Bhagavad Gita Chapter 2 Verse
25

अव्यक्तोऽयमचिन्त्योऽयमविकार्योऽयमुच्यते ।
तस्मादेवं विदित्वैनं नानुशोचितुमर्हसि ॥२-२५॥
avyakto 'yam acintyo 'yam avikaryo 'yam ucyate
tasmad evam viditvainam na anushocitam arhasi
॥ 2-25 ॥
Transliteration

To provide relief to grieving
Arjuna, Lord Krishna impresses upon Arjuna various attributes of soul atman, the spirit within! Lord Krishna
says, O Arjuna: People say that our true inner self... our soul atman, the spirit within was unmanifest,
incomprehensible and immutable. It was not possible for manifest physical self (the human form) to comprehend
the unmanifest. Our soul atman, the unmanifest was beyond capture of five senses and mind. In simple words we
can say... through limited power of senses and mind, one could never comprehend a soul atman!
With our intellect (buddhi)... it was not possible to comprehend the enormity of a
soul atman. Though minute... a soul atman had the potential to trigger trillions of atomic bombs at a time. The
power of a soul atman could never be realized by the manifest physical human being. To comprehend the absolute
reality, our indulgence in sacred scriptures of Hinduism was mandated by god. Through path of religion (rituals),
one could never visualize what soul atman was about. Even though human form was highest manifest stage in cosmic
life cycle... still, one could never comprehend the world of souls' atmans.
There is a quote in Upanishads "Yo veda na so asya veda" which means... one who says he knows
the unmanifest knows nothing about the world of souls atmans and says out of one's
ignorance. None in this cosmic world could define what a soul atman was all about. If an enlightened one like Sri
Ramakrishna Paramhansa or Maharishi Ramana stated that he knows the unmanifest... he was not wrong, for he had
realized his true inner self, reached god! In present times if a religious preacher, a translator or
one from masses says one knows all... One was totally ignorant in matters spiritual as one who had not yet
experienced god, how could one state so.
If Lord Krishna says, soul atman was immutable... it means with passage of time the entity of
a soul atman did not decay. This confirms the fact that entire lifespan of a soul atman was one single continuous
cosmic journey consisting of 8.4 million manifestations. As a spiritual being when we did not die... the cause for
grieving does not exist! Krishna repeatedly admonishes Arjuna for behaving cowardly and advises him to realize his
true inner self, his inner being! Being a Kshatriya Warrior, it was below Arjuna’s dignity to indulge in sorrow,
grieving! When a soul atman does not die... the question of killing someone or getting killed was
meaningless!
The Explanation:

