Gita 02.69 – Be special above the ordinary, not among the ordinary

Audio Link: https://www.thespiritualscientist.com/gita-02-69-be-special-above-the-ordinary-not-among-the-ordinary/

yā niśā sarva-bhūtānāṁ
tasyāṁ jāgarti saṁyamī
yasyāṁ jāgrati bhūtāni
sā niśā paśyato muneḥ (Bg 2.69)

Word-for-word:
yā — what; niśā — is night; sarva — all; bhūtānām — of living entities; tasyām — in that; jāgarti — is wakeful; saṁyamī — the self-controlled; yasyām — in which; jāgrati — are awake; bhūtāni — all beings; sā — that is; niśā — night; paśyataḥ — for the introspective; muneḥ — sage.

Translation:
What is night for all beings is the time of awakening for the self-controlled; and the time of awakening for all beings is night for the introspective sage.

Explanation:
In this verse, Kṛṣṇa speaks about the general principle of the difference in values between self-realized individuals and the general mass of people. The verse is largely metaphorical, although a literal meaning can also be drawn.
The literal meaning is as follows:
yā niśā sarva-bhūtānāṁ: That which is night for all living beings,
tasyāṁ jāgarti saṁyamī: the self-controlled, wise person remains awake at that time.
yasyāṁ jāgrati bhūtāni: That time when the general populace is awake,
sā niśā paśyato muneḥ: is like night for the introspective sage who sees the truth.

A natural question a thoughtful person may ask is—what does this actually mean?

At one level, we could take a literal understanding. Serious spiritualists often wake up early—at 3 or 4 a.m.—to tap into the spiritual potency of the early morning hours. In contrast, materialistic people prefer to stay awake late into the night, partying and indulging in what they consider to be enjoyment, often going to sleep only by 3 or 4 a.m.

Thus, the time of sleeping for the common person is the time of awakening for the self-realized; and the time of sleeping for the self-realized is the time of awakening for the materialistic person.

Self-realized individuals usually sleep by 9 or 10 p.m. When nature sleeps, humans should sleep; when nature awakens, humans should awaken. That is the natural biological rhythm to which the human inner clock is best attuned.

However, those who consider nightlife to be real life think that the day begins at night—that’s when, for them, all the fun begins.

At a literal level, we could say that this verse refers to contrasting schedules—early rising for the spiritualist and late-night activity for the materialist. But there’s also a deeper question—what does this verse mean in the case of materialistic or general people who don’t follow such a lifestyle—those who don’t necessarily have an aggressive nightlife or unusual sleep patterns?

In this broader sense, ‘night’ refers to a state of inactivity, while ‘day’ refers to a state of activity. Symbolically, night represents ignorance, unconsciousness, or disinterest in higher realities, whereas day represents awareness, engagement, and the pursuit of truth.

The arena of inactivity for general people (yā niśā sarva-bhūtānāṁ) is the arena of activity for the self-realized—tasyāṁ jāgarti saṁyamī. Conversely, the arena of activity for common people (yasyāṁ jāgrati bhūtāni) is the arena of inactivity for the self-realized—sā niśā paśyato muneḥ.

What this essentially means is that the domain of activity for the saṁyamī—the restrained, those on the path of self-realization—is self-realization itself. Their energy is directed toward progressing on the journey of discovering the Absolute Truth. They contemplate spiritual realities, study scripture, meditate, and engage in a culture of inner growth and realization. In this way, they find joy in spiritual understanding and enlightenment.

That is the arena they look forward to—that is their activity. But materialistic people question it: “What is all this? What are you doing just sitting and thinking? You’re wasting your time! Do something practical. Live a little. Enjoy life!” They simply cannot comprehend the purpose or value of such inner engagement.

For them, the entire idea of self-realization seems like a waste of time. In contrast, the arena of inactivity for the self-realized is the arena of hyperactivity for the common people—and that is sense gratification.

Materialistic people believe that sense gratification is the very essence and purpose of life. That’s what they live for, that’s what they look forward to.

On the other hand, the self-controlled—the saṁyamīs who are moving towards self-realization—understand that sense gratification leads to bondage. Therefore, they seek to minimize it. They try to have as little to do with sense gratification as possible, avoiding it to the extent they can, knowing it distracts from their higher purpose.

