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