Bhagavad-gītā 14.2
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
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upāśritya
—
taking shelter of
Upa-ā-śri — not merely understanding, but taking shelter. The verb shares its root with śaraṇa. Knowledge here is a refuge one moves into, not a fact one stores. The whole verse hinges on this verb: the result follows because one took shelter.
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sādharmyam
—
same nature, same quality
Sa-dharma-tā — sharing the Lord's dharma. Not equality of position (the Vaiṣṇava reading guards against that) but qualitative likeness: the soul, like Kṛṣṇa, becomes untouched by creation and dissolution. Gauḍīya commentary reads this as the eternal svarūpa awakening.
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upajāyante
—
are born
Negated in the verse — na upajāyante, are not born. The verb is precise: upa-jan, to be born up. Even at the next sarga, when the cosmic out-breath reissues every conditioned soul, the knower of this knowledge is not reissued. He has slipped the recycling.
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vyathanti
—
are disturbed
Vyath — to tremble, to be agitated. At cosmic dissolution every other being trembles back into avyakta. The verse negates the verb: na vyathanti. The knower is already grounded in a substance pralaya cannot reach to shake.
After acquiring perfect transcendental knowledge, one acquires qualitative equality with the Supreme Personality of Godhead, becoming free from the repetition of birth and death. One does not, however, lose his identity as an individual soul. It is understood from Vedic literature that the liberated souls who have reached the transcendental planets of the spiritual sky always look to the lotus feet of the Supreme Lord, being engaged in His transcendental loving service. So, even after liberation, the devotees do not lose their individual identities. Generally, in the material world, whatever knowledge we get is contaminated by the three modes of material nature. Knowledge which is not contaminated by the three modes of nature is called transcendental knowledge. As soon as one is situated in that transcendental knowledge, he is on the same platform as the Supreme Person. Those who have no knowledge of the spiritual sky hold that after being freed from the material activities of the material form, this spiritual identity becomes formless, without any variegatedness. However, just as there is material variegatedness in this world, in the spiritual world there is also variegatedness. Those in ignorance of this think that spiritual existence is opposed to material variety. But actually, in the spiritual sky, one attains a spiritual form. There are spiritual activities, and the spiritual situation is called devotional life. That atmosphere is said to be uncontaminated, and there one is equal in quality with the Supreme Lord. To obtain such knowledge, one must develop all the spiritual qualities. One who thus develops the spiritual qualities is not affected either by the creation or by the destruction of the material world.
He who has taken shelter of this knowledge and attained liberation in the form of sārūpya, similarity of form with Mine (sādharmyam), does not experience pain at the time of death. The form vyathayanti is used instead of vyathayante (ātmanepada).
Attaining this knowledge which I will describe, through service to guru (upāśrtiya), people have attained eight qualities appearing through practice, which are similar to My eight qualities (sādharmyam). In Me, the Lord of all, these eight qualities are eternally manifest. These persons are not subject to the karma of taking birth or dying (sarge, pralaye). Devoid of birth and death, they are liberated. The Lord states that many have attained this liberation. This is understood from the śrutis which say tad viṣṇoḥ paramaṁ padaṁ sadā paśyanti sūrayaḥ: the devotees always see the supreme form of Viṣṇu. (Ṛg Veda 1.22.20, Gopāla Tāpanī Upaniṣad)
Krsna is going to explain this entanglement, how the soul got encased in this material nature.
[2. Krsna is the father of all living entities, for He impregnates them within the material energy (Brahman, the maha‑tattva, the 24 elements). The living entities then become conditioned by that material energy which consists of the three modes of material nature. (3‑5) ]
Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa states that we attain this knowledge by worshiping the feet of our
spiritual master.
14.2 इदम् this? ज्ञानम् knowledge? उपाश्रित्य having taken refuge in? मम My? साधर्म्यम् unity? आगताः have attained to? सर्गे at the time of creation? अपि also? न not? उपजायन्ते are born? प्रलये at the time of dissolution? न not? व्यथन्ति are (they) disturbed? च and.Commentary Having resorted to this knowledge they (the sages) are assimilated into My own nature. They have attained to My Being. They have become identical with Me. They live in Me with no thought of thou or I. They go beyond birth and death. There is no birth for them when creation begins and there is no death for them at the time of dissolution. Having reached Me they attain eternity? immortality and perfection. Having become identical with Me through the attainment of the knowledge of the Self by practising the necessary means? they are neither born at the time of creation nor are they disited at the time of dissolution. Knowledge of the Self is eulogised by the Lord in this verse.
- BG 14 01-02 - Mukundamala Prabhu - ISKCON Chowpatty 2009-12-10
- BG 14 02 - Jitamrita Prabhu - Hindi
- BG 14 02 - Revati Raman Prabhu - ISKCON Tirupati 2011-08-25
- BG 14 02 - Revati Raman Prabhu - ISKCON Tirupati 2011-08-25 Telugu Translation
- BG 14 02 - Sankarsana Prabhu - London 2012-05-16
- Priya Valabha Mataji BG 14-02 Hindi
- UM Bhakti Shastri Class - Modes of Material Nature-02 - 2010-01-18 ISKCON Mayapur
- Hari Lila Pr BG 14-02 Tamil
- Jitamitra Pr Hindi Comments - BG 14-02 - 2015-07-24 EOK
- Jitamitra Pr Hindi BG 14-02
- Radhe Shyam Pr BG 14-02 - Real Purusha and Imitating Purusha - 2013-09-24
- Rasika Govinda Pr BG 14-02 Tamil - 2018-02-05
- Revati Raman Pr BG 14-02 - 2011-08-25 ISKCON Tirupati
- SDAP BG 14-02 - 2012-05-16 London
- Shubha Krishna Pr BG 14-02 Hindi
- Aim for the knowledge that places you beyond creation/dissolution cycles.
- Trust that real knowledge has cosmic protective effect.
- Don't reduce 'liberation' to inner peace alone.
- What would 'beyond creation/dissolution' actually mean for my present?
- What practice approaches it?
A drop of water flung into a hot pan vanishes; the same drop returned to the ocean keeps its nature and its place. Knowledge that fixes the soul in Kṛṣṇa's own quality is the return to the ocean — creation cannot burn it off, dissolution cannot evaporate it.
Nārada Muni narrates his own story in the Bhāgavatam: in a previous kalpa, he was the son of a maidservant; by hearing from sages and serving them, he attained pure knowledge and devotion.
When that universe was wound up in dissolution, Nārada was not unwound with it. He entered the body of Nārāyaṇa, and at the next creation re-emerged as the same Nārada — same character, same name, same mission. Sādharmya with the Lord meant he was untouched by both pralaya and sarga.
My note
Source: vedabase.io