{"id":598,"date":"2013-07-13T01:29:08","date_gmt":"2013-07-13T01:29:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/localhost\/?p=598"},"modified":"2013-07-13T01:29:08","modified_gmt":"2013-07-13T01:29:08","slug":"16-chapter-two-vol-08-translations-volume-08","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/01-works-of-sri-aurobindo\/01-sabcl\/08-translations-volume-08\/16-chapter-two-vol-08-translations-volume-08","title":{"rendered":"-16_Chapter-Two.htm"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n\n\n
\n
\n


\n\t\tCHAPTER TWO<\/font><\/span><\/b><\/p>\n


\n <\/span><\/p>\n

T<\/font><\/b><\/span>o him thus besieged with
\npity and his eyes full bewildered with crowding tears, to him weak with sorrow,
\nMadhusudan<\/span> spake<\/span> this word.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

KRISHNA<\/font><\/span><\/b><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cWhence hath this stain of
\ndarkness come upon thee in the very crisis and the stress, O Urjoona<\/span>. this weakness unheavenly<\/span>,
\ninglorious, beloved of un-Aryan minds ? Fall not into coward impotence, O Partha<\/span>; not on thee does that sit well; fling from thee the
\nmiserable weakness of thy heart, O scourge of thy foes.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\nurjoona<\/font><\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cHow shall I combat Bhishma<\/span> in the fight and Drona<\/span>,<\/u>
\nO Madhusudan<\/span>. how shall I smite with arrows those
\nvenerable heads? Better were it, not piercing these great and worshipped hearts
\nto eat even a beggar\u2019s bread on this our earth. I slay our earthly wealth and
\nbliss when I slay these; blood\u00adstained will be the joys I shall taste.
\nTherefore we know not which of these is better, that we should be victors or
\nthat we should be vanquished: for they whom slaying we should have no heart to
\nlive, lo, they Dhritarashtrians<\/span> face us in the foeman\u2019s
\nvan. Pain and unwillingness have swept me from my natural self, my heart is
\nbewildered as to right and wrong: thee then I question. Tell me what would
\nsurely be my good, for I am thy dis\u00adciple ; teach me, for in thee I have sought
\nmy refuge. I see not what shall banish from me the grief that parcheth<\/span> up the senses, though I win on earth rich kingship
\nwithout rival and empire over the very gods in heaven.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Thus Gudakesha<\/span> to Hrishikesha<\/span>: the scourger<\/span> of his
\nfoe said unto Govinda<\/span>, \u201cI will not fight\u201d, and ceased
\nfrom words. On him thus overcome with weakness in the midmost of either battle,<\/span><\/p>\n

Krishna smiled a little and said:<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThou grievest<\/span> for whom thou shouldst<\/span> not grieve and yet speakest<\/span>
\nwise-seeming words, but the wise grieve not, whether for the dead or for the
\nliving. It is not that I was not before, nor thou nor these lords of the folk,
\nnor yet that we shall not be again hereafter. Even as the embodied spirit
\npasses in this body to boyhood and youth and age, so also it passes away from
\nthis body to another; the strong man suffers not his soul to be clouded by
\nthis. But the things of material touch, O son of Coonty<\/span>,
\nwhich bring cold and warmth, pleasure and pain, they come and they pass;
\ntransient<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

Page \u2013 80<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n
\n

<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n

are they, these seek to
\nabandon, O Bharata<\/span>. The man whom these vex not, O
\nlion of men, who is strong and receiveth<\/span> sorrow and
\nbliss as one, that man is ready for immortality. For that which is not, there is
\nno coming into being, and for that which is, there is no ceasing to be; yea, of
\nboth of these the lookers into truth have seen an end. But That in which all
\nthis universe is extended, know to be imperishable; none hath force to bring to
\nnought<\/span> the One who decays not neither passes away.
\nFinite and tran\u00adsient are these bodies called, of the eternal, imperishable and
\nimmeasurable embodied Spirit; arise, therefore, and fight, O son of Bharata<\/span>. Who know-eth the Spirit as slayer and who deemeth<\/span> Him to be slain, both of these discern not. He slayeth<\/span> not, neither is he slain. <\/b>He is not born nor
\ndieth<\/span> ever, nor having once been shall not be again. He
\nis unborn, for ever and perpetual. He is the Ancient One who is not slain with
\nthe slaying of the body. He who knoweth<\/span> Him to be
\nimperishable, eternal, unborn and un-decaying, whom doth that man, O Partha<\/span> slay or cause to be slain ? As a man casteth<\/span> from him his worn-out robes and taketh<\/span>
\nto him other and new raiment, so the embodied Spirit casteth<\/span>
\naway its worn-out bodies and goeth<\/span> to other and new
\ncasings. Him the sword cleaveth<\/span> not. Him the fire
\ncannot burn, Him the water wetteth<\/span> not and the hot
\nwind withereth<\/span> not away; indivisible, unconsumable<\/span>, unmergible<\/span>, unwitherable<\/span> is He. He is for ever and everywhere, constant
\nand moveth<\/span> not. He is the One Sempiternal<\/span>
\nBeing. If thou knowest<\/span> him as such, thou hast no
\ncause to grieve.<\/span><\/p>\n

