Bhagavad Gita - Daily One Verse Brief Explanation - II 2:4 II

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|| Shree Hari ||

Ram Ram

 

II 2:4 II

 

Arjuna uvaca

 

katham bheeshmam aham sankhye, dronam cha madhusoodana

isubhih prati-yotsyami, poojaarhav ari-soodana (Gita 2:4)

 

Arjuna said:

" O slayer of Madhu, and slayer of foes, how shall I fight Bheeshma

and Drona, with arrows on the battlefield? Both of them are worthy

of our worship. "

 

From Gita Prabodhani in Hindi pg. 18 by Swami Ramsukhdasji

 

---------------------------

Chapter 2, Verse 4 is as follows;

 

Arjuna = Arjun

Uvaacha = said

Katham = how

Bheeshmam = Bheeshma

Aham = I

Sankhye = in battle

Dronam = Drona

Cha = and

Madhu-soodana = O Shree Krishna, the killer of demon Madhu!

IShubhiH = with arrows

Prati-yotsyaami = shall fight

Pujaarhau = worthy of worship

Arisoodana = O Shree Krishna, the slayer of enemies!

 

English translation:-

 

Arjuna said, " O slayer of demon Madhu, O slayer of foes, how shall I

counter-attack with arrows Bhishma and Drona, who are worthy of

worship? "

 

Arjuna continues his argument against the royal battle. Maharshee

Veda Vyas have selected the most appropriate qualifiers of `Madhu-

soodana' i.e. killer of the demon Madhu and `Ari-soodana' i.e.

slayer of enemies, for Lord Krishna in Arjuna's earnest appeal.

Arjuna seems to argue that, " O Lord Krishna, your case was

different. Grandsire Bheeshmaachaarya and Guru Dronaachaarya are

neither demons nor my enemies. I dare not even debate with the

venerable ones, who are true symbolic representatives of the

collective might of the Kuru kingdom. My enemies are only hundred

sons of King Dhritaraashtra. Will I not be condemned as an

ungrateful warrior, who waged war with the worshipful grandsire and

adorable preceptor, who have showered great affection and genuine

love on me? "

 

Arjuna had fought a war with both Bheeshmaachaarya and Dronaachaarya

earlier at the conclusion of the one year exile in anonymity;

however that was not a decisive battle for life and death.

 

Teacher Dronaachaarya loved Arjuna beyond his own son Ashwatthaamaa.

Dronaachaarya had earlier asked Ekalavya his right hand thumb as

`Guru-DakshiNaa' i.e. tuition fee so that the only probable

competition to Arjuna is nipped in the bud.

 

Dronaachaarya decided to take the ultimate test of his disciples.

While swimming in a river Guru Drona was caught by a giant

crocodile. It was his deliberate plan. He shouted for help and urged

all his disciples to rescue him. All of them fumbled except Arjuna.

Within a fraction of time, Arjuna hit five sharp arrows to the

crocodile, which immediately released Guru Drona and met with its

instant death. Being highly impressed with alacrity and agility of

Arjuna, Guru Drona declared him to be his best disciple and gave him

`Brahma- Astra' i.e. a weapon with the potential energy of

destruction of the entire planet earth. Guru Drona cautioned Arjuna

not to use it against any human being under any circumstances and

blessed him that he will enjoy the status of the best archer in this

world forever.

 

It reminds me of famous Sanskrit Subhaashita i.e. good words as

follows;

 

" SaH hi VidnyaaH Tatam Janayati Tat ShreshTham JanmaH, Shareeram Eva

Maataa-Pitarau JanayataH " i.e. duo of mother and father give birth

to a raw physical body with organs while preceptors give birth to

real mental and intellectual development of a human being. Such a

birth is indeed the superior one.

 

Arjuna's arguments sound hollow and shallow due to his complete

surrender to his fickle mind with total disregard to his `Viveka-

Buddhi' i.e. proper intellectual discrimination.

 

Arjuna is unable to comprehend that the imminent battle is not

between individuals based on their personal egos and rivalries.

Arjuna has no separate identity apart from the army of the Pandavaas

and the revered Bheeshmaachaarya and venerable Dronaachaarya have no

separate identities apart from the army of the Kauravaas with their

collective policies of `Dharma' i.e. righteousness and `A-Dharma'

i.e. unrighteousness respectively.

 

In this backdrop, Arjuna has no individual right to expect any

personal honour or dishonour. He has no individual right as well to

ascribe any mean motive or disrespect while challenging his

grandfather and preceptor, whom he has revered and held in the

highest esteem so far, as they are championing the wrong side of `A-

Dharma' i.e. unrighteousness in the ensuing epic battle.

