṃ tāni karmāṇi nibadhnanti dhanaṃjaya
udāsīnavad āsīnam asaktaṃ teṣu karmasu
mayādhyakṣeṇa prakṛtiḥ sūyate sacarācaram
hetunānena kaunteya jagad viparivartate

“At the end of an age, son of Kuntī, all beings go into my nature; at the beginning of an age I send them forth again. Resting on my own nature, I send forth again and again this whole host of beings, helpless under the power of nature. These acts do not bind me, Dhanañjaya; I sit as if indifferent, not clinging to these acts. With me as the one who watches over it, nature gives birth to the moving and the unmoving; because of this the world turns.

अवजानन्ति मां मूढा मानुषीं तनुमाश्रितम् ।
परं भावमजानन्तो मम भूतमहेश्वरम् ॥ ११ ॥
मोघाशा मोघकर्माणो मोघज्ञाना विचेतसः ।
राक्षसीमासुरीं चैव प्रकृतिं मोहिनीं श्रिताः ॥ १२ ॥

avajānanti māṃ mūḍhā mānuṣīṃ tanum āśritam
paraṃ bhāvam ajānanto mama bhūtamaheśvaram
moghāśā moghakarmāṇo moghajñānā vicetasaḥ
rākṣasīm āsurīṃ caiva prakṛtiṃ mohinīṃ śritāḥ

“The bewildered look down on me when I have taken a human body, not knowing my higher being as the great lord of beings. Their hopes are empty, their actions empty, their knowledge empty; without understanding, they take on the bewildering nature of rākṣasas and asuras.

महात्मानस्तु मां पार्थ दैवीं प्रकृतिमाश्रिताः ।
भजन्त्यनन्यमनसो ज्ञात्वा भूतादिमव्ययम् ॥ १३ ॥
सततं कीर्तयन्तो मां यतन्तश्च दृढव्रताः ।
नमस्यन्तश्च मां भक्त्या नित्ययुक्ता उपासते ॥ १४ ॥
ज्ञानयज्ञेन चाप्यन्ये यजन्तो मामुपासते ।
एकत्वेन पृथक्त्वेन बहुधा विश्वतोमुखम् ॥ १५ ॥

mahātmānas tu māṃ pārtha daivīṃ prakṛtim āśritāḥ
bhajanty ananyamanaso jñātvā bhūtādim avyayam
satataṃ kīrtayanto māṃ yatantaś ca dṛḍhavratāḥ
namasyantaś ca māṃ bhaktyā nityayuktā upāsate
jñānayajñena cāpy anye yajanto mām upāsate
ekatvena pṛthaktvena bahudhā viśvatomukham

“But the great-souled, Pārtha, taking on the divine nature, worship me with minds turned nowhere else, knowing me as the source of beings that does not pass. Always singing of me, striving, firm in their vows, bowing to me in love, always joined, they worship me. Others, offering the offering of knowledge, worship me as one, as many, as facing everywhere.

अहं क्रतुरहं यज्ञः स्वधाहमहमौषधम् ।
मन्त्रोऽहमहमेवाज्यमहमग्निरहं हुतम् ॥ १६ ॥
पिताहमस्य जगतो माता धाता पितामहः ।
वेद्यं पवित्रमोङ्कार ऋक्साम यजुरेव च ॥ १७ ॥
गतिर्भर्ता प्रभुः साक्षी निवासः शरणं सुहृत् ।
प्रभवः प्रलयः स्थानं निधानं बीजमव्ययम् ॥ १८ ॥
तपाम्यहमहं वर्षं निगृह्णाम्युत्सृजामि च ।
अमृतं चैव मृत्युश्च सदसच्चाहमर्जुन ॥ १९ ॥

ahaṃ kratur ahaṃ yajñaḥ svadhāham aham auṣadham
mantro 'ham aham evājyam aham agnir ahaṃ hutam
pitāham asya jagato mātā dhātā pitāmahaḥ
vedyaṃ pavitram oṃkāra ṛk sāma yajur eva ca
gatir bhartā prabhuḥ sākṣī nivāsaḥ śaraṇaṃ suhṛt
prabhavaḥ pralayaḥ sthānaṃ nidhānaṃ bījam avyayam
tapāmy aham ahaṃ varṣaṃ nigṛhṇāmy utsṛjāmi ca
amṛtaṃ caiva mṛtyuś ca sad asac cāham arjuna

“I am the rite, I am the offering, I am the gift to the ancestors, I am the healing herb; I am the sacred word, I am the butter, I am the fire, and I am the pouring. I am the father of this world, the mother, the one who sets it in place, the grandsire; what is to be known, the purifier, the syllable Om, and the three Vedas. The goal, the one who sustains, the lord, the witness, the home, the refuge, the friend; the origin and the dissolving, the ground, the treasure-house, the seed that does not pass. I give heat; I hold back the rain and send it; I am deathlessness and death, being and non-being, Arjuna.

त्रैविद्या मां सोमपाः पूतपापा यज्ञैरिष्ट्वा स्वर्गतिं प्रार्थयन्ते ।
ते पुण्यमासाद्य सुरेन्द्रलोकमश्नन्ति दिव्यान्दिवि देवभोगान् ॥ २० ॥
ते तं भुक्त्वा स्वर्गलोकं विशालं
क्षीणे पुण्ये मर्त्यलोकं विशन्ति ।
एवं त्रयीधर्ममनुप्रपन्ना
गतागतं कामकामा लभन्ते ॥ २१ ॥

traividyā māṃ somapāḥ pūtapāpā
yajñair iṣṭvā svargatiṃ prārthayante
te puṇyam āsādya surendralokam
aśnanti divyān divi devabhogān
te taṃ bhuktvā svargalokaṃ viśālaṃ
kṣīṇe puṇye martyalokaṃ viśanti
evaṃ trayīdharmam anuprapannā
gatāgataṃ kāmakāmā labhante

“Those who know the three Vedas, who drink the soma and are cleansed of wrong, worship me with offerings and pray for the way to heaven. Reaching the pure world of the lord of the gods, they enjoy the gods’ delights in heaven. Having enjoyed that wide heaven, their merit spent, they enter the world of mortals. So, following the threefold dharma, wanting what they want, they come and go.

अनन्याश्चिन्तयन्तो मां
ये जनाः पर्युपासते ।
तेषां नित्याभियुक्तानां
योगक्षेमं वहाम्यहम् ॥ २२ ॥

ananyāś cintayanto māṃ ye janāḥ paryupāsate
teṣāṃ nityābhiyuktānāṃ yogakṣemaṃ vahāmy aham

“Those who, thinking of nothing else, worship me and are always joined to me, I carry what they need and keep what they have.

येऽप्यन्यदेवताभक्ता
यजन्ते श्रद्धयान्विताः ।
तेऽपि मामेव कौन्तेय
यजन्त्यविधिपूर्वकम् ॥ २३ ॥
अहं हि सर्वयज्ञानां
भोक्ता च प्रभुरेव च ।
न तु मामभिजानन्ति
तत्त्वेनातश्च्यवन्ति ते ॥ २४ ॥
यान्ति देवव्रता देवान्पितॄन्यान्ति पितृव्रताः ।
भूतानि यान्ति भूतेज्या यान्ति मद्याजिनोऽपि माम् ॥ २५ ॥

ye 'py anyadevatā bhaktā yajante śraddhayānvitāḥ
te 'pi mām eva kaunteya yajanty avidhipūrvakam
ahaṃ hi sarvayajñānāṃ bhoktā ca prabhur eva ca
na tu mām abhijānanti tattvenātaś cyavanti te
yānti devavratā devān pitṝn yānti pitṛvratāḥ
bhūtāni yānti bhūtejyā yānti madyājino 'pi mām

“Even those devoted to other gods, who worship with faith, worship me alone, son of Kuntī, though not by the rule. For I am the enjoyer and the lord of all offerings; but they do not know me as I am, and so they fall. Those devoted to the gods go to the gods; to the ancestors, to the ancestors; to the spirits, to the spirits; and those who worship me come to me.

पत्रं पुष्पं फलं तोयं यो मे भक्त्या प्रयच्छति ।
तदहं भक्त्युपहृतमश्नामि प्रयतात्मनः ॥ २६ ॥

patraṃ puṣpaṃ phalaṃ toyaṃ yo me bhaktyā prayacchati
tad ahaṃ bhaktyupahṛtam aśnāmi prayatātmanaḥ

“Whoever offers me in love a leaf, a flower, a fruit, water, that offering of love from a pure heart I accept.

यत्करोषि यदश्नासि
यज्जुहोषि ददासि यत् ।
यत्तपस्यसि कौन्तेय
तत्कुरुष्व मदर्पणम् ॥ २७ ॥
शुभाशुभफलैरेवं
मोक्ष्यसे कर्मबन्धनैः ।
संन्यासयोगयुक्तात्मा
विमुक्तो मामुपैष्यसि ॥ २८ ॥

yat karoṣi yad aśnāsi yaj juhoṣi dadāsi yat
yat tapasyasi kaunteya tat kuruṣva madarpaṇam
śubhāśubhaphalair evaṃ mokṣyase karmabandhanaiḥ
saṃnyāsayogayuktātmā vimukto mām upaiṣyasi

“Whatever you do, whatever you eat, whatever you offer, whatever you give, whatever discipline you keep, son of Kuntī, do it as an offering to me. So you will be freed from the bonds of action, with their good fruits and bad; with a self joined in the yoga of giving up, freed, you will come to me.

समोऽहं सर्वभूतेषु
न मे द्वेष्योऽस्ति न प्रियः ।
ये भजन्ति तु मां भक्त्या
मयि ते तेषु चाप्यहम् ॥ २९ ॥

samo 'haṃ sarvabhūteṣu na me dveṣyo 'sti na priyaḥ
ye bhajanti tu māṃ bhaktyā mayi te teṣu cāpy aham

“I am the same to all beings. No one is hateful to me, and no one is dear. But those who worship me with love are in me, and I am in them.

अपि चेत्सुदुराचारो
भजते मामनन्यभाक् ।
साधुरेव स मन्तव्यः
सम्यग्व्यवसितो हि सः ॥ ३० ॥
क्षिप्रं भवति धर्मात्मा
शश्वच्छान्तिं निगच्छति ।
कौन्तेय प्रतिजानीहि
न मे भक्तः प्रणश्यति ॥ ३१ ॥

api cet sudurācāro bhajate mām ananyabhāk
sādhur eva sa mantavyaḥ samyag vyavasito hi saḥ
kṣipraṃ bhavati dharmātmā śaśvacchāntiṃ nigacchati
kaunteya pratijānīhi na me bhaktaḥ praṇaśyati

“Even if someone of very bad conduct worships me with love that turns nowhere else, he must be thought good, for he has resolved rightly. He soon becomes one whose self is dharma, and reaches lasting peace. Son of Kuntī, declare it: my devotee does not perish.

मां हि पार्थ व्यपाश्रित्य येऽपि स्युः पापयोनयः ।
स्त्रियो वैश्यास्तथा शूद्रास्तेऽपि यान्ति परां गतिम् ॥ ३२ ॥
किं पुनर्ब्राह्मणाः पुण्या भक्ता राजर्षयस्तथा ।
अनित्यमसुखं लोकमिमं प्राप्य भजस्व माम् ॥ ३३ ॥

māṃ hi pārtha vyapāśritya ye 'pi syuḥ pāpayonayaḥ
striyo vaiśyās tathā śūdrās te 'pi yānti parāṃ gatim
kiṃ punar brāhmaṇāḥ puṇyā bhaktā rājarṣayas tathā
anityam asukhaṃ lokam imaṃ prāpya bhajasva mām

“Those who take refuge in me, Pārtha, even those of lowly birth, women, vaiśyas and śūdras, they too reach the highest way. How much more, then, the pure brāhmaṇas and the devoted royal seers. Having come into this passing and joyless world, worship me.

मन्मना भव मद्भक्तो मद्याजी मां नमस्कुरु ।
मामेवैष्यसि युक्त्वैवमात्मानं मत्परायणः ॥ ३४ ॥

manmanā bhava madbhakto madyājī māṃ namaskuru
mām evaiṣyasi yuktvaivam ātmānaṃ matparāyaṇaḥ

“Let your mind be on me, be devoted to me, offer to me, bow to me. Joined in this way, with me as your aim, you will come to me.”

श्रीभगवानुवाच —
भूय एव महाबाहो शृणु मे परमं वचः ।
यत्तेऽहं प्रीयमाणाय वक्ष्यामि हितकाम्यया ॥ १ ॥
न मे विदुः सुरगणाः प्रभवं न महर्षयः ।
अहमादिर्हि देवानां महर्षीणां च सर्वशः ॥ २ ॥
यो मामजमनादिं च वेत्ति लोकमहेश्वरम् ।
असंमूढः स मर्त्येषु सर्वपापैः प्रमुच्यते ॥ ३ ॥

śrībhagavān uvāca
bhūya eva mahābāho śṛṇu me paramaṃ vacaḥ
yat te 'haṃ prīyamāṇāya vakṣyāmi hitakāmyayā
na me viduḥ suragaṇāḥ prabhavaṃ na maharṣayaḥ
aham ādir hi devānāṃ maharṣīṇāṃ ca sarvaśaḥ
yo mām ajam anādiṃ ca vetti lokamaheśvaram
asaṃmūḍhaḥ sa martyeṣu sarvapāpaiḥ pramucyate

The Blessed One said: “Hear again, mighty-armed, my highest word, which I tell you, who delight in it, wishing for your good. Neither the hosts of gods nor the great seers know my origin; for in every way I am the beginning of the gods and the seers. Whoever knows me as unborn, without beginning, great lord of the worlds, is not bewildered among mortals, and is freed from all wrong.

बुद्धिर्ज्ञानमसंमोहः क्षमा सत्यं दमः शमः ।
सुखं दुःखं भवोऽभावो भयं चाभयमेव च ॥ ४ ॥
अहिंसा समता तुष्टिस्तपो दानं यशोऽयशः ।
भवन्ति भावा भूतानां मत्त एव पृथग्विधाः ॥ ५ ॥

buddhir jñānam asaṃmohaḥ kṣamā satyaṃ damaḥ śamaḥ
sukhaṃ duḥkhaṃ bhavo 'bhāvo bhayaṃ cābhayam eva ca
ahiṃsā samatā tuṣṭis tapo dānaṃ yaśo 'yaśaḥ
bhavanti bhāvā bhūtānāṃ matta eva pṛthagvidhāḥ

“Understanding, knowledge, freedom from bewilderment, patience, truth, restraint, calm; pleasure and pain, being and not being, fear and fearlessness; not harming, sameness, contentment, austerity, giving, fame and disgrace: these many states of beings come from me alone.

महर्षयः सप्त पूर्वे चत्वारो मनवस्तथा ।
मद्भावा मानसा जाता येषां लोक इमाः प्रजाः ॥ ६ ॥
एतां विभूतिं योगं च मम यो वेत्ति तत्त्वतः ।
सोऽविकम्पेन योगेन युज्यते नात्र संशयः ॥ ७ ॥

maharṣayaḥ sapta pūrve catvāro manavas tathā
madbhāvā mānasā jātā yeṣāṃ loka imāḥ prajāḥ
etāṃ vibhūtiṃ yogaṃ ca mama yo vetti tattvataḥ
so 'vikampena yogena yujyate nātra saṃśayaḥ

“The seven great seers of old, and the four Manus, from whom these creatures of the world are born, were born of my mind and share my being. Whoever knows this glory and this yoga of mine as it is, is joined in yoga that does not waver; there is no doubt.

अहं सर्वस्य प्रभवो मत्तः सर्वं प्रवर्तते ।
इति मत्वा भजन्ते मां बुधा भावसमन्विताः ॥ ८ ॥
मच्चित्ता मद्गतप्राणा बोधयन्तः परस्परम् ।
कथयन्तश्च मां नित्यं तुष्यन्ति च रमन्ति च ॥ ९ ॥
तेषां सततयुक्तानां भजतां प्रीतिपूर्वकम् ।
ददामि बुद्धियोगं तं येन मामुपयान्ति ते ॥ १० ॥
तेषामेवानुकम्पार्थमहमज्ञानजं तमः ।
नाशयाम्यात्मभावस्थो ज्ञानदीपेन भास्वता ॥ ११ ॥

ahaṃ sarvasya prabhavo mattaḥ sarvaṃ pravartate
iti matvā bhajante māṃ budhā bhāvasamanvitāḥ
maccittā madgataprāṇā bodhayantaḥ parasparam
kathayantaś ca māṃ nityaṃ tuṣyanti ca ramanti ca
teṣāṃ satatayuktānāṃ bhajatāṃ prītipūrvakam
dadāmi buddhiyogaṃ taṃ yena mām upayānti te
teṣām evānukampārtham aham ajñānajaṃ tamaḥ
nāśayāmy ātmabhāvastho jñānadīpena bhāsvatā

“I am the source of all; from me all comes forth. Knowing this, the wise worship me, full of feeling. Their minds on me, their lives given to me, waking one another, always speaking of me, they are content and delight. To those always joined, who worship me with love, I give the yoga of understanding by which they come to me. Out of compassion for them, dwelling in their own being, I destroy the darkness born of not knowing with the shining lamp of knowledge.

अर्जुन उवाच —
परं ब्रह्म परं धाम पवित्रं परमं भवान् ।
पुरुषं शाश्वतं दिव्यमादिदेवमजं विभुम् ॥ १२ ॥
आहुस्त्वामृषयः सर्वे देवर्षिर्नारदस्तथा ।
असितो देवलो व्यासः स्वयं चैव ब्रवीषि मे ॥ १३ ॥
सर्वमेतदृतं मन्ये यन्मां वदसि केशव ।
न हि ते भगवन्व्यक्तिं विदुर्देवा न दानवाः ॥ १४ ॥
स्वयमेवात्मनात्मानं वेत्थ त्वं पुरुषोत्तम ।
भूतभावन भूतेश देवदेव जगत्पते ॥ १५ ॥

arjuna uvāca
paraṃ brahma paraṃ dhāma pavitraṃ paramaṃ bhavān
puruṣaṃ śāśvataṃ divyam ādidevam ajaṃ vibhum
āhus tvām ṛṣayaḥ sarve devarṣir nāradas tathā
asito devalo vyāsaḥ svayaṃ caiva bravīṣi me
sarvam etad ṛtaṃ manye yan māṃ vadasi keśava
na hi te bhagavan vyaktiṃ vidur devā na dānavāḥ
svayam evātmanātmānaṃ vettha tvaṃ puruṣottama
bhūtabhāvana bhūteśa devadeva jagatpate

Arjuna said: “You are the highest Brahman, the highest home, the highest purifier, the eternal divine Person, the first god, unborn, all-pervading. All the seers say this of you, the divine seer Nārada too, Asita, Devala and Vyāsa; and you yourself tell me so. All that you tell me I take as true, Keśava. Neither gods nor demons know your manifestation, Lord. You alone know yourself by yourself, highest Person, source of beings, lord of beings, god of gods, master of the world.

वक्तुमर्हस्यशेषेण दिव्या ह्यात्मविभूतयः ।
याभिर्विभूतिभिर्लोकानिमांस्त्वं व्याप्य तिष्ठसि ॥ १६ ॥
कथं विद्यामहं योगिंस्त्वां सदा परिचिन्तयन् ।
केषु केषु च भावेषु चिन्त्योऽसि भगवन्मया ॥ १७ ॥
विस्तरेणात्मनो योगं विभूतिं च जनार्दन ।
भूयः कथय तृप्तिर्हि शृण्वतो नास्ति मेऽमृतम् ॥ १८ ॥

vaktum arhasy aśeṣeṇa divyā hy ātmavibhūtayaḥ
yābhir vibhūtibhir lokān imāṃs tvaṃ vyāpya tiṣṭhasi
kathaṃ vidyām ahaṃ yogiṃs tvāṃ sadā paricintayan
keṣu keṣu ca bhāveṣu cintyo 'si bhagavan mayā
vistareṇātmano yogaṃ vibhūtiṃ ca janārdana
bhūyaḥ kathaya tṛptir hi śṛṇvato nāsti me 'mṛtam

“Tell me fully, without leaving anything out, your divine glories, by which you pervade these worlds and stay in them. How may I know you, yogī, always thinking of you? In what forms of being should I think of you, Lord? Tell me again, in full, your yoga and your glory, Janārdana. I am never satisfied hearing your nectar.”

श्रीभगवानुवाच —
हन्त ते कथयिष्यामि दिव्या ह्यात्मविभूतयः ।
प्राधान्यतः कुरुश्रेष्ठ नास्त्यन्तो विस्तरस्य मे ॥ १९ ॥
अहमात्मा गुडाकेश सर्वभूताशयस्थितः ।
अहमादिश्च मध्यं च भूतानामन्त एव च ॥ २० ॥

śrībhagavān uvāca
hanta te kathayiṣyāmi divyā hy ātmavibhūtayaḥ
prādhānyataḥ kuruśreṣṭha nāsty anto vistarasya me
aham ātmā guḍākeśa sarvabhūtāśayasthitaḥ
aham ādiś ca madhyaṃ ca bhūtānām anta eva ca

The Blessed One said: “Yes, I will tell you my divine glories, but only the chief ones, best of the Kurus, for there is no end to my extent. I am the self that dwells in the heart of all beings, Guḍākeśa. I am the beginning, the middle and the end of beings.

