Bhagavad Gita Verse 32, Chapter 2

yadrichchayaa chopapannam svargadvaaramapaavritam |
sukhinaha kshatriyaaha paartha labhante yuddhameedrisham || 32 ||
 
Fortunate are those warriors who will fight such a war, O Paartha. Indeed, it is like a door to heaven that has opened without any effort.
 
yadrichchayaa : unsought, without effort
cha : indeed
upapannam : obtain
svargadvaaram : door of heaven
apaavritam : open
sukhinaha : fortunate
kshatriyaaha : those warriors
paartha : O Paartha
labhante : obtain
yuddham : war
eedrisham : this
 
Any singer or musician will look forward to performing in a large auditorium like Carnegie Hall rather than perform in a small 20 seat theatre. A doctor who genuinely cares about saving lives will tirelessly and joyfully work extra hard if she is handling an emergency room with a huge number of patients rather than serving only 1-2 patients a day.
 
In other words, a person performing his or her svadharma would always prefer working hard towards a challenging assignment rather than simply pulling along in a mediocre one. Shri Krishna pointed this out to Arjuna by reminding him that a true warrior would look forward to the challenge of fighting the Kaurava army, which was filled with world-renowned warriors.
 
How is this relevant to us? Our work should give us joy, our work should be its own reward. If we have chosen a profession that feels like drudgery, if we feel that any new work given to us is a chore rather than a challenge, if all we can do is complain, then we should re-examine whether we are really following our svadharma, or we are qualified to do something else.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 31, Chapter 2

svadharmamapi chaavekshya na vikampitumarhasi |
dharmyaaddhi yuddhaacchreyonyatkshatriyasya na vidyate || 31 ||
 
Furthermore, you should not be disturbed when you consider your duty, because there is no other glory for a warrior that a righteous war.
 
svadharmam : your duty
api : furthermore
cha : and
avekshya : consider
na : not
vikampitum : disturbed
arhasi : should
dharmyaat : righteous
hi : because
yuddhaat : than war
shreyaha : glory
anyat : any other
kshatriyasya : for a warrior
na vidyate : there is not
 
Shri Krishna now begins a fresh topic in these next few shlokas. He deals with the issue of svadharma, or one's own duty. It is important to remember that although Shri Krishna has addressed these shlokas to a mighty warrior, each of us has to interpret what they mean for us.
 
So, what exactly is one's duty? In this context, it is not something we have to do because someone else is forcing us, or because the so-called caste system says so.
 
Duty is work that one enjoys doing, has the aptitude and training for doing, and is not illegal or unethical. The practice of medicine becomes a svadharma for a doctor when he or she finds joy in the work, has completed medical training, and uses it for the betterment of society. Education becomes svadharma for students when they find joy in attending classes and studying for exams.
 
Note that the same person could have more than one svadharma. For example, a woman could be a mother at home, and executive at work.
 
One may ask, "I have the training and aptitude for my profession. I certainly do not perform any  illegal activities. But I don't find joy in my work. It is a drudgery for me, I only do it so that I can earn a living. How do I find joy in my work?". Shri Krishna has anticipated this question and will give us the trick for addressing this question very soon.
 
Let's also understand why Shri Krishna chose to introduce the topic of svadharma right after concluding the topic of the eternal essence. As we saw earlier, most of us are not at the advanced stage of spirituality where we have the ability to perceive the eternal essence in all beings, even though we may have an abstract or theoretical understanding of it by now. We are people with professions, jobs, careers and responsibilities. We are not in a position to retire to a monastery. Most of our day is spent in work.
 
Knowing this, Shri Krishna is gently introducing us to a more practical method of accessing the eternal essence. In this method, we can continue to lead our daily lives and still orient ourselves to accessing that eternal essence. As a side effect of this, we will also find joy and fulfillment in our work.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 30, Chapter 2

dehi nityamavadhyooyam dehe sarvasya bhaarata |
tasmaatsarvaani bhootani na tvam shochitumarhasi || 30 ||
 
This eternal and imperishable body-dweller dwells in all bodies, O Bhaarata. Therefore, you should not grieve for any or all beings.
 
dehi : body-dweller
nityam : eternal
avadhyaha : imperishable
ayam :  this
dehe : bodies
sarvasya : in all
bhaarata : O Bhaarata
tasmaat : therefore
sarvaani : all
bhootani : beings
tvam : you
shochitum : grieve
na arhasi : should not
 
With this shloka, Shri Krishna concludes the topic of the eternal essence. Now, having followed the teaching so far, we would probably have some questions. Let's try to address some of them.
 
So if we were to ask ourselves "I have studied the Gita for a while now, what is the message in a nutshell so far?". Or in management-speak "What is the net-net?". It is this shloka. Therefore, even if we may not remember all the shlokas about the eternal essence, we should not forget this shloka.
 
Here's another question: "We have covered the entire first chapter, as well as some part of the second chapter. Where is God in all of this?" We have purposely avoided the word "God" in our discussions because Shri Krishna has not yet uttered that word in any teaching so far. As we proceed through the Gita, Shri Krishna will bring up this topic at the appropriate time. For now, if we go to a place of worship like a temple, we can still continue to pray to God, knowing that the eternal essence is an integral part of God as well.
 
The pragmatist among us would ask "All this abstract stuff is well and good, how do we apply it in our daily life?". And the answer is - stay tuned! The topics will become more practical starting with the next shloka. All we need to remember is the examples from these shlokas: the eternal essence is like the sun, actionless and changeless. It is like the water that pervades the entire cloth. And it is like the car-dweller who occupies and leaves the car once it is old.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 29, Chapter 2

aashcharyavatpashyati kashchidenamaashcharyavadvadati tathaiva chaanyaha |
aashcharyavachchainamanyaha shrunooti shrutvaapyenam veda na chaiva kashchit || 29 ||
 
Some perceive this (eternal essence) as a wonder, and similarly indeed, others speak of it as a wonder; it is a wonder that some hear about this, and after hearing about it, some understand this and some do not.
 
aashcharyavat : as a wonder
pashyati : perceive
kashchit : some
enam : this
vadati : speak
tathaa : similarly
eva : thus
cha : and
anyaha : others
shrunooti : listen
shrutva : hearing
api : also
enam : this
veda : know
na : do not
 
Shri Krishna was getting ready to conclude the topic of the eternal essence. Therefore, he wanted to remind Arjuna about it, and also instill a sense of deep curiosity and interest in him. In this shloka, Shri Krishna did both of those things.
 
