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Geeta Chapter 2 Verse 10

Bhagavad Gita Chapter 2 Verse 10

तमुवाच हृषीकेशः प्रहसन्निव भारत ।
सेनयोरुभयोर्मध्ये विषीदन्तमिदं वचः ॥२-१०॥

tamuvacha hrishikeshah prahasanniva bharata
senayorubhayor madhye vishidantam idam vachah ॥ 2-10 ॥

Transliteration

Sanjaya addresses King Dhritarashtra as Bharatvanshi as if to provide fuel to his bloated ego. Sanjaya wanted to impress upon Dhritarashtra that as he belonged to king Bharat lineage, he should rein in his spoilt child Duryodhana to save all from perils of war. Narrating dialogues between Krishna and Arjuna, Sanjaya further elaborates how Lord Krishna rebukes grieving Arjuna for his shortsightedness in not wanting to fight the enemy head-on.

Lord Krishna laughed his way to center of battlefield where stood Arjuna. Lord Krishna was bewildered by act of Arjuna of not wanting to fight the enemy or exercise his power of discrimination to differentiate right from wrong. Being a Kshatriya... Arjuna was supposed to fight war with Kauravas but he acted cowardly and stood still. Instead of fighting like a Kshatriya, he wanted to withdraw from war, unmindful of promptings of Lord Krishna.

Arjuna truly was in a very pitiful state. The Moha (attachment) towards his elders, relatives and friends dissuaded him from war but his inner nature, Kshatriya Dharma wanted him to fight the battle. The Dharma of a Kshatriya always was fighting the enemy to the best possible extent. No reason or rhyme could sway one from path of dharma (righteousness). Lord Krishna happened to laugh on seeing Arjuna, a Kshatriya not willing to fulfill his duties as a Kshatriya (Warrior clan).

In his heart, Arjuna was a rightful person! But deeply ingrained feelings of moha (attachment) prevented him from fighting the war. When so-called elders of Arjuna (Bhishma Pitamah and guru Dronacharya) were prepared to fight the battle, how could Arjuna refuse! The faith of Arjuna in Krishna was shallow. He was not willing to see reason even for sake of his warriors and countrymen. How could he trust his elders in enemy camp who were against him from beginning?

The Explanation

King Dhritarashtra was a descendant (vanshaj) of King Bharat yet, he stooped so low indirectly instigating his son to fight battle of Mahabharata. Sanjaya calling Dhritarashtra as Bharatvanshi was to remind him of his eloquent lineage. Bhagavad Gita chapter 2 verse 10 forcefully endorses the fact that every serious seeker of spirituality one time or other faces dilemma of pursuing earthly ties vis-à-vis journey of spirituality.

When family ties bared us bang in the eye... we faltered! We thought over again and again, whether to quit family ties forever to undertake spiritual journey towards god! Not able to take a firm decision... we practically left things to chance! We were seriously in a dilemma as in absence of a spiritual master, preceptor we felt we had reached a dead end. Nowhere to look forward to, we ultimately found solace in the promptings of our soul atman, the spirit within!

In case of Arjuna, the story was different! No matter how best his intentions... he was not able to follow dictates of his soul atman, the spirit within! Arjuna had to choose one... the close knit family ties or path of pure spirituality that directly led to God Almighty! He wanted to be doubly sure before taking a final decision. Lord Krishna... the voice of his soul atman, the spirit within wanted to guide him but he was not yet prepared for the same.

Arjuna inherently knew, to establish absolute control over five senses and mind... promptings of his soul atman, the spirit within were an absolute must! He had to take refuge in his soul atman, the spirit within. He had no other alternative than to hear the sweet small inner voice of his soul that always guided us on right path. One can hear the sweet small inner voice of our soul atman, the spirit within by remaining truthful in life.

For Arjuna... practicing absolute truthfulness was not a big problem. The company of his dear friend Krishna had taught him to be truthful in life. He knew well that when things went wrong... he could always get guidance from his soul atman, the spirit within! Yet, Arjuna grieved over losing family relationships forever. For a serious seeker of spirituality... losing family ties was the biggest dilemma of all times. Prime reason, why most human beings world over failed to undertake spiritual journey to reach god!

The shackles of Moha were deeply ingrained into psyche of all human beings. Cutting across shackles of Moha was perhaps the most difficult of all in the spiritual journey of life. Even more difficult than practicing absolute celibacy as ordained in scriptures of Hinduism. Only a very hardened seeker like Swami Vivekananda every few centuries succeeds in travelling spiritual path to reach God in one's lifetime. Spiritually, no human being could ever ignore promptings of our soul atman, the spirit within that seemed to come from within our heart. Why?

The present journey of life belonged to our soul atman, the spirit within! Prompted by a bloated ego and ignorance human beings considered self as center of all! Whatever karma was indulged by human beings... the fruits of karma performed always belonged to our soul atman, the spirit within! The human body was the medium, reaching cosmic end of life... the ultimate goal of every soul atman, the spirit within! It was only through human manifestation... every soul atman, the spirit within finally reached 8.4 millionth manifestation, last in cosmic life cycle!

Reaching 8.4 millionth manifestation announces us as a soul atman, the spirit within gaining absolute purity forever! Devoid of all dross impurities within... our soul atman, the spirit within finally liberates self from cycle of birth and death forever.

Everything contained in Bhagavad Gita must never be read literally. Only through path of contemplation can human beings reach hidden inner truths of life. One may read through Vedas, Srimad Bhagavad Gita or Upanishads... the teachings of all propel human beings towards ultimate goal of life... reaching 8.4 millionth manifestation in present life! This is what Lord Krishna all the time prompts to Arjuna... undertake spiritual journey in this very life! Who knows what we shall be in next manifestation?

Commentary by: Vijay Kumar "Atma Jnani"... The Man who Realized God in 1993- Sep 4, 2014

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