आदित्यानामहं विष्णुर्ज्योतिषां रविरंशुमान् ।
मरीचिर्मरुतामस्मि नक्षत्राणामहं शशी ॥ २१ ॥
वेदानां सामवेदोऽस्मि देवानामस्मि वासवः ।
इन्द्रियाणां मनश्चास्मि भूतानामस्मि चेतना ॥ २२ ॥
रुद्राणां शङ्करश्चास्मि वित्तेशो यक्षरक्षसाम् ।
वसूनां पावकश्चास्मि मेरुः शिखरिणामहम् ॥ २३ ॥
पुरोधसां च मुख्यं मां विद्धि पार्थ बृहस्पतिम् ।
सेनानीनामहं स्कन्दः सरसामस्मि सागरः ॥ २४ ॥

ādityānām ahaṃ viṣṇur jyotiṣāṃ ravir aṃśumān
marīcir marutām asmi nakṣatrāṇām ahaṃ śaśī
vedānāṃ sāmavedo 'smi devānām asmi vāsavaḥ
indriyāṇāṃ manaś cāsmi bhūtānām asmi cetanā
rudrāṇāṃ śaṃkaraś cāsmi vitteśo yakṣarakṣasām
vasūnāṃ pāvakaś cāsmi meruḥ śikhariṇām aham
purodhasāṃ ca mukhyaṃ māṃ viddhi pārtha bṛhaspatim
senānīnām ahaṃ skandaḥ sarasām asmi sāgaraḥ

“Of the Ādityas I am Viṣṇu; of lights, the radiant sun; of the Maruts I am Marīci; among the stars, the moon. Of the Vedas I am the Sāma Veda; of the gods, Indra; of the senses, the mind; in beings, I am awareness. Of the Rudras I am Śaṅkara; of the yakṣas and rākṣasas, the lord of wealth; of the Vasus I am fire; of mountains, Meru. Know me, Pārtha, as the chief of household priests, Bṛhaspati; of generals I am Skanda; of waters, the ocean.

महर्षीणां भृगुरहं गिरामस्म्येकमक्षरम् ।
यज्ञानां जपयज्ञोऽस्मि स्थावराणां हिमालयः ॥ २५ ॥
अश्वत्थः सर्ववृक्षाणां देवर्षीणां च नारदः ।
गन्धर्वाणां चित्ररथः सिद्धानां कपिलो मुनिः ॥ २६ ॥
उच्चैःश्रवसमश्वानां विद्धि माममृतोद्भवम् ।
ऐरावतं गजेन्द्राणां नराणां च नराधिपम् ॥ २७ ॥
आयुधानामहं वज्रं धेनूनामस्मि कामधुक् ।
प्रजनश्चास्मि कन्दर्पः सर्पाणामस्मि वासुकिः ॥ २८ ॥

maharṣīṇāṃ bhṛgur ahaṃ girām asmy ekam akṣaram
yajñānāṃ japayajño 'smi sthāvarāṇāṃ himālayaḥ
aśvatthaḥ sarvavṛkṣāṇāṃ devarṣīṇāṃ ca nāradaḥ
gandharvāṇāṃ citrarathaḥ siddhānāṃ kapilo muniḥ
uccaiḥśravasam aśvānāṃ viddhi mām amṛtodbhavam
airāvataṃ gajendrāṇāṃ narāṇāṃ ca narādhipam
āyudhānām ahaṃ vajraṃ dhenūnām asmi kāmadhuk
prajanaś cāsmi kandarpaḥ sarpāṇām asmi vāsukiḥ

“Of the great seers I am Bhṛgu; of words, the one syllable; of offerings, the offering of quiet repetition; of what does not move, the Himālaya. Of all trees, the aśvattha; of divine seers, Nārada; of gandharvas, Citraratha; of the perfected, the sage Kapila. Among horses, know me as Uccaiḥśravas, born of the nectar; among lordly elephants, Airāvata; among men, the king. Of weapons I am the thunderbolt; of cows, the wish-giving cow; I am the god of love who brings forth life; of serpents, Vāsuki.

अनन्तश्चास्मि नागानां वरुणो यादसामहम् ।
पितॄणामर्यमा चास्मि यमः संयमतामहम् ॥ २९ ॥
प्रह्लादश्चास्मि दैत्यानां कालः कलयतामहम् ।
मृगाणां च मृगेन्द्रोऽहं वैनतेयश्च पक्षिणाम् ॥ ३० ॥
पवनः पवतामस्मि रामः शस्त्रभृतामहम् ।
झषाणां मकरश्चास्मि स्रोतसामस्मि जाह्नवी ॥ ३१ ॥

anantaś cāsmi nāgānāṃ varuṇo yādasām aham
pitṝṇām aryamā cāsmi yamaḥ saṃyamatām aham
prahlādaś cāsmi daityānāṃ kālaḥ kalayatām aham
mṛgāṇāṃ ca mṛgendro 'haṃ vainateyaś ca pakṣiṇām
pavanaḥ pavatām asmi rāmaḥ śastrabhṛtām aham
jhaṣāṇāṃ makaraś cāsmi srotasām asmi jāhnavī

“Of the nāgas I am Ananta; of beings of the water, Varuṇa; of the ancestors, Aryaman; of those who restrain, Yama. Of the daityas I am Prahlāda; of those who count, Time; of beasts, the lion; of birds, Garuḍa. Of purifiers I am the wind; of those who bear weapons, Rāma; of the creatures of the sea, the makara; of rivers, the Gaṅgā.

सर्गाणामादिरन्तश्च मध्यं चैवाहमर्जुन ।
अध्यात्मविद्या विद्यानां वादः प्रवदतामहम् ॥ ३२ ॥
अक्षराणामकारोऽस्मि
द्वन्द्वः सामासिकस्य च ।
अहमेवाक्षयः कालो
धाताहं विश्वतोमुखः ॥ ३३ ॥
मृत्युः सर्वहरश्चाहमुद्भवश्च भविष्यताम् ।
कीर्तिः श्रीर्वाक्च नारीणां स्मृतिर्मेधा धृतिः क्षमा ॥ ३४ ॥
बृहत्साम तथा साम्नां गायत्री च्छन्दसामहम् ।
मासानां मार्गशीर्षोऽहमृतूनां कुसुमाकरः ॥ ३५ ॥

sargāṇām ādir antaś ca madhyaṃ caivāham arjuna
adhyātmavidyā vidyānāṃ vādaḥ pravadatām aham
akṣarāṇām akāro 'smi dvaṃdvaḥ sāmāsikasya ca
aham evākṣayaḥ kālo dhātāhaṃ viśvatomukhaḥ
mṛtyuḥ sarvaharaś cāham udbhavaś ca bhaviṣyatām
kīrtiḥ śrīr vāk ca nārīṇāṃ smṛtir medhā dhṛtiḥ kṣamā
bṛhatsāma tathā sāmnāṃ gāyatrī chandasām aham
māsānāṃ mārgaśīrṣo 'ham ṛtūnāṃ kusumākaraḥ

“Of creations I am the beginning, the end and the middle, Arjuna; of knowledge, the knowledge of the self; of those who speak, I am the reasoning that seeks the truth. Of letters I am the letter A; of compounds, the joining of equals; I am also unending Time; I am the one who sets in place, facing every way. I am all-seizing death, and the source of all that is to come; among the powers spoken of as feminine, I am fame, fortune, speech, memory, understanding, steadiness and patience. Of chants I am the Bṛhat Sāman; of metres, the Gāyatrī; of months, Mārgaśīrṣa; of seasons, the flowering spring.

द्यूतं छलयतामस्मि
तेजस्तेजस्विनामहम् ।
जयोऽस्मि व्यवसायोऽस्मि
सत्त्वं सत्त्ववतामहम् ॥ ३६ ॥
वृष्णीनां वासुदेवोऽस्मि
पाण्डवानां धनञ्जयः ।
मुनीनामप्यहं व्यासः
कवीनामुशना कविः ॥ ३७ ॥
दण्डो दमयतामस्मि
नीतिरस्मि जिगीषताम् ।
मौनं चैवास्मि गुह्यानां
ज्ञानं ज्ञानवतामहम् ॥ ३८ ॥

dyūtaṃ chalayatām asmi tejas tejasvinām aham
jayo 'smi vyavasāyo 'smi sattvaṃ sattvavatām aham
vṛṣṇīnāṃ vāsudevo 'smi pāṇḍavānāṃ dhanaṃjayaḥ
munīnām apy ahaṃ vyāsaḥ kavīnām uśanā kaviḥ
daṇḍo damayatām asmi nītir asmi jigīṣatām
maunaṃ caivāsmi guhyānāṃ jñānaṃ jñānavatām aham

“Of those who deceive I am the dice; I am the brilliance of the brilliant; I am victory, I am resolve, I am the goodness of the good. Of the Vṛṣṇis I am Vāsudeva; of the Pāṇḍavas, Dhanañjaya; of sages I am Vyāsa; of poets, the poet Uśanā. Of those who govern I am the rod; of those who seek victory, wise conduct; of secrets, I am silence; and the knowledge of those who know.

यच्चापि सर्वभूतानां बीजं तदहमर्जुन ।
न तदस्ति विना यत्स्यान्मया भूतं चराचरम् ॥ ३९ ॥
नान्तोऽस्ति मम दिव्यानां
विभूतीनां परन्तप ।
एष तूद्देशतः प्रोक्तो
विभूतेर्विस्तरो मया ॥ ४० ॥
यद्यद्विभूतिमत्सत्त्वं श्रीमदूर्जितमेव वा ।
तत्तदेवावगच्छ त्वं मम तेजोंशसम्भवम् ॥ ४१ ॥
अथवा बहुनैतेन किं ज्ञातेन तवार्जुन ।
विष्टभ्याहमिदं कृत्स्नमेकांशेन स्थितो जगत् ॥ ४२ ॥

yac cāpi sarvabhūtānāṃ bījaṃ tad aham arjuna
na tad asti vinā yat syān mayā bhūtaṃ carācaram
nānto 'sti mama divyānāṃ vibhūtīnāṃ paraṃtapa
eṣa tūddeśataḥ prokto vibhūter vistaro mayā
yad yad vibhūtimat sattvaṃ śrīmad ūrjitam eva vā
tat tad evāvagaccha tvaṃ mama tejoṃśasaṃbhavam
atha vā bahunaitena kiṃ jñātena tavārjuna
viṣṭabhyāham idaṃ kṛtsnam ekāṃśena sthito jagat

“Whatever is the seed of all beings, that I am, Arjuna. There is no being, moving or unmoving, that could exist without me. There is no end to my divine glories, scorcher of foes; what I have told you is only an example of their extent. Whatever being has glory, beauty or strength, know that it has sprung from a spark of my splendour. But what is all this detailed knowing to you, Arjuna? I stand, holding this whole world with a single fragment of myself.”

अर्जुन उवाच —
मदनुग्रहाय परमं गुह्यमध्यात्मसंज्ञितम् ।
यत्त्वयोक्तं वचस्तेन मोहोऽयं विगतो मम ॥ १ ॥
भवाप्ययौ हि भूतानां श्रुतौ विस्तरशो मया ।
त्वत्तः कमलपत्राक्ष माहात्म्यमपि चाव्ययम् ॥ २ ॥
एवमेतद्यथात्थ त्वमात्मानं परमेश्वर ।
द्रष्टुमिच्छामि ते रूपमैश्वरं पुरुषोत्तम ॥ ३ ॥
मन्यसे यदि तच्छक्यं मया द्रष्टुमिति प्रभो ।
योगेश्वर ततो मे त्वं दर्शयात्मानमव्ययम् ॥ ४ ॥

arjuna uvāca
madanugrahāya paramaṃ guhyam adhyātmasaṃjñitam
yat tvayoktaṃ vacas tena moho 'yaṃ vigato mama
bhavāpyayau hi bhūtānāṃ śrutau vistaraśo mayā
tvattaḥ kamalapatrākṣa māhātmyam api cāvyayam
evam etad yathāttha tvam ātmānaṃ parameśvara
draṣṭum icchāmi te rūpam aiśvaraṃ puruṣottama
manyase yadi tac chakyaṃ mayā draṣṭum iti prabho
yogeśvara tato me tvaṃ darśayātmānam avyayam

Arjuna said: “Out of kindness to me you have spoken the highest secret, about the self, and by it this bewilderment of mine is gone. I have heard from you in full of the coming and going of beings, lotus-eyed one, and of your greatness that does not pass. It is just as you say of yourself, highest lord. Still, I want to see your form as lord of all, highest Person. If you think I am able to see it, Lord, master of yoga, then show me your self that does not pass.”

श्रीभगवानुवाच —
पश्य मे पार्थ रूपाणि शतशोऽथ सहस्रशः ।
नानाविधानि दिव्यानि नानावर्णाकृतीनि च ॥ ५ ॥
पश्यादित्यान्वसून्रुद्रानश्विनौ मरुतस्तथा ।
बहून्यदृष्टपूर्वाणि पश्याश्चर्याणि भारत ॥ ६ ॥
इहैकस्थं जगत्कृत्स्नं पश्याद्य सचराचरम् ।
मम देहे गुडाकेश यच्चान्यद्द्रष्टुमिच्छसि ॥ ७ ॥
न तु मां शक्यसे द्रष्टुमनेनैव स्वचक्षुषा ।
दिव्यं ददामि ते चक्षुः पश्य मे योगमैश्वरम् ॥ ८ ॥

śrībhagavān uvāca
paśya me pārtha rūpāṇi śataśo 'tha sahasraśaḥ
nānāvidhāni divyāni nānāvarṇākṛtīni ca
paśyādityān vasūn rudrān aśvinau marutas tathā
bahūny adṛṣṭapūrvāṇi paśyāścaryāṇi bhārata
ihaikasthaṃ jagat kṛtsnaṃ paśyādya sacarācaram
mama dehe guḍākeśa yac cānyad draṣṭum icchasi
na tu māṃ śakyase draṣṭum anenaiva svacakṣuṣā
divyaṃ dadāmi te cakṣuḥ paśya me yogam aiśvaram

The Blessed One said: “See, Pārtha, my forms, by hundreds and by thousands, of many kinds, divine, of many colours and shapes. See the Ādityas, the Vasus, the Rudras, the two Aśvins and the Maruts; see many wonders never seen before, Bhārata. See here today the whole world, moving and unmoving, standing as one in my body, Guḍākeśa, and whatever else you wish to see. But you cannot see me with these eyes of yours. I give you a divine eye. See my yoga as lord of all.”

सञ्जय उवाच —
एवमुक्त्वा ततो राजन्महायोगेश्वरो हरिः ।
दर्शयामास पार्थाय परमं रूपमैश्वरम् ॥ ९ ॥
अनेकवक्त्रनयनमनेकाद्भुतदर्शनम् ।
अनेकदिव्याभरणं दिव्यानेकोद्यतायुधम् ॥ १० ॥
दिव्यमाल्याम्बरधरं दिव्यगन्धानुलेपनम् ।
सर्वाश्चर्यमयं देवमनन्तं विश्वतोमुखम् ॥ ११ ॥

saṃjaya uvāca
evam uktvā tato rājan mahāyogeśvaro hariḥ
darśayām āsa pārthāya paramaṃ rūpam aiśvaram
anekavaktranayanam anekādbhutadarśanam
anekadivyābharaṇaṃ divyānekodyatāyudham
divyamālyāmbaradharaṃ divyagandhānulepanam
sarvāścaryamayaṃ devam anantaṃ viśvatomukham

Sañjaya said: Having spoken so, O king, Hari, the great lord of yoga, showed Pārtha his highest form as lord of all: with countless mouths and eyes, countless wondrous sights, countless divine ornaments, countless divine weapons raised; wearing divine garlands and garments, anointed with divine fragrance, all wonder, the endless god facing every way.

दिवि सूर्यसहस्रस्य भवेद्युगपदुत्थिता ।
यदि भाः सदृशी सा स्याद्भासस्तस्य महात्मनः ॥ १२ ॥

divi sūryasahasrasya bhaved yugapad utthitā
yadi bhāḥ sadṛśī sā syād bhāsas tasya mahātmanaḥ

If the light of a thousand suns were to rise at once in the sky, it might be like the light of that great being.

तत्रैकस्थं जगत्कृत्स्नं प्रविभक्तमनेकधा ।
अपश्यद्देवदेवस्य शरीरे पाण्डवस्तदा ॥ १३ ॥
ततः स विस्मयाविष्टो हृष्टरोमा धनञ्जयः ।
प्रणम्य शिरसा देवं कृताञ्जलिरभाषत ॥ १४ ॥

tatraikasthaṃ jagat kṛtsnaṃ pravibhaktam anekadhā
apaśyad devadevasya śarīre pāṇḍavas tadā
tataḥ sa vismayāviṣṭo hṛṣṭaromā dhanaṃjayaḥ
praṇamya śirasā devaṃ kṛtāñjalir abhāṣata

There the son of Pāṇḍu saw the whole world, divided in so many ways, standing as one in the body of the god of gods. Then, filled with wonder, his hair standing on end, Dhanañjaya bowed his head to the god and, with joined palms, spoke.

अर्जुन उवाच —
पश्यामि देवांस्तव देव देहे सर्वांस्तथा भूतविशेषसङ्घान् ।
ब्रह्माणमीशं कमलासनस्थमृषींश्च सर्वानुरगांश्च दिव्यान् ॥ १५ ॥
अनेकबाहूदरवक्त्रनेत्रं
पश्यामि त्वा सर्वतोऽनन्तरूपम् ।
नान्तं न मध्यं न पुनस्तवादिं
पश्यामि विश्वेश्वर विश्वरूप ॥ १६ ॥
किरीटिनं गदिनं चक्रिणं च तेजोराशिं सर्वतोदीप्तिमन्तम् ।
पश्यामि त्वां दुर्निरीक्ष्यं समन्ताद्दीप्तानलार्कद्युतिमप्रमेयम् ॥ १७ ॥

arjuna uvāca
paśyāmi devāṃs tava deva dehe
sarvāṃs tathā bhūtaviśeṣasaṃghān
brahmāṇam īśaṃ kamalāsanastham
ṛṣīṃś ca sarvān uragāṃś ca divyān
anekabāhūdaravaktranetraṃ
paśyāmi tvā sarvato 'nantarūpam
nāntaṃ na madhyaṃ na punas tavādiṃ
paśyāmi viśveśvara viśvarūpa
kirīṭinaṃ gadinaṃ cakriṇaṃ ca
tejorāśiṃ sarvato dīptimantam
paśyāmi tvāṃ durnirīkṣyaṃ samantād
dīptānalārkadyutim aprameyam

Arjuna said: “I see the gods in your body, O god, and all the hosts of beings; Brahmā the lord seated on the lotus, and all the seers and the divine serpents. I see you with countless arms, bellies, mouths and eyes, endless in form on every side; I see no end of you, no middle, and no beginning, lord of all, whose form is all. I see you crowned, with mace and discus, a mass of light blazing everywhere, hard to look at on every side, with the glare of burning fire and sun, beyond measure.

त्वमक्षरं परमं वेदितव्यं
त्वमस्य विश्वस्य परं निधानम् ।
त्वमव्ययः शाश्वतधर्मगोप्ता
सनातनस्त्वं पुरुषो मतो मे ॥ १८ ॥
अनादिमध्यान्तमनन्तवीर्यमनन्तबाहुं शशिसूर्यनेत्रम् ।
पश्यामि त्वां दीप्तहुताशवक्त्रं स्वतेजसा विश्वमिदं तपन्तम् ॥ १९ ॥
द्यावापृथिव्योरिदमन्तरं हि
व्याप्तं त्वयैकेन दिशश्च सर्वाः ।
दृष्ट्वाद्भुतं रूपमिदं तवोग्रं
लोकत्रयं प्रव्यथितं महात्मन् ॥ २० ॥

tvam akṣaraṃ paramaṃ veditavyaṃ
tvam asya viśvasya paraṃ nidhānam
tvam avyayaḥ śāśvatadharmagoptā
sanātanas tvaṃ puruṣo mato me
anādimadhyāntam anantavīryam
anantabāhuṃ śaśisūryanetram
paśyāmi tvāṃ dīptahutāśavaktraṃ
svatejasā viśvam idaṃ tapantam
dyāvāpṛthivyor idam antaraṃ hi
vyāptaṃ tvayaikena diśaś ca sarvāḥ
dṛṣṭvādbhutaṃ rūpam idaṃ tavograṃ
lokatrayaṃ pravyathitaṃ mahātman

“You are the imperishable, the highest thing to be known; you are the final resting place of this universe; you are the guardian of eternal dharma who does not pass; you are the ancient Person, I believe. Without beginning, middle or end, of endless power, of endless arms, the sun and moon your eyes, I see you, your mouth a blazing fire, burning this universe with your radiance. This space between heaven and earth, and every direction, is filled by you alone. Seeing this wondrous and terrible form of yours, great one, the three worlds tremble.

अमी हि त्वा सुरसङ्घा विशन्ति
केचिद्भीताः प्राञ्जलयो गृणन्ति ।
स्वस्तीत्युक्त्वा महर्षिसिद्धसङ्घाः
स्तुवन्ति त्वां स्तुतिभिः पुष्कलाभिः ॥ २१ ॥
रुद्रादित्या वसवो ये च साध्या
विश्वेऽश्विनौ मरुतश्चोष्मपाश्च ।
गन्धर्वयक्षासुरसिद्धसङ्घा
वीक्षन्ते त्वां विस्मिताश्चैव सर्वे ॥ २२ ॥

amī hi tvā surasaṃghā viśanti
ke cid bhītāḥ prāñjalayo gṛṇanti
svastīty uktvā maharṣisiddhasaṃghāḥ
stuvanti tvāṃ stutibhiḥ puṣkalābhiḥ
rudrādityā vasavo ye ca sādhyā
viśve 'śvinau marutaś coṣmapāś ca
gandharvayakṣāsurasiddhasaṃghā
vīkṣante tvā vismitāś caiva sarve

“These hosts of gods are entering you; some, afraid, praise you with joined palms; crying ‘may it be well!’, the hosts of great seers and perfected ones praise you with many hymns. The Rudras, Ādityas, Vasus, Sādhyas, the Viśvedevas, the Aśvins, the Maruts and the ancestors, and hosts of gandharvas, yakṣas, asuras and perfected ones, all gaze at you in wonder.