And now if yet thou deemest<\/span> of
\nthe Spirit as everborn<\/span> or everdying<\/span>,
\neven so thou hast no cause to grieve for him, O strong-armed. For of that which
\nis born the death is certain, and of that which is dead, the birth is sure;
\ntherefore in a thing inevitable thou oughtest<\/span> not to
\ngrieve. Un-manifested in their beginning are creatures, manifested in the
\nmiddle, O Bharata<\/span>; they become but unmanifest<\/span> again at death; what room is here for
\nlamentation? As a Mystery one seeth<\/span> Him, as a Mystery
\nanother <\/i>speaketh<\/span> of Him, as a Mystery a third heareth<\/span> of Him, but even with revelation not one knoweth<\/span> Him. The embodied One is for ever unslayable<\/span> in the body of every man, O Bharata<\/span>;
\nand from Him are all creatures; therefore thou hast no cause for grief. Moreover
\nif thou considerest<\/span> the law of thy own being, thou oughtest<\/span> not to tremble, for than battling in a Just cause
\nthe Kshatriya<\/span> knoweth<\/span> no
\ngreater bliss. Happy are the Kshatriyas<\/span>, O Partha<\/span>, who win such a battle to their portion; it is as
\nthough one came past by chance and found the door of Paradise open. Now if thou
\nwilt not wage this just and righteous battle, then hast thou cast from thee<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Page \u2013 81<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n
\n

<\/span><\/div>\n

 thy glory and the law of thy
\nbeing, and brought sin upon thy head; yea, thy shame shall be eternal in the
\nmouth of all creatures; and for one who hath been honoured<\/span>,
\nshame is worse than death. The warriors will think that from fear thou hast
\nceased from battle, and in their eyes who thought highly of thee, thou shalt<\/span> be belittled. And thine<\/span>
\nill-wishers will speak of thee many unutterable words, disparaging thy might
\nand thy greatness, than which there is no worse bitterness under heaven. Slain
\nthou shalt<\/span> conquer heaven, victorious thou shalt<\/span> enjoy earth for thy kingdom; therefore arise, O son
\nof Coonty<\/span>, arise with a heart resolute for war. Make
\nthou thy soul indifferent to pain and pleasure, to gain and loss, to defeat and
\nvictory, then gird thyself to the combat; sin shall not touch thee then.<\/span><\/p>\n

Thus hath been declared to thee the mind that dwelleth<\/span> in the way of Sankhya<\/span>;
\nhearken now to that which dwelleth<\/span> in Yoga, to which
\nbeing wedded, thou shalt<\/span> cast from thee, O Partha<\/span>, action\u2019s binding chain. On this path no step once
\ntaken is lost, in this path thou shalt<\/span> meet with no
\nstumbling-block; even a little of this Law saveth<\/span> the
\nheart from its great fear. One is the mind of a man that holds fast to its aim,
\nbut infinite are their minds, and many-branching, who have no resolved goal. \u2018Tis<\/span> a flowery word they babble, men of little understanding
\nwho take delight in the creed of Veda, disputing, saying \u201cThere is nought<\/span> else\u201d, their souls full of desires, their hopes bent
\nupon Heaven; but he who hearkeneth<\/span> to their words
\nthat give but the fruit of life\u2019s actions, and is crowded with mul\u00adtifold
\nrituals aiming only at splendour<\/span> and enjoyment and
\nlordship, \u2014 lo, it hurrieth<\/span> away his heart and causeth<\/span> it to cling to lordship and pleasures, and his mind
\nis unfixed to God and cannot set itself on the rock of concen\u00adtration. Of the
\nthree nature-moods are the stuff of the Vedas, but thou, O Urjoona<\/span>,
\nrise above the three, high beyond the dualities, steadfast on the plane of the
\nLight, be careless of getting and having, be a man with a soul. As much use as
\nthere is in a well, when all the regions are flowing with water, so much is
\nthere in all the Vedas to the Brahman who hath the Knowledge. Thou hast right
\nto action only, to the fruit of action thou hast no manner of right at all; be
\nnot motive by the fruits of action, neither to inaction sell thy soul; but put
\nattachment far from thee, O Dhanunjoy<\/span>, and do thy
\ndeeds with a mind awaiting success and failure with an equal heart, for \u2018tis
\nsuch equipoise of the soul they call Yoga indeed. For far lower is action than
\nYoga of the Supermind<\/span>; in the Supermind<\/span>
\nseek thy refuge, for this is a mean and pitiful thing that a man should work
\nfor success and rewards. The man whose Supermind<\/span> is
\nin Yoga casteth<\/span> from <\/span><\/p>\n

