Chapter 2 is the longest of the first three chapters, with 72 verses, and many readers say that if you read only one chapter of the Gita it should be this one. It is called Sankhya Yoga. Its great verses, among them na jayate mriyate va kadachit (2.20), karmany evadhikaras te (2.47) and the description of the steady-minded person (2.54 to 2.72), are quoted all over the world.
How the chapter is built
- Verses 1 to 10: Arjuna, in tears, has stopped arguing. Krishna’s first words are sharp (2.2 and 2.3). Arjuna then makes his last appeal, asks to be taught as a pupil (2.7), and says he will not fight. Sanjaya adds that Krishna smiled before replying.
- Verses 11 to 30: The first teaching, on the self. Krishna says that the wise do not grieve for the living or the dead, that every person has always existed and will continue to exist, that the self passes from body to body as a person changes clothes, and that it cannot be cut, burned, wetted or dried. The self is not the one who kills or is killed.
- Verses 31 to 38: The argument from duty. For a warrior in a just cause, duty is plain, and to avoid it would bring regret and a loss of standing. Krishna asks Arjuna to treat pleasure and pain, gain and loss, victory and defeat alike.
- Verses 39 to 53: The turn from knowledge to practice. Krishna introduces buddhi yoga, the yoga of steady understanding, and says the person who acts without clinging to results is not bound by action. This is where verse 47 stands. Krishna also criticises a ritual-minded reading of the Vedas that treats them only as a way to gain heaven and enjoyment (2.42 to 2.46).
- Verses 54 to 72: Arjuna asks how a person of steady wisdom, the sthitaprajna, speaks, sits and moves. Krishna’s long answer describes a calm person who is free from craving and fear. It includes the chain of thought from attachment to ruin (2.62 and 2.63), and the picture of the ocean that takes in every river and stays unmoved (2.70).
Three ideas to hold on to
The self is more than the body. Krishna’s first answer to grief is that what a person most truly is does not die. The words used for this, such as dehin (the embodied one) and atman, are explained in the verses. Some of these verses are very close to verses in the Katha Upanishad, so the Gita is clearly drawing on older teaching here.
Act, but not for the fruit. Verse 47 is often read as asking people not to care about results. Read in context, it says something narrower and more practical: do the work fully, and do not let the hoped-for result be the thing that drives or paralyses you. The same verse warns against dropping action altogether.
Evenness of mind is the aim. Krishna defines yoga in this chapter as samatva, equanimity (2.48). The steady-minded person is not cold. The description in 2.55 to 2.72 is of someone content in the self, who is not shaken by pleasure or pain.
A word on the word Sankhya
The chapter is named for sankhya, and in verse 39 Krishna says he has given the teaching in the sankhya way and will now give it as yoga. The old commentators differ on what sankhya means here. Some read it as knowledge in general, and others as the early school of thought of that name. It is best not to read the later classical Sankhya philosophy back into this chapter.
The text, transliteration and meaning
All 72 verses follow, each with its speaker, the Devanagari, a simple transliteration and a meaning in plain English. Verses 5 to 8, 20, 22, 29 and 70 are in a longer metre than most of the chapter, so their lines are longer. The verse list below lets you jump to any verse, such as 2.20, 2.47 or 2.70.
तं तथा कृपयाविष्टमश्रुपूर्णाकुलेक्षणम्
विषीदन्तमिदं वाक्यमुवाच मधुसूदनः ॥ २.१ ॥
Tam tatha kripayavishtam ashrupurnakulekshanam
Vishidantam idam vakyam uvacha madhusudanah
MeaningSanjaya says: To Arjuna, filled with pity, his eyes brimming with tears and confused, and sunk in sorrow, Krishna spoke these words.
कुतस्त्वा कश्मलमिदं विषमे समुपस्थितम्
अनार्यजुष्टमस्वर्ग्यमकीर्तिकरमर्जुन ॥ २.२ ॥
Kutas tva kashmalam idam vishame samupasthitam
Anaryajushtam asvargyam akirtikaram arjuna
MeaningThe Blessed Lord says: Arjuna, where has this dejection come from at such a hard moment? It is not what a noble person welcomes, it does not lead to heaven, and it brings no good name.
NoteKrishna's first words are a challenge, not comfort. The Gita starts by naming Arjuna's collapse for what it is before it offers any teaching.
क्लैब्यं मा स्म गमः पार्थ नैतत्त्वय्युपपद्यते
क्षुद्रं हृदयदौर्बल्यं त्यक्त्वोत्तिष्ठ परंतप ॥ २.३ ॥
Klaibyam ma sma gamah partha naitat tvayy upapadyate
Kshudram hridayadaurbalyam tyaktvottishtha parantapa
MeaningDo not give in to weakness, Partha. It does not suit you. Throw off this petty faintness of heart and stand up, scorcher of foes.
कथं भीष्ममहं संख्ये द्रोणं च मधुसूदन
इषुभिः प्रतियोत्स्यामि पूजार्हावरिसूदन ॥ २.४ ॥
Katham bhishmam aham sankhye dronam cha madhusudana
Ishubhih pratiyotsyami pujarhav arisudana
MeaningArjuna says: Madhusudana, how can I fight back with arrows against Bhishma and Drona in battle? They are the very people I should honour, slayer of enemies.
