Chapter 2, Verse 6
na caitad vidmaḥ kataran no garīyo
yadvā jayema yadi vā no jayeyuḥ
yān eva hatvā na jijīviṣāmas
te’vasthitāḥ pramukhe dhārtarāṣṭhrāḥ
Nor do I know which is better for us, that we should conquer them or they
conquer us. Before us stand the sons of Dhritarashtra, who if we slay, we
would lose all desire to live.
Here again Arjuna is showing that he is in a state of confusion, because he is still very attached to the outside. You see, if somebody is not fully dedicated, they always go into a state of confusion. They are not making themselves ready. Arjuna is in this state and says, “I don’t yet know if we will be the winners or they will be the winners. Here are the sons of Dhritarashtra on the battlefield in front of us.” He is still trying to find ways to not fight them. He is indicating that he has the choice: either to fight or not to fight. If he doesn’t fight, it will be a great offence of a Kshatriya, of a fighter, to not fight and to run away from the battlefield. How will he face his family? How will he face his people? If he runs away and doesn’t fight, it will also be a great sin and an evil act. This state of confusion makes him unsure.
In the next part of the verse, Arjuna says, “Before us stand the sons of Dhritarashtra, who if we slay, we would lose all desire to live.” Arjuna knows what to do, but at the same time, he is expressing confusion. In the state of confusion there are always two parts in it. There is a knowing, there is a self-confidence, that, “Yes, I feel what is right to do!” The feeling of the heart is there and you know that it is right. But then the mind starts to reason. There is a fight between what you feel in your heart and what your head is saying to you: this makes the state of confusion. If your feet are more in the outside world, of course, then the mind will win. But if the feeling is stronger, then you will try to take the right decision. The state of confusion is the beginning of one’s path, the beginning of one’s search. In our confusion, we keep asking, “Am I right to be on this path or not? Am I right to do this or not?” Even the word of the Guru, at that moment, won’t mean much to the disciple, because he is still searching. He is still wandering. And the outside samskaras are still very powerful. The attachment to the outside world is still so strong that one can’t really think or see.
Bhagavad Gita