 

With the fragile and lame justification of `Arthasya Purusho

DaasaaH' i.e. all men are slaves of material possessions including

wealth; grandsire Bheeshmaachaarya had brushed aside moral pleas and

claims of Pandavaas. In the similar manner, out of slavish

obligation to the Kuru Kingdom, Guru Dronaachaarya had championed

the cause of Kauravaas out of total selfish attitude. Both

Bheeshmaachaarya and Dronaachaarya felt no compunction to fight the

Pandavaas who were the most deserving candidates for the succession

at the throne of Hastinaapur.

 

The more we identify ourselves with only `I, me and mine' attitude,

our confusions and problems in life will always multiply. Whenever

we expand our horizon and identify ourselves with the larger canvas

and higher goals; our confusions and problems in life will always

nullify.

 

All human beings suffer from constant mental agitations arising due

to desires and obstruction in the path of attainment of those

desires. Every person attributes his failures and sufferings in life

to external stimuli but very rarely one admits that the real sources

of the problems are his internal stimuli i.e. constant mental

agitations due to `Kaama' i.e. desires for pleasures in life,

`Krodha' i.e. anger due to non-fulfillment of those desires, `Lobha'

i.e. expectations of always desirable outcomes in any event or

activity, `Moha' i.e. delusion, `Mada' i.e. arrogance and `Matsara'

i.e. hatred to those who are obstructing his lustful desires.

 

Arjuna continues to be in a baffled state as Lord Krishna is

sanctioning the very acts which Arjuna treats as atrocious,

ungrateful and inhuman in nature.

 

The fundamental mistake in Arjuna's assessment and judgement is in

his personal belief that every action per say is either good or bad.

No action is intrinsically either good or bad but the motive behind

every action renders it either good or bad. An apparently virtuous

action may have a vicious motive behind it and vice versa.

 

Lord Krishna ultimately proves to Arjuna with his irrefutable logic

and chaste knowledge of the Self that an apparently atrocious act of

killing one's own Guru and Grandfather becomes an act of virtue due

to the underlying noble, selfless intention of re-establishing

righteousness.

 

Thanks & Best Regards,

Shrikant Joshi

 

-----------------------------

FROM SADHAK SANJIVANI

 

Link:—In the first chapter, Arjuna gave several arguments against

the war. But without attaching importance to his arguments, Lord

Krsna suddenly scolded Arjuna for his faintheartedness, and ordered

him to array himself to wage war. So Arjuna without getting any

satisfactory reply to his arguments, got excited and spoke abruptly

the words in Gita 2:4.

 

Comment:—

 

[Arjuna addresses the Lord as 'Madhusudana' and 'Arisudana', because

he had killed unrighteous, villainous and cruel demons, such as

Madhu etc., and foes also who always are jealous of others, without

rhyme or reason. But how can he kill his great well-wisher, the

respected grandfather Bhisma, and adorable preceptor Drona, who have

great affection for him?]

 

'Katham bhismamaham sahkhye dronam ca' — I am not turning away from

war because of faint-heartedness, but because it is unrighteous for

me to fight, with the revered grandsire Bhlsma and venerable teacher

Drona. I would be called unmanly if I were afraid of death. I am not

afraid of dying but I do not want to kill my venerable elders, who

have always been very affectionate to me.

 

Grandfather Bhisma, has loved me since my childhood. When I

addressed him as father, he very affectionately used to say, that he

was my father's father. Similarly, my adorable preceptor Drona, has

been so kind to me that he imparted to me better training, than he

imparted even to his son. He taught the use of Brahma-weapon, (a

kind of weapon which caused infallible destruction and set in motion

by incantation) to both of us, but as far as its control or end is

concerned, he taught that only to me, not to his son. He also

granted me a boon that no one would excel me, in military science.

So it is a mortal sin, to wage war against them.

 

'Isubhih pratiyotsyami pujarhau'—Both Bhisma and Drona being elderly

are venerable and adorable. They have a right to attack me. But it

is a deadly sin for me to fight against them with my arrows.

 

From " The Bhagavad Gita - Sadhak Sanjivani " by Swami Ramsukhdasji pg

74-75 in English.

 

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Shree Hari

Ram Ram

Thank you Shri Shrikantji Joshi for taking the initiative to support

this divine work and to Mrs. K Asani for requesting shloka

explanation on a daily basis.

From Gita Talk Moderators

Ram Ram