Again, the point here is that, in essence, there is very little in common between the values of the self-realized and those of the general populace—between the materialists and the spiritualists, to put it simply.

The context for this discussion is that such a level of sense control—where one gives up material pleasures and rigorously restrains the senses—is incomprehensible to materialistic people. They may say, “This is repressive! You’re giving up all enjoyment. What is there in your life to live for?”

When there is such a stark contrast in values between the materialists and the spiritualists, Kṛṣṇa advises us to simply recognize this difference as a fact of life. One must accept it and move on—there is no point in expecting alignment or understanding. It is what it is.

Both these classes of people—the materialists and the spiritualists—will always exist. This is unchangeable. The only thing we can do, as thoughtful individuals, is make a wise choice—whose ranks would we like to be part of—the materialists or the spiritualists?

The path we choose will determine the direction in which we move forward in life. Whether we move towards Kṛṣṇa or towards māyā, whether we ascend in our consciousness towards spiritual truth, or descend into a more materialistic mindset, the choice is ours.

Now, while mainstream culture may become increasingly materialistic, that doesn’t matter to a serious spiritualist. A sincere spiritualist understands that truth is not determined by vox populi—it is not shaped by popular opinion. Truth is truth, and the truth is that at the level of the body, the pleasure one can experience is limited. True pleasure, however, is available only at the level of the soul.

To experience pleasure at the level of the soul, we must make the right choice. The pleasure derived from sense gratification is so limited, and the bondage it creates for that fleeting pleasure is so great, that a wise person refrains from it. In contrast, the wise person directs their focus toward cultivating spiritual knowledge.

Now, Kṛṣṇa explains that there are two kinds of people. Interestingly, we often find ourselves caught between these two types. At times, we feel and act like materialists, and at other times, we feel and act like spiritualists.

So, how do we develop consistency in the way we act? This requires an awareness of our consciousness, which is dynamic and flexible. We must understand that ultimately, spiritual life is about the sincerity of intent in the seeker, and that sincerity is expressed through making the right choices.

Although, due to our moods, self-realization may sometimes seem dark—it may feel like no progress is being made, or there is no taste, and nothing in spiritual life seems interesting—it may seem dark, like the night.

On the other hand, with sense gratification, everything may seem clear—there is a sense object, and we know how to engage with it to experience pleasure. It can be tempting to think, “Why give it up?”

But if we understand that what seems to be clear, like light, is actually entangling and darkening, we realize that it clouds our soul and dims our spiritual prospects. Indulgence in self-gratification only leads to deeper attachment and greater entanglement in matter.

On the other hand, although sense control may initially appear to be miserable, it purifies us, liberates us, and elevates us. Ultimately, it leads us to Kṛṣṇa, where there is supreme light, supreme love, and supreme happiness.

Hence, we need to recognize the path of light and abandon the path of darkness. To do so, we must understand what constitutes light and what constitutes darkness—not based on our ever-changing perceptions, influenced by the fickle moods of our mind, but based on the steady, unchanging scriptural truth.

When we keep this truth in mind and make our choices accordingly, we can steadily progress in our spiritual life and ultimately attain Kṛṣṇa. The key takeaway in life is that we must stand apart. Often, people desire to be special, but in material life, being “special” often means doing nothing different—we simply try to do the ordinary in a special way. Everyone is pursuing eating, sleeping, mating, defending—everyone is pursuing sense gratification. Some think, “If I can just pursue sense gratification in a better way—if I can have a bigger car, a more attractive spouse than my friends, then I’m better off.”

But instead of trying to be special among the ordinary, we should aim to do something special above the ordinary. The “special among the ordinary” is still ordinary, after all. Ultimately, it doesn’t matter whether one engages in a special form of sense gratification or just the ordinary kind—they are both simply sense gratification. Both provide insignificant pleasure and ultimately lead to bondage.

Choosing “above the ordinary” means choosing higher spiritual happiness. That is what makes us truly special, because it brings special happiness that lasts forever. Unlike sense gratification, no matter how “special” it may seem, it eventually reveals itself to be ordinary and entangling—and ultimately, miserable.

Thank you.