रूपं महत्ते बहुवक्त्रनेत्रं
महाबाहो बहुबाहूरुपादम् ।
बहूदरं बहुदंष्ट्राकरालं
दृष्ट्वा लोकाः प्रव्यथितास्तथाहम् ॥ २३ ॥
नभःस्पृशं दीप्तमनेकवर्णं
व्यात्ताननं दीप्तविशालनेत्रम् ।
दृष्ट्वा हि त्वां प्रव्यथितान्तरात्मा
धृतिं न विन्दामि शमं च विष्णो ॥ २४ ॥
दंष्ट्राकरालानि च ते मुखानि
दृष्ट्वैव कालानलसंनिभानि ।
दिशो न जाने न लभे च शर्म
प्रसीद देवेश जगन्निवास ॥ २५ ॥

rūpaṃ mahat te bahuvaktranetraṃ
mahābāho bahubāhūrupādam
bahūdaraṃ bahudaṃṣṭrākarālaṃ
dṛṣṭvā lokāḥ pravyathitās tathāham
nabhaḥspṛśaṃ dīptam anekavarṇaṃ
vyāttānanaṃ dīptaviśālanetram
dṛṣṭvā hi tvāṃ pravyathitāntarātmā
dhṛtiṃ na vindāmi śamaṃ ca viṣṇo
daṃṣṭrākarālāni ca te mukhāni
dṛṣṭvaiva kālānalasaṃnibhāni
diśo na jāne na labhe ca śarma
prasīda deveśa jagannivāsa

“Seeing your great form, mighty-armed, with many mouths and eyes, many arms, thighs and feet, many bellies, terrible with many tusks, the worlds tremble, and so do I. Seeing you touching the sky, blazing, of many colours, mouths wide open, with huge burning eyes, my inner self shakes, and I find no steadiness or peace, Viṣṇu. Seeing your mouths, terrible with tusks, like the fire at the end of time, I do not know the directions and find no shelter. Be gracious, lord of gods, home of the world.

अमी च त्वां धृतराष्ट्रस्य पुत्राः
सर्वे सहैवावनिपालसङ्घैः ।
भीष्मो द्रोणः सूतपुत्रस्तथासौ
सहास्मदीयैरपि योधमुख्यैः ॥ २६ ॥
वक्त्राणि ते त्वरमाणा विशन्ति
दंष्ट्राकरालानि भयानकानि ।
केचिद्विलग्ना दशनान्तरेषु
सन्दृश्यन्ते चूर्णितैरुत्तमाङ्गैः ॥ २७ ॥
यथा नदीनां बहवोऽम्बुवेगाः
समुद्रमेवाभिमुखा द्रवन्ति ।
तथा तवामी नरलोकवीरा
विशन्ति वक्त्राण्यभिविज्वलन्ति ॥ २८ ॥
यथा प्रदीप्तं ज्वलनं पतङ्गा विशन्ति नाशाय समृद्धवेगाः ।
तथैव नाशाय विशन्ति लोकास्तवापि वक्त्राणि समृद्धवेगाः ॥ २९ ॥
लेलिह्यसे ग्रसमानः समन्ताल्लोकान्समग्रान्वदनैर्ज्वलद्भिः ।
तेजोभिरापूर्य जगत्समग्रं भासस्तवोग्राः प्रतपन्ति विष्णो ॥ ३० ॥

amī ca tvāṃ dhṛtarāṣṭrasya putrāḥ
sarve sahaivāvanipālasaṃghaiḥ
bhīṣmo droṇaḥ sūtaputras tathāsau
sahāsmadīyair api yodhamukhyaiḥ
vaktrāṇi te tvaramāṇā viśanti
daṃṣṭrākarālāni bhayānakāni
ke cid vilagnā daśanāntareṣu
saṃdṛśyante cūrṇitair uttamāṅgaiḥ
yathā nadīnāṃ bahavo 'mbuvegāḥ
samudram evābhimukhā dravanti
tathā tavāmī naralokavīrā
viśanti vaktrāṇy abhivijvalanti
yathā pradīptaṃ jvalanaṃ pataṃgā
viśanti nāśāya samṛddhavegāḥ
tathaiva nāśāya viśanti lokās
tavāpi vaktrāṇi samṛddhavegāḥ
lelihyase grasamānaḥ samantāl
lokān samagrān vadanair jvaladbhiḥ
tejobhir āpūrya jagat samagraṃ
bhāsas tavogrāḥ pratapanti viṣṇo

“And all these sons of Dhṛtarāṣṭra, with the hosts of kings, Bhīṣma, Droṇa, and that son of a charioteer, together with our own chief warriors, are rushing into your terrible mouths with their tusks. Some are caught between your teeth, their heads crushed. As the many currents of rivers rush toward the ocean, so these heroes of the world of men enter your blazing mouths. As moths rush with great speed into a burning flame to perish, so the worlds rush with great speed into your mouths to perish. Swallowing the worlds on every side with flaming mouths, you lick your lips; filling the whole world with your radiance, your fierce rays burn, Viṣṇu.

आख्याहि मे को भवानुग्ररूपो नमोऽस्तु ते देववर प्रसीद ।
विज्ञातुमिच्छामि भवन्तमाद्यं न हि प्रजानामि तव प्रवृत्तिम् ॥ ३१ ॥

ākhyāhi me ko bhavān ugrarūpo
namo 'stu te devavara prasīda
vijñātum icchāmi bhavantam ādyaṃ
na hi prajānāmi tava pravṛttim

“Tell me who you are, with this terrible form. I bow to you, best of gods; be gracious. I want to know you, the first one, for I do not understand what you are doing.”

श्रीभगवानुवाच —
कालोऽस्मि लोकक्षयकृत्प्रवृद्धो लोकान्समाहर्तुमिह प्रवृत्तः ।
ऋतेऽपि त्वा न भविष्यन्ति सर्वे येऽवस्थिताः प्रत्यनीकेषु योधाः ॥ ३२ ॥
तस्मात्त्वमुत्तिष्ठ यशो लभस्व
जित्वा शत्रून्भुङ्क्ष्व राज्यं समृद्धम् ।
मयैवैते निहताः पूर्वमेव
निमित्तमात्रं भव सव्यसाचिन् ॥ ३३ ॥
द्रोणं च भीष्मं च जयद्रथं च
कर्णं तथान्यानपि योधवीरान् ।
मया हतांस्त्वं जहि मा व्यथिष्ठा
युध्यस्व जेतासि रणे सपत्नान् ॥ ३४ ॥

śrībhagavān uvāca
kālo 'smi lokakṣayakṛt pravṛddho
lokān samāhartum iha pravṛttaḥ
ṛte 'pi tvā na bhaviṣyanti sarve
ye 'vasthitāḥ pratyanīkeṣu yodhāḥ
tasmāt tvam uttiṣṭha yaśo labhasva
jitvā śatrūn bhuṅkṣva rājyaṃ samṛddham
mayaivaite nihatāḥ pūrvam eva
nimittamātraṃ bhava savyasācin
droṇaṃ ca bhīṣmaṃ ca jayadrathaṃ ca
karṇaṃ tathānyān api yodhavīrān
mayā hatāṃs tvaṃ jahi mā vyathiṣṭhā
yudhyasva jetāsi raṇe sapatnān

The Blessed One said: “I am Time, grown ripe, the ender of the worlds, here at work gathering in the worlds. Even without you, all these warriors standing in the opposing ranks will cease to be. So stand up, win glory; conquering your enemies, enjoy a flourishing kingdom. By me alone they have already been struck down. Be only the instrument, archer who shoots with either hand. Droṇa, Bhīṣma, Jayadratha, Karṇa, and the other heroes are already struck down by me. Strike them; do not waver. Fight; you will conquer your rivals in battle.”

सञ्जय उवाच —
एतच्छ्रुत्वा वचनं केशवस्य
कृताञ्जलिर्वेपमानः किरीटी ।
नमस्कृत्वा भूय एवाह कृष्णं
सगद्गदं भीतभीतः प्रणम्य ॥ ३५ ॥

saṃjaya uvāca
etac chrutvā vacanaṃ keśavasya
kṛtāñjalir vepamānaḥ kirīṭī
namaskṛtvā bhūya evāha kṛṣṇaṃ
sagadgadaṃ bhītabhītaḥ praṇamya

Sañjaya said: Hearing these words of Keśava, the crowned one, trembling, his palms joined, bowed, and spoke again to Kṛṣṇa, stammering, overwhelmed with fear, bowing low.

अर्जुन उवाच —
स्थाने हृषीकेश तव प्रकीर्त्या
जगत्प्रहृष्यत्यनुरज्यते च ।
रक्षांसि भीतानि दिशो द्रवन्ति
सर्वे नमस्यन्ति च सिद्धसङ्घाः ॥ ३६ ॥
कस्माच्च ते न नमेरन्महात्मन्गरीयसे ब्रह्मणोऽप्यादिकर्त्रे ।
अनन्त देवेश जगन्निवास त्वमक्षरं सदसत्तत्परं यत् ॥ ३७ ॥
त्वमादिदेवः पुरुषः पुराणस्त्वमस्य विश्वस्य परं निधानम् ।
वेत्तासि वेद्यं च परं च धाम त्वया ततं विश्वमनन्तरूप ॥ ३८ ॥
वायुर्यमोऽग्निर्वरुणः शशाङ्कः
प्रजापतिस्त्वं प्रपितामहश्च ।
नमो नमस्तेऽस्तु सहस्रकृत्वः
पुनश्च भूयोऽपि नमो नमस्ते ॥ ३९ ॥
नमः पुरस्तादथ पृष्ठतस्ते
नमोऽस्तु ते सर्वत एव सर्व ।
अनन्तवीर्यामितविक्रमस्त्वं
सर्वं समाप्नोषि ततोऽसि सर्वः ॥ ४० ॥

arjuna uvāca
sthāne hṛṣīkeśa tava prakīrtyā
jagat prahṛṣyaty anurajyate ca
rakṣāṃsi bhītāni diśo dravanti
sarve namasyanti ca siddhasaṃghāḥ
kasmāc ca te na nameran mahātman
garīyase brahmaṇo 'py ādikartre
ananta deveśa jagannivāsa
tvam akṣaraṃ sad asat tatparaṃ yat
tvam ādidevaḥ puruṣaḥ purāṇas
tvam asya viśvasya paraṃ nidhānam
vettāsi vedyaṃ ca paraṃ ca dhāma
tvayā tataṃ viśvam anantarūpa
vāyur yamo 'gnir varuṇaḥ śaśāṅkaḥ
prajāpatis tvaṃ prapitāmahaś ca
namo namas te 'stu sahasrakṛtvaḥ
punaś ca bhūyo 'pi namo namas te
namaḥ purastād atha pṛṣṭhatas te
namo 'stu te sarvata eva sarva
anantavīryāmitavikramas tvaṃ
sarvaṃ samāpnoṣi tato 'si sarvaḥ

Arjuna said: “Rightly, Hṛṣīkeśa, the world rejoices and delights in your praise; the rākṣasas flee in fear in every direction, and all the hosts of the perfected bow down. And why should they not bow to you, great one, greater even than Brahmā, the first maker? Endless, lord of gods, home of the world, you are the imperishable, what is and what is not, and what is beyond both. You are the first god, the ancient Person, the highest resting place of this universe; you are the knower and the known and the highest home; by you this universe is pervaded, endless in form. You are wind, Yama, fire, Varuṇa, the moon, the lord of creatures, and the great-grandsire. I bow to you, I bow to you a thousand times, and again and again I bow to you. I bow to you before and behind; I bow to you on every side, you who are all. Your strength is endless and your power beyond measure; you pervade all, and so you are all.

सखेति मत्वा प्रसभं यदुक्तं
हे कृष्ण हे यादव हे सखेति ।
अजानता महिमानं तवेदं
मया प्रमादात्प्रणयेन वापि ॥ ४१ ॥
यच्चावहासार्थमसत्कृतोऽसि
विहारशय्यासनभोजनेषु ।
एकोऽथवाप्यच्युत तत्समक्षं
तत्क्षामये त्वामहमप्रमेयम् ॥ ४२ ॥

sakheti matvā prasabhaṃ yad uktaṃ
he kṛṣṇa he yādava he sakheti
ajānatā mahimānaṃ tavedaṃ
mayā pramādāt praṇayena vāpi
yac cāvahāsārtham asatkṛto 'si
vihāraśayyāsanabhojaneṣu
eko 'tha vāpy acyuta tatsamakṣaṃ
tat kṣāmaye tvām aham aprameyam

“Whatever I said rashly, thinking you were my friend, ‘Hey Kṛṣṇa, hey Yādava, hey friend,’ not knowing this greatness of yours, from carelessness or from love; and if, in fun, I treated you without respect, at play, resting, sitting or eating, alone or in front of others, Acyuta, for that I ask your forgiveness, you who are beyond measure.

पितासि लोकस्य चराचरस्य
त्वमस्य पूज्यश्च गुरुर्गरीयान् ।
न त्वत्समोऽस्त्यभ्यधिकः कुतोऽन्यो
लोकत्रयेऽप्यप्रतिमप्रभाव ॥ ४३ ॥
तस्मात्प्रणम्य प्रणिधाय कायं
प्रसादये त्वामहमीशमीड्यम् ।
पितेव पुत्रस्य सखेव सख्युः
प्रियः प्रियायार्हसि देव सोढुम् ॥ ४४ ॥

pitāsi lokasya carācarasya
tvam asya pūjyaś ca gurur garīyān
na tvatsamo 'sty abhyadhikaḥ kuto 'nyo
lokatraye 'py apratimaprabhāva
tasmāt praṇamya praṇidhāya kāyaṃ
prasādaye tvām aham īśam īḍyam
piteva putrasya sakheva sakhyuḥ
priyaḥ priyāyārhasi deva soḍhum

“You are the father of this world, the moving and the unmoving; you are its worship and its greatest teacher. There is none equal to you; how could there be any greater, in the three worlds, you whose power has no equal? So, bowing down, laying my body before you, I ask your grace, Lord to be praised. As a father bears with a son, a friend with a friend, a lover with the beloved, please bear with me, O god.

अदृष्टपूर्वं हृषितोऽस्मि दृष्ट्वा
भयेन च प्रव्यथितं मनो मे ।
तदेव मे दर्शय देव रूपं
प्रसीद देवेश जगन्निवास ॥ ४५ ॥
किरीटिनं गदिनं चक्रहस्तमिच्छामि त्वां द्रष्टुमहं तथैव ।
तेनैव रूपेण चतुर्भुजेन सहस्रबाहो भव विश्वमूर्ते ॥ ४६ ॥

adṛṣṭapūrvaṃ hṛṣito 'smi dṛṣṭvā
bhayena ca pravyathitaṃ mano me
tad eva me darśaya deva rūpaṃ
prasīda deveśa jagannivāsa
kirīṭinaṃ gadinaṃ cakrahastam
icchāmi tvāṃ draṣṭum ahaṃ tathaiva
tenaiva rūpeṇa caturbhujena
sahasrabāho bhava viśvamūrte

“I am thrilled to have seen what was never seen before, and my mind is shaken with fear. Show me, O god, that form of yours. Be gracious, lord of gods, home of the world. I want to see you as before, crowned, with mace and discus in your hands. Take again that four-armed form, you of a thousand arms, whose body is all.”

श्रीभगवानुवाच —
मया प्रसन्नेन तवार्जुनेदं
रूपं परं दर्शितमात्मयोगात् ।
तेजोमयं विश्वमनन्तमाद्यं
यन्मे त्वदन्येन न दृष्टपूर्वम् ॥ ४७ ॥
न वेदयज्ञाध्ययनैर्न दानैर्न च क्रियाभिर्न तपोभिरुग्रैः ।
एवंरूपः शक्य अहं नृलोके द्रष्टुं त्वदन्येन कुरुप्रवीर ॥ ४८ ॥
मा ते व्यथा मा च विमूढभावो
दृष्ट्वा रूपं घोरमीदृङ्ममेदम् ।
व्यपेतभीः प्रीतमनाः पुनस्त्वं
तदेव मे रूपमिदं प्रपश्य ॥ ४९ ॥

śrībhagavān uvāca
mayā prasannena tavārjunedaṃ
rūpaṃ paraṃ darśitam ātmayogāt
tejomayaṃ viśvam anantam ādyaṃ
yan me tvad anyena na dṛṣṭapūrvam
na vedayajñādhyayanair na dānair
na ca kriyābhir na tapobhir ugraiḥ
evaṃrūpaḥ śakya ahaṃ nṛloke
draṣṭuṃ tvad anyena kurupravīra
mā te vyathā mā ca vimūḍhabhāvo
dṛṣṭvā rūpaṃ ghoram īdṛṅ mamedam
vyapetabhīḥ prītamanāḥ punas tvaṃ
tad eva me rūpam idaṃ prapaśya

The Blessed One said: “Out of grace, Arjuna, by my own yoga, I have shown you this highest form, made of light, all, endless, first, which no one but you has seen before. Not by the Vedas, nor by offerings, nor by study, nor by gifts, nor by rites, nor by fierce austerities, can I be seen in this form in the world of men by anyone but you, hero of the Kurus. Do not be afraid, do not be bewildered, seeing this terrible form of mine. Free of fear, glad at heart, see again this form of mine.”

सञ्जय उवाच —
इत्यर्जुनं वासुदेवस्तथोक्त्वा
स्वकं रूपं दर्शयामास भूयः ।
आश्वासयामास च भीतमेनं
भूत्वा पुनःसौम्यवपुर्महात्मा ॥ ५० ॥

saṃjaya uvāca
ity arjunaṃ vāsudevas tathoktvā
svakaṃ rūpaṃ darśayām āsa bhūyaḥ
āśvāsayām āsa ca bhītam enaṃ
bhūtvā punaḥ saumyavapur mahātmā

Sañjaya said: Having spoken so to Arjuna, Vāsudeva showed again his own form; and the great one, becoming gentle in form again, comforted the frightened man.

अर्जुन उवाच —
दृष्ट्वेदं मानुषं रूपं
तव सौम्यं जनार्दन ।
इदानीमस्मि संवृत्तः
सचेताः प्रकृतिं गतः ॥ ५१ ॥

arjuna uvāca
dṛṣṭvedaṃ mānuṣaṃ rūpaṃ tava saumyaṃ janārdana
idānīm asmi saṃvṛttaḥ sacetāḥ prakṛtiṃ gataḥ

Arjuna said: “Seeing this gentle human form of yours, Janārdana, I have come to myself now, and my heart is restored to its nature.”

श्रीभगवानुवाच —
सुदुर्दर्शमिदं रूपं
दृष्टवानसि यन्मम ।
देवा अप्यस्य रूपस्य
नित्यं दर्शनकाङ्क्षिणः ॥ ५२ ॥
नाहं वेदैर्न तपसा
न दानेन न चेज्यया ।
शक्य एवंविधो द्रष्टुं
दृष्टवानसि मां यथा ॥ ५३ ॥
भक्त्या त्वनन्यया शक्य
अहमेवंविधोऽर्जुन ।
ज्ञातुं द्रष्टुं च तत्त्वेन
प्रवेष्टुं च परन्तप ॥ ५४ ॥

śrībhagavān uvāca
sudurdarśam idaṃ rūpaṃ dṛṣṭavān asi yan mama
devā apy asya rūpasya nityaṃ darśanakāṅkṣiṇaḥ
nāhaṃ vedair na tapasā na dānena na cejyayā
śakya evaṃvidho draṣṭuṃ dṛṣṭavān asi māṃ yathā
bhaktyā tv ananyayā śakya aham evaṃvidho 'rjuna
jñātuṃ draṣṭuṃ ca tattvena praveṣṭuṃ ca paraṃtapa

The Blessed One said: “This form of mine that you have seen is very hard to see; even the gods always long to see it. Not by the Vedas, nor by austerity, nor by gifts, nor by offerings, can I be seen as you have seen me. But by love that turns nowhere else, Arjuna, I can be known in this way, and seen as I truly am, and entered, scorcher of foes.

मत्कर्मकृन्मत्परमो
मद्भक्तः सङ्गवर्जितः ।
निर्वैरः सर्वभूतेषु
यः स मामेति पाण्डव ॥ ५५ ॥

matkarmakṛn matparamo madbhaktaḥ saṅgavarjitaḥ
nirvairaḥ sarvabhūteṣu yaḥ sa mām eti pāṇḍava

“One who does my work, who holds me as highest, who loves me, free of clinging, without enmity toward any being, comes to me, Pāṇḍava.”

अर्जुन उवाच —
एवं सततयुक्ता ये भक्तास्त्वां पर्युपासते ।
ये चाप्यक्षरमव्यक्तं तेषां के योगवित्तमाः ॥ १ ॥

arjuna uvāca
evaṃ satatayuktā ye bhaktās tvāṃ paryupāsate
ye cāpy akṣaram avyaktaṃ teṣāṃ ke yogavittamāḥ

Arjuna said: “Those devotees who, always joined, worship you in this way, and those who worship the imperishable, the unmanifest: which of them know yoga best?”

