1Sanjaya.     Him, filled with such compassion and such grief,     With eyes tear-dimmed, despondent, in stern words     The Driver, Madhusudan, thus addressed:

2Krishna.     How hath this weakness taken thee? Whence springs     The inglorious trouble, shameful to the brave,     Barring the path of virtue? Nay, Arjun!     Forbid thyself to feebleness! it mars     Thy warrior-name! cast off the coward-fit!     Wake! Be thyself! Arise, Scourge of thy Foes!

3Arjuna.     How can I, in the battle, shoot with shafts     On Bhishma, or on Drona-O thou Chief!--     Both worshipful, both honourable men?          Better to live on beggar's bread     With those we love alive,     Than taste their blood in rich feasts spread,     And guiltily survive!     Ah! were it worse-who knows?--to be     Victor or vanquished here,     When those confront us angrily     Whose death leaves living drear?     In pity lost, by doubtings tossed,     My thoughts-distracted-turn     To Thee, the Guide I reverence most,     That I may counsel learn:     I know not what would heal the grief     Burned into soul and sense,     If I were earth's unchallenged chief--     A god--and these gone thence!

4Sanjaya.     So spake Arjuna to the Lord of Hearts,     And sighing,"I will not fight!" held silence then.     To whom, with tender smile, (O Bharata! )     While the Prince wept despairing 'twixt those hosts,     Krishna made answer in divinest verse:

5Krishna.     Thou grievest where no grief should be! thou speak'st     Words lacking wisdom! for the wise in heart     Mourn not for those that live, nor those that die.     Nor I, nor thou, nor any one of these,     Ever was not, nor ever will not be,     For ever and for ever afterwards.     All, that doth live, lives always! To man's frame     As there come infancy and youth and age,     So come there raisings-up and layings-down     Of other and of other life-abodes,     Which the wise know, and fear not. This that irks--     Thy sense-life, thrilling to the elements--     Bringing thee heat and cold, sorrows and joys,     'Tis brief and mutable! Bear with it, Prince!     As the wise bear. The soul which is not moved,     The soul that with a strong and constant calm     Takes sorrow and takes joy indifferently,     Lives in the life undying! That which is     Can never cease to be; that which is not     Will not exist. To see this truth of both     Is theirs who part essence from accident,     Substance from shadow. Indestructible,     Learn thou! the Life is, spreading life through all;     It cannot anywhere, by any means,     Be anywise diminished, stayed, or changed.     But for these fleeting frames which it informs     With spirit deathless, endless, infinite,     They perish. Let them perish, Prince! and fight!     He who shall say, "Lo! I have slain a man!"     He who shall think, "Lo! I am slain!" those both     Know naught! Life cannot slay. Life is not slain!     Never the spirit was born; the spirit shall cease to be never;     Never was time it was not; End and Beginning are dreams!     Birthless and deathless and changeless remaineth the spirit for ever;     Death hath not touched it at all, dead though the house of it seems!          Who knoweth it exhaustless, self-sustained,     Immortal, indestructible,--shall such     Say, "I have killed a man, or caused to kill?"          Nay, but as when one layeth     His worn-out robes away,     And taking new ones, sayeth,     "These will I wear to-day!"     So putteth by the spirit     Lightly its garb of flesh,     And passeth to inherit     A residence afresh.          I say to thee weapons reach not the Life;     Flame burns it not, waters cannot o'erwhelm,     Nor dry winds wither it. Impenetrable,     Unentered, unassailed, unharmed, untouched,     Immortal, all-arriving, stable, sure,     Invisible, ineffable, by word     And thought uncompassed, ever all itself,     Thus is the Soul declared! How wilt thou, then,--     Knowing it so,--grieve when thou shouldst not grieve?     How, if thou hearest that the man new-dead     Is, like the man new-born, still living man--     One same, existent Spirit--wilt thou weep?     The end of birth is death; the end of death     Is birth: this is ordained! and mournest thou,     Chief of the stalwart arm! for what befalls     Which could not otherwise befall? The birth     Of living things comes unperceived; the death     Comes unperceived; between them, beings perceive:     What is there sorrowful herein, dear Prince?          Wonderful, wistful, to contemplate!     Difficult, doubtful, to speak upon!     Strange and great for tongue to relate,     Mystical hearing for every one!     Nor wotteth man this, what a marvel it is,     When seeing, and saying, and hearing are done!          This Life within all living things, my Prince!     Hides beyond harm; scorn thou to suffer, then,     For that which cannot suffer. Do thy part!     Be mindful of thy name, and tremble not!     Nought better can betide a martial soul     Than lawful war; happy the warrior     To whom comes joy of battle--comes, as now,     Glorious and fair, unsought; opening for him     A gateway unto Heav'n. But, if thou shunn'st     This honourable field--a Kshattriya--     If, knowing thy duty and thy task, thou bidd'st     Duty and task go by--that shall be sin!     And those to come shall speak thee infamy     From age to age; but infamy is worse     For men of noble blood to bear than death!     The chiefs upon their battle-chariots     Will deem 'twas fear that drove thee from the fray.     Of those who held thee mighty-souled the scorn     Thou must abide, while all thine enemies     Will scatter bitter speech of thee, to mock     The valour which thou hadst; what fate could fall     More grievously than this? Either--being killed--     Thou wilt win Swarga's safety, or--alive     And victor--thou wilt reign an earthly king.     Therefore, arise, thou Son of Kunti! brace     Thine arm for conflict, nerve thy heart to meet--     As things alike to thee--pleasure or pain,     Profit or ruin, victory or defeat:     So minded, gird thee to the fight, for so     Thou shalt not sin!          Thus far I speak to thee     As from the "Sankhya"--unspiritually--     Hear now the deeper teaching of the Yog,     Which holding, understanding, thou shalt burst     Thy Karmabandh, the bondage of wrought deeds.     Here shall no end be hindered, no hope marred,     No loss be feared: faith--yea, a little faith--     Shall save thee from the anguish of thy dread.     Here, Glory of the Kurus! shines one rule--     One steadfast rule--while shifting souls have laws     Many and hard. Specious, but wrongful deem     The speech of those ill-taught ones who extol     The letter of their Vedas, saying, "This     Is all we have, or need;" being weak at heart     With wants, seekers of Heaven: which comes--they say--     As "fruit of good deeds done;" promising men     Much profit in new births for works of faith;     In various rites abounding; following whereon     Large merit shall accrue towards wealth and power;     Albeit, who wealth and power do most desire     Least fixity of soul have such, least hold     On heavenly meditation. Much these teach,     From Veds, concerning the "three qualities;"     But thou, be free of the "three qualities,"     Free of the "pairs of opposites," and free     From that sad righteousness which calculates;     Self-ruled, Arjuna! simple, satisfied!     Look! like as when a tank pours water forth     To suit all needs, so do these Brahmans draw     Text for all wants from tank of Holy Writ.     But thou, want not! ask not! Find full reward     Of doing right in right! Let right deeds be     Thy motive, not the fruit which comes from them.     And live in action! Labour! Make thine acts     Thy piety, casting all self aside,     Contemning gain and merit; equable     In good or evil: equability     Is Yog, is piety!          Yet, the right act     Is less, far less, than the right-thinking mind.     Seek refuge in thy soul; have there thy heaven!     Scorn them that follow virtue for her gifts!     The mind of pure devotion--even here--     Casts equally aside good deeds and bad,     Passing above them. Unto pure devotion     Devote thyself: with perfect meditation     Comes perfect act, and the right-hearted rise--     More certainly because they seek no gain--     Forth from the bands of body, step by step,     To highest seats of bliss. When thy firm soul     Hath shaken off those tangled oracles     Which ignorantly guide, then shall it soar     To high neglect of what's denied or said,     This way or that way, in doctrinal writ.     Troubled no longer by the priestly lore,     Safe shall it live, and sure; steadfastly bent     On meditation. This is Yog--and Peace!