Four types of spiritual seekers are pointed out here. Firstly, there are seekers who have heard about the eternal essence through the Gita or through other means. Usually, most of them will hear about it and forget about it. But there will be some that will become interested in it, and will want to hear more - this is the second category. Of those seekers, some will try to gain an intellectual understanding about it and having done so, will be so enthralled with it that they will keep speaking about it to other people. This is the third category.
 
But the most devoted and advanced seekers will ultimately perceive the eternal essence directly, and the perception would have occurred without any sense organs. When this happens, there would be no words to describe it. The closest one could come to describing it is when we see something so wonderful that it renders us speechless, like a breathtaking painting or a waterfall.
 
Note that the meter has changed in this verse to indicate its importance.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 28, Chapter 2

avyaktaadeeni bhootani vyaktamadhyaani bhaarata |
avyaktanidhanaanyeva tatra kaa paridevanaa || 28 ||
 
All bodies are latent in the beginning, they manifest in the middle, O Bhaarata. In the end, they will become latent again, so why should you grieve about this.
 
avyakta : latent
aadeeni :  in the beginning, prior to birth
bhootani : all bodies
vyakta : manifest
madhyaani : in the middle
bhaarata : O Bhaarata
nidhanaani : after end
eva : only
tatra : this
kaa : why
paridevanaa : grieve
 
This is yet another important and profound shloka with layers and layers of meaning. Let's try to understand it to the best of our ability. Let us look at some examples.
 
The first example, which is an oft-quoted one, is the seed example. We know that we can hold the seed of a tree, say a mango tree, in the palm of our hand - it is that small. We also know that if we provide the seed with the right climate, soil, water and fertilizer, it will grow into a tall mango tree. The blueprint of the tall tree is present in that small little seed. In other words, the mango tree is latent until the seed is planted. In time, when the seed transforms into a sapling, and then into a tree, we can say that the tree has manifested out of the seed. And in the due course of time, the tree will eventually transform into wood or paper for human consumption, or get burnt and become one with the soil, or something else.
 
Today is the festival of Diwali when I'm writing this, so I have to add the example of the flowerpot firecracker. For those unfamiliar with it, the flowerpot firecracker is a fist-sized conical shape with a wick on top. After the wick is lit, the firecracker shoots up a dazzling fireworks display in the shape of a fountain, sometimes up to 100 feet tall. This display lasts for about 30-60 seconds. Here we can say that the fireworks display was latent in the firecracker, it came into existence when the wick was lit, and it ended when the gunpowder was exhausted and eventually absorbed in the air. To make it even more relevant, sometimes a hundred or so of these flowerpots are lit in succession, so that as one ends, another one begins.
 
Finally, here's a somewhat different example. I used to play Beatles songs in a band. We would rehearse most of the Beatles popular songs beforehand. When we began our performance in the club, we would ask the audience to request a song, which we would end up performing. Therefore, the song was latent in our memory, it would come into existence when we played it, and it would end soon thereafter, after having travelled into the listener's ears, and hopefully into their minds. Also, each time we played it, it would sound just a little different.
 
What's common in all the 3 examples? In each case there was a beginning where something was hidden or latent, then something happened that caused it to come into existence, and eventually there came a time when that thing no longer existed. In effect, the birth, existence and death of a tree is no different than the "birth", "existence" and "death" of the fireworks display or the song. Birth, existence and death are modifications rather than standalone events, therefore one should not grieve when someone or something comes to an end. It just transforms into something else.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 27, Chapter 2

jaatasya hi dhruvoo mrityudhruvam janma mritasya cha |
tasmaadaparihaaryerthe na tvam shoochitumarhasi || 27 ||
 
Since one who is born certainly dies, and one who dies certainly is born. Therefore you should not grieve over this inevitable fact.
 
jaatasya : one who is born
hi : since
dhruvaha : certainly
mrityuha : die
janma : born
mritasya : who is dead
cha : and
tasmaad : therefore
aparihaarye:  inevitable
arthe : fact
na : not
tvam : you
shoochitum : grieve
arhasi : should
 
In the last shloka, Shri Krishna told Arjuna: Even if you think that the eternal essence undergoes birth and death, you should still not grieve. He continues the argument in this shloka.
 
The notion that birth eventually results in death, and death eventually results in birth is sometimes difficult for us to accept emotionally, but at the intellectual level, most of us acknowledge and accept it. I remember watching a TV show that showed a time lapse (high speed) video of a rodent's corpse decaying into the soil, and small plants and flowers emerging from the soil shortly thereafter. I thought that it very vividly and visually illustrated the cyclical nature of birth and death.
 
If we look at this example closely, we conclude that the physical body of the animal transformed into the raw material for the body of the flowers and plants. And although we could not see it, we can guess that the eternal essence of the animal "died" and is now "born" as the life force that sustains the plants and flowers.
 
Therefore we would not grieve for death the animal's body, nor for the death of the life force in it, because both were born again after they died. Similarly, Shri Krishna wanted Arjuna not to grieve for the imminent death of his kinsmen.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 26, Chapter 2

atha chainam nityajaatam nityam vaa manyase mritam |
tathaapi tvam mahaabaaho naivam shochitumarhasi || 26 ||
 
But on the other hand, if you believe that this (eternal essence) constantly takes birth and dies, then also you should not grieve, O mighty armed.
 
atha cha : but if
enam : this (eternal essence)
nityajaatam : constantly being born
nityam : constantly
vaa : or
manyase : believe
mritam: die
tathaapi : then also
tvam : you
mahaabaaho : O mighty-armed
na : not
evam : this
shochitum : grieve
arhasi : should
 
Shri Krishna imparted the teaching of the eternal essence to Arjuna in the shlokas we've been seeing. Now, the teaching becomes slightly less abstract and a little more "down-to-earth" as it were. Shri Krishna understands that people like us may find it hard to comprehend the notion of imperishability. Our mind will find a hard time comprehending that something was never born/created, and something will never die/get destroyed.
 
For example, we may think of the Earth as relatively imperishable, but even then we know from our school geology class that it was formed billions of years ago out of cooling of gases.
 