गुरूनहत्वा हि महानुभावाञ्श्रेयो भोक्तुं भैक्षमपीह लोके
हत्वार्थकामांस्तु गुरूनिहैव भुञ्जीय भोगान्रुधिरप्रदिग्धान् ॥ २.५ ॥
Gurun ahatva hi mahanubhavan shreyo bhoktum bhaiksham apiha loke
Hatvarthakamams tu gurun ihaiva bhunjiya bhogan rudhirapradigdhan
MeaningIt is better to live in this world on alms than to kill my own great and honoured teachers. If I killed them, I would be enjoying wealth and pleasure stained with their blood.
न चैतद्विद्मः कतरन्नो गरीयो यद्वा जयेम यदि वा नो जयेयुः
यानेव हत्वा न जिजीविषामस्तेऽवस्थिताः प्रमुखे धार्तराष्ट्राः ॥ २.६ ॥
Na chaitad vidmah kataran no gariyo yad va jayema yadi va no jayeyuh
Yan eva hatva na jijivishamas te 'vasthitah pramukhe dhartarashtrah
MeaningWe do not know which is better for us, that we win or that they win. The very men whom we would not wish to live after killing are standing before us: Dhritarashtra's sons.
कार्पण्यदोषोपहतस्वभावः पृच्छामि त्वां धर्मसंमूढचेताः
यच्छ्रेयः स्यान्निश्चितं ब्रूहि तन्मे शिष्यस्तेऽहं शाधि मां त्वां प्रपन्नम् ॥ २.७ ॥
Karpanyadoshopahatasvabhavah prichchhami tvam dharmasammudhachetah
Yach chhreyah syan nishchitam bruhi tan me shishyas te 'ham shadhi mam tvam prapannam
MeaningMy very nature is weighed down by pity and weakness, and my mind is confused about what is right. I ask you: tell me for certain what is best for me. I am your pupil, so teach me, for I have come to you for refuge.
NoteThis is the turning point of the poem. Arjuna stops arguing and asks to be taught. In the tradition this verse is read as the moment a pupil becomes a pupil.
न हि प्रपश्यामि ममापनुद्याद्यच्छोकमुच्छोषणमिन्द्रियाणाम्
अवाप्य भूमावसपत्नमृद्धं राज्यं सुराणामपि चाधिपत्यम् ॥ २.८ ॥
Na hi prapashyami mamapanudyad yach chhokam uchchhoshanam indriyanam
Avapya bhumav asapatnam riddham rajyam suranam api chadhipatyam
MeaningI cannot see anything that would drive away the grief that dries up my senses, even if I won a rich and rival-free kingdom on earth, or lordship over the gods.
एवमुक्त्वा हृषीकेशं गुडाकेशः परंतप
न योत्स्य इति गोविन्दमुक्त्वा तूष्णीं बभूव ह ॥ २.९ ॥
Evam uktva hrishikesham gudakeshah parantapa
Na yotsya iti govindam uktva tushnim babhuva ha
MeaningSanjaya says: Having spoken so to Krishna, Arjuna, the conqueror of sleep and of enemies, said, I will not fight, and fell silent.
तमुवाच हृषीकेशः प्रहसन्निव भारत
सेनयोरुभयोर्मध्ये विषीदन्तमिदं वचः ॥ २.१० ॥
Tam uvacha hrishikeshah prahasann iva bharata
Senayor ubhayor madhye vishidantam idam vachah
MeaningThen Krishna, smiling a little, O Bharata, spoke these words to the grieving Arjuna in the middle between the two armies.
अशोच्यानन्वशोचस्त्वं प्रज्ञावादांश्च भाषसे
गतासूनगतासूंश्च नानुशोचन्ति पण्डिताः ॥ २.११ ॥
Ashochyan anvashochas tvam prajnavadamsh cha bhashase
Gatasun agatasumsh cha nanushochanti panditah
MeaningThe Blessed Lord says: You grieve for those who are not to be grieved for, yet you speak words that sound wise. The wise do not grieve for the living or for the dead.
NoteHere the teaching proper begins. Krishna's first claim is that grief is misplaced, because what a person truly is does not die.
न त्वेवाहं जातु नासं न त्वं नेमे जनाधिपाः
न चैव न भविष्यामः सर्वे वयमतः परम् ॥ २.१२ ॥
Na tv evaham jatu nasam na tvam neme janadhipah
Na chaiva na bhavishyamah sarve vayam atah param
MeaningThere was never a time when I did not exist, nor you, nor these rulers of men. And none of us will ever cease to exist after this.
देहिनोऽस्मिन्यथा देहे कौमारं यौवनं जरा
तथा देहान्तरप्राप्तिर्धीरस्तत्र न मुह्यति ॥ २.१३ ॥
Dehino 'smin yatha dehe kaumaram yauvanam jara
Tatha dehantarapraptir dhiras tatra na muhyati
MeaningAs this embodied being moves through childhood, youth and old age within the one body, so it moves on to a further body at death. A person of steady understanding is not shaken by this.
NoteThis is one of the clearest statements of rebirth in the Gita. The verse speaks of the embodied self (dehin) moving through the stages of one life and then on to another body.
