Chapter 2, Verse 2

Sanskrit

श्रीभगवानुवाच कुतस्त्वा कश्मलमिदं विषमे समुपस्थितम्। अनार्यजुष्टमस्वर्ग्यमकीर्तिकरमर्जुन॥

Transliteration

śrī-bhagavān uvāca kutas tvā kaśmalam idaṃ viṣame samupasthitam anārya-juṣṭam asvargyam akīrti-karam arjuna

Translation (per Swami’s paraphrase)

The Blessed Lord said: Where has this weakness come from, in this moment of peril? It is not fit for a noble person; it does not lead to heaven; it brings ill-repute, O Arjuna.

Concepts discussed

• (None of the named concepts yet — this is pre-Vedanta common sense)

Characters present

• krishna (speaking for the first time), arjuna

Swami’s commentary

Krishna speaks for the first time in the Gita here. His words are deliberately not Vedanta. They are common sense — a rebuke.

Swami’s reading: Krishna is very wise. He knows Arjuna has not yet asked for help, so Krishna does not teach. He says, roughly: what is this? You are in the middle of real danger. This despondency is unworthy of you. It does not lead to heaven (the warrior’s duty, done well, leads there); it leads to ill-repute — your name will be mud for centuries if you do this.

The psychology behind it: Krishna never gives advice unless asked. A teacher who volunteers Vedanta to someone who has not asked for it is not heard. We do this constantly — we hand out advice to people who haven’t asked, and no one listens; we don’t even listen to our own. Krishna does not make that mistake. Before teaching, he lets Arjuna say his piece and come to the point of surrender.

Lecture evidence

• Ep. 1 [52:05]–[54:03]: Krishna’s first words are common-sense rebuke, not Vedanta.
• Ep. 1 [55:35]: Krishna never gives advice unless asked.