Therefore, Shri Krishna says : "O Arjuna, even if you cannot comprehend that the eternal essence is imperishable, it is ok, you can also believe that the eternal essence, which is present in human bodies, undergoes birth and death with the body". In the next few shlokas, Sri Krishna will convince Arjuna that his grief is unfounded even if he accepts that the eternal essence undergoes birth and death.
 
We may have a question here: Why did Shri Krishna begin his teaching of the Gita by describing the eternal essence? Isn't it a complex, abstract topic that all of us, including Arjuna, would have a hard time understanding? Couldn't he have started with something simpler?
 
Here's a possible answer. What is described as the eternal essence is the goal, the final result of the Gita teaching. Like a good teacher, Shri Krishna described the end goal to his students before describing the means to attain that goal. Any good teacher will always describe, elaborate upon, and glorify the end goal in the first lecture of a course. This will generate interest, curiosity, focus and dedication from the student. The student may not necessarily understand everything about that goal, but that is ok.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 25, Chapter 2

avyaktoyamachintoyamavikaryoyamuchyate |
tasmaadevam viditvainam naanushochitumarhasi || 25 ||
 
This (eternal essence) is imperceptible, this is incomprehensible, this is unchanging, it is said. Therefore, having known this, it is not worthy of grief.
 
avyaktaha : imperceptible
ayam : this
achintaha : incomprehensible
avikaryaha : unchanging
uchyate : it is said
tasmaad : therefore
evam : thus
viditva : having known
enam : this
naa : not
anushochitum : grieve
arhasi : worthy
 
Let's take stock of where we are. In the second chapter, Shri Krishna covers 4 main topics: 1) Informing Arjuna that his logic and reasoning was incorrect 2) Explaining the correct logic and reasoning to Arjuna 3) Providing practical guidance to implement this correct logic and reasoning 4) Describing the attributes of a person who follows this teaching.
 
We are still exploring the second topic, and this shloka marks the end of the argument that Shri Krishna began in shloka 17. The argument was whether the eternal essence can slay or be slain. Shri Krishna, in this shloka, concludes the argument by saying the following:
 
"Arjuna, associate yourself with the eternal essence and not the body. The eternal essence is eternal and imperishable; it cannot slay or be slain. Therefore do not grieve for the opposing army's warriors on their imminent death. Their bodies will perish anyway, so you shouldn't grieve for what is bound to perish. The eternal essence which is common between them and you is imperishable, so you should not grieve for that either. Therefore you have no reason to grieve at all."
 
Let's look further. If something is imperceptible, that means it is beyond the realm of our sense organs. If something is incomprehensible, it is beyond the realm of the intellect. If something is unchanging, then no physical effort will have an impact on it. We are dealing with something that is not of this material world, it is beyond it.
 
In the next few shlokas, Shri Krishna provides a simpler alternative of logic and reason to Arjuna, after which the teaching takes a turn towards more practical and concrete topics.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 23-24, Chapter 2

nainam chindanti shastraani nainam dahati paavakaha |
na chainam kledayanyaapo na shooshayati maaritaha || 23 ||
 
acchedyoyamadaahyoyamakledyoshoshya eva cha |
nityaha sarvagataha sthaanurchaloyam sanaatanaha || 24 ||
 
Weapons cannot pierce this (the eternal essence), fire cannot burn this, water cannot wet this, and wind cannot dry this.
 
This is uncleavable, incombustible, and cannot be wetted or dried. It is eternal, all-pervading, stable, immovable and everlasting.
 
enam : this (eternal essence)
na chindanti : cannot pierce
shastraani : weapons
na dahati : cannot burn
paavakaha : fire
cha : and
na kledayanti : cannot wet
aapaha : water
na shoshayati : cannot dry
maarutaha : wind
 
acchedyaha : uncleavable
ayam : this (eternal essence)
adaahyoha : incombustible
akledyo : wetted
shoshya : dried
eva cha : neither can
nityaha : eternal
sarvagataha : all-pervading
sthaanuha : stable
achalaha : immovable
sanaatanaha : eternal
 
We have been hearing a lot about the eternal essence since the 13th shloka began. By now, it must be clear to us that the topic of the eternal essence is abstract, and our intellect will have difficulty in grasping it. This is perfectly normal, because the eternal essence cannot be fully comprehended by the intellect. But we can get close to it through negation.
 
What does negation mean? Let's say you want your friend to buy a shirt for you from the store. You will inform your friend about that the shirt is fuchsia color. If you were to use negation, you would say that the shirt is not regular pink, not dark pink, not fully bright pink etc.
 
Similarly, the eternal essence here is indicated by negation, that it cannot be cut, cannot be wetted or dried etc.
 
Shri Krishna will provide us with a few more shlokas about the eternal essence, after which the topic will change to something much more tangible and concrete.
 
Footnotes
1. The Jnyaneshwari, in the commentary for this shloka, declares that the eternal essence cannot be comprehended by our intellect.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 22, Chapter 2

vaasaamsi jeernaani yathaa vihaaya navaani grihnaati naroparaani |
tathaa shareeraani vihaaya jeernaanyanyaanisamyaati navaani dehee || 22 ||
 
Just as an individual will discard old clothes and wears new one, so does the body-dweller discard old bodies and obtain other new bodies.
 
vaasaamsi : clothes
jeernaani : old
yathaa : just like
vihaaya: discard
navaani : new
grihnaati : wears
naraha :  individual
aparaani: other
tathaa : so does
shareeraani : bodies
vihaaya : discard
jeernaani : old
ayanyaani : other
samyaati : obtains
navaani : new
dehee : body-dweller
 
This is an oft-quoted shloka, and has several aspects and interpretations, just like many shlokas we have seen in this chapter. For our purposes, the main point here is that the eternal essence, or the body dweller, is separate from the human body. When the human body has outlived its purpose, the body dweller discards it and subsequently inherits a new body.
 
If we have followed the line of reasoning so far, a doubt emerges. How does the eternal essence, which is all-pervading and infinite, enter and leave human bodies? Shouldn't there just be one eternal essence, one body dweller? This question will be answered later in subsequent verses. For now, we should still consider the eternal essence as one but know that the one eternal essence gets attached to this body or that body, and perceives itself to be that body out of an error.
 