मात्रास्पर्शास्तु कौन्तेय शीतोष्णसुखदुःखदाः
आगमापायिनोऽनित्यास्तांस्तितिक्षस्व भारत ॥ २.१४ ॥
Matrasparshas tu kaunteya shitoshnasukhaduhkhadah
Agamapayino 'nityas tams titikshasva bharata
MeaningContacts of the senses with their objects, Arjuna, give cold and heat, pleasure and pain. They come and go and do not last, so bear them patiently.
यं हि न व्यथयन्त्येते पुरुषं पुरुषर्षभ
समदुःखसुखं धीरं सोऽमृतत्वाय कल्पते ॥ २.१५ ॥
Yam hi na vyathayanty ete purusham purusharshabha
Samaduhkhasukham dhiram so 'mritatvaya kalpate
MeaningThe person whom these contacts do not disturb, who stays the same in pain and in pleasure and remains steady, is fit for immortality.
नासतो विद्यते भावो नाभावो विद्यते सतः
उभयोरपि दृष्टोऽन्तस्त्वनयोस्तत्त्वदर्शिभिः ॥ २.१६ ॥
Nasato vidyate bhavo nabhavo vidyate satah
Ubhayor api drishto 'ntas tv anayos tattvadarshibhih
MeaningWhat is unreal has no being, and what is real never ceases to be. Those who see the truth have understood the end of both of these.
NoteA short, dense verse that teachers return to often. Roughly, it says that what is not real does not last and what is real does not stop being real, and that those who see truth have grasped both.
अविनाशि तु तद्विद्धि येन सर्वमिदं ततम्
विनाशमव्ययस्यास्य न कश्चित्कर्तुमर्हति ॥ २.१७ ॥
Avinashi tu tad viddhi yena sarvam idam tatam
Vinasham avyayasyasya na kash chit kartum arhati
MeaningKnow that by which all this is pervaded to be imperishable. No one can bring about the destruction of this unchanging reality.
अन्तवन्त इमे देहा नित्यस्योक्ताः शरीरिणः
अनाशिनोऽप्रमेयस्य तस्माद्युध्यस्व भारत ॥ २.१८ ॥
Antavanta ime deha nityasyoktah sharirinah
Anashino 'prameyasya tasmad yudhyasva bharata
MeaningThese bodies of the eternal, indestructible and immeasurable embodied self are said to come to an end. So fight, Bharata.
य एनं वेत्ति हन्तारं यश्चैनं मन्यते हतम्
उभौ तौ न विजानीतो नायं हन्ति न हन्यते ॥ २.१९ ॥
Ya enam vetti hantaram yash chainam manyate hatam
Ubhau tau na vijanito nayam hanti na hanyate
MeaningThe one who thinks the self kills and the one who thinks it is killed both fail to understand. It neither kills nor is killed.
न जायते म्रियते वा कदा चिन्नायं भूत्वा भविता वा न भूयः
अजो नित्यः शाश्वतोऽयं पुराणो न हन्यते हन्यमाने शरीरे ॥ २.२० ॥
Na jayate mriyate va kada chin nayam bhutva bhavita va na bhuyah
Ajo nityah shashvato 'yam purano na hanyate hanyamane sharire
MeaningIt is not born, and it does not die at any time. It did not come into being at some point and then stop, nor will it. Unborn, constant, lasting and original, it is not struck down when the body is struck down.
NoteVerses 19 and 20 are very close to two verses of the Katha Upanishad. The Gita is drawing on older Upanishadic teaching here, and the verse is among the most quoted in the whole text.
वेदाविनाशिनं नित्यं य एनमजमव्ययम्
कथं स पुरुषः पार्थ कं घातयति हन्ति कम् ॥ २.२१ ॥
Vedavinashinam nityam ya enam ajam avyayam
Katham sa purushah partha kam ghatayati hanti kam
MeaningWhoever knows it to be indestructible, constant, unborn and unchanging, Partha, how can that person cause anyone to kill, or kill anyone?
वासांसि जीर्णानि यथा विहाय नवानि गृह्णाति नरोऽपराणि
तथा शरीराणि विहाय जीर्णान्यन्यानि संयाति नवानि देही ॥ २.२२ ॥
Vasamsi jirnani yatha vihaya navani grihnati naro 'parani
Tatha sharirani vihaya jirnany anyani samyati navani dehi
MeaningJust as someone discards clothes that have worn thin and puts on fresh ones, the one who dwells in the body leaves worn bodies behind and enters new ones.
NoteThe image of clothes is used in almost every later discussion of rebirth in Indian thought.
नैनं छिन्दन्ति शस्त्राणि नैनं दहति पावकः
न चैनं क्लेदयन्त्यापो न शोषयति मारुतः ॥ २.२३ ॥
Nainam chhindanti shastrani nainam dahati pavakah
Na chainam kledayanty apo na shoshayati marutah
MeaningBlades cannot cut it, fire cannot burn it, water cannot soak it, and wind cannot dry it.
अच्छेद्योऽयमदाह्योऽयमक्लेद्योऽशोष्य एव च
नित्यः सर्वगतः स्थाणुरचलोऽयं सनातनः ॥ २.२४ ॥
Achchhedyo 'yam adahyo 'yam akledyo 'shoshya eva cha
Nityah sarvagatah sthanur achalo 'yam sanatanah
MeaningIt cannot be cut, burnt, wetted or dried. It is constant, all-pervading, steady, unmoving and primeval.