श्रीभगवानुवाच —
मय्यावेश्य मनो ये मां नित्ययुक्ता उपासते ।
श्रद्धया परयोपेतास्ते मे युक्ततमा मताः ॥ २ ॥
ये त्वक्षरमनिर्देश्यमव्यक्तं पर्युपासते ।
सर्वत्रगमचिन्त्यं च कूटस्थमचलं ध्रुवम् ॥ ३ ॥
संनियम्येन्द्रियग्रामं सर्वत्र समबुद्धयः ।
ते प्राप्नुवन्ति मामेव सर्वभूतहिते रताः ॥ ४ ॥

śrībhagavān uvāca
mayy āveśya mano ye māṃ nityayuktā upāsate
śraddhayā parayopetās te me yuktatamā matāḥ
ye tv akṣaram anirdeśyam avyaktaṃ paryupāsate
sarvatragam acintyaṃ ca kūṭastham acalaṃ dhruvam
saṃniyamyendriyagrāmaṃ sarvatra samabuddhayaḥ
te prāpnuvanti mām eva sarvabhūtahite ratāḥ

The Blessed One said: “Those who fix their minds on me and worship me, always joined, filled with the highest faith, I hold to be the most joined. But those who worship the imperishable, which cannot be defined, the unmanifest, everywhere, beyond thought, unchanging, unmoving, steady, holding all the senses in check, the same toward all, delighting in the good of all beings, they too come to me.

क्लेशोऽधिकतरस्तेषामव्यक्तासक्तचेतसाम् ।
अव्यक्ता हि गतिर्दुःखं देहवद्भिरवाप्यते ॥ ५ ॥
ये तु सर्वाणि कर्माणि मयि संन्यस्य मत्पराः ।
अनन्येनैव योगेन मां ध्यायन्त उपासते ॥ ६ ॥
तेषामहं समुद्धर्ता मृत्युसंसारसागरात् ।
भवामि न चिरात्पार्थ मय्यावेशितचेतसाम् ॥ ७ ॥

kleśo 'dhikataras teṣām avyaktāsaktacetasām
avyaktā hi gatir duḥkhaṃ dehavadbhir avāpyate
ye tu sarvāṇi karmāṇi mayi saṃnyasya matparāḥ
ananyenaiva yogena māṃ dhyāyanta upāsate
teṣām ahaṃ samuddhartā mṛtyusaṃsārasāgarāt
bhavāmi nacirāt pārtha mayy āveśitacetasām

“The struggle is greater for those whose minds are set on the unmanifest; the unmanifest way is hard for the embodied to reach. But those who lay all their actions on me, given to me, worshipping me with yoga that turns nowhere else, meditating on me, for those whose minds have entered me, Pārtha, I soon become the one who lifts them out of the ocean of death and birth.

मय्येव मन आधत्स्व मयि बुद्धिं निवेशय ।
निवसिष्यसि मय्येव अत ऊर्ध्वं न संशयः ॥ ८ ॥
अथ चित्तं समाधातुं
न शक्नोषि मयि स्थिरम् ।
अभ्यासयोगेन ततो
मामिच्छाप्तुं धनञ्जय ॥ ९ ॥
अभ्यासेऽप्यसमर्थोऽसि
मत्कर्मपरमो भव ।
मदर्थमपि कर्माणि
कुर्वन्सिद्धिमवाप्स्यसि ॥ १० ॥
अथैतदप्यशक्तोऽसि कर्तुं मद्योगमाश्रितः ।
सर्वकर्मफलत्यागं ततः कुरु यतात्मवान् ॥ ११ ॥
श्रेयो हि ज्ञानमभ्यासाज्ज्ञानाद्ध्यानं विशिष्यते ।
ध्यानात्कर्मफलत्यागस्त्यागाच्छान्तिरनन्तरम् ॥ १२ ॥

mayy eva mana ādhatsva mayi buddhiṃ niveśaya
nivasiṣyasi mayy eva ata ūrdhvaṃ na saṃśayaḥ
atha cittaṃ samādhātuṃ na śaknoṣi mayi sthiram
abhyāsayogena tato mām icchāptuṃ dhanaṃjaya
abhyāse 'py asamartho 'si matkarmaparamo bhava
madartham api karmāṇi kurvan siddhim avāpsyasi
athaitad apy aśakto 'si kartuṃ madyogam āśritaḥ
sarvakarmaphalatyāgaṃ tataḥ kuru yatātmavān
śreyo hi jñānam abhyāsāj jñānād dhyānaṃ viśiṣyate
dhyānāt karmaphalatyāgas tyāgāc chāntir anantaram

“Set your mind on me alone; let your understanding enter me. Then you will live in me; there is no doubt. If you cannot hold your mind steadily on me, then seek to reach me by the yoga of practice, Dhanañjaya. If you cannot even practise, be given to doing my work; doing work for my sake, you will still reach fulfilment. If you cannot do even this, then, taking refuge in my yoga, holding yourself, give up the fruit of all your actions. Knowledge is better than practice; meditation is better than knowledge; giving up the fruit of action is better than meditation. From giving up comes peace, at once.

अद्वेष्टा सर्वभूतानां मैत्रः करुण एव च ।
निर्ममो निरहङ्कारः समदुःखसुखः क्षमी ॥ १३ ॥
सन्तुष्टः सततं योगी यतात्मा दृढनिश्चयः ।
मय्यर्पितमनोबुद्धिर्यो मद्भक्तः स मे प्रियः ॥ १४ ॥

adveṣṭā sarvabhūtānāṃ maitraḥ karuṇa eva ca
nirmamo nirahaṃkāraḥ samaduḥkhasukhaḥ kṣamī
saṃtuṣṭaḥ satataṃ yogī yatātmā dṛḍhaniścayaḥ
mayy arpitamanobuddhir yo madbhaktaḥ sa me priyaḥ

“One who hates no being, who is friendly and compassionate, free of mine and free of I, the same in pain and pleasure, forgiving; always content, a yogī, self-held, firm in resolve, whose mind and understanding are given to me: that devotee is dear to me.

यस्मान्नोद्विजते लोको लोकान्नोद्विजते च यः ।
हर्षामर्षभयोद्वेगैर्मुक्तो यः स च मे प्रियः ॥ १५ ॥

yasmān nodvijate loko lokān nodvijate ca yaḥ
harṣāmarṣabhayodvegair mukto yaḥ sa ca me priyaḥ

“One from whom the world does not shrink, and who does not shrink from the world, who is free of elation, impatience, fear and agitation, is dear to me.

अनपेक्षः शुचिर्दक्ष
उदासीनो गतव्यथः ।
सर्वारम्भपरित्यागी
यो मद्भक्तः स मे प्रियः ॥ १६ ॥
यो न हृष्यति न द्वेष्टि
न शोचति न काङ्क्षति ।
शुभाशुभपरित्यागी
भक्तिमान्यः स मे प्रियः ॥ १७ ॥

anapekṣaḥ śucir dakṣa udāsīno gatavyathaḥ
sarvārambhaparityāgī yo madbhaktaḥ sa me priyaḥ
yo na hṛṣyati na dveṣṭi na śocati na kāṅkṣati
śubhāśubhaparityāgī bhaktimān yaḥ sa me priyaḥ

“One who expects nothing, who is pure, capable, unconcerned, untroubled, who has let go of all undertakings for himself: that devotee is dear to me. One who neither rejoices nor hates, neither grieves nor craves, who has let go of good and ill, full of love: that one is dear to me.

समः शत्रौ च मित्रे च
तथा मानापमानयोः ।
शीतोष्णसुखदुःखेषु
समः सङ्गविवर्जितः ॥ १८ ॥
तुल्यनिन्दास्तुतिर्मौनी सन्तुष्टो येन केनचित् ।
अनिकेतः स्थिरमतिर्भक्तिमान्मे प्रियो नरः ॥ १९ ॥

samaḥ śatrau ca mitre ca tathā mānāvamānayoḥ
śītoṣṇasukhaduḥkheṣu samaḥ saṅgavivarjitaḥ
tulyanindāstutir maunī saṃtuṣṭo yena kena cit
aniketaḥ sthiramatir bhaktimān me priyo naraḥ

“One who is the same to enemy and friend, in honour and dishonour, in cold and heat, in pleasure and pain, free of clinging; the same in blame and praise, quiet, content with whatever comes, without a fixed home, steady in mind, full of love: that person is dear to me.

ये तु धर्म्यामृतमिदं
यथोक्तं पर्युपासते ।
श्रद्दधाना मत्परमा
भक्तास्तेऽतीव मे प्रियाः ॥ २० ॥

ye tu dharmyāmṛtam idaṃ yathoktaṃ paryupāsate
śraddadhānā matparamā bhaktās te 'tīva me priyāḥ

“But those who, full of faith, holding me as highest, honour this deathless dharma as I have told it, those devotees are very dear to me.”

श्रीभगवानुवाच —
इदं शरीरं कौन्तेय क्षेत्रमित्यभिधीयते ।
एतद्यो वेत्ति तं प्राहुः क्षेत्रज्ञ इति तद्विदः ॥ १ ॥
क्षेत्रज्ञं चापि मां विद्धि सर्वक्षेत्रेषु भारत ।
क्षेत्रक्षेत्रज्ञयोर्ज्ञानं यत्तज्ज्ञानं मतं मम ॥ २ ॥
तत्क्षेत्रं यच्च यादृक्च यद्विकारि यतश्च यत् ।
स च यो यत्प्रभावश्च तत्समासेन मे शृणु ॥ ३ ॥

śrībhagavān uvāca
idaṃ śarīraṃ kaunteya kṣetram ity abhidhīyate
etad yo vetti taṃ prāhuḥ kṣetrajña iti tadvidaḥ
kṣetrajñaṃ cāpi māṃ viddhi sarvakṣetreṣu bhārata
kṣetrakṣetrajñayor jñānaṃ yat taj jñānaṃ mataṃ mama
tat kṣetraṃ yac ca yādṛk ca yadvikāri yataś ca yat
sa ca yo yatprabhāvaś ca tat samāsena me śṛṇu

The Blessed One said: “This body, son of Kuntī, is called the field. The one who knows it, those who know it call the knower of the field. Know me also as the knower of the field in all fields, Bhārata. Knowledge of the field and of its knower: that, I hold, is knowledge. Hear from me briefly what that field is, what it is like, how it changes, where it comes from; and who the knower is, and what his powers are.

ऋषिभिर्बहुधा गीतं छन्दोभिर्विविधैः पृथक् ।
ब्रह्मसूत्रपदैश्चैव हेतुमद्भिर्विनिश्चितैः ॥ ४ ॥

ṛṣibhir bahudhā gītaṃ chandobhir vividhaiḥ pṛthak
brahmasūtrapadaiś caiva hetumadbhir viniścitaiḥ

“It has been sung by the seers in many ways, in many separate measures, and in the well-reasoned, certain words of the aphorisms on Brahman.

महाभूतान्यहङ्कारो बुद्धिरव्यक्तमेव च ।
इन्द्रियाणि दशैकं च पञ्च चेन्द्रियगोचराः ॥ ५ ॥
इच्छा द्वेषः सुखं दुःखं सङ्घातश्चेतना धृतिः ।
एतत्क्षेत्रं समासेन सविकारमुदाहृतम् ॥ ६ ॥

mahābhūtāny ahaṃkāro buddhir avyaktam eva ca
indriyāṇi daśaikaṃ ca pañca cendriyagocarāḥ
icchā dveṣaḥ sukhaṃ duḥkhaṃ saṃghātaś cetanā dhṛtiḥ
etat kṣetraṃ samāsena savikāram udāhṛtam

“The great elements, the sense of I, understanding, the unmanifest, the ten senses and the one, and the five fields of the senses; desire, aversion, pleasure, pain, the whole gathered together, awareness, steadiness: this, in brief, is the field with its changes.

अमानित्वमदम्भित्वमहिंसा क्षान्तिरार्जवम् ।
आचार्योपासनं शौचं स्थैर्यमात्मविनिग्रहः ॥ ७ ॥
इन्द्रियार्थेषु वैराग्यमनहङ्कार एव च ।
जन्ममृत्युजराव्याधिदुःखदोषानुदर्शनम् ॥ ८ ॥
असक्तिरनभिष्वङ्गः पुत्रदारगृहादिषु ।
नित्यं च समचित्तत्वमिष्टानिष्टोपपत्तिषु ॥ ९ ॥
मयि चानन्ययोगेन भक्तिरव्यभिचारिणी ।
विविक्तदेशसेवित्वमरतिर्जनसंसदि ॥ १० ॥
अध्यात्मज्ञाननित्यत्वं तत्त्वज्ञानार्थदर्शनम् ।
एतज्ज्ञानमिति प्रोक्तमज्ञानं यदतोऽन्यथा ॥ ११ ॥

amānitvam adambhitvam ahiṃsā kṣāntir ārjavam
ācāryopāsanaṃ śaucaṃ sthairyam ātmavinigrahaḥ
indriyārtheṣu vairāgyam anahaṃkāra eva ca
janmamṛtyujarāvyādhiduḥkhadoṣānudarśanam
asaktir anabhiṣvaṅgaḥ putradāragṛhādiṣu
nityaṃ ca samacittatvam iṣṭāniṣṭopapattiṣu
mayi cānanyayogena bhaktir avyabhicāriṇī
viviktadeśasevitvam aratir janasaṃsadi
adhyātmajñānanityatvaṃ tattvajñānārthadarśanam
etaj jñānam iti proktam ajñānaṃ yad ato 'nyathā

“Freedom from pride, from pretence; not harming; patience; straightforwardness; service of the teacher; purity; steadiness; self-restraint; turning away from the objects of the senses; freedom from the sense of I; seeing clearly the pain of birth, death, old age and sickness; not clinging; not being caught up in son, wife, home and the rest; constant sameness of mind when wanted and unwanted things come; love for me, with yoga that turns nowhere else; living in quiet places; no delight in crowds; constancy in knowing the self within; seeing what the knowledge of truth is for: this is called knowledge. What is other than this is not knowing.

ज्ञेयं यत्तत्प्रवक्ष्यामि यज्ज्ञात्वामृतमश्नुते ।
अनादिमत्परं ब्रह्म न सत्तन्नासदुच्यते ॥ १२ ॥
सर्वतःपाणिपादं तत्सर्वतोक्षिशिरोमुखम् ।
सर्वतःश्रुतिमल्लोके सर्वमावृत्य तिष्ठति ॥ १३ ॥
सर्वेन्द्रियगुणाभासं सर्वेन्द्रियविवर्जितम् ।
असक्तं सर्वभृच्चैव निर्गुणं गुणभोक्तृ च ॥ १४ ॥
बहिरन्तश्च भूतानामचरं चरमेव च ।
सूक्ष्मत्वात्तदविज्ञेयं दूरस्थं चान्तिके च तत् ॥ १५ ॥
अविभक्तं च भूतेषु विभक्तमिव च स्थितम् ।
भूतभर्तृ च तज्ज्ञेयं ग्रसिष्णु प्रभविष्णु च ॥ १६ ॥
ज्योतिषामपि तज्ज्योतिस्तमसः परमुच्यते ।
ज्ञानं ज्ञेयं ज्ञानगम्यं हृदि सर्वस्य विष्ठितम् ॥ १७ ॥

jñeyaṃ yat tat pravakṣyāmi yaj jñātvāmṛtam aśnute
anādimat paraṃ brahma na sat tan nāsad ucyate
sarvataḥpāṇipādaṃ tat sarvatokṣiśiromukham
sarvataḥśrutimal loke sarvam āvṛtya tiṣṭhati
sarvendriyaguṇābhāsaṃ sarvendriyavivarjitam
asaktaṃ sarvabhṛc caiva nirguṇaṃ guṇabhoktṛ ca
bahir antaś ca bhūtānām acaraṃ caram eva ca
sūkṣmatvāt tad avijñeyaṃ dūrasthaṃ cāntike ca tat
avibhaktaṃ ca bhūteṣu vibhaktam iva ca sthitam
bhūtabhartṛ ca taj jñeyaṃ grasiṣṇu prabhaviṣṇu ca
jyotiṣām api taj jyotis tamasaḥ param ucyate
jñānaṃ jñeyaṃ jñānagamyaṃ hṛdi sarvasya viṣṭhitam

“I will tell you what is to be known, knowing which one tastes the deathless: the highest Brahman, without beginning, which is said to be neither being nor non-being. With hands and feet everywhere, eyes and heads and mouths everywhere, ears everywhere, it stands enfolding all in the world. Shining with the powers of all the senses, yet free of all the senses; not clinging, yet holding all; beyond the qualities, yet knowing the qualities. Outside beings and within them; unmoving and moving; too subtle to be known; far away and near. Undivided, yet standing as if divided among beings; it is to be known as the one who holds beings, swallows them, and brings them forth. It is called the light of lights, beyond darkness; it is knowledge, what is to be known, and what knowledge reaches, seated in the heart of all.

इति क्षेत्रं तथा ज्ञानं ज्ञेयं चोक्तं समासतः ।
मद्भक्त एतद्विज्ञाय मद्भावायोपपद्यते ॥ १८ ॥

iti kṣetraṃ tathā jñānaṃ jñeyaṃ coktaṃ samāsataḥ
madbhakta etad vijñāya madbhāvāyopapadyate

“So the field, knowledge, and what is to be known have been told in brief. My devotee, understanding this, comes to my being.

प्रकृतिं पुरुषं चैव विद्ध्यनादी उभावपि ।
विकारांश्च गुणांश्चैव विद्धि प्रकृतिसम्भवान् ॥ १९ ॥
कार्यकरणकर्तृत्वे हेतुः प्रकृतिरुच्यते ।
पुरुषः सुखदुःखानां भोक्तृत्वे हेतुरुच्यते ॥ २० ॥
पुरुषः प्रकृतिस्थो हि भुङ्क्ते प्रकृतिजान्गुणान् ।
कारणं गुणसङ्गोऽस्य सदसद्योनिजन्मसु ॥ २१ ॥
उपद्रष्टानुमन्ता च भर्ता भोक्ता महेश्वरः ।
परमात्मेति चाप्युक्तो देहेऽस्मिन्पुरुषः परः ॥ २२ ॥
य एवं वेत्ति पुरुषं प्रकृतिं च गुणैः सह ।
सर्वथा वर्तमानोऽपि न स भूयोऽभिजायते ॥ २३ ॥

prakṛtiṃ puruṣaṃ caiva viddhy anādī ubhāv api
vikārāṃś ca guṇāṃś caiva viddhi prakṛtisaṃbhavān
kāryakāraṇakartṛtve hetuḥ prakṛtir ucyate
puruṣaḥ sukhaduḥkhānāṃ bhoktṛtve hetur ucyate
puruṣaḥ prakṛtistho hi bhuṅkte prakṛtijān guṇān
kāraṇaṃ guṇasaṅgo 'sya sadasadyonijanmasu
upadraṣṭānumantā ca bhartā bhoktā maheśvaraḥ
paramātmeti cāpy ukto dehe 'smin puruṣaḥ paraḥ
ya evaṃ vetti puruṣaṃ prakṛtiṃ ca guṇaiḥ saha
sarvathā vartamāno 'pi na sa bhūyo 'bhijāyate

“Know that nature and spirit are both without beginning; know that the changes and the qualities are born of nature. Nature is said to be the cause in what is done and the means of doing it; spirit is said to be the cause in the feeling of pleasure and pain. Spirit, dwelling in nature, tastes the qualities born of nature; clinging to the qualities is the cause of its births in good and bad wombs. The highest spirit in this body is also called the witness, the one who consents, the one who sustains, the one who tastes, the great lord, and the highest self. Whoever knows spirit and nature with the qualities in this way, however he lives, is not born again.

ध्यानेनात्मनि पश्यन्ति केचिदात्मानमात्मना ।
अन्ये साङ्ख्येन योगेन कर्मयोगेन चापरे ॥ २४ ॥
अन्ये त्वेवमजानन्तः श्रुत्वान्येभ्य उपासते ।
तेऽपि चातितरन्त्येव मृत्युं श्रुतिपरायणाः ॥ २५ ॥

dhyānenātmani paśyanti ke cid ātmānam ātmanā
anye sāṃkhyena yogena karmayogena cāpare
anye tv evam ajānantaḥ śrutvānyebhya upāsate
te 'pi cātitaranty eva mṛtyuṃ śrutiparāyaṇāḥ

“Some see the self in the self by the self through meditation; others through the yoga of knowledge; others through the yoga of action. Still others, not knowing this, worship having heard of it from others; they too, given to what they have heard, cross beyond death.

यावत्सञ्जायते किञ्चित्सत्त्वं स्थावरजङ्गमम् ।
क्षेत्रक्षेत्रज्ञसंयोगात्तद्विद्धि भरतर्षभ ॥ २६ ॥
समं सर्वेषु भूतेषु तिष्ठन्तं परमेश्वरम् ।
विनश्यत्स्वविनश्यन्तं यः पश्यति स पश्यति ॥ २७ ॥
समं पश्यन्हि सर्वत्र
समवस्थितमीश्वरम् ।
न हिनस्त्यात्मनात्मानं
ततो याति परां गतिम् ॥ २८ ॥

yāvat saṃjāyate kiṃ cit sattvaṃ sthāvarajaṅgamam
kṣetrakṣetrajñasaṃyogāt tad viddhi bharatarṣabha
samaṃ sarveṣu bhūteṣu tiṣṭhantaṃ parameśvaram
vinaśyatsv avinaśyantaṃ yaḥ paśyati sa paśyati
samaṃ paśyan hi sarvatra samavasthitam īśvaram
na hinasty ātmanātmānaṃ tato yāti parāṃ gatim

“Whatever is born, moving or unmoving, know it comes from the joining of the field and the knower of the field, best of the Bhāratas. The one who sees the highest lord standing the same in all beings, not perishing when they perish, sees. Seeing the lord standing the same everywhere, one does not harm the self by the self, and so goes the highest way.