Note the change of meter in this verse.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 21, Chapter 2

vedaavinaashinam nityam ya enamajamavyayam |
katham sa purushaha paartha kam ghaatayati hanti kam || 21 ||
 
Whosoever knows this (eternal essence) to be imperishable, eternal, birthless and changeless, how can that individual, O Paartha, slay or cause anyone to be slain?
 
veda : knows
avinaashinam : imperishable
nityam : eternal
yaha : whosoever
enam : this
ajam : birthless
avyayam: changeless
katham : how
saha : that
purushaha : individual
paartha : O Paartha
kam : who
ghaatayati  : cause to be slain
hanti : kill
kam : who
 
Imagine that you are operating a laptop that is connected to a printer. You open a document on the laptop and click the print button. The laptop sends a signal to the printer, and the document gets printed.
 
Now imagine that the laptop and the printer have egos and can think for themselves. The laptop will say "I initiated the printing action" whereas the printer will say "I was the receiver of the printing action".
 
But in reality, an electric current went from the laptop to the printer, which then caused the printing to happen. So, an engineer would never say "the laptop caused the printing to happen". It was all a play of electricity.
 
So here, what Shri Krishna is trying to say is that "this", the eternal essence does not act and nor does it get impacted by any action, just like electricity does not really act. It empowers material objects to act without actually acting. Therefore a wise person will never think that the eternal essence can slay or kill or act at all. It is like the sun.
 
The refrain is clear: "You are the eternal essence - birthless, changeless, eternal and imperishable. The eternal essence does not slay, nor does it get slain." It is repeated throughout the Gita because it will take a significant effort on our part to truly understand and internalize this message.
 
This shloka forms the seed of chapter thirteen of the Gita on the topic of knowledge of the eternal essence, or "tattva jnyaana".

Bhagavad Gita Verse 20, Chapter 2

na jaayate mriyate vaa kadaachinnaayam bhootvaa bhavitaa vaa na bhooyaha |
ajo nityaha shaashvatoyam puraano na hanyate hanyamaane shareere || 20 ||
 
It (the eternal essence) is neither born, nor does it ever die; nor is it that having come into existence, it will again cease to exist. It is birthless, eternal, changeless and primeval, it is not slain when the body is killed.
 
na : not
jaayate : born
mriyate : dies
vaa : and
kadaachita : ever
na : not
ayam : this
bhootvaa : having come into existence
abhavitaa : ceases to be
vaa na : it is not the case that
bhooyaha : again
ajaha : birthless
nityaha : timeless
shaashvataha : changeless
puraano : primeval
na hanyate : slain
hanyamaane : when slain
shareere : the body
 
This shloka reinforces the attributes of the eternal essence that we have seen so far, that it is eternal and changeless. Any material object, including the human body, goes through six types of modifications: birth, exist, change, grow, decay, and to perish. The eternal essence is beyond all these modifications, hence it is changeless.
 
Two additional qualities of the eternal essence are provided here. The first is that it is birthless. It is logical that it should be birthless, otherwise it could not be eternal and timeless. And since it is birthless, it would have always existed, therefore it is primeval.
 
Note the change in meter to highlight the importance of this shloka.
 
Footnotes
1. "Om namoji aadya" is the very first ovi or stanza of the Jnyaneshwari. Sant Jnyaneshwar invokes the primeval quality of the eternal essence by using the word "aadya" which means primeval.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 19, Chapter 2

ya enam vetti hantaaram yachshainam manyate hatam |
ubhau tau na vijaanito naayam hanti na hanyate || 19 ||
 
A person who believes that it (the eternal essence) slays, and another who believes that it is slain, neither of these understands. It does not slay, nor is it slain.
 
yaha : that person who
enam : this (body dweller)
vetti : believes
hantaaram : slayer
yaha : that
cha : and
enam : this
manyate : believes
hatam: slain
ubhau : both
tau : those
na : do not
vijaanitaha : know
na ayam : this does not
hanti : slay
na hanyate : nor is slain
 
The "It" in this shloka and the following shlokas refers to the body-dweller. Here Shri Krishna addresses another concern that Arjuna had raised. Arjuna thought that that he will be held responsible for killing his kinsmen, which was something that was abhorrent to him. But Shri Krishna through this shloka advised him to use the logic or the perspective of the eternal essence. The eternal essence does not kill, nor does it die from someone else trying to kill it.
 
But how does this apply to us? We are not warriors, and it is rare that we will be put in the position of killing somebody. So there must be another interpretation.This shloka equates the act of slaying to performance of any action, and being slain to any change or modification. In other words, the eternal essence never performs any action, nor does it undergo any change or modification.
 
As an example, let's consider at the sun. Without the sun there will be no activity or life on this planet. There would be no plant life because plants use the sun's energy. There would be no animal or human life because both cannot survive without plants. But, does the sun perform any action pertaining to growing a plant or an animal? Does it get affected by all the changes happening on earth? It does not that that "I caused this forest to grow" or "I was impacted by this eclipse". It remains actionless and changeless.
 
The shloka goes on to say that one who thinks that the eternal essence acts or kills is not using viveka or discrimination, and that person does not have the correct understanding. The person is still thinking at the level of the material object, or in other words, the level of the un-real, and has still not learnt to discriminate between the two.
 
Footnotes
 
1. Verses 19 and 20 are almost verbatim taken from the Katha Upanishad.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 18, Chapter 2

antavanta ime dehaa nityasyoktaaha shareerinaha |
anaashinoprameyasya tasmaadyudhyasva bhaarata || 18 ||
 
These bodies of the eternal body-dweller will perish, it is said. It is imperishable and unfathomable. Therefore, fight, O Bhaarata.
 
antavanta : perishable
ime : these
dehaa : bodies
nityasya : eternal
uktaaha : has been said
shareerinaha: this body-dweller
anaashinaha : imperishable
aprameyasya : unfathomable
tasmaat : therefore
yudhyasva : fight
bhaarata : O Bhaarata
 
Like the previous shloka did, this shloka introduces another aspect of the eternal essence. It is unfathomable, incomprehensible. In other words, it cannot be understood by our intellect like we understand other kinds of knowledge. Also notice here that the eternal essence is denoted as one entity, whereas the bodies are many. Which means it is same eternal essence that pervades all material objects, including human bodies.
 
