Attachment Creates Illusions in Mind Thus One Cannot Know What is Right & Dharma

Shrimad Bhagavad Gita: Arjuna Vishada Yogam: Chapter 1: Verse 45

यदि मामप्रतीकारमशस्त्रं शस्त्रपाणय: |

धार्तराष्ट्रा रणे हन्युस्तन्मे क्षेमतरं भवेत्|| 45||

yadi mām apratīkāram aśhastraṁ śhastra-pāṇayaḥ

dhārtarāṣhṭrā raṇe hanyus tan me kṣhemataraṁ bhavet|| 45||

 Shloka Translation

BG – Ch. 1- Ver. 45: It will be preferable if the sons of Dhritarashtra kill me unarmed and unresisting on the battlefield with weapons in hand.

Explanation

According to the ksatriya fighting tenets, it is customary not to assault an enemy who is unarmed and unwilling. However, Arjuna decided he would not fight if he was confronted by the enemy in such a perplexing circumstance. He didn’t take into account how determined the other side was to fight. He has a sensitive heart as a result of his intense devotion to the Lord, which is the cause of all these symptoms.

Reflection

Arjuna’s own attachment to and sympathy for his rapacious cousins and other relatives served as his excuse for not killing them. He believed that killing them would be sinful because they were his family, but he was unaware that his feelings were truly materialistic and not spiritual. He had lost sight of his warrior dharma and the fact that he was more than this physical body due to compassion. He was prepared to lay down his weapons and let his foe kill him without them because of his illusion at this point.

This is Arjuna’s concluding comment in the first verse of the Gita. It demonstrates the depth of Arjuna’s illusion as he transformed from a fearsome warrior into a pitiful, defenceless person. Because Arjuna was desperately trying to get out of the horrible circumstance he was in, his mind came up with all kinds of justifications for the escape, including declaring the departure to be “good.”

To acquire knowledge and to implement that knowledge in life one needs to be mentally and physically active and healthy and for that daily meditation is a great tool.

There are various types of meditation like Buddhist meditation, heartfulness meditation, mindfulness meditation, meditation for stress, and each meditation benefits are countless. There is also numerous meditation techniques for beginners which help in practicing daily meditation so go ahead and start your journey towards a peaceful and balanced life.

In the next verses, Sanjaya narrates to Dhritarashtra about what Arjuna did.

Let’s learn to live with “The Gita” via Meditation Affinity…