प्रकृत्यैव च कर्माणि क्रियमाणानि सर्वशः ।
यः पश्यति तथात्मानमकर्तारं स पश्यति ॥ २९ ॥
यदा भूतपृथग्भावमेकस्थमनुपश्यति ।
तत एव च विस्तारं ब्रह्म सम्पद्यते तदा ॥ ३० ॥
अनादित्वान्निर्गुणत्वात्परमात्मायमव्ययः ।
शरीरस्थोऽपि कौन्तेय न करोति न लिप्यते ॥ ३१ ॥

prakṛtyaiva ca karmāṇi kriyamāṇāni sarvaśaḥ
yaḥ paśyati tathātmānam akartāraṃ sa paśyati
yadā bhūtapṛthagbhāvam ekastham anupaśyati
tata eva ca vistāraṃ brahma saṃpadyate tadā
anāditvān nirguṇatvāt paramātmāyam avyayaḥ
śarīrastho 'pi kaunteya na karoti na lipyate

“The one who sees that all actions are done by nature alone, and sees the self as not the doer, sees. When one sees the separate being of beings as resting in the One, and spreading out from it alone, then one reaches Brahman. Being without beginning and beyond the qualities, this highest self that does not pass, though dwelling in the body, son of Kuntī, does not act and is not stained.

यथा सर्वगतं सौक्ष्म्यादाकाशं नोपलिप्यते ।
सर्वत्रावस्थितो देहे तथात्मा नोपलिप्यते ॥ ३२ ॥
यथा प्रकाशयत्येकः कृत्स्नं लोकमिमं रविः ।
क्षेत्रं क्षेत्री तथा कृत्स्नं प्रकाशयति भारत ॥ ३३ ॥
क्षेत्रक्षेत्रज्ञयोरेवमन्तरं ज्ञानचक्षुषा ।
भूतप्रकृतिमोक्षं च ये विदुर्यान्ति ते परम् ॥ ३४ ॥

yathā sarvagataṃ saukṣmyād ākāśaṃ nopalipyate
sarvatrāvasthito dehe tathātmā nopalipyate
yathā prakāśayaty ekaḥ kṛtsnaṃ lokam imaṃ raviḥ
kṣetraṃ kṣetrī tathā kṛtsnaṃ prakāśayati bhārata
kṣetrakṣetrajñayor evam antaraṃ jñānacakṣuṣā
bhūtaprakṛtimokṣaṃ ca ye vidur yānti te param

“As space, which is everywhere, is not stained, because it is so subtle, so the self, present everywhere in the body, is not stained. As the one sun lights this whole world, so the lord of the field lights the whole field, Bhārata. Those who know with the eye of knowledge the difference between the field and its knower, and the freeing of beings from nature, go to the highest.”

श्रीभगवानुवाच —
परं भूयः प्रवक्ष्यामि
ज्ञानानां ज्ञानमुत्तमम् ।
यज्ज्ञात्वा मुनयः सर्वे
परां सिद्धिमितो गताः ॥ १ ॥
इदं ज्ञानमुपाश्रित्य मम साधर्म्यमागताः ।
सर्गेऽपि नोपजायन्ते प्रलये न व्यथन्ति च ॥ २ ॥

śrībhagavān uvāca
paraṃ bhūyaḥ pravakṣyāmi jñānānāṃ jñānam uttamam
yaj jñātvā munayaḥ sarve parāṃ siddhim ito gatāḥ
idaṃ jñānam upāśritya mama sādharmyam āgatāḥ
sarge 'pi nopajāyante pralaye na vyathanti ca

The Blessed One said: “I will tell you again the highest knowledge, the best of all knowing, by which all the sages went from here to the highest fulfilment. Taking refuge in this knowledge, and coming to share my nature, they are not born at the creation, and not troubled at the dissolution.

मम योनिर्महद्ब्रह्म तस्मिन्गर्भं दधाम्यहम् ।
सम्भवः सर्वभूतानां ततो भवति भारत ॥ ३ ॥
सर्वयोनिषु कौन्तेय मूर्तयः सम्भवन्ति याः ।
तासां ब्रह्म महद्योनिरहं बीजप्रदः पिता ॥ ४ ॥

mama yonir mahad brahma tasmin garbhaṃ dadhāmy aham
saṃbhavaḥ sarvabhūtānāṃ tato bhavati bhārata
sarvayoniṣu kaunteya mūrtayaḥ saṃbhavanti yāḥ
tāsāṃ brahma mahad yonir ahaṃ bījapradaḥ pitā

“My womb is the great Brahman; in it I place the seed, and from that, Bhārata, all beings are born. Whatever forms are born in any womb, son of Kuntī, the great Brahman is their womb, and I am the father who gives the seed.

सत्त्वं रजस्तम इति गुणाः प्रकृतिसम्भवाः ।
निबध्नन्ति महाबाहो देहे देहिनमव्ययम् ॥ ५ ॥
तत्र सत्त्वं निर्मलत्वात्प्रकाशकमनामयम् ।
सुखसङ्गेन बध्नाति ज्ञानसङ्गेन चानघ ॥ ६ ॥
रजो रागात्मकं विद्धि तृष्णासङ्गसमुद्भवम् ।
तन्निबध्नाति कौन्तेय कर्मसङ्गेन देहिनम् ॥ ७ ॥
तमस्त्वज्ञानजं विद्धि मोहनं सर्वदेहिनाम् ।
प्रमादालस्यनिद्राभिस्तन्निबध्नाति भारत ॥ ८ ॥
सत्त्वं सुखे सञ्जयति रजः कर्मणि भारत ।
ज्ञानमावृत्य तु तमः प्रमादे सञ्जयत्युत ॥ ९ ॥

sattvaṃ rajas tama iti guṇāḥ prakṛtisaṃbhavāḥ
nibadhnanti mahābāho dehe dehinam avyayam
tatra sattvaṃ nirmalatvāt prakāśakam anāmayam
sukhasaṅgena badhnāti jñānasaṅgena cānagha
rajo rāgātmakaṃ viddhi tṛṣṇāsaṅgasamudbhavam
tan nibadhnāti kaunteya karmasaṅgena dehinam
tamas tv ajñānajaṃ viddhi mohanaṃ sarvadehinām
pramādālasyanidrābhis tan nibadhnāti bhārata
sattvaṃ sukhe sañjayati rajaḥ karmaṇi bhārata
jñānam āvṛtya tu tamaḥ pramāde sañjayaty uta

“Clarity, passion and darkness, the qualities born of nature, bind the embodied one that does not pass, mighty-armed, in the body. Of these, clarity, being stainless, is light and free of affliction; it binds by clinging to happiness and clinging to knowledge, sinless one. Know that passion is the nature of desire, born of thirst and clinging; it binds the embodied one by clinging to action, son of Kuntī. Know that darkness is born of not knowing, bewildering all the embodied; it binds by carelessness, laziness and sleep, Bhārata. Clarity binds one to happiness, passion to action, Bhārata; darkness, covering knowledge, binds to carelessness.

रजस्तमश्चाभिभूय सत्त्वं भवति भारत ।
रजः सत्त्वं तमश्चैव तमः सत्त्वं रजस्तथा ॥ १० ॥
सर्वद्वारेषु देहेऽस्मिन्प्रकाश उपजायते ।
ज्ञानं यदा तदा विद्याद्विवृद्धं सत्त्वमित्युत ॥ ११ ॥
लोभः प्रवृत्तिरारम्भः कर्मणामशमः स्पृहा ।
रजस्येतानि जायन्ते विवृद्धे भरतर्षभ ॥ १२ ॥
अप्रकाशोऽप्रवृत्तिश्च प्रमादो मोह एव च ।
तमस्येतानि जायन्ते विवृद्धे कुरुनन्दन ॥ १३ ॥

rajas tamaś cābhibhūya sattvaṃ bhavati bhārata
rajaḥ sattvaṃ tamaś caiva tamaḥ sattvaṃ rajas tathā
sarvadvāreṣu dehe 'smin prakāśa upajāyate
jñānaṃ yadā tadā vidyād vivṛddhaṃ sattvam ity uta
lobhaḥ pravṛttir ārambhaḥ karmaṇām aśamaḥ spṛhā
rajasy etāni jāyante vivṛddhe bharatarṣabha
aprakāśo 'pravṛttiś ca pramādo moha eva ca
tamasy etāni jāyante vivṛddhe kurunandana

“Clarity rises by overpowering passion and darkness, Bhārata; passion, by overpowering clarity and darkness; and darkness, likewise, by overpowering clarity and passion. When the light of knowledge shines in all the gates of this body, then know that clarity has grown. Greed, busyness, the starting of works, restlessness and craving arise when passion grows, best of the Bhāratas. Darkness, idleness, carelessness and bewilderment arise when darkness grows, joy of the Kurus.

यदा सत्त्वे प्रवृद्धे तु प्रलयं याति देहभृत् ।
तदोत्तमविदां लोकानमलान्प्रतिपद्यते ॥ १४ ॥
रजसि प्रलयं गत्वा कर्मसङ्गिषु जायते ।
तथा प्रलीनस्तमसि मूढयोनिषु जायते ॥ १५ ॥
कर्मणः सुकृतस्याहुः सात्त्विकं निर्मलं फलम् ।
रजसस्तु फलं दुःखमज्ञानं तमसः फलम् ॥ १६ ॥
सत्त्वात्सञ्जायते ज्ञानं रजसो लोभ एव च ।
प्रमादमोहौ तमसो भवतोऽज्ञानमेव च ॥ १७ ॥
ऊर्ध्वं गच्छन्ति सत्त्वस्था
मध्ये तिष्ठन्ति राजसाः ।
जघन्यगुणवृत्तस्था
अधो गच्छन्ति तामसाः ॥ १८ ॥

yadā sattve pravṛddhe tu pralayaṃ yāti dehabhṛt
tadottamavidāṃ lokān amalān pratipadyate
rajasi pralayaṃ gatvā karmasaṅgiṣu jāyate
tathā pralīnas tamasi mūḍhayoniṣu jāyate
karmaṇaḥ sukṛtasyāhuḥ sāttvikaṃ nirmalaṃ phalam
rajasas tu phalaṃ duḥkham ajñānaṃ tamasaḥ phalam
sattvāt saṃjāyate jñānaṃ rajaso lobha eva ca
pramādamohau tamaso bhavato 'jñānam eva ca
ūrdhvaṃ gacchanti sattvasthā madhye tiṣṭhanti rājasāḥ
jaghanyaguṇavṛttasthā adho gacchanti tāmasāḥ

“If the embodied one meets dissolution when clarity has grown, it goes to the stainless worlds of those who know the highest. Meeting dissolution in passion, it is born among those who cling to action; dissolving in darkness, it is born in bewildered wombs. The fruit of good action is said to be clear and stainless; the fruit of passion is pain; the fruit of darkness is not knowing. From clarity comes knowledge; from passion, greed; from darkness, carelessness, bewilderment, and not knowing. Those who stand in clarity go upward; the passionate stay in the middle; the dark, standing in the lowest quality, go downward.

नान्यं गुणेभ्यः कर्तारं यदा द्रष्टानुपश्यति ।
गुणेभ्यश्च परं वेत्ति मद्भावं सोऽधिगच्छति ॥ १९ ॥
गुणानेतानतीत्य त्रीन्देही देहसमुद्भवान् ।
जन्ममृत्युजरादुःखैर्विमुक्तोऽमृतमश्नुते ॥ २० ॥

nānyaṃ guṇebhyaḥ kartāraṃ yadā draṣṭānupaśyati
guṇebhyaś ca paraṃ vetti madbhāvaṃ so 'dhigacchati
guṇān etān atītya trīn dehī dehasamudbhavān
janmamṛtyujarāduḥkhair vimukto 'mṛtam aśnute

“When the seer sees no doer other than the qualities, and knows what is beyond the qualities, he comes to my being. Going beyond these three qualities, which arise in the body, the embodied one, freed from birth, death, old age and sorrow, tastes the deathless.”

अर्जुन उवाच —
कैर्लिङ्गैस्त्रीन्गुणानेतानतीतो भवति प्रभो ।
किमाचारः कथं चैतांस्त्रीन्गुणानतिवर्तते ॥ २१ ॥

arjuna uvāca
kair liṅgais trīn guṇān etān atīto bhavati prabho
kimācāraḥ kathaṃ caitāṃs trīn guṇān ativartate

Arjuna said: “By what marks is one known who has gone beyond these three qualities, Lord? How does he live? And how does he go beyond these three qualities?”

श्रीभगवानुवाच —
प्रकाशं च प्रवृत्तिं च मोहमेव च पाण्डव ।
न द्वेष्टि सम्प्रवृत्तानि न निवृत्तानि काङ्क्षति ॥ २२ ॥
उदासीनवदासीनो गुणैर्यो न विचाल्यते ।
गुणा वर्तन्त इत्येव योऽवतिष्ठति नेङ्गते ॥ २३ ॥
समदुःखसुखः स्वस्थः समलोष्टाश्मकाञ्चनः ।
तुल्यप्रियाप्रियो धीरस्तुल्यनिन्दात्मसंस्तुतिः ॥ २४ ॥
मानापमानयोस्तुल्यस्तुल्यो मित्रारिपक्षयोः ।
सर्वारम्भपरित्यागी गुणातीतः स उच्यते ॥ २५ ॥

śrībhagavān uvāca
prakāśaṃ ca pravṛttiṃ ca moham eva ca pāṇḍava
na dveṣṭi saṃpravṛttāni na nivṛttāni kāṅkṣati
udāsīnavad āsīno guṇair yo na vicālyate
guṇā vartanta ity eva yo 'vatiṣṭhati neṅgate
samaduḥkhasukhaḥ svasthaḥ samaloṣṭāśmakāñcanaḥ
tulyapriyāpriyo dhīras tulyanindātmasaṃstutiḥ
mānāvamānayos tulyas tulyo mitrāripakṣayoḥ
sarvārambhaparityāgī guṇātītaḥ sa ucyate

The Blessed One said: “One who does not hate light, activity or bewilderment when they come, Pāṇḍava, nor long for them when they go; who sits as if unconcerned, not shaken by the qualities; who knows ‘it is the qualities that are moving’ and stays steady and does not waver; the same in pain and pleasure, resting in the self, to whom a clod, a stone and gold are the same, the same toward the pleasant and unpleasant, steady, the same in blame and in praise of himself; the same in honour and dishonour, the same toward the side of friend and the side of enemy, letting go of all undertakings for himself: that one is said to have gone beyond the qualities.

मां च योऽव्यभिचारेण भक्तियोगेन सेवते ।
स गुणान्समतीत्यैतान्ब्रह्मभूयाय कल्पते ॥ २६ ॥
ब्रह्मणो हि प्रतिष्ठाहममृतस्याव्ययस्य च ।
शाश्वतस्य च धर्मस्य सुखस्यैकान्तिकस्य च ॥ २७ ॥

māṃ ca yo 'vyabhicāreṇa bhaktiyogena sevate
sa guṇān samatītyaitān brahmabhūyāya kalpate
brahmaṇo hi pratiṣṭhāham amṛtasyāvyayasya ca
śāśvatasya ca dharmasya sukhasyaikāntikasya ca

“And one who serves me with the yoga of love that does not stray goes beyond these qualities and is fit to become Brahman. For I am the ground of Brahman, of the deathless that does not pass, of eternal dharma, and of perfect happiness.”

श्रीभगवानुवाच —
ऊर्ध्वमूलमधःशाखमश्वत्थं प्राहुरव्ययम् ।
छन्दांसि यस्य पर्णानि यस्तं वेद स वेदवित् ॥ १ ॥
अधश्चोर्ध्वं प्रसृतास्तस्य शाखा
गुणप्रवृद्धा विषयप्रवालाः ।
अधश्च मूलान्यनुसन्ततानि
कर्मानुबन्धीनि मनुष्यलोके ॥ २ ॥

śrībhagavān uvāca
ūrdhvamūlam adhaḥśākham aśvatthaṃ prāhur avyayam
chandāṃsi yasya parṇāni yas taṃ veda sa vedavit
adhaś cordhvaṃ prasṛtās tasya śākhā
guṇapravṛddhā viṣayapravālāḥ
adhaś ca mūlāny anusaṃtatāni
karmānubandhīni manuṣyaloke

The Blessed One said: “They speak of an aśvattha tree that does not pass, with its roots above and its branches below, whose leaves are the sacred hymns. Whoever knows it knows the Veda. Its branches spread below and above, fed by the qualities, with the objects of the senses as its buds; and below, its roots stretch down, binding to action in the world of men.

न रूपमस्येह तथोपलभ्यते नान्तो न चादिर्न च सम्प्रतिष्ठा ।
अश्वत्थमेनं सुविरूढमूलमसङ्गशस्त्रेण दृढेन छित्त्वा ॥ ३ ॥
ततः पदं तत्परिमार्गितव्यं
यस्मिन्गता न निवर्तन्ति भूयः ।
तमेव चाद्यं पुरुषं प्रपद्ये
यतः प्रवृत्तिः प्रसृता पुराणी ॥ ४ ॥

na rūpam asyeha tathopalabhyate
nānto na cādir na ca saṃpratiṣṭhā
aśvattham enaṃ suvirūḍhamūlam
asaṅgaśastreṇa dṛḍhena chittvā
tataḥ padaṃ tatparimārgitavyaṃ
yasmin gatā na nivartanti bhūyaḥ
tam eva cādyaṃ puruṣaṃ prapadye
yataḥ pravṛttiḥ prasṛtā purāṇī

“Its form is not seen here, nor its end, nor its beginning, nor where it stands. Cutting this firm-rooted aśvattha with the strong axe of not clinging, then one should seek that place from which, having gone, none return: ‘I take refuge in that first Person, from whom the ancient stream of all this flowed.’

निर्मानमोहा जितसङ्गदोषा अध्यात्मनित्या विनिवृत्तकामाः ।
द्वन्द्वैर्विमुक्ताः सुखदुःखसंज्ञैर्गच्छन्त्यमूढाः पदमव्ययं तत् ॥ ५ ॥

nirmānamohā jitasaṅgadoṣā
adhyātmanityā vinivṛttakāmāḥ
dvaṃdvair vimuktāḥ sukhaduḥkhasaṃjñair
gacchanty amūḍhāḥ padam avyayaṃ tat

“Free of pride and bewilderment, the fault of clinging conquered, always in the self, desires turned away, freed from the pairs called pleasure and pain, the unbewildered go to that place that does not pass.

न तद्भासयते सूर्यो न शशाङ्को न पावकः ।
यद्गत्वा न निवर्तन्ते तद्धाम परमं मम ॥ ६ ॥

na tad bhāsayate sūryo na śaśāṅko na pāvakaḥ
yad gatvā na nivartante tad dhāma paramaṃ mama

“The sun does not light it, nor the moon, nor fire. Having gone there, they do not return. That is my highest home.

ममैवांशो जीवलोके जीवभूतः सनातनः ।
मनःषष्ठानीन्द्रियाणि प्रकृतिस्थानि कर्षति ॥ ७ ॥
शरीरं यदवाप्नोति यच्चाप्युत्क्रामतीश्वरः ।
गृहीत्वैतानि संयाति वायुर्गन्धानिवाशयात् ॥ ८ ॥
श्रोत्रं चक्षुः स्पर्शनं च रसनं घ्राणमेव च ।
अधिष्ठाय मनश्चायं विषयानुपसेवते ॥ ९ ॥

mamaivāṃśo jīvaloke jīvabhūtaḥ sanātanaḥ
manaḥṣaṣṭhānīndriyāṇi prakṛtisthāni karṣati
śarīraṃ yad avāpnoti yac cāpy utkrāmatīśvaraḥ
gṛhītvaitāni saṃyāti vāyur gandhān ivāśayāt
śrotraṃ cakṣuḥ sparśanaṃ ca rasanaṃ ghrāṇam eva ca
adhiṣṭhāya manaś cāyaṃ viṣayān upasevate

“A part of me, eternal, having become a living being in the world of the living, draws to itself the senses, with the mind as the sixth, which rest in nature. When the lord takes a body, and when he leaves it, he takes these with him and goes, as the wind takes scents from where they rest. Presiding over hearing, sight, touch, taste and smell, and the mind, he tastes the objects of the senses.

उत्क्रामन्तं स्थितं वापि भुञ्जानं वा गुणान्वितम् ।
विमूढा नानुपश्यन्ति पश्यन्ति ज्ञानचक्षुषः ॥ १० ॥
यतन्तो योगिनश्चैनं पश्यन्त्यात्मन्यवस्थितम् ।
यतन्तोऽप्यकृतात्मानो नैनं पश्यन्त्यचेतसः ॥ ११ ॥

utkrāmantaṃ sthitaṃ vāpi bhuñjānaṃ vā guṇānvitam
vimūḍhā nānupaśyanti paśyanti jñānacakṣuṣaḥ
yatanto yoginaś cainaṃ paśyanty ātmany avasthitam
yatanto 'py akṛtātmāno nainaṃ paśyanty acetasaḥ

“The bewildered do not see him as he leaves, or stays, or tastes, joined with the qualities; those with the eye of knowledge see. Striving yogīs see him dwelling in the self; but those whose selves are unprepared, who lack awareness, do not see him even when they strive.