Since Shri Krishna concludes a line of reasoning in this shloka with the word "tasmaat", let's summarize the argument that began in verse 11 of this chapter:
 
1) Shri Krishna told Arjuna : "You are thinking that it is evil, wrong, unlawful to fight against your kinsmen. Your logic is incorrect. You are missing the big picture."
 2) "I will tell you the correct logic. You shouldn't grieve for them. The eternal essence, body dweller, is imperishable and real, whereas human bodies and material objects are perishable, and are unreal, as it were."
 3) "I will also give you some practical advice. Do not get agitated by joy and sorrow caused by contact with people, objects and situations. These are temporary conditions so bear them patiently. Once you learn to remain stable through joy and sorrow, you will begin to realize the eternal essence".
4) "Now that you know that you can never destroy the imperishable eternal essence, and that you should not grieve for the perishable, get up and fight, O Arjuna".
 
So then, what is the bottomline? "Arjuna, you should not think that you are this human body. Associate yourself with that body-dweller, that eternal essence. It will never get destroyed, so there is no need for grief."
 
Here we also see that Shri Krishna, like any good teacher, is providing 2 kinds of training : theoretical and practical. From the next shloka onwards, we will examine the theoretical, or logical aspect. In the later part of the chapter we will look at the practical aspect.
 
Footnotes
1. This shloka gives a pointer to the birth of the ego. When the eternal essence, which is one entity, associates itself with material objects, it gets split or fragmented. It begins to think that it is limited by whatever material object it is associated with. And when that eternal essence feels limited to a particular human body, and does everything in its power to maintain a sense of separation from everything else, that gives rise to the sense of ego.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 17, Chapter 2

avinaashi tu tadviddhi yena sarvamidam tatam |
vinaashamavyayasyaasya na kashchitkartumarhati || 17 ||
 
But know that (eternal essence) to be indestructible by which all this is pervaded. Nothing ever can destroy that, the imperishable.
 
avinaashi : indestructible
tu : but
tat : that
viddhi : know
yena : which
sarvam : everything
idam : this
tatam : pervades
vinaasham : destruction
avyayasya :  of the imperishable
asya : of this
na : not
kashchit : any
kartum : do
arhati : is able
 
The theme of the ongoing shlokas has been understanding the nature of the eternal essence. This verse gives us two qualities that the eternal essence possesses. Note that the sanskrit word "tat" meaning "that" refers to the eternal essence in this shloka.
 
Firstly, the eternal essence is imperishable. It cannot be destroyed, nor is it created. In the bangle example from the prior verse, the pawn shop owner only cared about the gold content of the bangle and not its shape and form. He could melt that bangle into another ornament, melt it again and make it into another ornament, and so on. In doing so, each subsequent ornament was "created" and "destroyed", but the gold essence was imperishable and indestructible. Similarly, the eternal essence spoken of in these verses is imperishable.
 
Secondly, the eternal essence pervades "all this", which means the eternal essence pervades the entire universe. If we immerse a piece of cloth into water, water pervades each and every fibre of the cloth. There is no part of the cloth that isn't dry. In the same way, from a rock, to plants, to animals, and to humans, the eternal essence pervades everything that is part of the universe.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 16, Chapter 2

naasato vidyate bhaavo naabhaavo vidyate sataha |
ubhayoropi drishtontastvanayostattvadarshibhihi || 16 ||
 
The unreal has no existence, and there is no non-existence of the real; the truth about both of these has been experienced by seers of the essence.
 
asataha : unreal
bhaavaha : existence
vidyate : situation
na : no
tu : and
sataha : real
abhaavaha : non-existence
tattva : truth
darshibhihi : seers of
anayoha : of these two
ubhayoha : both
api : also
antaha : essence
drishtontaha : experienced
 
Here we encounter one of the most profound shlokas of the Gita, with layers and layers of meaning. It begins to lead us into understanding this thing called the eternal essence, and how we can experience it. At present, we may not have the capability to go too deep into it, but we can try to get its gist.
 
The best example I heard in connection with this verse is the animal cookie example. We may have come across animal cookies. They are a brand of children's cookies shaped like tigers, elephant etc. Now, some children will only want to eat the tiger shaped cookie and not the others, whereas other children may only want to eat the elephant shaped ones and not the others. But, most adults would not care about the shape of the cookie, they will eat any shape.
 
Why is this so? The adult has the wisdom to go straight to the essence of the cookie. He or she does not care about the name or the form taken by the cookie. And this wisdom has come by maturity, by knowing that the animals were "un-real" and they did not have "existence". Only the cookie dough was "real", just like this verse indicates.
 
Another example is about the newly married wife who has just received a beautiful gold bangle from her husband. Although she cares about the shape and ornamentation of the bangle, a pawn shop owner would not not really care about those things. He only cares about the weight of the bangle.
 
The prior verse indicated that a wise person is one who stays balanced in joy and sorrow. This verse explains that the balanced person will slowly achieve wisdom and reach a state where any object or situation will begin to lose its "real-ness". Only the eternal essence will remain as the common element behind every object or situation. This vision is called "tattva-drishti" or "vision of the essence".
 
Moreover, the word "bhaava" has another meaning: finitude. So it means that the real is infinite, and the unreal is finite. Therefore, the wise person does not go on chasing material objects that have a finite existence and give only finite happiness.
 
Footnotes
1. The Jnyaneshwari has several examples to illustrate this verse, for further reference.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 15, Chapter 2

yam hi na vyathayantyete purusham purusharshabha |
samaduhkhasukham dheeram somrutatvaaya kalpate || 15 ||
 
Therefore, that person who is not agitated by these (contacts with material objects), O strongest of men, and can remain balanced in joy and sorrow; that wise person is fit for immortality.
 
yam : that
hi : therefore
na : not
vyathayanti : agitated
yete : these
purusham : person
purusharshabha : O strongest among men
samaduhkhasukham : balanced in joy and sorrow
dheeram : wise person
saha : that
amrutatvaaya : immortality
kalpate : fit for
 
Most people who read this verse immediately zero in on the last part and quickly ask the question "will this mean that if I follow the teaching in this verse, I will never die?". Immortality here does not refer to a state where our body never perishes, or a state where we go to heaven and enjoy its delights forever.
 
What is meant here is that life is a series of experiences that arise, exist temporarily, and perish. The person who knows the "trick" of staying balanced through these experiences will attain a state where they will transcend the push and pull of these experiences, and will eventually get to touch that changeless, eternal essence that came up in the earlier verses. One who does not get affected by agitation is called "dheera".
 