अव्यक्तोऽयमचिन्त्योऽयमविकार्योऽयमुच्यते
तस्मादेवं विदित्वैनं नानुशोचितुमर्हसि ॥ २.२५ ॥
Avyakto 'yam achintyo 'yam avikaryo 'yam uchyate
Tasmad evam viditvainam nanushochitum arhasi
MeaningIt is said to be unmanifest, beyond thought, and not subject to change. Knowing it to be so, you should not grieve.
अथ चैनं नित्यजातं नित्यं वा मन्यसे मृतम्
तथापि त्वं महाबाहो नैनं शोचितुमर्हसि ॥ २.२६ ॥
Atha chainam nityajatam nityam va manyase mritam
Tathapi tvam mahabaho nainam shochitum arhasi
MeaningEven if you think of it as being constantly born and constantly dying, mighty-armed Arjuna, you still should not grieve over it.
जातस्य हि ध्रुवो मृत्युर्ध्रुवं जन्म मृतस्य च
तस्मादपरिहार्येऽर्थे न त्वं शोचितुमर्हसि ॥ २.२७ ॥
Jatasya hi dhruvo mrityur dhruvam janma mritasya cha
Tasmad apariharye 'rthe na tvam shochitum arhasi
MeaningFor one who is born, death is certain, and for one who has died, birth is certain. So over something that cannot be avoided you should not grieve.
अव्यक्तादीनि भूतानि व्यक्तमध्यानि भारत
अव्यक्तनिधनान्येव तत्र का परिदेवना ॥ २.२८ ॥
Avyaktadini bhutani vyaktamadhyani bharata
Avyaktanidhanany eva tatra ka paridevana
MeaningBeings are unseen at the start, seen in the middle, and unseen again at the end, Bharata. What is there in that to lament?
आश्चर्यवत्पश्यति कश्चिदेनमाश्चर्यवद्वदति तथैव चान्यः
आश्चर्यवच्चैनमन्यः शृणोति श्रुत्वाप्येनं वेद न चैव कश्चित् ॥ २.२९ ॥
Ashcharyavat pashyati kash chid enam ashcharyavad vadati tathaiva chanyah
Ashcharyavach chainam anyah shrinoti shrutvapy enam veda na chaiva kash chit
MeaningOne person sees it as a wonder, another speaks of it as a wonder, and another hears of it as a wonder, and yet even after hearing, nobody truly knows it.
देही नित्यमवध्योऽयं देहे सर्वस्य भारत
तस्मात्सर्वाणि भूतानि न त्वं शोचितुमर्हसि ॥ २.३० ॥
Dehi nityam avadhyo 'yam dehe sarvasya bharata
Tasmat sarvani bhutani na tvam shochitum arhasi
MeaningThe embodied self in everyone's body can never be killed, Bharata. So you should not grieve for any living being.
स्वधर्ममपि चावेक्ष्य न विकम्पितुमर्हसि
धर्म्याद्धि युद्धाच्छ्रेयोऽन्यत्क्षत्रियस्य न विद्यते ॥ २.३१ ॥
Svadharmam api chavekshya na vikampitum arhasi
Dharmyad dhi yuddhach chhreyo 'nyat kshatriyasya na vidyate
MeaningLooking at your own duty as well, you should not waver. For a warrior there is nothing better than a war that upholds dharma.
NoteFrom here to verse 38 Krishna argues from svadharma, one's own duty, for Arjuna as a warrior. Readers and commentators differ on how far this applies beyond Arjuna's own situation.
यदृच्छया चोपपन्नं स्वर्गद्वारमपावृतम्
सुखिनः क्षत्रियाः पार्थ लभन्ते युद्धमीदृशम् ॥ २.३२ ॥
Yadrichchhaya chopapannam svargadvaram apavritam
Sukhinah kshatriyah partha labhante yuddham idrisham
MeaningA battle like this comes unasked, like an open door to heaven. Fortunate are the warriors who find such a fight, Partha.
अथ चेत्त्वमिमं धर्म्यं संग्रामं न करिष्यसि
ततः स्वधर्मं कीर्तिं च हित्वा पापमवाप्स्यसि ॥ २.३३ ॥
Atha chet tvam imam dharmyam sangramam na karishyasi
Tatah svadharmam kirtim cha hitva papam avapsyasi
MeaningBut if you will not fight this war that dharma asks of you, then you will have abandoned your own duty and your good name, and you will incur sin.
अकीर्तिं चापि भूतानि कथयिष्यन्ति तेऽव्ययाम्
संभावितस्य चाकीर्तिर्मरणादतिरिच्यते ॥ २.३४ ॥
Akirtim chapi bhutani kathayishyanti te 'vyayam
Sambhavitasya chakirtir maranad atirichyate
MeaningPeople will speak of your lasting disgrace, and for someone once honoured, disgrace is worse than death.
