Bhakti Sastri -> 054
2nd Ch – 1st sec -> Arjuna surrender & enquiry
2nd ch – 2nd sec verse 11 to 13 -> Krishna telling soul is indestructible, so fight (Compassion argument is countered)
2nd ch – 3rd sec 31 t o37 -> Krishna telling do your dharma as Kshetriya then you will go to heaven and you will enjoy (Enjoyment argument is countered)
2nd ch – 4th sec 38 to 53 ->
Now Krishna will answer Arjuna’s fear of sinful reaction argument: He will address by telling how by working with Nishkam Karma Yoga you can stay free from all sinful reactions.
BG 2.38
labhalabhau jayajayau
SYNONYMS
sukha — happiness; duhkhe — and distress; same — in equanimity; kritva — doing so; labha–alabhau — both profit and loss; jaya–ajayau — both victory and defeat; tatah — thereafter; yuddhaya — for the sake of fighting; yujyasva — engage (fight); na — never; evam — in this way; papam — sinful reaction; avapsyasi — you will gain.
TRANSLATION
Do thou fight for the sake of fighting, without considering happiness or distress, loss or gain, victory or defeat — and by so doing you shall never incur sin.
Sukha-duhkhe same kritva, be equipoised in happiness and distress. Labhalabhau, in gain or loss. Jayajayau, victory or failure. What is the difference between the two? Labha and alabha can occur in various endeavors. Jayajayau, profit and loss can also be transitional. During a battle, we can gain sometimes or lose sometimes, but jaya means eventual victory. Tato yuddhaya yujyasva, be equipoised among all these things. Yuddhaya yujyasva, so fight for the sake of fighting. Naivam papam avapsyasi, then you will gain no sinful reactions.
So, in 1.36, Arjuna is saying, “pāpam evāśrayed asmān, hatvaitān ātatāyinaḥ. If I kill these atatayi, then I will get Papa.” But Krishna is responding here, “naivam papam avapsyasi, you will not get papa.” How? Because you are working with detachment. You are fighting because it is your duty. You are not fighting for victory. So at this stage, Krishna seems to have almost contradicted Himself. In the previous verse, Krishna said if you lose, you will get heaven; if you win, you will get your kingdom and rule the earth. So either way, you are gaining.
Krishna has talked about profit-loss calculation and said how practicing the Karma Kanda level of religion and therefore doing Kshetriya Dharma of fighting would be best for him. So, he has just talked about profit-loss calculation, and now He has changed the stakes and says, “Don’t think in terms of profit-loss; think in terms of doing your duty. Give up the calculation of profit and loss.” This seems like a U-turn in thinking, not in terms of action. In both cases, He is saying fight only, but for the motivation of fighting, there is a sudden and enormous change. Why is that? Shri Krishna is taking Arjuna one layer higher on the yoga ladder. Till now, He was talking about Karma-Kanda, and now He is talking about Karma-Yoga, acting in detachment.
Srila Prabhupada has quoted, which he has also quoted earlier:
“devarṣi-bhūtāpta-nṛṇāṁ pitṝṇāṁ
na kiṅkaro nāyam ṛṇī ca rājan
sarvātmanā yaḥ śaraṇaṁ śaraṇyaṁ
gato mukundaṁ parihṛtya kartam”
“Anyone who has completely surrendered unto Kṛṣṇa, Mukunda, giving up all other duties, is no longer a debtor, nor is he obliged to anyone – not the demigods, nor the sages, nor the people in general, nor kinsmen, nor humanity, nor forefathers.” (Bhāg. 11.5.41) That is the indirect hint given by Kṛṣṇa to Arjuna in this verse, and the matter will be more clearly explained in the following verses.
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