So how do we bring this down to our daily lives? Let's first look at a simple question. Why do someone else's agitations do not impact us? Because we do not associate our "I" with someone else's agitations. Similarly, our "I" is also not associated with our body/mind/intellect related agitations and conditions. If there is a fragrance in the room, we do not say "I am fragrant". Therefore, we should strive to keep the joyful or sorrowful condition from associating with the "I". Instead of saying "I am sad", we can say, "there is sadness".
 
Furthermore, we have seen instances where people are ready to endure pain and sorrow when they attach themselves to a higher ideal. A parent will endure a lot of suffering so that he or she can educate the child. A freedom fighter will endure torture, or even die for the cause of the country's freedom. This verse is asking us to become wise and aim for the highest possible ideal, that of the eternal essence.
 
We have been repeatedly hearing about the eternal essence in these verses. Can we get a deeper understanding?
 
Footnotes
1. The examples in this post are from Swami Chinmayananda's commentary on the Gita
2. The word "sama" contains the word "maa" meaning mother. The mother's loving attitude towards her child is same regardless of how the child behaves or misbehaves. Her attitude is "sama" or even-keel.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 14, Chapter 2

maatraasparshaastu kaunteya sheetoshnasukhaduhkadaaha |
aagamaapaayinoonityaastaanstitikshasva bhaarata || 14 ||
 
Contact with material objects will only give joy and sorrow, heat and cold. These are transitory - they appear and disappear, so endure them bravely, O Bhaarata.
 
maatraasparshaaha : contact with material objects
tu : only
kaunteya : Kaunteya
sheeta : cold
ushna : heat
sukha : joy
duhka : sorrow
daaha: give
aagama : appear
apaayina : disappear
anityaaha :  transitory
taan : those
titikshasva : endure them bravely
bhaarata : O Bhaarata
 
The last verse gave a hint of what is this thing called the eternal essence. But since none of us have ever seen it, or experienced it, we would now like to know how can we make that happen. This verse gives us a preparatory step in that regard. It advises us to develop the capability of titiskha, or brave endurance against joy and sorrow.
 
Let's examine each aspect of this verse. The first part of this verse makes the assertion that contact with material objects, or more specifically, contact of our senses with material objects, causes us to experience heat and cold.
 
How does this work? The senses react to external stimuli and send an input signal to the mind. The mind processes these sensory inputs and labels some as “ joy” and some as "sorrow". A hot coffee when it is freezing weather outside gives us joy, for sure. But the same cup of hot coffee in boiling hot summer will probably not give us joy, in fact it would probably give us sorrow.
 
More broadly, heat and cold in this verse represent polar opposites of stimuli received by all of our sense organs. If we take the organ of sight, then heat and cold represent beauty and ugliness. If we take the organ of touch, then heat and cold represent soft and hard.
 
Taking this even further, we can include words as well. If someone praises us, our ego-centred mind gets a boost, and we experience pleasure at that point. But if someone insults us, or criticizes us, our ego-centered mind feels threatened and we experience sorrow at that point.
 
So to summarize, our sense organs and our ego can get affected by external stimuli. But, instead of labelling each external stimulus as joy or sorrow, what if we remained steady through each of them? Instead of labelling these stimuli as “joy” and “sorrow”, could we begin to label them differently?
 
Let’s say your boss gave you a mouthful of criticism after your sales presentation at work. His words came through your ears, the ears sent a signal to your mind, and the mind took this criticism and labelled it as “sorrowful” or "painful". Instead, what would happen if we labelled this as something neutral e.g. “useful information”, and used it to improve our next presentation? And if the words were not really criticism, but were veiled or direct insults, what would happen if we labelled them as "irrelevant" or "noise" or "chatter"?
 
Now you may say, yes, that sounds good in theory, but how do we do it in practice? The second part of the verse gives a clue in this regard. It says that any contact with material objects is temporary, it will appear and then disappear, and it has a beginning and an end. Therefore, if we know that something has an end, why should we let it bother us? Or conversely, if we know that a pleasant situation has ended, if the child's bubble has burst, why should we grieve about it?
 
Again, you may say that developing this titiksha, this brave endurance, would still be difficult. Just like losing weight is not something that happens overnight, developing titiksha will also not happen overnight. You need to follow a structured, disciplined technique to do so, and the Gita will go into this topic in depth.
 
So then, what is the benefit of developing this titiksha? We shall see very soon.
 
Footnotes
1. Heat, cold, joy, sorrow etc. are termed as "Vikaara". Vikaara means a temporary modification of some thing or some substance that is permanent.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 13, Chapter 2

dehinosminyathaa dehe kaumaram yauvanam jaraa |
tathaa dehaantarapraaptirdheerastatra na muhyati || 13 ||
 
Just as in this body, the body dweller passes through childhood, youth and old age, so also does it obtain another body (after death); the steadfast person does not grieve over this.
 
dehinaha : body dweller
asmin : this
yathaa : just like
dehe : body
kaumaram : childhood
yauvanam : youth
jaraa: old age
tathaa : similarly
dehaaantara : another
praaptihi: obtain
dheeraha : steadfast person
tatra : by that
na muhyati : do not grieve
 
It is our experience that we pass through childhood, youth and old age. We can agree that this concept is familiar to us. But note the language used in the first line. It is not you or I that passes through these phases, it is something called the "dehina" or the "body dweller". The body is born, it undergoes changes, and eventually perishes. But the body dweller remains constant through these changes. So, this means that the body dweller is something that is separate, distinct and different from the body.
 
Remember the example of Mr. X and his car from the first verse? Let's revisit it. Mr. X is excited when his car is brand new. After 5-6 years, it starts to develop engine problems. After another 4-5 years, the problems have become so bad that Mr. X decides to sell this car and buy a new Mercedes S-class. Mr. X can be called a "car dweller".
 
As the old car's engine degraded over the years, Mr. X remained the same from the car's perspective. But when the car had lived its life, he discarded that car for another new car. And there was nothing to be sad about this point. An extreme scenario is some unscrupulous people deliberately crash their old car just so that they can get insurance money to buy a new one.
 
Similarly, our body undergoes modifications of birth and aging, and eventually perishes. But the body dweller remains constant through these modifications. When the old body has become unfit to dwell in, the body dweller discards it and obtains a new body. The key point here is that the body dweller remains constant through the changes in its body, and also through the change from one body to another. And just like in the car example, a wise person should not grieve about growing old or dying, because the body dweller will always remain constant.
 