भयाद्रणादुपरतं मंस्यन्ते त्वां महारथाः
येषां च त्वं बहुमतो भूत्वा यास्यसि लाघवम् ॥ २.३५ ॥
Bhayad ranad uparatam mamsyante tvam maharathah
Yesham cha tvam bahumato bhutva yasyasi laghavam
MeaningThe great chariot warriors will think you have withdrawn from the battle out of fear, and those who held you in high regard will think little of you.
अवाच्यवादांश्च बहून्वदिष्यन्ति तवाहिताः
निन्दन्तस्तव सामर्थ्यं ततो दुःखतरं नु किम् ॥ २.३६ ॥
Avachyavadamsh cha bahun vadishyanti tavahitah
Nindantas tava samarthyam tato duhkhataram nu kim
MeaningYour enemies will say many things that should not be said, and mock your ability. What could be more painful than that?
हतो वा प्राप्स्यसि स्वर्गं जित्वा वा भोक्ष्यसे महीम्
तस्मादुत्तिष्ठ कौन्तेय युद्धाय कृतनिश्चयः ॥ २.३७ ॥
Hato va prapsyasi svargam jitva va bhokshyase mahim
Tasmad uttishtha kaunteya yuddhaya kritanishchayah
MeaningIf you are killed you will reach heaven, and if you win you will enjoy the earth. So rise, son of Kunti, and fight with a firm resolve.
सुखदुःखे समे कृत्वा लाभालाभौ जयाजयौ
ततो युद्धाय युज्यस्व नैवं पापमवाप्स्यसि ॥ २.३८ ॥
Sukhaduhkhe same kritva labhalabhau jayajayau
Tato yuddhaya yujyasva naivam papam avapsyasi
MeaningTreat pleasure and pain, gain and loss, victory and defeat alike, and then engage in the battle. In this way you will not incur sin.
एषा तेऽभिहिता सांख्ये बुद्धिर्योगे त्विमां शृणु
बुद्ध्या युक्तो यया पार्थ कर्मबन्धं प्रहास्यसि ॥ २.३९ ॥
Esha te 'bhihita sankhye buddhir yoge tv imam shrinu
Buddhya yukto yaya partha karmabandham prahasyasi
MeaningThis understanding has been given to you in the Sankhya way. Now hear it in the way of yoga, by which, Partha, you will cast off the bondage of action.
NoteVerse 39 marks a change of subject. Krishna says he has so far given the teaching in the Sankhya way, that is, as knowledge, and will now give it in the way of yoga, that is, as practice. What the word Sankhya means here is read differently by commentators and should not be confused with the later classical Sankhya school.
नेहाभिक्रमनाशोऽस्ति प्रत्यवायो न विद्यते
स्वल्पमप्यस्य धर्मस्य त्रायते महतो भयात् ॥ २.४० ॥
Nehabhikramanasho 'sti pratyavayo na vidyate
Svalpam apy asya dharmasya trayate mahato bhayat
MeaningOn this path no effort is wasted and no harm comes of a start left unfinished. Even a little of this discipline protects from great fear.
व्यवसायात्मिका बुद्धिरेकेह कुरुनन्दन
बहुशाखा ह्यनन्ताश्च बुद्धयोऽव्यवसायिनाम् ॥ २.४१ ॥
Vyavasayatmika buddhir ekeha kurunandana
Bahushakha hy anantash cha buddhayo 'vyavasayinam
MeaningHere, descendant of Kuru, the resolved understanding is single. The thoughts of those without resolve are many-branched and endless.
यामिमां पुष्पितां वाचं प्रवदन्त्यविपश्चितः
वेदवादरताः पार्थ नान्यदस्तीति वादिनः ॥ २.४२ ॥
Yam imam pushpitam vacham pravadanty avipashchitah
Vedavadaratah partha nanyad astiti vadinah
MeaningThose of little understanding speak flowery words. They delight in the letter of the Vedas and say that there is nothing else.
कामात्मानः स्वर्गपरा जन्मकर्मफलप्रदाम्
क्रियाविशेषबहुलां भोगैश्वर्यगतिं प्रति ॥ २.४३ ॥
Kamatmanah svargapara janmakarmaphalapradam
Kriyavisheshabahulam bhogaishvaryagatim prati
MeaningTheir minds are full of desire and they hold heaven as their goal. They speak of elaborate rites that promise rebirth and results, all aimed at enjoyment and power.
भोगैश्वर्यप्रसक्तानां तयापहृतचेतसाम्
व्यवसायात्मिका बुद्धिः समाधौ न विधीयते ॥ २.४४ ॥
Bhogaishvaryaprasaktanam tayapahritachetasam
Vyavasayatmika buddhih samadhau na vidhiyate
MeaningFor those attached to enjoyment and power, whose minds are carried away by such talk, the resolved understanding is not formed in deep concentration.
त्रैगुण्यविषया वेदा निस्त्रैगुण्यो भवार्जुन
निर्द्वंद्वो नित्यसत्त्वस्थो निर्योगक्षेम आत्मवान् ॥ २.४५ ॥
Traigunyavishaya veda nistraigunyo bhavarjuna
Nirdvandvo nityasattvastho niryogakshema atmavan
MeaningThe Vedas deal with the three qualities of nature. Rise above the three qualities, Arjuna: be free from the pairs of opposites, steady in goodness, free from worry about gain and keeping, and self-possessed.
