The Bhagavad-gita’s second chapter begins with Arjuna’s plight: he is emotionally afflicted (02.01) and ethically conflicted (02.06). Finally, he surrenders to Krishna, seeking guidance (02.07).

How does Krishna respond to Arjuna’s surrender? By smiling (02.10: prahasan). That seems a highly inappropriate reaction. If someone talking with us was in tears, would we smile at them? No; we would be appropriately grave and try to console them. 

Then, why was Krishna smiling? A smile instantaneously appeared on his lips because he was amazed and appreciative at how dramatically life had changed things. His friend had become his student; a battlefield had become a classroom; and this battlefield-classroom was about to witness arrows of a different kind: not physical arrows meant to kill enemies on the other side of the battlefield, but verbal arrows in the form of words of wisdom that could kill the inner enemies existing in all living beings. 

While Krishna was seeing the situation from a far bigger perspective, he was not oblivious to his immediate context. Given the gravity of the situation, he was aware of the inappropriateness of levity or even a semblance of levity. That’s why he quickly restrained his smile, as indicated by the qualifying word (iva: as if): it appeared as if Krishna smiled for a moment. 

By no means was Krishna enjoying Arjuna’s misery; far from it, he sought to free Arjuna from misery by speaking the Gita’s message. Krishna’s benevolent purpose is evident in his concluding question (18.72). And he was successful in his purpose, as indicated by Arjuna’s concluding declaration (18.73). If Krishna had been mocking Arjuna, he wouldn’t have followed mockery with profound philosophy. And Arjuna wouldn’t have been able to concentrate on philosophy spoken by someone flippant, let alone be enlightened by the words of a mocker. 

One-sentence summary:

When a wise person seems to act inappropriately, know that they are probably responding not to the immediate situation, but to the situation’s broader implications.  

Think it over:

  • On seeing Arjuna’s surrender, why did a smile appear on Krishna’s lips?
  • Why did Krishna restrain his smile? 
  • If someone wise behaves inappropriately, how can we understand their behavior?

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02.10: O descendant of Bharata, at that time Krishna, smiling, in the midst of both the armies, spoke the following words to the grief-stricken Arjuna.

To know more about this verse, please click on the image