Make yourself apt for immortality.

Sankhya Yoga

Chapter 2, Verse 15

 

yaṁ hi na vyathayantyete 

purus‌aṁ puruṣarṣabha 

sama duḥkha sukhaṁ dhīraṁ 

so’mṛtatvāya kalpate

 

The man who these do not trouble or pain, O lion-hearted among men, the firm and wise who is equal in pleasure and suffering, makes himself apt for immortality.

 

Krishna addresses Arjuna as lion-hearted among men. He is reminding Arjuna, “You are like a lion! You are strong! You are not weak. You are powerful! Be firm and wise.”

 

“The man who these do not trouble”, yaṁ hi na vyathayantyete, means the one who is not troubled by pleasure and pain. The best and most excellent of men are beyond pleasure and pain. It is easy for them to rise above these opposite qualities, to rise above these dual experiences.

 

The realised soul doesn’t go into the drama of life. He sees pleasure and suffering equally. The one who makes himself ready becomes ripe. He becomes aware to receive the knowledge of the Self.

 

Krishna is pushing Arjuna. He says, “Don’t just talk about what is right and not right. Make an effort to change. See it from another point of view, so you can rise above this limitation. Make an effort to see that these objects of the senses, these objects of pain and pleasure are just limited. Today they are here; tomorrow they are not here. If you can change this feeling in the mind, if you can rise above it, from then on, you will see everything as equal. Only then will the immortality of the soul be revealed to you. But if you are attached to the duality, you are not ready for it.” You see, here it is very important to know that people may talk a lot about Realisation, but if they are not realised, what good is that?

 

Krishna says, “Make yourself ready. You have been given a life here to make yourself ready to receive the Grace of God.” Krishna doesn’t only talk about the immortality of the Self: He also talks about attaining the Grace of God. But in this verse, He is not talking about attaining the unlimitedness of God; rather He says, “Make yourself apt for immortality.” However, Arjuna is so focused on the outside reality, that it is difficult for him to think about anything else.

Bhagavad Gita