Gita 02.27 – See death not as a future event, but as an ongoing process
jātasya hi dhruvo mṛtyur
dhruvaṁ janma mṛtasya ca
tasmād aparihārye ’rthe
na tvaṁ śocitum arhasi (Bg 2.27)
Word-for-word:
jātasya — of one who has taken his birth; hi — certainly; dhruvaḥ — a fact; mṛtyuḥ — death; dhruvam — it is also a fact; janma — birth; mṛtasya — of the dead; ca — also; tasmāt — therefore; aparihārye — of that which is unavoidable; arthe — in the matter; na — do not; tvam — you; śocitum — to lament; arhasi — deserve.
Translation:
One who has taken his birth is sure to die, and after death one is sure to take birth again. Therefore, in the unavoidable discharge of your duty, you should not lament.
Explanation:
Kṛṣṇa continues his series of instructions to help Arjuna become free from grief, a theme emphasized by the repeated injunction na tvaṁ śocitum arhasi—”you should not lament.” This phrase appears in various forms throughout the second chapter: nānuśocitum arhasi (2.25), nainaṁ śocitum arhasi (2.26), and here as na tvaṁ śocitum arhasi. The point remains the same—it does not befit Arjuna to lament.
jātasya hi dhruvo mṛtyuḥ: One who is born will certainly die.
dhruvaṁ janma mṛtasya ca: One who dies is certainly born again.
tasmād aparihārye ’rthe: Therefore, in the unavoidable discharge of duty,
na tvaṁ śocitum arhasi: you should not lament.
The first fact is understood by all—jātasya hi dhruvo mṛtyuḥ—everyone who is born must die. Why this is so remains an unsolved philosophical mystery. Why does death exist at all? Why are we all born with a sentence of death hanging over us?
Naturally, we dislike this reality, which is why we try to deny it. We hide from it, pretending as if we will never die. Yet, no matter how we act, death remains inevitable.
We often think of death as a remote, distant event—something that happens to others. But the fact remains that death will come for all of us. When we speak of it, we do so in a hollow, abstract way, which fosters a sense of complacency.
That illusion of remoteness is shattered when someone close to us—an acquaintance, a loved one—dies, especially when they die unexpectedly. Yet, before long, the veil of illusion descends once more, and we forget the inevitable death sentence hanging over us. We resume our attempts to bury ourselves in trivial pleasures and pursuits.
To grasp the inevitability of death, we must first recognize its immediacy. Immediacy does not mean that death will occur right away—it may or may not. We might die in the next moment, or we might live for several decades.
The point is that death is not merely a distant event—it is an evolving process. With every heartbeat, we move closer to it. With every breath we take in and release, our allotted breaths in this body diminish. In truth, we are all on the path to death.
Even biologically, medical science views death not merely as an event but as a process—a gradual shutdown of bodily functions. Of course, death is also an event in the sense that, at a specific moment, the soul leaves the body. But alongside being an event, it remains an ongoing process.
Those involved in hospice care understand this well. The final moments are often preceded by certain symptoms, which can indicate how near a patient is to death. This awareness allows caregivers to make necessary preparations, ensuring a peaceful and dignified departure for the dying person.
Medical science recognizes death as a process—one in which those who are terminally ill inch closer, inexorably, toward the event we call death. But this process is unfolding at every moment, not just for the dying but for all of us.
Our movement toward death is subtle, and its endpoint remains invisible. As we pass through days, weeks, hours, and even minutes, we fail to realize how steadily we are approaching it. Instead, we perceive life as a recurring cycle and assume we have plenty of time ahead.
Remembering that death is a fact of life can bring a deep sense of sobriety, gravity, and clarity to our priorities. Lifestyle management gurus often suggest a thought exercise—if you had only a few months to live, what would you do? The answers reveal what truly matters, and the exercise encourages people to live with those priorities in mind.
However, this is not a new, modern, or Western concept. It is, in fact, an age-old spiritual teaching—begin with the end in mind. Death is the inevitable end, and we should focus on what is most important before it arrives.
Meditating on death fosters not just an awareness of it as a distant event but an understanding that it is an ongoing, relentless process already unfolding within us. By recognizing this, we can prepare ourselves—cutting down on the trivial and unnecessary while focusing on the essential values and purposes of our lives.
In Arjuna’s context, this verse conveys: “Arjuna, you know that death is inevitable. Avoiding the fight will not protect your loved ones, for they will die regardless. Therefore, do not become sentimental—na tvaṁ śocitum arhasi—do not lament over that which is unavoidable. You cannot save them from death by refusing to battle. Death is swooping down upon them, upon you, and upon everyone, and it will continue to do so, no matter what you do.”
The important question is—what should we do when we understand that death is swooping down upon us? It is not that we live paranoid lives, but rather that we live purposeful ones. With a sense of purpose, we elevate our consciousness to the spiritual level, enabling us to transcend the miseries of death. More importantly, we rise above the cycle of birth and death. This is the true purpose of contemplating death.
For Arjuna, the path to transcending death—to elevating his consciousness beyond the mortal, material level—is to perform his dharma as a kṣatriya—to fight.
The verse implies, “Arjuna, you cannot avoid inevitable death. But by abandoning your duty to fight, you will only ensure your continued entanglement in the cycle of birth and death. Instead of escaping death, you will deepen your bondage to it. However, by fulfilling your duty, you will prepare yourself to raise your consciousness above death. Therefore, do your duty. Do not let lamentation distract you from the battle before you.”
Another key point in this verse is dhruvaṁ janma mṛtasya ca—just as those who are born must die, those who die must take birth again. The soul is never destroyed. As long as it remains in the material world, it must inhabit a material body, and inevitably, it will receive another one.
“Therefore, do not think that your loved ones will be permanently lost—they will receive new bodies. That is a fact of life. Since they are old now, by freeing them from their current bodies, you are simply accelerating the process by which they will receive their next, younger body. This transition—the departure from one body and the acquisition of another—is unavoidable (aparihārye ’rthe). You cannot stop it. So why abandon your duty in an attempt to stop the unstoppable? Rather, fulfill your duty and elevate your consciousness beyond the unstoppable march of death.”
Thank you.
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