Page \u2013 82<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n
\n

<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n

him even in this world both
\nrighteousness and sin; therefore to Yoga gird thy soul; when thou dost works
\nYoga is the one auspicious way. For the wise whose understandings have reached
\nGod, cast from them the fruit that is born of their deeds, they are delivered
\nfrom the fetters of birth, they pass into that sphere where suffering is not,
\nneither any disease. When thy soul shall have voyaged to the other shore over
\nthe Chorus of the Great Bewilderment, then shalt<\/span> thou
\nbecome careless of the Scripture that is and the Scripture that shalt<\/span> be, and when the mind that is perplexed and beaten
\nabout by the Scripture shall stand fast and motionless in Samadhi, then shalt<\/span> thou attain Yoga.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\nurjoona<\/font><\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cWhat is the speech of him
\nin whom Wisdom hath taken its firm seat, O Keshena, of him who is in Samadhi,
\nwhose thought standeth<\/span> on settled understanding ?
\nWhat speaketh<\/span> he, what are his sittings and what his goings?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/span><\/p>\n

\nkrishna<\/font><\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cWhen a man casteth<\/span> far away from him, O son of Pritha<\/span>,
\nall the desires that cling to the mind, when he is self-content in the Self,
\nthen it is said of him that his Reason is fixed in its seat. He whose soul is
\nnot shaken in sorrows and in happinesses<\/span>, hungers not
\nafter their delight, he to whom fear and liking and wrath are forgotten things,
\nhe is the sage thought in whom is settled. He who is in all things without
\naffections, whether evil come to him or whether good, who delights not in the
\npleasure neither hateth<\/span> the pain, he is the man of an
\nestablished understanding. As the tortoise gathereth<\/span>
\nin its limbs from all sides, so when this understanding spirit gathereth<\/span> in the senses away from the things in which the
\nsenses work, then is the Reason in a man safely seated. By fasting and
\nrefraining the objects of passion cease from a man, but the desire and the
\ndelight in them remain; but when the embodied spirit hath beheld the most High,
\nthe very desire and delight cease and are no more. For very furious and
\nturbulent are the senses, O son of Coonty<\/span>,<\/u> and
\nthough a man be God-seeking, though he have the soul that discerneth<\/span>,
\nthey seize upon even his mind and ravish it violently away. Let a man devoted
\nto Me coerce all these and sit fast in Yoga utterly giving himself up to Me,
\nfor only when a man has his senses in his grip is the Reason of him firm in its
\nseat. But when a man thinketh<\/span> much and often of the
\nthings of sense, fondness for them groweth<\/span> upon <\/span><\/p>\n

Page \u2013 83<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n
\n

<\/span><\/div>\n

 him, and from fondness
\ndesire and passion are born; and passion\u2019s child is wrath; out of wrath cometh
\ndelusion and disturbance of the brain; and from delusion cometh confusion of
\nthe recording mind; and when memory faileth<\/span> the
\novermind<\/span> is destroyed, and by the ruin of the
\novermind<\/span> the soul goeth<\/span> to its
\nperdition. When one moveth<\/span> over the fields of the
\npassions with his senses in the grip of the Self, delivered from likings and
\ndislikings<\/span>, and when the Spirit itself answers to the helm,
\na pure serenity becometh<\/span> his. In that bright gladness
\nof the soul there cometh to him a waning away of all grief; for when a man\u2019s
\nheart is like a calm and pure sky the Thought in him findeth<\/span>
\nvery quickly its firm foundation. Who hath not Yoga hath not understanding, who
\nhath not Yoga hath not infinite and inward con\u00adtemplation, who
\nthinketh<\/span> not infinitely and inwardly hath not peace of
\nsoul, and how shall he be happy whose soul is not at peace ? For the mind that
\nfolloweth<\/span> the control and working of the senses when they
\nrange abroad hurleth<\/span> alone with it the Thought in the
\nSpirit as the wind hurleth<\/span> along a ship upon the
\nwaters. Therefore it is, O strong-armed, that his Reason is firmly based whose
\nsenses are reined in on all sides from the things of their desire.<\/span><\/p>\n

In the night which is darkness to all creatures, the
\ngoverned soul is awake and liveth<\/span>; that in which all
\ncreatures wake and live, is night to the eyes of the seer. The waters enter
\ninto the vast, full and unmoving ocean, and the ocean stirs not nor is
\ntroubled, and he into whom all desires even in such wise enter
\nattaineth<\/span> unto peace, and not the lover of passion. That
\nman who casteth<\/span> away all desires and doeth works
\nwithout craving, not melting to aught because it is his, not seeing in aught
\nhis separate self, at\u00adtaineth<\/span> his soul\u2019s peace. This
\nis that God-state, O son of Pritha<\/span>, to which
\nattaining man is not again bewildered, but standing fast in it even in the hour
\nof his ending mounteth<\/span> to Cessation in the Eternal.\u201d  <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage \u2013 84<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

CHAPTER TWO   To him thus besieged with pity and his eyes full bewildered with crowding tears, to him weak with sorrow, Madhusudan spake this…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-598","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-08-translations-volume-08","wpcat-12-id"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/598","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=598"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/598\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=598"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=598"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=598"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}