The body dweller is, therefore, the eternal essence that was highlighted in the prior verse. And since it is different than the physical body which perishes, it cannot be "found" in any part of the physical body.
 
So what exactly is this body dweller, this eternal essence? And how should we acquire the wisdom to see this eternal essence?
 
Footnotes
 
1. In one day we have several thoughts such as "I am happy", "I am sad", we join a condition to our "I". Each time do so, we are "born" as a happy person, as a sad person and so on, even if there is no new physical body that is born.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 12, Chapter 2

na tvevaaham jaatu naasam na tvam neme janaadhipaaha |
na chaiva na bhavishyaamaha sarve vayamataha param || 12 ||
 
In fact, there was never a time when I did not exist, nor did you, nor did these kings; and never shall we all cease to exist hereafter.
 
tu  : in fact
na eva : certainly never
jaatu : any time
aham : I
na : did not
aasam : exist
na : nor
tvam : you
no : nor
ime : these
janaadhipaaha : kings
 
cha : and
na eva : certainly never
na : will not
bhavishyaamaha : exist
sarve : all
vayam : of us
ataha param : hereafter
 
The Gita uses a lot of poetic techniques, including using double negatives like the ones in this verse. If you cancel the double negatives, a simpler version of this verse will be "All of us are timeless and eternal. We always existed in the past, and we will always exist in the future".
 
This statement, at first glance, does not seem to make sense. So let's look at an example. Let's imagine a huge lake with deep waters. The surface of the lake is usually quiet. Once in a while, a wind blows across the lake causing a wave to appear for a few seconds, then disappear soon after.
 
If we apply the logic of this verse and examine it from the perspective of a wave, the lake always existed before the wave came into existence. And the lake will remain long after any wave has disappeared.
 
Similarly, an LCD television has thousands of pixels, or dots of light, on its screen. These pixels turn on and off, due to which a moving image is created on the screen. We can enjoy a movie on the screen that will begin and end, characters and situations will come and go, but the screen will remain as a constant.
 
Now, according to physics, matter can never be created or destroyed, it can only undergo change from one state to another. So therefore, this shloka reiterates this physical law by saying that the atoms and molecules that comprise us always existed in the universe in some shape or forms.
 
But, just like the surface of the lake is a constant that lets the play of waves happen on it, there is a timeless, eternal, constant surface or "essence" that is present in the entire universe, which is the backdrop on which the play of matter happens. 
 
At this point, what is being spoken of here may seem abstract and somewhat hard to conceptualize, but it is similar to algebra where we denote unknown quantities by variables like x and y, till such time as we deduce the right value.
 
Ok. So what exactly is this eternal essence? How do we see it? If it is present in us, which part of the body does it reside in?
 
Footnotes
1. The wave and lake example is from the Jnyaneshwari, which is filled with tons of examples to explain complex concepts such as this one.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 11, Chapter 2

Shri Bhagavaan Uvaacha:
ashochyaananvashochastvam pragnyaavaadaamshcha bhaashase |
gataasoonagataasoonshcha naanushochanti panditaaha || 11 ||
 
Shri Bhagavaan said:
You are grieving for those who are not worthy of sorrow, yet seemingly speaking words of wisdom. The wise grieve not for the departed, nor for those who have not yet departed.
 
ashochyaan : not worthy of sorrow
anvashochaha : grieving
tvam : you are
pragnyaa : wisdom
vaadaam : words
cha : yet seemingly
bhaashase : speak
gataasoon : departed
agataasoon : undeparted
cha : and
na : do not
anushochanti : grieve
panditaaha : wise people
 
In the verses so far, Arjuna thought he was wise in lamenting the war by making a plea for peace. But Shri Krishna here pointed out that Arjuna "seemingly spoke wise words", i.e. in reality what Arjuna said was not correct. His assessment of the situation was clouded by emotion instead of being driven by logic and reason. On one hand, he was displaying grief, on the other hand, he was trying to display logic. Logic and grief cannot go together.
 
There are several instances in life where what we thought was correct knowledge, no longer applies. For example, let's say you get promoted to your first managerial job. It is your first day at work and you get invited to 10 meetings from different teams. If you were at a job right out of college, you would ensure that you attended all the meetings that you were invited to, and doing so would be the right thing to do at that stage in your career. But as a manager, you have the advantage of seniority to choose which meetings to go to, and which to avoid. You no longer assess the situation like you previously used to. You use different reasoning and logic.
 
Shri Krishna's wanted to correct Arjuna's logic. He pointed to Arjuna that there was no need to grieve for the living nor for the dead. Death is inevitable. We should enjoy and appreciate the living, just like one appreciates a colourful soap bubble blown by a child. The bubble will last for a few seconds, but inevitably, it will burst. Some bubbles burst quickly, some last for a longer time. But there is never a surprise when a bubble eventually bursts.
 
Therefore Shri Krishna instructs Arjuna, and us, to assess any life situation with logic and reason, and not to get swayed by emotion. Of course, it will not always be possible to check our emotions, but it should be what we strive for constantly. We saw what happened to Arjuna when he let his emotions run wild, resulting in a panic attack. A wise person who uses "viveka" or discrimination (logic and reasoning about correct and incorrect) is called a "pandit". He need not necessarily have formal degrees, but is one who uses reason all the time.
 
A bubble will eventually burst, and the body will eventually perish. But is that the end? The next verse goes deeper into this topic.
 
Footnotes
1. "Moha" is delusion is reverse thinking. Mistaking the real for the unreal, impermanent as permanent, something that was never ours as ours, is delusion. The first line of the shloka addresses moha.
2. "Shoka" or grief is excessive dwelling in the past, or in other words, reliving past memories repeatedly. The second line of the shloka addresses shoka.
3. Per Shankaracharya's commentary, shoka and moha were the two primary reasons that Arjuna resisted fighting against his relatives.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 10, Chapter 2

tamuvaacha hrisheekeshaha prahasanniva bhaarata |
senayorubhayormadhye visheedantamidam vachaha || 10 ||
 
Hrishikeesha, as though smiling, spoke these words to the despondent Arjuna, in the middle of the two armies.
 
tam : to him
uvaacha : spoke
hrisheekeshaha : Hrisheekeshaha
prahasan iva : as though smiling
bhaarata : Arjuna
senayor-ubhayor-madhye : in the middle of the armies
visheedantam : despondent
idam : these
vachaha : spoke words
 
The most interesting aspect of this verse is the phrase "as though smiling", and has been interpreted differently by several commentators. The commonly held notion is : Shri Krishna wanted to use Arjuna as a vehicle for delivering the sermon of the Gita, and he smiled because the time for delivering the sermon had come as soon as Arjuna requested him to become his disciple. Another interpretation is that on the one hand, Arjuna is surrendering to Shri Krishna and asking for guidance, but o the other hand he says that he will not fight. Therefore Shri Krishna is smiling on this qualified request from Arjuna.
 
