The Bhagavad-Gita | Page 8

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.
HERE ENDETH CHAPTER II. OF THE BHAGAVAD-GITA, Entitled "Sankhya-Yog,"
Or "The Book of Doctrines."




CHAPTER III
Arjuna. Thou whom all mortals praise, Janardana! If meditation be a nobler thing Than

action, wherefore, then, great Kesava! Dost thou impel me to this dreadful fight? Now am
I by thy doubtful speech disturbed! Tell me one thing, and tell me certainly; By what road
shall I find the better end?
Krishna. I told thee, blameless Lord! there be two paths Shown to this world; two schools
of wisdom.
First The Sankhya's, which doth save in way of works Prescribed[FN#4] by reason; next,
the Yog, which bids Attain by meditation, spiritually: Yet these are one! No man shall
'scape from act By shunning action; nay, and none shall come By mere renouncements
unto perfectness. Nay, and no jot of time, at any time, Rests any actionless; his nature's
law Compels him, even unwilling, into act; [For thought is act in fancy]. He who sits
Suppressing all the instruments of flesh, Yet in his idle heart thinking on them, Plays the
inept and guilty hypocrite: But he who, with strong body serving mind, Gives up his
mortal powers to worthy work, Not seeking gain, Arjuna! such an one Is honourable. Do
thine allotted task! Work is more excellent than idleness; The body's life proceeds not,
lacking work. There is a task of holiness to do, Unlike world-binding toil, which bindeth
not The faithful soul; such earthly duty do Free from desire, and thou shalt well perform
Thy heavenly purpose. Spake Prajapati-- In the beginning, when all men were made, And,
with mankind, the sacrifice-- "Do this! Work! sacrifice! Increase and multiply With
sacrifice! This shall be Kamaduk, Your 'Cow of Plenty,' giving back her milk Of all
abundance. Worship the gods thereby; The gods shall yield thee grace. Those meats ye
crave The gods will grant to Labour, when it pays Tithes in the altar-flame. But if one
eats Fruits of the earth, rendering to kindly Heaven No gift of toil, that thief steals from
his world."
Who eat of food after their sacrifice Are quit of fault, but they that spread a feast All for
themselves, eat sin and drink of sin. By food the living live; food comes of rain, And rain
comes by the pious sacrifice, And sacrifice is paid with tithes of toil; Thus action is of
Brahma, who is One, The Only, All-pervading; at all times Present in sacrifice. He that
abstains To help the rolling wheels of this great world, Glutting his idle sense, lives a lost
life, Shameful and vain. Existing for himself, Self-concentrated, serving self alone, No
part hath he in aught; nothing achieved, Nought wrought or unwrought toucheth him; no
hope Of help for all the living things of earth Depends from him.[FN#5] Therefore, thy
task prescribed With spirit unattached gladly perform, Since in performance of plain duty
man Mounts to his highest bliss. By works alone Janak and ancient saints reached
blessedness! Moreover, for the upholding of thy kind, Action thou should'st embrace.
What the wise choose The unwise people take; what best men do The multitude will
follow. Look on me, Thou Son of Pritha! in the three wide worlds I am not bound to any
toil, no height Awaits to scale, no gift remains to gain, Yet I act here! and, if I acted not--
Earnest and watchful--those that look to me For guidance, sinking back to sloth again
Because I slumbered, would decline from good, And I should break earth's order and
commit Her offspring unto ruin, Bharata! Even as the unknowing toil, wedded to sense,
So let the enlightened toil, sense-freed, but set To bring the world deliverance, and its
bliss; Not sowing in those simple, busy hearts Seed of despair. Yea! let each play his part
In all he finds to do, with unyoked soul. All things are everywhere by Nature wrought In
interaction of the qualities. The fool, cheated by self, thinks, "This I did" And "That I

wrought; "but--ah, thou strong-armed Prince!-- A better-lessoned mind, knowing the play
Of visible things within the world of sense, And how the qualities must qualify, Standeth
aloof even from his acts. Th' untaught Live mixed with them, knowing not Nature's