6Arjuna.     What is his mark who hath that steadfast heart,     Confirmed in holy meditation? How     Know we his speech, Kesava? Sits he, moves he     Like other men?

7Krishna.     When one, O Pritha's Son!     Abandoning desires which shake the mind--     Finds in his soul full comfort for his soul,     He hath attained the Yog--that man is such!     In sorrows not dejected, and in joys     Not overjoyed; dwelling outside the stress     Of passion, fear, and anger; fixed in calms     Of lofty contemplation;--such an one     Is Muni, is the Sage, the true Recluse!     He who to none and nowhere overbound     By ties of flesh, takes evil things and good     Neither desponding nor exulting, such     Bears wisdom's plainest mark! He who shall draw     As the wise tortoise draws its four feet safe     Under its shield, his five frail senses back     Under the spirit's buckler from the world     Which else assails them, such an one, my Prince!     Hath wisdom's mark! Things that solicit sense     Hold off from the self-governed; nay, it comes,     The appetites of him who lives beyond     Depart,--aroused no more. Yet may it chance,     O Son of Kunti! that a governed mind     Shall some time feel the sense-storms sweep, and wrest     Strong self-control by the roots. Let him regain     His kingdom! let him conquer this, and sit     On Me intent. That man alone is wise     Who keeps the mastery of himself! If one     Ponders on objects of the sense, there springs     Attraction; from attraction grows desire,     Desire flames to fierce passion, passion breeds     Recklessness; then the memory--all betrayed--     Lets noble purpose go, and saps the mind,     Till purpose, mind, and man are all undone.     But, if one deals with objects of the sense     Not loving and not hating, making them     Serve his free soul, which rests serenely lord,     Lo! such a man comes to tranquillity;     And out of that tranquillity shall rise     The end and healing of his earthly pains,     Since the will governed sets the soul at peace.     The soul of the ungoverned is not his,     Nor hath he knowledge of himself; which lacked,     How grows serenity? and, wanting that,     Whence shall he hope for happiness?          The mind     That gives itself to follow shows of sense     Seeth its helm of wisdom rent away,     And, like a ship in waves of whirlwind, drives     To wreck and death. Only with him, great Prince!     Whose senses are not swayed by things of sense--     Only with him who holds his mastery,     Shows wisdom perfect. What is midnight-gloom     To unenlightened souls shines wakeful day     To his clear gaze; what seems as wakeful day     Is known for night, thick night of ignorance,     To his true-seeing eyes. Such is the Saint!          And like the ocean, day by day receiving     Floods from all lands, which never overflows     Its boundary-line not leaping, and not leaving,     Fed by the rivers, but unswelled by those;--          So is the perfect one! to his soul's ocean     The world of sense pours streams of witchery;     They leave him as they find, without commotion,     Taking their tribute, but remaining sea.          Yea! whoso, shaking off the yoke of flesh     Lives lord, not servant, of his lusts; set free     From pride, from passion, from the sin of "Self,"     Toucheth tranquillity! O Pritha's Son!     That is the state of Brahm! There rests no dread     When that last step is reached! Live where he will,     Die when he may, such passeth from all 'plaining,     To blest Nirvana, with the Gods, attaining.