Bhagavad Gita Chapter 2, Verse 26

Chapter 2 – Sankhya Yoga · Speaker: Krishna

Sanskrit verse

अथ चैनं नित्यजातं नित्यं वा मन्यसे मृतम् ।
तथापि त्वं महाबाहो नैवं शोचितुमर्हसि ॥

Transliteration

atha cainaṃ nityajātaṃ nityaṃ vā manyase mṛtam .
tathāpi tvaṃ mahābāho naivaṃ śocitumarhasi ॥

Meaning

And even if you think of the Self as constantly being born and constantly dying, even then, O mighty-armed one, you should not grieve like this.

Word meanings

अथ च – and if
एनम् – this
नित्यजातम् – constantly born
नित्यम् – constantly
वा – or
मन्यसे – you think
मृतम् – dying
तथा अपि – even then
त्वम् – you
महाबाहो – O mighty-armed one
न एवम् – not thus
शोचितुम् – to grieve
अर्हसि – you ought

Anvaya (word order)

अथ च (त्वम्) एनं नित्यजातं नित्यं मृतं वा मन्यसे, तथा अपि महाबाहो, त्वम् एवं शोचितुं न अर्हसि ।

Explanation

So far Krishna has ruled out grief on the basis of the Vedantic teaching that the Self is eternal. Now, like a skilful teacher, He offers a second argument: suppose you do not accept what I say, and think that the Self too is born and dies again and again along with the body — even then there is no reason to grieve.

The argument has in view schools of thought that do not hold the Self to be eternal — the materialist (Lokayata) view that consciousness is merely a property of the body, or views that regard the self as momentary. Krishna says that even on these views, birth and death are an inevitable, unceasing process of nature. To grieve over what is natural and unavoidable is futile.

This is characteristic of Krishna's method. He does not impose His view on Arjuna but examines every possible standpoint to show that grief is unjustified from all of them. Shankara calls this ‘abhyupagama-vada’ — provisionally granting an opponent's position and still showing its conclusion to be mistaken.

‘Mahabaho’, mighty-armed, reminds Arjuna of his strength and duty. One whose arms were made to protect dharma should not sit sunk in delusion.

Context

Up to 2.25 Krishna ruled out grief on the basis of the Self's eternity. Here (2.26–2.27) He shows grief to be unfitting even from another standpoint — that the self is subject to birth and death. In the next verse (2.27) He says death is certain for whatever is born.

Life lesson

Look at a problem from several angles. Often we discover that what grieves us does not, from any angle, deserve so much sorrow.

Key terms

Nitya-jata: constantly being born
Mahabahu: mighty-armed — Arjuna
Abhyupagama-vada: arguing by provisionally granting the opponent's view