Lord Krishna repeatedly tells
Arjuna attributes virtues of a soul atman... only to making him realize that he was primarily a soul atman and
not the manifest physical human form! As a soul atman is immutable, Sanatana (existing since times immemorial),
unchangeable, indescribable, indestructible, invisible and primordial... it was this very soul atman that
manifested form of Arjuna, a human being! As a soul atman, Arjuna need not fear anything.
For Arjuna to differentiate between soul atman and physical self, Lord Krishna
imparted to him teachings of Srimad Bhagavad Gita. Krishna knew, moment Arjuna realized that he was a soul atman,
the spirit within... he would prepare self to fight the battle of Mahabharata! It is birthright of every Kshatriya
to uphold dharma (righteousness) against evil forces of adharma (lawlessness). By agreeing to fight the war...
Arjuna would not do Pandavas a favor.
As a Kshatriya it was his duty to fight the enemy... even if it consisted of his
maternal grandfather Bhishma Pitamah and Guru Dronacharya. As these two elders sided evil, bad karma would finally
get them. Krishna advises Arjuna not to worry about elders in the opposite camp. Law of karma will take care of
all. As Bhishma Pitamah and Guru Dronacharya had erred in choosing the wrong camp... they had to suffer as per
inscrutable laws of karma!
Krishna tells Arjuna that fights between righteousness and evil forces of nature
was a routine matter. Every human being on mother earth faced it. As ultimate goal of life for Arjuna was
travelling spiritual path, his side winning the battle of Mahabharata was the call of day. Desire or no desire...
Arjuna had to indulge in this war of dharma (righteousness)! Krishna emphasized on Arjuna that fighting the enemy
was not his independent decision. As the chieftain of Pandava army, he had a duty towards his army and
countrymen.
He just could not abandon interest of all for the sake of committing a sin. As per
Krishna, fighting war of dharma (righteousness) could never incur sin. That was how God Almighty ordained spiritual
life to be. Most of all when Arjuna had a compatriot and guide like Lord Krishna (Dharmaraja himself) to guide him
in all stages of war... where was the cause for worry? The spiritual advice that Krishna rendered to Arjuna from
time to time was to make him realize that Krishna was not only a relative of Arjuna but much more than
that.
Arjuna had not yet realized that Lord Krishna was Dharmaraja himself disguised in
human form. Arjuna was not giving due response merited by Lord Krishna. For this very reason... Krishna repeatedly
kept telling Arjuna attributes of soul atman, the spirit within! Such a fact, such reality can only be realized by
one who had already reached god. When Lord Krishna was enlightened and also a saviour, messiah... an avatar of his
era (god manifest in human form) how could his advice to Arjuna go wrong. This is the biggest predicament of
spiritual path.
In present times none seemed to travel path of pure spirituality as detailed in
Srimad Bhagavad Gita. All preferred path of religion (path of rituals) to reach god... not realizing that
indulgence in rituals never lead anyone anywhere. To realize subtle hidden intricacies of spiritual life... our
undertaking spiritual journey was mandated by god. Unless Arjuna gave Lord Krishna a patient hearing... he would
never realize hidden abstract truths of life. Goal of Lord Krishna was not to teach Arjuna something. He only
wanted Arjuna to realize his true inner self.
The duty of a doctor is to write the right prescription and give right medicine to
the patient. Despite best efforts... if the patient refuses to take medicine, the doctor was not at fault! Giving
right advice lay in domain of God Krishna but adhering to this advice rested on shoulders of Arjuna. Krishna knew
well, if he repeatedly told Arjuna absolute hidden facts of life... he would finally succumb to his advice! It was
only a matter of time before Arjuna picked arms to fight the enemy head-on. On path of pure spirituality, for human
beings to realize inner truths of life... we need repeating the teachings again and again.
Through Bhagavad Gita chapter 2 verse 25, it has been made absolutely clear by Lord
Krishna that travelers of spiritual path need contemplating on teachings contained in sacred scriptures. Unless we
read the same teachings again and again, we would never realize its hidden true inner meaning! For a human being to
believe in voice of our soul atman, the spirit within... in one go was just not possible! Before we developed faith
on voice of our soul atman, faith on god was necessitated! Our soul atman, the spirit within residing in our heart
was Lord Krishna in all its glory. By remaining truthful all the time... we can hear the sweet small inner voice of
our soul atman that seemed to come from within our heart.
It is this voice of our soul atman that always guided us on right path. As the
journey of life belonged to our soul atman and not the manifest physical human form... it was implied that we
follow dictates of our soul atman that seemed to come from within all the time. If we were to reach god in present
life... in a limited time span of 70 to 80 years of earthly abode, our taking guidance from Lord Krishna... our
soul atman, the spirit within was an absolute must! Initially this seemed very difficult but with passage of time
we developed faith on this voice of our soul atman, the spirit within! The voice of our soul atman was a compatriot
assisting us all the time. By following voice of our soul atman, the spirit within... we had nothing to lose in
life!
I have done this all my life. Right from six years of age, I cultivated myself to
hear the sweet small inner voice of my soul atman that seemed to come from within my heart. I was not wrong... the
voice of my soul atman always prompted me on right path! Not for once, the voice of my soul atman, the spirit
within went wrong! An earthly journey of about 70 to 80 years of physical manifest life was nothing compared to 1.1
million manifestations in human form undertaken by a soul atman. To reach god in present life... we were really
short of time! By patiently exercising restraint, by practicing forgiveness... by practicing patience, persistence
and perseverance of the highest order... we can definitely make it to god in present life.
Arjuna initially took time but he finally realized the gravity of all that Krishna
had to say. He finally agreed to fight the just war of dharma (righteousness) to re-establish dharma against all
odds. How noble to think that every human being had a Lord Krishna to advise one in matters spiritual all the time!
The essence of spiritual life never laid in visiting temples, churches and mosques. Our Lord Krishna rested in our
heart all the time. We had only to look within to contemplate on deep philosophies of life enumerated in various
sacred scriptures of different religions of world. Remaining wherever we are, in whatever condition... rich or
poor, we can make it to god in our lifetime.
In a nutshell, lord Krishna advises Arjuna not to grieve for family ties that would
be left behind if one wanted to reach god in present life. For a true seeker of spirituality comes a stage when
entire world community becomes one large family! This happened in the case of Mahavira, Gautama Buddha, Jesus
Christ and Prophet Mohammed. All those who gained enlightenment in their lifetime faced this dilemma. We have to
abandon Moha (extreme emotional attachment) towards our beloved... if we truly desire reaching god in present life.
As ties of Moha (attachment) were very strong in ladies... it was difficult for them to undertake spiritual journey
in right earnestness.
In the entire history of mankind till date... only two ladies reached stage of
enlightenment. They were Gargi and Maitreyi from erstwhile Bharatvarsha (now India). Gargi was a philosopher saint
of the highest order and Maitreyi was the dutiful second wife of Sage Yajnavalkya, the composer and compiler of
most voluminous Brihadaranyaka Upanishad.
Commentary by: Vijay
Kumar "Atma Jnani"... The Man who Realized God in 1993 -
query!
Bhagavad Gita Study Circle: a meeting point for people from all
walks of life interested in knowing anything relating to spirituality, Bhagavad Gita, Upanishads and on a broad
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More on Geeta Chapter 2 Verse 25 - bhagavad gita 2 25 can be found at :
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 2
... Vijay Kumar - Sep 10,
2014 |
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