यदादित्यगतं तेजो जगद्भासयतेऽखिलम् ।
यच्चन्द्रमसि यच्चाग्नौ तत्तेजो विद्धि मामकम् ॥ १२ ॥
गामाविश्य च भूतानि
धारयाम्यहमोजसा ।
पुष्णामि चौषधीः सर्वाः
सोमो भूत्वा रसात्मकः ॥ १३ ॥
अहं वैश्वानरो भूत्वा प्राणिनां देहमाश्रितः ।
प्राणापानसमायुक्तः पचाम्यन्नं चतुर्विधम् ॥ १४ ॥

yad ādityagataṃ tejo jagad bhāsayate 'khilam
yac candramasi yac cāgnau tat tejo viddhi māmakam
gām āviśya ca bhūtāni dhārayāmy aham ojasā
puṣṇāmi cauṣadhīḥ sarvāḥ somo bhūtvā rasātmakaḥ
ahaṃ vaiśvānaro bhūtvā prāṇināṃ deham āśritaḥ
prāṇāpānasamāyuktaḥ pacāmy annaṃ caturvidham

“The light in the sun that lights the whole world, the light in the moon and the light in fire: know that light as mine. Entering the earth, I hold up beings with my strength; and becoming the moon, the juice of life, I nourish all plants. Becoming the fire of life within the bodies of the living, joined with the in-breath and the out-breath, I digest the four kinds of food.

सर्वस्य चाहं हृदि संनिविष्टो
मत्तः स्मृतिर्ज्ञानमपोहनं च ।
वेदैश्च सर्वैरहमेव वेद्यो
वेदान्तकृद्वेदविदेव चाहम् ॥ १५ ॥

sarvasya cāhaṃ hṛdi saṃniviṣṭo
mattaḥ smṛtir jñānam apohanaṃ ca
vedaiś ca sarvair aham eva vedyo
vedāntakṛd vedavid eva cāham

“I am seated in the heart of all. From me come memory, knowledge, and their loss. I am what is to be known by all the Vedas; I am the maker of the Vedānta, and the knower of the Veda.

द्वाविमौ पुरुषौ लोके क्षरश्चाक्षर एव च ।
क्षरः सर्वाणि भूतानि कूटस्थोऽक्षर उच्यते ॥ १६ ॥
उत्तमः पुरुषस्त्वन्यः परमात्मेत्युदाहृतः ।
यो लोकत्रयमाविश्य बिभर्त्यव्यय ईश्वरः ॥ १७ ॥
यस्मात्क्षरमतीतोऽहमक्षरादपि चोत्तमः ।
अतोऽस्मि लोके वेदे च प्रथितः पुरुषोत्तमः ॥ १८ ॥

dvāv imau puruṣau loke kṣaraś cākṣara eva ca
kṣaraḥ sarvāṇi bhūtāni kūṭastho 'kṣara ucyate
uttamaḥ puruṣas tv anyaḥ paramātmety udāhṛtaḥ
yo lokatrayam āviśya bibharty avyaya īśvaraḥ
yasmāt kṣaram atīto 'ham akṣarād api cottamaḥ
ato 'smi loke vede ca prathitaḥ puruṣottamaḥ

“There are two persons in the world: the perishable and the imperishable. All beings are the perishable; the unchanging is called the imperishable. But there is another, the highest Person, called the highest self, who, entering the three worlds, holds them up, the lord who does not pass. Because I am beyond the perishable, and higher even than the imperishable, I am celebrated in the world and in the Veda as the highest Person.

यो मामेवमसंमूढो जानाति पुरुषोत्तमम् ।
स सर्वविद्भजति मां सर्वभावेन भारत ॥ १९ ॥
इति गुह्यतमं शास्त्रमिदमुक्तं मयानघ ।
एतद्बुद्ध्वा बुद्धिमान्स्यात्कृतकृत्यश्च भारत ॥ २० ॥

yo mām evam asaṃmūḍho jānāti puruṣottamam
sa sarvavid bhajati māṃ sarvabhāvena bhārata
iti guhyatamaṃ śāstram idam uktaṃ mayānagha
etad buddhvā buddhimān syāt kṛtakṛtyaś ca bhārata

“Whoever, unbewildered, knows me in this way as the highest Person knows all, and worships me with all his being, Bhārata. So this most secret teaching has been told by me, sinless one. Understanding it, one becomes wise, and has done all that is to be done, Bhārata.”

श्रीभगवानुवाच —
अभयं सत्त्वसंशुद्धिर्ज्ञानयोगव्यवस्थितिः ।
दानं दमश्च यज्ञश्च स्वाध्यायस्तप आर्जवम् ॥ १ ॥
अहिंसा सत्यमक्रोधस्त्यागः शान्तिरपैशुनम् ।
दया भूतेष्वलोलुप्त्वं मार्दवं ह्रीरचापलम् ॥ २ ॥
तेजः क्षमा धृतिः शौचमद्रोहो नातिमानिता ।
भवन्ति सम्पदं दैवीमभिजातस्य भारत ॥ ३ ॥

śrībhagavān uvāca
abhayaṃ sattvasaṃśuddhir jñānayogavyavasthitiḥ
dānaṃ damaś ca yajñaś ca svādhyāyas tapa ārjavam
ahiṃsā satyam akrodhas tyāgaḥ śāntir apaiśunam
dayā bhūteṣv aloluptvaṃ mārdavaṃ hrīr acāpalam
tejaḥ kṣamā dhṛtiḥ śaucam adroho nātimānitā
bhavanti saṃpadaṃ daivīm abhijātasya bhārata

The Blessed One said: “Fearlessness, purity of heart, steadiness in the yoga of knowledge, giving, self-restraint, offering, study, austerity, straightforwardness; not harming, truth, freedom from anger, letting go, peace, not speaking ill of others, compassion for beings, freedom from greed, gentleness, modesty, steadiness; vigour, forgiveness, endurance, purity, freedom from malice, freedom from pride: these belong to one born to the divine nature, Bhārata.

दम्भो दर्पोऽतिमानश्च क्रोधः पारुष्यमेव च ।
अज्ञानं चाभिजातस्य पार्थ सम्पदमासुरीम् ॥ ४ ॥

dambho darpo 'timānaś ca krodhaḥ pāruṣyam eva ca
ajñānaṃ cābhijātasya pārtha saṃpadam āsurīm

“Pretence, arrogance, pride, anger, harshness and not knowing belong to one born to the asura nature, Pārtha.

दैवी सम्पद्विमोक्षाय निबन्धायासुरी मता ।
मा शुचः सम्पदं दैवीमभिजातोऽसि पाण्डव ॥ ५ ॥

daivī saṃpad vimokṣāya nibandhāyāsurī matā
mā śucaḥ saṃpadaṃ daivīm abhijāto 'si pāṇḍava

“The divine nature is said to lead to freedom; the asura nature, to bondage. Do not grieve, Pāṇḍava: you are born to the divine nature.

द्वौ भूतसर्गौ लोकेऽस्मिन्दैव आसुर एव च ।
दैवो विस्तरशः प्रोक्त आसुरं पार्थ मे शृणु ॥ ६ ॥

dvau bhūtasargau loke 'smin daiva āsura eva ca
daivo vistaraśaḥ prokta āsuraṃ pārtha me śṛṇu

“There are two kinds of beings made in this world: the divine and the asura. The divine has been told at length; now hear from me of the asura, Pārtha.

प्रवृत्तिं च निवृत्तिं च जना न विदुरासुराः ।
न शौचं नापि चाचारो न सत्यं तेषु विद्यते ॥ ७ ॥
असत्यमप्रतिष्ठं ते जगदाहुरनीश्वरम् ।
अपरस्परसम्भूतं किमन्यत्कामहैतुकम् ॥ ८ ॥
एतां दृष्टिमवष्टभ्य नष्टात्मानोऽल्पबुद्धयः ।
प्रभवन्त्युग्रकर्माणः क्षयाय जगतोऽहिताः ॥ ९ ॥

pravṛttiṃ ca nivṛttiṃ ca janā na vidur āsurāḥ
na śaucaṃ nāpi cācāro na satyaṃ teṣu vidyate
asatyam apratiṣṭhaṃ te jagad āhur anīśvaram
aparasparasaṃbhūtaṃ kim anyat kāmahaitukam
etāṃ dṛṣṭim avaṣṭabhya naṣṭātmāno 'lpabuddhayaḥ
prabhavanty ugrakarmāṇaḥ kṣayāya jagato 'hitāḥ

“People of asura nature do not know when to act and when to refrain. Neither purity, nor good conduct, nor truth is found in them. They say the world has no truth, no ground, no lord, that it is not born of any order, that it is caused by desire alone, and nothing else. Holding this view, lost in themselves, of small understanding, they rise as doers of cruel deeds, enemies of the world, for its destruction.

काममाश्रित्य दुष्पूरं दम्भमानमदान्विताः ।
मोहाद्गृहीत्वासद्ग्राहान्प्रवर्तन्तेऽशुचिव्रताः ॥ १० ॥
चिन्तामपरिमेयां च प्रलयान्तामुपाश्रिताः ।
कामोपभोगपरमा एतावदिति निश्चिताः ॥ ११ ॥
आशापाशशतैर्बद्धाः कामक्रोधपरायणाः ।
ईहन्ते कामभोगार्थमन्यायेनार्थसञ्चयान् ॥ १२ ॥

kāmam āśritya duṣpūraṃ dambhamānamadānvitāḥ
mohād gṛhītvāsadgrāhān pravartante 'śucivratāḥ
cintām aparimeyāṃ ca pralayāntām upāśritāḥ
kāmopabhogaparamā etāvad iti niścitāḥ
āśāpāśaśatair baddhāḥ kāmakrodhaparāyaṇāḥ
īhante kāmabhogārtham anyāyenārthasaṃcayān

“Given to desire that can never be filled, full of pretence, pride and intoxication, taking up false ideas through bewilderment, they act with impure vows. Clinging to endless worry that ends only with death, holding enjoyment as the highest aim, sure that this is all there is, bound by hundreds of ropes of hope, given to desire and anger, they seek to pile up wealth by wrong means for their enjoyment.

इदमद्य मया लब्धमिदं प्राप्स्ये मनोरथम् ।
इदमस्तीदमपि मे भविष्यति पुनर्धनम् ॥ १३ ॥
असौ मया हतः शत्रुर्हनिष्ये चापरानपि ।
ईश्वरोऽहमहं भोगी सिद्धोऽहं बलवान्सुखी ॥ १४ ॥
आढ्योऽभिजनवानस्मि
कोऽन्योऽस्ति सदृशो मया ।
यक्ष्ये दास्यामि मोदिष्य
इत्यज्ञानविमोहिताः ॥ १५ ॥

idam adya mayā labdham idaṃ prāpsye manoratham
idam astīdam api me bhaviṣyati punar dhanam
asau mayā hataḥ śatrur haniṣye cāparān api
īśvaro 'ham ahaṃ bhogī siddho 'haṃ balavān sukhī
āḍhyo 'bhijanavān asmi ko 'nyo 'sti sadṛśo mayā
yakṣye dāsyāmi modiṣya ity ajñānavimohitāḥ

“’This I have gained today; this wish I will fulfil; this is mine, and this wealth too will be mine. That enemy I have killed, and others too I will kill. I am the lord, I am the enjoyer, I am accomplished, strong and happy. I am rich and well-born; who else is like me? I will offer, I will give, I will rejoice.’ So they are bewildered by not knowing.

अनेकचित्तविभ्रान्ता मोहजालसमावृताः ।
प्रसक्ताः कामभोगेषु पतन्ति नरकेऽशुचौ ॥ १६ ॥
आत्मसम्भाविताः स्तब्धा धनमानमदान्विताः ।
यजन्ते नामयज्ञैस्ते दम्भेनाविधिपूर्वकम् ॥ १७ ॥
अहङ्कारं बलं दर्पं कामं क्रोधं च संश्रिताः ।
मामात्मपरदेहेषु प्रद्विषन्तोऽभ्यसूयकाः ॥ १८ ॥

anekacittavibhrāntā mohajālasamāvṛtāḥ
prasaktāḥ kāmabhogeṣu patanti narake 'śucau
ātmasaṃbhāvitāḥ stabdhā dhanamānamadānvitāḥ
yajante nāmayajñais te dambhenāvidhipūrvakam
ahaṃkāraṃ balaṃ darpaṃ kāmaṃ krodhaṃ ca saṃśritāḥ
mām ātmaparadeheṣu pradviṣanto 'bhyasūyakāḥ

“Bewildered by many thoughts, caught in a net of delusion, clinging to enjoyment, they fall into a foul hell. Self-admiring, stubborn, full of the pride and intoxication of wealth, they make offerings in name only, with pretence, not by the rule. Given to the sense of I, to force, arrogance, desire and anger, these envious ones hate me in their own bodies and in the bodies of others.

तानहं द्विषतः क्रूरान्संसारेषु नराधमान् ।
क्षिपाम्यजस्रमशुभानासुरीष्वेव योनिषु ॥ १९ ॥
आसुरीं योनिमापन्ना
मूढा जन्मनि जन्मनि ।
मामप्राप्यैव कौन्तेय
ततो यान्त्यधमां गतिम् ॥ २० ॥

tān ahaṃ dviṣataḥ krūrān saṃsāreṣu narādhamān
kṣipāmy ajasram aśubhān āsurīṣv eva yoniṣu
āsurīṃ yonim āpannā mūḍhā janmani janmani
mām aprāpyaiva kaunteya tato yānty adhamāṃ gatim

“Those hateful, cruel, the lowest of people, the impure, I throw again and again into the rounds of existence, into asura wombs. Having entered asura wombs, bewildered birth after birth, not reaching me, son of Kuntī, they go to the lowest way.

त्रिविधं नरकस्येदं द्वारं नाशनमात्मनः ।
कामः क्रोधस्तथा लोभस्तस्मादेतत्त्रयं त्यजेत् ॥ २१ ॥
एतैर्विमुक्तः कौन्तेय तमोद्वारैस्त्रिभिर्नरः ।
आचरत्यात्मनः श्रेयस्ततो याति परां गतिम् ॥ २२ ॥

trividhaṃ narakasyedaṃ dvāraṃ nāśanam ātmanaḥ
kāmaḥ krodhas tathā lobhas tasmād etat trayaṃ tyajet
etair vimuktaḥ kaunteya tamodvārais tribhir naraḥ
ācaraty ātmanaḥ śreyas tato yāti parāṃ gatim

“Threefold is this gate of hell, destroyer of the self: desire, anger and greed. So one should let go of these three. Freed from these three gates of darkness, son of Kuntī, a person does what is good for himself, and then goes the highest way.

यः शास्त्रविधिमुत्सृज्य
वर्तते कामकारतः ।
न स सिद्धिमवाप्नोति
न सुखं न परां गतिम् ॥ २३ ॥
तस्माच्छास्त्रं प्रमाणं ते
कार्याकार्यव्यवस्थितौ ।
ज्ञात्वा शास्त्रविधानोक्तं
कर्म कर्तुमिहार्हसि ॥ २४ ॥

yaḥ śāstravidhim utsṛjya vartate kāmakārataḥ
na sa siddhim avāpnoti na sukhaṃ na parāṃ gatim
tasmāc chāstraṃ pramāṇaṃ te kāryākāryavyavasthitau
jñātvā śāstravidhānoktaṃ karma kartum ihārhasi

“Whoever throws aside the guidance of the teaching and acts on the push of desire reaches neither fulfilment, nor happiness, nor the highest way. So let the teaching be your measure in deciding what should be done and what should not. Knowing what the guidance says, you should act here.”

अर्जुन उवाच —
ये शास्त्रविधिमुत्सृज्य
यजन्ते श्रद्धयान्विताः ।
तेषां निष्ठा तु का कृष्ण
सत्त्वमाहो रजस्तमः ॥ १ ॥

arjuna uvāca
ye śāstravidhim utsṛjya yajante śraddhayānvitāḥ
teṣāṃ niṣṭhā tu kā kṛṣṇa sattvam āho rajas tamaḥ

Arjuna said: “Those who set aside the guidance of the teaching, but worship full of faith: what is their standing, Kṛṣṇa? Clarity, passion, or darkness?”

श्रीभगवानुवाच —
त्रिविधा भवति श्रद्धा
देहिनां सा स्वभावजा ।
सात्त्विकी राजसी चैव
तामसी चेति तां शृणु ॥ २ ॥
सत्त्वानुरूपा सर्वस्य
श्रद्धा भवति भारत ।
श्रद्धामयोऽयं पुरुषो
यो यच्छ्रद्धः स एव सः ॥ ३ ॥
यजन्ते सात्त्विका देवान्यक्षरक्षांसि राजसाः ।
प्रेतान्भूतगणांश्चान्ये यजन्ते तामसा जनाः ॥ ४ ॥

śrībhagavān uvāca
trividhā bhavati śraddhā dehināṃ sā svabhāvajā
sāttvikī rājasī caiva tāmasī ceti tāṃ śṛṇu
sattvānurūpā sarvasya śraddhā bhavati bhārata
śraddhāmayo 'yaṃ puruṣo yo yacchraddhaḥ sa eva saḥ
yajante sāttvikā devān yakṣarakṣāṃsi rājasāḥ
pretān bhūtagaṇāṃś cānye yajante tāmasā janāḥ

The Blessed One said: “The faith of the embodied is of three kinds, born of their own nature: clear, passionate and dark. Hear of it. Everyone’s faith follows their inner being, Bhārata. A person is made of faith: whatever one’s faith is, that one is. The clear worship the gods; the passionate, yakṣas and rākṣasas; and the others, the dark, worship departed spirits and hosts of ghosts.

अशास्त्रविहितं घोरं तप्यन्ते ये तपो जनाः ।
दम्भाहङ्कारसंयुक्ताः कामरागबलान्विताः ॥ ५ ॥
कर्शयन्तः शरीरस्थं
भूतग्राममचेतसः ।
मां चैवान्तःशरीरस्थं
तान्विद्ध्यासुरनिश्चयान् ॥ ६ ॥

aśāstravihitaṃ ghoraṃ tapyante ye tapo janāḥ
dambhāhaṃkārasaṃyuktāḥ kāmarāgabalānvitāḥ
karśayantaḥ śarīrasthaṃ bhūtagrāmam acetasaḥ
māṃ caivāntaḥśarīrasthaṃ tān viddhy āsuraniścayān

“Those who practise terrible austerities not ordered by the teaching, joined with pretence and the sense of I, driven by the force of desire and passion, thoughtless, tormenting the elements gathered in the body, and me who dwell within the body: know them to be of asura resolve.

आहारस्त्वपि सर्वस्य त्रिविधो भवति प्रियः ।
यज्ञस्तपस्तथा दानं तेषां भेदमिमं शृणु ॥ ७ ॥
आयुःसत्त्वबलारोग्यसुखप्रीतिविवर्धनाः ।
रस्याः स्निग्धाः स्थिरा हृद्या आहाराः सात्त्विकप्रियाः ॥ ८ ॥
कट्वम्ललवणात्युष्णतीक्ष्णरूक्षविदाहिनः ।
आहारा राजसस्येष्टा दुःखशोकामयप्रदाः ॥ ९ ॥
यातयामं गतरसं पूति पर्युषितं च यत् ।
उच्छिष्टमपि चामेध्यं भोजनं तामसप्रियम् ॥ १० ॥

āhāras tv api sarvasya trividho bhavati priyaḥ
yajñas tapas tathā dānaṃ teṣāṃ bhedam imaṃ śṛṇu
āyuḥsattvabalārogyasukhaprītivivardhanāḥ
rasyāḥ snigdhāḥ sthirā hṛdyā āhārāḥ sāttvikapriyāḥ
kaṭvamlalavaṇātyuṣṇatīkṣṇarūkṣavidāhinaḥ
āhārā rājasasyeṣṭā duḥkhaśokāmayapradāḥ
yātayāmaṃ gatarasaṃ pūti paryuṣitaṃ ca yat
ucchiṣṭam api cāmedhyaṃ bhojanaṃ tāmasapriyam

“Food, too, which everyone loves, is of three kinds, and so are offering, austerity and giving. Hear the difference. Foods that increase life, strength, health, happiness and good cheer, that are savoury, rich, nourishing and pleasant, are dear to the clear. Foods that are bitter, sour, salty, very hot, sharp, dry and burning are liked by the passionate; they bring pain, grief and sickness. Food that is stale, tasteless, spoiled, left over and impure is dear to the dark.

अफलाकाङ्क्षिभिर्यज्ञो विधिदृष्टो य इज्यते ।
यष्टव्यमेवेति मनः समाधाय स सात्त्विकः ॥ ११ ॥
अभिसन्धाय तु फलं दम्भार्थमपि चैव यत् ।
इज्यते भरतश्रेष्ठ तं यज्ञं विद्धि राजसम् ॥ १२ ॥
विधिहीनमसृष्टान्नं मन्त्रहीनमदक्षिणम् ।
श्रद्धाविरहितं यज्ञं तामसं परिचक्षते ॥ १३ ॥

aphalākāṅkṣibhir yajño vidhidṛṣṭo ya ijyate
yaṣṭavyam eveti manaḥ samādhāya sa sāttvikaḥ
abhisaṃdhāya tu phalaṃ dambhārtham api caiva yat
ijyate bharataśreṣṭha taṃ yajñaṃ viddhi rājasam
vidhihīnam asṛṣṭānnaṃ mantrahīnam adakṣiṇam
śraddhāvirahitaṃ yajñaṃ tāmasaṃ paricakṣate

“The offering made by the rule, by those who do not want its fruit, with the mind set on ‘this ought to be offered’, is clear. But the offering made with an eye on its fruit, or for show, know it to be passionate, best of the Bhāratas. The offering made without the rule, with no food given out, without the sacred words, without the gift to the priests, and without faith, is called dark.