यावानर्थ उदपाने सर्वतः संप्लुतोदके
तावान्सर्वेषु वेदेषु ब्राह्मणस्य विजानतः ॥ २.४६ ॥
Yavan artha udapane sarvatah samplutodake
Tavan sarveshu vedeshu brahmanasya vijanatah
MeaningWhen water floods everywhere, a small well has little to offer. In the same way, for a brahmin who has truly understood, the Vedas hold only that much.
कर्मण्येवाधिकारस्ते मा फलेषु कदा चन
मा कर्मफलहेतुर्भूर्मा ते सङ्गोऽस्त्वकर्मणि ॥ २.४७ ॥
Karmany evadhikaras te ma phaleshu kada chana
Ma karmaphalahetur bhur ma te sango 'stv akarmani
MeaningYour claim extends only to the doing of the act, never to what it yields. Let the yield not be your reason for acting, and do not let yourself settle into not acting either.
NoteThis is the best known verse of the Gita. It is about the relation between a person and the results of action, and it does not ask anyone to stop caring about outcomes in everyday life. Notice that the verse ends by warning against the opposite mistake, giving up action.
योगस्थः कुरु कर्माणि सङ्गं त्यक्त्वा धनंजय
सिद्ध्यसिद्ध्योः समो भूत्वा समत्वं योग उच्यते ॥ २.४८ ॥
Yogasthah kuru karmani sangam tyaktva dhananjaya
Siddhyasiddhyoh samo bhutva samatvam yoga uchyate
MeaningAct while established in yoga, Arjuna, letting go of attachment, and remain the same in success and failure. This evenness of mind is called yoga.
NoteHere yoga is defined: it is evenness of mind in success and failure. Many later teachers use this as the Gita's own definition of the word.
दूरेण ह्यवरं कर्म बुद्धियोगाद्धनंजय
बुद्धौ शरणमन्विच्छ कृपणाः फलहेतवः ॥ २.४९ ॥
Durena hy avaram karma buddhiyogad dhananjaya
Buddhau sharanam anvichchha kripanah phalahetavah
MeaningAction done for results is far inferior to action done with a steady mind. Seek refuge in that steady mind, for those who act for results are to be pitied.
बुद्धियुक्तो जहातीह उभे सुकृतदुष्कृते
तस्माद्योगाय युज्यस्व योगः कर्मसु कौशलम् ॥ २.५० ॥
Buddhiyukto jahatiha ubhe sukritadushkrite
Tasmad yogaya yujyasva yogah karmasu kaushalam
MeaningOne with a steady mind leaves behind both good and bad deeds in this life. So devote yourself to yoga. Yoga is skill in action.
NoteThe phrase yogah karmasu kaushalam, yoga is skill in action, is often quoted. Commentators take it to mean skill in acting without being bound by the act.
कर्मजं बुद्धियुक्ता हि फलं त्यक्त्वा मनीषिणः
जन्मबन्धविनिर्मुक्ताः पदं गच्छन्त्यनामयम् ॥ २.५१ ॥
Karmajam buddhiyukta hi phalam tyaktva manishinah
Janmabandhavinirmuktah padam gachchhanty anamayam
MeaningThe wise whose minds are steady give up the fruit that action brings. Freed from the bondage of birth, they reach the state that is free from suffering.
यदा ते मोहकलिलं बुद्धिर्व्यतितरिष्यति
तदा गन्तासि निर्वेदं श्रोतव्यस्य श्रुतस्य च ॥ २.५२ ॥
Yada te mohakalilam buddhir vyatitarishyati
Tada gantasi nirvedam shrotavyasya shrutasya cha
MeaningWhen your understanding crosses beyond the tangle of confusion, you will become indifferent to what has been heard and what is yet to be heard.
श्रुतिविप्रतिपन्ना ते यदा स्थास्यति निश्चला
समाधावचला बुद्धिस्तदा योगमवाप्स्यसि ॥ २.५३ ॥
Shrutivipratipanna te yada sthasyati nishchala
Samadhav achala buddhis tada yogam avapsyasi
MeaningWhen your mind, once bewildered by what you have heard, stands steady and unmoving in deep concentration, then you will reach yoga.
स्थितप्रज्ञस्य का भाषा समाधिस्थस्य केशव
स्थितधीः किं प्रभाषेत किमासीत व्रजेत किम् ॥ २.५४ ॥
Sthitaprajnasya ka bhasha samadhisthasya keshava
Sthitadhih kim prabhasheta kim asita vrajeta kim
MeaningArjuna says: Keshava, what marks a person of steady wisdom who is established in concentration? How does such a person speak, sit and move?
NoteArjuna asks about the sthitaprajna, the person of steady wisdom. The rest of the chapter is Krishna's description of such a person.
प्रजहाति यदा कामान्सर्वान्पार्थ मनोगतान्
आत्मन्येवात्मना तुष्टः स्थितप्रज्ञस्तदोच्यते ॥ २.५५ ॥
Prajahati yada kaman sarvan partha manogatan
Atmany evatmana tushtah sthitaprajnas tadochyate
MeaningThe Blessed Lord says: When a person gives up all desires that arise in the mind, Partha, and is content in the self by the self, that person is said to be of steady wisdom.
