BHAGAVAD-GITA 2:6

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BHAGAVAD-GITA 2:6

 

na caitad vidmah kataran no gariyo

yad va jayema yadi va no jayeyuh

yan eva hatva na jijivisamas

te 'vasthitah pramukhe dhartarastrah

 

WORD FOR WORD

 

na--nor; ca--also; etat--this; vidmah--do we know; katarat--which;

nah--for us; gariyah--better; yat va--whether; jayema--we may conquer;

yadi--if; va--or; nah--us; jayeyuh--they conquer; yan--those who;

eva--certainly; hatva--by killing; na--never; jijivisamah--we would

want to live; te--all of them; avasthitah--are situated; pramukhe--in

the front; dhartarastrah--the sons of Dhrtarastra.

 

TRANSLATION

 

Nor do we know which is better--conquering them or being conquered by

them. If we killed the sons of Dhrtarastra, we should not care to

live. Yet they are now standing before us on the battlefield.

 

PURPORT

 

Arjuna did not know whether he should fight and risk unnecessary

violence, although fighting is the duty of the ksatriyas, or whether

he should refrain and live by begging. If he did not conquer the

enemy, begging would be his only means of subsistence. Nor was there

certainty of victory, because either side might emerge victorious.

Even if victory awaited them (and their cause was justified), still,

if the sons of Dhrtarastra died in battle, it would be very difficult

to live in their absence. Under the circumstances, that would be

another kind of defeat for them. All these considerations by Arjuna

definitely proved that not only was he a great devotee of the Lord but

he was also highly enlightened and had complete control over his mind

and senses. His desire to live by begging, although he was born in the

royal household, is another sign of detachment. He was truly virtuous,

as these qualities, combined with his faith in the words of

instruction of Sri Krsna (his spiritual master), indicate. It is

concluded that Arjuna was quite fit for liberation. Unless the senses

are controlled, there is no chance of elevation to the platform of

knowledge, and without knowledge and devotion there is no chance of

liberation. Arjuna was competent in all these attributes, over and

above his enormous attributes in his material relationships.

 

Copyright 1983 The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust International. Used with

permission.