Our journey so far was just the background of the Gita. Starting from the next verse, we are about to delve into the heart of the Gita. Like any good speaker, Shri Krishna has provided an overview of the Gita for us in Chapter 2. Later chapters will delve into these themes in significant detail.
 
We will try our best to understand some of the more abstract verses in this chapter, but let's not worry if we don't understand them completely in the first reading. These verses will reveal new nuances and facets in each reading.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 9, Chapter 2

Sanjaya uvaacha:
evamuktvaa hrisheekesham gudakeshaha parantapa |
na yotsya iti govindamuktvaa tushneem babhoova ha || 9 ||
 
Sanjaya said:
 
Having spoken this to Hrisheekesha, Gudaakesha, the scorcher of foes, said to Govinda : "I will not fight", and became silent.
 
evam : this
uktvaa : having spoken
hrisheekesham : Hrisheekesha (Shri Krishna)
gudaakesha : Gudaakesha (Arjuna)
parantapa : scorcher of foes
na yotsya : I will not fight
iti : this
govindam : to Govinda (Shri Krishna)
uktvaa : said
tushneem : silent
babhoova  ha: and became
 
In the last verse, Arjuna had surrendered his decision-making to Shri Krishna, and had asked him for guidance. Arjuna knew that he was in no shape to make that decision himself, let alone fight. So he eventually proclaimed that he would not fight, and became silent.
 
We should note that it was not just Arjuna's voice that became silent. His mind, though not totally silent, became calmer than what it was in the last verse. Otherwise, it could not have assimilated the teaching that was about to follow.
 
Also note that the narration has shifted back to Sanjaya in this verse, and the meter has changed back to normal. He refers to Arjuna as Gudaakesha or "conqueror of sleep", and Shri Krishna as Hrisheekesha or "conqueror of the senses".

Bhagavad Gita Verse 8, Chapter 2

na hi prapashyaami mamaapanudyaad yachchokamuchchoshanamindriyaanaam |
avaapya bhoomaavasapatnamridham raajyam suraanaamapi chaadhipatyam || 8 ||
 
Even if I should obtain prosperity and unrivalled kingship on earth, or even supremacy over the gods, I do not see that it will drive away this sorrow that withers my senses.
 
na hi: do not
prapashyaami : I seemama : my
apanudyaat : drive away
yat : that which
shokam : sorrow
uchchoshanam : wither
indriyaanaam: senses
avaapya : obtain
bhoomau : on earth
asapatnam : unrivalled
ridham : prosperous
raajyam : kingdom
suraanaam : gods
api : even if
cha : and
aadhipatyam : supremacy
 
Arjuna realized that the sorrow caused as a result of his attachment to his kinsmen was not ordinary. It burrowed deep into his personality and lodged itself in it. This deep rooted sorrow had the effect of totally throwing his senses off track. He was not able to see or hear clearly. This sorrow was not going to be easy to remove.
 
In this verse, Arjuna also came to the conclusion that what he was looking for could not be found in the material world. If this were the case, he would have been happy with wealth, riches and thrones. But here we see that even supremacy over the gods was something that would not satisfy him.
 
Arjuna reached a point where the only thing that mattered for him was the ultimate cure for sorrow, a cure that was permanent, and not some material thing like wealth that would diminish sorrow temporarily. And this ultimate cure that he was seeking was a higher level of discrimination or viveka that would lead him to liberation.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 7, Chapter 2

kaarpanyadoshopahatasvabhaavaha pricchaami
tvaam dharmasammoodhachetaaha |
yachchreyaha syaannishchitam broohi tanme
shishyasteham shaadhi maam tvaam prapannam || 7 ||
 
This error of cowardice has damaged my personality, and my deluded intellect cannot decide what is right or wrong. Tell me what is definitely appropriate. Guide me, I am your disciple and take refuge in you.
 
kaarpanya : cowardly
dosho : error
upahata : damaged
svabhaavaha : inherent nature
pricchaami : I ask
tvaam : you
dharma : right and wrong
sammoodha : deluded
cheta : intellect
yat : what
shreyaha : appropriate
syaat : may be
nishchitam : definitely
broohi : tell me
tat : that
me : for me
shishyaha : disciple
te aham : I'm your
shaadhi : guide
maam : me
tvaam : your
prapannam : refuge
 
This verse is a milestone in the Gita, because it reflects a change in Arjuna's thinking.
 
Arjuna finally gained enough of his reasoning capacity back to realize that his mind had been thrown off balance by cowardice, which he rightly labelled as an error. In the first chapter, he could never have come to this conclusion because he was experiencing an extremely negative emotional state. He was able to put a degree of objectivity towards his thinking, some space between his thoughts and himself. And in doing so, he realized that his intellect was totally deluded.
 
In addition, he also realized that because of this cowardice, he was in no position to make a decision about whether to fight or not. This was a high-stakes decision, a decision that could impact the course of history. He quickly needed to find some other way of coming to a decision. The only way he could do so is to give up any pretense of knowing what was the correct thing to do, and give that decision to a trusted friend and guide, Shri Krishna.
 
For many of us, especially in youth, we never feel the need to look beyond the material world. All our goals and aspirations are material, and once we achieve a certain goal, we strive for a higher goal. And as long as everything goes our way, we are fine. But sooner or later, something happens in our lives that shakes things up and makes us think whether we are missing something. We all have to pass through a earth-shattering stage in life that makes us question things, and makes us revisit our assumptions and beliefs. That stage was indicated in chapter 1 of the Gita, when Arjuna saw his entire world and belief system collapse.
 
When this shattering happens, we have two choices. We can continue operating in the material world in the same way as we did before. We can also use this collapse to search for something higher. The choice made by a seeker is indicated by the words "Tell me what is definitely appropriate. Guide me, I am your disciple and take refuge in you" uttered by Arjuna.