दुःखेष्वनुद्विग्नमनाः सुखेषु विगतस्पृहः
वीतरागभयक्रोधः स्थितधीर्मुनिरुच्यते ॥ २.५६ ॥
Duhkheshv anudvignamanah sukheshu vigatasprihah
Vitaragabhayakrodhah sthitadhir munir uchyate
MeaningOne whose mind is not shaken in sorrow, who does not crave pleasures, and who is free from attachment, fear and anger, is called a steady-minded sage.
यः सर्वत्रानभिस्नेहस्तत्तत्प्राप्य शुभाशुभम्
नाभिनन्दति न द्वेष्टि तस्य प्रज्ञा प्रतिष्ठिता ॥ २.५७ ॥
Yah sarvatranabhisnehas tat tat prapya shubhashubham
Nabhinandati na dveshti tasya prajna pratishthita
MeaningOne who feels no clinging anywhere, and who neither rejoices nor dislikes when good or bad comes, has steady wisdom.
यदा संहरते चायं कूर्मोऽङ्गानीव सर्वशः
इन्द्रियाणीन्द्रियार्थेभ्यस्तस्य प्रज्ञा प्रतिष्ठिता ॥ २.५८ ॥
Yada samharate chayam kurmo 'nganiva sarvashah
Indriyanindriyarthebhyas tasya prajna pratishthita
MeaningWhen someone can withdraw the senses from their objects on every side, as a tortoise draws in its limbs, that person's wisdom is firm.
विषया विनिवर्तन्ते निराहारस्य देहिनः
रसवर्जं रसोऽप्यस्य परं दृष्ट्वा निवर्तते ॥ २.५९ ॥
Vishaya vinivartante niraharasya dehinah
Rasavarjam raso 'py asya param drishtva nivartate
MeaningObjects turn away from someone who abstains from them, though the taste for them remains. Even that taste fades when the Highest is seen.
यततो ह्यपि कौन्तेय पुरुषस्य विपश्चितः
इन्द्रियाणि प्रमाथीनि हरन्ति प्रसभं मनः ॥ २.६० ॥
Yatato hy api kaunteya purushasya vipashchitah
Indriyani pramathini haranti prasabham manah
MeaningEven for a wise person who is striving, son of Kunti, the troubling senses can carry off the mind by force.
तानि सर्वाणि संयम्य युक्त आसीत मत्परः
वशे हि यस्येन्द्रियाणि तस्य प्रज्ञा प्रतिष्ठिता ॥ २.६१ ॥
Tani sarvani samyamya yukta asita matparah
Vashe hi yasyendriyani tasya prajna pratishthita
MeaningHaving brought all of them under control, one should sit steady with devotion to me as the goal. The wisdom of the person whose senses are under control is firm.
ध्यायतो विषयान्पुंसः सङ्गस्तेषूपजायते
सङ्गात्संजायते कामः कामात्क्रोधोऽभिजायते ॥ २.६२ ॥
Dhyayato vishayan pumsah sangas teshupajayate
Sangat sanjayate kamah kamat krodho 'bhijayate
MeaningThinking again and again about sense objects, a person becomes tied to them. From that tie desire is born, and from desire, anger.
NoteVerses 62 and 63 describe a chain from thought to ruin, one link at a time. It is a short and clear piece of psychology and is quoted widely.
क्रोधाद्भवति संमोहः संमोहात्स्मृतिविभ्रमः
स्मृतिभ्रंशाद्बुद्धिनाशो बुद्धिनाशात्प्रणश्यति ॥ २.६३ ॥
Krodhad bhavati sammohah sammohat smritivibhramah
Smritibhramshad buddhinasho buddhinashat pranashyati
MeaningFrom anger comes confusion, from confusion the loss of memory, from loss of memory the ruin of understanding, and when understanding is ruined, the person is lost.
रागद्वेषवियुक्तैस्तु विषयानिन्द्रियैश्चरन्
आत्मवश्यैर्विधेयात्मा प्रसादमधिगच्छति ॥ २.६४ ॥
Ragadveshaviyuktais tu vishayan indriyaish charan
Atmavashyair vidheyatma prasadam adhigachchhati
MeaningBut one who moves among the objects of the senses with the senses under control, free from craving and aversion, and self-governed, finds peace of mind.
प्रसादे सर्वदुःखानां हानिरस्योपजायते
प्रसन्नचेतसो ह्याशु बुद्धिः पर्यवतिष्ठते ॥ २.६५ ॥
Prasade sarvaduhkhanam hanir asyopajayate
Prasannachetaso hy ashu buddhih paryavatishthate
MeaningIn that peace all sorrows come to an end for such a person, for the understanding of one whose mind is at peace soon becomes steady.
नास्ति बुद्धिरयुक्तस्य न चायुक्तस्य भावना
न चाभावयतः शान्तिरशान्तस्य कुतः सुखम् ॥ २.६६ ॥
Nasti buddhir ayuktasya na chayuktasya bhavana
Na chabhavayatah shantir ashantasya kutah sukham
MeaningOne who is not steady has no understanding and no meditation, and without meditation there is no peace. Without peace, how can there be happiness?