देवद्विजगुरुप्राज्ञपूजनं शौचमार्जवम् ।
ब्रह्मचर्यमहिंसा च शारीरं तप उच्यते ॥ १४ ॥
अनुद्वेगकरं वाक्यं सत्यं प्रियहितं च यत् ।
स्वाध्यायाभ्यसनं चैव वाङ्मयं तप उच्यते ॥ १५ ॥
मनःप्रसादः सौम्यत्वं मौनमात्मविनिग्रहः ।
भावसंशुद्धिरित्येतत्तपो मानसमुच्यते ॥ १६ ॥

devadvijaguruprājñapūjanaṃ śaucam ārjavam
brahmacaryam ahiṃsā ca śārīraṃ tapa ucyate
anudvegakaraṃ vākyaṃ satyaṃ priyahitaṃ ca yat
svādhyāyābhyasanaṃ caiva vāṅmayaṃ tapa ucyate
manaḥprasādaḥ saumyatvaṃ maunam ātmavinigrahaḥ
bhāvasaṃśuddhir ity etat tapo mānasam ucyate

“Honouring the gods, the twice-born, teachers and the wise; purity, straightforwardness, continence and not harming: this is called the austerity of the body. Words that cause no distress, that are true, kind and helpful, and the regular practice of study: this is called the austerity of speech. Calm of mind, gentleness, silence, self-restraint and purity of heart: this is called the austerity of the mind.

श्रद्धया परया तप्तं तपस्तत्त्रिविधं नरैः ।
अफलकाङ्क्षिभिर्युक्तैः सात्त्विकं परिचक्षते ॥ १७ ॥
सत्कारमानपूजार्थं तपो दम्भेन चैव यत् ।
क्रियते तदिह प्रोक्तं राजसं चलमध्रुवम् ॥ १८ ॥
मूढग्राहेणात्मनो यत्पीडया क्रियते तपः ।
परस्योत्सादनार्थं वा तत्तामसमुदाहृतम् ॥ १९ ॥

śraddhayā parayā taptaṃ tapas tat trividhaṃ naraiḥ
aphalākāṅkṣibhir yuktaiḥ sāttvikaṃ paricakṣate
satkāramānapūjārthaṃ tapo dambhena caiva yat
kriyate tad iha proktaṃ rājasaṃ calam adhruvam
mūḍhagrāheṇātmano yat pīḍayā kriyate tapaḥ
parasyotsādanārthaṃ vā tat tāmasam udāhṛtam

“This threefold austerity, practised with the highest faith by those who are joined and want no fruit, is called clear. The austerity done to win respect, honour and reverence, and with pretence, is here called passionate; it is unsteady and does not last. The austerity done from a foolish idea, with self-torment, or to ruin another, is called dark.

दातव्यमिति यद्दानं
दीयतेऽनुपकारिणे ।
देशे काले च पात्रे च
तद्दानं सात्त्विकं स्मृतम् ॥ २० ॥
यत्तु प्रत्युपकारार्थं
फलमुद्दिश्य वा पुनः ।
दीयते च परिक्लिष्टं
तद्दानं राजसं स्मृतम् ॥ २१ ॥
अदेशकाले यद्दानमपात्रेभ्यश्च दीयते ।
असत्कृतमवज्ञातं तत्तामसमुदाहृतम् ॥ २२ ॥

dātavyam iti yad dānaṃ dīyate 'nupakāriṇe
deśe kāle ca pātre ca tad dānaṃ sāttvikaṃ smṛtam
yat tu pratyupakārārthaṃ phalam uddiśya vā punaḥ
dīyate ca parikliṣṭaṃ tad dānaṃ rājasaṃ smṛtam
adeśakāle yad dānam apātrebhyaś ca dīyate
asatkṛtam avajñātaṃ tat tāmasam udāhṛtam

“The gift given because ‘it ought to be given’, to one who cannot give back, at the right place and time, to a worthy person, is called clear. The gift given expecting a return, or for the sake of a fruit, or grudgingly, is called passionate. The gift given at the wrong place and time, to the unworthy, without respect, with contempt, is called dark.

ओं तत्सदिति निर्देशो ब्रह्मणस्त्रिविधः स्मृतः ।
ब्राह्मणास्तेन वेदाश्च यज्ञाश्च विहिताः पुरा ॥ २३ ॥
तस्मादोमित्युदाहृत्य यज्ञदानतपःक्रियाः ।
प्रवर्तन्ते विधानोक्ताः सततं ब्रह्मवादिनाम् ॥ २४ ॥
तदित्यनभिसन्धाय
फलं यज्ञतपःक्रियाः ।
दानक्रियाश्च विविधाः
क्रियन्ते मोक्षकाङ्क्षिभिः ॥ २५ ॥

oṃ tat sad iti nirdeśo brahmaṇas trividhaḥ smṛtaḥ
brāhmaṇās tena vedāś ca yajñāś ca vihitāḥ purā
tasmād om ity udāhṛtya yajñadānatapaḥkriyāḥ
pravartante vidhānoktāḥ satataṃ brahmavādinām
tad ity anabhisaṃdhāya phalaṃ yajñatapaḥkriyāḥ
dānakriyāś ca vividhāḥ kriyante mokṣakāṅkṣibhiḥ

“Om tat sat: this is remembered as the threefold name of Brahman. By it the brāhmaṇas, the Vedas and the offerings were set in order long ago. So, saying Om, those who speak of Brahman always begin their acts of offering, giving and austerity as the rule says. Saying tat, without aiming at the fruit, those who seek freedom do the many acts of offering, austerity and giving.

सद्भावे साधुभावे च सदित्येतत्प्रयुज्यते ।
प्रशस्ते कर्मणि तथा सच्छब्दः पार्थ युज्यते ॥ २६ ॥
यज्ञे तपसि दाने च स्थितिः सदिति चोच्यते ।
कर्म चैव तदर्थीयं सदित्येवाभिधीयते ॥ २७ ॥
अश्रद्धया हुतं दत्तं तपस्तप्तं कृतं च यत् ।
असदित्युच्यते पार्थ न च तत्प्रेत्य नो इह ॥ २८ ॥

sadbhāve sādhubhāve ca sad ity etat prayujyate
praśaste karmaṇi tathā sacchabdaḥ pārtha yujyate
yajñe tapasi dāne ca sthitiḥ sad iti cocyate
karma caiva tadarthīyaṃ sad ity evābhidhīyate
aśraddhayā hutaṃ dattaṃ tapas taptaṃ kṛtaṃ ca yat
asad ity ucyate pārtha na ca tat pretya no iha

“Sat is used to mean what is real and what is good; and the word sat is used for a deed worthy of praise, Pārtha. Steadiness in offering, austerity and giving is also called sat, and any action done for that purpose is called sat. But whatever is offered, given, or practised as austerity without faith is called asat, Pārtha; it is nothing here or hereafter.”

अर्जुन उवाच —
संन्यासस्य महाबाहो तत्त्वमिच्छामि वेदितुम् ।
त्यागस्य च हृषीकेश पृथक्केशिनिषूदन ॥ १ ॥

arjuna uvāca
saṃnyāsasya mahābāho tattvam icchāmi veditum
tyāgasya ca hṛṣīkeśa pṛthak keśiniṣūdana

Arjuna said: “I want to know the truth of renunciation, mighty-armed, and of letting go, Hṛṣīkeśa, each one separately, slayer of Keśī.”

श्रीभगवानुवाच —
काम्यानां कर्मणां न्यासं संन्यासं कवयो विदुः ।
सर्वकर्मफलत्यागं प्राहुस्त्यागं विचक्षणाः ॥ २ ॥
त्याज्यं दोषवदित्येके कर्म प्राहुर्मनीषिणः ।
यज्ञदानतपःकर्म न त्याज्यमिति चापरे ॥ ३ ॥

śrībhagavān uvāca
kāmyānāṃ karmaṇāṃ nyāsaṃ saṃnyāsaṃ kavayo viduḥ
sarvakarmaphalatyāgaṃ prāhus tyāgaṃ vicakṣaṇāḥ
tyājyaṃ doṣavad ity eke karma prāhur manīṣiṇaḥ
yajñadānatapaḥkarma na tyājyam iti cāpare

The Blessed One said: “The poets understand renunciation as laying aside works done from desire; the discerning call letting go the giving up of the fruit of all works. Some thinkers say that action should be given up as a fault; others, that the works of offering, giving and austerity should not be given up.

निश्चयं शृणु मे तत्र
त्यागे भरतसत्तम ।
त्यागो हि पुरुषव्याघ्र
त्रिविधः सम्प्रकीर्तितः ॥ ४ ॥
यज्ञदानतपःकर्म न त्याज्यं कार्यमेव तत् ।
यज्ञो दानं तपश्चैव पावनानि मनीषिणाम् ॥ ५ ॥
एतान्यपि तु कर्माणि
सङ्गं त्यक्त्वा फलानि च ।
कर्तव्यानीति मे पार्थ
निश्चितं मतमुत्तमम् ॥ ६ ॥

niścayaṃ śṛṇu me tatra tyāge bharatasattama
tyāgo hi puruṣavyāghra trividhaḥ saṃprakīrtitaḥ
yajñadānatapaḥkarma na tyājyaṃ kāryam eva tat
yajño dānaṃ tapaś caiva pāvanāni manīṣiṇām
etāny api tu karmāṇi saṅgaṃ tyaktvā phalāni ca
kartavyānīti me pārtha niścitaṃ matam uttamam

“Hear my conclusion about letting go, best of the Bhāratas; letting go is said to be threefold, tiger among men. Works of offering, giving and austerity should not be given up; they should be done, for offering, giving and austerity purify the wise. But even these works should be done letting go of clinging and of the fruit. This, Pārtha, is my settled and highest view.

नियतस्य तु संन्यासः कर्मणो नोपपद्यते ।
मोहात्तस्य परित्यागस्तामसः परिकीर्तितः ॥ ७ ॥
दुःखमित्येव यत्कर्म कायक्लेशभयात्त्यजेत् ।
स कृत्वा राजसं त्यागं नैव त्यागफलं लभेत् ॥ ८ ॥
कार्यमित्येव यत्कर्म
नियतं क्रियतेऽर्जुन ।
सङ्गं त्यक्त्वा फलं चैव
स त्यागः सात्त्विको मतः ॥ ९ ॥

niyatasya tu saṃnyāsaḥ karmaṇo nopapadyate
mohāt tasya parityāgas tāmasaḥ parikīrtitaḥ
duḥkham ity eva yat karma kāyakleśabhayāt tyajet
sa kṛtvā rājasaṃ tyāgaṃ naiva tyāgaphalaṃ labhet
kāryam ity eva yat karma niyataṃ kriyate 'rjuna
saṅgaṃ tyaktvā phalaṃ caiva sa tyāgaḥ sāttviko mataḥ

“Giving up the work that is one’s own to do is not right; abandoning it out of bewilderment is called dark. Whoever gives up a work because it is painful, out of fear of bodily strain, lets go in passion and gains no fruit of letting go. When the work that is one’s own is done because it ought to be done, Arjuna, letting go of clinging and fruit, that letting go is held to be clear.

न द्वेष्ट्यकुशलं कर्म
कुशले नानुषज्जते ।
त्यागी सत्त्वसमाविष्टो
मेधावी च्छिन्नसंशयः ॥ १० ॥
न हि देहभृता शक्यं त्यक्तुं कर्माण्यशेषतः ।
यस्तु कर्मफलत्यागी स त्यागीत्यभिधीयते ॥ ११ ॥
अनिष्टमिष्टं मिश्रं च
त्रिविधं कर्मणः फलम् ।
भवत्यत्यागिनां प्रेत्य
न तु संन्यासिनां क्वचित् ॥ १२ ॥

na dveṣṭy akuśalaṃ karma kuśale nānuṣajjate
tyāgī sattvasamāviṣṭo medhāvī chinnasaṃśayaḥ
na hi dehabhṛtā śakyaṃ tyaktuṃ karmāṇy aśeṣataḥ
yas tu karmaphalatyāgī sa tyāgīty abhidhīyate
aniṣṭam iṣṭaṃ miśraṃ ca trividhaṃ karmaṇaḥ phalam
bhavaty atyāgināṃ pretya na tu saṃnyāsināṃ kva cit

“The one who lets go, filled with clarity, wise, his doubts cut, does not hate unpleasant work, nor cling to pleasant work. An embodied being cannot give up actions entirely; but one who lets go of the fruit of action is called one who has let go. The threefold fruit of action, wanted, unwanted and mixed, comes after death to those who have not let go, but never to those who have.

पञ्चैतानि महाबाहो
कारणानि निबोध मे ।
साङ्ख्ये कृतान्ते प्रोक्तानि
सिद्धये सर्वकर्मणाम् ॥ १३ ॥
अधिष्ठानं तथा कर्ता करणं च पृथग्विधम् ।
विविधाश्च पृथक्चेष्टा दैवं चैवात्र पञ्चमम् ॥ १४ ॥
शरीरवाङ्मनोभिर्यत्कर्म प्रारभते नरः ।
न्याय्यं वा विपरीतं वा पञ्चैते तस्य हेतवः ॥ १५ ॥

pañcaitāni mahābāho kāraṇāni nibodha me
sāṃkhye kṛtānte proktāni siddhaye sarvakarmaṇām
adhiṣṭhānaṃ tathā kartā karaṇaṃ ca pṛthagvidham
vividhāś ca pṛthakceṣṭā daivaṃ caivātra pañcamam
śarīravāṅmanobhir yat karma prārabhate naraḥ
nyāyyaṃ vā viparītaṃ vā pañcaite tasya hetavaḥ

“Learn from me, mighty-armed, these five causes for the completion of all actions, as told in the teaching of reason: the ground, the doer, the various instruments, the many separate movements, and, fifth, the divine. Whatever action a person begins with body, speech or mind, right or wrong, these five are its causes.

तत्रैवं सति कर्तारमात्मानं केवलं तु यः ।
पश्यत्यकृतबुद्धित्वान्न स पश्यति दुर्मतिः ॥ १६ ॥
यस्य नाहङ्कृतो भावो बुद्धिर्यस्य न लिप्यते ।
हत्वापि स इमांल्लोकान्न हन्ति न निबध्यते ॥ १७ ॥

tatraivaṃ sati kartāram ātmānaṃ kevalaṃ tu yaḥ
paśyaty akṛtabuddhitvān na sa paśyati durmatiḥ
yasya nāhaṃkṛto bhāvo buddhir yasya na lipyate
hatvāpi sa imāṃl lokān na hanti na nibadhyate

“That being so, whoever, through untrained understanding, sees the self alone as the doer, does not see; that one is dull of mind. One who has no sense of I, whose understanding is not stained, even if he kills these people, does not kill, and is not bound.

ज्ञानं ज्ञेयं परिज्ञाता त्रिविधा कर्मचोदना ।
करणं कर्म कर्तेति त्रिविधः कर्मसङ्ग्रहः ॥ १८ ॥
ज्ञानं कर्म च कर्ता च
त्रिधैव गुणभेदतः ।
प्रोच्यते गुणसङ्ख्याने
यथावच्छृणु तान्यपि ॥ १९ ॥

jñānaṃ jñeyaṃ parijñātā trividhā karmacodanā
karaṇaṃ karma karteti trividhaḥ karmasaṃgrahaḥ
jñānaṃ karma ca kartā ca tridhaiva guṇabhedataḥ
procyate guṇasaṃkhyāne yathāvac chṛṇu tāny api

“Knowledge, the known and the knower are the threefold push to action; the instrument, the act and the doer are the threefold making of action. Knowledge, action and doer are said, in the teaching of the qualities, to be threefold too, according to the qualities. Hear of them as they are.

सर्वभूतेषु येनैकं
भावमव्ययमीक्षते ।
अविभक्तं विभक्तेषु
तज्ज्ञानं विद्धि सात्त्विकम् ॥ २० ॥
पृथक्त्वेन तु यज्ज्ञानं
नानाभावान्पृथग्विधान् ।
वेत्ति सर्वेषु भूतेषु
तज्ज्ञानं विद्धि राजसम् ॥ २१ ॥
यत्तु कृत्स्नवदेकस्मिन्कार्ये सक्तमहैतुकम् ।
अतत्त्वार्थवदल्पं च तत्तामसमुदाहृतम् ॥ २२ ॥

sarvabhūteṣu yenaikaṃ bhāvam avyayam īkṣate
avibhaktaṃ vibhakteṣu taj jñānaṃ viddhi sāttvikam
pṛthaktvena tu yaj jñānaṃ nānābhāvān pṛthagvidhān
vetti sarveṣu bhūteṣu taj jñānaṃ viddhi rājasam
yat tu kṛtsnavad ekasmin kārye saktam ahaitukam
atattvārthavad alpaṃ ca tat tāmasam udāhṛtam

“The knowledge by which one sees one being that does not pass in all beings, undivided in the divided, know that knowledge to be clear. The knowledge that sees, in all beings, many separate beings of different kinds, each apart, know that knowledge to be passionate. And the knowledge that clings to one thing as if it were everything, without reason, not grasping what is true, and small, is called dark.

नियतं सङ्गरहितमरागद्वेषतःकृतम् ।
अफलप्रेप्सुना कर्म यत्तत्सात्त्विकमुच्यते ॥ २३ ॥
यत्तु कामेप्सुना कर्म साहङ्कारेण वा पुनः ।
क्रियते बहुलायासं तद्राजसमुदाहृतम् ॥ २४ ॥
अनुबन्धं क्षयं हिंसामनपेक्ष्य च पौरुषम् ।
मोहादारभ्यते कर्म यत्तत्तामसमुच्यते ॥ २५ ॥

niyataṃ saṅgarahitam arāgadveṣataḥ kṛtam
aphalaprepsunā karma yat tat sāttvikam ucyate
yat tu kāmepsunā karma sāhaṃkāreṇa vā punaḥ
kriyate bahulāyāsaṃ tad rājasam udāhṛtam
anubandhaṃ kṣayaṃ hiṃsām anapekṣya ca pauruṣam
mohād ārabhyate karma yat tat tāmasam ucyate

“The action that is one’s own to do, done without clinging, without liking or disliking, by one who does not want its fruit, is called clear. The action done by one who wants what he wants, or with the sense of I, or with great strain, is called passionate. The action begun from bewilderment, without regard for what follows, for loss, for harm to others, or for one’s own capacity, is called dark.

मुक्तसङ्गोऽनहंवादी
धृत्युत्साहसमन्वितः ।
सिद्ध्यसिद्ध्योर्निर्विकारः
कर्ता सात्त्विक उच्यते ॥ २६ ॥
रागी कर्मफलप्रेप्सुर्लुब्धो हिंसात्मकोऽशुचिः ।
हर्षशोकान्वितः कर्ता राजसः परिकीर्तितः ॥ २७ ॥
अयुक्तः प्राकृतः स्तब्धः
शठो नैकृतिकोऽलसः ।
विषादी दीर्घसूत्री च
कर्ता तामस उच्यते ॥ २८ ॥

muktasaṅgo 'nahaṃvādī dhṛtyutsāhasamanvitaḥ
siddhyasiddhyor nirvikāraḥ kartā sāttvika ucyate
rāgī karmaphalaprepsur lubdho hiṃsātmako 'śuciḥ
harṣaśokānvitaḥ kartā rājasaḥ parikīrtitaḥ
ayuktaḥ prākṛtaḥ stabdhaḥ śaṭho naikṛtiko 'lasaḥ
viṣādī dīrghasūtrī ca kartā tāmasa ucyate

“The doer free of clinging, who does not keep saying I, full of steadiness and energy, unchanged in success and failure, is called clear. The doer full of passion, wanting the fruit of action, greedy, harmful by nature, impure, swept by joy and grief, is called passionate. The doer who is undisciplined, coarse, stubborn, deceitful, dishonest, idle, despondent and always putting off, is called dark.

बुद्धेर्भेदं धृतेश्चैव गुणतस्त्रिविधं शृणु ।
प्रोच्यमानमशेषेण पृथक्त्वेन धनञ्जय ॥ २९ ॥
प्रवृत्तिं च निवृत्तिं च
कार्याकार्ये भयाभये ।
बन्धं मोक्षं च या वेत्ति
बुद्धिः सा पार्थ सात्त्विकी ॥ ३० ॥
यया धर्ममधर्मं च
कार्यं चाकार्यमेव च ।
अयथावत्प्रजानाति
बुद्धिः सा पार्थ राजसी ॥ ३१ ॥
अधर्मं धर्ममिति या
मन्यते तमसावृता ।
सर्वार्थान्विपरीतांश्च
बुद्धिः सा पार्थ तामसी ॥ ३२ ॥

buddher bhedaṃ dhṛteś caiva guṇatas trividhaṃ śṛṇu
procyamānam aśeṣeṇa pṛthaktvena dhanaṃjaya
pravṛttiṃ ca nivṛttiṃ ca kāryākārye bhayābhaye
bandhaṃ mokṣaṃ ca yā vetti buddhiḥ sā pārtha sāttvikī
yayā dharmam adharmaṃ ca kāryaṃ cākāryam eva ca
ayathāvat prajānāti buddhiḥ sā pārtha rājasī
adharmaṃ dharmam iti yā manyate tamasāvṛtā
sarvārthān viparītāṃś ca buddhiḥ sā pārtha tāmasī

“Hear, Dhanañjaya, the threefold difference in understanding and in steadiness, according to the qualities, told fully and separately. The understanding that knows when to act and when to refrain, what is to be done and what is not, what to fear and what not to fear, what binds and what frees, Pārtha, is clear. The understanding by which one knows dharma and its opposite, what is to be done and what is not, wrongly, Pārtha, is passionate. And the understanding which, covered in darkness, thinks what is against dharma is dharma, and sees all things upside down, Pārtha, is dark.