इन्द्रियाणां हि चरतां यन्मनोऽनुविधीयते
तदस्य हरति प्रज्ञां वायुर्नावमिवाम्भसि ॥ २.६७ ॥
Indriyanam hi charatam yan mano 'nuvidhiyate
Tad asya harati prajnam vayur navam ivambhasi
MeaningWhen the mind follows the roaming senses, it carries off a person's wisdom, as wind carries off a boat on the water.
तस्माद्यस्य महाबाहो निगृहीतानि सर्वशः
इन्द्रियाणीन्द्रियार्थेभ्यस्तस्य प्रज्ञा प्रतिष्ठिता ॥ २.६८ ॥
Tasmad yasya mahabaho nigrihitani sarvashah
Indriyanindriyarthebhyas tasya prajna pratishthita
MeaningSo, mighty-armed Arjuna, the wisdom of one whose senses are fully held back from their objects is firm.
या निशा सर्वभूतानां तस्यां जागर्ति संयमी
यस्यां जाग्रति भूतानि सा निशा पश्यतो मुनेः ॥ २.६९ ॥
Ya nisha sarvabhutanam tasyam jagarti samyami
Yasyam jagrati bhutani sa nisha pashyato muneh
MeaningWhat is night for all beings is wakefulness for the disciplined person, and what is wakefulness for other beings is night for the sage who sees.
आपूर्यमाणमचलप्रतिष्ठं समुद्रमापः प्रविशन्ति यद्वत्
तद्वत्कामा यं प्रविशन्ति सर्वे स शान्तिमाप्नोति न कामकामी ॥ २.७० ॥
Apuryamanam achalapratishtham samudram apah pravishanti yadvat
Tadvat kama yam pravishanti sarve sa shantim apnoti na kamakami
MeaningAs waters flow into the ocean, which is full yet stays still in its place, so desires enter the one who remains unmoved. That person finds peace, not the one who chases desires.
NoteThe picture is a still ocean that takes in every river without overflowing. The calm person takes in desires and is not moved by them.
विहाय कामान्यः सर्वान्पुमांश्चरति निःस्पृहः
निर्ममो निरहंकारः स शान्तिमधिगच्छति ॥ २.७१ ॥
Vihaya kaman yah sarvan pumamsh charati nihsprihah
Nirmamo nirahankarah sa shantim adhigachchhati
MeaningThe person who gives up all desires and lives free from longing, without the sense of mine and without ego, attains peace.
एषा ब्राह्मी स्थितिः पार्थ नैनां प्राप्य विमुह्यति
स्थित्वास्यामन्तकालेऽपि ब्रह्मनिर्वाणमृच्छति ॥ २.७२ ॥
Esha brahmi sthitih partha nainam prapya vimuhyati
Sthitvasyam antakale 'pi brahmanirvanam richchhati
MeaningThis, Partha, is the state of being established in the Absolute. Having reached it, one is no longer bewildered. Remaining in it even at the hour of death, one reaches the peace of Brahman.
NoteThe chapter ends by naming the state as brahmi sthiti, being established in Brahman. The word brahmanirvana, which appears again in chapter 5, joins the idea of calm to the idea of liberation.
Chapter summary
Chapter 2 gives the Gita in outline. Its main teaching moves in three steps.
First comes the nature of the self. A person is not only a body, and the self is not harmed when the body ends. This is offered as a reason not to be crushed by grief, and it does not ask anyone to stop feeling it.
Second comes duty. Krishna says that Arjuna’s own situation, as a warrior in a righteous cause, leaves him no honourable way out. Readers have taken this in several ways. Some limit it to Arjuna as the poem’s character, and others take it as a principle about doing what is yours to do.
Third comes the way to act. The yoga of steady understanding asks a person to act fully, to hold results lightly and to remain even in success and failure. The chapter closes with a portrait of the person who has reached that evenness: free from craving, fear and anger, content in the self, and calm like the ocean.
Later chapters return to each of these three points. Chapter 3 takes up action, chapter 4 knowledge and action together, and chapters 5 and 6 renunciation and meditation. If you read only chapter 2, you will have met the whole outline of the Gita.
Where the two source texts differ
We compared the critical edition text held at GRETIL with the Sanskrit Wikisource text, verse by verse. All 72 verses are present in both. Differences only in spacing, in the way a nasal sound is written, and in how words are joined are not listed. Two verses differ in the words:
- Verse 5: the critical edition has bhaikṣam for alms-food, and the commonly printed text has bhaikṣyam. The meaning is the same. The two texts also write the sandhi after mahānubhāvāñ differently, which is only spelling.
- Verse 26: the critical edition reads nainaṃ śocitum arhasi, “you should not grieve over it”. The printed text reads naivaṃ śocitum arhasi, “you should not grieve in this way”. Both fit the sense of the verse.
So 2 of the 72 verses differ in the words between the two texts, and none of the differences changes the teaching.
Source of the text on this page. The Sanskrit is the critical edition text of the Bhagavad Gita held at GRETIL, based on the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute edition of the Mahabharata, where this chapter is chapter 24 of the Bhishma Parva. It is in Roman script, and we converted it to Devanagari ourselves. We checked every verse against Sanskrit Wikisource. The transliteration is a simple guide to sound and the meanings are our own wording. See the Bhagavad Gita hub for the full note on sources.