धृत्या यया धारयते
मनःप्राणेन्द्रियक्रियाः ।
योगेनाव्यभिचारिण्या
धृतिः सा पार्थ सात्त्विकी ॥ ३३ ॥
यया तु धर्मकामार्थान्धृत्या धारयतेऽर्जुन ।
प्रसङ्गेन फलाकाङ्क्षी धृतिः सा पार्थ राजसी ॥ ३४ ॥
यया स्वप्नं भयं शोकं
विषादं मदमेव च ।
न विमुञ्चति दुर्मेधा
धृतिः सा तामसी मता ॥ ३५ ॥

dhṛtyā yayā dhārayate manaḥprāṇendriyakriyāḥ
yogenāvyabhicāriṇyā dhṛtiḥ sā pārtha sāttvikī
yayā tu dharmakāmārthān dhṛtyā dhārayate 'rjuna
prasaṅgena phalākāṅkṣī dhṛtiḥ sā pārtha rājasī
yayā svapnaṃ bhayaṃ śokaṃ viṣādaṃ madam eva ca
na vimuñcati durmedhā dhṛtiḥ sā pārtha tāmasī

“The steadiness by which one holds the workings of the mind, the breath and the senses through unwavering yoga, Pārtha, is clear. The steadiness by which one holds to duty, pleasure and wealth, clinging and wanting the fruit, Arjuna, is passionate. The steadiness by which a dull person does not let go of sleep, fear, grief, despondency and pride, Pārtha, is dark.

सुखं त्विदानीं त्रिविधं
शृणु मे भरतर्षभ ।
अभ्यासाद्रमते यत्र
दुःखान्तं च निगच्छति ॥ ३६ ॥
यत्तदग्रे विषमिव परिणामेऽमृतोपमम् ।
तत्सुखं सात्त्विकं प्रोक्तमात्मबुद्धिप्रसादजम् ॥ ३७ ॥
विषयेन्द्रियसंयोगाद्यत्तदग्रेऽमृतोपमम् ।
परिणामे विषमिव तत्सुखं राजसं स्मृतम् ॥ ३८ ॥
यदग्रे चानुबन्धे च सुखं मोहनमात्मनः ।
निद्रालस्यप्रमादोत्थं तत्तामसमुदाहृतम् ॥ ३९ ॥

sukhaṃ tv idānīṃ trividhaṃ śṛṇu me bharatarṣabha
abhyāsād ramate yatra duḥkhāntaṃ ca nigacchati
yat tadagre viṣam iva pariṇāme 'mṛtopamam
tat sukhaṃ sāttvikaṃ proktam ātmabuddhiprasādajam
viṣayendriyasaṃyogād yat tadagre 'mṛtopamam
pariṇāme viṣam iva tat sukhaṃ rājasaṃ smṛtam
yad agre cānubandhe ca sukhaṃ mohanam ātmanaḥ
nidrālasyapramādotthaṃ tat tāmasam udāhṛtam

“Now hear from me, bull of the Bhāratas, the three kinds of happiness: that in which one comes to delight by practice and reaches the end of sorrow; that which is like poison at first and like nectar at the end, born of the clarity of one’s own understanding, is called clear. That which comes from the meeting of the senses with their objects, like nectar at first and like poison at the end, is held to be passionate. And the happiness that bewilders the self at the beginning and at the end, arising from sleep, idleness and carelessness, is called dark.

न तदस्ति पृथिव्यां वा दिवि देवेषु वा पुनः ।
सत्त्वं प्रकृतिजैर्मुक्तं यदेभिः स्यात्त्रिभिर्गुणैः ॥ ४० ॥

na tad asti pṛthivyāṃ vā divi deveṣu vā punaḥ
sattvaṃ prakṛtijair muktaṃ yad ebhiḥ syāt tribhir guṇaiḥ

“There is no being on earth, or in heaven among the gods, that is free from these three qualities born of nature.

ब्राह्मणक्षत्रियविशां शूद्राणां च परन्तप ।
कर्माणि प्रविभक्तानि स्वभावप्रभवैर्गुणैः ॥ ४१ ॥
शमो दमस्तपः शौचं
क्षान्तिरार्जवमेव च ।
ज्ञानं विज्ञानमास्तिक्यं
ब्रह्मकर्म स्वभावजम् ॥ ४२ ॥
शौर्यं तेजो धृतिर्दाक्ष्यं युद्धे चाप्यपलायनम् ।
दानमीश्वरभावश्च क्षात्रं कर्म स्वभावजम् ॥ ४३ ॥
कृषिगौरक्ष्यवाणिज्यं वैश्यकर्म स्वभावजम् ।
परिचर्यात्मकं कर्म शूद्रस्यापि स्वभावजम् ॥ ४४ ॥

brāhmaṇakṣatriyaviśāṃ śūdrāṇāṃ ca paraṃtapa
karmāṇi pravibhaktāni svabhāvaprabhavair guṇaiḥ
śamo damas tapaḥ śaucaṃ kṣāntir ārjavam eva ca
jñānaṃ vijñānam āstikyaṃ brahmakarma svabhāvajam
śauryaṃ tejo dhṛtir dākṣyaṃ yuddhe cāpy apalāyanam
dānam īśvarabhāvaś ca kṣatrakarma svabhāvajam
kṛṣigorakṣyavāṇijyaṃ vaiśyakarma svabhāvajam
paricaryātmakaṃ karma śūdrasyāpi svabhāvajam

“The works of brāhmaṇas, kṣatriyas and vaiśyas, and of śūdras, scorcher of foes, are divided according to the qualities born of their own nature. Calm, restraint, austerity, purity, patience, uprightness, knowledge, understanding and faith are the work of the brāhmaṇa, born of his nature. Courage, vigour, steadiness, skill, not fleeing in battle, generosity and leadership are the work of the kṣatriya, born of his nature. Farming, keeping cattle and trade are the work of the vaiśya, born of his nature; and work that is service is the work of the śūdra, born of his nature too.

स्वे स्वे कर्मण्यभिरतः
संसिद्धिं लभते नरः ।
स्वकर्मनिरतः सिद्धिं
यथा विन्दति तच्छृणु ॥ ४५ ॥
यतः प्रवृत्तिर्भूतानां
येन सर्वमिदं ततम् ।
स्वकर्मणा तमभ्यर्च्य
सिद्धिं विन्दति मानवः ॥ ४६ ॥

sve sve karmaṇy abhirataḥ saṃsiddhiṃ labhate naraḥ
svakarmanirataḥ siddhiṃ yathā vindati tac chṛṇu
yataḥ pravṛttir bhūtānāṃ yena sarvam idaṃ tatam
svakarmaṇā tam abhyarcya siddhiṃ vindati mānavaḥ

“Each person, devoted to his own work, reaches fulfilment. Hear how one devoted to his own work finds fulfilment: by worshipping, through his own work, the one from whom all beings come forth and by whom all this is pervaded, a person reaches fulfilment.

श्रेयान्स्वधर्मो विगुणः
परधर्मात्स्वनुष्ठितात् ।
स्वभावनियतं कर्म
कुर्वन्नाप्नोति किल्बिषम् ॥ ४७ ॥
सहजं कर्म कौन्तेय
सदोषमपि न त्यजेत् ।
सर्वारम्भा हि दोषेण
धूमेनाग्निरिवावृताः ॥ ४८ ॥

śreyān svadharmo viguṇaḥ paradharmāt svanuṣṭhitāt
svabhāvaniyataṃ karma kurvan nāpnoti kilbiṣam
sahajaṃ karma kaunteya sadoṣam api na tyajet
sarvārambhā hi doṣeṇa dhūmenāgnir ivāvṛtāḥ

“Better one’s own dharma, even done imperfectly, than another’s dharma done well. Doing the work set by one’s own nature, one incurs no fault. One should not give up the work one was born to, son of Kuntī, even if it is flawed; for all undertakings are covered by fault, as fire by smoke.

असक्तबुद्धिः सर्वत्र
जितात्मा विगतस्पृहः ।
नैष्कर्म्यसिद्धिं परमां
संन्यासेनाधिगच्छति ॥ ४९ ॥
सिद्धिं प्राप्तो यथा ब्रह्म तथाप्नोति निबोध मे ।
समासेनैव कौन्तेय निष्ठा ज्ञानस्य या परा ॥ ५० ॥
बुद्ध्या विशुद्धया युक्तो
धृत्यात्मानं नियम्य च ।
शब्दादीन्विषयांस्त्यक्त्वा
रागद्वेषौ व्युदस्य च ॥ ५१ ॥
विविक्तसेवी लघ्वाशी
यतवाक्कायमानसः ।
ध्यानयोगपरो नित्यं
वैराग्यं समुपाश्रितः ॥ ५२ ॥
अहङ्कारं बलं दर्पं
कामं क्रोधं परिग्रहम् ।
विमुच्य निर्ममः शान्तो
ब्रह्मभूयाय कल्पते ॥ ५३ ॥

asaktabuddhiḥ sarvatra jitātmā vigataspṛhaḥ
naiṣkarmyasiddhiṃ paramāṃ saṃnyāsenādhigacchati
siddhiṃ prāpto yathā brahma tathāpnoti nibodha me
samāsenaiva kaunteya niṣṭhā jñānasya yā parā
buddhyā viśuddhayā yukto dhṛtyātmānaṃ niyamya ca
śabdādīn viṣayāṃs tyaktvā rāgadveṣau vyudasya ca
viviktasevī laghvāśī yatavākkāyamānasaḥ
dhyānayogaparo nityaṃ vairāgyaṃ samupāśritaḥ
ahaṃkāraṃ balaṃ darpaṃ kāmaṃ krodhaṃ parigraham
vimucya nirmamaḥ śānto brahmabhūyāya kalpate

“One whose understanding clings nowhere, who has mastered himself, from whom longing has gone, reaches through renunciation the highest fulfilment of freedom from action. Learn from me briefly, son of Kuntī, how one who has reached fulfilment reaches Brahman, the highest end of knowledge. Joined to a pure understanding, holding the self with steadiness, letting go of sound and the other objects, setting aside liking and disliking, living in a quiet place, eating little, speech, body and mind held, always given to meditation, taking refuge in letting go, releasing the sense of I, force, pride, desire, anger and grasping, free of mine, at peace, one is fit to become Brahman.

ब्रह्मभूतः प्रसन्नात्मा
न शोचति न काङ्क्षति ।
समः सर्वेषु भूतेषु
मद्भक्तिं लभते पराम् ॥ ५४ ॥
भक्त्या मामभिजानाति
यावान्यश्चास्मि तत्त्वतः ।
ततो मां तत्त्वतो ज्ञात्वा
विशते तदनन्तरम् ॥ ५५ ॥
सर्वकर्माण्यपि सदा कुर्वाणो मद्व्यपाश्रयः ।
मत्प्रसादादवाप्नोति शाश्वतं पदमव्ययम् ॥ ५६ ॥

brahmabhūtaḥ prasannātmā na śocati na kāṅkṣati
samaḥ sarveṣu bhūteṣu madbhaktiṃ labhate parām
bhaktyā mām abhijānāti yāvān yaś cāsmi tattvataḥ
tato māṃ tattvato jñātvā viśate tadanantaram
sarvakarmāṇy api sadā kurvāṇo madvyapāśrayaḥ
matprasādād avāpnoti śāśvataṃ padam avyayam

“Having become Brahman, serene in the self, one neither grieves nor longs. The same toward all beings, one reaches the highest love for me. By love one knows me, how great I am and who I am, in truth; then, knowing me in truth, one enters into me at once. Even while always doing all works, taking refuge in me, by my grace one reaches the eternal home that does not pass.

चेतसा सर्वकर्माणि मयि संन्यस्य मत्परः ।
बुद्धियोगमपाश्रित्य मच्चित्तः सततं भव ॥ ५७ ॥
मच्चित्तः सर्वदुर्गाणि मत्प्रसादात्तरिष्यसि ।
अथ चेत्त्वमहङ्कारान्न श्रोष्यसि विनङ्क्ष्यसि ॥ ५८ ॥

cetasā sarvakarmāṇi mayi saṃnyasya matparaḥ
buddhiyogam upāśritya maccittaḥ satataṃ bhava
maccittaḥ sarvadurgāṇi matprasādāt tariṣyasi
atha cet tvam ahaṃkārān na śroṣyasi vinaṅkṣyasi

“In your mind, laying all works on me, holding me as highest, taking refuge in the yoga of understanding, keep your mind always on me. With your mind on me, you will cross every difficulty by my grace. But if, from the sense of I, you will not listen, you will be lost.

यद्यहङ्कारमाश्रित्य
न योत्स्य इति मन्यसे ।
मिथ्यैष व्यवसायस्ते
प्रकृतिस्त्वां नियोक्ष्यति ॥ ५९ ॥
स्वभावजेन कौन्तेय निबद्धः स्वेन कर्मणा ।
कर्तुं नेच्छसि यन्मोहात्करिष्यस्यवशोऽपि तत् ॥ ६० ॥

yad ahaṃkāram āśritya na yotsya iti manyase
mithyaiṣa vyavasāyas te prakṛtis tvāṃ niyokṣyati
svabhāvajena kaunteya nibaddhaḥ svena karmaṇā
kartuṃ necchasi yan mohāt kariṣyasy avaśo 'pi tat

“If, taking refuge in the sense of I, you think, ‘I will not fight’, this resolve of yours is false. Your nature will compel you. Bound by your own work, born of your nature, son of Kuntī, what you do not want to do out of bewilderment, you will do even against your will.

ईश्वरः सर्वभूतानां हृद्देशेऽर्जुन तिष्ठति ।
भ्रामयन्सर्वभूतानि यन्त्रारूढानि मायया ॥ ६१ ॥
तमेव शरणं गच्छ
सर्वभावेन भारत ।
तत्प्रसादात्परां शान्तिं
स्थानं प्राप्स्यसि शाश्वतम् ॥ ६२ ॥

īśvaraḥ sarvabhūtānāṃ hṛddeśe 'rjuna tiṣṭhati
bhrāmayan sarvabhūtāni yantrārūḍhāni māyayā
tam eva śaraṇaṃ gaccha sarvabhāvena bhārata
tatprasādāt parāṃ śāntiṃ sthānaṃ prāpsyasi śāśvatam

“The Lord dwells in the heart of all beings, Arjuna, making all beings turn by his power, as if mounted on a machine. Go to him alone for refuge with all your being, Bhārata. By his grace you will reach the highest peace and the eternal home.

इति ते ज्ञानमाख्यातं गुह्याद्गुह्यतरं मया ।
विमृश्यैतदशेषेण यथेच्छसि तथा कुरु ॥ ६३ ॥

iti te jñānam ākhyātaṃ guhyād guhyataraṃ mayā
vimṛśyaitad aśeṣeṇa yathecchasi tathā kuru

“So I have told you knowledge more secret than all secrets. Reflect on it fully, and then do as you wish.

सर्वगुह्यतमं भूयः
शृणु मे परमं वचः ।
इष्टोऽसि मे दृढमिति
ततो वक्ष्यामि ते हितम् ॥ ६४ ॥
मन्मना भव मद्भक्तो
मद्याजी मां नमस्कुरु ।
मामेवैष्यसि सत्यं ते
प्रतिजाने प्रियोऽसि मे ॥ ६५ ॥

sarvaguhyatamaṃ bhūyaḥ śṛṇu me paramaṃ vacaḥ
iṣṭo 'si me dṛḍham iti tato vakṣyāmi te hitam
manmanā bhava madbhakto madyājī māṃ namaskuru
mām evaiṣyasi satyaṃ te pratijāne priyo 'si me

“Hear again my highest word, the most secret of all. You are dearly loved by me; so I will tell you what is for your good. Let your mind be on me, be devoted to me, offer to me, bow to me; you will come to me. I promise you truly, for you are dear to me.

सर्वधर्मान्परित्यज्य
मामेकं शरणं व्रज ।
अहं त्वा सर्वपापेभ्यो
मोक्षयिष्यामि मा शुचः ॥ ६६ ॥

sarvadharmān parityajya mām ekaṃ śaraṇaṃ vraja
ahaṃ tvā sarvapāpebhyo mokṣayiṣyāmi mā śucaḥ

“Let go of all dharmas, and come to me alone for refuge. I will free you from all wrongs. Do not grieve.”

इदं ते नातपस्काय
नाभक्ताय कदाचन ।
न चाशुश्रूषवे वाच्यं
न च मां योऽभ्यसूयति ॥ ६७ ॥
य इमं परमं गुह्यं
मद्भक्तेष्वभिधास्यति ।
भक्तिं मयि परां कृत्वा
मामेवैष्यत्यसंशयः ॥ ६८ ॥
न च तस्मान्मनुष्येषु कश्चिन्मे प्रियकृत्तमः ।
भविता न च मे तस्मादन्यः प्रियतरो भुवि ॥ ६९ ॥

idaṃ te nātapaskāya nābhaktāya kadā cana
na cāśuśrūṣave vācyaṃ na ca māṃ yo 'bhyasūyati
ya idaṃ paramaṃ guhyaṃ madbhakteṣv abhidhāsyati
bhaktiṃ mayi parāṃ kṛtvā mām evaiṣyaty asaṃśayaḥ
na ca tasmān manuṣyeṣu kaś cin me priyakṛttamaḥ
bhavitā na ca me tasmād anyaḥ priyataro bhuvi

“This should never be told by you to one who has no discipline, no love, who does not wish to listen, or who finds fault with me. But whoever tells this highest secret to those who love me, having shown the highest love for me, will come to me without doubt. There is no one among people who does dearer service to me than that one, and there will be no one on earth dearer to me.

अध्येष्यते च य इमं धर्म्यं संवादमावयोः ।
ज्ञानयज्ञेन तेनाहमिष्टः स्यामिति मे मतिः ॥ ७० ॥
श्रद्धावाननसूयश्च शृणुयादपि यो नरः ।
सोऽपि मुक्तः शुभांल्लोकान्प्राप्नुयात्पुण्यकर्मणाम् ॥ ७१ ॥

adhyeṣyate ca ya imaṃ dharmyaṃ saṃvādam āvayoḥ
jñānayajñena tenāham iṣṭaḥ syām iti me matiḥ
śraddhāvān anasūyaś ca śṛṇuyād api yo naraḥ
so 'pi muktaḥ śubhāṃl lokān prāpnuyāt puṇyakarmaṇām

“And whoever studies this dharmic conversation of ours, by him I will be worshipped with the offering of knowledge; this is my view. And even one who only listens, with faith and without finding fault, will be freed, and reach the bright worlds of those whose deeds are good.

कच्चिदेतच्छ्रुतं पार्थ
त्वयैकाग्रेण चेतसा ।
कच्चिदज्ञानसंमोहः
प्रणष्टस्ते धनञ्जय ॥ ७२ ॥

kaccid etac chrutaṃ pārtha tvayaikāgreṇa cetasā
kaccid ajñānasaṃmohaḥ pranaṣṭas te dhanaṃjaya

“Have you heard this, Pārtha, with a mind turned to one point? Has your bewilderment born of not knowing been destroyed, Dhanañjaya?”

अर्जुन उवाच —
नष्टो मोहः स्मृतिर्लब्धा
त्वत्प्रसादान्मयाच्युत ।
स्थितोऽस्मि गतसन्देहः
करिष्ये वचनं तव ॥ ७३ ॥

arjuna uvāca
naṣṭo mohaḥ smṛtir labdhā tvatprasādān mayācyuta
sthito 'smi gatasaṃdehaḥ kariṣye vacanaṃ tava

Arjuna said: “My bewilderment is gone. I have regained my memory, by your grace, Acyuta. I stand firm, my doubts gone. I will do your word.”

सञ्जय उवाच —
इत्यहं वासुदेवस्य पार्थस्य च महात्मनः ।
संवादमिममश्रौषमद्भुतं रोमहर्षणम् ॥ ७४ ॥
व्यासप्रसादाच्छ्रुतवानिमं गुह्यतमं परम् ।
योगं योगेश्वरात्कृष्णात्साक्षात्कथयतः स्वयम् ॥ ७५ ॥

saṃjaya uvāca
ity ahaṃ vāsudevasya pārthasya ca mahātmanaḥ
saṃvādam imam aśrauṣam adbhutaṃ romaharṣaṇam
vyāsaprasādāc chrutavān etad guhyam ahaṃ param
yogaṃ yogeśvarāt kṛṣṇāt sākṣāt kathayataḥ svayam

Sañjaya said: So I heard this wondrous conversation of Vāsudeva and the great-souled Pārtha, and it makes my hair stand on end. By the grace of Vyāsa I heard this highest secret, this yoga, from Kṛṣṇa, the lord of yoga himself, as he spoke it.

राजन् संस्मृत्य संस्मृत्य
संवादमिममद्भुतम् ।
केशवार्जुनयोः पुण्यं
हृष्यामि च मुहुर्मुहुः ॥ ७६ ॥
तच्च संस्मृत्य संस्मृत्य
रूपमत्यद्भुतं हरेः ।
विस्मयो मे महान्राजन्
हृष्यामि च पुनः पुनः ॥ ७७ ॥

rājan saṃsmṛtya saṃsmṛtya saṃvādam imam adbhutam
keśavārjunayoḥ puṇyaṃ hṛṣyāmi ca muhur muhuḥ
tac ca saṃsmṛtya saṃsmṛtya rūpam atyadbhutaṃ hareḥ
vismayo me mahān rājan hṛṣyāmi ca punaḥ punaḥ

O king, remembering again and again this wondrous and holy conversation of Keśava and Arjuna, I rejoice again and again. And remembering again and again that most wondrous form of Hari, great is my wonder, O king, and I rejoice again and again.

यत्र योगेश्वरः कृष्णो यत्र पार्थो धनुर्धरः ।
तत्र श्रीर्विजयो भूतिर्ध्रुवा नीतिर्मतिर्मम ॥ ७८ ॥

yatra yogeśvaraḥ kṛṣṇo yatra pārtho dhanurdharaḥ
tatra śrīr vijayo bhūtir dhruvā nītir matir mama

“Where there is Kṛṣṇa, the lord of yoga, and where there is Pārtha, the archer, there are fortune, victory, flourishing, and sure guidance. That is what I think.”